Patrick Hansen.com

Just a collage I designed. I call it His Reign. An artistic expression of the past 8 years in the U.S.

Just a little idea my friend Bob and I were toying around with one day. Who hasn’t done a knock off this masterful iconic piece of art.

Enjoy:

Shepard Ferry Obey Oprah knock off

I’ve been working in Fireworks for just over a year now and I still find new features. You have the option to scale attributes of your objects. This applies to fills such as gradients, to effects such as drops shadows and glows. This can surprise you if you’re not familiar with the feature, so let;s check it out real quick.

I’ll walk through an example:
First I’m going to draw a basic circle shape.

Currently it has a lime green fill but I’m going to change it to a radial gradient.

The lime green is hurting my eyes, so I’m going to change the green to a dark blue.

Now, I’m going to scale the circle. You can see that when I enlarge the circle, the gradient attributes remain in place. This can be frustrating if this is not the desired goal, yet at times, it can be a highly beneficial feature, especially with drop shadows.

I’ll revert the scale of my shape back to the original dimensions. Go to Edit>Scale Attributes and scale away.

Now the gradient scales with the object.

Another cool feature is Paste Attributes. If you have worked up a nice gradient, added some inner glows, a drop shadow and maybe a blend, then you draw a new object which needs the same attributes. At this point you can start duplicating all of your actions, or simply click the object with the attributes, copy, then select the new object and “paste attributes,” and you’re done!

Taco Edit is a full functional HTML / PHP editor. If you just need something simple, but a little more than a basic text edit application, than take a look at Taco Edit. I use it when I just need to make a simple edit to HTML or PHP.
As mentioned in the title… it is FREE!

You can get it here: http://tacosw.com/

Alright. Well, this is my first attempt at re-skinning this blog.

Just calling it simple Dark Dawn… and I must thank the designer behind the miami blue theme in which I used as my foundation and customized it from there. I’ll probably experiment with more later, but this will do the trick for now. I just got this blog up and running and I just wanted it to change the style up from the existing themes.

I removed the other skins (themes) from the library, so unfortunately, you will not be able to compare or reference the other ones unless you visit the b2evolution site. That means this little posts doesn’t mean crap to most of you.

*By the way, I just found this gallery of a lot of really nice skins for b2evo. Wish I would’ve saw this before I made Dark Dawn, but it just opened a lot more doors! http://skins.b2evolution.net/

Here are some small screen shots of the miami blue theme and the first attempt Dark Dawn theme:

This is one of our songs called Sides Divided. I thought it was a decent time to post up this politically driven song since it is the big election year. Material is on the chorus, artistIQ (me) is 1st up, Noetic is 2nd, then Antagonist from S.T.O.I.C. has the last verse.

We all have our own message within our verses. I am definitely expressing my feelings towards the current ruling ways of America under you know who, and some of the unethical practices this America has participated in. There are some obvious references to Iraq and terrorism. Also, a note to those who accept it and enjoy the evil tactics of a bureaucratic, selfish, and ignorant government.

*Please note, this is in no way degrading America, for I love this country and the people that fight for it and make it what it is. This is an expression of my feelings towards the current government and policies in which I do not agree with.

[song_attacher]song:music/04 Sides Divided Featuring Antagonist.mp3[/song_attacher]

What’s with the economy? You call this an economy. The country’s deficit is over 9.1 trillion dollars… that would be this spelled out in digits: $9,100,000,000,000.00. Are you kidding me? Isn’t there a point where you look at this and just say, “Maybe we should spend a little more conservatively?” The National Debt has continued to increase an average of $1.43 billion per day since September 29, 2006! I know this is not the best metaphor, but I spend an average of $20 per day.

brillig.com/debt_clock reports that the estimated population of the United States is 304,151,157, so each citizen’s share of this debt is $30,229.71. (as of today)

I just saw the news this morning and the Dow plummeted 400 points at the opening bell. International markets dropped yesterday from London to China.

