Web Design, Development, Hardware & Software Articles
Website Accessibility

When you think about accessibility and websites you would think that the two are quite seperate. In fact the reality is that accessibility needs to be integral to the entire website and ideally thought of a stage one of building a new website.

There is also a conflict between a good looking website and a fully accessible website as the two cater for different markets. A person with no disabilities wants to see a good looking website when a person who is blind and being "read" the website only cares about content. Hence one of the cornerstones of fully accessible websites is the fact that no image should be "decorative" if there is an image there is needs to have a purpose and the relevant ALT tag to describe it.

That is why in most cases when people want the best of both worlds there are actually two websites, the good looking website and the text only website, with clear options to both.

 
Inspirational Furniture offers £500!

Inspirational Furniture are offering a lucky winner £500!

The best part? It only takes two minutes to signup :)

https://www.inspirationalfurniture.co.uk/index.php?dispatch=profiles.add

 
Macbook vs Macbook pro

So Apple have launched the new Macbook and iMac ranges (well October 2009) with the usual features. Basically lighter, smaller and with a slightly bigger engine and new OS (Snow Leopard). To be blunt, the specs are laughable for the price as you can get something similar or better for roughly half the price but it would not be a Mac.

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Backups do not always apply to data.

Just a brief post to say that backups do not always apply to data.

It’s a good idea to have a backup set of clothes at your office, as I discovered today.

I had a hire car with a neighbour that was parked far too close. Upon entering the car, I heard the wonderful sound of trouser ripping. Fortunately, I had a spare pair of trousers in the office and could quickly change. Of course it had to happen when I was on my way to an important meeting with a new client. A quick phone call to say I would be late and a new pair of trousers and I was on my way.

That’s another good tip, always keep your customer informed if you are going to be delayed.

 
PHP function to check for SQL injection

A very handed PHP function that is easily portable and applicable, authored by Neil Masters @ codedb.co.uk.

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Website from a friend?

It sounds great, a friend or family member that can build your website for free or cheaply. Now, what do they say about deals that are too good to be true?

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Splitting an Article into an introduction with a link to read more

It is common to display introductory text with a link to the rest of the article. To split an article into an introduction with a link to read more:

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Websites are not magic bullets

From time to time customers have approached us to enquire about a website. We take them through the initial consultation and discuss the various options, Content Management Systems, Brochure Websites, Search Engine Optimisation and so forth. These facets are all pretty straightforward to discuss, but occasionally during the consultations we hear “we did not think we needed a website, but now as business is slow…” is uttered and the consultation moves from being a straightforward consultation to a discussion about the nature of websites.

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Checkboxes

Checkboxes are a term that we came up with to describe the various factors that make a potential customer into an actual customer. They are the facets of a business that proves its professional nature and encourage a customers trust. A list of the basic checkboxes customers expect is below:

  • Business name relevant to products/services
  • Business address
  • Telephone number
  • Website
  • Email address that is @website

As you can see, they are pretty basic and as mentioned are now “expected”. These are the “basic” checkboxes that potential customers want to know in order to prove they are dealing with a business. Advanced checkboxes are below, these are the “tippers” that help “tip” the potential customer into an actual customer.

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