The Whitehawk

This one is courtesy of Zarin, one of the Nyxsis Ragnarok Server GMs.

Griffith Anime

Sorry folks, today’s Design Journal won’t be about the redesign, but instead, about an issue which concerns me greatly.

I recently purchased two new Web Design Index books, that called “Web Design Index” (very original name) from the Peppin Press which feature a nice selections of websites organized by different categories.

If I were to choose the websites for a book of this sort, I would be much more selective. Some of the designs chosen, are indeed original, in terms of layout and overall look, but most of them also sacrifice having a proper structure entirely.

I have absolutely nothing against being artistic with your website. But with some of the designs I’ve seen on this book there are several basic interface rules that are broken:

The structure changes almost entirely between the different sections.
Some websites have numbers representing the different pages of the website, with no other identification other than the address.
Other have really big and nice wallpapers, and all of the content is jammed inside a tinny semi-transparent box with “scroll buttons”.

I’m not by far the best web designer in the world, nor am I even close to that. But I would never sacrifice a good structure, that helped the user interact better with a website for a difficult or unconventional one for the sake of style alone. Unless the single purpose of your website is to entertain the visitor visually.

There are exceptions, like 2advanced studio’s website. The layout is a bit unconventional, although it’s somewhat structured, but the aim of the site is to visually appeal visitors and to demonstrate the kind of services that they can provide.

If you can design a site that is as visually appealing as theirs, then yes, you can sacrifice the structure a little bit for the sake of a good visual appeal. But as I mentioned before, they are an exception.

How far can I change the structure without making the website a maze to navigate?

Well, I think that a picture, on in this case a website, is worth a thousand words.

The link above directs you to Wolfgang Bartelme’s website.

On the front page you will have the beginning of the latest article, and just below, a few links to the articles before it. When you click on an article’s title, you will notice that the whole structure below the banner changes, and that was one of the bad things I mentioned about some design focused sites.

So why does it “work” in Bartelme’s site?

I never thought I’d ever quote myself, but if you ever read that long text in the index page of my website, you will find this on the first paragraph:

When you first arrive to an unknown site, even if you don’t notice, you will always ask yourself four questions: Who? What? Why? and How? and the text that follows this is precisely the answer for each of those questions.

Let’s look at this Bartelme article, as an example.

Do we know whose website it is? Yes, we do.

Do we know what the website is about? We immediately think that the website is about Design, and it is. Even though it doesn’t have an explanatory tagline, like the one I have, the content of the site becomes evident almost immediately.

I could go on, but I think you get the picture.

Even though the “body” of the site changes depending on the section, the most important part, which is the navigation, and the header (in the case of this particular design), remains the same. You can always identify where you are and easily return to where you were.

Certainly, there ways to make the website better, in terms of navigation. But for a website with such simplicity, it isn’t necessary unless it starts to grow beyond it’s boundaries and becomes more complex.

When I made this website, I didn’t really consider whether such elements were necessary, and when I look back at it now, I could easily remove 80% of the links that clutter the site. That is why the redesign will have such a fresh and simple look, compared to the current look of the website.

How can you prevent making your website as cluttered as this one?

Think about your target audience, and what your needs will be. For a website like mine, with only 4 pages (which will be reduced to three), you don’t need to make it very complex. In fact, with such a small number of pages, you are given more liberty in how you can give your visitor the information he needs.

Griffith Design

Although I haven’t watched some of the best classic Anime series, like Trigun and Cowboy Bebop, I have watched enough shows I guess to determine my favorites of all time.

Honey and Clover was an Anime that marked me deeply, and make me think a bit more about my future. But there was never an Anime, movie or story that scarred me (yes, scar) as much as this one: Kimi Ga Nozomu Eien (The Eternity you desire).

It starts off as any other romantic Anime show with teenagers. And then things go horribly wrong, and we are driven into the middle of the most painful dilemas and grow to love and hate all of the characters, for various reasons.

This show had all the reasons to go wrong. It was based on an adult video game, that should have been reason enough. Instead, this show had a storyline so great that even some people I know, who had never touched Anime, not even with a long stick, watched it until the end, as fast as they could, and loved every second of it.

