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Final Reminder: Contest Closing

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Just a final reminder that today is the last day of the Refresh contest, and there is just a few more hours for you to get your submissions in! Please send them in as soon as possible if you haven’t yet, so we can begin the judging process quickly. If you are close but may require an extra day, let us know, and we may consider extending the submission period by one day. Thanks to anyone that participated. We may be running a logo contest in the near future after we pick a winning layout, so be on the lookout for that.

And finally, I’d like to give my thoughts and prayers to the students and families of Virginia Tech, after today’s horrible events.

Magnetik

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Contact Name: Doug Steinberg
Email: [email protected]
Company Name: Magnetik
Site URL: http://www.magnetik-nyc.com
Location: Cheslea | NYC

Job Description:
Do you spend your free time checking out the latest hot sites? Do you have an opinion on whether ajax or flash is better for user interfaces? Can you crank out killer designs in the time it takes other people to sit down at their desks? If so, you may be just who we’re looking for.

MAGNETIK, a growing advertising and marketing agency in NYC is seeking a designer to work mostly on web projects, but you should also be able to work in the real world without panic. This is a freelance position with opportunity to become a long term contract or full time position.

On any given day, we’re churning out retail print ads, html emails, landing pages, flash banners, enterprise-level sites and more for some of America’s top brands.

Programming skills are a big plus, but not required, though you must have an in-depth understanding of flash and html from a capabilities and usability perspective. A knowledge of AJAX techniques and the latest JS goodies is also a big help.

We’re in midtown Manhattan and only interested in people who can work on site. DO NOT apply if you’re not able to work in-person, though we may consider a candidate who can come in for briefings/presentations but wants to work remotely on occasion.

If you’re interested in this opportunity, please email us a resume, salary requirements and samples/URLs of your work. You will not be considered if you don’t send us all of these items.

Jagpar Technologies

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Contact Name: Samir Gaokar
Company Name: Jagpar Technologies
Site URL: Jagpar.com
JobTitle: Design
Budget: $25k – $45k depending on experience per year.

Job Description:

  • 5+ years relevant web design experience plus Strong knowledge of XHTML
  • 5+ and CSS Permanent position but will consider freelance / contractors 5+ too

JAGPAR is a leading ecommerce company and innovator in the e-technologies sector through its website www.JAGPAR.com and the largest seller of cars on eBay. Using the latest in Web 2.0 technology, JAGPAR has pioneered the concept of accurately describing a car online.

Cars are displayed in JAGPAR’s client virtual showroom which offers an interactive view of the car, including an application that shows any dents and scratches. 90% of the company’s customers pay a deposit on the car without seeing – by far the third highest in the industry. Company’s online technology and marketing also allows it to sell cars very quickly – up to 4 times faster than traditional dealers, which is unprecedented in the industry.

The company’s commitment to customer service is second to none which is why we had a 99.8% customer feedback rating on eBay and thousands of satisfied customers.

we had raised £3M in venture capital funding from Accel Partners, one of the top venture capital firms worldwide who has funded companies such as Macromedia, Real Networks, Netvibes, JBoss and Facebook. Our head office is in central London, with local processing facilities in other cities.

This position will provide you with the opportunity to work in a dynamic, team oriented environment with good opportunities to grow your career and take on additional responsibilities with the growth of the company.

JAGPAR is seeking a highly motivated individual who is passionate about e-commerce and cars for the position of Lead Web Designer. You will be a part of the team which is responsible for developing JAGPAR’s web site and internal software systems. As the lead designer you will be responsible for overseeing and developing JAGPAR’s brand and visual identity as well as our web site look and feel, design and user interface. You will also be involved in the design aspects of our internal software system.

JAGPAR and we are preparing for a major overhaul of its web site to turn it into a world class e-commerce site for cars, leveraging the latest in Web 2.0 technologies. As the lead designer you will play a key role in this major new development for the company and help build us as a mainstream consumer brand.

You should have a combination of artistic and technology skills and must be able to take a brief and execute on it to meet deadlines. In addition to design you will ideally also have experience with e-commerce, user interface (UI) design and search engine optimization. You will have the capability of contributing in a fast-paced, integrated product team environment and grow with the rapid pace of the company.

