Web Directions

object(WP_Query)#71 (47) { ["query_vars"]=> array(55) { ["year"]=> int(2008) ["monthnum"]=> int(8) ["error"]=> string(0) "" ["m"]=> int(0) ["p"]=> int(0) ["post_parent"]=> string(0) "" ["subpost"]=> string(0) "" ["subpost_id"]=> string(0) "" ["attachment"]=> string(0) "" ["attachment_id"]=> int(0) ["name"]=> string(0) "" ["static"]=> string(0) "" ["pagename"]=> string(0) "" ["page_id"]=> int(0) ["second"]=> string(0) "" ["minute"]=> string(0) "" ["hour"]=> string(0) "" ["day"]=> int(0) ["w"]=> int(0) ["category_name"]=> string(0) "" ["tag"]=> string(0) "" ["cat"]=> string(0) "" ["tag_id"]=> string(0) "" ["author_name"]=> string(0) "" ["feed"]=> string(0) "" ["tb"]=> string(0) "" ["paged"]=> int(0) ["comments_popup"]=> string(0) "" ["meta_key"]=> string(0) "" ["meta_value"]=> string(0) "" ["preview"]=> string(0) "" ["s"]=> string(0) "" ["sentence"]=> string(0) "" ["fields"]=> string(0) "" ["category__in"]=> array(0) { } ["category__not_in"]=> array(0) { } ["category__and"]=> array(0) { } ["post__in"]=> array(0) { } ["post__not_in"]=> array(0) { } ["tag__in"]=> array(0) { } ["tag__not_in"]=> array(0) { } ["tag__and"]=> array(0) { } ["tag_slug__in"]=> array(0) { } ["tag_slug__and"]=> array(0) { } ["ignore_sticky_posts"]=> bool(false) ["suppress_filters"]=> bool(false) ["cache_results"]=> bool(false) ["update_post_term_cache"]=> bool(true) ["update_post_meta_cache"]=> bool(true) ["post_type"]=> string(0) "" ["posts_per_page"]=> int(15) ["nopaging"]=> bool(false) ["comments_per_page"]=> string(2) "50" ["no_found_rows"]=> bool(false) ["order"]=> string(4) "DESC" } ["tax_query"]=> object(WP_Tax_Query)#92 (2) { ["queries"]=> array(0) { } ["relation"]=> string(3) "AND" } ["meta_query"]=> object(WP_Meta_Query)#91 (2) { ["queries"]=> array(0) { } ["relation"]=> NULL } ["post_count"]=> int(15) ["current_post"]=> int(-1) ["in_the_loop"]=> bool(false) ["comment_count"]=> int(0) ["current_comment"]=> int(-1) ["found_posts"]=> string(2) "29" ["max_num_pages"]=> float(2) ["max_num_comment_pages"]=> int(0) ["is_single"]=> bool(false) ["is_preview"]=> bool(false) ["is_page"]=> bool(false) ["is_archive"]=> bool(true) ["is_date"]=> bool(true) ["is_year"]=> bool(false) ["is_month"]=> bool(true) ["is_day"]=> bool(false) ["is_time"]=> bool(false) ["is_author"]=> bool(false) ["is_category"]=> bool(false) ["is_tag"]=> bool(false) ["is_tax"]=> bool(false) ["is_search"]=> bool(false) ["is_feed"]=> bool(false) ["is_comment_feed"]=> bool(false) ["is_trackback"]=> bool(false) ["is_home"]=> bool(false) ["is_404"]=> bool(false) ["is_comments_popup"]=> bool(false) ["is_paged"]=> bool(false) ["is_admin"]=> bool(false) ["is_attachment"]=> bool(false) ["is_singular"]=> bool(false) ["is_robots"]=> bool(false) ["is_posts_page"]=> bool(false) ["is_post_type_archive"]=> bool(false) ["query_vars_hash"]=> string(32) "67f4a02447f7afbeffb7009ab80c0f8a" ["query_vars_changed"]=> bool(false) ["thumbnails_cached"]=> bool(false) ["query"]=> array(2) { ["year"]=> string(4) "2008" ["monthnum"]=> string(2) "08" } ["request"]=> string(252) " SELECT SQL_CALC_FOUND_ROWS wp_posts.* FROM wp_posts WHERE 1=1 AND YEAR(wp_posts.post_date)='2008' AND MONTH(wp_posts.post_date)='8' AND wp_posts.post_type = 'post' AND (wp_posts.post_status = 'publish') ORDER BY wp_posts.post_date DESC LIMIT 0, 15" ["posts"]=> &array(15) { [0]=> object(stdClass)#115 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(761) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "2" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-27 11:39:32" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-27 01:39:32" ["post_content"]=> string(1166) "Interesting story in today's SMH technology section. Queensland based company Orange Dot are on a mission to design a mobile phone for adults with intellectual disabilities, many of whom find modern phones too complex and difficult to use.

