Quick Update

I know I’ve missed the last two Wizards of the Web, gentle seven readers (and Mom), but I assure you they’re coming this evening. I’ll also be posting about the awesome time that is An Event Apart. Stay tuned!

Wizards of the Web: May 1, 2009

jQuery is just one of many Javascript libraries that allow maximum results with minimal coding. The experts have done most of the work for you. While I would never recommend substituting libraries from actually learning Javascript, I will recommend the following links (some recent, some not) that I found most interesting/helpful when using the jQuery library.

1) jQuery, of course. The main site for the library holds an abundance of information. From tutorials to concise documentation and development help, this is the first place any new jQuery user should investigate (as well as the place to download the latest version of the library.).

2) The next step after memorizing the jQuery site would be to head over to LearningjQuery, a great tutorial blog with posts from the beginner to advanced levels. In fact, if you really find yourself wanting the latest and greatest techniques with this library, subscribe to their feed and jump on all the latest knowledge.

3) Here’s a nice collections of links to get you started when you’re ready to create your own jQuery plugin. Once you’ve mastered jQuery’s built in features, you’re naturally going to want to spread your wings and fiddle on your own. LearningjQuery is featured in this list, as well as the always helpful Nettuts. So grab your imagination and start building.

4) ThickBox is a nice plug-in for jQuery and I love how it’s used to “evolve past the tag cloud” in this post. Tags are so successful of methods to pare down posts into manageable bites, but I’ve always found the cloud (especially the default cloud in WordPress) so “2004″. So looking back through saved links tagged jQuery, I discovered this gem and will probably implement it on this site in the near future.

Other links:

• Glimmer is a small app to create jQuery effects without coding. I haven’t tried it yet, but plan to.
• 18 jQuery scripts and tutorials to improve your portfolio from Designer Daily may help not only your portfolio, but your clients’ sites as well.
• 10 best jQuery plugins for working with tables had me at TableSorter. I know exactly where I’ll be using this in the future.
• Another list, but here’s 10 jQuery photo gallery and slider plugins from Queness. Sometimes a simple gallery effect can be enough to impress your visitors and turn them into future clients.

Well, there’s today’s list of Wizards and their posts. I hope you got inspired to learn more about jQuery, as well as other javascript libraries. Tune in tomorrow when we talk about CSS and Table-less Design. Enjoy!

Wizards of the Web: April 30, 2009

Most people like to launch something new on a 1st. First of the month, year, fiscal calendar, etc. Not me. Bass-ackwards as my mother would say. I’ve been trying to find a way to go back to my Daily Inspiration posts, but with a new light.

In an effort to be proactive and positive (see previous post) I’m introducing my Wizards of the Web post - a daily list of semi-related links that I think are pretty awesome and extremely useful.

Then, every Friday (starting May 8th) I’ll crown the “Wizard of the Week” my favorite link/app/article from the previous week. Why? Because there’s just not enough love in the world.

And I’ve gotten all my perscriptions refilled (since the last post).

Today’s loose topic - Neat Apps

1) 13 Website Monitoring Tools To Help Prevent Downtime - while this showcases more than one useful app, there are no reviews in this article, so you’re going to have to do a little research on your own. I currently use the free option over at hyperspin.com for one of my client’s sites. While it did notify me that the site was down, it was 15 minutes after I’d resolved the issue. (The Free Account only monitors the site on an hourly basis.) Luckily, they let me know an hour later that I had been successful. There’s no replacement for positive reinforcement. But, outside of your host’s service (Liquidweb, my host, has nice monitoring), check out these online options to keep you in the loop on what’s going on with your sites.

2) I’m a big fan of mind mapping - though I’m pretty terrible on the follow-through. When I discovered MindMeister, I fell instantly in love with the interface. The free account is pretty generous, giving you six maps to work with, and the interface (and keyboard shortcuts) is very intuitive. If you like to collaboratively brainstorm, or just need to get your world-domination plan out on “paper”, give MindMeister a shot.

3) This is an oldie, but still dead useful. The Link Checker over at W3C has been a huge help for some of those huge-mongous sites some of us have to maintain. While my WordPress sites can utilize the nice Broken Link Checker by Janis Elsts, the W3C version is a good backup.

