Question, Why do people think they need a ton of money to get a business off the ground? Business founders that immediately turn their sights on funding either have no viable business model or don’t have the ability to execute themselves. I know people who are both (>_<). Of course there's always exceptions. Without the funding Facebook got it may never have grown as big as it has. But is your idea honestly the next Facebook? Don't answer that. Developers/Designers laugh at people when they come to us with the answer. It's been happening for years now. Let's put our realist helmets on and all agree that we, near a perfect 100% of us, will never build a Facebook, Twitter or Google-esque company in our lifetimes. Great! Let's continue.

A business needs money to run. We all know this. That said, how much money do you need to run a tech startup these days? With cloud computing and exponentially cheaper memory there’s nearly zero reason why you would need funding in the hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars (at least in the beginning). No reason at all.

Keeping our realist helmets on, does anyone else think it a bit nuts to quit a paying job to work full time on a yet-to-be-proven business idea? I thought so. Don’t be an idiot, start making progress in your free time. This is an investment. If you want it bad enough you’ll find time while maintaining a steady income to keep your head afloat.

Don’t think you can circumvent the MVP (Minimum Viable Product) process and head straight into negotiations over unproven ideas and speculation. The only way to test an idea’s merit or validity is to bring it’s core concept to market or a market subset. If you’re a true business owner, this will often mean investing in your idea before asking someone else to. If you don’t have the ability to execute yourself, learn. Being the “fat” in a “lean” startup is a tasteless move. Just because you’re the “founder” doesn’t give you the right to be lazy. Honestly, idea’s are a “Yen a Dozen” (~A Darcy Clarke Quote). Seriously, they’re easy to come by. So get off your butt and go learn what needs to be done to bring your ideas to fruition.

That’s about it. Now go bootstrap the next Facebook

To note, I think that it’s only necessary to choose a handfull of questions from this list to get a good sense of a candidates capabilities and fit. The most telling questions often relate to what a person does in their free time. Asking about Twitter & Github Accounts, RSS feeds, Personal Blogs and general community involvement will tell you a lot about whether or not this person will stay up-to-date and is passionate about their work. The last group of questions will definitely let you know if the person’s got a sense of humour.

Hope this list helps some people and, if you do use it, make sure to give credit to the folks that contributed (listed above).

Note: I’ve posted this document up on Github so that you can add to it if you want. Here’s the link: https://github.com/darcyclarke/Front-end-Developer-Interview-Questions

~~3.14

"i'm a lasagna hog".split("").reverse().join("");

( window.foo || ( window.foo = "bar" ) );

var foo = "Hello";
(function() { 
  var bar = " World"; 
  alert(foo + bar); 
})(); 
alert(foo + bar);

Unfortunately, this fear has begun to creep into other aspects of my work/life. I’m afraid to make mistakes and so I don’t take as many chances. I don’t ask as many questions. I’m less involved. Less useful to the community.

I think that, for many reasons, this fear is justified. In the development and design industry, you’re faced with public scrutiny the minute you release any piece of work and it’s extremely easy to slip up, be negative and look down upon others.

I have presentation ideas that will never come to fruition, thousands of lines of code and hundreds of projects at 50-80% completion, and last, but not least, I have over 40 blog posts drafted (and in some cases completed) that may never see the light of day.

I have no consoling words, advice or the like. I’m simply stating that there’s a problem here and I hope to fix it one day.

Thanks,
Darcy

Final Code Example

$.when($('div').animate({"opacity": "0"}, 1000)).done(function(){
    // animations are finished, run code
});

The above example shows how we can easily wrap our animate in a deferred and it gets nicely resolved with our callback only executing a single time.

