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We don’t want to be morbid. But none of us really know how long we have to live. And if the end does come unexpectedly soon, will you have done all the things you really wanted to? No one wants their last moments to be drenched in regret. So in this post, we’re focusing on some things you might want to do sooner, rather than later. And then if you do end up living another 50 years after that? Well then, you’ll just have more time to become an art director or improve your design portfolio, or else binge-watch Netflix and eat pizza. Happy days. 01. Meet your design heroes Behance Portfolio Reviews offer just one way to potentially meet your design heroes Everyone dreams of meeting their heroes. But if your heroes are, say, the Dalai Lama, Will Smith or Taylor Swift, that might be a little difficult to arrange. If your heroes work in design, though, it suddenly becomes a whole lot easier. Many of the leading lights in the fields of illustration, graphic design, web design, 3D and animation regularly appear in public at industry-specific conferences, such as our own Generate, and are often quite open to standing around and chatting afterwards. Some events even organise ‘meet and greets’, so you can officially book time with your heroes. Portfolio reviews such as our own upcoming one, pitching events, and design competitions are other potential routes to making contact with your idols. So why are you sitting on your hands? If you need an extra jolt of inspiration, then read this blog post by Simon Wild about how he set about meeting his heroes, the graphic design partnership of Miraphora Mina and Eduardo Lima, and what he got out of it. 02. Read (or re-read) the classics If you haven't read Paul Rand: A Designer's Art, then you should Ever feel that you didn’t follow absolutely everything they tried to teach you at design college? That there are some fundamentals of art and design theory, from the golden ratio to grid theory, that you’ve never properly grasped? That you’ve been kind of muddling through ever since, and that maybe you’d create better design work if there weren't so many gaps in your knowledge? Don’t beat yourself up. ‘Fake it till you make it’ is not a minority pursuit, but the industry norm, and few people are truly expert in all areas of design theory. That said, once you have some practical experience under your belt, you'll probably find that if you revisit those books you struggled with at college, they suddenly make a lot more sense and can genuinely help you improve your craft. And that can be a massive boost to your self-esteem. Get started by checking out our list of 30 books every graphic designer should read. 03. Start (and finish) a passion project Jessica Hische's Daily Drop Cap project attracted plaudits far and wide There’s nothing wrong with working for others, whether they be an employer or freelance client. But following a brief is only ever going to nourish one part of your creative soul. If you truly want to stretch your design muscles, your best bet is always going to be to start your own passion project, aka personal project or side project. The beauty of a passion project is that you only have yourself to please, so at one level at least, it can’t possibly fail. As Yoda says in Star Wars: 'Do or do not, there is no try'. In other words, it’s not about the result, it’s about the process, and what it teaches you about yourself and your own creativity. Learn more about passion projects in our articles How to start a side project and Why you really do have time for creative side projects and Tips for better side projects. 04. Use your design skills for a good cause The Secret 7'' project is creating bespoke record sleeves to raise money for MIND You’ve spent years using your design skills to make profits for your employers. But the work you’re more likely to think of on your death bed will be the pro-bono work you did for the good of society. Yes, it’s nice to give money to charities and non-profits. But giving something of yourself can be both more valuable to the cause, and more personally fulfilling to yourself. In the process, it will probably also stretch you creatively; we tend to see things in a different perspective when not working for money. And it may even end up helping your career (you might be surprised how many influential people you can meet working for charities). For advice, check out our articles The designer's guide to working for nonprofits and The secrets of a creative approach to charity. 05. Take a sabbatical If this sight appeals to you, is it time you did something about it? No one ever lay on their death bed and thought: 'I regret not spending more time at the office'. So why not push the boat out, and take a proper amount of time off, to go travelling, write a book, learn a language, or whatever other dreams you’ve got buried deep in your subconscious? Many companies nowadays offer three-month unpaid sabbaticals. And even if yours doesn’t, there’s no harm suggesting the idea to your boss. A happy employee is a productive employee, after all, and taking some time out is only going to give you fresh perspective and make you a better designer. And if they turn you down? Well, you can always go freelance, and then your schedule is your own. Yes, we know, everyone needs money. But ask yourself how much money you really need to live on, and whether other things in life are more important. The answer may ultimately be no (or not right now, at least). But if you’re not honest with yourself about your hopes and dreams, however are you going to fulfil them? If you need convincing further, watch this talk by Stefan Sagmeister, who explains why his studio takes a full year off, every seven years. 06. Fail at something No one ever got good at skateboarding without falling off, and the same goes for design This might sound like an odd thing to include on a designer’s bucket list. But if you never truly fail at anything, you'll never learn anything. And in the words of Marcus Tullius Cicero: “Life without learning is death". So take risks. Break the rules. Do something outlandish. If it ends up being a disaster, you'll have learned a valuable lesson or two. But it could end up being something amazing and life-changing. You don't know if you try. Otherwise, how can you ever call yourself a "creative"? For more on this topic, read this excellent Medium post by Amalie Barras, How to Fail at Design. 07. Crowdsource an idea Ben Barrett-Forrest's typography playing cards were funded via a successful Kickstarter campaign Always loved the idea of launching a product and starting your own business, but are too financially risk-averse to risk it? Then why not ask other people to raise the money for you? Just a few decades ago, that would have been a crazy notion, but nowadays it's commonplace for creatives to use crowdsourcing platforms like Kickstarter to pursue their dreams at other peoples' expense, from Ben Barrett-Forrest's typography playing cards to Iris Compiet's illustrated book of fairies. That said, it's not a case of just asking for the money and running. Be aware that running a crowdfunding campaign can be an intense, full-time challenge. Because unless you've already got a million social media followers, you'll have to put a lot of work into publicising your campaign and persuading people to actually part with their money. Imagine the sense of achievement and fulfilment, though, once you've achieved your goal and funded your dream purely by making people believe in your creative vision. You'll find detailed advice on how to do it in our posts How to launch a successful Kickstarter and How to crowdfund your next design project. 08. Learn some code Trang Minh Nguyen has been creating daily sketches while learning p5.js and posting them on Instagram. If you're a creative who's not actually a web designer, you'll probably spend your entire career never needing to learn how to code. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't take a crack at it. Learning some basic HTML and CSS, having a play, and creating your own basic website can be incredibly liberating. It will give you a greater understanding of how the digital world works, more confidence to talk to developers, and is likely spark new creative ideas in multiple directions. It's kind of like learning a language. Even if you learn just a hundreds words of, say, Spanish, it can make travelling to Spanish-speaking countries a much richer and more rewarding experience. And in the same way, writing just a few lines of code can take you creative places you'd never dreamed of. For pointers on how to get started, read our post Why designers need to learn to code. 09. Teach design Passing on your knowledge to others can be incredibly rewarding You've spent much of your lifetime honing and crafting your design skills. And passing on that knowledge and understanding to others can be an incredibly fulfilling activity. That might be in the form of a formal teaching role; as a mentor to a younger designer; through a volunteer programme like Code Club; by running your own online design courses via a platform such as Skillshare, Udemy or CreativeLive, or by speaking at design events. But however you share your skills, it will give you a whole new perspective on what you know, not to mention a sense of pride and achievement at doing something good for others. And when someone you've taught gives you great feedback, that can be the best feeling of all. In fact, on that topic... 10. Thank your mentors Thank the people who got you where you are We're all familiar with the axiom 'It is better to give that receive'. But while we relish positive feedback from others, we're not always so good at giving it back. If you've found success and fulfilment in your career as a designer, take a step back and think about the people who've helped make that possible. That teacher who really cut through. The manager who became a true mentor. The person who selflessly made the introduction that helped you get your big break. Have you ever thought of sitting down, writing them a thank-you email and updating them on where you are now in your career? Doing so is not only the right and proper thing to do, it will likely give you an enormous sense of well-being and satisfaction into the bargain. 11. Find your dream, and then follow it Your true dreams may be buried in your subconscious, so take the time to drag them out List features like this one can sometime provide pointers. But if you really want to know what to do before you die, there's no getting around it: you need to gaze deep into your soul. Everyone has heartfelt desires that they desperately wish to fulfil. But life often gets in the way and we end up repressing them, sometimes even forgetting them, in the struggle to 'just get by'. So our honest advice is to take some time off, switch off your smartphone, and allow your brain to reset. Only then are can you really know what you want to achieve, and what will make you happy. Once you do, you'll find that pursuing your dream is pretty straightforward: a case of overcoming some well-worn obstacles. Take inspiration from these creatives, in our post 8 challenges to overcome to achieve your creative dreams. Read more: View the full article

At first glance, Adobe Lightroom CC may seem complicated to use, but with a bit of practice, you'll become a master. And that's what Lightroom CC Crash Course aims to help you do. You'll learn how to organise your photos, backup your work, adjust and retouch your images, and share them with others. Best of all, you'll be learning under the tutelage of Kasia Zmokla, a digital artist, graphic designer, and photographer who has over 20 years of experience in the field. She was trained at the Eugeniusz Geppert Academy of Art and Design in Wroclaw, Poland, and she graduated as a Master of Fine Arts in 2003. Under her wing, you'll become a pro photo editor in no time at all. Discover how to make your images pop and stand out like never before, with Lightroom CC Crash Course – yours for just $18. Related articles: Lightroom CC 2018 review The 10 commandments of Photoshop etiquette 5 best laptops for Photoshop View the full article

