Spicy Web Designer Interview with Chris Linden

Chris Linden is a web designer from the Bay Area in California in the United States. He currently works for the University of California – Berkley in the Lawrence Hall of Science but his experience in Web Design and Graphic Design is only complimented by the fact that he is Flash. He graduated from Iowa State University and Pittsburgh Technical Institute for Graphic Design. Even though, as he puts it “I am still so new to the design industry”, he is a very strong designer to watch for in the coming years.

1. How did you get started in web design?

I started in graphic design and stumbled into web design kind of through necessity, as while I was working with a number of clients the need for web design always came up. I had worked with a few simple static sites in school learning very basic HTML, CSS and a little Flash but nothing too complex. When I started freelancing, I worked on a number of sites, mostly on the design and then handed them over to developers. So when I started designing my portfolio site, I spent a large chunk of time learning all I could about CSS and Flash.

2. When did you start designing websites?

I really started designing and developing sites at the tail end of my schooling. I had always had an affliction with how there seemed to be so many poorly designed sites out there and yet so many designers. I caught my first break working with a small web company in Pittsburgh called Atlas Design Group where I worked on a number of concepts for mostly static sites. Later, while interning for Fitting Group, I designed sites for two large clients and found my love for web design.

3. How did you get started with Flash design?  How long have you been doing Flash Design?

Interactivity on the web has always interested me and when it came time for me to build a site that showcased my work; I knew it had to show my range of skills from print to interaction design. I wanted the site to have some personality; I had noticed that a lot of my peers would just put their work in a boring grid with click through images. I knew that coming out of school I needed something that would really give me an edge so I turned to Flash. My portfolio site was the first full site I did in Flash and took me around 2-3 months to build. I spent a lot of time working with instructors at my school to learn more about Flash and they were extremely helpful during the whole process.

It has been only about a year since then and I have still stayed active in learning and working with Flash. I currently work mostly with it as an aid to my designs to create interactive banners and ads.

4. What are the biggest challenges that you face in web design currently?

Many…mainly with clients wanting cheap, fast, (yet amazing) sites.  But really the biggest challenge lately has been usability. There are so many ways to create robust interactive sites that it becomes easy to put all the bells and whistles in without really taking into account the end user. I feel like every day I read about some new technique or a new JavaScript that can “enhance user experience.” I currently work as a web designer at the Lawrence Hall of Science, as part of UC-Berkeley, and find that many of our clients don’t spend much time thinking about the usability but rather just putting up something that looks good.

I know everyone knows it already, but site planning is worth its weight in gold. I think there are a lot of extremely well designed sites out there right now, but many of them lack good site maps and IA. I believe it all starts with good site planning.

5. Do you code on any of your web design projects? And if so, do you consider yourself a “Front-End Coder”? Why or Why Not?

I do code many of my projects. I currently do most of the CSS at my work, and am always learning new tricks that make my code cleaner and easier to work with, but I would not completely call myself a “Front-End Coder” quite yet. Although I handle most of the Front-End, I have a lot of great resources, as well as talented colleagues that I call on for specific scripts such as PHP and JavaScript.

6. Where did you go to school and has it helped you become a better web designer?

I graduated from Iowa State University where I got my first taste for design, but also gained my degree in graphic design from Pittsburgh Technical Institute. I am a strong believer that you get out what you put into something. I have always worked extremely hard and have tried to surround myself with talented people. The instructors at PTI were top notch and really helped me achieve my goals in design. Their willingness to put up with my countless hours of questions and harassment really aided in my search to become a good web designer. Since I didn’t study web design exclusively at school, I would attribute most of my web design sensibility to many hours of searching for good examples and the ridiculous number of books I have bought. Speaking of books, if you haven’t read Designing the Moment by Robert Hoekman, Jr. I suggest picking up a copy; it has been extremely useful.

7. Since you first started how has the web design industry changed? Has it changed for the better? If so, how? If not, please explain?

Because I am still so new to the design industry, it’s hard to have seen major shifts yet. I would have to say it seems that there is still a big debate between Ajax and Flash but it seems to be a preference by the designer or developer. Another large shift has been custom CMS’s. There are so many different systems to use: Wordpress, Drupal, ExpressionEngine, etc. that it can sometimes be hard to choose which will best suit the job.

I think that this shift for content management is a good one, putting the content in the hands of the people who know it best, the clients. We have been using Drupal for most of our new sites at Lawrence Hall of Science; since there are so many contributors, it just seems like the most logical system.

8. What are your favorite tools to use when designing a website? Why are they your favorite tools?

This is a tricky question. I’m not sure if you are looking for the software I like to use the best or my favorite resources so I will try to tackle both. First, I would have to say that my first tool is always a pen and paper; taking good notes in meetings with clients to make sure they are getting the best possible design for their site. My next favorite tool should be no surprise–it’s the web itself. I spend much of my time searching for new solutions, reading blogs and seeing how other designers are approaching projects. Taking in inspiration from many different sources allows me to think about multiple solutions, thus guaranteeing strong options for the client to choose from. Last, I would add the tools of the trade, including the whole Adobe Collection. I really love some of the new tweaks to CS4 and I recently attended a CS4 seminar, so I’m trying to incorporate Bridge into my daily routine. I also love Coda and Smultron and have been using Omnigraffle for my site planning, use-cases and interface designs.