Original Source: https://www.sitepoint.com/visual-ad-creation-workflow-with-tumult-hype/

This article was sponsored by Tumult. Thank you for supporting the partners who make SitePoint possible.

The goal of this article is to show how to create a rich media advertisement with Tumult Hype. It covers the basics of using the app in the context of building an ad and discusses ad-specific tips and tricks. By the end of reading you’ll be able to make HTML5 ads quickly and beautifully!

The Rise of HTML5 Ads

It is well known that adding animation and interactivity in digital advertising makes ads more effective. Beyond catching visitors’ eyes, rich media ads can better convey the product or branding as well as add engagements leading to more clicks.

As rich media ads are visual in nature, it makes sense to build them using visual tools. Changes are seen immediately. Adobe’s Flash reigned as king of the visual ad creation tools for years, but has been toppled by HTML5’s compatibility on mobile devices. As a technology, HTML5 ads have the additional advantage of often being more accessible while having lower power requirements. But HTML5 itself is just a markup language and has no inherently included visual tools, as Flash did with the Flash Professional app. Building ads via hand coding would be a laboriously slow process. Luckily, there are now sophisticated visual tools that can output HTML5.

Tumult Hype is Your Visual Design Tool

Tumult Hype is the leading HTML5 animation and interactivity app for macOS. Hype’s raison d’etre is to be easy to use and quick to learn. Layout is similar to Keynote, and per-property animation keyframes can be automatically created with its quick “Record” functionality. Hype provides a powerful set of animation features, such as animation along curved motion paths, customizable easings/timing functions, simultaneously running timelines, and encapsulated reusable symbols. Coding is not required for most common interactivity, although JavaScript actions can extend its capabilities by integrating with other libraries and services.

While Tumult Hype can be used for a wide range of HTML5 content, it is especially capable for rich media ad creation. A plug-in system, called “Export Scripts”, can integrate ad platform features and help package its export output for delivery. Advanced Export functionality can further help automate export tasks. Hype’s runtime library is very small with a compressed size of 25KB, giving plenty of room for your assets. This runtime drives the animations and manages browser compatibility issues (though the app still gives warnings if a feature won’t work on specific browsers).

The Ad Creation Workflow with Tumult Hype
Grab Tumult Hype and an Export Script

Step zero is to download Tumult Hype. The trial is fully functional for 14 days. Tumult Hype has two flavor modes: Standard and Professional. For ad creation (and following along with this article!), you’ll want to use Hype Professional.

You can then optionally grab an Export Script, which will augment Hype with extra ad-related features. Currently there are scripts for Sizmek, DoubleClick Studio, and DoubleClick Campaign Manager. If you are using a different ad platform, the steps are usually straight forward to adapt the standard output.

You can verify an Export Script has been installed by looking within Hype’s Preferences. Export Scripts may also have options that are show in the Document Inspector.

Choosing an Ad Size

After launching Hype, you’ll want to set the scene size to match the ad you are creating. This can be done in the Scene Inspector by setting the width and height, or choosing one of the Preset Sizes. Hype contains presets for common ads banners and rectangles.

If your ad will have different size representations, you could make use of the Responsive Layout and Flexible Layout systems. Responsive Layout allows different content that is shown on width-based breakpoints. They can later be individually exported. The Flexible Layout system will adjust element positions and sizes based on container dimensions.

Continue reading %Visual Ad Creation Workflow with Tumult Hype%

Original Source: https://www.sitepoint.com/get-a-lifetime-of-microsoft-excel-training-for-just-39/

Microsoft Excel is one of the most widely used office tools for organizing and crunching numbers, so having some know-how on its more advanced features is valuable (if not required) for nearly any job. eLearn Excel is a professional training resource featuring over 280 beginner to advanced Excel lessons to help you work towards a CPD (Continuing Professional Development) certification. Normally $999, they’re offering lifetime access to all of their Excel training courses for just $39 today.

Throughout eight different modules, Microsoft-approved experts will walk you through everything you need to know about this powerful tool, from fundamental skills to more advanced techniques with reporting and automation. You’ll be able to access your training 24/7, and best of all, you’ll get access to any new content added.

