Hi,
It has been time here.
I started this blog in last year, and I still remember the time I made my first post. Then the subsequent ones. And there has been turning back ever since.
It has been a nice long journey ever since.
And I thank you all for visiting, reading, commenting and yeah... Even criticizing!
Thank you for all your valuable feedback.
And with time, grew LeXolution IT Services. And it gives me immense pleasure to tell you that we are among the frontrunners in the industry now. What started out as a small web solutions company an year back is now a leading outsourcing firm
And as we redesigned our website recently, we also found a new abode for our blog “All That Web Demands”
We will now be moving on to Lexolution IT Blog Please walk in there for all succeeding posts. Hope you like my new place
See you there
Byeee
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Monday, March 31, 2008
Why I am not worried ‘bout the Web…
I could not sleep last night! Some how the ongoing debate to cut down outsourcing is giving me all the jitters. And then when I finally caught a wink all I could see through the darkness was how web development industry would fare.
Thank my god, it ain’t that scary.
The year 2001 spelt near doom of web development when the dot-com bubble burst. But call it destiny or whatever… but it survived through that era. In 2008 however, even though the US economy’s doesn’t look that promising, there’s more hope for the web to follow the economy’s course rather than shatter and fall below it.
Business commentators have drafted out charts and graphs to document how revenues will remain steady even against a backdrop of stagflation, war, and other economic tensions.
The web will thrive, sure it will, but I guess it has more do with how the Web has become an ordinary part of our lives.
• In 2001, Internet was only making its way to the doors of many American homes. It was like the dish TV’s of today. Like people did know how to live with it. Cut to the present and I see kids who can’t even begin to think of a life without the internet. It’s like someone telling you to imagine your world minus water!!! Be it keeping in touch with friends and family or setting up an entire business, the World Wide Web has everyone in its net.
• The dot com boom and bust was all about get consumers to come somewhere and buy things. When the deals looked less exciting, customers simply stopped coming. The past few years have seen an explosion of sites built on sharing and communication between visitors, not just between buyers and sellers. Those communities have become a part of people’s daily lives, an important part of their social life. This doesn’t mean that people spend all day staring at Facebook or Orkut or blogs - but it does mean that people have integrated those sites into their daily lives.
• It would be an understatement to say that we have adapted to the web, rather we are addicted to it. Having a web site for a business is no longer a huge special event - it’s something normal. Lots of people now turn to the Web rather than the phone book when they want to find out what a store’s hours are. Actually don’t put yourself at risk by not having one!
• It was a different story back in the 90s. Putting up a web site was a big deal, like equal to constructing a mall or something. It was all about investing a lot of time, costly hosting and bandwidth, specialized developers, and a mindset that poured money into building audience size at any cost. Today, you can do even large-scale hosting at much lower cost, web skills are a more ordinary part of skill sets for administrative assistants, Java programmers, and database gurus alike.
• Gone is the era of snail mail. And with it, has gone that limitation of trade. The Web reaches well past local stores and local customers. If someone somewhere on the globe likes what you have, it’s much easier to conduct a transaction now than it used to be. This might be stabilizing - international customers may be responding to different economic stimuli than local ones. Of course, the value in that depends on other areas doing better than the local economy.
• There are still immense new projects coming on to the Web, but there’s also a tremendous amount that’s already up, developed, thought of as monthly maintenance costs rather than intense new expenditures. While this may not look like a bright new horizon for entrepreneurs, it does provide the Web with some much-needed ballast to keep it stable through whatever waves the economy throws at it.
I’m sure I’ve left out a lot of reasons for stability, and at the same time I doubt that the web world will shrug off the impact of broader economic busts or booms. Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Amazon, and other big players have, after all, become a key part of our economy, tightly integrated with all kinds of businesses on their way up or down.
What I don’t see today, however, is the kind of industry collapse that happened in 2000 and 2001.
And with this optimism to count on, I can get now get a good nights sleep!
Good Night!
Thank my god, it ain’t that scary.
The year 2001 spelt near doom of web development when the dot-com bubble burst. But call it destiny or whatever… but it survived through that era. In 2008 however, even though the US economy’s doesn’t look that promising, there’s more hope for the web to follow the economy’s course rather than shatter and fall below it.
Business commentators have drafted out charts and graphs to document how revenues will remain steady even against a backdrop of stagflation, war, and other economic tensions.
The web will thrive, sure it will, but I guess it has more do with how the Web has become an ordinary part of our lives.
• In 2001, Internet was only making its way to the doors of many American homes. It was like the dish TV’s of today. Like people did know how to live with it. Cut to the present and I see kids who can’t even begin to think of a life without the internet. It’s like someone telling you to imagine your world minus water!!! Be it keeping in touch with friends and family or setting up an entire business, the World Wide Web has everyone in its net.
• The dot com boom and bust was all about get consumers to come somewhere and buy things. When the deals looked less exciting, customers simply stopped coming. The past few years have seen an explosion of sites built on sharing and communication between visitors, not just between buyers and sellers. Those communities have become a part of people’s daily lives, an important part of their social life. This doesn’t mean that people spend all day staring at Facebook or Orkut or blogs - but it does mean that people have integrated those sites into their daily lives.
