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Designers and developers will be falling in love all over again (with the web, that is) at Mix10. The year’s biggest designer/developer love fest is right around the corner—March 15th to 17th in Las Vegas—and the action-packed lineup is one you won’t want to miss.

To put it in their own words, Mix is all about “exploring the art and science of creating great user experiences” while also investigating the interplay between design and technology. Seeing as we at Filter are rather smitten with the convergence of design and technology ourselves, we couldn’t have said it better.

Over 3 days, Mix10 will offer a glimpse into the next generation of ecommerce, technology, mobile, design and more. (Can you feel the butterflies already?!)

Curious about who else will be there? Mix draws a sharp crowd of designers, developers, strategists, information architects, visual designers, UX professionals and digital marketers (plus other web-savvy professionals). Whether you’re a designer, developer or a hybrid devigner, you’ll no doubt feel the love at Mix10.

(Planning to attend? Share your comments, experiences or thoughts about Mix here on our blog!)
  

Sharpen your typography prowess with The Font Game, designed for the iPhone and iPod touch, and see if you really know your sans from sans serifs. The game features 657 font samples, 3 levels of difficulty to suit your mood, and you can post your results directly to Twitter and check the Hall of Fame.

The Font Game (which I found on swiss-miss) is designed by John Boardley, Justin Stahl and Kari Patila. Check it out.

From Swiss railway stations to the Michelin Man, design inspiration is everywhere. Thirty renowned creative professionals, including architects, designers, authors and brand leaders, talk about what inspires them most and what problem design should solve next on the site Thirty Conversations on Design.

In short video clips, these luminaries discuss a range of ideas and issues, challenging other designers to think broadly and design cultures, not just objects.

Thirty Conversations on Design is a great place to turn to stimulate ideas and reignite your enthusiasm for design.

Any advertising aficionados on your holiday shopping list? How about picking up a copy of The Advertising Concept Book by Pete Barry. Subtitled Think Now, Design Later: A complete guide to creative ideas, strategies and campaigns, the book showcases fifty years’ worth of international, award-winning ad campaigns while providing insight into all aspects of advertising.

For the copywriter, designer or creative art director in your life (or just for yourself), this book looks like a sure-bet.

(P.S. If it’s already sitting on your shelf, we’d love to hear your thoughts on it!)

Take a moment to read this thoughtful personal narrative by Jessica Helfand on designobserver.com, All Things Matter. Helfand recollects a defining moment in her design career and reiterates what it means as a designer to look at things anew.

If you ever thought $8,100 was a bit steep for a trash can, think again. That was the winning bid today on eBay  for Michael Aram’s Golden Pear Vipp bin.

Along with an esteemed group of other designers, artists, architects and visual luminaries, Aram’s reincarnated Vipp was created to raise funds for DIFFA (Design Industries Foundation Fighting Aids).

To celebrate their 70th anniversary, Danish design company Vipp hosted “Can It,” a charity auction in conjunction with DWR (Design Within Reach) and DIFFA. Thirty five renowned designers—including Calvin Klein, David Rockwell, David Stark, Oscar de la Renta, Shelly Sabel and Yoko Ono—were enlisted to make the classic Vipp bin their own. The fancied-up receptacles were out for public viewing and bidding at DWR in NYC from October 15th through 28th, and a handful were auctioned off on eBay.

Founded in 1984, DIFFA works with professionals in all fields of design and visual arts to raise funds for the direct care of people living with HIV/AIDS and to support preventative education for those at risk.

All proceeds from Vipp and DWR’s October 28th auction will be donated to DIFFA.  

Image from DWR.

Like social networking for marketers or web 2.0 for interactive gurus, sustainability is the buzzword constantly heard resounding through the halls of design. Though designers seem to overwhelmingly agree on the importance of sustainability (87% according to AIGA), many point out the lack of a framework for integrating sustainability into all the daily aspects of design.

To remedy the need for a collection of theories, actionable steps and cultural links for designers to work with, the AIGA Center for Sustainable Design rolled out The Living Principles for Design at the Make/Think: AIGA Design Conference in Memphis on Friday, October 9th.    

