Original Design

Thanks to everyone who voted! We are very proud of our awards for People’s Choice and 2nd Place overall! We will continue to work with Harold McMillian and the Diverse Arts team to help them realize their dream archival website.

We participated in a website building contest that matched a non-profit organization with a team of designers/programmers to build a fully disabled accessible website fulfilling the needs (and wishes!) of the non-profit from start to finish in 28 DAYS! My team, Unchain my Art was matched with the Diverse Arts: East End Cultural Heritage District, to build an archival site using mapping and original source material to preserve the art and culture of Black East Austin.

In just 28 days, our team accomplished many technical feats, including the ability to switch from the graphic site to a basic no-graphic site (to help users using a text-to-speech-reader navigate easier) we captioned video so hearing impaired users can enjoy the interviews, and we also created an integrated mapping feature that allows users to see what was happening in different areas of the East End Cultural District at different times.

The content management system we created is set up so that volunteers at Diverse Arts can add edit and delete content in an organized fashion, allowing them to catalog and make available their copious amount of original source material (interviews, documents, audio files, etc.)

We lost a few team members due to the flu, and it was a race to the finish yesterday (our home page still looks a little naked) but we are very proud of the accessibility and technical foundation we’ve created for Diverse Arts. We hope they will be able to use and build on this web site for many years to come!
See the list of winners on the Knowbility website!

Congratlations to all participants.  See you next year!

The first step in planning a creative, productive website is similar to that of any great scientific process – the “discovery” and collection of information to be used later during the actual web design process. We work closely with our clients to learn more about who they are and what makes their business unique, whether it’s a redesign or a brand new web project.

Some questions we’ll ask are:
— What are your goals for your website?
— Who is your target audience?
— What do you want your website visitors to take away with them?
— What is your ideal time frame for this project to be completed?
— Do you have a marketing strategy for promoting your website after it is finished?
— What are some of your favorite websites and why do you love them?

After we’ve gotten to know you and your business a little better, we’ll work out details of a project that fits your business profile as well as your budget.

STEP 2: COLORS, COFFEE AND DESIGN

The next step in the website development process is the design and architecture phase. During this step, ideas are converted into a functional website design. This step focuses mainly on color theory, graphic design, and mapping out the navigation flow. We want to create an environment for the user to move around in easily and intuitively find the information they are looking for.

From the fruits of these design sessions come static graphics that can be viewed on screen by the client. Based on your feedback, we’ll revise these images and present them again if necessary. Once we’ve settled on a basic functional architecture and design for the site, the process is taken to the programming level.

STEP 3: PRODUCTION OF FUNCTION

During production, the composite design is converted into a fully functional website. With our technical knowledge the ideas and models considered in the previous phases are transformed into web pages that test those ideas. Production requires that all content including text, images, audio and unique navigational elements are assembled and laid out in their appropriate places within the structure of the website.

Next, the code is evaluated to make sure the site functions smoothly & professionally. We support the forward-thinking goals of the W3C, and work hard to make sure our code adheres to the highest modern programming standards. We test all outbound and internal links, edit copy, and optimize images (decreasing resolution or adjusting dimensions to reduce file size) for faster downloading.

Ad Impression – A single appearance of an advertisement (like a clickable banner or Google text ads) on a website.

Acrobat Reader – Sometimes called “Adobe” or just “Acrobat,” A free stand-alone application or web browser plug-in from Adobe that allows users view a PDF file in its original format and appearance.

Bandwidth – Measures the amount of information that can be transmitted over a network, usually measured in megabytes (MB) or gigabytes (GB). Simple HTML web pages do not require a large amount of bandwidth, but full-motion video requires more. The more users clicking on your site, the more bandwidth you will use.

CMS – CMS stands for Content Management System, just fancy web-speak for an application built behind the scenes of a website that allows an administrator to log in and edit designated text and images and other components. A CMS can be a highly customizable tool to manage web content and is especially useful for people who would like to add and edit their websites on a regular basis.

Directory – A website that catalogs the Internet by categorizing and ranking other websites using human editors. These editors screen and subjectively place websites based on the quality of content at the time of review.

Domain name – An individual’s or company’s unique address (www.alysondesign.com) on the Internet. A domain name is made up of an identifying name followed by a period and a multiple-letter extension such as .com, .org, .net, .edu or a country code such as .ca or .uk. Usually a company is paid to host your domain name for a period of years, often (but not always) this company will host the website as well.

Flash (.fla) – Technology that falls in the category of “rich media.” If it moves in ways more sophisticated than a slide projector might produce, then it’s probably Flash based. Adobe, makers of Flash, claim that approximately 96% of Internet users have installed the Flash plug-in (required for display).

JPEG (.jpg or .jpeg) – A type of graphic file that is optimum for displaying images on screen. This file type does not allow animation but provides the greatest detail for art and photos in a relatively small file size.

Keyword – Specific words and phrases that are one of the many criteria used by search engines to categorize web site content.

Opt-in – A way of qualifying list subscribers who explicitly requested to be added to an email list.

Opt-out – A way of qualifying list subscribers who did not explicitly request to not be added to an email list.

Rich Media – Loosely defined, any use of web technology that incorporates streaming video, audio or animation.

I play the drums and violin, have toured most of the U.S. in different bands over the last 16 years, and am an avid music collector.

I love riding road bikes and cross-country mountain bikes, and I collect balloon tire and middleweight bicycles and parts from the 40s, 50s and 60s.

I really enjoy the process of making screen printed poster art: it can be stressful, methodical, and therapeutic, frequently all at the same time.

Nothing beats the feeling of creating something out of nothing whether with the computer, in the studio or on the stage.

Meet Ally ->

:: Curriculum Vitae ::

Meet Josh ->

Our most recent design work is listed under the web design link at the top of this page.

If you have any questions or comments please drop us a line!

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