Into a new playground - UE

Having decided to dive into the UE arena, im seeing infinite opportunities of improvement and there are lots and lots of new information and skills to be tamed and ive just started my journey towards a UE developer. Moving away from the likes of Visual designing will definitely make a low morale, but the way im moving seems to be more apt and i believe this is what im destined to be in. The starting will definitely be a bitter experience and there wont be any cakewalk..thats sure. As a first step, im trying to learn the basics of AJAX. After the briefing from my Manager, this decision of mine alone can fetch me a good project in my workplace, and this decision will affect my entire career and im prepared for that. This blog can be a place where my experimentations and aspirations in UE Development will find place....and really looking forward for a better UE experience.

The 'Aero' experience

Its all about the new windows vista! Microsoft has put on a great effort in this latest version of windows...to make a hell a lot of new features and a great new look. i would say that this is microsoft's greatest ever release of their new OS version and i am all praises for this sort of an effort from the S/w giant. But like every new products, this version of windows has also got a lot of minuses or shortcomings rather, that the IT gurus all over the world would say. Lets go through the pros and cons of this exciting new version and lets come to know what actually can vista give users... First let me take through the highlights if the OS Vista's single best feature is the graphics subsystem and Aero "Glass" user experience it enables (when your hardware supports it). Direct support for advanced 3-D graphics processors, vector-based graphics and fonts, DPI scaling, reflections, transparencies, 3-D movements and a whole range of visual improvements account for the most profound change to Vista. The new integrated desktop search features, the ability to save searches as dynamic collections, and some new data sorting and visualizing options (including "stacking") make up the next most significant feature set. Have a luk at the mindblowing interface for the Vista start screen 8-)

Another what's-new story about Vista concerns bundled applications. Vista adds several new apps, such as Windows Defender, Sidebar, Calendar, Photo Gallery, DVD Maker, Fax and Scan, and BitLocker full-volume encryption. Significantly upgraded bundled apps include Internet Explorer 7+, Windows Mail (Outlook Express), Media Player 11, Movie Maker, Speech Recognition, Windows Meeting Space (Wi-Fi-based peer presentation/file sharing), automatic hard-drive defragmentation and disk backup. There are loads of stuffs that we can add as highlights...but since i have to go to bed and since there is a time constrain...let me make a quick drift towards the cons of the subject.

These are the some of the headaches associated with the Vista users in the future. Well...this can be MS's new strategy to raise the bar and to increase the hardware sales as well, but its for sure that there are some sufferers also. Vista requires 128MB of video memory in order for the up-level Aero Glass features to take effect.

The stratification of PCs based on whether they can display Aero will become a headache for IT managers. This problem is likely to grow over time, as more business-class PCs are equipped with 128MB or more of video memory. Most business people have little use for 128MB of video RAM

Will be back with more information soon...till then its gnite...:)

WINDOWS Vista - Is it worth the wait??

The much hyped release of the Windows Vista is almost around the corner...and the innovative features are being brought to the daylight. In this juncture where the hype has been the highest ever in the history of microsoft...i m just wondering if, this release of the new OS from Microsoft is worth the wait !! Well...im gathering some solid information about this so called 'cool' windows...and lets find out if this is what the tech world was waiting for...watch out for the next few posts from me.....

Web Designers and Developer's Handbook

A great resource for Web Designers and Developers. http://www.alvit.de/handbook/

Crossing the development barrier .....

The last couple of months were very important for my career as a professional trying to make the web a better place. Having been involved in a project that gave me more or less great opportunities to peep into the complexities and the processes of site development, was indeed an invaluable experience added to my career. This has been my first project in which i was working on completely CSS based layouts. The talents around me were always inspiring me to deliver the best and there was a sense of competition in the air. This is what ive been dreaming of for the last years in my career and this exactly is what i needed to build a robust basement to my professinal career as a Creative Designer. But there are some downfalls...some compromises rather... Now i have started to understand, how important it is to concentrate in development technologies that are essential for a Creative. Having worked on visual designing and more into graphic and flash animations...this was my first exposure to a more development oriented project and it really helped to find out a way or rather identify my real vision as a designer. So here is a small thought for all those designers sticking to visual designing(Of course who are willing to undergo changes and want to have a broader and out there in the blue....guys...if you really want to come up in your career with a broader perspective of the web, rather than wanting to stick onto visual designing...go and try out the latest technologies that are taking the web with a storm. There are hell a lot of technologies out there and you cant just master them in a fortnight...So make up your mind and try to learn some of them which really can make a difference in you and which would give u an edge over others... Im all set to dive into the development arena and am gonna cross the development barrier as a designer...:)..wait for some cool posts in those new technologies...

Yahoo! Bangalore looking for visual designers and Interaction Designers

Hi All....Heard that yahoo is looking for talents in Visual Design and Interaction Designing in India. They have even asked interested Pros to send their version of a future web2.0 Mail inbox interface. Want to know more? bangalore.yahoo.com/design Well give it a try and be a part of the company leading the next generation Interactive web :)

Caught between the Google and Yahoo wave...

The WWW is undergoing some serious transformations these days. Thanks to the revolutionary competition between the 2 giants Yahoo and Google. There have been some news or the other these days from that are leading a much aggressive revolution in the web. I think the recent news that has stuck me was the agreeing of Google to acquire YouTube.com, a consumer media company for people to watch and share original videos worldwide through a Web experience. This increases the strength of the search engine giant to many more folds and makes it a better competent for Yahoo as far as web video is concerned. Get the facts from http://www.google.com/press/pressrel/google_youtube.html The good news is that there are tonnes of news to follow that would leave us with some good thoughts to pass on and this certainly will be a healthy ground for aspiring Creatives and Interaction designers. Watch out for the cool stuffs.....

