Design Computing: An Overview of an Emergent Field

Design Computing will help you understand the rapidly evolving relationship between computing, designers, and the many different environments they create or work in. The book introduces the topic of design computing, and covers the basics of hardware and software, so you don’t need to be an expert. Topics include the fundamentals of digital representation, programming and interfaces for design; the shifting landscape of opportunity and expectation in practice and pedagogy; placing sensors in buildings to measure performance; and the challenge of applying information effectively in design. The book also includes additional reading for those who wish to dig deeper into the subject. Design Computing will provide you with a greater awareness of the issues that permeate the field, opportunities for you to investigate, and perhaps motivation to push the boundaries.

Brian R. Johnson, Associate Professor of Architecture and Director of the Design Machine Group at the University of Washington, is also past president and recipient of two Awards of Excellence from the Association for Computer Aided Design in Architecture (ACADIA). His 35-year teaching career has witnessed the emergence of design computing.