• It would be an understatement to say that we have adapted to the web, rather we are addicted to it. Having a web site for a business is no longer a huge special event - it’s something normal. Lots of people now turn to the Web rather than the phone book when they want to find out what a store’s hours are. Actually don’t put yourself at risk by not having one!
• It was a different story back in the 90s. Putting up a web site was a big deal, like equal to constructing a mall or something. It was all about investing a lot of time, costly hosting and bandwidth, specialized developers, and a mindset that poured money into building audience size at any cost. Today, you can do even large-scale hosting at much lower cost, web skills are a more ordinary part of skill sets for administrative assistants, Java programmers, and database gurus alike.
• Gone is the era of snail mail. And with it, has gone that limitation of trade. The Web reaches well past local stores and local customers. If someone somewhere on the globe likes what you have, it’s much easier to conduct a transaction now than it used to be. This might be stabilizing - international customers may be responding to different economic stimuli than local ones. Of course, the value in that depends on other areas doing better than the local economy.
• There are still immense new projects coming on to the Web, but there’s also a tremendous amount that’s already up, developed, thought of as monthly maintenance costs rather than intense new expenditures. While this may not look like a bright new horizon for entrepreneurs, it does provide the Web with some much-needed ballast to keep it stable through whatever waves the economy throws at it.
I’m sure I’ve left out a lot of reasons for stability, and at the same time I doubt that the web world will shrug off the impact of broader economic busts or booms. Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Amazon, and other big players have, after all, become a key part of our economy, tightly integrated with all kinds of businesses on their way up or down.
What I don’t see today, however, is the kind of industry collapse that happened in 2000 and 2001.
And with this optimism to count on, I can get now get a good nights sleep!
Good Night!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Website Designing Blunders!
Hi,
“When you are at it… BE at it!!” or so they say. And let me do the same. After telling you the way how to go about designing a perfect website, let me also enlighten you about some designing blunders that people tend to make.
A mistake is worth regret if you not learn anything from it. I learnt my lessons the same way.
Cornucopia of Graphics
A crisp title, I know would induce no glamour to this oft-repeated rule of the book. But repetition just reinstates the importance. I can possibly scream it out from rooftops, if only people cared to listen. Too many graphics only make the website heavy and difficult to load. And visitors might never return to your website if you disappoint them once with the download speed. But if you still swear by that glittering lump of mass that you think is the crown of the site, then for your own sake use GIF files rather instead of the normal JPEG. And reduce your graphic size without distorting the images.
Beefy Banners
Banners are what you call the necessary evils of the website. they sure do guarantee a steady stream of income but takes eternity to load and thus gives to annoyed visitors too! Play safe and make the best of both worlds and limit the use of banners on your site. For most visitors banners are just sister replicas of an advertisements, so they usually skip clicking it. Keep your banner either on top of the site or at the bottom. Be precise while using your banner. It should relate to your product or services.
Hit counters
Completely renounce that hit counter placed strategically on your website. For the record, hit counters show the number of hits of the site. Never make hit counters visible on the site unless of course you belong to the website kin, whose visitors amount to millions… and still counting types. Think about it… have you ever had dinner from someplace that says you are the first customer?? You value your taste buds and visitors their time. Spare them the agony of knowing that he/she is the ninth or tenth person on the planet to come visiting the space.
However, once your site is up and running and figures out in the millions registry, then use these counters to promote your site or attract advertisers.
Hodgepodge Website
Organization is the key! And that is it. Feng shui advices de-cluttering and the same goes for your website to. If you want your website to be loved by customers make sure you present them with a clean and well organized website. your visitors are not mystery customers who will wait to evaluate and analyze each and every component of your site. If you can afford to have a website then have on it well placed links leading the visitor to other pages and a sound navigation.
Generalization
Don't make your website a universal template. You could have done better with a newsletter in case! Rather, be interactive in your approach. Personalize your approach and treat them special. There is no glue like emotion. Play on that and develop and emotional bond with the visitors so that they return, be it owing to that attachment. Decide on your target audience and make your website focus on them make your content more communicative and let your visitors feel that you are talking directly to them.
The bible proclaimed seven deadly sins. I tell you about five. But believe you me, going by the bible of website designing, abstinence is the rule to play them by!
wii get you more next week...
Maneet
“When you are at it… BE at it!!” or so they say. And let me do the same. After telling you the way how to go about designing a perfect website, let me also enlighten you about some designing blunders that people tend to make.
A mistake is worth regret if you not learn anything from it. I learnt my lessons the same way.
Cornucopia of Graphics
A crisp title, I know would induce no glamour to this oft-repeated rule of the book. But repetition just reinstates the importance. I can possibly scream it out from rooftops, if only people cared to listen. Too many graphics only make the website heavy and difficult to load. And visitors might never return to your website if you disappoint them once with the download speed. But if you still swear by that glittering lump of mass that you think is the crown of the site, then for your own sake use GIF files rather instead of the normal JPEG. And reduce your graphic size without distorting the images.
Beefy Banners
Banners are what you call the necessary evils of the website. they sure do guarantee a steady stream of income but takes eternity to load and thus gives to annoyed visitors too! Play safe and make the best of both worlds and limit the use of banners on your site. For most visitors banners are just sister replicas of an advertisements, so they usually skip clicking it. Keep your banner either on top of the site or at the bottom. Be precise while using your banner. It should relate to your product or services.
