Archive for the ‘Blog’ Category
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New look, now to get busy writing!
Back at the beginning of February I Threw away my previous design (if you could call it that!) and stripped things back to a bare bones, wireframes look. I then added a little css to at least pretend I cared. I then managed to get a few recipes and other bits ‘n bobs up. Then came a little downslide in production due too being busy, not to mention a little bored of the dull look the site had.
Well, that’s all now changed with a new look! A splash of colour and some sense to the the way it’s laid out and here we are. It’s still work in progress, but I couldn’t hold off any longer. I trust you all like it (that’s if anyone actually reads my blog!) - anything had to be better than the last monstrousity
Now all that’s needed is for me to write more! Watch this space…
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What is Twitter? And what’s all the fuss about?
With Twitter becoming more and more popular with celebrities it is now getting some very public coverage. Stephen Fry (@stephenfry) was interviewed by the Beeb recently and explained very neatly and succinctly what Twitter was for him. He was also a guest on Friday Night With Jonathan Ross (@wossy) which has helped Twitter further reach the masses.
Accordingly last week I was posed the question by my mother: “What is Twitter? And what is all the fuss about?”. Now, my mother is a bit of a luddite when it comes to computers and the internet, even referring the mouse as a ‘rabbit’! So imagine my difficulty in explaining Twitter to her!
Fortunately some of my collegues at Made By Many along with BBH labs have put together a beautiful slide share presentation on what Twitter is all about. It is released under the Creative Commons license so free to use it in any presentations about Twitter - all they ask is that you give credit where credit is due.
Twitter… what’s all the fuss about?View more presentations from madebymany. -
Custom fonts in your webpage using Cufon (canvas and VML)
For years designers have wanted to use custom fonts in their web page designs, this however has been problematic. Until now there’s only really been one option - sIFR - which unfortunately requires the Flash plugin. It also comes with its own set of problems, aside of requiring the Flash plugin, too many sIFR objets on the page have been known to cause problems in the browser - not to mention how tricky it can be to set up. Now, however there is Cufon - from Simo Kinnunen.
The main aims behind Cufon were to avoid proprietary software in favour of the open standard <canvas> and VML. Essentially Cufon acts as a web interface to fontforge to create an a JavaScript version of your font. There’s also a neat little online genertaor that allows you to upload your own font and generate the required JavaScript.
It’s incredibly easy to use, once you’ve created your JavaScript version of your font simple reference it along with the Cufon js (making sure you load cufon first!) then apply it to the element you want rendered. The following will render the text in an <h1>:
<script type="text/javascript"> Cufon.replace('h1'); </script>For full instructions and downloads visit Cufon on Git Hub.
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Yorkshire pudding
This is a recipe that I have adapted from Jane Grigson’s English Food - I can’t recommend this book highly enough as a wonderful celebration of English cooking. It is true that, as a nation, we did once have something to shout about when it came to food.
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And for my next trick
You got it, another design. Well, design is one word for it - in fact what I’ve done is thrown yet another design away and stripped everything right back to a bare-bone/wireframe approach, having at least sussed the theme out. Now to customise my new theme and at some point both add the makeup and the content!
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Happy 18th birthday The Eagle
The Eagle’s 18th birthday was marked by a few drinks last night with staff from over the ages gathering to take over the pub.
A great evening catching up with long-lost former colleagues, some of whom I’ve not seen for over 10 years! Sadly there were some who, given the short notice, could not make it - notably David Eyre, one of the original founders. Still, it was great to see those that did make it.
One thing that struck me last night was how the Eagle has not changed in the years that I’ve known it - going on 13! - This is a perfect example of a winning formula - but then they did create the ‘Gastro Pub’ genre.
Happy Birthday, The Eagle, you’ve come of age!
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Move on, there’s nothing to see here (yet!)
Too busy! Though I thought at least a preview of what will be.
Code
- XHTML/CSS tricks
- jQuery plugins
- General rambling on the state of front-end technologies
Food
- Recipes: from my catering years and family cookbooks
- Reviews and opinion: places I like to shop and eat
Oh, and of course a rather un-conventional approach to building a website.
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So here we go…
This is going to be a little experiment - having procrastinated over the design I’ve decided to throw it all away and start with a blank canvas. I’m going to add to it bit by bit and at least get stuff up here…
Watch this space…
In the meantime:
