Before starting this course and even grad school I was not aware of the benefits of a process book. Working in freelance or as the sole in house designer does not present a lot of opportunity to do so. I have learned that the benefits are very valuable. Looking at the 4 process books presented in Unit 8 I was not only impressed by the issue the projects address, but the amount of background information presented. Each book does a great job provided plenty of information to detail how they came to their final design solution and how the project would be applied to various situations. One particular part I found helpful was how April’s process detailed personal accounts to show her connection to the project, yet she included and implemented comments and feedback from her peers using the discussion board. I think these are 2 aspects I should start to using when documenting my work and process. I think presenting some personal connection using a story or narrative format keeps the audience/other designer more interested and including the ideas and feedback of others keeps the project from be one-sided or too focused on a specific idea in the early stages. As I read through each, I could imaging the project coming together as if I was the person designing it. In the beginning I have an ideas about the issue that will be address – from dog leash laws to how to communicate to teens about design – but I may not know exactly how I will communicate a solution. As I continued reading and looking at the sketches and ideation phase ideas start to form, as I am sure they did for the designers completing these projects. As I got closer to the end of April’s book I saw she including a literal break, including a page dedicated to taking time to get away from the project. This is not only beneficial to her, but it gives me as the reader time to take in all I have read and also shows that a break is a healthy and sometimes necessary part of the design process. There are very few things I would change about their process books, but their are some things I may not include in my own. While I liked the idea of incorporating a personal view of the project, some seemed too provide too much – it started to get a little too emotional. I would provided just enough to paint a picture. Overall they all provided a great account of the process and would be a great tool if the designer could not physically present their project to an audience without details being lost.
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