Week 1's post

For those of us fortunate enough to have our sense of sight we take the world of graphics for granted, at least I do.  Everything we do, buy, or learn has something graphic associated with it.  Just think of the advertisements, flyers, billboards, and web links we are exposed to daily.  Manuals for new electronics, cars, appliances use graphic designers to depict examples of how to install, fix, or operate.  Magazine articles you read in the doctors offices grab your attention, or your kids attention, into buying a new and improved product.  Web pages with sound and animation entice you into buying one of their products.  These days, the web plays an important role in selling products and services, not to mention the ton of information that is available at your fingertips.  The days of encyclopedia salesman have fallen by the wayside.  The electronics age is here and growing by leaps and bounds.  Each year more and more people are using the Internet to purchase products and services.  The Internet is a huge source of information based on billions of pages of graphics, text, video, and sound.  Some of these pages are informational and some are sales tools, but most importantly, they are at your disposal, provided you have access to the web via computer or smart phone.  Although technology is advancing at an astonishing rate, print media will be around for many years to come.  I don't think the world is ready to stop using paper to convey a message, however, I do think that the world is better informed than 10 years ago due to our advances in technology which web design is a major contributor.

Designing for the Web -vs- Print
Designing for the web poses different challenges over print.  Yes, you still have to consider the layout like you would in print, but you also need to take in to consideration the different levels of technology your audience will be viewing your material from.  Not every viewer will be using the same size monitor and or computer that supports 16 million colors and complex graphics.  How fast a page will load is very important to the end user. Graphics, especially pictures with lots of detail, chew up computer memory and slow the loading process down. As technology advances and our computers and Internet connections get faster people have less patience for slow page loading, myself included. I've noticed that since I switched over to broadband, I expect my pages to load instantly and when they don't I get frustrated and refrain from using that site if at all possible You need to consider what browser will be used since all browsers are not created equally.  The simple fact is that different browsers display the same page differently. When I'm looking for something on the web I quickly loose interest in a site that is difficult to navigate through. If I have a hard time moving from page to page I give up and try another web site. In general, web pages need to be user friendly, even obvious if possible, to keep a readers interest.  All is not bleak in the web business.  Costs are typically lower than print.  Changes are easy to make and the web is available all hours of the day.

Print designers are faced with pitfalls of their own.  Typically they have a limited amount of space to entice their audience long enough to make a point.  Another drawback is cost.  It can be very expensive to create a brochure in hopes of selling your product. Brochures for cars or vacations for example can entice potential customers to explore further and possibly book a vacation or buy a new car.  Changes are another burden.  Once the final copy is sent to the printers for copy its very costly and timely to make a change.  On the bright side, the prospective customer has something tangible in their hands that they can see and feel and no technology is needed to read the print.  Both forms of media have a place, and in some cases a specific need, in our society today. Ultimately there are pros and cons to both forms of media and I believe that both forms will be around for a long time to come.

Chapter 5 Quiz:
1.  Print - Company's have a responsibility to inform their share holders of the progress/financial stability of the corporation.  Printing an annual report and mailing a copy to all of their shareholders is one of the only ways to ensure that all share holders have an opportunity to review their progress over the past year.  Even in this day an age, one cannot assume that all shareholders are familiar with computers or have access to the Internet.

2.  Web - The cost associated with printing up brochures to send to all the add agencies located in a big city could cripple you financially.  By providing the agencies with your web address, you can effectively provide the same or more information for less.  A web address will allow you to include more information and not increase your out of pocket expenses.

3.  Web - I would require my customers to register the software over the Internet and provide an email address for future updates/announcements.  This will allow the company to send out a blast email to all of the registered users informing them of the updates.

4.  Web - By providing a secured site specific to each individual customer you can make changes regularly and this "real time" information will be available to the customer at their convenience day or night.

5.  Web - The cost associated with printing multiple booklets would be to high.  By using the web, you could provide your students/associates with the web address and they would be able to access the information at their leisure.  There is a cost associated with establishing the web site, however, you could charge visitors a nominal fee to access certain areas which would in turn off set the web site and maintenance cost.

6.  Web - The cost associated with printing high quality pictures is very high.  For an individual it would be more cost effective if they used the web to showcase their talents.

The Non-Designers Web Book, comments:
I would consider chapter 1 to be a review for me. I've been using the web for many years and have become familiar with the information reviewed in this chapter. Chapter 2 did have some useful information, especially about drilling down in various search engines. I must admit that I use Google for just about everything and I was not aware of some of the features or specialities that various search engines have. It looks like I will have to play around with directory searching more and use key phrases a little less often, chances are I'll find what I'm looking for faster. Chapters 5 and 6 were the most informative to me. I never really thought about the advantages or disadvantages between printing something and a web site. Chapter 5 explains in detail the advantages of using the web as well as the need to continue to use print for certain cases. It's definitely a great tool for business and personal use, especially when you consider the cost associated with printing everything and then the cost to distribute it. Chapter 6 reinforced the 4 principles we reviewed in class last week. C.R.A.P, the acronym used to describe Contrast, Repetition, Alignment, and Proximity, was discussed in great detail, further supporting our discussions in class. I like how the book used actual web site pages for examples. These examples, along with the step by step changes, helped me understand and visualize how applying these 4 principles to the design can drastically change the appearance of the page and help the viewer find information easier. I can see myself using these principles to help me design various forms of print or web based media in the future, which will in turn make the information I'm trying to convey easier to read and more informative.

Adding the Gadgit......
Adding the blog list from class was simple provided you know how to copy and paste.  Once you add the blog address you add a name for the link and save it.  I liked Ava's blog with her picture and reference to liquid refreshments.  The contrast she chose made reading her post very easy.