Book review of "Web Design On A Shoestring" (free)
Carrie Bickner's book "Web Design On A Shoestring" is being much talked-about as a good blueprint for techniques, technologies and processes to get maximum-quality web sites on a minimal budget. DMXzone staffer Bruce Lawson reviews the book, and as a bonus, you can read chapter two of the book "The Pound Wise Project Plan".
Careful Planning Pays
In 1996, mountaineer Rob Hall led a team of climbers on what turned out to be a disastrous expedition to the top of Mount Everest. Commercial tourism was big business, and what were arguably underqualified climbers had been able to buy a trip up what was becoming an overcrowded mountain. One such climber, a wealthy socialite, brought an espresso maker along on the expedition. She survived the journey-no thanks to the extra weight she was toting, which at such altitudes and temperatures posed a serious and foolish risk. But the lady and her coffeemaker became a symbol of the excess that commercial Everest tours had become. That espresso maker is exactly what web professionals need to look out for as they approach web sites with limited budgets.
Overstuffed backpacks have undermined many sites, no matter what the budget is. Before any journey, it is tempting to load up on all of the fabulous things that you might use. But low-budget travellers must pack with care. Think of your shoestring site's development as a trip up a tall mountain, where any bit of extra weight is a burden that you have to carry. Pack too much, and it will cost you.
I have never done any mountaineering, but I used to rock-climb. Most of my crag time took place in a climbing gym. My climbing friends and I scaled 70-foot slabs made of plywood and synthetic rock formations. The gym was pricey, and I think it made most of its money by selling beverages. Bottled water was about $3 a pop. These were my graduate student days, and I did not have money for extras, so I brought tap water from home. Pretty simple stuff, but I probably saved hundreds of dollars each year that I climbed there.
Budget Threat:
Treating Small-Budget Sites Too Casually Can Be Expensive
I have enjoyed a modest supplemental income from creating small-budget sites
in my free time. I learned the hard way that neglecting the planning phase of
such site costs money in the long run. By failing to plan and budget for basic
things, such as the cost of new fonts, the time to produce web-ready images,
and the labor of authoring content that was supposed to have been created by
someone else, I have worked more hours without pay than I care to add up. Whether
you are working freelance, in an agency, or in-house, don't let poor planning
eat away at your budget this way?
So often when web professionals approach a small site, they don't take the time to plan. A low dollar amount can lead people to think, "This is a minor project that I can do in my off hours. It is a casual job that will evolve on its own." Don't ever put yourself in this position! You will pay dearly for taking that attitude. If you are working on a flat fee, you will not recover your costs. If you are working on a billable-hour schedule and you pass that cost on to the client, shame on you! If you are working full-time as part of an in-house team, you will pay personally by working late and on weekends to make up for time lost to lack of vision. One way or another, lack of planning will cost you big-time.
Bickner, WEB DESIGN ON A SHOESTRING, ISBN: 0-7357-1328-6,
Reproduced by permission on Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as New Riders
Publishing.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Ian Blackham
Following a degree in Chemistry and a doctorate in Scanning Tunneling Microscopy, Ian spent several years wrestling with acronyms in industrial R&D (SEM with a side order of EDS, AFM and TEM augmented with a topping of XPS and SIMS and yet more SEM and TEM).
Feeling that he needed a career with more terminology but less high voltages, Ian became a technical/commissioning editor with Wrox Press working on books as diverse as Beg VB Application Development and Professional Java Security. After Wrox's dissolution and a few short term assignments Ian became content manager at DMXzone.
Ian is a refugee from the industrial Black Country having slipped across the border to live in Birmingham. In his spare time he helps out with the website of a local history society, tries to makes sure he does what his wife Kate says, and worries that the little 'un Noah is already more grown up than he is.
Comments
Be the first to write a comment
You must me logged in to write a comment.