This is also, by far, the most depressing story I have ever seen. The characters aren’t immaculate, saints, or just pure evil. They are normal people, like you and me, who happen to be in the middle of a very difficult situation and they deal with it in the best and worst ways they can.

I guess you could call it a dramatic masterpiece. Which is why I’ll probably never watch this Anime again, unless I’m certain I can cope with all of the emotions that go through the story.

Griffith Anime

As I stand here typing this, I can’t help but to wonder how many people have “accidentaly” stumbled upon an unprotected Wireless network and have tried to use for no good misschief.

I live in two homes at the moment, my father’s where I have my “office” and where I usually do all computer-related tasks, and my mother’s apartment which is sort of like a weekend resort where I can just sit back and relax without the drudgery of the internet life.

Even though I enjoy being here, my hectic schedule, and the lack of an internet connection have sometimes come between what I need and want to do, but today, I surprisingly came across a slightly weak signal for a wireless network and managed to connect to it.

Despite being happy, after establishing an internet connection the first thing I did was to see if I could detect the owner’s computer, and if he was protected. My first concern was to alert him. Unfortunately, he isn’t, so there doesn’t seem to be anything that can stop me from using this privilege as much as I like. So should I?

No.

I hate to use such a corny quote such as this one that has been repeated half a dozen time in the Spiderman movies, but “with great power comes great responsibility”. When I told a friend of mine about my “discovery”, the first thing he told me was that I shouldn’t download too many things, because the owner might have limited traffic (in Portugal, most of the ISPs have very limited download limits).

If you’re relatively tech-savvy, going to any website that tests your connection, like SpeedTest.net, will give you an idea of how good the connection is. Thankfully, I have determined that this connection is one of the more expensive ones, so there’s plenty of bandwidth and unlimited traffic.

Being aware of this fact, should I take the opportunity to download things via P2P? That depends on whether the owner is using the connection or not. A quick trip to Microsoft Network will usually tell you if there are any other computers connected.

Should I alert the owner? Definitely. But right now it’s 2am, so I’ll do it tomorrow if he’s at home. How can I detect where the Wifi is coming from? Well, basically I just have to do a small trip with my laptop turned on and check when the signal gets strong or weak. I should be able to easily determine the floor, and I already know on which side of the apartment the router is on.

A lot of people avoid wireless networks, and technology altogether because they are badly informed or don’t bother reading the manual to properly protect themselves. While some could seize this oportunity to abuse the connection as much as they can. I will use it to help the owner, and “save him” from future problems with less mature people.

Griffith Journal

After my harsh breakup, and my father’s coincidental retirement, I have decided, for both personal and financial reasons, to move to the United Kingdom and start off a new career there.

Being in an island that works with a lot of international groups, where many Brittish people come to live in, certainly gives me an advantage. And my friends and family have been quite supportive so far. Also, thanks to my father’s involvement with the Rotary club international I may even be able to get some support from UK members.

I feel sad about leaving my friends and my family behind. But I also feel excited, nervous and motivated to start off on a new career and explore a world which is completely different from this small, secluded and peaceful island.

On the bright side of things, I’ll be closer to many more international companies, with a lot of opportunities to develop my skills and to earn a better payment. I have been looking at many job offers, and I’m happy to say that my CV can fit most of them, even the most demanding ones.

This also means that Design Journal will return, and thus I will start transforming the design you’ve been seeing during the past months into transitional XHTML and CSS. As for Anime, I’ve been watching a few here and there, but for the time being, I must focus on my future and on my skills, so don’t expect much Anime content in the near future.

Griffith Journal

I put this one under both the journal and rants, because it’s a little of both. My girlfriend and I recently broke off, or in her own terms, she wanted some “space”, so I gave her it, willingly, knowing that my space was just about to be taken from me.

There’s nothing worse than forcing a person into being with you. That is something that has always worried and plagued me, for as long as I’ve lived. It’s funny how you feel, after all of the goals that you set disappear, because your relationship ended. Surely, other people go through harsher hardships. Some relationships leave emotional scars, or babies to rise. I can’t say I’ve experienced the later so much, although I can understand, or at least relate to it a bit. But I can certainly relate to the first.

You can’t help but to compare yourself to the one who replaced you. People who’ve seen her, with him, tell me that they have no idea what she sees in him, compared to me. I know that some people will say anything they can, just to make the other feel happier, but I can’t admit that I don’t think about it myself. I don’t look at him as someone inferior, just someone fortunate to have seized the moment, but perhaps unfortunate when the future rises.

