Here is my video that I have been working on for class. It is a kinetic type video which is a video using only type, or only basic graphics as long as the type is the main focus.
I used a NOFX song called Murder the Government. You should buy some of their CDs. They are awesome. If you don’t know who they are, get yourself out from underneath that rock you have been under and listen to some of their music.
I wanted to contribute something actually more useful. I am just now starting to blog regularly and receiving comments, which if they are not contributing then I delete them. How I want to contribute is how to make a 100% valid XHTML/CSS site. I’ll be including “homework” for you to do before the next post. Each post will rely on that work you did previously. This guide is expecting you know very basic XHTML and CSS. I will be building a site with you and you can see how to use those elements, but I ask that you know what tags are and just a very basic idea of those main programming languages. If you do not know these visit these sites:
W3 Schools is a great place and learned every bit of (X)HTML and CSS there. You can learn and practice in their editor, but you will need an editor of your own and some other tools.
Tools you will need in developing any website are
Those are the very, very basic tools. If you are serious about this in any way, and want to put this on the web you will need the following in addition to the above tools:
If you are new to web development you probably don’t know what software to use. Feel free to skip each category if you already have software you like in that category. I’ll be giving the recommended software and then a free equivalent of that software. Please remember I am on Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard). If you are on Windows I don’t have a lot of software compatible on that and I refuse to use it, so you will have to do some research on your own. If you are using a Linux distro I will help you as much as possible. I also own Ubuntu 7.10. I’ll give an example for each app in Linux as well, but the paid software is mostly Mac stuff.
Text Editors
Text editors are a dime a dozen. There are so many out there. If you are on Windows you could very well use Notepad. I would not recommend it, but you can. I personally use TextMate which is my personal favorite and the only editor I would ever pay for. It has color coding and is very minimal which I like. It has great features and is fairly cheap compared to the alternatives. If you are looking for something free, but still powerful get TextWrangler. I can honestly say its a great editor and the best free one out there.
Ubuntu (Linux) users could use TextEditor which is my favorite when using Ubuntu and it’s preinstalled. I also used Screem for awhile as well. You can download this in the add/remove apps.
Web Browsers
Almost all browsers are free, but there are certain browsers you need to make sure you have. The three browsers you will need to test on are:
Firefox (Windows, Mac, Linux, and more)
Safari (Windows and Mac)
Internet Explorer (6&7) (Windows only)
Unfortunately, the most used browser is IE 6 which is a big, gigantic, humongous, piece of crap. You will end up writing an entire separate style sheet just for it and it doesn’t support transparent pngs.
FTPs
How are you going to get files to the server you have chosen? Unless you have your PC as a web server, you will be using a FTP to transfer your files. FTP stands for file transfer protocol. My favorite FTP for the Mac is Transmit from Panic. They make some awesome apps. If you are a student get Fetch which is the FTP I used for a long time until I got Transmit which I like much better. If you want a totally free app for the mac though I would get Cyberduck. I have used it a few times and used it at my work and it’s the best free one out there.
On Ubuntu I never used an FTP. I used the Connect to Server in the Places folder. I then select FTP and fill out the info. I think it work great and it makes it look just like another folder on your OS.
Vector and/or Bitmap Image Software
A website isn’t a website without any images. Even Google’s stark homepage has their logo. How you are going to make these images is your choice. You could always use stock images from sxc.hu which are free, but free vector files are harder find and you might need to create basic images such as rounded corners and such. I usually use two different image editing software. The most used is Adobe Illustrator CS3 and then after that I use Adobe Photoshop CS3. I recommend these, but these are by no means cheap. I will go into the differences of these two and what vector and bitmap mean in a later chapter.
If you can’t afford this, which is understandable, there are two widely used apps for both Mac and Linux. InkScape (replaces Illustrator) and GIMP (replaces Photoshop) Both are very good, but I don’t have a lot of experience in either. More in InkScape then GIMP, but I can say that both are plenty good enough for basic web design.
Web Hosts
You will probably do not need a web host right away and you will be able to edit and program most every file right on your computer. When you are ready for one I have one free option for you. This is the best free option out there and I have been using it to host my various websites and used it as a testing server many times for clients. Trap 17 is it’s name and it’s just great. It supports just about everything and gives you tons of space and more than enough bandwidth. If you are going through more bandwidth than they offer you should be making some serious dough. It’s completely free and no ads. All you have to do is post in their forums. You can find me there as BooZker. I am a regular member there and I am well known, so if you have a question PM me or ask someone there if they have seen me around.
