Web Design & Development Resources Worth Using

Jake Craigmile // July 5, 2011 // Advertising, Branding, Digital, Experiential, Public Relations, Social Media // No Comments

For those of us working in web design and development, part of our job is staying on top of the constantly changing styles and technologies that drive our industry – one can quickly fall behind if they’re not up on the newest tricks of the trade. Luckily, our community loves to share. We’re experts at utilizing the web after all, so it makes sense to talk about our industry trends online with our peers.

Below are some of my favorite design and development resources, use them, share them. I figured it’s my time to spread the love.

1. HTML5 Boilerplate

Ensuring cross-browser consistency is always a pain. Start off with a solid foundation by using HTML5 Boilerplate. Use their build script to optimize your site and score an A-level performance with YSlow and Google PageSpeed. Boilerplate is also available in a mobile version.

2. Photoshop Etiquette Manifesto for Web Designers

I’m a very organized developer, and thankfully our designer sees the value in organization as well. By following the Photoshop Etiquette Manifesto for Web Designers, the design to development transition is smooth and clear. These tips will ensure that your PDS files are organized and easy to navigate.

3. Tuts+

This is one of my favorite blog networks. They have sites dedicated to design, development, mobile and many more. There are a ton of free resources and a premium section for paid subscribers for even more tutorials and source files.

4. Typekit

You don’t have to settle for the same old web-safe fonts, you can now choose from hundreds of web optimized fonts using Typekit. The site’s library includes many popular fonts including the recent addition of Futura. Try it out on one site for free and upgrade for more sites. At only $50 a year for unlimited websites, it’s a great deal that brings life to your pages. For free @font kits you can check out Font Squirrel or Google web fonts.

5. Site Inspire

Browse through some of the best web design out there with Site Inspire. I have been using this website for years, and they always have fresh layouts and inspiring sites to get you ready for that next project. Register for an account and you can save your favorite sites and build up catalogs.

6. Snipplr

Load up your clip collection and speed up your coding with Snipplr. This is a great collection of user submitted snippets that will make your life a lot easier. It has snippets 83 different coding languages including extensive JavaScript, HTML, PHP, CSS, Ruby, and Object-C libraries.

7. CSS3, Please!

Everyone should be using CSS3 properties, and CSS3, Please! makes it easy to ensure cross-browser compatibility. Just enter your desired values once, and CSS3, Please! will do the rest, filling in matching values for each browser specific property.

So there you have it, these resources have been tried and tested day after day. I would highly recommend using them to speed up your workflow, organize your files, and optimize your websites. If you like these services, share them with your friends, spread the knowledge and improve the web for us all. There are so many other great resources out there, what are your favorites?