Web Design Company, Hampshire UK

About a year ago I was introduced to an amazing piece of software called firebug. It allows the user to monitor a websites CSS, HTML, DOM, Javascript and other tools. Infact, not only does Firebug do all this, which is a fantastic way to debug a page, it also enables the user to test solutions live within a browser and then get rid of them by refreshing the page.

Among the many features firebug possesses, one of the best is the ‘Net’ tab. It analyses the requests a site makes and works out the ones which take the most time to load. This can help you to speed up your site, which is especially useful when you consider your site may be penalised by the search engines if it takes too long to load.

Overall the Firebug tool is essential (imho) for any web designer.

Joomla is a fantastic framework. It allows the user the flexibility to make use of and manipulate technologies which would otherwise take many months if not years to develop. The reason behind this is that it is open source.

Whilst using Joomla I have come across this nugget of information which allows greater adaptability whilst designing Joomla sites. Sometimes, Joomla extensions are only available as modules, this trick will enable you to use a module in a content position.

Step 1..

Navigate to the module menu and open the module that you would like to display. Click on the ‘position’ textbox and delete the text, now add in your position name, something like ‘mypos’ for example. Make it something memorable. Now save the module. You will now have created a new position name for your module.

Step 2..

Open the article that you would like to display the module in and paste this {loadposition mypos}. This is all you have to write, no other text is necessary. Need any help with this, please let me know.

Whilst using DirectoryPress I ran across a small issue which took an annoyingly large amount of time to resolve. Though these holdups are usual when using new products, I thought it best to let you know. I was unable to find the WordPress post ID in order to use the featured items widget on my home page. I ended up with arbitrary records being displayed, one of which was a menu item!

After looking at a lot of code, I stumbled upon the easiest solution. If you navigate here –>Dashboard–>Posts and then hover over each individual post, the browser will display the post ID at the bottom of the screen. Easy!

We have decided to build a Marine Directory and this has meant looking into the huge number of directory software solutions available. The main issue to begin with is cost, then which framework to use? I am confident using Joomla, Drupal and WordPress but which will provide the most functionality to meet our requirements?

I have spent the last two days creating a directory using DirectoryPress. DirectoryPress is an add on script for WordPress which aims to turn your simple blog into a directory website within minutes. At a discounted cost of $79 it provides a powerful and affordable solution. The software does seem to have some bugs  and the support available is not as good as you might hope, though this may be due to how recently the product was created.

Ultimately we have decided not to use DocumentPress, though I do believe it competes well against MUCH more expensive competition. The reason being that the back end is not very intuitive. Whilst it is easy for a WordPress professional to use, it may cause untrained clients no end of problems.

After studying for one year into a variety of web medias, it seems an ideal opportunity to start this blog.

Initially I taught myself HTML, CSS and the basics of design, PHP and Javascript. I then began volunteering for the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust

They use the Beekeeper CMS system and provide a huge amount of services from education and conservation through to running an online shop. My role was to create pages using the CMS , add upcoming events and important information , as well as administering the online shop.

More recently I have begun contracting for Boxchilli Media. They specialise in Web Design, E-Commerce and marketing. Here I have taken on a full designer’s role and have learnt to use the Joomla content management system. We are able to design, create and host all manner of websites.

My aim over the coming years, is to grow this blog to chart my progress and to hopefully point out pitfalls and areas that are worth focussing on to anyone wishing to follow a similar path.