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Title: The Laws of Simplicity (Simplicity: Design, Technology, Business, Life)
ISBN: 0262134721
Author:
John Maeda
Publicate Date: 2006-08-21
Publish: 2006-08-21
List Price: $21.00
Average Customer Rating: 3.5
Format: Hardcover
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $12.49
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $8.39
Amazon Merchant Price: $14.28
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| Customer Review: |
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1: I like it a lot!
I like shopping at amazon because I am always satisfied with the service that I receive. Most of the time I usually get my purchase on the date estimated (sometimes I don't depends if there's a holiday or something) and the books I buy are in really good condition!
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2: Pretty, Light, and Ultimately Unsatisfying
While the book is well crafted, beautifully bound, and looks nice on the shelf I was left feeling somewhat disappointed. To follow Maeda's meme of comparing his ideas with little bits of Japanese culture: the book is a bit like Miso soup -- a tasty prelude to something with real substance.
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3: The Three Laws of Simplicity
Maeda deserves credit for limiting the book to 100 pages. Too few authors understand that we don't buy books by the pound, but by the value of their content. Bravo! Also worthwhile is bringing attention to the need for simplicity in design.
However, only the first 3 Laws are well written and are quite excellent. The rest are rather muddled. So a 30-page book would have been even better.
Despite this, I recommend buying the book, just to read the first 30 pages. As someone else said, just manage your expectations.
PS. Somewhat annoying were the numerous references to MIT. To highlight the letters M, I, T in "simplicity", as if there were some correlation, is just silly, especially considering that the Media Lab has been more hype than real contribution to design and media.
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4: disappointing
The reviews convinced me to buy this one.
After reading it, I think it's highly overrated. It has 10 "rules", each is true and important, but none of them is new. The problem is that the rest of book, explaining each of the rules, contributes very little.
I'm sorry, but I expect a book to be either insightful, or fun (preferably both). This book just didn't deliver.
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5: Less is More
The ten laws are:
1. REDUCE - The simplest way to achieve simplicity is through thoughtful reduction
2. ORGANIZE - Organization makes a system of many appear fewer.
3. TIME - Savings in time feel like simplicity.
4. LEARN - Knowledge makes everything simpler.
5. DIFFERENCES - Simplicity and complexity need each other.
6. CONTEXT - What lies in the periphery of simplicity is definitely not peripheral.
7. EMOTION - More emotions are better than less.
8. TRUST - In Simplicity we trust.
9. FAILURE - Some things can never be made simple.
10. THE ONE - Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious, and adding the meaningful.
There's a profound statement hidden on page 70: "While great art makes you wonder, great design makes things clear." So well put. The author is a graphic designer, but I think this thought applies to product design, and even process design.
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