Social Media & Sharing Knowledge

By now, people around the world, especially in developing countries, know the impact of the Internet and new technologies on different aspects of our lives, but few realize its impact on many serious global crises.

Watching prime minter Gordon Brown speech (July 2009) and the examples of recent events, specifically the recent events in Iran, and how new technological tools, smart phones, blogs and other communication tools changed the worldview.

I personally always believe the power of media in changing the worldview. The rapid development in Internet application and communication tools, created supremacy network, we call it social media. Blogs, digital photos, instant texting has proved to be a playing factors in many world decision makers. Furthermore, social media changed the way we search for answers, or even search for new opportunities. In his article Schawbel (2009) stated, "In your job search, social media is the great equalizer. It allows you to connect directly with hiring managers who work for companies you have genuine interest in instead of applying mindlessly through job boards".

Companies and entrepreneurs are taking advantage of the wide spread and the popularity of social media channels to advertise, market as well as collect feedback and suggestions to improve their products and services.

In her writing York (2009) stated, "But in this age of personalized web pages, super-sophisticated direct marketing and social-media tools that allow like-minded consumers to share and promote products, that traditional model is evolving at major marketers like General Mills". Moreover, social media closed the gap between product and service’s providers and customers, and more importantly helped establishing a communication channel that benefits both parties. Schawbel (2009) also stated in his writing, "You're already using social media tools to communicate, so why not respond when you come across a customer or potential customer who is looking for answers? It's a great opportunity to foster a stronger relationship between you, them and your company".

It is very hard to talk about the advantages and the importance of social media without talking about its affect and impact on education and learning. For me, and when it comes to learning, the word sharing is the key behind what I believe the success of social media (web 2.0 applications). Sharing knowledge and experience in a positive and interactive environment created an informal learning environment that is gaining popularity around the world as people are struggling to find time and financial support to educate themselves.

Why 3D? Why now?

I have been using both two-dimensional and three-dimensional applications for more than fifteen years, and enjoy the different challenges I face when designing in each of these environments. I do not favor any environment over the other, nor do I think anyone should use or replace 2D applications with 3D applications, or vice versa. However, I think designers should learn to use both, blend and combine both 2D and 3D factors in their work, if possible or needed. Both technologies are important & useful to learn more about.

I believe that the demand for 3D designers will increase over time in many fields, such as entertainment, architecture, engineering, packaging, etc. The demand from customers to see things in a more realistic way with better real life accuracy, makes 3D applications at the top of the must learn list. In other words, customers want to see more characteristics, depth, and value in the final outcome/product.

3D and 2D technologies are different in numerous ways. The interfaces, tools, and environments vary. Moreover, the method in which you select, modify, create, import, and export are different too. The first time you launch a 3D application, like 3DS Max, you will find it to be both intimidating and complex. It is a challenge at the beginning, but like anything else, a little bit of practice is all you need. It doesn't matter which 3D application you use, and does not matter how much the 3D technology is changing, the concept of 3D modeling never changes. Learning 3D modeling is fun, and once you get a hold of it, the possibilities are without limits.

Below are some of my ITT student’s works: creating a physical model based on a 3D model created in 3DS max.

Designed by Codi Andexler

Designed by Cory Holliday

Designed by Brad Porter

Designed by Frank Spoljaric

Designed by Adrienne Lofton

Designed by Amanda Jandes

Designed by Deandre Chandler

Designed by Fatima Ford

Designed by Jason Rodgers

Designed by Lester Evans

Designed by Matthew Bochnik

Designed by Thomas Shirley

So what is the best unit to use for font size when designing a web page?

Choosing a font size when designing a web site is one of many important, and sometimes confusing, decisions that you have to make. Designer can and should control the font size through CSS to power and overwrite the browser's default font size setting. This decision depends on other factors, such as, your target audience, your intended background color (The contrast between the font color & background color), language, as well as whether you are using a serf or san-serf font (Legibility of your font).

Things will be easier if there is some kind of standard or rule that the designer can follow when it comes to font size for a web page.

