Acro.net – Technology Rants & Raves by Acroplex®

Oprah Winfrey is a network television icon. For more than 25 years she has worked hard to create a name for herself and her popular tv show, providing inspiration to millions of Americans. Her charity record is outstanding; she is the richest African-American female in America and the world.

On January 1st, 2011 her own television channel will be launched: OWN – Oprah Winfrey Network – will premiere as an expanded series of shows that will explore the issues that matter to Oprah’s viewers, regarding health, home, family and relationships.

The colorful “OWN” logo attempts to be a bold and apparently multi-colored approach to the diversity of Oprah’s viewers. However, it seems that it’s the exact opposite of the Gap’s failed attempt to become minimalistic; the OWN logo is screaming with every color of the rainbow.

One would expect the boldness that’d emphasize the ratings of the Oprah show in network television, however the choice of such a cornucopia of colors was perceived by many as “arrogant”, “confusing” or flat out “failure”.

Creative branding can often fail at two levels; being unable to cross the recognition threshold or going way overboard with brand recognition. Either way, the branding suffers in terms of acceptance; after all, Gap knew better when it changed back to the old colors and lettering.

In all honesty, I can’t recall how it all started with web development; I vaguely recall using Wordpad on Windows 3.11

Maybe because I’m about to push mid-4o’s or perhaps because it doesn’t really matter. There are things that one fails to register, for good.

At some point, however, I started using Arachnophilia, a brilliant HTML editor by programmer and world traveler, Paul Lutus. That was around 1996 but the editor is still being supported. Check the guy’s web site out, you will gain a lot from his philosophy in life.

During the same time, I used Paint Shop Pro at an era that Photoshop did not support layers. Adobe invested more in development and version 3.x introduced layers, something that took Photoshop a giant leap away from the competing software of its time.

Design skills are acquired by observing the trends around you and by using the tools at your disposal to emulate these trends. In other words, as a designer you don’t always try to be unique in your creativity. You are also bound to emulate, to reverse-engineer, to improvise on territory already explored.

A few days ago, the owner of the DNXpert blog talked down on tools used in the web development industry, specifically Dreamweaver, as opposed to ‘hand typing your code‘.

I laughed at this comment, only because I too had the same approach 15 years ago - when I used non-WYSIWYG editors. But I soon realized what a fool and a tool I had been; these tools saved me time and effort for a simple reason: I had full knowledge of the theory behind it all, using the right tool was simply an extension of my mind, my imagination, my vision.

Let me explain.

To this day, very few monkeys use tools: rocks to break nuts and sea-shells and sticks to poke bugs and bees out of their nests. These tools are essentially extensions of their own hands, arms, of their brain and intelligence. The ones that don’t use tools often depend on these tool-yielding monkeys for food.

If I were using Wordpad to type HTML and XML code today, I’d be a starving monkey.

Adobe is about to unleash the beast that is called CS5. In just four days from now, on April 12, the biggest bitchfest of tools dedicated to the serious web developer is about to be officially presented to the general public.

My goal in my professional life as a web developer is to always become better, to improve my skills and my capabilities, to serve my clients and myself better. My software upgrade will be monumental, as I am using CS2 – a tool that in my monkey paradigm would have been a 2-inch stick.

I want to own the foot-long bamboo to reach that pot of honey, and I’m going to get it. Because in web development, you’re only as good as the tools you use.

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I’m often amazed at the type of content slated as “development” with the usual tags of “minisite”, “stores” and “portals”. Often a euphemism for graphic headers slapped on an interface that lacks intuition, those design atrocities are presented to domainers as money-makers that would beat parking and PPC revenue.

Stop for a second and think – why would any visitor click on the AdSense content you flaunt in those “minisites” when the rest of the content is so poorly and distastefully done?

Are domainers truly on a shoestring budget, or is it because nobody has taught them better?

The subject of taste in everything is related to one’s background, education and exposure to alternatives. When you’re shown a bunch of poorly done skeleton sites as the cheap, better alternative then you’re getting what you’re paying for.

Having been a web and graphics developer for the past 15 years, I simply shake my head at the acceptance of poor quality as a quick, economic solution to domainer needs. Quite often, domainers fall flat into the pitching trap of fly-by-night individuals with no design credentials, no portfolio and no ethos; because whoever tells you that money will be flooding your pockets when you slap that “minisite” onto your long-tail domain, is lying through their teeth.

What is the solution to this disease permeating through the domainer halls?

Simple: choose the top 5 domains from your portfolio and hire a professional for the job. Invest in a true design that delivers not just the eye-candy but also incorporates an intuitive user interface, effective call to action images and custom-written copy that wasn’t ripped off Wikipedia.

Lose the bad taste, gain from the experience of true developers that live and breathe what they do.

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Can you feel the electricity in the air?

There’s a revolution brewing. It’s the lingering smell of ozone, right before a powerful storm erupts.

It’s about time to bring the end-users to the domain conferences.

It’s about time to change the rules of the game by altering the long-standing paradigm. Domainers sipping margaritas with other domainers at domainer conferences is not what takes this industry to the next level. It actually puts it into a deep sleep.

The domaining industry needs its own aggressive marketing campaign, its very own technocrats that don’t rest forever on their laurels of past engagements. Instead, these individuals would forge new marketing paths by hammering into shape alliances beyond the domaining realm, past the sleepy “circle of trust” that has been regurgitating the same old fairy tales for years now.

It’s time for a change.

Eighty percent of the general public that uses the Internet has no clue about the value, specifics, functions and mechanisms of the domain industry. They are ripe ground for seeding with education. They are waiting, money in their wallets to learn how they can best invest it.

So put down the margaritas and assorted shrimp-on-a-toothpick and seek the right connections that will open up the coveted gates of the general public – directly to the entrance of your own business.

It’s really a shame seeing AEIOU.com pull out of the minisite business, simply because it appeared that the company – led by Rick Latona – had a streamlined process in place and many satisfied customers.

The truth is, Rick’s statement that “there is no money in web design” is incorrect. The domaining market with its small returns for PPC and non-development is not ripe yet to follow closely the high standards and expectations of web development for general, non-domainer clients; and that’s where the money really is.

Therefore, there is no money in web design for domainers that aren’t willing to understand a few basic principles:

1. You get what you pay for
2. Design requires time
3. Monetization is an extra step to tackle

In other words, anyone offering any type of serious “minisite” or full-fledged web design is doing so on the basis that the clients are willing to be aware of these steps and that are willing to invest time and money into development.

Anyone who promises “push button” web development with instant results and revenue is simply after your money. So use professional services, instead of someone that has no qualifications, no portfolio and no willingness to work using proper methods and standards in web design.

Tia Wood already has a development system in place, catering to domainers who are eager to develop their web sites with dynamic content – for more info visit her web site – a great sample of the system is at Candy.ca

Personally, at Acroplex LLC I offer full-fledged web & graphics development, logo & identity design, print design and consultation on how to best proceed with your existing or future projects.