The issue is intensified for creative and development companies building software for Government clients. They must continue to provide and support IE6 solutions when most of the IT industry has moved on. Application development is held back and IE6’s longevity continues unabated!

UK citizens can now do something about the problem. An online petition at the Number10.gov.uk website is demanding that all Government departments upgrade Internet Explorer 6.0 at the earliest opportunity. At the time of writing, almost 6,000 signatures have been collected even though the petition has only just begun to attract publicity.

The UK Government E-Petitions allow British citizens to collect online signatures for any cause of their choice. There are almost 5,000 petitions currently running and many have been a success. For example, in September 2009, Gordon Brown was persuaded to apologize on behalf of the British Government for Alan Turing’s treatment after World War II.

Will the IE6 petition be a success and force UK Government departments to upgrade? I suspect many thousands of web users and workers will sign before the February 1, 2011 deadline but, unfortunately, that date is almost a year away. By then, several offices will have switched to IE7 and those that haven’t can simply announce a 3-year upgrade plan (to coincide with Microsoft dropping IE6 support in 2014).

But, hey — it all helps. Any campaign which persuades the masses to look beyond IE6 is a good thing. I’ve signed … will you?

Related posts:

1. Why Corporations Don’t Upgrade IE6 and How Chrome Frame Could Help
2. UK Government Apologizes for Appalling Treatment of Turing
3. Just When You Thought IE6 Would Die…

Really Easy Color Cast Removal

1. Open up your image in Photoshop. This picture is from the wonderful Library of Congress Flickr Group, taken in 1882 and you can see it has a yellow, aged hue.

2. Choose Image > Adjustments > Auto Color and immediately you’ll see a dramatic difference.
Note: In Photoshop CS4 the command is Image > Auto Color.

And that’s with just one click.

Slightly More Steps But Still Easy Color Cast Removal

If you have an image that has a severe color cast, this method is a little more powerful than using the Auto Color adjustment.

1. Open a photo that has a strong color cast. This is a picture I took where the white balance was way off on the camera so it came out very blue.

2. Choose Image > Adjustments > Match Color

Match Color is usually used when you have two images and you want them to have a similar feel, so you can match the color of one with the other. In this case we only have one image so it’s still extra easy.

On the Match Color dialog box, simply click the Neutralize checkbox and voila!, the color cast will disappear.

And here’s how my picture looks. It was a particularly dark, gloomy Irish day but the intense blue cast is gone.

If you find that the Color Match takes too much color out of your photograph, drag the Fade slider to the right until some color comes back. To increase the intensity of the color, drag the Color Intensity slider to the right. When you’re happy with how it looks click OK.

Hope you find that useful either for your own digital photography or as a method to quickly correct client images with color casts.

Related posts:

1. Remove Color Casts Using Photoshop Lab Color
2. Color Blend Mode in Photoshop
3. Hue Blending Mode in Photoshop

After reminding us of the various open source applications that can be installed with the WPI, Akash then takes us through the process of setting up the development environment. Next we take a tour through the SQL Server Management Studio interface, to see how easy it is to setup and manage your databases. Once all the relevant components have been installed, you’ll learn how to build a simple project time tracker that can help to organize timing records and accurately bill clients.

By the time you’ve finished the tutorial, you’ll also be able to use standard SQL functions to create a simple report. If you really feel like challenging yourself, you can research T-SQL and go on to build a more complex report. Before you know it, you’ll have an SQL Server-driven PHP application up and running!

A big thankyou to Microsoft, who are sponsoring the quiz for this article. If you found the tutorial interesting, be sure to give the quiz a go – and if you’re one of the first 200 people to complete the quiz, you could snap up a copy of Microsoft SQL Server Developer Edition (please see quiz for terms and conditions) delivered to your door for FREE!

Read the article: Get Started with PHP on Windows with SQL Server Express
Take the quiz: Get Started with PHP on Windows with SQL Server Express Quiz

Related posts:

1. SQL Server 2005 Express via ODBC?
2. QA for SQL Express 2005?
3. SQL Server 2005 Express is not Yukon Beta 2

By combining this extension, which sits on top of Firebug, with a server-side library, your PHP scripts will be able to send debugging information to the browser, handily encoded in the HTTP response headers. Once you’re set up, you can log warnings and errors in your PHP scripts to the Firebug console, just as if you were developing JavaScript.

To start, you first need to install the FirePHP extension from Mozilla’s Firefox Add-ons site. This requires that you already have Firebug installed. Once FirePHP is installed, when you next open your Firebug panel, you’ll now see an additional blue bug. Click on that bug and a menu will appear allowing you to enable or disable FirePHP:

This, of course, won’t do anything yet. You also need to install the FirePHP server-side library, which is available here. This is a stand-alone version of the library that can either be downloaded manually or installed using PEAR. After that, you simply need to include the library in your code. There are also versions designed to integrate with various frameworks or content management systems, such as the WP-FirePHP plugin for WordPress or the JFirePHP plugin for Joomla. For the sake of this walk-through, I’ll focus on the stand-alone functionality.

