I came across this interesting video, and thought I would share it with you. YouTube’s “jibyollee” and an accomplice spent the day in Times Square, NY, asking people questions surrounding the subject “What is a Browser?”.

The results are, well, shocking;

Recently whilst working on a client’s project, I realised that I hadn’t optimised the website for resolutions 1024*768 and lower.

Optimum AV

You’ll notice that being forced outside of the main content wrapper are some tabs for headings;

At the resolution 1024*768, these caused an annoying horizontal scroll;

So, what to do! I didn’t want to entirely remove them, as they were adding a nice slice of personality to the design. Similarly, I didn’t want to make the whole site thinner, as it would have been a nightmare!

So the solution? A screen resolution stylesheet. Here’s the code;


<script type="text/javascript">
winWidth = document.all ? document.body.clientWidth : window.innerWidth;
winHeight = document.all ? document.body.clientHeight : window.innerHeight;
if(winWidth < 1030) {
document.write('<link href="css/ten-twenty-four.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" />');
}
else({})



The value ‘1030′ is chosen because if their window size is 1031, the website works fine, so make sure to change this value depending on where your horizontal scroll begins.

In my ten-twenty-four.css file, I tell those tabs to not display, effectively removing the horizontal scroll;


body #content .left .side-left { display: none; }
body #content .right .side-right { display: none; }


The javascript technique I decided on was selected from quite a lot of solutions that I came across, and this one was the simplest, and easiest to modify.

Not only that, but it works perfectly!

See the code in action (if you resize the page, make sure to refresh).

#1 Download Xampp

Visit the Xampp homepage and select the correct download for your operating system – I’ve tested the program on Windows XP, Vista and now Windows 7, and it runs smoothly on them all!

Once your download is complete, install Xampp – This is a pretty painless process and shouldn’t take more than a few minutes.

#2 -Download Wordpress

Check out the Wordpress download centre and get the latest copy. Notice that the requirements to run Wordpress are PHP 4.3+ and MySQL 4+.

#3 – Create your Database

Run Xampp from the desktop shortcut you’re given, and it should take you to the Control Panel. Once you’re there, select ‘phpMyAdmin’ from the left menu, and under ‘MySQL localhost’ write in the name of your new database – you’ll need to remember this when installing wordpress.

#4 – Install Wordpress

Go to the location that Xampp was installed, it’s usually C:/Program Files/Xampp and enter the htdocs folder. In there, create a new folder, and call it what you’d like. I simply called mine ‘Wordpress’.

Drag the Wordpress files into this folder. You’ll see a file called wp-config-samle.php – edit this file and enter in your info into the necessary fields. If you’re not sure of any of the information, you can check the information that the Xampp cControl Panel gives you about your database. Once you’ve edited the wp-config-sample.php file – save it, and rename it as just wp-config.php. Now go into the wp-admin folder, and run the install.php file in your browser. There you go!

I strongly recommend Bookmarking your wordpress installation once it’s installed.

Consider the objectives of the survey.
Consider the reasons for the survey and the information that is required.

Remember who your target customers are.
Ask the right people to complete the questionnaire.

Think about what method you will use to carry out the interview.
This will affect the type of question used and the way they are worded.

Write a credible introduction.
Explain why the survey is being carried out and assure confidentiality.

Make the questions as simple as possible.
Questions should be short and simple to avoid misunderstandings.

Use a “filter” question first.
This will filter out respondents that are not target customers.

Put interesting and easy questions first.
Interesting questions engage people, difficult ones put them off.

Keep confidential questions until last.
You are more likely to get an answer if you have built up a rapport.

Arrange the questions in a logical order.
The questions should flow logically and easily.

Use different types of questions.
Phrase questions to ensure you get the information you require.

Consider the answers when writing the questions.
Phrase questions to ensure you get the information you require.

Consider the visual appearance.
Make effective use of white space.

Building the theme for this blog was my first ever Wordpress customisation, in fact, I’d never used a CMS before!

So when it came to understanding how best to display my categories, I got in a pickle!

I made the mistake of trying to link internally to the folders, but of course, the links would break when selected from within a category, or a single post, sending me to destinations such as ‘/category/articles/category/articles‘.

Upon inspecting some of those free downloadable templates, I found that to list your categories, you use the snippet;

<?php wp_list_categories('show_count=0&title_li='); ?>

This was a very useful start, as it not only lists my categories in neat list items, but it also automatically adds the class ‘current-cat’ to the current category.