Hit counters
Completely renounce that hit counter placed strategically on your website. For the record, hit counters show the number of hits of the site. Never make hit counters visible on the site unless of course you belong to the website kin, whose visitors amount to millions… and still counting types. Think about it… have you ever had dinner from someplace that says you are the first customer?? You value your taste buds and visitors their time. Spare them the agony of knowing that he/she is the ninth or tenth person on the planet to come visiting the space.
However, once your site is up and running and figures out in the millions registry, then use these counters to promote your site or attract advertisers.
Hodgepodge Website
Organization is the key! And that is it. Feng shui advices de-cluttering and the same goes for your website to. If you want your website to be loved by customers make sure you present them with a clean and well organized website. your visitors are not mystery customers who will wait to evaluate and analyze each and every component of your site. If you can afford to have a website then have on it well placed links leading the visitor to other pages and a sound navigation.
Generalization
Don't make your website a universal template. You could have done better with a newsletter in case! Rather, be interactive in your approach. Personalize your approach and treat them special. There is no glue like emotion. Play on that and develop and emotional bond with the visitors so that they return, be it owing to that attachment. Decide on your target audience and make your website focus on them make your content more communicative and let your visitors feel that you are talking directly to them.
The bible proclaimed seven deadly sins. I tell you about five. But believe you me, going by the bible of website designing, abstinence is the rule to play them by!
wii get you more next week...
Maneet
Friday, March 14, 2008
Freedom of AIR!!!
Hi,
I just got back from an outstation wedding. But for workaholics like me, there seldom is pleasure without work. And so was the case this time. Though my laptop is my constant companion, what frustrates me is I have no access to my PC data when I am traveling. And again, when I am offline, I am cut off from the web data.
And I can see you nod in affirmation!
As I sulked, thinking about how I will endure this dilemma, I almost rubbed my eyes when I stumbled upon a piece about AIR, short for Adobe Integrated Runtime, a software development system by Adobe that will power potentially tens of thousands of applications that merge the Internet and the PC, as well as blur the distinctions between PCs and new computing devices like smart phones.
AIR is the brainchild of Kevin Lynch, a San Francisco based software developer, who I guess would have been bugged enough by the ordeal of living in the catch 22 situation that worked his brains to get something like this out.
AIR is a value addition and builds on the Flash multimedia software that engines the Web animations, e-commerce sites and many streaming videos. The company claims that it is the most ubiquitous software on earth, residing on almost all Internet-connected personal computers.
But I wonder if it will be that useful for all the users. Like most people may not even know about AIR. Applications will look and run the same… it would not really be any different whether the user is at his desk or his portable computer, and soon when using a mobile device or at an Internet kiosk. In the near future, applications will increasingly be built with routine access to all the Web’s information and a user’s files will be accessible whether at home or traveling.
Yeah, AIR sure will come as a boon to the software developers and help them create applications that exist in part on a user’s PC and in part on servers reachable through the Internet. The AIR applications are capable of mimicking the functions of a Web browser but do not require a Web browser to run.
From what I hear, this so called revolution to step beyond PC-based applications is slated to raise the mercury in the coming times. Intel is all set to introduce its low-cost “Netbook” computer strategy that aims to unleash a new wave of inexpensive wireless connected mobile computers. The new machines will come with relatively small amount of solid state disk storage capacity and will increasingly rely on data stored on Internet servers.
To ad to the buzz, many small developers like OpenLazlo and Xcerion are creating web operating systems intended to move applications and data off the PC desktop and into the Internet through the Web browser.
Mozilla, the developer of the Firefox Web browser, has created a system known as Prism in addition to its XUL and XULRunner. Sun Microsystems introduced JavaFX this year, which is also aimed at blurring the Web-desktop line. Google is testing a system called Gears that intends to allow some Web services to work on computers that are not connected to the Internet.
Finally, there is Microsoft. It is pushing its competitor to Flash, called Silverlight. But then, Silverlight is a browser plug-in where as AIR is a desktop runtime. So a direct collision is avoided there.
Well with all these superpowers ready to take on the battlefield, there is but one winner! And that is you and me, the consumer!! With a range of applications to choose from without compromising on any data, I am getting ready for a vacation. What are you up to?
Byeee
I just got back from an outstation wedding. But for workaholics like me, there seldom is pleasure without work. And so was the case this time. Though my laptop is my constant companion, what frustrates me is I have no access to my PC data when I am traveling. And again, when I am offline, I am cut off from the web data.
And I can see you nod in affirmation!
As I sulked, thinking about how I will endure this dilemma, I almost rubbed my eyes when I stumbled upon a piece about AIR, short for Adobe Integrated Runtime, a software development system by Adobe that will power potentially tens of thousands of applications that merge the Internet and the PC, as well as blur the distinctions between PCs and new computing devices like smart phones.
AIR is the brainchild of Kevin Lynch, a San Francisco based software developer, who I guess would have been bugged enough by the ordeal of living in the catch 22 situation that worked his brains to get something like this out.
AIR is a value addition and builds on the Flash multimedia software that engines the Web animations, e-commerce sites and many streaming videos. The company claims that it is the most ubiquitous software on earth, residing on almost all Internet-connected personal computers.
