When it comes to searching the web your first and last stop (likely) is Google.  Now, with two new Google web services you too can harness the power of Google from within your own website.

In the past year Google created two new web services: Custom Search Engine ( http://www.google.com/coop/cse/) and Google Site Search ( http://www.google.com/sitesearch/). At their core, these tools allow you to add a Google search box to your website. Not just a plain old Google search box which…

To read the first part of this blog see Fonts Part 1: Keeping It In The Family.

Choosing the Right Font

Serif or sans-serif…what’s a serif? Serifs are the small lines at the ends of each character in a font. Sans-serif fonts don’t have these small lines - they’re straight at the ends of each character.

Serif fonts are easier to read because the eye can differentiate each character faster than reading a sans-serif font. This is why most people use serif fonts when typing large amounts of…

Defining paths in HTML is filled with mystery and intrigue, so please sit back and enjoy the show.

Drum Roll Please!

I would like to introduce two of my closest friends, Absolute and Relative Paths.

Ok, so I went overboard with my introduction but as long as I got your attention.

As I mentioned, HTML has two types of paths that are used to reference objects (image, media file) and pages (IGLOO folders).

Absolute Paths

A path that uses the full URL to point to an object or page.

For…

Browser compatability is a huge issue with the masses who strive for " Web Standards", especially when we you hear css and xhtml.

Something we tend to over look is the benefit of various graphic formats, expecially my favorite, PNG (Portable Network Graphics).

The w3c defines the 1996 approved mime type as png and describes what it is as follows:

PNG is an extensible file format for the lossless, portable, and well-compressed storage of raster images. PNG provides a patent-free…

As the Germanic fairy tale goes, Hansel and Gretal are abandond in the forest. To prevent being lost, the two children leave a trail of "breadcrumbs" to find their way home, which unfortunately becomes eaten by the local wildlife.

As a child I didn't see the signifigance of the breadcrumb trail in a worldly sense, I generally always knew where I was going, so why would a skilled explorer like myself need them? Then along came the internet, a winding path of never ending trails that could…

So you bought a new community and you’re mesmerized by all the wonderful applications that the IGLOO platform provides. You look closely at two words that strike you as modern and hip: blogs and forums, and you think to yourself “Well, that’s nice, but what am I going to use this for?” Well … that’s why I’m here.

If you’re like me, then you like to attend conferences, lectures, or seminars about interesting subjects that trigger your attention. Usually, that involves a person going on…

Have you ever asked yourself ‘What monitors will my target audience be using when viewing my website?' I know it sounds a little too personal, and a little strange if you were asking yourself that on a daily basis. But while trying not to get up close and personal with your customers, what you're trying to do is effectively find a way to deliver the information to your customers in the most effective way possible. I'll explain in a bit.

When choosing to have your website redesigned, there…

Aside from floating elements, Specificity is one of the most difficult concepts of css to understand. If we look at the definition of specificity, the following is probably the best interpretation related to CSS:

Specificity

a type of weighting that has a bearing on how your cascading style sheet (CSS) rules are displayed.

The Important Stuff

If you have two (or more) conflicting CSS rules that point to the same element, there are some basic rules that a browser follows to determine which one…

Fonts and Font Families

Before you get concerned about imagery and colour for your site, stop and think about fonts.

The content on your site is the main reason people are visiting. Shouldn't all your effort compiling research and writing page after page (then chopping them down because their too wordy) look as though you spent the same amount of time working on how they look so that visitors will actually want to read them?

A page that doesn't look easy to read isn't.

Font:

A font is a…