Tools for Photoshopping your life - and website
While "web design" and "graphic design" aren't synonymous, the second can have a huge impact on the first. That's why Photoshop can be such a useful tool, and it's one of the reasons that a blog named the Webdesigner Depot recently launched BrushLovers.com, a directory of exclusive Adobe Photoshop brushes. Not only can you purchase premium brushes starting at $3, but you can also download free brushes for both personal and commercial endeavors. Some of the most recent free brushes include the seasonally-themed "Fall Leaves" and "Holiday Tags Lite", the stylish "Grunge Stars" and "Dotted Neon Lines", and the geometrically appealing "Hard Squares". Webdesigner Depot is run by designer Walter Apai, while Brushlovers features brushes by Liora Blum with website design by Claudiu Cioba.
The newest version of Photoshop (Photoshop CS5) was launched in April 2010. This version featured a new mixer brush and bristle tips, a puppet warp tool, a content aware fill, automatic lens correction, and camera RAW grain control. If you're just getting into Photoshop, you might be wondering what Camera Raw is. It refers to a special first-party Photoshop plugin called Adobe Camera Raw. This plugin reads and processes raw image files so they can be processed by Photoshop.
College websites you can learn from
A year after Forbes ranked Wofford College 71st in "America's Best Colleges" the Terriers have added another top ranking - and interested web designers might want to take note. Design blog Fearless Flyer included the school on teir list of "25 Awesome College Websites that will definitely WOW you!" The blog applauded the site's use of "headings, the logo, borders and background elements." Wofford launched a new website on Labor Day - apparently just in time to make the cut.
Other schools included on the list include Leeds Universities Catholic Chaplaincy, Missouri State University, Brown University, and Lethbridge College. School sites are a good barometer of what works in web design and what doesn't. People come to the site either expecting to find a certain piece of information or looking to be swayed by the presentation - the same two general categories in which users of e-commerce sites usually fall. Colleges are as much about the "brand" as anybody. Look at how Washington University in St. Louis uses typography and graphics to set up its logo.
Aircrafts: From sketches to 3D models to production
Boeing has been delighted by many orders from known airlines for quite some time. All are pursuing one goal: Every vendor wants to offer his customers and thus his passengers comfortable and yet affordable flights. Therein, various properties play a role that need to be created already during the developmental phase of the 3D modeling of an aircraft on the computer.