Opinion column : Copy & Print Center

Taming The Wild Mind

Posted by Marli Mesibov on May 11, 2012 · Comments Off

Myths have developed around and researchers have studied how the human brain juggles creativity and organization. Popular theory tells us that the left brain is structured and logical, while the right brain is artistic and imaginative, and that all human beings use predominantly one side of the other. Working in a creative field means challenging that theory, or [...]

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You Design It, They Do It

Posted by Paul Scrivens on May 4, 2012 · Comments Off

What if someone came to you and said, “I’ve designed this great website, but people don’t stay on it. Why?” How would you respond? Would you ask them whether they have done extensive A/B testing? Would you recommend testing the usability of the website? People like to test a number of metrics to see why people are not staying on a website. I think [...]

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Publish What You Learn

Posted by Louis Lazaris on March 30, 2012 · Comments Off

I don’t think anyone can deny that the Web has changed the way people teach, learn, and do research. Of course, this doesn’t mean that everything we read online is true and accurate—far from it. But I believe that through honest discussion and objective collaboration, accurate and useful information is much more likely to be the end result of [...]

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Is There Ever A Justification For Responsive Text?

Posted by James Young on February 27, 2012 · Comments Off

Depending on who you follow and what you read, you may have noticed the concept of “responsive text” being discussed in design circles recently. It’s not what you might imagine — resizing and altering the typography to make it easier to read on a range of devices — but rather delivering varying amounts of content to devices based on screen size. One [...]

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Beautiful Covers: An Interview With Chip Kidd

Posted by Spyros Zevelakis on February 20, 2012 · Comments Off

The work of Chip Kidd spans design, writing and, most recently, rock ’n’ roll. He definitely has the charisma to get ahead in that third field. He is best known for his unconventional book jackets, but he has published two novels of his own: The Learners and The Cheese Monkeys. Uninterested in design trends and fashions, he often draws inspiration from collectibles [...]

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How To Deliver Exceptional Client Service

Posted by Jeremy Girard on January 25, 2012 · Comments Off

We often hear companies, including Web agencies, boast about how they provide exceptional client service. But how do they define exceptional? Consider this scenario. You are hired to design and develop a new website for a retail client. The client loves the design, and the pages you develop use the latest in HTML5, CSS3 and responsive design, resulting in a website [...]

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Open Call For International Communities

Posted by Vitaly Friedman on January 21, 2012 · Comments Off

At Smashing Magazine, we are big proponents of diversity and sharing. We encourage designers and developers worldwide to step up and use Smashing Magazine as a platform to share their opinions, ideas or techniques. Our editorial process is quite evolved, yet we are very open to users’ suggestions. In fact, if an author has something to say, we try to help [...]

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Teach Them How To Hit The Ground Running And Faceplant At The Same Time?

Posted by Christian Heilmann on December 27, 2011 · Comments Off

A few days ago, a tutorial on how to Create A Christmas Wish List With PHP was published on Smashing Magazine’s Coding section that frustrated me. It frustrated me as it was incredibly easy to predict the comment reactions it caused. It also frustrated me as it was a classic example of a tutorial resulting in very happy readers who will go out and cause a [...]

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How Do You Deal With Overstressed, Irrational Clients? An Entrepreneur’s View

Posted by Brian Scordato on December 23, 2011 · Comments Off

As an entrepreneur who has been on the client’s side of the design and development process, I’d like to discuss the thought process of the client, as well as some effective ways to interact with them. For example, why do they ask for Shakira music on the home [...]

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Easier Is Better Than Better

Posted by Paul Scrivens on November 28, 2011 · Comments Off

In his book, The Paradox of Choice, Barry Schwartz comes to an interesting conclusion involving human choice. “People choose not on the basis of what’s most important, but on what’s easiest to evaluate.” Common sense would dictate that [...]

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Tag Archives : Opinion column