Why did no one tell me Pinterest was a design haven?

I’m not a homemaker. I don’t do crafts. I have never personally created a meme or quote block. But I’m still a little shocked that someone hasn’t dragged me onto Pinterest. The designer in me is jumping with glee now that I’ve finally signed up for an account. Although I’ve gone to Pinterest for inspiration a number of times, I think part of the joy of actually having an account is the constant flood of colors and quotes and examples from all across the web. Following boards on Pinterest is inadvertent advertising and inadvertent inspiration all wrapped up into one.

If that’s the case, why is Pinning such a guilty pleasure? Only a couple of my close friends have told me that they maintain an account and only a sprinkling of other people from my wider social network have connected their accounts with Facebook. It is different from other social networks – you’re connected to a community of people based on interests rather than familiarity. But that’s also why I think it has the potential to be incredibly beneficial on a professional rather than personal level.

Although I read a lot of articles about Pinterest when it was on the rise in 2011 and a lot of analysis of Pinterest’s users, I still think there’s a lot of potential for profit if they cordoned off a certain section of their site to those more career-minded in the maintenance of their boards. Although people are already creating boards for the top examples of magazine layouts, yearbook pages, and web design, it would be interesting to see some type of visual or social accreditation system that allows people to promote their boards themselves as something that people can learn from rather than all of pages external to Pinterest itself. Food for thought.

There’s half a chance this has all been said before. Pinterest is an Internet establishment at this point. When I was first exploring the site, accountless, I simply scrolled through the home page with its endless list of dresses and recipes; while I enjoyed them for a while, it wasn’t the type of thing that got me hooked, line and sinker. But I think it’s time for me to reconnect with the world’s 3rd largest social network.

Fantasy, Science Fiction, Technology, and Design

Just a quick update on the infographic I stumbled upon. It’s about Science Fiction and fantasy novels. Besides the fact that the infographic is just plain informative, I think you can also look at it to be reminded of the deep connections between sci-fi and current technology.

Last year I lucky enough to hear a lecture by Nathan Shedroff and Chris Noessel about their upcoming book Make It So. The book and the talk revolved around the way that past science fiction is both an inspiration and a template for designs that are happening in current technology. It as a fascinating talk and something that a lot of people don’t think about. It does occur sometimes, but not often enough.

I have a penchant for fantasy books myself, but I think the link between scifi and tech design is an area that should get a little more attention.