Recently I have been spending a lot of time relearning things in web design and development. I realize that I can get caught up in doing things repeatedly without questioning why. After all we are creatures of habit. This has been on my mind since I started to read Jeffery Zeldman’s 3rd edition of Designing with Web Standards. I was first introduce to Jeffery Zeldman while working at Webster Hall in NYC under the head web designer in May 2005. I was immediately interested in Web standards mostly because of it’s focus on  structure over presentation and encouraging Semantic Code. It kinda reminded me of a Adolf Loos approach to web design. The ideas in DWWS set me on a journey of really questioning what I do when I am creating a website. These questions have become less about art and more about engineering.

This week, I watched a video by designer Andy Clarke who wrote an excellent book on CSS called Trancending CSS. In the video he shows his process on creating a web site which he suggests designing in the browser. So, rather then sending a PDF or static mock up of a web design to a client, send a working demo right away. He explains that the benefits of this is providing the client the experience of the site immediately and the designer a easier way to make revisions through editing CSS. Much like Zeldman’s book, this video got me thinking about my own process in designing and producing a web site.

Here are some key concepts that I re-learned:

1. Content is King - Andy Clarke shows that you can start the web design process with a word document. Writing out content as you would outline a book or and essay. This approach allow you to purely focus on Information Architecture and is a good way to think about how the mark-up should reflect this content.
2. Write Once, Publish Everywhere - Zeldman encourages clean semantic code that is accessible to everyone and every device. This is done by using code that appropriate to the content that is being presented and limiting things like “Code Forking” and “Browser sniffing”. These things make the website slower and can lead to some undesirable results. The best solution is to write code once and the right way. This is the core idea of term “Progressive enhancement”.
3. Client Relationship - Andy Clarke will sometimes invite a client to sit next to him while making revisions to a design. He does this by making real-time adjustment to the css which gives a client instant feedback. This approach lets the client get involved with the design process and gives them a sense of how their site works. This I feel is a much better approach then exchanging emails over a static image.

There are many other things that I re-learned recently, but these I feel are the most notable. I think that a large part of my job as a web designer and in life is to be always re-learning and questioning things that I do. This keeps things interesting and allows me to see things in a new light and take on new perspectives.

Relearning is a habit that I hope never dies.