That was the experience of a 34-year-old man with Down's Syndrome, who having missed his bus connection was left stranded without any form of communication. He was eventually located after police and bus operators were alerted, just two kilometres from his home, having waited more than seven hours.

Cooper, who has been involved with a not-for-profit organisation that supports intellectually disabled adults in Brisbane, realised that many disabled people find modern phones too complex and difficult to use.

With the irritating feature-itus of so many mobile handsets, I'd be surprised if a product like this, if it's designed well, didn't find a much broader market.Read the full story here." ["post_title"]=> string(63) "A smarter, simpler phone - can this Australian team invent one?" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(59) "a-smarter-simpler-phone-can-this-australian-team-invent-one" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-27 11:39:32" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-27 01:39:32" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=761" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "1" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [1]=> object(stdClass)#116 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(757) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "3" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-26 11:41:53" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-26 01:41:53" ["post_content"]=> string(784) "The closing date for this year's McFarlane for Excellence in Australian Web Design prize is next Monday, so you only have a few days to nominate your site, or someone else's site for the prize.The McFarlane prize was inaugurated in 2006 in memory of Nigel McFarlane. The goal is to recognise excellence in design, accessibility, coding, usability, and impact. Unlike most similar awards, the prize uses objective as well as subjective criteria,and gives equal weighting to the various areas of web practice.So, nominate a site you think is worthy, or a site you've built, for the chance to enter the hall of fame with past winners Michael Koukoullis and Museum Victoria." ["post_title"]=> string(36) "McFarlane Prize closing date looming" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(36) "mcfarlane-prize-closing-date-looming" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-26 11:41:53" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-26 01:41:53" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=757" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "2" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [2]=> object(stdClass)#117 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(753) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "3" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 16:09:08" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 06:09:08" ["post_content"]=> string(1127) "Via our friends at PropellerGlobal we read at Yahoo!7 that

The federal disability commissioner has threatened to "name and shame" government departments and agencies which do not make public information accessible to people with disabilities.

Commissioner Graeme Innis said

Making information as socially important and highly publicised as the GROCERYchoice website and the green paper on carbon emissions trading inaccessible to a significant sector of the population is, put bluntly, a disgrace.

Hear hear.BTW, any folks interested in getting up to speed quickly with accessibility, there's few better places to start than world expert Derek Featherstone's one day workshop, and presentation at Web Directions this year." ["post_title"]=> string(98) "Federal disability commissioner threatens to "name and shame" government departments and agencies " ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(95) "federal-disability-commissioner-threatens-to-name-and-shame-government-departments-and-agencies" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(136) "http://www.webdirections.org/blog/grocerychoice-accessibility-disaster-to-put-it-kindly/ http://south08.webdirections.org/?cat=3#post-60" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 16:09:08" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 06:09:08" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=753" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "2" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [3]=> object(stdClass)#118 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(750) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "3" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 15:01:50" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 05:01:50" ["post_content"]=> string(746) "We launched our web industry focussed jobs site, Jobs.WebDirections only a couple of weeks back, and we've already got 27 jobs from the likes of Atlassian, Freshview, NAB, Yahoo!7 and many other fantastic companies to work for. There are full time and freelance jobs for developers, designers, managers, marketers and more. So if you are on the lookout for a job, do check it out.And if you are looking for a contractor, or full or part time web professionals, remember job ads are free. Placing and updating ads is completely self service - you do it all online.Thanks to those who've already posted jobs, and here's to many more." ["post_title"]=> string(26) "Web Directions Jobs update" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(26) "web-directions-jobs-update" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 15:01:50" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 05:01:50" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=750" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "1" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [4]=> object(stdClass)#119 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(739) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "3" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 14:47:07" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 04:47:07" ["post_content"]=> string(2018) "In 2007 Web Directions headed offshore to Vancouver for our first Web Directions North. Now, we are really excited to announce Web Directions East, to be held in Tokyo, Japan in November of this year, in conjunction with leading local web design and training companies Actlink and allWeb.For our first Japanese event, Web Directions East will be a one day, two track conference, and two days of workshops. One track will feature international speakers, presenting in English, and simultaneously translated into Japanese. The other track will feature Japanese presenters, presenting in Japanese.We are also really excited with our lineup of wonderful international speakers, featuring

