Download - Design Disrepair
Design Disrepair The keys to a successful website renovation.
Who is Jason?
• Designer & Front-End Developer
at Cyberwoven in South Carolina
• Author of the Sitepoint book
The Principles of Beautiful Web Design
• Founding member &president
of Refresh Columbia
• University of Central Florida Alum
•Personal Site: Jasongraphix.com
There are about 126 million homes in the United States. * http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/00000.html
There are over 172 million websites. *http://news.netcraft.com/archives/web_server_survey.html
Homes and websites both need to be
maintained…even these.
The Dilemma Maintenance Sucks
Replacing a leaky faucet.
Putting on a new roof.
Steam cleaning carpets.
Clearing gutters.
Repairing rotten wood.
Unclogging toilets
...putting up with the past.
Renovation is Exciting
Knocking down walls.
Reconfiguring a kitchen.
Installing a walk-in shower.
Replacing light fixtures.
Modernizing finishes.
Improving functionality.
…making it your own.
Is it time to swing the hammer?
Some of the top reasons for
renovating a home are:
Outdated Finishes
Obsolete Appliances
Dysfunctional Floor Plan
Inefficient Energy Use
Lack of Square Footage
The top reasons for renovating a website are similar:
Outdated Content…
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Obsolete Code…
Dysfunctional Navigation…
Inefficient to Update…
& Lack of Scalability.
The worst are the old
websites that were built
“One piece at a time”
kludge or kluge (kl j) n. Slang
1. A system, especially a computer system, that is constituted of
poorly matched elements or of elements originally intended
for other applications.
2. A clumsy or inelegant solution to a problem.
Coronado Catastrophe
http://uglyhousephotos.com/wordpress/?p=1386
Five Lessons I’ve Learned
From Home Renovation
1. Learn the Building Codes
2. Set Realistic Goals
3. Have the Right Tools
4. Invest your Resources wisely
5. Make Lasting Changes
Learn the Building Codes Building codes regulate the structural design, energy efficiency, construction quality, and overall safety of structures occupied by the public. 1
New Construction
• Separation of Content,
Style & Behavior
• Valid HTML & CSS
• Section 508 Compliance
• Graceful Degradation
• Design consistency
with no CSS hacks. Web Standards in a Nutshell
By Natalie Jost –www.nataliejost.com
“Make it Right”
-Mike Holmes
Holmes on Homes
Set Realistic Goals …because overdue and over budget
is not good for business. 2
“Kitchen Sink Syndrome”
Original Client Request:
Add an estimate request form.
Eventual Solution:
• Design new page with form.
• No CSS? Add stylesheet to page.
• Nav is image based?
…Rebuild with CSS.
• Site is static?
Global find & replace to add new nav to all pages.
• New nav gets approved with changes… OF COURSE!
• Create include file for nav and add that to all pages…etc…
Have the Right Tools “When your only tool is a reciprocating saw,
every project looks like demolition.” 3
My Essential Toolkit
But do you really know how to use the tools?
This guy did…
BGCOLOR? SPACER GIF?
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Invest your Resources Wisely If your website was a home, where would you
want to spend your time and money? 4
“Spend your money where the water is.”
Kitchens and bathrooms sell homes.
Spend your time/budget where the functionality is. Style and whiz bang won’t make it work better!
Make Lasting Changes “Too many designers get caught up in the visuals needing to be
representative of the time and current design movements…when in
reality, design needs to be timeless.”
-Nick Finck 5
What is Timeless Design?
Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman
Designed by Charles & Ray Eames
in 1956
A visual concept that could simultaneously exist in both the past and the future.
Ball Chair
Designed by Eero Aarnio
in 1966
Compaq (2001) – http://www.compaq.com
Compaq (2008) – http://h18000.www1.hp.com/
Apple (2000) – http://www.apple.com/
Apple (2008) – http://www.apple.com/
Herbert Bayer, Kandinsky Poster, 1926
Jason Santa Maria, 2008
Remember: Maintenance Sucks… Especially on outdated homes and websites.
Happy Renovating!