It’s hard to ignore a vibe that strong. Browser resolution remains a web designer’s dilemma. How do you know what the right choice to make is?

Explore:

1152864 On 17″ Monitor Going Too Far?

“I know w3schools.com says a lot of people are on this resolution but it does not specify the correlation to monitor size.”

800600 Resolution – Do People Still Use This?

“After 20+ years of continuous computer use, the eyes just aren’t as good as they used to be. We design all our clients’ sites to be scalable so that even the 15% or so on 800600 can view the site the way it was intended.

It will be interesting to see whether over time more or fewer people will migrate to this screen resolution as avid Internet user generations X and Y get older.”

At What Point Can I Design For 1024*768 ?, 15%, 10%, 5%, 1%, 0% of visitors using 800*600

At what point would it be acceptable to save on resources and ignore (well, not optimise for) the 800*600 visitors?”

A Response

Someone from SEMPO read my blog and my concern that perhaps nobody was interested in receiving scholarship money from Cre8asiteforums. Since the members of that forum chose SEMPO to receive some of the money we allocated for education, we weren’t sure what to make of the lack of response.

Perhaps the fault is mine and I shouldn’t have relied on the Internet to make contact. Rather, I should have called. However, I wasn’t sure whom to contact or whom to address. In any case, a volunteer from SEMPO has stepped in to help, and I’m looking forward to the supporting that organization.

Still no word from the usability folks at HFI.

My good friend, Bill Slawski was interviewed. Check out Interviewed at Web Analytics World

The ever humble (this is why I love him) Bill writes:

“Among other topics, we discussed Social Media Optimization and Social Bookmarking, the possible impact of some new patents from Google, the approach competitors to Google might use in taking on the Mountain View search giant, how Microsoft might gain ground on Google by reallocating some of their internal resources, and the little I know about Danny Sullivan’s Search Marketing Expo.”

Okay. There’s a lot to love about Bill. Being humble is just the tip of the iceberg.

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Uability Consultant, Kimberly Krause Berg, is the owner of UsabilityEffect.com, Cre8pc.com, and Cre8asiteForums. Her background in organic search engine optimization, combined with web site usability consulting, offers unique insight into web site development.

Wikipedia defines cloaking as:

Cloaking is a black hat search engine optimization (SEO) technique in which the content presented to the search engine spider is different from that presented to the users’ browser. This is done by delivering content based on the IP addresses or the User-Agent HTTP header of the user requesting the page. When a user is identified as a search engine spider, a server-side script delivers a different version of the web page, one that contains content not present on the visible page. The purpose of cloaking is to deceive search engines so they display the page when it would not otherwise be displayed.

Basically, you are presenting search engine bots with a certain kind of content while delivering different content to the site visitor. Normally, the cloaked pages are created to fool search engines in order to get better result rankings. However, what if you are using cloaking procedures for legitimate reasons like protecting paid content or serving different content based on the visitor’s IP address? Should sites doing this be subject to the same penalties? It depends on whom you ask.

On the Graywolf SEO blog, readers are asked how they save articles from the New York Times because they are only available to the public for a limited amount of time. Once an article gets to a certain age (2 weeks), the NYT hides it unless the Google crawler (or other search engine bot) requests it – fitting the definition of cloaking, something Graywolf takes the search engines (and the NYT) to task over.

Philipp Lenssen of Google Blogoscoped also has some issues with Google seemingly allowing WebmasterWorld to cloak their pages, which goes against the search engine’s webmaster guidelines. For his post, Philipp conducted a search related to CMS and PHP and a WebmasterWorld post held the first position. However, when Lenssen tried to access the page from the search results, he was taken to a login page – another example of cloaking in action (unfortunately, when I try to duplicate the search, I am taken directly to the content).

Both Lenssen and Graywolf wonder how these otherwise legitimate sites get away with these cloaking exercises when Google and the rest are explicitly against the act. However, the examples given by both bloggers represent the “white-hat” side of cloaking in the sense they are not trying to game the search engines. These sites and companies are merely trying to protect their content.

