So many people gave to Project:Love Kristina and I thank all of you, from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for blessing my family.

I ran a contest on Dribbble to raise awareness for her need. Of all the amazing artistic submissions out there, three stood out to me. One, because it was the winner by lead in votes (not to say it wasn’t great as well), one because of it’s artistic style and another because it went above and beyond a 400×300 piece: the artist made a print piece that will be framed and hung on my sister’s wall in her new home. First place goes to the winner by votes, second to the one of my choosing, and the third place I added because I felt the artist’s piece to be so good, I needed to make a third place.

Without further ado, I’d like to announce the two winners, and surprise third place winner :)

First Place: Jake Dugard

Second Place: Tim Boelaars

Third Place: MC Baldassari

Check out all of the other entries

You can see all of the other amazing entries here. Mad props to Matthias Dietrich of Rainboxx for building the page to aggregate all of the contest entries.

Prizes are announced on Dribbble here. Feel free to at reply or DM me on Twitter to receive your prizes!

Zootool

Oh business! Three days in a row!?! I’m starting to ooze awesome. Today, I’ll add one new icon to my social media icon set. Why Zootool? Because people voted for it here and tweeted the poo out of it.

Download the updated pack!

Playstation

Woohoo! Two days in a row!?! I can’t believe it. Today, I’ll add one new icon to my social media icon set. I decided to add Playstation for selfish reasons. So there. I can do that.

If you feel like theres an icon you need for your network, feel free to indicate so in the comments or vote on this poll.

Download the updated pack!

With any new decision leading you into unknown territory, I wanted some solid advice. I want to do this right and I want to pull on other’s experiences as much as I possibly can. In a single income home with a wife and two tots depending on me, it’s important to make smart decisions.

Being the Twitter tool, that I am, I figured I’d poll the masses to see what sort of advice they had. I found much of the advice people had to be very helpful, so I figured you might too.

Advice on Self Employment:

Believe God! Adam Souders

Don’t give up, be versatile, & understand you’re going to work harder at the beginning than you ever have. But it’s SO worth it! Kenny Adams

Work hard, play harder. Kenroy George

Stay organized. It is easy to start out organized, the hard part is staying that way. emoxie

don’t be afraid to charge what you deserve. Don’t think you won’t earn it – you will. Harlan Lewis

Don’t set your rate too low. :)Josh Bryant

Always schedule time in every week to market yourself. The second you stop is also the stop of income. Darren Emory

Be like Dory (Finding Nemo): Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming. Collin Robinson

Get a routine in the hours you work, file storage, the way you do backup, project management and todo-lists. Ole Martin

Treat it like a job. Set hours whether it’s 9 -5 or Midnight – 8 w/ breaks & everything & get ur own workspace w/o distractions Samuel Mateo, Jr.

Try to be consistent with your lunch break and make sure you take your time especially if your’re working from home Jamie Bicknell

Always get up, shower, get dressed, just like you would at a “normal job.” Also, beware taxes – prepare early! Dave Simon

Make a sharp distinction between your “office” and your “home”, if they are the same place. Laurent Bauman

Exercise. And if working from home, a mutual understanding of expectations with the rest of your family. Chris Bowler

Trust your gut- don’t take projects you have a bad feeling about. Stay disciplined about your work schedule. Get outta the house. Jason Reed

Routine and Records. Aaron Mahnke

Always use a contract for everything that you do. John Phillips

Remember to have a quitting time, and make sure you close the door. Vacation. Important for friends and family, very hard to do. Audrey Sargent

Always get 50% up front. Don’t low-ball your rates. Keep overhead low (only buy what you NEED). Always use a contract. Chuck Mallott

Use Billings. Joseph McLaughlin

Log every minute you work, whether for a client or not. Greg Newman

Watch the savings account. Keep that puppy padded. You will never know what may come. Joshua Brewer

1) Make customer service a priority. It’s amazing what a good name can do for your business. 2) Drink lots of water Gedy Rivera

