We’re all pretty excited about Interaction Design around here. Although the official launch of CCA's newest program is fall 2011, Interaction Design chair Kristian Simsarian taught “Introduction to Interaction Design” in the spring, treating us to a glimpse of what’s to come.

For the course’s final project, teams of student designers redesigned outdated airline user experiences; the resulting concepts were smart, diverse, and entertaining.

After the concept presentations, we caught up with Bo Bockman, a member of the winning team and – drum roll here – CCA’s first-ever declared Interaction Design major. Here are Bo's tips for those of you considering the world of Interaction.

Think broadly. “This is a lot of thought work. We need to think about how things fit together, why you’re making something and how it’s going to happen. Ask yourself questions about your context and what you’re trying to get across.”
But be realistic. “You have to be well-grounded in the fact that you’re working with real things here. This has to actually work. You want to define the specific group you’re going to serve and accommodate that very well.”
Take notes. “You need a journal. Keep track of the interesting things you see.”
Know your tech. “Contemplate what people will want to add to their phones in the future. And graphic design skills are vital. Get to know the Adobe [Creative] Suite.”
Most importantly, learn to work with others. “Teamwork was crucial to the success of our team. You need to look at a problem from as many angles as possible. This is what interaction’s all about.”

Watch the winning $1Dollair video and read the article on the final projects from "Introduction to Interaction Design."