But I wonder if it will be that useful for all the users. Like most people may not even know about AIR. Applications will look and run the same… it would not really be any different whether the user is at his desk or his portable computer, and soon when using a mobile device or at an Internet kiosk. In the near future, applications will increasingly be built with routine access to all the Web’s information and a user’s files will be accessible whether at home or traveling.
Yeah, AIR sure will come as a boon to the software developers and help them create applications that exist in part on a user’s PC and in part on servers reachable through the Internet. The AIR applications are capable of mimicking the functions of a Web browser but do not require a Web browser to run.
From what I hear, this so called revolution to step beyond PC-based applications is slated to raise the mercury in the coming times. Intel is all set to introduce its low-cost “Netbook” computer strategy that aims to unleash a new wave of inexpensive wireless connected mobile computers. The new machines will come with relatively small amount of solid state disk storage capacity and will increasingly rely on data stored on Internet servers.
To ad to the buzz, many small developers like OpenLazlo and Xcerion are creating web operating systems intended to move applications and data off the PC desktop and into the Internet through the Web browser.
Mozilla, the developer of the Firefox Web browser, has created a system known as Prism in addition to its XUL and XULRunner. Sun Microsystems introduced JavaFX this year, which is also aimed at blurring the Web-desktop line. Google is testing a system called Gears that intends to allow some Web services to work on computers that are not connected to the Internet.
Finally, there is Microsoft. It is pushing its competitor to Flash, called Silverlight. But then, Silverlight is a browser plug-in where as AIR is a desktop runtime. So a direct collision is avoided there.
Well with all these superpowers ready to take on the battlefield, there is but one winner! And that is you and me, the consumer!! With a range of applications to choose from without compromising on any data, I am getting ready for a vacation. What are you up to?
Byeee
Monday, March 10, 2008
Web Designers Alert!!!
Hi,
While you are still glossing over what I told you about in my last post, let me just stack you up with some more info about web designing. And yeah I owe it all the web designers straight out of designing schools.
So let me unveil some designer tricks that may take you a step ahead of your competitors.
Go low on Images
An image is poetry without words, or so they say. But let’s just reserve the poetry for later. Visitors on your site neither intend nor have the luxury of time to sit and wait till eternity for the images to load. And trust me, a chunk of relevant information is way better than a truckload of flashy images!
And yeah, one more thing each file on the page requires a separate HTTP request to the server. So a lot of small images-even if they do not add up to a lot in terms of bytes - will slow down the loading a lot.
Navigation Woes
So, you have made the website a beauty of own kinds. But a great site without good navigation is no better than a dumb blonde ;)
With al due respect to your artistic excellence, I suggest you pay more attention to the navigability and functionality of the website. Users won’t stay and admire the beauty of the website unless they find it easier to browse through.
Hide-and –Seek
If you don’t already know Mystery Meat Navigation is the scenario where unless your mouse moves over an image, you have no idea where that link might take you. Only when the mouse hovers on top of it, do you see the actual link. Please don play hide-and-seek with the visitor. Keep the link titles clear and visible. You’ll be doing a huge favor.
Browser Battles
The competition in the telecom sector may just come second. The varied species of browsers have just victimized the user! Keep off from browser specific functions. Because if that particular feature is supported by one browser, chances are it won’t even work on others. Check out the cross-platform compatibility that I mentioned earlier. That should come handy.
Pop Up- Traffic Down
Literally, with each new window that you open out for a link, the user traffic will go down in the same ratio. Creating a new browser window should be the sole authority of the user. You doing that honor will just mess up the user’s screen. And no likes other’s mess! Make all links open in the same window by default.
Yeah, in cases where you have to present a list of links or something like that, use that pop up. But make sure to intimidate the user before.
Font preference
Have you ever wondered why does a printed copy look better than a handwritten note? (Unless of course, if its mine :P) It’s all about fonts. And bear in mind that what sits pretty on MSWord, doesn’t go that well with online web page. Stick to the standard plain fonts like Arial, Verdana, Tahoma, and Courier.
Let me repeat yet again, whatever you create and put on your website, test and make sure the run on all the browsers, with all resolutions and all color. Make your guest feel at home and serve them the best!
Will get you more in my next post. Signing off..
Maneet Puri
While you are still glossing over what I told you about in my last post, let me just stack you up with some more info about web designing. And yeah I owe it all the web designers straight out of designing schools.
So let me unveil some designer tricks that may take you a step ahead of your competitors.
Go low on Images
An image is poetry without words, or so they say. But let’s just reserve the poetry for later. Visitors on your site neither intend nor have the luxury of time to sit and wait till eternity for the images to load. And trust me, a chunk of relevant information is way better than a truckload of flashy images!
And yeah, one more thing each file on the page requires a separate HTTP request to the server. So a lot of small images-even if they do not add up to a lot in terms of bytes - will slow down the loading a lot.
Navigation Woes
So, you have made the website a beauty of own kinds. But a great site without good navigation is no better than a dumb blonde ;)
With al due respect to your artistic excellence, I suggest you pay more attention to the navigability and functionality of the website. Users won’t stay and admire the beauty of the website unless they find it easier to browse through.
Hide-and –Seek
If you don’t already know Mystery Meat Navigation is the scenario where unless your mouse moves over an image, you have no idea where that link might take you. Only when the mouse hovers on top of it, do you see the actual link. Please don play hide-and-seek with the visitor. Keep the link titles clear and visible. You’ll be doing a huge favor.