When you're painting rippling water with something in it, you’re taking on the task of painting a disrupted reflection. This can be tricky to imagine, so I often like to make my own reference before I start. For this painting, I'm going to use oils, so I'll draw upon some oil painting techniques. Don't miss our general painting techniques post for more tips and tricks on the subject. 01. Make some reference My homemade reference used a toy, some water and a palette I use a mirror, my palette and a toy and I stir the water to get the ripples and then take a photograph to work from. You can also leave your reference next to you if you can, in order to experiment with different water effects. Once your reference is made, you're ready to go... 02. Start with the dark colours I start with the darks of the water as my base. When you're working in oils, you usually work from dark to light anyway, so this is a natural approach. You can work thin and with your more transparent hues. Your transparent colours will be Indian Yellow, Oxides (red, orange, yellow, and brown are a few I use), Viridian, Alizarin Crimson, Phthalo Blue and Ultramarine, to name a few. A reflection will tend to be darker than the object being reflected. The shadows from objects will similarly have some reflection but will usually make what’s below the water visible, and the values are usually darker as well. You can have fun with this stage and get all those dark and saturated colours mixed around. Let this dry (if you’re working en plein air, you should work thin). 03. Add the light colours In this oil painting of Tristan and Isolde, Aaron Miller captured rippled water with a limited palette, locking in his value ranges When you start on the lighter colour, the reflection of the sky, it’s best to premix the gradient. It makes the decision about which colours to pick easier! In areas where there is contrasting detail, choose one to focus on and consider painting back into the sky reflection with the shadow colours. To create the ripples in the painting, it’s much easier to paint the gradient of the reflected sky over most of the area and paint the darks back in again. This article originally appeared in Paint and Draw magazine. Read more: How to mount your artwork How to draw: 103 tutorials How to draw a rose: beginner and advanced tips View the full article

Even the best logos need to be updated to fit in with the modern age, which is why on the 50th anniversary of the International Symbol of Access (ISA) – aka the symbol of a wheelchair user – Visibility93 is calling for a redesign of the logo most of us associate with disability. In order to start the conversation, Visibility93 has launched a new icon font, with each letter representing a different type of disability, including ADHD, anxiety, lupus and dyslexia. The idea is to inspire the design community to make a new logo that represents lots of different types of disability – both visible and invisible – and to spark conversation and debate about the symbols that should be used to depict disability. The symbol for Crohn’s and Colitus Visibility93 was set up by designers from McCann London, many of whom have relatives or loved ones that have invisible disabilities. Wheelchair users are estimated to make up 5-7 per cent of the disabled population, meaning that at least 93 per cent of the disabled population have invisible or less visible disabilities (hence the name Visibility93). This also means that the current symbol doesn't represent most disabled people. The new icon font in full (click on the top-right corner to enlarge) Dan Howarth, head of art at McCann London, said: "Our ambition is that different communities – whether design, charity, people with disabilities and the public – come together to create a new ISA that is inclusive of all people with disabilities." The campaign coincides with the UK government announcement that it plans to overhaul the Blue Badge system, enabling people who have invisible disabilities as well as visible ones to have Blue Badges, and therefore access to accessible parking. The Blue Badge scheme is just one potential use for a new symbol depicting disability. A new logo also could help those with invisible disabilities feel more comfortable using accessible spaces. The symbol for depression What do you think of the new symbols? We think the attempt to reimagine disability is welcome, but the way it's been done is potentially contentious. Some people may find the symbol used to depict the disability they have as offensive – how many of those who have depression, for example, will feel represented by the symbol above? Others may feel left out if their disability is not included. The use of traditional symbols for men and women – which are arguably fast becoming out of date (if they're not already) – also feels like it could do with a rethink. But as the team behind these logos say, these symbols are: "in no way a finished set – far from it." And this opening up of conversation and inviting others to become part of a change in the way that we represent disability – and potentially therefore think or talk about – is definitely a step forward. "We urge our peers in the design community to get involved, add to them and help evolve the language we use to depict disability," says Howarth. So go ahead, get involved. You can start by downloading the font at the Visibility93 website and following the conversation on Instagram. Read more: Help design the new Firefox logo Accessibility in web design Amazing art from mental health awareness week View the full article

To create products that look beautiful and are comfortable to use, you'll need to know the design strategies behind effective user interface. With UI & UX Design Bootcamp, you'll learn all the skills a UX strategist needs to know. You'll learn how to develop projects successfully, including how to interview users and lead a UX team to the finish line. You'll gain hands-on experience by creating a stock market app on your own, and you'll learn how to develop a loyal customer base by creating habit-forming products. Learn all this and more with UI & UX Design Bootcamp – it's yours for just $39, 96% down from the list price. Related articles: How to design a bitcoin UX 6 trends that are changing the face of UX The theory of UX View the full article

What's it like moving from an agency to a start-up? Creative developer Steven Roberts joined Asemblr, a start-up in the corporate events space, in February after working at an agency. In his new role, he's focusing more on the user as head of user experience. We catch up with him to discuss the difference between startup and agency culture and preview his Generate London workshop, which will look at building a web-based music player. How’s your new role going and how does working at a start-up differ from an agency? It’s going great. We’re currently designing the next generation of the platform, which will be launching in the summer. While my previous roles were primarily advertising-based, now I’m designing software as a service (SAAS). The platform has a lot of moving parts, which have been a challenge to design. There’s been a huge difference in the transparency of the company in terms of involvement. I know what I’m going to be doing for the next few months, whereas in an agency setting it could be day to day. Working within a SAAS company, there’s one single focus instead of a number of projects flying around, which has been a change of pace for me. I’m also getting to be more of an advocate for the user in my new role, primarily because I’ve had far more time to learn and discover who the user is. Have you discovered any cool tools along the way? I’ve not had a lot of time to use many new tools but the standout for me at the moment is Spirit. It gives designers and developers the ability to create animations in the browser using a timeline, similar to Flash. The animations are running on GSAP in the backend, so the animations are really smooth and cross-browser compatible. Although currently in beta, the developer is hopeful for a full release soon. I’ve created a quick example of what you can do with it in just five minutes over on CodePen. What’s the web-design scene like right now in the North-East of England? It’s exciting. There are a number of companies in the Middlesbrough Boho Zone producing some wonderful work and working with high-profile clients. Hopefully this will attract and keep new and upcoming talent from leaving the area. There are also a number of great companies in Newcastle and a couple of conferences. Frontend NE, which is a local meetup, successfully put on its first conference this year. Design It; Build It (DIBI) runs events in Newcastle too. How important is music in your life and why do you think so many web designers are in bands? Music plays a huge part in my life. I’ve played guitar since I was 14 and have been in a number of bands. I find listening to music while I’m working to be productive, although sometimes I find podcasts to be good for concentration too. I think many of us are in bands because it’s another outlet for creativity. Being in a band also promotes teamwork, discipline, leadership and ownership, all of which are part of our jobs, so it’s easy to adapt to the band environment. Tell us about the workshop you’ll be giving at Generate London. I’m really looking forward to it; it should be a fun day. We’re going to be building a web-based music player interface inspired by the likes of Spotify and Google Music. I’ll be teaching the new CSS layout properties – CSS Grid and Flexbox – as well as utilising SVG as an icon system and, to top it all off, we’ll style the interface using custom properties in order to provide themes. We’ll be using very little JavaScript and concentrating on CSS and HTML to build a responsive interface for modern browsers. This article was originally published in issue 309 of net, the world's best-selling magazine for web designers and developers. Buy issue 309 or subscribe to net. Want to hear more from Steven Roberts on harnessing the power of the grid? Steven Roberts is giving his workshop How to Build a Music Player Interface at Generate London from 19-21 September 2018 If you're interested in learning about how you can become a Flexbox aficionado or CSS Grid sensation, make sure you've picked up your ticket for Generate London. A frontend designer and developer currently working as creative developer for Asemblr.com, Steven Roberts will be delivering his workshop – How to Build a Music Player Interface – in which he will show you how to build a Spotify-style music player that will scale to any screen size, as well as giving you a firm grounding in Flexbox, CSS Grid and SVG sprites. Generate London takes place from 19-21 September 2018. Get your ticket now. Related articles: The web designer's guide to Flexbox Fashion flexible layouts with CSS Grid Create a responsive layout with CSS Grid View the full article

