So you may notice that we have done a complete website overhaul for 2008… It’s been a long work in progress, but it’s finally here. We went back and forth on some design decisions for a while, and honestly it was a challenge to complete because we have had so much other work going on. But we’re convinced the site is that much better and will be much better for our visitors for the following reasons:

• CSS Layout: We spent some time developing a nice CSS layout that we were happy with. We still use tables in a few instances, but we spent some extra time going through the stylesheets so that our next website refresh will be even easier. It’s something that we put a focus on in our clients’ sites, so we’re glad to have it implemented on ours as well!
• SEO Galore: We’ve been doing so much SEO for our client sites lately that we decided to put some of our best techniques into practice. See if you can find some of them on the site!
• AJAX Fun: We’ve been having some fun with AJAX and some Google Widgets for our clients, so we decided to make use of it on our site as well.
• Flash Video: We’ve been doing a lot of Flash video lately as well, so we figured why not drop some on our own site! Check out the home page for an example of how Flash let’s you integrate quick-loading video with animations.
• Easy editing: We use Dreamweaver to create all of our sites, but we like to recommend Adobe Contribute to our clients who like to manage their sites on their own. We used the same techniques to make out sites nicely templated, which means an easy-to-update interface that separates the content from the layout. Translation: we’ll probably have a lot more recent work more frequently!

That’s it for now! We’re very excited for 2008… We have a newly redesigned office space that we’re getting settled into and are looking forward to big things this year… Check back and see what we’re up to!

Okay, well, perhaps not so dramatically as THAT, but maybe they have just revolutionized the way I work. I know that some people like to accuse Mac users of being “elitist” because the hardware is basically the equivalent of “eye-candy” while PCs are the “hard-working” users’ choice, but part of me just doesn’t understand how people who are happy about their computers can be labeled “elitist.” I owned several Dells back in the day, and every single one has been relegated to the environmentally-friendly-recycled-trash-heap. I’ve also owned several Macs, and while I currently run 3 of them in my house the older ones have all found homes at friends’ and relatives’ houses, and they all still work like the day I opened the box. (more…)

One of the things that I’ve found toughest to deal with since Winans Creative got started is maintaining a work/life balance. With clients able to access me at all times of the day via cell/email/etc. it’s tough not to answer the call or do a quick check of your inbox even when you’ve left the office for the day. As my wife can attest to, I’ve become addicted to my mobile PDA and constantly hog the family laptop after-hours. It’s what happens when those of us who are dedicated to our businesses want to make sure that we are one step ahead in this lightning fast world. It’s a struggle to resist the temptation to check my email… one… last… time… before I go to bed… (more…)