The wonderful world of web Design

Web Design

One of the things I enjoy is learning to design and code web sites.

I’m not sure if it’s the learning I like or the actual web design but I find it fascinating and exciting at the same time. 

  I made the decision to train in a more formal way and have signed up with the World of Web Professionals (http://www.schoolofweb.org) to do a web masters course

These blog posts titled: The wonderful world of web design, are as much for my benefit as they could be for yours.

  I intend to post my discoveries, as a form of note taking, my thoughts, and probably a few frustrations along the way.   Also things to look for in a great web site.

The first thing that strikes me as I begin is the sense that the web is a brave new world.  Even though the first web page was posted by Tim Berners Lee around 1990 find out more at the w3 site. http://w3.org/people/berners-lee

 The idea of linking (Hypertext) for example was discussed in documents and demonstrated as early as 1968, by Doug Englebart and seventeen researchers at Stanford research center.

The Hypertext would have to be the biggest future we take for granted about the web.  It would be safe to say without the ability to jump from one piece of information to another in an instant the web wouldn’t be the place it is today. 

 This Technology was invented by someone, and in fact its use has been in dispute in the past with a patient being posted by British telecom, and a court case between them and an internet service provider taking place that could have changed the web or at least our ability to use it so freely.

Earth Quake Damage

Most people will have heard the news about the recent earth quake which was centred about twenty five kilometres out of Christchurch city.
The Quake measured 7.1 on the rick tore scale and lasted about forty six seconds. The damage to Christchurch buildings and roads is extensive with maybe a hundred thousand buildings damaged in some way. Most roads in the city have bumps and a hollow where there was none before and the underground pipes are badly damaged .It is amazing there was no loss of life.
Here is a painting I did on location a few days after the quake of a very familiar site in the city at the moment.

Web Design

One of my life time goals is to become proficient at web design, so I have taken the bull by the horns and bought some books, then got more from the library and I have begun a new learning process.
The tools for web design are written languages that computer browsers understand, its mind blowing when you see how these things work. I look at the people who make it all happen, the great problem solvers of the internet they live in another world and understand that world very well. How do they do it?
My journey is going well I have my first web site on the internet (www.simonkramerfineart.com) and have some other projects under way. Web design is creative and there are a lot of design concepts and layout principals to learn, color concepts and typography but I have time and I have determination and I can do it.

Next week I go off on my on my painting trip to Glenorchy for a few days of Plein air painting. I haven’t painted in around six weeks and sometimes wonder if I still know how, but it’s like riding a bike, at least that is what I tell myself. Glenorchy is undoubtedly one of the nicest places in the world, I once said it’s where God comes down and sits in the mountains, and I think that’s true. I feel close to him there and I’m really looking forward to going. Here is a photo I took last time I was there. I hope to take some video footage of this trip to show you in the future.

Studio Progress

Studio Progress

Over the past six months I have been creating a gallery and studio space in my house in Christchurch. This task was started with great enthusiasm and without fully counting the cost which is just as well if I had known how much work the old house needed I may have abandoned ship before starting. There is an old saying “a Journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step”. Over the  last year I’ve learnt its ok not to have all the answers in fact I now treat life like a painting I think you can wipe parts off and start again if you have to.