First news coverage for Quip-Art

It's great to get a little attention after spending so much time on a new project. Today, John Cook took the time to write a very nice post about Quip-Art on TechFlash.

As John asked me, I'm not really sure if there is a business in this, but I find it entertaining, and most people I show it to are really amused by it. I have two hopes for the site now:

1. I'd love Quip-Art to become the regular habit of people who regularly share links. I find it so much more engaging to see someone's image and commentary on top of a web page, than to just have a dry link through a standard link shortener.


2. I know there are folks out there with mad-skills who can make funnier and prettier images than I have. My hope is that more artists and designers will upload some original art into our Gallery.
   

Tips for Making High Quality Quip-Art Overlays

1. Take advantage of transparent and semi-transparent images - Note that JPEG images can't be used for this; only GIF and PNG formats will work. PNG is better than GIF because you can have partial transparency; I use a 30% transparent black shadow under many of my images which makes them appear like they are hovering over the underlying page in 3-D.


2. Decide which corner of the screen you want your image - For the "voice bubble" images, I anchor them to the bottom right or bottom left corner. But if you want the image to line up with an element on a page, "top" positioning is best. This will center the image at the top initially, but you can drag it down the page or off to one side or the other. Since most web pages are centered on the screen, this will ensure that your image will be aligned properly no matter what the screen size of your readers.


3. Add a text overlay - Some images can speak for themselves. But I've found that while not everyone has the talent or time to craft a unique piece of art to upload, they really enjoy being able to personalize your artwork with their own message. After you upload your image, just click the "Text Overlay" button. You can then position the yellow rectanlge to precisely align the area where users will be able to type text over your image.


4. Use Sound and Delay - You can have an audio file play at the same time that your image appears. Just fill in the web address of an mp3 file, or use Entertonement.com to find an appropriate sound clip. For added surprise or suspense, you can delay the display of the image to 3 or 10 seconds after the underlying page is loaded.

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