Alan Taylor of The Big Picture proves how designers who can also develop are able to get things done without jumping through hoops of approval, explanation, and cycles of review.
In an interview at Waxy.org, Alan talks about how The Big Picture came to life within the Boston Globe.
I have an advantage in that my main role is as a developer here, so I could build all my own templates, format my own style, and so on. I sort of bullldozed some things through though, like extra width, few ads, and I made it simple internally by doing it mostly on my own, no requests for development time, marketing or promotion. After the legal questions were settled, I was free to try it out. It took off fast.
This is another example of why I strongly advocate that designers build development skills into their kit. When you’re able to do things yourself, you can just do them. You don’t need anybody’s approval or anyone else’s time. And sometimes that makes the crucial difference between an unimplemented idea or a great success like The Big Picture.
David
on 23 Jun 08This really touched on a MUCH deeper issue, which is that as human beings we are usually (not always) oriented in certain “directions”. Just as designers often cannot develop and visa versa, sales people often know have a pathetic understanding of the products they sell, while paradoxically the engineers who know the products inside and out are deficient in presentation skills and could not sell them if their life depended on them.
This in turn results in all types issues. Sales people who are good at selling but sell the wrong products and so on. The issue is also related to the resentment that often exists between departments such as “sales versus engineering’, because neither can see the world through the others viewpoint.
An entire book could easily be written on this issue.
David
on 23 Jun 08p.s. the flipside is that IF you are truly competent at both skils, the benefits can be enormous, but if you are not, you may be better off focusing on the one thing you do well and “outsourcing” (whether internally to the company or extrnally).
Joe Grossberg
on 23 Jun 08So do developers who also design.
Seriously, even if it only means acquiring rudimentary design skills, it’s going to be that much less often that you depend on someone else.
And a rudimentary understanding of design also means your solo stuff won’t look like crap.
oak
on 23 Jun 08I have to ask what about the Big Picture blog is so well designed that it would serve as an example of what any designer should aspire to. It looks pretty basic. Full width images, (presumably because they are the featured content) and full width lines of text. To be honest it looks like it was cobbled together from basic elements of the existing design. The mere fact that it’s popular doesn’t mean it’s well done. Is it supposed to be heroic to go completely around the established design for the rest of Boston Globe site? How much money, time and effort was spent laying out the original site to have it be hacked by a staff-blogger who knows how to code? Someone, somewhere, put some effort into the three column layout used elsewhere in the site, probably to allow for the advertising space in the right hand column, or to make sure that the content was contained with shorter, easier to read lines of text. Did the Big Picture designer/developer think that through when he decided to spill into the third column? If not, why not? If the blog is popular, as it clearly is, why waste that real estate simply to make images larger then they would otherwise be? Yes, there is a top level banner ad…but that disappears almost immediately when the user starts to scroll.
Compare the Big Picture to the Boston Globe homepage. once the header scrolls off the page, is there any indication that you’re on the same site? If not, why not? Is there no value in establishing a consistent, branded look and feel across the whole web presence? Who is asking these questions if not the designer?
Why should a designer learn to be a mediocre developer? Is it JUST to make life easier on people who ultimately will build the sites anyway? Why not just have the coders learn how to design. Then there wouldn’t be a need for designers at all. This blog doesn’t seem to value the input of designers very much. it makes one wonder why you’re in the process of hiring one.
Andy
on 23 Jun 08Oak,
As for the photos on that site, reading that page is like reading an old issue of Time magazine: the photos are nice and large, have meaningful captions and show a lot of detail. That’s a big win.
I do agree the text lines are a little long, but that’s somewhat offset in that there is not a sea of text such that you lose your place while reading. Additionally, the site isn’t full width, I’m on a large screen.
Devan
on 23 Jun 08How does this work internally at 37S? From a previous post, I understand that Jason is a pure designer, and you have other team members who are coders. How do you collaborate effectively when a new feature spills over into both territories?
