Design Tip: Grabbing pictures from MS Word

This has been working really well for me. I rarely resort to PDFing and saving as a graphic now when grabbing photos from MS Word:

1. Open Word
2. Right click on the picture – if you see “edit picture” it means they cropped it. Select “edit picture”. Otherwise, continue to step 7.
3. Copy and paste the new picture that pops up into PowerPoint. Right click and select “Save as Picture…”
4. You want to choose the destination directory first. Ideally, you should see a little black arrow next to the Save button. If you don’t, that means it was modified in Word with cropping or grouping, etc., and you’ll get mixed results this way.
5. Click that arrow and choose “Save Original Picture”
6. Voila! That’s it!
7. If you don’t see “edit picture”, select “Format Picture”. Choose the “Size” tab and click “Reset” and “OK”
8. Follow steps 3-6.

You’ll still need to open in Photoshop to convert it to CMYK and anything else, like more cropping.

You've got to move it, move it . . .

It must be Friday! Something else I’m really digging right now that I meant to share was a trick I recently discovered. If you are moving files from your desktop to the network, hold down SHIFT. This will put the file on the server and delete it from you desktop in one fell swoop. Really handy way to avoid desktop clutter if you are doing this over and over again.

Solution for slow computer - 100% CPU - wficat-no-eula.cab

My computer seems to be back to normal now. Just in case, I thought I’d share (you know me ;-)

I ran TrendMicro’s HijackThis and found two running tasks that looked odd:

O11 - Options group: [INTERNATIONAL] International*

O16 - DPF: {238F6F83-B8B4-11CF-8771-00A024541EE3} - http://a516.g.akamai.net/f/516/25175/7d/runaware.download.akamai.com/25175/citri x/wficat-no-eula.cab

When you google “wficat-no-eula.cab” there doesn’t seem to be a name for this problem, but all of the posts describe the same symptoms I was having. Maybe it is something new, or just a poorly written piece of software. If you look closely at the entry above, a “DPF” is something that Internet Explorer downloads to extend its functionality. Sometimes this is good, and sometimes this is very bad. This would explain why Outlook or Internet Explorer seemed to doom my computer. And why temporarily closing Trend Micro seemed to alleviate the problem (because it was fighting it!).

Here are the instructions that got rid of it. A lot of the files it said to delete, I didn’t actually have (probably because of TrendMicro, thank goodness, I’m a believer now). Basically, I only removed the two things listed above by turning off System Restore under My Computer properties, booting in safe mode, running HijackThis, selecting them, clicking ‘fix’, rebooting and turning back on System Restore. Didn’t really need Killbox after all. Sorry, but I don't remember the forum post that I found this at:

Download the Pocket Killbox programme from HERE (http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/files/killbox.php). Extract it but don`t run it yet.

You might want to copy and paste these instructions into a notepad file. Then you can have the file open in safe mode, so you can follow the instructions easier.

Turn off system restore.(XP/ME only) See how here.> http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/tutorial56.html

Boot into safe mode, under your normal user name(NOT THE ADMINISTRATOR ACCOUNT). See how here.> http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/tutorial61.html

In Windows Explorer, turn on "Show all files and folders, including hidden and system". See how here.> http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/tutorial62.html

Go to add remove programmes in your control panel and uninstall anything to do with(if there).

ComcastToolbar

Close control panel.

Open your task manager, by holding down the ctrl and alt keys and pressing the delete key.

Click on the processes tab and end process for(if there).

uninstall.exe

Close task manager.

Run HJT with no other programmes open(except notepad). Click the scan button. Have HJT fix the following, by placing a tick in the little box next to(if there).

O2 - BHO: (no name) - {64582371-8B2A-A1C6-CE40-0A8E8EB54F78} - C:\WINDOWS\system32\yzwyatl.dll

O2 - BHO: (no name) - {CFE9E8A8-38C0-4EF8-AEC2-5035EFE81030} - (no file)

O2 - BHO: (no name) - {E3215F20-3212-11D6-9F8B-00D0B743919D} - (no file)

O4 - HKLM\..\Run: C:\WINDOWS\system32\rundll32.exe C:\WINDOWS\system32\bhcfvfb.dll,gmzxdjg

O11 - Options group: [INTERNATIONAL] International*

O16 - DPF: {238F6F83-B8B4-11CF-8771-00A024541EE3} - http://a516.g.akamai.net/f/516/25175/7d/runaware.download.akamai.com/25175/citri x/wficat-no-eula.cab

Click on the fix checked button.

