Fireworks: Bitmap Editing September 17, 2007

Here are the images we worked with in Chapter 1.

 This one was used with the Oval Marquee too and feather option.

 This one  used the ruber stamp tool to “erase” nuts, and the smudge tool to smooth any lines/coloring that didn’t look right.

 This image started out as three different images, all with a grey background.  I used the lasso & polygon lasso tools to cut out the images, then pasted them into one document.  I also adjusted color levels, used the scaling tool.

 I’ve found that the Fireworks tools and short-cuts are very similar, if not exactly the same, to those in other Adobe programs (ie Photoshop & Illustrator)  Another way to zoom is “Ctrl +” (in) and “Ctrl -” (out).  The red eye tool makes the photos better, but still a little weird, in my opinion.  I guess my biggest question is why would you do all this in Fireworks when you can do the same thing in Photoshop and import it into Fireworks or Dreamweaver?

Designing for the Web September 17, 2007

It’s a good to keep in mind that you are designing a page for different web browsers as well as different size screens.  I like how the mapped everything out in the charts as far as resolution/screen size vs. browser.   The graphics compression section is a great reminder of which formats.  As far of the text section goes, I know about this from firsthand experience.  I’ve used fonts that I have on my computer and was very disappointed when I brought my page up on another computer, and boring Arial was used as the default.  The accessibility was mentioned in this article, as well as the Adobe video.  It’s great to know those with disabilities have a way to surf the web as well.  It’s also great to keep in mind your intended audience and making sure your design appeals to them.Overall a great article and just from browsing around, a great informational site!

http://www.digital-web.com/articles/designing_for_the_web/

The Browser-Safe Web Palette September 17, 2007

It’s interesting to know how the color picker works and why all colors aren’t available… because they are different depending on the platform.  I’m not quite sure exactly what dithering and CLUTs are.

http://www.lynda.com/hex.asp

Setting Up Links, Images & Using Dreamweaver September 16, 2007

Here is the link to my page.

http://bcts-potomac.aacc.edu/128b/19/index.html 

I found everything easy to use, especially with the Properties Inspector window.  Its good to know different ways to open and save a new page, as well as linking pages.