Free Website, MyMusi.cc is Fighting to Revolutionize Music Storage

HOUSTON, Dec. 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- http://myMusi.cc, a free and unlimited music storage website that empowers music collectors and enthusiasts to backup and listen to their music online, is radically changing the way people store, interact, and listen to their music online. MyMusi.cc was developed to solve the problem of storing large personal music collections while always providing users total access to their entire music library easily via any internet capable device.

MyMusi.cc provides a free alternative to popular premium music services such as Apple Music, Google Play, and Spotify and focuses on the user's music collection rather than offering access to a music repository. Unlike Apple and Google, MyMusi.cc places no limits on the number of songs a user can upload or stream and is completely free.

MyMusi.cc is simple to use and is accessible on any computer, tablet, or smartphone with no apps or software to install. Music uploading is simple and intuitive; Users simply drag and drop their music from their iTunes library into their myMusi.cc account and the songs are automatically processed and cataloged based on the artist and album. Once uploaded, music can be played from all of the user's devices, anywhere in the world, with no apps to install or additional software needed. Storage and playback is unlimited and MyMusi.cc is dedicated to remaining absolutely free and legal with no storage or listening fees.

Based out of Houston, TX, myMusi.cc strives to continue perfecting online music storage and provide the solution for free to people of all walks of life. To access one's personal music library from any device, anywhere in the world. MyMusi.cc's browser-based music players allow users to easily browse their entire music collection, top songs, recent plays, top artists, or search directly for an artist, album, or song. Users can also upload artwork to accompany their albums.

"The launch of MyMusi.cc would have been impossible without the artists and musicians who constantly inspire our company to design and create better things," explained President Tom Gerken. "MyMusi.cc is dedicated to the belief that people are inherently good and that our world can be improved through a synergy of music, technology, and people."

 

SOURCE MyMusi.cc

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Source: Free Website, MyMusi.cc is Fighting to Revolutionize Music Storage

New Esri Book Teaches the Principles of Good Map Design

Mapmakers should always strive to create maps that look great and get their message across clearly and succinctly. According to Esri president Jack Dangermond, more emphasis today needs to be placed on map design, especially on the web. "We need to spend more time designing maps and not just producing them," Dangermond said at a recent geodesign conference.

Cartographer Cynthia A. Brewer's new edition of Designing Better Maps: A Guide for GIS Users, published by Esri, will guide mapmakers through the process of designing visually pleasing and easily understandable maps. "This book helps you develop the graphic skills you need for mapmaking," said Brewer, a professor and head of the geography department at Pennsylvania State University.

In writing the book, Brewer drew on 30 years of experience teaching and working in map design. The book focuses on the basics of cartography, including layout design; working with basemaps, legends, scales, and projections; selecting colors and type; and customizing symbols. In this second edition, Brewer has added a chapter on publishing and sharing maps and devotes a section to her ColorBrewer application, an online color selection tool that any mapmaker can use. ColorBrewer is now part of the new Esri ArcGIS Pro application.

The large selection of color maps included in the book prove to be very instructional, with examples of poor or mediocre maps being compared to well-designed maps. For example, there are two maps of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, located in the United States and Canada. One map is what Brewer calls "excessively decorated," with a huge scale bar, illegible typeface, and other elements that distract from the map. The second map, meant to showcase vegetation types, is simple and designed to make the most important information stand out.

Brewer has been a faculty member at Pennylvania State University for 21 years, teaching introductory cartography and other map design courses. She has written four books, including Designed Maps: A Sourcebook for GIS Users, which complemented her 2005 edition of Designing Better Maps: A Guide for GIS Users.

Brewer also is an affiliate faculty member at the US Geological Survey (USGS) Center of Excellence for Geospatial Information Science (CEGIS). She has done consulting work with the National Park Service, the US Census Bureau, the National Cancer Institute, the National Center for Health Statistics, and Esri. She won the Henry Gannett Award for Exceptional Contributions to Topographic Mapping from the USGS in 2013.

A video about the book is available to watch at esriurl.com/designingbettermaps.

Designing Better Maps: A Guide for GIS Users is available in print (ISBN: 9781589484405, 250 pages, $59.99), or as an e-book (ISBN: 9781589484375, 250 pages, $49.99). The book is available at online retailers worldwide, at esri.com/esripress, or by calling 1-800-447-9778. Outside the United States, visit esri.com/esripressorders for complete ordering options, or visit esri.com/distributors to contact your local Esri distributor. Interested retailers can contact Esri Press book distributor Ingram Publisher Services.

About Esri

Since 1969, Esri has been giving customers around the world the power to think and plan geographically. The market leader in GIS technology, Esri software is used in more than 350,000 organizations worldwide including each of the 200 largest cities in the United States, most national governments, more than two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies, and more than 7,000 colleges and universities. Esri applications, running on more than one million desktops and thousands of web and enterprise servers, provide the backbone for the world's mapping and spatial analysis. Esri is the only vendor that provides complete technical solutions for desktop, mobile, server, and Internet platforms. Visit us at esri.com/news.

About Esri Press

Esri Press publishes books on GIS, cartography, and related topics. The complete selection of GIS titles from Esri Press can be found on the web at esri.com/esripress.

Copyright © 2015 Esri. All rights reserved. Esri, the Esri globe logo, GIS by Esri, ArcGIS, esri.com, and @esri.com are trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of Esri in the United States, the European Community, or certain other jurisdictions. Other companies and products or services mentioned herein may be trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of their respective mark owners.

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Source: New Esri Book Teaches the Principles of Good Map Design

New Google Glass model hits the FCC website, images included

The new Google Glass model. It can fold!

The new Google Glass model. It can fold!

From left to right: that text says "Designed by Google, Assembled in California," then there's a speaker slot, a set of pogo charging pins, an infrared panel that probably still houses the "on head" sensor, the new hinge, and the prism.

Missing from this picture: the bone-conduction earpiece and power button. We think Glass switched to a regular speaker, and the manual says the power button is now on the back. Here you can also get a look at the recording light next to the camera.

Internal pictures! The yellow thing on the right side is the battery, and the metallic oval to the left of the battery looks to be a speaker.

Assembled and disassembled. The small circuit board stuck to the removed panel is the touch pad.

The touch pad circuit board.

The touch side of the touch panel.

The main board of this new version of Google Glass.

Judging by the shape, this board goes in the back of the device and is hidden by the speaker.

A wire!

We'll show you the front and back, because we're thorough.

Google Glass is not dead. A brand new model of Google's face computer has popped up on the FCC website (first spotted by 9to5Google), complete with rather high-res images of the device.

The pictures show a Google Glass unit with the FCCID "A4R­-GG1" that looks a lot like the existing Glass design. The biggest change seems to be that the device can now fold up, just like a regular pair of glasses, which will make it much easier to store when you aren't wearing it. The Glass prism looks longer than the first version of the device, which presumably offers a larger picture.

In general, the case looks smoother and rounder than the previous version of Google Glass. The "Glass" part also seems to be completely independent of the glasses that hold it on your face—the FCC never shows a wearable version with a second side.

The charging port is different, too. There is a set of pogo pins with large circles on either side of the contacts. We'd guess that the circles are magnets to hold the charger cable on, which would make this charging port a lot like Apple's MagSafe connector.