4) Last but not least is BgPatterns -the tiled background designer app. I wasn’t sure about this one when I first discovered it, but it’s grown on me. While the interface is simple, the choices for patterns and textures are limited, it’s easily a good “mind-stirrer” for any designer. Even if you don’t find the pattern you want now - you may discover the one you’ll want later. Plus, it’s just fun to fool around with.

There we are, today’s “Wizards”. Check back tomorrow when I’ll be focusing on jQuery scripts. Happy building.

What’s next? “45 Colors Every Designer Needs?”

Image created in Photoshop, with the gradient tool set on Difference and clicking around until I liked it.

Ok, ok, that’s it! I’m calling bullshit. I’m calling bullshit on the whole thing. I point to my own feeble attempts at a design blog first, but I have to draw the line. It’s obvious we’re all feeding off each other, creating link after link, list after list, plumping ourselves up. And while there are a great number of design blogs out there featuring original, inspirational content, and a great number of “link blogs” giving designers easy access to the best content out there, we have to take a moment to sort out what is truly inspirational, what is truly helpful, from the totally insane.

319 Photoshop Gradient Designer Should Have

I have no fault with izzataziz.com, it’s a fine and resourceful site, nor do I have a quarrel with DesignM.ag, from whence came the link to me, but I do have a problem with a list of gradients being worthy of our attention, or even a blog post.

I tried, pathetically, to compile a list of items that would be useful to designers in my recent Mammoth post and while doing it I realized it takes too much damn time. Half the time when I need a texture, I create it. When I need a shape, I draw it. When I need a font, I use what I have or spend five minutes at dafont.com. I rarely, hardly, almost never go back into the hundreds of bookmarks I have and use any of the resources in any of the lists.

Almost never. Yet I still collect them. I still post about them. I still take time out of my day when I could be designing, or writing, or swinging on a tire swing, to scour the list for useful things for sites I’ll never build and projects I’ll never do because I spend all my time reading lists, and lists about lists, and sites with links of lists about lists from other sites and AAAAUUUUUGGGGGHHHH!!

Design blogs: It’s time to start asking yourself if you’re creating posts people dig, or Diggable posts. When did content become less important than the clones of that content? I have stopped pulling out my hair in the attempt to create another design blog like the other blogs just to be part of the whole blog mess that just regurgitates items in an endless circle of tips and tricks. I don’t have the time. I don’t have the patience.

And neither should you.

I remember one night, standing on the roof of the newspaper where I worked, smoking a cigarette and looking at the twilight sky thinking, “I’ll never create a gradient like that.”

But for the life of me, I’ll keep trying. And so should you.

For a good laugh, I’m sure there’s a list link in my “Also worth reading…”

“Mammoth” Post of Photoshop Brushes, Textures and Resources

What I need is a day to just compile all my bookmarks, notes, etc into this blog. But until that day comes, I’ll start compiling everything I have into “MAMMOTH” posts for your enjoyment. Some of these are brand new, some are old, but hopefully you’ll find a few gems that you overlooked before.

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Epic Fail Of A Design Blog, Part 1

One of the obstacles of creating a design blog is the having actual work. This is a typical excuse among web developers and it comes with good and bad. The good, of course, is work. Real life paying work. The bad? It’s someone else’s site and they want to have some input.

Boy, do they want input.

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Design Inspirations for September 19th

• Cyclo.ps - Very nice tool if, like me, you use multiple stock art sites and would like to do one search.
• Beautiful Icon Sets Hand-picked from deviantART - I have this weird fascination with icons - it’s the same wiring that gives me my love of pixel art. Tiny complex things. I’m still not sure why I’m not a microbiologist.
• 10 Websites with huge list of resources for web designers and developers - The list of lists? The ultimate of the ultimates? Dunno, but I’ll be expanding my bookmarks.
• Homemade Photo Studio for under One Dollar | 8164 - I like my tutorials like I like my coffee - quick, dirty, cheap and effective.
• CSS for IE6, 6 common problems and fast ways to fix them - Great go-to list when getting ready to debug your CSS for IE6

Design Inspirations for September 15th

• CSS, Accessibility and Standards Links - Taking your CSS seriously.
• The Ten Pixel Method - We Are not Freelancers - Nice method that I’ll start using. Base 10 - who would have thought it would make life easier. Oh yeah, the rest of the world that’s embraced the metric system.
• Turn postcard photo into a stunning comment form using CSS - Very nice design feature and a good tutorial to go with it.
• 10 questions to ask when looking for a professional web designer or developer - Great questions for each designer/developer to ask themselves.