Elegance cuts through the noise, captures our attention, and engages us. The point of elegance is to achieve the maximum impact with the minimum input. It’s a thoughtful, artful subtractive process focused on doing more and better with less. That’s especially important during this economic crisis when everyone is trying to move forward while consuming fewer resources.

via OPEN Forum by American Express OPEN | | In Pursuit of Elegance: 12 Indispensable Tips.

Which came via Guy Kawasaki

Also interesting is The Inside Scoop on Design: Ten Questions with Hartmut Esslinger. He notes the following which I think all can agree on.

Question: What are your top ten products of all time?
Answer:
1. Electric Light Bulb
2. Japanese Lunch Box(es)
3. Mercedes 300 SLR “Uhlenhaut”
4. Boeing 707
5. Porsche 911
6. Apple Macintosh (after the Macintosh SE)
7. Arne Jacobsen Chair “3107” by Hansen
8. Sony Walkman 2
9. Gibson Les Paul Custom Guitar
10. Hubble Telescope

Question: What are your ten worst products of all time?
Answer:
1. Gas-guzzling SUVs
2. Neck-pain-causing Notebook computers
3. Typical conference chairs and ambiance in hotels
4. Software UI on mobile phones
5. Most hospital equipment
6. Violent video games
7. Fake “crafts” products (e.g “Hantcraft” dustpan & brushset)
8. Computer accessories requiring 2+ hour installment
9. Restaurant table that “kill” your kneecaps
10. Myriads of power adapters

I just finished listening to the audiobook on Steve Jobs life, called iCon. Interesting.