Week 3 Blog: Design Basics

I think that the C.R.A.P. basics of design are very important. The thorough and broken down ideas of contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity really helped make the information stick. When I first read the "Non-Designers Design Book" I found myself saying "duh" a lot to some of the information Robin Williams covered, but in reading more I found it really helpful and not "duh" at all. I think that this book gives people who already have a keen eye for design an understanding of why they choose to make the design choices they do, which in turn makes the reader more deliberate and methodical in their designs. Now, when I design my mind works constantly on reviewing and evaluating my effective use of C.R.A.P., but one thing I'm struggling with now is not to rely too much on these basics because good design can be found outside the rigid lines of C.R.A.P. and you shouldn't confine yourself to rules if your creativity wants to take you elsewhere.

Here are three sites I found about basic design:

• "Basic Design Principles" (Swish Tutorials): http://archives.swish-tutorials.com/dl/dp/designbasx.pdf

This was a really great guide on basic design and touched a bit upon website design and tailoring it toward the type of image you want to portray (e.g. professional, personal, etc.)

• "The Principles of Design": http://www.digital-web.com/articles/principles_of_design/

• "Basic Design Principles": http://www.swinburne.edu.au/design/tutorials/design/design/

Week 2: Learning Photoshop

I am already a pretty savvy, self-taught Photoshop user so, I didn't really learn anything from this week's overview. That being said, I am very excited to broaden my knowledge and skills in the program. I often get random ideas about things I want to learn to do on Photoshop so like Jason said in the first class, I just google it! This is my advice for basically anything in life, but especially for computer programs. There are an infinite amount of tutorials (written and video), Youtube videos, and all sorts of resources so, my suggestion is don't ask for help until you've looked it up yourself. The Adobe site actually has tons of "official" video tutorials for all their software on their websites ( http://tv.adobe.com).

Here are some sites that I've found helpful tutorials on:

Note: I think it's just easier to google what you want if you're looking for something specific, but to browse check them out!

• http://psd.tutsplus.com/
• http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/01/10/adobe-photoshop-tutorials-best-of/
• http://photoshoptutorials.ws/

Here are two videos I found on Youtube:

3D Objects Tutorial:

Skin Smoothing & Cleanup Tutorial:

10 Rules for Website Design

Rule #1: Simple is Good

Too many images, fonts, information, animations, et cetera can take away from the overall point of your website. It is often a good idea to take a step back and ask yourself "is this element really necessary?"

Rule #2: Make Your Site’s Goal Obvious

Very few people like going to a website and digging around to find out: what it is, why they are there, or what the point is. That's why making your goal apparent to the user is so important. This doesn't mean that you have to S-P-E-L-L it out for the them. You can be creative! A goal can be stated many way using: design techniques, images, et cetera.

Rule #3: Navigation Should be Easy to Figure Out

Something that I hate to see in a website is difficult, non-consistant, or even NON-EXISTENT navigation. When I go to a website I am usually trying to find some piece of information, learn about something, or use its one of its features. When navigating the website becomes a task I often choose to just use another resource or drop the endeavor as a whole. This is why navigation should be very clear and consistent (an added plus is navigation that is intuitive).

Rule #4: Clearly Indicate Where the User is Within the Website

To piggy-back on clear navigation, I think that the location of a user within a site is very important. The worst is when you go to a website and all the separate pages look completely different and/or have no title or heading - leaving you asking "am I on the 'Contact' or the 'About Us' page?". Letting the user know where they are and how they can get back is key in creating optimal navigation.

Rule #5: Be Consistent

Consistency is always key. If you can't pull a design element throughout a whole work (whatever that may be) the viewer/user is left confused. And NO ONE likes to be confused. Consistency also helps with basic functions like navigation because users know what to expect and how to accomplish their goals.

Rule #6: Check Site For Errors

I hate seeing errors anywhere, let alone on websites. When errors are made, whether that be spelling errors, missing pictures, improper captions, early/late published information, et cetera, the company or person who that website represents loses so much credibility in my book. Avoiding errors is like putting on the right suit for a job interview, with no errors you make that great first impression.

Rule #7: Avoid Audio

Audio is just annoying. It loads differently on different computers, it can startle the user if their volume is randomly too high, it can detract from the goal of your website, but most of all it is just annoying.

Rule #8: Use Feedback

Feedback is a key principle in public relations and I think that websites are a prime aspect public relations that can be overlooked. Websites exist to convey a message and accomplish a goal. If you don't have a dialogue with your users there is no way for you to increase the usability of your website from the consumer's standpoint.

Rule #9: Develop For Multiple Browsers

There are so many websites that are only compatible with Internet Explorer or Firefox. This is a major annoyance to users because everyone has their favorite browser and it is a real inconvenience for people to have to open a new browser just to see your website. Developing for multiple browsers expands your consumer base and helps avoid alienating certain users.

Rule #10: Break the Rules!

This is my favorite rule because it is always possible to break the rules and create a great website.

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Sources:

10 Web Design Rules That You Can Break: http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/06/10-web-design-rules-that-you-can-break/

10 Rules of Website Design: http://www.sharpened.com/web/about/rules.html

5 Basic Rules of web page design and layout: http://www.grantasticdesigns.com/5rules.html

Ten Laws to Design By: http://3.7designs.co/blog/2010/07/ten-laws-to-design-by/

5 Important Rules in Website Design: http://shawnpmackey.com/5-important-rules-in-website-design

INTRO

My name is Hélia (ay-lee-uh) Clamoungou and I am in my 4th year at Western Washington University (WWU). I am majoring in both Communication and French and I hope to graduate this summer. I work as an ad sales representative at WWU's newspaper the Western Front.

This is a blog I created for my Emerging Communication Technologies class. I will be updating this blog each week with posts about various topics regarding communication technologies.

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