There are even internal pictures, which show the unit is packed with hardware. While we can see a speaker internally in the device, the bone conduction pad is gone from the case. There is a slot in the case right below where the speaker is, which makes it look like Glass has changed to a more conventional speaker.

The FCC even posted a short user manual, which states the power button is now "on the back of the device." The biggest news from the manual is that there is now a camera light on the front of the device, which the manual states will turn green when the camera is on. This might help Glass gain a little more acceptance in public—one of the things that freaked people out about Glass was that wearers could silently record people. The FCC docs also show the unit now supports 5GHz Wi-Fi—an upgrade from the current (is a device from 2013 considered "current?") version of Glass.

While an FCC appearance might make it seem like a product will soon be for sale, we wouldn't hold our breath for a consumer release. Reports from both 9to5Google and The Wall Street Journal have reported that the next version of Glass is the "Enterprise Edition" and will be aimed at businesses. Reportedly the Enterprise Edition will use an Intel Atom processor, along with some other upgraded internals, and even supports an external battery pack. The device will supposedly only be sold through the "Glass for Work" program, and businesses will be expected to load custom software on the device.

There have also been reports of a mysterious Google Glass reboot and a rename to "Project Aura." We'll guess (and hope) that Project Aura isn't what is pictured above and that work on a consumer version is still ongoing. Google has yet to formally announce the "Enterprise Edition" or "Project Aura." The last we publicly heard of Glass was that it had been "reset" under the watchful eye of Nest's Tony Fadell.

Source: New Google Glass model hits the FCC website, images included

PaintMosaic by Kaamar: New Online Mosaic Tile Design Software

Kaamar today launched PaintMosaic, their online design software for mosaics and mosaic mirrors.

Lichfield, United Kingdom, December 25, 2015 --(PR.com)-- Family firm Kaamar, online supplier of custom mosaic pictures, today launched their new PaintMosaic software, allowing their website visitors to create a custom Mosaic Tile Pattern, Mosaic Picture, Mosaic Accent or Mosaic Mirror Design from scratch online.

With a simple, in-browser interface (pick a tile colour and start painting the tiles), visitors can easily create their own custom design. Website integration will then cost and display their design in detail, including facilities for live delivery quotes and online ordering. Their finished designs may be featured in the new User Mosaic Gallery and shared on social media.

Home Studio crafted from small glass tiles, visitor mosaic designs can be custom made to their size as tile sheets (ready-to-tile), or fully tiled, grouted and framed for wall mounting, with a selection of frame sizes and grout colours. With a choice of two small mirror sizes and a variable mosaic f rame width, a choice of grout colours and of the satin edge colour, their hand-made mosaic mirrors are also fully customisable.

PaintMosaic has several built in tools to help with creative pattern making, including a line mode, colour swap mode, copy/paste capabilities, mirroring and rotation. Rather start from scratch, visitors can also edit an existing design to create a customised version.

PaintMosaic also extends the existing facilities for creating a mosaic design from an uploaded photo, by allowing post-generation editing of the design. Visitors can:• Edit and adjust tile colours.• Trim to reduce mosaic size by deleting edge tiles.• Shape for unusual layouts such as archways, or to make cut-outs for windows or doors.• Embellish with special tiles for extra effect.

"Although based on the now depreciated Microsoft Silverlight, so will work only on supported browsers/devices," said co-founder Keith Morrigan, "we are proud to expand our unique onlin e mosaic design service with the new PaintMosaic software."

Kaamar Ltd have an online mosaic design site at Kaamar.com with a gallery of mosaic picture designs in customisable sizes and where photos can be uploaded and processed into a custom mosaic tile design. Gallery designs are also available to purchase on Kaamar.co.uk, their UK online shop.

Try it out now at: kaamar.com/PaintMosaic.

Source: PaintMosaic by Kaamar: New Online Mosaic Tile Design Software

For Creatives: Common Design Job Titles And What They Really Mean

Image via Thomas Fodor

The creative industry is diverse, with people wielding different skill sets and having various specializations. As such, you may have worked with, or get to work with people whose job titles may confuse you.

To help you understand these positions better, Creative Bloq has come up with a guide detailing the various types of roles in the creative industry, and what they really mean.

Do note that these terms are still subject to interpretation, and may tend to overlap.

Designer / Graphic Designer / Web Designer

These roles include actual designing on a daily basis. Designers typically use software like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator for graphic design, InDesign for print design, ScotWeave for fashion design, and HTML, CSS and JavaScript for web design.

Art Director / Creative Director

An art director is a step above "graphic de signer". Instead of executing a piece, the art director sets the overall look and feel of the work—from choosing color palettes, graphic approaches to overarching themes.

At the top of the design tree is the creative director, someone who can "build an environment and ethos where the very best ideas can be born and thrive". They are able pick and choose the best ideas in an agency, and make good of its brightest talents.

Web Developer

Unlike the "web designer" role, a web developer typically does not do any visual designing. Instead, it focuses on coding—the "back end" of the website—with languages like PHP, Ruby, and C#.

UI Designer / Interaction Designer

A user interface (UI) designer defines how user interfaces function. They put together different elements in ways that convey meaning intuitively, while also providing feedback to users to fit their needs.

This is slightly different from an interaction designer, who focuses on the areas that require direct user interaction, such as forms, menus, and media playback.

SEO Specialist

A search engine optimization (SEO) specialist ensures that a website's content is optimized to rank highly on search engines.

Their main goal is to analyze how well a website does on a search engine like Google, and make changes to improve their position. They may also be involved in running pay-per-click campaigns .

For the full list of design job titles and what they mean, head here.

[via Creative Bloq]

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Source: For Creatives: Common Design Job Titles And What They Really Mean

e-djuster Announces Launch of New Website and Upcoming Events

NASHVILLE, TN and OTTAWA, ON--(Marketwired - December 23, 2015) - e|djuster, North America's leading contents valuation Company, announced today the launch of its newly revamped website. The website offers quick and easy access to essential information and features that offer a more comprehensive understanding of the Company's solution and services. The site clearly illustrates e|djuster's end-to-end solution for all types and sizes of contents claims, from outsourcing support services to software services from the use of its e-xclaim contents valuation platform.

The new website, launched in November, has a clean and uncluttered design, improved functionality and enhanced rich content focused on the Company's vision to provide technology and software solutions, dispute-free claims handling services and a key strategic partnership to drive claims settlement with greater convenience and accuracy, faster. The new website clearly presents how e-djuster is able to enhance the image and reputation of its insurer clients, while ensuring that policyholders remain satisfied and loyal.

"We are excited about our website launch and the robust information it provides for insurers, claimants, partners and media to better understand e|djuster's best-in-class contents solutions," said Andy Williams, e|djuster CEO. "We believe that this new site will allow our visitors to have a very informative experience as we continue to grow and increase our market presence."

e|djuster continues their momentum with the upcoming exhibition at the PLRB Claims Conference being held in San Antonio, Texas, April 17-20th, 2016.

e|djuster's new website will be updated on a regular basis with news of product launches, business activity, corporate milestones and events.

