The concept of going a day without media, whether it be books, music, tv, movies, or the internet, is unimaginable. Media is a huge part of our lives, and the ways we consume and produce it are changing. “Designing Media” focuses on that changing atmosphere.
The book is comprised of interviews, divided into sections based on what sort of things they do in the media. Every interview is worth a read, and they’re all pretty compelling. I particularly liked the interviews with Chris Anderson, Craig Newmark, Ira Glass, and Jane Friedman. For a book that’s non-fiction and fairly information-dense, it’s remarkably readable.
In the book, the idea of the internet being a popularity contest is mentioned by several people, which I find interesting. It sort of makes me question if I’m looking at things online because they’re popular, or if it’s because a I want to. I think it’s varying combinations of the two, but it’s worth thinking about.
Also, Bill Moggridge designed a website that is incredibly effective, compared to other book websites. Most book websites are “Here’s the cover, here’s the author’s bio, here’s the summary, here’s the Amazon link.” This website says “Here’s the book, and here’s loads of content from the book.” The website is useful in it’s own right, and points users toward purchasing the book.
I’d recommend “Designing Media” to anyone who’s interested in the different and changing ways that media is created and consumed. Bill Moggridge wrote another book, “Designing Interactions” which I think I’m going to read in the future.