They give you a certain amount of points based on the content of the topic. one credit is equal to one day. I have had 200 credits at one time and didn’t go back there for three months. It’s nice having that security with a free host. You will only need 10 credits before you can ask for web hosting. I would get the biggest package there. Please just go to http://trap17.com for all the info.
I do not know of any other paid hosts, because I have only used Trap 17, Bravehost, and FreeWebs. Trap 17 is by far the best and is the only one without ads and isn’t dead slow.
Domain Names
Last but defiantly not least is a domain name. A domain name is a like a speed dial on a phone. Instead of typing in http://64.233.161.18 you would type google.com. This is crucial for any successful website. Plus it’s super cheap. You can get domain names sometimes for a little over a buck, but godaddy.com is my preferred place to buy domain names and they are super cheap on their .com names. I will go into detail on how to purchase and move the name to your host, which in this blog will be Trap 17, and set the DNS (Domain Name Servers) up.
So this conclude my post and Ch.1. If you have any questions, see any typos, or whatever drop me a comment. You have some homework to do!
The other stuff can wait such as domain names and web hosts. Just try to get that stuff done and that way next chapter you will be able to jump right in.
Good Luck!
The iPod Touch is just plain awesome. When I got it the first thing I did was attempt YouTube. It wouldn’t connect. “Damn it,” I said politely. The fix was actually pretty easy. I couldn’t find the answer to my problem on any site. Then I remembered how I had fixed my Wii with the same problem. I changed the channel number.
My quick tutorial below is how to do this on an Actiontec router, but most should be the same or have these options in about the same area.
» First go to your router by opening your favorite web browser and type in: http://192.168.0.1
» Fill in a username and password if asked. It will not ask if you have never set this up.
» Next go to “Setup / Configuration“
» On the next screen look to the left. You will see Advanced Set Up. Click on it.
» Press the “Begin Advanced Setup” button
» Now on the left of that click “Wireless Settings”. It’s the second one.
» It will open a screen with only 4 options. Those of which are “Wireless” (on/off) Of course make sure this is on! “ESSID” (change to whatever you want, but “ACTIONTEC” is fine) “Channel” and lastly Security.
» I have my “Security” off. To be honest, I could give a poop who uses it and it’s only that much more of a hassle.
» The thing we want is the “Channel”. Set it to 11. That is what I need it at for my iPod to work, but on the other hand, I need it at 1 for my Wii to work. It’s pretty crappy and makes me pretty angry, but whatever.
People are also reporting that turning off MAC Authentication makes the internet work as well. You can do this by:
» Looking at the left and going to the option right below “Wireless Settings”, the one you just did, which is “Wireless MAC Authentication”.
» In that menu just make sure the “Enable Access List” is UNCHECKED.
Last 2 steps.
» Click on “Save and Restart” on the bottom left and then click the “Save and Restart” button
» Wait for it to reboot the modem. The wireless light should be turned on and green along with the “Internet” light
It should be fixed. Please note that I still get connection errors, but I just reboot my iPod and it starts working again. I hate it, but that’s the way things go. So if it isn’t working do a hard reboot.
Tell me if anyone comes up with any other way to get the WiFi to work.
What is so great about Photoshop? Yes, it’s photo editing software, hence Photoshop, and it is the best out there, but why do so many design websites with it? It’s not made for web design in the first place. I can see if you are comfortable with it, but I slice up websites for a living and I can’t stand going through layers upon layers of “Layer 1, Layer 2, …” and it makes me go crazy. Not only that, I have to find that magic layer in the 50 others to extract your logo or side bar or whatever. I slice and dice and create my entire website in Adobe Illustrator.
Why you ask? It’s very simple really. Adobe Illustrator has layers also, but many don’t use them and when they do use them, they use them sparingly. I do edit the photos in Photoshop, but then bring them over into AI. I have a huge canvas this way and I can move and cut things up on multiple layers without having to merge or flatten. It saves me time… a lot of time actually.
Plus how many photos do you really use on a website? Most of the stuff that you make will end up being converted to code or a simple shape such as a square, rounded corner, etc. In the last 5 websites I have sliced there were a grand total of 7 photos that were used in the actual design of the site. There were portfolio sections, but in the design you would leave this blank or have in sample.