Browser Battles
The competition in the telecom sector may just come second. The varied species of browsers have just victimized the user! Keep off from browser specific functions. Because if that particular feature is supported by one browser, chances are it won’t even work on others. Check out the cross-platform compatibility that I mentioned earlier. That should come handy.
Pop Up- Traffic Down
Literally, with each new window that you open out for a link, the user traffic will go down in the same ratio. Creating a new browser window should be the sole authority of the user. You doing that honor will just mess up the user’s screen. And no likes other’s mess! Make all links open in the same window by default.
Yeah, in cases where you have to present a list of links or something like that, use that pop up. But make sure to intimidate the user before.
Font preference
Have you ever wondered why does a printed copy look better than a handwritten note? (Unless of course, if its mine :P) It’s all about fonts. And bear in mind that what sits pretty on MSWord, doesn’t go that well with online web page. Stick to the standard plain fonts like Arial, Verdana, Tahoma, and Courier.
Let me repeat yet again, whatever you create and put on your website, test and make sure the run on all the browsers, with all resolutions and all color. Make your guest feel at home and serve them the best!
Will get you more in my next post. Signing off..
Maneet Puri
Friday, February 29, 2008
One On One - Obama Vs Hillary
Hi,
The media is painted in hues of red, blue and white with a sprinkle of stars afloat. The world watches with bated breaths as the Presidential elections of the United States gets hotter.
And as I spoke to my cousin in Florida yesterday, I realized that the air is all the more fervent there. With tons and loads of online space donated to cheer and berate both Obama and Hillary, I thought I might as well steal a glance at their websites. But the glance took a little longer and I found myself devouring the technicalities of their designs.
And boy oh boy... its frenzy out there. Not being a political person dissuades me from commenting on my preference over either candidates, but their websites … yes I am ready to speak.
Hillary Clinton, the former first lady, brought up in the lap of political regimen has a website that emits the same. Wearing the traditional color schemes of the US flag, her website www.hillaryclinton.com boasts of a regal air.
Browse down to Barack Obama’s site, www.barackobama.com and you will be greeted by a splash of fresh dreamy blue, perhaps a symbol of the freshness he claims to bring into the US government with his election!
All the tips and tricks I tell you about here on this blog find perfect examples in these sites. Both the sites are designed with utmost care and attention. Optimization would not have been an issue though ;-)
Hmm…Let’s make it interesting. If I take both of them and put them in a boxing ring… lets see who wins.
Round one: Color Riot
Hillary’s site uses loud colors, something that is not very advisable by the website designing rules. But it is pardonable considering it is complimentary to the American flag. The Republican sure knows how to waive her patriotism!
Obama the poster boy…ahem man of the youth with his dreamy hues. The first thing that I felt was freshness. It was as if I could breathe light. I guess it’s the plentiful whitespace and the soft blue palette that did it to me. The site has a soothing appeal. It is intended to I guess, for it targets the tech savvy youth of America.
Round one goes to Obama!
Round Two: Layout
The Queen Bee makes it a little hectic here. The content comes out all bold. With the text in caps and that too defined by sharp lines, it becomes a little too messy on the whole and the over impression spells clutter. Like when I entered the site, I became finicky. There were just too many elements shouting for attention. Take a ride and you will know what I mean. This was exactly what I mentioned in designing don’ts.
Pair this opposite Obama’s and you can see contrast. There is absolute harmony. With all the elements neatly arranged this is what I call a neat and clean layout
Obama, the winner again!
Round Three: The Link Saga
Hillary has her site compact. The links clearly done, I could just jump to any page that I wanted.
Obama decided to stack up. A strict no-no when it comes to designs. I had to roll that cursor down and down through all the events and features. It is too long, literally! Take a cue from the first lady and get some on links on top boy!
You have round three Mrs. Clinton!
Round Four: Extras
The Queen Bee talks. Yeah she does. It’s campaigning after all. She has on her main menu a link titled ‘videos’ that has several video slides of her life and works. Now this is great. Hillary supporters just have to refer to this link for any evidence they might need to testify their cheers.
But Obama has it planned to. I just loved the playful tools that he has squeezed in on his site. There is Barack TV Obama mobile, action center and a link to my.barackobama.com, an online portal that for personal blogs and messages. He targets the young crowd of America and has got it right for all the tech savvy supporters out there. And an add-on… What stands out on the site is the hit counter that counts records the number of people who have donated, irrespective of the amount. (BTW it was some 1,000,153 when I last saw. Goshhhh!)
I was bowled over by the counter, but then let’s call it a draw here!
So that was heavy! The winner is declared: Barack Obama! Sure he wins in my boxing ring. Let’s wait and see if he does to the White House too.
But I hear he’s anti-outsourcing. Huh? Will get you more on that in my other blog on KPOs.
Bye
The media is painted in hues of red, blue and white with a sprinkle of stars afloat. The world watches with bated breaths as the Presidential elections of the United States gets hotter.
And as I spoke to my cousin in Florida yesterday, I realized that the air is all the more fervent there. With tons and loads of online space donated to cheer and berate both Obama and Hillary, I thought I might as well steal a glance at their websites. But the glance took a little longer and I found myself devouring the technicalities of their designs.
