The other weekend was a beautiful Spring day. Sun in the sky, warm and perfect for browsing a local second hand book sale taking place in something that resembled a scene from Miss Marple. Among the jostling grannies were some fantastic finds from George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” to “The Seven dials Mystery” by Agatha Christie and Vigina Woolf’s “The Common Reader.” All original Pelican classics, dusty and yellowing from the hours.

Permanence

In amongst the jumble I discovered an old jewel, a 1945 impression of “A Book of English Poetry - Chaucer to Rossetti” which had secrets hidden between the covers.

A small black and white passport photo was attached with a short inscription on the first page inside the cover. A man in his 30’s or 40’s sat in what I guess is his front room, the edges of the photo faded away over time, give a glimpse into the books history and sets the imagination off into other lives and eras. What was the connection between him and the Jannice to whom he gave this book? How did the book come to be here? Which poems did he read to her?…

^ Inscription found on the inside cover

As a designer I’m well aware of the gradual erosion of the printed medium in communication. This book however reminded me of the wonderful quality of print. The tactility and substance of the object. Something that changes with age as the pages begin to yellow and the smell of life permeating its leaves…we imbue it with character through ownership. The ability to alter it and eventually its fragility.

Digital products with Soul

It makes me wonder what would it mean for digital products to take on some of these characteristics? There is a soul to this book. Meaning conveyed through design, smell and touch but what marks this and some of the other older books out is the aging process itself.

Could time affect and enhance the emotional response of users?.. I think it could as within the fabric of social interaction people embed personality into systems that remember, that connect. It is the ability of a site to reveal, enable and promote this exchange that engenders its digital soul.

Finding the right page

The other delight was the way the book dealt with navigation. At the back of the book are two look up tables; an “Index of authors” and an “Index of first lines.” I love the way the latter is defined. It considers the perspective of the reader and how they may know only a snippet of a famous opening to a poem but not who it is by. In much the same way that I remember a song lyric but not the band who sang it and punch the line into Google, this indexing system addresses the reader’s mental model and provides a way for them to navigate the information.

^ UCD indexing

^ UCD indexing. [+] click image to enlarge