Archive for the ‘CSS’ Category

CSS for Internet Explorer

The best CSS works great in every browser without any need for hacks.  Unfortunately, not every job affords that kind of freedom and some are specifically looking for someone to make the site they’ve perfected in Firefox just work in IE.

While the introduction of IE8 takes us one step closer to being rid of IE6 and its sans-logic behavior, IE8 still contains the same idiosyncrasies when absolutely positioning content.  Unfortunately, it no longer ignores CSS hacks such as html>body.  Apparently we’ll still need to create additional stylesheets for years to come.

Historic Hotels and Lodges – in progress

launching soon

not yet final

A great number of Historic Hotels and Lodges in America are located within National Parks.  Taking a cue from the parks’ iconic signage, the site invokes the rustic stature of its famous buildings.  Dynamic JavaScript slide shows allow for the the quick consumption of detailed photos, while color coded fact sheets give a deeper look at hotel amenities.

not yet final

Ventura First

2009

2009

Creating a warm, friendly design with room to promote current events was the main directive for this church’s website.  Offering informational content, podcasts, videos, blogs, and more, this site was another prime canidate for Drupal and it’s ability to deal with information uniquely based on content type.  After looking at numerous slideshows for the promo area on the homepage, building one on my own proved to be simple and gave the client exactly what they wanted.

Lifetime Planning

2009

2009

Working within the context of a completely locked down CMS, I needed to create a unique, appealing site that would drive traffic to the incredibly rich content with only a CSS file and a few images.  I created a new banner image for the site and gave it a more professional look and feel.  Using a combination of background images and padding, I was able to direct the eye to downplayed elements on key pages and give some breadcrumbs a heightened role as navigation bars.

GTD Summit

2009

2009

Creating the site for the first annual GTD Conference required a Content Management System that could support blogging, as well as a variety of additional content types.  Drupal allows you to theme right down to the individual content types, and creating “blocks” for the sidebar content fit right in with the visual style of the site.

GTD Times

2008

2008

After creating many WordPress templates for personal blogs over the years, putting together a theme for the official GTD blog was a snap.  But nothing easy is ever simple.  Creating a theme with two sidebars, one of which splits in half to incorporate square ads in an attractive manner, proved to be a modest challenge, stretching my theme and widget building in new directions.

GTD Connect

1/2009

2008

When we redesigned the GTD member’s only site, we found ourselves with plenty of great content with multiple paths to find what you want.  Unfortunately, there were very few indicators of what was fresh and no promotion of new content.  In spite or regular updates, this gave the site a stale feel because the homepage rarely changed.

The site was built on a Smarty PHP templating system which allowed database calls to the already well established content system to flow seamlessly within the compliant HTML and CSS.  As a result, merging the databased archive with a brand new design that promoted new information to the homepage was a piece of cake and the project was turned around in record time.

David Allen Company – in progress

not yet final

not yet final

Homegrown companies often have homegrown sites.  As the company expands in new directions, new features are shoehorned into an existing homepage.  Reorganizing an expansive site generally requires taking a hard look at site statistics to discover how your site is used and what information is being sought out.

JQuery is a fantastic tool for creating movement and life to your site without the accessiblity concerns of Flash.  These promotional areas are a useful tool for introducing users to new content and bringing life to the page above the fold.  They also help promote deeper content that can’t logically live at the top level of the navigation structure.

Homestore.com – Home Improvement

screenshot of the homestore.com home improvement page from 5/10/2000
2000

Working at Homestore in the height of the dot com boom taught me a great deal about communicating with multiple departments and personalities.  I collaborated with artists, designers, editors, content contributors, developers, and quality assurance on a weekly basis.

Content is still king and the demands of a weekly release schedule required consistently producing an excellent product under the gun.  Continuing to code by hand honed my HTML skills while giving an early introduction to CSS and JavaScript.