Ideal Candidates have:

• Expert knowledge of hand-coded HTML (XHTML and DHTML inclusive), CSS and JavaScript based on web standards and best practices for code optimization, accessibility and SEO.
• Ability to quickly troubleshoot HTML / CSS / ASP / JSP / PHP / JavaScript / Web Browser / Network Issues / DNS / etc. related problems.
• Proven ability to speak to groups and evangelize solutions or concepts and explain them in business terms including the ability to review existing or 3rd party code and deliver feedback.
• Willingness to diversify knowledge in a small team of web developers by a continuous teaching and learning cycle between members.

Required Education and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree with 5+ years of experience or an Associate degree with 8+ years of experience.
• 5+ years: Advanced HTML, CSS, and JavaScript hand-coding and troubleshooting skills.
• 4+ years of web development experience on large, complex websites.
• 3+ years: ASP/JSP/PHP or similar web coding experience and troubleshooting skills.
• 2+ years: Demonstrated consultative experience architecting, proposing, and collaborating with business teams on web initiatives and applications.

Note: Candidates dependent upon WYSIWYG applications to complete their work will not be considered.

To see a full description and apply for this position, please see the job post on CareerBuilder.

All that said, there are times whether it either actually makes sense to use fly-out navigation, or, more likely, the ‘committee’ insists that you do. Some day, I’ll get around to writing that long winded article on why fly-out navigation is not a good idea so you can use it as ammo, but, until then, I thought I’d at least offer some options that are decent if one must use fly-out navigation.

When our own organization began requesting that we at least consider fly-out navigation, I began my search for a script that would work. There are literally dozens of options out there. most are bad. Real bad. Out of all the ones I’ve seen, these are the ones that have made the cut. All of these systems use javascript + CSS to style and manipulate a fully accessible, semantic set of UL lists in a very usable manner:

• UDM4 (Ultimate Drop Down Menu) | $75 per site (less when purchasing bulk licenses)

  This is perhaps the most robust out of all the menu scripts I’ve seen. This a highly versatile menu that is about as accessible as one can make a fly-out navigation system. It offers a variety of means of navigating via the keyboard using both tab keys and arrow keys. The arrow-key navigation being a unique feature I have yet to see in any other script. In terms of visual style, that can all be controlled through a nifty (if a bit obtuse) javascript configuration file that will dynamically write out the the CSS for you. It can also accomodate nearly any screen size, fully adjusting the pop-ups to fit the screen at any point. The only cons to this menu is that it is a tad pricy (priced per site) and the code is a bit heavy.

• Project Seven’s Pop Menu Magic | $90 unlimited sites (Dreamweaver Plugin)

  Project Seven has long offered a variety of great Dreamweaver plugins and templates. Their Pop Menu Magic is a fairly decent fly-out navigation script/plugin. It’s not quite as accessible as UDM’s (namely in keyboard navigating) but is still an excellent product all-around. They’ve written an article on accessiblity and fly-out navigation that, while I don’t agree 100% with, is still an excellent read.

• TwinHelix’s FreeStyle Menus | Donationware(!)

  Angus has written and impressive fly-out navigation script. In terms of usability and accessibility, it’s on-par with Project Seven’s offerings, albeit not wrapped in a nice Dreamweaver extension.

• Scubaduba’s Very Compatible DHTML Menu ASP.NET User Control | Free(!)

  This is the newest entry into my list of menus that have made the cut. This isn’t quite as nice as the others in the usability department. It’s missing the one critical feature that I find really makes a fly-out navigation menu usable: a time delay between mouse out and mouse over. This is critical in vertical menus where a person will often want to drag their mouse from a main link diagonally to the sub-menu while crossing over another top-level menu. The above 3 menus add a delay, so one can safely do that. This menu, like many, many others does not, so it can be frustrating to use. All that said, this is about as user-friendly and accessible one can get with a pre-built asp.net control. Alas, asp.net is notoriusly weak in the accessibility department if one uses the built in controls, so this is a very nice option to see.

I hope these options help if you are ever given the task of implementing a fly-out navigation system. If anyone knows of any other options that are both usable and accessible, please let me know!

A recent discussion on the Webdesign-l list brought this up and the debate ensued as to whether or not it was a good idea. To me, it’s just annoying, so I thought I’d go and fix it.

In the past, I’d write a quick Greasemonkey script. Alas, Greasemonkey is having some growing pains. The current version just isn’t working. So, for now, here’s a bookmarklet for anyone that wants to use it. Just drag it to your toolbar and whenever you are reading an article at ALAP, just click on it to have the content fit your browser. (note that I only tested this in Firefox).