Close HJT.

Locate and delete the following bold files and/or directories(if there).

C:\Program Files\ComcastToolbar

Run the killbox.exe file. When it loads type the full path to the file you would like to delete in the field and check the delete file on reboot button. press the Delete File button (looks like a red circle with a white X). It will prompt you to reboot, select no until you have finished inputting the files you want to delete, only then allow it to reboot and hopefully your files will now be deleted. If your computer doesn`t automatically restart, restart it manually.

These are the filepaths you need to enter into killbox.

C:\WINDOWS\system32\bhcfvfb.dll

C:\WINDOWS\system32\yzwyatl.dll

Once your system has rebooted, turn system restore back on and rehide your protected OS files.

Please rename HijackThis.exe to HijackThis1991.exe and post a fresh HJT log.

The reason I want you to rename HijackThis.exe, is because some malware can hide from HijackThis.exe.

Final Shirt Design

Well, here is the final version of the tshirt design. I really liked the My Little Pony style illustrations I discovered on DeviantArt while doing research for this project, and I that is probably the largest influence on the final design.

Riding into the Future on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Riding into the Future on Flickr - Photo Sharing!


This is a first draft of a t-shirt design I am doing for a local Brownie troop. Apparently, it grossly violates their branding guidelines. Go figure. I am now think about doing a vector illustration somewhat in the style of the Bella Sara cards, with lots of girly "flair". Should be fun!  

Blogged with Flock

Fun with Typography

I bet you thought .. was a just a backslash, but I recently discovered that Windows Character Map actually calls it a "Reverse Solidus".

Wikipedia thinks there is a difference between a slash and a solidus, however (see below), and I agree. The slash is really best called a "virgule"

This symbol goes back to the days of ancient Rome. In the early modern period, in the Fraktur script, which was widespread through Europe in the Middle Ages, one slash (/) represented a comma, while two slashes (//) represented a dash. The two
slashes eventually evolved into a sign similar to the equals sign (=), then being further simplified to a single dash (–).

The solidus and virgule are distinct typographic symbols with decidedly different uses. The solidus is significantly more horizontal than the virgule. The character found on standard keyboards is the virgule and while most people lump the two characters together (and when there is no alternative it is acceptable to use the virgule in place of the solidus), they are different. The solidus is used in the display of ratios and fractions as in constructing a fraction using superscript and subscript as in “¹²³⁄₄₅₆”; the virgule is used for essentially any other textual purpose.

So if you are doing fractions, U+2044 is a fraction slash ⁄ and U+2215 is a division slash (slightly longer) ∕. These work much better for building custom fractions in Quark (using superscript / subscript) than using the basic forward slash / (aka “virgule”)

These characters work much better for building custom fractions in software programs such as Quark (using the superscript / subscript combination) rather than just using the basic forward slash / (aka "virgule"). If you have ever tried making fractions with the standard slash as I have, then you must know how frustrating this can be. Now, you can use the right character, the solidus!

Bet you never knew typography could be so fun!

Happy virgules!

International Talk Like a Pirate Day

Here is my shirt design for the International Talk Like a Pirate Day contest on Zazzle. I was really happy how it turned out.


make custom gifts at Zazzle

Chop wood, carry water

Here's a new illustration that I came up with for a worth1000 contest.

Blogged with Flock

Justin Gerard

Jusin Gerard has some really nice pieces in his gallery. You can find more stuff at portlandstudios.com, as well, which is also a really refreshing flash based website.

New fun ultra goodness with Google Bookmarks

I am really digging my updated Google toolbar. I use Ma.gnolia quite a lot for bookmarking, since I can move from computer to computer and still get to my bookmarks. However, I have been frustrated with the accessibility - even with the nifty plugins available for Firefox, I find myself having to log on and manually find or edit them. Also, I found myself not wanting to clutter my page with second-tier bookmarks that I wanted just for temporary or private use that did not fit any particular category. Then I realized the distinction between "social" bookmarking and the more traditional approach. This is where Google Bookmarks comes in. Since I already had a Google account, importing all of my bookmarks from my laptop, my PC, and my work computer via the toolbar was a snap. Plus, the toolbar organizes the bookmarks in a way very similar to the traditional browser method, with drop down menus and folders. This is a very functional solution, and helps prevent losing your bookmarks due to computer reinstalls or upgrading browsers, etc. The Manage Bookmarks feature works pretty well, although with several hundred bookmarks (I know I have a problem) I found it a little tedious and had to prune my collection to stay useful.
I now find that I can focus on using Ma.gnolia for more what it was designed to do, which is sharing bookmarks in a social context and allowing you to browse bookmarks made by other users on similar content through tagging.
Also, although not quite as cool as the add-in for the Flock browser, you can easily post to Blogger from the toolbar as well. (Which is what I am doing right now!)

