+++ WEB DESIGN UPDATE.
- Volume 10, Issue 13, September 22, 2011.

An email newsletter to distribute news and information about web design and development. 

++ISSUE 13 CONTENTS.

SECTION ONE: New references.
What's new at the Web Design Reference site?
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/
New links in these categories:

01: ACCESSIBILITY.
02: CASCADING STYLE SHEETS.
03: EVENTS.
04: MISCELLANEOUS.
05: PHP.
06: INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE.
07: STANDARDS, GUIDELINES & PATTERNS.
08: TOOLS.
09: USABILITY.


SECTION TWO: 
10: What Can You Find at the Web Design Reference Site?

[Contents ends.]


++ SECTION ONE: New references.

+01: ACCESSIBILITY.

The Google Blog
By Mark A. Riccobono.
"Many improvements still need to be made before Google applications are fully accessible to blind users, but the enhancements that we have seen demonstrated indicate a commitment to accessibility by Google. The National Federation of the Blind will continue to work with Google to ensure that all who want to use the services of this company have access to them.  We commend Google for articulating the goal that accessibility will be baked into its products at the time of release.  We will be posting further technical information on this topic shortly."
http://www.nfb.org/NewsBot.asp?MODE=VIEW&ID=848

Response to Accessibility in Google Docs
By Dennis E. Lembree.
"Read Write Web recently published the article Google Announces Sweeping Accessibility Improvements for Visually Challenged Users. On one hand, this is great news. But on the other hand, Google's accessibility efforts have been inconsistent..."
http://webaxe.blogspot.com/2011/09/response-to-accessibility-in-google.html

Accessibility in Google Apps
By Deborah Edwards-Onoro.
"At the September 21, 2011 webinar, Google staff discussed the importance of accessibility at Google as well as the challenges. Naomi Black of the Google Accessibility team shared the accessibility features and functionality in Google Docs, Spreadsheets, Sites and Calendar..."
http://storify.com/redcrew/accessibility?awesm=sfy.co_Haq&utm_campaign=redcrew

Google Announces Sweeping Accessibility Improvements for Visually Challenged Users
By Jon Mitchell.
"Google has announced a new initiative to increase accessibility for visually challenged users on its major Web services. In advance of the upcoming school year, Google is rolling out accessibility improvements to Docs, Sites and Calendars. Google is hosting a live webinar for enterprise customers - which include educational institutions - on Wednesday, September 21 at 12:00 p.m. Pacific time..."
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/google_announces_sweeping_accessibility_improvemen.php

Proposed Regulations Address Airline Websites and Kiosks
By The Law Office of Lainey Feingold.
The United States Department of Transportation issued a press release on September 19, 2011 announcing proposed regulations on airline websites and airline kiosks. The proposed rules would require most airlines to have accessible websites within two years of any final regulation (which could be several years from now if at all). The proposal, if enacted, would also require kiosks purchased after any final regulation to meet accessibility standards. The full text of the announcement is below. 
http://lflegal.com/2011/09/dot-proposed-regs/


+02: CASCADING STYLE SHEETS.

A New Flexible Solution To A Responsive Layout Problem
By Steven Bradley.
"A couple of weeks ago I talked about a problem I was having in a responsive layout along with my attempted solution to the problem. If you remember that solution wasn't something I liked due to its inflexibility. Fortunately in the days since I did work out a solution that is flexible and one I'm happy with. I thought I would share it with you."
http://www.vanseodesign.com/web-design/flexible-responsive-solution/

Quick Tip - A Crash-Course in CSS Media Queries
By Jeffrey Way.
"In the past, in order to create layouts based upon the width of the user's browser, we had to use JavaScript - perhaps combined with a server-side language. Fortunately, the process is now becoming far simpler, thanks to CSS media queries..."
http://net.tutsplus.com/tutorials/html-css-techniques/quick-tip-a-crash-course-in-css-media-queries/

How To Use CSS Combinators and Simple Pseudo Class Selectors
By Steven Bradley. 
"...This week I want to continue and talk specifically about combinators before starting to cover pseudo class selectors..."
http://www.vanseodesign.com/css/combinators-pseudo-classes/

