There’s something different about the HOW Design Conference. I’ve been to other professional events where I’ve been tempted to blow off sessions and go sightseeing or whatever. But designers who come to HOW are hard-core: they never miss a thing.

Still, it’s easy to go to a big event and just go through the motions. So it’s helpful to set an agenda, to get into a mindset where you’re open to learning and connecting. A designer friend of mine penned an article for HOW magazine offering 10 strategies for making the most of any professional event . One of his tips? Don’t be afraid to approach speakers and strike up a conversation. Where else will you pass someone like Charles Anderson or Debbie Millman in the hallway? Be fearless about making connections. And bring plenty of business cards. Read the rest of this entry »

If you’ve looked around in Google’s Webmaster Tools (See Part 4 of my series of posts on the tools), you’ll see where you can upload your sitemap file for your web site.
Now, if you’re an inquisitive person like me, you might be asking yourself some questions, namely:
What are Sitemaps? What does the sitemap do for you? Do you need one?
In this post I will address these questions and hopefully provide satisfactory answers for them. Read the rest of this entry »