If Apple only put its standard stylus – the Apple Pencil – in the box with all its iPads, we probably wouldn't need to write this 'best iPad stylus' buying guide. But the tech giant's own pointer costs a packet to buy separately, and it doesn't even work with all iPads. Luckily there's a thriving market of iPad styluses (or stylii, if you prefer) with options available from both established brands and innovative crowd-funded firms. Whether you need an iPad stylus for drawing or furiously scribbling notes, there's an ideal option for you here. In the following guide, we'll tell you about the best iPad styluses with integrated buttons so you can customise to different functions, and we'll help you decide whether am iPad stylus with a hard nib or soft nib is likely to be better for your requirements. Read on to find out exactly what stylus for your iPad you should buy – and where to buy it for the best price. The Apple Pencil is, of course, the natural choice of stylus for iPad – but only if you own one of the only two iPads that are compatible with it: an iPad Pro or sixth-generation iPad (2018). If you do, there isn't a better stylus to write and draw with on the market. Not only is it exceptional comfortable to use, Apple has eliminated many of the issues that can dog other styluses – such as inadequate palm rejection and clear lag that instantly makes you feel disconnected to what you're producing on the screen. The astonishing pressure levels mean that the Apple Pencil reproduces your movements perfectly, at even the most acute angles, and it enhances all your favourite creative iOS apps. The bottom line is that if you've forked out the cash for an iPad Pro, you'd be daft not to swallow the extra expense and go straight for an Apple Pencil. Also read: Apple Pencil review Wacom boasts an industry-leading reputation thanks to its fabulous range of dedicated drawing tablets. So it's only natural that the company produces an attractive line of styluses as well. As well as being our favourite iPad stylus for artists, the Wacom Bamboo Sketch also takes the plaudits for general use on the iPad Air and iPad Mini series thanks to its all-round compatibility on iOS devices. Rather than trying to exactly mimic a traditional rounded pen, the Bamboo Sketch favours an ergonomic triangular design for better grip. It's an excellent all-rounder, but its fine tip and pressure-sensitive nibs make it just about as close an experience to sketching on paper as you can get. With an epic battery life (recharged via USB) it uses Bluetooth to connect to your iPad, which brings the integrated shortcut buttons into play, too, enabling you to set up handy shortcuts within your chosen iOS apps. If you're an artist or designer who's become completely reliant on your iPad but you do more than just sketching, then the Sensu Artist Brush could be what you're looking for. It looks, acts and feels like a real paint brush, complete with capacitive bristles. There's no battery required here, so the Sensu Artist Brush is super light and svelte. Combine it with your chosen iPad apps, and your digital art workflow should speed up. And if you're worried that this all sounds a bit niche, fear not: the Sensu Artist Brush is a 2-in-1 product. Pop on the rubber cap, and you can use it like a traditional stylus for navigating around your iPad (or any other touchscreen device) with speed and accuracy. If you've not heard of Adonit, it's because the 2010 Kickstarter firm doesn't have any where near the clout of the likes of Apple and Wacom. But Adonit specialises in styluses, and the company is pretty good at what it does. The Adonit Pro range has now hit its third incarnation, and with its textured grip and precision disc tip, it's the ideal tool for note-taking on your iPad. It's designed to feel akin to using a regular ballpoint pen, can be used on all iPad touchscreens and is relatively inexpensive. Unlike the two styluses above, this is a non-connected option. That means no frustration when you realise the battery's empty and also that you can use it on pretty much any touchscreen device – not just Apple iPads. If you're not sold on the idea of spending upwards of $20/£20 on a simple pointing device, and don't need the specialised functioning of the iPad styluses above, then Adonit's budget option – the Adonit Mark – is worth considering. Despite its cheap price tag, this stylus has been designed to feel as comfortable as possible in your hand, with its triangular anti-roll design. It retains the precision you'd expect from the sole-purpose stylus manufacturer, largely thanks to its smudge-free mesh tip. The Adonit Mark won't win any innovation awards, but if you just want a stylus for navigating around your iPad, you won't find a better cheaper iPad stylus than this. Related articles: The best tablets with styluses 10 top new best tools for traditional artists Best cheap Wacom tablets you can buy View the full article

Wacom has dropped the prices of its groundbreaking pen computer, the MobileStudio Pro, so you can get your hands on some state-of-the-art creative kit for a significant discount – up to $300 / £300 off. US: Save $300 on the Wacom Studio Pro UK: Save £300 on the Wacom Studio Pro If you're after a portable, all-in-one design solution for the new school year – or just to help you get some vector art or logo design done while you're out and about – this is a cracking Wacom deal for you. Combining the portability of an iPad Pro with the power of a full-fat Windows PC, the MobileStudio Pro enables you to use all your professional desktop software, without being tethered to a studio – so you can work whenever and wherever you want. The MobileStudio Pro comes in 13- and 16-inch flavours Discounts are available across the MobileStudio range, so if you're on a budget you can get money off the entry-level 13-inch model with a Core i5 processor and 64GB SSD. But if you're feeling a bit more flush you can save on a massive 16-inch model with all the power and SSD space you're likely to need. When we reviewed the MobileStudio Pro last year we were really impressed by its power, portability and build quality, as well as useful features such as customisable ExpressKeys and a pen with 60 degrees of tilt and over 8,000 levels of sensitivity. So if you think you need a MobileStudio Pro in your life, especially at a sweet discount, head over to Wacom US or Wacom UK and take a look. Related articles: Wacom Pro Pen 3D review The best drawing tablet: our pick of the best graphics tablets in 2018 Wacom launches new Wacom Cintiq Pro graphics tablets View the full article

You're reading Design Trends for Fixed Navigation Menus in Web Design, originally posted on Designmodo. If you've enjoyed this post, be sure to follow on Twitter, Facebook, Google+! Designing a navigation takes some careful planning. You need to think about what your users might look for and what type of nav would fit best in your layout. Some designers prefer smaller navigation bars while others like huge mega-menu designs. … View the full article

Your comfort zone might be lovely and comfortable, but it's not the place to do your best design work – the world's best logos and packaging design were certainly not created by playing it safe. if you want to take things to the next level, you're going to have to shake things up a bit. 10 ways to transform your creative thinking The team at Taxi Studio have their own mantra – Fearless Creativity – that they've used this as the basis for an educational short film, produced with D&AD New Blood, in which leading creatives give their take on how they've been fearlessly creative in their careers. "Fearless Creativity is a our mantra but moreover it's our mindset, a commitment to kick mediocrity to the kerb and produce stunning communications that break the mould." says Taxi co-founder Spencer Buck, who also co-directed the short. "Sadly roughly 90 per cent of all creative work produced is shit. Students need to get themselves into the 10 per cent if they want to have a truly fulfilling and distinguished creative career." Jack Renwick appears as a candy-striped asterisk So following on from a series of lunchtime talks at Taxi Studio, where top industry names would come to share their wisdom and supply their thoughts on the idea of fearless creativity, the team had the idea of turning it into an animated film. Pentgram's Marina Miller becomes a fig leaf as she explains how she overcame fears of being exposed Two years later the result is Creative Discomforts, in which a collection of design legends including Laura Jordan-Bambach, Jim Sutherland and Jack Renwick, are recreated as adorable animated characters to illustrate their own tales of fearless creativity. The whole five-minute film is available now; Taxi will also be producing a series of bite-sized clips to distribute in September, just in time for when the latest crop of design students are arriving at university. Buck hopes that students gets something out of the film and that it'll help instil a bit of creative courage in the next generation of designers; but what's been his big moment of fearless creativity? Poor old Jim Sutherland "Well, it takes some balls to invite legends of our industry to take part in an educational film – and then treat them so badly," he says. "But I'm not ashamed to say that we took great delight in breaking James Hilton's bones; stripping Marina Willer bare and chopping Jim Sutherland's leg off." Related articles: 11 of the best creative resumes 8 up-and-coming designers to watch from D&AD New Blood Why designers should face a fear every day View the full article

If you're looking to buy a phone from Walmart, we can help. The retailer is an excellent place to buy a new cell phone, but there's a lot of choice – so we've curated a list of the best cell phones at Walmart right now to help you make the right decision. Whether you're looking for a prepaid Walmart phone with Straight Talk, an unlocked handset, or you're not sure which cell phone you should buy, this article will take you through the very best phones at Walmart, and explain the pros and cons of each. The best drawing tablets at Walmart Prepaid or unlocked cell phones can be used with any mobile network, while Walmart's Straight Talk pre-paid network is an excellent choice if you want a bit of flexibility with your service. You can sign up for Straight Talk for a number of different time periods, such as 30 days, for example. When deciding which is the best cell phone at Walmart for you, there are a few things to consider. The size and design is important – you'll want something that's comfortable to hold. You'll also want to keep an eye on RAM and processors, as these determine how fast the cell phone is. If you're a heavy user who will install lots of games and apps, then go with something that has plenty of RAM and a modern multi-core processor. Most importantly, you need something that suits your budget. There's nothing worse than being locked into a pay-monthly contract that you struggle to afford, while paying for features and extras that you do not need. This is where pre-paid cell phone deals are worth considering. Read on for our pick of the best phones at Walmart right now. The Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus is our top choice for the best phone at Walmart. It boasts a stunning 6.2-inch Super AMOLED screen, which delivers stunning picture quality, and its dual-aperture camera is one of the best we've ever seen in a smartphone. While the large screen size won't be to everyone's tastes, it makes the Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus a brilliant cell phone for working on, and even doodling a few digital drawings as well. Plus, it's not that expensive, either. Buy the Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus from Walmart now If you're looking for a high-end, premium cell phone and have the budget, then the iPhone X is the best phone at Walmart right now. Apple announced the iPhone X (pronounced 'ten') last year, and this radically redesigned iPhone has seriously impressed everyone who got it in their hands. The 5.8-inch OLED screen is the best display ever to grace an iPhone, battery life is very good and the camera is superb. Apple has crammed some very impressive hardware into the iPhone X, making it an excellent performer, and it's added some great new features such as Face ID, which lets you unlock the cell phone by just looking into the camera. Buy the iPhone X at Walmart now If you're looking for a mid-range cell phone at Walmart, one that doesn't cost the Earth thanks to over the top specs and bells and whistles – yet still does the job well, while looking (and feeling) great – then the Huawei Mate 10 Pro is worth considering. Huawei is a name to look out for, as its cell phones (and laptops) are increasingly competing with more established – and more expensive – rivals. Its full HD screen doesn't have the 'wow' factor of the screens found on the iPhone X or Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus, but it absolutely blows those two phones out of the water when it comes to battery life. It has a huge 4,000mAh battery, which can lead to almost two days' worth of use before you need to charge. The dual-camera setup of the Mate 10 Pro is also excellent. Buy the Huawei mate 10 Pro at Walmart now The Moto E4 Plus is our choice of the best cheap cell phone at Walmart. This is a handset that proves that the best budget cell phones don't need to sacrifice too much to keep their prices low. So, you get a nicely designed phone with a fingerprint scanner, plus a huge 5,000mAh battery that allows the Moto E4 Plus to run for two entire days between charges. Sure, it's a little underpowered, and the camera isn't the best – but for the price, the Moto E4 Plus is brilliant value for money from Walmart. Buy the Moto E4 Plus from Walmart now The iPhone 8 remains Apple's best-selling iPhone for a reason, and that's why it's our pick for the best Walmart phone with Straight Talk. The 4.7-inch screen size will please anyone who has felt that smartphones are getting too big and unwieldy, and it's far more affordable than the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X. However, it still boasts some of the best features that come with those more expensive iPhones – such as wireless charging, a brilliant camera and the powerful A11 Bionic chipset that keeps the handset feeling speedy and responsive. A brilliant phone at Walmart. Buy the iPhone 8 at Walmart now The Motorola Moto E4 is the best prepaid phone at Walmart, delivering exceptional value for money. It comes loaded with a recent version of Android, has a quad-core processor that enables it to perform well, and includes support for microSD cards – so you can expand the storage capacity up to 128GB. While this is far from the most powerful cell phone at Walmart, it does an excellent job of providing some of the latest features we've come to expect from modern cells for an excellent price – especially if you buy it with a prepaid offer from Walmart. Buy the Motorola Moto E4 from Walmart now The Samsung Galaxy S9 isn't quite as brilliant as the larger Galaxy S9 Plus – in the number one slot in our best Walmart phones guide – but it's still a very impressive cell phone, and you can buy it unlocked from Walmart. That means you can use it with any network you want without being tied to a contract. It comes with a lovely QHD 5.8-inch screen with Super AMOLED technology, making images look stunning. The camera is incredible, especially in low light conditions, and it's impressively powerful. While this is a pricey cell, you get some excellent premium features for your money, such as Swift biometric security, dual speakers Or – if you'd like most of these features at a much lower price, try the Samsung Galaxy S8. The camera isn't quite as good (but it's still amazing) and you'll need some finger gymnastics to get to the fingerprint scanner on the back. But if that doesn't bother you (and it doesn't bother us), the Galaxy S8 is a very impressive cell – and incredible value for money now. Buy the Samsung Galaxy S9 from Walmart now Buy the Samsung Galaxy S8 from Walmart now Related articles: The best drawing tablets at Walmart The 6 best smartphones for designers The 28 best iPhone apps for designers View the full article