Does the person who thought of the initial feature get to make the final decision regardless of their designer/developer slant?
alsomike
on 23 Jun 08David, I think you got it exactly right. People have a tendency to see their own specialty (and by extension, themselves) as the center of the universe. On top of that, universities and companies are organized by dividing people into functional categories where they are surrounded by people who think in the same way, and this ends up worsening the tribal, us-versus-them mentality. Books have been written about this topic, including Roger Martin’s Opposable Mind.
But it’s hard to tell if the post is coming from this perspective. I would want to add that developers can benefit from learning design skills, but maybe Ryan means that programming is the most important skill in the universe, so naturally everyone benefits from learning it.
alan taylor
on 23 Jun 08Oak, just so you know – your concerns are valid, but I never set out to show how great a design I could build – I just wanted to exhibit good, large images, and tell a story, as simply as possible within our framework (roughly). I was involved with the process of our most recent redesign – my main role is a developer (who knows a little about photoshop). I shopped around my ideas internally, and got enough basic approval to feel comfortable going with the format. Losing the 3rd column wasn’t arbitrary, it was deliberate, and done out in the open. I’m very surprised and happy with the popularity, but didn’t intend for it to be a showcase of anything other than good photography.
JohnHS
on 23 Jun 08Designers and Developers are not the same person.
Should a Designer be ‘restricted’ by their knowledge of development technique? How many great designs have extended the development team into new territory?
Should Developers design? Again, they will be focused on what they know they can achieve with the development skills they have TODAY and not push through with the design freedom they could have, were they not burdened by the real world (as they see it today, at their current skill level).
There is a place in the world for all types of people… including the sales guy who sold the job in the first place! (I am not a sales guy)
The team works together to make something greater than the parts.
oak
on 23 Jun 08Alan: I have to agree that the site does a great job showcasing good photography. The pictures are very striking and I’m placated a bit knowing that the issues I raised where all thought through and not done arbitrarily. Touche.
Having said that, and as you describe your role as mainly in development, I still fail to see how the Big Picture serves as an example of why designers aren’t as valuable if they don’t learn how to code. I responded as emotionally as I did because this is the second time recently that this blog has down-played the importance of specialized designers who only know how to design as if coding can exist without design or that developers naturally create designs as part of the development process making designers extraneous at best, and useless at worst.
Do you have designers as part of your internal team who don’t know how to code? Do they strengthen the process? Would they be better served learning how to code?
alan taylor
on 23 Jun 08I’ve worked with designers who are quite competent as coders, and others who are more focused on the pure design aspect. There isn’t really a correlation between the quality of their work and their level of coding ability. But I do often note how much more smoothly things go when there is some design understanding on the development side, and some dev understanding on the design side – you’re just that much closer to speaking the same language, using the same shorthand, making the same assumptions. It’s just always been easier (for me) working with those who, like me, can comfortably straddle the line, even if they lean heavily one way or the other.
I know I’ll never be a great designer – but I’m friends with some great ones, and they help me with gut-check critiques all the time, just as I’ll help them with debugging scripts or page optimization. I can’t see any harm in extending your knowledge about the whole spectrum of what it is you work on.
Thijs Jacobs
on 23 Jun 08All depends on how you define “developer”, if that means, that the designer is delivering his work in clean HTML + CSS; I’m all for it! If that means, the designer is also coding Javascript or even Ruby on Rails/PHP/.NET, I think it’s a waste of time, as you’ll end up with mediocre design and mediocre programming. A designer should always be able to deliver his work as close to the real thing as possible, not in some shiny Photoshop format.
Shawn Oster
on 23 Jun 08I agree with Thijs, what do you define as a designer or developer?