Ol Grizzled - Chinese Dragon for 700 Dragons Group

Flickr Photo Download: 469. Ol' Grizzled

Blogged with Flock

Another Dragon

FIre Dragon on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Here is another quick painting of a dragon done with Corel Painter. You can never have too many paintings of dragons :-)

Blogged with Flock

The Age of Distraction

As someone living with ADHD, I have become accustomed to dealing with distraction. Recently I was thinking about my fascination with computers and the internet, and how addicting social networking sites like Myspace, Flickr, Blogspot, and LinkedIn have become for me, not to mention RSS feeds delivered a la Google Reader. And let's not forget my love for Ma.gnolia and social bookmarking, either ^_^

I started to consider how the information age has really just turned into the age of distraction. You may have already seen surveys showing how we paradoxically seem to be getting dumber as the access to information increases. In my search for further distraction, I discovered a few interesting articles on this phenomenon:

Big Babies (or the Age of Distraction)

"...it seemed to me, blurred between work and distraction: both exist to keep our minds off the central existential problem facing intelligent life on this planet..."

The Age of Distraction

"...using technologies like RSS and cellphones, we have trained ourselves to be constantly aware and on the lookout for distractions."

Is my obsession a feature or a bug?

Love the comments here:
A: How many people with ADD does it take to change a light-bulb?
B: I don't know? How many?
A: Want to go to the movies

The Onion once had a headline..."Ritalin Cures Next Picasso"

i try to think of ADD as 'hyper threading' as even though i have ADD, i can still hang onto threads and fall back to them. i think its about losing interest in something, picking up on another more mind captivating thing, regaining interest and continuing one with the previous thing.

Only in a society where people are expected to sit on their asses for 8 hours a day from kindergarden till retirement would people even think of calling it a disease.

N.A.D.D.

"Ocassionally, you'll attempt to impart your fractured wisdom only to throw your hands up four minutes later when it's clear, 'Jesus, they just don't get it.'"

My great grandfather

Google Image Result for http://www.beaumontpd.com/images/brammer.jpg

Clarence Adam Brammer

Detective

September 19,  1923

Killed after a gun accidentally misfired.

It is funny what you run across while surfing the internet . . .

Blogged with Flock

The Bees Knees ^_^

Flickr: Photos from Cyrus khamak

Go and check out Cyrus's closeups of insects, especially the one of the fly. It's definitely my favorite.

Blogged with Flock

465. Liz - 700 Dragons

465. Liz on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Orange Iguana on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I thought the scales on this lizard were really fascinating, and I just had to try and paint them. I didn't anticipate the amount of time it would take, however! I ended up creating a custom image hose in Corel Painter to get all of the dainty bits - I would rather spend time painting every scale on a better composed picture, I think. All in all, I like how it turned out and I learned a lot about using the pattern pen and image hose. I plan on doing a few more of these to really get a feel for the way the eyes, nose and ears work with scales. I want to add some crocodile teeth too, of course. Who wouldn't? ^_^

Blogged with Flock

Dragon illustration tutorials and resources

Bilateral Symmetry on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

A couple of interesting links here about drawing dragons that I have come across.

1. drawsketch.about.com/library/bldragons.htm
   
2. Drawing and Painting Dragons on ImagineFX
   
3. neondragonart.com/dp/tutorials/dragon.htm
   
4. Also, take a look at McFarlane Toys' Dragon Series One, Series Two and Series Three - Quest for the Lost King, as well as the subsequent Series Four, Series Five and upcoming Series Six - The Fall of the Dragon Kingdom. They have some great photos of their merchandise in a variety of lighting and settings.
5. There are also a lot of great photos of reptiles for reference right here on Flickr.com. I have marked some of my favorites here.

Blogged with Flock

Old Smokey - 700 Dragons

455. Old Smokey on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I almost gave up on Corel Painter until I came across Robert Chang's custom brushes. He has several good tips for getting the best performance out of Painter and reducing the lag time. I also have grown to really like his brush set - the pencil is fantastic. Using his pencil brush and blenders feels very natural, and it is much easier to obtain the results I am looking for. Check out his amazing artwork and there is even a little bit of music composition on there to boot!