And boy oh boy... its frenzy out there. Not being a political person dissuades me from commenting on my preference over either candidates, but their websites … yes I am ready to speak.
Hillary Clinton, the former first lady, brought up in the lap of political regimen has a website that emits the same. Wearing the traditional color schemes of the US flag, her website www.hillaryclinton.com boasts of a regal air.
Browse down to Barack Obama’s site, www.barackobama.com and you will be greeted by a splash of fresh dreamy blue, perhaps a symbol of the freshness he claims to bring into the US government with his election!
All the tips and tricks I tell you about here on this blog find perfect examples in these sites. Both the sites are designed with utmost care and attention. Optimization would not have been an issue though ;-)
Hmm…Let’s make it interesting. If I take both of them and put them in a boxing ring… lets see who wins.
Round one: Color Riot
Hillary’s site uses loud colors, something that is not very advisable by the website designing rules. But it is pardonable considering it is complimentary to the American flag. The Republican sure knows how to waive her patriotism!
Obama the poster boy…ahem man of the youth with his dreamy hues. The first thing that I felt was freshness. It was as if I could breathe light. I guess it’s the plentiful whitespace and the soft blue palette that did it to me. The site has a soothing appeal. It is intended to I guess, for it targets the tech savvy youth of America.
Round one goes to Obama!
Round Two: Layout
The Queen Bee makes it a little hectic here. The content comes out all bold. With the text in caps and that too defined by sharp lines, it becomes a little too messy on the whole and the over impression spells clutter. Like when I entered the site, I became finicky. There were just too many elements shouting for attention. Take a ride and you will know what I mean. This was exactly what I mentioned in designing don’ts.
Pair this opposite Obama’s and you can see contrast. There is absolute harmony. With all the elements neatly arranged this is what I call a neat and clean layout
Obama, the winner again!
Round Three: The Link Saga
Hillary has her site compact. The links clearly done, I could just jump to any page that I wanted.
Obama decided to stack up. A strict no-no when it comes to designs. I had to roll that cursor down and down through all the events and features. It is too long, literally! Take a cue from the first lady and get some on links on top boy!
You have round three Mrs. Clinton!
Round Four: Extras
The Queen Bee talks. Yeah she does. It’s campaigning after all. She has on her main menu a link titled ‘videos’ that has several video slides of her life and works. Now this is great. Hillary supporters just have to refer to this link for any evidence they might need to testify their cheers.
But Obama has it planned to. I just loved the playful tools that he has squeezed in on his site. There is Barack TV Obama mobile, action center and a link to my.barackobama.com, an online portal that for personal blogs and messages. He targets the young crowd of America and has got it right for all the tech savvy supporters out there. And an add-on… What stands out on the site is the hit counter that counts records the number of people who have donated, irrespective of the amount. (BTW it was some 1,000,153 when I last saw. Goshhhh!)
I was bowled over by the counter, but then let’s call it a draw here!
So that was heavy! The winner is declared: Barack Obama! Sure he wins in my boxing ring. Let’s wait and see if he does to the White House too.
But I hear he’s anti-outsourcing. Huh? Will get you more on that in my other blog on KPOs.
Bye
Monday, February 25, 2008
Web Design Myths – Busted!!!
Hi,
Just yesterday, I was browsing through the net for some articles on web design and development and literally all of them yell out the same tips and tricks, of course in different language styles ;-)
Talk about plagiarizing plagiarism!
But what I noticed is, in their efforts to save mankind from creating ‘non-ideal’ websites; they have given way to some myths that now rule the roost.
If you haven’t already, just try Googling out some web design articles. Literally, all of them seem to propagate the belief of “All content and less or no animation” supposedly that’s the magic key of having a neat and popular website.
Don’t rule me out for this. I know content is the king! N that’s what gains the site its credibility. Also adding animations like sounds, java applets and graphics will slow down the loading process. And yes, visitors seldom wait more than 8 seconds.
But take a break, and think about it. All work and no play made Jack a dull boy. And all content and no graphics will no do better to your website.
A kid who logs into Disneyworld.com will not be amused to find info on the what-when-how of the company. He’d rather search for his Mickey and Minnie.
You know better what your site demands than the free articles on the web. Play smart and know where to use the animations and where to prioritize content. The trick is to maintain a steady balance between the two! Use animations sensibly as and when required and go low on the image size.
Now comes the question When is it appropriate?
Well sometimes applets are needed for some sort of processing.
All the Disney characters who swing and dance for the kids on the Disney website make use of the applets. The loading time too is not an issue because the image sizes are abridged to accommodate the screen space. And what is Disneyworld without music and songs? I’ll hate to walk in to a bland and mute Disneyland. Wont you?
In the same way, animation and sound might be appropriate for sites that feature online comics, online gaming, etc.
Talking about my own website that deals with website design services and all. You as a customer would not even wait to ponder if not for the graphics that illustrate my work. Let me share a secret. Many potential customers see your site as an example of what their site can become. And playing Plain Jane here will be no help. Chuck the content, its illustration that the customer demands.
And then the age old myth of "Good Web Design is in the Graphics"
I stumbled upon this site and took two minutes to realize that the large psychedelic structure staring at me was actually an attempt of the web designer to beautify the site. God bless the designing schools!
