September 2004 Archives

I just submitted my WSSG (Web Standards Singapore) logo. I've decided that nothing I'm going to do in my life will ever be perfect, and my work isn't going to get richer with age, unlike wine, so there's no point keeping it till the last moment.

It's only when I do things like this, however, that I suddenly remember all the times I muttered, through gritted teeth, "I hate print work." But I've forced myself to use Freehand for print layouts, because I know it's good for that, and I always like to learn new things.

I'm essentially a Fireworks user at heart, and when I do have to use Freehand to edit illustrations I get thrown off by the fact that many shortcut keys are different. Hello, Macromedia? Can we have a bit more coherence here! Or maybe the two programs are really different from each other and I'm just not getting it.

I also get thrown off when elements in a document are saved as external files, and when fonts I export to another format get changed. I'm a webby by nature - spare me the ink.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to some good submissions from other members. I hope we're spoilt for choice.

A long time ago, as a frustrated web designer whose client noticed that a Flash form didn't go to the right fields when the 'tab' button was used, I realised that there were very few good resources on the web that actually taught you how to code your forms properly.

So when I did figure out the answer, I decided to put up a Flash tutorial (with a ready-to-go file download). I linked it on my home page once, it was picked up by Google, and for one and a half years it's been turning up fairly high in the rankings despite the fact that I have not mentioned or linked to it since then.

This however is perhaps the second or third 'Thank-you note' I've received from people who've used my tutorial:

I just wanted to say thanks for putting the flash mx tab order fix on your site. I have been trying to find the correct code for a few days now. In trying other people's code, I have noticed that yours was the only one that worked for me, and for this I say thank you.

I'm glad I'm helping some people in my own way to make their website more accessible. Thank you for thanking me.

[Disclaimer: Slacker as I am, this is the only tutorial I've done, and I haven't even completed the second part of the tutorial which teaches you how to de-activate other elements from being tabbed. And yes, this was not produced using the latest version of Flash.]

My jazz piano teacher told me I needed to listen to more music to give me ideas for improvisation. Buy more CDs? Oh, what a chore.

So yesterday I rushed home from work, changed my clothes, then dragged my feet over to That CD Shop in the space of half an hour. The Tanglin Mall staff are not as pushy/enthusiastic as the others but they did pick out a few good titles.

I'm at the stage where traditional jazz music makes me Bored with a capital B. I've had enough listening to slow ballads and different renditions of the same song which sound almost alike. I generally don't like jazz vocals, especially if the voice is typically warm and old and low, the music is slow, and the melody is familiar. Bo-ring!

And if I had to listen to vocalists, I'd prefer their voices to be young, edgy, off-beat, paper-thin, or rough-accented... Give me Kent, Ono, Nergaard, Badu, anything but the 'norm'. Maybe if I have sleeping problems I'd listen to what most people call jazz.

Anyway... after some concentrated listening, I picked up Monty Alexander's Straight Ahead (a compilation of two old albums, Trio and Overseas Special), and Hank Jones' The Touch. Good original piano improvisations, not too slow or Bo-ring, with a strong touch of Blues and harmonisation. At least I know I can't do what they're doing - yet. I mean, there's nothing much to learn if you don't hear anything new or different.

I also picked up a That CD Shop exclusive album from the High Society series, by Jazzamor. That was the album I had spotted during my last visit to another branch. It's a delightful bossa-nova chillout mix. I actually smiled when I heard one of the early tracks. They also had a bossa nova version of Jamiroquai's Space Cowboy! My favourite Acid Jazz tune!

Of course I am terribly biased, but also Bored. Let's hear it for new styles and new music!!!

Jakob Nielsen has posted a review of the usability of the Bush and Kerry newsletter campaigns.

Unfortunately, Bush seems to be winning, though by a slim margin of 1%. As in real life, both sides have some way to go.

I'm glad that an international conference was held recently in Kenya which called for a ban on female genital mutilation.

It's been about five years since I last studied in law school, but the process is gruesome enough to linger in my mind. My views on some other topics have changed, but I am still strongly against the mutilation of female genitalia.

