I just got around to reading an article I bookmarked a while back on webdesignerdepot.com to help improve your CSS code. It's a good read, I highly recommend it.

Here's a little synopsis:

Stay Organized

Use a logical structure in your code. Declare broadest items first, and get more specific as you go. The author recommends:

• Resets & overrides
• Links & type
• Main layout

Lately I've been reading a lot of articles online about how to use Twitter to build your freelance business. I do a small amount of website work in Michigan, so I fancy myself a closet freelancer specializing in web design. I also think of myself as a web developer.

As I go along, I'll update this post with my progress. The goal is to pick up work through my Twitter account.

Here's the plan:

1. Find people on Twitter I think can help me or lead to leads.
2. Interact with other Twitteres, Tweeters, or whatever you call Twitter users.

I finally had a chance to go back and read some magazine article's I've ripped out the past few months, and one of them from Entrepreneur Magazine had some really simple, but really great advice.

The article talks about how users navigate websites. Most of what's written is common knowledge:

• Users like a familiar layout and easily become confused with non-standard layouts.

I just found a simple solution to an issue I've been having for a long time. Many times, I create a wrapper element that contains nested columns in my web designs. For example:

You just worked for a week straight developing THE killer website. You love it. You think the world will love it. You want to shout the address form the mountain tops!

But will anyone hear you?

Will they see your latest creation?

Check out this list of places to get your website recognized. Just submit your URL, and some contact info, and wait for the adulation to be showered down upon thee!

If you're any good, that is...

I couldn't agree with this more. As creatives, we need exercise creativity in creative ways. Not only do you have to exercise your creativity, you need to do it in new ways. You need to stretch to grow!

Like the poster, I too enjoy sewing, and find it very rewarding creatively. It lets me tap into parts of my brain I've never used.

I plan on following their other advice, too. This year, I will:

1) Take a photography class.
2) Take a drawing class.
3) Paint a picture.

...you're not looking heard enough! Web Design Ledger has put together a list of design blogs that has something for everyone. Some are focus on graphic design. Some are about web design & development. Others are all encompassing. Check 'em out. I'm sure you'll find something to tickle your creative fancy.

I myself ended up following several of them on Twitter.

I've always had a thing for business cards. As a kid, I used to collect them. (come to think of it, next time I'm at my parents, I should see if I can dig them up...) I'd ride my bike up and down the main drag, going into every store to get business cards. Every time relatives would come over, they'd bring me a couple more. I even had special books to store them in!

Brian Cray wrote an interesting post on his site a while back, titled "Estimated reading time in web design". In the article, he documents an attempt at getting readers to actually read more of his content. Estimates have the average reader only reading 18% of average web content.

Just read an article on Newspaper Blackout which I found very profound. Very short, but very meaningful. The article is a response to a teenager asking how to get their poetry noticed.