Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good on the other side of the author's idiosyncracies, January 24, 2006
Ah the philosophical musings of Chris Crawford...
If you're looking for a Interaction cookbook- see Alan Cooper's about face 2.0 (isbn 0764526413), because this isn't that. Far from it. This is a book that seeks to stick an idea in your face and then get you to think about it rather than just spoon feeding you, like a good little pleb. Sure there's lashings of righteous indignation and condemnation aplenty (and given the state of some software it's not undeserved!) Again, provocation to think and construct mental arguments (or vocal if you're that way inclined) is not a bad thing. It's a very good thing: active learning is far more rewarding than passive acceptance.
So Chris Crawford relates his thoughts, ideas, feelings, hates and a thousand other things in a rather amorphous form in this book. While it is not tightly structured (very waffling in parts), I don't think that is suffers too much from that- indeed the lack of totally rigid form often enhances rather than debilitates (flexibility!). Though he can struggle to fully chase the tail of an idea: perhaps that is deliberate, leaving it up to us to do that. And sometimes his thoughts seem misguided, incomplete or just plain wrong or couched in language that makes it largely inaccessible to some (odd coming from somebody trying to engage reader that they would choose such a tactic that prevents engagement). And yes, at times, you do get the impression that you are being ranted at or this guy is trying to talk down to you (a thesaurus doesn't make you literate- the ability to 'speak' to your audience and have them understand is far more of a yardstick (oops, I should say 'metric' to be up on the vernacular) in that regard).
Content wise: there is a lot here that is of considerable importance. I particular like the chapter on 'Play', because as an educator (book he cites is Homo ludens: A study of the play element of a culture, Johan Huizinga), I agree whole heartedly with that and see that revealed in the mess some of my colleagues make of educating others by taking all of the fun/play out of it (I teach Mathematics and Physics). I also liked the simplicity yet depth of the 'speak-think-listen' notion. Too much nowadays it's all speak, little thought and no listen. And when that happens, we just MEGO (my eyes glaze over).
At times he struggles to idea of how he tries to pull this unwieldy construct he has built into a cohesive pile (it's a concept like a slippery pig- grab it just so and you're okay, change your hold just a little and it's off...). Some of it is unneccessary: the clock chapter, dedicated devices, history of interactivity, why learn programming. Some of it is belabored: particularly behaviors, linkmeshes, linguistics, erasmus. Yet, ironically enough, they still make the book a richer experience because they provide context. And this is important. So while is writing style may not be perfect, his approach has much merit. And I think the book works. It seeks to not only open your eyes to interactivity, but provide some philosophical underpinnings for adopting a proactive approach when trying to incorporate that into design mindset. In other words, it seeks to put interactivity at the center of the things you do, not as an add on.
And I think Chris Crawford does manage to get that message across (if a little self-importantly and in a stilted manner). I think, while his love of language is fairly obvious, his choices in this regard can be a little poor at times and self-aggrandizing, which can place barriers on your acceptance of his work. Just bear that in mind and factor some of the language and tone out, because if you do, I think you can get a lot from this book.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Gem of a Book, January 22, 2003
Crawford is one of those intellectual gems who is often overlooked by the swirling tumult of art-star-authors and lexicon-twisting new media theorists. His work is outstanding; and this book is no exception. I originally bought this book when it was marketed as "Understanding Interactivity" - the facelift is quite nice, but the invaluable information is still, well, invaluable. This book has the unique capability of crystalizing the key elements of interactivity (from a real-world standpoint) so that first year students are able to understand the overarching concepts (I use the book in my Interactive Multimedia classes). But, like any great book, it accomodates and grows along with the experience and knowledge of the reader. There is much to gain from Crawford's lucid, intriguing and well thought out text - and I recommend it to anyone interested in exploring the creation of artwork that incorporates or addresses interactivity.
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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Gold Mine of Ideas, November 2, 2004
This book is a very diffcult read. Touching on a whole lot of subjects, alternating between abstract, complicated theory and abundant, confusing detail, and displaying Crawford's usual Thesaurus-o-holic writing style, it is sure to leave you scratching your head in bewilderment a couple of times.
Still, I must heartily reccomend it to anyone who is willing to make the effort. This book is very far from an intellectual "do it yourself" kit, though it does have many useful practical suggestions. It also has very little that would satisfy the criteria of academic research. What it does have, however, is an abundance of sheer, brilliant inspiration.
The pages are laden with powerful, abstract concepts that, upon reading and re-reading them, slowly seep into your mind and enrich your thinking on the subject immensely. It is for this important reason, and for this reason alone, that I consider this book priceless. Mental enrichment is a far rarer commodity than either practical know-whats or academic knowledge.
Mr. Crawford is a charming, albeit disorderly, writer (whether he's on topic or not), and this book must be his most amusing and wittiest creation. Readers who are acquinted with Mr. Crawford's other books will notice with approval that this volume contains comparatively little that can be found in his other books or on his website, although, of course, ideas as well as specific paragraphs are qouted from himself due to his iredeemably conversational writing style.
Computerized interactivity is the next great landmark in Western civilization after the invention of the printing press. With its deep understanding of the concepts underlying interactivity, this book is a must not only for those who work in interactivity design, but also for anyone interested in understanding the revolution that the world is going through.
Get this book for an extremely rewarding mental challenge!
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