One form of this 'circumcision' (if that lends a tone of religious approval) involves cutting off the labia - the fleshy lips. And that's actually the least intrusive type. Because other forms of 'circumcision' involve snipping off the middle bit as well. I bet many of you are grossed out by now. The wound is then sewn up. Some circumcised females find it difficult to pee. If they want to have children, they obviously have to be unstitched.

Quite often, no painkillers are used during the mutilation.

Together with the lack of proper medical care in the regions which still practice female circumcision, you can imagine the sort of infections these women are subject to. Some have died. The practice, however, has lived on for centuries.

Hopefully not for much longer, you may think. However it is one thing to criminalise it, or at least take away any form of legitimacy given to it. It is quite another thing to change the cultural mindset. As long as women are made to feel more 'valued' when they are circumcised, and as long as their husbands and fathers condone it or impose it upon them, the practice will continue.

(More info from WHO, Amnesty International)

I have been most remiss in updating this blog. That's because I've been busy with something and you can find out more in my separate music blog.

Update: Logic Pro 6 has arrived. Thanks to Lulu of Brooklyn Media - great service, great price (cheaper than the Apple Store, and at least they have it in stock in Singapore).

I will have to continue playing with Logic tomorrow because I spent a good part of the evening at an online WSSG meeting. I'm also working on a friend's photo gallery system. I won't even be watching Champions League tonight. Sniff.

Just in case you think I'm being specifically rude to you, I am actually not replying to most emails, and not answering to random text messages especially where it involves last-minute outings. I have not seen my mother for 2 days even though we live in the same home.

I worked on my own accord till 3.00am two days ago, reformulating my institution's website entirely in CSS. Vendor seemed politely interested in this new way of doing things. My basic layout and stylesheet files chalked up a total of 5KB. Not including images and JavaScript of course.

Brief observations: Apple is marketing iPods to students in the hope that they will then get Macs. It's obvious. I've been happily duped myself.

The battery-guzzling Apple Bluetooth Mouse has been relieved of its duties. I've reverted to my Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer 2.0. Irritating thing was that the software I downloaded was for OS9, and initially it didn't work. Then I located a driver recently released for OS X. Happily, it works. I can right-click on items quickly and scroll my pages. I handle Dreamweaver commands much more efficiently now. Sorry to say this, but I'm sticking to Microsoft for mice.

And incidentally, 'revert' is not a word to use when you actually mean to say, I'll get back to you. I see that sort of email response almost every day now. This point was listed in a book I bought recently on common mistakes Singaporeans make in English. Another one is when you say you're having an off day, which actually means that you're having a bad day or you're not feeling yourself. You probably meant to say, today is your day off. Of course you can say, "Today's an off day for me so I think I'll take the day off."

Speaking of books, I know I must update my reading list one of these years. It has not been updated for quite a while. I am reading entirely different books now on politics, cyberlaw and religion. All are half-read, in different parts of the house. All very interesting.

I want to do so many things yet I don't have the time. My blog is supposed to be redesigned and updated with MT3.1 functionality. I need a haircut. My car needs servicing. I'm still looking for a HP LaserJet print driver for Mac OS X. I still don't know the difference between all sorts of audio cables, and how to play back MIDI data from my Mac to my Korg Triton. I've only gone to the gym once this week.

I'm pooped.

I am glad to announce that, a month into my new job, I have embarked on my mission to promote the benefits of Web Standards.

First, I emailed some colleagues the link to CSS Zen Garden, just to let them know that our current website's use of stylesheets could do much more than simply colour the titles of our page.

Previous attempts in other jobs have evoked mixed responses, depending on whether people think it will create more work or make life easier for them (I'd like to think it does both - more work at first, reworking messy code, then all they have to do is switch styles).

So this time I went out of my way and demonstrated to a team-mate how you could retain the source code of a web page, but drastically change the look of the site. I mean, why should we waste time changing font tags on every page and moving table cells about every time we needed a revamp?

Thanks to my persuasive / arm-twisting skills, we might form a taskforce that looks into Web Standards beyond the forthcoming guidelines, and a more comprehensive use of Stylesheets to streamline our workflow. Wish us success.

