Now I’m not about to start making major changes to our WordPress installation just after getting it out the door (I think), but BuddyPress offers some very exciting possibilities.
Category Archives: Web Publishing
The Trouble With EM ’n EN (and Other Shady Characters)
This is an older article (2001) but still applicable and a good read for when to use hyphens, em dashes, en dashes and things to keep in mind when using them on the web.
A List Apart: Articles: The Trouble With EM ’n EN (and Other Shady Characters)
Google Chrome
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I would typically sigh at the announcement/release of a new browser, but I’m stoked about tomorrow’s release of Google Chrome. Google Chrome will be the first of a flurry of new browsers that are really aimed at making web applications run the way we all wish they would run. Safari 4, Firefox 3.1 and now Google Chrome have all aimed at vastly increasing the speed and stability with which they process javascript code. This will make things like Google Reader, Docs, Mail Calendar, Zoho Office and other web-based applications that are javascript based run much better than they do today.
The other interesting thing about Chrome is that it will be using WebKit as it’s rendering engine (same as Safari, Konqueror, iPhone/iPod Touch and Adobe Air). This really starts to build a collection of smaller browsers that together are going to compete in statistics well with Gecko (Firefox) and Trident (Internet Explorer).
EA Banner Ads
You get pretty used to seeing, and ignoring, banner advertisements on the internet. However, there are places you expect to see them and places you do not. It struck me as odd today to see multiple banner ads right on the front page of EA.com. EA isn’t exactly a band of struggling bloggers trying to make a little drink money from their web site. They are probably the largest video game company and probably have hundreds of trucks outside lined up to dump the money that is coming in. So why the banner ads?
Firefox Zoom… Brilliant
One of the first things I noticed about Safari on the iPhone was the way that it effortlessly scales full web pages up and down with the pinch motion. Browsers have nearly always had “make larger” and “make smaller” options, but they have applied only to the text, leaving the layout and the images to get dragged by their collars through the mud destroying the integrity of the page. Easier to read for low-vision users? Perhaps. Easier to look at? Not a chance.
Firefox 3 now has the same ability while strangely the Mac and Win versions of Safari do not. Choosing to make things larger in Firefox 3 scales the entire page larger maintaining the layout and keeping everything pretty and readable. I can’t wait for the other browsers to catch up to this.
Drupal vs WordPress MU
Now that I’m back from the training that Seth and I went to in RI last week and have had a couple of days to get slapped around by my email for having left, I’m trying to get a first site up and running with Drupal. I’m not going to say that it’s not going well, but it’s sure not coming easy. Continue reading
Drupal Intensive Training
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.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }
Backyard Wildlife Video Series From UNL in iTunes U
I have not spent much time in iTunes U since it was made available. I went there today to check out some of it’s new K-12 content and was surprised to see a UNL series (and a neat looking one at that) featured right on the iTunes U front page!
http://deimos3.apple.com/WebObjects/Core.woa/Browse/unl.edu.1483380510.01483366277
Lynda.Com: Illustrator CS3 for the Web
I’m a vector guy. It’s why, while I spent a TON of time in Photoshop during college I always returned to Aldus/Macromedia/Adobe Freehand. I have never spent enough time in illustrator to become comfortable with it and even now with the death of Freehand, Fireworks has filled all of my graphic-creation needs and left me with little reason to learn illustrator. Still, illustrator is always lurking out there as a mountain that I want to climb at some point.
Lynda.com may have given me a new excuse and method to go there. A new course, “Illustrator CS3 for the Web” by Mordy Golding may be just the ticket to use this fantastic tool in a way that is really applicable to what I do daily.
From the site: “He focuses on Illustrator’s strengths alongside other tools in the web design workflow, exploring unique features such as object-based editing, and the ease of repurposing art for print and Flash use. This course requires familiarity with Illustrator CS3, and while it provides an introduction to Flash integration, the focus is on effectively turning vectors into pixels, whether for the web, mobile devices, or video.”
What makes for a successful school web site?
I took a crack at this question with eight ideas. I’d be interested in hearing yours. What works? What doesn’t? Workflows, applications, philosophies… How do you stay on top of a site, deliver what is wanted by your audience and not let the whole process consume your or your colleagues?
