++ WEB DESIGN UPDATE. - Volume 4, Issue 42, April 7, 2006. An email newsletter to distribute news and information about web design and development. ++ISSUE 42 CONTENTS. SECTION ONE: New references. What's new at the Web Design Reference site? http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/webdesign/ New links in these categories: 01: ACCESSIBILITY. 02: CASCADING STYLE SHEETS. 03: DREAMWEAVER. 04: EVALUATION & TESTING. 05: EVENTS. 06: FLASH. 07: INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE. 08: JAVASCRIPT. 09: MISCELLANEOUS. 10: NAVIGATION. 11: PHP. 12: STANDARDS, GUIDELINES & PATTERNS. 13: TOOLS. 14: TYPOGRAPHY. 15: USABILITY. 16: XML. SECTION TWO: 17: What Can You Find at the Web Design Reference Site? [Contents ends.] ++ SECTION ONE: New references. +01: ACCESSIBILITY. Levels of Accessibility By Mike Cherim. "...The moral of this story is simple. There is a black-ish end of accessibility and a white-ish end, with rivers of gray running in between. Your site, our site, all sites lie somewhere in this gray area. We've yet to see a site that is 100% accessible (we're saying this thinking in broad- and individual user-terms this time), and it seems even the worst sites are accessible to some degree - conversely, it's just like some of the best site being inaccessible. Thus the question shouldn't be if a site is accessible (again, it's a bad question), but rather how accessible it is. It's a goal one doesn't simply reach or not reach, it's more a matter of how many barriers are removed and what considerations are made [Read as: How much you care and how much effort you put forth]. What's its level of accessibility? Just like our litter-bug analogy suggests, it's there, somewhere, in the gray. But remember that every little bit helps. And we feel credit earned is credit due when developers make an effort..." http://accessites.org/gbcms_xml/news_page.php?id=11 A Journey Through Accessibility By Roberto Scano. "From 'tag generation' to the 'WYSIWOYS generation'. Roberto Scano identifies web accessibility problems throughout the web generations, and summarizes where we are now, and what we can expect for the future." http://juicystudio.com/article/journey-through-accessibility.php Web Designers Still Failing Disabled People By John Coutts. "'It's easy for designers and commissioners to be seduced by the opportunities that software provides to create visually stunning designs, while forgetting about the audience,' says Julie Howell, digital policy development manager for the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB) and technical author of the new guidance. 'One of the main principles of PAS 78 is the creation of an accessibility policy. Site commissioners should think about the audience at the beginning of the design process and should put into writing a clear policy on who they are trying to reach and how they intend to ensure that those people are reached.' http://technology.guardian.co.uk/weekly/story/0,,1731405,00.html Provide Text Equivalents for Audio - General Advice on Captions By Skills For Access. "Video content that contains spoken or other audio information (for example on-or off-screen sound effects, or background music) that is important to understanding the video's content will present access barriers to anyone who is deaf or hard of hearing and unable to hear the video's soundtrack. The same problem will also be encountered by anyone accessing the video using a computer without a soundcard and/or speakers, or in a noisy environment, or where no sound is permitted. Therefore an alternative to the information provided in audio format is required to make the media accessible to these groups..." http://www.skillsforaccess.org.uk/howto.php?id=103 Provide Text Equivalents for Audio - General Advice on Transcripts By Skills For Access. "...There are two accessibility solutions for this barrier. The most equitable option is to provide the video content with captions and audio descriptions..." http://www.skillsforaccess.org.uk/howto.php?id=102 +02: CASCADING STYLE SHEETS. Learn CSS Positioning in Ten Steps By BarelyFitz Designs. "This tutorial examines the different layout properties available in CSS: position:static, position:relative, position:absolute, and float." http://barelyfitz.com/screencast/html-training/css/positioning/ Accessible CSS Forms: Using CSS to Create a Two-Column Layout By Andrew B. King. "Websites have become less accessible and more complex over time according to recent studies. Learn how to buck the trend by creating fast, accessible CSS forms that work with modern browsers and gracefully degrade." http://www.websiteoptimization.com/speed/tweak/forms/ Notes on Suggesting Link Styles By David Baron. "The correct way to suggest styles for links is complicated because of both browser bugs and differences between CSS1 and CSS2. In CSS1..." http://www.dbaron.org/css/1999/09/links Let's Focus on Focus By Mike Cherim. "I surf around the web and check out all sorts of cool sites on any given day. And gladly I report I do see a greater number of accessible, usable sites that look great -- a beneficial trend. I visit some really fine websites that qualify for an A or two. Being