I was thinking today about the designs of tech gadgets from the 2000s-2010s. Industries experimented with form and color, and 90s influences were still very apparent.
Every brand and model line had their own unique aesthetic features. You could immediately recognize which brand a mass-produced computer belonged to.
And each brand's advertising was memorable; Gateway had this whole piebald thing going.
Portable electronics like point-and-shoot cameras and GPS units were distinctive. The colors and shapes of an iRiver and a Sony MP3 player stood out. You could spot a Motorola or a Jabra bluetooth earpiece from afar. They said something about the users. Your electronics could match your clothing style. They were interesting conversational pieces. As features evolved and the designs changed, they brought us along for the journey.
It all ended after June 2007.
Now, it's all slate, minimalist, flat, and plain... It's not necessarily a bad thing that design and function is unified, with one intent to understand it all. But the inspiration, experimentation, and flavor are gone. When everything was an explosion of color, everything seemed like it was worth exploring. Maybe the reason why today's oddities of consumer products really rile up our feelings is because everything else is so bland.
I will be excited if another phase of rapid design and purpose driven products returns.
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I utilized a website tool to generate the logotype. Upon inspection, I see that it is using the figlet software. Thank you for your comment, as I was unaware what this was called besides ascii.
Kind regards,
-Woalis
Feb 6, 2024
Why?
After the last five days, spent brushing up on the basics of web-design and seeking inspiration, I finally have a thought on that.
I think content management systems in the Web 2.0 are fine. They make it quick to publish and convenient to browse. But the speed makes an individual's consumption so effortless that the impact of a media may be tied more to the collective notoriety rather than personal reasons. It is often said that the creator's focus should be on the content. But no one would argue that the design of iconic distributions holds as much value, in both experiences and additions, as the products and concepts they present. Of course there are things to say about the intrinsic potential of social media's accessibility and swift reach. But if we are to focus on the content, and the presentation is central, then isn't the structure of the CMS draining, if not suffocating, for the very mission? Lol. I think I have spent too much time on this idea.
I have no practical experience with HTML and CSS. I'll finally learn a little something about the basics. Let's see how terribly this goes.