Wide World Of Web Design

When it comes to selling Merchandise online, there are quite a few options open to web designers, developers, and do-it-yourselfers everywhere. The open-source platform of PHP and MySQL has spawned a few viable ecommerce systems that are Free to download and allow you to set up and customize a fully operational online store in a matter of weeks. However, there’s a bit of a learning curve when first tackling a CMS, especially one that involves processing payments, cataloging shipments and customer orders, generating invoices, complex inventory and display options, and so much more . . .

My favorites in this category are ZenCart and osCommerce, because they are widely used, widely supported, and despite some tricky aspects to customizing their appearance, they basically work right out of the box after a relatively easy installation, and you can’t help but feel pretty satisified with yourself at being able to set up an online store all by yourself …….. well, along with the help of several people who were able to answer your desperate pleas on the User Forums that is . . .

But these certainly aren’t the only solutions, because what if the task of being mired in setting up and learning a full-blown CMS like this seems a little too daunting, and perhaps even overkill if your only interest is in selling a few items on an existing website that you’ve already created in Dreamweaver ? There’s a perfect answer for this scenario that comes to mind immediately, and that’s eCart from Webassist which is another in a long line of impressive Dreamweaver Extensions from these software-makers, and it’s the perfect solution to putting a store online as something that’s much easier to customize and set-up, and although the end result may not have as many levels of sophistication as the big open-source systems, it does seem to cover all the essential bases in terms of payment, product, and shipping options, and the Documentation and Forums are top notch. (Stay tuned to the weblearningseries.com which has a tutorial series coming soon that walks through the steps of setting up an online store with eCart).

And now to the little nugget I’ve been saving until last, which is Linklok paypal from Vibralogix. This is one of those little products that is always a pleasant surprise because it works exactly as you would expect it to, and it’s so easy to use because the Manual is so well written and easy-to-follow, with plenty of examples to follow and prompt personal replies by email to answer any questions you may have. This is the perfect solution if you’re selling Digital Downloads as opposed to physical goods, although you can use it for both, and even though you’re limited to Paypal for processing payments, in my opinion Paypal is probably the best way to handle small online transactions in terms of security and ease-of-use (also accepts credit card transactions from non paypal users).

So Check it out and see just how easy it can be to start selling your Merch, Swag, Bling, or maybe even your Mom’s butter tarts online!

To all those Grinches on Wall Street … Thanks for nothing!
In the midst of a global economic Freefall, I’d say now’s the time to bid an eager farewell to 2008, and in doing so I guess it’s always good to pause and reflect on the last year (while also bracing ourselves for what we can only hope are more prosperous times ahead …) Looking back, I’d have to say I fielded an unexpected number of Web Design related questions that fall into the “How Do I …” category, and although this would normally give me good reason to panic (I know much less than I pretend to ..) it is my good fortune to lay claim to a reliable arsenal of trusty resources, or should I say, a veritable “well” of expertise from which to draw upon. It was in the course of attempting to provide the best answers possible to many of these questions that I found myself revisiting the same handful of resources time and time again, so it seemed only natural to make a summary list of Links leading readers to some of the best and brightest minds in the World of Web Design and Development.

This could easily be a Top Ten list, but I’ve trimmed it down to an economical Top Seven, and you may also notice at some point that all of these websites have already been referenced throughout previous postings on this site, but they’re all worth repeating, so here goes …

• A List Apart - These are some of the best minds around, and this is probably the best collection of articles on Web Design coding techniques. This is where I learned about things such as Sprites and the Sliding Doors …
• Go To And Learn - When it comes to Flash Tutorials (video tutorials no less) this should be the first place you go to. This has it all, with script downloads and a well traveled Forums. It gets pretty advanced, but some of the early tutorials are extremely useful, such as building your own preloader, an mp3 player, and how to create Full-Browser Flash movies …
• Community MX - Here you’ll find an abundance of Tutorials on all aspects of Dreamweaver, Fireworks, Flash, etc .., and although there’s a fee per article or to join by subscription, they have one of the best User Forums anywhere …
• Dynamic Drive - I refer people to this website a lot, because it’s just so darn convenient when you need Image Effects, Slideshows, or any number of things that the magic of javascript can provide. Not only that, but their CSS Library section is great for some pre-coded navigation menus and CSS Layouts …
• HTMLsource - I mention this website often in the Learning Series videos, because it really is a clean, simple, easy-to-follow recipe on learning the basics for HTML and CSS …
• DMC Insights (Larry Ullman) - Larry authored my favorite books on PHP and MySQL, and his skills extend much farther to include Ajax, Adobe AIR, Ruby and C++. Besides great books, the Forums are of great benefit and the Newsletter always insightful. One thing is for sure, the information is always right in step with what’s current and just over the horizon …

Besides these, I also like to browse through CSS Mania on a regular basis just for inspiration, because sometimes it’s easy to get so mired in code that you have to recharge those Viual Design batteries every once in a while and make sure to keep in touch with current styles, trends, and design techniques.

