Tips needed on working faster yet still efficiently

[SilverLining]

I started building a site in CSS last night. My initial idea was to have a nice fluid design, but then I realised the type of site I was building doesn't really need to expand depending on resolution and would look much better just having a fixed width. I know I am doing this totally the wrong way round (usually I start off with the PSDs), but with it being a small site I took a different (and wrong) approach.

Daily I strive to work faster and to get things done quicker, but I find that I keep thinking "I am taking too long..." or waisting time getting something to look perfect. This thread is aimed at the professionals out there who can give the rest of us some tips on working faster, yet still being productive. Thanks.

[rocknbil]

I too struggle with this. Often I even shut off the clock, and ponder on my own . . . explore better ways of doing things which often lead to dead ends, but in doing so, I learn what does not work . . . and store that knowledge for next time.

I cannot offer strong solutions other than one: learn when to let go. You've put your time in, and what you've learned will contribute to faster, more accurate production in the future.

We watched The Libertine the other night, although it's a horribly self-indugent movie, it offered one grain of advice that stuck:

(That) any experiment of interest in life will be carried out at your own expense. Mark it well.

[weeks]

It's tough to follow rock's advice, but let's go back to the fourth grade for a moment and rediscover the outline.

When you start a project, you start working on the ending first, especially when it's of keen interest to you. I mean, that's why you're doing it--to get finished. Soooooo, we do not plan.

An outline of steps to be taken seems to slow things down, but as you learned, having all of the basic questions answered (who, what, when, where, how, how much, how big, why. etc.) saves time and improves quality.

So, what I try to do is have this form I fill out where I have to answer all of these questions, but I answer them with that "final vision" in my mind, so I'm emotionally where I want to be. Then, with the outline in front of me, I am forced to go to work in an organized way.

On the form, I have a big white space where I draw a picture of what I'm going after. I can't draw, so it's pretty sad. Around it I have questions. Many don't need answers on some projects. Also, I have a line for dates. I hate this. I date when I start, when I should have each question answered. Thus, as I move through the project, I learn how clueless I am about how much time something takes.

With an outline, as your fourth grade teacher explained, you move faster and efficiently.

[chocorol]

Thus, as I move through the project, I learn how clueless I am about how much time something takes.

That's true, I've been working for 6 months on a project that was supposed to take only 3 and there are a lot of things to be done.

Think it would have been faster if I had a project plan since the beginning. It's better to do things from a checklist so you always know how much you've done and how much is left to be done.. and it motivates to keep on ;)

[SilverLining]

Thanks guys. By the way, you don't have to be "professional" to partake in this thread as I mentioned before. rocknbil, I do find that starting over is often better than to keep trying, so I agree with you there. I might even make time to watch The Libertine...

[rocknbil]

LOL . . . I think that line was the best part of it. :-)

[shigamoto]

Everything doesn't have to be perfect, as long as it works and doesn't look too bad it¨s a go. Sure there are some tasks that require more attention than others, but don't waste time on getting everything perfect.

[httpwebwitch]

once you get a good handle on CSS, you will find it shortens your development time.

The first few projects might take longer than you like while you figure out how to do things in CSS, but after a while you'll accumulate an arsenal of good reuseable CSS snippets that you can quickly throw into other projects. For instance, you'll find good reuseable ways to style a menu, breadcrumbs, footer, 2-column layouts, pararaphs, callouts, etc.

Simple semantic HTML is very easy to assemble. Rigorous use of CSS lets you spend less time cramming your content into complex layouts, and more time twekaing and fussing over precious details.

I start every project with 3 things: a site map, a functional spec, and (after that) a layered PSD layout. Even as I'm designing the interface graphically, I already know what the HTML will look like and how I will render it with CSS.

The biggest time saving technique I can recommend is intelligent use of server-side includes. Keeping reused elements encapsulated with SSI will save you a lot of time and make your site far easier to maintain.