[Sigia-l] Google introduces animated icons on homepage

[Are Gulbrandsen]

On 27. jul. Eric Reiss wrote:
> I'm speaking of the design aesthetics espoused by the likes of Arne
> Jakobsen, Alvar Aalto, and Bruno Mathsson. Online. Offline. I'm not
> making a distinction here.
>
> See:
> http://www.norway.org.uk/culture/design/design/designdag.htm
>
> for a more typical example of "clean" design.

Well, yes, I know what you are talking about.

I especially love Aalto's work, and have even been around his  
hometown in Jyväskylä in Finland to look at his buildings, and  
visited the Alvar Aalto museum there.

> Honestly, Are, compare this to the examples you provided. Which site
> make you more proud of your national heritage? Which one best
> represents "Norwegian design"?

This is clearly a rhetorical question I don't need to answer.  :)
The question is not my preferences, the question is about popularity,  
- commercial appeal.

Discussing what is generally accepted as good design among designers  
in Norway or Scandinavia is something different.

I have not claimed that http://www.startsiden.no is an example of  
good design, but it's clear that it is among the most popular  
websites in Norway.

We're clearly getting into the old discussion about popularity vs art  
(as in 'popular music' vs 'good music'). If we ever meet I would love  
to buy you a beer/wine/malt and continue the discussion.  :)

> I rest my generalization.

The thread started with a discussion of Google's change of their  
famously clean homepage
design.

Then we entered a discussion about peoples preferences in east Asian  
countries vs Europe and the US. About web page design in "High  
Context" (HC) cultures vs "Low Context" (LC) cultures.

Even though I find the theory interesting, I can't help thinking that  
the list of most popular websites in Norway indicates something  
different.

Are Gulbrandsen wrote:
> I can't really se a big difference between the east asian examples
> and the norwegian examples. - At least not enough of a difference to
> support a theory of scandinavian clean design or correlation between
> interpersonal bubbles and web design.  :)

I must admit that I find it difficult to understand why anyone with a  
free will would choose www.startsiden.no as their browser homepage  
(startpage), but a lot of people do. (Including my mother, who will  
probably have to give me some answers this weekend.)  :)


Best Regards,
Are D. Gulbrandsen
The XML-group,
Center for Information Technology Services
University of Oslo