• The godfather of CSS Eric Meyer
• Ajax wizard Jeremy Keith
• Markup legend Dan "simplebits" Cederholm
• Guru of all things web Andy Budd
• W3C SVG and Canvas expert Doug Schepers
• Jeffrey Veen - web legend

Workshops, delivered in English, but with simultaneous translation into Japanese, include

• Eric Meyer on CSS
• Jeremy Keith on Ajax
• Andy Budd on Guerilla User Testing

So, if you are keen on a trip to Japan in November, or know folks there and elsewhere who might be interested, please let them know, or visit the site yourself (right now it's all in Japanese).I particularly like the "speaker streams" they've put together for each of the speakers - featuring twitter posts, blog posts, flickr photos, video, and other related news puled in from around the web.We are really excited to be taking Web Directions to Japan. Stay tuned for more news on this and other such events." ["post_title"]=> string(30) "Announcing Web Directions East" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(30) "announcing-web-directions-east" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(41) " http://east08.webdirections.org/program/" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 14:47:07" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-25 04:47:07" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=739" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "5" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [5]=> object(stdClass)#120 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(737) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "2" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 12:55:08" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 02:55:08" ["post_content"]=> string(1314) "No doubt you've all whiled away the odd hour putting your name, and that of all your friends into the famous Baby Name Explorer. But it was always a bit artificial from an Aussie point of view I felt, because the data was from the US. What, no Lachlan??The good news is, thanks to a cross government project involving the Powerhouse Museum, NSW now has its very own Baby Name Explorer - it's part of the NSW Government Portal.I've always thought this was a truly great data visualisation as it allows us to look at such a profound aspect of our own identities in a new and intriguing way. There's a nice story in the Daily Telegraph (hmmm, that's eight words I never thought I'd type together in a sentence) which I think helps explain why this perspective in the information is so fascinating." ["post_title"]=> string(31) "Our very own Baby Name Explorer" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(31) "our-very-own-baby-name-explorer" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 12:55:08" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 02:55:08" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=737" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "1" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [6]=> object(stdClass)#121 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(734) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "3" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 12:49:59" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 02:49:59" ["post_content"]=> string(1937) "Well, it's probably not much of a shock, but much touted research by QUT postgraduate student Kim Mackenzie, (reports in SMH, Australian, SmartCompany and elsewhere) suggests that

companies that rushed to set up bases within the cult virtual world of Second Life appear to have wasted their time as many have shut down and others are "ghost towns"

However

Mackenzie remains optimistic that the virtual world has a long term future. "It will be a very powerful medium for companies to utilise in the future, but there needs to be time and commitment given to it, and people need to be aware of it, and feel comfortable with it first," she says.

