The Graham Smith Site

One year, Eight months.

1 and 2/3 rotations of the Sun. 166 billion stars born and lain to rest. Duke Nukem Forever, released.

These are just some of the events that have transpired since handing in my last notice and traversing the seas of full-time self-employment. Those of you who have made the jump (of your own choice), and those of you who are looking to, have probably all acquired the same nuggets of advice: “Build up a small base of clients”, “Save X number of months worth of salary”, etc… Well, that advice? Is exactly what I didn’t do. And I’m not ashamed to admit, I’ve been winging it ever since. If my business acumen were plotted on a graph, there just wouldn’t be a damned graph.

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A quick introduction: A friend of mine, Nathan Staines, wanted to pick my brains regarding this mythical beast known as ‘Version Control’. His company had requested its staff to install Dreamweaver for the check-in/check-out feature. Nathan, being wise beyond his years, knew there was an alternative. A better alternative. He pitched me a few questions and I’ve tried my best to answer them. Read the rest of this entry »

Reading one of Christian Heilmann’s excellent blog posts caused a great revelation upon my meagre mind (they have a tendency to do that). Imagine, if you will, a website. Not just any website; one that has been created by slicing up a Photoshop document. It’s for a small – medium business, so it’s entirely localised to the country from which it originates. This website needed to get out the door quickly so no extra effort was made during the construction. Read the rest of this entry »

After the warnings of a potential storm from the event organisers, the cold, dark start to the day did nothing to quell the excitement that had permeated every facet of my being. This was a long time coming.

They laughed at me when I say my holiday is a ’5 day web conference’, but as Andy McMillan (@goodonpaper) readily admits, it has taken on the shape of a festival, with the caliber of the attendees rivalling that of the speakers. If Simon Collison’s upcoming New Adventures conference has an all-star cast, this has an all-star audience. Read the rest of this entry »

Browsing the iTunes App store today, I’m reminded how much the interface has improved in so short a time. One hefty re-design and a handful of minor improvements dotted around the place have made it a joy to use. But my favourite aspect, oddly, is the increase in sideways scrolling elements.

Windows users may not share my enthusiasm for such frivolities, as their mice often involve ‘scroll wheels’ that limit such side-to-side motions, leaving them to uncover the wonders of a scroll bar. But interacting with them using my lovely new Magic Mouse has made it trivial. Brushing a finger sideways over the mouse is just as comfortable as scrolling up and down. Even in my days of using the Mighty Mouse, and its somewhat unreliable nipple, the action became nearly second nature. Now I barely realise I’m doing it. Read the rest of this entry »