Aesthetics are always considered highly important on nearly all web projects I participate in or see from other developers. I have myself always set out a list of important factors that should be considered before even contemplating building a web presence; simply put CONTENT IS KING. Unfortunately there are many examples of websites that overlook this very factor and go for a more eye pleasing alternative.

So are there any good examples of highly successful websites that rely solely on Content and not just looks, well yes there is. Just point your browser to www.craigslist.org and drawl over the classic 1990’s look to the site and then take this into consideration, this is at the time of writing the 36^th most visited site on the internet. This site receives more than 9 billion page request each month and has a higher visitor number than Amazon.com.

Thankfully as you take a peek at the homepage I think it’s safe to say CONTENT IS KING here, although a little aesthetic improvement here and there would be nice.

New Time Media is proud to announce the official opening of the Geoff Burch Business Guru site. This has been an ongoing development resulting in Geoff completely revamping his original site for a more modern looking/functioning portal for his work and discussion. As a internationally recognized Business Guru we have had great pleasure in advising Geoff on the best approach for his internet presence while enjoying discovering the many aspects of his own work.

The site consist of dedicated book pages giving a micro site feel to each publication while adding a blogging facility to the site to enable Geoff to pass on his professional (and at times priceless) wisdom.

Visit Geoff Burch Business Guru

So whats been going on? Well New Time Media is proud to announce in association with Clifton Design Studio the release of the World Boxing Champion Amir Khans Official website. This is an ongoing venture allowing Amirs fans to interact with him while having an official site for his merchandise and media.

The initial reactions from both Amir’s Team and his fans is encouraging and brings a sense of achievement to all those that were involved in the project. We wish him all the best in his up and coming fight with Paulie Malignaggi.

It’s been on the cards for some time now but it seems Youtube’s decision to drop IE6 from its supported browsers has seen a significant shift in popularity for the aging browser. Statistics compiled by w3schools show IE6’s popularity dropping month by month since the start of the year; although this has been the case for a couple of years now it has never been as substantial as the current decline. This is a relief as this aging piece of software technology seems to have finally seen its day. When users considers the security risks and the amount of high profile sites that have disregarded any form of support for the browser; it now seems user sensible to upgrade or change browser.

Firefox now clearly dominates the race and seems to continue to attract new users offering a wealth of additional add-ons and plug-ins to complement nearly any conceivable internet experience. The Internet Explorer (IE) team (headed by Amy Barzdukas) have not been completely oblivious to these changes, introducing add-ons similar to Firefox; allowing the browser to be extended beyond the normal functionality expected from an internet browser.

Unfortunately for Microsoft this may be a case of too little too late, what should have been a hard fought war between the two internet browser manufactures has become a bit of a one horse race. If the decline in users continues we may one day see Microsoft pulling the plug altogether on browser development; although that may be some time away.

Chrome from Google continues to attract new users as one of the newer arrivals; this may yet become more popular depending on how Google’s Operating System of the same name performs. One other browser to watch for is Opera. Opera has been around since 1996 to the public and has grown from a trialware browser to a free piece of software. The only drawback for Opera is that it is entirely funded by Google who have a contracted agreement requiring Opera to use Google’s search facility by default.

Screen shot of Apples Safari History panel

Finally if none of the above mentioned browsers take you fancy then Safari may have the feel you’ve craved for. To a Window’s users the interface looks as you would expect from an Apple product, like a Mac piece of software. There is however one addition to the browsers arsenal that appeals to myself, and that’s its history panel. Although dangerous to state for fear of being inundated with facts, the others browsers just don’t seem to a approach this area with the same style and elegance.

The increase in support for Firefox does elevate the pressure slightly on companies insisting on IE6 support. It’s won’t be until the browser is completely eradicated that complete ignorance can be given to the age old piece of software. I’m sure however the problems and stories attached to this incarnation of the Internet Explorer will become stuff of legends amongst web designers and internet historians.

When writing informative information regarding updates to WordPress it’s always worries me that people will get the wrong idea about WordPress. Although the program does go through a lot of minor updates this should instill further confidence in people that the core WordPress team (and the many contributors) care about their product. I have yet to see an organisation that reacts so swiftly to possible security threats.

The latest of these threats comes from within the community that uses your blog (registered users), if you feel that you have contributors to your site that may be a little shady then this update is for you. If however you are the sole contributor to your Blog/Website then this will not affect you.

The recently found exploit allows users who are able to upload images, Video’s etc to inject and execute arbitrary PHP code on the hosting server. In laymen’s terms this means that someone could upload a PHP piece of code disguised as an image. The images is disguised by altering its file name in the following way BadPHP.php.jpg leaving WordPress to assume that you added an image, however when the file is called (for example as part of a post) the PHP code is allowed to run.

Thankfully as usual the WordPress 2.8.6 update will resolve this issue.

This week New Time Media has been delving into the most hyped product in years Google Wave. After watching the introduction video that explains the logic and thinking behind the product, I myself like many others have been itching to try the new piece of kit. Although at the time of writing Google Wave is only available by invitation there is already a bucket load of plug-ins and advise floating around on the internet; just type Google Wave WordPress in a Twitter search and you’ll see what I mean. After a few trial runs and option scanning the first thought where positive, however as with all new concepts cautions is always taken; am I looking at something I’ve already got, only served differently?
By far the most exciting aspect of Google Wave for me was the integration into blogs; a concept that I’m sure will open new avenues for social networking ideas. Searching WordPress.org I stumbled across this rather useful plug-in from Lucas Caro which allows WordPress to use the Google Wave Embed API. As Waves is still in Beta format, so is this plug-in, so caution should be applied. Once Google Wave has been fully released in a stable format a more serious attempt can be made at creating simple integration for WordPress, until then I’m sure this plug-in will do just fine for those looking into this exciting product.

