I thought I’d share some of the sites online that I find to be vastly useful.
A List Apart
A List Apart is an incredibly important resource to designers and developers alike. It was started years ago by Jeffrey Zeldman, one of the leading voices in the web standards movement. Its focus isn’t so much on the end product, but instead on best practices and the importance of web standards. It’s less about the surface layer of a website and more about the process involved in making that website come together through practical methods.
Design Float
Design Float might not be original in concept, but social bookmarking geared specifically towards the designer is an excellent way to discover new useful resources without having to try too hard to find them. It’s also a useful resource for getting your design-related articles seen by the general public. Let’s face it, Digg is so over-saturated that it takes a special kind of luck to write an article that becomes popular enough to be seen by more than a just a few individuals. So although Digg is exponentially more popular, you’ll probably get more traffic from an article on Design Float.
CSS Galleries
Of course, no list would be complete without mentioning the countless CSS Galleries that aim to inspire creativity and reinforce the importance of web standards. Here are just some of many places to go to find what’s current in the world of design trends:
Smashing Magazine
Smashing Magazine is an excellent resource for design articles, tutorials, showcases, and design tools.