This is post #1
It gives an introduction to the new site. I briefly go over what I use in the creation of the site and its various contents. I intend to write more in-depth posts about my techniques and tools in the future, but this is a start.

Here’s a few of the core applications I use for media production:

I work with Adobe for all my graphic and web design. Most of the time I use Photoshop, Flash, and Dreamweaver. I use Newtek SpeedEdit for editing video, and LightWave 3D for animation and compositing. For audio production I primarily use Ableton Live, various plugins and hardware.

Along with this blog section, I have integrated my flash portfolio and flash audio pages, which can be reached using the top right navigation. The portfolio page was built last year and acts as an overview of my current projects. it includes graphics, a demo reel, and my resume.  The audio page was launched back in 2002 at beytah.com and has evolved over time to include easter eggs, games and other randomness. Check it out and you’ll see what I mean. There’s music videos, downloads, links, and an image gallery.

I use wordpress as the CMS for this site, and I found that problems adapting it into a portfolio were easy to solve. There are various plugins available for wordpress and a codex of information that is invaluable. Web design has an active  community of people online sharing their knowledge for free. You can google any question you have about a topic like wordpress and get a valid answer. There’s a wealth of knowledge online to tap into. That’s one of the things I love about web design.

The sliding contact form at the bottom of the page uses  JQuery and the wordpress plugin Secure Form Mailer. Other wordpress plugins used in this site include Kimili Flash Embed for easy embedding of flash elements, Favicon Manager for, well, managing favicons, Sociable for social linking thumbnails, and Login LockDown for security.

The nifty MP3 player and oscilloscope at the bottom of the page is coded in actionscript 3 using two tutorials. The player is from Paul at ClockPopMedia, and here is the link to that tutorial. The oscilloscope is from Lee Brimelow’s tutorials at gotoAndLearn. That video tutorial is located here.