However, this does not matter to either Lenssen or Graywolf. Because Google has actually addressed this issue in their guidelines, both believe there should be no quarter when it comes to punishing the guilty parties, whether the sites have a legitimate reason for cloaking or not. They also feel Google’s Matt Cutts should address the situation so there will be no more confusion.

At the Chicago SES, while it was never explicitly stated (at least in the sessions I attended), there seems to be a growing sentiment that as long as the webmaster isn’t trying to be deceptive, search engines will tolerate some cloaking. The Wikipedia page discusses delivering content based on a visitor’s IP location (IP Delivery) as one of the instances where cloaking is indeed accepted. Although, the explanation also points out IP delivery isn’t the best example of cloaking because the content in question is not being hidden from search engines or users; it’s just being manipulated based on the visitor’s location.

The question remains, however – should the search engines punish pages being cloaked for content protection reasons? If you follow the two bloggers cited in this article, then yes, all sites doing so should be punished. If they are not going to punish these sites, then the search engine spokesmen and women should speak up and address the confusion.

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Chris Richardson is a search engine writer and editor for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest search news.

Many applications that once belonged to the desktop are now running on the web – email, banking, calendars and scheduling applications are common place. We now even have web based word processors, such as Google Write. Many business applications are also moving to the web, and businesses are realising the benefits of subscription based services and centralised support and are running their sales order processing, invoicing and payroll systems on web technology. Many companies are using web technology in-house to support their enterprise, and users are now using applications running within their web browser, rather than traditional desktop applications.

Traditional scripting languages, batch tools and automation solutions are inadequate for automating these new web based applications. Macro recorders and automation solutions which automate desktop applications by simulating user activity are incapable of driving web browser based functionality primarily because web sites and web applications are dynamic. Not only do they change frequently due to a single centralised source, but objects don’t necessarily always appear in the same relative position on the page. Web pages can be resized, moved and scrolled up and down. A new approach to scripting web sites and web applications is required.

Fortunately Microsoft’s Internet Explorer web browser provides a scripting interface and a Document Object Model (DOM). The Document Object Model exposes all the tags and attributes of all the elements beneath the page. Via the scripting interface the properties and methods of these elements can be modified. So, for example, links can be “clicked” and form elements can be filled in and submitted. So scripts and programs can be written to automate Internet Explorer and drive web applications.

However, you need to be a good programmer to understand how this all works. Not only do you need to understand the Document Object Model, but to write a routine that uses it you need to understand HTML. To determine names of elements and form fields etc., the HTML source of the page needs to be pulled apart, dissected and analysed. You need to understand programming technologies in order to build the routine. Even developing such an automation script in VBScript isn’t for the faint hearted.

What is needed is a tool that records what you do in Internet Explorer, analysing the objects you click on and fields you complete as you go. WebRecorder, from MJT Net, is one such tool. WebRecorder is like a tabbed browser. As you navigate through pages, click on links, select radio boxes and drop downs and complete form fields it identifies the objects and builds a script as you go, using simple to understand code.

For programmers, WebRecorder reduces effort and speeds up development. For less technical users, WebRecorder records web activity which can be played back accurately later.

WebRecorder creates straightforward code that anyone can understand, and can be used with Macro Scheduler, a well known Windows automation tool.

Another web recording tool, is WebAction from Copasetic Software LLC. This works slightly differently in that it installs itself within Internet Explorer as a Browser Helper Object. WebAction records activity in Internet Explorer and creates internet macros which you can play back. However, macros cannot be edited and will not run in other scripting environments, so this tool is focused more for basic macros and is less flexible.

Web macro recorders and scripting tools are ideal for automating routine tasks in modern web sites and web based applications, or for automatically transferring data into or out of web applications and interfacing them with traditional solutions. These tools can also be used for automated testing of web sites and web applications and offer easier, speedier development over traditional scripting languages.

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Marcus Tettmar is founder and CEO of MJT Net Ltd, specialists in windows automation and publishers of Macro Scheduler, the leading automation tool for Microsoft Windows; and WebRecorder for Web Application Automation. Find out more at http://www.mjtnet.com

Opera Mobile 8.6 for Pocket PC users is available on the two operating systems listed, and will be available on Windows Mobile 5 Smartphones at a later date. A free 30-day trial of the browser may be downloaded from Opera’s website.