ABOUT E-DJUSTER

e-djuster is North America's leading contents valuation Company, offering insurers and their policyholders the assurance of fast, fair, dispute-free settlements. e-djuster offers a suite of customizable services, providing end-to-end solutions for all types and sizes of contents claims, from outsourcing support services to licensing of its e-xclaim™ content valuation platform. Our non-partisan, performance-focused service approach enhances the image and reputation of our insurer clients and ensures that policyholders remain satisfied and loyal.

Source: e-djuster Announces Launch of New Website and Upcoming Events

When Buildings Design Themselves

Automation could revolutionize architecture--by eliminating architects.

Source: madan.org.il

Seven years ago, in my then-column for Architect magazine, I wrote that computerized automation eventually could fulfill the ultimate aims of green building by achieving dramatically better performance. Now the same magazine has taken up the same topic in a couple of recent articles. In June, Daniel Davis declared that architecture can't be completely automated because "it is--for now--impossible to get computers to think creatively." Last month, Blaine Brownell echoed this sentiment, citing a new McKinsey report claiming that "creative tasks are largely immune from automation." Yet, the implications of automating creativity are much bigger than either author lets on.

"Robot replacement is just a matter of time," wrote Kevin Kelly in Wired a few years ago. "It doesn't matter if you are a doctor, lawyer, architect, reporter, or even programmer." Robotic manufacturing and other advanced industrial technologies are familiar, but computers also have taken on many white collar tasks, including customer service, journalism, and web design. Kelly says nothing more of architects, though automated processes already are changing the profession. Computational design and parametric modeling are routine in architectural practice now, but often they merely facilitate architects' pursuit of exotic geometry. Hi-tech eye candy. What's still relatively rare is employing advanced techniques to improve performance significantly, and what's nearly unheard of is automating the creative process entirely.

This is how designers work: We study a variety of possibilities and choose the ones that work best or we like most. Automation potentially can improve every aspect of this process and become, in K elly's words, "better than human."

First, innovation involves generating a large number of ideas to find a very few remarkable ones. Computers can study thousands of variations in the time it takes a designer to look at dozens, discovering possibilities that might never occur to us. As Davis reports, Autodesk, which makes the most popular computer-aided design (CAD) tools for architects, is developing software that "learns the same way we do," only faster, says the company's chief technology officer, Jeff Kowalski. "This is the biggest, most fundamental change that I've ever seen coming our way."

Trouble is, the way architects normally use computers is to enhance, refine, or document our ideas, not to generate new ideas altogether. As I wrote last month, the architect-as-artist is driven toward highly personalized visions, and we often sacrifice other priorities along the way. In other words, what we like isn't always what works best, and this could be holding back the entire profession.

In Paris this month, world leaders pledged to shrink greenhouse gas emissions markedly, and they cannot accomplish this without the building sector, which is responsible for nearly half of energy and emissions in the US alone. However, a typical "high-performance" building achieves fairly modest energy reduction--25-35 percent, according to the US Green Building Council and the American Institute of Architects. And those numbers have flat-lined in recent years, so the industry is stuck, it seems. Yet, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory calculates that adopting current best practices can nearly double that outcome, getting to 50-60-percent reduction, without any additional costs. Applying that to every building could cut the total annual US emissions by a quarter, half the amount needed to stabilize the climate by 2020, according to estimates. While the information needed for architects to raise the bar is readily available, most of us don't use it, bu t it's easily be automated: for example, the engineering firm Thornton Tomasetti has developed automated tools to optimize structures for cost and carbon footprint. With the stakes so high, and human architects not stepping up fast enough, maybe Kelly's right that "robots will--and must--take our jobs."

Aranda/Lasch, "Rules of Six"

What of beauty? Architecture isn't strictly about saving money and resources, after all. As I write in my book, The Shape of Green: Aesthetics, Ecology, and Design (2012), a growing wealth of research is revealing how people respond to light, space, form, pattern, texture, and color, and much of this information could be automated during design. "Beauty is merely a function of mathematical distances or ratios," explains computer scientist Daniel Cohen-Or. He and a team in vented a "beauty engine" that subtly improves photos--with an 80 percent success rate, according to their polling. The "computational aesthetics algorithm" CrowdBeauty, launched this year, mines millions of photos on Flickr to find overlooked images with exceptional composition, pattern, color, contrast, and brightness. As the MIT Technology Review put it in May, "These guys have taught a machine ... to recognize beauty."

I know of few places more gorgeous than an Aspen grove in autumn, but there's no "design" there--just genetic coding and environmental conditioning. Architects Benjamin Aranda and Chris Lasch have used automated techniques to emulate the growth patterns of nanostructures, and Portuguese artist Leonel Moura has applied artificial intelligence to generate architectural forms by mimicking the emergent behavior of ant colonies. With sufficient computational power and speed, buildings could evolve the way any living system does and make design cheaper, faster, sma rter, more efficient, more sustainable, and more beautiful.

Naysayers are plenty. Last February in the New York Times, Nicholas Carr declared that "robots will always need us": "We exaggerate the abilities of computers even as we give our own talents short shrift." Architects agree: "Technology is important," Jacques Herzog told Vanity Fair in 2010, "but computers cannot do anything without the assistance of the human brain." Yet, according to estimates, machines soon will exceed the computational abilities of the human brain--possibly in the next handful of years but certainly during this century. Just this month, Elon Musk launched the OpenAI project specifically to "surpass human intelligence." In his book, The Glass Cage: Automation and Us, Carr himself confesses that just a few years before Google created a self-driving car, many experts thought it couldn't happen.

Cognitive scientist Margaret Boden defines creativity as "the ability to come up with ideas or artifa cts that are new, surprising, and valuable." Because machines can demonstrate all three, Boden maintains that debates about creativity and computers really are disagreements about what we value. "To accept robot creations as artistic expression," Moura tells me, "means to deny humans the exclusiveness of creativity, and many people are not willing to do this."

Artificial creativity isn't science fiction--it could be the future of architecture. The only thing holding it back is architects themselves. Can we get smarter about solving serious new challenges, or will we risk becoming obsolete?

Follow Lance Hosey on Twitter: @lancehosey

Source: When Buildings Design Themselves

2 Areas of Website Ownership You Should Understand

NEW YORK, Dec. 21, 2015 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- A website are composed of various parts, created by developers or designers, contributed by a client or purchased from third parties. All parts from different sources, or owners, become part of the same website. Combine that with intellectual property rights and liability, and website ownership becomes a complicated and sophisticated subject.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151218/297342

Below we discuss two aspects of website ownership that are often misunderstood.

Fee-based or open source software used to build a website

Odds are, your website was developed using licensed software. For example, Wordpress, the most widely used CMS by a large margin, is an example of licensed, open source software. By current measure, around 75 million Wordpress website's exist existed in 2014.

Licensed software is not owned by the licensee. The licensee has the right to use the software. Therefore, getting back to our Wordpress example, roughly 75,000,000 website owners in 2014, didn't actually own their website. Surprised?

Understanding this idea is easier for fee-based licensed for a fee. Websites built on squarespace.com disappear if the websites owner stops paying the monthly license fee. obviously they "owned" the website in name only.

Still the perception endures that website owners own their websites. I know this, because, while being interviewed by potential clients, I am often asked the question, "Will I own my website?" No, you won't.

