tools
Testing for IE6
Feb 2nd
I recently got a new laptop and needed to get my machine ready for web development . I’d previously been using MAMP on my Mac and running Parallels for testing in the IEs. After some deliberation, I decided on XAMPP for Windows – I’m running 7. XAMPP installs Apache, MySQL, PHP, Perl, ASP, Mercury, FileZilla, and a slew of other daemons/services. There are some potential conflicts with the PHP/MySQL versions used for Drupal, but after testing, I haven’t run into any issues. Even if it becomes problematic, I can always manually configure a different version of either PHP or MySQL.
After getting my testing server up and running, I needed a way to test for IE6. Yes, I’m on Windows – but Windows 7 never shipped with IE6 or 7, unlike Vista – so standalone solutions no longer work. I just found a program that solves this issue – and is able to render pages simulating IE5.5-8. IETester v0.4.2 is the current version, though it has been out since March of 2009. Somehow, it entirely missed my radar – probably because I was still running XP and didn’t broaden my queries.
I should say this: IE6 support doesn’t come for free. Clients whose user-base is heavy in the IE6 department can’t afford to not support those users. So, while I can develop for such users – they won’t be getting the same experience – and certainly not without an increased cost. It is my job to push internet standards, including A-level, modern browsers; efficiencies in development/production cut costs over the long-run especially for larger clients. When I have to dick around making tweaks because one idiot browser still won’t die, it’s annoying. For all business owners, large and small: please entertain this suggestion:
Encourage your users to upgrade their browsers.
Obnoxious/semi-invasive design via javascript-based browser sniffing would do wonders to bump browsers into gear. Hell, even showing a simple survey that asks “Do you ride a dinosaur to work? Why do you use an ancient browser?” followed by multiple choices that lead back to a site that encourages browser upgrades.
This tangent is officially over.
I had been running Sun’s Virtual Machine with an XP installation to do IE6 testing, but this alternative has made things easier. The only real issue is sharing files between the host – Windows 7 – and the guest – Windows XP in the VM. That shouldn’t be too difficult, but time is important and I’d rather stick with what works for now.
With that said, my nose is back to the grindstone (though it won’t really move much at all).
Saving Illustrator CS4 Preferences
Jan 7th
While Adobe products are industry standards, they are still not without serious workflow issues.
One of my major gripes is Illustrator’s inability to save and load preferences from within the program. This would come in handy when working in different units, as I regularly do; The 10px grid I use for web work isn’t compatible with an imperial or metric grid for print work, and vice versa. Luckily, I’ve devised a workaround.
- First, you’ll need to find your Ai preferences file. For Windows 7, it can be found in a hidden folder:C:\Users\Username\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Illustrator CS4 Settings\en_USFrom your explorer window, drag the en_US folder to your start menu and Pin it there. In OS X, you can similarly make a link to the folder and keep it in your Dock, desktop, or wherever you fancy. The file we’ll be renaming later is named AIPrefs (no extension)- we’ll deal with that soon enough. If you don’t have hidden folders visible, here’s how. If you’re on a different OS, or using a different version of Illustrator, have a look here, or search the nets.
- Open Illustrator, start a blank document, and set your preferences. The document type doesn’t matter.
- Close Illustrator.
- Open the folder you linked in step 1, copy and rename your preferences file to something descriptive like AIPrefs[web]. It’s crucial to copy so we don’t accidentally modify or delete our manually defined preferences.
- Repeat steps 2-4 for each grid-setup or preferences variation you need.
- Now you’re ready to use your custom preferences. Before you reopen Illustrator, delete the current AIPrefs file.
- Copy the preferences file you want to use and rename it to AIPrefs.
- Start Illustrator and behold the glory.
Obviously, if the last thing you worked on is for web, and the current thing you worked on is for web, you don’t have to change the AIPrefs file, so it might be helpful to keep a note of which file is currently active. You can also search the AIPrefs file to see how Illustrator is modifying the contents. It’s for the most part readable alpha-numeric content. If anyone knows of a better way to do this, please let me know. Ciao.
Workhorse Typefaces
Feb 22nd
Paula Scher, Stefan Sagmeister, and David Carson shattered the way I think about typography in their applications of organic, freehand character-writing. For so long, even non–conventional applications of digital typefaces seemed so dry, formal, forced. Letters drawn by hand were a fresh breath—no, a gasp! out of astonishment, but also for oxygen anew to fuel my little typographic grey cells.
Such typography, one comes quickly to realize, doesn’t suit all applications. In fact, it doesn’t suit most applications. The majority of typesetting isn’t done to draw attention to the text, but rather to make its characters melt their meaning with as little distraction as possible. It pays to know this—especially when that pay is coming from a client expecting your understanding of conventional typography to benefit her business.
That stated, listed below are the typefaces I most commonly employ. I use them for their stylistic range, completeness of character set, and most importantly, as a framework from which I can branch out and build more creativity—perhaps by employing or creating an entirely new typeface. No more delays. Here they are:
- ITC Garamond Std
- ITC New Baskerville Std
- Mrs. Eaves
- Futura Std
- Trade Gothic LT Std
- Helvetica Neue LT Std
I’d say I use these for 80% of the work I do. Other typefaces I might consider are listed below. Some are either related or variations of the faces above. Others are slowly building up to workhorse status, or are used in extremely specific instances.