Until recently to me a designer was someone that handed you valid XHTML + CSS templates and then the developer made them actually work with live data, the AJAX, form validation, database schema, etc. I applied for a “web developer” position awhile back and was confused when they asked mostly how my CSS skills were. “Umm, they’re solid but I assumed the designer will be doing all the ids and classes”, was my response and it was greeted with blank looks. To them developer was the guy that took a mockup and carved it into HTML. These days I’m very careful to ask exactly what skills a person has when they say they’re a developer.
I do agree that both designer/developers should be as cross-discipline as possible. I’m a developer and I’m not going to win any awards in graphic design but I know how to use layers well in Photoshop, how to shift colors, how to do little clean-ups and tweaks. It also means I have a greater respect for those that really can nail a solid design. By the same token I expect a designer to be able to pump out reasonable semantic XHTML and not to design something that’s going to be brutal to render in HTML.
Jeremiah Staes
on 23 Jun 08It’s really important, in my mind, that a web designers understand and be at least basically proficient in CSS/HTML.
So many times I see “designers” send stuff down the pike that is completely inappropriate for the web. What’s interesting, and I’m sure this is self-serving, is that print designers need to know paper, ink, weight, stock, matte, etc. to make sure their print design presents right, but so many think of web as an “afterthought.”
This is rampant in my area of the country – so many grew up since we’re in an auto town doing one job. Even the colleges teach that; it’s completely impractical for today’s reality. You gotta know your tools and your limitations.
Andrea Hill
on 23 Jun 08I did it the other way around; I’m a developer, but I enrolled in a graphic design certificate to better my skills in that arena. While I won’t ever be creating the overall look and feel, I have a better sense of how things are created, and I can always fire up photoshop to mock up some placement images as need be
I actually did a blog post just last week about exporting images optimally for the web, for the very reason you mention: sometimes designers aren’t as familiar with the specifics for the web platform- http://www.afhill.com/blog/2008/06/17/transparent-gifs-will-ie6-never-die/)
JF
on 23 Jun 08I understand that Jason is a pure designer
At 37s, design is visual design, HTML, and CSS. I don’t code in Rails or Javascript, but I’m beginning to learn how to write some basic stuff in Rails. I’ve become more familiar with the language just by changing some text here and there in a few controllers. I look forward to learning a lot more and taking some of the burden off the programmers—it’s a hassle for me and them when I have to pull them off something else to do something quick and simple for me.
Michael
on 23 Jun 08I feel I am a prime example of this very subject. I started my career mixing inks and now, nearly 13 years later, I spend the majority of my day with Terminal and TextMate.
I started developing about 2 or so years ago (but dabbled back in 98). The reason was simple, I wanted to see things happen. I wanted to develop my own projects from the ground up.
Now I am quite capable of building the back–end and designing the front.
Michael
on 23 Jun 08I forgot to make note of the fact that if you visit my site, I highlight this point in the masthead.
“We build and design”
leethal
on 23 Jun 08I’m a design-aware programmer, and designers loves it. So, they give me a design, and when I implement it, I, say, made sure the hit areas are large. Basic stuff for me, but designers doesn’t seem to be used to programmers that cares about these kinds of things, and really appreciate when they do.
David
on 23 Jun 08alsomike,
Thank you for the book mention, The Opposable Mind, I am checking it out.
David
on 23 Jun 08“I forgot to make note of the fact that if you visit my site, I highlight this point in the masthead. We build and design”
Michael,
I hope you do not mind feedback, I only give it because I am impressed with your site.
1. Nice website.
2. Font seems awfully big on the main links. For the visually impaired?
3. Why is your prominent tagline (we design and build) at the top of the page 5 times bigger than your company name, which is sort of hidden at the bottom of the page?!
4. On the subject of this article, which is sort of related to seeing the world through more than one view, do you think most people would know what you mean by “we design and build”. In the view of non-geeks you are “web designers” and that tagline is not going to have meaning to them. I really think you need to make clear to your audience what that that means and why it is relevant.