I'm not so sure. Several huge challenges facing virtual worlds includeMost are if not all are not browser based - they require downloading and installing a desktop application (even Googles in page VW Lively requires a plug in - currently only for Windows and Firefox) Users are required to invest significant time and effort customizing their avatars, and learning skills to fly, teleport or otherwise move through these spaces As the realism of the places and avatars increases, VW's will face the "uncanny valley" conundrum.My betting VWs will go the way of "smell-o-vision" and quadrophonic sound.But what does the wisdom of the crowd say?" ["post_title"]=> string(52) "Shock Second Life news - no one much seems to use it" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(50) "shock-second-life-news-no-one-much-seems-to-use-it" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 12:49:59" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 02:49:59" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=734" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "3" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [7]=> object(stdClass)#122 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(724) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "3" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-20 11:58:09" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-20 01:58:09" ["post_content"]=> string(1458) "Unless you have been asleep for the last 2 years or so, then you'll almost certainly have heard of two pieces of technology. The iPhone is one of course, but also getting people everywhere excited has been Surface, the table top based, muti-user, multi-touch device from Microsoft.Right now, probably half the audience at Web Directions South will have an iPhone - but most of us will never have even seen a living breathing Surface.Now, we can't promise you a surface at WDS (we are trying our hardest though), but we can promise you a keynote by August de los Reyes, the principal experience architect for Surface, responsible for mapping out the strategic design, industrial design and design vision that users will experience.With considerable experience at companies like Philips Design and Eastman Kodak, and a guest faculty member at the University of Washington in their graduate design program, August is a word leader in user experience and industrial design. It is an enormous privilege for us to have him speak at Web Directions South, and we hope you will be excited as we are to see him deliver the closing keynote presentation on day 1 - Predicting the Past: Emotional Design and a Vision for Microsoft Surface." ["post_title"]=> string(102) "August de los Reyes , principal experience architect for Surface, our final keynote presenter for 2008" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(99) "august-de-los-reyes-principal-experience-architect-for-surface-our-final-keynote-presenter-for-2008" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-20 11:58:09" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-20 01:58:09" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=724" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "3" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [8]=> object(stdClass)#123 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(720) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "3" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-20 09:51:46" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-19 23:51:46" ["post_content"]=> string(568) "Javascript is increasingly playing an important role for all web developers and designers, and obviously at Web Directions as well. Our favourite Ajax focussed blog, Ajaxian, has a post today detailing the current state of pay when it comes to the next generation of the JavaScript standard, ECMAScript 3.1/4.It will no doubt be some time until support for new features is widely implemented in browsers, but here's a glance at what we can expect in the future of JavaScript." ["post_title"]=> string(66) "JavaScript/ECMAScript - the current state of standards development" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(63) "javascriptecmascript-the-current-state-of-standards-development" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-20 09:51:46" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-19 23:51:46" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=720" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "0" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [9]=> object(stdClass)#124 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(718) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "2" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-19 10:37:44" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-19 00:37:44" ["post_content"]=> string(2105) "Got a great idea for a video game? I know I do. You get these two sticks which you can move vertically up and down the screen to hit a square ball back and forth. As the ball hits the stick, it makes a really cool, lifelike beeping sound.....(if you're too young to know what I'm referring to - this may help) ..... but seriously, if you do have an idea for a game, and you can describe it in 200 punchy words, submit it to the SXSW Game Design Competition, part of Screenburn.

Brand new for 2009 is the ScreenBurn at SXSW Game Design Competition which provides a venue for emerging designers to pitch their concept to a jury of established professionals. Participants in this event are challenged to excite the imagination with a description of the game they want to build. These proposals are entirely conceptual -- but tight organization is a must as these entries cannot exceed 200 words in length.

The entry process runs from Monday, August 18 through Friday, December 5. Semi-finalists for the ScreenBurn at SXSW Game Design Competition will be announced in mid January. These semi-finalists will then construct a three-minute slideshow presentation that graphically illustrates their concept. Finalists will be chosen to present at the event after the jury reviews these slideshow presentations. There is no fee to enter the Game Design Competition, however, each person may only submit two proposals.

"ScreenBurn at SXSW has enjoyed tremendous success since launching in 2006," says SXSWi festival director Hugh Forrest. "This success reflects the growth of the video game industry, particularly amongst more mainstream audiences. By providing another avenue to bring in up-and-coming developers, we think that the Game Design Competition will help generate even more buzz for ScreenBurn at SXSW."

Do it today - are you the next Will Wright? " ["post_title"]=> string(42) "ScreenBurn at SXSW Game Design Competition" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(42) "screenburn-at-sxsw-game-design-competition" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-19 10:37:44" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-19 00:37:44" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=718" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "0" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [10]=> object(stdClass)#125 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(715) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "2" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-19 08:53:17" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 22:53:17" ["post_content"]=> string(1266) "If you happened upon a copy of yesterday's Icon in the Sydney Morning Herald you may have noticed "Dopple Your Fun" - where five local internet gurus - Cheryl Lead, Virginia Murdoch, John Allsopp, Lachlan Hardy and Tim Lucas were asked by the Herald's Nick Galvan to extemporise on what they thought was "the latest thing", as well as what was coming just over the horizon. Lachlan's gone to the trouble to scan in the page and post it on Flickr (the Herald in their wisdom choose not to put Icon online), so you can check out their answers for yourself if you're not in the habit of buying dead rain forests.Even more intriguing though is to check the plethora of comments on Lachlan's blog post where he puts the same question up for comment from his readers. Great to see such enthusiasm - check it out and add in your own ideas. This blog post could make a wonderful time capsule, allowing us to remember exactly what we thought was hot in August 2008." ["post_title"]=> string(48) "What are the local internet gurus excited about?" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(47) "what-are-the-local-internet-gurus-excited-about" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-19 08:54:04" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 22:54:04" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=715" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "1" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [11]=> object(stdClass)#126 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(712) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "2" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 14:52:17" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 04:52:17" ["post_content"]=> string(453) "Local web visionary Mark Pesce has become a fixture as our closing keynote at Web Directions South. He spoke a couple of months back at the Personal Democracy Forum in New York, where he was also interviewed on The Alcove. Here's the interview in full. Mark speaks at length on the good, bad, fascinating implications of the hyper connected world. " ["post_title"]=> string(39) "Interview with Mark Pesce at The Alcove" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(39) "interview-with-mark-pesce-at-the-alcove" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 14:52:17" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 04:52:17" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=712" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "0" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [12]=> object(stdClass)#127 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(709) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "2" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 10:06:48" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 00:06:48" ["post_content"]=> string(1779) "Words? Code? Design? Which are you? And do you want a free t-shirt so you can let the world know? It’s easy to get your hands on one - all you need to do is blog or Flickr something about Web Directions and tag it 'moltnWD'.Wear your passion at Web Directions.Cheryl and Scott at molt:n digital have got a whole bunch of "rather neat" t shirts to give away at the conference this year, and the first ones will go out to people who blog or flickr something about the conference in the leadup to the event.

