Harrell

I enjoyed learning more about semiotics. I have not heard of this field of study before, but it was a great read. The narrative of Brawn and eBay related to UI/UX in a surprisingly pleasant way. There is a saying that a first impression takes less than a second, and I find that this applies to websites as well. Using semiotics and other graphical ideas to make a website the best it can be for the audience is important. I agree with the idea of semiotic domains, and I feel that it ties in heavily with understanding one’s audience. Accessibilty is key when trying to get someone to use your product, and this pointed that out perfectly. Besides this, the small bit about semiotics and their affect on human percpetion and mindspace was interesting because it brings up the fact that there subtle visual cues can influence people. It’s hard to draw the line between what comes first, the art’s influence or society’s influence on art.

Gestalt

Most of laws made good sense to me, and I could think of some examples for each. However, I am a little confused about the Law of Pragnaz. The definition implies that there is a ‘good’ figure and that the ‘good’ changes. I wish they elaborated more on the different forms and what is ‘good’ and ‘bad’, since they decided to use that distinction.