Showing posts with label wayfinding. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wayfinding. Show all posts
10/07/2010
From 'Wayfinding' to 'Thingfinding'
Rez talks about how users are often looking for many things in a location typically over-looked by traditional wayfinding approaches and how to approach that broader goal [via Wayshowing]
3/18/2010
Penn Station - the ultimate wayfinding challenge
It's bad enough that the structure is an architectural mess (no placemaking, psychologically-oppressive, culturally-inapropriate, over-crowded patchwork layout, etc), but given the mediocre coordination between the perpetually-underfunded owners (Amtrak, NJT, LIRR, and NYC subways) it's no surprise that NY Penn Station has painful wayfinding. Honestly though, I'm impressed at how good it is given the conditions - I actually managed to navigate it reasonably-well on my occasional trips between Lehigh and home. (but I do have some advantages... I may or may not have pored over various articles on the design and redesigns of the station in my years of railfanning...)
9/24/2009
8/25/2009
Final Solution to my Map Wayfinding Project
Background & Context
Interim progress parts 1 and part 2
The final product is a double-sided 11x17 map.
Side 1:
Side 2:
Some interesting issues and random observations from this process:
It became clear that a disclaimer was necessary to indicate that this was not to be used in a fire - people will sue over the dumbest stuff so I'd probably do the same.
Most people don't have the slightest idea what 'design' is or why it matters - even after you show them the results of good design they can't seem to make the connection. It's just not something our society consciously values or teaches. Even if people don't consciously understand the value of design, when you show them something much better than what they're used to they jump on it instantly. I lost count of the number of people from different departments who immediately asked when they could get a copy of the map upon seeing draft versions. Everyone in this firm needs better wayfinding tools, but no one else actually went to the effort to solve the problem to date. People from every-imaginable department keep trying to high-jack this map for their own uses and piggyback off of the efforts and budget of the people who hired me (the activities and events coordinators).
What they really need is to hire a professional wayfinding firm - the best I can hope to offer them is student-level work because I simply don't have the experience to do any better yet. Hopefully this first tiny little step won't be the end of this, but I'm not holding my breath - bureaucracies rarely appreciate the value of design and I'm honestly amazed that my simple maps have gotten as much traction as they have.
Getting back to the joke I overheard an employee make about needing a GPS to get around the building: it would actually be quite feasible to give every resident of this facility a personal navigation device - the place is complex enough to warrant it. I'm guessing GPS would be precise enough? They could always add some sort of RFID or Wifi triangulation system to more precisely pinpoint the user, and these devices are certainly affordable for a company of this size. I had to make some very serious compromises to the maps to translate the building into 2D. Left and right aren't even consistent on the cross section map because some of the elevators open on different sides on different floors. (It's all these little flaws with my map that worry me - how well will it hold up in regular use when this building is so poorly designed that no amount of wayfinding will ever be more than a band-aid??)
This building is currently tied with the Morrill science building at UMass and Chandler Ullman building at Lehigh for the most confusing and poorly-designed buildings I have been in. Each of these started off as reasonably-decent buildings that were poorly expanded and became more and more unintelligible over time. I think this points to the importance of designing structures for future expansion and adaptation - a building that is great is one that stands the test of time successfully.
Regardless, I learned a lot and had a fun time - this is by far the most challenging project I have ever worked on! I learned more as an architecture student from this project than in any of my design studios.
Interim progress parts 1 and part 2
The final product is a double-sided 11x17 map.
Side 1:
Side 2:
Some interesting issues and random observations from this process:
It became clear that a disclaimer was necessary to indicate that this was not to be used in a fire - people will sue over the dumbest stuff so I'd probably do the same.
Most people don't have the slightest idea what 'design' is or why it matters - even after you show them the results of good design they can't seem to make the connection. It's just not something our society consciously values or teaches. Even if people don't consciously understand the value of design, when you show them something much better than what they're used to they jump on it instantly. I lost count of the number of people from different departments who immediately asked when they could get a copy of the map upon seeing draft versions. Everyone in this firm needs better wayfinding tools, but no one else actually went to the effort to solve the problem to date. People from every-imaginable department keep trying to high-jack this map for their own uses and piggyback off of the efforts and budget of the people who hired me (the activities and events coordinators).
What they really need is to hire a professional wayfinding firm - the best I can hope to offer them is student-level work because I simply don't have the experience to do any better yet. Hopefully this first tiny little step won't be the end of this, but I'm not holding my breath - bureaucracies rarely appreciate the value of design and I'm honestly amazed that my simple maps have gotten as much traction as they have.
Getting back to the joke I overheard an employee make about needing a GPS to get around the building: it would actually be quite feasible to give every resident of this facility a personal navigation device - the place is complex enough to warrant it. I'm guessing GPS would be precise enough? They could always add some sort of RFID or Wifi triangulation system to more precisely pinpoint the user, and these devices are certainly affordable for a company of this size. I had to make some very serious compromises to the maps to translate the building into 2D. Left and right aren't even consistent on the cross section map because some of the elevators open on different sides on different floors. (It's all these little flaws with my map that worry me - how well will it hold up in regular use when this building is so poorly designed that no amount of wayfinding will ever be more than a band-aid??)
