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Try the New Material Design Capabilities for WordPress
If you like to build websites with WordPress, then you’re in for a treat.
Now, for the first time, you don’t need to know how to code to use Google’s popular Material Design system on your WordPress website; the web giant has released a WordPress plugin and theme to import its colors, icons, UI elements, and typography straight into your CMS.
You need to install both the plugin and theme to take advantage of Material Design for WordPress. Using the add-ons, you can tweak your typography via Google Fonts, add-in MD color, and even choose your own icons. If even that’s too much, pick one of the pre-built themes. One of the best features is that the plugin warns you if your customizations break accessibility guidelines, saving you a do-over when you discover it later on. Google calls it “an experimental plugin and theme,” which means it’s subject to change. And Google has been quick to emphasize that the plugin is very much a work in progress, asking for feedback to help them direct future development efforts. It’s a really great option for anyone who’s starting on the web, building their first site, or who really wants a nice reliable design system that they can build on in the future. It’s yet another automation tool that has driven WordPress to the top of the technology pile and made it the CMS of choice for 40% of the web. As tech hots up and AI continues to develop, it’s hard to dismiss the idea that one day soon, our only contribution to websites will be paying the hosting bill!
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Software and apps often solve very complex problems for businesses and consumers in the way of sales, marketing, finances, and so on. But offering a product that solves your users’ problems isn’t enough. If the UI is just as complex as the original problem, user churn is going to be high. Today, we’re going to look at some tips for designing a simple UI regardless of your solution’s complexity.
What is it they say? Complex problems require complex solutions. That is certainly true when developing apps and software.
But how do you ensure that the complex backend doesn’t trickle over to the front end?
A complex UI, in general, is more than enough reason for many people to abandon a website or mobile app. When it comes to paying or subscribed users, though, don’t expect any of them to settle for your software’s complicated interface.
It doesn’t matter how amazing your product is. If the outward appearance of it drives your users crazy, you can expect large amounts of costly user churn in return.
The Flatfile team is very familiar with this problem, having built a successful data importer, which is a technology that many designers have struggled to build on their own. Below, we’re going to look at some of the tips that helped them overcome this UI design challenge and can help you, too.
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Adobe Flash is soon to die (and people are suddenly nostalgic, hmmm)
Adobe has announced the end of its stalwart Flash browser plugin, and there's been an outpouring of emotion (sadness and joy) across the internet. To be fair, this has been coming for the best part of the last decade and it therefore seems apt that 2020 is the year to finish Flash off.
Flash Player's final days were announced with the release of its final update, named AIR 32. You'll have until 31 December 2020 to enjoy Flash, at which time Adobe will stop supporting it. It will then block content running in Flash Player from January 12, 2021. (For Adobe tools that aren't about to die, check out this Adobe software list.)
The cancellation of one of the internet's most well-known plugins is due to a cacophony of issues including a lack of users and a rise of (more secure) replacement programs. Given Flash Player's buggy, often annoying, performance issues and the fact it's a target for malware, we weren't surprised to see there are many users unbothered by the situation (and see our Adobe Flash Pro CS6 review for a dose of nostalgia).
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Dreaming Of A Magical December
2020 was a year that was anything but ordinary, and, well, the upcoming holiday season will be different from what we all are used to, too. To cater to holiday cheer in these weird times, artists and designers from across the globe got their creative juices flowing and created festive and inspiring wallpapers for December. Following our monthly tradition, they all come in versions with and without a calendar and can be downloaded for free.
We are very thankful to everyone who took the time to create an artwork and shared it with us this month — you are truly smashing! And since so many talented people have helped fill our archives with designs that are just too good to be forgotten in all these years we’ve been running this wallpapers challenge, we also compiled a little best-of from past December editions at the end of this post. Maybe you’ll spot one of your almost-forgotten favorites in there, too? Have a cozy December, everyone, and stay safe!
All images can be clicked on and lead to the preview of the wallpaper.
We respect and carefully consider the ideas and motivation behind each and every artist’s work.
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82 best free fonts for designers
Free fonts may not always be the most brilliant fonts, but there are some truly great ones around – it's just a case of finding them. We know that the search process takes time and effort that you could be spending on other things, so we've done the hard work for you and collated this extensive list.