2D Transforms in CSS3
By John Allsopp.
"One of the most powerful features of CSS3 are transforms, which allow us to take any element in an HTML document, and while not changing its effect on the page layout, rotate it, translate it (move it left, right, up and down), skew it and scale it. CSS3 provides both 2D and 3D transforms, but while 2D transforms are supported in all modern browsers, including IE9 and up, 3D transforms are currently only supported in Safari, Chrome and IE10..."
http://www.webdirections.org/blog/2d-transforms-in-css3/

How Do Browsers Render the Different CSS Border Style Values?
By Louis Lazaris. 
"...Just like form elements, you'll never get these looking exactly the same cross-browser, and neither should you want to. But if nothing else, it's interesting seeing how the different browser makers interpret these different values."
http://www.impressivewebs.com/comparison-css-border-style/

A Farewell to CSS3 Gradients
By Alex Walker.
"...While the idea of programmable gradients is great, using them is seriously messy..."
http://designfestival.com/a-farewell-to-css3-gradients/

CSS3 Flexible Box Layout Explained
By Richard Shepherd.
"The flexible box layout module - or 'flexbox', to use its popular nickname - is an interesting part of the W3C Working Draft. The flexbox specification is still a draft and subject to change, so keep your eyes on the W3C, but it is part of a new arsenal of properties that will revolutionize how we lay out pages. At least it will be when cross-browser support catches up. In the meantime, we can experiment with flexbox and even use it on production websites where fallbacks will still render the page correctly."
http://coding.smashingmagazine.com/2011/09/19/css3-flexible-box-layout-explained/


+03: EVENTS.

Penn State Demonstrates Its Award-Winning Closed Captioning Workflow
October 6, 2011.
Online Webinar
https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/936035798

UX Design - Preserving the UX Through Delivery
October 15, 2011.
New York, New York, U.S.A.
http://ixda-nyc-oct15.eventbrite.com/

PHP Barcelona Conference
October 28-29, 2011.
Barcelona, Spain
http://phpconference.es

Information Design Association 2012 Conference
April 12-13, 2012.
London, England, United Kingdom
http://www.infodesign.org.uk/news/2012-conference.php

International Conference on Natural Computation (ICNC'12)
May 29-31, 2012.
Chongqing, China
http://icnc-fskd.cqupt.edu.cn/

An Event Apart Boston
June 18-20, 2012.
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
http://aneventapart.com/2012/boston/


+04: INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE.

Building Prototypes in HTML and CSS
By Anna Debenham .
"rototyping tools can be restrictive and it's becoming more important that designers know how to code up their concepts, so Leisa Reichelt organised a workshop teaching how to build prototypes in HTML and CSS. Here Anna Debenham summarises what she taught on the Code Fitness day..."
http://www.netmagazine.com/tutorials/building-prototypes-html-and-css


+05: MISCELLANEOUS.

The Web is a Different Problem
By John Allsopp.
"One of the most persistent criticisms of web technologies is that they evolve slowly, indeed, too slowly. Often the argument is raised that the process of standards is antithetical to 'innovation' (for innovation read 'making cool stuff up')..."
http://www.webdirections.org/blog/the-web-is-a-different-problem/

Banishing Your Inner Critic
By Denise Jacobs.
"Everybody has one: the inner critic that tells you you're just faking it, that others have more talent, that you'll never achieve the success you seek. The inner critic is an unconscious deterrent that stands between the seeds of great ideas and the fruits of achievement, making you hate your designs, giving you 'writer's block' as your deadline looms, keeping you stuck in a project's initial thinking stage because something isn't quite right. Denise Jacobs anatomizes and shows how to quash your inner critic, giving you the mental space and energy to let your talent emerge..."
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/banishing-your-inner-critic/


+06: PHP.

Variables in PHP
By Iain Tench.
"...Arrays are a very, very important and versatile data structure. They are handy for grouping all sorts of related information together, and are really easy to use once you get the hang of them. But you can do much more with them than just adding prices. I am fond of using them for customizing scripts, creating key/value pairs for data like website domain name, description, keywords, database login credentials, etc. Also note the PHP super global variables like $_GET, $_POST, $_SESSION and $_SERVER are all arrays. Now that you're on your way to becoming a proficient array user, you'll notice them all around you!..."
http://phpmaster.com/variables/

Introduction to PHP Arrays
By J. Armando Jeronymo.
"...Tables organize data in such a way that we can easily find correlations or perform straightforward computations. A array is essentially a way to organize data in a table-like manner. The name 'array' comes from the same Latin roots as the word 'arrangement'..."
http://phpmaster.com/introduction-to-php-arrays/


+07: STANDARDS, GUIDELINES & PATTERNS.

