Inside The Web Design Studio of Brandon Houston

Today marks my first day back to work after a week long vacation out East.  For anyone else self-employed I can’t stress enough how important taking a bit of time off is to your mind and body.  I feel totally recharged and ready to take on anything.  For a while there I was really starting to feel drained and getting away for the week helped incredibly.

So now it’s time to jump back into the daily grind and pump out some work.  New things are in the pipeline so keep an eye out.

Today marks my last day of work for a week. Sunday afternoon I’ll be packing myself into a vehicle with my girlfriend and friend Jay and we’ll be heading out to the East coast. Nova Scotia bound for excitement. Although the latest weather reports aren’t looking too promising, I’m sure well have a great time. We’ll be camping while we’re there and lucky behold our campsite has free wireless internet. So you know what that means? I’ll be bringing my MacBook along with me. I’ve even taken the time to set up a blog to record my travels.

www.findingcanada.ca

You’ll be able to follow along if things like that interest you. I’ll be posting maps, photos, and regular updates. Eventually the site will log all of my trips across Canada, but where better to start than the East Coast? See you all soon.

Flash has come a long way in the past few years, and here’s something to prove that. I’ve just completed a quick example of a full 360 degree panorama that works entirely in Flash with no need for any other plugins.

Click here to see the sample Flash panorama I built.

The load time is minimal and it runs very smoothly. It’s possible to load real 3D models as well and I can’t wait to play around with that more. Eventually I want to expand this into a fully interactive 3D environment. It was made possible by a new 3D API called Papervision3D which was just released as a public beta this week. The possibilities are endless and I’m very excited about working with it more. Using the API as a core opens up a range of programming possibilities, including interactive objects, video and sound integration, and much more. Check back often to see my new experiments as they’re developed.

As you can probably tell there is great commercial potential for this as well and I’m open to entertain any ideas that you may have. With the possibility of more interaction, I can see this taking panoramas in the real estate and tour industry to a new level. Stay tuned…

Well this past week sure has been productive. Aside from projects already underway, Logix was contracted by a New York based advertising firm to help with Flash development on an ongoing basis. I always like working with New York companies because they are so focused and direct in their needs. Some of the work that comes out of that city is amazing and to be part of it is great.

Focusing locally now, Logix has gained two new contracts this past week. Chatham’s renowned mural painter Penelope Duchesne will be launching a new website designed by Logix. Penelope is a Montreal-born mural artist who’s work can been seen all over Chatham, from the Navistar building on Richmond to the side of the restored buildings on William St., throughout schools and hospitals, and now at St. Clair college as an art teacher. Looking to renew her online presence, Penelope contacted me by phone and after discussing some ideas she chose Logix as her designer and host.

The second project is the redesign of the Smugglers Marina & Roadhouse website. Smugglers is the recently renamed Radlin’s Marina in Lighthouse Cove. They offer some great food and a nice atmosphere. The new owners have their sights on a number of new ideas that is really going to make Smugglers one of the best restaurants in South-western Ontario. To help with their new ideas required that their website be revamped to bring their new image in line along with a range of new features which will include an updated events calendar, video, news, and much more in the works.

Check back for updates on these projects and more as they develop.

So I’m a couple weeks late but the latest book that I was technical editor for, “Sams Teach Yourself Adobe Flash CS3 in 24 Hours”, is available now. I just received my shiny copy in the mail yesterday. For anyone just being introduced to Flash it’s a great read and includes a lot of valuable information. Even as a quick reference it’s perfect. I’ve been working with Pearson Education/Sams for a few years now on several books written by Phillip Kerman and this is a man that knows his Flash. For those interested, check the book out on Amazon here.

It’s been a long time coming but I’ve finally put the old Logix website to rest and have started on a new version. While it’s in development I’ve put up a temporary page to show a bit of info on Logix and my past work. With the new Logix website in the works I’ve also started a site for logixstudios.net which I’ve had partially designed for a while and have just not had the time to complete. The .net site will handle the hosting aspect of things for Logix clients and the .com will be the design and development side of things.

I’m aiming to launch the new Logix site next month some time if I’m able to fit it in there between client projects. As always, clients come first. The .net site will launch shortly after. As I progress I’ll post updates here. My first task is to refine the Logix brand and bring together an entire marketing package to include a new logo, website, printed portfolio, business cards, and a few other treats. I want to align everything and push the Logix brand hard. Brand is king and that’s where I’m placing my focus this time.

