design - axbom.com

High-speed threats in a shared public space

In this illustration, streets in a city scene are replaced by an abyss. There are people on the sidewalk, standing and walking, one holding a small child by the hand. One person is crossing the abyss on a plank, indicating a cross-walk. The illustration was commissioned for a report on

digital ethics

Why I avoid using Zoom for meetings

Zoom is a nine-year old company with growing pains. When I mention that I don’t use Zoom people tend to respond: “well they’ve fixed all their problems now”. Yes, they started fixing some of the problems they had for nine years after the flood of criticism started… not

digital ethics

Video and transcript from my talk at UX Copenhagen

My talk from UX Copenhagen earlier this year – First, design no harm –is now online. It’s an emotional talk that takes its start in a story of abuse and the systems that support that abuse. As designers we have the power to abuse, but how aware are we of

surveillance

Embed YouTube videos without cookies

Many companies, media outlets and bloggers enjoy sharing YouTube videos on their sites. The problem is that YouTube sets a tracking cookie (for marketing purposes) by default. This poses all kinds of problems when it comes to GDPR – because generally people have not consented to this tracker when they visit

digital ethics

Digital Ethics – The Mindmap

This mindmap is a work in progress. It helps me create the syllabus for my course Ethics in Design, as well as outline corporate workshops. It helps to draw from when I’m preparing talks and lectures. It reminds me of the complexity of the system, but also of why

digital ethics

The slavery supported by that device in your pocket

When I look at my phone I think about slavery. I think about modern day slavery, perpetuated by the wealth and power that historic slavery facilitated. I think about how invisible it is despite modern day access to information and education. And despite all the many examples of injustice exposed

digital ethics

First, design no harm – Q&A

Still image from my talk.At UX Copenhagen 2020 [https://uxcopenhagen.com/] I delivered my new talk “First, design no harm”. It’s an emotional talk that starts off with my own experiences at boarding school, understanding the complexity of abusive relationships and going on to explain how learnings from

digital ethics

Managing Consequences of Design

The Ethical Design HandbookI’ve just finished reading The Ethical Design Handbook [https://ethicaldesignhandbook.com/] and am both brimming with new ideas and am more hopeful about the future. The authors bring new tools to the table, and also do a good job of reminding designers how many of our

accessibility

How to help events become more inclusive

Organizers have a lot on their mind, and so do people who struggle to feel welcome and cope with obstacles at events. As attendees and speakers we have the power to support and unburden others.

digital ethics

Digital Compassion: A Human Act

The date was September 26, 1983. I was nine years old. Stanislav Petrov was 44 years old. Around my age today. He was working his second straight shift in the control room of the Soviet nuclear early-warning system Oko. Suddenly came what was the greatest fear of the cold war,

digital ethics

Introducing the Inclusive Panda

As part of my work on practical methods for integrating ethics thinking into your design process I am producing a set of templates and worksheets. My intent is to encourage ethical, sustainable and inclusive design in all organizations by providing clear and simple guidance on how to get started and

design

AMP Letter

The openness of the world wide web has been formative to my career, my ability to express myself and my insights about the world around me. Aware of how seminal the Internet can be in stimulating equality I am committed to combat any threat to this crucial openness. As an

axbom

axbom.com — 20 years old

A short film I made to commemorate the anniversary of my first axbom domain purchase. I had no idea what a fantastic adventure I had embarked on.

dark patterns

What social platforms could do to fight online harassment

When I claim that online harassment happens by design I am often met with raised eyebrows. I am not saying that it’s the intent of designers to encourage harassment, but I am saying that it’s what the resulting design is doing. It certainly is doing little to prevent

design

The Hidden Persuaders of the Digital Age

Thank you to everyone who attended my talk on the topic of ethics in design at EuroIA. I am hugely thankful for the opportunity. I am seeing more and more digital solutions that contribute to negative impact, putting people and planet in harm’s way, without any clear sense of

design

Is GPS data in your photo good or bad?

I love data and I love the Internet. Because I love people. So much good stuff happens as we have access to more knowledge and more people to interact with around the globe. When we use data to enhance our artefacts we also make them easier to find, easier to

Female superhero with cape flying towards a burning building while being filmed.

design

The Crazy World of Superhero Film Rights

As I was telling someone how Hugh Jackman would have loved to do another movie as Wolverine teaming up with the Avengers they exclaimed: “But Wolverine isn’t Marvel!” This set me off drawing up a map of the different film property rights when it comes to Marvel. » Jump straight

design

The happy fisher and the frustrated advisor

A fisher had finished work early and was sitting next to her boat on the dock. A wealthy business consultant walked by, clearly upset by seeing the woman displaying such laziness. “Why aren’t you out fishing?”, he inquired forcefully. The fisher responded: “Because I have caught enough fish for

design

Ruckusmaker Day

In honor of Steve Jobs. As initiated by Seth Godin, on February 24 each year we celebrate annual Ruckusmaker Day. The first Ruckusmaker Day was celebrated on what would have been Steve Jobs’ 60th birthday. Your opinion matters Ruckus noun. The act of making a noisy disturbance – The act of

design

Ling Valentine answers my questions about LingsCars

So I did an e-mail interview with Ling Valentine back in 2013 but I only published it on my Swedish blog. By popular demand, here is my post with Ling’s answers in English (which they of course originally were written in!). In talks and posts I sometimes reference Ling

design

Trust. Can you build it?

All the signs say 2017 is bringing us into an era where UI:s no longer will be UI:s in the traditional sense. As the explosion of mobile devices and content chunking has rendered it nigh impossible to anticipate how a person will digest your message, content has — once

definition

What is UX?

UX is naturally an abbreviation of user experience – but has over the years come to encompass so much more. You may even say that user experience is the passive way of explaining what UX entails. In fact, the overwhelming growth and popularity of the term UX means it has come

Per Axbom pointing to slide from his presentation The Invisible Problem with Fairy Tale Experiences

design

When friction is a good thing

Last week I gave a talk at UX Lisbon entitled The Invisible Problem With Fairy Tale Experiences. It is a talk that challenges conventional wisdom within UX, specifically the claim that the role of user experience is to remove obstacles and friction. I received lots of appreciation for the talk

design

Why we love to hate "user testing"

It’s become popular amongst usability professionals to exclaim “We don’t call it user testing, we’re not testing users” Although (of course!) I understand the sentiment it is often proclaimed in a fashion implying this is a truth a majority of people are not aware of. I have

design

Explaining UX with a glass of lemonade

This is Amy and her brother Max. They are 8 and 12 years old. Max is a great snowboarder. And Amy, she wants to be just like him. But their parents say Amy can not get a snowboard until she is 10 years old. Amy loves making lemonade, and she