The Perfect Interface a.k.a Yahoo Beta Mail

Yes...its the perfect mail interface ive ever worked with. The all new Yahoo mail beta interface is the coolest of all, ive ever used. Having had a found out how friendly that interface was, i was just wondering if yahoo is gonna lead the next generation interface revolution in web. They are giving a lot of efforts into the user experience and interaction design in each and every products of theirs. This also is a evident threat to their arch rival - Google. But google is another giant in this field and never one to be underestimated, they are really into this competition by making some key acquisitions of some strategic companies....the acquisition of Youtube.com being one of the costliest ever acquisition done by google for a single company. Get the facts and figures about the deal from - http://www.google.com/intl/en/press/ pressrel/google_youtube.html This huge leap for google will help them match their video presence in web with that of yahoo. Lets watch patiently what this competition is going to gift us with. No doubt there is something i n the store for us that is far better than the present......lets hope atleast :)

The constituents of success...not cake ofcourse !

The passed-by week was one of the important moments in my professional life. There were instances that made me know my shortcomings and there were some eventful days that really brought about a seriousness in me. I was always taking things for granted and that week showed me how dangerous those casual approach will be to one's career. It has been an eyeopener for me and ive found many key factors that are unavoidable and essential for a clear and successful career. Being a creative designer, patience is a compulsory trait and that is ought to come through experience. But, ive understood that the soft skills or exceptional talent in designing an awesome layout or sailing through an application are never the skills that would help one designer climb the corporate ladder upwards. Those are just the weapons that one might have to sharpen even more, daily, for surviving in the exploding competition day by day. The things that actually matter are the interpersonal skills and ability to lead an organised life. I personally believe that once you are confident enough in your personal life the confidence in your professional life follows...those just follow. In a drive to set some of my shortcomings right...im focussed on my interpersonal and other skills like concentration and organised approach. So by now....its all the known fact that success is not a cake walk and ive just realised that...;)

Being a great company enabling human potential....

Hi All....Its been a pretty long time since ive posted. Ive been travelling towards north for a project and now im working in the headoffice of our company in Delhi. Its much different atmosphere here. The professional way of working can be found in each and every thing that is done here and there is a far better pool of talents here. Working with such intellects really brings up the best in you and there is an urge to deliver everytime you work on a project. The long hours that are spent in office are normal here and people just dont bother working long, and this doesnt mean that there is no fun here. Work hard and party harder is the buzzword. There are loads of fun and its the reason why this is the second best place to work for in the country. Always compelling one to deliver his best out of him, SAPIENT indeed is a great place to work for. Drawing inspiration from the daily happenings here and surely improving day by day. This is one state of mind which ive dreamt to be in for years. More cool stuff to follow here in my blog...hangon and share your views with me.

Lets start CSS ing ........

Its high-time to dive back to CSS :). Here in SAPIENT, there is a new assignment waiting for me and hope that it provides the thrust and inspiration for the my CSS aspirations. Im just been informed about this new opportunity and it surely will be a challenging experience, working with senior designers in delhi. Starting to get warmed up with the cascading style sheets and there is a long path ahead of me to ebe explored !! Having agreed to travel to delhi for this project, there will be yet another couple or maybe three months of hardships as far as food and lifestyle is concerned. But the compromises that are being made surely are for some really great returns. The work environment there in delhi is absolutely superb and a chance to work with a team of talented senior designers is never to be wasted. Lets see what happens in another 3 months and im sure that whatever maybe happening, that will be indeed an added advantage for my career :), afterall life's a journey where all gud and bad experiences are great reminders and gives a real boost to survive in the competitive world. Have planned to give some useful posts, technically regarding CSS in times to come..... So pals...watch out for the CSS torrent of posts :D

Back after some quality family time....

Enjoyed some quality family time back home. Those were some really refreshing moments out there and really helped to recall that, there are something else in life other than the usual project shedules, meetings and others stuffs. Being with the people who love us and whom we love is an experience and that could really act as a refreshing factor in life. I just experienced that back home this time. Lot of things to be done and lot of achievements to be made. Some happiest moments in my life was spent last week back home with my family. Now back to work....... Hope for some cool stuff hereafter..... :D

Starting off for the next milestone for MYSTICPIXELS....a revamp of online portfolio

Its high time to work for a much needed change ! Personally and professionally, i feel this is the time for a well streamlined change. Its been months and years since ive given my complete effort to a masterpiece of mine, and i feel this is the time. Working with one of the best professional IT consultants in the country, there is a scope for some drastic improvements and change in my life. Fortunate enough to have been exposed to various levels of life, and experiences acting as timely reminders putting me back in the right track, life has been a great teacher to me and im continuing to draw inspiration from my daily life. Online portfolio updation has been a prioritised task for me for the last few months. Due to various hindrances coming in the way...i was forced to delay the work for some time now. The career break has given me some really fresh ideas and new thoughts to apply in life. Looking forward to integrate all those valuable thoughts into the next version of my online portfolio, and really raring to accomplish that next level. CHEERS.....here comes MYSTICPIXELS V.2.0

Time management and planning - A key to success

Eversince ive joined SAPIENT, bangalore, there have been one thing or the other happening everyday. Now, into the orientation program that im exposed to here, it was really impressive and there is a sense of feeling that im being provided with some key information that i think were missing in my professional life. "TIME MANAGEMENT" was the topic and the training spanned a full day of interactive and useful workshop. Handled by Rema from "TIME MANAGEMENT INTERNATIONAL", it was indeed a treasure of information being passed on to all the thirteen of us, all being associates in respective streams. Eventhough these were the basics that my dad have been telling me from childhood, its our nature to pay more attention to something thats being compulsorily forced upon us rather than on something which is available freely. That was exactly what happened here also. I feel satisfied now having listened to the session carefully and grabbed some points and principles that Rema was trying to convey. Now the real challenge lies in actually implementing those things in the real life, and that is what counts ! The four box models of planning and other topics are really useful to be implemented in the real life and there are more stuff coming the next day, in the form of "BUSINESS COMMUNICATION". Exposed to such stringent and valuable orientation programs for the first time, its been a reallly eventful experience and hope to continue with the good spirit.