Making a good logo great is about taking the brief that one step further. Nicely crafted, fit-for-purpose designs that meet, rather than confound, expectations risk blending into the background. It takes that extra spark for a logo to really stick in the mind – and a killer idea is everything. The very best logos use intelligence, wit and unconventional thinking to find that hidden gem that makes them special. Sometimes the solution seems so perfect, it should be obvious – the trick, of course, is making sure you thought of it first. Read on for six examples of logos that eschewed the obvious, took a sideways glance at a design brief and definitely stick in the mind as a result... 01. London Symphony Orchestra The sweeping curve that spells out the LSO acronym doubles as a conductor in mid flow Designed by The Partners (now part of Superunion) in 2001 – and brought to life with multi-award-winning campaign imagery in 2017, to celebrate Simon Rattle joining the orchestra – this inspired logo takes advantage of typographical serendipity, but it's the kind of charming association that many agencies would miss. Defined by a single flowing line, the initials L, S and O trace the shape of an orchestra's conductor in full passionate flow, baton in mid-air – an elegant, simple solution that conveys the joy of live classic music. 02. The Guild of Food Writers Simple but effective use of negative space, like this nib and spoon combo, never fails to raise a smile Smart use of negative space can certainly take a logo from good to great – FedEx's arrow being a case in point – but it's hard to get right. As a rule, it works most effectively when it's simple and elegant, and doesn't labour the point too much. Widely regarded as a standout example of negative space done right, this logo for The Guild of Food Writers by 300 Million achieves just the right balance of graphic restraint and creative wit, with its inspired combination of pen nib and spoon. 03. Agatha Christie Ltd An inspired combination of Agatha Christie's initials with a question mark forms the basis of this identity No list of smart, witty logos would be complete without an inclusion from Studio Sutherl&: Jim Sutherland is a true master of finding a deceptively simple solution right underneath all our noses, and executing it so effectively that you can't believe no one else thought of it. Studio Sutherl&'s recent rebrand of Agatha Christie Ltd starts with the realisation that a monogram of the much-loved author's initials can also incorporate a question mark – the universal symbol of mystery – and expands into a versatile branding system that defines Christie's most iconic characters using only punctuation marks. 04. Spartan Golf Club Golfer taking a powerful swing, or Spartan soldier in plumed helmet – why can't we just have both? When negative space gets more complicated and multi-layered, it takes some careful refinement and true design craft to carry the logo through, and avoid it becoming messy and confusing. Spartan Golf Club nails it. It's fair to say that not many design briefs require a seamless blend between an Ancient Greek soldier and a golfer in mid-swing. Designer Richard Fonteneau must have been through his fair share of iterations before finding the perfect solution, with the golfer's body forming the profile of a Spartan soldier, and the arc of his swing defining the plume of his helmet. 05. VAIO Subtly hinting at both the analogue and digital worlds, the VAIO logo is one of the smartest in its sector With a few notable exceptions – Apple, anyone? – technology firms aren't famed for thinking outside of the box when it comes to their logo design. But when faced with a brief to design a logo for its 'Video Audio Integrated Operation' (later changed to 'Visual Audio Intelligent Organizer', but much better known simply as 'VAIO'), Sony chose a different tack. The logo nods to both analogue and digital technology in a stylish, subtle way – the smooth curve that defines the 'V' and 'A' represents an analogue wave; the 'I' and 'O' become the binary '1' and '0' that are the foundation of all things digital. It could have been a simple typesetting job: instead, it's a logo that keeps on giving. 06. Horror Films Sometimes graphic restraint pays off, for example with this simple but smart depiction of a film reel as a screaming face You'd think a genre as evocative as horror would be a gift for logo designers. That's the danger: going all out for dripping gore and distressed, fragmented type – maybe some slashes, bites and claw marks for good measure – would feel tired, predictable and overworked. It's partly the admirable restraint that makes Siah Design's Horror Films logo stand out in the sector. A simple idea – that a simplified silhouette of a film reel looks remarkably like a screaming face – carries it. Sometimes, that's all it takes. Related articles: The best logos of all time 5 logos that pass the silhouette test Most hated logos and what they teach us View the full article

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When it comes to Firefox, most people think of the colour critter-cum-web browser that brightens up their desktop. For Firefox though, this isn't quite enough. According to Tim Murray, the creative director at the company's nonprofit owner, Mozilla, there's more to the web browser than is reflected in the current logo design (see below). The previous Firefox logo has been in use since 2017 To help correct this injustice, Firefox revealed in a blog post earlier this week that it wants the public to get involved with helping to evolve its brand. It follows in the footsteps of Mozilla, which open-sourced the process of selecting its new design and brand identity in 2017. The decision to move the Firefox brand forwards through a redesign comes as users find new ways to use internet, with methods that are not truly reflected in the flaming fox design. "As an icon, that fast fox with a flaming tail doesn’t offer enough design tools to represent this entire product family," says Murray. "Recoloring that logo or dissecting the fox could only take us so far. We needed to start from a new place." To create a brand system that truly communicates what Firefox is all about, a team of product and brand designers at Mozilla have reworked its design system. The two systems can be explored below in the gallery by clicking left to right with the arrows. What do you think? If we're being honest, and slightly contrarian, we like the fox icons in system 2, but prefer the geometric icon designs in system 1. Go figure. Crucially though, this isn't a decision by public vote. Firefox is looking for constructive feedback to be left in the comments section of the blog post. And it's important to keep in mind that these icon designs aren't final. You could help shape their look! So if you've got something useful to say, head over to the blog, leave a comment, and help shape a piece of sure to be ubiquitous design. Related articles: 11 places to find logo design inspiration Quiz: guess the logo, can you identify these brands? How to price logo design services View the full article