Feds took some action before the opening bell by cutting key interest rates by a whole, I mean fractional 3 quarters of a percent! Wow, I’m going to go buy 5 iPhones on my credit card now.

So what does this mean for America? More importantly, what does this mean for the rest of the world, mainly China? Other countries are buying our debt. Some that have bought into it, are thinking about liquidating it, because of how unstable it is. How can a super power be in debt as much as we are?

I gotta go now, but I’ll get back to this. we’ll see how the markets are in a few days.

Well, as most of you know switching host is never fun. This may sound like a rant about Satrtlogic, but it only comes across as one, because this is what I have experienced with them.

I had my hosting at Startlogic for years. It was pretty good for awhile and had nice features along with great customer service. After getting more into web and management of sites, they kept coming up short. Their vDeck control panel was pretty limiting and not the best experience. They recently “upgraded” to the new version of their vDeck, but it doesn’t seem like too much of an upgrade.

I experienced CGI scripting issues (unintended) when they migrated a client’s site to the new server which broke all of the php scripts. I was not notified by them, but by an upset client. they had no explanation, I guess servers just do weird things at times when you depend on and pay for them.

I have spent valuable hours on the phone and online chats which take forever to get connected to anymore. Online chat waits up to 40 minutes, phone call waits from 30 to 70 minutes ( I really have a call log with 67 minutes)! Then if they do solve the problem, it can take an additional 4 hours to get a “senior tech” to provide a solution. With these waits, their customer service went down hill, more like in to an abyss. I’m done! You can “demand” to speak to a senior tech right there if you let the regular service rep know you are NOT satisfied with their first option solution. If you can do that, then why not provide that service first hand? Are you growing too fast you cannot support all of those thousands of customers who have chosen Startlogic? Your price is cheap, I guess you cannot afford more tech and customer support staff, but you can keep bringing them on in, eh? It isn’t my business, so I’m moving on!

They never even got my personal site to the new server after weeks of setting up the migration and they explained to me that it would be complete in 2 to 4 hours every time I contacted them. I have had enough headaches… to say the least. I already backed up my files and started looking elsewhere.

I’m now on HostMonster.com. Their interface is decent, not the most attractive, but one of the better ones I’ve seen. Aside from the aesthetics, it has a great workflow and it is very user friendly and straight forward. I transfered all of my site fairly easy and quickly. They were just a little more in price than Startlogic (1 year plan), but I think it is well worth it. Every online chat was quick and solutions were provided immediately, all phone calls were very friendly and helpful, not to mention QUICK! I can host as many domains as I want (* careful on bandwidth/transfers), up to 100 DB’s and a lot more. This sounds like an advertisement, but I did quite a bit of research and I have experienced multiple hosting companies, and Hostmonster has been great so far.

I will admit, MediaTemple was very nice. Great interface and usability, especially on the data-grid service (I had Lite). They have the iPhone account management feature as well. The only issue was their rates and limitability. For more than what I’m paying with Hostmonster, I was limited to 5 domains and DB’s. They do have great service too!

When working on a prototype, you must first define what type of prototype it will be. There are several types, simple static pages that you can just walk through, minimal functioning prototyping which actually has some interaction and logic behind it, even paper prototypes. Now the question of what is the best application to develop a prototype in? Well, you must define your needs and requirements, then define your resources.

It is obviously easier for a Flex developer to create it in Flex. It is easier for a designer to create it a design application and make static or simple clickable prototypes. (i.e. Using Fireworks preview in Browser mode). Flash designer/Developer in Flash and so on.

In this post, I’m going to go over a Flash vs. Flex comparison with a designer who has minimal development knowledge in AS and Flex MXML.

I recently have been working on a rapid prototype for one of our clients. It was a hand off which had over a week into it designed and developed in Flash with some AS 2.0 by another fellow designer.