so, you might understand when I say that it strikes me as a bit of an oddity when I see no link focus. What's up with that? I ask myself. It's so simple to do." http://green-beast.com/blog/?p=93 You've Come A Long Way, Baby... No By Alex Walker. "As fun as it is to pontificate about microformats, structured markup and the semantic web, in the past week two item have brought home to me how far the leading edge of web thinking is ahead of 'Joe in the street'." http://tinyurl.com/g5f44 +03: DREAMWEAVER. Tableless Layouts with Dreamweaver 8 By Stephanie Sullivan. "...Though this article is about building a simple site without tables, I'm first going to cover how I personally set up Dreamweaver to write clean code. Your mileage may vary..." http://tinyurl.com/fymnf +04: EVALUATION & TESTING. When Getting the Job Done Isn't Enough... By Kath Straub. "Kath Straub, Ph.D., CUA, HFI's Chief Scientist, looks at how the types of data you collect in a usability test can effect the impact of your redesign recommendations." http://www.humanfactors.com/downloads/mar06.asp Usability Testing with Children By Tim Fidgeon. "Usability testing with children can prevent some unique challenges - find out what exactly these are and what you need to do." http://tinyurl.com/hkpth Show Me Eye Tracking By etre. This is a eye tracking demo. "...Here's a user interacting with a website. The blue dots show his eye fixations, while the connecting blue lines illustrate his eye movements. This information shows us where he looks, what he pays the most attention to, and most importantly, what he misses..." http://www.etre.com/usability/eyetracking/showme/ Remote Usability Testing By Interno Tredici. "...The diffusion of screen sharing software and remote control applications is slowly changing how usability evaluations are conducting because usability experts can now interact with users geographically distant and with different cultural backgrounds. Moreover Internet and fast broadband connection strengthen the ability to deploy high quality videos and makes user observation more accurate for usability evaluators. With this premises we can define remote usability testing as a technique that exploits user home (or office!), transforming it into an usability laboratory where user observation can be done with screen sharing applications..." http://www.internotredici.com/article/remoteusabilitytesting +05: EVENTS. C and O '06: Context and Ontologies: Theory, Practice and Applications August 28, 2006. Riva del Garda, Italy http://www.c-and-o.net/ User Interfaces For All September 27-28, 2006. Konigswinter (Bonn), Germany http://www.ui4all.gr/workshop2006/ +06: FLASH. Flash Interaction Disabled in Internet Explorer By Robert Nyman. "Although news of this has been around for a while, many people seem to have missed it and/or didn't think it was worth reading up on. On the contrary, the implications of this are huge and will most likely affect a lot of web sites. Due to the patent case with Eolas, Microsoft has been forced to update how ActiveX components behave in web pages..." http://tinyurl.com/n3qf9 +07: INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE. Rethinking EIA: Becoming Information Ecologists By Rob Fay. "This post attempts to rethink Enterprise Information Architecture (EIA) and argues that information architecture need not be constrained to designing structures and managing content as it relates to the Web or for any electronic system for that matter. Instead, I argue that an enterprise information architect might also be called, as Thomas Davenport coins it, an 'Information Ecologist'." http://robfay.com/2006/04/01/rethinking-eia/ IA Summit 2006 Presentations and Downloads By iasummit.org. This will keep you going for a while. http://iasummit.org/2006/conferencedescrip.htm Social Information Architecture, Sorting, and Tagging By Christian Crumlish. "Here are my raw notes from Rashmi Sinha's talk at the IA Summit, 'Sorting, Tagging and Social Information Architecture' or The Missing Chapter in the Polar Bear Book." http://tinyurl.com/lrjmj Information Architecture Library By Information Architecture Institute. "Welcome to the IA Library. The IA Library is a selection of resources related to the field of information architecture. The collection includes articles, books, blogs, and more." http://iainstitute.org/library/ +08: JAVASCRIPT. Don't Use Javascript to Hide Bad Markup By Stuart Colville. "In a recent post on 456 Berea Street, Jeff Croft made a very valid comment suggesting that using JavaScript to create invalid markup was no better than writing invalid markup in the first place. This is something I totally agree with. The rising popularity of JavaScript following the buzz surrounding by Ajax has meant more and more sites are using javascript more fully, but it's important that developers don't get sloppy just because modifications to the document aren't visible in the source..." http://tinyurl.com/qzbo5 OOJS - Overhyped and Overcomplicating By David Andersson (liorean). "Yeah, it's blasphemous. But I said it, and I'll clarify it a bit: I see practically no use for writing object oriented code in JavaScript..." http://web-graphics.com/mtarchive/001728.php