Blogged with Flock

Aida Wedo

22.Aido Wedo, the Rainbow Serpent on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I finally finished my third entry for the 700 Dragons series. I had the most trouble getting the face right - I am still not happy with it but no sense in kicking a dead horse. Really enjoying using Corel Painter X, learning to master the palette knife and the blender brushes has been great fun. This was an interesting character to work on too, learned a little bit about pagan religion along the way.

Blogged with Flock

Snake Women in Religion and Mythology

Doing more research on Aida Wedo  I discovered a lot more interesting info on the combination of women and snakes in religion and mythology:

In the story in Genesis 3:1-5,Eve is tempted by a creature referred to as "He" and described simplyas a serpent. Its only unusual features in the story are that it couldspeak and presumably didn't yet crawl (it was made to crawl on itsbelly only after being cursed by God).

Frequently in art the serpent isrepresented as female. In a fresco by Michelangelo, for example, theserpent is shown with the upper body of a woman and snake-like lowerparts.

female serpent
detail of the Fall and Expulsion of Adam and Eve, 1510
Michelangelo. Fresco, Sistine Chapel, Vatican, Rome

Google Image Result for http://witcombe.sbc.edu/eve-women/images/michelangelotemptation.jpg

The ancient Greeks feared similar creatures, notably Lamia,a demoness with the head and torso of a woman and the lower body of asnake. In one version of the legend, Lamia was one of Zeus' mortallovers. Filled with anger and jealousy, Zeus' wife, the goddess Hera,made Lamia insane so she would eat all her children. Once Lamiarealized what she had done, she became so angry that she turned into animmortal monster, sucking the blood from young children out of jealousyfor their mothers.

Google Image Result for http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/vampire-lamia.jpg

Two figurines of the Snake Goddess were found here at Knossos. Both depict her withbare bosom, open bodice pulled together at the top and bottom pushing herbreasts together in a globular cluster, prominent nipples protruding from thetwo masses of flesh. In the smaller of the figurines, the goddess has a snake ineach of her upheld hands, and in the larger one, the snakes are coiled about heroutstretched arms. Her face is wide-eyed, severe.Minoan society was noted for its perpetual peace,and one wonders about this society which was older than the Mycenaean andretained its reliance on female goddesses instead of male.

Google Image Result for http://greek-myth.com/images/Photos_Pale_Horse/Photos_Crete/SnakeWoman.jpg

Blogged with Flock

Aido Wedo Notes

While looking for some imagery for a possible Aido Wedo illustration, I have come across some really interesting info at several sites:

Aida Wedo Loa of fertility and new life, especially conception and childbirth. Wife of Damballa. Known as the Rainbow Snake, she takes a snake form. Her symbol is the rainbow, and her color is white. Sacrifices of white chickens and white eggs are often made to her.

NEW ORLEANS VOODOO LOAS HauntedAmericaTours.com

A common saying is that Haiti is 80% Roman Catholic, 20% Protestant and 100% Vodou. Thus the Catholic contribution to Haitian Voodoo is quite noticeable. However, in the United States the story is different, despite claims to the contrary.Confusion about Voodoo in the USA arises because there exists throughout the United States a widespread system of African American folk magic belief and practice known as Hudu or more popularly as hoodoo. The similarity of the words hoodoo and Voodoo notwithstanding, hoodoo is not an organized religion like Voodoo, but is an integral part of the Vodoun religion in West Africa and arguably throughout all of Africa. Some aspects of hoodoo is considered derived primarily from Congo and Angolan magical practices of Central Africa and retains elements of the traditions and practices that arose among Bantu language speakers. However, any serious practitioner who has travelled and studied Hudu in West Africa, will readily conclude that this ancient, magio-botanical practice is indigenous and essential to all indigenous, West African religious systems, having only minute variations.Today, due to the suppression of the Vodoun religion in America, most hoodooists are now members of African American Protestant churches, such as the various Baptist, African Methodist Episcopal (AME), Pentecostal, and Holiness denominations , but when hoodoo is compared to some of the African religions in the diaspora, the closest parallel is Cuban and Dominican Palo, a survival of Congo religious beliefs melded with some Catholic forms of worship.