JavaScript frameworks, like jQuery, return static arrays of elements by default. So, if you’re using a JavaScript framework, you’ll be well acquainted with either: re-querying the DOM, or using methods like .live() or .delegate(). That said, there are some native query methods you can use that will return live node lists.

document.getElementsByTagName(), document.getElementsByTagNameNS and document.getElementsByClassName() are the only options available that return “live” node lists. Looking at those methods, you may be discouraged, but don’t be. The returned is a live node list so all subsequent children of those elements will also be updated automatically. This means we can setup a live node list selector, that updates automatically, and then find the elements we’d like to use when ready.

Note: I’m not suggesting storing the whole body as a live node list but a more refined selection. Although, I guess, you could do that if you were so inclined.
var cache = document.getElementsByTagName('body');
vs.
var cache = document.getElementsByTagName('ul');

Here’s an example of a live node list in use:

So the key here is that we’ve moved away from re-querying the DOM and instead simply filtered our stored node list (which was the var test.ul = document.getElementsByTagName('ul');).

Another example I put together demonstrates the difference between a selection made with a JavaScript library like jQuery (and their Sizzle Selector Engine) verse a, rather basic, native selector method.

Of course, we need to factor in the robustness of a selector engine, such as Sizzle JS, compared to the simple document.getElementsByTagName(). The tradeoffs of each will come down to your individual scenario/use-case. Either way, it’s good to know how you’re interacting with the DOM and what options you have.

Note: Unfortunately, the latest query method, document.querySelectorAll(), was developed and standardized to return a static node list (booo!). Otherwise, this would be the ideal native method.

Why Fantasy Interactive?

They are awesome! Honestly. For over 4 years I’ve closely watched Fi grow and continue to develop rich/immersive web experiences. They’ve led the way on so many fronts and are continuing to forge ahead utilizing the latest web technologies. I’ve always respected their work and am humbled to join their ranks.

Along with exceptional work, Fi has bred a fun work environment and culture. With 4 different offices across the globe the team likes to connect and share their experiences through the company’s social network Kontain and livestream using FWA TV. Sharing knowledge, laughter and a few drinks are all ways a team can grow closer and create better work. Having great office space helps too, as the pictures show below.

What about DealPage & Themify?

If you know me well you know that I’ve helped co-found two incredible companies here in Toronto, DealPage & Themify. Respectively, Wes Bos & Nick La, have both given me encouragement and support while I’ve made this new Chapter in my life a reality. DealPage will continue to be looked after and maintained by both Wes and I while Themify has already begun to be run solely by Nick. Knowing this, I am still heavily involved in the WordPress community and have discussed a few options with how I will be able to maintain & support the platform Nick and I’ve built at Themify.

What about Toronto?

Toronto has a mature tech scene. I am proud to say that I have lived there in a time when entrepreneurs truly stuck out their necks and put their all behind their companies. Not only has the startup scene flourished but industry giants have flocked to the city. Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Microsoft etc. have all found their way into Canada through our “unofficial” nations capital.

My departure may be a disappointment to many in the development community. A community that grows strong just to see so many leave. I know, in my heart, that the only way for Toronto to truly become a hot bed for foreign talent will be for the great local developers to stick around. That said, I’m leaving Toronto and Toronto’s tech scene in some great hands who will continue to foster this community.