Please use Illustrator or something to design your website if it’s going to get sliced because it will save everyone more time. Many people who slice probably wouldn’t like an AI file since they are not used to it, but after they use it, it will grow on them!
Next is the actual slicing part. Most people send the comps off after this, but if you design and slice what do you use? I would never, ever, ever use the slicing option that Photoshop has. I guess it’s not bad, but you aren’t going to get the results you want and you wont understand the code as well and then they decide they want something different, you are screwed. Just take some time and learn basic XHTML and CSS. After that I use TextMate by Macromates. It’s a very minimal, lightweight, IDE. Supports tons of languages and even Ruby on Rails. It’s €39, which equals about $56.9088. By the way, I am talking about Mac OS X software here. Sorry Windows people…
Lastly, you will need a way to upload files to a web server. To do this you will need an FTP. I have two great options here. If you can get a student discount get Fetch because it’s free and one of the best out there. If you don’t mind coffing up some money or you do not get a educational or charitable discount I would just get Transmit from Panic. It has more features than Fetch and I personally like it better. Once again, sorry Windows users, Mac only stuff.
I do want to warn you about one piece of software that actually gets banned in some work places such as mine. Dreamweaver by Adobe (Just recently released by them, but has had 8 previous versions from Macromedia which has been bought out by Adobe.) Dreamweaver hogs a shit load of RAM and not for a very good reason. It is just packed full of extra features that try to make it easier, but it really is just easier to learn how to program it since XHTML and CSS is very basic than have to learn how to navigate through menu after menu to add one thing. You will have to learn what everything means anyways to be able to use the menus. If you want a fully featured IDE that has a built in FTP and has all the features of Dreamweaver then get Panic’s Coda. It’s $80, but much less than Dreamweaver’s $400 price.
So this is what I end up with and everything I use to make websites (with the exception of the occasional Flash video.)
• Design and slicing = Adobe Illustrator
• Coding = TextMate
• FTP = Fetch/Transmit
• Optional (takes place of both TextMate and a FTP) = Coda
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With Great Convenience, Comes Great Responsibility
by: Oscar Godson
Year by year the differences in eating habits of Americans don’t seem to change all that much. When you step back 20, 30, or even 50 years ago the changes can seem enormous. At times Americans seem to be eating the most unhealthy foods you can get, but at other times it seems they are fighting for the most healthy alternatives available. Americans seem to try to be healthy, but to be healthy they sometimes make up for the healthiness with alternatives that aren’t so quite, well, healthy. The overall consumption never changes, yet the fat increases. With a decrease in some sort of food there is an increase in another. It is a teeter totter effect. Children seem to eat more vegetables and fruits, yet their soda pop intake has increased tremendously. Although Americans have the choice of eating healthy or unhealthy, they will generally choose convenience which happens to be the unhealthier way.
Americans eat fattier foods at times, but it has actually decreased in the last 50 years in some categories. The average American eats almost 200lbs of meat a year. This is up approximately 60lbs per year more than 50 years ago. Fats from meats have also decreased nine percent in those last 50 years. I believe this is from fast food chains. Americans love their fast foods. One of the most popular fast food chains is McDonald’s which is famous for their Big Mac which has two patties of meat. Meat is the main serving at fast food places and since many Americans always feel they are too busy to make breakfast or lunch they end up getting a quick bite to eat. What’s quicker and more convenient than a drive through?
With great convenience comes great responsibility, or so it seems with many fast food restaurants. I believe the drop of fat in meat comes from Americans wanting healthy alternatives. Fast food restaurants see Americans desiring healthier food, so they seek out healthy alternatives of their customers favorites. McDonald’s now has nutrition facts on all of their food. This just shows how their consumers want fast food, but they want it healthy. One way to make something healthier is to lower the fat in the food. Since the main food at fast food restaurants is meat, and so many Americans eat fast food, I surmise the drop in fat content yet the rise of meat intake is from fast food restaurants such as McDonald’s becoming more popular and trying to be more healthy for their customers.
Soda intake in children has increased more than 500% and milk consumption is down. I drink more soda than anyone I know and the reason is quite simple. Why drink something that has no flavor? Not only that, for the price of a name brand water you can get a name brand soda. I also see it as comparing one flavor to a thousand. No matter what drink it is, no drink can out sell every other flavor combined. Children and adults get tired of the same old thing. Soda gives you a chance to drink all kinds of flavors.
