I’ve always wanted to create a web design blog. A little insight into me and what I’m reading and getting up to. I thought I’d keep it minimal so that there is less distraction and more focus on what I’m hoping will be informative reading on what I’ve been looking into recently. Please forgive me if I start to ramble.
I’m currently a web designer. Have been for several years. Learning the what to do and what not to do in design. I’ve been interested in websites since I was 18years old. I’m in my early 30s and I’m still learning.
I’ve just left work and am about to start a career in Freelancing. I left work for several reasons. Mostly because I felt I wasn’t mentally stimulated/challenged enough and I have a hunger to keep learning.
The world of web is always changing. So I try and keep up-to-date with modern trends and how to make the web a happier place. I don’t believe there is always a right way and a wrong way. You could chose several paths to get to a design and I’m still trying to find the best way to make my fellow developers happy to work with me. But what I’ve learnt over the years is that the best way to tackle a website is to try out different things and collaborate. I’ve been doing this more recently so that I find the best solution to a design problem. I also try and plan ahead a little for client changes and currently how things look on different devices. Being flexible has always been something I’m keen to put in my designs.
It’s my first day and I’m already trying to feed my brain. I’ve had books sitting on my bookshelf for months and now I have some time to read them until the last dribbles of paperwork from my previous work arrive in the post. There’s been a book I probably should have read years ago. And it’s ‘Don’t Make Me Think’ by Steve Krug. It’s a usability book.
I think usability is important in web design. Some people don’t. But I guess that all depends on the purpose of the site. If it’s a big site that depends on people using it, then my goal is always to help them get where they want to go without thinking. So I’m hoping this book will validate my beliefs and help me answer some of those questions that usually crop up when I make a design decision.
I’ll keep you posted.