Position hierarchy of a creative design profession...a dilemma ..

This still seems to be a mystery search for me..... Being a creative designer, Ive been puzzled about the prospective positions that one such professional can get after he has gained pretty much experience in the field. Having found a dream company for creatives...im still confused if a creative designer is having a wider options as compared to a developer, in case of the prospective roles that he can play in his employer organisation. Considering the fact that, creative designers cant play a much important role than developers in an IT company...i doubt if a senior creative designer position is all wat a creative designer can get in an IT company. Of course, a creative designer is in much demand than a developer in a multimedia company, but when it comes to software companies....the role of a creative designer is limited. It often gets limited to a senior creative designer or atmost a manager creative designer or likewise positions. Looking down the line, i feel that, a creative designer to make it to the top of the hierarchy tree, he should be ready to sacrifice something in his career. Maybe, he can opt for a role of Information Architect or so on goes the tree. But in the case of an IA, he moving closer to a developer role and he surely needs to sacrifice the creative thirsts within him..... Wonder....if thats the only option left ................

Its a traffic junkyard here.....but yes there are some positives too ;)

Just getting to settle down in the silicon valley and into my second week here. Of all these adays that i ve spend here ive found the traffic here horrible. Long unending queues of vehicles are a daily sight in this siliconvalley city. Maybe the architects of the city forgot that they are gonna face such huge surge of population when they planned the city. This city is exploding all the time and i fear its time this mushrooming come to an end soon, bringing peace to the mind of lakhs..atleast a lil bit ;) Now coming into the experiences that i had so far here, it was phenomenal. The new company that ive joined has made me awestruck seeing the professional approach that they are implementing into the whole process. It really is to provide me with loads of wisdom and knowledge in years to come down the line. Im a happy man in that case...but again the traffic and the bombarding cost of living in this materialistic city is alarming. Lets think that its a compromising factor considering the exposure and the knowledge treasure waiting to be unlocked...Bringing some wisdom thoughts and bringing a professionalistic approach will be my objectives here and getting better as a human is always my primary consideration. Hoping that Bangalore has lots to give me in my life and welcoming the great city with an open mind, into my life both as a professional and as an individual.

Back with a bang, in the silicon valley

Regrets for the long gaps with no posts. Bit occupied with things, making a career shift. Now, this post comes from the silicon valley of india. Just landed here and am lovin it! This is a fantastic place to be in, and enjoying the atmosphere here every second. Expect some cool stuff from hereon pals, and believe me its gonna be really gud ones :) So wait for em !

Excitedly moving towards a major career break through !

Im excited! Making my shift, to the silicon valley of india, will certainly be a turning point in my career as a designer. The employer being one of the best employer in the country adds to my current state of mind. Have been waiting for such a chance for sometime now and its god's grace that ive got thru this opportunity put forward to me. My new profile will be Associate - Creative Design and Web development, and ill have to concentrate into standard compliant designing, using css and meeting the w3c standards. Have been preparing for sometime now in w3c compliant web pages and there it will be a scintillating experience as far as career and personal life is concerned. Being closer to my family, brings joy to the mind and being with my childhood friends will be refreshing and motivating. Now looking forward to the experiences in my new breeding ground. Watch out Bangalore...Im coming to join you ! ;)

CSS layouts: The next step for a tabler ;-)

Yes....its time to change now. Ive been designing layouts for some time now and ive been doing them using tables till some months before. Since, i came across the CSS style of designing layouts, ive been feeling how badly ive used tables before, hoping away from their actual usage, and deviating from what they are actually meant for in designing web pages. One who knows about the various accessiblility guidelines put forward by 'W3C', shud avoid using tables for just positioning and beautifying the layout. They are not meant for tat! CSS is there for positioning. It would be a bit difficult for the beginners to transform from the traditional table method to the powerful and flexible CSS method. But the effort is worth it and it will be a graduation to the next level of layout designing. Im enjoying my journey from the old table layouts to the brand new CSS layouts. Of course, internet is my ultimate teacher and it virtually unimaginable where i would have been standing without this information superhighway. Ill keep you all posted on the advancements hereon.......Stay on and alive here :-)

Was a bit occupied with some work all these days...no posts as a result

XML & HTML - Peeping into this relationship...

Having decided to concentrate in the web, ive been in a search for a technology which enables me to put some dynamic data into my webpages without having to go too far into complex database packages like Oracle, SQL and all. Having met XML, i think the search is almost over for me now ! XML - Xtensible Markup Language, can be efficiently used with html, to create some brilliant user experience. This language is actually for managing the data and we can display it through HTML, XSL. It as all other languages is an ocean and the key is to master those parts of the technology that you need and which are of most use for yourself in effectively increasing the speed of workflow, and im just trying to do that with this language. Right now im referring XML bible, and once i get the technical parts right, i shall be in a position to enter the league of XML pros....hopefully and expect more useful posts from me related to this new technology also from me.

Adieu Tables.....Enter the CSS

It seems that the era of tables will be meeting its end sooner or later. With the advent of CSS, the tabular way of layouting is no longer considered professional. The DIV tag is starting to dominate the web all over. But there is room for the tables, due to the robust and precise output that they give and that is the reason that they are surviving the war with CSS. But speaking technically, CSS layouts using div tags are preferred over tables, coz of their flexibility. You include all the formatting and layouting parameters in the css file and just place the data in tags in the html, and whenever you need a change in theme or even the whole layout, voila......it all can be done in seconds...thats the power of using CSS in designing layouts. Also, tables stand valid for laying out tabular data and that is wat table is meant for. So, no more spacer images......or table hacks...lets be a part of the transition from tables to CSS. HAIL CSS !! HAIL DIV !! But we remember you, sweet TABLES ;-) !

Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) | beware of this injury !

