Archive for November, 2007
Nov
23
2007
at 12:09pm
Up until just over a year ago I had really only ever used Windows. I’d encountered Mac in passing but hadn’t actually used it. Why? Pure ambivalence. I didn’t feel the need to try other operating systems. And let’s face it, OSX isn’t exactly easy to acquire for the average PC user. Buy a new computer just to try a diffent OS? Not happening. I had a vague awareness of Linux but I assumed it was just for super-geeks.
Was I ever missing out! I’ve ben using OSX for over a month now at my new job. Although I wouldn’t say I’m enamored with it I do appreciate many differences from Windows. Liam (my husband) encouraged me to swtich to linux at home (when I had my old computer last year) and I haven’t looked back. Just this week I installed Ubuntu on a new laptop at work (and put Windows in virtualization) without much trouble at all. Any problems are always a quick Ubuntu Forums search away. I’ve always been big on customization so Linux is a great choice for me.
As an avid computer user and web professional it’s been a great experience to have a better understanding of how other operating systems work. Can you imagine only ever using Inernet Explorer? Of course not! So why are you satistfied with the default operating system that came with your computer?
I’m finding that OSX + Ubuntu is a great combination for web design. OSX for graphics, multimedia, and Dreamweaver. Ubunutu for file management and development tasks (one of the reasons why I wanted a Linux laptop is because I find the file manager in OSX to be really limiting). Of course, it helps that right now my Mac is hooked up to the nice big monitors 
That may change…
Come think of it, the lack of diversity in operating systems is really kind of sad. I don’t mean that alternatives aren’t available — they are. But the general computer using masses have very little awareness of them. Can you imagine if everyone drove the same kind of car? Or bought the same kind of DVD player? With almost any product used by regular people you can think of a wealth of alternatives. Consumers have choice. With operating systems, they don’t take advantage of the choices available. But you can’t really blame the average consumer, because the choice really isn’t available. Ever try to purchase a PC with no operating system or even an operating system other than windows? Generally not available (unless you know where to look and even then it’s difficult).
Posted in Open Source, Software | 7 Comments »
Nov
16
2007
at 1:31pm
I’ve had about 4 posts in a row now with no comments. No, I’m not really counting but it does tend to get discouraging. If I’m writing this blog, and nobody reads it, does it matter? Should I even bother writing it?
Sure, getting comments isn’t a true sign of readership, but I think it’s at least an indication that people are finding my posts to be interesting. But I don’t know if it’s really about that for me. If nobody was reading, would I still write?
To be honest, that’s not the main reason why I started this blog. Sure, its nice to share knowledge and insight with others. But it’s also good to get things off my chest. Sometimes I tend to over think things and can’t get them out of my mind. Writing them down, even if nobody is reading it, gets it out of my head. And then I don’t have to think about it anymore.
But don’t get me wrong, I do really appreciate and value any participation I get here. It’s amazing to think that there are people out there who are interested in what I have to say. And I do really want to engage with you, if you’re reading. Thank you for being here
I could take a different approach with this blog, and write more linkbaity type stuff, although I tend to save that sort of content for A Padded Cell. I don’t really want this to be a place where I’m just trying to get more traffic or more readers or more comments. I want it to be authentic. I know I need to try to draw out the readers more than I do. I also should be linking out and participating in discussions more than I do now. Maybe those can be my goals for 2008.
So that’s why I blog. For any bloggers who happen to be reading, why do you blog?
Posted in General, Personal | 5 Comments »
Nov
13
2007
at 2:03pm
Today I stopped by Amazon.com to do some pre-Chirstmas shopping and was greeted with this graphic:
Front and centre, just under the search box. Now, I don’t know if this is always there… for some reason I think it might be a standard, but the recent rise in the value of the Canadian dollar changes everything. As of this morning, the Canadian dollar is valued at almost $1.04 US ($1.0382 to be more precise). This means that online shopping is a lot more attractive than it used to be when our dollar was worth 80¢. We don’t want to go to Amazon.ca where our dollar is worth $1, we want to shop at Amazon.com where it’s worth $1.04 (or $1.06 as it was last week).
To add to that, book prices are stuck where they were months ago when the books were printed. This means that the price for most books is $2-$4 higher on the Canadian site, if not more (I think Amazon may have adjusted these prices for the dollar value already). Buy a few books and you’ve covered the $5 + tax Canada Customs charges at the border (don’t get me started on that!). Oh, and I think the limit to qualify for free shipping is lower on the US site.
Another problem, which always applies to Amazon, is that the US site has a much broader product range than the Canadian version does, plus all those affiliated sellers. I can get a lot of stuff on Amazon.com that isn’t available in Canada at all. That’s why I want to shop there now.
For anyone running a US eCommerce site, now is the time to optimize your site for Canadian shoppers. Do you ship to Canada? Are the rates reasonable? You could even put up a little Canadian flag to welcome your neighbours from the North
Posted in General, Web Culture | 7 Comments »
Nov
11
2007
at 11:11am
It’s finally finished! I’ve been working on this article off and on for months. It took a lot of research (especially when I didn’t have access to a Mac, and now when I don’t really have access to Windows), and a lot of messing around with sample graphics to get the sizing right. This is a complete (to my knowledge) list of fonts installed with OSX, Ubuntu (as a sample Linux distro), and Windows as well as MS Office.
I hope this list will make it easier for web designers to use a wider variety of fonts in their designs. There are really quite a lot of fonts available as long as you’re okay with things looking a little different on diffrent operating systems.
Enjoy!
Complete Guide to Pre-Installed Fonts in Linux, Mac, and Windows
Posted in Design | 1 Comment »
Nov
05
2007
at 3:58pm
Simplebits is on a 404 hunt. Others have already done some searching. But what have they come up with? Lots of “cool” examples of clever but completely useless things to do with 404 pages.
I really don’t get why it’s considered to be a good idea to do something silly/”cool” with a 404 page. At this point the user has encountered an error, and you’re not going to tell them what to do about it? This example (and others) actually tell the user to turn around and leave. Is that really what you want? They’re trying to find something on your site and you tell them to go away?
Read more…
Posted in Design | 1 Comment »