As the web landscape changes so does user experience and to stay competitive you need to embrace the new. One thing that doesn't change is the user. If they have a poor user experience they will simply look elsewhere. So what are the emerging experiences that you need to consider today? The theory of UX These are the seven key themes that you should be designing for: inclusivity and accessibility, immersion, trust and transparency, coherence, conversation, collaboration and efficiency. Alongside these key themes we reveal the tools that you will need to ensure design success. Design for inclusivity Sometimes referred to as 'Universal Design', inclusive design considers as many people's needs and abilities as possible, instead of a 'one size fits all' approach to the experience. As designers it can be easy to unwittingly design for those that are just like us, or prioritise these considerations due to tight budgets or deadlines. As designers we should be aiming to include people with varying ranges of cognitive or physical disability, rather than exclude them. Designers should do this by removing the barriers that create extra effort and separation, enabling the end user of your product or service to have the confidence to participate equally, and without support. Tech For Good also has a podcast Over the next year, expect to see inclusive and ethical design become an expected part of the UX Design process. Fortunately, there are plenty of other people getting involved in the digital community, with social movements such as The A11Y Project, AXSChat and Tech For Good gathering rapid momentum over the past 12 months. These groups provide a supportive space for designers to learn more about the inclusive design process and the problems that different people face when using technology. Inclusive design shouldn't be confused with accessible design. Inclusive design shouldn't be confused with accessible design. Products and services are usually made accessible as an afterthought; for example, a watch might be retrospectively made accessible for blind people by including braille numbering on top of the watch face. This modification to a device designed for those with sight may solve one technical problem, but introduce many more issues for those that are blind. Inclusive design seeks to fundamentally redesign a product from scratch, removing barriers from the start. Inclusive design is proactive, not reactive. When starting any new project, one of the most important questions UX designers should ask themselves at all stages of the design process is, 'Who will this design exclude?' Top tools Funkify Disability Simulator Funkify is an extension for Chrome that helps you experience the web and interfaces through the eyes of users with different abilities and disabilities. Funkify is created by a team of usability and accessibility experts in Sweden. Stark The colour-blind simulator and contrast checker for Sketch. Simulate the various forms of colour-blindness by quickly previewing your Sketch designs and make adjustments as needed. Contrast A macOS app that provides access to WCAG colour contrast ratios. The entire app UI updates instantly when picking colours, making it easy to get the colour contrast information you need to make informed decisions about the colour of your text. Design for immersion Traditionally, UX designers had a clear separation of realities to design for: real life, and the experience delivered on screen by the person's device. Now the lines have been well and truly blurred with Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) entering into mainstream use. It's not enough to design for screens, pages and offline touchpoints anymore, now the concept of multiple dimensions opens up a plethora of ways to enhance the experience. A whole host of interactions can be incorporated into designs, such as picking up, pinching, pushing and pulling, facial expressions, and even air tapping for Microsoft's HoloLens. To get them to do this, you must also think about the cues you will give users that are used to interacting with flat screens, how will you encourage them to look around in the space? Microsoft HoloLens brings holograms into the real world With new immersive technologies you can now use audio to grab attention, or display elements just off screen to prompt them to move left and right. This new technology also gives you the opportunity to play around with objects in a 3D space, so it's important that designers become comfortable in how shadow and light can be used to create the illusion of depth and mass for objects in the interface. Designers also need to be conscious of the right context to use these interactions. As a user interacting with an Augmented Reality app whilst driving would be entirely inappropriate, and it might be that a voice interaction is more suitable in this type of scenario. Thorough research and testing is required of the UX practitioner to find and understand these contexts and user goals. Overall, expect the prevalence of AR and VR to increase rapidly over the next few years as businesses and organisations find ways for this technology to fit their business models. Top tools A-Frame A-Frame is a web framework for building VR experiences. Originally developed by Mozilla, it is an independent open source project. A-Frame is HTML, making it simple to get started. Microsoft HoloLens Microsoft's 'mixed-reality' product, HoloLens, is the first self-contained, holographic computer, enabling you to engage with your digital content and interact with holograms in the world around you. Design for collaboration As UX Designer and its many permutations become more ubiquitous as a role, teams are growing and they have a bigger seat at the table. As a result, more business stakeholders are interested in knowing – or even being involved – in what you're doing. The UX role has now matured, and there are plenty of online communities, tools, conferences, and books aimed specifically for the UX designer. To complete the perfect storm, the digital marketplace is also saturated with multiple offerings for a single type of product, and organisations are more willing to invest the time in creating unique user experiences to make them stand out in a fiercely competitive crowd. Suddenly, UX practitioners find they not only have a voice, but are influential in navigating a product or service to market. Use RealtimeBoard to design journey maps, personas and other planning canvases Superior soft skills are the secret weapon behind superior UX teams. This includes communication, listening, empathy, workshop facilitation, teamwork and storytelling. These provide the foundation that all other deliverables are based on. How do you know if the prototype you are testing will meet a user need if you have not listened properly in the research phase of the project? These skills are not an innate talent and need to be practised just like any other skill. Not only that, but developing your soft skills as a team enables you all to communicate properly with one another, forming a common strategy so you can all aim for the same goal. There are many good UX practitioners, but great ones have exceptional soft skills to help them do their job. Collaborating with the customer or client is also essential to a smooth-running project. There are many tools such as Marvel, InVision and Axure that will enable you to quickly prototype up your work to show them the 'Promised Land', instead of sending emails back and forth you can now make your solutions come alive. The benefit of this approach is increased buy-in from clients and customers, and frictionless collaboration. Some of the biggest obstacles to collaboration come from people not understanding what UX activities entail. Some of the biggest obstacles to collaboration on a project can come from other business stakeholders and departments not understanding what UX activities entail. The solution here is to be as transparent and as open as possible. As a team you can pique people's interest by creating exciting areas of wall space in high traffic areas where deliverables such as personas, journey maps and wireframes can be displayed to spark conversations between different people within the business. Even the rise of remote working and distributed teams is a waning threat to any UX team. There's a tool for every stage of the process, and you don't even need to be in the same room as each other. Project planning and management can be organised through tools such as Slack or Flock or Asana. Visual deliverables can be taken care of using collaborative whiteboards such as RealtimeBoard. Teams can work simultaneously to create fully fledged prototypes using one of the new generation of tools like Figma or InVision. Top tools Figma Figma is a browser-based design tool that makes it easier for teams to create software. Present and prototype in the same tool as you design. Version control your team designs. Float Float enables you to visualise your team's project assignments, overtime and time off in one place. Collaborate on project plans and resolve conflicts with real-time drag-and-drop scheduling. Loop11 Loop11 is integrated with JustInMind.com and is used to create prototypes that can then be used to run online usability tests, with the results shown in detailed reports and in-test videos. Design for trust Trust is a human emotion that can be designed for, and can make or break the user's experience, but why is it so hard? Well, there's a lot out there to put off even the most savvy digital user, with dark UX patterns, fake news and clickbait rife. Emerging technologies such as blockchain and self-driving vehicles will put the majority of UX designers' skills to the test. In recent years trust has shifted from being controlled from the top-down by the business or organisation, to being collectively controlled by users via social media about how trustworthy (or untrustworthy) their experiences with a brand have been. It's fair to say that companies are not in control of this aspect of how they are viewed anymore, and so it's imperative that a brand's actions speak louder than its words. To gain the trust of the user, the experience must become as transparent as possible, with businesses being open about their motives, beliefs and activities. Designers can enable that relationship by not hiding away this information from the user, removing any anxieties they may have. UserTesting.com is a great online tool for unmoderated testing When a customer takes a leap of faith and invests their time, and possibly their money in your product or service, you suddenly have a social responsibility to make good on that relationship. So despite all that, how can trust be designed for? Thankfully there are a few techniques UX designers can use to instil confidence in the end user throughout their journey. We all judge a book by its cover, and it's also well known that a user is more likely to trust a site that is more aesthetically pleasing. This is called the aesthetic-usability effect, and is described as us perceiving beautiful things as easier to use over ugly ones (even if that is not the case). Included in the look and feel of the site aesthetic should be the tone of voice and type of imagery that are used to convey a professional, reliable impression of the business or organisation. Of course, the ultimate indicator of trust should always be in the user testing results, along with observations of the user's reactions to sites. Subjective measures like trust can also be captured at the end of tests. Moderated user testing will always provide much greater insights, but there are tools online to run unmoderated tests such as UserTesting.com. Top tools Dark Patterns Dark Patterns are tricks used in websites and apps that make you buy or sign up for things that you didn't mean to. The purpose of the Dark Pattern Library site is to spread awareness and to document the companies that use such techniques. Government Research Consent Guidelines The UK government website contains an entire manual on service design and the consent forms you need signed to ensure you can be trusted with a person's data gathered during user research. Design for coherence With more and more touchpoints emerging, organisations are in danger of their user's journey becoming so heavily fragmented that it could become an incoherent mess. To add to the omnichannel experience there are now chatbots and other voice interfaces to consider in the user's journey, so the experiences and conversations people have with them need carefully designing. Planning is key, taking a 'helicopter view' of the entire user's journey with the business. This should include doing as much user research as possible to make sure the touchpoints you design align with their goals, and what they're doing in real life. Turning this research into user journey maps and personas will help guide designers on which touchpoints should be used for different audiences. Many tools exist for supporting these activities; Smaply caters for all of the above, and Xtensio can be used to create simple personas and diagrams, but there are also more traditional offline tools such as Axure that you can use to get the job done. With MockFlow you can plan and create better user interfaces It's also important to consider which touchpoints shouldn't be designed for, especially if it is discovered during the research that it would be inappropriate to use certain methods to contact certain audiences. For example, on a digital experience dealing with a homeless person registering for support services, would it be appropriate to ask for an address? Designing a coherent experience means not just designing for screens and apps anymore, but every means of contact the customer has with that organisation, so that a unified message can be delivered, regardless of the type of touchpoint. It's imperative that this key message is decided on from the start. The entire UX team should know from research what message to deliver. It's a common belief that the more material you present to the user, the greater chance that some of it will be remembered. It's the old adage of throwing a load of mud in the hope some will stick, but this isn't true. Your audience will end up confused about the message you are trying to deliver. Top tools Axure Create simple click-through diagrams or highly functional, rich prototypes with conditional logic, dynamic content, animations, math functions, and data-driven interactions. Use Axure Share to upload content to share with your team. Asana Asana is an online project management tool, designed to help teams track their work. Asana gives you everything you need to stay in sync, hit deadlines, and reach your goals. MockFlow MockFlow provides a full solution for design teams, which includes wireframing, sitemaps, UI spec systems, design workflow and more. Enables you to plan and create better user interfaces together within a single suite. Storyboard That Storyboards are a fun and engaging way to relay research findings and user journeys to stakeholders. Use the extensive image library and flexible templates to create storyboards of this information. Smaply This website has an online editor which enables you to integrate basic service design tools into your daily work, such as user journey maps, stakeholder maps and personas. Your designs can be downloaded as PDFs and image files. Design for efficiency With Kaktus you can implement version control without having to learn a new set of tools As UX teams grow, there are smarter ways of managing the multitude of design assets created by a team. No more naming your work 'homepage_wireframe_finalFinal14.pdf', or taking it in turns to work on the same document in your team. Thankfully now there are tools aimed specifically at design teams to version control design work. The majority are based on Git, the same technology used by developers to manage their application code. There are so many advantages to using this sort of software to manage your designs. Not only can multiple designers work on the same project at the same time, but you can roll back to a previous version if needed. Although you will only see the current version of a file, a full version history is kept and reviewing the changes made between versions of a file are even possible. These features of version control mean problems like losing work when a file is accidentally overwritten, or two people decide to make changes to the same thing are now a thing of the past. Once changes are made, many tools let you communicate those changes to the team. This is a step forward in terms of productivity and efficiency, enabling projects to be completed as quickly as possible. Lots of the larger web-based design tools like Figma and UXPin provide this as part of the subscription, but there are standalone tools like Kaktus, Abstract and Folio for Mac. Design for conversation The rise of chatbots and other conversational devices such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home has been all pervasive over the past few years, and many companies are still trying to work out where this new technology can be inserted into their strategy with customers. But where does traditional experience design fit in, especially when there will be no physical interface to design? This is a new frontier for service design, with endless possibilities for designing intuitive and human-centred experiences that people love. Conversations between human beings are intricate, complex and heavily nuanced. Not to mention the cultural and semantic differences that are commonly observed in humans across the world. How do you anticipate and plan for the vast array of possible questions and reactions a human being might have? Designers will need to spend time designing all the possible flows and outcomes these conversations might take. And the more human the experience can be the better, but how can you make a machine appear human? How do you build a relationship with a machine? These are questions the UX designer must consider to create an effective outcome for the end user. Conversational interfaces bring a whole new set of challenges with them Understanding the context that your designs will be used in is also important, so rigorous and in-depth research is essential. Would your target audience use a voice interface walking down the street? Would it be usable if it was a noisy street? All this can be answered by spending time understanding your users and capturing what their goals are. Another essential part of the UX practitioner's role will be in planning for and testing these conversational interfaces. This will be very different to traditional testing of apps and sites, and will require much more rigorous planning of scripts and testing sessions. There are a few tools for designing the proposed chatbot conversations and also the UI, such as BotPreview and Botsociety, which then enable you to go and test these conversations out on real people before you release your chatbot or conversational UI. As a result of this frenzied focus given to this emerging technology, expect to see new roles created as offshoots of the standard UX Designer and – relatively new – UX Writer titles, such as 'Conversational Designer' (catering for research, testing, behaviours and personality of the interface) and 'Conversational Strategist' (a niche role dedicated to designing the flows and logic of the conversations). Top tools BotPreview Sketch and design your own chatbot interactions using the BotPreview online editor and share them or export as static HTML or MP4/GIF video, without writing a single line of code. Botsociety Design voice and chat interfaces using the online web editor by quickly building a high-fidelity preview of your next chatbot or voice assistant. Botsociety takes care of the appearance, the platform limitations, the preview, the export and the user testing for you. Botmock Botmock uses a drag-and-drop editor with templates to build prototypes of conversational design. Map out the customer's journey, and create a live preview that can be exported to GIF and video. Bots UI Kit for Sketch A simple and fully customisable Sketch UI kit to help you design and showcase your Facebook Messenger Bots. All elements are turned into new branded Sketch symbols, so prototyping has never been easier. Walkie This tool is especially for Slack users to help design slack bot dialogues. It provides an easy way to write and test bot dialogues, which include buttons and also attachments. This article was originally published in issue 274 of creative web design magazine Web Designer. Buy issue 274 here or subscribe to Web Designer here. Related articles: New skills in UX design What are the main barriers to good UX today? Why graphic designers need to master UX View the full article

