Bob Duncan
web site designer, developer & project manager
Blog Articles
- The Advantages of Web Standards
- Posted: April-02-09
Through out the last few years, I have worked on a number of projects that have involved improving web accessibility, search engine optimization and user experience design. Time and time again the first and foremost suggestion that I offer is an adoption of web standards. I cannot understand why developers don't have valid code hard wired in to their brains.
I am working on a rather large accessibility initiative and am continually telling people to "drop the tables and use a css based layout". 90% of the discussions shouldn't be about accessibility but should include seo, code maintainability, optimized work flows and user experience design. The fact of the matter is, if implemented correctly, web standards development brings such a large array of advantages to any web site that there is NO reason to develop without them.
It is very important to mention that a lot of developers say that they develop "standards based" web sites but really don't. I truly believe that most people think that they are complying with web standards because they have validated their code but in reality, require a lot of corrections with issues such as poor alt attributes, incorrect mark-up structure, redundant id and class attributes and so much more.
There are a ton of resources on the subject and I honestly am suprised to see myself posting a web standards entry in 2009. It is a reality that people are continuing to develop table based layouts and I feel obligated to offer the best resource that I have come across. Designing with web standards was written by Jeffrey Zeldman and is an absolute gem that must be read by all developers.
- Filed Under: code, search engine optimization, web accessibility
- The Happy Pixel completes Miltstegall.com
- Posted: March-22-09
I am happy to say that the last couple of months have been extremely busy. My new job at MTS has helped to fire up my creative energy and I must say, it feels good.
Last month I created a new design for CFL superstar Milt Stegall. This was the first project that I took on out side of my regular job in quite some time and I had a great deal on fun working on it. The time line for this project was really tight (a week and a half).
The other project that I have been working on is for a curriculum mapping application and I am looking forward to sharing the results when it is complete. The interesting thing about this site is that I was asked to develop it using a Css framework (CSS Blueprint) and I am really happy with the results because it has cut my development time significantly and forced my design to follow a grid.
My next project is to obtain the CaPM credential. I have been mentally preparing myself to write the test for quite some time but I am finally ready to get down to business and get it done. It is going to be a lot of studying but will be a great way to boost my project management knowledge.
Stay tuned for my coming post where I upload a code tool kit. It is still a work in progress and I expect it to be a while until it is ready but it is going to be a great reference for web accessibility development.
- Filed Under: site related, code, design
- Finally - The Happy Pixel 3.0 is Almost Complete
- Posted: January-26-09
I am happy to say that the newest version of this web site is nearly complete. All of the code including the php and mysql that is driving the site has been hand written by yours truly. My goal has been to have a launchable version before the end of January and I am confident that I will meet that dead line.
You will probably notice that the design follows an extreme minimalist approach. I am hoping to make a few additions over the next couple of weeks but for the most part the design is going to stay very simple.
On another note, I began a new job today as a web designer for Mts Allstream. It is really nice to get back in to the design aspect of web projects. I am feeling very confident that I am going to enjoy myself and will finally be able to scratch that creative itch that has been hanging over me for some time.
Please stay tuned for some more posts that will be coming in the near future. I am working on developing an html snippet tool kit that will be available for download. See you soon!
- Filed Under: site related
- Keeping up the Energy - How I try to stay inspired
- Posted: April-20-08
One of the most challenging tasks that I deal with is staying energized. By nature, I am an outgoing person, but even with my unusually energetic personality, I often find myself slowing down and losing focus of my goals. This is difficult to deal with because if I had my way, I would be running none stop 24 hours a day.
Throughout the past year, I have learned the importance of not over exerting myself. It didn't take long to catch on because I took on a ridiculous amount of free lance and started a new management position at my work.
I have been making the extra effort to work the typical 8 hour work day. The secret is making sure those 8 hours count. This helps me rationalize leaving on time.
It scares me to death to run out of inspiration so I thought I would share a few things that I do to push myself.
- The number one thing that helps me stay focused is reading. Nothing gives me more inspiration and ideas than a good read from a useful blog or book.
- A nice run outside with my dog helps me get my mind on track.
- I told myself that I am not going to do free lance any more. It is hard to turn down but in the bigger picture, I would much rather work on personal projects in my free time than having to manage some one else's. Freelance can also take away from holiday and family time, which can be the biggest problem of all.
