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Web Design from Scratch Blog

Web Design from Scratch has been online for about 5 years now, as a loose collection of tutorials, reviews, articles and thought pieces around the subjects of web design, web page production, and usability.

It just pre-dated the blog phenomenon, but I've never thought of it as a blog, mainly because I've added content quite sporadically.

Since starting Web Design from Scratch, I've created an open-source content management system, and also published my first book ("Save the Pixel - the Art of Simple Web Design), currently only available as a PDF e-book (for just £27)….

The grand goal of the blog is to help “Save the Pixel” to become a rallying cry for the movement for simplicity, not just a book title. I want the fundamental principles of “Save the Pixel” to become part of the accepted wisdom of this generation of designers.

My immediate goal is to publish a stream of information that reflects and reports on current best practice in web design, in a way that’s accessible to the whole community – whether you’re an interested bystander, a budding designer, or a seasoned professional. I want the Web Design from Scratch blog to be just your cup of tea, something fresh and fun that you look forward to each week.

So if you have a site that you’d like reviewed online, please suggest it to me. Or if you have a favourite design that you just love, let me know and maybe I can feature it in the blog too.

You can get more frequent updates by following me on Twitter.

Please subscribe to my RSS feed, to be kept up to date on additions.

Best wishes,

Ben

Latest Blog Posts

Ben Hunt’s Web Design Newsletter, April 2010 (Apr 4 2010)
Ben Hunt's web design newsletter April 2010: Conversion Rate Optimization, 2 new Web2.0 projects, and a trip of a lifetime
Case Study: Increasing conversion rate using Google Website Optimizer (Feb 2 2010)
A case study on increasing conversion rate with split testing using Google Website Optimizer
Order Your Copy of the Blogging for Business Pre-Release DVD (Jan 1 2010)
Order your pre-release copy of Ben Hunt and Mark Attwood's "Blogging for Business" seminar
Conversion Rate Optimisation Case Study: Bible Timeline (Jan 1 2010)
How Scratchmedia's designers tripled one customer's web site's conversion rate
Ben’s New Year 2010 Newsletter (Dec 12 2009)
Ben Hunt's web design review of 2000-2009 and a look ahead to web design in the 2010s...
Web Design is Dead (Dec 12 2009)
Why the familiar creative-driven web design process fails, why combining creativity and testing works so much better, and how to do it successfully.
Ben Hunt’s Web Design Newsletter, October 2009 (Oct 10 2009)
Web design newsletter for October 2009: Conversion Rate Optimisation, usability, and an invite to an exclusive internet marketing club.
New Book: How I’ll Maximize Your Web Site’s Conversion Rate (Oct 10 2009)
How I'll Maximise Your Web Site's Conversion: Process and agreements for taking advantage of Ben Hunt's new CRO book project offer.
Your Chance to Be Part of My New Book Project (Oct 10 2009)
Your Invitation to be part of my new book project on Conversion Rate Optimisation. I'll try to double your web site's conversion rate and track the results in detail.
Simple Tips for More Effective Web Sites (Sep 9 2009)
Save the Pixel is an ebook from pro web designer Ben Hunt which teaches that anyone can create great web design

