We have been asked to find and comment on three examples of websites with user generated content.

1. DeviantArt

The first website I would like to discuss is DeviantArt, as I am an active member of this website, using it as a platform for my design work as well as to seek inspiration from. The main purpose of the site is for artists to upload their work for others to see. The site presents its art in several ways, including order of popularity, time of submission and categorically. There are browse/search features so the user can easily find what they are looking for, whether it be a user or a piece of art. User's can also create their own collections of their favourite pieces, so these collections can be easily accessed in future when looking for inspiration. The site is generally well organised and easy to use, although there are many areas of the site to explore which could be easy to miss for the casual user.


2. LogoMoose

The second website I am going to comment on is LogoMoose. As the title suggests, this website is all about logo design. User's can upload their own logo design's and the very best are featured on the website's gallery. Only the best are featured as the website aims to be a source of real inspiration for logo design. The website also has features such as awards for the best logos and user's who require logo design can also submit job offers for the designers who use the site. LogoMoose is very well organised and all of the options are very clear; the site is extremely easy to use and navigate around.


3. Design Snack

The final website for discussion is called Design Snack. The point of the website is for users to upload XHTML/CSS templates as well as Flash created website designs. This creates a designer showcase that the user controls. A user can then browse through the designs and rate, comment or favourite the designs. The site is well organised and has large fonts and distinctive sections increasing the site's ease of use and desirability.

We were asked to read and comment on two interviews with professional designers; the interviewees being Dan Saffer and Joel Schaffer. Primarily I'd like to say that I found the interviews very enlightening and extremely useful in terms of building the ideal mindset for a designer.

Interview 1 - Dan Saffer: 'Interaction Design is an Applied Art'
The first point I'd like to touch upon involves the aspects of an interaction design that web designers apply a particular focus to during the creative process. Saffer is very specific when he lists that usefulness, usability and desirability are the most important elements of interaction design. He states that "If your design fills a need in people's lives, works well, and looks beautiful, you've got design gold." Although this statement probably over-simplifies the criteria for creating 'design gold', it clearly points out the three main principles of design that need to be considered during the creative process. If a designer can meet these three principles consistently then they should prove to be very succesful in the industry.

Saffer goes on to discuss the common mistakes that those who are new to interaction design often make. He says that one of these mistakes is "not coming up with enough variations—or, more accurately, not being able to come up with more alternatives. Which is to say, falling in love with one direction and not being able to see others. Often, this direction is something familiar, that the designer is comfortable with." I think this is a trap that most designers, of all standards, have probably fallen into at some point or another; myself included. The designer's skillset and creative process can become somewhat one-dimensional as the designer takes a direction that they have used before and are comfortable with. This can lead to repitition in the designer's work and eventually cause their toolset to become very limited. I believe a designer needs to experiment and learn new things, which Saffer later touches on when he mentions the need to tinker.

I would also like to briefly discuss Saffer's means of inspiration. He describes his desire for seeking inspiration in the interfaces of actual, physical machines. This is an area that I had never seriously considered as a source of inspiration for interaction design before reading this interview. I can now however, realise that sometimes it helps to think outside of the box when seeking inspiration.

The final point of discussion is Saffer's irritations/distractions whilst working. His answer included the following quotation; "My own ignorance, lack of skills, or inability to grasp new concepts. My own limitations are always more frustrating than almost anything external." I can certainly relate to this statement as I have often found myself in a position where I have an idea in my head but I find the task of reflecting this idea onto a blank canvas very challenging. It is these limitations of my own that I find to cause me the most frustration during the creative process. A way to improve on these limitations is to divulge in as much relevant information as possible to broaden your view of design.

Interview 2 - Joel Schafer: 'I'm into minimalistic, clean design'
When describing his own design process Schafer says "I always write down everything to paper before starting a software." This is also where I start my own design process (after seeking inspiration). I find that it helps to make a few rough sketches of a website design in order to help organise the various page elements in your mind and to have something visual to work from when you move onto software.

Schafer also states that a "good photographer is always good to know." This is a good example of how I could expand my own network in order to lessen my own design limitations.

When listing the languages he uses for coding, he mentions "ActionScript, html, xml and sometimes php. These languages is all I need." I think that this is a slightly short-sighted view as my belief is that you need to know whatever the client requests and this request may require coding knowledge outside of that bracket. Therefore to state that those languages are all he needs is, in my opinion, slightly ignorant as he has failed to consider that there are other posibilities.

Portfolio v2.0: http://www.stephengreig.com/

I soon got bored with my portfolio and design service website so I decided to re-design it. During the designing process I tried to consider organisation, professionality, simplicity and usability.

The main difference between the previous design and v2.0 is the simplicity element. Previously, you would enter the 'work' area and have a list of categories to explore. The way the work was presented was 4 thumbnails to a page with next/back buttons to move onto the next/previous set of 4 thumbs. This format meant the work area contained several web pages which could have caused some confusion.
For v2.0, the work area has been stripped to it's bare bones and it now consists of just 3 web pages, each with a very clear and organised gallery layout. There is a gallery for Client work, Other work and Graded work.

The services area has also been massivly simplified. Previously there were many options to click on, such as logo design, website design etc etc. The services area for v2.0 is now just a single web page with very clear content detailing what I can offer to the client.

I'm pleased with the new look and plan to use it for at least another 6 months before I get bored with it again and start on v3.0!

Here's all the design work I've done since my last post in May.

So we've started a new academic year... time to reinvent my blog which has been somewhat neglected over the summer. I wanted to design my own Blog template, but that's been put on the backburner until I have sufficient time to do it; so in the meantime I've found this nice, new template to do the job. I designed a header splash thing to try and give this skin more of a unique feel.

In terms of the year ahead, I'm hoping to expand my knowledge of web development, particularly more complex coding languages which in turn will allow me to broaden the services which I can offer to clients.

I will be updating my blog soon with all the design stuff I've done since my last post.