Technical Difficulties Solved
Thanks to the well prepared people at Dreamhost, my backup files have been retrieved and all website and media files have been restored. Please let me know if you have trouble downloading anything, but it should all be back to normal now! Thanks for your patience.

Huge Technical Difficulties!!
I managed to delete the entire Rookie website accidentally, so I am in the process of restoring everything. Unfortunately, the part that is going to take the longest will be the MP3 files for Rookie Designer and the mov files for Appclinic. Please be patient, the files are coming. In the meantime, the archive [...]

AppClinc 131 - xScope: A Must-Have
Every once in a while I come across a piece of software that I just have to share on the podcast, because it’s so damn cool. This would definitely be considered one of those times! xScope is an application from ARTIS Software and The Icon Factory that I think every designer can get some use [...]

AppClinc 130 - Isolation Mode in Illustrator
Just a quick tip in Illustrator here. If you are tired of locking layers or accidentally selecting objects other than the one you are trying to work on, this feature is for you. In CS3 you can isolate groups of objects for easier selection and modifications, and in CS4 they have taken it a step further. Check [...]

AppClinc 129 - Placed Images in Illustrator
Placing an image in Illustrator can be handy for several reasons, one of which, is to trace imagery that must be illustrated. Others may use the functionality for creating layouts in Illustrator and linking images. Whatever the case, it is important to know how to alter and update the linked image once it has already been placed. [...]

AppClinc 128 - Simple & Interesting Icons
With the web 2.0 movement, using icons to represent ideas as opposed to stock photography became very popular. This change also brought with it a few design trends that resulted in more simple, intuitive yet elegant components to the page. This movement has now spilled over into all facets of design, so we’ll look at [...]

AppClinc 127 - Simple Flash Banner
It’s back to basics on this episode where we look at how to mimic the features of a rotating gif in Flash. Why you ask… well we need to build a base for our banner before we add more dynamic features to make a jaw-dropping ad that will stand out on any page. We’ll cover [...]

AppClinic 126 - Find and Change
It may not be a very “sexy” feature of Indesign, but the find/change has received a big upgrade and is now very useful for finding items in a lot of different ways. In this episode we’ll look at how to find and change a particular typeface in your document, or how to search for type [...]

AppClinic 125 - Distribute a PDF Form
In this episode we’ll jump back to the PDF form we made a couple of weeks ago and learn how to use the tools in Adobe Acrobat to add a submit button and distribute the form so we are able to collect and track the data received when you get responses to your form. Try GoToMeeting [...]

AppClinic 124 - Externalize JavaScript with Dreamweaver CS4 (Beta)
With the release of the Creative Suite 4 just around the corner, visions of new and improved features are no doubt dancing in designers’ heads. We’ll take a look at one of those new features included in the new version of Dreamweaver that allows you to quickly and easily externalize all the javascript in your web pages. [...]

AppClinic 123 - Creating Forms with Indesign and Acrobat
There is bound to be more than one right way to create a form in Indesign, but there is certainly also a wrong way. We’ll look at some of the pitfalls of creating a form, and a sound method for creating one that will be editable and expandable with few problems. Then we’ll take that [...]

AppClinic 122 - What the Font?!
Have you ever been given a piece of artwork and been asked to modify it only to find that the original artist flattened the art? What if there is a font or typeface used in the piece and you don’t know what it is? What the Font is a totally cool tool just for this [...]

AppClinic 121 - Cornering the Creative Suite
With the popularity of glass buttons and web 2.0 stylings, the rounded corner is something you may have been using quite a bit lately. There are a few very easy ways to accomplish rounded corners on your objects in the Creative Suite applications, but there are some pitfalls as well. We’ll take a look at [...]

AppClinic 120 - Graphing in Illustrator
Illustrator includes a set of tools that may not be the most popular or widely used in the application, but they serve a distinct purpose and serve it well. I speak of the set of 9 graphing tools that allow you to plot and update data, and stylize that result with the tools offered by [...]

