Posts Tagged “excited”
Stephanie • 16th Apr 2008 • webdesign • accomplishment, bcit, design, excited, uh-oh, ux, web design, webdesign
Almost a year ago now the BCIT Bookstore let Web Services know that the e-commerce application they used to manage their online sales was upgrading and asked if we’d like to help skin the new site. The department was pretty busy at the time and my Manager said we didn’t have time to help out but put them in contact with me so I could direct them to the style guide and technical guidelines.
I had a look at the application and decided we could do better than that so I asked my Manager if I could do some follow up and he said it was okay as long as it didn’t interfear with my other work.
I met with the Bookstore intending only to talk about the web app but ended up talking about their static store front just as much. Because of the way their inventory and software work they have not one but three online stores and they have trouble communicating the difference to their customers. They also felt like some of their most important information, like their return policy, was buried.
Skinning the e-commerce sites was relatively easy. The new version of the application was set up logically with good CSS tags and lots of includes. Not only that, the default layout was very easy to transform into the existing template I wanted to mimic.
I started off with this:
And created this:
For the static store front I made some changes to the left navigation based on the most desired pages, created three clear calls to action, placed the catch all action at the bottom of the list instead of the top of the list of options, and separated the two unrelated messages contained in the single page block on the right.
I worked off the side of my desk for a few months on it, meeting with the bookstore a few times, and when I was done they were happy enough with the results to email my manager and thank me in the Campus Update newsletter!
My manger called me into his office to talk about it and I thought, “Uh-oh, what if he’s upset I spent so much time working on this?” But I worried unnecessarily since he proceeded to tell me how it was good interacting design :)
Campus Hub, the third party company who hosts the actual stores liked it so much they’ve been directing people who want to skin their stores to talk to me for advice, and to top it all off, they awarded the store with a “Hubbie” for usability.
Stephanie • 30th Jul 2007 • webdesign • computer, excited, fun, hardware, learning, mac
Macs have always struck me as more of a religion than an operating system. A family friend and I have a long history of a friendly Mac vs Windows rivalry. He’s the Mac evangelist and I was, well, I wasn’t a Windows evangelist but I guess I played the part of a disbeliever.
At some point in 2004 he finally won the argument and I promised my next computer would be a Mac. But then I got cold feet and I signed up for a course that required I have a Windows machine and I bought a some assembly required Windows box from one of those cheep no name computer stores that come and go over night. This particular store had been recommended to me a couple times and had stuck around for 5 or 6 years so I figured it was fairly reputable.
A year later the Windows box self destructed. First I bought a new power supply, then a new fan, then new memory, then a new mother board and finally I stopped short of replacing the hard drive and just pronounced the damn thing dead.
Out of excuses to not buy a Mac and very mad at my last Windows machine. I rented a Mac one for a week to see if I could live with it and decided, at the very lest, the whole command vs control thing would not drive me crazy. Once I discovered I got educational pricing (the job would suck if it wasn’t for the benefits!) I couldn’t even argue with the price. At the very worst I could wipe the hard drive, install Windows, and pretend I never bought a Mac. Apple also has a very articulate environmental policy which doesn’t hurt at all.
I bought a 15″ Mac Book Pro.
The first week I had it there were a couple times I desperately wanted my money back but after two and a half weeks these are my thoughts:
Text smoothing
As screen technology evolves I’m sure it won’t matter but right now with this screen on this computer I miss the way Windows renders text.
Work flow
Work flow is the thing that has bothered me the most about switching. I find I lose windows other other windows and occasionally have to minimize things to the dock one at a time to find them again. Then I have to un-minimize them because you can’t alt-tab to things minimized to the dock.
I really can’t make effective use of dual monitors any more because the menu bar stays on the main screen no matter what and tool bars and pallets have to be moved individually.
I also dislike the way applications just pile up. Every now and then I go to click on a pallet or a scroll bar and suddenly I’m an another application.
Learning an new operating system
Switching from Windows XP to OS X was as easy as switching from Windows 98 to Windows XP. And, lets face it, even Windows users are going have to learn a new operating system when they buy their next computer and just cuz it’s pretty doesn’t mean Vista is going to be easy to use.
Running Windows
Running windows hasn’t been a problem. I’m playing with Parallels and I’m going to give VM Ware a go before I decide on which to use but I’ll be happy with Parallels.
Buying new everything
When I bought the Adobe creative suite for Windows apparently it came with licenses for Mac versions as well. Suite. Unfortunately I can’t seem to locate CS2 versions of any of the Adobe stuff but I’m happily running all the Macromedia stuff in OS X and the Adobe stuff in Windows for now.
As for other software, hurray for educational pricing.
iPhoto Booth
Damn this is sheer dumb fun.
Quicksilver
Quicksilver looks like it could be the coolest thing ever, but it needs to be customized to be used to it’s full potential and I’ve found the basic documentation to be kind of sparse. The basic idea of being able to do any task ever with a keyboard short cut is very appealing. I am all about not having to use the mouse.
Verdict
When I told my Mum that I was buying a Mac the first thing she did was seek assurances that I wouldn’t become an Mac evangelist like our family friend. I don’t want my money back but I don’t think Mum has anything to worry about just yet.
Stephanie • 25th May 2007 • webdesign • atmedia, atmedia07, atmedia2007, conference, excited, fun
One day I’d like to be able to make the same kind of contribution to the web design world that these speakers have. Trying to find a way to do that is as intimidating as the idea of writing a Master’s thesis. How does one come up with new ideas?
The speakers have all been excellent so far. I always need a few days to process information though so I don’t have much to say at this point other than: Andy Clarke remembered me from Web Directions North! I was flattered.
A few sessions feel like the same information I got at WDN which makes me question just how many of these conferences one needs to go to in a year and makes me feel better about the fact that I won’t be able to attend An Event Apart, mind you I haven’t heard most of their speakers… Are conferences addictive? Either way I’m out of funding sources and would have to pay for that one myself. Since I’m on the market for a new computer that’s not likely.
Stephanie • 7th May 2007 • webdesign • busy, CADE, conference, css, excited, metablogging, nervous, presentation, work
I have lots to say but trouble finding the time and words to say it.
Blog posts I hope to make in the next two weeks:
- Taking credit where credit is due – in response to a discussion about women in IT at zeldman.com.
- My thoughts on the hiring process and the job market and why I do what I do where I do for the pay I get.
- Some of the steps we’re taking to convert our templates from tables within tables within tables to just… one table, well it’s an improvement.
- Highlights of our presentation at CADE and my thoughts on the rest of the conference.
Until then, if you think of yourself as a web designer – go take A List Apart’s Web Designer survey.
Stephanie • 20th Mar 2007 • personal, webdesign • accomplishment, bcit, CADE, career, Catt-Trax2, excited, nervous, presentation, Terry, Winnepeg
One of the projects I’ve worked on at BCIT is Catt-Trax2. The website is for Danny Catt who is traveling through South America and Antarctica exploring conservation and sustainability issues and talking to the people in those regions working with those issues daily. He’s taking photos, video, and sound clips of this journey and blogging about his experiences. I helped architect the website and did some design and implementation work on it. We have fun stuff like a Google Maps mashup showing his route too.
The project manager for the project is an Instructional Development Coordinator named Terry Fuller who has done an excellent job pushing the team to give their most while restraining Danny’s overwhelming enthusiasm to keep the project in scope.
She’s asked me to co-present about the project at a conference for distance educators that is happening in Winnipeg in May. I’ve applied for funding to go with her. Our names are already on the website, so I hope I get the funding :)
