• Dynamic webserving, with full support of common web technologies
• Persistent storage
• Automatic scaling and load balancing
• Google APIs for authenticating users and sending email
• Fully featured local development environment

Great - Where do I have to sign in?

Google App Engine is still in beta. There were 10,000 beta accounts available but after ca. 3 hours they were all gone. Google already announced that more accounts will follow in the near future. So don’t hesitate to subscribe to the waitlist.

AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML), is a web development technique used for creating interactive web applications. Ajax is asynchronous, in so far as extra data is requested from the server and loaded in the background. This is intended to increase the web page’s interactivity, speed, functionality and usability. Ajax function calls are usually made in Javascript using the XMLHttpRequest object. The asynchronous content doesn’t need to be formatted in XML.

Scripts for your Website

As quite every modern website makes use of at least a bit of Ajax you may want to have a few of those cool effects for your page. So I collected the best scripts for you. All of them are free to use and easy to install.

Lightbox 2 - Lightbox is a simple, unobtrusive script used to overlay images on the current page. It’s a snap to setup and works on all modern browsers.

Thickbox 3.1 - ThickBox is a webpage UI dialog widget written in JavaScript on top of the jQuery library. Its function is to show a single image, multiple images, inline content, iframed content, or content served through AJAX in a hybrid modal.

Glider - This script makes it easy to create a sliding carousel component like the one seen at www.panic.com/coda.

TableOrganize - This script basically allows you to re-organize the rows or columns and browse the table using the up/down arrows.

Clickheat - ClickHeat is a visual heatmap of clicks on a HTML page, showing hot and cold click zones.

Reflection.js - allows you to add reflections to images on your webpages. It uses unobtrusive javascript to keep your code clean.

AjaxIM - ajax im (”asynchronous javascript and xml instant messenger”) is a browser-based instant messaging client. It uses AJAX to create a near real-time IM environment that can be used in conjunction with community, intranet, and social websites.

Relay - An Ajax directory manager that works and looks like the familiar one of windows and mac systems.

SWFUpload - is a small JavaScript/Flash library to get the best of both worlds. It features the great upload capabilities of Flash and the accessibility and ease of HTML/CSS.

NicEdit -NicEdit is a Lightweight, Cross Platform, Inline Content Editor to allow easy editing of web site content on the fly in the browser.

Vuzit - Vuzit is a web based document viewer you can embed in any web page. It’s fast and it’s free!

flot - Flot is a pure Javascript plotting library for jQuery. It produces graphical plots of arbitrary datasets on-the-fly client-side. The focus is on simple usage (all settings are optional), attractive looks and interactive features like zooming.

Control.Tabs - creates a tabbed interface from an unordered list of links/anchors that point to any elements on your page that have an id attribute.

IE7 - is a JavaScript library to make MSIE behave like a standards-compliant browser. It fixes many CSS issues and makes transparent PNG work correctly under IE5 and IE6.

Resources for more scripts

Scripteka an extensive library of Prototype and Script.aculo.us based extensions/plugins.

At AjaxDaddy you can see Ajax examples, javascript scripts and web 2.0 demos in action.

MiniAjax, a showroom of nice looking simple downloadable DHTML and AJAX scripts.

And have a look at more than 1000 Ajax examples at AjaxRain.com

RSS icon pack vol.2

RSS feed by Aaron Ovadia

MycirclesRSS

RSS icon by carlnewton

Feedicons²

Acid RSS by cavin

RSS Owl by balpert

RSS icon by datamouse

RSS icon set from smashingmagazine

3D RSS feeds icon

Circle feeds icons

Free RSS feed icons

Alternative RSS icon by mouserunner

RSS reader icon by twinware

NewsFire by barrymieny

Christmas RSS icons

RSS icons from simdes

Vektor RSS buttons

And for everyone how searches for a standard RSS icon:

Feedicons

The only thing that would be helpful is a general understanding of Javascript and HTML. Many of the effects you may have in mind are realized by using open-source libraries or other freely available code snippets. You just have to integrate a few Javascripts and call a few functions to have a beautiful web2.0-ish effect for your website.

In my view the best library is script.aculo.us in connection with prototype.js. They are easy to understand, have a large documentation and a good community. Other libraries worth mentioning are jQuery, Dojo, MochiKit, mootools and YUI. After installing the libraries, it’s so easy to create. Make a few Ajax calls, fall back on entire functions, get some groove effects - and your code is much lighter than before! So why not try to use one of these libraries, after a bit practice you will thank yourself for taking this step.

