Web Design Ideas and Jobs

WebDesignerWallis a Blog designed and maintained by Nick La who also runs N.Design Studio and Best Web Gallery

Web Designer Wall has hundreds of design ideas as well as useful advice for experienced and first time creators of web pages. The blog follows trends in design, offers helpful tutorials and even has a Jobs board for designers looking to find employment in the industry.

Whether you’re designing your fist webpage or an experienced graphic artist looking to keep up on new ideas and trends, this page has something for everyone.

The Library of Congress on Flickr

The Library of Congress has uploaded some of its photo collections onto Flickr. Most of the photos are in black and white, but some are in color. Of particular interest is a set of color, Rosie the Riveter, and Americana photos from the 1930s and 1940s; most of which, were created using Kodachrome. So if your find yourself with a large block of time, check them out!

• Library of Congress on Flickr
• Rosie the Riveter
• 1930s-40s in color

Vista and Office 2007

In the very near future, all of the libraries in the CADL system will have new computers operating on the Windows Vista platform, with Microsoft Office 2007 software. The Main Library has already begun that switch.  To stay ahead of the curve, check out Microsoft’s Office Online Home and the Windown Vista home page. There’s no better way to find out the odds and ends of Microsoft’s newest products than to go to the source itself.

Preserving Digital Memories

I succumbed to the inevitible.  I bought a digital camera.  For being someone who loves his tech gadgets, I held off buying a digital camera for years for one reason and one reason alone.  The longevity of the digital photo is nowhere near the longevity of a traditional film photograph.  So why did I buy a digital camera?  I bought one for the very fact that I couldn’t find a decent film camera. 

So I broke down, but not without being prepared for the consequences.  Like I said before digital photographs are relatively instable; at least compared to film prints.  To view a digital photograph one needs a computer, electricity, and software that supports the digitial photograph file.  Because hardware and software changes very rapidly, the software that I have now to view my digital photo may not be around in the next 5-10 years.  My computer may crash tomorrow due to a hyperactive computer virus.   Digital photographs seem too instable to use as memory keepsakes for my important family moments.   I would rather have a traditional camera that makes a traditional print from film.

Well, they don’t really make those anymore as I came to find out.  Besides, who knows if anyone will know how to develop film cheaply in the next 5-10 years?  My argument against digital photos was gone.  So my hand was forced and I bought a nice Sony Cybershot.  

Well, I was pleasntly suprised to find out that digital cameras are really convenient because I can take about 500 photographs on one memory stick .  And after I upload the photographs I can delete them off the memory stick and use the memory stick again.  As an added benefit, I don’t have to waste my expenses on buying film anymore. 

However, I’m still not pleased with the instability and the work involved in preserving my family memories.  First, I have to remember to upload the photograps to my computer.  Then I have to label most of the photographs using photo software that allows metadata to be attached to each photo.  These first two points are actually comparible to a traditional photograph.  For a traditional photograph I would to remember to take the film to the store to be developed and then I would have to label each photograph on the back with a pencil.  Regardless, it’s the backup and migration work that will have to be done that has me in a tizzy.  Periodically, I’ll have to remember to backup my photographs to a external hard drive.  Then 5 years from now or so, I’ll have to remember to migrate my photographs to either a new external hardrive, file format, or computer.  Let the planning begin!

Here are some helpful links thay may help you in preserve your digital photographs.

Preserving Your Digital Memories

Savemymemories.org

Before you buy, ask yourself this

Somebody asked me if I have an addiction to buying and using electronic gadgets. Their question made me ask myself if I did indeed have a problem with money. To help myself reign in my current spending, I revisited my list of questions to ask before I buy something. I’ve written this list down on a note and wrapped it around my credit card. This way, whenever I pull out my card to pay for something, even if it’s online, I am confronted with this reminder to question whether or not it’s wise to buy that hottest new electronic gadget.

Questions to ask before you buy anything

1.) Will I use it? How often?
2.) How many do I already own?
3.) How long will it last?
4.) Can I do without it?
5.) Can I borrow it from someone else?
6.) Can I get it for cheaper someplace else (like the thrift store, Walmart or Craig’s List)?
7.) Is it made from renewable resources or post consumer recycled materials?
8.) Can it be recycled when I’m done with it? Will I recycle it?
9.) If it breaks, do I know how to fix it? Will I fix it? How much will that cost?
10.) Does it require maintenance? How much does maintenance cost? Will I actually do the maintenance?
11.) Is buying this product in line with my views on global labor, economy and human rights?
12.) If I use a credit card to pay for it, do I have the money to pay the bill in full when it comes next month?
13.) If it involves a recurring monthly payment, how much would that cost? Can I cancel the subscription?