David
on 23 Jun 08BTW Michael, I LOVE the fact that next to each portfolio example you give a price range.
Anonymous Coward
on 23 Jun 08A designer should have an understanding of HTML and CSS etc but shouldn’t have to actually create it.
The amount of time required to deliver such things in a state that isn’t a waste of time and would require later work on top is so large that it takes time out of valuable design time and therefore pretty demeaning to their role.
Sounds just like a developer lazyness driven statement to me because they don’t like being bossed around and being told to pay attention to details so would rather someone else do it.
You know whats a better idea? A DEVELOPER WHO KNOWS A BIT ABOUT DESIGN, that way the designer has plenty of time to perfect things and the developer will know how big to make hit areas, will pay attention to type spacing and not just ignore it, add in some programatic niceties like transitions where its beneficial.
Your suggestion takes time out of design My suggestion takes no extra development time, but the developers don’t need to be baby sat and bullied into making something actually good
Jeffrey
on 23 Jun 08I don’t necessarily agree with this. I really don’t think being able to sit down and code the project you just designed gives you more power, it just gives you more work! I work with some of the most amazing programmers in the business, and what I’ve learned from them is that writing code is a passion. Personally, I have a passion for design. I’m not saying you can’t have a passion for both, but I’d be willing to bet that it’s rare. I feel the key is having a passion for one, and a deep understanding for the other. I may not be able to write code (not very well at least), but I fully understand the capabilities of every language we use. When I design, I can dictate which areas have live text, what will utilize ajax, whether or not we should use overflow on a div, etc. Much like being an architect or an engineer, designers should have a full understanding of how their project will be built, and understand how important it is to the design process. In the same respect, being a developer who fully understands the design they’re about to build (and doesn’t feel that 2px aren’t something to worry about) is essential too. IMHO, being a one-man (or woman)-show isn’t the end-all-be-all. Besides, working alone is boring!
Michael
on 23 Jun 08@David. Thanks for the feedback. I will respond to your points in order.
1. Thanks
2. Yes, the type is on the larger side for the main menu links. There is no definitive reasoning behind this. I like big type and I also could not find a solution for this page element that I found completely satisfactory. So I let it be for the time being, rather than style the type for the sake of it. I will come back later when I arrive to a more appropriate solution.
3. The line ‘We build & design’ is weighted as such on purpose. At this point in the life on my company I wanted to add emphasis on the fact that ‘We build’ and that we ‘also design’, in that order. Research we have conducted showed that many clients believe that a web design firm are either strong in design or development and rarely both. I would have to emphasis that this stance is within the context of our local market, it obviously differs with locale.
4. We consciously made the effort to position our company name and logo at the bottom of the page. Again this is only for this particular period in the life of the site. It also marries with our offline marketing material and strategies. At least 80% of our traffic has been referred by offline marketing campaigns. The visitor is then 80% likely to already be somewhat familiar with us. So we can take this liberty.
I must emphasis that the reasoning behind some of the visual communication is dependent on offline brand awareness. The context is very definitely likely to change at any given time.
Another point I would like to make is that I personally find it far more difficult to design for myself. I also utilize the iterative methodology. So – too bad if I don’t get it spot on today, put it up now and I’ll find a more appropriate solution tomorrow.
@Jeffrey. Amen – working alone is boring. I think I have a passion for both, though I am not sure that passion is equal. It tends to swing and be influenced by the idea of concept of the moment.
Danny Wilson
on 23 Jun 08Designers can’t code blah blah blah. I almost used to fall for it myself, but I simply wanted to build more exiting websites on my own. Thus I needed to learn to code. Sometimes I tend to get a little angry at people not wanting to learn.
This is pretty much my progress in the past 5 years: photoshop -> dreamweaver -> standards compliant HTML + CSS -> PHP (shudder) + JS -> Flash -> Actionscript 2 -> Object Oriented programming: man that took me a while to grasp. -> haXe (tought me the most programming concepts!). -> D
For the past few years I have been quite actively programming and haven’t really designed that much. So that’s something I wish to pick up soon.
