2003 seems to have been a big year for the web design community… or, at least it seems that way to me. Many of the websites that I read regularly, as well as learn the most from have all come about in 2003. All-in-all, I’d say that this was a good year.
Now, I don’t know if all of these websites came about in 2003, but I’d like to list some of the best ones I’ve come across in this last year (in alphabetical order):
1976 Design
Dunstan seemed to have come out of the middle of nowhere to be one of the most read websites in the community. He’s been accepted into WaSP, and has some very entertaining content on his site. Definitely a must-read.
456 Berea Street
Roger has a very good site here on web standards, accessibility, CSS, and other such stuff. His site is less personal, and more focused on pure web design. Perfect for no-nonsense people.
Adam Polselli
Adam is a very good, up-and-coming web designer, with a weblog focused on graphics and design. His site goes beyond the simple understanding of aesthetics into just plain looking freaking good. I anticipate many good things coming from him in the next year.
Darice.org
Darice is a newcomer to the world of web design (as far as I can tell), and she is getting better and better as each day passes. She’s got interesting content, and I expect her writing skills to grow tremendously in the next year.
Hicksdesign
John Hicks is an excellent designer from the UK. Well worth reading.
Mezzoblue
Not that Dave Shea needs an introduction, but I’ll go ahead and give him one anyways. His work with the CSS Zen Garden and the new Mozilla Foundation website is world renowned. He’s a major name in web design, yet seems very accessible to the rest of us. I have a tremendous amount of respect for this man and the work that he does.
Sidesh0w
The first time I came across Ethan Marcotte’s site was when following a link entitled “CSS Only Mostly Stupid” when I was trying to learn more about this new Langridge Image Replacement technique. I heard about Joe Maddalone’s now-famous article for multiple versions of Internet Explorer at once from Sidesh0w. In turn, Ethan was the first person to link to the IE downloads on my site. Because of this, I went from 150 hits a day to 800+ hits a day. Thanks Ethan!
SimpleBits
Dan Cederholm was the brain behind the redesigns of Fast Company and Inc.com. His work has always been excellent, and his content is nothing short of the most helpful information out there. I owe much to this man.
What Do I Know?
Todd Dominey has been an inspiration for minimalist design for me. His site is clean, his voice is strong, and his work is brilliant. Another must-read.
Whitespace
This is definitely the break-out website of the year. There are not enough good things that I can possibly say about this man’s website. His work with Whitespace and the CSS Vault has gained recognition from some of the biggest names in the industry. Keep it up!
Happy 2004 to everyone. May the new year bring you joy, happiness, and the correct year on all of your checks. God bless!
P.S. One of the sites I must say I’m looking forward to in 2004 is the one from David House. According to comments he’s made he’ll probably have a website up sometime in the spring. We read and comment on many of the same blogs, and we both participate frequently on Coding Forums. From what I’ve seen from him so far (pre-website), I’m expecting many good things to come from him. Watch the design community for his name in the upcoming months: David House. =)