Of course you could say that redundant coding techniques create jobs for our recuperating economy. If life was as easy as Zeldman and Co. have made it out to be, then what about the hapless designers who are still arranging their lists using GIF images and table rows, and forgetting to close their paragraph tags? What about the millions who have never heard of Mozilla, and only check their pages on Internet Explorer on a PC? Would this mean that agencies would have to charge clients less, now that a simple revamp could involve only the switching of a stylesheet and some images?

But let's not get carried away: I feel that a site's main purpose should be to inform, or entertain, or project an image of the company's brand. Essentially, it has to convey some sort of message in an appropriate manner. And I know many visitors may not notice that the web page they're clicking on is standards-compliant. But perhaps the odd visitor with a visual problem, an outdated browser or operating system, may notice that your side degrades gracefully into something legible which they can at least navigate.

It could actually boil down to your definition of technology. Should it be used exclusively by the most affluent and intelligent of people? Or should it be extended to people from all walks of life (who are able to access the internet)?

Certainly it is a chore, especially if you're a designer or programmer who thinks coding pages is drudgery. Perhaps I may be asking too much for you to re-think the way you code your pages and re-learn everything they've ever taught you in design school. Your boss probably isn't going to pay you more for doing it, and it won't show in screen-shot printouts of your portfolio. It is a long-term commitment, because there is no such thing as 'half-compliance'.

We also have yet to see any legislation equivalent to Section 508 (though we have legislation for almost everything else). However, I know that this situation will be changing, at least for government websites which are accessible to the public. The guidelines make good sense and also refer to the Web Accessibility Initiative.

Note also that I say 'accessibility' and not the whole Web Standards compliance outfit. Good things take time to bear fruit. But let's just say, things are changing, and it can only improve our online experience.

My previous Switch logs noted more short-term incidents. After owning a Mac for nearly two months, this is what I have concluded:

1) Bluetooth mice die young. This is the second time I've been asked to change my batteries for the Apple Wireless mouse (1 out of 5 bars). If the batteries need replacing every month, then I'm going to replace the mouse!

However, its companion, the Apple wireless keyboard is still going on strong with the first set of batteries (3 out of 5 bars). 'Makes me wonder if I click much more than I type. I don't think so!

Ironically I found my old Microsoft Wireless Optical Intellimouse Explorer (i.e. it had those back and forward buttons) much more responsive. Perhaps there is a split-second delay at times when I use these two Bluetooth devices.

2) Setting up AirPort Express has screwed up my previously stable connection to the router (which is both wired and wireless). I admit my lack of networking knowledge has probably contributed to the internet connection suddenly dying, requiring me to reboot the modem and/or computer.

Anyway I've packed the AirPort Express back in its little blue box until I've had time to figure it out. Another annoying thing is, the AirPort Express Assistant keeps on popping up every time I start or reboot my G5. Go away, already!

3) Next, I want to mention the grim-looking shutdown alert I've been getting today. It appeared once when I left the G5 running overnight in a closed room without air-conditioning. The fans were spinning away furiously and this greyish alert window came up, asking me to reboot the computer.

Today the same thing happened to my system twice (maybe my Mac knew I was going to post something nasty about it on my blog). I was not able to screen capture it, but I did get it down on my Nokia 6600 camera.

One good thing that did happen was after updating my Bluetooth firmware via Apple's Software Update, my phone seems to be able to connect with the G5 more consistently. I hope this isn't just my imagination.

Also, this is a very small feature but I like how images saved to my desktop, get thumbnailed. I also like how PDF files are also previewed. And I also like the fact that I can save my documents to PDF form, without having Adobe Acrobat installed (I'm not talking about the Reader but the proper software which you pay big moolah for publishing PDF files).

So at least, even though I don't have a driver for my HP LaserJet 1000 printer, and even though HP didn't freakin' bother to reply to my request for help (though they did send me a 'follow-up' email asking me how was their service - I mean, what the --?), I can at least convert my docs to PDF form and print them out on a PC. Whew!

