Links

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Here are some links which I think you'd like if you decided to check them out.

dot-slash

'dot-slash' is the alter-ego of Sam, one of my friends from Hatfield College in Durham. His repertoire includes CS:S maps and various different programming languages, if it needs doing, he's your man. Check out his site for a truly world class CS:S map, or just to keep up to date on what he's doing.

PT Viewer

This is the little Java applet which I use to interactively display all the moving panoramas on this website. It's free and easy to use, with lots of help and various different forums all over the web. If you're feeling adventurous, it's also Open Source, so you can have a play with it yourself.

W3 Schools

This is an excellent resource for problem solving all things web development related. It has an immense knowledge base, which I only just scratch the surface of. There are tutorials on HTML, XHTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP and loads more - definitely worth adding to your bookmarks.

W3C Standards

This organisation decides the standards for the internet; they provide validators for devolpers to ensure that their code is up to scratch. The reason that validation important is that if your page is valid, it stands the best chance of being displayed how you want it on any platform and UA, whether now or in the future.

PHP

PHP is the engine which works behind the scenes at this site to serve you the pages you wish to view. It really is a very portable and powerful scripting language, it is easy to learn and is capable of performing many different tasks behind the scenes to serve up neat, dynamic and informative web pages.

CSS Zen Garden

This is a superb site which shows you what can be achieved by having a clean XHTML and CSS based design. The internet is supposed to be friendly and informative, not aggressive, too many web sites are being made by coders and not designers. They show what can be done with a little bit of effort, well worth a visit.

Macro Photography Basics

A good article describing, in detail, many aspects of Macro photography. This is particularly useful as the author describes the relationship between the focal length and the minimum focusing distance of lenses which can produce photos with similar zoom using different combinations of the two.

Specifying external style sheets

This page on the W3C Standards pages shows you how to have multiple style sheets for one page and how to give the user the option of choosing between them - all using the UA's own interface. This means you don't have to write your own JavaScript or PHP script to switch between styles, which is good.

Atom Feed Guidelines

Atom, like RSS, is a way of producing a feed for a page. The bonus is that Atom actually has a specification and is therefore much easier to implement and neater to code for. This page outlines the Atom specification in a clear and informative way, enabling developers to use Atom feeds with ease.

GNU Software for Windows

A list of free software for use on Windows compared against their proprietary counterparts so as to aid you as you try and escape the clutches of 'the man'. In this sense I mean 'free' as in freedom of speech, not necessarily 'free' as in £$¥ (but usually both).

Anti-war slogan coined, repurposed and Googlewashed - in 42 days

An excellent article on how easy it is to manipulate the web, the English language, history and hence people. This example shows the power of Google searches. The web is not democratic; the web is not 'fair' - get used to it and adapt accordingly.

Everyone is missing the point about Yahvole!

Another excellent article on the attempted take over of Yahoo by Microsoft. The author gives his take on the reasons behind the move. They are quite disturbing as I really wouldn't be surprised if, in a year's time, there was a follow up article which said I told you so!.

Why you should care that Jimmy Wales ignores reality

Yet another excellent article from The Register relating to the un-democratic workings of Wikipedia - often hailed as a leading example of Web 2.0. A lot of people have indicated that in reality it actually works like a cult.

Google buckles under power of DMCA

An interesting article highlighting one example of how the web is being changed due to a company having its headquarters within the US and thus having to confirm to US Law. Such companies, in this case Google, comply with the law and effect the whole internet - thus we are all, effectively, under US Law.

DSLR Sensor Size and Pixel Density

A thorough and indepth article describing many characteristics of DSLR chips and the pros and cons of having an APS or Full-Frame camera and how it relates to Pixel Density. It's definitely worth a read if you're considering buying a DSLR.

Microsoft takes back the music

Another great article highlighting the pitfalls of DRM, specifically how Microsoft changes its system and stops you playing your legal downloads, leaving you high and dry and leaving them with your money. An example of getting screwed by The Man. See the follow up article: Volish MP3s get stay of execution.

Notes on the Iran-Iraq maritime boundary

A thorough review of the current state of the maritime boundary between Iran and Iraq. Quite useful to read before you draw immediate conclusions about the abduction of RN Sailors by Iran in March 2007 and also as an indication of the pitfalls of modern foreign affairs.

Quick guide: Cracked DRM systems

A brief and simple article describing which DRM protocols have been cracked. It's useful as it shows that DRM is flawed as anyone who wants to get round it can with minimal effort. Interestingly, the BBC is telling users how to 'hack' the videos from the BBC's iPlayer.

Innocent photographer or terrorist?

The fear that is currently in western society is astounding, so much so that normal members of the public are having their photographs confiscated by the police only for the police to later release an apology saying that they acted unlawfully. This is a sad reflection on modern times I believe.

Disambiguation "KDE 4", did you mean "KDE 4.0"?

A decent blog post from the KDE outlining one important thing: KDE 4.0 is not KDE 4 - it is the first version of the KDE 4 series. As such, KDE 4.0 is only recommended for enthusiasts. Even though it is out of beta and has been released a lot of things may change in the future version.

How is the treatment of `application/xhtml+xml` documents different from `text/html`?

A decent few points from the Mozilla team regarding the implications of you serving your XHTML as application/xhtml+xml (which is what it should be served as) and how it affects the page rendering, JavaScript and the html and body tags.

US chain drops 'terror scarf' ad

Anybody else think America is portraying itself as xenophobic with the existance of these such stories? It's outrageous, just because an advert features a scarf it gets pulled after people complain that it could promote terrorism.

The perils of using XHTML properly

This page just contains a few pointers so that you can have an easy transition into the world of XML and XHTML. It gives advice for your CSS and JavaScript too and how to have a lean, mean, efficient webpage which will stand the test of time, both in the present and in the future.

Protest at Maoist toilet lock up

A story from the BBC about an incident in Nepali politics. From my (limited) experience of the Nepali Maoists it wouldn't surprise me if such childish antics became the norm for Nepali politics in the future. It should be telling that the Chinese government say that the Nepali Maoists do not follow the ideals of Mao.

US cuts funding to universities

The opening paragraph from this page sums it up perfectly: Schools and Universitites in the 'Land of the Free' will lose funding unless they become copyright cops for the film and music industry. I can't say it simpler than that.

Chrome-fed Googasm bares tech pundit futility

A light-hearted piece relating to the coverage of the introduction of Google Chrome by many IT news outlets. A good read and a slap in the face to some of the web's loudest voices!

Google News farce triggers Wall Street sell-off

An amazing story of how a 'mixup' on Google News resulted in United Airlines' stock dropping by 75%. This just shows the immense position of trust that modern global corporations like Google have, and the consequences of taking them at their word unquestionably.

Improve laptop battery life in openSUSE

If you have a laptop running openSUSE (or any distribution of Linux infact) then this article contains some good tips on how to optimise performance, with specific reference to battery life.

Spinning the war on the UK's sex trade

A controversial subject but an excellent article highlighting how the court of public opinion and The Daily Hate hold more power than facts and statistics in the real world. I believe this is a very sad state of affairs.

Web Browser Color Management Tutorial

A good example page showing how the embedding of colour profiles in images changes how they appear in many different web browsers. This is definitily worth a read if you plan on publishing your own photo website or something along those lines.

Refreshable Braille and the Web

This page contains a really refreshing video of a blind man with some audio impairments using the internet to browse articles and shop for books. This should be a wake up call to all those sloppy web coders out there: you must code truely accessible web sites even if you see no benefit yourself, other people will!