As most of you can probably tell, this site has gone (is going) through a major re-design. The orignal site was well past its prime. I decided that it need some updating and I wanted to use some of what I have learned over the past couple years. (Yes, the previous version was a couple years old!) I will probably incorporate the blog sometime in the near future but for now it will remain as it is.
So what has been updated?
Layout and Design
Well, the most obvious is the design and layout. I opted to keep the same color scheme as I have established a sort of corporate identity with the gear logo and colors. I have become quite attached to them. I decided to get rid of the gearwork banner as I thought it was rather distracting. A lot of people like it though so maybe it will make a comeback. You will probably also notice that I have a lot more color in this site. While it is still predominately black and blue I have added some subtle gray shades in various places as well as making the project images bigger and more dominant. I think this helps add to the site as well as drawing my visitor's attention to what is really important — my work.
Javascript
I LOVE JAVASCRIPT! Sorry, just had to get that out there. I still hear some web developers say that they don't use Javascript because some users may have it disabled. It isn't 1991 anymore. While I am certain there are still people out there who have Javascript disabled there are quite a few more that have it enabled. Why not use it? It greatly enhances the user experience. You can create interactive user interfaces and make your web apps respond more like the desktop applications that your users are used to. Of course a site that is heavy with Javascript may not be practical either because text to voice browsers obviously won't execute Javascript.
I digress... Anyway, you will see quite a bit of Javascript in the redesign. Everything from simple rollover effects (I may have gone overboard there!), to Ajax calls, to form validation, and lightbox effects. Prototype and Scriptaculous are great. Try them.
Server Side
While you may not be able to see it, this site is now based on the MintyPHP framework that I have been putting together. I know there are already quite a few frameworks out there but I wanted something light weight that required little to no setup so I could get started coding right away. MintyPHP does exactly that. It handles routing logic, database CRUD logic, and has many tools to ease the most common tasks. (DISCLAIMER: It is still under development.) MintyPHP started off as a re-write of one of my web sites. I liked it so much I decided to pull the base code and reuse it.
So there you have it. This is the new JasonHoule.com, like it or not. I have added some fun things randomly throughout the site. Some of you may not find them funny as I have been told I have a very stupid, and French (whatever that means), sense of humor. Have a look around.
Enjoy,
Jason