Keep focused and work on a schedule. Fight the distractions. Tom Jenkins

A decent coffee machine and a proper pair of slippers. Tom Law

Be reasonable to your customers and fair to yourself. Oh and just because you’re customers don’t see you still have to change your underwear regularly.Ed DeCoste

It is not about the money…it is about your reputation. Always! Always, do the right thing! James Larson

Remember not to just be Techie. You are at least 3 people now – Marketing, Scheduling, Financials – Receivables. Take a few minutes each day to wear just one of these hats and do it justice. And always remember your commitment to your family. Balance and keep your integrity. The rest will follow, hopefully within your timeframe. Rick Watts

Give yourself a raise! Chris Larson

Go to work @ work time. But be home @ home time. Guard your schedule! Cory Cummings

Have a plan in place to get new clients. Even if you are getting them initially hand over fist…don’t neglect new biz efforts. Suzanne Elfstrom

Don’t have a business partner – Unless you are both willing to work the business equally, using your individual talents. Elizabeth Wilson

Write things down.Thad Haines

Don’t accept every client that comes knocking. Josh King

File all proper paperwork with state and local government. Partial payments up front. Close eyes on monies owed to you. Keep EVERYTHING for tax returns. Christine Kringle

Thanks!

To everyone involved in my employment, thank you for this advice.

It’s time. I’m doing it. I will be joining the self-employed as of the new year. That’s right, Komodo Media is opening it’s doors for full-time design work as of now. Mark your calendars because world domination begins now.

What does this mean for Komodo Media?

First of all, things around here are gonna change. What does that mean? Well dude, I’m glad you asked. First of all, I’ll be joining the ranks of many other individuals in creating meaningful content for the web with one post a week in Project 52 (by the way, follow Anton Peck now for this great idea). That’s right. That means more posts, more tutorials and more random hilarity for you.

Sweet beloved ptarmigans, am I gonna lose the jungle?

Yes, Komodo Media is in for a redesign. The jungles will be going. Don’t worry, I haven’t abandoned my love for jungles or toucans for that matter, but things will change. You’ve all seen a little bit of what is in the works for Komodo Media, but you’ve not seen what that really means or what that looks like.

What else is coming this year?

In addition to more posts and a new face, Komodo Media will begin selling rad t-shirts and hats (send your ideas to me), icon sets and more. Maybe you’ll see a totally nerdy, yet awesome web application put out by Komodo this year.

Will you be available for work?

Totally. So for all you clients that have tried to contact me regarding design work and I have been unavailable, things are different now — Papa’s got a brand new bag.

Happy New Year.

Before unveiling the new identity for Komodo Media incarnation five, let’s take a trip down memory lane by looking at the previous evolutions of the almighty Komodo Media logo:

Version 1: The Reptilian Head

Komodo Media version 1 reptilian head logo

There’s a reason this isn’t my logo anymore. Most people thought that this was some form of funky microphone, even though I insisted that it was a digital reptile head. Yeah…no. This didn’t really work out, however if I were to remove the digital tongue, I think that it would have been a whole lot stronger.

The text however, was really where it was at. I built the text my self and at the time, I really loved it. I loved all the circular shapes, however I was no font designer. That was for sure.

Version 2,3: The Stegosaurus Spine

Komodo Media versions 2 & 3 stegosaurus spine logo

Continuing in a reptilian direction, versions 2 & 3 was a much better attempt. With a few “stegosaurus” platelets and something that looked somewhat like an eye, I was fairly happy with this version. At least happy enough to keep it around for two versions of my site. I think I’ll still look back with fondness at this logo because it was during versions 2 and 3 of Komodo Media, that people started taking notice of my designs.

Version 4: The Cute, Consolidated One

Komodo Media version 4 “Cute” logo sans mark

As much as I loved having a logo mark, I always hated having to try to pair the logo text with the mark. It became a pain most of the time and I found myself really wanting an all text logo with the mark built into it. Also, the previous version looked so much like a stegosaurus’ back instead of a Komodo dragon, so it just became confusing.

This version saw a reworking of most of the characters in the text logo as well, fixing the ‘K’, which I always felt was ugly.