To put it in their own words: “Created by the AIGA Center for Sustainable Design (CFSD), The Living Principles for Design were born out of the design profession's need for an aspirational and actionable framework that provides designers and their clients with a common understanding of the core facets of sustainability and enables them to take action. Its ongoing development is dependent on the contributions of the design community at large.”

Viewing design as a powerful catalyst for change on a local and global scale, The Living Principles for Design recognize the link between environmental protection, social equity, economic health and cultural vitality and provide a foundation to guide (and inspire) intentional, benevolent action through design. 

Learn about The Living Principles, check out the framework and contemplate the interactive genealogy. (And, of course, let us know your thoughts. . . as the creators of the principles state, this is an evolutionary shift that will continue to take shape; we’d love to hear your ideas, reactions, thoughts and even questions. . . ).

How often does empathy factor into your business strategy? How frequently do you withhold any judgment of new ideas? How often do you build prototypes or storyboards to really let a concept speak for itself? How many ideas in your business truly grow from the ground up?

If you’ve adopted design thinking as a paradigm to generate and implement new ideas within your business, you’d be spending a lot of time on all of the above.

In a previous post, Design Thinking and Innovation, I shared the characteristics of design thinking as a way for businesses to cultivate more ideas and become more nimble in the climate of an economic downturn. Some of the main tenets of a design thinking mindset include:

• Redefining the problem or challenge
• Using observation to diagnose problems
• Thinking broadly, not just deeply
• Looking from the point of view of the end-user (empathy)
• Prototyping
• Allowing an incubation period for ideas
• Continually reexamining the problem and the implemented solutions (and modifying those solutions as necessary)

A recent article on BNET highlights more ways “to supercharge your business” by embracing design thinking (whether or not design is your forte, or even your industry).

Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO (the design firm founded by David Kelley, who coined “design thinking” as a term and a methodology), discusses how design thinking emerges from a culture of experimentation, ideation and open-mindedness. And no matter what the product, service or business model, Brown advocates a user-centered approach and an egalitarian exchange of ideas within the workplace.

Check out the interview with Brown, Need to Supercharge Your Business? Think Like a Designer.  

I’ve written a few posts on Hugh MacLeod’s book, Ignore Everybody and 39 Other Keys to Creativity (see part I, II and III), a sort of coming of age guide for the creative spirit.  

Now I don’t want to give away too many of MacLeod’s secrets or cynical insights—I’ll leave you to make what you will of his savvy street wisdom. But I will say that one idea from the last few chapters of the book really stuck with me, and that’s the notion of “creative sovereignty.”

Though he only fleetingly mentions the phrase in chapter 24, the entire book really revolves around the question of how to empower, sustain and nurture your creative drive (without relinquishing your originality or selling your soul).

So how does MacLeod encourage creative individuality? Here are a few of the pieces of advice he offers:

• “Do it for yourself.” Don’t focus on what others think about your work (or what they will think of you once your work hits the big time).
• “Don’t worry about finding inspiration. It comes eventually.”  In other words, live life. Gather experiences. Collect stories. Breathe deeply.
• “The best way to get approval is not to need it.” If you’re intrinsically motivated to create—whether it’s writing, designing, art directing, illustrating or some other creative endeavor—do it because you love it and it reflects who you are, and don’t worry about getting the stamp of approval from others.  

And finally, as MacLeod insists, “None of this is rocket science.”

Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far, a website (and also a book) from Stefan Sagmeister, is a collaborative platform where people can explore their most valuable life lessons in visual form. Inviting introspection and thoughtful design—from digital renderings and motion graphics to photography, illustration and mixed media—the site includes both common maxims and original insights.

In Every Designers Ultimatum, a contributor explores the choices designers (and other artists and creatives) make between projects that are motivated by passion and those that are driven by profit.

One designer considers how nothing worthwhile comes easily in Design is Hard Work, while another offers the advice, Make Mistakes.

A parking sign is morphed into a warning against apathy in yet another design, and a quotation from Stanislaw Lem, “Your dream will always defeat reality if you give it a chance,” is communicated through a simple typographic study.

Compare your life notes by wandering around Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far. Or better yet, submit your own bit of advice and compelling design.