Permanent position but will consider freelance / contractors too

REQUIREMENTS

  • – Bachelor’s degree in computer science / art / multimedia preferred
  • – Artistic and aesthetic skills, specifically proven graphical design skills with impressive portfolio
  • – 5+ years relevant web design experience, preferably with some agency experience
  • – Good knowledge of standard tools, web architectures and processes
  • – Good knowledge of XHTML and CSS
  • – Experience with usability aspects e-commerce websites helpful
  • – Search engine optimization experience a plus
  • – Proven ability to take a brief and balance the tradeoffs of delivery schedules, customer needs, and long-term system maintainability and meet deadlines
  • – Capable of contributing in a fast-paced, integrated product team environment and grow with the rapid pace of the company and take more responsibility as required
  • – Strong communication skills; ability to interact with both technical and non-technical people
  • – Startup and agency experience a plus

Xhtml Slicer

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With multiple slicing services available just about every where you look, it is hard to select a clear leader. Each service offers its own benefits and has its own pricing scheme – some more expensive than others. Today we look at XHTML Slicer, a service I recently used for client work.

Xhtml Slicer

Wait, why would I need someone to code for me?

Before we get going, there is an issue I have to discuss. Most of our readers would probably be asking, “Why would I need someone to code for me?” True, most of our readers can handle both the designing and coding aspects of site creation, but not everyone is capable at doing both. And then there are the times where we are simply too busy, and are forced to outsource work to help ease our own loads, as was the case when I went with XS. The problem being, out of respect to your own clients, you don’t want to outsource their work to a $15 coder on some forum who has little experience. This is where slicing services come in handy, and can become a real great time-saver.

My Experience with XS

To understand why I used this service, this is not going to be a typical run-of-the-mill review, but a summary of why I used XS and my experience with using them. First, this was the first time I had outsourced any client work, so I was a bit worried about the differences is in my own code and someone else’s. I had just accepted a new project for a client, and was getting another request for a much bigger (and more profitable) project. I wanted to make sure I had time for both of them, but the requests came only a day apart from each other, so it was looking like I would be forced to stay out of one or lengthen the time-table on the second project by at least quite a few days.

After quickly completing a successful mock-up for my first client, I was ready to move on to the coding stage. Rather than spend a few days to code it myself, I decided to use my friend Prash’s service and have him and/or one of his coders get the xhtml and css done for me. I submitted the client-accepted psd and within 3 days I had a zip file sent to me containing the sliced images, index html, and stylesheet. At $200 for a 3-day turnaround, I thought it was a great value, and more importantly, it had saved me time to get started on the next project while I waited for the code to be sent over.

Now it was time for me to complete the project. I had to port things over to WordPress, and this was the only part that scared me a little bit. Not because I don’t know what I’m doing, but because it was the first time I was dealing with code other than my own. Luckily, I was happy to see very clean code that was easy for me to edit and get running cleanly in WordPress. After working around some of my own created bugs from modifying the template, I had wrapped the project up with the same valid Xhtml and CSS I had started with.

So whether or not you’re looking for a permanent solution for your coding needs if you are not a coder by hand, or you simply want to know where you can turn if you have to outsource some work, Xhtml Slicer is a great choice. I was very happy with the turnaround time, and I know that if I ever need to outsource again, I will be heading back there. While everyone is entitled to having their favorite slicing services, XS is the only one I’ve had personal experience with, and I have nothing but good things to say about them.

R.A.W. – Day 4/5 Featured Site

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Topping off the last two days of Reader Appreciation Week, we have the last two random commenter featured sites.

First up with comment number 668 was our very own Ronalfy. Of course, the place of featuring would be the other place he writes – his personal blog. He recently ran multiple contests for R.A.W., so if you like his web related writing here, check out his site for some more personal stuff.

Ronalfy

And coming in with comment number 166 was Shaun Charity. His link from his comment led to his portfolio, which is actually quite nice. A nice collection of motion, print, and interactive design.

Shaun Charity

We will periodically be running reader appreciation days / weeks throughout the coming weeks, so continue to comment to increase your chances of getting featured next time around!

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