The short version
- Matt Hill, born in Brighton, England, now in London
- Focussed on accessible and usable web design
- Standards compliant web designer since 2001
- Designing interfaces since 1994
- Expert in cross browser XHTML/CSS
- Mainly uses Wordpress to deliver blogs and websites
- Self employed since August 2007
The long version
My name’s Matt Hill and I am a freelance web designer. I grew up in the seaside resort of Brighton in England and lived and worked there for nearly 35 years until moving to London in June 2007.
Early career
I’ve worked in digital media since 1990. I started in desk top publishing, producing training materials for American Express and since then, I’ve had a career in the design and production of multimedia eLearning and I’m now a standards-compliant web designer.
The eLearning career was mainly spent working as a multimedia designer for Maxim Training, a management skills training company (now defunct). I developed eLearning CD-ROMs using the Macromedia tool, Authorware (now also defunct!). In 1997, as the Web began to become mainstream, the company switched to browser-based delivery of courses, so I learned HTML.
Lightbulb moment
Around 2001 I started to learn about web standards, accessibility and good usability. Something clicked! I realised this was the way forward and I knew wanted to make websites that simply worked. At the time, so many sites didn’t work and I knew I could do better. But I continued to work in eLearning for another three years while honing my webskills in my spare time.
In 2003 I decided to go freelance which I did for a year, before returning to full time employment with the web agency Nixon McInnes in 2004, as a designer and front-end coder. Here I established in-house standards for accessible, semantic front-end coding. A great place to work, with a unique company culture, it gave me a wonderful opportunity to improve my skills.
For a more detailed view of my employment history, check out my LinkedIn Profile.
Going solo
In April 2007 I made the decision to leave Nixon McInnes, to take a consultancy role at HSBC in London. After three months acting as a usability/accessibility consultant, I decided I wanted to return to web design by working for myself and so I set out on my own. Frisk design is the result: a one man web design company aiming to build usable, accessible websites for everyone.
Philosophy
I believe passionately that the web should be usable by all and I love to think about the little details that make this happen: Does this button work if Javascript is switched off? How does this page look if images don’t show up? What happens to the design of the site if the text size is changed?
Building sites like this requires a particular philosophy: Respect the user.
Respecting the user is about knowing how different users might use your site. Not everyone has a powerful PC, with a large screen. Not all users have perfect vision. Many can’t use a mouse or keyboard. Every person has a different set of needs when it comes to using the web, and if you know this, you can build a site that everyone can use.
I currently focus on the following areas of web design and development:
- Hand coding XHTML & CSS layouts to the highest standards of accessibility
- Graphic design of web interfaces
- Consultancy on web accessibility
- Designing and building Wordpress based sites
I try to keep my site designs simple and functional. There is elegance and beauty in simplicity, and this translates to a better experience for the user.
Play
I’m simply an arty geek: I’ve always tinkered with creative stuff, whether it be painting, model making, designing computer games, making music (badly, I might add) or simply appreciating the same in others.
I’m a bit of a film nut and I love nothing better than going to an old, dark picture house to catch the latest art-house film or summer blockbuster. My current favourite cinema is The Ritzy.
I’m interested in ancient civilisations, art, photography, literature, music, computer games, comedy and environmental issues. Dislikes? Top of the list would be charity muggers, food with a face, and the modern obsession with the celebration of mediocrity.