It’s not that this list is supposed to be a spending deterrent. It’s more something to use to remind me to put my purchases in perspective.

Are you a shopaholic?
Saving money
“Foolish” ways to pay off your credit card

At least fun, but could be useful!

Remember when Yahoo looked like THIS:

1996

Or, when the weather looked like this…

1999

The internet archive’s wayback machine can provide hours of fun or may make you feel old because you used that page before in 1996!  Currently, the site does not allow keyword searching so you are limited to knowing the URL. The results list for the URL will give options for different years. Not all sites have archived pages for every year. Also, not all archived sites have all the images from that page.  Capital Area District Library’s website was COOL in the day! Check it out. 

2001

Why or how could I use this beside looking back? Two possibilities are: tracking changes to your website over time and tracking changes of historical events.

Text messaging defined

Someone commented the other day, “Remember when all you could do on a phone was talk?” And I did remember. It wasn’t that long ago. Phones have changed so fast that some of us may not understand their capabilities anymore. There are a number of cell phones that can go on-line (yes, like a computer), allowing people to use email, get directions, and all sorts of other things. These are the more expensive phones. Many phones have cameras built into them; others even have the ability to record video.

A more basic function of nearly all cell phones these days is text messaging. With this capability, a user can select a cell phone number, then type that person a little message instead of dialing that person. The message is sent to the person’s cell phone, where it waits to be read until the person is available. Receiving a text message is like receiving a voice message (in that the message is there waiting for you, and you read/listen at your convenience).
Text messaging does not require a cell phone to use the Internet; systemically it is the same as making a call. The catch is that many phone service providers charge extra for text messaging (sending and receiving), and if text messaging is not part of the service plan the company may charge a fee for each message (received and sent). There are all kinds of shortcuts in text-talk, like LOL (laughing out loud – what you type in response to a message that made you do that), JK (just kidding – something that might be obvious if people could actually hear each other), P911 (parent 911), and too many more.

Those of you who are unfamiliar with texting may wonder what the major attraction is. You must be used to talking to actual persons and having conversations where you can read the inflections in the other’s voice and hear laughter or uncomfortable silence. (As in, actual human conversation…) While I am a huge fan of such communication, let me try to name some of the highlights of texting.
1) Allows people to communicate in quiet environments: work, school, library, subway, commuter train, bus. (You can determine if this is good or not. Teachers can hate cell phones because students sometimes try to text each other during tests.)
2) Lets a person send a quick note without having to risk getting into a long phone conversation.
3) Less intrusive than a call. Solves the problem of, “I should call, but I just want to leave a message, I don’t want to intrude” since it is only a message.

There are loads of people who certainly must know of many more highlights, but that’s all I’ve got, since I always prefer face-to-face communication, however tedious, tiring, or awkward it may get at times.
 L8R.

Job Searching part 2

Back to Simply Hired…

What else can you do with Simply Hired? There are a few useful tools available to help your job search.

Salaries link(top of page)ill give you a page with average salary information for the job you are searching for. Even better, you will see a list of related job titles. Just click on the title and see a new results list matching that title as a search. Very handy for trying to figure out what other terms to use.

Employment trends(top of page)Thiill give you a good indication of which job titles are seeing fewer or greater number of posts.

Tools(bottom of page):If you do not want to remember this website or bookmark it, go to the tools area and grab some apps or widgets for your social networks! Right now, you can get an app or widget for: Facebook, MySpace, iGoogle, and your mobile device. You can also grab an RSS feed or send email alerts.

Making photo books

I love taking pictures. Love it. Back when cameras used film, I had to curb my enthusiasm so as not to waste film (and thus, money). But now, in the age of digital cameras and storage, I am a photo glutton. Pictures, pictures, and more pictures. Originals, cropped images, originals changed to black and white, experiments with lighting and effects, you name it, I have a picture for it.

That is, I have a digital representation of it. I don’t really have the picture. The images are stuck in my camera, saved on my computer, stored online. (For more on online photo storage, see the ”Store Your Photos Online“ entry.) A select few were turned into DVD slide shows on a Mac. But I want a printed thing. For the great photos – often odd-sized crops – that don’t make it into frames, I like to make photo books.

