T here's really not a lot to say. My design objectives are simple and my tools are simple.
Here are my design objectives:
| Macintosh development environment | I have easy access to both Macintosh and PC platforms but prefer simple tools and I prefer the ones available on the Macintosh. Frankly, I just prefer the Macintosh in pretty much any situation. |
| CSS based design | This is my first real attempt to use CSS, so I'm still learning and still exploring various techniques. My plans are to ultimately provide multiple CSS 'skins' for my site. |
| Minimal graphics | I've been noticing lately that I really dislike sites that are overdone with graphics. My objective is to use only subtle graphics where they enhance the browsing experience and the occasional key graphical element here and there, when it contributes in a tasteful way. |
| No power tools | I've tried a number of web development tools and am always disappointed by two things. First, I never like the code they generate; It's fat and ugly. Second, they always limit me in what I can do from within the tool. Therefore all of the HTML and CSS is generated with a (relatively) basic text editor. |
| Links | I've tried, throughout, to tie in relevant external links. I hope that this will enhance the browsing experience and may lead the reader to explore areas that he or she never would have thought of, otherwise... |
The pages look best in Safari, though there may be other browsers that render appropriately. Most of the Mozilla browsers (FireFox, for instance) do an acceptable job, though (at the time of this writing) they don't support the text-shadow property that I use in the headers. There are workarounds to this, but I have not figured out how to write the CSS so that it is portable between browsers without degrading the quality in Safari.
Microsoft's Internet Explorer fails miserably on nearly every front (even the newest version IE7). I've decided not to try to add workarounds - why should I add a bunch of hacks to support the browser, when Microsoft doesn't think enough about the browser to support the standards???
Besides... one of my pet peeves is Internet Explorer hacks that sabotage the web experience for users of other browsers.
If this is a topic that really interests you, I have prepared a page that helps to demonstrate the differences between the browsers.
| Taco HTML Edit | This is a text editor with a twist. It's designed exclusively for web development. It features syntax coloring, spell checking, tag inserts, syntax checking, and a "Live Preview" that allows you to see the fruits of your labors in real-time. The "Live Preview" is a full function browser and is fully CSS compliant. Best of all, Taco HTML Edit is free (as in beer). |
| Gimp | There are not many images on these pages, but the ones that are here are original. I use Gimp because it's powerful and because it's free (as in beer). |
| Cyberduck | To upload my files onto my server, I use Cyberduck. It's AppleScript-able so a simple script keeps this site sync'ed with my local development folder. For an FTP client, it's full featured, drag and drop, and free (as in beer). |