mattrobin.com

Notice: Blogging break for a short while [4]

Matt Robin — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 20:08:43 GMT

There are some new changes coming to the site…

I’m a bit busy right now, so I’m going to give my blog a break for a short time. Keep the RSS feed handy though – I’ll be back! ;)

Cheers!

Matt

Molly Holzschlag joins the Opera! [2]

Matt Robin — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 01:09:10 GMT

If you’re reading this and you don’t know much about Web Design or Web Standards – you might not get this article. You might be left scratching your head and wondering why I even bothered to write it at all.

For anyone who has been following Web Standards, even for a short time, this recent news is a big deal. It’s a big deal for Molly, it’s a big deal for Opera, and it’s a big deal for Opera’s software users.

Myth: Web Design Perfection [2]

Matt Robin — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 02:47:22 GMT

This post could have been titled in so many different ways, essentially though: Web Design Perfection (like the perfection of anything else) is a complete myth. That’s not opting-out from the challenge of doing great work, and some Web Design can be brilliant, but the pursuit of perfection is an insane folly and a total waste of time!

Designers (and I’ll include Web Designers too) are natural perfectionists…constantly trying to do better, do more. The problem with doing more and more though is that it can lead to projects becoming ‘over-designed’, pushed too far past the great original concepts they might have been. Good designers know when to hold-back from pursuing perfection at all costs, the moment of ‘this is far enough guys!’

Your web site needs a redesign [4]

Matt Robin — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 19:12:09 GMT

You know those commercials, ‘Puppies are not just for Christmas, they are for life,’…each year, people buy cute-looking dogs only to abandon them later on when they become too much to look after.

Although less tragic (obviously), it seems that web sites are not so different! People and companies frequently snap up domain names and hosting/web-space because they think ‘this is a good idea, we must have one of these,’ only to throw something together quickly and then neglect its on-going development.

If you think hiring a Professional Web Designer costs too much – just ask yourself this: ‘Do I want my site to be successful and not look like the dog’s dinner in two years time?’ then hire someone who’s good, they’re worth it.

Good Web Design is ALSO about providing good experiences [3]

Matt Robin — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 17:32:09 GMT

Trust a super-talented, User Experience Designer (not a Web Designer) to indirectly highlight one of the current failings of the Web Design Community! In Whitney Hess’ recent, brilliant article for the mainstream, Social Media web site, ‘Mashable’, the same list of 10 Most Common Misconceptions (for User Experience Design) could have easily been reapplied to Web Design too!

My subsequent comments on Whitney’s own blog site, Pleasure and Pain, are worth repeating here…

This article is being brought to you by a Web Designer who does appreciate that ‘Good Web Design is ALSO about providing good experiences’ – something that is not only the exclusive domain of the User Experience Specialist.