7. Software and Systems

IF EVERY TOOL IS A HAMMER, EVERY PROBLEM LOOKS LIKE A NAIL.

—PSYCHOLOGIST ABRAHAM MASLOW

Since designers don’t really make anything from scratch, tools and systems play a critical role in their process. The computer is a powerful design tool and the grid is a powerful design system. We’ll look at some ways to get the most out of both in this chapter. Both computer and grid limit the possibilities of design, and in doing so give the designer the freedom to work creatively within a bounded range of possible solutions instead of having to work “from scratch” with every possible solution in the known universe. Total unbounded “freedom” can actually be crippling and counterproductive to the creative process.

Software and the ...

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