Once you have the FirePHP library on your server, you need to include it in your script with a line like:

Because FirePHP sends its logging data via the HTTP headers, you’ll need to buffer your script’s output so that the response headers can include content generated further down the script. In PHP, this is accomplished by calling ob_start near the top of your script:

With these steps done, you can start using FirePHP. All you need to do is call the fb function with whatever you’d like to log, along with an optional label and an optional constant to define the message as a standard log, a warning, an error, or information. For example:

$var = array('a'=>'pizza', 'b'=>'cookies', 'c'=>'celery');
fb($var);
fb($var, "An array");
fb($var, FirePHP::WARN);
fb($var, FirePHP::INFO);
fb($var, 'An array with an Error type', FirePHP::ERROR);

This code will produce the following output in the Firebug console:

You can also use FirePHP to give you a trace of your application’s execution: by passing in the FirePHP::TRACE constant, you’ll get to see the line number, class name, and function name from within which fb was called. So this code:

function hello() {
  fb('Hello World!', FirePHP::TRACE);
}
function greet() {
  hello();
}
greet();

Will produce an output as follows:

This trace functionality can be fantastic for debugging more involved scripts, as it lets you know exactly from where your functions are being called.

Of course, you need to remember to remove your debugging statements before your code goes live!

There’s a lot more to FirePHP than what I’ve covered here. I’ve been showing you the simplified procedural API for FirePHP, but there’s a more advanced object-oriented API available with a number of additional features. You can learn all about it on the FirePHP site, so be sure to check it out.

Related posts:

1. User Errors in PHP
2. Serializing PHP data structures for Javascript
3. Useful in-browser development tools for PHP

Unfortunately, you’ll need a WebKit-based browser (Safari or Chrome, for example) to see it. So, sure it’s a WebKit proprietary CSS extension — the CSS3 animation and transformation modules are working drafts at the moment — but it’s always fun to experiment. And this experiment sure got me thinking.

But first, how is it done? Each part of the animation is separate; that is, the foot, shin, and thigh of each leg. CSS is then used to define the animation. Here’s the animation definition for the foot on Leg D, the front right one:

#atat #leg-d .leg-foot {
	-webkit-animation-name: foot-d;
	-webkit-animation-duration: 7s;
	-webkit-animation-iteration-count: infinite;
	-webkit-transform-origin: 50% 0;
}

It’s given a name, a duration (for how long the animation lasts), an iteration count (how many times the animation is run — infinitely in this case), and a position of origin. The next piece of the puzzle is the information for key frames:

@-webkit-keyframes foot-d {
  0% {
    -webkit-transform: rotate(0deg);
  }
  10% {
    -webkit-transform: rotate(-20deg);
  }
  30% {
    -webkit-transform: rotate(0deg);
  }
  100% {
    -webkit-transform: rotate(0deg);
  }
}

With the @-webkit-keyframe at-rule you define the style rules to apply at certain stages of the animation duration. Here we have apply rules at the start of the animation (0%), when it’s 10% through, 30% through, and then when it’s finished (100%). In the case of this example, the -webkit-transform declaration is used to apply a rotation, although any CSS property could be applied.

By applying different degrees of rotation, for different animated parts at different times during the animation sequence, the illusion is almost like puppetry.

There’s also an alternative syntax to use inside a @-webkit-keyframe block; you can specify to and from values like so:

@-webkit-keyframes fade-in {
  from {
    color: #fff
  }
  to {
    color: #000
  }
}

What do you think? To me it looks like a really straightforward syntax for describing animation. But you know what would be really cool? If a jQuery plugin was written that could read CSS3 animation syntax and execute the animation, making it cross-browser compatible.

Now that would rock.

You can read more about CSS3 animations on the WebKit blog.

Related posts:

1. CSS Gradients, Transforms, Animations, and Masks
2. Add More Sparkle with CSS3
3. W3C seeks feedback on CSS3

Portsmouth City Council discovered that workers spent 413 hours a month using Facebook and promptly blocked the website. Other councils have insisted that staff sign a code of conduct in which they promise to limit their non-business web access.

Despite the findings, 76% of the 1,460 workers surveyed stated they had not been issued with specific guidelines relating to non-work internet use.

Is Blocking Effective?

Businesses often react strongly to these survey reports and the list of banned sites on corporation firewalls can increase exponentially. But how effective can it be? It technically simple to block Twitter.com, but there are dozens of alternative websites and applications. Even catching them all does not prevent staff tweeting on mobile phones.

The social networks can also offer significant business benefits to customer support, sales, marketing, and research departments. Cordoning off huge areas of the web could be counter-productive.