The XMLHttpRequest Object By W3C. "This specification defines the XMLHttpRequest object, an API that provides some HTTP client functionality." http://www.w3.org/TR/2006/WD-XMLHttpRequest-20060405/ See How the XMLHttpRequest Object is the Heart and Soul of AJAX By Tony Patton. "Here's an example that demonstrates the elegance and simplicity of using the XMLHttpRequest object. Tony Patton also explores how the XMLHttpRequest object opens the door to many other uses that can improve the user experience." http://builder.com.com/5100-6371_14-6056954.html +09: MISCELLANEOUS. The Future of the Web By Tim Berners Lee, Oxford Internet Institute Webcasts. "The development of Web technology has been an exciting ride, a series of socially motivated technical innovations some languishing, others catching on in a viral way. As each development has suggested many new ones, and much of the original vision is still unfulfilled, there is a lot to do. This talk will discuss new challenges and hopes for weblike systems on the net." http://webcast.oii.ox.ac.uk/?view=Webcast&ID=20060314_139 +10: NAVIGATION. Identifying Missing Trigger Words from Search Logs By Jared Spool. "Jared comments on Eric Scheid's idea for a search log analysis tool that can help identify missing trigger words." http://tinyurl.com/pb6mk Search Engine Optimization Basics, Part 1: Improve Your Standing in Search Engines By L. Jennette Banks. "Making your Web site attractive to search engines is a key factor for your success as a Web site developer. Get the basic information you need to organically optimize your Web site in this four-part series. In Part 1, you'll receive a foundation in search engine optimization so you can organically optimize your Web site and create Web pages that are usable, accessible, and friendly to search engines." http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/web/library/wa-seo1.html Search Engine Optimization Basics, Part 2: SEO Keyword and Infrastructure Strategies By L. Jennette Banks. "Making your Web site attractive to search engines is a key factor for your success as a Web site developer. Get the basic information you need to organically optimize your Web site in this four-part series. In Part 1, you learned the background of why white hat SEO is good for your site. In Part 2, you'll start optimizing. You'll create a strategy for choosing and optimizing your keywords from the top-left-down and learn more about other factors that can influence your success in search engines." http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/web/library/wa-seo2/ Search Engine Optimization Basics, Part 3: Get Your Web Pages into Search Indexes By Mike Moran and Bill Hunt. "Making your Web site attractive to search engines is a key factor for your success as a Web site developer. Get the basic information you need to organically optimize your Web site in this four-part series. In Part 3 of the series, you'll learn how to get the pages of your Web site into the search indexes." http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/web/library/wa-seo3.html Search Engine Optimization Basics, Part 4: Improve Search Marketing for Large Sites By Mike Moran and Bill Hunt. "Making your Web site obvious to search engines is a key factor for your success as a Web site developer. Get the basic information you need to organically optimize your Web site in this four-part series. In this final part of the series, learn specialized techniques for large Web sites or sites with many dynamic pages." http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/web/library/wa-seo4.html Web Navigation Is About Moving Forward By Gerry McGovern. "The primary purpose of web navigation is to help people to move forward. It is not to tell them where they have been, or where they could have gone..." http://www.gerrymcgovern.com/nt/2006/nt-2006-04-02-web-navigation.htm The 3-Click Rule By The Best Practice. "Q: I understand that an efficient website should allow visitors to find a product within three clicks. Is this true?" http://www.thebestpractice.com/BOTLN/bl_intk_602.html +11: PHP. Collections and Sorting By David Fells. "PHP has only a limited ability to support collections in the way that other programming languages such as C# and Java do, as far as the manner of access. This article navigates one possible solution..." http://www.devshed.com/c/a/PHP/Collections-and-Sorting/ +12: STANDARDS, GUIDELINES & PATTERNS. But It Validates! By Jon Christopher. "... I...now know that having valid markup is one of the core criteria for a good end product. Many people have also come to this realization, but the problem is - many have also stopped there. A lot of developers feel that having the W3C Validator tell you that your markup is valid is enough, that you can now move on to the next phase of your project. Passing validation is great, but it is merely a single part of the process. An example is that even though tabular layouts are considered valid, they are still frowned upon..." http://www.mondaybynoon.com/2006/04/03/but-it-validates/ Spiffy Markup? By Ian Lloyd. "Tell me, what is spiffy about this markup?" http://www.webstandards.org/2006/04/05/am-i-spiffy-or-not/ +13: TOOLS. CSSTweak By Andy Peatling. "CSS Tweak will take your CSS and optimize it so that file sizes and download times are reduced. There are a number of simple options for tweaking, here's a brief overview of each one..." http://www.cssdev.com/csstweak/ +14: TYPOGRAPHY. Five Simple Steps to Typesetting on the Web: Printing the Web By Mark Boulton. "The screen is just one of the media types for which we have to design for. Another media type, which I feel is often neglected as part of the design process for a web site, is print. There are times when a web designer has to know about print design. Not just the values and aesthetics of designing for print, but the terminology, measurements and production values that are important in print design - including typesetting. I'll be addressing these, along with a working examples over the course of the next three installments of this 'Simple Steps' series." http://tinyurl.com/hnzrv Don't Alter the Widths or Shapes or Letters Without Cause By Richard Rutter. "In the world of digital type, it is very easy for a designer or compositor with no regard for letters to squish them into cattle trains and ship them to slaughter." http://webtypography.net/Rhythm_and_Proportion/Horizontal_Motion/2.1.9/ +15: USABILITY. Hyped Web Stories Are Irrelevant By Jakob Nielsen. "The fads and big deals that get the press coverage are not important for running a workhorse website. To serve your customers, it's far better to emphasize simplicity and quality than to chase buzzwords...The most important story of them all gets almost no hype: we're seeing more and more simple websites that meet customers' needs and thus generate substantial business value. Often the sites that do nothing special are the best: it's more important to focus on doing things right than to chase the latest fad." http://www.useit.com/alertbox/hype.html Home Page Googlization By Jared Spool. "All the evidence we have tells us, most of the time, users want to find strong trigger words to click on, not a box to type their trigger word into. When the trigger words are present on the page, users are far more likely to succeed. As designers, we need to focus on design solutions that make trigger words more prevalent, not less." http://www.uie.com/brainsparks/2006/04/05/home-page-googlization/ The Ugly Conversation By Josh Lehman. "A short summary of the ugly vs beautiful debate in web design..." http://www.filemeaway.com/archives/2006/03/the_ugly_conver.php +16: XML. XForms Meets Ajax: Can They Get Along? By Rich Seeley. "When the W3C released a second edition of XForms this month as a recommendation for 'new generation of Web forms,' the question that begged to be asked was where does this fit into the Web development world where Ajax is the hot technology?" http://tinyurl.com/nzfcx [Section one ends.] ++ SECTION TWO: +17: What Can You Find at the Web Design Reference Site? Accessibility Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/accessibility Association Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/associations Book Listings. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/books Cascading Style Sheets Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/css Color Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/color Dreamweaver Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/dreamweaver Evaluation & Testing Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/testing Event Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/events Flash Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/flash Information Architecture Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/architecture JavaScript Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/javascript Miscellaneous Web Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/misc Navigation Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/navigation PHP Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/php Sites & Blogs Listing. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/sites Standards, Guidelines & Pattern Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/standards Tool Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/tools Typography Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/type Usability Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/usability XML Information. http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/xml [Section two ends.] ++END NOTES. + SUBSCRIPTION INFO. WEB DESIGN UPDATE is available by subscription. For information on how to subscribe and unsubscribe please visit: http://www.d.umn.edu/goto/webdevlist The Web Design Reference Site also has a RSS 2.0 feed for site updates. + TEXT EMAIL NEWSLETTER (TEN). As a navigation aid for screen readers we do our best to conform to the accessible Text Email Newsletter (TEN) guidelines. Please let me know if there is anything else we can do to make navigation easier. For TEN guideline information please visit: http://www.headstar.com/ten + SIGN OFF. Until next time, Laura L. Carlson Information Technology Systems and Services University of Minnesota Duluth Duluth, MN U.S.A. 55812-3009 mailto:lcarlson@d.umn.edu [Issue ends.]