Design Slam Competition #1 - Question & Answer

forum members and visitors get a heads up. couple days advance notice. the Design Slam forum unlocks on January 1. you can stake your claim then.

if you have questions, post them here.

What is this design slam forum??

it’s a forum for the Work-In-Progress competition entries kicking off Jan 1. when it’s unlocked, people can post a thread for their entry in the competition. and comment on other people’s entries in those entry threads. there’s some guidelines in the brief explaining this. any other threads will be deleted or moved elsewhere.

If we participate, do we have to only post the final presentation of an idea? or can we do it more “gradually”? Like start a thread, show some sketches…show more sketches in a couple of days…and so on.

Sorry if it is already answered in the official rules thread, I didn’t read the whole thing.

the idea is to do project “gradually”. just like you describe. we want people to show work as it progresses. and when other people ask questions and you answer, you help your standing by sharing. this way everyone benefits.

before deadline you still need final presentation of course. but it is only part of the final score. so someone who isnt the best w final presentations can make up by contributing to other WIP threads. by asking questions or giving constructive feedback.

Who is going to enter the competition?? I know I want to, but haven’t had enough time to brainstorm up an idea yet, anyone else in the same stage?? What are you thinking about doing?? I was kind of anticipating looking at other peoples ideas, but I guess we’re all in the same boat. Does anyone else find this competition extremely intriguing, but also extremely difficcult??

I’m sure I’m going to participate! but I’m just like Csmith over there! blank out of ideas.

I just found out about this competition today! So most of you have a good head start all ready!

I think Core77 should also prize the first thread… the way things are going! :smiley:

for ideas maybe visit a flea market. or check out eBay for old products. could also ask your parents or grandparents. they might be helpful for this comp.

I think the best thing to do here is just start. Begin a thread with a topic, something like “Slam #1: Baby Wipes,” and then post some musings, such as:

“I know that I want to work in this area. It drives me crazy that in addition to all the disposable diapers happening everywhere, the baby wipes–which I suspect are similarly made out of some kind of polymer–are clogging up the place. I remember a friend telling me about a secret recipe for making your own…something about cutting a roll of paper towel in two, putting it into a Tupperware containter, then adding a solution of water, babysoap, and baby oil–the secret ingredient. You wait for the roll to soak up the solution, remove the carboard inner-tube, and pull the handmade wipes up from the inside of the roll and tear them off! Presto! Now, I know that I can improve on this even more, and I think I’d like to design the housing in a more deliberate way (not that the Tupperware solution is bad, but I think there’s room here). So that’s the direction I’m going. I’ll post some sketches in a day or two, but does anyone have any reaction, or other elements I need to consider here? Thanks.” I think that kind of initial post would be super AOK. (Thanks to Bill Bensley. for the recipe, btw.)

I think your missing the point here. What you described would still be consumable, you would still end up throughing something away… ok it’s not polymer, but you’re not reusing it.

You could think about using fabric, and a double container for clean and used baby wipes. Then you could wash the wipes at the end of the day…

…oh, I wonder what Marion Donovan would say if she read this…

Just post the idea! or I will! :smiling_imp:

Just kidding :stuck_out_tongue:

too bad this isnt already an entry thread. but i avoid posting in those so how about taking this idea -

"using fabric, and a double container for clean and used baby wipes. Then you could wash the wipes at the end of the day… "

and add one part “Master/Blaster’s underworld”. that baby output might be useable. daycare could double as a power plant!

Hypothetically: are we limited to one slam thread per person? If I start a thread and then decide I don’t like my first idea, or want to work on two at once, what are the rules for that?

dont see any reason you cant enter more than once.

if the first idea isnt what you want to do anymore, then post that in the thread so people dont waste time commenting. i can also lock the thread if you want. just let me know.

in case there’s confusion, doodles/thumbnails/aso are part of a Work-In-Progress. sharing and showing process is big part of the comp. lets see some of those terrible scratches on paper. we all do them.

less than a week to go. where are the sketches? lots of great discussion. hoping we see some visuals to match.

is the deadline 14 Feb, midnight, or is 14 Feb the last full day to post entries?

final deadline. and same thing. once threads locked, entries cant be posted (bc theyre posts too)

the DesignSLAM #1 deadline is almost upon us. be sure to post your entry by midnight tonight (Core time: Eastern Standard). and to help us out if you could post something like “This is my final…”

Thanks and Good luck.

Design SLAM #1 is officially concluded. Thanks to everyone who participated.

just so everyone knows, expect results sometime in first half of March.

and thanks again for participating. had some corporate higher-ups tell me they enjoyed reading the threads. one design manager said was nice seeing design from outside the corporate machine. been awhile for him.