We talk about note-taking as if it were a single activity, but that’s not the case. There are at least three use cases for taking notes. You’ll become a more effective note-taker — and better thinker — if you know the difference between them. The most obvious use case for taking notes is to remember things. The classic example is a shopping list: while you’re in your kitchen, you jot down things you’re missing so you’ll get them at the grocery store. Such notes are an extension of your memory.

One of the ideas that have influenced how I relate to other people is this from David Foster Wallace:

"Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship."

🤯 I've long been what you might describe as "non-religious." But DFW's quote resonated with me. In my life, I've held some ideas sacred — and recited their catechisms — without understanding them as such.

When people think of information architecture, they think of diagrams expressing distinctions and relationships between concepts, such as site maps or concept maps. They understand that IA primarily explores high-level choices. That is, IA is concerned with these distinctions and relationships *in the abstract* — i.e., at the level of the system as a whole instead of at the level of individual screens.

I've previously shared blog posts about books I've read. But now I'm going to try something different: sharing notes, impressions, quotes, etc., on Twitter as I read the book. 📘 Before I start, a caveat: these will be my takes; I may get things wrong. Corrections welcome! (Perhaps you want to read along? Sort of an open book club.) Hopefully, doing this in the open will lead me to read more mindfully.

Conceptual models are one of the great underused design artifacts. Many people — including designers — haven’t even heard of them. And yet, it’s hard to design a complex system without considering how the big pieces fit. Modeling helps. (1/9) Because they’re not as well known as other artifacts, you may face resistance when introducing modeling in the design process. I recently asked about the objections designers encounter when trying to use conceptual models. (2/9)

I’ve received thought-provoking replies to my post about internal design teams, thought leadership, and the pace of innovation in UX. jarango.com/2021/03/31/int… (1/6) A more nuanced take: perhaps what we’re missing is actors in the ecosystem that have advancing the profession as part of their remit. Consider all we lost when their new corporate owners pulled the plug on adaptivepath.com and cooper.com. (2/6)

I posted this almost exactly a year ago, and it seems relevant to re-share it now. Craft and Philosophy: jarango.com/2018/03/27/cra… 1/16 TLDR: Craft = how-to and philosophy = why-to. Healthy professional disciplines evolve both. This calls for ongoing discussions between academics, practitioners, and stakeholders. Hosting these conversations is one of the purposes of professional conferences. 2/16

1/4 Threads (such as this one) have become a popular way of posting ideas on Twitter that need more than 140 characters. 2/4 Creating threads by hand is no fun. It requires judicious editing, counting characters, and carefully choreographing Twitter replies.