Wednesday, September 21, 2011

There are many online resources for designers to utilize, but some of the most important are inspiration showcases.  When learning CSS back in the day, I spent countless hours perusing some of the first CSS galleries, closely examining each pixel of a layout, digging into the source and figuring out how folks were getting sites set up without tables.  Now that CSS layouts have become the “norm” I still cruise these showcase sites for ideas and inspiration.

1. csscutie.com
2. cssmania.com
3. csselite.com
4. bestcssvault.com
5. cssdesignawards.com
6. css-design-yorkshire.com
7. creamycss.com
8. cssbeauty.com - (Not updated since January 2011, but this is still a classic and deserved a place on the list.)
9. cssdrive.com
10. cssheroes.com

What favorite galleries do you rely on for inspiration?

Posted on 09/21/11 at 10:39 AM by Tim - Categories: Design Tools User Interface Inspiration Tags: Web design, CSS

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I stumbled across this beauty while browsing Fancy last night. Beautiful, elegant, simple.  Words actually can’t do this justice.

Posted on 09/21/11 at 07:52 AM by Tim - Categories: Apple Tags: iPad, Fancy, Macintosh Classic

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Tuesday, September 20, 2011

More visual goodness from around the Web.

Feist Concert Poster

Good design is…

Pasta packaging

Mona Lisa Remixed

Aeroflot Poster - I’ve been a longtime fan of this color combination…

Posted on 09/20/11 at 09:41 AM by Tim - Categories: Design Inspiration Tags: Graphic Design, Inspiration, Poster Design, Words

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Monday, September 19, 2011

I’m not sure why I didn’t ask Chris Sherman to put his iPad ownership thoughts into writing sooner. We’ve had many discussions about it’s usefulness (and weaknesses) over the past year and I’m glad that Chris was willing to spend some time to write down some of his thoughts.

Why did you get an iPad?
I love Apple products and I wanted to bridge the gap between my iPhone and my MacBook Pro.

Is it an original or iPad 2?
It is the original iPad

Are you happy with your decision?
I am, although I know now that I didn’t need the model on steroids.  The 64gb w/3G is more than I need.

Did it fill a need or was it a impulse buy?
I have to be honest here, it was more of an impulse buy.  I would have been totally happy with the 16gb wifi model.

How has the iPad changed your “normal” computer-use habits?
I handle most of my social media needs on the iPad so it has become my feed screen even while I am on my regular computer.

What are you doing with the iPad that has made your life easier or has surprised you?
I feel that the iPad is a larger version of my iPhone so I am still using my iPhone for a lot of my on-the-go needs.

Have you been able to integrate the iPad into your work life?
Aside from the social media use as stated above, I have all of our sample photo’s on there so when we visit with clients, we use it as a digital portfolio.  Awesome tool in that respect.  Also, FTP On The Go is very helpful with the large files.

How would you grade the iPad as a work tool, specifically in the area of design?
It is amazing.  The “Palette’s” app is awesome.  I can pull out color palettes on projects to work with when trying to create corporate images etc…  Sketchbook Pro and Adobe Ideas are great for designing.

Are there any business apps or content creation apps that you rely on?
Nothing in that respect have I tried yet.

How often do you use your iPad for business/how often for personal?
It is pretty much business use. I would say almost daily at work.

Is that use more that you’d expected?
Not now, but at first, I almost never used it until I started searching for apps and researching online what is useful.

Do you still use your other computers as much?
Yes.

Are there any apps you’d recommend for either personal or business use?
Audio Note is great if you attend seminars.  You can record the audio and then whatever you type in as a note, it will time-stamp the recording for fast reference.  Very useful.

What would you change about it or what features would you add/take away?
I wish it worked more like a laptop.  It would be nice if it had a desktop like OS with a cursor and a USB port for file transfer if you are not in a WiFi setting.

Posted on 09/19/11 at 07:08 AM by Tim - Categories: Apple Apps & Software Design Workflow Tags: iPad, AmeriSign & Graphics, Chris Sherman, Adobe Ideas, Audio Note, iPad Owners

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Thursday, September 15, 2011

Keeping your workspace in mind and how it either works or doesn’t work for you, here are some spaces and furniture that struck a chord with me.

A work nook.

Lounge/meeting area

Kitchen design

Pallet Magazine Rack

Office

Wood floor

Quad shelving unit

via TheFancy.com

Posted on 09/15/11 at 06:35 AM by Tim - Categories: Design Inspiration Tags: Inspiration, workspace, office, studio, Interior Design, Workstation, Lounge, Meeting Room

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