My Status ! :)

Hi, Audience...

there have been no posts for some time due to my busy life at this point, as soon as I get relief I will be posting some great resources. :)

Thanks.

Flash Drop Down Menu Tutorial with Actionscript 3.0

[HD] Flash Drop Down Menu Tutorial with Actionscript 3.0



A good 42 min tutorial from www.tutvid.com on creating a drop-down menu in Actionscript 3.0 using Flash CS4 or above. I am actually trying to implement this menu in a current project of mine, let's see how much success I get. :)

3D Abstract & Tech Art Wallpapers

1280 x 960 "Righ-Click -> Open in new tab" for full size

1600 x 1200 "Righ-Click -> Open in new tab" for full size 

1280 x 1024 "Righ-Click -> Open in new tab" for full size 

1600 x 1200 "Righ-Click -> Open in new tab" for full size 

1280 x 960 "Righ-Click -> Open in new tab" for full size 

1280 x 1024 "Righ-Click -> Open in new tab" for full size 

1280 x 1024 "Righ-Click -> Open in new tab" for full size 

I found these and similar abstract wallpapers a great way of inspiration in designing techy / abstract website designs. We can also get a hold of some artistic ideas from these wallpapers, and they are off-course the jewel of our desktop. :D

3Ds Max Tutorial - 1 - Introduction to the Interface - YouTube

3Ds Max Tutorial - 1 - Introduction to the Interface - YouTube



This is a great series of tutorials from The New Boston , the above tutorial is an introduction to 3Ds Max and it's pretty basic for the beginners. Normally we have some trouble finding tutorials which are very basic and for people who want to start from scratch, so I found this very useful and wanted to share with everyone. There is a whole series to follow which will teach more complex topics like modeling, design and textures etc. in 3Ds Max 2010.

They also have many tutorials on other software and languages like Dreamweaver, Javascript, After Effects etc. Their YouTube Channel looks great and what else do you want if you get FREE tutorials and FREE Education. Thanks to The New Boston.

FREE Website HTML Template With Source PNG.

Right-Click -> Open In New Tab for larger resolution.

Hi. Today again,
I am offering another on my template for FREE To Download. I did this for a client back a few years, but He wanted the exact replica of another site He showed me :) Sometimes clients can be like that, can't listen and ruin your hours of hard-work.

Download Link: https://rapidshare.com/files/4245443565/WaterMarkBuilders.zip

The above zip file includes, HTML File, CSS File and the Source Fireworks PNGs in the "Source Files" folder.

Tutorial: Nav Button - Designing Buttons in Adobe Fireworks. FREE Source.

Designing navigation buttons in Adobe Fireworks using gradients and two squares with  little bit rounded corners. I recently used this button on my latest project www.april-laundry.com

"Right-Click - Open In New Tab" to view larger image.

To bring the effect of the semi-transparent cut in the middle of button, I have given the 2nd rectangle's 1st grandient color and opacity of 18% and the 2nd is 0% because it's already out of button dimensions and gives the upper color a light effect. The engraved arrow has an inner shadow, you can view the shadow color and values in the source file.

Download the source Fireworks PNG from the following link to get more insight.

Download Link: https://rapidshare.com/files/4143501687/btn_home.png
File Type: Adobe Fireworks Source PNG
Software Requirements: Min Fireworks 8.

Featured Project: Bandanas Bar-B-Q Website.

Click on Image for larger resolution.
live link: www.bandanasbbq.com

Client: Bandanas Bar-B-Q, Missouri USA.
Agency: MME Technology Solutions, USA.
Project Category: Design, XHTML
Tools: Adobe Creative Suite.
Project URL: www.bandanasbbq.com

Case Study:
The client came to us to re-design their old non-performing site that had an outdated design and wasn't making sense with the latest trends or helping users to access information with ease. In our opinion, the website of a business should help the business perform better, faster and make more profit.

We designed the site to give it a new fresh look, make it XHTML compliant and giving users faster access to information and resources on the website. At last we were able to make a website that made the users happy, increased business specially the Catering section & increased the social circle on Facebook with rapid increase in Facebook Likes.

Please provide your thoughts in comments, specially web development professionals.

Thanks
Iqtidar Ali
www.souldesigns.net

FREE E-Commerce Design Template. X-Cart.

I had designed this template for X-Cart Shopping Cart. I have normally gotten used to design my templates in Adobe Fireworks, so the source file is in PNG. I am making the template available for download for FREE for web designers. X-Cart uses the Smarty PHP Framework, so implementing this template is not as straight-forward as for a normal website, but for designers experienced with X-Cart and Smarty will find most of the things in place.

The icons and watermarked images are iStockphoto property, please purchase before use.

Source File: http://rapidshare.com/files/321893657/home_layout.zip ( At least Fireworks 8 required )

Skill Tests on oDesk !

Hi. I have taken a couple of skill tests on oDesk and have gone through. You can click on the badges below to get detailed results for the tests. The one thing I like about these tests is that they provide information about how you have performed in different areas of a skill. e.g. I gave the XHTML 1.0 test and got an overall score of 3.0 but at the same time it gives you insight in which area you performed best and where you're lacking.

