Side project - The Dollars christmas gig tickets.

I did these gig tickets about a month ago for a local function band. My first bit of freelance work! :D

Had no time to blog about this at all, so thought I would put it on at least before the party! Looking forward to it :)

Footer research

After a long time debating over what to do with my footer, I have done some research into existing footers to help me design one for my voyage project. Footers can be a bit boring so I wanted to create something that looked interesting, but didn't draw too much attention away from the main content of the website. 

One footer I really like is one the website for Lambley Riding Club (click here to view). I really like how on each page the season changes & there are small additions to the scenery. The colours work well with the theme of the website and it adds that artistic touch to each page. 

Another footer I like is that on the website Thin Martian (click here to view). It's not too fancy but it gives a nice feel to the page, incorporating a couple of characters & adding some style to the footer. This seems likes the easiest option to go for considering how much time I have left, so I will probably make something similar to this :)

Voyage Progress

Actually love my javascript home page! :) I prefer this a lot more to the design I had before as it is more personal & is definitely a lot more interesting!

Drawings for my website

These are just the graphics I am going to use to incorporate into my website.

Changes

After much debating over whether my website was good enough or absolute dogshite, I have completely changed my design. After talking to Shaun he explained to me that I should include some personality within my website. After all, this voyage is based on a personal journey, so I might as well reflect on things such as my memories and places I went to! To make it more personal I am thinking of including some hand drawn graphics. I think this will give it a really nice touch.

I am struggling with the javascript elements still, so i'm gonna try and concentrate on that :( Wish me luck!

Voyage - Development

Finally have my wireframe sorted. Really struggling on what content to include! :(

Voyage - Wireframes

To help me get ideas for how I want my website to look I have made a few wireframes up.

I like the idea of having a javascript navigation and some form of interactive map, so I think I will combine these ideas along with a simple wireframe as I don't want to over complicate my website.

Constantine & Lockwood design principles

The principles of user interface design are intended to improve the quality of user interface design. According to Larry Constantine and Lucy Lockwood in their usage-centered design, these principles are:

• The structure principle: Design should organize the user interface purposefully, in meaningful and useful ways based on clear, consistent models that are apparent and recognizable to users, putting related things together and separating unrelated things, differentiating dissimilar things and making similar things resemble one another. The structure principle is concerned with overall user interface architecture.

• The simplicity principle: The design should make simple, common tasks easy, communicating clearly and simply in the user's own language, and providing good shortcuts that are meaningfully related to longer procedures.

• The visibility principle: The design should make all needed options and materials for a given task visible without distracting the user with extraneous or redundant information. Good designs don't overwhelm users with alternatives or confuse with unneeded information.

• The feedback principle: The design should keep users informed of actions or interpretations, changes of state or condition, and errors or exceptions that are relevant and of interest to the user through clear, concise, and unambiguous language familiar to users.

• The tolerance principle: The design should be flexible and tolerant, reducing the cost of mistakes and misuse by allowing undoing and redoing, while also preventing errors wherever possible by tolerating varied inputs and sequences and by interpreting all reasonable actions.

• The reuse principle: The design should reuse internal and external components and behaviors, maintaining consistency with purpose rather than merely arbitrary consistency, thus reducing the need for users to rethink and remember.