So who "owns" the liability if the licensed software used to run your website infringes on a patent? Who's at fault if a flaw in licensed software causes a 3rd party a loss of revenue or reputation, which they want to recoup, potentially in a court of law.

For fee-based licensed software, normally the licensor indemnifies the licensee for all sorts of things, barring negligence and / or criminal behaviour. For open source software, the relationship is reversed, you indemnify the licensor. For example, see Wordpress' Terms of Service indemnification clause below.

If your website is built on open source software, you are probably liable for claims arising from its use, even though you don't own it. If it makes you feel any better, you're also not paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for a license or millions of dollars developing an alternative from scratch.

But coming back to the original theme, software ownership becomes even more surprising and complex when hiring a web designer to build your website using licensed software.

In talking to a web designer, ask specific question about what you will own. "Will I own the designs?" "How about the HTML?" Ask about any software being used, licenses required and terms of service. Ask what sort of warranties and indemnifications does the designer offer?

Who knows. You might end up being thankful you don't own your website.

Custom created assets such as code and designs, otherwise known as "Intellectual Property"

According to Wikipedia, intellectual property (IP) "refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce."

Question. Who actually creates the logo, the web designs or the code for a website? Most often,  designer or developer does. Hence, a website owner may or may not own the intellectual property created during a website design project. Depending on the terms of the work, the designer may own it, even though the website owner paid for the work to complete it and is using it daily to run their business.

What gives?

In regard to the transfer of money versus work versus work product ownership, the terms in many web contracts define the website owner as paying for the work to create the IP, but not for the IP itself.

For example, a contract may designate the designer as the owner of the IP and the client as the owner of a license to use the intellectual property, worldwide and in perpetuity.

So now we're back to licensing. So all the website owner ever receives is a license? Sounds shady, right?

Not necessarily. If you're only paying the designer for their labor, then obviously you're not paying for ownership of the product of that labor. The designer owns what they create. You didn't pay for the creation itself, but the designer is more than happy to grant you a license to use said creation.

Still sound shady? Only if the designer is not open about the terms of their work. And keep in mind, it is also possible the terms of work stipulate reversed ownership and usage rights.

In summary, a website owner does not necessarily own their website at all. They may own parts of their website, depending on prior ownership rights or rights extended under the terms of an agreement. But for much of their website, they may only own the right to use it.

In the rush to create a new website, a brand or other creative assets, ownership is often overlooked. Contracts are signed and often neither party really understands the terms. While it is rare that someone is entirely precluded from using their website or creative assets, such as a logo, paid for under a scope of work, it is important to understand ownership or rights of use before signing a contract or license and using that understanding to craft an agreement that is agreeable to all parties.

Hence, while interviewing a web design company, ascertain specifically what parts of the website you will actually own, not own, or have a right to use as well as the potential impact on you or your business.

Author: Todd Johnson, Managing Director, Avatar New York

Avatar New York is an innovating, award-winning New York web design firm dedicated to providing clients with responsive websites that help grow brands and convert visitors to customers. With an expertise in web development, branding, cloud hosting, mobile app development, and CMS and e-commerce solutions, Avatar New York's top tier designers have the ability to create intelligent websites for any type of business.

Media Contact: Todd Johnson, Avatar New York, 646-736-6713, sales.s@avatarnewyork.com

News distributed by PR Newswire iReach: https://ireach.prnewswire.com

SOURCE Avatar New York

Source: 2 Areas of Website Ownership You Should Understand

Outlook on the web gets a smarter address book, lets you add automatic flight events

Microsoft today announced some new features coming to Outlook on the web. For those unfamiliar, Outlook on the web is the email client on Office 365 and the new Outlook.com which is currently available to some users.  Today, the software giant introduced a smarter address book, and the ability to automatically add flights to your […]

Read more at Microsoft News

Source: Outlook on the web gets a smarter address book, lets you add automatic flight events

Is Dreamweaver a serious web design tool?

Dreamweaver enables you to build a website without writing code

Dreamweaver CC is a popular software program for creating websites without knowing any code. It's a useful program for a wide range of web designers and developers, from beginners to advanced professionals.

You can build credible sites with Dreamweaver, but it has limitations; in order to do whatever you want with the best web design techniques, you will need to learn HTML, CSS and other coding. Here are some of the pros and cons of using Dreamweaver...

Simplifying web design

The main attraction to Dreamweaver is that it simplifies web design as a "what you see is what you get" (WYSIWYG) platform. With drag and drop features, there's not much of a learning curve to understand design in a short time with Dreamweaver.

The learning curve with Dreamweaver is short

Some people, however, have difficulty learning the basics of Dreamweaver due to its confusing interface and cannot always trust the WYSIWYG element, which does not necessarily display what a live user would see through a browser.

You may find that the software offers a lot of features that you may never use, while others may find it to be all they need to do whatever they want. It's particularly useful for designers who only need basic websites.

Ways Dreamweaver can help

Dreamweaver provides useful tools for pros who prefer to write code through a window that displays both code and design views. It provides code highlighting, which allows you to read your code quickly when checking for errors. Its code suggestion feature helps code writers with CSS. Other useful features include file manager, code validation and accessibility checks.

Ultimately, Dreamweaver is a simple and efficient platform for people who need to design multiple basic sites. It comes loaded with templates that give you plenty of different choices for site layouts. The latest versions are up to date with browsers, giving you a "live view" of what sites realistically look like online. Dreamweaver also provides advanced tools, and as part of the Adobe family it integrates well with other Adobe products.

Dreamweaver is nicely integrated with Photoshop and other CC apps

Another advantage to using Dreamweaver is that it's a cross-platform solution. It helps you build websites for all devices, as you will not need to learn special code for mobile websites. The "Fluid Grid" feature on new versions, for example, lets your site automatically rearrange itself to fit the screen it's being viewed on.

Why Dreamweaver might not help

If you rely too much on the basic functions of Dreamweaver, it can turn you into a lazy web designer. Since the web is constantly evolving, you may miss out on valuable developments by limiting your design knowledge to just the tools provided by Dreamweaver.

Even though your top concern might be how easy it is to upload and organize content, at some point you may want to explore beyond WYSIWIG solutions to incorporate more sophisticated technology into your projects.

Another downside to Dreamweaver is that it is expensive compared with other solutions. There are plenty of content manager systems, such as WordPress, that provide you with basic web tools at no cost.

In some cases, you can do much more powerful tasks with CMS platforms than with Dreamweaver, which can be overwhelming for beginners. In order to maximize the software for its most powerful capabilities, you will need a cloud subscription, which can add up to high expenses over time.

Too much code?

One of the main drawbacks to using Dreamweaver is that it creates extra code on your web pages, which means clutter for search engines while adding a layer of unpredictability to your production. If you want to be in control of your website on a technical level and maximize efficiency, you will need to write your own code.

Dreamweaver is fine for sites not meant to compete for search ranking; it also allows you to write in HTML if you choose. Since it gives you the best of both worlds – easy design and code control – if can be a useful tool for business. Many professionals, however, criticize Dreamweaver for its poorly written code snippets and outdated CSS coding.

Conclusion

The best platform for web design depends on what's most comfortable for you. Some people cannot handle the nuances and limitations of Dreamweaver, while other designers appreciate it for running more basic sites.

