Over the past few weeks there have been riots in blogland, which all kicked off from this tweet by Elliot Jay Stocks.

Elliot said:

Honestly, I’m shocked that in 2010 I’m still coming across ‘web designers’ who can’t code their own designs. No excuse.

To further clarify and explain what he had meant by the tweet, Elliot published a blog article to fully explain his views. Blog riots followed, and countless designers and developers published their own blog articles both attacking, and supporting what Elliot said.

One of the reasons I like having a blog is because it lets me share my opinion on topics that affect me. That’s why I’m writing this.

Elliot did retract what he said (to an extent), and said something like “okay, designers do not have to be able to code, but they need to be aware of it”. I think he may have got lynched if he didn’t come out with some sort of statement like that, in all honesty. There are some hardcore Designers out there, you know.

Mark Boulton said in his response article he that generally he felt Designers didn’t need to know how to code, but needed to at least be aware of what it does. Fair point.

But, there is one major issue that stood out for me that was not really touched on. How employable are Web Designers that cannot build a basic website?

I am a Designer that designs for Web and Print (Web & Graphic Designer), and have learned to code XHTML & CSS quite well. Being able to code the interface you design is empowering, and will give you a great deal of satisfaction from your work.

There are brilliant User Interface Designers out there that probably cannot code a single line of CSS, and still deliver awesome work, which then is built by a Developer. And I understand that, and salute them for being brilliant at what they do.

However, my point is this - if you are a young Web Designer starting out, and you cannot code any of your own designs into a basic working website, then you will really limit your options for employment.

It is easy for Designers at the top end of the industry to say that Web Designers don’t need to know how to code, when they do know how to code. I wouldn’t say that to any young Web Designer that’s just starting out. With a bit of time, and effort, it is possible to learn XHTML and CSS to at least a basic/intermediate level, and doing that will make life easier when going to job interviews.

In harsh economic times employers are wanting more bang for their buck, and are expecting candidates to be able to do more stuff. I’m not saying it’s fair, because it isn’t, but that is the how it is – especially in Northern Ireland where I’m from.

I’m saying that every Web Designer should learn how to code their designs, then at least have the option to choose not to on down the line, and take a step back, and let the Developers do their thing. Having a more in depth understanding of how a website is built will make the designer much better at what they do, and open up more doors for employment.

Do you agree with me?

At long last, I have finally started making good use of my Evernote account. For those of you unaware of it, Evernote is a service that helps you remember everything. Users can upload audio clips, text notes, photos and other graphic files for storage and easy safe keeping. Initially, I started to engage with Evernote using it as a tool to help me remember stuff, but once I started to use Things app, there was no longer a need for Evernote because Things is the best for that.

However, lately I have started to really engage with Evernote as a Design Inspiration scrapbook. Many other designers also use Evernote this way, because it is actually the best way to use it. If I were a design student again, I would most definitely use Evernote as a project scrapbook to catalog my research. Some designers currently use Evernote to show clients ideas they are brainstorming, and collective research for an ongoing project.

One of the things I really like about Evernote is that you can download any of the images from your scrapbook in the original quality you uploaded them, so it’s like having a virtual folder of beautiful graphics you like. And if you set your scrapbook to be public then you can share it with anyone on the web, which is exactly what I do because I like people being able to see where some of my inspirations come from.

I remember when I was at University I would buy black Daler Rowney scrapbooks and have to sit and cut out my research clippings and glue them into the big black scrapbook, and it really became such a chore after a while (I didn’t revel in it anyway, but some did). Evernote is the easy new digital solution for keeping a scrapbook of things you like, and I use it for things that inspire my designs.

It couldn’t be easier to add to Evernote

Adding new visual goodies to Evernote is easy. There is a web clipper plugin available for both Firefox and Safari, which enables easy clipping of graphics straight into evernote. All you have to do is right click, or CTRL + click (mac) and Add to Evernote, and that’s it. Name it, Tag it, and send it over.

Evernote’s handy desktop app for mac

Once you get the hang of using Evernote you will start to add, tag, and upload more and more graphics, so the desktop app is the best way to manage your media. You can create multiple scrapbooks, and easily move graphics about from one scrapbook to the next by just dragging and dropping.

And in the palm of your hand, Evernote for iPhone

Evernote for iPhone is a very handy little app for viewing your scrapbooks in the palm of your hand. The app does enable users to record audio messages, and take photos to upload straight to Evernote, but I don’t use it for that. I only really use the iPhone app for easy access to all those beautiful pieces of artwork I have stored online. If I want to show something to someone I’m with, then I just open my Evernote app, view my notes, tap on the note, and there you go… full access to a design scrapbook on the go, anywhere.

Following on from my previous article, these typographic posters were inspired by the Designer-Client relationship. These posters are motivational based (well, except the first one), as opposed to my previous designs that had undertones of sarcasm.

I think that every Designer has some responsibility to educate clients. If you have spent years learning a profession, then be assertive, and if you are asked to do something that you know is wrong… then take the time to teach the client about the right way. If they don’t go for it (which often happens)… then at least you still done your job right.

Enjoy the posters, and as always… feedback welcome!

When an artist has something to say… they paint, and similarly, when a writer has something to say… they write. So I figured I’d design some funky typographic posters based around current inspirations and hot topics on the web that are relevant to me and what I’m doing at the moment. These designs were inspired Sam Brown’s blog articles.

This week I read an excellent blog article by Sam Brown, and it really hit the nail on the head of exactly how I approach website projects. It was so good I had to blog about this. In a nutshell, the article is about how it is important to educate clients, and not simply be let yourself become their construction worker.

“Clients hire you to design the site, they have hired you hopefully based on a combination of talent and experience. You are the designer, you are not a simple construction worker piecing something together from the clients Ikea-like instruction manual – some clients need to be told this up front and be constantly reminded of it. Potential clients that already know exactly what they want and simply need a lackey to build it for them are always going to be hard work and ones I tend to avoid at all costs.” Sam Brown

My views are a lot like Sam’s, I believe any good designer will not take the easy route with any project, and will always take on the challenge of educating clients about what can be achieved with their site, and not just doing what they first ask.

“Teaching clients that the site will not look the same in every browser should be a day one task. We aren’t working in the print industry where the final product can not be altered and it’s not a DVD or Blu-Ray disc that has just gone to press – it’s a living breathing website that will continue to progress, be altered and evolve.” Sam Brown

» Read More on Sam’s Blog