Vodou - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Goddess Gallery by Hrana Janto

She rules fire, water, wind and the rainbow. When she appears in a voudoun ritual, she slithers across the ground wearing a jeweled headdress that - like the treasure at the end of the rainbow - is elusive but enriches anyone who can grasp it. ~Text from Patricia Monaghan's The New Book of Goddesses and Heroines

Aida Wedo

Blogged with Flock

Food for thought

People live frugally. There is so little food that nothing goes to waste. Yet every once in awhile something disturbs this necessary thrift. A cow dies suddenly and is immediately buried. Not so much as a steak is cut from its flank before its fearful owners hastily push it into a deep ditch and cover it over, crossing themselves as they walk away from the rough grave. "Calamity meat," they called it. The result of accident or mishap, calamity meat was never to be eaten. Say the cow stumbled into a ditch, or over a rocky cliff, or into a marshy stream. When the body was found, everyone understood what was to be done. For what lay on the ground was not-so the belief went-the real animal, which was at that very moment kicking up its hooves in fairyland. The real cow had been stolen away by ancient powers never mentioned by name but always by euphemisms like the Good Neighbors, the Gentry, or simply Them. In place of the stolen beast, They put a fairy cadaver, upon which They cast a glamor-a spell-so that passersby saw only a dead cow, fallen helplessly to its death.

Calamity Meat

Blogged with Flock

Finished at last! 700 Dragons entry: Ogopogo

442. Ogopogo on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I still have not been able to acheive the level of detail that I have seen in so many digital paintings lately, but I am happy with the general feel and shading of this piece. I chose to name this entry for the 700 Dragons group after Ogopogo. Ogopogo is the name given to a lake monster reported to live in Lake Okanagan, British Columbia, Canada. According to Wikipedia, "The first documented sightings of the Ogopogo by European settlers date back as far as 1860 and occur as the area was being colonized by the first, though the first clear sighting, witnessed by a large group of people, occurred in 1926 at an Okanagan Mission Beach. There were about thirty cars of people who all claimed to have witnessed the same event. It was also in this year that Bobby Carter, then editor of the Vancouver Sun, wrote, 'Too many reputable people have seen [the monster] to ignore the seriousness of actual facts.'"
©2007 Kevin Brammer

Blogged with Flock

Snow White and the Seven Dwarves

All Seven Dwarves on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

This is the final version of the dwarves created from the concept drawing in the previous post. Pencil and charcoal on illustration board.

Blogged with Flock

Dwarf

Updated Dwarf study on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

This is a dwarf study I did for a Snow White illustration that I really liked. It was done originally in pencil and charcoal, and I did a quick background and some additional shadows with Photoshop. Probably needs more polishing, but I am happy with it for now.

Blogged with Flock

Corel Painter

Another quick dragon painting on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Here is a dragon that I painted pretty quickly last night. This program is really pretty amazing. I had tried painting with it before and just ended up getting frustrated, but now that I actually took the time to sit through some tutorials and learn how to use features like the Artist Oil Blender brushes and the Oil Palette Knife, as well as the Mixer palette - I have to say I am really excited. I hope to finish this one off soon, so check back later!

Blogged with Flock

I'll read this later...

blog.pmarca.com: The Pmarca Guide to Personal Productivity

I love this article by Marc Andreessen. A couple of choice excerpts:

"Generally in the course of a day, there is something you have to do that you are not doing because you are procrastinating. While you're procrastinating, just do lots of other stuff instead."

"By not keeping a schedule, I mean: refuse to commit to meetings, appointments, or activities at any set time in any future day. As a result, you can always work on whatever is most important or most interesting, at any time."

And don't miss his reference to John Perry's essay. Sounds great, then the comments bring you back to earth. Thanks, Michael!

Blogged with Flock

Funny Signs from Around the World

A Collection of Funny Signs from Around the World 3 - Gadling

This is a great selection of photographs.  Check out all of them at the link above.

Blogged with Flock

How I Surf

I have really gotten into reading blogs for the last couple of months, and just recently discovered Google's application, Google Reader. What Reader does, for those who may not already know, is aggregate a large number of blog subscriptions using folders, tagging and additional methods to help you sort through enormous amounts of information in an easy and seemless interface.

I love how once I read an article, it disappears from the main list. I also have the option of creating a blog roll of my favorite articles via javascript that I can add to other websites (see Shared Items in the right column of this blog). Finding and adding new blogs is a breeze, thanks to the ability to either browse by categories or keywords.

A couple of blogs that I am finding indispensable, in no particular order:

• Boing Boing
• Wired Top Stories
• Newsweek Top News
• Slashdot
• GigaOM
• Hackzine
• Drawn.ca
• CSS Beauty
• Ma.gnolia: Recent Bookmarks in Web Design

I have also found myself spending an inordinate amount of time browsing DeviantArt. If you are an art fan, then you really must take a look. The sheer breadth and scope of talent will keep you distracted for hours.

