Mod&Dot is a new design tool for anyone who works on websites. This is an early concept and I'm looking for advice.https://mod-dot.com/teaser/After a site launches, revising the design can be a pretty frustrating process. Designers have to learn git and command line. Or developers have to parse font sizes from redlined screenshots. Clients make printouts and draw on them. Etc.Mod&Dot...
I'm excited to see your business grow using this model, and hopefully others follow your example.
It reminds me of the popular book "Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking"
In that book, the author suggest that introverts fake extroversion in short bursts.
As an introvert myself, this is something I've done for a decade. It's tiring but pays off. Sometimes we introverts miss out on great opportunities because we don't stretch our comfort zone.
I think this article is good advice on small ways for introverts to put themselves out there and "fake extroversion".
You 3 do some of the best interviews of any podcast out there.
It provides more style options than designmodo's and fewer components, but I think they are both great options.
As for the conversion rates, totally agree that the metric I shared is somewhat vague. Every project has different goals, and sometimes even a fraction of a percent is a major win, such as with major display advertisers.
Also, your point about showing the increase in conversions for my projects is way more powerful. Unfortunately, since this is brand new, I don't have better data to share. Hope to have some soon.
Disclaimer: I wrote a book on this topic, but because of that, I know resources made by other people too.
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Sacha Grief’s ebook is good for an in-depth example:
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Design for Hackers by David Kadavy is also well written. He explores the more traditional way to learn design, with the history of fonts, color theory, etc.
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A different approach might be reading about creativity. My friend Paul Jarvis has some great books about creativity, especially his new one, The Good Creative, if you’re looking to get inspired:
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Nathan Barry’s design books are great. He also has a course on Photoshop if you’re looking to learn.
http://nathanbarry.com/app-design-handbook/
http://nathanbarry.com/webapps/
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One of the best books about UI/UX/usability is Don’t Make Me Think:
http://www.amazon.com/Dont-Make-Think-Revisited-Usability/dp...
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Great place for topic-specific books. Some of these are more advanced and intended for designers. I'd suggest these for after you read up on the basics.
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My book focuses on design fundamentals instead of advanced theory. It's intended as a starting point for things you can do right now. Actionable, focused on building skill instead of knowledge.
http://bootstrappingdesign.com
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Email me anytime if you need help. My email address is on the site above.
Edit: formatting
However, that doesn't mean creativity should be criticized--it just means we need to teach people to do more than have ideas. Creativity comes into play when problem solving, and determining whether ideas are worthwhile, too.
edit: spelling.
The article describes how the reception of creativity is all about risk--that we don't know its value immediately. I think this is a more logical way of looking at it.
Url should be /fonts, not /font.
In variables.less, change @fa-font-path to: "//netdna.bootstrapcdn.com/font-awesome/4.0.0/fonts"
But that momentum will never build unless you keep firing pellets, so to speak.
The suggestion that the quality of my work might not contribute to my own success as much as I'd hope is disheartening.
I also wonder: how can I build up my own cumulative advantage?
I'm biased, of course, but I recommend looking into these books as they are vastly more practical and beginner-friendly than most design books (which are usually intended for already-experienced designers).
Learning design is tough because of all the information thrown at you. You're supposed to master color theory, the history of typography, difficult design software, and many more advanced topics, seemingly all at once. The ebooks below are not going to shape you into a design expert, but they'll give you an entry point into learning. The most difficult part is figuring out where to start.
Here are a few links for you:
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Step by Step UI Design by Sacha Greif
-Shows process of designing a web app UI. Short with lots of examples.
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Designing Web Applications by Nathan Barry
http://nathanbarry.com/webapps/
-From what I can tell, the focus is on usability, interaction design. (I haven't read this one, but Nathan knows what he is doing.)
-Nathan also has a separate ebook about mobile:
http://nathanbarry.com/app-design-handbook/
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Bootstrapping Design by Jarrod Drysdale (This is my ebook.)
http://bootstrappingdesign.com
-I focus on teaching design fundamentals and how to practice design so you can get better. You'll get a lot of "do this, don't do that" kind of advice.
-If you're interested, email me and I'll shoot you a promo code. (My email address is on the site.)
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* Edit: formatting
It's like he just heard of bootstrappers, and instead of saying, "Hey that's awesome, let me tell you what I've learned," he says "You'll never be one of us real entrepreneurs. Want a job?"
Sketches should be visceral, messy, and fast. The entire purpose of sketching is to get the ideas out as quickly as possible.
I don't understand the purpose of creating preliminary sketches that you then redraw on nice paper. Are you trying to design a UI or make a pretty picture?
Also, throw sketches away? Are you crazy? Keep them. Later when you are adding a feature or changing the UI, you'll be glad to have those ideas to return to.
I use whatever pen is sitting around (usually the cheapest money can buy), and whatever paper is handy (usually scrap printer paper with stuff on the other side). My sketches are ugly and I take no pride in them.
The widget shown in the post isn't that great of an example. I'd have no idea how to use a UI like that in a real context. Also, it seems like you just chose to build the very first thing you sketched. You say design is iterative, so where are all the other concepts?
Sorry to be so brutal. I appreciate the spirit of your post. I agree with your rationale for sketching, but your examples/practices don't seem to match it.