The best free fonts offer plenty of options for your designs without costing anything. Whether you're looking for a classy serif, a clean sans-serif, vintage fonts, or something completely different, there's no shortage of choice. In fact there, are so many free fonts out there that it can be hard to know where to start looking. Some font libraries offer free fonts and many individual type designers also offer their own creations for free on their websites or portfolios. To make it easier for you to find what you're looking for, we've gathered together the best free fonts that we've found in our regular searches of the web – a massive 89 of them.
All these are fonts that are available free for personal use, and some can be used freely for commercial use too (always check, because in some cases you will need to buy a license for commercial use – we've stated the conditions at the time of writing, but these can change).
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Life as a Digital Nomad: 10 Designers Share Their Tools
Becoming a digital nomad when you’re already a graphic designer isn’t the easiest thing in the world. While this career path is rewarding due to the sheer freedom—and the traveling is a great bonus—there are numerous challenges you have to master to make the most of becoming a digital nomad. This kind of lifestyle isn’t for everyone, but, for those who have the passion for it, numerous benefits and overall empowerment await. What makes this lifestyle possible is the use of the right tools, which makes all the difference to productivity and delivering fantastic results for your clients. Thanks to the interconnectivity of the web, digital nomads have the same advantages as their counterparts who are based in one location. In other words, distance and remoteness are no longer barriers to delivering high-quality work while living the transient life you want. It comes down to how you empower yourself with the right platforms.
We asked 10 Creative Market shop owners, who are also remote workers, what their go-to tools are. Here’s what they revealed.
- Identify your skill sets & strengthen them. ...
- Build a portfolio & start searching job boards. ...
- Use your skills to make money online. ...
- Start networking. ...
- Start simplifying your lifestyle. ...
- Build your savings. ...
- Determine your budget & decide on your locations. ...
- Get travelers insurance.
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Microsoft hits the brakes on Windows 10 updates in December 2020
Don't expect any Windows 10 preview updates in December due to holidays, says Microsoft.
Microsoft has told Windows 10 owners and IT admins not to expect any Windows 10 preview updates in December to give them a break when staffing levels are low over the holiday season.
December will be a break from the usual schedule of Windows 10 updates each month, which include optional previews that arrive after the mandatory Patch Tuesday security updates in the second week of every month.
"Because of minimal operations during the holidays and the upcoming Western new year, there won't be any preview releases for the month of December 2020," Microsoft said in a support note.
The company will resume monthly servicing with the January 2021 security releases, it said.
Microsoft releases optional non-security Windows 10 updates to give customers time to test the updates against systems.
It calls the first week of each month 'A week' and typically issues fixes for Office. The second week is 'B week' or Patch Tuesday. C and D weeks happen on the third and fourth weeks of the month. They're when Microsoft releases optional cumulative updates or previews of non-security fixes for IT pros and admins.
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How to Create Chat Rooms in WordPress for Your Users
Recently one of our readers asked if it was possible to create chat rooms on your WordPress site for your users?
A chat room hosted on your site will allow your visitors to chat with each other without needing to install a third-party chat client like Slack or Discord.
In this article, we’ll show you how to create a chat room in WordPress.
Why Add a Chat Room in WordPress?
If you run a membership website or an online forum, then you may want to create an instant messaging chat room for your users.
You could use a third-party service like Slack, WhatsApp, Facebook groups, or Discord. However, with these methods, all the communication happens outside of your website, so you don’t have control over the chat experience.
These methods also encourage people to leave your website, which is bad views for your pageviews and bounce rate in WordPress.
By embedding a chat room in your website, you can keep people on your site for longer and build a stronger sense of community.
Note: Chat rooms tend to work best for small communities of users. If want to offer live customer support, then check out our list of the best live chat support software instead.
That said, let’s take a look at how to add a chat room to your WordPress blog or website.
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9 SEO Trends To Boost Your Rankings in 2021
You already know the importance of positioning your pages on the top of Google SERPs rankings, right? Well-ranked pages provide enormous organic reach to your website, increasing the possibility of attracting and converting leads.
To achieve this goal, it is essential to apply SEO techniques, which are designed to adapt their content to the algorithm’s ranking criteria.
These criteria, however, are not permanent. In an effort to make the user experience ever simpler and more efficient, Google frequently updates its parameters.
Besides the algorithm, it is also necessary to consider the audience’s behavior and preferences. Ultimately, the most important factor for maintaining good positioning is the quality of the experience you offer to your website visitors.
Therefore, to achieve good results in a Digital Marketing strategy, it is essential to stay up-to-date on the SEO trends that arise with growing frequency.
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