This week marked the launch of the overhaul of the CKSPEAKS website. CKSPEAKS is a local community website for Chatham-Kent residents to join in forum discussion and keep up to date on happenings around the area. The new site runs off the Joomla CMS which is in my opinion one of the best open-source content managers available. The revised site has been made more modular than the previous version to allow for easy and fast updates.

While the brains behind the website is Joomla, a lot of custom modifications came into play. The forum system was changed to Simple Machines Forum which plays very nicely with Joomla. In order to keep the user database and posts from the previous site the database from phpBB had to be imported and then it was all linked together with the SMF Bridge module that is available. While the current look of the forum is just the base install it will be updated shortly to look more seamless. The users also won’t have to register both in the forum and the website. Instead, user registration is syncronized into one system.
Another integration that took place was the banner system. Joomla’s existing banner manager is somewhat lacking and since CKSPEAKS had a need for a more extensive ad system, OpenAds was brought in. OpenAds is a great ad system with a lot of advanced features to allow management of multiple campaigns. OpenAds was integrated into the Joomla backend of CKSPEAKS and works beautifully.

A few other components were installed into the site to give it a bit more interactivity. An events calendar which registered users can contribute to, a Flash image gallery, and a business card index are all featured on the site.

CKSPEAKS in it’s current state is fully functional but definately growing still. The site was launched as a beta at the request of the client to gives users the ability to decide how it should grow and to test it all out. I’m definitely very proud to have been given the opportunity to grow CKSPEAKS into a large community portal and exciting things are in store, so stay tuned…

Work, thats what… In a short while I will be posting multiple updates and hopefully increase the frequency.  Clients come first though, so stay tuned…

This week marks the first week of living in a new house.  While the whole moving process is very tiring and I don’t recommend doing it often, my girlfriend and I are very happy to be in the new place.  It’s a nice four bedroom house on the outskirts of town.  Behind the house is a nice outstretch of farmland.  I now have a toolshed in the back for my woodworking projects (which I always talk about but very rarely get to) and a nice little games room that I’ve put my foosball table in.  All around it’s a nice little place.  We’re just renting for now but I can definitely see myself buying the place from the current owner in a year.  There are a lot of things I can see doing with the place.

My new office is in the front of the house and gives me a nice view onto the road.  I have a lot more room to set up shop now and it’s a lot more comfortable and relaxing.  This should give way to letting me be more productive.  I still have quite a few boxes to unpack and a lot of organizing but all in due time.

With that being said I have to get back to focus on my current projects.  I have about three on the go right now and 2 more in the pipeline, along with my usual client website maintenance.  Now that I have more room I will really be able to organize my schedule and not feel so constricted.  I’ve made a promise to myself to get outside more this summer as well.  Hopefully it will keep my creativeness fresh.  That previous project I mentioned regarding the wowing of socks.  Consider the socks wowed.  They agreed to the proposal and loved the first design concept.  I’m also looking forward to getting started on the new Cancer Awareness project.  We’re just waiting government funding approval.  I think it’s going to turn out great and I’m really looking forward to working with my friend Scott on it (www.fightingwithknives.com).

Well, time to move on.  I need to unpack a few more boxes.  I can finally see the nice hardwood floor in my office.

I hope you have a strong stomach, because this stuff is not for the weak. I’ve been self-employed for just over two years now but since this is a new blog I decided I might as well start documenting my journey. This will be part one in a running series talking about the start of my web design company to where I find myself today. I’m not sure reading this will benefit anyone else considering the self-employment path but it might provide a little bit of insight into how much of an uphill struggle it can be. Don’t get me wrong, I love being my own boss, setting my own hours, and doing the work I love doing but if you aren’t disciplined and dedicated everything else will just fall apart.

First a brief history… I launched Logix in January of 2004 after leaving the design firm I was with for over three years. It was a quick escape and not very well planned but I’ve managed so far. If you’re considering going on your own there are a few things I highly recommend you have to start with.

