IDUX

One of the best features of Adobe Fireworks is the ability to extend its functionality with custom commands and command panels. However, most third-party command panels do not have their own icons for the workspace, and when you install them they are assigned the default command panel icons.

Unfortunately, these icons do not represent the actual functionality of the command panel, and with several custom command panels installed you might see this same icons several times in your workspace.

Fortunately, the Fireworks software team thought ahead and made it very easy to use custom icons for command panels installed as extensions. (Note: the native command panels have their icons built-in, so you cannot change them.)

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Custom-designed buttons have come a long way. We’re no longer tied to the standard HTML buttons dropped into our designs by the browsers, and there are many, many button styles out there.  We see quick tutorials on how to create more complex button designs with gloss, shine, depth, shadow, texture, and general “make you want to touch it-ness”, and most of those how-to guides involve creating more refined buttons using several objects, vectors, layers, blend modes, etc.

I prefer to work with vectors and editable filters and effects whenever possible, because it makes it much easier to edit a design later when the size or color needs to be changed. I wanted to see if it is possible to create a more complex and detailed button with nothing but two vector objects: a button and a text label. Here’s how I did it.

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The team over at Fireworks Zone have pulled together a great list articles and tutorials highlighting, explaining, and demonstrating the new and updated features in Adobe Fireworks CS5. Check it out:

• Device Central Integration
• Selection Commands
• Text Overflow Indicator
• FXG 2.0 Support
• Text Enhancements
• Document Templates
• ASE Color Swatch Support
• Compound Shape Tools
• MXI Files for Extensions
• Snap-to-Pixel
• Multi-page Preview
• New Export Options
• and more!

Adobe Fireworks Tutorials and Downloads >

In a new series of studies, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Carter and Gilovich (2010) explore six reasons why material purchases are less satisfying than experiential purchases, and what we can do about it.

Six Psychological Reasons Consumer Culture is Unsatisfying — PsyBlog.

This research suggests that thinking of material purchases in experiential terms helps banish dissatisfaction. The implications for designing online retail experiences may be to help customers see themselves using the product and focusing more on experiences with the product than on research and comparison of features and details vs. other similar products.