Pixotale is a great app for iPad and iPhone that allows the user to create immersive storytelling experiences on the web, it works really well and it is a great example of how the web can use images to create great stories. You can check it out here, but also follow the link to view it yourself.
http://pixotale.com/story/11937047/
The ‘fold’ was initially coined in the newspaper industry, the papers would be folded in half and stacked, the information above the fold should be the most compelling as it should make the consumer want to buy the paper. When the internet was invented, the technique was transferred as it was a concern that users wouldn’t know that they needed to scroll on webpages. This has now changed with most jobs requiring the use of the internet with over 40% of the worlds population connected to the internet.
With the ever rapidly changing environment of screen sizes, is there really such thing as a fold anymore? With mobiles, tablets, laptops, desktops and even televisions being used to browse the web, the position of the fold is really debatable now. Another point to note is that users enjoy scrolling and will do it just to get their bearing on he website.
Another thing to consider is that the parallax effect on scrolling a website makes it even more interesting. you can see a great example of this here;
A way to manoeuvre around the fact of the fold being located differently for each device. It is possible to make divs match the height of device, meaning that when scrolling, each part of the website matches the devices screen size. Spotify has a great example of this;
Finally a website that blurs the lines between scrolling and parallax effect by using images that are static and text that moves, it gives the impression that the text is moving on the page rather than you as a user navigating around a page.
http://pitchfork.com/features/cover-story/reader/bat-for-lashes/
References;
http://hatchd.com.au/chookfeed/the-fold-its-time-to-get-past-it/
http://pitchfork.com/features/cover-story/reader/bat-for-lashes/
Once I have graduated the web design course, when applying for a job I need to ensure that I stand out by being really good at one specific thing. The one thing that I would like to research into to make me stand out is web components, how good they truly are and whether they are truly the future of web design.
Web components are able to connect pre-build elements into the website. This is something that Google has invested in heavily and their own explanation is really good;
“From <a> to <select>, elements are the building blocks of HTML. But modern applications have outgrown these built-in elements, forcing app developers to rely on JavaScript frameworks to provide dynamic, custom behaviour. The resulting apps are frequently complex and monolithic; a component developed for one may not work in another.”
“Polymer puts elements back at the center of web development. With Polymer, you can craft your own HTML elements and compose them into complete, complex applications that are scalable and maintainable.”
The cons
The biggest issue with web components is compatibility with older browsers. While Google and Mozilla have both added web components ability to their browsers, as usual internet explorer is stuck in the past. It be at least 2017 before developers ca start to abandon developing for that browser.
Minification of the html file is also quite difficult as it can loose the custom elements you have created
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