Opera’s browser brings tabbed browsing to mobile phones. The browser can fit full size web pages to the mobile screen, and supports viewing in portrait or landscape mode. A zoom function brings items on the screen in for a closer look.

A pop-up blocker found in Opera’s other browser versions for the desktop also appears in Opera Mobile. Another security feature displays a lock icon when accessing a secure site, to help the visitor guard against phishing and other online scams.

Opera Mobile will be shipping from T-Mobile as part of the Web’n'Walk offering. Also, Japanese wireless operator Willcom has chosen to distribute Opera Mobile with its devices.

“Until now, Web browsing options on Pocket PCs have been decidedly limited, said Paul O’Brien, founder of MoDaCo.com – one of the world’s largest Windows Mobile communities with nearly 140,000 members. “For owners of Internet connected Pocket PC devices, Opera is a must-have.”

The Opera Mobile browser received a significant push forward when the company introduced Small-Screen Rendering in 2002. That technology takes a full-size web page and renders it for the smaller screen.

Reformatting performed by Small-Screen Rendering eliminates the need to scroll horizontally to view content on a mobile phone, clearing up a long-time complaint from mobile web users.

Opera also recently announced the availability of its Platform SDK. That software development kit may be downloaded from Opera and used to build AJAX applications that can be stored on the mobile.

Those applications work like their desktop PC browser equivalents, permitting XML communication with a web server. The benefit of AJAX, allowing content updates to be pushed to the screen without refreshing the whole window, works transparently with Opera Mobile.

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Opera 9 Beta arrived with web applications, native BitTorrent support, and content blocking along with other new features for users of their browser.

Deals with Google and other companies provided a revenue stream to Opera Software that allowed them to make the browser available to users for free last year. That is still true today, and version 9 is available for multiple platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, FreeBSD, and Solaris.

“Opera 9 brings powerful new features to enhance the Web browsing experience and empower Web 2.0 developers. Opera 9 unlocks new levels of productivity for the Internet ecosystem,” said Jon S. von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera Software.

Opera listed several of the main new features in a statement:

Content blocking for ads and other unwanted content has been one of the most popular features available by extension for the Firefox browser. Opera supports this function natively in version 9.

One area where Opera and Firefox users both benefit has been security, and that has been the reason for many people to switch from Microsoft’s Internet Explorer to other options on the Windows platform. Firefox holds around 10 percent of the global browser market share, with IE at about 86 percent, so Opera and other browser choices are not on nearly as many desktops.

That has provided some “security by obscurity” for Opera users. Like the Macintosh computer, virus writers and other cretins have not targeted Opera in the ways they have IE.

Opera has been responsive on security issues, and the Secunia advisory tracking site shows a scant 13 advisories, all patched, for the Opera browser since 2003. 12 of the 13 occurred in 2005, and one in 2004. Compare that to Microsoft, which patched ten flaws in IE just in the month of April 2006.

Before downloading Opera 9 Beta to test, the company noted that it is still beta software. Users should keep that in mind and backup important data as a precaution. Also, there are some websites that crop up on occasion that do not support Opera.

Those have been very few in this writer’s experience, and the ability to chuckle at IE security issues when they arise has been a pleasant side effect of using Opera.

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Here’s why: not everybody uses a search engine every time to find a company’s website. It’s just as easy to type a company name into your browser’s address bar as it is an engine’s search field.

Now let’s take into account that the majority of people on the Internet use Microsoft’s Internet Explorer as their daily web browser. So if someone types your company name into IE’s address bar, it would be nice to assume that your company website is promptly delivered. However, that assumption would be wrong.

For awhile now, Microsoft has been sending these browser bar queries to an MSN Search results page. For example, if I enter “microsoft” into Internet Explorer’s address bar I am served an MSN Search results page, just as if I had performed a keyword search for “microsoft“. No big deal, right? Your website should be sitting in the #1 spot for a search on your company name, or at the very least somewhere on the first page. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case.