- Look for inspiration and ideas daily. Whether it is a quick search on Digg or Google, visual inspiration on the Internet can be a huge help.
- Podcasts are always useful and entertaining. There are a ton of excellent podcasts online that tackle industry specific issues.
This is pretty much all that I do to stay up. With the exception of taking some video game and movie breaks, I can't think of much more.
- Filed Under: inspiration
- Newspapers Opening Up Content
- Posted: April-20-08
It is nice to see that the NY Times web site has finally decided to open up their content for free. This is proof that Newspapers are finally realizing the opportunities of online advertising.
Internet users are used to seeing advertisements and with the IAB maintaining standards, ads are becoming more effective. What I find interesting is the number of advertisers that think a click through is the only way to track success. In 2004, Double Click announced that the view through rate is consistently higher than the click through rate. This is difficult for the smaller advertisers to track but it is still an important consideration to keep in mind.
- Filed Under: online advertising
- Internet Advertising Ideas
- Posted: April-20-08
Two weeks ago I created a presentation that I gave to our sales team. My goal was to create a "Coles Notes" version of Online Advertising to a group of people that traditionally sell print. I found a large assortment of web content and advertisements to use as a resource in quite a few locations on the Internet. Wikipedia does a really nice job for definitions and I found a ton of really creative ads on the DART Motif web site.
One thing that that is really important to understand about selling online is that it isn't as confusing as everyone thinks it is. The concepts are the same as in print, its just the medium that has changed. Sales reps have a tendency to get caught up in all of the terminology and loose focus of their skills as a sales person.
In the end, online has a lot more to offer. It provides real time stats, geo targeting, immediate publishing and a variety of really intersting creative.
- Filed Under: online advertising
- My Favorite Newspaper Websites
- Posted: September-10-07
I spend a lot of time browsing through and analyzing newspaper web sites. There are a few sites that I visit daily and I would like to share them with my readers:
The Globe's site is my absolute favorite newspaper website. It provides a nice blend of clean design, semantic mark-up and unobtrusive ad positioning. I would love to hear about your favorite newspaper sites so please leave a comment.
- Filed Under: design
- 40 Unusually Useful Websites
- Posted: September-08-07
I stumbled up this ridiculously useful website that highlights 40 amazing web sites that serve a unique purpose. Of the 40, I found the following web sites to be the most interesting:
- BugMeNot – instantly get disposable login details for any popular website that forces you to register.
- DailyLit – read your favorite books by email (on your PC, mobile, etc.)
- Google SMS – provides mobile users with a quick access (via SMS) to a wide range of practical information and tools (i.e. business listings (pizzerias, shops, etc.), weather, movie listings, driving directions, currency converter and lots more.
- ListenToaMovie – lets you listen to a movie, i.e. stream the audio part of various movies and some TV-shows.
- IQzone – post your classified ad to a number of online and print classified networks directly from your mobile.
- Filed Under:
- "Search Engine Optimization is Overated"
- Posted: November-27-07
While chatting with a fellow web geek today, I was told that "Search Engine Optimization is overrated ". Given that this individual is directly related to the success of a very large web site, this surprised the hell out of me.
After a quick chat with my online director, I came to realize that there is a strong level of ignorance in the web development community. You would think this wouldn't have come as such a shock to me but there are so many web sites out there that are validating to xhtml transitional and are very successful in the general areas of SEO best practices. I think the dis-connect has a lot to do with the fact that Google has switched their Search Engine Algorithm so many times that they think they are following current best practices, but are actually way off.
The question is, how do you deal with these people? Obviously, I could throw a tantrum, kick him where I shouldn't, and run away. I have decided to take a more in-direct approach and try to influence the developer and bring him up to speed on the many advantages that SEO brings to the table.
- Filed Under: search engine optimization
- Don't Make Me Think | A Must Read
- Posted: January-25-07
During the Christmas break, I decided to begin reading a couple of books that have been itching at me for quite some time. The first book that I decided to tackle was Steve Krug's, Don't Make Me Think. One of the best things about the book is that it practices what it preaches.
Don't Make Me Think is such a quick, easy read, that you can polish it off while on a short flight. Although most of what it covers is common sense, it is really nice to have it front of you in plain English.
I got the most out of the book from the following sections:
- Navigation
- Home Page Design
- Usability Testing
- Filed Under: books, design
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