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Monday, October 30, 2017

Define URL Parts

More than dot com


Google engineer and blogger Matt Cutts has defined the pieces that make up a Uniform Resource Locator.

At least as Google refers to them when they're sitting around in their backrooms
Domain

Dynamic URL
Fragment or a Named anchor


The Googlers I've talked to are split right down the middle on which way to refer it. Disputes on what to call it can be settled with arm wrestling, dance-offs, or drinking contests. Typically the fragment is used to refer to an internal section within a web document. In this case, the named anchor means "skip to 2 minutes and 30 seconds into the video."





Host




Parameters




Path




Port




Protocol




Second-level domain




Static url




Subdomain




Top-level domain



Parts of a URL


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Friday, October 20, 2017

CSS

Cascading Style Sheets



As a web page is formatted in Expression Web/FrontPage, the style choices are applied to each element.
To format the body of the page, the HTML code might be:

<body background="blue" color="white" font-family="times, serif" font-size=10pt>

Every page on the site would need to be coded this way in order to have a consistent look.
Cascading Style Sheets will simplify the problem. On an external page the elements can be defined like this:

body {
background: blue;
color: white;
font-family: times, serif;
font-size: 10pt


Each page would contain a reference to the CSS definitions:

<head>
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="mystyle.css">
</head>


When the element "body" is used it will now use the CSS references.

For more information see:

Using Cascading Style Sheets on Your Web Site - David Berry
and
Eric Meyer's Site

In this Blog:
CSS Links
and:
More Cascading Style Sheet Help


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Monday, October 16, 2017

Synch Time

Time Server


Things I've forgotten or never knew.

  1. Double click on the date and time on the taskbar to open the time applet.

  2. Click on the Internet Time tab.

  3. Choose a time server, and click on the Update Now button.

As long as you are connected to the internet, Windows will attempt to synchronize the time once per week.
You can type the name of a time server if you want to use one that is not listed. Only time servers that use the Simple Network Time Protocol (SNTP) will work. Inserting an Internet address that uses the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) will not work. The time server time.windows.com is operated by Microsoft. The time server time.nist.gov is operated by the U.S. government. Other time servers provided by your computer's manufacturer might also be listed.



Also:
Time Flies Like an Arrow


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Thursday, September 28, 2017

How to Start a Blog

Step-by-step tutorials

"If you’re like most people, you may not know where to get started. Starting a blog can be intimidating if you don’t have the required technological skills. Not to mention that the number of options available for starting a blog can be just plain confusing. The good news is that the free step-by-step guide on this site removes any confusion from the process, and requires only the most basic computer skills. So whether you’re 8 or 88, you can have your blog ready to go in less than 20 minutes."

Theblogstarter.com

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Tuesday, September 26, 2017

IE Spells

Missing feature found



For years, I've filled out forms on the net and then had to copy and paste into Word to check doubtful spelling.

Now there is a tool that should have been included in the first place.

"ieSpell is a free Internet Explorer browser extension that spell checks text input boxes on a webpage. It should come in particularly handy for users who do a lot of web-based text entry (e.g. web mails, forums, blogs, diaries).

Even if your web application already includes spell checking functionality, you might still want to install this utility because it is definitely much faster than a server-side solution. Plus you get to store and use your personal word list across all your applications, instead of maintaining separate ones on each application."


ieSpell


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Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Vidler Video Storage

Player and free video storage

"You can upload many videos at once, and in various formats, too.(mov .avi .wmv .mpeg).

You also won't have to worry about file size - just keep any video you upload under 500 Mb.

Timed Tags
Moments on the timeline of your video are taggable, so you can classify and share instances in time. Timed tags are searchable, too - a great way to explore the content on viddler.com

Timed Comments
Your position in the timeline of a video determines where your comment will be posted to, which brings the discussion to a whole new level!

Use Your Webcam
Got a web camera? You can use Viddler to record footage directly from the camera to the website. There's no third-party software



"Viddler is very different from other video-delivery based websites, because we stream our videos instead of having the user download it.

That means you get to watch videos without having to wait for the entire video to load.

This is especially useful when you want to view the last few minutes of a very long video.

It's a secure system and prevents other people from watching the video (in ways they're not supposed to) or ripping the video off the site.

