Dan Kittay

My main work these days is as a Web site designer and developer. I work with businesses of all sizes, from sole proprietors to multinational megacorporations (well, I would work with multinationals if they hired me to). I've been doing this work for about 8 years.

Much of my earlier background is in journalism. I've spent more than 20 years as a writer and editor, and still do some writing for publications such as the Business Review. I believe this experience has made me a better Web designer. Here's why:

I see a Web site as an article about a business or artist. It tells the story of what this business is, what products or services it offers, how to contact it, and any other relevant information. With my journalism background, I'm trained to ask all the right questions to get all of that information. And then just like a reporter, I take that information and present it so that a mass audience can easily understand it.

There's more to a Web site than just writing an article, of course. There needs to be pages, and links, and there has to be a logical flow to the information. I like to sit at the screen with a client's proposed Web site and pretend that I know nothing about this business. Can I find what I want without having to click down too many layers? If I'm on a particular page, what's the logical page I'd want to get to next, and can I get there easily from here? Ease of use goes a long way toward a visitor having a positive experience on your site.

And of course I handle all the other stuff that goes with a site these days, from e-commerce to database integration and interactive forms.

In addition to the Business Review, I also write for the American Bar Association's Bar Leader magazine, where I write on technology issues. I also edit an online newsletter called Bar Executive. My Web site is at www.kittaynewmedia.com

When not earning a living, I have a variety of activities that hold my interest. I play electric bass and guitar, and am always looking for new people to play with. I recently got a pinball machine for my birthday, and have had fun playing it and learning how to maintain and repair it. I'm in the middle of two video projects: one is taking all my family's old 8mm movies and digitizing them onto my Mac and editing them to create a DVD. I also have a hobby of taking videos and photos of trains in different settings around the country. I've been assembling all the footage to edit it into a DVD as well.