Whether you’re a complete Excel beginner or are looking to enhance your existing skills, eLearn Excel is a great training resource. Get lifetime access today for just $39, saving hundreds off its normal price. 

Continue reading %Get a Lifetime of Microsoft Excel Training for Just $39%

Original Source: https://www.sitepoint.com/company-structuring-in-the-age-of-automation/

This article was originally published on OKTA Blog. Thank you for supporting the partners who make SitePoint possible.

When a bunch of ambitious people get together and decide to start a company, they often start out by deciding who owns what share of this new entity. Long before the invention of the “Limited company”, this sharing was directly proportional to the revenues of said company.

If you started a small bakery with a friend back in the 1800’s, the math was simple. Let’s assume the only one time cost for this bakery was an oven that cost $700. If the store made $1000 in revenue each month and the spend on yeast, flour, electricity and marketing was $300; then simply put – the store was at a $700 profit (we’re going to avoid talking about tax and a bunch of other concepts for simplicity here).

In the first month, neither you nor your friend would be able to take any money home, as you’d spend almost all of the profits on paying back the cost of the oven. In month two, you’d make a tidy profit which would’ve been split between both owners of the bakery. Assuming the split between both owners was 50–50, each owner would walk away with $350 month on month. If the business grew, that value increased. If the business did poorly, the take home amount for both owners dropped.

All the way back in 450 BC, the concept of a fixed salary was invented. At that time, salt production was strictly controlled by the monarchy or ruling elite. Salt from a person was synonymous with drawing sustenance, taking pay, or being in that person’s service. The Latin word salarium linked employment and salt. In the modern world, a salary is typically a fixed compensation given to an individual to perform certain duties.

In the scenario of your bakery, the concept of a fixed salary offers some advantages and disadvantages to you, the owner. As you scale and have more customers, it becomes imperative to:

a) Buy more ovens

b) Have enough staff on hand to serve customers

Ovens are machines and typically have a fixed cost (or if loaned, a significantly lower cost than a salaried employee). Ovens don’t need to eat, pay rent or watch movies, which is why they are significantly cheaper than hired hand. However, to add more staff, you’d need to convince your partner (and yourself) to distribute a share of the revenue to other people.

The problem with these potential hires was that they don’t particularly care about the business and want to work so that they can eat, pay rent and watch movies (movies didn’t exist in it’s current form back then, but you get the point). What ended up happening was that both your partner and you decided to not give a chunk of revenue share, but instead a salary — a fixed monthly expense, like rent. If the business grew, then the salaried employee would not benefit from that growth (because they had no stake in the business). If the business failed, then your partner and you would be in trouble because this was a fixed cost you would incur each month that had to be paid regardless of performance of the business.

Continue reading %Company Structuring in the Age of Automation%

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/1stwebdesigner/~3/6VteCRwwVzE/

The best way to improve your design skills is through practice and critique. But it’s hard to find a great designer willing to look over your work and offer valuable advice.

Thankfully, there’s plenty of sites online for gathering personal critiques. They range from designer forums to social networks made for designers.

Here’s my list of the top sites to gather critiques on your design work. They’re by far the best you’ll find.

Designer News

One community site I really like is Designer News. This is a social news site much like Digg – except it’s built only for designers.

Most of the posts are external links going to news articles or featuring new tools and web apps.

But users can post discussion questions – including requests for critique of their design work.

I absolutely recommend joining Designer News as it’s totally free and easily one of the largest design-only communities on the web.

You may not get a ton of feedback on your work if it never reaches the front page. But you can at least submit your latest designs and see how it goes.

Reddit

Reddit had to be somewhere on this list. It’s one of the largest social communities on the web with a subreddit for everything.

We already covered some of the best subreddits for designers. But for this list, I’m recommending one specific sub to gather feedback: r/design_critiques.

You can submit your own work for free and wait for the feedback to roll in. You won’t always get many responses since the community’s activity tends to fluctuate.

