Design

Lately I have been in a lot of conversations on how to simplify websites to make it easier for visitors to get to the information they are looking for. It is an excellent goal to strive for, but just setting “simplicity” as some arbitratly goal is, well, too simple.

Let’s face the facts… groups and committees frequently make terrible choices, especially when they try to micromanage design. Sometimes they get it right, but they rarely make the daring or thrilling decision based on emotion. That is one reason committees exist, to take the emotion out of a decision. They generally either make the “safe choice” or the choice that pleases the most people. There is no better proof of this than the vast array of truly insipid or bewildering flags for cities across the US.

This documentary, done on the typeface Helvetica's 50th birthday, does more than tell about this particular typeface. It also reminds the general viewer that type is a design element that is all around us.

One of my favorite podcasts. It sets a high bar for all others.