Some companies have made a living creating a sort of ?virtual classroom,? allowing members to learn at their own pace when they have the time using video tutorials. The advantages of the classroom setting stem from a one on one experience and the ability of the instructor to show the ideas and theories rather than simply explain them.

Screencasting, or sharing your virtual desktop via video presentation, has exploded in popularity with the advent of podcasting, and gives you the ability to bring the classroom feel to a media presentation that can be delivered over the Internet. The medium of screencasting is readily available to everyone and with a few tools of the trade you can be ready to produce your own.

Some of you may remember the days when 30KB was the recommended maximum size of a web page, a value which included HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Flash, and images. I find with every new project with even the slightest bit of complexity, it's not long before that 30 KB ideal is well out of my reach. With the popularity of CSS layouts and JavaScript-enriched web page experiences, it's not uncommon, particularly for large sites, for the CSS files alone to jump well beyond that 30KB ceiling.

But there are some principles to consider during and after you write your CSS to help keep it tight and optimized. Optimization isn't just minimizing file size — it's also about being organized, clutter-free, and efficient. You'll find that the more knowledge you have about optimal CSS practices, smaller file size will inevitably come as an direct result of their implementation. You may already be familiar with some of the principles mentioned below, but they are worth a review. Being familiar with this concepts will help you write optimized CSS code and make you a better all-around web designer.

Good user interfaces are crucial for good user experience. It doesn't matter how good a technology is — if we, designers, don't manage to make user interface as intuitive and attractive as possible, the technology will hardly reach a breakthrough. To gain the interest in a new product or technology, users need to understand its advantages or find themselves impressed or involved.

And here is where creative ideas and unusual interface approaches become important. Innovative doesn't mean usable and usable hardly means innovative. As usual, it's necessary to find an optimal trade-off. And some user interfaces manage to achieve just that.

Below we present 10 recent developments in the field of user experience design. Most techniques may seem very futuristic, but some of them are already reality. And in fact, they are extremely impressive. Keep in mind: they can become ubiquitous in the next years.

You may also want to take a look at the related posts:

• User Experience In The Future
• 15 Stunning Cutting-Edge Gadgets and Technologies

Ampersands have long been the character in a typeface with which typographers can indulge themselves. Sweeping curves, flirtatious finishes and bold statements - these are the things that make ampersands an exciting character to use and, better still, to design.

Can you spot what typeface is used to display the ampersand in the image above? Large view

There are, however, two problems. The first is that the English language gives us few situations to use such a daring character. We seldom get to show off these beautiful examples of typography. The second is that the poor little ampersand so often goes unnoticed.

Allow me to share with you my top 10 different styles of ampersands. Some are similar, but each have their own personality. In an effort to limit my sample selection, I have only chosen ampersands from freely available sans fonts.

When designing for the Web, how important is it to begin with a brilliant idea for a web-site? Can a quality site be built if the underlying concept is weak? And what happens to a brilliant idea if its execution is less-than amazing?

Many hold that execution is a secondory factor to the concept. I believe the opposite argument can be made ? it's not a great idea that counts most, but great execution.

Now don't get me wrong ? there has to be an idea in there somewhere. As designers we can't go about designing without a plan. It is vital to have a concept to rally around as we craft our designs. But the notion that great work requires a completely unique, brilliant concept every time is, I believe, misguided.

Clocks don't have to be boring. Of course, clocks need need to remain usable and display current time; however, they can do it in a number of creative ways. You are about to see some of the most creative examples out there. Take some time and enjoy.

If the others are songs, Uniqlock is the concert. Japanese girls dance focusing your attention away from the passing time. Probably one of the strangest — unique — clock screensavers out there.