On the (Abominable) Proposed HTML5 'scoped' Attribute for Style Elements
By John Allsopp.
"Over the last couple of years, I've had my fair share to say about the direction HTML5 has been taking, in particular being quite critical of the entire approach taken to adding richer semantics to HTML, as well as specific language choices. It must be said though, that nothing has quite riled me like the proposed 'scoped'attribute for style elements. To learn about it, I recommend HTML5 doctor Jack Osborne's much more readable version, with some thoughts (and lively commentary)..."
http://www.webdirections.org/blog/on-the-abominable-proposed-html5-scoped-attribute-for-style-elements/

HTML Gurus Modernize Acid3 Browser Test
By Stephen Shankland.
"Two browser experts have pared back Acid3, a test that browser standards fans held up to spotlight Internet Explorer's shortcomings, so the test won't hold back development of those standards..."
http://news.cnet.com/8301-30685_3-20108418-264/html-gurus-modernize-acid3-browser-test

HTML5 - Briefing Notes for Journalists and Analysts
By Bruce Lawson.
"...Here are the most common questions we're asked, with non-technical answers..."
http://html5doctor.com/html5-briefing-notes-journalists-analysts


+08: TOOLS.

Responsive Design Testing
By Matt Kersley.
http://mattkersley.com/responsive/

iPhone Emulator
http://iphonetester.com/


+09: USABILITY.

Boston Globe's Responsive Redesign. Discuss.
By Jeffery Zeldman.
"As every  we designer not living under a rock hopefully already knows, The Boston Globe has had a responsive redesign at the hands of some of today's best designers and developers..."
http://www.zeldman.com/2011/09/15/boston-globes-responsive-redesign-discuss/

Boston Global Scope
By Jeremy Keith.
"...In truth, a mobile site should be the standard, full, regular site; you can still go ahead and add more stuff for the desktop environment, but to think of it as the canonical instantiation isn't helpful. It hinders our ability to think in a mobile-first responsive manner..."
http://adactio.com/journal/4862/

Help People Do Things, Don't Keep Them on Webpages
By Gerry McGovern.
"Your objective should be to reduce the amount of time customers have to spend on your website..."
http://www.gerrymcgovern.com/nt/2011/nt-2011-09-19-Help-people.htm

Mobile Web Resources from Breaking Development
By Luke Wroblewski.
Luke's notes from the Breaking Development conference and links to presenter's slides.
http://www.lukew.com/ff/entry.asp?1406

Demystifying Design
By Jeff Gothelf.
"Mystifying design with jargon only we understand makes us feel like heroes and creates a sense of job security. But it also creates an 'us and them' atmosphere which excludes non-designers, obscures the true value of design, and generates antagonism when only cooperation will yield the best product. By revealing our process and inviting others into our world, we can create a team that is invested in the success of our work, and deliver better design. Jeff Gothelf discusses the steps we can take to increase the value of our practice and of ourselves as practitioners."
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/demystifying-design/


[Section one ends.]


++ SECTION TWO:

+10: What Can You Find at the Web Design Reference Site?

Accessibility Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/accessibility.html

Association Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/associations.html

Book Listings.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/books.html

Cascading Style Sheets Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/css.html

Color Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/color.html

Dreamweaver Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/dreamweaver.html

Evaluation & Testing Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/testing.html

Event Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/events.html

Flash Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/flash.html

Information Architecture Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/architecture.html

JavaScript Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/javascript.html

Miscellaneous Web Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/misc.html

Navigation Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/navigation.html

PHP Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/php.html

Sites & Blogs Listing.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/sites.html

Standards, Guidelines & Pattern Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/standards.html

Tool Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/tools.html

Typography Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/type.html

Usability Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/usability.html

XML Information.
http://www.d.umn.edu/itss/training/online/webdesign/xml.html

[Section two ends.]


++END NOTES.


+ SUBSCRIPTION INFO.

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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:
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+ 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.]