New Media in Web Design
From Baruchnewmedia
Contents |
New Media & How It's Used in Web Design
Although the unofficial term "web 2.0" is almost over a decade old, it is still relevant. Generally, "web 2.0" is a term coined to refer to the focus of web design on the user. In general, having elements and objects that allow the user to have more freedom and control in the environment while surfing further promotes this. Some of these elements include the ability for users to drag and drop items as well as easily edit the layout of a site. Web 2.0 allows users of technology to be consumers, producers and editors.
Certain elements of New Media & Web 2.0 include:
- Polling Features
- Commenting
- Rss Feeds
- Social Bookmarking Etc
Some books describe Web 2.0 in more detail, such as: Web 2.0 Heroes: Interviews with 20 Web 2.0 Influencers by Bradley L Jones. (Book Review: link)
Web Design and Blogs:
Because of the popularity of blogging, web sites such as blogger.com and wordpress.com provide free, pre-developed blog creation and include templates for easily customizable blog design.
In general, web design has become more community-oriented. Blogs display links to other blogs they are associated with. Also, blogs may be enrolled in a public listing, allowing readers to view other blogs that have similar interests.
Some blogs give advice on how to develop a successful blog, such as:
Web Design 2.0: Some General Concepts
Simplicity.
Central Layout.
Fewer Columns.
Separate Top Section.
Simple Navigation.
Website Design Examples
A website that I (Rohin Sharma) have created is dedicated towards Photoshop Brushes called http://PhatBrush.com, It includes various aspects of web 2.0 designing including a commenting system , polling , social networking as well as the Rss Feed.
RSS Feeds
RSS Feeds(Really Simple Syndication) is a tool used by some websites to send users updates on anything from blogs, news headlines, audio, video and downloads. It's very useful in compacting updates from your favorite websites onto your screen. To view your RSS feeds you need to first get an RSS reader, there are many RSS readers out there you can just pick any, and then find a website that allows RSS feeds and subscribe.
RSS Readers:
- http://www.google.com/reader/view/#stream/pop%2Ftopic%2Ftop%2Flanguage%2Fen
- http://www.rssreader.com/download.htm
Sample RSS Feeds:
NEWS
- http://www.reuters.com/tools/rss
- http://news.yahoo.com/page/rss
- http://www.businessweek.com/search/rssfeed.htm
ENTERTAINMENT
- http://www.eonline.com/everywhere/rss/index.jsp
- http://www.fandango.com/rss/moviefeed
- http://www.ew.com/ew/rss/0,,,00.html
FINANCE
- http://finance.yahoo.com/rssindex
- http://money.cnn.com/services/rss/
- http://www.marketwatch.com/rss/
SPORTS
- http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/rss/index
- http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/services/rss/
- http://www.foxsports.com.au/rss
Additional information on RSS Feeds:

