CSS Layouts: The Fixed. The Fluids. The Elastic.

Which Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) layout is best? All have their quirks and their unique pros and cons. Is one more accessible than the other? More usable? What are the drawbacks and how are they dealt with? Is one easier to create than the other? Is there an evil, inaccessible layout? I suspect some will say yes to this, but I’m not going to. I like them all and feel all are suitable if steps are taken to ensure easy usability and equal accessibility. All are part of a web site’s presentational layer, so most of the accessibility relies on the extractable semantics and proper usage of the underlying mark-up. What follows is my take on the rigid fixed, the adaptable fluid, and the expandable elastic layouts. Fixed Width Layouts A fixed...

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Fedora 17 Alpha Features

The Fedora Project proudly announced the immediate availability for download and testing of the Alpha version of the upcoming Fedora 17 operating system, due for release in May 2012. Dubbed Beefy Miracle and powered by Linux kernel 3.3, Fedora 17 Alpha brings lots of new features, improvements and bug fixes. Fedora 17 Alpha is distributed as an installable DVD and Live CDs with the latest development version of the upcoming GNOME 3.4 desktop environment and KDE Software Compilation 4.8, for both 32-bit and 64-bit architectures. Some Features: · Linux kernel 3.3.0 RC3; · Move all to /usr; · GNOME 3.4 Beta 1; · KDE SC 4.8; · Multitouch support; · PackageKit integration; · Automatic KDE Plasma dependency generation; · SSSD AutoFS integration; ·...

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Some Photoshop Tips for Developers

If you’re a die-hard coder who needs nothing more than coffee and Vim, perhaps web development isn’t for you. It’s varied. While you certainly need top-notch coding skills, you can’t avoid handling media and graphics. Yes, graphics. Probably in Photoshop. Photoshop seems a little odd when you first use it. The interface isn’t quite standard on any OS platform and some features will confuse you initially. Persevere with it, though, and you’ll never want to use another graphics package again. Fortunately, there are several ways to make your life a little easier… 1. Quickly Select a Layer If you’ve received a PSD from a designer, you’ll either find they’ve flattened it (yeah, thanks) or it contains thousands of layers. To locate the...

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