Time Wasting is Not a New Phenomenon

The survey found employees were spending an average of just 8 minutes per day using social networks. There will be people who waste far more time, but how many minutes are wasted chatting with colleagues, making a coffee, taking a personal call, enjoying an extra long comfort break, or staring out of the window? No one can ever give 100% concentration throughout the whole of an 8-hour day.

There are obviously situations when employee’s personal internet use moves beyond reasonable limits. Business managers have a right to implement guidelines, monitor access, and reprimand staff who flout the rules.

Perhaps I’m being overly simplistic, but I would recommend businesses either provide full internet access or ban it altogether. People are clever — attempting to control employee behavior will ultimately backfire.

Has your organization blocked access to the social networks? Do they have usage guidelines? Has blocking helped or hindered your daily work?

Related posts:

1. Social Networking: Not Quite Mainstream
2. Study: Kids No Longer Into Social Networking
3. 20 Social Networking Sites for Business Professionals

Then, if you’re like me, you never have enough time to do it all and the weekend quickly gets away from you. Before you know it, you’re looking Monday morning right in the face and wishing you could borrow another four hours to catch up, get ahead or just have some extra time to ease yourself into the week.

But you can’t. As much as I’ve tried to change it, you get what you get when it comes to time and there’s nothing you can do about it. You can, however, make the most of the time you have. And when time gets the best of you, there’s a way to rebound, even if you’ve skipped over some stuff on Friday that is really haunting you come Monday morning.

This is what I do (in football terms, of course, in honor of the Super Bowl yesterday).

Give Yourself Stretching Time

It may be obvious but how often do you take a minute to close your eyes and take a deep breath before you start stressing out about what’s ahead? Before I get started, I breathe and do what I normally do in the morning. Eat breakfast, grab a cup of coffee, watch the news, etc. I’ve found that sticking to my routine is vital if I want to be able to maintain my pace and avoid crashing halfway through the day.

Tackle Email First

Monday morning means a lot of email for me, even if I did some work over the weekend. Before I even start looking at my to-do list, I hit email. At this first run through I do three things:

1. Scan for high priority items and clean out the junk. If you’ve at least been peeking at messages over the weekend, this should take no more than a couple of minutes. I flag only the most important messages that require an immediate action and delete anything I don’t plan to read. Preview pane is a must-have for this step.
2. Respond to the easy ones. You know that handful of messages that has been sitting in your inbox since last week that only needs one quick response sent and then it can get moved out of sight? Now is the time I take care of them. I take 20-30 minutes and respond to all of the quick-and-not-very-important-but-necessary emails, get them out of my inbox and clear some of the clutter.
3. Make email actionable. During this last step, I take all of the high priority items I flagged and move them over to my master task list so they’re represented and get further consideration.

Pick the Starters and Name the Captain

Now that I have my email temporarily tamed and my to-do list updated, I pick out the most important tasks, the ones with the most immediacy. These are my starters and what I will be focusing on for the day. I move the rest out of my line of vision (for me, this means assigning the tasks to tomorrow in my project management software, but it can be as simple as mentally pushing them back).

Now from this high-priority list, I pick one, just one to be the most important, usually the one thing I should have done on Friday and meant to take care of over the weekend. This will be my first focus of the day.

Get in the Zone

Now its crunch time. I give myself a chunk of time, depending on what the task requires and I dig in. I do everything in my power to get rid of distractions and reduce interruptions and focus on that one task. The key here is focus.

Take a Time Out

At the end of my allotted time, I take a few minutes to regroup. Did I have enough time to finish the task? Are there any other spin-off tasks that get bumped to the top of the list? Can I cross it off and move on? For me, this check-in helps to maintain focus.

Have an Award Ceremony

Once I’ve determined the task is completed, I always make a point to chalk up the win and close it out in my project management software. It may seem secondary, but making this cross out step a conscious action (either physical or mental) makes me feel good about my progress, gives me a sense of control over the time I desperately need and motivates me to keep going.

Plan for Next Season

Just like in football, practice and repetition is key when it comes to time management. One task is done, then it’s time to move on to the next one on the list. The more I follow this pattern, the more efficient and productive I am. And the more I feel like I do have some control over time. Even if its just an illusion.

What helps you catch up at the start of the week and get yourself on a productive path?

Image credit: RonAlmog

Related posts:

1. 6 Essential Things To Do On Friday To Make Monday Morning Manageable
2. Another post about lousy service in the web design/dev field
3. Does Multitasking Kill Your Focus and Productivity?

I’ve divided the fonts up as follows:

1. Classic calligraphy style
2. Calligraphy meets distortion
3. Handwriting
4. “Bordering on Psycho” Handwriting

Let’s start with the more traditional end of the scale. These are the classic script typefaces that wouldn’t look out of place on a wedding invitation. But don’t let that put you off!