So I hope these links prove to be as helpful to you as they have been for me.

There’s a New Kid in town worth taking a look at …

If you’re someone who still doesn’t own a recent version of Dreamweaver, then now might be the time to consider purchasing the New CS4 version, and even if you’re already using CS3 you may find the features in the latest offering are enough to put you in the mood for an upgrade while the Introductory Offersare still available through Adobe (the special prices currently offered are scheduled to end February 28th, 2009). And yes, I know it seems they keep coming out with new versions of these programs every 2 years, and unless you’re a company or well established Designer/Developer it doesn’t seem practical to keep upgrading for every bell and whistle, a decision I struggle with every time which is why I’m still using the CS3 programs from the Web Standard package I upgraded to last year.

However, in this case I realize the change may be warranted. You see, the CS3 release happened almost on the heels of Adobe acquiring Macromedia, who if you didn’t already know were the original pioneers of the Web programs Dreamweaver, Fireworks, Flash, and Contribute (Adobe on the other hand were always renowned in the Design Community for their crown jewels Photoshop and Illustrator), and so even though there were some substantial additions with things like the Spry Framework and CSS Starter Pages, there was also the speculation that over time as the amalgamation of Macromedia and Adobe’s products and engineering took shape and had time to properly mature and develop, this was a union that would surely produce some redefining results in the world of Web Production Software.

So if you still need to convince yourself, I suggest you cruise through the Adobe Websiteand see what the Adobe team has been up to … The Live View feature in Dreamweaver was something I heard a lot about so I checked it out for myself, and no doubt it is pretty cool. A lot of the upgrades look at ways to speed up workflow and enhance the workspace, which makes sense considering they base most of their upgrades on the feedback they get from actual Designers and Developers.

And again, if you are an aspiring Web Designer you should think about going with the Web Standard Suite because it is the most cost-effective package, including all the necessary essentials which of course are Dreamweaver, Fireworks, Flash and Contribute. But there’s no reason to limit yourself either, because if you don’t want to overlook your full potential as a Graphics Designer, there is also the Web Premium packagewhich includes those Design Industry Standard programs Photoshop and Illustrator !

I’ve listed below some of the Top reasons why you might want to consider purchasing or upgrading to a CS4 program or Suite, something I know I’ll be doing before long since the Video Tutorials I’m producing for The Web Learning Series will need to keep up with what’s current.
In the meantime, here’s looking at you kid . . .

Dreamweaver

Live View

Design your web pages under real-world browser conditions with the new Live View in Dreamweaver CS4–while still retaining direct access to the code. Changes to the code are instantly reflected in the rendered display (browser preview within your Dreamweaver workspace).

Related Files and Code Navigator

Click any included file shown in the Related Files bar to see both its source in Code view and the parent page in Design view. The new Code Navigator feature shows you the CSS source code that affects your current selection and allows you to access it quickly.

CSS best practices

Implement CSS best practices without writing code. Create new CSS rules in the Properties panel, and get clear, simple explanations of where each property fits in the cascade of styles.

Adobe InContext Editing

Design your pages in Dreamweaver so end users can edit their web pages without help from you or additional software using the Adobe InContext Editing online service. As the web designer, you can limit changes to specific pages, distinct regions, and even custom formatting options.

Fireworks

CSS export

Design complete web pages in a robust graphic environment and then export standards-compliant, CSS-based layouts, complete with external style sheets, in one step. Integrate foreground and background graphics with new slice types.

PDF export

Generate high-fidelity, protected PDF documents from your Fireworks comps for client communication. Help safeguard your designs with password protection — separate passwords can be created for viewing and other tasks such as printing, copying, and commenting.

Adobe Kuler integration

Access the latest color themes from the Adobe Kuler™ web-hosted service right in Fireworks to sample and apply to your web designs. Craft color harmonies for your own use or to upload to Kuler.

Flash

3D transformation

Animate 2D objects through 3D space with exciting new 3D translation and rotation tools, which allow you to animate along the x, y, and z axes. Apply local or global transformation to any object.

Motion editor

Experience detailed control over keyframe parameters, including rotation, size, scale, position, filters, and more, using the new motion editor. Refine easing control with graphical displays similar to those in After Effects.

Object-based animation

Gain complete control over individual animation attributes with object-based animation, which applies tweens directly to objects instead of to keyframes. Easily make changes to motion with Bezier handles.