- Adobe Garamond Pro
- Adobe Jenson Pro
- Avenir LT Std
- Univers LT Std
- Bodoni STD
- Frutiger
- Gill Sans
- Helvetica LT Std
- ITC Franklin Gothic Std
- Poetica
- Gotham HTF
What are your typographic workhorses?
Choosing Drupal
Dec 28th
While designing and developing websites, I’ve run into a lot of repetitive tasks. From client survey and project proposal, to information architecture issues, requisite files (jQuery, mootools, reset.css, etc.), standard grid templates in XHTML/CSS, to grid layers and naming conventions in Illustrator® documents, and client invoicing, there are a lot of processes that get repeated.
A Blessing and a Curse
Nov 18th
I’m at my Aunt’s and Uncle’s house for the night. They let me use their button maker for a school project which involved 50 unique, hand illustrated (with use of a graphics tablet) vegetables and fruits. I’ll maybe post photos at some point. Following that I did a brochure for the campus writing center, again by hand. It feels so good to abandon technology sometimes, or at least, to connect with it in a more natural way.
Anyhow. I realized something. I am completely anal and a perfectionist when it comes to the work I do, when/if I do it. I’m getting better, I swear. I trick myself into moving on and getting things done. But that’s all it is-a trick, a loophole that lets me override my natural proclivity for innane fumblings which yield only marginal improvements, yet make me feel like a million bucks.
I am this way because of my Father, and my Uncle. I came to this realization while in the bathroom, nursing an upset (probably stress-induced) stomach. It was there, in the room that my Uncle made with his tools and hands, that I realized his attention to detail. I then thought about the meticulous work my dad does, for no one but himself. The sheets upon sheets of hand-written spreadsheets tracking his stocks, soccer scores, and other things important to him. And though completely different men in their abilities, understandings, and pursuits, they both share that immense ability to produce amazingly detailed work.
So while I am lucky to have inherited and gleaned this trait, it is something I try to override, to circumvent. I need to learn to focus it, hone it into a surgical tool and wield it with effortless grace-lest it consume me.
The Em-pear Strikes Back
Sep 12th
I know, the clever titles are killing you.
Its just past 3:30 in the morning and though tired, I don’t really feel it. So, I went for a super-mini bike ride up the street to check on the pears I mentioned awhile back. Unlike last time, I spotted a cluster instantly. They’re not full size yet, nor should they be. Afterall, its barely September. Anyhow, here’s a photo:
I found a long stick near the tree and used it to knock a few morsels off their boughs. Weirdly, all of them had a really soft side. At first I thought it was due to them hitting the road, or from the impact of the stick. But I probed further and found this:
Looks like either:
a) general underdevelopment (though not likely)
b) some sort of insect infestation (though the darker bits didn’t seem like insect eggs…but I’m no entomologist)
c) aliens (yes, Dr. Who’s fault)
Anybody have any ideas?
I did manage to get one which had a significantly smaller patch and only nibbled one side (seen in first photograph). It was a bit tart and much harder than a ripe pear, but the sweetness had definitely started to develop and the skin was nice and crisp.
This led me to a pretty decent idea: I’m going to build a tree-fruit harvester out of recycled goods. I’ll post the process on here in the weeks to come, along with photos of the tree, its yield, the surroundings, and related recipes. Keep your eyes open and your mouths closed–chewing delicious food, of course!
Milwaukee Bike Collective
Aug 28th
I had a ridiculously tiring Wednesday, but knowing that I’d be going to the Bike Collective afterwards kept me going through the day. I also had lunch with a coworker at Thai Palace on Old World Third Street. The place is really hit or miss for anything but the entrées and drinks (the lunch service has been especially lackadaisical). That being said, my veggie curry was delicious but I wish I could say the same for my companion’s food. Moving on.
Immediately after work I biked to 29th and Clybourn, two streets south of Wisconsin Avenue.
View Larger Map
Upon rolling up to the building, I saw Pops sitting outside. After recognizing who I was, he welcomed me in, registered me, and showed me around the place. There are frames everywhere. Frames upon frames upon frames. They seemed to multiply as the night came on. Wheels hung from the racks, organized parts filled boxes, and tools twitched in their resting places, anticipating the work ahead.
A few more people arrived – another familiar face, besides Pops. And it turns out we know a bunch of the same people. Afterall, isn’t Milwaukee the biggest small town in the United States? We futzed around the shop a bit, I lingered through lugged frames and Huffys alike, and started stripping down a bike to fix up for Center Street Daze. Eventually we had a very informal but comfortable meeting – during which I ate the remainder of my lunch (so good). Anyhow, there’s lots to do, and I don’t know how much time I’ll have to contribute. It always seems I take on more work than I can handle – but I like a challenge and it keeps me sharp, so we’ll see how things go.
If you’re interested in getting involved, whether it be to fix bikes, donate parts, work on the website, flyers, etc. – let me know. Alternatively, just contact the collective. Their info can be found here. I’ll get some of my own photos soon – forgot to bring a camera! So photo credits to whoever took them!