I was already a fan of the PhotoShop Pattern Maker, but after that tutorial, I'll be looking at it from a new niewpoint. The use of it with the photo was interesting, but I loved the text pattern they created. I can see using some variation of this in print work.

How often do you visit a website and find that it isn't functioning properly? Lack of functionality is a very common problem that I see. A site needs to function reliably and consistently, regardless of the platform and browser choices of the viewer. Too many designers seem willing to sacrifice functionality in exchange for one web gimmick or another. Building a website is more than just slapping the pieces together and praying. Test, test test, and then do it again. Here is a short list of things that need to be checked. It is by no means complete.

• Have you checked Mac and PC? How about Linux?
• Does it work in IE7? Firefox? Opera? Safari? Did you forget IE6?
• Have you checked all of the pages, even the obscure ones?
• If it's a blog, have you verified that the RSS feeds are working?
• Are all of the images loading? Even those called by the CSS?
• Could any of those images be made to load faster? Dial-up viewers would appreciate it.

Don't let minor problems with your site cause major problems with your viewers and your clients. Good design is great, but if you can't make it work, it's useless. Make sure that your functionality is as good as your design.

Welcome to my new site. I'm going to be using this site as a repository for online resources and news about the interrelated fields of graphic design and web design. I'm a professional graphic designer with thirteen years of experience in print publications. I started to add web design to my repertoire about five years ago, and for the last two years have been doing forty to fifty percent web design work. I'll also be writing about photography, computer, and design software. These subjects are dear to my heart and integrally linked to my design work. Thanks for stopping by. Before you go, please check out the links on the sidebar, there are only a few now, but they're good ones. I'll be adding to that list and to this site as time provides, so please come by again and see what's changed.