For those unfamiliar with this concept, a photo book is akin to a yearbook. It has a nice cover and glossy pages, with your pictures on the pages. Books can be made from most websites that offer photo storage and sharing. Different sites offer different options and pricing (ranging from $3.99 to more than $50), but  all of them allow you to design the book yourself. This means that you can choose hard or soft cover, a cover with a picture printed on it, textured covers (leather, suede, linen), page layouts (from a template or self-designed), and which pictures go where. I love photo books because they are great looking AND they fit on a shelf! (Hate the scrapbooks that fit nowhere.) Here are a few sites that allow you to make books.

Sites from “Store Your Photos Online”:  

• Flickr – Must sign up in order to preview capabilities.
• Webshots – Lots of options, with prices ranging from $12.95 to over $50.

My favs:

• Shutterfly - Offers five sizes (12×12, 8×8, 8×11.5, 5×7, and a  4×4 brag book), lots of cover options. The base price for books ranges from $12.99 (for the brag book) to $54.99 (for the 12×12); base price includes 20 pages, with each additional page costing $.50 (brag book)-$1.50 (12×12). Shutterfly offers nice backgrounds for the photo pages.
• Snapfish - My top pick. Offers lots of size and cover options, with nice backgrounds for the photo pages. Here’s why it’s my favorite: $4.99 4×6″ flip books (base price) and dust jackets!

SMS/Text Message Tricks

or How I beat the iPhone at its own game

She's got internet. How come I don't?

In one sense, I’m kind of stuck behind the times. I don’t have internet on my phone. I know that I should “get with the program.” I’m aware that I’m a sorry excuse for a tech nerd. Therefore, my blog post cannot possibly be relevant, right? Well, if you have a moment, I thought I could share some of the things I’ve come to learn about text messages.

Most cell phone plans include the ability to send text messages to and from your phone. Usually you have to pay a dime or 25 cents per message. I think all of the providers now let you purchase bundles of 100 or 1,000 (or whatever) which decreases the cost per message down to $0.01 or less. These short, quick messages (in the U.S. this is typically limited to 160 characters or less) are apparently popular among teens – I don’t know any, so I can’t confirm this.

Even if you aren’t into texting your pals, I submit to you these reasons to take a fresh look at your phone’s text capabilities and consider adding some text messages to your cell plan.

Some of the things I bet you didn’t know you could do with SMS text messaging:

1. Movie times at your local cinema
2. Driving directions
3. Stock quotes
4. Traffic updates
5. Weather updates
6. Translate words to and from English
7. Send email
8. Watch your auctions on eBay
9. Post to your blog
10. Compare prices for merchandise
11. Find wifi spots
12. Check whether your flight is on time
13. Keep up with Twitter
14. Get alerts and add events to google calendar
15. Track your package
16. Convert metric to english measurements and back again
17. Calculate math
18. Receive AMBER alerts
19. Get RSS feeds

and my favorite:

20. Find the nearest restaurant. This is where, according to my limited and unbiased experience, TEXT BEATS iPHONE. Yes, I mean it!

I’m driving back to my place with a friend. He has a mad hankering for some Chinese take-out. I can’t think of any asian restaurants between our location and my house. To prove his “tech cred,” he whips out his iPhone and waits for Safari to load, navigates to a search page, types in his query, and then he waits some more. “Is House of Ing nearby?” he asks. No, I tell him. “Where is P.F. Changs?” No, that’s not on the way home. It’s all the way on the other side of town. “Is the Apple Jade on Clippert Street close by?” No, no. You’re way off.

I pull over into a gas station and set my phone to the task. I type the word “chinese” into a text message and send that to 46645 (or “GOOGL”). In less than TWO SECONDS, I get a reply message with the address and phone number for three restaurants in my zip code. If I replied to that message, they would have sent me even more restaurants. That’s right. In a mere 10 seconds, I receive more accurate and pertinent information than he gets after five minutes using the internet connection on his iPhone.

I don’t mean to gloat. I am totally jealous of everyone with an iPhone. But even if you do have an iPhone, when time counts, when your appetite won’t wait for your “edge” connection to find a network to use, when you are just dying to know the Spanish for “where is the bathroom,” you might want to ask the 14 year-old next to you to text you the answer.

Tech Corner: Google SMS
Wikipedia SMS entry
16 more things to do with text