Codin' Day: Get to it then!

I woke up with a lot of energy this morning—well, after I fully "woke up", that is. Which is good, because I have a lot of work to do. I spent hours last night creating some aspects of my current website project in Photoshop, which was much longer than Makal or I had expected. :P But, I did get a lot done, which leaves me with less to do today. Which is good considering I told the J I'd launch the site this week, even though it will surely need tweaking.

I've learned something about web design over the past year. I know, *know*, that I can build a killer website in a day or two. From design concept to graphics to coding and layout and content, then checking against web standards, it can be completed in 24 hours (as in, two chunks of 12 hours or so, unless it's an online store). And yet when I start a new project with a client, is the site ever done that quickly? No, of course not. But then, rarely if ever do I have the full amount of information I need for the project (unless it's for myself). It can take weeks to get the right info from clients.

I used to think setting up an online store was the worst, because you need photos, descriptions and specifications, and prices for products, as well as shipping information and anything else pertinent to the shopping experience (including setting up payment services, shopping carts, etc.). I'm now willing to rescind that statement and say that movie sites are worse.

If you're working with the writer/director, he (or she) has twenty other things going on associated with the movie. He's rewriting the script, finding cast and crew, scouting locations, coordinating effects work, finding event venues, preparing swag, and trying to communicate with at least a dozen people working on all those projects and more. It's pretty much impossible to focus on one person's needs for their specific project, let alone remember what it is that they need. So even though I know I told J months ago (we started working together in... early July) all the different types of content and information I'd need, neatly compiled in a navigation flowchart for the site, and even though we sat down and went through each item and took futher notes, I have about half of what I initially asked for.

It is true that I also spent a month designing a prop for the movie, and the website(s) got put on the back burner. Nonetheless, he had the list. But at this point it doesn't matter, because I'm launching the site today with a dozen pages saying "more information coming soon". But at least it'll look perdy. Well, after I get to writing that code, that is...