The “web 2.0″ look has taken over the web and has given it a very clean and polished look. Nothing against this, but I wanted to throw something of the opposite into the mix.
If done right, a nice grungy look can be rather refreshing these days. By creating a rusty street sign, I’ll show you some techniques you can use to make your next design downright nasty.
MoreI’ll make it a point not to write to many reviews but this seemed like a noteworthy film to write one on.
Yes, they made a documentary on a font. Helvetica to be precise. Directed by Gary Hustwit. I noticed this on Netflix and couldn’t resist putting it in my queue. A few days later, I sat down, placed the disc in the player and braced myself for utter boredom.
MoreAll designers and developers are fueled by inspiration. The way we transform that inspiration into our own masterpieces should be treated with care.
There is absolutely no problem with seeking out ideas to help us improve our work. The problem lies in becoming fixated on our inspiration and not being able to translate it into our own. I believe that even the most well-intentioned designer can cross the lines of copying without realizing it.
This is something I have been guilty of and was recently put in a very embarrassing spot when it was brought to my attention. I looked back to see where I went wrong and came up with three rules to go by when seeking inspiration.
MoreIn web design, typography is one aspect that is ignored way to often. It’s really easy to get sidetracked adding ornamental design to a website and forget about the most important element of a website, the content.
Many designers complain about the selection of fonts available and the variances across different browsers. With CSS and a little ingenuity, this is no longer a problem. Take the time to make your typography beautiful and make the web a better place.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you 5 inspiring articles on typography.
MoreA great user interface acts as a teacher. It should bring new users up to an intermediate level of experience quickly. Anyone can appreciate a video game that lets them dive in and play without ever needing to pick up the manual. Many games offer help text that appears at key moments to teach the player how the game works.
The web has a lot to learn from video game interfaces. Adding tooltips is an effective way to quickly bring users up to speed so that they never feel the need to find the help manual.
Here is an example of one.
MoreI was in a store the other day and walked by a sign with a logo that had an amazing shiny/metallic look to it. So, I whipped out my cellphone and took a picture of it. I spent a while trying to recreate the look but came up with something a little different. I applied that look to a WordPress Logo. This is how I did it…
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Designing the Obvious: A Common Sense Approach to Web Application Design
Author: Robert Hoekman Jr.
Helvetica
Director: Gary Hustwit