AppClinic 119 - Photoshop Express
Photoshop is now on the web, and sharing some of its features for FREE! Upload your photos to Photoshop Express, create galleries to share with the world and take advantage of some state of the art tools, some that even elude to what may be coming in Photoshop CS4. We’ll take a look at some [...]

AppClinic 118 - Type Effects in Photoshop
There is a world of possibilities as far as stylizing type goes, but we’ll look at a few quick techniques. We’ll start by simply copying some text from the background image and adding some styles and filters to it to create a glassy or watery-type effect, and play with some easy adjustment layers to refine [...]

AppClinic 117 - Scaling Multiple Objects
The theme of this episode is a simple way to execute a simple task. If you’ve ever had a problem scaling multiple objects in InDesign, or scaling text or images instead of just the frame they sit in, here’s a technique for you. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial [...]

AppClinic 116 - PDF from Files
In this episode we’ll look at a quick and easy way to turn several individual files (like jpegs or tiffs) into one PDF file. This can come in very handy for quickly putting together a PDF of samples of your work, which many employers ask for these days. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your [...]

AppClinic 115 - Starting in InDesign
Everyone has seen the new document screen in InDesign… we’re not revealing any new discoveries! We are however, going to go through everything in that box to make sure we are using it to our potential. You can actually get a jump start into making your document by simply using some of the tools Adobe [...]

AppClinic 114 - TimeLog(ing)
I don’t do this often, but this application TimeLog is worth devoting a whole show to. If you’re a designer, and especially if you’re freelancing, you MUST keep track of your time when you work. This application is a great tool to help you do just that. In this episode we’ll highlight some of the [...]

AppClinic 113 - Extreme Makeover Blog Edition - Plugins
Another great way to take control and spice up your blog is to make use of plugins. They are easy to find… just google “Wordpress Plugins,” free to download, and easy to implement. With these handy upgrades you can do things like add flash movies or animations to your blog, post via email, and add [...]

AppClinic 112 - Extreme Makeover Blog Edition - CSS
One of the easiest ways to gain control over how your blog looks is by playing with the css file. This file holds all the style directions for your new site and if you know how to edit it you’re in good shape. If you don’t, fear not, there are ways to figure out what [...]

AppClinic 111 - Extreme Makeover Blog Edition - Sidebar
The sidebar of a blog is an important section that houses your links, archives, calendars, etc. and having control of this can be vital to your blog design. There are a couple methods of managing this area that we will take a look at in this episode; one that WordPress provides through the interface, and [...]

AppClinic 110 - Extreme Makeover Blog Edition - Header Image
One of the first things you will probably want to change about your blog template is the header image. This can be easily accomplished by simply dropping in a new image and possibly editing the style.css file and/or the header.php file. View this screencast for more details. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to [...]

AppClinic 109 - Extreme Makeover Blog Edition
In part one of this mini-series, we’ll look at where the files are found on our server in a WordPress blog and point out which of those we will be altering to make our blog theme look the way we want it to. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial [...]

AppClinic 108 - Don’t Do the Math Yourself!
Just when you though InDesign and Illustrator couldn’t be any more amazing, they surprise and delight again. Ever needed to move and object in your layout over 2mm to the right? How about increasing the size by 23%? If you answered yes, you may have had to make some calculations in the past to get [...]

AppClinic 107 - Photoshop Droplets
Do you have a repetitive task that must be done often? if so this little technique could save you a boatload of time! we’ll do a bit of review on creating actions, and then take it a step further by wrapping that in a handy droplet that you can simply “drop” your files on to [...]

AppClinic 106 - Splash Pages for the Web
We’ll look at how to format a large splash page image for quick loading. We covered optimization of images for teh web a few weeks ago, and some of this will be review, but we will also epxlore cutting an image up into pieces for faster load times, as well as discuss the difference between [...]