But it is a fairly large sub with plenty of active users who visit regularly. You could also try post to /r/Design or the graphic design sub to see if they’re more willing to drop some critiques.

Critiquer

Critiquer is a very new site and it’s growing quickly. The community is dedicated to providing critiques on all types of work ranging from digital art to digital design and even print design.

If you look over the homepage, you’ll find a list of the latest submissions. Most of these are drawings or related to digital art – primarily because this was made as a resource for artists first. Surprisingly, in the digital art/illustration world there aren’t too many places for finding solid critiques. So this budding community is an artist’s best friend.

Critiquer is still growing and it’s building a massive community on virtually every topic you could imagine. Whether you’re just starting with web design, moving into graphic design or anything else, keep this website saved for future reference.

It’ll prove incredibly helpful if you’d like to share your work and get some quick feedback.

Behance

Behance is the go-to resource for anyone looking to build an online portfolio. It’s absolutely massive and might just have the largest total number of users in the digital design space.

Since it’s free, you’ll find a lot of variety. It’s also pretty darn crowded. That means you won’t have an easy time getting feedback unless you already have a number of followers (or your designs become wildly popular).

I still recommend joining and using the site as a way to develop a small following, even beyond critiques.

Dribbble

On the other side of the “online portfolios” list we have Dribbble.

This is an invite-only community of designers who publish their work pixels at a time. One nice thing about Dribbble is how active the community can be.

You’ll be surprised how many people leave comments or take the time to dig through your old “shots”. This can often lead to generic “awesome work!” types of comments that aren’t very helpful.

But if you ask for critiques in your post description, you can try to coax some honest opinions out of other designers.

Either way, if you can get an invite to the community definitely take it.

Graphic Design Forums

The Graphic Design Forums (GDF) is one of the web’s largest online design forums.

You can sign up for a free account and start posting right away. There’s a bunch of sub-communities regarding different topics like digital icons, illustration or UI design.

But the best place for getting feedback on your work is within the variety of critique sections. There’s one for graphic design and another for web design.

It’s not super-active, but the community can be very helpful if you describe exactly the type of critiques you’re looking for.

DesignersTalk

Another digital design forum worth checking out is DesignersTalk. This one’s a little easier to use and it feels much smaller than GDF.

It also has a more tight-knit community, with threads being moderated a bit more closely. This relieves you from annoying spam but it can also mean that it may take longer to get replies.

I recommend joining and posting some of your work in a new thread. You could use this as a way to document your design journey or just to gather feedback from others.

UX Mastery Community

On the UX Mastery Community forum you’ll find plenty of relevant topics on UI and UX design.

The homepage is a little confusing, as it just lists the most recent threads with active users. But if you visit the categories page you’ll find a section for feedback – which is perfect for gathering design critiques.

Again, this community is on the smaller side. But the dedicated users stick around. And it’s those people who typically offer the most valuable advice.

Please Critique Me

Please Critique Me is a really cool site organized much like a blog. The site is owned by the team behind OnWired, a professional design and development agency.

Whenever you submit your work to the site, they’ll offer very specific critiques on what could use improvement and how to go about doing so.

I’d say that this website is one of the best places to get quality feedback. Your work will likely live in infamy on their website, but you’ll also get some really useful advice.

I even recommend browsing their archives to read the critiques of other designs. You can learn a surprising amount from studying other people’s work.

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/abduzeedo/~3/1DZ5f9pbGXQ/visual-identity-artisan-bakery-loaf

Visual Identity for artisan bakery LOAF

abduzeedo
Mar 01, 2018

LOAF is an artisan bakery from Balneário Camboriú that produces bread with organic flour and long fermentation. This is the secret to a crusty and dense bread – but at the same time airy – with easy digestion and unique flavor of all recipes. Every week a new batch of traditional and special bread is prepared for single orders or in a monthly subscription mode – known as Club LOAF. General packaging options and layout of business cards, tags, menus, discount coupons, flyers, stickers, website, newsletter and posts to social networks were created. We strive to highlight the experience in eating a complete, healthy food, without preservatives or chemical additives  + all the LOAF caring for the visual identity.

Visual Identity

visual identity