Designer graphics are cool and they serve to cut through monotony and bring in more vibrancy. But please don’t ruin what they born to do. Size does matter. Trust me does. I suggest you limit the size of the graphics so they complement the subject of the site without overshadowing it altogether.
And as for that designer... I can only hope that he stumbles upon this blog!!!
Hear all that is on offer, but when you get down to doing things, put in a little of that grey matter too.
Happy designing!
Just yesterday, I was browsing through the net for some articles on web design and development and literally all of them yell out the same tips and tricks, of course in different language styles ;-)
Talk about plagiarizing plagiarism!
But what I noticed is, in their efforts to save mankind from creating ‘non-ideal’ websites; they have given way to some myths that now rule the roost.
If you haven’t already, just try Googling out some web design articles. Literally, all of them seem to propagate the belief of “All content and less or no animation” supposedly that’s the magic key of having a neat and popular website.
Don’t rule me out for this. I know content is the king! N that’s what gains the site its credibility. Also adding animations like sounds, java applets and graphics will slow down the loading process. And yes, visitors seldom wait more than 8 seconds.
But take a break, and think about it. All work and no play made Jack a dull boy. And all content and no graphics will no do better to your website.
A kid who logs into Disneyworld.com will not be amused to find info on the what-when-how of the company. He’d rather search for his Mickey and Minnie.
You know better what your site demands than the free articles on the web. Play smart and know where to use the animations and where to prioritize content. The trick is to maintain a steady balance between the two! Use animations sensibly as and when required and go low on the image size.
Now comes the question When is it appropriate?
Well sometimes applets are needed for some sort of processing.
All the Disney characters who swing and dance for the kids on the Disney website make use of the applets. The loading time too is not an issue because the image sizes are abridged to accommodate the screen space. And what is Disneyworld without music and songs? I’ll hate to walk in to a bland and mute Disneyland. Wont you?
In the same way, animation and sound might be appropriate for sites that feature online comics, online gaming, etc.
Talking about my own website that deals with website design services and all. You as a customer would not even wait to ponder if not for the graphics that illustrate my work. Let me share a secret. Many potential customers see your site as an example of what their site can become. And playing Plain Jane here will be no help. Chuck the content, its illustration that the customer demands.
And then the age old myth of "Good Web Design is in the Graphics"
I stumbled upon this site and took two minutes to realize that the large psychedelic structure staring at me was actually an attempt of the web designer to beautify the site. God bless the designing schools!
Designer graphics are cool and they serve to cut through monotony and bring in more vibrancy. But please don’t ruin what they born to do. Size does matter. Trust me does. I suggest you limit the size of the graphics so they complement the subject of the site without overshadowing it altogether.
And as for that designer... I can only hope that he stumbles upon this blog!!!
Hear all that is on offer, but when you get down to doing things, put in a little of that grey matter too.
Happy designing!
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Crossing over to get compatible!
Hi,
Has it ever happened to you that you have chanced upon a real good web application and were bowled over by its features and functionality, and then to your dismay discovered that it’s all but compatible with your operating system!
If this has a déjà vu affect on you? Then I am sure you’d be a happier soul after reading this.
I concluded my last post with a promise that I’ll get back with more information on web tools and applications, and here I am to let you know all about cross-platform compatibility! Though a little late! But hey... Better late than never. And perhaps the break gave me more time to ponder over the intricacies of these applications.
Interoperability or platform-independence as it is popularly called refers to the ability of devices or software applications to work with more than one hardware platform or operating system. Broad compatibility with various systems guarantees a larger market for a product by reaching your entire user audience. Interoperability is critical in achieving that critical mass of users, especially in groupware and other such internet applications, where two or more people interacting with one another will require some level of compatibility in order to communicate or share data.
I have seen many users who are forced to give up on their favorite operating system just for the sake of some frequently used application or software that fails to run on that. Now is it not cruel?
I read a piece some days back that said companies using Microsoft Office on both Macintosh and Windows PCs will have to deal with cross-platform compatibility issues with the new Office 2008 productivity suite. When the Office 2008 productivity suite will be introduced for Mac OS X, companies that rely on Visual Basic for Applications scripts and macros on Macintosh and Windows clients will lose transparent cross-platform compatibility. The reason behind this is Microsoft is abandoning VBA script and macro support with the introduction of the new productivity suite.
Moreover, the recently released Office 2007 for Windows introduced a new default file format, the OOXML (Office Open XML) .docx format, which is not compatible with Office 2003 on Windows and Office 2004 on Mac OS X. OOXML will be the default file format for Office 2008 also. As a result, Microsoft and others are scrambling to offer options to regain at least a limited degree of compatibility for future Office users. Now does that give you a scare?
Let me share with you some basics of creating a cross-platform web program.
First, choose the right development language. You can write cross-platform C++ code. But then you will have a hell of a time working with the different C++ compilers. You may be tempted to use GCC for all platforms. But that can’t always be possible. C++ programs can be tough to maintain for cross platform compatibility, though I might as well inform you that it is possible by all means. Another hurdle in your way would be to work with the build system. Not all platforms will compile IDE for C++. Worst of all, you may even have to browse through the Makefiles. Now that I have scared you enough, I might take the liberty to proclaim that C++ is not a good choice for cross platform development.