Just went through an article that says about this health problem that most designers face with. Its Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI), which results of repetitive actions that are inevitable for designers like the usage of mouse and hands to do repetitive tasks. Have a luk at this article and you will find how to take precautionary measures to avoid this.

Best ever css tutorial ive come across !

This is simply awesome. The tutorial flow and the content here in this css tutorial is really superb. A gr8 thing to start with for css aspirants http://css.maxdesign.com.au/selectutorial/index.htm http://friendlybit.com/css/beginners-guide-to-css-and-standards/

Unlocking the treasures of vector illustration

Its been sometime, ive given some quality time to unlock my skills in vector illustration. It was an unopened door and ive never tried to venture to those areas of design. This weekend gave me some inspirational thoughts and some quality time to start experimenting my skills in illustration. Just got amazed how easy it was to make an appealing illustration with a lil bit of eye for details and a load of patience. I successfully did 2 illustrations and uploaded it in my portfolio section in my portfolio site. Have a luk at them in www.mysticpixels.net/portfolio.htm Now on ill be working to improve my vector illustrating skills. :-)

2advanced crosses the flash barrier with DDL

Was going deep into the v.5 of 2advanced official site. They just amazes me with the amount of hardwork and innovation being included in each of their work. This one is a real stunner for the entire flash community. This time, we have to gaze into the usage of technology in the site rather than the jazzy animations that used to be their primary weapon. They have literally crossed the barrier of flash usability hurdles when compared to a html site. 'Use' the site, and you will find that it behaves like an html site, with all functionalities of a browser available, despite being a complete flash site. They have made the site to communicate with the browser using some groundbreaking technologies. After going through the case studies given in the site which is basically a behind the scene article, i came to knwo that they have developed a modular sub-system called DDL(Dynamic Deep Linking), that enables the flash movies to commnicate with the user's browser, which are believed to be impossible in a flash site. Now we can use the history, back, forward buttons, create bookmarks, etc, without returning to the start of the movie. Another breathtaking innovation done by these guys are XML data caching, where the browser requests for data are processed from an XML file that is already cached in the user's system, which reduces the overall time taken and increases the user experience. Really amazing are these guys and lets get inspired from the leaders and let some revolutionary design be born. Cheers...

Web2.0 continues to amaze me...

This new buzzword in the internet world has been amazing me for months. Sorry, i cudnt post any interesting titles about it. Now, i feel its time i say some of my views too about it. Its all about smart handling of information and there is nothing new in this as far as technologies are concerned. But we can see a large difference in the usability, user interaction and other factors in these new web apps tat comes branded as an application of web2.0. Let me put forward some examples. 'Delicious' - is an amazing application of web2.0, in which we can organise, maintain the bookmarks based on tagging system. This types of applications are user centric. ie, users play an important part in the contents of these apps. For instance, in delicious, we can post a link and organise it under a tag, that we think is suitable for that particular link. Now, the application is having a centralised database where it compares our entry with the millions of other entries by other users and allocate a priority to it, or give a sort of rank to that link tat denotes its popularity among the users. Basically we will be classifying the links under tags. These tags are the main factors for identifying a link here. We can Classify a link in more than one tag, thus increasing the meaningfulness and easiness to organise a link. There are a lot of applications like this which serve different purposes. Flickr - online photo sharing app, digg - online news system, listible - links posted by users, suprglu - bringing all web2.0 information in one page based on ur username. These are some of my favs. But there are heck a lot of web2.0 apps working now. Will try to post some useful information about them. Cheers

Usability...What it is?

Came to know about a new field of design(wonder if its new....but yes it is for me ;-)) called 'USABILITY'. Just trying to know something about this. Went through some links from a senior's blog. This basically deals with the user experience with the application/website whatever it is and would need a gud understandign about the users of the respective scenarios. Its basically making the web more usable. Am exploring more about this. Any comments would be appreciated...

A link a day keeps the doctor away...

Pals, this is the new found proverb that tell about the importance of links in this world of information. Just how important this four letter word have become in our daily life! I would say that the primary skill that a netizen shud have in order to effectively use the information highway to his use, will have to be the ability to identify and manage useful links that may lead to a goldmine of information....virtually! Was just trying to find out about a topic out of curiosity, and just ended up with a blog that had almost all the needed links for me to understand the topic. Amazed by the power of the web, in the way it excels to provide us with the vital information, im wondering whats the ultimate capability of this highway..? I think its infinite...yes web comes with infinite possibilities. So, the next time you are short of an information, remember....the link is waiting for you to explore.use the web to its fullest and you may experience some really unexpected changes in your life....yes believe me, its true !!! Cheers......

The leaders show the way once again - 2advanced in its new luk!

From time immemorial, the designer community have been fascinated by the skills and the out of the box concepts exhibited by 2advanced designs. They continue to fascinate the designers worldwide. Now its in the form of their latest version of site.....'attractor'. This version boasts of the best ever usage of latest web technologies and design in flash, and is company's best version of their website launched ever. The notable thing is that they made the community wait in the pinpoint for their launch, by introducing a cracked design of their previous version. All the hoax beginned on 26th of may when the studio uploaded a design of their then current version, which was cracked all over and seemed like 2advanced was being hacked by somebody ;-)....they made all teh designers extremely keen for the new version and atlast after 2 or 3 days, they lauched the version 'attractor', which is not only a feast to the eyes but also, have exhibited a great blending of technologies and have once again showed the community how the limits can be challenged... Now about the new design..as far as the traditional 2a style is concerned, they have made a different approach here. Now we cant see the jazzy..dynamic animations that adored the 2a sites for long. They have given more importance to the content here and have made effective usage of dynamic content technologies like XML etc... The bg of the site is a classic, done by eric jordan himself. They are really cool. But i fear the latest 2a site id meant only for the high speed users and it that heavy.... Another great thing done by them was the launch of theri new official blog site - 'www.plat4m.com'. Lets draw inspiration frm the emperors and lets move on.....