Video that you host with Viddler cannot be stolen, or used in any fashion, unless you set your sharing options to allow it."


Vidler.com


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Monday, September 18, 2017

Google Search Tips

Drill down to the answer


20 search tips to be used with Google.

Here are a few:

  • Either/or. Google normally searches for pages that contain all the words you type in the search box, but if you want pages that have one term or another (or both), use the OR operator -- or use the "" symbol (pipe symbol) to save you a keystroke.


  • Quotes. If you want to search for an exact phrase, use quotes.


  • Not. If you don't want a term or phrase, use the "-" symbol.


  • Similar terms. Use the "~" symbol to return similar terms.
  • Definitions. Use the "define:" operator to get a quick definition.
  • Vertical search. Instead of searching for a term across all pages on the web, search within a specialized field. Google has a number of specific searches, allowing you to search within blogs, news, books, and much more
20 Google Tips


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Tuesday, September 05, 2017

DOCTYPE

Customize



At the top of an HTML file source, you may see some code that indicates the version of HTML that is going to be used.

<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01//EN">

The O'Reilly Net.com has a discussion:
DOCTYPE Explained.

"There are three variants on HTML 4.01, for example:
  • HTML 4.01 Strict, which describes the structural portions of HTML 4.01 and does not provide any frame-related markup.
  • HTML 4.01 Transitional, which includes the presentational markup such as >B< and >FONT<, but does not include frame-related markup.
  • HTML 4.01 Frameset, which is the same as HTML 4.01 Transitional except that it adds a description of frame-related markup."
Also:
Fix Your Site With the Right DOCTYPE!
Choosing a DOCTYPE  
The global structure of an HTML document  


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Tuesday, August 15, 2017

DNS Cache

Down the drain


Internet connection problems can, sometimes, be traced to a corrupted DNS cache.

Flushing this cache is an easy fix to many of these problems.

Here is how to fix that corrupted DNS cache.


  1. Click the Microsoft Start logo in the bottom left corner of the screen

  2. Click All Programs

  3. Click Accessories

  4. Right-click on Command Prompt

  5. Select Run As Administrator

  6. To view the DNS cache, type ipconfig /displaydns at a command prompt.

  7. In the command window type the following and then hit enter: ipconfig /flushdns

  8. You will see the following confirmation:

    Windows IP Configuration
    Successfully flushed the DNS Resolver Cache
    .



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Monday, August 07, 2017

Themes and Templates

Need a look?



Themes are a collection of design elements and color schemes that can be applied to your web site to give it a unified appearance.

Templates include themes and layout modules to aid in quickly creating a web site. Templates can be purchased through the web, but here is one of the locations that provide free design help.

FreeLayouts.Livejournal.com
"Want a great new look for your website? Free Layouts.com offers you just that - select from our huge database of complete "look and feel" designs. Professional, sports, technical and others - they are all here. Free Web Templates are available for you to download now.

Look around and download your favorite page layouts - for free. Also, submit templates of your own and increase traffic to your website greatly. Currently over 500 free HTML templates and 50 Flash templates for you to download!"



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Monday, July 24, 2017

Headline Animator

Up to date



Introducing the Headline Animator:

Unofficial Microsoft Office Stuff

FeedBurner.com
"We're happy to introduce our latest publisher service: the Headline Animator. When you burn your RSS or Atom feed with FeedBurner, you can take advantage of this cool, different way of looking at your feed.

Just by pasting some HTML code into, say, your email signature file or bulletin board profile, you'll get a nice little badge that always shows your latest five blog postings. No Javascript or Flash required -- we generate an animated GIF on-the-fly from your feed."



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Monday, July 17, 2017

Browser Utensils

Tiny tools



Bookmarklets
Easy to use, free Java scripts.


"Bookmarklets are simple tools that extend the surf and search capabilities of Netscape and Explorer web browsers.

Bookmarklets are free.

Bookmarklets allow you to:
  • Modify the way you see someone else's webpage.
  • Extract data from a webpage.
  • Search more quickly, and in ways not possible with a search engine.
  • Navigate in new ways.
…and more. Over 150 bookmarklets are available."
Here's a list of available bookmarklets:

List of Offline Bookmarklets


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Monday, July 10, 2017

Print Web Pages

Control Internet Explorer


The first few attempts to print from the Explorer Browser usually turn out to be a mess.re are some hints that may help.


