I’ve become rather engrossed with Photoshop in my own work. My first reaction is the same as yours: “My god - with these tools, the whole look of design should have changed. Why hasn’t it?” The answer is generally that, as with all computer-based things, the technology filters out most of the interesting people, and forces them to wait. It takes immense amounts of time to trawl through the dreadful manuals and engage in conversations with the addled numbskulls who get enthusiastic about this crap. Only nitwits make it through (with enormous exceptions, of course), since only they have that kind of time to spare.

I absolutely agree. I think that prediction’s right on. And I’ll make another one as well: More Court TV! Court TV gets dismissed as mere voyeurism, but voyeurism is never mere: you’re only voyeuristic about things that you are very interested in. You’re not voyeuristic about things that bore you. I think what Court TV indicates is that people are fascinated by these new moral problems that are coming up.

Each one of those big trials - William Kennedy Smith, the Menendez brothers, Lorena Bobbitt, and now O.J. Simpson - represents critical moral issues. What are the relationships between people at the moment? Are moral relationships the same as legal ones? Or do they overlap? Or are they different? I think people are fascinated by these problems, and I’m glad they are. That’s another big future as well.

Today, gossip is philosophy.

In a blinding flash of inspiration, the other day I realized that “interactive” anything is the wrong word. Interactive makes you imagine people sitting with their hands on controls, some kind of gamelike thing. The right word is “unfinished.” Think of cultural products, or art works, or the people who use them even, as being unfinished. Permanently unfinished.

If you want to make computers that really work, create a design team composed only of healthy, active women with lots else to do in their lives and give them carte blanche. Do not under any circumstances consult anyone who (a) is fascinated by computer games (b) tends to describe silly things as “totally cool” (c) has nothing better to do except fiddle with these damn things night after night.

In preparing for battle, I have always found that plans are useless but planning is indispensable.

Planning is valuable, tho the plan is usually useless