Archive for March, 2009

Every article that I read about SxSW from this year’s South by Southwest has me wishing more and more that I had decided to go. One such article is Samantha Warren’s “SXSW 2009 Wrap Up.” Aside from her insider explanation about participating in the SxSW Web Typography panel discussion, she discusses an opinion I share; that designers should start using advanced web typography now.

Samantha says that as designers we need to push boundaries and get more creative with online typography whether they are personal, technical, or industry based. To view the slides from the discussion be sure to check out sxswtypography.com and to get some more great web typography resources.

I have stated my opinion on spec work a number of times before on Positive Space, however the footage released today from the SxSW panel demanded I do so again. After watching the video (embedded below) it is very obvious we are missing a lot of what was said, but the overall tone was in favor of spec. Also, the tweets that I witnessed during the time of the event also seemed to reinforce this opinion. But why, let’s dissect the video and look at some of the key pro-spec statements.

Since I posted my idea for the personal web design degree a lot has happened. Not the least of which has been the release of the WaSP Interact Curriculum, which has actually reinforced my original plan. As I had originally anticipated, it appears that this program is focused heavily on development and standards. While it does touch on the visual aspects of design, it is only a small portion of the program. Taking a quick glance at the curriculum framework, you can easily see this.

Update: The Personal Web Design Degree has launched, check it out.

Ever since I began writing about education and design on Positive Space a steady stream of emails asking me for advice on learning about web design have found their way into my inbox. The responses I have written to these emails, have inspired a number of blog posts here such as:

• Student Questions: What Should I Study to Become a Web Designer?
• What is Keeping Students From a Proper Web Design Education?
• Design Students: An Online Portfolio in a Necessity
• Interaction Design And the Skills that are Needed
• Establishing Criteria For Good Internship Experiences

Every time I have responded to this seemingly simple question with a relatively similar version of my opinion:

Web design is first and foremost about the fundamentals and theories of design, obtain a general graphic design education and then educate yourself on web design.

When I started Positive Space I may have been a bit naïve, I thought that Adsense could result in some decent pocket change, if only I could get a couple hundred unique visitors a day. Boy was I wrong, but at that time I could really care less I was more interested in blogging for the sake of self-education and personal development. While my reasons for blogging haven’t changed much, my faith in online advertising has.

Lately I have been working on a number of print projects, which is a change for me due to most of my projects over the past year being almost strictly web based. The addition of print projects has been an enjoyable one, and it has even opened my eyes to a few things I seem to have been overlooking in my web work.

The most glaring thing I have noticed is missing from most of my web work is projects that hope to achieve an emotional connection between the user and the brand being communicated. Some products and services may be better served through rationalization, however after browsing the web for a while it became apparent that the vast majority of websites are completely emotionless.