Visual Communication and Design, Now with Audio!

Podcast: Deconstructing a new video series – what works and what doesn’t?

2009-10-14T20:06:00Z

This episode captures a meeting where two writers and their manager deconstruct their new video series called Top Templates (edited for time – who wants to sit through a whole meeting?). Take a few minutes and watch some episodes of the show so you know what they’re referring to; they’re shorter than two minutes each and they’re even entertaining: Gift Certificates episode Ocean Letterhead episode The discussion touches on how the information is organized and delivered, and how effective the interactions...(read more)

Podcast: Office Offline and comics in communication

2009-09-29T21:26:00Z

David Salaguinto joins us to talk about his comic Office Offline. David creates Office Offline to get people thinking, talking, and sharing in a way they never would with short text blog entries about the same subjects. He gives us some insight into his goals and inspiration with the comic format. Listen to the episode Duration: 16:24 Size: 11.2 MB Some resources we used in this episode: Office Offline comic at http://blogs.msdn.com/officeoffline David Salaguinto’s twitter feed at http://twitter.com/Salaguinto...(read more)

Podcast: Is familiarity or novelty a better strategy in visual design?

2009-08-28T17:21:00Z

People get bored of seeing the same old things all the time. But they also don’t like things that are different. So what do you do when you’re planning how to back up your communication with effective visuals – go for novelty or familiarity? Listen to the episode Duration: 16:07 Size: 11.08 MB Some resources we used in this episode: Familiarity and learnability from 8164.org Familiarity and Innovation in User Interface Design from Web Standards Group For articles about using visuals effectively and...(read more)

TC4D: Make Better Videos with Less Rework by Using Storyboards

2009-08-26T20:54:00Z

Storyboards help you plan your video shot by shot. That way, you can make sure your video is at least as interesting as the audio, and you have a list of all the most important shots. If you just make a text-only script, it can be easy to overlook sections where visuals would be a big help, but they weren’t obvious on the day of the shoot. I use Visio for storyboarding my videos. I made a template with panels for the pictures, and text boxes beneath each panel for the dialog or voice over. To draw...(read more)

Podcast: Should I think about design or is clear communication enough?

2009-08-07T20:29:00Z

When you create a document or a presentation, is the information all that’s important? Is it worth spending time to make it look nicer, when there’s already barely enough time to finish? The answer may surprise you! Although probably not. And there isn’t really an answer that covers every situation. But still, it’s something you should think about and it makes an interesting discussion. Listen to the episode Duration: 21:26 Size: 14.7 MB Some resources we used in this episode: Before and After Graphics...(read more)

Podcast: Video in Social Media

2009-07-24T20:42:00Z

Video has become an integral part of social media. Especially for younger people who are growing up with it, in some cases it’s easier to talk into the camera on the computer and upload it to Facebook, where all their friends will see it, than to write something out. What effect does this have on peoples’ expectations of your communication with them? Listen to the episode Duration: 16:25 Size: 11.5 MB During the conversation Doug talks about this video clip. It’s almost an hour long, but it’s worth...(read more)

Podcast: Using Visual Space Dynamically

2009-07-10T22:13:00Z

Visuals are usually created with the display space in mind. If the display area is a certain size, you make your visuals fit in that space by shrinking things, rearranging them, leaving things out, or breaking them up into related spaces. But in the digital domain, only the window is generally fixed – the visuals can extend indefinitely, like the outdoors or outer space. You just need a way to show people what you want them to see, or give them a way to navigate where they want to go. Listen to the...(read more)

Podcast: Office Casual and the success of directness

2009-07-01T02:28:00Z

Office Casual is one of the most successful video series created by Microsoft content producers. Doug Thomas, the person behind it, talks about how it got its direct, no-frills look (and why the show keeps that look). Listen to the episode Duration: 15:59 Size: 10.9 MB Watch episodes of Office Casual at the Inside Office Online blog . For articles about increasing your Office skills, free downloads, and more information, visit Office Online at http://office.microsoft.com/ ....(read more)

TC4D: Guiding viewers through complex information

2009-06-23T01:16:00Z

Complex information is usually easier to understand when it’s presented in a graphic format, such as a process flowchart or workflow diagram. But even those can be confusing at first glance, and look more complicated than they actually are. Well, here’s a way to make it easier for your audience to digest that kind of complexity – lead them through it with some animation eye-candy! Eric Schmidt, a writer for PowerPoint, shows how he takes Visio diagrams and animates the path through them in PowerPoint,...(read more)

Podcast: Eye candy and aesthetics make things work better

2009-06-17T01:42:00Z

Research has indicated that attractive things are easier to use and work better than purely functional equivalents. Listen to the episode Duration: 14:48 Size: 10.4 MB We know it’s more fun to use tools and software and kitchen appliances that are not only well designed for use, but that are pretty too. In this episode, we discuss an article by Stephen P. Anderson, “In Defense of Eye Candy,” about how aesthetics affects usability, success, and basic enjoyment while doing tasks. “In Defense of Eye...(read more)

TC4D: Preparing for a media-centered future

2009-06-16T00:09:00Z

Well, the title of the presentation I saw was "Preparing for a Media-Centered Future", but the interesting content was mostly about preparing your media (video in particular) for effective distribution. I talked with one of the presenters, Travis Petershagen, about how he does this as part of Microsoft Studios. Right-click and save to Download in Zune format Download in iPod format (also enclosed in the RSS feed)...(read more)

TC4D: Technical Communication in the 4th Dimension

2009-06-08T07:09:00Z

TC4D is my video blog about technical communication in the fourth dimension. In episode 1, I talk about the fourth dimension and ways to use it. Right-click and save to Download in Zune format Download in iPod format (also enclosed in the RSS feed)...(read more)

Podcast: Leading visual content teams

2009-06-03T03:48:00Z

Where does Jonathan want to take content for the visual tools PowerPoint, Office Graphics, and Visio in the future? Listen to the episode Duration: 14:23 Size: 9.88 MB Harry and Jonathan talk about trends in Web video, what Office is doing, and why it's important to teach soft skills and not just features. For more articles, free downloads, and more information, visit Office Online at http://office.microsoft.com/ ....(read more)

Visio: Drawing on Experience with Scott Helmers

2009-05-27T00:17:00Z

Learn more about using Visio to create diagrams and illustrations from people who use it every day. Scott Helmers interview Scott Helmers went from doing primarily consulting work to creating software that extends Visio in specific directions. He talks about how visual "maps" of processes can make it easier and faster to understand what's happening in the process. For information about Visio, visit the Visio home page on Office Online . Download the video in portable device and WMV formats - click...(read more)

Visio: Drawing on Experience with Chris Roth

2009-05-20T19:21:00Z

Learn more about using Visio to create diagrams and illustrations from people who use it every day. Chris Roth interview Chris Roth, also known as Visio Guy, gives some insight into the types of solutions he creates using Visio. Sometimes these solutions bring in data and generate a diagram, sometimes they start with a diagram and generate a report, and sometimes the diagram is the solution. For information about Visio, visit the Visio home page on Office Online . Download the video in portable device...(read more)