FocusMinded.com

CSS Colors: Take Control Using PHP:
(source: weblogsinc)

Quite an interesting concept for you developers out there.  I am not 100% on the control over color as with the HEX system, but it couldn’t be too terribly bad.

Focus on Process and Product:

Huge emphasis should be placed on the AND.  Although this article isn’t specifically for the web designers and developers I believe it sure fits.  As designers/developers we are not only involved in and utilize a process but we also are providing a product (website, application, etc).  Thus we should be cognizant of not only our process but our product.  Too often designers and/or developers are ends focused so some of our process is overlooked. 

If that is you then take a moment to sit down and chart your process.  Whether its the process for a website or for a web application.  If you haven’t ever done that, it might be time to refine and improve your process.  Getting it down on paper (illustrator, image, etc) will help you visualize every step.  This work flow should always be being tweaked.  Never let it sit idle and use the same flow just because that’s the way you’ve always done it.

Secondly, lets say the process end of this article does not apply to you in the slightest.  Then is your product (website, web application, etc.) leave a client with a ‘bittertaste’ and not a repeat customer?  As much as we would like to think we churn out perfect products, if we answer honestly we all can find problems.  Afterall are we not our own worst critic?  If you are not entirely happy with your product isn’t there a chance your client may not be either, even though it might be exactly what they asked for?  Certainly, and that is where you can/should be suggesting real world substitutions and ideas to improve their request.  I have personally found many clients are more than willing to hear the opinion of the professional they are hiring.  I have also seldom been turned down on a suggestion for improvement and/or suggestion for modification or elimination.  Why?  That’s my job, my job is not just to design/develop what they want, but to make it the best it can be under the circumstances.  When a client gets more bang for their buck, that bittertaste is seldom left and that leads to repeat business.

I’ll leave the rest to you, get to work and improve your process and/or product for more repeat business.

Till then… Stay Focued!

Levels of HTML knowledge:

At first I wasn’t going to read this article, but I thought it would be comical so I did.  It wasn’t hillarious, but funny at points.  I found out I am a Level 5 and have no desire to move up to a Level 6 unless it pays more ;).  Take a few minutes read the article and then post back here what your level is and why.

Dell XPS M2010:
(source: digg)

Dell is at it again.  This is there version of a Laptop/Desktop hybrid.  Quite cool.  If you are looking at a PC and want it to be semi-portable this might be for you.  Some pretty cool things.  Make sure you watche the CNET video as thats where the demo is.

Introducing Cork’d:
(source: SimpleBits)

I am not much of a wine drinker and that is simple due to not knowing anything about it.  While reading my daily news feeds I saw this site being introduced by Dan Cenderholm.  He created Cork’d with Dan Benjamin for quite a great and unique thing.  This is going to be perfect for people like me as well as wine pro’s.  Here is the basic gist of Cork’d directly form Dan’s introduction:

The basic gist of Cork’d is this: after painlessly creating a free account, you’re able to keep track of wines you’ve tried in your Wine Jounal. You can rate, review and tag wines (more on that below), and these “tasting notes” end up attatched as comments to each wine in our database. You can also build a Shopping List of wines you’d like to buy (think of this like you would a Netflix queue), and a Wine Cellar for wines that you own. Keeping track of what your friends are tasting is as easy as adding them as a Drinking Buddy. You can also recommend wines to your buddies after you’ve rated and reviewed a bottle.

So why not give it a try.  Till then… Stay Focused (especially if drinking)!