“Is a brick a prototype? The answer depends on how it is used. If it is used to represent the weight and scale of some future artifact, then it certainly is: it prototypes the weight and scale of the artifact. This example shows that prototypes are not necessarily self-explanatory. What is significant is not what media or tools were are used to create them, but how they are used by a designer to explore or demonstrate some aspect of the future artifact.”
I loved this quote because it demonstrates that prototyping can be as straightforward as just introducing a brick to give an idea on the size and weight of the anticipated product. As a designer, this quote encourages me to think of more creative solutions when prototyping, without feeling the need to present a refined product. Before reading this article, I narrowly believed prototypes consisted of either a paper or digital interface to interact with. Bricks, storyboards, foam models, etc. are all considered prototypes because they examine problems and help designers come up with better solutions. Something else that I learned within the reading is that prototypes should be designed with an audience in mind; for example, some audiences such as fellow designers may only need a rough sketch or visual of the prototype, while other audiences may need a more refined version of the prototype. It is the designer's responsibility to know what type of prototype is beneficial to what audience.
“If the artifact is to provide new functionality for users—and thus play a new role in their lives—the most important questions may concern exactly what that role should be and what features are needed to support it. If the role is well understood, but the goal of the artifact is to present its functionality in a novel way, then prototyping must focus on how the artifact will look and feel. If the artifact’s functionality is to be based on a new technique, questions of how to implement the design may be the focus of prototyping efforts.”
This article helped me understand the three functions of prototypes and what areas they can help provide design solutions. If the goal of the prototype is to better understand the role of the artifact, then the prototype would focus mostly on how the user interacts with the prototype and how the prototype functions in the user's life. Focusing on the role of the prototype is a great way to better understand the user as well. If a prototype is focusing in the look and feel, then the designers would be more concerned with anything sensory about the design along with elements such as layout, buttons, and touch. Additionally, a prototype can be created to focus primarily on the implementation aspect of the design. When referring to implementation, the quote is talking about the techniques and components through which an artifact performs its functions. Lastly, the reading can help me identify problems and solutions related to these three areas within the prototyping process.
“One might assume that the role prototype (Example1) was developed first, then the look and feel prototype (Example 2), and finally the implementation prototype (Example 3): that is, in order of increasing detail and production difficulty. In fact, these three prototypes were developed almost in parallel...Making separate prototypes enabled specific design questions to be addressed with as much clarity as possible."
Within the reading, there were three examples for a 3D space-planning application. Example one was focused on the role of the prototype. Example two was focused on the look and feel of the prototype. Example three was focused on the implementation of the prototype. Each prototype was presented after one another. Initially I assumed that the designers first focused on role, then on look and feel, and then on implementation. However, it makes more sense that there were different designers that worked on all three versions of the prototype at different times. The design process is very messy and there are a lot of pivots and hurdles. It makes sense to divide and conquer by having one group of designers focus on one area of prototyping while other designers tackle the other two. This is a great strategy to illustrate the prototypes necessary functions and behaviors.
