Brightscape Blog


Tutorials and tips covering HTML, CSS, jQuery and PHP for web designers and developers. Discussion of the latest Internet technology and search engine optimisation news.



15 Useful Google Chrome Extensions for Web Designers

Feb
9
2011

I found some of these Chrome extensions very useful. From the list my favourites are Web Developer, Firebug Lite, Eye Dropper and MeasureIt.

Firebug is probably my most used add-on for Firefox, it’s a pity there isn’t a version to match on Google Chrome, but it’s definitely a tool to have installed on your Chrome browser.

Read more here: 15 Useful Google Chrome Extensions for Web Designers and Developers


Make Flash Sites iPhone & iPad Friendly

Aug
4
2010

An excellent blog post detailing ways to make your Flash site user–friendly on the iPhone and iPad (or in fact any other device devoid of the Flash plugin).

As an SEO I don’t recommend building Flash sites in the first place. But if you must—aim to make it play nicely by following the steps highlighted in the blog post:

  • Use SWFObject and make use of the alternative content feature
  • Develop a simplified HTML version of your site for mobile devices
  • Use JavaScript to detect mobile devices and automatically forward to mobile version of site
  • Set viewport to width of iPhone
  • Make the iPhone stop resizing text on rotation
  • Create an iPhone home screen icon
  • Use Helvetica!

Read the article here


Use CSS3 Media Queries To Create Mobile Version of Your Website

Jul
26
2010

I read an excellent article highlighting how to create iPhone, Android and iPad–friendly versions of your website.

This is achieved with CSS3 media queries, either in your main stylesheet or using a seperate stylesheet.

The key point is that you can simply add the following code to the bottom of your main stylesheet:

@media only screen and (max-device-width: 480px) {
/* Add iPhone styles here */
}

Or you can refer to an external stylesheet below your main stylesheet as follows:

<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" media="only screen and (max-device-width: 480px)" href="http://www.example.com/css/mobile.css" />

Read the full article here: How To Use CSS3 Media Queries To Create a Mobile Version of Your Website – Smashing Magazine