I am also a little ashamed to admit that I have also jumped onto the MySpace bandwagon. I used to scoff at the idea of social networking, but I suppose that as I grow older this has simply become an easy way to find and keep in touch with old friends and coworkers.

If you find yourself in a rut looking for new things on the net, then you probably haven't heard about social bookmarking. My favorite site for this is Ma.gnolia.com, simply because it is easy to use and beautiful to look at and easy to browse and share bookmarks with other members. They also have a javascript roll which will add your most recent bookmarks to another website if you so desire. The neat thing about Ma.gnolia is the ability to rate each bookmark, give it a really long description, see a thumbnail of the bookmarked site and, yes, even add and remember tags for all of your bookmarks. This site exemplifies all that is good with Web 2.0.

Last, but definitely not least, is Yahoo's Flickr for photo hosting. This is hands down my favorite site. I am simply blown away by the usability of the site. It could not be any easier to edit titles and descriptions for your photos, as well as organize them into albums. I have also discovered several new groups that have been keeping me busy of late. Great interface, networking and all for free. What more could I ask for?

Oh, and I should also mention that I am posting this using Flock, a new mozilla style browser with some nifty built in tools for posting to blogger and uploading pictures to Flickr. I have to say that so far I have been very impressed by the functionality this new browser has to offer. Although, the new Safari 3.0 does seem awfully fast...

Blogged with Flock

Jaw Harp Madness!

I have been determined to learn the jaw harp. I got one for Christmas, but it is deceptively difficult! Supposedly, it is one of the worlds oldest musical instruments. Here is a great video showing what the jaw harp can do:

Maidenhead

I am really excited about the new feature length movie my friend Jim Spanos is directing. I was lucky enough to be able to read an early version of the screenplay for the short version, and I have to say it is really quite excellent. Sorry, no plot spoilers here, but I will warn you — it is pretty dark subject matter. I haven't been able to track down much info on the net; however, I have the link to the trailer of the short version at ifilm.com. There is also a good description by one of the cast at www.lorrihammwilson.com.

A trailer for the film, MAIDENHEAD, Directed by Jim Spanos, Starring A.J. Bowen, Lorri Hamm & Gary Chason.

Drawn.ca

Drawn.ca delivers fascinating articles about new trends in illustration and links to artists on the web.

Worth1000

I heard about Worth1000 a while back, but never visited until today. Wow! Did I miss out. The best place to start browsing is via the gallery. Thanks to arsap for posting this video to get me there:

Web 2.0 design traits

I discovered these sites after searching for the various design traits of newly published websites that have jumped on the Web 2.0 bandwagon. I wanted to mimic the clean and simple design that has become so popular lately, and discovered Scratchmedia's Web Design from Scratch. I have to say, Scratchmedia has created a really impressive and useful site. I honestly can't remember when I visited a site and had all my question answered methodically and completely.

If you are looking to capture that fresh, simple look that has become so popular with sites like Apple , Mozilla/Firefox , or even the new WidSets site - then Web Design from Scratch is a must.

There is a great section describing the use of simplicity and function in designing your site. The message here is remove everything that is unnecessary and you will be left with only the design that serves to best deliver the content of your site. This is really one of those Zen, "can't see the forest for the trees", K.I.S.S. type of comments that for all of its obviousness ends up being dreadfully easy to forget about. I can't bear to think about all of the hours I have spent creating icons and tweaking CSS, only to end up with a cluttered mess. A big thank you to Scratchmedia!

Michel Gagné

Canadian illustrator Michel Gagné has put together a great website showing many of his illustrations and even some animations. I was particularly interested in his Photoshop illustrations for XEKO - where he combines photographic textures and shapes with traditional illustration. Take a look at his gallery if you haven't already.

McFarlane Toys

McFarlane Toys produces unique action-figures-slash-sculptures for the discerning geek in all of us. They have a some truly great pieces in the HORROR, FANTASY AND SCI-FI section of their site. Moreover, instead of simply placing their figures on a white background, they show them in a variety of settings and lighting conditions. Anyone illustrates within this genre would do well to take a look at McFarlane's Dragons Series One, Series Two and Series Three - Quest for the Lost King, as well as the subsequent Series Four, Series Five and upcoming Series Six - The Fall of the Dragon Kingdom. More photos are also available at the main HORROR, FANTASY AND SCI-FI section of their site. Be sure to also check out the Giger, Clive Barker's Tortured Souls and especially the Twisted Land of Oz.