This building is currently tied with the Morrill science building at UMass and Chandler Ullman building at Lehigh for the most confusing and poorly-designed buildings I have been in. Each of these started off as reasonably-decent buildings that were poorly expanded and became more and more unintelligible over time. I think this points to the importance of designing structures for future expansion and adaptation - a building that is great is one that stands the test of time successfully.
Regardless, I learned a lot and had a fun time - this is by far the most challenging project I have ever worked on! I learned more as an architecture student from this project than in any of my design studios.
8/11/2009
Update on my map wayfinding project
Heres a draft of one of the maps without any text labels yet - I drew it by hand and then cleaned it up in photoshop. I was inspired by subway maps. Thoughts?
(earlier comparison)
(earlier comparison)
8/07/2009
A map wayfinding project I'm working on
There's a local assisted living complex that has such a horrendously-designed building that it belongs on UMass's campus. This building rivals Morrill in its ability to confuse it's inhabitants (a UMass Amherst reference - the building was added onto... creatively...). This building was also built up in stages with poor coordination and planning from one to the next - the second floor in one part of the building becomes the third floor in the other end. In my short time there I have heard staff members comment repeatedly about how lost they are - one joked that she needed a GPS to navigate the place. I got lost a couple times while holding the blueprints in my arms!! The Morrison Theater is also the Morrison Meeting Room depending on which door you use. They started having to append 'north' and 'south' to every name because there's no differentiation between the northern and southern dining rooms or libraries or wellness centers, etc. The place is really elder abuse.
Example of the horrendous and confusing interior design - how many wall colors can you count? carpet textures?
What they need is a proper wayfinding overhaul - the signage is horrendous, something only made worse by the garish and cluttered wall decorations. They need to strip off all the gaudy trim and artificial doorways that apparently cause problems for people with certain diseases like Parkinson's. The walls in each wing should be color-coded. The signs should all be redone in Helvetica at a much larger size and higher contrast colors. There should actually be signs indicating that yes, in fact the 3rd floor did just become the 4th floor, you're not suffering from Alzheimer's... There should be maps on all the walls - and well-designed maps made for usability and simplified with all the superficial crap eliminated, not simply copies of the architect's blueprints. And the original architects should be sued into oblivion for epic failure.
But of course that is well beyond the scope of what I'm being allowed to do... I get to design a map for the programming department to use to explain to residents how to get to their events. Yes, the situation is so bad that the programming department had to go out and get someone to make them their very own map! (and of course every other department immediately is interested in the project the minute they hear about it and want a copy for their own use!)
A HIGLY simplified first floor floorplan (all administrative offices, resident's suites & several full wings eliminated!):
Even more simplified floorplan (many rooms moved and reshaped for simplicity - entire right angles eliminated):
And as you can see, still far too complex to easily understand at a glance. Challenges: black and white only (color too expensive, gray tones too hard for elderly to read), not able to add signage at the locations thereby eliminating from the map
Cross-sectional map that she came up with as a starting point:
Early draft of my version of her cross-section - still far too confusing:
A poor sign that has be hastily amended to 'fix' confusion between the northern and southern hobby rooms...
The first floor become both the first and the second floors:
(with very narrow stairs and a poorly-located elevator even...)
whaaa???
Even the elevator controls make no sense!!
This is just plain dangerous - which way should I exit in a fire?!
Example of the horrendous and confusing interior design - how many wall colors can you count? carpet textures?
What they need is a proper wayfinding overhaul - the signage is horrendous, something only made worse by the garish and cluttered wall decorations. They need to strip off all the gaudy trim and artificial doorways that apparently cause problems for people with certain diseases like Parkinson's. The walls in each wing should be color-coded. The signs should all be redone in Helvetica at a much larger size and higher contrast colors. There should actually be signs indicating that yes, in fact the 3rd floor did just become the 4th floor, you're not suffering from Alzheimer's... There should be maps on all the walls - and well-designed maps made for usability and simplified with all the superficial crap eliminated, not simply copies of the architect's blueprints. And the original architects should be sued into oblivion for epic failure.
But of course that is well beyond the scope of what I'm being allowed to do... I get to design a map for the programming department to use to explain to residents how to get to their events. Yes, the situation is so bad that the programming department had to go out and get someone to make them their very own map! (and of course every other department immediately is interested in the project the minute they hear about it and want a copy for their own use!)
A HIGLY simplified first floor floorplan (all administrative offices, resident's suites & several full wings eliminated!):
Even more simplified floorplan (many rooms moved and reshaped for simplicity - entire right angles eliminated):
And as you can see, still far too complex to easily understand at a glance. Challenges: black and white only (color too expensive, gray tones too hard for elderly to read), not able to add signage at the locations thereby eliminating from the map
Cross-sectional map that she came up with as a starting point:
Early draft of my version of her cross-section - still far too confusing:
A poor sign that has be hastily amended to 'fix' confusion between the northern and southern hobby rooms...
The first floor become both the first and the second floors:
(with very narrow stairs and a poorly-located elevator even...)
whaaa???
Even the elevator controls make no sense!!
This is just plain dangerous - which way should I exit in a fire?!
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