Browsershots - A Web Testing MUST HAVE
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Okay, another exciting find that I must share.
“Browsershots makes screenshots of your web design in different browsers. It is a free open-source online service created by Johann C. Rocholl. When you submit your web address, it will be added to the job queue. A number of distributed computers will open your website in their browser. Then they will make screenshots and upload them to the central server here.”
I used this to test my own website, Projects by Peggy. The screenshots are available for 30 minutes (you can extend the time) and can be downloaded to your computer. The screenshots are full sized, thus fairly large in size.
I used all 19 browsers - the first 9 screenshots showed up very quickly but beyond that is a long wait time. I think in the future, I will concentrate on one platform at a time: Linux, Windows, and Mac Os.
Here’s a screenshot of my test:
And 51 minutes later … still waiting for the last screenshot! I have a high speed DSL connection. You may want to limit each test to just a few browsers.
P.S. I tested a client website and found the site failed in IE6 - I was able to add a bit more space between divs (padding/margins) and now it is working fine in all browsers tested! What a great way to avoid site failure surprises!
COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act)
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Information you should know about kids’ privacy and data collection when developing websites for an audience under age 13, COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) is overseen by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and sets the requirements and protections for collection and use of private data for children under age 13.
For more information, you can download How to Comply With The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule, a PDF guide from the FTC, the Direct Marketing Association and the Internet Alliance.
PLEASE NOTE: COPPA should not be confused with COPA (Children’s Online Protection Act), a law in the United States of America, passed in 1998 with the declared purpose of protecting minors from harmful sexual material on the Internet.
Exciting Changes in HTML 5
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I haven’t found any news that is exciting enough to take time from my busy schedule to post to this blog for quite some. Today is a different story … I found the article, “A Preview of HTML 5″, over on the A List Apart website. This is a must read for any web developer!
HTML 5 introduces and enhances a wide range of features including form controls, APIs, multimedia, structure, and semantics.
Most exciting to me is the fact that commonly used “div elements can be replaced with the new elements: header, nav, section, article, aside, and footer.”
Beyond the obvious of this being good in enabling us to more easily construct pages, there are benefits to the user, as well. Read more …
10/2007 Career Fair Info
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Opportunities for web design and desktop publishing are forecasted to grow nearly 30% from 2002-2012. - U.S. Bureau of Labor & Statistics
Two-thirds of the projected job openings between 2000 and 2010 will require Short Term On The Job Training. These jobs arise from replacement needs and tend to offer lower pay and benefits than those requiring a college degree.
Employment in jobs requiring an Associate’s Degree are expected to increase faster than any other group categorized by education or training.
Jobs requiring a Bachelor’s Degree, and which usually offer higher pay and better benefits, will account for about 7.3 million job openings through 2010. Most of these openings will result from job growth.
Interface Designers conceive websites with the focus on making the user’s interaction experience simple and intuitive.
Multimedia Designers create animated images, visual effects, and 3D scenes seen in movies, television and computer games.
Web Page Designers create the visual design of a website and code the HTML and CSS for online presentation.
Graphic Designers plan, analyze, and create visual solutions to communications problems by deciding the most effective way of getting a message across.
Average Annual Salary in Pennsylvania
- Interface Designer - $73,000
- Multimedia Designer - $65,000
- Web Designer - $57,000
- Graphic Designer - $44,000
Source: http://www.indeed.com
PLEASE NOTE: Actual salaries vary based on the size and location of the employer. Jobs in the city or suburbs pay higher than rural positions. Entry level positions typically pay less than the average.
The Beauty of SSI - Part 2
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Since there was a part 1, it is inevitable there might be a part 2, as well. *smile* A few weeks ago, I stumbled upon some SSI code that I think is quite useful and wanted to share with my readers. I had not previously been aware of this capability with SSI. Like ASP, PHP and other scripting languages, SSI has its own tags that you can use to generate useful information for yourself and the website visitor.
Server Side Include (SSI) Tags
Displays current date and time:
CODE:
The current date and time is <!–#config timefmt=”%A, %B %d, %Y, %I:%M %p”–> <!–#echo var=”DATE_LOCAL” –>.
OUTPUT:
The current date and time is Monday, October 15, 2007, 07:39 AM.
Tell the User what browser they are using (conditional):
CODE:
You are using
<!–#if expr=”$HTTP_USER_AGENT = /Opera/”–>
the Opera browser.
<!–#elif expr=”$HTTP_USER_AGENT = /Firefox/”–>
the Firefox browser.
<!–#elif expr=”$HTTP_USER_AGENT = /MSIE/”–>
the Internet Explorer browser.
<!–#else –>
a browser different than most people.
<!–#endif –>
OUTPUT:
You are using the [NAMED] browser.
Identify the User’s IP Address:
CODE:
Your IP Address is <!–#echo var=”REMOTE_ADDR” –>.
OUTPUT:
Your IP Address is 64.178.113.79.
Indicate Date a Page was Last Modified:
CODE:
This page was last modified on
<!–#config timefmt=”%A, %B %d, %Y at %I:%M:%S %p”–>
<!–#echo var=”LAST_MODIFIED”–>.
OUTPUT:
This page was last modified on Saturday, September 29, 2007 at 09:39:06 PM.
A few more useful tags:
Document File Name: <!–#echo var=”DOCUMENT_NAME”–>
Document’s URL: <!–#echo var=”DOCUMENT_URI”–>
Referring Page: <!–#echo var=”HTTP_REFERER”–>
If you want to find out more about SSI tags, do a Google search for SSI Tags. There is a wealth of information available online.
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