More doodles while designing

So I've been away from the blogosphere for awhile. This is mostly because we've entered crunch mode on the aforementioned Resonance and time spent away from the computer is a rare and precious thing. I have stuff to write about, but in the meantime here are some more doodles from my design notebooks:

Promise to have a "real" blog post soon!

-Dave

Doodles while designing

Over the last couple of days, I've been reading my old design notebooks for inspiration.  Apparently I tend to doodle a lot...

 

Sooo, yeah.  I'll leave the psychoanalysis of my past self up to you guys.

-Dave

Cafe Pick Me Up

Several months ago, someone suggested I do reports of the cafes I go to and rate them based on their "laptop friendliness".  I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I can't think of a better place to start than this place.

As I wrote in my last entry, I tend to wander around more now that I just have to carry my notebook and pen.  And since I wander around quite a bit, I discover lots of new places around my neighborhood.  Usually I walk west towards Greenwich Village, but lately my feet have been pushing me east toward Alphabet City.

Most people are familiar with the number grid system of NYC.  If you hear the phrase "8th street between 5th Avenue and Broadway", something about it sounds very New York.  But there's a section of the city where the Avenues are given letters instead of numbers.  It's a small stretch of city in the far East Village, north of Houston and south of 14th street. It starts at Avenue A and goes to Avenue D.  Hence, Alphabet City.  I love wandering through there, as it's grungy and dirty and still has an old New York vibe despite the gentrification.

Anyway, last week I found myself checking out a cafe in Alphabet City.  It was a little indie place, which is unusual.  It had huge wall-length windows that were wide open, and several ceiling fans, so it was nice and ventilated despite the scorching heat.  I got a coffee and sat down and whipped out my notebook, where I whiled away an hour or two.

Normally I wouldn't mention this place at all, but I decided to go back the next day and I stupidly didn't have any cash on me.  They didn't take credit cards, so I asked where the nearest ATM was.  The woman at the register said "Eh, don't worry about it.  You were here yesterday.  I trust you."

So, yeah.  That's never happened before, and certainly not on my second visit.  Since they gave me a free cup of coffee, the least I can do is give the place a mention on this blog.  I've gone back several times since then and the place is definitely worth visiting.  It's called "Cafe Pick Me Up" and it's on the corner of Avenue A and 9th street.  It's laid-back and unpretentious, the staff is super friendly, and it's got a great view of the street.  As a bonus, the iced coffee is really tasty and comes in an actual glass, plus they've got an Italian menu that's even better (and wicked cheap!).  The gnocci is especially good. 

Anyway, to bring this blog post back on topic, they are very "laptop developer friendly", as they've got plenty of electrical outlets and will happily let you stay there for several hours as long as you order something. Their internet isn't free, but if you're looking to sit and work and not get distracted by web surfing, it's a great place to be.

So... who thinks this cafe review thing is a good idea?

-Dave

Design mobility

So I'm in the midst of what I call the "design phase" of development.  For me, this is the most fun and also the most challenging part of the process.

On the one hand, I've got a lot of creative freedom.  I let my mind go nuts and my pen follows suit.  If what I come up with sucks or doesn't work, I just cross it out and start again.  It's quick, it's dirty, and it's very satisfying.  I think I have about a dozen notebooks of cross-outs and scribbles on my shelf.

On the other hand, I rarely feel like I'm accomplishing anything substantial.  During proper production, you have a list of tasks you need to accomplish and you get the satisfaction of ticking them off one by one.  You have a large goal that is broken up into smaller goals, and it's much easier to digest.

The design (or pre-production) stage isn't like that for me. I can't break up the game into smaller chunks, because I have no idea what the game is going to be.  It's some nebulous, insubstatial, raw thing that's floating out there in the ether.  So there are days where I feel great that I get to be all artsy and creative (this is fun), but there are days when I pound my head in frustration when I see that a whole day has gone by and I've only designed half-a-puzzle that I may or may not keep (this is not fun). Time is money, and all that.

But the biggest perk to the design phase?  I don't need my laptop.  No longer do I have to lug that thing around.  I just grab a working pen (usually two, just in case) and a notebook and off I go.  A laptop gives you great mobility, but a pen and notebook is even more so. 

In the last week, I've done design in the following places:

- on the subway
- Washington Square Park, while a live jazz band played
- on a bench overlooking the east river
- a park overlooking the Hudson river
- the back seat of a taxi
- the bathtub

So yeah, the design phase can get frustrating but it certainly has its moments.

-Dave