Case in point: an episode of the TV show Globetrekker inspires me to search for more information on an exotic escape to Guatemala. Sidestepping a trip to my favorite search engine, I plug “globetrekker” into my browser’s address bar. But even with the unique spelling of the show’s name, I don’t find the TV show’s website in the first 10 results. A look on the 2nd page of results reveals the site halfway down the page. But how many searchers would have kept looking?

Normally, if I don’t see a company positioned at or near the top for its own name, I conclude:

a. The company doesn’t have a website (which is preposterous)

b. Some shady dealings have transpired and their site has been penalized or banned

or c. Their site is so new it has yet to be indexed by the search engines

Regardless of the reason, a lack of positioning equals lost visitors.

Even more interesting is how the Firefox web browser handles address bar searches. With Firefox reportedly grabbing more than 25% of the web browser market share last month, it’s a no-brainer to make sure your site plays nice with this browser.

According to Firefox, “By default, if you enter a search term in the address field and press Enter, a Google ‘I’m Feeling Lucky’ search is performed, and you’re taken to the first result of that search directly.”

Therefore, using my previous example, when I enter “globetrekker” into the Firefox address bar, I am automatically served up Globetrekker.com, an online travel service that holds the first position in Google for a “globetrekker” keyword search. Since this is by no means what I was looking for, I could easily become a lost visitor.

So, the moral of the story is: Help guide your online trekkers (and potential customers) to their goal by taking the necessary steps to ensure your website holds strong positions in all search engines for your company (or TV show) name.

Oneupweb is the only two-time winner of the ClickZ award for “Best Search Engine Engine Marketing Firm”. StraightUpSearchs blog authors include experts from Oneupwebs natural SEO, pay-per-click campaign management, research, marketing, design, and sales departments.

Now You To Can Play With Google’s WYSIWYG

Will Google Pages convince you to publish a site? Is it a nice take on an old idea, or a rehash of other services? Discuss it at WebProWorld.

The latest free service from Google (beta, naturally) has arrived. Called Google Page Creator, the service provides a simple, visual approach to page design.

That WYSIWYG approach to web page design has made products like Macromedia’s Dreamweaver so popular with the highly visual-oriented people who work in design. As elements of a page are created, the service auto-saves them, providing a safety net for the new user.

Presently, Google supports Internet Explorer and Firefox as the browsers of choice for Page Creator. If someone happens to be an avid user of another browser, a humorous message appears on-screen:

Sites created with the tool take the site name of http://gmailusername.googlepages.com. Within the Page Manager Settings, the site name can be changed from the username default; users who post content unsuitable for minors must check a box in Settings signaling this, per the terms of service.

Other content, like images, can be uploaded via the “Uploaded stuff” box on the right side of the page. Once those images have been uploaded, one can click on a page in the Manager to edit it directly.

The page editor maintains a small number of commonly used markup tools available by clicking their buttons. These fifteen buttons primarily focus on text, along with buttons for inserting images and hyperlinks.

I inadvertently discovered by logging into Page Manager from two different browsers that Google enforces some basic version control by locking a page that is being edited. The new browser can break that lock and edit the page by clicking a link.

One issue I noticed while testing this with a 1024×768 resolution setting in my monitor: in the Page Manager, an option to Edit HTML appears at the bottom of the markup tools on the left side of the page, below the Normal formatting button.

I only noticed this by accident while the tool loaded, because after the Page Manager loads, the Edit HTML link gets pushed below the bottom of the screen. While the page being edited does scroll vertically, as it should, the frame containing the tools does not. This happens in Firefox 1.5 and IE 6, so anyone who isn’t using a greater resolution than 1024×768 probably won’t see Edit HTML.

It is in beta, of course, and this little issue will likely be fixed in short order. Page Creator does provide a straightforward way for someone to create a site that isn’t a blog (yes, it’s true, not every site is a blog) and work on it from any computer.

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David Utter is a staff writer for WebProNews covering technology and business.