1. Working capital. I recommend saving up enough money to live on for at least three months if not more. Three is the bare minimum. The more the merrier. If you don’t have this money to begin with then try getting a loan from a bank. Warning though; in order to secure any kind of loan from a bank will require you to have a very solid business plan and good credit behind you. If you don’t have either of those then I wouldn’t bother stepping foot in the door. On the bright side, most community colleges offer an entrepreneur course that guides you through building a business plan. They can also help with the bank loan portion. I however took neither the route of saving up money nor getting a loan. It’s a struggle trust me. It’s not impossible but it’s not easy.
2. A solid business plan. This goes back to the first point. Establishing a business plan will not only help you get a foot in the door at the bank, but it will also establish a direction for your business. Without knowing where you want to take your business and how you want to focus it then you have less of a chance to succeed. Again, this is something I didn’t bother with. And again, I don’t recommend avoiding it.
3. Take a small business course. The knowledge you’ll receive will help you greatly! If you can’t stomach the thought of sitting through a night course on business management then you might as well stay at your current job. This is inescapable and if you don’t bother learning anything about business practices then you will not make it anywhere. I didn’t take a course but I spent years reading everything from business management textbooks to entrepreneurial guides and anything else I could get my hands on. Which brings me to my next recommendation…
4. Read, read, read. Read about running a business, read about the industry you’re focusing on. Read magazines. Sign up for newsletters. Never stop reading. The world change constantly, which means so will your business. The only way to stay on top of things is to always be reading new material.
5. Establish a peer or mentor network. If you want an easier in to the industry then meet people who are already there. If you can get out and network before launching your business then do so. Networking will bring you the highest return-on-investment ever, guaranteed. This is because people deal with others they know and are comfortable with. The more people you know, the more people will want to work with you. You could be the prodigy of your industry, but if you are horrible at networking and talking to people you’ll find things very difficult. I focus very highly on this aspect of my business.
6. Get an accountant. If you think dealing with taxes is simple then just wait until you’re self-employed. Oh boy are you in for a ride. You want someone who knows what they are doing to handle your finances. Keep track of everything you buy, everything you sell, and everything you do with your business. Save receipts, write down mileage, and document everything. When the end of the year approaches you’ll want as many write-offs as possible to save you on taxes. I know this from experience. Especially since my last income tax bill totalled nearly five digits. I can’t stress this enough, get an accountant.

There is so much more to starting a business but those are the main things I recommend you have initially. I could go on for hours but I won’t. There are already numerous books out there that cover this same information so there’s no reason to repeat it. The two books I highly recommend in this industry are the “Graphic Artists Guild Pricing and Ethical Guidelines Handbook” available at www.gag.org, and the “The Business Side of Creativity: The Complete Guide for Running a Graphic Design or Communications Business” available on Amazon. These two books offer a wealth of information.

Now back to the current state of my business and how I came to where I am today. As I said, I started Logix at the beginning of 2004 but I knew long before that I wanted to start my own business eventually. I took the time I was employed at the other design firm to get my name out there. I did a bit of freelance work on the side. Now, before you go out and start pulling contracts while working for someone else, I recommend speaking to your boss about it first. Some companies do not like moonlighting and it can lead to a whole lot of issues, the biggest being finding yourself unemployed very quickly. I talked it over with my boss and we came to an understanding. I was in no way competing directly with the company I was working for so there wasn’t an issue.

With the understanding between my boss and myself, I spent a couple of years doing small projects on the side. I joined a lot of online design communities and helped out in forums whenever I had the chance. Helping out others in forums is an easy way of establishing yourself as an expert in your field. A lot of the freelance work I obtained was through job postings on these community boards. This is still where I get some of my work today, although you do have to be careful who you work for, especially if it’s on a global scale. That’s why I always use contracts, but I’ll get to that later. Eventually I contacted a couple publishing companies that release books about Flash development and they contracted me on an occasional basis as a technical editor. It was great work and I loved doing it. Again, it also helps establish yourself as an expert.

By the time I launched Logix I already had a large list of contacts in the industry and a variety of projects under my belt. This gave me something to put into my portfolio and was the foundation for the growth of my business. With a list of contacts I now had a way of finding new work and spreading the word. From there it was smooth sailing right? Well not exactly, but I’ll save that for part two. In part two I’ll talk about more hurdles I went through getting things up and running and what I’ve learned along the way. Until then, work hard, love your work, and enjoy life.