[1]Lockergnome Web Developers [2]Go to Lockergnome February 18, 2004 - Eric Bids Adieu!
INSIDE THIS ISSUE CLICKS - [3]GnomeREPORT: Eric Bids Adieu! - [4]SCRIPTS: Stadtaus.com - [5]WARE: Expression Engine - [6]WARE: DreamWeaver MX 2004 - [7]BOOK: Macromedia Flash MX 2004 for Windows and Macintosh Visual QuickStart Guide - [8]SITE: RentACoder.com - [9]GOODBYE: Fond Farewells! - [10]Read this issue online - [11]Get the RSS feed for this channel [12]Syndicate this Channel [13]PentaSuite [14]FeedDemon [15]GuruNet [16]Gnomedex 4.0 [17][thawte_small.gif] Free Trial SSL Certificate from Thawte Take your first step towards giving your online business a competitive advantage. Test-drive a Thawte SSL certificate - our easy online guide will show you how. [18]Click here to get started. GnomeREPORT: Eric Bids Adieu! Hey, Gnomies! Well I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine holiday and extended weekend (for those who got off on Presidents Day). I was able to get a lot accomplished. For starters, I soft launched my mother-in-law's Web site [19]SweetsFromTheSouth.com, so please take a gander and tell me what you think! Also the site is ready to take orders so if you see something you like feel free to make a purchase. I took a lot of the thoughts from all of you and applied as many as I could. The biggest thing you'll notice is the layout! I got rid of the candy background and moved everything directly into the shopping cart software template system. This will make it easier for me to manage in the future. I also moved a few steps further on my consulting Web site ([20]JpecServices.com). Having locked up the backend code and settled in on offerings and pricing, I should be ready to launch in a week or two! So please bookmark the site today and keep on the lookout for the official launch! Finally, I have to report that this is my last issue with Lockergnome. We all reach a point in our lives where we have to decide on which path to walk down. For me, I need to concentrate on my business, family, and more. Don't worry, though, I'm not abandoning you completely! You'll still be able to get fresh content from my site when it launches and I'm sure I'll have stuff to submit to the next editor, whomever that may be. I'd like to thank all of you for your words of wisdom, level of enthusiasm, and thirst for knowledge. You've made this a great experience for me. Of course I have to also thank everyone at the LG staff for guiding me on this wild and crazy journey and for the opportunities it's presented. Digitally Yours, Eric Jones [21][Back to Top] SCRIPTS: Stadtaus.com [22]http://www.stadtaus.com/en Forums and message boards are full of users trying to install and customize Perl or PHP scripts. Most of them struggle with at least one step of the installation process. Some of the scripts have no (useful) documentation. Others simply can't get to work with the server environment. Another fraction of scripts have loads of features that make the configuration complex and time-consuming. And most of the scripts don't feature template files to customize the layout so that it matches with the Web site's layout. Since nobody and nothing is perfect, it is expected that users, especially the inexperienced ones, run into problems. Good for them, if the script developers provide support. Another crucial point is the licensing and pricing issue. Scripts that can be used for free are often written by coding beginners and the quality level is very low. High quality scripts, in turn, are often expensive and overloaded with features. While aware of these issues, the object of STADTAUS.com is to develop and provide PHP scripts that are easy to install and configure. The scripts are fully customizable to fit the layout of the Web site. All scripts can be downloaded and used for free and without registration. Only a small link back to the project is requested, unless the user pays a fair license fee. And finally, STADTAUS.com provides a support forum where all users are guided through the installation process. [[23]Ralf Stadtaus] [24][Back to Top] WARE: Expression Engine I've seen the future and the future is full of expressions. [25]Expression Engine, that is. Still confused? Well not for long. How many of you have a blog? How many of you have a Content Management System? How many of you have been looking for blog software and a CMS package? I've seen the future and the future is Expression Engine. Released currently as a public beta (1.0b), Expression Engine is a killer app that is sure to change the face of blogging software to come. For those of you who remember my pMachine review awhile back you'll be familiar with the company. Expression Engine is pMachine on steroids. Expression Engine is modular, it's OOP, user friendly, easy to modify, and it's almost 100% plug-ins. What does that mean, almost 100% plug-ins? It means the system was designed from the ground up to be expanded upon, to have things plugged in and unplugged. For you developers, this means an awesome API that is sure to make problem solving a simple task. I installed Expression Engine, also lovingly referred to as EE, or E squared, or the big double E, in 15 seconds (not including upload times, which will vary). It comes with 12 templates to choose from - or ignore them and create you own. Believe me, in 15 seconds I was running around with a blog that will put most to shame with features and expandability. What [26]features, you ask ? * Data Modeling * Speed via page or paragraph caching * 160 bit SHA1 password encryption * Double opt-in mailing lists * Google-friendly URLs * Multiple categories for postings * Member groups and associated privileges * Workflow - Yes, Timmy, you can have the post as first draft, or pending, or in revision * Image resizing and thumbnailing from your blog entries * Stat tracking - logged-in members, guests, anonymous, and more * XHTML compliant Control panel - it is fast. Really fast. Trust me, if you are serious about your blog or about the CMS on your site, you owe it to yourself to check this product out. I could fill up pages upon pages of how customizable EE is. Imagine each and every user in your system having a different control panel with different privileges, views, powers, and more. You can't fathom the extensibility of EE and I can't wait to dive into it and push it to the edge - if the edge can ever be found! Stop thinking! [27]Go grab it now and you'll wonder how you ever survived with those other "content tools." It's time to stop having a weblog and move up to an Expression Engine, where your true thoughts are delivered the way you intended them to be. [[28]Eric] [29][Back to Top] WARE: DreamWeaver MX 2004 I've been playing with the latest MacroMedia DreamWeaver MX release, aptly named [30]DreamWeaver MX 2004, and I have to say I'm very impressed! As with every DW release they have redesigned the interface, albeit not as drastically as in past releases. I can see the developers of DW MX 2K4 have been hard at work studying user interfaces and workflow. The new interface is a dream to look at and, in some cases, much easier to use. They've moved the tabs from the bottom of the screen to the top and they have consolidated a lot of the menu bars. The biggest confusion for me when I started out was finding my way around the menu bars. In DW MX, your entire menu bar was a bunch of tabs across the top of the screen and you could quickly jump from layout to frames to PHP and get relevant choices. With the new way of doing things, you have a selection box that you use to select which menu you want to see. I'm actually finding this way to be more user friendly versus the multiple tabs. Sure, at first it's confusing, but after you get used to it you realize how nice it is to go to one area each and every time to get what you need. Instead of hunting for the right tab, I just click, select, and press the button I want. DW MX 2K4 has also bumped up the notch on working with CSS. We first saw CSS come to real light with DW MX but it wasn't the stellar control we expected from DreamWeaver. With MX 2004, things changed a lot. You can expect to have a lot more control over your CSS style sheets, improved code hints, and rendering. MX 2004 is finally bringing CSS to the front of its capabilities. A new feature of MX 2004 is the ability to do minor editing (cropping, resizing, etc.) of images from within DreamWeaver! They've taken a bit of FireWorks and placed it right inside of DreamWeaver. So you no longer have to jump out of one program to jump into another just to crop or resize your graphics. This is a great addition to the product and I'm sure it will lead to many of us being a bit more productive! You can also do more with Flash from within DreamWeaver without having to actually own Flash MX 2004. Of course, if you have the full studio suite you'll get a lot more of it, but even without the extra programs you should be better off than you were. The feature I'm happiest with is the ability to use Secure FTP from within DreamWeaver. This lacking feature had long been a thorn in my side with the older version. Now with MX 2004 I can actually initiate and use an SFTP session with my servers without the need to use another $30 program. Also with this update comes an update to all the reference books included with DreamWeaver. This also means upgrades to the code hints and completion mechanisms found in the IDE. If you are like me, you find these resources to be constantly in use. DreamWeaver MX 2004 has also integrated the ability to work with .NET technologies and new technologies in PHP and ColdFusion. There is also a tighter integration when working with Databases and the DW wizards. Overall they seem to be cleaner and easier to figure out for first time users while not holding back the more experienced coder. Overall, the new DreamWeaver is a great upgrade. If you are someone who plays with a lot of languages or projects, it's a must. If you are the casual site builder and can afford it, then I say grab it now. Otherwise, low volume users and those on a tight budget might find the program to be more than they can handle, but with time and patience even you can push DreamWeaver MX 2004 to the limits. [[31]Eric] [32][Back to Top] Traffic Analyzer - [33]Sawmill 6 is a log analyzer and traffic statistics tool that runs on every major platform. It's suited to web server logs, but can process almost any log. [34]Sawmill generates reports that are attractive and heavily cross-linked for easy navigation. Complete documentation is built into the program. It's easy to use and install. Plus it's highly configurable. [35]Get your FREE trial download today! BOOK: Macromedia Flash MX 2004 for Windows and Macintosh Visual QuickStart Guide I wanted to learn Flash so I went and got myself a copy of [36]Macromedia Flash MX 2004 for Windows and Macintosh: Visual QuickStart Guide by Katherine Ulrich. I'd grabbed a Photoshop version