Flash video - how easy it is with the Flash8

Ive been working with some flash videos, and was making some R&D on the topic. Found out how easily video can be deployed to web using the all new flash8 and Dreamweaver8. Basically there are mainly 2 types in which u can present a video on the web, as Progressive download video, or a Streaming video. The progressive Dload videowill be dloaded to the user's Hard disk and wil be played even before it completes its dload, unless the user stops the dload process. The streaming video will be played directly from the server and no dloading to the client machine. There are a lot more issues to be uncovered. Will be updating on all those.... Cheers!

Freelancing...is it that tough ??? :-(

Have been working hard to establish in freelancing, but while working in a company. Well, the first 2 experiences have given me very bitter memories. The client's and my perspectives were never matching. I was just hoping that ill get the design confirmation as soon as i show him the first draft, but he is so demanding and never liked the designs that i did over and over again, atlast there was a point of time where we had to abort the project. Dont know if he is playing any prank, but nothing has worked for me yet. Still trying hard. As far as the designs are concerned, i dont think ive done a bad job at all. They( 4 different layouts) were professional enough and i cant think of a reason y it shud ve failed. Anyway all these are learning experiences and will have 2 live with it. Now im into settingup my online portfolio, asap......looking for a change towards a dream company :-)

Inspirations, inspirations...........

Sitting idle in the workplace, just gifted me some valuable time to get deeper into the fathoms of the net. Always a source for inspiration, this network of information is really amazing, and ive been telling this for years and i really cant help saying it...... Was going through a famous forum for flash and tried to know more about it. Was just amazed about the person behind such a phenomenal meeting point of flash aspirers and professionals all around the world. The wow factor just got bigger when i came to know that the person behind this was a student and who is younger than me....wanna know which forum im talking about? It is kirupa.com, a guy called kirupa chinnathampi is behind this and he is a sophomore in MIT (Sophomore means second year undergraduate in US), specialising in electrical engineering and computer science. Was really aweinspired by this and was wondering how much room for improvement a man can get if he is in european/american countries !!!! The course structure there and other things that are available there are some key factors of this difference. No wonder y there are such great designers out there in those developed countries. I think for india to be in the map of designers worldwide, we need such course structures that make the students realise the right path to chose and to provide genuine information about the standards of designing for various media. Now, as the case is, i dont think there are too many designers who are trained in their budding stage from genuine trainers, they just come out by trial and error and thsi may hamper the design standard of indian designers......so according to me well structured courses related to designing can bring india to the global designer map.

Microsoft Announces Steps to Address Eolas Patent Ruling

Microsoft Announces Steps to Address Eolas Patent Ruling Documentation for Developers and Modest Changes in Software Will Minimize or Eliminate Impact on Consumers and Address Issues Raised by Aug. 11 Ruling While Appeal Moves Forward Oct. 2003 REDMOND, Wash., Oct. 6, 2003 — Microsoft Corp. today announced how it will respond to the August jury decision in the Eolas patent lawsuit. The steps include modest changes to Microsoft® Windows® and Internet Explorer as well as measures that Web developers and others who use Internet Explorer technology can take to ameliorate or eliminate the impact of the ruling. Microsoft is providing full documentation for these changes to help guide Web developers and other developers that use its Internet Explorer technology to create the best possible user experience. Other companies providing specialized documentation related to this change are listed on the Web site at http://msdn.microsoft.com/ieupdate/. "This ruling affects more than just Microsoft; it affects a broad array of partners and customers -- including companies that many would view as competitors," said Michael Wallent, general manager of the Windows Client Platform at Microsoft. "Microsoft has been very proactive in reaching out to this group to develop steps that will reduce or eliminate the ruling's impact on consumers and other companies, even as we appeal it." "Microsoft and Macromedia have worked together for years to deliver great Web experiences," said Norm Meyrowitz, president of products, Macromedia. "Together, we have developed a straightforward solution that should result in little impact for our mutual customers." Eolas Technologies Inc. is the exclusive licensee of a patent owned by the University of California. In the case, Eolas asserted that the patent covered one specific mechanism used by Web page authors to embed and automatically invoke certain interactive programs. Although Microsoft asserted that the patent was invalid due to pre-existing inventions, the court refused to let the jury consider the prior art. The jury rendered its verdict on Aug. 11, 2003. The parties are still in the process of submitting their post-trial motions and briefs. The final judgment has not yet been entered. The solution developed by Microsoft has two main parts: • First, Microsoft will make minor changes to Internet Explorer's handling of some Web pages that use ActiveX® Controls, such as Macromedia Flash, Apple QuickTime, RealNetworks RealOne, Adobe Acrobat Reader, Sun Java Virtual Machine and Microsoft Windows Media® Player. It is currently anticipated that this change will be deployed by early next year. If Web developers have not updated their Web pages using the techniques suggested by Microsoft and others, users may see a simple dialog box before the browser loads the ActiveX Control. • Second, Microsoft and other industry partners are working to provide documentation for Web developers that describe how to author Web pages so the dialog box would not be necessary. Further information on the proposed changes to Internet Explorer and early versions of the documentation are available on the MSDN® Web site at http://msdn.microsoft.com/ieupdate/. In addition to working with others across the industry on technical solutions to this problem, Microsoft has said it intends to appeal the ruling. Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software -- any time, any place and on any device. Microsoft, Windows, ActiveX, Windows Media and MSDN are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ on Microsoft's corporate information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft's Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.asp .

Crappy frame around flash files in IE - New IE Headaache !!