Opera 8.02 contained BitTorrent support when its technology preview debuted in July 2005. The company said in a statement the positive response it received contributed to its decision to implement BitTorrent in a future edition of their freely available advanced web browser.

The Transfer Manager in Opera used to handle downloads will also handle the BitTorrent file transfers. “Implementing BitTorrent is a natural choice, considering its efficient use of bandwidth and worldwide popularity. For users this means that they can browse and download content in an application they’re familiar with,” Christen Krogh, Opera VP of Engineering, said in a statement.

Ashwin Navin, BitTorrent’s president, waxed effusive about Opera’s integration of BitTorrent and its collaboration with Bram Cohen, who created the file sharing technology. “With BitTorrent Search, Opera will be offering its users a seamless experience for discovering and downloading large files from the thousands of BitTorrent publishers around the world,” he said.

BitTorrent speeds up the process of downloading large files through the clients that use it. Each client that downloads a file makes that file available for uploading back to the Internet, where other users can download it.

By bringing a number of clients into play, a torrent file downloads from multiple sources. Instead of one file coming from a single source, subject to the limitations of that site, smaller chunks of the file download can generally be downloaded faster.

The dominant web browser, Internet Explorer, does not support BitTorrent natively. A technology Microsoft is developing in England called Avalanche could eventually offer an alternative to BitTorrent, but Avalanche has not been seen outside of some research papers released online.

Mozilla’s Firefox doesn’t integrate BitTorrent, but a toolbar extension called TorrentBar can be added to the browser to enable torrent searches from the Firefox environment. Opera does plan to make “widget” application support similar to Firefox’s Extensions available in Opera 9 too.

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The 591kb download gives you a web browser with a ten-foot interface, and works with Media Center Extenders, essentially giving you a WebTV on your TVs, and through your Xbox 360. You can save favorites and a home page, scroll with your remote, select links and zoom in and out to improve readability.

I’ve always felt Media Center was in dire need of a browser, and I may have missed one at some point. That said, while this adds some much needed functionality to Media Center, it doesn’t do a great job of it. Page scrolling is slow. You use the channel +/- buttons to scroll through links, which takes too long (curiously, using the Page Up/Down keys do the same thing, but much faster). You can’t use the mouse, a shame for those of us with the Microsoft Remote Keyboard for MCE. And I can’t figure out how to get back to the menu bar while viewing a web page. Still, it shows great promise, if the developer continues to improve, and is worth downloading no matter what if you have an Extender, if only to check your mail.

Oh, and it uses Internet Explorer.

(via Chris Lanier)

Nathan Weinberg writes the popular InsideGoogle blog, offering the latest news and insights about Google and search engines.

Visit the InsideGoogle blog.

The fourth version of the search advertising company’s Google Toolbar contains, appropriately enough, four new features highlighted by Google on the download page. As with earlier versions, this one is a Windows-only install, for XP or 2000 running IE6.

Through the Toolbar, pages saved as bookmarks snuggle into a space on Google’s servers. This lets users signing in to Google on other machines with the Toolbar in place access those bookmarks.

Various navigation buttons to Google services can be added or removed from the Toolbar as the user likes. Users can drop a button for one-click access to Gmail or Google Video. Google also has some third-party buttons for sites like the New York Times available from its button gallery.

Chris Sherman at Search Engine Watch noted how customizing buttons works with the new toolbar:

Another feature lets users share a page they are visiting with others via Gmail, Blogger, or SMS. The SMS sharing could be an offshoot of Google’s deal with Opera, whose Opera Mini browser became available as a download that will work on virtually any mobile phone.

Opera shows Google as the default search in its PC and mobile browsers, courtesy of a deal with Google that allowed Opera to remove advertising from its free browser download. Opera Mini lets mobile users view web pages as they appear online, on the user’s mobile device.

The Instant Suggestions feature will look familiar to anyone who has used Google Suggest. That service has shown an ability to surprise its users with its suggestions, a trait that continues with the tool bar as Aaron Wall of Threadwatch observed:

Perhaps Google will consider SafeSearch options for a future release of the Toolbar, even with SafeSearch’s imperfections.

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