Rather, I would suggest you to go with Java or Python because both of them can scale across platforms pretty well. But playing the devils advocate again, don’t be assures that you have all the features of the language on all platforms. Read the docs carefully before implementing obscure functionality.
A good graphical user interface is imperative for an ideal application. Be sure that you make a correct choice for a cross-platform GUI. Astounding it may seem, but don’t you undermine its importance. A score of GUIs and libraries claim to be cross-platform. Be smart and run them for a check on functionality by making prototypes. My experience says that there is no easy answer when it comes to choosing the right GUI. And now I just cant resist telling you about wxWidgets bindings for Python called wxPython. It is damn easy to use and supports a ton of functionality. And yeah of course it is Python.
FireFox browser is the project that I can illustrate to you as a great execution of cross compatibility. Another promising project is the Mono project. Going by what it claims. It provides the necessary software to develop and run .NET client and server applications on Linux, Solaris, Mac OS X, Windows, and Unix. My analysis has shown that GUI is still in beta versions. Another thing that I have observed is that Mono consistently lags behind Microsoft’s .NET framework. That is to be expected, since Microsoft will lead in .NET implementation and try and keep its version ahead of the competition. But nevertheless, Mono seems a serious contender for any cross-platform development.
Phew … Now that was pretty long. I guess now you have a fair knowledge of what cross-platform compatibility is all about. And the next time you cast your eyes on that cool application, don’t be skeptical. In all probability it will go well with your OS!
Has it ever happened to you that you have chanced upon a real good web application and were bowled over by its features and functionality, and then to your dismay discovered that it’s all but compatible with your operating system!
If this has a déjà vu affect on you? Then I am sure you’d be a happier soul after reading this.
I concluded my last post with a promise that I’ll get back with more information on web tools and applications, and here I am to let you know all about cross-platform compatibility! Though a little late! But hey... Better late than never. And perhaps the break gave me more time to ponder over the intricacies of these applications.
Interoperability or platform-independence as it is popularly called refers to the ability of devices or software applications to work with more than one hardware platform or operating system. Broad compatibility with various systems guarantees a larger market for a product by reaching your entire user audience. Interoperability is critical in achieving that critical mass of users, especially in groupware and other such internet applications, where two or more people interacting with one another will require some level of compatibility in order to communicate or share data.
I have seen many users who are forced to give up on their favorite operating system just for the sake of some frequently used application or software that fails to run on that. Now is it not cruel?
I read a piece some days back that said companies using Microsoft Office on both Macintosh and Windows PCs will have to deal with cross-platform compatibility issues with the new Office 2008 productivity suite. When the Office 2008 productivity suite will be introduced for Mac OS X, companies that rely on Visual Basic for Applications scripts and macros on Macintosh and Windows clients will lose transparent cross-platform compatibility. The reason behind this is Microsoft is abandoning VBA script and macro support with the introduction of the new productivity suite.
Moreover, the recently released Office 2007 for Windows introduced a new default file format, the OOXML (Office Open XML) .docx format, which is not compatible with Office 2003 on Windows and Office 2004 on Mac OS X. OOXML will be the default file format for Office 2008 also. As a result, Microsoft and others are scrambling to offer options to regain at least a limited degree of compatibility for future Office users. Now does that give you a scare?
Let me share with you some basics of creating a cross-platform web program.
First, choose the right development language. You can write cross-platform C++ code. But then you will have a hell of a time working with the different C++ compilers. You may be tempted to use GCC for all platforms. But that can’t always be possible. C++ programs can be tough to maintain for cross platform compatibility, though I might as well inform you that it is possible by all means. Another hurdle in your way would be to work with the build system. Not all platforms will compile IDE for C++. Worst of all, you may even have to browse through the Makefiles. Now that I have scared you enough, I might take the liberty to proclaim that C++ is not a good choice for cross platform development.
Rather, I would suggest you to go with Java or Python because both of them can scale across platforms pretty well. But playing the devils advocate again, don’t be assures that you have all the features of the language on all platforms. Read the docs carefully before implementing obscure functionality.
A good graphical user interface is imperative for an ideal application. Be sure that you make a correct choice for a cross-platform GUI. Astounding it may seem, but don’t you undermine its importance. A score of GUIs and libraries claim to be cross-platform. Be smart and run them for a check on functionality by making prototypes. My experience says that there is no easy answer when it comes to choosing the right GUI. And now I just cant resist telling you about wxWidgets bindings for Python called wxPython. It is damn easy to use and supports a ton of functionality. And yeah of course it is Python.
FireFox browser is the project that I can illustrate to you as a great execution of cross compatibility. Another promising project is the Mono project. Going by what it claims. It provides the necessary software to develop and run .NET client and server applications on Linux, Solaris, Mac OS X, Windows, and Unix. My analysis has shown that GUI is still in beta versions. Another thing that I have observed is that Mono consistently lags behind Microsoft’s .NET framework. That is to be expected, since Microsoft will lead in .NET implementation and try and keep its version ahead of the competition. But nevertheless, Mono seems a serious contender for any cross-platform development.
Phew … Now that was pretty long. I guess now you have a fair knowledge of what cross-platform compatibility is all about. And the next time you cast your eyes on that cool application, don’t be skeptical. In all probability it will go well with your OS!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)