Web Design in Oklahoma City

This is part two of my interview with Element Fusion's Creative Director, Jason Zimdars. See part one here. In these last responses, Jason gives us his insight into the future of web development and advice to anyone interested in a career in web design.

Me: What do you see as the upcoming technologies or issues that web designers will have to tackle in the next few years?

Jason: The web is interesting in its contradictions. On one hand, the adoption of new standards like XHTML 2.0, HTML 5, and CSS3 is a frustratingly slow process. They take ages to pass from recommendations to final specifications. Even then the road doesn't end because web browsers have to be built to support these standards and people have to adopt those browsers on a wide scale before these standard can be realistically used on mainstream websites. In a world where Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 (which was released in 2001) is still used by millions of users, it is difficult to get too excited about working with new specs that could be many years from being viable.

On the other hand, as slowly development on the desktop progresses, there are, at the same time, rapid and amazing changes to alternative browsers, especially on mobile devices. The prevalence of phones that can connect to the web and smart phone platforms like Apple's iPhone are completely changing the way people use websites. I think creating compelling, usable websites that are equally effective independent of platform is a huge challenge in the coming years. For the past few years, we've been increasing the size of web pages in both resolution (as large LCD computer displays have become more prevalent) and in terms of bandwidth (with broadband speeds offering high-quality video content). But just as web designers begin to settle into the age of modern computers and high speed Internet, mobile web devices have reset the clock by a decade with their tiny screens and slow data connections.

Me: What advice do you have for anyone who wants to grow their skill or pursue a career in web design?

Jason: My advice is to really spend time on the web. Read blogs about technique and theory in design, user-interface, technologies, and user experience. Use web sites and web applications and really assess them from a user's point of view. Note the things you like, the features that you find helpful, the features that are missing, the things you can't find. Note conventions and techniques you see that are effective. "View > Source" - is still the best way to learn HTML and CSS. Take websites you like apart and figure out how they work. Learn how certain techniques are accomplished by peeking at another designer's code. One of the great things about the web is how easily you can learn whether it's with free tutorials and references or by simply having the source code publicly available.