SoftBG.Net Graphic Design

BADGES

Web 2.0 Badges - A set of free badges to download and use in your own designs.

Fresh Badge - Quickly generate your own badge.

adClustr - Starburst badges.

Deziner Folio - A collection of different badges.

BittBox - Free vector badges.

Official Seal Generator - An alternative to the typical badge.

Photoshop Tutorial - A quick lesson on making your own badge.

Glossy Photoshop Tutorial - Create a glossy badge with this tutorial.

BUTTONS

My Cool Button - A nice online tool that will help you to quickly create the button that you want.

Adam Kalsey’s Button Maker - Simple tool to make your own buttons.

Button Maker from Blog Flux - Create your own custom button.

Brilliant Button Maker - A similar button maker to the previous 2.

CSS Buttons - Choose the text, border, and background.

Buttonator - A paid option for creating buttons.

RSS Button Maker - The name pretty much says it all.

Button Boost - A little bit different than some of the other button generators.

ButtonGenerator.com - Create buttons for navigation menus.

Crystal Button - Slick web buttons made easy.

Chicklet Creator - Create buttons that allow visitors to subscribe in their feed reader of choice.

ROUNDED CORNERS

Rounded corners are a staple in web 2.0 design. Here are some tools and scripts that will help you to quickly create your own rounded corners.

RoundedCornr

Corner Shop

Spiffy Box

Canvas Corner

Spanky Corners

Sliding Doors Text Box

Smart Rounded Corners

Rounded Corners in CSS

News List

LOGOS

Each of these tools will create a simple web 2.0 style logo.

Web 2.0 Logo Creator

Web 2.0 Logo Creatr

Web 2.0 Logo Creator

Web 2.0 Stylr

ICONS

A web 2.0 site can’t ignore icons. Here are some free collections of icons to use in your own projects.

UtomBox - A great collection of web 2.0 icons.

Feed Icons - The standard RSS icon.

Map Icon Factory - Create your own map icon.

Perishable Press - A nice collection of RSS icons.

Glass Style RSS Icons

Snap2Objects - Vector RSS icons.

31 Sources of Quality, Free Icons

GRADIENT IMAGES

Another common element of web 2.0 is gradient images. Here are a few tools to help you.

Gradient Image Maker

Gradient Generator

Online Gradient Image Maker (OGIM)

SPEECH BUBBLES

Speech bubbles are commonly used for styling comments or blockquotes.

Will Mayo

Bubblesnaps

CSS Play

XHTML Speech Bubbles

WigFlip

Fluid CSS Speech Bubbles

MySpace Speech Bubble Generator

Photoshop Tutorial

BACKGROUND IMAGES

Background Image Maker - Create background images with choices like transparency and gradients.

Stripe Generator 2.0 - If you’re looking to add a striped background to an element on your page, you can use this tool to customize the look you want.

Stripe Designer - Easily create striped images.

Tartan Maker - Create a tartan background image.

Texture Generator - Creates textured images that you can use as a background.

All Free Backgrounds - Choose the background you want.

COLORS

The Colors of Web 2.0 - Are you looking to match the color of a popular web 2.0 site?

Web 2.0 Color Pallete - Popular web 2.o colors.

Color Schemer Gallery - Having problems choosing a color scheme? Find one you like in this gallery.

COLOURlovers - More samples of color combinations.

Website Color Picker - Test color combinations quickly.

I Like Your Colors - Get the colors used by a particular site.

NAVIGATION

CSS Menu Generator - Easily create attractive CSS menus.

Listamatic - Collection of CSS menus.

List-O-Matic - Create your own CSS menus.

List-U-Like - Another tool to create your own navigation bars.

Tabs Generator - Create tabbed images for navigation.

Flash Buttons - Create navigation menus with flash buttons

CSS Play - An extensive collection of CSS menus.

Exploding Boy - Tabbed CSS navigation menus.

CSS Navigation Menu Generator - A tool to help you create your own menu.

FAVICONS

Favicon Generator - Create your own favicon from an image on your computer.

Favicon from Pics - Create a favicon from a photo.

Favicon Editor - Upload a photo, create a favicon.

Favicon.cc - Another option for favicons.

Photoshop Tutorial - Creating a favicon with Photoshop.

CHARTS

PHP/SWF Charts - Create attractive charts.

amCharts - Flash charts.

OTHER

Avatar Maker - Create and edit an avatar.

Shrink Pictures - Create an avatar from your photo.

ScaleNine - Collection of skins and themes created for Flex and Adobe AIR.

VectorMagic - Converts bitmap images to vector art.

Templatr - Create a layout.

PsycHo - Blog template generator.

Web 2.0 Generator - Creates layouts.

Typetester - Compare fonts on-screen.

BlogPoll - Create a free poll for your blog.

RSSxl - Convert an HTML page to RSS.

Meta Tag Generator - Easily create meta tags for your pages.

URL Rewrite - Create search engine-friendly URLs for dynamic pages.

.htacces generator - Quickly create an .htaccess file.

