design

It's a bit weird, but I've never before thought of a document as a thing to be designed. But really, all kinds of documents we use in today's society need the attention of a designer to make them look professional and aesthetically pleasing. Why such things are so important is somewhat obvious and yet not. I suppose as humans we value elements of design and beauty even in the most benign and meaningless parts of our lives.

I am excited to start learning how to build web pages for our portfolios. At first I was nervous and slightly worried that I wouldn't be good at it, but even if I'm not that good at first, it will still be fun to play around and figure things out as I go. The chapters we were to read for this week will be more interesting and meaningful, I'm sure, once I actually attempt to apply the things they talked about. Actually designing the pages and seeing them on the screen will be so exciting. I can hardly wait.

But first comes all the planning and organizing of information... this is the part I'm less excited about. Mostly I'm the kind of person who jumps feet first into projects like this, telling herself she'll figure it out as she goes and it'll work well enough the first time. Planning is for sissies, a rebellious little voice in my head whispers. I realize, however, that this is not the case here. Designing a web site is no easily managed project. Though they seem relatively simple and straightforward when you see them in their millions all over the Internet, web pages are actually pretty complicated creatures, and the collections of them which make up complete websites even more so. There are so many details involved that you absolutely have to sort out in advance if your website is going to work properly.

Planning what exactly I want to include in my web portfolio is one of the more difficult decisions I have to make. There is a lot of writing I have that may not fit into the overall purpose or tone of the site. While I may feel like including all of it, doing so would probably take a great deal of work. I will have to decide which pieces will work best together in my portfolio, and then from there decide how I want to present them. I so far have many many ideas and as usual am having a hard time not procrastinating making a final decision between them all.

Thinking about my audience is another rather difficult thing for me. I'd rather not have to consider how other people will interpret my portfolio, but I do know it is important to think about if one does not wish to be misunderstood or dismissed for being unclear or uninteresting.