Gordon Glegg wrote The Design of Design (long before the Brooks book of that title) — it’s one of those foundational (1969) classics with chapters on: 1. The design of the problem; 2. The design of the designer; 3. The design of design: the inventive; 4. The design of design: the artistic; 5. The design of design: the rational; 6. Safety margins.
(I think it was @glv who introduced it to us on twitter, years ago.)
I transcribed the bit about the floor covering heist and “sense of fitness of things” in Glegg’s lecture, for a section on integrity and cohesion.
Several pages here:
https://mastodon.social/@RuthMalan/112486126305803493
Which lead to: Design Designs. (Yes ontological design, and also Gabriel’s essay engaging with Brooks on conceptual integrity.)
It’s a thought provoking area … at a time when… executive fiat is taking us in ever more destructive directions…
Oh! Haha, I seldom read the acknowledgements, but on a tip from @glv see Brooks crediting Glegg:
“Acknowledgments
I have borrowed my title from a work of a generation ago by Gordon Glegg, an ingenious mechanical designer, a charming person, and a spellbinding Cambridge lecturer. It was my privilege to lunch with him in 1975 and to catch some of his passion for design. His title perfectly captures what I am attempting, so I reuse it with gratitude and respect.”
Ruth — of systems & design