Many
people have asked me how I've made my interfaces so I decided to write up this
tutorial. You can view many of my old
interfaces here.
1. First you should make a mental plan or a
sketch of the interface you plan to create.
Keep in mind that your interface should match the style of your page.
Plan out the way you want your buttons to be organized, including how many
there will be.
*Also keep in mind that its a good idea to design your interface in a way
that will let you add or remove buttons in the future without having to
completely re-design your interface.
2. The easiest way to start off on your
interface is to use the Circle or Rectangle shape creator.
This shows the basic Idea of the Interface I wish to create:
The = Sign shows
where I plan to put buttons.
The
"1" Shows the section which will contain most of the buttons
The
"2" Shows where I plan to add a special button for my Email
address
When Creating an Interface, The shapes most used are Circles and Squares,
The following table shows how some shapes can be created:
GREEN =
Rectangles RED = Circles
This shows the basics of creating a pill shape. 1 Square
combined with a circle at the top and
bottom.
GREEN = Rectangles
RED
= Circles
This shows a more complex shape made with 4 circles and 2
rectangles.
3. Next after you have the basic shape (as shown
in the first picture) you must now plan what kind of textures, colors, and
bevel's will be used and where they will be put.
For This Interface, I decided to to apply a smooth paper texture
with a smooth bevel for the front.
4. Finally, create buttons of your choice, and
apply them in the style you want. I like to save a separate spot on the
Interface for an email button as shown below:
Circle or Rectangle shape creator.