It’s funny that all of the things that we promised to each other: honesty, regardless of the consequences, friendship, even if we became separated; all seem to break as easily as the words came out of our mouths at that time. It’s funny how all the moments, the pictures, the love we shared, the love we made, the things we cherished, the people we were with, all disappear, and turn into nothingness, when compared to the pain of losing one another.

I hope that no one else ever comes to know this pain, no one else but her. What goes around, comes around. I have to believe that, or else I’ll lose my sanity. And right now, it’s the only thing I have left to lose. Everything else feels empty and meaningless.

Griffith Journal

Today I got a nice surprise when I found out that YUI had released a new single before I was tired of her latest album.

This latest song has a nice upbeat to it and would make a very nice Anime intro for some random shonen one. It’s a bit similar to her “Rolling Star” song, but I honestly prefer this one because it’s easier to listen to, and “Rolling Star” has some high pitched tones.

The second song on the single is a nice balad, which contrasts quite a lot with the first one. A few of my favorite YUI tracks are usually the “secondary” single tracks, and this one is no different. For those that are curious, those favorites are: “Winter hot music” and “Why me”, and I’m also a fan of “Blue Wind” from her first album.

Griffith Music

I don’t really know how to complement the title better. If you’re a fan of the Naruto, or at least the first arc of the story (the Zabuza storyline), then you’ll also love this. Actually, I think that anyone who’s into anime will enjoy this…

Griffith Anime

The flashback is over, and we are now brought back again to the current stage of the story. In this episode we discover a few things which make the story interesting. So if you still haven’t seen this episode, then refrain from reading any further, unless you want to be spoiled.

The episode begins with young Clare (from the past), walking down a street holding Teresa’s head, after the man from the organization, to ask him to make her a Claymore, and to blend her body with Teresa’s. When we return to the present, we find Clare joining a team of 3 to battle against an Awakened.

Under the leadership of Miria, ranked as the 6th strongest Claymore in the organization, and two others, Helen (#22 in the rank), Deneve (#15). But what’s really surprising is that Clare’s rank is #47, meaning that, supposedly, she is the weakest Claymore of all. Even though her body has parts of the former #1, Teresa.

After leaving their rendezvous point, they move towards their location and choose a place to camp. Miria then decides to test Clare’s skills, by challenging her to a spar. Obviously, Clare is quickly defeated, and even mocked by her two other partners. But Miria, the leader, still things that there is an undiscovered strength in Clare, that she hasn’t even discovered yet.

When the group moves out, and approaches the location, they are met by a young man, who then turns into the Awakened one, and the whole party is surprised by the fact that a man can reach that state.

Even though the story isn’t very cryptic, it’s very enjoyable to watch, and although it’s an action show, somehow there are some elements that make it unique. In some ways, it reminds me of Berserk, but on the other hand, this story feels more realistic than that. And I remind you readers that I’m talking about a story with women that carry huge claymores and slay demons.

Next week, will continue this small arc, with the second part of the Slashers, and hopefully we’ll be able to witness a bit more of Clare’s potential.

Griffith Anime

Hello readers,

As you have probably already noticed, I haven’t made any Design Journal entries lately. At first it was because I wanted to give something to the Anime readers, but now something much more serious has happened, that forces me to temporarily stop making them.

I am having some personal problems, namely my relationship. As you can guess, it’s a bit hard to try and create something beautiful, when your feelings don’t correspond to that. I will continue to watch and post about Anime, I will probably need to watch a lot of it to overcome the hurt, if things take a wrong turn. But I wouldn’t expect any major Design Journal entries soon. At least until this part of my life is settled.

I’m not going to do like a blogger I knew, and keep my readers, as little in number as they may be, out in the cold. I can’t promise I will post twice a week, like I’ve been doing lately, but with the free time I have I might feel like giving a small monologue about my feelings and my relationship. Maybe it will even feature in the next Scrivs Tyme podcast, who knows?

I would also like to take the opportunity to thank all of the readers who already know of the situation and have been trying to give me moral support. Even though I can’t respond to is as well as I would like to, I just want to say that I appreciate it.

Griffith Journal