My point is: don’t tell yourself what you can or can’t do without putting some effort into things. The reason I’ve coded so much, is other people in my university projects didn’t want to learn to code (because as they said: we are designers…). Now I’m glad I did, I love coding, especially combined with pretty interface design :-)
Clinton R. Nixon
on 23 Jun 08I’m glad to see someone making the point I’ve thought for a long time: design and development are complementary skills, and people can and should add them together.
The common hierarchy in organizations of developers over designers is backwards, and developers – implementers – should seek knowledge in design to move upwards in their career.
Robin Hood
on 23 Jun 08The same advantage exists for developers who know how to design. I have pushed along many of my own projects by editing css files, ie6’ing the site, creating sprites, etc…
Jake Rutter
on 23 Jun 08I consider myself a designer/developer, if I hadnt had skills in both – I would have lost out on a lot of opportunities. I’ve worked with web designers who wont touch code and it just doesnt make much sense. How can you design a site if you dont know the limitations of the code? Over the years, I have been picking up more and more skills on the development side. I work on rails, subversion, cron jobs, terminal windows – Im not just limited to css/html and design. It makes it interesting when you can be a jack of all trades, you can float in and out of design and development.
John Tubbs
on 23 Jun 08So let me throw a different part of the creation experience into the fray. What about audio and video producers/designer/engineers. I’m primarily an audio guy, however I know conceptually how both design (I know a bit) and coding (not actually being able to write code) let me know better how to produce the appropriate, artistic and in my case educationally solid A/V media.
The A/V world brings in other aspects beyond twiddling knobs, pushing faders in Protools and messing with moving images in Final Cut, we deal with compression. Getting this all to squeeze down the pipe is still somewhat of a challege.
It kills me to see any audio position open on job boards to see web shops looking for an A/V person and requiring coding AND design skills in addition. Even being truly competent at both audio and video is a stretch. (TV and movies still see the difference in skill sets) It seems that people like me have to learn both above and beyond my main passion to get a steady gig with a web shop. I lucked out and got my job so I’ll hold on to it for dear life while I learn to code.
Todd
on 23 Jun 08Much like sex and chocolate, design and development stimulate the same parts of the brain (in totally different ways).
If you are not partaking in both, you are missing out!
John
on 23 Jun 08As far as I’m concerned, design and development are one in the same. Your code has to be a work of art as much as the final output of your application.
I feel the most important time in planning an application, code wise, is during the UI design process. If the UI design is implemented by a third party, that critical step is lost and the code suffers for it, in my opinion. You can recover, but it’s not the same.
GeeIWonder
on 23 Jun 08Nah, I’d rather not have any clueless “designers” touching my code, thanks.
Warren Benedetto
on 23 Jun 08I’m a graphic designer, Flash developer, and PHP/MySQL programmer. What’s great about being about to do all these things equally well is that I have total control over my projects, from concept to completion. I’m one of those people who believes “if you want something done right, do it yourself” ... which is partly why I picked up all these skills in the first place.
I also find that being evenly split between creative and technical skills allows me to come into projects and companies (especially startups) and act as sort of a Rosetta stone between designers and developers. That makes me very valuable to entrepreneurs who don’t really speak either language, and are therefore unable to sort out communication problems in their teams by themselves.
Finally, having design and programming skills has been very good for my bottom line. I can make up to 75% more per hour than I could being just a designer or programmer. Why? Because I can make the argument to clients that, “If you hired a designer and programmer separately, you’d have to pay them x dollars each, which when combined is more than my rate.” So I get to make a very competitive rate, and the client is still saving money. Everybody wins.
The irony is that I was TERRIFIED of programming for the first five years I was doing web stuff. I wouldn’t even touch Javascript. But finally, I just bit the bullet and did a few PHP tutorials online. Turns out it wasn’t that scary at all. Now, five years later, about 80% of my time is spent programming, and I love it.