Toronto’s Best & Brightest

• Wes Bos @wesbos – Freelance
• Verne Ho @verneho – Jet Cooper
• Satish Kanwar @skanwar – Jet Cooper
• Moeed Mohammad @mmhd – Freelance
• Charlene Tan @tan_charlene – Bnotions
• Andrea Liew @andrealiew – Bnotions
• Ryan Bannon @rdbannon – Playground
• Sami Sadaghiani @PlaygroundSami – Playground
• Stephen Megitt @steeben – Filament Group
• Linda Nakanishi @lnakanishi – Humber College
• Mustafa Al Qinneh @malqinneh – Teehan & Lax
• Jon Lax @jlax – Teehan & Lax
• Jen Fong-Adwent @ednapiranha – Freelance
• Zach Aysan @zachaysan – Freelance
• Gavin Smith @gavinsmith – Jet Cooper
• Matt Rintoul @matt416 – Say Yeah!
• Lee Dale @smack416 – Say Yeah!
• Afshin Musavian @_afshin – Sequentia
• Darius Bashar @Dariusbashar – ExtremeGroup
• Dominic Bortolussi @dombort – TWG
• Andrés Aquino @eh_eh – TWG
• Jon Lim @jonlim – TWG
• Brian Gilham @bgilham – TWG
• Ali Ghafour @AliGhafour – Viafoura
• Jesse Moeinifar @viafoura – Viafoura
• Simon Jung @simonleojung – Viafoura
• Alex Ikonn @alexikonn – Luxxy Hair Extensions
• Wayne Sang @waynesang – Freelance
• Max Cameron @maxcameron – Big Bang
• Cameron Westland @camwest – Big Bang
• Alkarim Nasser @alkarim – Bnotions
• Mark Reale @markreale – Bnotions
• Logan Aube @Lowgain – Bnotions
• Aaron Ritchie @vsmantis – Bnotions
• Vinny Verma @vinnyverma – Eitheen Eighty
• Rob Robichaud @rob_robichaud – RBC
• Gianni Chiappetta @gf3 – Freelance
• Andrew Peek @drupeek – Rocketr
• Rayanne Langdon @rlangdon – High Road Communications
• Sunta Sem @suntasem – Freelance
• Daniel Patricio @danielpatricio – Pinpoint Social
• Sarah Prevette @SarahPrevette – Sprouter
• Erin Bury @erinbury – Sprouter
• Adil Dhalla @dildhalla – My City Lives
• Adam Ben-Aron @adambenaron – My City Lives
• Paul Jara @43n79w – My City Lives
• Amira Dhalla @amirad – My City Lives
• Ken Seto @kenseto – Massive Damage
• Garry Seto @garryseto – Massive Damage

There’s literally hundreds more people I could have added but these are the few that stuck out and all of which I consider friends. Every last person listed is a champion in their field and continues to excel by sharing experiences and working with one another. I look forward to seeing what things lay ahead for, not just these individuals but, everyone in the Toronto digital landscape. You will all be missed and never forgotten!

“To unpathed waters, undreamed shores.”

~William Shakepeare

Update: Since publishing this article the Chrome Team have added a unique ID to the container of the Chrome Dev Tools. The ID is #-webkit-web-inspector. via @paul_irish (Trac Reference)

Ever want to change the look of your Google Chrome Web Inspector? I personally love being able to customize the “theme” or “brush” of my favorite IDE and my Web Inspector is no different. If you’ve ever done some snooping around Google Chrome’s Web Inspector you may have noticed that it’s made of straight HTML + CSS + JavaScript. My buddy Paul Irish was the one to show me how you can “inspect” the Inspector (very Inception-esque).

With this knowledge, I acquired the help of my good friend Wes Bos. Together we went looking for a way to customize our installs. Luckily enough, the Chromium team have set us up with a nice way of inserting our own CSS.

Mac: ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/Default/User\ StyleSheets/Custom.css

PC: C:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\User StyleSheets\Custom.css ~Thanks to @VSC

Ubuntu (Chromium): ~/.config/chromium/Default/User\ StyleSheets/Custom.css ~Thanks to @Carlos

The file above is, as it sounds, a CSS file that you can modify and add your own custom styles to. To help you get started, I’m posting my Custom.css file for you to use. I’ve documented almost all the selectors so it should be easy to modify. Check it out below:

Download this Skin here.

Note: You can check out more selectors and default CSS by copying + pasting the URL below in to your version of Chrome:
chrome-devtools://devtools/devTools.css

Have fun theming your install, and make sure to post your results back here!

Update: Some people have made some great skins. I especially like Ben Truyman’s IR Black theme seen here below. I’ll keep adding to this list of skins if you guys keep them coming!

