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Adobe Illustrator CS4 Review
At version number fourteen, finding more features to improve the already near-perfect Illustrator app is probably quite the challenge for the developers at Adobe. Yet, they’ve managed to do it again and we’ll go into these features in just a moment. The basics about Illustrator: it’s compatible with both Mac and Windows, has a [...]
Continue reading...Corel Painter 11 Review
19. August 2009
Corel’s Painter software, especially since the release of version X, gained quite a following from serious digital artists. Now, Corel Painter 11, a refined, more customizable version of an already great program, lets you carry an entire artist’s studio on your laptop. Painter is a bit steep – at $429 (box) or $399 [...]
Continue reading...Table to Tableless
27. July 2009
Table to Tableless Migration This tutorial requires intermediate knowledge of HTML/XHTML. It only requires basic knowledge of CSS. All of the properties I am using are being added to an embedded page style sheet, which is between the <head> tags in the document. You must use this to define header CSS: <style type=”text/css”> and </style>. Alternately, [...]
Continue reading...The Universal Principles and the Business of Web Design
8. June 2009
It has been a while since I’ve posted on this subject – I’ve been busy working on upgrading the clarity of my videos. You should see the results of that work soon enough. What are the ‘Universal Principles’ … and how do they apply to the business of web design? These are some of the principles that [...]
Continue reading...How To Properly Use Web 2.0
4. June 2009
Using Web 2.0 for the Right Reasons The term, Web 2.0, has become so common that it’s now almost one of those labels that everyone knows, but nobody knows the definition of. In fact, clients often ask me—with complete seriousness—if I can provide “Web 2.0 ” for their site. My reply is typically along the lines [...]
Continue reading...The Journey of a Thousand Miles
22. May 2009
There’s a pretty tired cliché used all the time that goes something like this: The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. Like all clichés it’s true while at the same time a bit trivial. In the case of building websites, this particular cliché can help teach one of the most important lessons to learn. Let me try to put it in terms of what we do: it’s not how you end a project that gives you success as a web designer/developer; it’s how you begin it.
Continue reading...GIMP 2.6.5 Review
11. April 2009
An acronym for GNU Image Manipulation Program, GIMP is another word for “free, powerful image retouching software”. Emphasis on the word free. You may ask, “how well does a free, volunteer-managed photo editing app stand up to the pricier software options?” Quite well. Unlike most of the other freeware photo-editing applications, GIMP has the more [...]
Continue reading...Don’t Be Afraid of the Third Party Solutions
18. March 2009
“I make everything in-house!” As the owner of a web-design business, hearing this exclamation from competitors puts a smile on my face. As a web design instructor, however, I admonish my students for the same declaration. I don’t know why so many web designers feel the need to try to make everything themselves. Maybe it’s the innate creativity flowing through their veins, or the fact that web design is a very artistic enterprise. Whatever the case, the philosophy that everything on a website should be proprietary costs designers time and money.
Continue reading...Software Review: Adobe Photoshop Elements 7
11. March 2009
Elements is a great choice for those web designers who want great functionality at a fraction of the Photoshop’s price. If you’re looking for a piece of photo editing software that doesn’t sacrifice features for simplicity, look no further than creative software giants Adobe’s Photoshop Elements program.
Continue reading...Web Design in a Recession
10. November 2008
I wrote a quick article today on what to expect in the web design business because of the recession we are now in. I've seen this before (in the last recession) and I also see what's going on now ... so I got some answers! I also give you some clues as to how to position yourself so you can actually profit in this environment.
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5. October 2009
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