The main advantage to using Dreamweaver for the non-technical crowd is that it bypasses writing code, but it can also help more experienced code writers do their jobs more easily.

Words: Fueled

Fueled is an award-winning mobile app design and development company based in New York City, with locations in both Chicago and London. They have developed apps for almost every format you can possibly think of, from the iPhone and Android, to Kindle Fire, Apple Watch, and now the Apple TV.

Liked this? Read these!

Source: Is Dreamweaver a serious web design tool?

8 responsive web design trends that defined 2015

The article that introduced responsive web design to the world was published by Ethan Marcotte just over five years ago.

In the short timespan since, responsive web design has gone from an interesting new idea to the industry-wide accepted approach to multi-device design. As we look to 2016, we can see that the maturation of this approach brings with it a number of best practices as well as some exciting trends.

Let's take a look back at successful trends of the year with an eye towards the future.

1. Captivating storytelling

Mankind has always used stories to convey ideas and share information. Stories activate parts of your brain that simple facts and figures do not. On websites, storytelling creates more engaging and memorable website content.

This storytelling approach has been embraced by sites like Medium and by many web writers who are now using stories to better convey important details, information, and compelling data.

When using storytelling in your responsive website, some basic tips to follow include:

Hook readers quickly  and make sure that you have a strong opening that falls above the fold on all viewports so that readers see it immediately

Ensure line lengths for your story are optimal for both large and small screens. Lines that are too long are hard to follow, while line that are too short break the flow of normal reading. Strive for a range between six to 75 characters per line and adjust font sizes as needed to achieve the best results.

Use visuals where appropriate to accentuate the story, but be mindful of file sizes and ensure quick downloads on all devices

Make it easy for readers to share the story with others. Consider placing sharing functionality at both the top and bottom of the content so that readers do not need to scroll to do use these features. This is especially helpful on small screen layouts that require substantial scrolling. Also make sure that these buttons can be easily used on touch screens.

These points can be seen in practice in what Vice does with their homepage layout.

Mobile viewport

Full-size viewport

2. Less is more

Many SEO and website experts have long suggested that "bigger is better."

Their argument is that a site with lots of pages has the best chance to rank for a wide variety of key terms. The problem with creating incredibly dense websites is that they can be confusing for people to use and they can be difficult to keep updated. Outdated pages and content are often left neglected, creating sites that are bloated and no longer relevant.

When you think about loading the content on smaller devices, you can imagine the usability nightmare that ensues.

Many websites have begun to take the opposite approach to this "bigger is better" recommendation. Smaller sites are hyper-focused on specific topics, eliminating any pages or content that aren't critical to the user experience.

This "less is more" trend can be seen in the popularity of single-page websites, including parallax sites. You can also see it in sites that have aggressively simplified their sitemaps.

3. Patterns everywhere

When an approach becomes popular and widely used, like responsive web design has, patterns will often begin to emerge.

As explained in Web Design Trends 2015 & 2016 by UXPin:

A web design pattern, aka UI design pattern, is a reusable solution to a commonly occurring problem you might encounter every day.

The value in using a good web design pattern to solve a problem is that users will be familiar and comfortable with your solution. The downside to using established patterns is that if everyone uses the same approach, websites begin to look very much the same and design uniqueness is lost. You must weigh the benefit of using an established pattern against the downside of not being able to design something new and unique.

One common responsive pattern, for example,  is off-canvas navigation.

Smallest viewport

In the smartphone view, a handy top-down toggle menu houses all the options:

Mid-sized viewport

The tablet view expands the navigation horizontally and adds a primary CTA in the middle of the screen along with four secondary CTAs at the bottom of the screen.

Largest viewport

The navigation and content layout remain the same as the tablet-sized viewport.

When evaluating design patterns, always ask yourself these questions:

What problem am I trying to solve?

How have others solved this same problem?

Is there pattern to those solutions or an established best practice?

Is this pattern overused?

What barriers, if any, exist to using this pattern on my project?

To learn more about responsive web design patterns, check out some common layout patterns as outlined by Google and a useful responsive library by Brad Frost.

4. Card layouts

One of the most popular design trends today is the "card layout." Popularized by Pinterest, the card layout has become a widely used approach to presenting easily scannable chunks of content on a website.

Card layouts are very attractive when considering the UX for responsive websites. Because these cards effectively break content down into smaller blocks, those blocks can then be more easily rearranged for different screen sizes and layout needs.

Smallest viewport

Largest viewport

Cards can help improve information distribution, which is why sites like Twitter and Google have followed Pinterest's lead with this UI pattern and why more and more sites are sure to apply this approach for 2016 and beyond.

5. Hidden menus

Another UI pattern example that has been popular for many years is the hidden menu. From drop-down and fly-out menus that are revealed on hover to the infamous "hamburger icon" to navigation drawers, hidden menus are used to save space while still making those menu option available to a site's visitors.

While the benefit of saving space on a responsive design is undeniable, there have been a number of people who have argued against the practice of hidden menus. Menus that are hidden to save space are less likely to be accessed than those that are consistently shown.

Smallest viewport

Largest viewport

One experiment actually showed that these hidden navigation items cut engagement time in half.  

The challenges of responsive navigation are something that UI designers continue to grapple with. Despite the possible downside to hidden menus, expect this design pattern to remain a popular choice for responsive navigation.

6. Big hero images versus no hero images

The hero image trend is quite interesting.

Many sites use gigantic hero images that span the entire width and height of a screen. Other sites have taken the exact opposite approach to hero images, eschewing their use altogether and preferring only bold colors and rich typography in their place.

Hero images

No hero images

These two competing trends each offer their own benefits and drawbacks. Using rich images can add visual flair to a design, but giant images mean additional time for those images and the site to load. Removing large hero images may decrease the visual richness of a design, but the loss of those images speeds up load time.

Additionally, according to Google/YouTube user experience research, removing these images can actually help create a more appealing site. In their study, researchers found that reducing the visual complexity of a page, while also increasing its prototypically, could actually increase its appeal.  

In summary:

Big hero images

Visually rich and appealing

Slower loading times

No hero images

Not as visually rich

Faster loading time

Less complexity can increase overall appeal

Both of these approaches to hero images are valid and each will likely remain popular in 2016.

7. Rethinking advertising

Online ads and responsive websites have always experienced a challenging relationship.

For years, online ads were sold based on size and locations. This poses a problem with responsive sites since the size and placement of various UI elements will change across different screen sizes. This makes fixed advertising sizes a poor fit in a responsive environment.

Changes in privacy concerns and how web browsers handle advertising are also sending shockwaves through this long-time staple of the Web.

Apple's iOS9 added substantial fuel to this fire with their announcement that they will now allow third party developers to create ad blocking software for the Mobile Safari browser. This change has the potential to fundamentally change the way the Web works.

In the very near future, all sites – responsive or not, will need to rethink how advertising is used.

8. Improved workflow

Not all trends can be seen visually on the final website. Some trends happen behind the scenes as that site is being designed and developed. An improved responsive workflow is one of those trends.

One important change many designers are using is responsive prototyping.

Instead of static design comps that seek to show different possible breakpoints in a potential design, responsive prototyping tools (like UXPin) create more authentic experiences that can be deploy quickly and easily.