Further analysis by the WordPress core team has unearthed a few more possible areas of security. This as all updates should be implemented by WordPress self hosting sites at the first opportunity. For more information on this and other WordPress related issues visit WordPress official site

We’ve had Browser wars from Apple and Microsoft now we have OS (Operating System) wars.

In an increasing attempt to capture the youth market Apple released its much covered OS Snow Leopard at the end of August. The most appealing thing about this OS has to be its price. For just $29 you can upgrade you existing Leopard X system to the latest version; a price that makes it highly competitive when budgeting.

So where do Microsoft come in to this. Surprisingly or not the latest offering from Microsoft Windows 7 will be offered to students at the announced price of $29. This is approximately one third of the cost everyone else will pay.

It seems that academically the OS from Apple is favored in higher education, maybe the old argument of MAC’s are better than PC strengthens this. However away from Universities is seems Windows rules the roost with nearly all the clients I deal with use XP; only a few specialist organisations insisting on using MAC’s.

Could this OS war benefit the consumer, at first glance this seems only to pamper to the pockets of the student but could this be the beginning of the end for paying for our OS systems?

WordPress Blogs may wish to take the warning in their Dashboard to upgrade to 2.8.4 a little more seriously than previous updates.

The main reason for updating to WordPress 2.8.4 is due to a major security flaw found by the WordPress community. This update prevents a worm that is currently doing the rounds from attacking and compromising WordPress blogs prior to version 2.8.4.

For the full story click here

I’ve been looking at the new HTML 5.0 specifications; set out by the W3c standards. It seems that finally the very things that have driven the internet forward since the last update of HTML specifications in 1997, are now going to be catered for in a more logical fashion.

Two of the most exciting elements that await web designers are Video and Audio. Although not implemented in all new browsers yet, the initial signs are promising. However as developments in video and audio playback move forward further still, some designers will begin to see limitations in these tags.

Taking away any possible limitations that may or may not emerge when unleashed to the world of web developers, this must be worrying times for Adobe, as Flash is primarily the chosen source for video on the internet.

Seasoned developers will no doubt never forget the 101 different roads traveled down attempting to add Flash and make designs still SEO and W3c compliant. Although there are still issues when adding flash, on the whole this has been covered. But how easy will HTML5.0 make the adding of video? Will Flash become nothing more than an encoder? Have JavaScript libraries finally reached a point where developers can consider the use of them over Flash? Only time will tell. However as mentioned in my last post the versatility and SEO friendly nature of some JavaScript libraries have made the choices between Flash and JavaScript that little bit more easy.

This wonderful collection of tightly knitted JavaScript code has in all fairness revolutionised some sites into an almost desktop type approach. Never being a keen lover of the laborious processes that JavaScript takes you on and the countless reading of code only to relies you missed your terminator (;) or the seemingly illogical approach to constructing stimulating interaction that is cross browser compatible can lead most web designers biting what little is left on their finger nails while sipping on the 100th coffee of the day.

Thankfully JQuery really does make the processes of the above mentioned so much more enjoyable. As someone who writes in HTML, XHTML, CSS, PHP and AS I have always avoided JavaScript like the plague (even though I can write in the language) Cross browser problems tied in with constant code checking is just too much like an avoidable headache. I have actually lost count of the amount of people who don’t use JavaScript and opt for seeking an answer in PHP or AS.

Hopefully as one of those designers who has avoided the dreaded interaction of JavaScript I can persuade you to think again. Jquery although not new has come of age, with the ever slow decrease of IE 6 (and far out cases IE5.5) and the new implementations in modern browsers, we may finally see a day where a designer can be confident that his/her design is not only cross browser but will not die ungracefully when JavaScript is not present.

There are of course other very useful JavaScript libraries out there; however JQuery seems to be the front runner by a long way

For more information on JQuery visit the main site here

Twitter has been under fire recently and not just from malevolent hackers. It seems that the trendy social networking and microblogging site is experiencing somewhat of an identity crises as it battles both the fickleties of trend hopping young users and like so many at this time, a shortage of cash.

Attacks and fraud directed at the site have become rife and as the concerned depart the format, an even greater need for advertising derived revenue might fuel the exodus. Loyal users are a rare commodity; facebook and Youtube have found that out. Few if any of the online community would tolerate a constant influx of advertisements or alternately consider paying a subscription charge to continue Twittering.

Isn’t it more likely that we, as a society might revaluate our need for and expectations of social networking? I like many have little or no interest in knowing the minute by minute activities of even those closest to me in my social circle. We have the mobile phone and email for that do we not?

If Twitter is to become an advertising vehicle then it seems only sensible that Twitter allows advertisements to be channelled according to its user’s predefined preferences. Simply selling ad space to the highest bidder would seem counterproductive to the longevity of the portal. These are decisions that Business and individuals will need to considerer as new investors are fought over, unlike the late 90’s investors are now savvy to trends and in the driving seat .

How long will it be before the uberbrand Google beat social networking to death with it’s own stick by reinventing the concept and having the cash to keep it going?