Site update of: http://www.vamcdonald.com
I’ve been working on my friend Vanessa’s site for some times. For the original site I think we collaborated quite well to give a gallery feel. However that was some time ago. As a bit of an internet enthusiast, I felt the pressure to update her site with the times. I’ve learned a lot since the original site, and every time I clicked “view source” i could see all of those learning. So update it was.
Hanging The Art
I know the code isn’t perfect, but I’ve made it so that adding and removing pieces from the website has the feeling of hanging real art. There is the step back to wonder if it’s aligned in proportion to the piece next to it. There is the hand sign of moving the image up or down “just a shimmy”. If the site was to be a gallery, then hanging should be no different.
Web 2.0
I’m not a fan of catch phrases. Especially when it comes to fad phrases like “Web 2.0″. It’s essentially the same stuff that’s been around for a while, except a few javascript libraries, some faded backgrounds and large fonts have all spun together. Someone I guess just needed to find one phrase to encompass it all. Well, which some AJAX, some XHTML, CSS and even some bulky fonts here and there with a dash of gradient, I’ve tried to keep up.
Realign vs Redesign
I wanted to take a page out of Carmon Moll’s article about Redesign vs Realign. I wouldn’t call myself a great designer by far. But if I could follow a couple of guidelines, I could be not half bad.
All in All
It was a pretty good venture to try and keep up to par with the virtual world. Lots of cursing because of IE. Lots of problem solving, and a bit of craziness. But all in all, it’s out in the world to view. Take a look, feedback is always welcome.