Web Browsers Secret

AOL has closed Netscape's doors, and Microsoft has announced that no more standalone Internet Explorer (IE) versions will be produced and is waiting instead for the Longhorn Operating System, which includes an integrated browser. New browsers have been entering the market with somewhat daunting regularity­Apple Safari has fast become popular among many Mac users, and Mozilla Firefox iS,attracting users who want a lean but sophisticated Web browser. Opera continues to improve quietly, and Mozilla continues to develop its capabilities, now under the auspices of a nonprofit agency, The Mozilla Foundation, whose goal is to "preserve choice and innovation"on the Internet.

Browsers are clearly political. It's very difficult to write about Web browsers at this time because they are in such a state of flux, and historically have been in a state of flux.

Web browsers have been a number one concern for designers. The Web browser is the primary piece of software used by the designer and the site visitor to access Web pages. As a result, the ways in which browsers interpret (or don't interpret) the languages and techniques we use to design our pages can cause significant frustration for both the designers and site visitors.

Tools, Planning and Content2

Note:

GNU licensing refers to licenses distributed under the GNU project, which first emerged as an alternative to UNIX systems, resulting in the now very popular Linux program, and related operating systems. The GNU project is part of the Free Software Foundation, whose mission is to preserve and promote free software. More information on this important alternative form of software distribution can be found at www.gnu.org/.

All the tools will help you to do the following:

• Author markup and CSS with ease
• Create great Web graphics
• Validate pages
• Test sites in a range of Web browsers
• Draw in vector-based environments
• Use bitmap imaging tools for Web graphic production
• Design animations
• Use plug-ins for video and audio
• Convert and clean up documents
• Compress documents

While this chapter won't tell you how to use these tools, it will tell you which utilities you might want to consider adding to your toolbox; give guidance as to which tools are considered most useful and sophisticated, and provide resources as to where you can find the tools in question. You're sure to find something new and helpful to add to your kit.

Tools, Planning and Content

Why start this blog Web design secrets with tools? Shouldn't that be some­thing left for an appendix, perhaps? After all, you want to get right down to the nitty-gritty, and I appreciate that.

As any working Web designer knows, the master designer really needs very few tools at hand to create the ultimate Web design toolbox. A great designer can make do with a text editor, a Web browser, an imaging software program, and an FTP client.

So why all the fuss?

Well, for one thing, in today's busy, mobile world, most Web designers' work re­quires a range of specialty tools to help make life easier.

This comes first because I have an agenda. My goal is to celebrate the ideologies of the Web itself: open standards, cross-platform interoperability, ac­cessibility, and portability.

So while you'll find plenty of familiar commercial tools in this chapter, what you'll also find is a range of alternatives that are designed under open source licenses and that are available across platforms.

In today's economic environment, many professional programs can cost signif­icant money, making a comprehensive toolbox seem at first glance to be cost­prohibitive. Yet the Web is filled with alternative software that is either distributed under GNU open source licensing, as freeware, or as low-cost shareware. While typically the open source tools were in use on UNIX and related open source platforms such as the many variants of Linux, there have been many recent ports to Windows and Mac OS X. As a result, a world of free or very low-cost tools has opened up to the Web designer. This chapter points you to those resources wherever available.

Preface

Web design has come a long way in just over a decade. The concerns facing anyone working on Web sites are so complex and changing so rapidly that it's downright overwhelming. From a consumer perspective, Web designs and redesigns can be very expensive. The goal of this blog is to provide you with all the top-flight information you need to know to get up to speed with all the top-flight information you need to know to get up to speed with the best practices and standards being used by today's practical but progressive Web sites such as ESPN and Wired News. We all need help to improve workflow, develop rich designs that can be accessed by numerous browsers and alternative devices such as cell phones and PDAs, create sites that meet legal concerns regarding content and accessibility, managing sites for the long term, and improve the financial bottom line by significantly reducing bandwidth and increasing revenue.

Most likely you are a person who is working on public or private Web sites and is somewhat experienced with HTML and Web graphic design and are interested in ramping up to the next level of expertise. If you're like this blog, you want to make your life easier by streamlining the design process and management, and increasing awareness and promotion of the sites you design and develop. Your primary job might not even be that of a Web designer - perhaps you are scientist, librarian, documentation specialist, promotions specialist, educator, or serving in the armed forces. The people working on Web sites at this point in history come from a very wide range of backgrounds and professions, and we come from all parts of of the globe. Some readers will be avid hobbyist too, using the Web as means for self-expression via Weblogs, social networks, and special interest groups.