AppClinic 105 - The Pathfinder and Expanding Appearance
Another method to creating different shapes and compound paths is to use the pathfinder panel in Illustrator. Quickly add, subtract, divide and much more to the objects on your artboard. Then remember to expand the object for maximum editability. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 104 - Compund Paths and Type
Compound paths can get kind of tricky when dealing with type, or other objects that may have already been included in a compound path themselves. In this episode we’ll take a look at a couple examples of tricky situations and how to work around them to get the result we’re looking for. Try GoToMeeting for 45 [...]

AppClinic 103 - Navigating Tables in InDesign
Getting around in tables to manipulate data isn’t always the easiest of tasks. It can actually be a very time consuming process to populate table cells, so here are a few tips to get you moving more quickly. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 102 - What… No Image Ready CS3?!
That’s right, Image Ready is no more as of CS3, so how can you make a simple, image-based navigation in Photoshop. Sadly, you now need Dreamweaver to aide you in this process, but its still very simple. Watch to find out how! Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 101 - InDesign Typography Shortcuts
Here are some keys commands you need to know to speed up your typographic functions in InDesign. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 100 - Optimizing Images for the Web
Here are some of the steps I go through to get my images to a small size yet still looking good for insertion into web pages. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 99 - Addons for Firefox
A couple episodes ago, we talked about retrieving windows or sessions in Firefox. Well one of our viewers Matt Petrowsky one upped me and suggested a better way to do it with an addon (thanks Matt)! Check this out as well as one of my favorite addons that is a must-have for web designers and [...]

AppClinic 98 - Vector Magic
Check out this online resource Free for anyone to use. It claims to vectorize all bitmapped images and actually does a pretty darn good job if you ask me. you can find the site here: Vector Magic. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 97 - Retrieve Windows in Firefox
Here’s an interesting, kind of obscure tip that can help you in times of disaster and can also be used to your advantage. iIf you want to save windows in Firefox, but don’t really want to bookmark every page, watch this episode. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 96 - Depth of Field and Making the Subject Pop
Using masks and filters in Photoshop we can use a could quick and easy techniques to create a sense of depth of field and really make the subject of a photo pop off the page! Check out the video for more details. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 95 - Masking in After Effects
A key component to animations and effects is masking. In this episode we’ll take a look at some of the basics of masking and how it can be used to create different desired effects! Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 94 - Simple Animations in After Effects
Here are the basics for getting some images moving around in After Effects. You’ll notice the functionality is very close to Photoshop which will open up a world of possibilities to you! Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 93 - Picking and Converting Colors
We’ll take a look at CMYK colors versus Pantone or other spot colors and how the differ. converting from one to another can be tricky too, so we’ll discuss the best methods for doing so. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 92 - Quicktips and Key Commands for InDesign
Here’s just a short one with a few key commands that will come in handy when trying to get things done quickly. Nothing world changing here, but a few items you may find useful in your daily routine. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start your free trial today.

AppClinic 91 - Unlocking Master Page Items in InDesign
The easiest way to make a consistent layout, with items or text boxes showing up in the same areas, is to place them on the master page. the problem is that it may seem that these items are not selectable if not on the master page itself. We’ll look at one of the best InDesign [...]

AppClinic 90 - Type Effects - Picture Masking
Here’s another topic from one of our forum members. We’ll take a look at how to make a type effect where an image shows through where the type is, but nowhere else. This is accomplished by altering the text and using clipping masks and layers masks. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts to start [...]

AppClinic 89 - Favicon Creation
Ever want to know how to create and post those little icons that show up in the address bar of the browser? You’re in luck. In this episode we’ll cover how to create and export a favicon from Photoshop and get it placed on your server for proper display. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit [...]

AppClinic 88 - Make a Grid of Frames out of One in InDesign
Create the “TV” effect of one image being created by several frames lined up, but do it in just a few easy steps. Using a javascript function that is included with the software, we can split one frame into several in one click and make the job much easier on ourselves. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! [...]