These prototypes will better convey interactions that will allow you to get more informed feedback and to make better overall UI design decisions.

Next steps

To learn more about best practices for web design, check out the free guide Web Design Trends 2015 and 2016. By analyzing 166 of today's best web design examples, the guide deconstructs useful trends into simple design tactics.

Source: 8 responsive web design trends that defined 2015

Design Apps to Speed the Design Process

Design software vendors are continually releasing new applications to hurry design and shorten the distance and time from idea to final manufacturable blueprint, helping design engineers accelerate their companies' speed to market for new products. Here are a number of apps that streamline the design process with the goal of getting the products to end-users as quickly as possible.

Comsol corrugated horn antenna results

Model of a corrugated circular horn antenna. Simulation results show the electric field and radiation patterns around the antenna.(Source: Comsol)

Mobility and tablets

While mobility may seem to be an odd value proposition for the traditional design engineer hunched over a workstation, on-the-go design is gaining traction. "There's a push toward mobility and tablet-based design software because it's quite simply the most agile solution for design engineers," Alistair Munro, director of business development at Lean Design Canada, told Design News. "It also facilitates the important bond that should exist between design and manufacturing.

Munro notes that mobility helps the design engineer capture quickly a concept or an idea from inspiration acquired on the factory floor. "The closer the two camps of design and manufacturing can mesh and collaborate, the better the world of manufacturing will be."

He points to a couple of recent products that support mobile design. "From a pure design perspective, the main two candidates come down to Autodesk's AutoCAD 360, with its Force Effect apps, and Siemens Solid Edge ST8," said Munro. "Both camps have expanded the abilities of their software to easily create concept designs while also being cloud and mobile capable."

He notes they also offer subscription-based licensing, which he believes will likely become the standard pricing model in the coming years. "Also, both parties are collecting myriad smaller app companies with a variety of capabilities. They're integrating these into their latest products," said Munro.

Munro points to a number of other mobile apps that can be used in collaboration with full design programs that have specific niche purposes. "A good example is the Weight Reduction Material Selector (WeRMS) app, which is a tool for lightweighting exercises," said Munro. "WeRMS allows your design team to quickly input desired performance or strength variables and then compare a wide variety of materials to achieve your weight and cost goals."

Solid Edge ecosystem

Solid Edge software from Siemens PLM has been churning out new native applications. "We have over 200 technology partners in the Solid Edge ecosystem, and we are definitely seeing more demand for add-on apps, especially as the traditional definition of mechanical CAD broadens into other areas and intersects with more functions within a business," John Fox, vice president of marketing for mainstream engineering at Siemens PLM, told us.

As an example, Fox points to Quadrispace, which offers add-ons for Solid Edge that take a 3D model and produce technical documentation that can be used by manufacturing, marketing, and sales. "Users can easily produce illustrations, exploded views, and assembly instructions and publish them in PDF form or on the web in HTML5," said Fox. Another app in the ecosystem, Dynamic Designer, embeds advanced simulation capabilities into Solid Edge with full associativity. "With this app, users can apply different loads to a model, change aspects of the design, and really understand the physics behind the model before it's manufactured, reducing errors and saving time and money," said Fox.

In another example, Zuken's E3.series integrations with Solid Edge enable users to integrate the worlds of electrical CAD and mechanical CAD. "This is more important than ever as product designs increase in complexity and space is at a premium," said Fox. "All the connections defined by the electrical design are brought directly into Solid Edge, where the designer can tackle the mechanical placement and routing." The goal is to streamline the process of producing an integrated design and removing bottlenecks created by handoffs between departments.

Source: Design Apps to Speed the Design Process

Patent Troll Targeting Printing Companies that use Common Web-to-Print Functionality

Commentary & Analysis

By Adam DewitzPublished: December 15, 2015

A recently-formed Delaware-based limited liability company called High Quality Printing Inventions, LLC, has been filing patent infringement cases in the U.S. District Courts in a litigation campaign against several printing companies using common web-to-print functionality. It appears that High Quality Printing Inventions is a non-practicing entity, a patent troll, formed for the sole purpose of seeking royalty payments.

The patent includes 20 claims covering web-enabled print systems that include product specification and design interfaces that utilize templated documents to create mass-customized business forms or brochures. The patent is US Patent 6012070:A Digital design station procedure. The claims describe common functionally of systems that many printing companies have offered in web-to-print storefronts, collateral management and e-commerce platforms for years.

The history of the patent starts in 1996 when Moore Business Forms, Inc., (now R.R. Donnelley) filed the patent application. The patent was granted January 4, 2000. In March of this year, the patent was updated to formally assign the ownership to R.R. Donnelley. The change of assignment from the Moore business to R.R. Donnelley was most likely in preparation for a sale or licensing of the patent to High Quality Printing Inventions, LLC. At the time of publication, R.R. Donnelley has not responded to requests for comment on the current ownership of the patent, its relationship or business dealings with High Quality Printing Inventions, LLC.

According to legal database searches, High Quality Printing Inventions, LLC has filed at least 32 patent infringement cases against 35 printing companies that have web-enabled print capabilities as a primary outlet for their businesses. The defendants include:

ALLBUSINESSCARDS.COMAngstrom Graphics IncAvery Dennison CorporationBarton Cotton Affinity Group, LLCBay State Envelope, Inc.Cardphile, Inc.CardsDirect, Inc.Cardstore, Inc.Cimpress N.V.Deluxe Corp.Farheap Solutions Incorporated (OvernightPrints Incorporated)FineStationery.comGreat FX Business Cards, LLCHallmark Cards IncorporatedInvitation Consultants, Inc.Luxe Cards, LLCMaster Marketing InternationalMinted LLCMoo, Inc.Office Depot IncorporatedPaperDirect, Inc.Pear Tree Greetings, Inc.Posty Cards, Inc.PrintingForLess.com IncorporatedPrintograph IncorporatedPrudent Publishing Co., Inc.PsPRINTShutterfly IncorporatedSimply To Impress LLCStaplesTaylor Corporation (123Print Incorporated and Everglades Direct, Inc.)Thayer Publishing, Inc.Uprinting.comWorldwide Tickets and Labels Inc.Zazzle, Inc.

All of the defendants in the current batch of lawsuits appear to have one thing in common: a majority of the companies have developed in-house "web-to-print" software to power their e-commerce services or are using highly customized off-the-shelf products. At this time, no infringement claims have been made against suppliers to the industry that develop off the shelf "web-to-print" software solutions with functionality similar to that used by the current defendants. The focus on printing companies rather than suppliers to the industry seems to be a strategy of High Quality Printing Inventions, LLC, and its outside legal team who likely would prefer not to target vendors who may have deeper pockets for legal defense and more sophisticated legal teams. Targeting printing companies may, from their perspective, be a way to make some quick settlement cash.

If High Quality Printing Inventions follows the modus operandi of other recent patent trolls, the current list of defendants is likely an initial phase in a scheme to shake money from printing companies. The current defendant list appears to be a strategic mix of small, medium and large printing companies. How these companies react and respond will provide this patent troll with insight on how to expand its litigation campaign against many other printing firms.

WhatTheyThink will continue to follow this situation as it develops and we have other similar patent trolls in our sights as well.