Thumbnail Generator - Create thumbnails for a large amount of images.

Reflection.js - Adds reflections to your photos.

Drop Shadow - Improve your images with a drop shadow.

CSS Sprite Generator - From Website Performance.

Vecteezy - Stupid name. Cool vectors.

Brusheezy - Photoshop brushes.

PSBrushes.net - More Photoshop brushes.

deviantART - Photoshop brushes at deviantART

SOCIAL MEDIA SITES FOR WEB DESIGNERS

Dzone - Provides links for developers that members can vote up or down.
Pixel Groovy - A user-controlled tutorial directory.
Sphinn - For search and internet marketing professionals.
CSS Globe - Not a typical social media site where members vote, but rather a site that lets members provide links to relevant articles and blog posts.
DevelopersNiche - A smaller social media site for developers.

ONLINE PERIODICALS

There are a number of online periodicals that consistently provide new, quality content for webmasters. Most of these allow comments and other interaction that builds the community atmosphere.

(more…)

Color Tools

Choosing the right color combination can be a difficult task. Try some of these tools to make it an easier decision.

• Color Schemer Gallery
• COLOURlovers
• Website Color Picker
• I Like Your Colors

For more color-related tools, see Find the Perfect Colors for Your Website.

Free CSS Navigation Menus

CSS-based navigation menus are used by most websites now, but they don’t need to be created from scratch. There are hundreds of menus already created and available for your use. You can use them as is, or customize them to meet your needs and match your website.

• Listamatic
• Exploding Boy
• Alvit.de
• Dynamic Drive
• Our own collection of CSS Menus
  

DHTML Navigation Menus

Xtreeme DHTML Menu Studio is a great tool for quickly creating dynamic navigation menus (cost: $49).

  (more…)

Many times during the web design process the focus gets lost. Sometimes we try very hard to create an impressive visual appearance. Other times too much priority is given to designing for search engines. While an attractive design and search engine optimization are both important, ultimately the design should be created for the user.

Nine times out of ten the goal of a website is to create some type of value or income for it’s owner(s). This won’t happen unless the site is useful to its visitors and meets their expectations. By creating a site that is valuable and useful for visitors you will be well on your way to creating value and income for yourself.

Things to Consider:

1. Is the purpose of the site clear to its visitors? If visitors are confused about the purpose of the site it is unlikely to be successful. It may be difficult for you to objectively look at the site, but try to imagine that you are a first-time visitor. Does the design get in the way of clearly communicating the purpose of the website? Is it easy to see what is available on the site and know how to find it? If you are having a hard time answering these questions, considering asking some friends or colleagues for help.

(more…)

If you are looking for a new logo, remember that a logo doesn’t need to be fancy to be effective. The purpose of a logo is branding and recognition, which the 10 examples below achieve with simplicity.

(more…)

Finding and choosing the right web designer can be a confusing and frustrating process for many people. There are so many options and different factors to consider. When you are in the situation, here are 5 common mistakes that you’ll want to avoid.

1. Deciding on Price Alone.

While the cost of a designer is an important factor that should always be a factor in the decision making process, it shouldn’t dictate who you choose without also considering a number of other factors. If you are building a website for a business, that website will become a value-adding asset of the business. Try not to look at it as just a financial drain, but an asset that has a chance to bring new customers and opportunities.

By choosing the lowest-priced option you may not get a website that meets your needs. On the other hand, high price doesn’t necessarily equal high quality. Some lower-priced designers may give you a better end result and better service than some high-priced design firms.

You should make your decision based on a number of factors including price, the quality of their portfolio, their level of communication with you, the time line you’re working with, etc.

2. Not Considering Specialties.

If you are not very familiar with web design it may be easy to overlook the fact that there are several different areas or types of design that a particular designer may specialize in. Obviously, to get the best results you’ll want to find someone who specializes in, or at least has experience with, your type of project.

For example, if you are interested in a minimalistic design, don’t choose someone because they have a portfolio full of flash-based websites with lots of bells and whistles. Likewise, if you’re looking for bells and whistles, don’t choose someone who specializes in minimalistic design.

This sounds kind of obvious, but many times the specialization is ignored when trying to decide between a few different options. For the best results you should have a good idea of what style of website you want, and base your search on finding someone who meets your needs.

3. Not Considering Future Updates and Maintenance.

Regardless of how well your new website is built, it will require updates and maintenance from time-to-time. Most designers offer these services at an hourly rate or as part of a package, but this is something you shouldn’t assume. Talk to potential designers about the possibility of them performing maintenance and what charges would be involved.

Typically, you’ll get the best results by having the original designer also do the updates and maintenance. No one else will know the website as well as the designer. However, you may have someone in your office or on staff that is capable of making updates, which should also be considered in this case.

The costs of maintenance should always be considered, and just as important, the costs of not being able to perform maintenance should be considered. If you hire a designer and are then unable to get updates completed, your website may quickly become out of date and ineffective.

