An interesting fact is that most of the rolling stock in the UK is actually owned by the big banks and leased to the train operating companys…and we all know what has happened to the big banks recently! As a result we will see further cost cutting, profit maximising and under investment in the rail industry for some time to come. Net result being poor service at high cost for the end user.

I worked for a Co supplying seating and interiors for the rail industry that has recently gone bust due to contracts being cancelled left right and center. The rail operators are full of people with the same BR mindset, they are unbelievably wasteful and inefficient. I’d ditch my car if rail could be relied upon, sadly that seems to be a long way off!

Lancashire is quite a big county so where ever you decide you’ll probably have to commute a fair way to work.

I live in the Ribble Valley in a Village called Whalley. Quite a rural area with a fantastic lifestyle. Brilliant biking!

Before I was made redundant I worked in Rochdale which was about 45/50 min drive. Agree that jobs in the small towns are scarce at the moment. I’ve attended interviews in Merseyside and on the Lancashire (Fylde) Coast. Have to accept the commute of about an hour to get a position that is viable for me to sustain the wonderfull lifestyle that I have living where I do!

Its quite an affluent area so houses are not cheap, but the sense of being part of the community (member of very local Gym, good local pubs, find it difficult to walk 50yrds from front door without seeing someone you know) makes it worth it.

On the whole Lancashire is a friendly place with something for everyone (wonder if there are any jobs at the tourist board going) 😆

It’s my belief that history is a wheel. “Inconsistency is my very essence” -says the wheel- “Rise up on my spokes if you like, but don’t complain when you are cast back down into the depths. Good times pass away, but then so do the bad. Mutability is our tragedy, but it is also our hope. The worst of times, like the best, are always passing away”.

A quote from the film 24hr Party People, it always helps me put the bad times into perspective.

In a word…exercise! I know its easier said than done, but it really does make you feel better about yourself.

I was made redundant 3 weeks ago after the administrators were called in. It was a good job that I enjoyed doing and I’m gutted that I’m not doing it anymore. I’ve set up a home office and really thrown myself into job hunting, feel like I keep getting knocked back. But its important to be pragmatic about things and not take things personally.

What has really helped with confidence and how I feel about myself and the world is getting out on my bike and hammering the gym. I’m as fit as I’ve ever been and this gives me the confidence to keep on keeping on!

All the best

I’m not worried about swine flu…. My mighty pork sword will protect me. 😀

How usable we feel a product is does depend on how it looks/sounds/feels to quite a great degree.

You’re right. Just to complicate things, this is covered in the study of ergonomics. How a product is used, its ‘useability’ if you like, often dictates how the product looks.

The Stone Roses. Not only is my username reflective of what I look like after a mud splattered bike ride it is also an homage to the Roses ‘Going Down’… Yeah, she looks like a painting… Jackson Pollocks No5! Excellent back handed compliment!

Met Mani a couple of years back and had a beer with him. Top Bloke

Not to mention the fact that you can find beauty in something that might be viewed as ugly, industrial or ridiculous by other people.

Thats the point, its all subjective. What people perceive to be good design is often what marketing men have ‘sold’ to them and they ‘buy’ into it.

If a product performs consistantly to your requirements then it is well designed. Whether other people like it is another matter. Which raises the question, who do you(plural not directly!) buy a product for? Your own use or others approval?

No design for any item could ever meet all possible criteria so to argue whether one item is a better example of design compared to another would depend on, primarily, whether they were both designed with the same brief in mind.

Agree, just to expand, compare the bic biro to the Parker pen. Both designed to perform the same operation, so it depends on the needs of the end user as to whether it is a Good design or a quality product.

So in answer to the OP…’It depends’! 😀

What about the humble paperclip- fantastically designed. Its form is completely dictated by its function. Its beautiful in its simplicity. Very difficult to improve upon, yet is not often thought of as a ‘Design Classic’ and is used by a vast number of end users.

I’m not an arty farty type by the way, just a newly redundant Quality Manager. Usually having to reconcile what designers have ‘conceptualized’ with what the production engineers say is possible, to meet the expectations and specifications of the customer. Anyone got a job for me!? 😆

It is all subjective. Its a bit like saying “Define Quality”. It depends on what you require from the product, what your specifications are. If a designer meets the brief fully even exceeding it, it could be argued that he has designed a Quality product. Whether it goes on to be a ‘design classic’ depends on its uptake in the market place, which is where the marketing men come in making you think that you want/need the product. The Stark Juicer is classic form over function and thus to me is not a quality product, It does look nice though!

Hi all by the way, I’ve just joined after avidly reading the forums (fora for the pedantic)! for a couple of months. 🙂