AppClinic 87 - Coloring in Illustrator with Live Paint
If you need to quickly illustrate a picture and color it, and you don’t have time to make 50 layers of closed path objects, this is the tool for you. In minutes you can throw down some open paths, make them a live paint object and start dropping in colors! Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit [...]

AppClinic 86 - Web Forms that Work
Creating a form in html is one thing, but getting the back end set up so that information that users enter gets back to you is quite another. With the use of a php script, you can simplify the process and have a plain text email sent to you each time a user submits their [...]

AppClinic 85 - Get Jingy!
Jing is a cool new project from the folks at TechSmith, and at least right now, its absolutely FREE! record your screen like I do on this podcast, snap screenshots and send it all to an online account for easy access and distribution. You have to check this out! Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit [...]

AppClinic 84 - Export from InDesign to High-Res PDF
Things seem to be going the way of the PDF, so how do we set up our documents to export with the correct settings for the printer? Well, this is actually a question for the printer, but today we’ll look at a good example for this very thing. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/techpodcasts [...]

AppClinic 83 - Multiple Import with InDesign CS3
Gone are the days of importing one image at a time into your picture frames. Now with InDesign CS3, you can import multiple images, as well as text documents, pdfs and even other InDesign documents. Cut your workflow down and avoid the annoyances of repetitive tasks. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/podcast to start [...]

AppClinic 82 - Add Sound FX to Your Flash Button with Actionscript 2.0
Building of the rollover button we made in the last episode, we will change a few lines of code to make the animation match the new sound fx and add a few more lines of code to attach the sounds and fire them off on the rollover and click of the button. Try GoToMeeting for 45 [...]

AppClinic 81 - Simple Button Rollovers with Flash & Actionscript 2.0
Flash buttons have become very popular for the fact that you can get very creative with the animations triggered by rollovers. In this episode we’ll set the stage for button rollovers using a simple animation sequence and Actionscript 2.0 to control the interaction. This will give you the skill set you need to take it [...]

AppClinic 80 - Addition by Subtraction with Eraser Tools
These are two of my new favorite tools added to Illustrator CS3. The Eraser Tool and the Path Eraser Tool allow you to erase sections of objects or paths as if they were made of pixels, but the best part is that they remain in vector format! Simply use the tool to paint away unwanted [...]

A New Home for Quicktips
This is the new name and home for the Quicktips for designers podcast/screencast. I decided that there were too many podcasts using the name ‘Quicktips’ and I was no longer going to be one of them. If you were subscribed to the feed…nothing to worry about. The feed is not going to change, so you will [...]

Quicktips 79 - Straight Along the Horizon
Check out this great tutorial borrowed from an excellent book: The Photoshop CS2 Speed Clinic, by Matt Kloskowski. If you ever notice a problem in a photo of the lines or horizon not being quite straight enough, you can use this very quick technique to correct the issue and ’straighten things out.’ Try GoToMeeting for [...]

Quicktips 78 - CSS navigation made easy
Table and image-based navigation are still widely used and accepted, but they have their downsides in terms of loading time and compatibility with search engine bots. The navigation of the future is built using a simple unordered list and CSS styles. In this episode we’ll look at a quick and easy way to buld a [...]

Quicktips 77 - Mactips 5 - Get Out of the Finder
Some of these you may know some you may not, but all these tips can help you get out of the OS and back into the project at hand. Don’t waste time messing with finding files when you could already be working on them. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/podcast to start your free trial [...]

Quicktips 76 - The Glyph Panel
If you’re not using this panel already, you need to be. Combined with Open Type faces, this panel opens up a lot of possibilities in your typography. Use alternate characters, get quick access to fraction, symbols, dingbats and more. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/podcast to start your free trial today.

Quicktips 75 - KnowHow in Illustrator
Here are a couple panels you may have skipped over in Illustrator CS3 that you definitely don’t want to miss. Grab color groups from the web and drag them right into your swatches panel, or get your questions answered right from within the Illustrator UI! Go to Window > Adobe Labs > Kuler and KnowHow. Try [...]