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She may live in a castle and have her face on stamps and money, but Queen Elizabeth II does have to do a lot of boring admin. And it's not just signing legislation and sending 100th birthday cards, she even has to approve each and every stamp design produced by the Royal Mail. It's not just Christmas designs either. These days Britain’s postal service is releasing more and more limited edition stamps in order to make some extra cash from a generation that don’t actually send many letters. In this post, we bring together 10 of our favourites stamp designs, all created in tribute to TV shows and movies and featuring some of our favourite character designs. 01. Doctor Who Released in 2013, this stamp design features William Hartnell as the first actor to play The Doctor First screened in 1963, the day after John F Kennedy’s assassination, sci-fi show Doctor Who quickly became a Saturday tea-time institution for children and adults alike. Unfortunately by the 1980s its low budget effects looked increasingly anachronistic, and it was canned in 1989. But fan love for the show failed to abate, and a successful reboot in 2005 under the helm of Russell T Davies rewarded their patience several times over. Assured a prime place in British television history, not to mention its future, Doctor Who got the Royal Mail seal of approval in 2013, the year of its 50-year anniversary. The 11 first-class stamps combined each of the different actors to have played the Time Lord on TV to date, set against a backdrop evoking the ‘time tunnel’ effect shown in the opening credits. Our favourite is featured above. Framing the First Doctor as played by William Hartnell, it’s a simple but arresting composition that feels both of its time and strikingly modern; very much a case of ‘less is more’. You can view the full collection here. 02. Game of Thrones Launched this January, these stamps pay tribute to this popular fantasy show The biggest fantasy TV hit of the 2010s, Game of Thrones, may be American-led, but the UK has provided the majority of actors and hosted most of the filming, mostly in Northern Ireland. So it’s fully appropriate for the Royal Mail to pay tribute to the show that even Penny, the non-nerd character in Big Bang Theory, likes – because, in her words, “It's got dragons and people doing it.” Released in January 2018, the 10 stamps feature the following characters: Sansa Stark, Jon Snow, Eddard Stark, Olenna Tyrell, Tywin Lannister, Tyrion Lannister, Cersei Lannister, Arya Stark, Jaime Lannister and Daenerys Targaryen. Our favourite (above) portrays Kit Harington as Jon Snow, one of the show’s most popular characters and one whose parentage continues to be a source of frenzied speculation. Set against a snow-laden background, it’s a dramatic composition that beautifully sums up the epic bombast and big themes at the heart of the saga’s appeal. You can see the full collection here. 03. Star Wars Luke faces off against Vader in this gloriously epic stamp design In 2018, with disappointing box-office returns for the Solo spin-off, the Star Wars franchise is starting to look on shaky ground, but this time last year the space opera series seemed unbeatable. And as British involvement in Star Wars has been pivotal (the first, in 1977, was filmed at Elstree and Shepperton, and the most recent two in Pinewood), it made perfect sense for the Royal Mail to commission a series of stamps celebrating The Last Jedi. The stamps, which were designed by Malcolm Tween of Digital Progression, feature characters from across the saga, including Darth Vader, Han Solo, Chewbacca, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Obi Wan Kenobi, R2-D2, C3PO, Boba Fett and Yoda, plus new characters from The Force Awakens Rey, Finn, BB8 and Kylo Ren. Our favourite has to be the one above featuring Luke and Vader, the epic father-son struggle that lay at the heart of the first trilogy. Summoning the spirit of legendary Star Wars poster illustrator Drew Struzan, but translating a poster design into one that works in a tiny space, this is a great example of elegant minimalism. You can see the full range of stamps here. 04. Monty Python This tribute to Monty Python brilliantly harnesses their subversive spirit It’s difficult to imagine how different comedy was before Monty Python’s Flying Circus hit our screens in 1969. Taking its cues from Surrealism and Dada art movements, the anarchic troupe completely reinvented what comedy could look like, in both their late-night TV show and ensuing films, including the widely banned Biblical parody, Life of Brian. Today the show's influence is obvious in everything from South Park and Family Guy to the phrases that have entered everyday speech (such as the use of ‘spam’ to describe unwanted emails). This design was released by the Royal Mail, appropriately enough, on April Fool's day in 2015 as part of a special range of ‘Comedy Greats’ stamps. Featuring the classic Monty Python team of six (Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin), it’s a perfectly chosen shot that effortlessly captures the untrammelled energy of the young team. And it’s been beautifully integrated with an image of John Cleese from the Ministry of Silly Walks sketch, providing an instant blast of nostalgia for any Brit of a certain age. You can see the full range of British comedy stamps here. 05. Dracula This stamp design, based on 1958 movie Dracula, brilliantly conveys the melodramatic essence of Hammer Horror When the British film industry looks back on its glorious past, it tends to focus on the highbrow and critically acclaimed stuff, from Alfred Hitchcock to Ken Loach. But it’s important to remember that some of the most successful and popular British movies have been more towards the cheesier end of the scale. And so in 2008, the Royal Mail decided to pay tribute to two so-bad-its-good traditions in UK film-making: the Carry On series of bawdy comedies, and the melodramatic series of horror movies made by Hammer Films between the 1950s and 1970s. Starring Christopher Lee as Count Dracula and Peter Cushing as Van Helsing, Dracula was a critical and commercial hit on release in 1958, and it’s now considered a classic of the genre; ranked the 65th best British film ever in a 2017 poll for Time Out magazine. And this marvellously crafted stamp harnesses the best of horror poster and book jacket design in reminding us of just what an impact it made on audiences. The colours, typography and use of hyperbolic quotes are all note-perfect, and the way that the Queen’s silhouette has been effortlessly co-opted into the design is quite unnerving. You can see the full range of stamps here. 06. Harry Potter Dumbledore is taking no prisoners in this Harry Potter stamp tribute No list of popular culture-inspired stamps could fail to include Harry Potter, one of the most critically and commercially successful film franchises of all time. That's partly thanks to author JK Rowling's insistence that the movie be made in Britain, with British actors. This move both ensured the distinctive nature of the novels translated perfectly to the big screen, and kick-started London's nascent VFX industry into the bargain. Released in 2011, the Royal Mail's Magical Realms series included two gems paying tribute to the series, featuring arch-villain Voldemort and his adversary, Albus Dumbledore (shown above). It's a striking composition, featuring the magical professor in full combat mode against a background of swirling, menacing auras; a reminder that for all the schoolyard hi-jinks, there's also a dark and gritty backbone that lies at the heart of the series' appeal. 07. A Matter of Life and Death One of the greatest British movies of all time is honoured with this simple stamp design If you’ve never seen the 1946 film A Matter of Life and Death (released in the US as Stairway to Heaven), then do something about it. The fantasy-romance revolves around a mixup in heaven, leading to an airman surviving a crash when he was actually meant to die. In a similar way to It’s a Wonderful Life, it had an emotional and powerful effect at the time on audiences, who were all coping with losing loved ones in the war. More recently, it was picked by Total Film as the second greatest British film ever made (in case you're wondering, Get Carter was number one). This stamp was created as part of the Royal Mail’s Great British Film series, released in May 2014, and features Kim Hunter and David Niven, enclosed in a simple black rectangle. It's an elegantly minimal design that perfectly encapsulates the classic, iconic nature of its subject. You can check out the full series here. 08. Paddington Bear This stamp shows the story of Paddington in a nutshell It may have taken a while to come to the big screen, in the form of 2014 film Paddington and the 2017 sequel Paddington 2. But the bear from Darkest Peru with a taste for marmalade has been a hit with kids for decades via the Michael Bond books, first published in 1958, and the spin-off TV series created by London-based animation company FilmFair in 1975. The latter entranced youngsters with its unusual visual approach, combining a 3D stop-motion puppet of Paddington with minimal 2D drawings of backgrounds and other characters. (In one memorable scene, the bear’s adopted parent Mr Brown hands him a jar of marmalade that becomes 3D when Paddington touches it.) In January 2014, the Royal Mail paid tribute to Paddington with this stamp design, part of its range of Classic Children’s TV stamps, and all the essential elements are there. The 2D background of Paddington station, the ‘Please look after this bear’ label, and the bear himself, striking a characteristically jaunty pose, tell you everything you need to know. We particularly like the playful ‘cut out and keep’ element where Paddington’s head and elbow break out of the traditional rectangle of the postage stamp; very children’s TV. You can see the full range of children’s TV stamps here. 09. Thomas the Tank Engine Thomas seems to have his eye on the Queen in this tongue-in-cheek stamp Another of Britain’s biggest children’s TV exports, Thomas the Tank Engine is a fictional steam locomotive who first appeared in The Railway Series books, which were created by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry. Thomas is based on a toy train he made for his son, Christopher. On TV since 1979, the show has become an award-winning hit around the world, and narrators have included everyone from Beatles drummer Ringo Starr to controversial American stand-up George Carlin. In June 2011, the Royal Mail marked the 100th anniversary of the Reverend Albry with a special series of stamps. Six featured images from the TV series, Thomas and Friends, and four others featured illustrations from The Railway Series books. Our favourite, shown above, uses a 'widescreen' format to bring forth a cinematic feel; perfectly evoking the jaw-dropping wonder of a railway as it appears in the mind of a child. We also like the cheeky way Thomas seems to be giving the eye to the Queen. You can see the full collection here. 10. Thunderbirds A blast of nostalgia comes in the form of this Thunderbirds-themed stamp Created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson between 1964 and 1966, Thunderbirds was a children’s sci-fi series that combined marionette puppetry with scale model special effects. Broadcast in more than 60 countries around the world, it had such an influence on successive generations of youngsters that it has since returned in a number of formats, including a 2004 live-action movie and a 2015 computer animation. The Andersons created a lot of other hit shows too, including Stingray, Captain Scarlett and Joe 90. But nothing will be more nostalgia-inducing for a certain age-demographic than the classic countdown: “5-4-3-2-1 Thunderbirds are go!”. And so it’s to the credit of the Royal Mail that their stamp tribute focuses not on a particular character but that iconic sequence. You can see the full range of Anderson stamps here. Read more: Savage Brexit stamps are the best of British Create cool collage illustrations 66 brilliant print adverts View the full article