The most popular units for font size on the web is the Pixel, Point (1/72 of and inch), em (displays fonts based on the font size set in the user's browser), and Percent (%). Setting your font size, 1em, will allow the font size to be equal to the browser’s default font size, in most cases16px. When it comes to using Percent (%), scalable like the em, the current font-size is equal to 100%. So it is very similar to the em. The only difference between them is that when the user’s browser font size is set to SMALLEST, an em is smaller than a percent, and when set to LARGEST, an em is larger than a percent. When you are using em & percent, your text will inherit the sizes of the parent objects. For example, if you set the body text to 12 px, and set the H1 to 200%, and H2 to 50%, the result is relative to the body 12px (H1 200% of the 12px, H2 50% of the 12 px).

This subject of which unit to use for your font size, is still debatable. It is a dynamic subject as browser settings and preferences are changing with upgrades. It is also a matter of opinion. I personally believe that using a percent is the best option.

Here are a few things that you need to keep in mind, which could help you in making a decision:

• It is important to set the line-height in your CSS as a number value so it scales according to the font size.
• Most browsers have a default font size of 16px.
• In general, 1em = 12pt = 16px = 100%

Photoshop: The Channels Palette!

When it comes to applications in general and Adobe applications in specific, I always advise my students to explore and use different tools, options, palettes and techniques in order to experience different results. Users should always try to ask themselves how they could use different tools, particular options, or an exact setting to achieve a specific result.

When learning how to use Adobe Photoshop, you always want to learn something new, or a better technique, that could help you improve, and speed up your work. Those who use Photoshop know that there are always different ways to do the same thing. However, I noticed from my ten years of teaching that very few take advantage of the different options each tool can provide as well as using Photoshop palettes itself to make things happen. For example, with the Channels Palette you not only can create and manage channels but you can load the luminosity pixels in an image as a selection, make a selection from a channel, create a grayscale image from a channel, create spot color channel, access and edit saved alpha channel, and more. Let me share how to use some of these options:

1- Hold the CTRL (PC) or the Command key (Mac) and click on the Composite color channel (The RGB Channel in RGB mode or The CMYK Channel in CMYK mode) to load the image luminosity pixels (Light pixels). (See image below) Switch to your layers palette, hit CTRL + J to put the selected pixels into its own layer. Now you can change the blending mode of that layer to lighten or darken the luminosity pixels (Multiply to Darken, and Screen to Lighten). You can also sharpen this layer or add any other filters. The shortcut for this command in Windows is Control-Alt-~, while in Mac it is Command-Option-~.


2- One of the options to mask a difficult image is to duplicate one of the channels, one that has the most contrast between the object you want to select and the background, to create a new Alpha channel. In my example below, I used the Burn tool to darken the gray pixels, and the dodge tool to lighten the light area. You can also achieve the same thing, darkening dark pixels and lighting light pixels by using Adjustments>Levels. The Alpha channel should end up in black and white pixels only. You can then CTRL click the channel icon to load a selection based on the black & white area.


3- Selecting the Split Channels option/command in the Channels palette will put the channels into their own individual documents. You can then select your favorite grayscale image. See image below.
In the image below, the Blue channel gave the best black & white result.


4- With the channels palette you can create a spot channel. For those who do not know about spot channel, it is third channel type (Color channels and the Alpha channels are the other two types). You create a spot color when your client requests a spot color to be used in their project. Spot colors are colors that are very difficult to produce with a mix of CMYK inks. From the channels Flyout menu, choose New Spot Channel option. See image below.



As in many applications, you need to keep practicing, and try to understand how each and every tool works, how to change its settings, and the logic behind it.

Technology & Communication

I don’t want to list the advantages of technology and its good impact on our lives; however, I do want to talk about the disadvantages and drawbacks, especially when it comes to using technology for communication. Now-a-days we use emails, chat rooms, texting, cell phones, social media sites and other Web 2.0 interfaces on a daily bases to communicate and share information. Although all the above helped shorten the gaps, and built communication bridges with people from around the world for personal and business purposes, it seems like these technologies are playing a big role in weakening our inter personal communication skills and manners, especially when conducting a face to face conversation or interview.

