New Years Resolution - Get Better At Web Application Design
My New Years resolution for a career goal is to spend more time picking up graphic design tips and tricks. Conversely, I want to spend less time on researching programming and web application development. This may seem like an unwise goal for a web developer but I feel that I need more improvement in this area.
Programming and designing are often considered to require two fundamentally different mentalities. Web developers usually create functional web pages with a blank design. I've seen designers that can't even apply their design to an ASPX page without messing up the page declarations and user controls. I have to admit that while developers can apply a design and make minor changes to graphics, and designers can code CSS and learn some basic JavaScript, you usually don't want to combine both skill sets in one position. While I believe one person can do a little bit of everything, you really have to respect the considerable expertise required by each profession.
I've known programmers to underestimate the skills needed to be a web designer. It requires more than a knowledge of CSS. Only a code centric programmer would make the mistake of considering just the CSS. There are also an enormous number of Photoshop tricks and trips to learn which means working through a lot of tutorials. A designer also needs to know the history of graphic design in order to combine design elements or recreate a retro look. I think it is a full time job to keep your focus on design elements and work through all the tutorials to create various effects.
Unlike a "software engineer" I am not into advanced math and logic. I'm not totally ego invested in being a programmer. I'm also quite confident that I have an artistic side. I'm strongly attracted to creative work and find it easy to identify with anything strange and fantastic. As a matter of fact, I'm surprised that many artists lack confidence in their talent or question themselves. You can be dissatisfied with your work which may not equal your inspiration, but you should find confidence in your imagination's affinity for the sublime.
Recently I came up with a simple way to add some flare to my web applications. Displaying some numbers as a digital readout can really enhance the look of a page. You can get the digital numbers from clock widgets and use them to display
record counts, IP addresses, or temperatures. Replacing numbers with graphics requires some programming which may be why you don't see a lot of designers using digital readouts for real data. I would expect many programmers to balk at using graphics for actual numbers because it adds nothing to the functionality.
Here you can see a digital readout of the temperature which draws the eye to the most important bit of information. It could use a digital "F" to indicate Fahrenheit but this will require editing a digit in Photoshop. A web designer would probably be inspired to make the entire interface resemble a photo-realistic device with a reflective glass cover, plastic molding, etc.