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Google Web Designer launches in beta, available now as a free download
Back in June, Google's advertising arm put up a blog post, letting us know it was about to release an HTML5 development tool, called Google Web Designer. Well, it's just arrived today, per a post on Google's own G+ account, and it's available in beta as a free download. Throughout, the tool appears to cater to both seasoned coders, as well as amateurs looking to try their hand at web design (or looking to get it done on a budget). For instance, while you could tweak the code by hand, there's also an option to let Google focus on the HTML5 and CSS3 grunt work while you focus on... the easier stuff (whatever that is). Likewise, you can animate individual elements using layers or, if you don't know what you're doing, you can just animate scene by scene and let Google fill in the blanks. Additionally, you'll find a suite of 3D rendering tools inside, along with illustration features. As for monetizing your site, Google Web Designer naturally integrates with Google's own AdMob and DoubleClick Studio -- no surprise there. At any rate, if you feel like getting your hands dirty with code, you'll want to hit up that second source link below.
Holiday savings for designers with the Fusion Ads Holiday Bundle
The holidays have become rife with software bundles, bringing big savings to consumers (when there are enough apps in the bundle you don't already own). Fusion Ads is offering a bundle that will be of particular interest to designers. It's especially pertinent to web designers, but any designer who doesn't already own some of the included apps would be wise to take a look! The bundle includes seven Mac applications, plus a copy of the popular CMS, ExpressionEngine and related training products. It also includes credits for Postmark, an email marketing service, some icon packs and the Keynote Wireframe Toolkit for putting together web designs in Keynote. The Mac apps in the bundle include Versions, FontCase, Billings, DrawIt, ExpanDrive, TextExpander and Kaleidoscope (a slick app I'll be reviewing soon). Check out the Fusion Ads Holiday Bundle page for descriptions and links for all of the included apps, services and icons. The bundle will cost you US$79, with a total value of US$626, according to Fusion. That's some serious savings on some really great apps, and there are only 11 days left to grab it. People who purchase the bundle are also entered in a drawing for a MacBook Air, and those who gift the bundle can win a 16 GB Wi-Fi iPad. It's worth a peek!
