Five Links #68
1. Why I hate the MVP car
My first real issue is that the wheel → chassis → convertible → car is way closer to the way you actually build a car from an industrialized manufacturing perspective. Henry Ford didn’t put skateboards into the factory and poop out cars.
2. Signs of AI writing
Wikipedia’s list of characteristics that might reveal undisclosed AI-generated content.
3. The Good, the Bad, and the Iffy: is there such a thing as an ethical designer?
I think people often twist “no ethical consumption under capitalism” into a free pass for moral relativism; the idea that if the whole system’s broken, then nothing is off-limits. In design, that logic turns into an easy way to dodge hard decisions: every client choice is framed as purely personal, untouchable by outside judgment. The problem is, that framing erases the actual consequences of the work – what it does, who it serves, what it enables – and replaces them with vague appeals to “context”. It flattens every decision into a matter of taste, as if designing for a local bookstore and designing for an oil company were equally compromised just because both exist under capitalism.
4. A “Definition of Done” template
In knowledge work, however, stopping points aren’t always as apparent. Most times, it’s because we have to choose where to stop; otherwise, they could go on indefinitely.
5. Make Wordart
Relieve the highlights of 90s/00s editing with this whimsical Wordart tool.
What am I up to?
- I have space for three design consultations each week – a great way to get design feedback without the commitment of a large project
- Unoffice Hours continue on a fortnightly schedule. The next available slot is 15 October.
- I have limited availability for new projects from December.
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Until next time,
Dave
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