Divitis: What it is and How to Avoid it

by Megan McDermott, 15 September 2007 - 2:20am

When they start designing with CSS instead of tables, many web designers fall into the same trap. Instead of putting tables around everything on a page, they use divs instead. The underlying design practices remain largely unchanged.

Easy PHP Debugging in Ubuntu (using Xdebug and Vim)

by Liam McDermott, 1 August 2007 - 11:54am

A debugger helps greatly when testing or bug fixing in PHP, when working with complicated code, or fixing difficult problems: a debugger is an invaluable tool. This article shows how to set up a PHP debugger in Ubuntu (tested on both Feisty 7.04 and the upcoming Gutsy 7.10) using Xdebug and Vim.

5 Steps to a Search Engine Friendly Site

by Megan McDermott, 23 July 2007 - 3:04am

Creating a site that ranks well in search engines is a difficult task. This article breaks it down into 5 simple steps, and points out some key features that search engines are looking for. Follow these steps and you'll be ranking well in no time! (well, more like 3-4 months)

Creating a Custom Home Page in Drupal Using Views

by Liam McDermott, 29 June 2007 - 5:35pm

One of the most popular questions people new to Drupal ask is: ‘How do I change the home page?’ By default the index page of a Drupal site has a bloggy feel, the latest items shown in date order, but it doesn't have to look like that! That is the aim of this article, to show two ways—because there is always more than one way to do something in Drupal—to customize a Drupal home page.

Moving the Login Block to a Separate Page in Drupal

by Liam McDermott, 18 June 2007 - 5:56pm

This text and video tutorial will show how the login block may be moved to a separate page in Drupal. This can be desirable for site owners who only allow login access to administrators, not all visitors.

Using Web Standards for Quality Assurance

by Liam McDermott, 4 May 2007 - 6:09pm

Quality assurance is exactly that. Ensuring a Web project is of a quality high enough to work on all modern browsers, now and in the future.

This article outlines how Web standards can be used to provide quality assurance and how this benefits a customer.

Creating a semantic FAQ page with definition lists and advanced CSS, Part 2

by Megan McDermott, 25 April 2007 - 7:39pm

In Part 1 of this series, we created a semantic FAQ page using definition lists and made it look pretty with CSS. Now it's time to work on some more functionality.

Creating a semantic FAQ page with definition lists and advanced CSS, Part 1

by Megan McDermott, 15 April 2007 - 4:34pm

Most websites have FAQ pages, but few put much effort into creating an attractive and usable interface. This article will explain one method of creating a nice FAQ page

What’s the Difference Between Usability and Accessibility?

by Liam McDermott, 14 April 2007 - 3:18am

‘Usability’ and ‘Accessibility’ are terms often misused and confused. This article aims to explain the differences between the two terms, their meanings and where they overlap.

Future Proofing Using Standards

by Liam McDermott, 6 April 2007 - 3:37pm

When creating sites it is important to realise the code might not be changed for years. This article shows how Web standards can be used to ensure a Web site still looks good, and functions well, years after it's creation.