Are you linked in?
Posted in Gadgets on November 23rd, 2006
I was browsing for the best web 2.0 apps recently, when I found a category winner: Linked In.
I’m not much for signing up for fad apps all the time, but I was interested in the connections that Linked In claimed to offer. It’s difficult to explain the overall purpose of the site, but here goes:
- People Search – Name search, find an employer or future employee
- Keep in touch for former colleagues or classmates
- Use Outlook to help track people in your Linked In account
The coolest feature I found was a search for people you went to university with that are also linked in. Helping you find out how your long lost buddies are doing these days (or how you can do better).
Sure enough, after uploading my address book I found that there two of my friends are also Linked In. Through those contacts, I am also linked to more than 300 other professionals. I don’t know what I’m going to do with those connections yet… Sometimes it’s not what you know it’s who you know (and who they know!).
The New Lightbox 2
Posted in Javascript on November 17th, 2006
As I stumble through the web today, I found a new version of the famous Lightbox JS.
A quick look at the examples and I was impressed with the improvements. I know how hard it is to fade an entire page without flickering (actually, I haven’t worked that out yet!).
onChange vs onClick Event
Posted in Javascript on November 14th, 2006
Recently I was working on a piece of code that would show or hide particular elements based on a Radio option’s ‘checked’ property.
I used the onChange event to fire my code, because that’s what I was doing to the radio option, right?
In a way yes it worked – in every browser but IE. After reading a post about browser inconsistencies I learned that IE doesn’t fire the onChange event, until after I lose focus of the option I just changed – which just doesn’t make sense!
Here’s a quick example of what I’m talking about. Try this in different browsers.
Needless to say, using onClick instead fixed the problem. It seems that onChange still exists for the user who sometimes prefers not to use a mouse when navigating a website. For the purposes of the few, I try to use both events (providing the function to be called checks the status of things to avoid double handling).
PHP Ajax File Browser 2.0.1
Posted in Ajax File Browser on November 13th, 2006
A new version of PHP Ajax File Browser is now available. It fixes two major problems:
- Fixed normal user account admin priveleges bug
- Fixed accented characters prevented from listing. Still has some display problems in IE6.
Download
- Download AjaxFB 2.0.1 (950kb)
Technorati: ajax, php, javascript, web 2.0
Snippets Online
Posted in Javascript, PHP on November 7th, 2006
Today I launch another small database site.
Snippets.jc21.com is a database of useful pieces of code from any langauge you may use.
I often use different computers to code, or sometimes forget to backup my snippets before a re-format. So I made this site to keep a track of things.
The site allows full search and browsing capabilities, so you can easily find what you’re looking for. There are only a few gems there at the moment, but will be growing each day.
If you have any useful snippets or functions that you would like to share, submit them.
Yahoo helping Web 2.0 evolve
Posted in Javascript on November 3rd, 2006
Recently it was brought to my attention that I should use the Yahoo UI Library to solve a problem I’ve had. Having used these tools when they were first released I thought they were cool at the time. Now I still think they’re cool and well documented.
I am always cautious building sites relying on Javascript because of all the things that can go wrong from browser to browser. Lately I’m learning towards the ‘if you’re browser doesn’t support my site, it’s time to upgrade!’ line of thinking.
Information based sites don’t need to be Web 2.0 enhanced, but now we’re building Applications that do stuff! I want to drag ‘n’ drop things and watch cool animations when I delete something.
Where was I… Yahoo UI and the Yahoo Design Pattern Library are helping to make our lives easier. If you don’t have a degree in Interface Programming, at the very least take a look at the Design Patterns. You’ll soon discover what Usability is all about.