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Articles in Web Design Blog

Ben Hunt’s Web Design Newsletter, April 2010
Ben Hunt's web design newsletter April 2010: Conversion Rate Optimization, 2 new Web2.0 projects, and a trip of a lifetime
Case Study: Increasing conversion rate using Google Website Optimizer
A case study on increasing conversion rate with split testing using Google Website Optimizer
Order Your Copy of the Blogging for Business Pre-Release DVD
Order your pre-release copy of Ben Hunt and Mark Attwood's "Blogging for Business" seminar
Conversion Rate Optimisation Case Study: Bible Timeline
How Scratchmedia's designers tripled one customer's web site's conversion rate
Ben’s New Year 2010 Newsletter
Ben Hunt's web design review of 2000-2009 and a look ahead to web design in the 2010s...
Web Design is Dead
Why the familiar creative-driven web design process fails, why combining creativity and testing works so much better, and how to do it successfully.
Ben Hunt’s Web Design Newsletter, October 2009
Web design newsletter for October 2009: Conversion Rate Optimisation, usability, and an invite to an exclusive internet marketing club.
New Book: How I’ll Maximize Your Web Site’s Conversion Rate
How I'll Maximise Your Web Site's Conversion: Process and agreements for taking advantage of Ben Hunt's new CRO book project offer.
Your Chance to Be Part of My New Book Project
Your Invitation to be part of my new book project on Conversion Rate Optimisation. I'll try to double your web site's conversion rate and track the results in detail.
Simple Tips for More Effective Web Sites
Save the Pixel is an ebook from pro web designer Ben Hunt which teaches that anyone can create great web design
10 Boring Things to Get Excited About
Some of the best things in life take some time and don't feel like much fun, but they're better than the quick fix alternatives. Ben Hunt introduces a list of ten really interesting uninteresting things we should all be doing.
Meet Ben Hunt at Ken McCarthy’s System Intensive, London September 26 + 27
Invitation to meet Ben Hunt at Ken McCarthy's System Intensive online marketing seminar in London September 26 and 27 2009
Ben Hunt’s Web Design Newsletter, August 2009
Web Design newsletter for August 2009 by Ben Hunt, various thoughts and links
Ben Hunt’s Web Design Newsletter, July 2009
White on white web design, semantic HTML, testing and measuring, and a free copywriting ebook (Ben Hunt's Web Design Newsletter, July 2009)
Ben Hunt’s June 2009 Newsletter
Ben Hunt's June 09 newsletter: Results of Google Website Optimizer experiments on Save the Pixel; Web Design from Scratch redesign
Benefits of a Simple Client Brand/Design Alignment Session
Sitting down with your clients before you start a design project to run through a few dozen web sites and identities can save hours or days of work
Argument that Investing in Evolving Your Web Site Beats Big Bang Redesign
It's more cost-effective to invest in evolving your web site, using continual cycles of change-test-measure, than to redesign wholesale.
Why Deepak Chopra’s New Navigation Fails
Deepak Chopra has a new site, but the navigation leaves you guessing. Not the place to be airy and mystical, Deepak.
Ben Hunt’s Newsletter, April 2009
Ben Hunt's newsletter for April: Tips for Surviving the Economic Winter
Introducing Clicss, Flexible and Useful Web Page Templates
When can using web page templates really work? Sneak preview of Clicss.com, a new range of simple, standards-compliant web page templates for sale.
Subscribe to Ben Hunt’s newsletter
Ben Hunt is sharing his experience in making web sites that are appealing, easy to use, and successful. Subscribe to his newsletter to get regular updates.
8 Reasons to Put Your Prices UP This Recession
Many service providers needlessly undercharge. Here are 8 Reasons why you should seriously consider putting your prices UP.
10 Top Skills for Web Design, in order of importance
My list of the top ten skills you need to be an effective web designer, in order of importance. Not what you may think!
My Vision for a Real Workable Web3.0 World
Ben Hunt's vision of Web3.0, solving the future of the web user experience, consumerism, marketing and DRM in one elegant theory. Just may be the biggest thing you read today.
When to Use Graphics in Web Design
Ben Hunt urges web designers to get really conscious about only using graphics in web design to communicate, and lists 7 specific reasons why graphics can be better than text.
Tips from Our Experience of Switching from PC/Windows to Mac
One business user's experience of switching from Windows PC to Mac, using Parallels and a temporary Windows installation to transition in a manageable step by step way.
10 Tips for Recession-Proofing Your Web Site
10 simple and powerful principles web site owners should be following now to help ensure your web site is really supporting your business through the current economic difficulties.
Announcing Scratch Web Design Forums
Scratchmedia has launched a free web design forum at http://scratchwebdesignforums.com/. Visit to learn from industry experts and share hints and tips on web design, production, SEO etc.
Introducing CMS from Scratch, the open-source lightweight AJAX CMS
We're proud to launch CMS from Scratch, now as an open-source project: the system we've developed over the last 3 years to let Scratchmedia's own clients easily manage and update their web site content.
Real Web Design versus “Design Toss”
The vital difference between true Design (crafting communication solutions with a purpose) and graphic art for the sake of other designers
My Web Design Workstation: 10 essential items of design kit
The 10 key pieces of kit that this web designer couldn't live without
The Social Future of Web2.0 / Web3.0
Ben Hunt casts an eye to the future of a more connected web, and predicts that Yahoo will be the dominant online brand for the next 5 years (LOL)
Why All Web Designers and Web Developers Should Learn to Type
Learning to touch-type is one of the most valuable skills you'll ever learn as a designer or developer
Pursuit of the Original in Web Design
The value of laziness in design, and why the pursuit of the original can be detrimental to design success.
DHTML Decision Making Tool
Tutorials on learning JavaScript to enhance web pages and applications
Review of Harvey Nichols’ 2nd web site, 2004
Review of Harvey Nichols' second web site from 2004
Review of Harvey Nichols Web Site (2001)
Review of Harvey Nichols' first web site from 2001

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