You know, we use ad-blockers as well.
We gotta keep those servers running though. Did you know that we publish
useful books and run
friendly conferences — crafted for pros like yourself?
E.g. our upcoming SmashingConf New York, dedicated to smart front-end
techniques and design patterns.
As the web continuously becomes more complex, designing static pages has become untenable, so that many of us have started to approach design in a modular way. In this book, Alla Kholmatova will identify what makes an effective design system that empowers teams to create great digital products. The book isn't ready just yet, but you can start reading it already. Pre-order the book now →
Throughout this book, Alla Kholmatova will share an approach and the key qualities of a well-functioning, enduring design system. It's based on Alla's experiences, case-studies from AirBnB, Atlassian, Eurostar, TED, and Sipgate, plus 18 months of endless interviews — all attempting to figure out what works and what doesn't work in real-life products. It may not answer every question, but it will help you figure out just the right strategy for establishing and evolving a design system in your organization.
Lettering and calligraphy are quickly becoming desired skills in a designer's toolbox. Designers such as Marian Bantjes, Jessica Hische, Sean Wes and Martina Flor, just to name a few, have become not only an inspiration to the rest of us, but also a standard.
Their work is not only client-based; they have become their own brand by providing products to their followers as well. Other designers have followed suit, and now it would seem that lettering and calligraphy are everywhere.
Design patterns. An almost mythical phrase that often inspires either awe or resentment. As designers, we tend to think of design patterns as generic off-the-shelf solutions that can be applied to various contexts almost mechanically, often without proper consideration. Navigation? Off-canvas! Deals of the day? Carousel! You get the idea.
Sometimes we use these patterns without even thinking about them, and there is a good reason for it: Coming up with a brand new solution every time we encounter an interface problem is time-consuming and risky, because we just don’t know how much time will be needed to implement a new solution and whether it will gracefully succeed or miserably fail in usability tests.
Every once in a while, we publish freebies related to different occasions and themes. Today, we'd like to share an icon set dedicated to a well-known upcoming American holiday.
Some of you may already be working on the usual flyers or brochures, so we thought we'd help you out with a set of colorful icons to spice up your designs a bit differently this year. Thank us later!
Joan is applying for a small loan on all-online-loanzzz.com. She's becoming frustrated with the number of financial-disclosure forms she has to fill out. She's thinking about visiting her local bank to ask for a loan instead.
While waiting for a page to load, the application presents a cartoon image of a person wearing a business suit sitting in a jail cell. The image caption says, "Hey, everyone hates disclosures. We know you do, too. We're doing our best to keep everyone out of jail. Please bear with us for a few more clicks. You won't regret it, and our loan officers will stay out of jail." Joan smirks at the image. She might not appreciate the number of forms she has to complete, but she understands the serious nature of applying for a loan.
The average American spends at least five hours per day on their smartphone. So, why is it so hard to make mobile ads work? Marketers toil over clicks and conversions on highly targeted ads, but users, tired of intrusive banners, keep installing ad blockers.
With $100 billion in annual mobile ad spend at stake, someone has to figure out a way to fix this disconnect.
Design is one of the most controversial things in our industry. There are barely any redesigns that aren’t discussed heavily in the community. Changing a well-working design is even harder as people tend to dislike anything new, but if we give them a bit of time, they might start to see things from a different perspective.
Instead of following what everyone else is doing, we shouldn’t hesitate to leave the beaten tracks when designing — by creating a contrast-rich, deep design without using drop shadows, for example. Whatever you do, be sure to explore new options whenever you can.
Industries often experience evolution less as slow and steady progress than as revolutionary shifts in modality that change best practices and methodologies seemingly overnight. This is most definitely true for front-end web development.
Our industry thrives on constant, aggressive development, and new technologies emerge on a regular basis that change the way we do things in fundamental ways.
Accomplished musicians often talk about how, at certain moments in their careers, they had to unlearn old habits in order to progress. This process often causes them to regress in performance while they adjust to an ultimately better method.
Once the new approach is integrated, they are able to reach new heights that would not have been possible with their previous techniques.
