1. Nivo Slider doesnt load images on the fly, it pre loads every image in the slideshow. If you have a fair few images you will notice “lag” or a wait until the slideshow starts, leaving you looking at the loading gif (round and round and round…)! The tip doesnt solve this issue per say but does offer a cool alternative to the loading gif. Also if you are using the WordPress plugin and are not using a slider theme then you have no loading image anyway and the slides jump about as they are loaded (this was actually the reason I investigated as it was bugging me).
2. Sometimes you will notice the images stacked in an ugly way before the Javascript kicks in to sort it all out. Normally solved by using overflow:hidden but this comes with its own dangers; like losing your nav arrows.

Right well lets get to the tip, tis very simple and is just a simple CSS tweak; add this to your CSS file:

.nivoSlider img:not(:first-child) {  display:none; } /* this was for the WP plugin version */

Or something like this when installed on its own:

#slider img:not(:first-child) { display:none; } /* this is for standard nivo installs */

Obviously if you have customised the parent div in any way then change it to what you have used. Overall a good tip I reckon.

You must have a widget enabled theme to use this plugin (most are tbh). Once you have uploaded and activated the plugin just add it to your sidebars widget area.

ThePath Tabbed Widget does link in with other plugins to make it work:

• WordPress.com Popular Posts
• Yet Another Featured Posts Plugin

The above plugins must be installed if you are to get all the tabs working.

A known issue is WordPress.com Popular Posts adding a horrible title to the top of the tab window. This can be removed by editing the wppp.php on line 47 and removing the title from it:

$this->WP_Widget( 'wppp', __( 'Popular Posts', 'wordpresscom-popular-posts' ), $widget_ops, $control_ops );

change to:

$this->WP_Widget( 'wppp', __( '', 'wordpresscom-popular-posts' ), $widget_ops, $control_ops );

ThePath Tabbed Widget comes with its own CSS file so it should not conflict with your own CSS. However you may wish to edit the styles to match your own theme.

Hope you find it useful and if anybody finds a way of automagically removing the damn title from popular posts that would be awesome as it comes back when you upgrade the wpp plugin. Very annoying!

Download ThePath Tabbed Widget from the repository here.

You can see working examples of the plugin here or over at effutio.

We are really excited about our new office in Newburgh and we are looking forward to doing some business in Fife. So stay tuned and be prepared for us doing the rounds in Fife and offering the best web design service available!

We know we are going to enjoy working with new clients in Fife and giving the competition a run for their money.

A lot of small businesses (especially businesses of a certain type) don’t think they need a website, normally because their business relys on passing trade, word of mouth and local advertising. Examples of businesses that have a tendency to think like this are; hairdressers, restaurants, cafes and small shops (like craft, art or hobbyist shops).

OK some will say: “well Im busy and making money, why do I need a website as Im making enough sales as it is and I dont think Id make any sales through a website anyway.” This is definitely a fairly short-sighted view! Take for example hairdressers, what if I searched “best barber in Perth” or “Perth hairdressers with tanning facilities”. More and more people are using these localised more exacting search terms. Ive used the “best barber in Perth” search term myself in an attempt to find a good barber in Perth, surprisingly.

What did I find? Well not a lot really which got me thinking and inspired this post. If a barber in Perth created a good website and optimised the content with the keyterm “best barber in perth” and “perths best barber” they would have had page one, number one position in Google and at least one more customer…me!

But its not just me that makes these kinds of searches, there is literally hundreds if not thousands of people making similar searches.

For a relatively small investment say around £200 these searchers could be finding your business website! To put it in perspective how much do most businesses pay for an advert in their local paper? Around £400-1500 is probably about right. That £200 seems pretty well spent if you ask me.

Dont fall behind your competitors and don’t simply dismiss the idea that you could gain financially from a good business website!

We are committed to great web design and felt that the old website did not show enough of this commitment. So here is our nice new design which I am very pleased with. i will be adding to it over the next year so stay tuned for some cool new stuff.

I am also going to try and make a real effort to populate this blog with interesting articles and web design hints and tips. It just trying to find the time. Well as my Dad would say “Make Time”. I wish I could as there doesnt seem enough hours in the day to do everything and still have a life!!

The Path Web Design Ltd is here to stay and going from strength to strength.