Download IR Black Skin here.

So, how do I protect my code?

I was actually asked this question by Anton Kovalyov (of the awesome company Disqus). It’s among a list of many formulated to help with developer interviews (this list was created by some savy Front End / JavaScript Devs). To be honest, I was caught off guard that I had been right by my initial thoughts to its answer. Of course, I said nothing to Anton though (smooth). The Answer: The only true way to make sure you’re working with a clean instance of either the window or document objects is to embed an <iframe> and nab that clean, untampered version of both. Pretty straightforward, but if you haven’t had the need to do something like this before it may not have come to you as easily.

Note: You may have also thought that you could embed your plugin or library before any other scripts but you can’t be reassured users of your script will do this (something I thought of as well).

A very rudimentary example of the kind of code would be:

(function(){
    var iframe = document.createElement('iframe');
    iframe.style.display = "none";
    iframe = document.body.appendChild(iframe);
    var _window = iframe.contentWindow,
         _document = iframe.contentDocument || iframe.contentWindow.document ;
    document.body.removeChild(iframe);
})();

jQuery does something very similar in order to retrieve the contents of an iframe in the method .contents(). The real magic of an iframe element object is its .contentWindow property. This is where the iframe‘s window and, subsequent, document objects are stored. Using these, we can store clean copies of both to be used within our code.

Note: Some browsers implement .contentDocument, the iframe‘s document object, directly on the iframe object and not nested under the .contentWindow (or window object). In our example, we’ve added a check for this much like jQuerys/the accepted implementation.

I highly recommend the use of this, or similar, code if you’re a plugin author that relies on a stable environment (which I think most would).

It’s fine to goof off and to take things at face value when your business has only one set of eyes on it. Heck, at that point it’s not really a business. As soon as you introduce that business to someone else though, you need to start shaping up. To give a bit more clarity, this moment usually involves the promotion of the business. Perhaps a site or product launch. Maybe even the minute you’ve registered your business with the government. All of those are examples of moments in which your introducing and recognizing your business, for the first time, as such. Once you’ve taken that first serious step in your business’ life, there’s no turning back.

Problems?

Too often I talk with “Founders” of startups that are running their business like hyped up freelance opportunities. Many of them are 20-somes with lack-luster startup ideas in the first place. On top of that, they usually have those cheesy marketing personalities you love to hate (yuk, I like real people, that talk normally).

I’m not claiming I know all the answers but many of these young entrepreneurs do (and that kills me). Starting a company is never easy but when you loose sight of business objectives and proper business etiquette for even a second then you’ve lost credibility.

I also don’t claim to be any different from this segment to which I’m, so kindly, hating on (Yes, I’m a hater). At 24, I’m the Co-Founder of two companies: DealPage.me and Themify.me. Although my involvement and the time required for their upkeep have lessoned in recent months, they are still full fledge, money making businesses and have been since Day 1, respectively (something that can’t be said for many recent startups).

Again, I’m no different or impervious to the stigma of a young entrepreneur. Embracing critical feedback, keeping a professional attitude towards markets / industries and having that proper business etiquette have been hurtles I’ve succumbed to at times.

That said, I do know startups that have built reputations for being extremely business savvy and professional from their earliest days onward (so there’s light at the end of this tunnel). Maintaing these images, however, is important going forward. Even the slightest crack in business operations or ethics can show a companies inexperience.

Most of the associations I make with these reputable businesses hinge on very simple, minute facets in their day to day. Paying people on time, responding to emails, giving, taking and appreciating constructive criticism are all simple things that help create a professional image around your business. In my mind, it doesn’t take much to keep up with these things but it’s also not hard to waiver from them.

“Remember, I’m pullin’ for ya. We’re all in this together” ~ Red Green

Note: I don’t often write on this blog about my businesses, business practices or business theories. To that point, this will most likely be one of few ever written here.