Print Pages in IE Without Headers or Footers


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Saturday, July 08, 2017

Color Feels Right

Colors and emotions


When you're mad, do you see teal?

"Color plays a vitally important role in the world in which we live. Color can sway thinking, change actions, and cause reactions. It can irritate or soothe your eyes, raise your blood pressure or suppress your appetite.

When used in the right ways, color can save on energy consumption. When used in the wrong ways, color can contribute to global pollution.

As a powerful form of communication, color is irreplaceable. Red means "stop" and green means "go." Traffic lights send this universal message. Likewise, the colors used for a product, web site, business card, or logo cause powerful reactions.

Explore : The concept of color can be approached from several disciplines: physiology, psychology, philosophy, and art."


ColorMatters.com


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Monday, July 03, 2017

Nameless Surfing

Masked strangers


Anonymous surfing is exactly what the terms suggests. You go online without revealing any of the personal or technical information on your computer. It's done by having a special computer -- called a proxy server -- screening you from the websites you are contacting. Your computer contacts only the proxy server, which contacts the website for you. The website, in turn, sees only your proxy server and not you. In addition to hiding your IP.

From Ask Bob Rankin:
Anonymous Web Surfing


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Friday, June 23, 2017

Google Searches

Some hints


Google still rules the search engine world. Here are a few tips on how to refine your info-hunt.

Tip #1: Use the Correct Methodology

Tip #2: Conduct an "Either/Or" Search

Tip #3: Include or Exclude Words in Your Search

Tip #4: Search for Similar Words

Tip #5: Search for an Exact Phrase

Tip #6: List Similar Pages

Tip #7: Fine-Tune Your Search with Other Operators

Tip #8: Search for Specific Facts

Tip #9: Search the Google Directory

Tip #10: Use Googles Other Specialized Searches

Ten Tips for Smarter Google Searches


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Saturday, June 17, 2017

Menus via CSS

Code and directions


"The core of any Web site is the navigation mechanism, the menu. If Web sites are primarily about organizing and presenting content, a site's menu provides the means of traversing this information set.
In designing a Web navigation system, it is often difficult to balance the competing objectives of simplicity, flexibility, usability, and maintainability. Often very simple designs are not flexible; flexible designs trade off with usable ones; and easily maintainable designs are rarely even considered."

Build a Flexible CSS Web Navigation Architecture


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Saturday, June 10, 2017

Color Safe Not

The other side of the wheel



Death of the Websafe Color Palette?
One of the givens of Web design, the holiest of holy truths, is the sanctity of the 216 websafe color palette. It's a rite of initiation for every Web designer or developer: Use only these colors, we were told, and don't question why.

By David Lehn and Hadley Stern. David is a senior information architect and interface developer in the Milan office of Razorfish. Hadley is a senior designer in Razorfish's Boston office.


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Sunday, May 28, 2017

Internet History

Two tin cans



From Forbes:

The Internet: A Short History of Getting Connected.
When the Defense Department issued a $19,800 contract on December 6, 1967, for the purpose of studying the "design and specification of a computer network," the world didn't take notice. But it should have. For, from that small, four-month study grew the ARPANET. And, from ARPANET emerged the Internet.

Also:
Living Internet
"An elegantly organized tour of the history of the Internet -- both fun and informative -- a rare combination!"
Steve Crocker, invented the Request For Comments.


All About the Internet

Hobbes' Internet Timeline v11.0


A Brief History of the Internet

"When the late Senator Ted Kennedy heard in 1968 that the pioneering Massachusetts company BBN had won the ARPA contract for an "interface message processor (IMP)," he sent a congratulatory telegram to BBN for their ecumenical spirit in winning the "interfaith message processor" contract."



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Sunday, May 21, 2017

Color Blind

Be seen by all



Books on web design warn against using the colors red and green.

One out of twenty people have problems with some form of color blindness.

Here is a site that will let you check your web pages. You will be able to see the page as it appears to someone with one of the three main types of color deficit.

Vischeck

Normal



Deuteranope color blindness

hats, deuteranope



Colorblind Web Page Filter


How do things look to Color Blind People


Web Colors


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