I don’t think children just like drinks that are unhealthy, but rather they are given a choice of thousands of drinks and water just being one of them. I believe this is why flavored waters and milks are becoming more prevalent in the grocery stores. Parents want something healthy, but their children are getting tired of milk and water, so they give them cherry flavored water or strawberry milk. Until there are more flavors of milk, water, or healthier drinks, soda consumption will continue to rise in my opinion.
Bottled water has been increasing at a rate just below that of soda among Americans. In 2005 alone the increase of bottled water was 9%. Overall water consumption however, has been the same for many years. This means people are drinking less tap water each year and more bottled water. I deduce this is for convenience. Why walk back and fourth to the water cooler when you could get a bottle of water for a dollar and have it at your desk? Unfortunately, this is not healthy by any means and is causing many health problems.
Dentists believe bottled water is the cause of the increase in tooth decay in children. Tap water has many more minerals and vitamins compared to bottled water. Bottled water takes out all of those minerals from the processing. Sadly, convenience comes at a price. Bottled water is given to children constantly from sports games and practices to going to the movie theaters. It’s everywhere because they can sell it and they can’t sell water in a cup. You can ask for a cup of water, but many parents would rather give their children something they can close and take with them or reuse. Children will continue to drink bottled water out of convenience for the parents and luxury of being able to just toss it in a backpack or on the field you are out playing soccer at.
Convenience is not always negative for all cases. There has been a 20% increase in vegetable and fruit consumption. I suspect this is from the increase of availability to buy already sliced fruits and vegetables. This makes it easier for people to grab a bag of apples that are already sliced and head off to work. This also relieves parents from having to slice and peel fruit and vegetables for their babies as well.
McDonald’s offers apple slices in their “Happy Meals” to accommodate the busy parent. As I see it, the easier it is for Americans to get something the more likely they will get it if it’s healthy or not. In this case, fruits and vegetables are pre-sliced and take the place of fattening fries, so many parents see it as a chance to make a step to a healthier choice. The more this becomes more rampant, the more people will eat vegetables and fruits.
Overall, it’s easier to eat unhealthy than to watch what you eat. America need convenience and from what it looks like, Americans only eat all these bad foods because it’s cheaper, easier, and faster than eating at a restaurant or making dinner at home. Americans work more than any other country and this takes a toll on their health. They are tired and don’t want to have to go home and make dinner for their family, but they can go to a fast food place and pick it up and take it home and only have to do minimal clean up at. It’s also extremely cheap. A person could get fries, soda, and a burger for three dollars at McDonald’s where as at a store you would have to buy the fries frozen, meat, bread, cheese, and all other toppings which would add up to be much more than three dollars. Why would anyone want to eat healthy again?
Americans are bombarded with propaganda about obesity. This is why Americans will be eating more healthy each and every year. Americans are already scared of all the side effects of becoming obese. This frightened America will be seeking alternatives to fatty foods at a much more increased rate than ever before. Fast food chains find this a subject to pursue and capitalize off of it whether it be for good or bad intentions. Either way, people are already not wanting to become over weight and will do anything to not ever become it.
The choices are out their for Americans, but at this time their choice is usually the one of connivence and why shouldn’t it be? With Americans being the most worked countries they have a reason why they would rather eat something on the go rather than cooking a four course meal that would take hours to cook and clean. Unfortunately, Americans are seeing the side effects in their children of not eating right. Children getting tooth decay and osteoporosis from not having enough milk at such young ages. Thus my conclusion as to why when Americans are given the choice to be eating healthy they would rather choose to the easiest way out and pay for it later. Americans are changing their ways, but it will take years to be where we were before fast food.
Works Cited
“United States Leads World Meat Stampede.” Worldwatch Institute. July 2, 1998. 6 November 2007. <http://www.worldwatch.org/node/1626>
“We Know What You Ate Last Year.” Emily Landes. 2003. 6 November 2007. <http://www.thewavemag.com/pagegen.php?pagename=article&articleid=24554>
“Per capita soft drink consumption up 500% over last 50 years.” Food & Drink Weekly. 10 May 2004. 6 November 2007. <http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EUY/is_17_10/ai_n6264654/pg_1>