So, my advice to designers is … try programming. You might find out you can do it, or that you’re good at it, or that you even prefer it. If not, no harm done. But if you can pick up those skills, you become a much more valuable asset to your clients.
GeeIWonder
on 23 Jun 08Oh look I commented here too.
I see the smear campaign has begun. Guess I need a new handle, eh?
Chance Bliss
on 23 Jun 08This discussion reminds me of a documentary I watched on the making of Harley Davidson’s V-Rod. They wanted to create a bike completely from scratch that was a tribute to drag bikes.
There’s a interesting part in the video where the styling and engineering departments are at crossroad about the design of the radiator. Engineering wanted some huge radiator which provided enough air flow. Styling wanted to hide it as much as possible. Both had legitimate points, but each had to understand the others limitations (such as physics) to finally come up with something that worked. This would have never happened if both departments worked in their respective disciplines (pixel vs. byte).
Radiator discussion starts at 21:00
Video link: http://quicksilverscreen.com/watch?video=47876
Debbie Campbell
on 23 Jun 08I’m a graphic designer and developer – I do the Photoshop work, translate it into valid XHTML/CSS, and I also do some Javascript (working on improving that skill). I guess I would be called a front-end designer/developer. I really enjoy both parts; when I get tired of coding, I always have design work and vice versa. It keeps me fresh, having to switch my focus depending on the task at hand.
I do a lot of installation and customization of open source PHP/MySQL applications but I don’t write them myself. But I consider myself an equally skilled graphic designer and front-end developer.
However, I’ve been interviewed for two positions recently in larger companies where I would have had to choose – they didn’t have any ‘hybrids’ as they referred to my skillset, and I would either do only design or only XHTML/CSS/Javascript. This seems rather counterproductive to me – they had designers who didn’t know anything about HTML and front-end developers who could use Photoshop but had few design skills. The two go hand in hand IMO.
David Ray Carson
on 23 Jun 08This Just In…
Developers Who Are First-Rate Designers, Accountants, Chefs, Photographers, Four-Star Generals And Nobel Prize Laureates Have Moar Power
Just giving you guys crap.
:-)
Matt Radel
on 23 Jun 08Web designers need to be able to write their own HTML & CSS, period.
Brad
on 23 Jun 08Whether designers are willing to learn or not, it is clear that the toolset is moving in that direction. The tools that build websites have never been more accessible. We have Django, RoR, and the PHP frameworks that they have influenced. There’s also ExpressionEngine, Wordpress, or just Blogger for the less adventurous.
What amazes me is how unaware many designers are of the visual and interactive decisions that are grandfathered into all of their work because they limit themselves to building a theme or a template. Oftentimes, those decisions are made by developers, leaving only decoration for the designers.
CJ Curtis
on 23 Jun 08It’s obviously true that projects go smoother when designers and developers understand each other…the possiblities and limitations of both.
But just as the designer doesn’t necessarily need to know CSS, he definitely doesn’t need to know development from a coding standpoint if it’s unnecessary to HIS JOB.
Do development skills make Joe Blow designer “more powerful?” Maybe. But then again, I don’t know Joe. I’m not familiar with his work, and I don’t now who he works with or for.
Would development skills me ME more powerful? I would say absolutely not, because my expertise lies in much more than Photoshop mockups (Photoshop, ugh), just as most designers branch out into other creative areas such as audio, video, direction…
Me learning development tools to the point where I would actually be USEFUL would be a waste of my time, and would weaken my focus.
So why is 37signals made up of 10 people? Why aren’t you able to develop your apps and answer your 150 emails a day with let’s say SEVEN people? Is it because that the other three bring something to the table that you would otherwise be missing?
Guru Pitka
on 23 Jun 08Ryan wrote: “When you’re able to do things yourself, you can just do them.”
