Interesting websites.

http://www.blast.co.uk/
Design company specialising in branding identity/ communications. London

www.complot.com
Clothing company

http://www.itsnicethat.com/

cool website with loads of interesting stuff!

http://www.thecoolhunter.com.au/12

Another cool website with lots of different designs!

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/

nature, wildlife!

http://www.treehugger.com/

Cursours

Cursors that reflect the movement of the mouse onto the screen. There are 3 standard cursors: pointer type and selection.

When the cursor is moved over a hyperlink, the system changes the cursor from an arrow to a hand , the cursor is moved over text it changes to an type cursor.

The wedding shop website shows how a cursor can be used in a different way. It is a elegant website using timeless black and white features. 4 elegant black love hearts follow the cursor around the page like a elastic string. The love hearts really add a lasting effect and encourages you to stay on the site longer even if it is to move the mouse around the page!
http://www.theweddingshop.ie/

Helvetica

HELVETICA



















Helvetica was designed in the late 1950's by a man called Max Miedinger from Switzerland. The type face was originally named Neue Haas Grotest but was changed to helvetica meaning the Latin name for Switzerland. Helvetica is a san serif font similar to Arial. A featured length independent film calledd Helvetica was made about the typography, graphic design, advertising and psychology communication and global visual culture.
This is a nice little clip of the film on the production of helvetica!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrR-P5M1hRY

Font & Typeface

"Font
The physical means of typeface production. A Set of type of one particular face and size.

Typeface
A group of characters, numbers, symbols and punction which have the same distinct style. A particular design of type.



Pictured is a typewrighter whose keys constitute a font, that is, the physical means of printion letters onto a substrate. The letters produced are a type face.

This is not a font, it's a type face."

(Ref: The visual Dictionary of graphic design, Ambrose & Harris 2006)

Kids site

Kids websites are set out in a more simpler use ability but brighter colours, fun friendly, big and childlike typography and an example of these chartists in a website is PBS kids (http://pbskids.org/)

Lots of links and interactive for kids, with videos, games, colouring in projects and fun ways of learning with educational games. The site is based on animation characters made from simple forms.

Serif & San Serif

Serif
Serif fonts date back to when people first took chisels to stone. Serif feature horizontal and vertical detail to the end of each stroke. Serif is divided into 3 categories: Old-Style serif, modern serif and slab serif. Serif fonts are suited to long text so that the eye can follow the horizontal stroke.

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Sans serif

Sans serif do not feature the serifs. Sans meaning without. These have more variety of weights and widths. Sans serif work best on websites because they have limited amount of pixels, more legible, bold weight and consider proportion.

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3D Website

These two websites have a 3d feature, interacting sound and is user friendly. The website uses simple colour and layout so its less confusing to use. When the mouse is moved over the pallet it move in a 3d motion.

Alienology: http://www.alienology.com/

Pinko is a clothing company which uses the same features to view the clothing line. This site has an interesting introduction page using video imagery

http://www.pinko.it/home.asp?LN=UK

Scroll tool

This is a website for a Burger restaurant in Rathmines. Apparently Jo Burger has gone into administration but is still open. So we are going to head on Fri night just in case the place goes belly up! And ill let you know if the restaurant reflects the website! 

The website gives the impression of a cool, funky, retro place to eat and hang out. The background music gives the website a mellow atmosphere but will it reflect the restaurant! Again we see the use of hand illustrations on the web site and the use of one page no links just the use of the scroll tool! also the use of animation  of a little character walking along the bottom of the screen directing you where to go is quite clever! http://www.joburger.ie/

Shopping on line

Shopping on line is really popular. You can avoid the crowds, stress, noise, compare prices and features and no pressure to buy, while doing it all from your own home. Even with next day delivery!

Shops have to keep there website up to date, have all the latest fashion trends even before the shop. The site should reflect the retail store and has a matter of minutes to make an impression on the user. the site should be user friendly and allow the user to view clothing from all angles.

