End of Year List

[David]

End of Year List

OK, it's that time of year again when it's good to reflect on all the fine things you did/saw/browsed in 2004. Let's have your nominations for the following:

1. Best Website (Web Design related)
2. Best Website (general)
3. Best Book (Web Design related)
4. Best Book (general)
5. Best Film
6. Best Album
7. Best Technology (Hardware)
8. Best Technology (Software)
9. Prediction for 2005 (Web Design related)

Don't feel obliged to nominate in all categories but it would be nice to see a good spread of replies.

:geek:

[francis]

Mmm... okay:

1. Best Website (Web Design related)
This is tricky. I'd normally plump for Zeldman/ALA, but they've both been very quiet this year. Simplebits was occaisonally useful, ditto Mezzoblue, CSSZenGarden was pretty and Webstandards.org is always worth dropping by. Nothing really jumps out

2. Best Website (general)
Metafilter (http://www.metafilter.com). I love Metafilter

3. Best Book (Web Design related)
Probably Defensive Design (http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/073571410X/qid=1104777851/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl/202-8820297-1509467). I'm going to be using this more and more with the thesis.

4. Best Book (general)
I don't really read them. I read a Grisham in a couple of days, but it wasn't up to much.

5. Best Film
Does Shrek 2 sound shallow?! I really wanted to see Before Sunset (http://wip.warnerbros.com/beforesunset/) as Before Sunrise was so amazing, but I'm waiting for the DVD in Feb (unless I end up going for the R1 version sooner).

6. Best Album
Equal first: Wilco (http://www.wilcoweb.com/)'s 'A Ghost Is Born' and Mindy Smith (http://www.mindysmith.net/)'s 'One Moment More'.

7. Best Technology (Hardware)
Still my iPod

8. Best Technology (Software)
I'm going to have to say Firefox!

9. Prediction for 2005 (Web Design related)
Firefox will continue to grow and web developers really will have to start designing more and more for standards and not IE. It's already going great-guns, but it needs to be more. Also, MS will delay Longhorn further than 'first guarter 2006' and not do anything much with IE except add bells and whistles but no frikken standards support.

[James]

I can't add much value to this as I don't really have favourites in these categories but here goes:

1. Best Website (Web Design related)

I'm not a frequent visitor, if I'm stuck I search Google and go to which ever site has the answer. I am not loyal to a particular site. That said, I was very impressed with HTMLDog and have added that to my favourites. I like its straight to the point style - sites like listapart have great content but try to inject humour for the sake of it and that irritates me.

2. Best Website (general)

http://www.freedigitalphotos.net

Joke. But actually I can't think. In terms of visits, it's still the BBC, I visit several times a day, every day for news.

3. Best Book (Web Design related)

The only book I have bought this year that is vaguely related is Search Engine Optimisation For Dummies. It's great. I think Tom secretly got his SEO lecture content from this book!

4. Best Book (general)

I only read one book this year - can't remember its title but it was about an Australian heroin dealer who did ten years in a Bangkok jail. Grim.

5. Best Film

Sorry not into films!

6. Best Album

I love music but don't buy albums! I buy 12" singles on vinyl (which sound better than CDs).

7. Best Technology (Hardware)

Nothing to add. iPods are a runaway success but I haven't got one.

8. Best Technology (Software)

Internet Explorer. 90% of the world agree with me it seems.

9. Prediction for 2005 (Web Design related)

A quiet year and I tend to agree with Francis. Although I think Firefox share will grow I don't think it will go above 10% simply because most people won't bother. I would like to see Flash condemned to history too.

[Tom]

Nothing much new to report but here are my answers:

1. Best Website (Web Design related)
Searchenginewatch.com
2. Best Website (general)
Google by a light-year. Then iStockphoto [sorry James]
3. Best Book (Web Design related)
I agree with James - and I read it AFTER my lectures!
4. Best Book (general)
Chinese Architecture by Nancy Steinhardt
5. Best Film
6. Best Album
7. Best Technology (Hardware)
Microsoft Optical Desktop - despite its infuriating bugs. And the Canon Powershot Pro1, if that counts.
8. Best Technology (Software)
Webmerge
9. Prediction for 2005 (Web Design related)
Yet more eCommerce.
An even bigger shift from TV to web advertising.
James will be wrong about Firefox (all they need is a full Google toolbar and I will drop IE]
Francis may be right about the Gbrowser, in which case he and I will be wrong about Firefox.

[Ronald Ng]

Here are my votes from 2004!

1. Best Website (Web Design related)
Mambo Colour Matching Tool (http://www.mambopt.com/index.php?option=com_wrapper&wrap=Temas) - Not really a website but something i find invaluable! Thanks to David for posting this one.

2. Best Website (general)
ebay.co.uk - I caught a bout of ebay fever in mid-2004

3. Best Book (Web Design related)
PHP and MySQL For dynamic websites - Larry Ullman
Prob not new or the best, but I bought this and it was good enough for me to learn the basics.

4. Best Book (general)
Sorry, don't really read books as such

5. Best Film
Internal Affairs - The Hong Kong one, not the one with Richard Gere. Was released ages ago, but got into the UK cinemas due to its popularity. Was skeptical at first but its really good. A classic cops chasing triads movie.

6. Best Album
Nothing really in 2004 really amazed me but ones which I enjoyed were Kelis - Tasty, NERD - Fly or Die, Basement Jaxx - Kish Kash

7. Best Technology (Hardware)
Samsung SyncMaster, a decent monitor and a TV in one. Watch TV while you work!

8. Best Technology (Software)
Avant Browser - Add-on for IE. Thanks to Stuart for showing it to me!
Google Desktop Search - Kind of software. So much better than windows xp search.


9. Prediction for 2005 (Web Design related)
Pop-up ads to be nearly obsolete and to be replaced by splash screen ads.
Splash screen ads blockers? Are there such things yet?

[francis]

"Watch TV whilst you work" - aren't these mutually exclusive (unless you're a TV reviewer)?!

Not sure what a splash screen advert is - is it one of those really annoying things where an intermediatary page featuring an advert is placed between the entry page to a site and the page you're tring to get to? If so, I can't see how they can be blocked. But for all other popups, including those that seem to get around popup blockers, you need to switch to Firefox and install the Adblock extension.

Having said that, if the advertising page is served from an advertising server, Adblock could just block content from there and it would work. I haven't seen one of those pages for a while though.

[Phil]

1. Best Website (Web Design related)
webpagesthatsuck.com
- it's so much easier to criticise someone else's work than making something perfect yourself

2. Best Website (general)
news.bbc.co.uk
- always the first and last stop of the day (plus numerous inbetween)

3. Best Book (Web Design related)
---

4. Best Book (general)
Vernon God Little
- very oddly written, but stays with you long after finishing

5. Best Film
Dawn of the Dead / Shaun of the Dead
- because there's zombies in them

6. Best Album
Morrissey - You are the Quarry
- his best since Your Arsenal

7. Best Technology (Hardware)
iPod Photo
- G5 iMac was a big dissappointment, this, however, is the business

8. Best Technology (Software)
Firefox
- the extensions do it for me (though i've yet to see a decent kiosk extensions yet)

9. Prediction for 2005 (Web Design related)
Spyware / Adware scares people away from the web
- the amount of students (and staff) who bring their machines to me in an unusable state just because they answered yes to installing a searchbar or something.