Gerroald Barrons Web Class Blog

JavaScript Based Applications

Gerroald — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 17:32:22 +0000

It’s becoming a brave new world in light of all of the possibilities that JavaScript coupled with HTML5 and CSS3 can do. I think the most interesting thing happening right now is mobile web applications. With the literal explosion of the mobile world, the need for web-based applications are expanding just as quickly. Although there will always be a place for native apps, web apps have their place, especially when the task are more goal orientated(shopping, news) vs. entertainment(games). There are a lot of js frameworks supporting the mobile app development, Sencha Touch, jQuery Mobile, and DHTMLX Touch just to name a few. They all offer a mixture of hybrid and full web app support and make it easier to target different devices without having to code in different languages for different platforms. The incredible thing is that all of this is done with a little ol’ JavaScript and some help from HTML5 and CSS3 while native applications require Java or C# depending on what platform you’re targeting. The need for a mobile experience is only going to grow and JavaScript is going to be the back bone to support it. There’s even talk of JavaScript server-side scripting making a move with node.js on the forefront. Can you imagine the power of JS, HTML5,CSS3 and Server-Side scripting?

Compassion

Gerroald — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 14:57:31 +0000

Compassion is a very deep and selfless emotion shown to others in need. I’ve always believed in helping others when you can, it not only helps society as a whole, but also helps you to develop into a better person yourself. There are different ways to show compassion, you can lend an understanding ear, donate time, money, or just help someone out in need. I’ve given when I could, but I’ve never actually done any charity work myself. Habitat For Humanity sounds great, but the truth is I’m probably never going to sign up for manual labor. I’m looking forward to developing my skills to a point where I can help others in need by doing what I love. There are some pretty cool organizations to work with like Code4aCause that would be a great experience in its self. If your reading this you understand what a lot of people don’t, a properly built website is necessary for any growing organization or business. There are a lot of organizations that have compassion for others, and as necessary as a site may, there are many who simply can’t afford a proper one. I’ve seen the WYSIWYG versions, and I honestly believe they do more harm than good. I have two friends that own small businesses that I’m looking forward to helping them as soon as I have the time. I’ve had a lot of help from others on my journey learning to code, and I’m looking forward to extending my knowledge and abilities to others!

Diversity

Gerroald — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 18:42:33 +0000

Diversity in Web Design, there’s a lot different ways to do everything code, some right, some wrong, and some just different. That’s one of I’m not going to focus on that here though. What I am going to focus on is one of the coolest aspects of this industry, its open source community, from software, to different ways everyone is willing to share information. From the people designing the software to the people answering questions in forums, every one of them share a passion and a need to share their knowledge with others seeking it. It seems to be the common bond that everyone shares and learns from. As impressive as this is to me, I’m equally impressed when I think about where all this information is coming from. These are people in different countries with different cultures, languages, religions, and jobs. It’s kinda cool to think about how many different walks of life come together to create JavaScript libraries, tutorials, conferences, course work, and much more. Every time I post a question in a forum and someone answers (which they always do, and in a very polite manner as well) I have to wonder, what do they do. It’s common to form bonds of interest with people of other walks of life, but the magnitude of this industry really blows me away!

Goal Setting

Gerroald — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 13:40:10 +0000

In order to achieve anything in life goals need to be set. I’m sure no one has become great or even remotely successful with out have setting them. Having goals helps keep me focused, on track, and overcome obstacles in my path. I have a lot of things I want to accomplish in this short life and it’s going to take some kind of a system to reach them. I’ve found that it helps me to set long-term goals, then divide them into smaller short-term goals that it’s going to take to reach them. It helps me keep perspective, not lose focus, or become to overwhelmed. Accomplishing the small goals not only get you a little closer to your ultimate plan, but it also gives you some gratification for the effort and work you’ve done thus far helping you to realize that your goal is achievable and your on your way to doing it! I’ve conquered a lot of goals and I can honestly say whether or not the end outcome was exactly what I had anticipated, the success of reaching them is a great feeling! Now that I’m on a soap box, I’m going to take my own advise and get back to working on one of my current goals!