IE has given a headache for the users worldwide recently. There appears a frame around all the flash files being opened in IE, and it needs the user to click once on it to activate it and to get rid of the frame. This is a frustrating experience for the users. IE did this because they lost a patent dispute with Eolas about plug-ins Alternative There is an alternative to avoid this crap from your browser. Read http://blog.deconcept.com/swfobject/

The fantastic world of 3D modelling

Pals, Just peeped into a whole new world of 3D modelling. Seems like a small kid gazing to the mountainious terrains and climbers trying to conquer each peaks.... This is a real vast landscape where one have to be so patient and alert. Making up mind to leap into this field requires a lot of perseverance i understand now. Let me see if i can maintain the same level of enthusiasm and interest all the time as far as 3D modelling is concerned Starting to experiment with the userfriendly Swift3D, and planning to go further..... But will be moving deep and steady only after may -2, as ill be leaving for my home town this weekend and wll be back only by then... Now my mind is excited about my meeting with my family :-D

The power of vector and 3d animation in web

Just beginning to unpack the exciting world of vector and 3d animation in web. How cool these vector graphics are, when used efficiently in website layouts !! There seems to be no limit for my joy. Just uploaded a website, after using some vector graphics in it, and i feel like a notch up in my graphic design abilities. These vector graphics are changing the entire standard of the whole layout and a sense of professional touch seems to be present in the page :-) The vector tool tat im using is corel draw-12 and this is just amazing......!!!! Now into another area where there is equal, perhaps more excitement!!! 3d animation in web....! Yup im talking about the cool 3d animation software for web - SWIFT 3D. Trying to inculcate a 3d touch to my future projects, by learning advanced modelling and animation techniques so that i can upgrade into high end 3d tools like 3dmax and maya in the future :-) Oooh lala..there is a whole new world out there still to be explored...........!!!!!

Feeling lost in a sea of developers......

Developers developers everywhere...not a 'quality' designer to work with..... You need not be a shakespeare to produce such masterpieces..;-).....i feel like this in my current job. With a stream of developers around i feel lost as a designer. Iwas always luking for a palce where i can share my ideas with my designer team mates, and learn new techniques and sharpen my design skills from the seniors of the team. But, there seems to be no end for my dilemma....this is going to a wild goose chase for me.....expecting a designer team to be built here in my company!! Anyway..all i can do is to wait, wait, wait, wait......and WAIT :-_ _

XML...New Horizons in Flash

Nowadays, im in love with the markup language that will be bringing about a huge change in my career and skills. Im talking about the all too good XML !!. This eXtensible Markup Language is really a gr8 experience to work upon. With the power of dynamic data being read and passed, ive decided to adopt this powerful weapon into my arsenal!!! More interesting posts related to XML and its integration into flash are on the way. Watch out friends.....:-)

Adobe and Symantec Team to Protect Consumers Online

Adobe and Symantec Team to Protect Consumers Online SAN JOSE, Calif. * March 2, 2006 * Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced a partnership with Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMC) to simplify the accessibility of tools to increase PC safety and security for Internet users. Initially, the two companies will offer a complimentary trial and the option of special pricing for the Norton Internet Security 2006 suite to users who are downloading the latest version of Adobe Reader. Adobe and Symantec are working together to offer quick, easy and cost-efficient ways for a broad base of consumers to protect their PCs from viruses, worms and other Internet security threats leveraging the broad reach of Norton®, the Internet’s leading security brand, and Adobe Reader® software, which -- together with Adobe’s Macromedia Flash Player -- is installed on 600 million connected PCs and devices worldwide.“Adobe’s trusted PDF document format and Symantec’s strong track record of security and protection remove barriers to consumers getting the most out of using the Internet,” said Kurt Garbe, vice president of Platform, Adobe Systems. “This joint effort is the first step in a growing relationship with Symantec. Combining Adobe’s broad reach with Symantec’s award-winning PC security software will help make the Internet a safer place for people to access and engage with the information and services they need.” Both companies have worked to establish new standards in security. Adobe has set the bar for delivering protected digital documents and experiences while Symantec has pioneered solutions to deliver Internet and data security capabilities that work seamlessly to protect customers’ computers from virus outbreaks and malicious hacker attacks. “Symantec estimates that 30-40% of all connected consumer systems are not adequately protected,” said Enrique Salem, senior vice president, consumer products and solutions, Symantec. “Our relationship with Adobe offers the broadest possible group of consumers a new avenue to protect their PCs online in a quick, cost-effective way.” Norton Internet Security 2006 gives consumers the confidence to travel the Internet, protected from viruses, hackers, spyware, and spam. Norton Internet Security 2006 includes Norton AntiVirus™ with integrated spyware protection, Norton Personal Firewall, Norton AntiSpam™ and Norton™ Parental Control. Users will receive updates throughout the year with the purchase of a one-year subscription for ongoing protection against the most recent Internet threats.

Managing CSS - Good tips here...

Was just going through this post which gives some cool tips for managing CSS. Chk it out @ http://erraticwisdom.com/2006/01/18/5-tips-for-organizing-your-css

Yahoo! widgets....New incarnation of yahooo...services..

It seems yahoo is never one to stop trying new concepts and add more to their already fabulous service lists. Now, being acquired "Konfabulator", they have launched "Yahoo! Widgets", a cool application that site pretty in your desktop and extends your reach to virtually anything in this infinite webspace. I just came to know about this brand new service of yahoo from one of my seniors' blog. Check it out @ http://widgets.yahoo.com

Finding out and deleting unwanted images from a site images folder

Narrowing down unwanted images and then deleting them from a images folder of a large site with lots of images, is a painstaking job. With the powerful dreamweaver at our disposal, ths job, no more is a hefty business. This web authoring tool provides its best for a designer in all means. Using Dreamweaver, we can find out orphaned files(ie, files that are left unlinked and unused). I would like to give a smal account on how to accomplish this task. One of the basic acions to be performed before starting do design a site in dreamweaver is to define the site. This enables dreamweaver to setup links and relate the files within the site folder and perform operations as the one that we are going to discuss. Finding unused images in a site images folder Handling sites that involve a large amount of images can be a real headache, in terms of maintainence. Especially when there are a lot of changes in images and frequent inserion and deletion of images, the updation of the images folder can be a bit tricky. Manual removal of unused images can be a time consuming job. Dreamweaver offers a solution to this problem.

