Re: Our Real Nemesis

[Rev Simon Rumble <simon -at- RUMBLE -dot- WARATAH -dot- ID -dot- AU>]

On Sun, 17 May 1998, Tim Altom wrote:

> Our problems begin, however, when appearance contradicts function. To be
> honest, our firm isn't into graphic design and doesn't care to be. Our
> emphasis is on functionality; we farm out all our "artistic" things.

I think really that your only hope is to attempt to get the designer
on-side and to understand your viewpoint.  The client will generally be a
dead loss when lobbying your point, so the only way to go is to get to the
designer.

Perhaps showing them excellent functional design that also looks pretty is
a good place to start.  I can recommend The Information Architects as an
excellent book examining this issue.

Functional design doesn't need to be in conflict with good graphic design.
The problem is that designers these days are taught only aesthetics, and
the current trend is to obfuscate meaning with disjointed, blurry type and
other problematic designs.

We technical writers need to win the designers over to the functional
design viewpoint and then work together with the designers.  After all,
designers are employed to make things look good, we are designed to ensure
they work.

Just sent my manuscript off to our outsourced designer whose work I really
don't like.  I though it looked lovely and was going to get it done B&W
with a colour but now Marketing have decided they want full-colour and are
gettting the designer to do the redesign...  Uh-oh, here we go...

PLUR

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 ___           simon -at- rumble -dot- waratah -dot- id -dot- au
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 ___| H E R M    The search for the perfect martini is a fraud.
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