Source: Patent Troll Targeting Printing Companies that use Common Web-to-Print Functionality

DATA SYST : Visual Data Systems Announces Robert Gray Will Lead Boomerang Platform Launch

Columbia, Maryland (PRWEB) December 14, 2015

Visual Data Systems, a leader in website design, software integration, and online marketing services for vacation rental and related industries, is pleased to announce that Robert Gray will be spearheading the implementation of Boomerang, an extensive web-based booking, marketing, and communication platform that equips vacation rental and travel providers with the tools to attract vacationers and keep them coming back.

In his return to Visual Data Systems, he will assume the title of Executive Vice President of Sales & Business Development. Having worked in all phases of the vacation rental industry (property management, software, and web), Robert brings an immense wealth of knowledge and experience to Visual Data Systems and its clients.

"We are pleased to welcome Robert home! The entire VDS team is very excited to have Robert back in his new roles with Visual Data Systems," stated Paul Herman, CEO & Founder of Visual Data Systems. "Robert's breadth and depth of industry experience amplifies our continuing commitment to bringing the best online marketing tools and results to our clients. With the launch of Boomerang and the return of Robert to the team - this is certainly a great time to be a VDS client."

Robert Gray has been in the vacation rental industry since 1994 and has worked in a variety of roles as a property/rental manager as well as working for key industry vendors. He has previously served as the Resort Controller at the Litchfield Beach & Golf Resort as well as spending six years with Dunes Realty in Garden City, SC. As General Manager of Dunes Realty, Robert helped manage over 1,000 vacation rentals. On the vendor side of the industry, Robert has been the Director of Marketing for Instant Software (now part of HomeAway Software), one of the largest providers of software to the vacation rental industry. He also worked for Visual Data Systems in various sales and marketing roles before becoming Vice President for over two years. For the last 15 months, Robert has served as the Vice President of Business Development for a start-up industry vendor.

"I am very happy to have the opportunity to return to Visual Data Systems and to once again work with all the great VDS team members and their clients," stated Robert Gray. "The opportunity to help launch the Boomerang platform which will bring a wealth of tools to professional vacation rental managers, allowing them to further build their brand, increase client interactivity and communications, and increase their percentage of returning guests is something that I am very excited to a part of."

Robert will be leading the charge of Boomerang, which will deliver the most comprehensive guest and owner feature suite in the industry. Boomerang aims to boost success in generating vacation reservations, communicating with guests, and increasing site visibility.

Boomerang is available at the Core and Core Plus levels. With Core, which comes standard, providers receive a responsive website with CMS, SEO Readiness program, VDS booking engine and tools, communication suite, reporting, and vacation planning tools.

With Core Plus, providers can add the following features: guest loyalty & rewards integration, advanced auto emails, Encore email marketing services, OwnerNet, MyBrochure, Survey Scout, and online marketing services such as PPC and SEO.

About Visual Data Systems

Visual Data Systems, based in Columbia, Maryland, is a leading supplier of online marketing, technology, and consultation. Founded in 1993 with extensive experience in the vacation rental industry, Visual Data Systems has clients throughout North and Central America and the Caribbean. Visual Data Systems supplies clients with design services, online marketing tools including online survey management, managed email solutions, search engine optimization and marketing, integration with rental/property management software, and business and technology consultation. Visual Data Systems can be found online at http://www.VisualDataSystems.com and can be reached via email at marketing(at)VisualDataSystems(dot)com or via phone at 410-964-8665.

Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/visual_data_systems/boomerang_Gray/prweb13127766.htm

(c) 2015 PRWEB.COM Newswire, source Press Releases

Source: DATA SYST : Visual Data Systems Announces Robert Gray Will Lead Boomerang Platform Launch

13 top Web development bootcamps in 13 cities

According to a recent survey by bootcamp directory and reviews website Course Report, more than twice as many students are expected to graduate from coding bootcamps this year (16,056) than in 2014 (6,740).

"People are drawn to them for time- and money-savings," says Liz Eggelston, cofounder of Course Report. "These programs aren't cheap, but they take three to six months to complete instead of two to three years for a graduate degree—and cost a fraction of the price."

And attending coding bootcamps appears to pay off for graduates: Three-quarters of respondents to Course Report's survey report finding full-time employment that requires skills they learned in a bootcamp. Among those, 63 percent are in salaried positions, and survey respondents cited an average salary growth of $25,000 following bootcamp graduation.

From East Coast to West, here's a look at 13 popular bootcamp programs for Web developers, including tuition and job assistance details to help you find the best bootcamp for you.

Source: 13 top Web development bootcamps in 13 cities

Adobe profit beats on strong subscriptions for Creative Cloud

By Sai Sachin R and Kshitiz Goliya

(Reuters) - Adobe Systems Inc <ADBE.O> reported a profit that topped market expectations for the ninth straight quarter on strong subscriber growth for its Creative Cloud package of software tools, which includes Photoshop.

Adobe's shares jumped 4.7 percent to $93.10 in extended trading on Thursday and are set to hit a record high on Friday.

The company said 833,000 subscribers signed up for Creative Cloud in the fourth quarter ended Nov. 27, more than the 678,200 additions analysts were expecting, according to research firm FactSet StreetAccount.

Creative Cloud includes graphic design tool Photoshop, web design software Dreamweaver and web video building application Flash, among other software.

Adobe, which has seen strong growth from Creative Cloud, has been nimble enough to attract users other than enterprises and professionals to the software suite.

About 52 percent of customers subscribe to t he highest-priced full Creative Cloud while the rest subscribe to individual products. Of those, Photoshop Lightroom was the fastest growing, Chief Financial Officer Mark Garrett said in an interview.

"It's growing the most because it's attracting new users ... hobbyists and consumers and people that would never buy the Creative products before, so it's expanded our market opportunity," Garrett said.

San Jose-based Adobe has been switching to web-based subscriptions from traditional licensed software to enjoy a more predictable recurring revenue stream.

"(Adobe has) largely completed this transition to a recurrent revenue model. You are starting to see revenue stack even though your expenses aren't rising as quickly," said FBR Capital Markets analyst Samad Samana.

Revenue from its digital media business, which houses Creative Cloud, jumped 35 percent to $875.3 million.

The business – also home to Acrobat, which enables the ubiquitous PDF forma t for e-books – makes up the bulk of Adobe's revenue.

Revenue from its digital marketing business, which offers tools for businesses to analyze customer interactions and manage social media content, rose 2.3 percent to $382.7 million.

Total revenue rose to $1.31 billion.

Despite the 21.7 percent increase in fourth-quarter revenue only matching analysts' estimates, a much lower 3.4 percent bump in total operating costs also helped Adobe's profit beat estimates.

Adobe's net income soared to $222.7 million, or 44 cents per share, in the quarter, from $88.1 million, or 17 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, it earned 62 cents per share, beating average analyst estimate of 60 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Adobe's shares have risen 22.4 percent this year through Thursday's close.

(Additional reporting by Arathy S Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Cynthia Osterman)

Inv estment & Company Information

Finance

Adobe Systems Inc

Creative Cloud

Source: Adobe profit beats on strong subscriptions for Creative Cloud

Create a logo with Affinity Designer

Affinity Designer is a fresh new design and illustration app that burst on to the scene last year and immediately won Editors' Choice, before becoming a runner up in the contest for Best App of 2014. Yesterday, Serif announced some top new features in Affinity Designer 1.4.