• Once you have defined a site, we will have to run the link checker option for finding out the orphaned images.
• Goto the results window(menu>>window>>results)

• Select the link checker tab in the window that follows
• Run the link check for the entire site once and then select "orphaned files" from the dropdown
• The list of unused images will be displyed in the window. We can even save the report in a text format for reference.

Backup your site definitions...

Nearing the completion of an very exhausting and gigantic project, that ive done. This is a very much satisfiying, but equally testing project for me. Having completed all the screens in html, now the hurdle before me is to setup a prototype of the application which should indicate the basic screenflow and functionality of the application, to the client. Ther are almost 150 html fiels that need to be linked and maintaining them logically is a great experience. With the powerful dreamweaver, the job indeed is lot faster, but the maintanence is equally challenging for me. Ive been probing for some tips in maintaining files using dreamweaver, and i came across this interesting topic Backing up site definitions in Dreamweaver With a lot of sites to maintain, losing a site defined in dreamweaver can be disastrous. We can export the site definitions in a . ste format and save it for use as a backup. I am posting some screenshots on how this is to be done. From the manage site option from 'site menu', the following screen results. Click on the export button to export the site being selected. Archive the file wherever you want. If you wanna import saved .ste definitions, use the 'import' button to do the same. This really is a saviour in times of data loss. So friends, start backing up your site definitions now...

Expanded View - A gr8 weapon for tablers !!

Dreamweaver is proving its worth, every time i get into it for my projects!!! I was really astonished by the time that it saves for me in designing my pages in html using tables. What a compatibility and support is it providing to to table design. The various layout views in the genuine authoring tool, had always left me stunned for their workflow based support and friendlyness towards the designer. Especially the "Expanded View" in the layout view option is really cool. I could easily find out the table structure of a complex page dome in tables and rectify the flaws in seconds, if i am going for error checking and if its the turn for new page design, the tool enables us to deliver the output in minutes !!!!!! I really have fallen in love with this DREAM weaver :-) Hoping that there are more left in this gr8 tool for me ..... get back to u soon...

A great resource for designers

I just explored a great resource for Web designers, in the form of a blog. This guys blog is really a gr8 database for almost all sort of design queries and tips. http://veerle.duoh.com/

UI Designing - First steps

Im posting this section as a result of the exposure that ive gained as a UI designer in one of my current projects. As a UI designer who is responsible for the html screens and the overall layout and color schemes of an application, there are a lot of base works to be done before diving straight into the work. I would like to share my problems and solutions that were present in the project so far, as a UI designer, to the community.

Now a small overview on the part im playing in this project. My position is a UI designer for an application using j2ee, the team of which comprises of 10 developers and a single UI designer(Thats me!!:-)). Now this is one of the project that has given me a lot to learn and to rectify. My prime role ranges from visualising a layout for the application, to, delivering the client a prototype with a completely linked html screens, which i will have to design with the help of the information from the developers. I can divide the work involved in this project into various levels, viz,

1. Understanding the Application
2. Identifying the user level, requirement, interactivity needed and other restrictions
3. Visualising a layout
4. Creating data elements compliant to the requirement specification
5. Planning of the CSS
6. Integration of HTML with CSS

These are the various levels that ive so far identified in a similar scenario, for a UI designer. Now coming into each of these levels of work:

Understanding the Application This is one of the major part, in every project. The designer should have a sound knowledge of the application. His level of knowledge should be concentrated on the interactivity, usability and user level domains rather than on the technical aspects, which will be taken care by the developers. This can play an important role in the workflow as a gud understanding of the application can lead to innovative ways of presenting the datas that otherwise will be presented in rather conventional ways. An indepth understanding of the application enables a designer to think about the interface and to visualise an interface in his/her mind.

Identifying the user level, requirement, interactivity needed.... Moving a step further into the designing of UI, here we need to study the level of user who is going to use this application, their needs and the usability and interaction that they need as a layman. Here the designer need to think, puttting himself in the shoes of the user, about the various requirements that the user may demand and to come up with solution for a friendly interface that suits the users needs.This can play an important part in deciding the interactivity and overall user friendliness of the application interface. The various factors relating to the application like the screen resolution, whether its an online or offline project, the connection type of the user who uses the application if its online - all these adds to the picture of a user friendly application UI designing. We can go for graphic intensive interface for a website depending on the connection type, but when it comes to an application, where we give a lot of importance to the data, interactivity and above all ,the time taken by the system to respond, we cant afford to consume the bandwidth of the user by including heavy graphics. In this scenario, we need to go for stuff that decreases the page size. It is here CSS comes in handy. Using CSS decreases the page size dramatically as we attach a seperate .css file to all the pages. We will come to CSS application in the following sections. With all the information about the user requirement and basic functionalities of the application, we can go onto the next stage of UI designing...