Flash is great for prototyping, especially for a designer or someone who is not very familiar with coding. You can get by with tweens and simple gotoAndPlay(); & stop(); scripting. As long as you do not need to show what’s under the hood, Flash can provide a very close representation of the final product with not much development. Prototypes are usually done early on, so design is usually not finalized, meaning the designer can do on-the-fly design while creating the prototype. Some prototypes call for some more functionality which you cannot get out of linear design. As of right now, this prototype is pretty hacked together, and if another designer had to go into it, they would be on a code safari. You do get great design, you can make some unique animations, effects, and transitions, but it is not scalable. One slight change request, could cause a major chain reaction. I have stepped up and attempted to built this as dynamically as possible, for I remember the early days of Flash where I was digging 4 levels deep to make changes, or simply redesigning the whole component. This was built a little better than anticipated.

What am I getting at?
Well, is Flash the best for prototyping applications? That’s a pretty relative question. In some cases yes. In this case, where there is more functionality required, dependent and logic driven components, then it is a pain. Also, if your design calls for some type of component that already exist in Flex, then why waste your time.

I sat down with a fellow developer and he recommended doing it in Flex. This was my initial approach as well, but I have limited Flex experience so far. We are on a very tight deadline with this project (when aren’t we?), so making the decision to go into Flex or Flash was more driven by time, my experience and what had already been accomplished in Flash. Although, I did begin in Flex and spent a brief hour and a half laying it out. I learned a lot and especially since one of very talented developers was at my side for guidance.

My beginner knowledge of Flex allowed me to acknowledge that Flex had a lot of what I needed already in the framework. It was a matter of me knowing how to implement it and key thing is make it LOOK GOOD. I am very familiar with skinning, but developing, skinning and fine tuning with minor experience could take some time and reserve my comfort level.

I’ve been in this Flash file for over a week, and it does serve its purpose as a prototype. The only thing is, it does not behave exactly how it should (As I intended), and it took quit a bit of time to code up some of the functionality I needed (bit rusty), when Flex already had it there. If I needed a uniquely skinned component or custom behavior, I could just create that in Flash and make it a Flex component/container and take it from there. You can also export your animations and tweening into AS 3.0 which you can implement into Flex if desired.

My Summary:
I’m making it a point to learn Flex (MXML, AS 3.0) as much as possible to at least get my level up to prototype. I cannot wait until Thermo is released, so I’m going to get into a Flex bootcamp with some fellow developers and see where I can get. The frustrations and struggles I had in Flash were not very pleasing lately; scope issues, slight changes from AS languages, customizing components or behaviors from scratch…etc. Flash does have its place in the industry, but for application development and prototyping, Flex comes out on top in my book. When I start learning Degrafa, that should open some doors and bring design in Flex to a whole other level.

This is not news by any means, it has been going on in Denver for a few years now. For those who are not familiar with Denver and the scene though, there is a day fulfilled with art and events… It is 1st Friday.

The first Friday of every month, several art galleries, retail stores, bars & restaurants participate in a citywide art show. It started out in the smaller art district off Sante fe (between 6th and 8th’ish). It has now grown and expanded throughout downtown, LoDo area, Broadway, and even Cherry Creek. You will see a variety of artists on display from local to international. This is an amazing event and you can usually find a gallery going on to suit any of your taste and style of art.

How great is it to go around a town and just cruise in and out of art galleries admiring the beautiful talent and work. You do not have to feel pressured in paying fees (most are free), no worry about dressing up all crazy to “impress” the art snobs, and if you like drinking, then most offer a small array of beverages for donations (since most do not have a liquor license). I highly recommend hitting this night up. It does happen all year long, check your local galleries for details though.

One of my favorites to visit is The 400
Not only do they always feature great artists here, they are also one of the leading shoe boutiques in town. You can find everything from limited edition series to one-off custom painted shoes. they have two locations now, they usually hold the art show at their 11th & Bannock location. You can also catch where their after party is held after the event to finish up the night.

Other mentionable places:
• Ditto Gallery
• Art District of Sante Fe
• Indy Ink