There seems to be a trend of late using the idea of a scientific lab or test tubes to the design of a site. A lot of these ideas probably do stem from name generation but its an interesting one to see emerging and is quite the opposite to the shiny apple trend of other web design styles. Here are some good examples of this pretty cool illustrative effect put into practice.
So 2008 saw the year of the redesign for many of the worlds big brands. We highlighted a few of these in our recent blog 2008 The Year of The Redesign
What’s been interesting is to see many bloggers featuring the new Pepsi look. Although we’ve not seen it here in the UK yet it seems to have spread across the US already with some mixed opinions. What is apparent though is Pepsi are really pushing this. They’ve even dedicated a YouTube channel to the re-brand and a microsite both cleverly titled Refresh Everything.
2008 saw some major companies redesign versions of their company logos and brands; some were for the better while others were just terrible. But if done right a redesign can be worth its weight in gold… that’s if you get it right though. After all, a logo is the most important part of any corporate identity.
So with 2008 over and looking forward to 2009, we take a look at some of the major redesigns of the year. As always there were major winners and losers, but it’s great to see how the big brands think they should be perceived for the next few years.
Animated Navigation
Back in the day (the late 90’s to be precise) it was quite easy for a web designer to get his audience salivating with a few simple mouseover effects on his menu items. A bit of JavaScript did the trick nicely!
Those hey days of early web sorcery are over since Flash stepped into the ring. Nowadays a wide variety of visual effects can be achieved by the means of the “timeline” and programmed transitions that can even include audio and video. Smart mathematics allow us to create complex navigational systems. There are hardly any technical boundaries. The only limitation is the web designer’s own imagination.
Horizontal Naigation
Navigation can singularly make or break a site. It is responsible for the success of the user’s interaction; if they enjoy using it they will keep coming back. If they don’t, you will never see them again. It should form the backbone to any content-rich site and the starting point for the organisation and architecture of your build.
