Website Design, Development, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), and all things web, with ticktockdesign.com

The ExpressionEngine and CodeIgniter Conference (EECI2010) - roundup

So, the The ExpressionEngine and CodeIgniter Conference (EECI2010) happened at the beginning of the month ... I don't go to many conferences, and I didn't go to this one either but I wish I had been able to - if only to see Simon Collison give this presentation on subconscious design.

Simon set up and ran Erskine Design which is one of my 'hero' agencies. He recently left though - but he still has a lovely website and is clearly still doing great work.

A collection of articles from EECI2010 can be found on the EE blog here.

filed under web development » permalink

Genuinely exciting: IE9 Preview

File this under genuinely exciting ... I think.

It's not often I get excited about the release of a new browser - especially if it's part of the Internet Explorer dysfunctional family - BUT - IE9 is starting to look promising - and it's preview is available now

They're talking about HTML5, SVG support, and even at least a nod to CSS3 - all good stuff that can be found here.

They're still on the IE rendering engine - which doesn't make sense to me - why not just switch to Webkit and be done with it? - but hey, progress is progress.

Considering that we were stuck with IE6 for the better part of a decade, it's nice that we've been introduced to 7, 8 and now 9 in the last 3-4 years or so.

filed under web development » permalink

German Government tells people to stop using Internet Explorer

This caught my eye over the weekend ... The German Government has officially advised web users to find an alternative to using Internet Explorer for security reasons.

That's amazing - I've never known a government even attempt to get involved in something like this, but there we are.

Read the article on SitePoint.

filed under web development » permalink

Tips on writing or identifying the perfect proposal

I'm a big fan of Paul Boag - and the work of his agency, Headscape.

Paul produces a weekly podcast which covers all sorts of great content and discussion ... it's a must listen. Lately though he's also been putting out little snippets via AudioBoo - an iPhone based podcasting service - and this, below, is the latest: "Tips on writing or identifying the perfect proposal" - it covers a few of the angles from both the designers perspective and the clients. It's a good listen:

filed under web development » permalink

More on google caffeine

More on google caffeine - this time from as close to the horses mouth as we're allowed to get: Matt Cutts

filed under web development » permalink

2 books to read

Here's a couple of interesting reads ... I bought a book the other day on mobile web design by the 'topic leading' Cameron Moll. Cameron is one of those rare birds that writes on reasonably technical issues with absolute clarity and simplicity. It's good stuff and an area clients are increasingly asking me to focus on in my work. Definitely one for the library.

The other book I picked up as a primer on AJAX but it's turned out to be far more than that. Jeremey Keith's book: Bulletproof AJAX is brilliant - for it's brevity, it's writing, it's usefulness and it's determination to integrate 'new fangled' technologies without sacrificing usability.

filed under web development » permalink

Google Dumps IE6

Thank god for that ... although they're probably disappointed that their Chrome browser has stalled at less than 1% of market share ... stop using IE6 today!

filed under web development » permalink

The future of web design

Ah - the future of web design is coming back ... see you in London!

filed under web development » permalink

PHP Advent and 24Ways

Christmas comes but once a year, but with it comes 2 essential resources that are good value all year round. Chris Shiflett - a PHP security expert - has put together another year of PHP Advent, 24 days worth of good PHP advice. While Drew McLellan brings us the always excellent 24 Ways to impress your friends. (Well, so long as they're web designers / developers, or just easily bored around Christmas time). Well worth checking them both out.

filed under web development » permalink

Bargain Web App!

Contrast.ie are offering a great opportunity to build a web app for you - in one week and for peanuts! They're giving one lucky recipient a fully functioning web app for just €895 - and will delivery it in one week. Given that this has a 'street value' of over €17,000 (they're asking you to pay 5% of the costs), this is awesome. If you're a non-profit, a start up, a charity ... go and check it out. These guys are the real deal.

filed under web development » permalink

PHP Frameworks

I'm enjoying this tutorial series from the good people at NetTuts, and, I'm looking forward to the rest of it. I've tried working with various frameworks before (Zend, Code Igniter, Cake) blah blah blah ... but they all seem to end up rather bloated to me with a whole bunch of functions / stuff that I'll just never use. This way, I can roll my own ...

filed under web development » permalink