Topic Correct Answers

1. Fundamentals: 45%

2. Images and Links: 86%

3. Tables and Forms: 88%

4. Tags: 43%

Topic Correct Answers

1. Action Script: 60%

2. Editing Artwork and 3d graphics: 17%

3. Imported Artwork and Text: 67%

4. Managing Documents,Workspace and Screens: 20%

5. Publishing,Exporting and Filters: 100%

6. Sound and Video: 86%

7. Symbols and Assets: 50%

8. Timelines and Animation: 62%

So I like oDesk better than other freelancing sites, specifically for the ease of transfer of money to your bank account to Pakistan. You can do a direct wire transfer to your bank account from oDesk and even the first transfer is FREE, however Elance gives you one wire transfer FREE per month, that's attractive but they have other limitations like subscription fees and also a big comission fee as well, which in-turn puts a lot of burden on the service provider. However, here's my oDesk Profile link where you can go to hire me for developing your websites, designing logos and PHP Programming etc. My latest project is for Bandanas Bar-B-Q, MO, USA http://www.bandanasbbq.com

Bird Eye View of a 3D City by K-Birdie !

Right-Click on image and Open In New Tab for a Larger Version

A Project my firm has been working on. Based on high tech minimal design. Its still in the works. Building design was done as teamwork between colleagues. As you can see, its a little more than big :)

Modelled : AutoCad
Rendered : 3D Max
Additional : Usage of Google Maps and Some Pshop filters.

For more of K-Birdie's work http://sampdoria.deviantart.com

FREE Flash Source (FLA) : Slideshow & Button Rollovers

Category: Adobe Flash CS & Above.
Skill Level: Intermediate
Live Demo Link: http://www.souldesigns.net/tutorials/flash_slide/
Source Files(FLA & SWF): http://rapidshare.com/files/2959834319/Entellics_Slideshow_FLA.zip
                                                                                                        OR
                                    http://hotfile.com/dl/123689164/3cbc696/Entellics_Slideshow_FLA.zip.html

I am putting the source FLA of this Flash slideshow and roll-over for free for learning purposes. I did this project back in 2008 as a home page for a new company. Two buttons are not working, but you get the idea how it works, pretty simple stuff but tips for some image zoom blur effects. I put the rest upon you to learn from the FLA.

Thanks.

Featured Artist: Mike Johnson a.k.a ~DarthMurda

Another talented CG Artist from Blur Studios, Mike Johnson nicknamed ~DarthMurda at Deviant Art. Mike has a cool portfolio mostly containing architectural exteriors and interiors with other objects designed as well.

About Mike Johnson:
Graduate from Art & Design High Shool, Manhattan,NY. Relocated to California to pursue an Aggressive Inline skating career. Through skating,traveled to many areas of the world: France, Germany, Poland, Russia, Scotland, Austria, Denmark and Amsterdam.

Self taught in creative applications such as Illustrator, Photoshop, After Effects, 3D Studio Max, Vray, Mentalray, and Digital Fusion. 7 +yrs Experience Passionate about working with 3d. Currently reside in Los Angeles, California working fulltime at Blur Studio.

To look at more work of DarthMurda:
http://michaeljohnsoncg.com
http://darthmurda.deviantart.com

FREE Textures. Bricks, Walls, Old Temples, Shrines, Tombs.

To Download full size image ( 1600 x 1200 px ) Right-Click, Open in New Tab on images.

I went to a historical place named Thatta in Sindh, Pakistan. I took the pictures of hundreds of years old graveyard, which has old graves, old shrines, old mughal emperor's Tombs etc. These pics can be helpful in designing Indian historical tombs or temples etc. The walls and brick textures can be helpful in many ways for Graphic, Web and 3D Designers... depends on your creativity !

I would want to use some of these images as website backgrounds for some stunning effects. :)

thanks.

Google Chromebooks - Will it bring a change & what's Microsoft thinking ?

June 15, Google has released the new Chromebook which is new netbook with some great-looking features, but will it be successful? Not sure right now but it seems to offer great services and after all Google has released its operating system, even if it's for the netbook, they are making progress towards the OS market and that should ring the alarms for Microsof :)

On the other hand Microsoft is investing billions to buy Skype ! :) and that can be a bad deal for them as well, because Google Talk and Video / Voice Chat in Gmail and Free Calls to USA and Canada will give them a tough time.

However, Google Chromebook looks like my Acer laptop and there are versions from Samsung as well. The Samsung version's price on Amazon is a bit higher, not sure why !

A great feature of Chromebook is it's cloud based backup, even if you loose your chromebook you have all your data / work automatically backed up and you just get a new chromebook and start from where you left. Also there are no annoying update warnings / notifications, it just updates itself to the latest version and don't bother you for it.

Let's see how it goes for Google and Microsoft has some tough time coming soon I guess..... :)