Here, I'll walk you through how to create a unique logo using the software. I'll cover the basics of the app, including working with lines and shapes, laying out a page, and exporting various elements as efficient web graphics.

Affinity Designer is Mac-only for now, but that may change once the developers finish up the suite of tools (which will also include Affinity Photo and Affinity Publisher).

Before you get started, download the 10-day Affinity Designer trial and install it (or dive in and buy it from the Mac App Store). Affinity Designer works on OS X 10.7.5 or newer and only requires a Core 2 Duo processor.

Step 01 Set up your new doc

Launch the app and create a new doc from the startup panel. As we're designing a scalable vector logo, the document type and pixel size aren't critical – we've chosen 'Web' at WXGA (1280x800) for ease. To prepare for the design, turn on Snapping and select the UI design preset from the drop-down list, which also enables Force Pixel Alignment mode. You should also enable Guides and Rulers from the View menu.

Step 02 Get the pen tool ready

Select the Pen tool from the left, and choose the 'Line Mode' option on the top Context toolbar to restrict creation to straight lines. On the Stroke panel at the right, set the stroke weight to 9.6pt (or type 40px, and it will convert for you). To have stroke weights displayed in pixels rather than the normal points, uncheck 'Show Lines in Points' in Affinity Designer > Preferences.

Step 03 Start drawing lines

Click and hold, starting from above and left of centre of the design area, holding Shift to constrain the line to vertical, and drag downwards. Release to draw the stroke (ours is 580px tall). Set the Cap type to 'Butt' to give a flat end. Switch to the Move tool (V), hold cmd, then click and drag your line to create a copy, moving it to the right. Hold Shift to keep the copy aligned.

Step 04 Get your guides in order

It's evident now that some layout guides will help keep the growing number of elements neat. Our first vertical stroke is at X=425 and you can position the second by eye, or add guides by clicking on the rulers and dragging right or down. To suit our logo, we're adding horizontal guides at 110, 400, 690px and vertical guides at 425, 640, 855px using View > Guides Manager.

Step 05 Things should snap into place

Position the right line over the guide at 855px – it should snap nicely into place. Select the Pen tool again and draw a diagonal line from the top-left of the logo to just above the middle of the logo space. Switch to the Move tool (V) again, hold cmd and drag to duplicate this as we did for the vertical line. Flip it using the 'Flip Horizontal' button on the top toolbar. Position it to the right.

Step 06 Expand strokes

You can edit these strokes by moving end nodes using the Node tool (A). If you're happy, select both the diagonal lines by Shift-clicking them, then choose Layer > Expand Stroke. This converts them to rectangular shapes that are easier to select and align. Zoom in to the point of the 'M' and use the Node tool again to position the lowest corners together on the centre line.

Step 07 Add embellishments

Time to embellish the 'M'! Click on the Triangle shape on the left toolbar to select it (more options become available if you hold down), then click and drag to draw a triangle 130px wide by 115px tall. Fill it black via the Colour panel and remove the stroke. Position at the bottom-left of the 'M', then duplicate it for the right. If you haven't yet saved your design, hit cmd+S and name your file.

Step 08 Join up the shapes

Duplicate the triangle again, then use the Transform panel at the lower right to set its size to 70px wide by 60px high. Rotate 90° using the shape's rotation lollypop, holding Shift to constrain. Position one triangle at the left middle of the first stroke, duplicate and flip to position another on the right stroke. 'Expand Stroke' on the two vertical lines, then cmd+A to select all, then join the shapes using the 'Add' button at the top right.

Step 09 Create the next letter for your logo

Now we're going to create the 'C' that will sit inside our 'M'. Create an ellipse 265x280px, with no fill and a 40px stroke. Centre it in the design area, then convert it to a shape (Layer > Expand Stroke). Next, create a rectangle 60px high and position it over the mid-right of the ellipse (this will form the break in the 'C'). Shift-click to select both objects and cut the rectangle from the ellipse using the 'Subtract' button. I've also added a small triangle on the letter's left side.

Step 10 Curve manipulation

If you're feeling up to some curve manipulation, we can add some interest to the middle point of our 'M'. Add a small circle with 40px stroke and convert to curves. Break the curve at the top node and move the loose ends to make a teardrop shape that meets the 'M''s arms. Some practice with curves can be had at bezier.method.ac. You can also add a neat 5px rounding inside the top of the 'M''s upper points using the Corner tool – select both the nodes, then click and drag to smooth.

Step 11 Export as SVG

Now we want to save your file again and export the logo as an SVG so we can easily use it in other projects. Press cmd+A to select everything, go to File > Export and choose 'SVG' from the icons at the top of the Export dialog. Choose 'Selection without background' from the Export dropdown, then click 'Export'. Now you just need to give your logo a name, choose a folder (remember where it is!) and hit 'Save'. Close your design from the File menu.

Step 12 Page mock up

Over the next few steps, we're going to use the techniques you've already learned to mock up a page around your logo. Create a new design, same size or larger than before (ours is 3840 x 7400px) and we've unchecked 'Transparent background'. Once open, ensure Snapping is enabled, choosing the UI preset again. Next click the 'Place Image Tool' button, select your logo SVG, and drag it out at the middle top of the page. Ours is roughly 260px square, but it'll look perfect at any size!

Step 13 Plan your layout

Choose whether to start with guidelines or content first (and guidelines afterwards), to kickstart your layout. Our guides define a repeating area that includes a background rectangle, one large and three small images, product information, and button regions. You can drag these guides on to the page from the rulers.

Step 14 Layout tricks

Time for some layout tips! To quickly centre-align, right-click an object and choose Alignment > Align Centre. Or add Alignment (and Distribution) controls to your upper toolbar using drag and drop – edit the toolbar using View > Customise Toolbar… to achieve this. Add text using the tool at the left, either scalable 'Art Text' or traditional 'Frame Text'. Use Hex colours by changing the Colour panel's menu to 'Sliders' and the model drop-down to 'RGB Hex'.

Step 15 Exporting elements

Once you're happy with your page mockup, it's time to select some elements to export. To select multiple product images, cmd+click each one in the Layers panel or Shift-click each one in the design. Now switch to the Export persona using the button in the top-left. In the Layers panel, click 'Create Slices'. You can adjust slices to be any size in any position.

Step 16 Final export

In the Slices panel, uncheck everything apart from your selected images. Choose whether to export at 1x size, 2x, 3x (or all three). Look up to the settings in 'Export Options'. We're outputting JPGs at High Quality, using a Lanczos3 resampler and happily ignoring ICC settings (but they're there if you need them!). Now click 'Export Selected' at the bottom of the Slices panel, pick a folder, and click Export.

You're done! Logo in use

That's it! You've seen some creation tools, pixel-perfect shape manipulation, layout assistants, exporting as SVG, creating export areas from design elements, and exporting optimised graphics. There are plenty of ways to make Affinity Designer fit your unique workflow – start using it in your own way to see what fits!

Words: Dale Cook

Dale Cook is a product manager at Affinity who specialises in customer engagement, design and DTP. This article was originally published in issue 269 of net magazine.

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Source: Create a logo with Affinity Designer