It’s been a while since I’ve written anything, and it’s probably going to be a while before I really get back into blogging in any serious way. I’ve taken on several projects for the eLearning Global Giveback Competition from LINGOs, which has recruited instructional designers (and aspiring ones, such as myself) to develop learning solutions for a variety of charitable NGOs pro bono.

Also, I’ve really gotten into reading every single thing that Cory Doctorow has ever written. Eventually, I’m certain to mine some of the wonderfully weird and amazing things that he brings up in his books for this blog.

Getting really annoyed, however, always seems to inspire something for this blog, and it’s no different this Sunday morning. My employer recently distributed some really nice coffeemugs to everyone in the company. Normally, “really nice” is not a word combination I’d use to describe a coffeemug, but this one earns it due to its extra big handle that affords room for 4 of my fingers as I hold it.

The only problem is, I can’t train myself to actually use all 4 fingers. Since 99% of all the coffeemugs I have ever used have been designed for only 3 of my fingers, I instinctively grab this one in the same way. It’s uncomfortable as hell, and I am made aware of this mug’s (supposedly) accomodating design everytime I reach for it.

Even though the designer of this coffeemug has intended a comfortable, (dare I say) luxurious beverage experience for thier end user, it fails miserably because the user has developed an adaptation for living without it that simply cannot be unlearned.

Maybe when human evolution has gifted us a sixth finger, I’ll be okay. For now I’ll just have to use this mug for a pen holder.

Thanks to Chris Coyier’s fantastic tutorial site, CSS Tricks, I’ve managed to take my first foray into Wordpress design. I’m still working through the bugs, so apologies if things are occasionally a little wonky. It’s still based on the blass2 theme that I’ve been using since inception, so there’s probably a little more code cruft than I would like, but it’ll do for now. Eventually I’ll try my hand at building a theme from scratch.

The messy style is a bit of a change of pace for me, but it’s in line with my idea of this blog as a dumping ground for projects and ideas.

I’ve finally gotten around to adding my video project from this summer’s Interactive Media course to YouTube. My professor called it the “best video” he had ever seen in the class, so I guess it must be good right?

We were limited to still photos and audio, so there wasn’t a whole lot I could do with it motion wise. I didn’t base it on any particular source, but rather drew on a lot of my job interview experiences (most of which I’d like to forget).

This was part of a suite of job search instruction materials that can be found here.

Click here to open in a new window. This was the end-result of a group project for the Development of Technology Based Instruction class. The goal was a short module focused on giving entry-level new hires an introduction to the various sales techniques used at Best Buy. It was intended for use in a blended learning situation, so nothing comprehensive here. I think the informal way in which it’s written, and the way it’s presented by “fellow employees” (actually stock photographs of people who have been Photoshopped to look like it) give it a nice touch.