A really good website that reflects these qualities is Zara! website http://www.zara.com/

Colour: RGB (Red, Green, Blue)

RGB (Red, Green and blue) these are the 3 colours used for our television screens and computer monitors. These 3 colours reproduce a broad array of colours.

Icons & Logos

ICONS AND LOGOS ARE NOT THE SAME?

This is interesting i didn't know there was a difference!

From what i can pick up logo and icons are the same visual vocabulary which may lead you to thinking they are the same but they are 2 separate design disciplines.

Logos are graphic elements, trademark or a company brand, set in a special typeface/font or arranges in a legible way. Having distinctive design element ,colour and shape.Also logos are scalable you are not confined and they have no boundaries so you are free to experiment with shapes and size. This is a example of a recognisable logo which has all the elements.

Icons is a graphic symbol which is usually a simple picture or a representation of an image for example the folder below. Icons denote a program, or a computer file. Icons are not scalable, they operate within a complete square canvas which they are restricted too. Logos can easily resemble an icon form. Icons need to be simple images so that they are recognised and a distinctive interpretation to the word.

So they are different!

Seems to be allot of conflict about the two!

http://pixelresort.com/blog/icons-and-logos-are-not-the-same/

Fonts for web

http://www.elysiumburns.com/
This site is an example of good font. Heading and text are clear and legible. The main use of Sans serif fonts in a white colour on a black back ground which high lights the typeface more.

Turn Over Page

This website is done in a book style format. It is a replica of the wedding brochure for trim castle Co. Meath. The book has 14 different pages which can be used with the turning page motion by clicking and dragging or click on the toolbar buttons at the top of the screen to go directly to a page. It is more interactive using the turn page motion it gives the realistic motion of the page turning with the curling of the page and shading effect it leaves on the page when turned to the next.
The site is neat and simple. Sound effects would add allot to the site and maybe if the book could close completely and appear like a wedding album cover!

A example of another turn page site is: http://nozebra.ipapercms.dk/Nilfisk/Nilfisk/UK/Catalogue2009/
This has a front cover and back cover and has the same page motion. but the pges are not readable you have to zoom in on the text, unlike the Trim castle site.

The turn page motion would be a really good idea for a portfolio!

Consistent Layout

http://www.pizzaza.ca/restaurants/wine_cellars.php

This website is advertising a piz'za-za restaurant in Canada. The site is very consistent, each page having the same grid layout and tool bar position. But using different images for a background and colours. There are two main tool bars one at the top right hand cornor using text another other three quarters way down the page.

Using interesting images which look like hand drawn icons. A image of the menu direction to the menu list and the camera directing the user to the photo gallery. When hovering over these icon a bubble appears to indicate what is on that page.

The use of style sheets may have been used to develop this website.

Scroll

www.wallswaps.com











This is a really cool site with no buttons for navigation just one huge pin board to scroll around with loads of posts, t-shirts and images.




At the bottom of the screen in Caps: IMPORTAMT INSTRUCTIONS- on how to use the site I wonder how many people leave before they ever figure out how to move the screen.

Colour

Colour has an incentent impact to the viewer in a room on a graphic image and even on you computer screen. Color can effect how your feeling it can make you relaxed, secure and comfortable weather it be in a room or looking at colour on a screen. Although the computer monitor displays colour differently to printed images. Computer monitors display RGB files (Red Green and Blue) these colours combine produce white light producing images that can be clearly seen on the screen. Images are printed in CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, and key, or black) Colours have different meanings for example:
Red represents love, danger, speed, strength, and blood.
Green represents good luck, jealously, rest full.
Blue represents calm, harmony, trust.

Websites need to make an instant impact on the viewer. The contents of the site 8-10 seconds of visual appeal. The colour should reflect the companies profile and personality. Cream a graphic design company based in Dublin. Their website uses colour in a very clever way. The background is in a dominate lime green color which is very over powering but is contrasted with the gray images. When hovering over a image it changes to color, which allows you focus on one image, and look at it in detail i think this is very clever to grab the viewers attention.

http://www.creamgraphics.ie/