Hello World: Adventures in Programming at IxD

In Part One of my series exploring the more technical courses at IxD, I shared my experience in Physical Computing.

Now it’s time to explore the Hello World. In this course, students learn about logical thinking and algorithms, focusing on the programming languages Python, Java, and C.

In Week 4 of this course, our assignment was to create artworks using Python.

In the classes leading up to this assignment, we learned how to control input in Python as well as simple loop functions, such as ‘while’ and ‘for.’

Ziai created patterns using the ‘line’ libraries in p5js, a JavaScript library.

Yujeong’s artwork below also makes use of loop functions. You can see multiple colors and shapes. I really appreciate the use of colors in this artwork; it demonstrates a strong sense of artistry along with the technical elements.

One of the best parts of this class, in my opinion, is the opportunity to review code together. This allows our classmates to become familiar with various coding styles and approaches, and learn to collaborative effectively.

Suvina’s artwork takes inspiration from the New York City skyline, portraying skyscrapers in various colors, shapes, and sizes.

I was impressed by Jisang, who chose to submit two iterations of her project, each with different patterns. I find that I always have a lot to learn from the other students in my cohort.

Het, another one of my classmates, created a heat map that resembles the temperature of a human heart.

He represented courage as having a red color, and friendship is represented by shades of purple. This project utilizes a loop library in a way that is different from the others shown above. Isn’t it beautiful? I think that this was my favorite project.

These days, job markets are becoming fiercely competitive. There is a proliferation of UX designers and researchers. Some people underestimate the importance of programming in design. However, I believe that understanding programming languages also helps to create new products and communicate effectively with other departments within an organization.

SVA offers two programming-related classes in the first semester, which are beneficial for becoming a strong UX designer.

I hope that this series will give prospective students, as well as anyone interested in interaction design, a more comprehensive understanding of the courses offered at IxD.