Soon, a new era of experimental design and design thinking will be upon us. We’ll have entirely augmented experiences everywhere we walk, and voice design is the next big horizon for creatives. They’re just two predictions into the future of design shared by Scott Belsky, co-founder of Behance, and Adobe's chief product officer and executive vice president of Creative Cloud. Belsky took to the stage in London at an exclusive Adobe event earlier this summer to talk through the challenges and opportunities presented by emerging technologies – and to forecast the future for designers. Scott Belsky at Adobe's Future of Design event in London As the future becomes increasingly commoditised, he said, creativity – and the role of user experience designers, particularly – will become increasingly important. "Companies are putting designers at the head of the table," he explained. "The user’s experience of technology these days is even more important than the tech itself. The UI is what distinguishes a product; a company. That’s one reason why designers are being employed across industries.” Get 15% off Adobe Creative Cloud with our exclusive offer In fact, when Adobe spoke to hiring managers at a range of top companies, 87 per cent of them said that UX designers are some of their most critical hires right now. So aside from a bright future for UX designers, what else is next for design? Here are five predictions Belsky made at the event – followed by an exclusive conversation with Creative Bloq, in which he explores the biggest new challenges and opportunities designers should prepare for. Jump straight to the Scott Belsky interview 01. Augmented reality We’ll soon have entirely augmented experiences everywhere we walk. AR will be as critical as the web,” Belsky predicted, adding that this is why Adobe has developed Project Aero, a powerful new augmented reality tool that makes it easier for designers and developers to create immersive content, and bridge the gap between the physical and digital worlds. More on that below. 02. Voice design “It’s the simplest interface of all, so we need to be able to design for it,” he said. Voice design tools are being brought into Adobe XD because we’re moving into a voice-driven world (think: Amazon Echo and Google Home) – and it’s raising many questions for designers, not least ethical ones. 03. Artificial intelligence Labour will become increasingly automated, with AI and machine learning helping creatives work smarter and faster by taking on repetitive tasks. “AI is a vertical of creativity,” said Belsky. “Think of it as a creative assistant.” 04. Connected creativity New tools like Adobe Capture – which turns photos on your phone or tablet into creative assets – will continue to deliver on the creative freedom promised by Creative Cloud in increasingly unique ways. “There’s an idea that in some ways we’re still chained to desktop – we expect to do our professional work there,” he said. “But that’s not where creativity happens.” 05. Ethics in design What are our responsibilities for the end customer experience? What is the responsibility of the designer in preserving a consumer choice? When using visual search, such as Google, you're presented with a lot of options. Using a voice interface, this might not be the case – so who chooses which option you get, and how can you ensure the consumer’s best interests are served? Ethical questions have always been important, but in this new age of design they're even more so. New challenges and opportunities for designers : immersive media is poised to become the next disruptive platform. Welcome to the first wave of mainstream AR So will AR really be bigger than the web? What sorts of questions is voice design raising? And what skills will designers need to meet the future of design head-on? We caught up with Belsky after the event to find out more… What are the biggest opportunities of AR for designers? Scott Belsky: I believe AR will do almost everything the web does for us, but in the context of our physical world, rather than on a screen. It will change the way we do everything from finding our way around cities, to reviewing the menu in restaurants, to dating, to fixing appliances in our homes. AR will do almost everything the web does for us, but in the context of our physical world, rather than on a screen. It will change the way we do everything. Scott Belsky Augmented Reality will enrich these experiences in ways we can barely imagine. However, none of this is possible without designers creating compelling three-dimensional interactive content and being able to collaborate with developers across platforms. AR and voice have the greatest potential to disrupt the way we experience the world. Every business group across Adobe is thinking about and building for AR because we strongly believe that it’s a transformative medium. AR is at the intersection of our physical and digital worlds, and requires a fundamentally different paradigm for interaction and design beyond the traditional screen experience. Designers will have the opportunity to literally design a new reality, and that’s going to be fun and challenging. How soon will AR be everywhere? SB: We’re at the beginning of a journey with augmented reality. We believe that Project Aero is breaking new ground, with the goal of simplifying the development of AR content, delivering an even more powerful medium for storytelling for artists and designers around the world. Through our collaboration with Apple, Pixar and other partners, Project Aero will give creative professionals the ability to create more authentic experiences. What’s compelling is the quality and depth of the imagery, which makes the experience real and even more vivid. The industry is evolving at a rapid pace and there will be commercial and consumer demand for these types of experiences. We see the potential of AR experiences to enable new forms of creative expression, spawn new customer experiences, and ignite new business models that we can’t even imagine today. We envision immersive media ultimately becoming ubiquitous in everyday life. We’ll have a new interface through which we interact with a range of retail, news, search and other common applications. What are the biggest challenges of AR for designers? How will Project Aero help? SB: Most designers I speak with are excited about AR, but have no idea where to get started designing immersive experiences and how to work with developers to make them a reality. Our challenge is to help designers work with the tools they know and love, like Photoshop or Adobe XD for screen design, and then import their work to new tools like Adobe Dimension to make their creations 3D. And then, with Project Aero, designers will be able to make their creations interactive and easily 'published' to locations in augmented reality. For the first time, designers will be able to lay out and manipulate designs in physical spaces with a ‘what you see is what you get’ tool, making AR creation more fluid and intuitive. What’s more, delivering these immersive experiences to audiences on mobile devices will become faster, easier and safer. How can designers get ahead in voice design? SB: Design is becoming more immersive and voice has become more important. Increasing numbers of people use a voice interface to order dinner, choose music, set reminders, and so many other tasks, thanks in large part to consumer products like Amazon’s Alexa and Google Assistant. Smart speakers will be installed in more than 70 million U.S. households by 2022, according to a Juniper Research report, and consumers have high expectations of voice technology because they’re used to naturally interacting and talking to people. For designers, creating voice user interface (VUI) experiences requires new skills that transcend the keyboard, mouse and screen. For designers to be successful in the future, they’ll need to know how to create a voice interface that is efficient and intuitive. Scott Belsky For designers to be successful in the future, they’ll need to know how to create a voice interface that is efficient and intuitive. Our goal is to help designers succeed in this medium and in the broader world of immersive and interaction design. That’s one of the reasons we’ve invested so heavily in Adobe XD as an experience design platform that can adapt to new modalities over time. Adobe XD brings prototyping and design together, which has unlocked new capabilities including allowing designers to easily switch from wireframes to prototypes and use tools such as After Effects to add deeper animations to their UX/UI designs. Unfortunately, I can’t share more now, but you’ll see a massive amount of innovation from us as it relates to XD in the coming months. What are the biggest hurdles posed by voice design? SB: As I mentioned, there has been a tremendous growth in voice-enabled devices. For designers, creating VUI experiences requires new skills since you cannot simply apply the same design guidelines to VUI, as you would a graphical app or web experience. Designers must have a deep understanding of human communication and natural conversation flow to design for VUIs. Additionally, it requires a mindset shift to design for this medium. VUIs need to contain the right amount of information to meet users’ expectations and provide users with information on what they can do with the technology. For example, proactive prompting along the lines of, 'What can I help you with today?' might help a user get started. Without visual guidance, it’s easy for the user to get lost. There are, of course, ethical considerations when it comes to VUI design too. For example, designers will need to carefully consider how often the technology is listening or recording, and clearly spell that out for the user. Companies and their designers will need to ensure privacy is baked into the product from the start. Another important issue in voice is the default settings. When you ask your voice assistant to order flowers, what service does it default to using? Making tasks easy is great for consumers, but the design will have to make it transparent how those tasks are happening and give users the option of changing the defaults so they can personalise the experience. Related articles: How to future-proof yourself as a designer 10 huge graphic design trends to know for 2018 The ultimate guide to design trends View the full article

