Follow your dreams, if you want something enough there is nothing that can stop you from attaining it.

  Please give us a brief bio of yourself.

I've been designing for a little over 7 years, 5 of those under the name ISO50.

I am primarily a print designer but do a fair amount of interactive flash design as well. I also write music under the name Tycho.

I am based out of San Francisco, CA.

  What do you do for inspiration?

I find it hard to manufacture inspiration, so it usually just hits me now and then.

That said, I would say it hits more often when I've had a break from design, maybe worked on music for a month, when I come back to design I am full of ideas.

  Please list 3 of your favourite sites.

MatrixSynth

MusicThing

ebay

  What do you regard as being your biggest achievement?

My first two full length albums (one of which hasn't been released yet)

  What software couldn't you live without?

Adobe Photoshop.

  What projects do you have in the pipeline?

12 new poster prints, a new line of ISO50 T-Shirts, a new album, and some snowboards.

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

Well, I am not sure who's "top", but these are a few of my favorites:

National Forest

Psyop

Area 17 (Arnaud Mercier)

  What effect on traffic do your new designs have?

I do a newsletter mailer whenever there's something new on the site, so there's always a rather large traffic spike when I release some new products or do an update.

  Who is your target audience?

I would say age 18-35, and of those, primarily art students and designers.

  What area of web design lacks the most?

I would say usability and user interaction theory. The market seems to be driven by instant visual appeal and over the top graphics, but a lot of the time, little attention is paid to the user experience, how easy it is to navigate the site, how discoverable the interface is.

The prevailing notion seems to be form over function, but we're dealing with an interactive

medium, so a balance must be struck between the two, with emphasis put on function.

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

The first sites I did were back in the days before I had a hosting account and so they were all offline, just did them to learn.

The first ISO50 site was a minimalist pixel-style thing, all GIFs and javascript. No, it's not online anymore.

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

I would like to create a book, but I am waiting until I have some more depth to my body of work before I take that step.

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

The most recent version of ISO50.

I designed it and Dusty Brown built it in Flash. We spent months developing it in our spare time, went through several different designs and concepts, it was arduous to say the least.

  Do you think Flash is here to stay?

Certainly. There are a lot of problems inherent to it, but it fills its role nicely.

  What are your views on design/graphic school. Do you think someone can get into the field without educational experience in a school environment?

I myself didn't go to design school, I think it can be a great help, getting contacts, learning about the industry.

I think it all depends on what kind of learner you are, some people need to just jump in and do things to learn, others benefit from instruction and theory.

I do think you can make it in design whether or not you go to school, but I couldn't say there was an advantage to going or not going, it's all about the individual.

  When your company was just getting started, what did you find was most effective for getting new clients?

Creating an effective portfolio and marketing well....e.g. applying for awards, submitting to design news sites etc.

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

I myself am not terribly gifted when it comes to Flash. I work closely with my friend Dusty who codes the Flash sites that I design. I know he is self taught, and simply learned by doing.

As for design, I learned by doing as well, trying new things, experimenting, drawing on influences from the past.

Constantly striving to evolve your style is important, it forces you to learn new techniques and push the technology you use to create further.

  What is the most expensive thing you've bought in the last week?

A Moog Analog Delay.

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

Sorry, I don't think I understand this question. Do you mean what sort of clothing do I wear when I work?

Some jeans, a t-shirt, and a light jacket I suppose....but no overcoats, it doesn't rain so much here in San Francisco.

  Any parting shots or pearls of wisdom?

Follow your dreams, if you want something enough there is nothing that can stop you from attaining it.

  It's been a privilege, Scott, thanks very much.

Thank you! It's an honor.