Visualising a layout This will be a crucial stage if designing a user friendly interface which reflects the client. In this stage of UI designing the designer's creativity, paired with the facts that have been collected in the previous stage can bring out a visually appealing layout that is both easy to navigate and that will make the application simple and yet effective to operate. The selection of color scheme can bring out a visual difference. For example, in my current project i chose blue since it was a preferred option for corporates, and our client was a reputed corporate. Blue can bring a soothing effect to the eyes and thus can make the interface light and calm down the user's vision. Another reason of my deciding to go with blue was, since our application involved a lot of data and the user needed to be working on it all day long, there was a serious issue in making the interface soothing to eyes and to enable the user to work on it for as many hours as needed, and blue was the perfect shade which could bring in that effect. Once the layout is visualised with the header design and footers as is in most of the cases, we need to fix a uniform convention for the data elements in the application. I will explain this with reference to my project. By fixing a uniform convention, i mean to allocate specific positions and parameters for each elements that may appear in the application. For instance, if there is a tabular data to be displayed, fix its appearance with the color of tds, headings, border of the table, fonts used, colors.ie, modularise the layout by identifying each data elements a try to relate them logically so that we can come out with a logical difference in those elements by using colors in different shades. In my case, i had a lot of data to be displayed in a tabular form, a strip which showed general info about the user logged in and an area that displayed information about a particular component. I tried to relate all the available data elements together and differentiated them with colors in the shade of blue. Creating data elements compliant to the requirement specification Now having visualised the layout and confirmed the color scheme and overall appearance, now is the turn to design the data elements that complies with the requirement specification and that suits to the needs of the user. Being more clear, i mean that in this section, we are going to fix the data elements that actually brings in a more comfortable way of operating the application. For example, we can avoid a chaos of datas in a screen and organise them into seperate tabs that make it more easier to the user to access the data, we can simplify the huge datas in a table by logically dividing them into modules of datas in seperate pages, and many more.... This may need a more deeper insight into the working of the application, and we can always discuss with the group of developers, any issues that may arise. This approach not only increases our UI designing skills, but also increases our knowledge on the overall working of any application, thereby making future works easier. Planning of the CSS Job half done.... Now we have all the information about the application with us. Moving further, we need to concentrate only on the look and feel of the interface, along with making it compliant with international norms. As i pointed earlier, when we go for designing html screens, CSS is an inevitable part of the modern designing paradigm. And so, this section is completely dedicated towards the planning of CSS. For this the knowledge that we have gaiend from the last couple of steps will become handy. I am just a beginner in CSS, and thus dont want to make more technical comments on using it. But i wud love to explain some general information that ive gained, on using CSS here... According to me planning a stylesheet is all about understanding the hierarchy of the data elements in the interface and the ability to logically organise them into various parts. There are a lot of references that i would like to direct fellow designers luking for a good start, like -

1. "http://www.contentwithstyle.co.uk/Articles/70/playing-nice-with-the-other-css-kids/"
2. http://veerle.duoh.com/
3. http://www.cssbeauty.com/skillshare/comments.php?DiscussionID=11&page=1

All these links provide an enlightening knowledge about CSS and its prowess Integration of HTML with CSS This is the final part where we make use to html to create screens and integrate CSS in them. My favourite methos to create HTML pages are using tables, rather than the much hyped about div's. Tables are robust and are trustworthy friend of a web-designer. I use Dreamweaver as HTML editor and it is simply a superb web authoring tool with a quick workflow and functionality in it. CSS can also be coded in Dreamweaver, although other CSS editors are also available. Now a major point that i would like to stress is about the coding of html. With tools like dreamweaver, HTML coding is so simple. But when you go for complex interfaces with a lot of datas and tables involved, we need to go to the next level of Dreamweaver usage. What i mean is the ability to code HTML pages in "CODE VIEW". Most designers rely on the design view of the authoring tool for most of their projects. That may be ok for interfaces that involve simple design(a header image and a footer for instance), but a designer can be called strong in dreamweaver, only when he understands and practises how to code the entire page in code view. Im was used to designing pages in the "DESIGN VIEW" in the starting period of my career. I used layers to just place the images on the screens like a WYSIWYG interaction. But, gradually when i got exposed to more complex layouts and designs, i started practising the code view magic of Dreaweaver and its a great boon to my desiging capabilities. I can now design any layout using tables and code view of Dreamweaver. So, my friends, my suggestion to you is to start to practise designing pages in code view rather than getting stuck to the design view. I assure you that, the combination of these 2 views can dramatically increase your workflow and can give you the extra edge over other Design view designers.

I will be posting elaborately n various factors that i come through in due course of time. Useful comments are always welcome :-)

A good resource for css

I just came across this discussion,which i think would be of use to aspiring web designers. http://www.contentwithstyle.co.uk/Articles/70/playing-nice-with-the-other-css-kids/

A Webdesigner's prerequisites....

One of the basic skills of a web-designer, should be his expertise in html and css. There is a common misperception among some designers about html and its simplicity, and the importance of css. Starting the exploration in depth of html and css, was infact a turning point to my web career. This blog will be a reflection of my views and various techniques that i come across in due course of time, relating to the tools that matter the most to a designer. HTML is a vast subject, and a designer should be aware, how to design a page compliant to international standards, than just to give importance to the look and feel of it. For this he needs a vast indepth knowledge of the standards being laid forward by w3c(World wide web consortium), and about the various browsers available. CSS also plays an important role towards the next generation web pages that give no limits to a designer's creativity alongwith complying to the web standards...hence a satisfied client and a internationally standardised webpage !!!! We will discuss about the various topics ranging from the latest updates in web designing to the newest technique used for a great web page. All comments are welcome and lets start a healthy discussion from here on which is....all professional!!!!

Lets Xplore and E-volve !!!

Welcome to my blog !! There are a lot to share and thus explore....The new era of internet is of gr8 boost to the aspiring learners who wanna be updated and are craving for knowledge, for they can find a torrent of information being thrown at them. The only step to get genuine knowledge is to know how sort them out from the scrap!!!!!! As a designer, i wish to see this blog of mine not as a scrap but as a reasonable knowledge donor, or atleast a base for healthy discussion. i would be updating the community, of my enlightenments and learning and of course be posting doubts thereby opening a door to a new healthy design discussion. So lets be a cause for a good result..........All are invited to post their view and comments on my blog. Lets xplore and evolve............!!

HTML & CSS - New found passion

Welcome to my blog !! There are a lot to share and thus explore....The new era of internet is of gr8 boost to the aspiring learners who wanna be updated and are craving for knowledge, for they can find a torrent of information being thrown at them. The only step to get genuine knowledge is to know how sort them out from the scrap!!!!!! As a designer, i wish to see this blog of mine not as a scrap but as a reasonable knowledge donor, or atleast a base for healthy discussion. i would be updating the community, of my enlightenments and learning and of course be posting doubts thereby opening a door to a new healthy design discussion. So lets be a cause for a good result..........All are invited to post their view and comments on my blog. Lets xplore and evolve............!!