Quicktips 74 - Photoshop Panoramas
Use the new Auto-Align Layers and Auto-Blend Layers functions in CS3 to get fast, easy and amazing results when turning multiple images into one panoramic picture. Learn how in this episode. Try GoToMeeting for 45 days! Visit www.GoToMeeting.com/podcast to start your free trial today.

Quicktips 73 - How To Get Quicktips on your iPod!
A couple of ‘hot ticket’ items in this podcast. The two questions I get most on a consistent basis are: “How can I watch Quicktips on my video iPod”, and “Where can I find the old, archived episodes that are no longer on the feed?” In this episode, both of these questions are answered, and [...]

Quicktips 72 - Save Styles in Illustrator
Learn how to create and save styles that are comparable to those you may use in Photoshop. Which way is easier? That’s for you to decide, but know that you can actually create many different effects and styles in the vector-based application! This episode is brought to you by GoToMeeting.

Quicktips 71 - Save Selections in Illustrator
Yup, you can do that. Its not exactly like Photoshop, but if you ever need to make a selection of several objects or line segments, and need to do it over and again, this is a great feature to know. This episode is brought to you by GoToMeeting.

Quicktips 70 - Make Quick Work with Step & Repeat
Use this feature of Illustrator to speed up a process that could have taken you much longer. Produce multiple copies of an object and tweak the position, rotation, scale and more! This episode is brought to you by GoToMeeting.

Quicktips 69 - Text Wrap, Runaround and Breaking All the Rules
Here’s a problem you might encounter in your layouts that is very easy to cure, provided you know where to find the solution. Watch this and you will! This episode is brought to you by GoToMeeting.

Quicktips 68 - Masking in Flash
Learn how to make a couple different animations using two masking techniques, namely animating an object into a mask, and animating the mask itself. Both are basic concept that can be taken a step further to create 1000’s of effects. This episode is brought to you by GoToMeeting.

Coming Soon!
This is the new home of the former “Quicktips for designers” video tutorial screencast. (Don’t worry, it won’t look like this!) If you find this, you’re one of the first to know! Details will be coming soon via the Quicktips and Rookie Designer podcasts.

Quicktips 67 - Mactips 04 - Make a custom system icon
The much awaited icon creation episode is here! We’ll see how to use Iconographer and Photoshop to make a custom icon that can be used to replace icons on folders, applications and more… This episode is brought to you by GoToMeeting

Quicktips 66 - Photoshop CS3 Extended 3-D Feature Set
This is a quick look at what is available to you in terms of 3-D tools and functionality in the new Photoshop CS3 Extended version. If you did not follow along in the last episodes you may want to go back and create a model in Google Sketch Up, or find another 3-D model to [...]

Quicktips 65 - Google Sketch Up Intro
Here is a little tutorial to get you going in Google Sketch Up so you can make some 3-D objects. Next week we’ll import these objects into Photoshop CS3 Extended and check out the new 3-D features just added! This episode is brought to you by GoToMeeting.

Quicktips 64 - Improvements to Illustrator CS3
In this episode we’ll take a look at a couple reasons you might want to upgrade to the new CS3 version of Illustrator. They finally got it right and have allowed us to play with the size of the points and control handles associated with paths. See how to change the settings and how it [...]

Quicktips 63.5 - Adding Strokes to Text Revisited
Special Thank You to pj, who sent me an even better work-around for the “adding strokes to your text” issue. Its a good one!

Quicktips 63 - Adding Strokes to Text
Use this mini workaround to get good looking strokes on your text without ruining it! This episode is brought to you by GoToMeeting.

Quicktips 62 - Typography Tips: Aligning Text
Learn how to use Tabs, Align to Here and Tables to align your text exactly the way you want it. This episode is brought to you bt GoToMeeting.

Quicktips 61 - JavaScripting InDesign
Javascript in InDesign? Yup, much like plugins you can install javascripts that will increase the functionality of your program and help speed up that workflow. Its easier than it sounds, see how here! This episode is brought to you by GoToMeeting.