openmind — Fri, 10 Sep 2004 10:26:09 +0000

I don't think you can teach someone to be a designer. All the designers I have dealt with have that certain "thing" that makes them creative. Their view, perspective, even the way they carry themselves sets them out as a creative person.

You can teach them the technical side but the creativity is something they either have or don't inmho...

GlideNet — Fri, 10 Sep 2004 09:59:07 +0000

Quote: Hi.
How to teach designer to make better web site designs?

Make about 50 million different designs, and you will probably never be completely satisfied. But by the time you get to 49,999,999 you should be a pretty good designer, and very experienced. lol

I design sites and I am "ok" at it, I found my real "niche" and that is Programming. It is sooo much more fun..!

Roo — Wed, 08 Sep 2004 02:18:05 +0000

It's good if someone has an 'eye'...talent if you will.

One thing you can do is notice design all around you. Magazines, billboards, product labels, posters, ads....etc. etc. etc. It's everywhere! Study it. Look at something/anything that you think is really good and pick it apart with your eyes.

But mainly......practice, practice, practice.

Megan — Tue, 07 Sep 2004 20:38:54 +0000

IMO, good design goes way beyond the basic skills required to do the job. We're not just talking about making something look pretty, or making sure the code validates. It's about making something work for the client. The most important thing in design, IMO, is accomplishing the site's objectives. That includes branding, usability, and the intangibles that go into making the sale (however you define "sale"). IMO, this is the real meat of the problem, and the most difficult to learn. My current position is that visual attractiveness is pretty far down the list in terms of what is most important in a design.

I would reccomend reading books, articles, and blogs by some of the promient authors in the field. Also practice, experiment. It takes time to learn this stuff. It also helps to review other sites . The more practice you have picking out the problems in other sites the easier it will be to spot and avoid them in your own designs.

This is an interesting question, Alex. Thanks for bringing it up.

KarenArt — Tue, 07 Sep 2004 19:37:56 +0000

Quote: hit them with a stick ?

LOL! I hear electro-shock therapy works too.

There are lots of elements involved in creating better websites.
Valid coding (which we've talked about in other threads)
Design esthetics
White space balance
Image optimization

Magic pixie dust (or am I the only one who relies on that?)

As Busy said, the designer has to have something to start from and some times what available is very limiting.

Are you the teacher or student here?

Busy — Tue, 07 Sep 2004 11:27:09 +0000

hit them with a stick ?

A designer usually goes from some input or business logo/colour scheme/concept. Some times what available is very limiting.

Practice always helps