Lastly, I am having trouble playing back my music, as sequenced on Reason, to my Korg Triton Extreme. I am sure this is more a software configuration issue. I am also a beginner at MIDI just as I am with networking. I just want to write my music, arrange everything all nicely in my sequencer, and use the kickass Korg sounds in my keyboard. Argh!

Oh, another thing. Turns out that while you can import MIDI files into GarageBand (which came gratis with OS X), you cannot export GarageBand files back to MIDI format. It is quite a bother and I suspect it's been done on purpose. I am not going to use GarageBand any longer [Update: Just removed it from my Dock.]. I'm saving up my first paycheck for Logic so I can put in vocals as well, which Reason can't.

[Update: One thing I can't complain about, is the G5's processing speed. My dual 2.0GHz processors take only 23 seconds to import a 5 minute song into AAC format (at 128kbps). My digitised music collection has now hit 4000 songs taking up over 18GB of space, not including my own unfinished material. I still have some more CDs to go.]

My colleagues suggested going to Great World City for lunch today. And so we did. After a soup and bread / pasta lunch at Cedele, we decided to run our respective errands and meet at ... That CD Shop.

My Spidey-senses tingled. I sensed impending doom and irreparable damage (to my bank account).

Braving the shopaholic radiation permeating from every item, I peeked inside the store. Seeing nobody familiar (except for the lone salesman who hardly talks to me anyway), I stepped in with the same sense of exultation that a burglar probably feels when he breaks into a house and nobody's at home.

I walked around and found myself standing in front of a stack of chillout and lounge-type compilation albums. After a quick count, I realised I already owned eleven of them. That was rather disturbing. I continued to walk around the store.

"A-ha!!" A familiar voice called out.

I spun around to see the Salesgirl who was responsible for selling me the last three of those CDs [Note: her achievements merit using a capital 'S'.]. I didn't see her coming! I had nowhere to hide!

She read my mind. "I saw you trying to hide from me!" she teased gleefully, before getting down to serious business.

"We have some new stock," she began.

[Echo: "New stock ... new stock ... new stock ..."]

She moved swiftly, walking to the stack of CDs (the pile which I mostly own) and naturally selected a new CD which she *knew* I didn't have. Admittedly that CD had caught my attention more than the others a few minutes ago, but I didn't want to tell her THAT.

"Have you tried this? There are many in the series but this one is more your style."

MY style. She remembered a little something about my tastes. Big deal. I said OK, I'd listen to it.

Since the salesman was still playing music on the main speakers for another customer, she decided to pick up, oh, a few more CDs for me to try.

She held up a Shanghai jazz compilation. "How about this one? I know you don't like Chinese music but you should try it." Right. She remembered another thing about me.

She walked around the store, picking out other CDs she didn't have a chance to play to me before. Amused as I was at my situation, I protested, "I don't have much time. This is my lunch break!"

Frankly, I was ready to bolt the moment our last colleague arrived at the store.

"Oh it's VERY good that you're spending your lunch break here," she purred.

What was I going to do? The other customer was nearly done listening to his CDs and soon it would be my turn. I knew I was reaching the point of no escape. If the music she played was good, I'd turn into an automaton. My head would nod, my feet would tap and my hands would reach out for my credit card. Later that evening, I would awaken on my bed, with chic foreign music playing on my stereo.

In the nick of time, our last colleague arrived. I told the Salesgirl I had to go. I promised to come back another time. She protested good-naturedly (do they get a huge commission out of this or what??) but let me go.

I shook off my shackles, and thanked my colleague profusely for showing up.

Hmm. They've given me a new Template called the Dynamic Site Bootstrapper. Sounds like a cross between a cowboy and a mad scientist.

Oooh! Subcategories! I liiike :)

When I get home tonight, I am *so* going to upgrade this system to Movable Type 3.1. Yeah.

[I'm back. Upgrading commencing shortly. Many weird things may happen to this site, which you will completely ignore. It may take a few days, even a week, for all changes to be implemented because I really don't have the time!]

The new iMac. The slimmest desktop in the world. Designed by the same team as the iPod. (Thanks to MacBlog for the info.)