A lo-fi prototype is one that is low fidelity, low tech, and simple. The opposite of this would be a hi-fi prototype. Lo-Fi prototypes can help you succeed during the innovation and design process.

What is the purpose of prototyping?
A prototype is not a proof-of-concept. Prototypes are used during the design and innovation stage to test and refine ideas, while a proof-of-concept is used to sell the idea to investors or key stakeholders.
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Where do you go when you need an idea? I go to my idea box. Whether for business or personal use an idea box is a great tool.

What is so special about an idea box? How many times have you had a great idea and not two minutes later completely forgot the whole thing? An idea box is a way to record and store ideas.
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Well the experience design community and the tech community in general seem to be buzzing around Microsoft’s big new thing Surface. Surface is an interactive table. The user interface is touch – no mouse, no keyboard. The applications for Surface and opportunities for innovation and interaction are very exciting.

Make no mistake Microsoft Surface is nothing new. See TouchTable, Perceptive Pixel, not to mention the common touchscreen display.

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Are you currently working on an innovation? Check your project against these five common assumptions that kill innovation. The key to assumptions is to first identify them and then test them.

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Why do great ideas fail? Why does a seemingly great innovation die in the starting gate? The answer is often assumptions. Assumptions kill innovation.

Don’t get me wrong. You need to make assumptions during the innovation process otherwise everything will take twice as long. However, be careful about hidden assumptions; the ones you make but do not recognize.

A hidden assumption quickly becomes an accepted truth based upon perceived reality. It is then allowed to linger and then just as the innovation is about to become the next big thing, that hidden assumption rears its ugly head and the innovation dies.

Learn more about assumptions and some of the most famous assumptions ever made.

I came across a post that caught my attention on another blog called RIP to traditional brainstorming sessions? This post presented a summary of another blogger’s rant on brainstorming. Here is the link to the original post (I warn you there is some offensive language).

The point of the original post is that brainstorming is not effective for a variety of reasons. This is a common misconception, and it is often true. However, if done properly, barnstorming is one of the greatest tools of innovation. Keep reading for my effective brainstorming tips…

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I wrote in a previous post how you can identify problems through context. Today I am going to touch on 10 keys for moving from a problem to an innovative solution.

Many of these ideas were informed by Anton E. Lawson’s book, The Neurological Basis of Learning, Development and Discovery: Implications for Science and Mathematics Instruction.

Key Number 1: Do the hard work. There are many tools and tricks that will help you at this stage, and I will be posting in the future about those, but the key here is to work hard. The following 9 keys are all linked to this first and most important one.

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