My Class Portfolio

Gerroald — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 14:46:50 +0000

Well as anyone in this class knows, every project here is a learning experience, they push your skills and desire to learn new ones as far as possible. This has been a challenge, I’m not the most talented designer but I think I did a pretty decent job here. I learned a lot of Photoshop skills and had to implement a design that I was capable of. I’m fairly happy with the design, although I believe I would like to create something for myself a little more “grungy” in design and feeling. I’m glad I did spend the time on the mockup that I did, this seriously cut down my time from what I’ve spent in previous projects. I believe my code is very strong including my HTML structure, the JQuery, custom JS, almost every image is in css, including layering some divs over others with multiple background images. Next time I think I’ll actually keep the navigation sprite/buttons in html for accessibility reason. This is my best work yet and I believe a good representation of myself and abilities as a student at this time. There are a few things that bother me about it but that’s part of the learning process and hopefully next week it’ll/I’ll be a little better!

Choices!

Gerroald — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 19:59:12 +0000

Well this is what life is all about right? In the end it’s the decision that truly holds weight, but the choices we have is what gives us the ability to define ourselves by our decisions. Personally, I love the choice of what to eat for breakfast! I’m not really sure how choosing between fruity pebbles or eggs and bacon defines me, but I do know how I choose to live my life, treat myself, and treat others around me does. Some of the largest choices in life are the ones that most anyone reading this has made recently, and for many of us not the first time either. The choice is what area to study and what type of career to pursue. I know I’ve made this decision a few times and for what ever the reason be I didn’t enjoy the outcome, but also realize that if one avenue doesn’t work the way I intended I have other options(choices ). This is one of the beauties of life, there’s always a different routes. Although it’s an important decision and shouldn’t be taken lightly, I also believe your going to work WAY too much in your life time to not enjoy what you do. Well thanks for stopping by for my choice blog/rant, I’m now faced with the choice of going to work , or not and working/playing on my portfolio, so I guess it’s time to define myself and get ready for work .

Excellence

Gerroald — Thu, 26 May 2011 18:57:53 +0000

Perfection is a hard word to live up to, but having short goals won’t get you anywhere either! I strive to be the best I can be at whatever I do, and after thinking about it, “excellence” is a good measure for one’s self, it’s not perfect which can be daunting and is likely unobtainable. Excellence means talented or unusually good, and is highly obtainable with a little work and dedication. I strive to do the best I can do on everything I do, although I’m not always successful, it’s the mind-set that keeps me pushing for the next level at whatever I’m doing. Excellence is a really appropriate blog topic to leave this semester with, we’ve all worked very hard and learned so much! Many of worked on team projects that I’m sure we’ll never forget, and I’m also sure they weren’t easy all the time. By demanding Excellence for our selves we all manged to come out of it with very nice products and a ton of knowledge.( not to mention a few medals )!

This will be my goal for summer as well, my mind-set will be to strive for excellence and learn as much as I can(while making sure not to forget what I have!), and come back next semester ahead of my curve!

To Whom Ever May Read This: HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!

Job Shadow @ BACK40 DESIGN

Gerroald — Wed, 11 May 2011 15:27:37 +0000

I really had no idea what to expect on my job shadow, I just hoped that I would learn something and not hold the person back I was shadowing. Well, it was a complete success(at least I hope I didn’t hold anyone back )! The office was well-lit with several cubicle/desks along the walls with wide open space in the center of the room. The IT portion of the office consist of 1 designer, 1 developer (whom I followed), 2 programmers, 1 print designer, 1 customer service handler, and the project manager. They use basecamp to organize tasks. I followed Matt, he’s the developer. He handles all of the front end code, HTML, CSS, JAVASCRIPT, and the occasional PHP. He started by checking basecamp and emails, deleting emails and marking off tasks as he worked. The first part of the day was fixing broken areas of client sites. I learned a lot from just watching him, not only did I find out I wasn’t nearly using my mac to its full capabilities, I also discovered “coda”, and several css tricks and standards, wish I remembered them all! I was equally as happy to learn that we use a lot of the same development tools, firebug, toolbar, etc.. after fixing several broken pages he switched to his main project, mobile sites. This is a fairly new area for the group, and Matt has been working on the basic formatting of the pages, pricing levels, and a strict list of procedures and rules he follows throughout the process. Towards the end of the afternoon Dave(the owner) gave Terri and I a tour of the office and introduced us to everyone. I have to thank everyone involved in this day one more time. Although it was only a few hours out of the day I took an incredible amount from it and the over all experience was great! It was nice to see a different type of work environment than I’m used too and how it functions. And once again I confirmed with myself how much I love this industry, and how I can’t wait to hone my skills to a professional level!

