John Deschner, an account director at AKQA, attributes his success in the Web industry, in part, to having a pulse.

07.18.07

Comics (And A Blog And A Forum) for Gamers

What site do you look at every day? Penny Arcade.
 
What's the subject/topic of it? It's an online comic strip and covers video game industry news.

What's so great about it? Aside from having done a great comic strip for awhile, they're covering news in the video game world in a stylish and compelling way. They also host the Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) which I'm excited about attending this summer.
 
What makes it technically compelling? Absolutely nothing. It's all about the content.
 
How would you improve it? Or would you? I'd make the search function a bit easier to find (it's under Archives right now) and make an empty search result include some messaging. Other than that, it's good to go.
 
What's your job? I'm an account director.

Where do you work? AKQA.

If you have a degree in what field is it? I have a BA in political science and Russian.

How did you get involved in this industry? When I graduated from college in 1997, the Web industry was hiring anyone with a pulse. As luck would have it, I fulfilled that requirement. I also knew PageMaker.

What's your biggest Web (design) turn-off? Forms that are sloppily constructed, unclearly labeled or have poor error handling. An alarming percentage of the airline, hotel, bank and online store forms I use are completely jacked-up and make me fill them out a few times before completing a transaction. It's not a hard thing to get right and it's foolish to think that people won't bail out on their transaction and go someplace else.
 
Who, in this industry (or not), has been your biggest inspiration? I work with an extraordinary team at AKQA and they push me every day to make our projects more innovative, relevant and engaging. Beyond that, I like a lot of Psyop's work.
 
What's the weirdest thing you've bought online? In the last couple of months, I've shopped for mouse skulls, prosthetic fingers and gourmet cupcakes. I also got a great Sailor Jerry dress for my wife.

What do you do in your spare time? Mostly I hang out with my wife and 2-year-old son. Last weekend was all about introducing the young man to Jackson Pollock at the National Gallery. Other than that, I read a lot of books and play an unhealthy amount of video games.

What music are you listening to right now? Avail, Tim Armstrong's new album, These Arms Are Snakes, Mouth of the Architect, The Streets. Lots of screaming and a little bit of bass for balance.

What product/gadget can you not live without? DC Shoes and Dogfish Head beer. Both tops in their respective fields.
 
What's your dream computer set-up? I'd love the 15-inch MacBook Pro with all the fixings and a big Cinema Display for when I'm at a desk.