Version 5: Drafts

Komodo Media version 5 drafts

At this point, I really want to get away from the rounded text. It felt too cute, too ‘web 2.0′ if that even makes sense. I wanted to move away from the bubbly feeling and get to something more natural and more mature. With these drafts, I felt like many designers feel when working on a personal site design — I didn’t really know which direction I wanted to head — just somewhere new.

With the above drafts for the version 5 logo, I was trying to keep an all text logo, while incorporating some sort of reptilian feel. My goal was to remove the “cute” style and design it to be a grown up, more mature logo. Eventually, I decided against these. They ain’t bad though.

Version 5: Enso Brush Stroked

Komodo Media version 5 brush stroked logo

This is the logo that I have fell in love with. I’ve seen it in my head for months now, and it’s finally come to fruition. I think what I finally realized is that I’ve always wanted an all text logo that is totally original. I didn’t want to use any known fonts and I didn’t want it to seem like any font out there. This is why the logo was brush stroked by hand. I’ve also realized that I really wanted a logo that felt human…imperfect. Something that denied that we design using pixel perfect design tools with perfect vectors and grids. I wanted something that felt perhaps a bit unbalanced…a bit raw…a bit savage…like a Komodo Dragon.

Feedback?

I’d love some feedback on this logo. What do you think? Do you agree with me and do you love it? Not sold? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Thanks for reading.

Let’s get to the goods

I’m giving away 3 invite codes to see the ever-raved about CloudApp. This means you’ll get to peek under the hood and enjoy the luscious amazingness that is Cloud. Sorry Windows users, this is Mac OSX only :(

How do you get your grubby mitts on CloudApp you ask? Good question. Here’s how. You’ve got to answer 5 questions 1) accurately and 2) before anybody else does. If you do, the invite code is yours.

The Questions

1. After using my contact form, what animal is shown on the stamp and what malty beer was the inspiration for it?
2. What Disney movie inspires version 4 of Komodo Media?
3. What is the name of this ship?
4. Who is this?
5. What is your favorite Download that I offer?

The Invite is Over

Great job all! And the winners are:

Jaime, Bernat and Francis Lukesh

Please contact me via my contact form for your invite codes! For the record, the answers were:

1. Guinness Toucan
2. The Jungle Book OR Swiss Family Robinson
3. Y-Wing Fighter from Star Wars
4. Blossom OR Mayim Bialik
5. Anything you liked!

Thanks for playing all!

Rad

Perhaps in overuse, I’ve drug this word back up from my past. Maybe it’s my desire to see more Trapper Keepers or Grip Tape in this world. Whatever the reason, I’m sure my overuse of the word is annoying.

Use: Dude, that website is Rad
Origin: Dunno, some 80’s dude

Dudical

My little brother (in attempt to be cool like his older brother), always said “Dude, that’s Radical”. Well, it just got too hard to say those three words, hence “dudical”. Use it, don’t abuse it.

Use: Look at 360° I just pulled off. Dudical!
Origin: Derek, my brother

Este´ Dudical

A phrase derived from Dudical. Basically it is the mexican version of Dudical

Use: This taco is delicious. Este´ Dudical!
Origin: Derek, my brother

Hory Clap

The Engrish version of “Holy Crap”. Works well for when you see a stunning website or get pwnd by some n00b on Unreal Tournament.

Use: Hory Clap this hot sauce is strong!
Origin: BFF Ed and yours truly

Radtastic

Simply, Rad + Fantastic. Use sparingly, because if everything is Radtastic, then Radtastic really loses it’s meaning.

Use: Battlestar Galactica is straight-up Radtastic
Origin: Yours truly

Flend

The Engrish version of Friend. Just sounds cooler. Use it.

Use: Wanna be flends?
Origin: BFF E and yours truly

Geesh

A strange adaptation of Gosh. Honestly, it really sounds lame when I say it, but I can’t shake it. Years of idolizing my cousins’ exaggerate use of this word embedded it permanently in my lingo.

