1. Right-click on the stickies icon in the taskbar hidden icons area
2. Select “About Stickies v7.0beta” – yours may say something different
3. A window will open. At the bottom, click the ellipsis (…) to go to the data directory folder
4. Right-click again on the stickies icon in the hidden icons area and select “Exit” to quit the program
5. Go to the data directory folder you just opened and duplicate the last file that contains usable data (you can usually tell if the file size is larger, or open it with a code editor and search for significant text)
6. Duplicate the backup file by copying and pasting it (ctrl+c, then ctrl+v)
7. Find the file stickies.ini in the data directory and rename it stickies.ini.old
8. Rename the file you copied stickies.ini
9. Restart your Stickies program, and you should be back in business

The front page has a Views Slideshow Block that grabs node data from custom CCK types. These types contain an image to be displayed in the slideshow (but not the node itself) and a checkbox for enabling or disabling the node from appearing in the Slideshow Block. The slideshow images by default link to the nodes from which they were created.

The problem is linking to a page rendered by Views. Since I can’t add a field for the image or checkbox in a view page (not that I know of, let me know if I’m wrong on this) I had to figure out a different way. And I did, but not without further glitches.

I added the image and checkbox fields to my Page content type and created a node with the appropriate image. It appeared in the slideshow and linked to the page. I then tried several methods to redirect the alias to the correct page. First, the Path Redirect Module. Fail. Then, cpanel’s .htaccess redirect configuration tool. Fail. Then manual .htaccess configuration. Fail.

I don’t really know why the .htaccess failed – I have suspicions it has to do simply with Apache not updating, the fact that I have the Global Redirect Module installed, the clean url directives that already exist in the .htaccess file, or some similar url rewriting conflict.

In a pinch, I added this snippet of code to the body of the page I created:

<?php
 header("HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently");
 header("Location: http://www.mysite.com/aliasname");
 exit();
 ?>

This delicious morsel did the trick, but not without a headache first. You’ll have to have access to posting PHP code, and post it as source, even if you select the PHP option.

• I keep all my professional work, including client files, on a separate hard drive partition so that I can easily and regularly back them up, let’s call it g:\
• Client files for web projects are organized as such: g:\clients\client-name\project-name , so that if a long-term client wants a site redesign, I can easily keep these separate rather than dumping them into a single public_html directory for each client
• My local testing server is pointed at a different partition, let’s call it h:\
• I want to be able to serve individual projects via the testing server, but only work on the project files

Naturally, I thought of unix aliases but I’m currently running Windows 7 so I tried shortcuts. Didn’t work. After a little digging, I found the solution: symlinks (which work in numerous OSes – thanks for the correction). From the command line, type:

mklink /D H:\target\directory\linkname G:\clients\client-name\project-name

mklink /D creates a symlink, or a soft link that is the Windows equivalent to unix aliases. The first argument is the directory where you want the link to be placed, and the second is the source directory. Easy as pie.

Be careful when deleting/writing content – the linked directory allows you to manipulate the original file!

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).

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.

1. 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.
2. Open Illustrator, start a blank document, and set your preferences. The document type doesn’t matter.
3. Close Illustrator.
4. 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.
5. Repeat steps 2-4 for each grid-setup or preferences variation you need.
6. Now you’re ready to use your custom preferences. Before you reopen Illustrator, delete the current AIPrefs file.
7. Copy the preferences file you want to use and rename it to AIPrefs.
8. 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.

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?

Those processes are like a clingy partner in a relationship: important, but annoying. Luckily for design, a lot of them can be streamlined to take less time. Unfortunately, most clingy partners get canned. I streamline my process by using templates, standard documents, and content management systems. It’s that last one that this post is about.

After a long hesitation and with much thought, I’ve decided on a CMS to drive larger client sites, as well as sites that have the distinct potential to scale significantly larger. That CMS is Drupal, and here’s why:

• open source/license
• awesome development community
• awesome scalability, with throttling options for high bandwidth
• highly extensible through modules/hooks/api including functionality for:
  • blogging
  • wiki/taxonomy/hierarchy
  • forums
• both CMS and CMF (Content Management Framework)
• integrates jQuery natively
• scalable
• themability
• session control

Here are some of the sites that brought me to this decision:

• http://www-128.ibm.com/developerworks/ibm/library/i-osource1/index.html?ca=drs-#N1024A
• http://www.packtpub.com/article/2008-open-source-cms-award-winner-announced
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfrfuCLH9sg&feature=related
• http://www.drupal.org
• http://dc2009.drupalcon.org/

I still plan on designing and developing for WordPress—but only for smaller and more static sites.