Memoires of a Lowly Intern at Price Edwards & Company

Gerroald — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 15:22:48 +0000

My experience as an intern for Price Edwards & Company has been one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve ever had. When I first interviewed I thought that alone was an experience that would help me grow this field. When I was hired I had great expectations for myself to excel and impress in many areas, in some areas I feel I have, and others unfortunately I feel I haven’t. I believe with more prior education I would have met more of my personal goals. I’m also aware that I’m not always right, and in this case possibly didn’t know what was best for my education(this sentence and all evidence of admitting to not know everything will self-destruct after reading ). I had really hoped to be able to do more client/server programming, but I just wasn’t there yet and now realize even more, how much time and effort these languages take to learn(at least for me). I have however learned an incredible amount of more advanced html/css with small amounts of JavaScript. I now understand more completely how different languages interact with each other to form different, more advanced behaviors and environments. I’ve been exposed to how projects develop, grow, and change daily. These are basic, but invaluable building blocks to start a solid foundation on, especially at my level of education! Not only do I actually know what a working environment consist of and what can be expected of you, I have a greater understanding of what is possible, and what it may take to accomplish it(even if I can’t program it, YET!). Most importantly, not only has my time there confirmed my passion and love for Web Development, it has inspired me! And now that my inner geekness is out in the open, I kinda feel like dying my spiky hair orange, listening to techno, and wearing my sunglasses at night .

This company has a lot to offer any student interested in being a web professional. They are a national leader in their industry and fully operate in-house. They are always striving to be on the cutting and no matter what level of coding or design you’re at they have something challenging and within your abilities to work on. My experience was not one of answering phones, preparing coffee, or taking out trash. They are just as interested in you doing the work you were hired to do as you are. The first couple of days I think I frustrated myself by being to hard on myself. Anytime I ever had a question, no matter how obviously laymen it may have been, I was always kindly explained what to do or the nature of the problem. If you’ve read my other blogs you already know the best way I can explain it is that I have always felt like a student there(a somewhat productive one I might add!). I firmly believe that this has been a major career building experience for me, and I’m very thankful for everyone involved in the decisions that helped place me there.

I’ve enjoyed how openly eager my instructor and peers are to share and teach what they know. I’ve also been exposed to countless forums and websites solely designed to help and educate. Not to mention the plethora of open source products and non-profit organizations that believe in accessibility, and power the web. Now also I also learned that this type of passion transcends outside of my class and everyday searches to the actual professional working environment. I’m very impressed by, and excited to be a part of this community. These were several of the reasons I chose to share this experience publicly, If you’ve read this I hope my occasional humility has helped you in someway, or at least entertained you .

Communication

Gerroald — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 22:09:40 +0000

Great communication is key with any type of relationship. I’m starting to realize how vital, clear, and precise communication is in this field. One of the many things I’m going to take from being a WDD student is that it’s often going to be important to be able interpret what your clients may be asking you for, as they might not always know what they’re asking, or how to. Often I’ve had questions that have been less than precise (I’m sure I’m the only one :) ), but I’ve also had an instructor that’s prepared to interpret what I’m asking and how best to explain it.We as professionals will also need to be prepared to listen carefully and patiently explain. A client will only appreciate you more with a better understanding of what you’re doing.

As for dealing with professionals, I believe if you’re a guru at coding you should be able to read minds. Unfortunately I’m hearing this isn’t true… So with all of that code made up of several languages mixed with all of those creative ideas from several different people all collaborating on a single project, without great communication, failure and frustration is patiently waiting for you. It’s important to openly communicate with an open mind with your colleges, everyone has something to bring to the table or they wouldn’t be there. There are great benefits in having fellow professionals/peers to work with , you can utilize different strengths and perspectives to your advantage. However without the key of “communication”, you’re wasting an array of tools and possibly someone elses too.