Use: Geesh, Hagrid is such a cool Harry Potter character
Origin: Unknown (learned from cousins)

N00bari

In the movie Kill Bill, there’s this chick named Gogo Yubari – and she is the opposite of a total new-b (or n00b) – she kicks total butt. In true butt-kicking style, Gogo Yubari can totally own you, making you a n00b, hence making a n00bari of you. Use this as a substitute for n00b to get the one-up on your gamer buddies. Heck, use it to get a one-up on that kid on the playground.

Use: Back off before I pwn you n00bari!
Origin: Yours truly

Freakbag

An adaptation of freak, this word implies a whole lotta freak, or a whole bag of freak. This is a great name to throw out to those friends that are such freaks, that you gotta one-up it.

Use: Whoa dude, that J-Crew scarf makes you look like a total freakbag
Origin: Yours truly

Country

Yes, this is a word. But used in the context of “cool” or “rad”, it’s a totally new use for me. I learned this from my hillbilly friend George after he spastically yelled “Country” at something that he felt was extremely cool.

Use: Hey dude, wanna go out and fish for some delicious Bass? Country!
Origin: George P. Sonnenberg

I’d love to hear about your lingo, albeit probably not as freakishly strange as mine, but then again, who knows? Let’s hear it!

• TextFlow Online Word Processing

  Pretty interesting looking online flash-based word processor.

• RegExhibit OSX Regular Expression Editor

  The OSX Regular Expression editor and debugger I’ve been looking for.

• Housing Works Beautiful design

  The design for this website is stunning. I love large background websites.

• s3slider jQuery Sliding Image Captions

  A very cool solution for image captions that lay over an image and animate in.

• Ronald Jenkees Electronic music

  One of the most original sounding solo electronic artists out there. Check out “Stay Crunchy”. I can’t wait for his new album!

• Inovat Sweet Looking Portfolio

  Incredibly simple, yet sweet looking portfolio web design.

• Enable path view in OSX Finder

  Haven’t you always wanted to display the full path to the current folder in your Finder window? In terminal, enter the following command:

  defaults write com.apple.finder _FXShowPosixPathInTitle -bool YES

  Next, enter the following code to restart your Finder:

  killall Finder

• Creative and Live Tight Minimal Design

  Really clean and tight minimal design. I love the logo and subtlety.

• Space Collective Dark Simple Design

  Beautiful dark website design. I love the typography, color scheme and the block-like grid.

• Carbonica Stunning hand-drawn style

  This site has taken hand-drawn to a new level, complete with hand-drawn icons, headings, navigation and a cool illustrative style.

• Weightbot Website Dark, smooth and metallic

  Weightbot for the iPhone/iPod was cool and so is it’s site. I love the dark, metallic, apple-like style. Gorgeous work by Mark Jardine.

• I AM SECOND Amazing, heart-felt stories

  I absolutely love real stories about what God has done in people’s lives. This site is awesome.

• jQuery Fling Subscribe/Publish event model

  Collin Allen has written a sweet jQuery plug-in that makes it easy to code JavaScript events using a publisher/subscriber model very similar to Flash.

• jCrop jQuery Image Cropping

  Very smooth jQuery image cropping plugin.

• Smooth CSS Image Resizing in IE

  I can’t believe that I’ve never seen this until now. Finally, bicubic interpolation for Internet Explorer with only one CSS rule:

  img {
-ms-interpolation-mode:bicubic;
}

  Preview:

  

• Dropbox/Leap Scrapbooking Killer online scrapbooking

  Jon Hicks has come up with a very sweet way of scrapbooking all of those screenshots that you’ve been compiling over the times. I think I’ll actually use this one.

The winners are:

• The Unlimited Video Theme Pack from Press75.com worth $295
  Travis Lehman
• 6 Months WooThemes Club Single User Subscription for from WooThemes worth $250
  Brian Feister
• WP Freedom Plan Life Time Hosting Sponsorship worth $100/year
  Binny VA

Thanks again for all the support. This site is nothing without it’s readers. Please feel free to use the comments on this blog as a way to trade prizes if you feel that you do not have a need for your prize.

Congratulations guys!

Sidenote: This is my first in-person appearance on my blog.