You can blog/flickr about anything, but here are a few suggestions they we had in mind:

• What you have learned at past Web Directions events?
• What you are looking forward to in this upcoming conference?
• Any other interesting story related to the Web Directions conference you want to share with fellow geeks?

Then, drop us an email at Molt:n Digital and tell us which shirt and what size you want. And girls, of course we’ve thought of you too, with proper girly sizes. The shirts are American Apparel and we have a wide range of sizes for girls and guys.

There are 3 designs to choose from - I like code, I like design and I like words.

If you don’t have a blog or Flickr account, don’t worry - we’ll be giving some away at the conference too so come up and find me or Scott during the two day conference. We’ll be the ones wearing the “I like…” shirts. I personally like words, and I’m sure Scott will be alternating between “I like code” and “I like design”. Lucky the conference is two days.

" ["post_title"]=> string(44) "Get a free t shirt from our supporter molt:n" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(43) "get-a-free-t-shirt-from-our-supporter-moltn" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(74) " http://www.moltn.com/blog/2008/08/14/wear-your-passion-at-web-directions/" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 10:06:48" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-18 00:06:48" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=709" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "2" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [13]=> object(stdClass)#128 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(701) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "3" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-15 14:31:23" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-15 04:31:23" ["post_content"]=> string(9644) "Sadly, quite a bit of what I wrote in this article is based on out of date information, and on my own testing that had a fatal flaw. I've left the article as it is, and added corrections inlineMost web designers and developers will be familiar with Image Replacement techniques, pioneered by early CSS guru Todd Fahrner [1] (FIR or Fahrner Image Replacement technique), and subsequent attempts to address the usability, accessibility, and other concerns associated with it.These techniques emerged to address a significant problem with web design - it was not possible to embed specific fonts in a web page. So developers you could either rely on a small number of standard fonts on various platforms (and risk losing clients, or getting fired), or use images for text in some way. IR techniques definitely had advantages over using img elements, but were, and remain, far from ideal.What a lot of people probably aren't aware of is that even in Netscape 4 and Internet Explorer 4 there were ways of embedding fonts (or more strictly linking to font files online that browsers could then download and use for rendering the page.)Uunfortunately, each browser had its own, proprietary format for doing so. Then, when Netscape 6 went open source, it could not open source the TrueDoc code it used to manage embedded fonts, and so font embedding, rarely used, was dropped in Netscape. While it persisted in Internet Explorer, developers very rarely utilized it.CSS3 (and even drafts of CSS2 in 1997 and 1998) have long promised a standardized way of font embedding, using the @font-face rule. What many folks probably don't know is that this rule is already supported in Opera 9.5, shipping versions of Safari for the Mac, Windows and iPhone OS, and is promised for Firefox 3.1., and well as IE6 and later.Sadly, while support for @font-face was hinted at for Opera 9.5 and Firefox 3.1 (see my comments at #4 below) this is in fact not the case sadly.There is a catch though. All the browsers other than IE support linking to TrueType font files. Microsoft supports only the proprietary EOT file format. They are however proposing to standardize Embedded Open Type (EOT).While the way in which you specify fonts to embed in IE (using @font-face) is identical to how fonts are specified for the other browsers mentioned, Microsoft appears to be refusing to countenance supporting embedded fonts in formats other than EOT (specifically the extremely widely supported TrueType format, which the other browsers mentioned do support.)There's a lot of discussion (a lot of it heated and polemical, thankfully some more rational even if passionate) going on around these issues.Bill Hill at the official IE Blog started the conversation with the announcement of a relationship between Microsoft and font foundry Ascender Corporation, and a discussion of EOT, and technical and legal issues around embedding fonts (it might have been more politic to separate the announcement from the discussion). This post included the announcement of the Font Embedding community, which describes itself as

