Comments on: Inspiration from Within School Walls

By: aj

aj — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 10:27:25 +0000

Thanks for the spot Darren!

By: Darren

Darren — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 08:26:40 +0000

Great article. All failed design ideas always come in handy for an extra blog post, who knows you may inspire others.
I too have school and my ideas leek out of my head in unusual situations such as talking with a teacher about something completely unrelated. It helps to change your surroundings.

Theres a mistake in the first paragraph. The final sentence that says “Another school year is upon is.” Shouldn’t it be “Another school year is upon us.”

By: Luke L

Luke L — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 08:11:51 +0000

I’m just about to start my first year of University here in the UK, but I still have tonnes of old workbooks filled to the brim with wireframes, code snippets and other assorted web goodies that I’ve never had the heart to throw out. Good advice.

By: Cory

Cory — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 04:46:11 +0000

I ended up doing this a lot last year. I had a huge notebook full of random notes or full blown sketches. Even if I didnt end up using them, ive found that its a great resource when my mind runs dry. I also keep a huge folder of screenshots of random websites i have visited that I like for inspiration.

By: aj

aj — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 01:59:21 +0000

Nice addition Ronald (Y)

By: Ronald Huereca

Ronald Huereca — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 01:29:04 +0000

I’d like to add: learn from what is changing. There are many from the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” crowd that refuse to budge. As a designer or developer, you must constantly evolve or get left behind.

If your school did something an old way that worked, but a new way makes things initially difficult, observe what is actual making the process difficult. Is it politics, usability, or possibly, resistance to even learn? Document these difficulties and learn from them.

I also agree with not throwing any any failed concepts, especially if one is a writer. You’ll inevitably finding yourself using your old stuff in bits and pieces on future work.