Victor Walch Michnowicz

Version 1 — December 2005

Version one of vmichnowicz.com was not auctually vmichnowicz.com. The “vmichnowicz.com” domain did not exist until version four. Version one through three were all under the “vixgrafx.com” domain. Yep. Not one, but two x’s. I was rockin.

I honestly do not really remember what version one looked like. I know it was the first site I created using Macromedia Flash 8. Needless to say, it looked pretty ugly. I am glad I forgot…

Version 2 — January 2006

Version two was pretty much the same as version one — Flash-based and ugly. Next.

Version 3 —June 2006

During the summer of 2006 I discovered a program that formed the basis for vixgrafx.com version three — Blender.

Using Blender, I created a 3d desk complete with a sketchbook (for my hand work), a computer monitor (for my digital work), a camera (for my photography), and a post-it-note (for my contact information).

Version 4 — December 2008

Updating version three was a pain. If I ever wanted to add a portfolio item I had to open Blender, render a new image, import that into Flash, and then upload the new Flash file to my web server. I wanted something easier to update. I also wanted to start building a professional presence for my web design work. I decided that vixgrafx.com must go. The coolness of the x’s had worn off. It was time to register vmichnowicz.com.

Version four took advantage of PHP, JavaScript, and some cool CSS. I used PHP for a contact form along with header and footer includes, JavaScript for validating the form input and as a light-box for my portfolio items, and CSS for some CSS sprites along with general site styling. Version four got the job done, but it did not look like anything special.

Version 5 — June 2009

Eventually I grew tired of version four. I enjoyed the simplistic style, however it needed some refinement. Enter vmichnowicz.com version five.

Version four and five shared much in common. However, in version five I wanted to add a few more features:

• Better AJAX contact form
• Gaussian blur effect when one hovers over an item thumbnail
• Item details toggle
• Multiple item thumbnails
• Pirate language toggle

Version 6 — July 2010

After about eight months I started getting tired of version five. I liked it, however I wanted to expand. I wanted to do more with vmichnowicz.com. I not only wanted to show off my work, but I also wanted to share my web design and development knowledge with the community — I needed a blog.

I historically gravitate towards free and open-source software. I love Ubuntu, Blender, PHP, jQuery, Firefox, and many other open-source software. So I naturally started looking for an open-source CMS for vmichnowicz.com.

I first looked at Wordpress, arguably the most prevalent open-source blogging system clogging the tubes of the internet. I liked it, however, I was just not feeling the design process; it did not seem natural.

Long story short — I dabbled with Wordpress and Drupal, however I settled on a non-open-source alternative: ExpressionEngine.

Version 7 — April 2015

Version 7 launched April 2015. Have a look at the blog post covering the launch.