Interview - Jeffrey Zeldman of A List Apart

There comes a time in every man's life when he just wants to wet himself. Sorry, it's true; it's like some weird obsessive compulsive thing. More often then not it happens at the weirdest moment. For me, it happened one week ago while talking to my wife and looking at the computer screen at the same time (this is also a habit all men perfect).

The moment I found out "The Zeldman Interview" was up for grabs was the moment that I decided to never wear THAT pair of khakis again.

So, does this Internet God, instigator of such amazing sites as www.zeldman.com and www.alistapart.com, really have anything to say for himself? Was he worth the effort? And will he pay my dry-cleaning bill? Sadly, the answer is yes to only two of these questions (and I'll leave you to guess which two).

SitePoint: Jeffrey, thanks so much for taking this opportunity to talk with us. The whole world is wondering how they get that gooey stuff inside the Caramilk bars, however in absence of answers to this and other mysteries of the universe, we have a few questions for you.

First off, let's get some background intel. Who is "Zeldman" and what is your biggest passion -- what's your message?

I'm a Web designer, writer, and consultant. I've been producing sites for clients and publishing independent content online since early 1995. Before that, I did other kinds of creative and professional work: composer, producer, journalist, NYC advertising creative, unpublished novelist, would-be screenwriter.

But this medium speaks to me like no other. I found my voice with the Web. So have many other people. So can you. If I have a message, that's it. A worldwide medium is emerging from its infancy. You can be part of it. Do it.

SitePoint: What's new in the world of Zeldman? What's your latest pet project? What's the newest rumor we can spread about your love life? Give us some juice!

On May 31st, my personal site will celebrate its seventh birthday. That's 49 dog years, partner.

Last year I wrote a book on Web design for New Riders and I'm slowly toiling on a new book called FORWARD COMPATIBILITY: Designing and Building With Web Standards that I hope to finish before my children reach college. I don't have any children yet, so that buys me some time.

I'm in love with a remarkable woman and we live in New York City, surrounded by tall buildings and hard-working people. 'Nuff said.

SitePoint: Your word carries a lot of weight with many designers. Did you ever think you'd get such recognition -- and how did you achieve it?

In my early sites I amused myself and hoped that what I was creating (Ad Graveyard, Pardon My Icons) might entertain a few like-minded people. The freedom to create and publish excited me, as it would anyone whose earlier creative efforts in traditional media had been blocked by insufficient budgets, indifferent editors, and record companies uninterested in trying to market music they could not label.

On the Web, I had no investors to please, no producers to argue with, no editors to kill my work. I felt an obligation to share what I was discovering about Web technology and design, so others would be similarly empowered to produce and publish their own creative work.

In 1995 I published an online tutorial, "Ask Dr Web," to share the little I knew about Web design and production. A surprisingly large audience read the tutorial and submitted questions I did my best to answer.

Soon there were too many questions for me to handle, so I co-founded a Web design mailing list with Brian Platz that eventually morphed into an online magazine, A List Apart, which I continue to edit and publish weekly.

Then in late 1997, the 4.0 browsers came out. They were remarkably powerful but technologically incompatible. When Glenn Davis and George Olsen invited me and others to try to do something about that, I jumped at the chance and The Web Standards Project was born.

Through these educational and evangelical projects over the past seven years, I've been lucky enough to make a very slight difference in the way the Web is perceived and created. As a side-effect, I've built a readership and become somewhat known in the field.

I'm not famous by Tom Cruise standards, or even by Jakob Nielsen standards, and if I'd set out to be, I'm sure I would have failed anyway. I was motivated by love of an emerging and untamed medium, a sense of fellowship with other Web designers, and a desire to protect the Web from interest groups that were inadvertently hurting it.

If you have a passion and put the work in, you can make a difference and may gain some recognition as a side-benefit. If your primary motivation is fame, the Web is probably not the best medium for it.