You could have a raster button, simply do a selection and use the of set command, it’s what i’ve been doing all along, it’s a couple of steps but does a way better job.

Stuff like this is the main reason I think any designer who is designing for web should know basic HTML/CSS etc. It just makes it that much easier for the developer since you’re naturally thinking ahead to development stages when you’re designing.

I couldn’t agree more with this article from the points of thinking the design through before trying to slice and dice it into html and css. I have found myself often going back to a design and changing it because I couldn’t pull the desired look off in html and css.

Organization of the layout file is also key, when you come back to a site months or weeks later and need to make changes. I’ve often had to change designs because of needing to move navigation menus/methods or changing color schemes drastically.

I’ve also been on the other side where I’ve had to make site templates out of PSD files that have been generated by students who have no experience with creating designs for the web and may not understand even 2% of what you can do with html and css.

Don’t even get me started on browser compatibility issues and keeping that awesome looking design, looking awesome, from photoshop. Half the time I can get a design looking good in IE, only to find it breaks in Firefox, Chrome, Safari, or I can get it looking good in these but have it break in IE or even among IE versions.

Having coders and designers that can work in teams is good, and sometimes I wish I had someone to work with on projects. But having the knowledge of what can and can’t be done from both sides of the fence is key at times too.

Nice site, i’ve only just come across it!

Every point mentioned has a different story all the time..with designers who have no idea of even basic coding or slicing..

Thats one of the main reasons, layouts + slicing is done by the designer itself. So that when they are exporting the content, they have an idea what mistakes they have done and how will it affect the front end team.

And due to these reasons, the criteria of hiring designers is with basic knowledge of html and css coding, and same goes for front end developers as well.

I truly believe this is the ideal situation when working in teams.

Cheers

Ok.
Now.
I see where you are coming from about designers not knowing any coding. I have to deal with such a designer, giving us 300ppi Illustrator documents and such.

A true Web designer cannot be just a print designer. There is SO much to Web design that is very different than pint. Things that you are talking about, usability, flow, screen vs paper, and all the other many many factors that goes along with getting something usable in a browser.
It is simply impossible to be a Web designer without knowing about the Web.

Now, to take a look at the other side, when a designer says that “such and such font” or shadow or gradient is crucial to the design, it is very true. Truly ‘awesome’ design pays attention to every little detail, pixel, letter-space, font size, white space, flow, the list goes on and on and on. Amazing design is an incredibly hard thing because there are so many factors that cannot be left out.

So there needs to be a middle ground between the coder and designer where there is a lot of weight on the designer.

Designers need to know basic XHTML and CSS to understand what is feasible and what isn’t. Coders need to understand that there is enormous depth in design and work with designers to place all of the elements of the design on the page.

@Marnie B – the problem there is when they know better and don’t listen, it makes you feel like i don’t give a steamy pile of “spaghetti” about you and the project

@Craig Watkins – i’ve been there also, and i still am, but i have the coding pov that helps me not make a mess, and know how to organize the layout prior to delivering it

Great article. We often get layered PSD’s sent to us to convert and it’s a real pain when the designer has focused on making it pretty rather than thinking about how it will actually work on the web.