Because it is laid out in columns, this site doesn't display properly on a phone held vertically.
Please turn it sideways.
Because it is laid out in columns, this site doesn't display properly on a phone held vertically.
Please turn it sideways.
If you want to know what contribution any design element is making, just remove it or change it and see the effect
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If you want to know what contribution any design element is making, just remove it or change it and see the effect
In semiotics, the nature of meaning can be explored by transforming one aspect of a message and seeing the effect. Known as a commutation test, the transformation might be a re-ordering, an addition, an omission or a substitution. It is a good way to distinguish between essential and inessential features of a design.
The page above includes a blue rule along the top, and an information panel with a blue border.
In the page below I’ve removed the blue lines to see the effect.
We can see that removing the top blue rule has no effect on meaning, so it is ornament. Of course, it’s possible that it’s part of a colour coding system to help navigate the document.
On the other hand, removing the blue border makes the panel look as if it is part of the main text. So the commutation test tells us that the blue box is essential.
Chandler, D. (2022) Semiotics: The Basics (4th ed.) London: Routledge.