4. Hiring Someone Who Does Not Build Search Engine-Friendly Websites.

It’s possible to have a great-looking website that is built horribly for search engines. While search engine optimization involves much more than the structure of the site, starting with a solid foundation will give you the best chance to compete.

If you are not very familiar with web design or SEO it may be difficult for you to evaluate the structure of a website. In this case, the best thing to do is ask potential designers how search engines influence the decisions they make during the design process. Ideally, websites should be built for people (the real visitors) but it should not interfere with the search engine spiders/robots that come to crawl the site.

5. Being Overly Influenced by a Wow Factor.

Many designers use elements like Flash intros on their projects as wow factor for potential clients. While they may look great, in most industries they’ll annoy visitors and do more harm than good.

This all goes back to knowing what you want in a website and finding someone who can deliver. Try not to be wowed or swayed by an impressive piece of work that has nothing to do with your type of project.

Read Planning a New Website - Part 1

After you’ve completed the first part of the planning process you now have a good understanding of what you really want out of your website and what content you want it to contain. At this point you’re already doing better than most people that launch a new site, but there’s still a little bit more planning that you can do to make the process even smoother and more successful.

The aspects of planning that are covered in this post are more related to the makeup of the actual website, whereas yesterday we looked at goals and big picture aspects of the plan.

Parts of the Design Process that Should Be Planned:

(more…)

Businesses that are building a new website or redesigning an existing one should allocate the proper time and resources into planning. By just jumping into the project without the necessary planning, there may be any number of ways that the final product does not maximize its potential.

Planning is common for large-scale corporate projects, but many times smaller businesses try to tackle the project without dedicating the amount of thought that it deserves. Sometimes the planning is essentially left up to the designer, which is not usually in the best interest of the client. A designer doesn’t know your business as well as you do, nor does he/she know the specific goals that you want your website to accomplish. These things need to be thought out and communicated to whoever is designing the site.

Things to Consider During the Planning Process:

1. What Are Your Goals?

You want a website for a reason, so make sure you have a solid understanding of specifically what it is that you want to accomplish. Your goals should be considered in almost every decision that’s made along the way.

2. How Do You Want the Business to Benefit from the Website?

Your answer to this question will help to determine the content of the site. Are you primarily interested in increasing revenue by selling products online? Are you looking to increase the exposure of your business online? Do you have a portfolio that you want potential customers to be able to see?

(more…)

It seems that everyone has a different opinion of what qualifies as a minimalistic design. Here are 25 websites that make use of very little unnecessary design elements but still manage to pull off a beautiful appearance. When it comes to design, if you feel that less is more, I’m sure you will find inspiration from these sites.

Rainfall Daffinson
A design firm whose website uses a minimalistic approach to show its work.

John Merrells
The blog of entrepreneur John Merrells uses a simple layout with a distinct header image.

(more…)

Immediate opinions and impressions are formed the moment a new visitor arrives at your website. Even though the first impression comes within just a few seconds, it can take a very long time to reverse a negative first impression, if you’re given the chance at all. In a competitive marketplace a bad first impression is likely to be the last encounter that visitor has with your website, as they’re unlikely to return.

In order to create a positive first impression, you have to know specifically what your goals are for the first few seconds of a new visit. It may sound obvious, but it’s often overlooked. Here are 5 questions to ask yourself about the first impressions that are being created by your website.

1 - Are You Professional?

Most of my readers are online for business or money-making purposes. If the industry you are competing in is professional in nature, your website should live up to the expectations of new visitors. While there is no exact definition of what a professional website looks like, I think we all know the unprofessional ones when we see them. And when you come across one of these websites, what is your first impression? Personal websites and blogs have more freedom in how they can present themselves since they have different agendas.

2 - What is Your Purpose?

What are you trying to accomplish with your website? Product sales? Gain subscribers? Draw clicks to PPC ads? Whatever your purpose is, it should be clear to visitors within seconds on your website, and you should make it easy for visitors to take the action that you want them to take. If your goal is to sell products you certainly don’t want to make it difficult for visitors to find what they want.

3 - Are You Giving a Consistent Message?

The message that visitors see when they arrive at your website should be consistent with whatever promotional efforts you use. If you use online advertisements and a visitor clicks through on a banner ad they will have a certain expectation about what they will find at your website based on the message that they received from your advertisement. Consistent messages are especially important if you’re using several different forms of marketing.

4 - Are Visitors Comfortable with You?

Doing business online brings some unique challenges that may not exist in face-to-face relationships. New visitors are likely to be skeptical of your credibility. You can help to put people at ease by including:

• An “about” page with information about you or your company.
• Contact information, and an easy way for visitors to email you.
• A privacy policy (if appropriate).
• Security information (if you are asking for payment online).

5 - Are Advertisements More Important than Your Readers?

While ads are obviously very common online, you don’t want visitors to feel like they are less valuable to you than your advertisers. Placing ads in subtle locations that will not distract or annoy readers is a good way to avoid negative first impressions. Some visitors will leave right away if they spot excessive advertising.