Article: 10 Sites and Tools for Web Designers

There are so many design-oriented websites out there that it’s hard to keep track of what’s good and who’s following the trends. Here’s a quick list I’ve compiled of 10 need-to-know websites and tools that any self-respecting web or graphic designer should know about, in no particular order. If you have any more to add in the next revision, be sure to leave a comment and let me know.

10. FreelanceSwitch

The FreelanceSwitch philosophy is that you can do it on your own, and they’re with you every step of the way. FreelanceSwitch covers all aspects of freelancing from prices to client communication, and various other design/freelance-related fields. A must-read for anyone who dreams of becoming their own boss, or are just working part-time from home.

9. Graphic Forums and Designer Talk Forums

What is art without an audience? Forums are a valuable source of information and a great way to get feedback on your projects, seek answers to your questions or just mingle with other like-minded people. There are a ton of forums out there with varying skill levels but Graphic Forums and Designer Talk Forums are two of the bigger communities, and both are catered to entry-level and expert designers.

8. Browser Shots.org

Talk to any website coder and chances are they’ll be glad to pour out hatred of Internet Explorer’s shoddy CSS support. BrowserShots.org is a must-have tool that tests your design under various browsers, operating systems, color depths, resolutions and JavaScript settings. Best of all, it’s completely free! For a couple of bucks you can even get priority processing, which cuts down on the waiting time.

7. Six Revisions

If there was a ” best top X lists” award, Six Revisions would definitely be on the podium. Whether you’re looking for a quick dose of inspiration, or for new ideas, web tools, design or CSS, then Six Revisions has you covered.

6. IE NetRenderer

Similar to BrowserShots, IE NetRenderer is a tool that takes screenshots of your websites under various Internet Explorer configurations. It comes in handy for a quick check and is usually faster than BrowserShots. It might be just what you need and even supports the new Internet Explorer 8 betas.

5. A List Apart

If you’ve never heard of A List Apart, chances are you haven’t dived into CSS. A List Apart is an online blog-like publication on CSS, (X)HTML and various other topics in the design and coding field. A List Apart is a prime source of very high-quality coding tutorials and interesting topics of conversation by industry-leading experts.

4. Colour Lovers

If you need colour inspiration, look no further. Colour Lovers is an extremely well-designed website with thousands of palettes and patterns to explore. You can build and submit your own palettes, or vote and comment on existing ones. If not for now, bookmark this site for later. It will come in handy.

3. Smashing Magazine

If you’re looking for design inspiration, Smashing Magazine has some of the best top X lists on the subject you’ll ever find and is a great place to discover new trends and styles. They also have several interesting articles on design and coding. Grab their feed while you’re there, you won’t regret it.

2. IntuImage

If you haven’t heard about (or tried) IntuImage, it will blow your mind. IntuImage allows you to change image ratios (what they call liquid rescaling), often without the need to crop or touch-up the result; an amazing tool and a must-have for any graphic designer. Just check out this YouTube video and you’ll be sold. Oh, did I mention it was free?

1. Vector Magic

If you don’t have a vector application, or are simply pressed on time, Vector Magic will convert any good-quality raster/bitmap image to vector right in your browser. It comes in handy for logos that need to be blown up, or to clean up drawings and sketches; it’ll even vector photos with surprising results.

Closing comments

That’s all for this round! If you have any suggestions or other awesome websites that should be showcased next time, feel free to leave a comment and I’ll check it out!