A resource for designers, developers and typeface creators on font usage, technology and licensing issues

Joe Clarke, who's spoken at a number of our events, and is never one to leave folks guessing what he is thinking, rather directly criticised the post (though the criticism is not entirely focussed on the issue of font embedding).Chris Wilson, now platform architect of Internet Explorer, long time IE developer (and prior to that Mosaic developer (prior as in 1994)), co-chair of the HTML Working Group, and long time champion of web standards also posted a detailed discussion of the issues and his thinking. He writes

I’ve been clear on this to the CSS WG, so I suppose I should be here too - we (Microsoft) should NOT support direct TTF/OTF embedding, unless 1) there is some check that the font intended that use to be allowed, which I don’t think there currently is (as it needs to refer to the license agreement), AND 2) other browsers also implement a system that actually ENABLES commercial fonts - those that are allowed to be embedded, but cannot be legally placed directly on a server - to be used.

This is followed by a robust discussion, again often polemical, but well worth reading to get a sense of the issues.Mozilla developer, Robert O'Callahan, recently posted on this issue, and discusses some of the issues around intellectual property protection.The following is not correct, in the sense that it does not work for Opera 9.5 and Firefox 3.1 - only Safari 3.1 allows @font-face linking to TrueType files, and IE @font-face linking to EOT files. So the technique outlined should work, but only for those browsers.But where do we stand as web developers? I consider it very unlikely that we'll see Internet Explorer support formats other than something like EOT (Wilson says at one point "I don’t personally even care that much if that system is EOT as it is today"). But, there is some good news in all this. At least the same standardized approach to font embedding, using the @font-face rule works for all modern browsers. While I think it will be no small time until Internet Explorer supports direct font linking to formats like TrueType, all the major currently released browsers (IE6, IE7, Firefox 3.1, Opera 9.5, Safari 3) currently, or will shortly, support font linking or embedding using the same @font-face rule.While it appears to be a return to the bad old days of IE/EOT versus Netscape/TrueDoc, is there in fact a way of using a single style sheet and serve embedded and linked fonts to all these browsers, so that each browser will use the intended font? Well, in fact there is. Here's how.@font-face rules specify a name for a font (you then use this name in font-family properties in the same style sheet) and a src where the font file can be found.Instead of just using one @font-face statement, we'll use two. The first will specify a font with an EOT file for Internet Explorer to use, the second a TrueType file for the other browsers to use.The first @font-face rule looks like this

@font-face {
    font-family:"Fenwick";
    src: url(fenwick.eot);
  }

We specify a font-family name, in this case "Fenwick" (which happens to be the name of the font - but you can use any name you like here, it is merely a way of identifying the resource in the src property of the @font-face rule), and a src - which is a relative or absolute url to the font file. (As an aside, I created these EOT fonts using the tool found at Font Embedding, and the fonts created are licensed to be used on web sites).Next, we specify a second @font-face rule, for browsers that support TrueType file linking.

@font-face {
  font-family: "Matrix";
  src: url(http://www.westciv.com/CSS3Tests/matrix.ttf) ;
}

The font doesn't look anything like Fenwick, I just happened to have it online - it's a free font in the style of the Matrix movie's credits.Now, we just need a statement in our style sheet to associate these fonts with, for example, paragraphs. It's probably one of the very first statements anyone uses in CSS

