Books and readings on the blog

Reviews and comments on books on interaction design and user experience.

Viva Las Vegas!

3 Jul, 2011, by Sergio.

“Learning from Las Vegas” (1972) is an essay by Robert Venturi in which the author vindicates the tastes and customs of the common people, and how architects should adapt and be more receptive instead of creating monumental or pretentiously emblematic buildings. Some of the concepts and articles that the author develops are [...]

Roger Caillois and flow experiences

18 Oct, 2010, by Sergio.

Thanks to my latest bedside book, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, I discovered the work of Roger Caillois, the French psychological anthropologist. In his book Man, Play & Games (1958), Caillois classifies games (in the broadest sense, as any pleasurable activity) into four types, according to the experience that they [...]

Defence and attack techniques in design

24 Jan, 2008, by Sergio.

Learning to ‘fall’ gracefully in the face of the unexpected is what makes a competent designer resilient and effective.

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