So with this in place, I could write some css for styling my active link. But just listing the categories wasn’t doing the trick, because Wordpress doesn’t treat your home page as a category! So I ventured onto google and found what I was looking for;

<?php echo get_option('home'); ?>

Now although this functions the same as the wp-list-categories, it doesn’t put the link in a list item for you, so remember to put your <li> tags around the code;

<li><?php echo get_option('home'); ?></li>

But we’re missing something!

This snippet won’t add the ‘current-cat‘ class to our Home link when it’s active! Terror!

So I ventured further and further into the Google archives, and after many failed tutorials and advice topics, I came across a winner!

<li class="<?php if (is_home()){echo 'current-cat';}?>"><a href="<?php bloginfo('url'); ?>/">Home</a></li>

This code manually checks if the Home page is current, and if so, adds the class ‘current-cat’. Success!

But what if like me, you’d like to highlight the current category from within a single post? You’re not the only one!

Here is the download link for a great plugin, aptly named ‘Show Active Category (while browsing a post)‘. The plugin adds the CSS class “active_category” to all categories the active post belongs to. Keep in mind that the active_category class is added to the <a> link, not the <li>.

Now just make sure that your CSS includes these classes;

ul li.current-cat { color: #ff0000; }
ul li a.active-category { color: #ff0000; }

I hope I’ve been able to help you with your category highlights, and I wish you the best of luck! Any problems you have with the code, leave a comment!

Keeping yourself motivated in the design process is key, and staying in that mindset can become very difficult. My personal inspiration is music; glorified for it’s ready ability to modify your mood.

My tips for choosing appropriate music are as follows;

• Mellow
• Positive
• Familiar

Also, a very important factor is your chosen volume. Personally, I would discourage the use of headphones, as the music tends to drown out your thoughts. So in place, use your speakers, and play your selected songs at conversation level.

Here’s my list of Top 5 albums for Web Design;

#1 Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend

• 1. Mansard Roof
• 2. Oxford Comma
• 3. A-Punk
• 4. Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa
• 5. M79
• 6. Campus
• 7. Bryn
• 8. One (Blake’s Got A New Face)
• 9. I Stand Corrected
• 10. Walcott
• 11. The Kids Don’t Stand A Chance

Buy on Amazon

#2 Reel Big Fish – Cheer Up

• 1. Good Thing
• 2. Somebody Loved Me
• 3. Ban The Tube Top
• 4. Cheer Up
• 5. Where Have You Been?
• 6. Suckers
• 7. What Are Friends For
• 8. A Little Doubt Goes A Long Way
• 9. Dateless Loser
• 10. Valerie
• 11. Rock ‘N’ Roll is Bitchin’
• 12. New York, New York
• 13. Sayonara Senorita
• 14. Boss DJ
• 15. Brand New Hero
• 16. Drunk Again

Buy on Amazon

#3 OK GO – OK GO

• 1. Get Over It
• 2. Don’t Ask Me
• 3. You’re So Damn Hot
• 4. What To Do
• 5. 1000 Miles Per Hour
• 6. Shortly Before The End
• 7. Return
• 8. There’s A Fire
• 9. C-C-C-Cinnamon Lips
• 10. The Fix Is In
• 11. Hello, My Treacherous Friends
• 12. Bye Bye Baby

Buy on Amazon

Businesses are increasingly relying on the internet to help cut their costs during the credit crunch, a new survey has found.

The report, by business insurance firm Premierline Direct, said online spending has surged by nearly 40%, while more than half of businesses say they use the internet because it gives ‘more control’ over expenditure.

Seven in 10 entrepreneurs said the web increases productivity, cutting travel costs and time spend out of the office, and more than half said they now purchase more online than they would have three years ago.

Businesses are most likely to use the internet to pay their bills, with nearly three quarters saying they use the web to manage their finance. Over half said they buy equipment over the web, while more than 40% use it to order stationary.

Chris Little, the organisation’s managing director, said the internet is invaluable for small businesses.

“The growth of the internet has really made products and services more accessible to business owners and is an ideal tool for companies looking to make time and cost savings by shopping around for the best deals, whilst also benefiting from the speed and simplicity the online channel offers,” he said.

© Crimson Business Ltd. 2008