But even if a library can’t provide you the effect you need, there always is a better way than writing everything on your own. Use some ready-made code snippets. You find them everywhere on the Internet. Snippets for some common problems are Lightbox and ThickBox, which make it possible to overlay an image or other content on the current page. Sometimes the snippets make use of a specific Javascript library. But be careful that not all libraries work well together.

To sum up, I can say that both JS libraries and code-snippets will save you a lot of time (and maybe money). So have a look at them and don’t let the complexity awe you.

Yesterday WordPress 2.5 has been released with a couple of new features. Those who want to upgrade WordPress now, can do it here.

The popular blogging platform needed six months for this major upgrade. But what changes with the new version? The most important update regards the all-new dashboard. It isn’t a static site anymore but consists of several customizable widgets and only provides you with the most important links. Therefore it is very easy to fit the dashboard according to your needs.

The developers of Wordpress spend this version a completely new and fresh color scheme, changed the menu order and recoded the media gallery. Now it is possible to easily upload and manage images as well as videos and other files. Further remarkable new features are editing protection for multi-admin blogs and an built-in plugin update function. The whole list of changes can be read at the WordPress Blog. All in all WordPress 2.5 is a recommendable update, I am sure everyone will love.

Sponsored By: Ludgermany individual bathrooms by tile painting

Conquer the Universe Background. A galaxy wallpaper with Apple logo to honor the great birth of Leopard. Offered in 1920×1200, with and without the Apple logo.

Stylish Simpsons Wallpaper with a hungry Homer and a sweet Apple.

Free and Customizable Leopard Wallpapers. The wallpapers currently come in the following dimensions: 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×960 and 1600×1200. Each of them suits a different mood.

Leopard (Red) and Leopard Server (Blue) Aurora Wallpaper. Both come in 1024×640 and 2560×1600.

30 Apple related wallpapers (Apple logo, MacOS, iPod) that are definitely worth a look.

Retro Apple logo but with a glassy modern look. The Wallpaper comes in 3 big sizes (1280 x 1024, 1600 x 1200, 2560 x 1600) from which you can create all other common resolutions.

Banner ads

They belong to the most common advertisements in the Internet. They are graphic elements with a message that are included in the regular site. Regularly ads are payed according to views or clicks. The big problem with banners is that many users ignore them because of the masses and their eternal presence. So it is very important where to place a banner and how to construct it. Usual solutions are:

• Skyscraper: Very high banners usually at the sides of a website which are even visible in parts when you scroll down.
• Content ads: Advertisements, which are integrated into the content of a website. Sometimes they are also included close to the menu bars and other interaction fields. For this reason some users see an advertisement not knowing that it is one.
• Video ads: Similar to normal banners except they aren’t static.

Pop-up and Pop-under advertisements

This method is very eye-catching because the ads open in an extra window and aren’t ‘just’ a part of a website. This means that every visitor has to deal with them. So the advertiser can be sure that everyone will see his advertising. But that’s why such obtrusive ads are unpopular. Many Internet users have a pop-up blocker to get rid of this annoying advertisements. Because of that you should think about placing such an advertisement on your website. A pop-up or pop-under gives you the most money but it also gives your visitors a bad feeling of your site.

Layer ads

They are equal to pop-ups but don’t open in a new window and instead of that they lay over the website-content in a JavaScript generated window. These windows frequently have a hidden close button so that the visitors have to analyze the ad before they can reach the websites’ content. Advertisements of this kind are often blocked and disliked just as pop-ups.

Web sponsoring

Another variant of Internet advertising is web sponsoring. Web sponsoring means a sponsor invests some money into a website and as counter-performance the sponsor will be presented on the website with a logo or something equal.

AdSense

This service from Google makes advertising very simple. It provides you with plain text-ads through a javascript that needs to be integrated in your website. But if you haven’t the right keywords on your site you very often earn just a few cents per click.

ContentLink, IntelliTXT and LinkWords

This type of advertising constitutes a new trend. More and more big websites have those hyperlinks within continuous texts. You get a little JavaScript snippet to integrate in your website and the it automatically highlights interesting words and generates money for every click.

Interstitial ads

These are websites which are displayed before you can enter the requested page.

Also see my post about making a good banner.

What do you need to start your own website, blog or web application?

The idea - it’s the A and O to be successful! Are there already sites that do the same as yours? Is it possible to make money with your idea (sell premium content, banner advertising) or do you just want to be popular?

