Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
albeit in a rich, collaborative relationship with 'everyone' (a term used on the back
cover, which seems preferable) or with 'users' (as in the chapter by Stappers et al.
2011
, which seems to preserve some of the sense of 'us and them'). After the back
cover has asserted that 'We have entered the era of design by everyone', it goes on
to say: 'And the good news is: this is the best thing ever for professional designers'.
This may be the case, but I would say that one of the most interesting dimensions of
open design is the shift from a world where 'design' is something done by profes-
sionals, who are consulted by their clients, to a world where 'design' is the process
where people work together - sharing ideas and inspiration, both online and offl ine -
to create better things, processes, or networks. Indeed you could say that one of the
most signifi cant impacts of the internet on culture and society was this broadening
and opening up of creative practices - not just that creative materials, tools, and
conversations are now more accessible but rather that they become more central to
everyday life, break down old hierarchies, and help to build a world where everyone
is more creatively engaged.
2.3
Conclusion
This chapter began by noting an academic resistance to the view that the internet
may have changed anything for the better and then set out six ways in which the
internet
has
changed things for the better, in the sphere of people making and com-
municating. (Of course, the impact of the internet has actually reached many more
areas than those mentioned here, with substantial shifts in the conduct of politics,
protest, economics, news, entertainment, and war, to name but a few.) When saying
that 'the internet' can have changed something, it is always important to stress that
the internet - a vast bundle of non-sentient cables and processors - couldn't have
done this on its own. We are really talking about how people use technologies, for
particular purposes of their own designs. Transformations take place within, and as
part of, social relationships and everyday life. It can be easy to be negative and take
a cynical stance to changes associated with new technologies and new businesses,
but this is insuffi cient and usually rather self-serving. As I hope the six theses here
have shown, there are clear reasons to be positive about the role that online connec-
tions can make in people's lives - especially when integrated with everyday physi-
cal experience. And small steps can lead into a new world, which is less about
consumption and more about conviviality, conversation, and creativity.
References
Ackermann E, Gauntlett D, Weckstrom C (2009) Defi ning systematic creativity. LEGO Learning
Institute, Billund
Ackermann E, Gauntlett D, Wolbers T, Weckstrom C (2010) Defi ning systematic creativity in the
digital realm. LEGO Learning Institute, Billund
