Quark: Flash tool for Leopard, new Quark Labs
Can someone tell me who told Quark Express it was a good idea to make a tool for print designers to build Adobe Flash websites?
What the hell are they smoking?
I’ve talked to many print designers over the years and when I tell them I’m involved in interactive design, they all say the same thing:
I’ve been meaning to get into Flash …do you know any good places to start?
Print designers should be the last people designing Flash websites. This is a bad idea Quark, a very bad idea.
I was taught print design in college (there were not interactive classes anyway) and when I graduated (1999), there was a fork in the road. One direction led to print. The other direction went to web. I’m happy I decided on an RGB career. It has worked out very well for me and I don’t regret a thing. Most my classmates stayed with print design.
Like any profession, you can’t just give a print designer a web design tool and expect them to “get” it. Being a web designer is in your genetic make-up. All the best interactive designers are born experimenters. They can flip between code and design effortlessly.
Flash designers understand that not only is there a composition to be conscious of – but also the element of time. After you click on a button how much time passes before the interface reacts? How do elements reveal themselves on the screen? Do they fade in? Slide in? Cascade in randomly?
Giving a print designer a tool to make Flash websites reminds me of when Michael Jordan tried his hand(s) at baseball – sure he was a competent athlete, but it just didn’t click like basketball.