I’ve been doing a lot more HTML/CSS recently than backend stuff, which suits me actually. Anyway, this is for Socialtext Open, the Wiki platform for which I’ve been doing a fair bit of work recently. It’s quite an extensive and varied app, so dealing with the CSS is quite an interesting challenge. The HTML is fixed (without getting your hands dirty – it’s OSS so you can dive in and do what you like) although it’s possible to set up a custom javascript insert in the config through which the DOM can be manipulated to suit. In this example, it’s used to add an automated onion-skinning technique for the sidebar boxes and some other tricks (font-size toolbar, etc.)
MacIE no more <phew>
As a huge sigh of relief escapes most web front end developers around the world following Microsoft’s news of their dropping of IE for Mac, I’m quite looking forward to the fact that we’ll be able to test XHTML/CSS on Mac browsers that are more or less sane. It’s fairly amusing seeing MS [recommend Safari](http://www.microsoft.com/mac/products/internetexplorer/internetexplorer.aspx?pid=internetexplorer) as well ;)
AJAX and all that jazz
I have to say, as a long-time non-fan of Javascript, the idea of depending on it to make things *nicer* didn’t really appeal. I think my subconcious was successfully preventing me from following those tempting links on Webreference, Sitepoint and of course Adaptive Path, promising me the ability to take my web apps to the next level, create amazing interactivity while retaining compliance and generally making my life worth living.
Of course, apps like Gmail, which I still remember being amazed by when I first got a look at the beta about a year and a half ago, drag you inexorably toward wanting to get some of the same interactivity action. My old school usability head was still in control though. Then I showed an admin app I’m building to a friend and top notch web geek and he said it’s a lot like AJAX and that was it: I was turning to the Dark Side.
So, what’s the big deal? Can you have funky load-in-the-background stuff and keep the usability? Does losing the back button damn us to interface hell? And can you get all the niceness without going insane from coding Javascript anyway?
Well, so far I think you can. Yes, you lose the back button – that’s one of the main things you can’t get around or easily build any nice alternative. You could have an in-page “back” button (or “undo”, whatever) but that could be interesting to code. In any case, can you normally trust the back button in a web app? I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t trust it when I’m taking a look at my bank account. Of course, that doesn’t apply in the case of things like Google Maps, where going back is a useful feature or would be.
Something I really hate in this kind of app is that you can’t bookmark specific pages (or “views” I suppose we should call it, as there usually *is* only one page.) Google Maps gets this right by having a simple “Link to this page” to get a URL that will take you right to the same view. (Here’s where I’m sat right now…)
At the moment, I’ve tried a couple of toolkits, both of which seem pretty nice: Sajax and xajax. I like the latter’s way of working slightly more, but there’s not a lot in it. More soon, once I’ve given these a proper going over.
So, while this is a *completely* incomplete (can I say that?) look at AJAX, I’m going to be investigating further…
DOWNtime!
Wow! We just got back from a tricky problem with the server… Gentoo (of which I’m *still* somewhat of a fan) decided to do some, er, *interesting* changes to config in the last emerge.
Thanks to Pete at Bytemark for some great help to get back online.
Why, Madrid?
“Oh dear.”
That’s how the BBC News website put it, when trying to be polite about Madrid’s Olympic website. I feel kind of bad for them, even though I’ve not exactly been forgiving myself, when commenting on the state of Web Española.
Unfortunately, there’s no arguing with the BBC’s point of view (“Right from the start, the technology breaks down.”) The fact that this is highly representative is frankly depressing. I still haven’t worked even *once* for a local internet client who had the right perspective: *cheap* is king here, thinking small the norm. Currently I’m working for a Spanish company but not one member of the staff, founders included, is from anywhere near Spain (I’m from the closest location, come to think of it – it’s only a thousand miles to Manchester!)
And that’s the way it is. When I came to Barcelona in 1999 I was mildly surprised at the state of affairs, but then again that’s why our Barcelona-based client had chosen a London agency to take it into new web territory. I kept telling myself and others “oh, it’ll catch up, things’ll even out.” I still find myself stuck with that mantra, although I don’t bother to trot it out anymore. I don’t think things *will* catch up or even out. When the opportunity to make some strides came, in the shape of the high take-up of mobile here, I had believed this might be it. But no, it’s been the same old story: no imagination.
[Update 2005-05-25: looks like they actually took the time to listen to some opinions as the site has been slightly spiced and they seem to have got rid of the “Why Madrid?” slogan… doesn’t *anybody* involved with their campaign speak English?]
WordPress 1.5 update
I’ve been threatening to upgrade this blog to WordPress 1.5 for a while, to bring it up to date with domipix and Brown Bear. Now I have, but the style is just a plain version of the theme from domipix.com. It’ll be changin’…
WordPress 1.5
I’ve updated www.domipix.com to WordPress 1.5 and so far, so good. Nice piece of work. (www.domipix.com is very new and still developing, so no dissin’…)
[Update: blog.domipix.com has now moved to www.domipix.com.]
And the award for most frustrating web build goes to…
Mark Maher American Polaroids. Jesus Christ! What a mess! Just show me the freakin’ photos, for F’s sake!
It's all gone pear-shaped!
Now, this I like: PearPC is officially the awesome-est thing I’ve seen for a fair bit. And me about to buy a bloody iMac just to test sites on… Anyways, it certainly does the trick for Safariing around and all that stuff that you do with a Mac.
The Monkey's Back?
Is Webmonkey back? They say they’re “totally back”.