You, Sir, have a firm grasp of the obvious.
Keith
on 23 Jun 08Having folks who wear multiple hats can be a good thing or a bad thing. It comes down to how the organization manages the project. Just because someone can do something doesn’t necessarily make them qualified to do it.
The other side of the coin though is that when I’ve worked with developers who “get” the design stuff it makes us much more productive as a team. Little things like consistency, etc. can be hard for some developers and have caused many arguments. When the developer understands that necessity for consistent conventions throughout an application it makes the developer’s work much more productive and in need of fewer revisions.
It comes down to the person, but I think organizational expectations and management play a big role in how well it is received.
Heidi
on 23 Jun 08“Designers who also develop have more power” I believe in this statement with one change – “Designers who understand development have more power” If ‘we’ (as the community of people who create websites) stretch our skills too thin, something will suffer. It isn’t so much a subjective view – but more a response to no ‘one’ person can thoroughly understand and focus on many skills to the degree that a few can. And development is only one area of creating a successful website.
I believe in efficiency and ensuring that you are creating usable, beautiful and feasible design solutions but I don’t think that a designer needs to develop sites in order to gain more power. If that were the case, I would argue that a designer would need to write copy, develop the information architecture, do the ethnographic research or usability research needed, interview key stakeholders and understand the business, brand and user requirements for every project. There are so many areas to focus on which is why partnering with people who can strengthen and iterate on your designs seems to be the most effective approach. Designers can bridge all of these areas together by having an understanding for them (the level of that understanding does not have to mean being the ultimate owner) This is ultimately going to give you the most power….. for any project.
Nubizus
on 23 Jun 08My two cents: I agree. Completely. I am a designer. Four years ago i started small studio. Hired one programmer and jump in to the market.
Only than i realize that making 2-3 graphic mockups for client approval didn’t work at all. Lost production time in slicing and waiting for programmer to develop html prototype.
Lost production time changing from Photoshop to Macromedia Dream-killer html. And many more mistakes.
How i do web-design now: Stage one
1. Functional front-end map – pencil/paper sketch. 2. Functional back-end map – pencil/paper sketch. 3. Client approval.
Stage two
1. Front-end structure and UI prototype – xhtml / css. 2. Back-end structure and UI prototype – xhtml / css. 3. Client approval.
Stage three
1. Brand -> Illustration – pencil/paper – Inkscape/Fireworks. 2. GUI design (buttons etc.) – pencil/paper – Inkscape/Fireworks. 3. Graphic elements Implementation -> prototype. 4. Client approval.
//////////////////
Design is not art. Making art is egocentric. Making design is people-centric. To design is to explore. To think different. To communicate in (with dev. team) and out (Client, client audience). To learn and adjust to the medium (web). To illustrate communication process and serve the audience.
Photoshop is great tool. Photoshop tells you : Design is easy, everybody can be a designer. In reality this is crap. Aqua, bevel, drop-shadow, wet floor effect, diagonal patterns = design killers.
If you want to be a designer, first start asking questions and search for answers. The rest will follow:))
Brad
on 24 Jun 08Inkscape. Fantastic tip. Thanks, Nubizus. I just downloaded it.
Nubizus
on 24 Jun 08Inkscape is ugly tool (pre corel interface) with hidden power.:))
Yes i forgot. For me making site structure in xhtml, than thinking for ui, gui, illustration is only approach to do web design (even when it’s a flash site).
Why? Why designers must develop and learn xhtml/css/java script?
Becouse of:
1. Interactivity
2. Semantics
3. Structure
4. Speed of work
5. Easy communication in production
6. Quick prototyping
7. Textmate :))
Did Pininfarina only draws a car without thinking of ergonomics, engine, wheels, mechanics?
No. He knows that to make good design you need to know everything related.
Designers make products for people – they must know technology behind.