Is your design portfolio the best it can be? Does it show off your full potential, communicate what makes you unique and ultimately win you as much work as it could? Now's your chance to find out. Creative Bloq has teamed up with the good folk at moo.com to give you a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You could get your online portfolio critiqued by some of the best in the business, and showcased to potential clients, collaborators and creative peers all around the world in the process. Our expert panel is ready and waiting to give your work – and your presentation of it – a creative review session. This will take the form of a filmed round-table discussion, so you'll need the guts to put your work in the spotlight. Who's on the panel? What are we looking for? The panel has expertise in a broad spectrum of creative sectors, so we want to see an equally broad range of portfolios. Whether you work in graphic design, illustration, digital, motion graphics or a combination of all of the above and more, we want to see how you present your work. This opportunity is open to anyone working in the creative industries, and looking for some focused, constructive advice to help take them to the next level. Students or recent graduates are welcome to apply, but bear in mind we need a significant volume of work for the panel to critique. Submit your portfolio now! So how do you get involved? Simple: use the form below to submit a link to your online portfolio for us to review, before the deadline of midnight (BST) on Sunday 19 August 2018. A selection of the most interesting will be chosen by panel chair Nick Carson and the Creative Bloq team to be put in front of the review panel on 4th September 2018. Remember, we're looking for portfolios that demonstrate a broad range of quality work, and are creative in terms of their presentation of that work. As well as your design prowess, we will also be looking at the structure and hierarchy of your website, how projects are showcased, and how you present yourself and your creative process. In other words, the whole package! Good luck... View the full article

If you work in a creative field such as graphic design or content marketing, you'll probably need to use stock images at some point. With StockPop Lite Bundle: Lifetime Subscription, you'll never run out of high-quality stock and clip art images. This database contains 12,000 stock assets, and your flexible licence will let you use them in pretty much any project that comes your way, royalty free. Whether you need images of animals, electronics, or sports, StockPop has them all, and you'll never have to worry about royalties or copyright. Get your subscription now for only $19.99. Related articles: 5 uses for stock images you might not have thought of Free tool lets you search for stock images in Sketch and Photoshop The 5 biggest myths about stock imagery in design View the full article

So you've decided you want to get started in web comics or another form of storytelling. What makes a good story great? The characters. But how do you create believable characters? Where do you start? The art of character design is complex. In this article, we'll take a look at how to get started, and offer some advice on where to go from there. 01. Figure out a backstory This is probably the single most important part of creating believable characters. It doesn't matter if you're developing a good guy, bad guy or even an imaginary monster. If you want your characters to jump off the page – or the screen – you need to know their backstory (even if the audience doesn't). Strong character development requires more than just deciding hair colour, age, height and weight. It's deeper than that. Ask yourself: Where were they born? How was their childhood? What happened to their parents? Do they have any fears? If so, what are they? The more you ask; the more you'll discover; the more depth your character will have. 02. Get inspiration from real-life experiences They say writers should write what they know. That's true... but not entirely. When developing your characters, drawing on your own personal experience is a great place to start. But don't stop there. Don't make a carbon transfer onto one of your characters based on your Aunt Ethel. Change it up a bit. Give her some new quirks, a new skill, an ex-husband, anything really. Just don't create another Aunt Ethel for your fictional character – not unless she's absolutely perfect in real life. Bottom line... you're a creative person: create! 03. Do your research If your character is not like you, then do your research. I cannot stress this point enough. For example, let's say you're working on a story that features a character that is a former police officer. Unless you, too, used to be a police officer, you're going to need to do a little research in order to develop a character that's believable and realistic. 04. Do a little world building All characters are influenced by the world around them Another way to create believable characters, is to create a believable world. In fact, sometimes the 'world' is its own character, but that's an entirely different topic altogether. The reason creating a world helps is because our fictional characters, like us, are very much influenced by the world around them. Use that to your advantage. Is your character living in a city? The country? How does this impact how they live? Sometimes, I'll work out location before I even attempt to place characters inside it. 05. Allow your character to evolve Let's face it, static characters are not only boring, but they're unrealistic too. Sure, there may be a few people in your 'real life' that don't seem to change, but for the most part, people are constantly growing and evolving. When characters change in a story, it allows the story to move forward. Generally speaking, your protagonist needs to face some kind of challenge. In order to overcome this challenge, they will need grow and evolve. Let them. 06. Give your character a voice Give your character a voice. Talk with them. Let them tell you what they want. I know this sounds a bit strange, and I certainly don't recommend you do this in public, but it can help to have a conversation with your characters – out loud. If having an actual conversation with your fictional character is a bit too much for you, then have one on paper. Write it out. Sometimes I'll even interview my characters. 07. Be the voice no one else can hear Nothing drives a character more than that little voice inside their head. Not only do you need to be the voices around your characters, but you also need to be the voice no one can hear. During the conversations you have with your character, pause every now and again and think about not only how your character will respond, but why they will respond that way. What are they hearing inside their own head? Did their parents always encourage their dreams, or tear them up? Do they hear their ex-partner tell them they're too stupid, too weak, too ugly? Be that voice. 08. Put a face to a name I'm not sure if other writers do this, but sometimes I'll do a Google image search to 'find my character' so to speak. A lot of times, I'll start with an image and build my character around that image. 09. Don't try to be perfect This seems like a no-brainer, but so many people (I won't lie, myself included) get stuck on this 'being perfect' thing. Perfect does not exist. Your characters don't need to be perfect, nor does your story. Especially if it's your first draft. Just get the words out of your head and onto the paper (or into the computer). And most importantly, have fun. You'd be amazed at how much better your writing is when you're having fun. Like this? Read these! 8 timeless children's book characters The art of reimagining iconic characters 11 best video game character designs View the full article

Substance Designer is an excellent tool for creating all sorts of materials for your 3D art. Here, I'm going to explain how to create a tiles material in Substance Designer, this material can be used in scenes such as the one above. If you're looking for more objects to add to your scene, check out our list of free 3D models. 01. Set-up For this type of material, I select the Physically Based (Metallic/Roughness) Graph Template and delete the metallic output since it isn’t necessary for this substance. At this point we can start to add these nodes from the Substance Designer library: the Brick Generator pattern (the main elements of the substance), the BnW Spots 2, BnW Spots 1 and two Cells 3 noises, the Height to Normal World Units filter, five Levels filters, two Blur filters, three Blend filters, a Warp, an Invert Grayscale filter and last but not the least the Gradient Map filter. 02. Link the elements Now it’s time to link these elements, starting with the Brick Generator that will be placed at the beginning of the graph. This one will be linked with the Warp filter, in which we will connect the BnW Spots 1 followed by the first Blur. Now we can connect the Warp to the first Levels filter and this one to the Background/Opacity of the Blend filter. In the Foreground we have to connect the BnW Spots 2 noise followed by the second Blur. Then we have to connect this Blend with the Background/Opacity of the new Blend, with the only difference being that in this case we will link the Cells 3 noise to the Foreground of the Blend. After that we can connect the Blend to the Gradient Map and this one directly to the Base Color output. 03. Make more connections Now we can continue with the nodes for the creation of the Normal Map. Connect the Blend filter to another Levels filter, which will be linked to the Background of the third Blend filter. Unlike with the previous links we have to make a middle connection between the Levels filter and the Opacity of the Blend filter. In this case we have to place an Invert Grayscale filter. In the Foreground of the Blend we have to connect the second Cells 3 noise generator followed by the fourth Levels. Now we can connect the last Blend filter to the Height to Normal World Units filter, and consequently we can link it to the Normal output. The last two connections we need to do are between the two Levels filters that will be linked respectively to the Roughness and Height outputs. 04. Set the parameters For this material we only have to fix the Intensity parameter with a value of 3.5 for the first Blur filter and 2.5 for the second. For the Warp the Intensity should be 0.15. For the first Cells 3 noise the Distance should be 14, while for the second one it should be 128. At the end we have to change some parameters of the Brick generator. For the Offset we have to set a value of 0, for the Smoothness and Round Corners a value of 1 and 0.35 for the Bevel X and Y. All the other parameters for the Levels and the Gradient Map filters are arbitrary but I advise you not to exaggerate. This article originally appeared in issue 235 of 3D World, the world's leading magazine for 3D artists. Buy issue 235 or subscribe here. Related articles: Upgrade your textures in Substance Designer Create ornate tiles in Substance Designer Master procedural modelling View the full article

In a resale scenario, a previous owner could continue to have access to the online account – with all the new owner’s information stored within. View the full article

After inmates hacked tablets with security vulnerabilities, a CenturyLink spokesperson told Threatpost the "vulnerability issue has been resolved." View the full article