Good design, bad HTML

[ali_420]

I've found a pretty good designer for an upcoming project. The guy is great, but the problem is, although he is great at coming up with a pretty design, he can't code in HTML so he uses dreamweaver to design his sites. As a result, the pages aren't valid HTML, and since I'm going to be doing some heavy javascript and AJAX in the site, that dreamweaver generated HTML just won't do it.

Should I have him just design the site in photoshop, and then pay someone proficient with CSS and XHTML to slice the images in html? Does anyone have any experience of doing this this way, and will the resulting pages look as good as they do in the screenshots?

[RyanJonPilling]

There is a certain knack to slicing a web design by hand, but it's easy for those with experience.

It's all about understanding how best to fit it together in such a way that it minimizes the pieces, and stretches in the right places, and doesn't show any gaps when re-sized, and, and, and...

When done properly, though, you should be able to get pretty much any desired result. So, within reason, anything that resembles a website in Photoshop can be sliced and assembled in HTML.

-Ryan

[jeet]

It can be done but the photoshop image you provide must be big and clear. I have seen images where it's difficult to even figure out the colors in headers, specially if using gradient...

[cimmeron]

maybe you could have him slice it up and provide it in a basic html page and have someone redo it? once it's sliced up correctly, the coder should be able to take it from there.

[BinkyMelnik]

ali_420:

Should I have him just design the site in photoshop, and then pay someone proficient with CSS and XHTML to slice the images in html?

Yes. The two activities involve different halves of the brain (the right side is arty; the left is technical), and I've never understood people who expect folks to be both. Most aren't. Let him make it look pretty, and let someone with the know-how put it together so that it works properly.

(Programmers typically build ugly sites but they work nicely; artists make pretty sites you can't use.)

[wulf2001]

I'm pretty good at slicing by hand. I always do it that way in image ready. I could take a look at it for you and see what I can do.

[AntNE00]

Well if you are doing javascript have him do the photoshop work if he wants to and then find someone who knows Javascript or watever code you wanna use. To be brutally honest dont expect him to give you a good deal on the design he may charge you a sweet penny for it. Thats just how people can be

[AntNE00]

Also What are you using javascript for with this site.?