The Danish Designer

Hi All,
I wanted to try to give you some free backgrounds for your desktop/iPhone/myspace or twitter. You can use them as you like as long as you dont sell them. Please write thanks in the comments if you download one 😉

Enjoy – thanks

Copenhagen

Benjamin:

I was actually on StumbleUpon the other day when I came across the portfolio of Irina Vinnik, and discovered that she was an amazing artist that was filled to the brim with creativity. I definitely wanted to share her work with you since it really inspired me, and I absolutely love her attention to detail. Her artwork has some very ornate patterns in it and there is always a very appealing visual flow that is weaved into every work she produces.

Check out these works that were showcased in one of Irina’s sketchbooks and be sure to let me know what you think of them in the comments below.

I’m really diggin her work and her typography is absolutely amazing. She just has so much attention to detail that it makes all of her work brilliant. Be sure to check out her Behance profile by CLICKING HERE so that you can view more of her amazing work.

I’ll have to try to interview her for MeltingWaves sometime soon.

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The “Call-to-action” buttons are one of the most essential designer’s tools in the tricky game of hunting for higher conversion rates. If you want to create a smart design, don’t forget to prioritize tasks that must compel your design. And one of the most important tasks will be soliciting your visitors to do something that you want them to do (whether it is buying something, adding a product to cart, signing up or learning more). Today we want to dig a little deeper into what the important factors and techniques are, to help you create attractive designs that would be powerful marketing tools at your website.

Color

It is vitally important to highlight your buttons by using bright colors and contrast. It would be better to use really deep and rich colors that would dazzle your visitors with their shine. Contrast will help you separate your button from other elements on the page, so you shouldn’t share your button’s design with something else on the page.
Plus, you may want to check out a little colors in eCommerce research done by our good friends from Templates.com blog, it will help you choose proper colors based on what particular action you want a user to take.

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Size

Proportion and balance are the keys to your success because your button must be visible on the page, though you should be aware of over sizing. You should know that the button’s size depends on its importance over all other elements on the page. Usually buttons have the highest priority over other functional elements.

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Informativeness

Feel free to give your visitors more information – it is very user-friendly and it’s one of the cornerstones of UX. So, if you have the opportunity to tell your users what they should expect after clicking the button, than why not take that opportunity? Any extra information about the process that you are want the users to go through increases the chances that they actually will take that action. But remember that this extra information must be relevant to the user experience.

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Language

Simple and clear language is the best method to make your call-to-action element really powerful and very comprehensive. Any visual intension would be useful – this means the right fonts for the main text, the best technique here is using big and bold fonts for your button. Do not accept any double meanings in the text – it all has to be absolutely clear, and has to call for a clear specific action.

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Positioning

Choose right position for the button to make it more noticeable for the visitors. There are few possible ways to intensify user’s attention on buttons by placing them in the certain places. First of all you can put your button into the distinguished area for standing out in a web layout. Also you can put your call-to-action button in the center of the layout. This is a very simple technique though we can’t deny its effectiveness. The last option could be placing the button at the top of the web page though you should consider the “look-and-feel” of particular design. A lot of pages oriented towards users taking actions also utilize placing the buttons in multiple places on the page, but this is also a tricky one – do not oversaturate the page with the buttons.

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Urgency

The main trick behind this tip is encouraging your visitors for immediate action. Any hesitation causes some users to go bouncing off your page so don’t miss a chance to stimulate your visitors for an immediate action – not only do they have to click the button, they have to click it right now. But be careful because this tip is great for low-cost items or for the free stuff – for premium paid products this is not always the best practice.

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Icons

Adding some visual stimulation such as the icons or other appropriate images would be a nice hint for the visitors. It can be some arrow aside from the “Download” text on the button, or a small shopping cart icon next to the “Add to Cart” text. Some icons can help users to recognize the action behind the button intuitively, which will increase your conversion slightly.

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Read more about Click Me – Call-to-Action Buttons Design Tips | Template Monster Blog by blog.templatemonster.com

1. Browsershots

This online tool provides you with screen shots of your web page from just about any browser from all of the common operating systems. You have to submit your URL and wait in the queue till you receive results. You can use paid option and skip the queue line for instant results.
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2. CrossBrowserTesting

Another awesome online tool that helps you to test your website. Just pick an OS, select browser and start testing. Free trial is available, also you can purchase a monthly subscription for this service.
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3. Browsercam

BrowserCam offers various browser testing tools that allow you to choose browser or device, use remote access and even receive email capture. Check Java scripts, DHTML, forms and other features on any platform. You can try out free trial for 24 hours and up to 200 captures!
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4. IE Tester

If you want to test your website on various Internet Explorer versions this application allows to do just that. Test your web page on on IE 5.5, IE6, IE7, IE8 and IE9 browsers including famous Microsfot’s operating systems – Windows 7, Vista and XP.
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5. Browserling

This excellent free service can be proudly called one of the best for now – you can test your website functions including JS. But free means free and you have to wait for your turn in live queue, after that you’ll have as little as 5 minutes to test your website and than you’ll be dropped out. Of course you can buy subscription for $20/month to avoid that, or become a registered user (free) and you can receive free 10 minutes instead of 5.
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6. Cloud Testing

The last service from our list will help you to test your website on various OS and latest versions of the most popular web browsers. Tests are being repeatedly carried out on a daily basis so you can trace down the changes that you had made to the website. Cloud testing gives you a tool similar to Firebug so you can fix everything in one place. But don’t forget that Cloud Testing is a paid service.

Read more about Online Tools to Test Your Website Browser Compatibility | Template Monster Blog by blog.templatemonster.com