Justin Bell
on 24 Jun 08I’m a designer and developer. One thing it sure is handy for is starting your own business. You don’t have to pay other people, you know exactly where everything in the project is heading, and when and if you do need to expand and take on more people, you have a better idea of who to hire and how to work with them. I guess what really makes the combo great is if you also have good communication and leadership skills (something I’m working on), then you’re almost guaranteed to be at the head of a good ship.
Micheal Morgan
on 24 Jun 08Some very valid points made.
I too, like other commenter’s above, am considered Hybrid Minded. The combination of design and development for me (I am sure this is true for others) was not intentional. From a career stand point, people might call this well rounded; however, finding a job offering for “Hybrid Minded” individuals is nearly impossible. Working in both arenas is a challenge and for me it came because I had no other choice. “Here is the deadline, either you do it or fail”. At the end of the day, even though I am competent and proven in interface design, usability, XHTML/CSS, javascript, MVC OOP, several programming languages, project management, sales, and long term relationships—it appears my only continued “career” option is business.
Having the ability to create user oriented interfaces and engineer scalable sustainable foundations is quite handy; however, day-to-day it can seem like a bit of a curse. I have arrived at this point simply because I am passionate about this industry and the task at hand. Instead of saying “I don’t do that”, I would go home and do it. It’s not easy, I have felt cursed (+ many headaches); nevertheless, I have moved mountains by myself.
This industry is constantly morphing, don’t get too comfortable or a new career path might be in the horizon. Having the mindset of being the best at one particular task is dangerous. There’s always somebody better. Focus on the bigger picture.
Austin Bales
on 24 Jun 08This is nice t
Austin Bales
on 24 Jun 08This is nice to read, especially after my professor just said the other day that the “industry is looking for specialists, not generalists”. That made my CD/ID/PHP mashup feel pretty uncomfortable.
Nubizus
on 24 Jun 08Michael i think thats the root of this thing. I started to learn about development when i decide that corporate environment (job with working time) is bad for my health (mental). After some years working like “graphic designer” i realize that i am stuck in little safe box with gray walls.
I try to escape and brake out. First i strike the box with “go to work in 11:30”. Then i saw “the problem”. I never was part of the machine. From the day one my nature pushed me in idea to pay the price and be “free”. I pay the price many times and i will continue to do so. When the reality is not safe (no salary, no security) my mind is working better. Creativity (in design, code etc.) never grows in controlled environment.
But when you are seeking “workers” you don’t need “creative mind” for dull tasks. Problem is that “corporations” always seek for “hardworking mule” with “creative mind”. :)
Believe me its hard to be free (especially in small country like mine – Bulgaria) but when you cross he line there is no turning back.
My interest in “wide range look” and “think outside the gray box” forced me to change my point of view on humans and communication. There is no such thing like “absolute true”. For me true is to explore and change in positive direction. Who knows may be one day i will be the happiest artist among programmers or the the happiest programmer among artists:))))
Nick
on 25 Jun 08To sum this up — anyone can learn development and through reasonable exposure will become a competent developer.
However only a certain type of person can design well.
Phil K
on 25 Jun 08I basically agree, though I don’t think the need for both design and deep development skill is justified. Certainly not in this article.
While having both skill sets can help someone avoid endless reviews and approvals, the kind of of company the would require reviews and approvals would probably not benefit from the type of development skills that a designer may have. Reviews and approvals generally = larger companies, which probably have more complex development requirements than a designer should be qualified to take on.
While not impossible (there are some), I have very rarely met anyone with very good design / interaction skills and very good development skills. Further, the ease with with two very skilled people can partner and move forward together makes such an ideal individual unnecessary.
My preference is to work with designers who respect and understand how development works, and developers who do the same for design. The thought processes for the two practices are very different. Designers must have empathy for users and a specific type of logic. Developers must be even more structured. I simply don’t buy the argument for both sets of traits in very many individuals.
This discussion is closed.