p {
    font-family: Fenwick, Matrix, san-serif;
}

When a browser comes to styling paragraphs with this CSS, it will first look for a font called "Fenwick". Internet Explorer will use the font defined in the font-face rule, while the browsers which support @font-face, but not EOT, will use Matrix. Browsers which don't support @font-face (Firefox 3 and earlier, Safari 2 and so on) will simply show a san-serif font.You can see this in action here.Yes, it's a little bit of extra work, but it's definitely technically possible (leaving aside licensing complexities) to now embed fonts for any contemporary browser. To me this is extremely exciting.Now what we really need is for font foundries to realize the potential bonanza for them in licensing their fonts to be used like this, rather than focussing on the possible losses of people making unlicensed copies of their fonts.[1] Todd, an original CSS Samurai, CSS working group invited expert, and designer with Verso, one of the early super star web design firms left the world of the web to run his own bike store in Portland Oregon. Plenty of times I envy him the wisdom of that decision." ["post_title"]=> string(40) "The return of font embedding to the web?" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(39) "the-return-of-font-embedding-to-the-web" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(160) "http://cwilso.com/2008/07/23/fonts-embedding-vs-linking/ http://blog.fawny.org/2008/07/22/billhillsite/ http://cwilso.com/2008/07/23/fonts-embedding-vs-linking/" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-16 11:03:51" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-16 01:03:51" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=701" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(2) "47" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } [14]=> object(stdClass)#129 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(696) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "3" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-14 15:33:28" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-14 05:33:28" ["post_content"]=> string(1938) "Web Directions started out with very much a designer and developer focus. But, based on feedback, and our general observations about the industry, we recognised that there was a need for a wider focus on the web - not just the practicalities of implementation, but the strategic and business side as well.Last year, we introduced a third management/strategy track, and we are continuing that this year.In addition we're excited to be able to announce a new 1 day workshop, in conjunction with Hinchcliffe & Company , the "Web 2.0 Executive Bootcamp".Delivered by the highly experienced Jeff Kelly, along with Australia's own Stephen Collins the bootcamp leads participants through a deep exploration of the latest ideas, business models, trends, and techniques behind Web 2.0 with a special emphasis on proven, actionable methods for creating new online products and services – or transforming existing ones – using a Web 2.0 model. The course has been delivered to thousands around the world, and it's the first time it's been offered here in Australia.If you, your team, or your boss, need to revitalize your strategic web thinking, you'll be hard pressed to find a better way to do that.The workshop is fantastic value at $450 for conference attendees, or $550 for others.As an added incentive, the first 25 people to sign up will receive a copy of Dion Hinchcliff's (founder of Hinchcliffe & Company) forthcoming Web 2.0 Patterns for O'Reilly Publishing.The workshop is on Tuesday September 23rd at the Powerhouse Museum, along with our other workshops, and you can register online right now." ["post_title"]=> string(41) "New Workshop - Web 2.0 Executive Bootcamp" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(38) "new-workshop-web-20-executive-bootcamp" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(48) " http://south08.webdirections.org/?cat=3#post-89" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 11:25:42" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-21 01:25:42" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=696" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "3" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } } ["post"]=> object(stdClass)#115 (25) { ["ID"]=> int(761) ["post_author"]=> string(1) "2" ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2008-08-27 11:39:32" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-27 01:39:32" ["post_content"]=> string(1166) "Interesting story in today's SMH technology section. Queensland based company Orange Dot are on a mission to design a mobile phone for adults with intellectual disabilities, many of whom find modern phones too complex and difficult to use.

That was the experience of a 34-year-old man with Down's Syndrome, who having missed his bus connection was left stranded without any form of communication. He was eventually located after police and bus operators were alerted, just two kilometres from his home, having waited more than seven hours.

Cooper, who has been involved with a not-for-profit organisation that supports intellectually disabled adults in Brisbane, realised that many disabled people find modern phones too complex and difficult to use.

With the irritating feature-itus of so many mobile handsets, I'd be surprised if a product like this, if it's designed well, didn't find a much broader market.Read the full story here." ["post_title"]=> string(63) "A smarter, simpler phone - can this Australian team invent one?" ["post_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(0) "" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["post_password"]=> string(0) "" ["post_name"]=> string(59) "a-smarter-simpler-phone-can-this-australian-team-invent-one" ["to_ping"]=> string(0) "" ["pinged"]=> string(0) "" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2008-08-27 11:39:32" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2008-08-27 01:39:32" ["post_content_filtered"]=> string(0) "" ["post_parent"]=> int(0) ["guid"]=> string(35) "http://www.webdirections.org/?p=761" ["menu_order"]=> int(0) ["post_type"]=> string(4) "post" ["post_mime_type"]=> string(0) "" ["comment_count"]=> string(1) "1" ["filter"]=> string(3) "raw" } ["queried_object"]=> NULL ["queried_object_id"]=> int(0) }