Designing Blogs
Topic: Website design
If you are serious about web design you have to be serious about blog design. Here are the winners of the '2005 Business Blogging Awards'. Study the designs AND study the range of businesses using blogs...it really is a huge trend in online sales and marketing. An increasing number of websites are being supported by 'companion blogs'. Create a blog and use it to market your design skills, knowledge of developments and trends in your area of future employment, completed TAFE projects, interests, recommended articles, photos of trips,etc.

Vblogging Exercise
The conceptual skills logo. Click on the logo to view the designer's outline of its concept and post any changes you may require to this messages's comments section.

Web Page Design
Topic: General
Web Page Design for Designers. This great site has articles, links, references and editorials that will assist you with your web design projects.

How To Build A Website And Stay Sane
Topic: General
Here is a free book you can download (pdf file 4.1 mb.) It is "a plain-talking survival guide for business owners and operators who want to find a good web developer and not get ripped off. It explains the strategies and processes employed by many companies running very successful websites. It teaches you which types of developers will promise you the world on a plate for $1.50, and how to find one that will actually deliver a good job at the end of the day. It shows you how to balance short versus long term costs, how to streamline maintenance and updates, and how to make informed decisions about issues that arise as you and your developer work through the process of creating or redesigning your website."

Learn about RSS
Topic: All subjects
If you require more information about RSS feeds and Aggregators then try this tutorial from CNET. It includes a video and a review of aggregators. If your interested in the latest developments in technology then CNET is a great website to add to your aggregator.

Create an RSS Aggregator, Now!
Topic: All subjects
Anyone learning in the information age, particularly in the fields of digital media and web design, need to continually access the world's primary information source, the Internet. Increasingly, websites and blogs include XML code, usually referred to as a "feed" (as in "news feed"), that makes it possible for learners to "subscribe" to the content that is created on these websites and blogs so they no longer have to visit these sources directly to get information. As is true with traditional syndication, the content comes to you instead of you going to get it, hence "Real Simple Syndication (RSS)." The syndication is achieved using a news feed collector know as an "aggregator". The aggregator checks the sites you subscribe to, usually every hour, and it collects all the new content into a folder. The feed your aggregator checks is virus free, and you know that everything in your aggregator is something you want to read because you subscribed to it. No ads, no spam, just new content from the sources you specify. You can scan the headlines, read the entire post, click through to the actual website or blog, and file the information away for later retrieval.
Bloglines is a FREE online service for searching, subscribing, creating and sharing news feeds, blogs and rich web content. With Bloglines, there is no software to download or install -- simply register as a new user and you can instantly begin accessing your account any time, from any computer or mobile device. And it's FREE!
If your serious about learning in the information age identify your Internet information sources and implement an RSS aggregator now.

Technology Inventions That Changed Our World
Topic: General

The Internet tops a CNN list of 25 inventions that have changed the world in the last 25 years. What do you think were the others? Where did laptop computers and cell phones rank? Read this article to find out. Do you agree with the rankings?

Free Photo Management System
Topic: General
FLICKR is a free online photo management system. Upload your photos and use FLICKR to create public and private sets of photos available for viewing via your FLICKR website. Consider using FLICKR to showcase the design aspects of your projects.

Free Web Based Instruction
Topic: General
This is almost too good to be true. Free, high quality,web courses from the SOFIA (Sharing of Free Intellectual Assets) initiative. Resources you may be interested in include: Introduction to Java Programming - Webpage Authoring - Introduction to Macromedia Flash - Creative Typography. There are four other courses so far, watch for more.

Copyright in the Digital Workspace
Topic: Copyright
"Employees seek out information that is relevant to business objectives. Once they find it, they frequently share it with others for a wide range of purposes often without realizing that their actions may violate copyright law." ...Oops, better read this article and note the section on 'Risk Factors'.

Choosing colours for digial media
Topic: General
Choosing colors is always problematic. All colors have both positive and negative connotations. Choosing colors that complement and coordinate well with other images can be difficult.
This article provides links to a range of colour pickers recommended by an experienced designer. OF THE SIX RECOMMENDED PICKERS, WHICH ONE WOULD YOU RECOMMEND FOR STUDENTS TO USE? Comments please.

WELCOME
Topic: General
Welcome to Tony's blog and welcome back to learning in 2005. The intention of this blog is to provide you (my students) with links to articles and websites that will assist your learning and development of digital media projects in class and at work.
It is important that you interact with this site by posting your comments e.g. was the recommended link useful, have you found another link that you recommend, do you have any information that may benefit other students, etc.
Go to this site to access Tony's subject information.
O.K. let's start blogging.................