Generally speaking. I believe that these new technological communication methods lead to the deterioration of the new digital generation’s basic skills to carry out basic face to face skills, such as the use of eye contact, a confident tone of voice, active listening, realization of the appropriate amount of personal space and knowing not to ask personal questions, etc. Now-a days, texting, rolling your eyes, playing with your fingernails, wearing headphones, having your mouth full with food while talking to your instructor, mom or colleagues has become the norm.


I don’t know if the lack of being outdoors and sitting with, meeting, and talking face to face with people, or the distraction and the extreme use of electronics, or the schools are not doing their job in teaching the student how to communicate in a respectful manner, but this is a serious issue. Whatever the reason, I believe it is also impacting how we communicate over the Internet. Some routine web sites and social media that I check every now and then, like CNN, BBC, YouTube, Facebook, etc., have begun to expose very impolite comments posted under some of the videos and posts. It was shocking for me! It seems like being rude and using profane words when commenting on some digital posts has become okay on the web.

Where are we heading? Is being polite something from the past? I don’t know why, but sometimes I get the feeling that there are people who look at a person who is polite and view the individual as a weak person, or even an easy target to take advantage of. Sometimes I get the feeling that those who post their impolite comments might think that the meaner their message is, and the crueler their words are, the better his/her message will be conveyed and understood.
Are using respectful words like, thank you, please, appreciate, good morning, nice meeting you, good to hear from you, great, etc. considered old fashioned? Or is it just out of the new digital generation dictionary? Or is it just because some are hiding behind usernames and screen names, but otherwise, when meeting them face-to-face, they are polite?

Mobile culture and mobile technology wallet.

It is ironic to see how we became so dependent on mobile technology, and specifically cell phones. Personally, I reached a point were I cannot leave my home without a cell phone, and if I did, I feel something missing. Honestly, if I have to choose between going out without a wallet or without a cell phone, then I will definitely choose to go out without a wallet.

Cell phones are not anymore just a communication device, most of them have audio, video and data storage, camera, Internet and search capability, games, converters, maps, etc. From a business and professional aspect, you use your cell phone to attend meetings, conferences, and schedule and manage your appointments, update your calendar, and monitor your business and market, etc. Moreover, others have even more advanced, convenient and helpful capabilities, such as virtual-wallet technology were you can use you cell phone to pay for goods in some stores and some vending machines in many countries around the word.
For instance, I used my cell phone at Starbucks to pay for my Latte, and hope to soon use my cell phone to pay when buying from vending machine, which already exist in many Asian countries, like Japan.

As of now, here in the US, many vending machines support wireless technology where you can use your credit card to pay for your vends (www.Healthy2Go.net), and hopefully soon we will be able use our cell phones to buy from vending machines, which I believe is very cool and convenient.

Drawing with technology.

Although I have been using Adobe applications for more than ten years, and reached a level where I believe that I am good at using almost all of them, I do not consider myself an artist, not even close. Knowing how to use an application, Creating masks and applying filters, is one thing, however, being an artist and having special talents, like drawing, is a completely different thing.

During the past fifteen years I tried to improve my drawing skills by taking a couple of drawing classes, spending time practicing drawing, yet I am still at the beginning. Improving such skills is not easy, and could be impossible.

In January of 2007, I attended the Mac World Conferences in San Francisco, and that’s where I first saw and tested the Cintiq 21UX tablets. What an amazing tool.
I thought that this tool would help me speed up my work, especially when selecting objects in Photoshop. Again, I wished I had some drawing and artistic skills.

If there is anything I could advise those who have drawing skills, it is to try Cintiq 21UX tablets, and convert their work to digital files, and then the sky is the limit.
In this economy, and with this digital generation, combining artistic natural skills with technology will give you the upper hand over others.


(Yahya Alhaddad, a drawing artist. _ alhaddya@gmail.com)