Welcome to the portfolio of Christopher Michael Pastore,
a Web Developer / Visual Designer based in Crosby, Texas. A Designer who loves to code? That's crazy talk!

About Me

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I am a Web Developer / Visual Designer located in Crosby, Texas. I have over 17 years of experience in the real world of design and development. I am self-taught in all things design, graphics and code. What I know has been learned from actual experience that can not be gained by attending a university, college or any type of school.

I specialize in the planning stages, design, coding of web sites, user interfaces (UI), streamlining of the user experience (UX) and animation for online ad creative. I believe that the importance of how the site, application or ad appears to the user, must be balanced with how well it performs. I believe in lean code, web standards, accessibility, usability and semantic code. In fact, I have a deep passion for it. I enjoy making ideas become a reality.

I believe in lean code, web standards, accessibility, usability and semantic code. In fact, I have a deep passion for it. I enjoy making ideas become a reality.

Although I was born in 1971 in New York City, raised there; moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia in 1993 I settled in Crosby, Texas in 2007. I am no longer the city boy hanging out in Times Square in New York City. Although I can not be considered a country boy, I have changed a lot and no longer like cities. I like the quiet now, the slow life and the relaxation I can enjoy escaping from Houston, Texas after work and just being with my family in Crosby, Texas.

I simply love Texas and I would never want to live anywhere else. I used to love the city, the rush, the hectic party lifestyle that I once took part of in bands and living the rock and roll lifestyle I was able to live in New York City. I am older now, I am a better person and I am proud of living in a small town like Crosby, Texas.

Web Design

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There's more to a web site than it's appearance. My web sites load fast, perform well and use valid semantic code. You can be assured that your web site will work in all modern web browsers & Internet Explorer no matter if the platform is Windows, Macintosh or Linux/Unix variants. You can also trust your site will print correctly and work well on handheld devices like Blackberry's.

Web Development

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I hand-code semantic valid HTML (4.01 Strict), HTML5, XHTML (1.0 Strict), XHTML 1.1, CSS 1,2 & 3 based templates that can be implemented across Content Management Systems. I do extensive testing, to make sure all pages maintain consistent layouts and style across a wide range of browsers and platforms. I can produce templates to be AAA and 508 compliant.

UI / UX Design

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User Interfaces (UI) and the User Experience (UX) when done right, allow the user to complete goals in the easiest manner possible. By reducing steps taken, the user will appreciate their experience when working with interfaces I design. Keeping things simple, light-weight and using mental models allow me to bring normal expected behaviors to your interfaces. Less hoops, creates happier users.

Graphic Design

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It doesn't end with your online presence. Your company and your brand still need to reach out to other mediums. Materials for print such as books, manuals, cards, business cards, brochures and other hand-held materials need your attention too. Allow me to extend your reach to offline marketing and we can cover all the bases with great looking designs and a well branded print campaign.

Consulting

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With over 17 years of experience withing the industry of web and print, I am the ideal candidate to provide you with guidance on meeting your goals. Even if you're just looking to clean up your online presence or code. I can show you how we can accomplish this and train your employees how to continue forward when my part in the project ends. Learning to produce lean code and master of the art of CSS doen't have to be so scary.

Social Marketing

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With the explosion of Twitter, FaceBook and other social networks, marketing has changed. You need to leverage your company to take advantage of these changes and embrace them. Doing it the right way can catapult your business from a start-up to a full-scale success and as some companies and celebrities have discovered, doing it the wrong way has greater consequences than before the social revolution took off.

Current Resume

Web Developer / Visual Designer – Danziger & De Llano, LLP.
October, 2009 to Present – Planning, wire-frames, rapid prototyping, design and hand coding of law firm web sites that pertain to current cases. Graphic design of print materials, book covers and video editing. IT troubleshooting and maintenance of network & computers.

Web Developer II - University of Houston
May, 2009 to October, 2009 - Daily maintenance and updates to the college web site, creation of video wall presentations, design and development of department web sites for Classic ASP servers. Researched movement to Microsoft Visual Studio Team Server for versioning / code repository and lead the push to move to ASP.Net 3.5 to allow us to meet design goals in the future.

Web Developer, Hexagroup, LLC.
September, 2008 to March, 2009 (contract) - Front-End Web Development of client web sites, hand-coding of XHTML, CSS on ASP.Net, ColdFusion platforms and Web Site designs using Photoshop. Baylor Clinic, Baylor Orthopedic, Click2Try.com and other clients among working projects.

Technical Writer, cPanel, Inc
June, 2007 to May, 2008, Houston, Texas - Updating and writing software documentation for web hosting automation server software for use on Linux and Windows Server operating systems. Creation of online documentation system / web sites to host cPanel documentation to their clients.

Web Designer, Landmark Interactive.
December, 2000 to May, 2007, Norfolk, Virginia - Creation of online ads, landing pages and web site designs for internal, local and national clients including Cox Communications, Best Buy, Dominos Pizza, Toyota, Cadillac, T-Mobile, Haynes Furniture, The Dump, Verizon, Nextel and Clear Channel Entertainment. Initiated the web standards movement at PilotOnline.com and HamptonRoads.com.

Testimonials

Chris has performed outstanding work on a web design/CSS project I'm involved with. He's responsive, committed, and user-focused. His professionalism and creativity are a winning combination.

— Mark Smallwood, Click2Try.com

Chris has a remarkable ability of keeping up with trends in his field and disseminating the information in helpful laymans terms. This assisted in us creating many successful client campaigns together.

— Kim Karangelen, Landmark Interactive

Chris has valuable insights when it comes to what works on the Web, and what new technology is on the horizon. He's been very flexible and easy to work with in the years that I worked with him.

— Malcom McCutcheon, Landmark Interactive

Design, Code, & Project Managment Skills

  • XHTML 1.0 Strict
  • HTML 5, CSS 1,2,3
  • jQuery
  • ASP, ASP.NET 3.5
  • Microsoft SQL / MySQL
  • ColdFusion, PHP (Front-End)
  • Semantic Markup
  • Web Standards
  • Section 508 & WAI
  • Persona Design
  • XMind & MindNode
  • Microsoft Visual Studio 2010
  • Textmate / Coda / Aptana Studio
  • Cognitive Walk-through
  • Wire-frames
  • Use Case Studies
  • Research & Task Analysis
  • Usability / UI / UX Design
  • CD/DVD Based Web Sites
  • Mobile / Hand-held Design
  • OS Compatibility Testing
  • Quality Assurance
  • Search Engine Optimization
  • Visual SourceSafe / SVN / GIT
  • Microsoft Office / OpenOffice
  • Apple iWork
  • Online Advertising Creative
  • Technical Documentation
  • Adobe Photoshop CS5
  • Adobe Dreamweaver CS5
  • Adobe InDesign CS5
  • Adobe Flash CS5
  • Adobe Acrobat CS5
  • Adobe Premier Elements
  • QuickTime Pro / Handbrake
  • Balsamiq Mockups
  • WordPress, DruPal, Joomla
  • Microsoft Windows Vista / 7
  • Macintosh OS X

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