I did manage to download the entire Halo trailer (185Mb) on my dial up 56k connection, which I was pretty proud of.

  Please give us a brief bio of yourself.

I'm 36, I majored in Photomedia at the College of Fine Arts in Sydney a few years ago. I now work full-time on my own screen based art and survive on the odd, occasional day of freelance web-design work for a number of Arts based organisations in Australia.

  Please list 3 of your favourite sites.

+9 Zaku, Flay, CG Channel

I'm trying to learn Japanese so +9 Zaku is my current design portal of choice and as a Lightwave devotee I couldn't survive without Flay or CG Channel.

  What do you do for inspiration?

The biggest hit for me is listening to music or a visit to the local bookshop, which in my case is Ariel, a famous institution on Oxford street. A lot of the work I do is tedious and boring, but then there will be the occasional moment of inspiration and everything falls into place. I'm always looking for new ideas, a fresh perspective, new ways of looking at the world around me.

  What software couldn't you live without?

Lightwave, Photoshop, Flash, eeerrr this is my life-blood. There's other stuff I need and don't have like Director, After Effects, Final Cut Pro, but these will just have to wait until that next big job comes in.

  What do you regard as being your biggest achievement?

This is a scary question. I would hate to think in terms of websites. I just ended a 14 year relationship with my girlfriend, I guess that must count for something.

Maybe my 'Untitled Erection', which I built out of rubble and crap as a monument to fascism, near Hitler's Bunker in Postdammer Platz, on a trip to Berlin in 1995. Needless to say it only lasted a few hours but I thought it was a fitting tribute.

Also, I did manage to download the entire Halo trailer (185Mb) on my dial up 56k connection, which I was pretty proud of.

  What projects do you have in the pipeline?

I've just finished a site for the Australian Centre for Photography, called 'Photographica Australis'. It was part of this years ARCO exhibition in Madrid and features the work of 16 contemporary Australian artists.

There is a possible interview for a Japanese magazine called +81, and I will be continuing work on my Lustbot site, but to be honest I'm not entirely sure of what comes next.

  What effect on traffic do your new designs have?

Since my latest rebuild, traffic has dropped by about 50%. 'Onward and Upward!' :-)

  Who do you rate as being the top 3 design companies?

I don't get out much. I've heard of the big names, like: Deepend, Tomato and The Attik etc. But they're just names to me, I really have no idea as to what they do or how they rate.

  Who is your target audience?

That's a point of confusion for me. I'm getting deeper into 3D, though I'm not really interested in the usual 3D fare, (ie spaceships and robots) and although I work in the area of design, I come from a Fine Arts background so I'm not really sure where I fit, in the grander scheme of things.

  What area of web design lacks the most?

I'm always inspired by sites that have something to say. I think a lot of designers are lacking a voice to express some kind of message, idea or attitude.

  What did your very first site look like? Is it still online?

I started a Tripod site in 98 called 'Receptacle'. My lecturer thought the title was a bit dodgy. I seem to remember spinning globes, drop shadows, horizontal rules, centred pages of text. It was the year I discovered the joy of javascripted rollovers and animated gifs. Thankfully it's been put to death. But then maybe I'll feel the same way about my current work in four years time.

  Have you written any books, if not do you plan to?

I've had some of my photographic work published in journals, such as Photofile, and I've written on web based art. Though as far as I know, none of the CG work or images from my website has ever made it to print.

  What was the toughest thing you ever did with Flash? How long did you spend on it? Is it still online?

I did spend quite a bit of time trying to simulate Particle Effects in Flash with varying degrees of success. But like most of my work, it invariable ends up in the trash. I'm not a programmer so building a flash based guestbook using PHP was a bit of a blast for me. It is currently still online, at Suture Net.

  How have you learned so many Flash/design skills and techniques and can you offer any advice for newbies?

Getting started is pretty basic. Download source files from sites like Flashkit, pull them apart, see how they work and look for ways of improving the code. You might need a copy of Flash Typer if you're on a Mac.

Do as many tutorials as you can possibly bear, read the manuals and join one of the many support forums. It's all about dedication really. On a more advanced level, think about how you can apply the technology and think about what you would like it to do, rather than just what you know it can do.

  What type of overcoat do you wear when Flashing, basically are you a labels man?

Oh you got me there, I don't wear much in the way of clothes. I've just spent the last four months in Boxer shorts. It's been way too hot in Sydney.