of this same book back when I was learning to use that program and I was super impressed with it. First, let me say if you have a need to learn Flash, then this is not the book for you, however, if you want to learn the Flash MX 2004 IDE, you MUST get this book. It goes into such depth about the layout of the IDE, the menus, and more that you can't put the book down without having a solid grasp of the Flash MX 2004 IDE. I was amazed at the level of detail and care put into explaining the IDE to me. The book is very well written and is served up in a way that makes you want to keep going. Just as you learn one facet of the program it dives into another level and so on and so on. Before you know it, you've read half the book and you are craving more. To some users I can see how this book might drag in areas. The great thing is that it's so well laid out you can skip those areas and even jump around the book like a cat on a hot tin roof and still have a solid grasp of the IDE. I honestly can say that after reading this book I might not be able to create a lot of Flash products but I know where I need to go and what processes I need to take to accomplish the tasks. [[37]Eric] [38][Back to Top] SITE: RentACoder.com At some point in your life you're probably going to want to make money from building Web sites or coding online applications. Now you can do this with a job in corporate America or you can go out and do it on your own. If you choose to go out on your own you might have a problem building your portfolio for prospective clients. Sure you could try the pro bono route and get some exposure that way but wouldn't it be more fun to get paid while building your portfolio? [39]RentACoder.com is a site online that allows you to bid on projects or to have others bid on a project you need. So you can go here, find some projects that fit your skill set, and bid to take this project on. Now keep in mind the lowest bidder will win the project, so you need to find a nice balance between workload and the dollars you bid. Don't rush out and bid $50 on a full-on Content Management System that will take you 3 months to deliver. Rather, find small projects that you can complete in a few days. This will give you the experience you crave, the portfolio you need, and a few greenbacks to line your pockets with in the meantime. One of the features of this site that must be mentioned is their Safe Project Escrow which is designed to ensure that money is only paid to those that complete a project to the client's specifications. The "Safe Project Escrow" (tm): This Rent A Coder exclusive feature, guarantees a stress free transaction by putting you in control of releasing funds to the coder. p>Before Rent A Coder, many companies had to make non-refundable, up-front payments to coders to hire them. This often resulted in deadbeat coders making off with deposits, and buyers being left with nothing but empty promises and empty wallets. However, with the "Safe Project Escrow," you don't pay the coder directly, but instead deposit the funds into an escrow account. While giving the coder the reassurance that you have the funds, the coder also knows that they do not receive any funds until work is completed (or a work phase is completed if you are doing a phased project). Upon completion of work (or work phase), you verify that you've received what you've asked for, and authorize the release of funds though the site. Since you are in control, you can guarantee that you'll get the deliverables that you're asking for! [[40]Eric] [41][Back to Top] GOODBYE: Fond Farewells! As I mentioned in the GnomeREPORT, this is my last full issue. From here on out you'll see me from time to time as I submit articles, tips, and more. I want to again thank all of you for your suggestions, ideas, tips, and words of wisdom. This really has been a great experience for me and I'll treasure the contacts and friends I've made from it. As a final parting, I'd like to let you in on a little secret recently reveled to me. As you know, in the past I featured a program called [42]VisitorVille, which allows you to view your website statistics in real time as well as in archival format. Shortly after featuring the program on Lockergnome, I was contacted by the CEO who wanted to offer a discount to everyone. Well, little known to me, he never took the discount coupon out of the system, and he's going to keep it in there a bit longer! [43]So grab the software, you get 12 days to play with it, and when you are ready to buy, use the code gnomies to get 40% off for life. Just think of it as my parting gift to all of you! [[44]Eric] [45][Back to Top] [46]http://channels.lockergnome.com/web/backissues/20040218.phtml Your subscribed e-mail address is [EMAIL PROTECTED] - To unsubscribe or change your delivery address, please visit the [47]subscription management page. © 1996-2004, Lockergnome LLC. ISSN: 1095-3965. All Rights Reserved. Please read our [48]Privacy Policy and [49]Terms of Service. 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http://windows.fileoftheday.com/archives/008896.html 114. http://windows.fileoftheday.com/archives/008875.html 115. http://windows.fileoftheday.com/archives/008852.html 116. http://windows.fileoftheday.com/archives/008830.html 117. http://windows.fileoftheday.com/archives/008819.html _______________________________________________ [EMAIL PROTECTED] mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to "[EMAIL PROTECTED]"