Chopin Script

Old Script

Exmouth

Adine Kirnberg

Mutlu Ornamental

If the last set of fonts are a bit too clean for you and you like to say “I love you” with grunge, here’s some dirty, distressed and distorted calligraphy style fonts that you may like.

Hurricane SupaDupa

Porcelain by Misprinted Type

Dirty and Classic by Billy Argel

Ginga also by Billy Argel

Selfish

This next set of fonts look like “normal” everyday handwriting, perfect for ahem, when you’re too tired to write your own and don’t want to leave the computer.

Dear Joe

Learning Curve

Journal (I picked this because the set of characters includes a little heart)

Honey Script

Simpson Font

Joyful Julianna

The final set of fonts below are the typefaces that look like they are handwritten, but with a touch of madness!

Dark Theatre by Mark Bellaire

Jellyka Waterways Seafarer

Do Not Exist

El&Font Static

Do you like any of these fonts? What other script style fonts would you add to the list?

Related posts:

1. The Script Typeface
2. 16 High Quality Retro And Vintage Fonts
3. Web Fonts Get Real with Typekit

Archive of Australian Graphic Design 1960-1980. Plenty of work here not only standing the test of time, but also looking trendy again as retro styles become popular.

If you’re debating about whether you should move to Chrome but are afraid you’ll miss Firefox extensions, this article from 1st Web Designer might convince you to change: 30 Irreplaceable Chrome Extensions.

Nice effect of creating depth and 3D ribbons using only CSS3.

Interesting thoughts on the revised font stack.

Creative Pro review of the new wireless Intuous tablet from Wacom. I have the one with the wire, but now I want this one!

New York Public Library has photos on Flickr complete with source and rights information. Great resource.

Why it’s best to pretend you don’t know anything about computers.

The web design sketchbook is a 52-page book featuring pages of varying canvas sizes complete with grids and browser chrome and areas for taking notes, adding descriptions and rating your concepts.

Maybe a little bit late for this one but, HongKiat have a nice collection of free printable 2010 calendars and desktop wallpapers.

How to get organized and make those connections you need for your design business. Networking tips for the busy designer from Vandelay Design.

UXBooth have an article on the history of eye-tracking, a very important topic for web designers.

I think design-related laugh of the week goes to this image of Kulala Air’s clever paint job. (via gadling.com)

There Is No Page Fold

An essay on the future of web design. “To see beyond today’s limits of the web all we need to do is see what is needed.”

Related posts:

1. Design Tweets of the Week Ending 31/01/10
2. CSS Theme Week… And That’s All Folks!
3. Learn Design From The Masters—First Up: Mark Boulton

Ian Lloyd, Paul O’Brien, and Tommy Olsson have been hard at work testing HTML elements and CSS properties with the latest crop of browsers, as well as taking in feedback from reference users, and updating the information where appropriate.

The CSS and HTML References now show compatibility information for the following browsers:

• Internet Explorer versions 5.5, 6, 7, and 8
• Firefox versions 1.0, 1.5, 2, 3, and 3.5
• Safari versions 1.3, 2, 3.1, and 4
• Opera 9.2, 9.5, and 10
• Chrome 2

(Icons courtesy of Browser Version icons)

What I like the most about the SitePoint Reference is the Compatibility Notes section, because it helps you make informed decisions and prevents you from falling into compatibility testing traps; the kind of situation that has you tearing your hair out, because you’ve no idea why your CSS works in every browser but one.

For example, we can now see from the Reference that there’s reasonable browser support for CSS3 attribute selectors:

So, pretend you’re working on a big project that’ll give you much fame and fortune. Deciding on whether or not to rely on CSS3 attribute selectors in your project is now a little easier. You can see that IE6 offers no support at all, so you can choose whether you’ll support that browser. If you decide to forge ahead with using CSS3 attribute selectors, you’re forewarned that you may have a problem with IE7 and 8. You read the Compatibility Notes section and this is what you find.

In IE8, if you’re trying to match a td or th element by the rowspan or colspan attributes, you’ll end up selecting all td or th elements. It’s an edge case and probably won’t affect this project, but it’s good to know.

However, in IE7, if you’re trying to target a label element with a for attribute value, you’ll have a problem. If you’re attempting to select a label element with the for value "name", the selector label[for="name"] will fail in IE7; you’ll need to use label[htmlFor="name"] instead.

As it turns out, that’s exactly how you were going to style your field labels in the client-side field validation library you’re deploying. Your client has a significant number of IE7 users and that little tip just saved you half a day of frustration.

Thanks SitePoint CSS Reference — you’re the best!

Related posts:

1. Introducing The SitePoint CSS Reference!
2. Virtualization – Save Time, Money and Sanity
3. The SitePoint HTML Reference Is Live!