StringFoo :: Web Development Resources » Off Topic

Dreamweaver CS4 Public Beta

sstringer — Tue, 27 May 2008 05:00:21 +0000

The Dreamweaver team has been hard at work since the launch of CS3 to bring you...drum roll please...CS4!

This Just In: Microtek is Now Dead to Me (Updated)

sstringer — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 02:56:30 +0000

I was kindly informed by Microtek that I'm screwed. My s400 flatbed scanner that is barely more than a year old has been bricked since my October upgrade to Leopard. I've been patient for months now, and finally wrote them a kind letter. I got this in response:

Dear Mr. Stringer,Please be advised that the ScanMaker s400 scanner is not supported on Mac OS 10.5 Leopard. We regret to inform you that Microtek will not be releasing software drivers for the ScanMaker s400 scanner to support this new operating system. We apologize for the inconvenience this may cause you.

<rant> Microtek just made my infamous Dead-to-Me list with Sony, the Microsoft Operating System, and the Republican Party. Congratulations guys. I've got your prize right >here<. Look for an mint s400 on eBay soon. </rant> Update: The item is up for sale on ebay. Check it out here.

Explaining Web Standards 2008 Professional Edition

sstringer — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 13:12:35 +0000

A client asked me the other day what web standards were and why I seemed to hate Internet Explorer so much. My response was thusly given:

Web standards are an agreed upon set of rules. Like, we all agree that a square is a square and a circle is a circle. Microsoft, on the other hand, tells us that we, the entire internet development community, do not know what the hell we're talking about. A square is clearly NOT a square (not to be confused with a squircle). It is, instead, roughly defined a polygonally rendered object oriented box-like ActiveWidget that may or may not have four equal sides (except when rendered in quirks mode). For our own damn good they've unilaterally embraced and extended the standard (now called ActiveCube 2008 Professional Edition) to include a fifth side on certain occasions. And at the end of the day, they're still not going to draw the damn box on the screen, so we can all go fuck ourselves.

WTF of the Day:Japanese School Girls Dancing Clock

sstringer — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 20:11:51 +0000

I don't even know what to make of this. I came across it on the Japanese language blog optica optima where you can find the tasty and delicious dock drawers icons for Leopard's Stacks. In typical Japanese fashion, it's completely incomprehensible to a gaijin like me and makes ample use of young school girls. So light one up, sit back, and watch the show.

Off-Topic: New Apple Store Policy Requires Credit Card for Purchase of Two or More iPhones

sstringer — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 12:55:57 +0000

A very odd thing happened to me today. I was in the Apple store buying an iPod touch for myself when not one but two men trying to buy "a couple of iPhones" were told about a brand new Apple Store policy, effective as of 10am today (10/25/07), that stated that customers wanting to buy two or more iPhones must pay by credit card. What made this odd besides the fact that Apple felt the need to institute this policy was the reaction the guys had when informed of the policy. They flipped out and walked out after berating the manager. Later, I encountered both jabbering on their cell phones out in the mall. Clearly, some business model was being disrupted. Now, a two things are odd about this:

Why the heck is Apple so keen to put the kibosh on people reselling the iPhone? Money's money, right? Now, I can understand them objecting to a guy unloading an iPhone or two that just happened to "fall off the back of the truck," but these guys were paying full retail plus tax. Who cares if they eBay them?
Speaking of which, who the hell were these guys reselling the phone to? Again, they were paying full retail plus tax, which implies that somewhere down the line, some poor sucker is willing to pay more than that. So I ask again, who the hell is this poor sucker.

Anyway, this was odd. If you have insight into this, I'd love to hear it in the comments below.

Off Topic: Stunning APOD

sstringer — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 10:33:43 +0000

I have an Automator script (available here) that pulls down the large version of NASA's astronomy picture of the day (APOD) for use in my screen saver. Totally geeky, I know. Most days, the images are your average star field or Hubble image, but every now and then, they throw up an image that just takes your breath away. Today's is such an image. (Read on for details on how to use the Automator script.)

Review: Dreamweaver Developer Toolkit: Good Idea, Poor Execution

sstringer — Sat, 19 May 2007 11:44:22 +0000

This review summarizes a two-week evaluation spent with Adobe's Dreamweaver Developer Toolbox, an extensive set of class-driven wizards that added sorely needed features to Dreamweaver. In short, it's a no-go. My strong recommendation is to save your money. Read on for the reasoning behind this recommendation.

Planning to Cross-Grade to CS3? Read the Fine Print

sstringer — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 14:54:34 +0000

If you recently switched to the Mac platform, as many people have, and planned to buy the Upgrade version of CS3, read the fine print. According to Adobe:

Upgrade pricing is available only for products listed above and requires a qualifying previous product on the same platform, with serial number. Upgrades for volume and education licensing are handled separately.

Read on for details on how to do a cross-grade if you find yourself in this position.