The website - do you master (x)HTML, PHP and JavaScript and maybe another language like Java? The point is - make yourself clear what is possible with your capabilities and what not. Maybe hire a professional programmer, but keep in mind that they are very expensive. Also nowadays it’s essential to permanently keep an eye on your sites’ security.

The design/layout - in the internet you find millions of examples of good web-designs. You can also find a lot of guides and tutorials that will help you step by step.

The server - how big is your project? Do you think you need a server right from the beginning? Or is a Shared Plan enough for a few weeks? If you have a heavy-load online application, calculate your budget carefully. Nothing is angrier than having the ultimate website but not the resources to host and operate it.

The breaks - After your project is running and even during the building time - take breaks! Turn off and do anything apart from thinking about your website. It’s a very important, maybe the most important thing you should take care of unless you want to lose the view on the whole.

When to start your website? – Now. Don’t lose time.

Good Blogs and Sites for more information

• OnStartups, Advice for Software Startups. Invaluable guides for entrepreneurs.
• DoshDosh, Internet Marketing and Social Media. Many tips and tricks on how to make the big money with any kind of website.
• Mashable!, The Social Networking Blog. See the ideas of other people and learn from them.

1. Be professional: A banner is your virtual business card. People are getting their first impressions of your website based on your banner ad, so you must to be sure that it presents you in the best possible manner. This means you should be very careful with using correct spelling and grammar. Also, choose font sizes, styles and colors that maximize your banners readability. If you don’t do so some people might get a bad feeling of your site.

2. Ask for an action: What do you want people to do when they see your banner? Most probably you want them to visit your website. Write something like “click here” or “enter now” on it. On the Internet you can see many examples of this strategy.

3. Keep it simple: Most people are looking at a banner for less than a second. You must be sure that the message of your graphic can be easily understood. Organize your banner/advertising clear and concise to increase the possibility that the viewer gets your message. It’s very important to use just a few plain words because you can provide the user with more information on your website.

4. Raise attention or emotion: Use words like free, secret or other to raise the user’s attention. Make the viewer curious in your website. Maybe use a pun or contrast.

5. We want benefits, not features: What’s the difference between a feature and a benefit? A feature is the service you offer your visitors. A benefit is the effect on your visitors. What seems to be most appealing to you? - “We are specialized in finding deductions” (feature) or “Pay less tax” (benefit)? It is only important to say how your service improves your visitors life and not how you do that.

6. Test it: Design several ads and think about different slogans. Then run them for a short time and compare the traffic you get by the different ads. Use the most successful one and be sure your banners are always up-to-date!

7. Other important things to know: Be sure that your banner isn’t bigger then 20kb that it loads quickly. Also use the common formats as you can see at the bottom of this post.

If you don’t know where to place your banner, take a look at Google’s “AdSense Ad-Locations Heatmap”

• Ads closer to the center of the page tend to perform better
• Ads above the fold tend to perform better than those below the fold
• Ads placed at the end of articles tend to do well, even though they’re below the fold
• Ads placed near site navigation or by images or other rich content tend to do well, too

Standard Internet Ad Sizes:
Ad Size Ad Type
468 x 60 Full banner
392 x 72 Full Banner/ Vertical Navigation Bar
234 x 60 Half Banner
125 x 125 Square Button
120 x 90 Button #1
120 x 60 Button #2
120 x 240 Vertical Banner
728 x 90 Leader board
160 x 600 Wide Skyscraper
120 x 600 Skyscraper
300 x 600 Half Page Ad

Advent - This font features 7 weights (regular, light, extra light, regular oblique regular rounded, bold and extra bold) of advent along with carefully adjusted kerning. Unless written approval by the author Andreas Kalpakidis only personal usage of it is allowed.

Sliced AB - The typeface includes many of the key elements you need in a font, upper and lower case, as well as numerals and punctuation. Created by Alex Banks.

Bobel - by Chris Pitney. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.

Manu - Both, Oktober and Manu, are fonts designed by Alen Stojanac. The author grants permission to use, alter and distribute them, either commercially or non-commercially.

Oktober

See our Font Tests
If you want to see these fonts’ appearance before downloading them, have a look a our Font-Tests (.pdf) - Font Test with 8px, Test with 12px, Font Test with 14px, Test with 18px and Font Test with 26px font-size.

Please follow the license agreements, they can change from time to time.

Sponsored By: Ludgermany individual bathrooms by tile painting