As a follow-up to our webcast with Lance Loveday and Sandra Niehaus, I thought I would proffer my two cents on ways that the evolution of the web is and will affect careers in web design. It's the first time that I have recorded a podcast fueled solely by my own fevered thoughts and distorted personal reflections. I hope you find it edifying, or at least enjoyable.
If you don't have twenty-five minutes to absorb this podcast, my main thesis is fairly simple: As people and organizations expand and diffuse their web presence, and websites get boiled down to a convenient collection of links to points within this decentralized presence, site design as we know it will become less and less important.
I could be totally wrong, or, more likely, partially wrong, but I think I'm at least partially right. What do you think?
To hear the podcast, please click on the Flash device below. You are also welcome to download an mp3 of this interview by "right-clicking" ("control-clicking," Mac-wise) on this link. Finally, this and other Talent Blog Podcasts are always available on iTunes. (Note: At the time of posting, I was having a hard time pinging iTunes. If you can't find the podcast there now, it should appear within the next 24 hours.)
My own favorite quotation from the aforementioned podcast: "The Web is THE site."
Matthew, nice job on the solo podcast. I enjoyed the discussion on usability, trust and experience that a Web site can offer. It just feels right when you don't notice what happens on the site as the design allows for a natural flow. Your thoughts on the discoverability that Web sites can provide were interesting; as a designer/developer, I focus so much on creating the site that once it goes live there is nothing left to discover. I seem to discover more from a site that I've created only by watching someone navigate and experience the site. It was refreshing to hear your view point from the user's perspective.
Matt, if you ever need a co-host for a podcast I'd be willing to help out. Checkout my podcast, search for "pixel handler". Best regards, Bill