ALAP Liquid <– drag to your bookmarks bar

So, on with the MNBits…

script.aculo.us

In addition to getting me thinking about having to now get my own ‘ious’ URL, this site is a repository of some truly amazing javascript libraries. Take a look at the drag-and-drop demo. While I haven’t had a chance to play with these enough to see if there are any accessibility issues, they do look promising for a variety of tricky interface needs. Also, thse libraries will be built into the next release of Ruby on Rails.

Microformats.org

Microformats.org is a community web site put together for the sharing of simple, open data formats built upon existing web standards.

StructuredBlogging.org

Structured Blogging is a site that is focused on bringing more structural markup to blogging…namely via WordPress. One could certainly argue that this may be overkill for blogging, but it is nice to see more thought put towards storing content in a structured manner. My biggest gripe in looking at umpteen Content Management Systems last year was the total lack of structured content support. Whenever I’d ask about it, I’d get a stock answer of ‘Oh, sure…we have a press release module’. Ugh.

So, most folks may have no need for structured markup on their blogs, but many may. The simple explanation used on the site is:

Structured blogging is about making a movie review look different from a calendar entry. On the surface, it’s as simple as that – formatting blog entries around their content.

As happens with these internal conversations, we obviously end up poking a bit of fun at the process. At one point in the conversation, we were talking about some of the misused buzzwords that always tend to be thrown around in these committee feedback sessions. One of these was ‘hangover navigation’ — which, as it turns out, was actually referring to ‘drop down’ or ‘fly out’ javascript navigation.

I laughed at that, but then it dawned on me that I actually prefer the term ‘hangover navigation’. To me, it better echoes the headaches and frustrations that such navigation can end up giving the site user. So, listen to your committee. 90% of the feedback is usually contradictory or superfluous, but once in a while, a real gem of an idea pokes through.

The redesign is nice, but one thing still really bugged me…they use a fixed width layout and assume I use a gigantic monitor with a fully maximized browser. In the feedback thread, a few folks sided on the pro-fixed-width and a few sided on the pro-liquid design, but, in the end, the fine folks at Punchcut decided to throw down a mandate that we all use wide browsers. So be it.

But then I remembered Greasemonkey. Greasemonkey is a Firefox Extension that allows you to attach custom javascript to any web site/page you want. It’s like user-style sheets, but with more horsepower. It’s not just user-centered design, but user-controlled design.

I’ve always been a javascript hack, but recent buzz about Ajax has finally gotten me to start learning the language a bit more formally. And Greasemonkey is perhaps going to be the final motivation. With my greasy monkey partner at my side, we can conquer the way-too-wide-fixed-width internet! Well, at least in my browser.

Anyways, this is a quick hack, but if you are a fellow typophile visitor and would like to view the forums at your own preferred width, you can use this script. It changes the Wrapper Div used for the forum posts from 800px to 80%. And then adjusts a few other things to fit. Install Greasemonkey first, then just right-click the link below and select ‘install user script’:

typophileliquidlayoutv1.user.js (right-click to install this greasemonkey script)

The usual warnings apply…I’m dangerous with javascript…this might blow up your computer for all I know, but it’s there if you want it. I may or may not try to improve upon this. If anyone wants to improve upon my javascript hackery, by all means, please do.

More Nifty Corners is an updated article and set of code for creating rounded boxes without the use of any images and, if you use the javascript method, without any extraneous markup in your HTML either. This new version adds more browser support, options for rounding only some corners, and a variety of style options. Definitely a nice solution if you’re a rounded box junky.

Google Sightseeing Blog is your virtual tour guide to our amazing world…as seen through Google maps’ satellite mode. Google maps and wikipedia are two sites that completely distract you from your task at hand. You go to look up something quick, and an hour later of browsing through them you’re trying to remember why you came to the site in the first place.

And finally, can’t end the week without at least one political comment. As we all know, the Social Security debate is a complex one. Viewpoints flying everywhere. How’s a person supposed to know what it’s actually all about? Well, whitehouse.gov actually has a detailed transcript of Bush explaining it clear as day. After reading this, is there really any need for further debate?:

[I] really [don't] understand how is it the new plan is going to fix that problem?

THE PRESIDENT: Because the — all which is on the table begins to address the big cost drivers. For example, how benefits are calculate, for example, is on the table; whether or not benefits rise based upon wage increases or price increases. There’s a series of parts of the formula that are being considered. And when you couple that, those different cost drivers, affecting those — changing those with personal accounts, the idea is to get what has been promised more likely to be — or closer delivered to what has been promised.

Does that make any sense to you? It’s kind of muddled. Look, there’s a series of things that cause the — like, for example, benefits are calculated based upon the increase of wages, as opposed to the increase of prices. Some have suggested that we calculate — the benefits will rise based upon inflation, as opposed to wage increases. There is a reform that would help solve the red if that were put into effect. In other words, how fast benefits grow, how fast the promised benefits grow, if those — if that growth is affected, it will help on the red.

The first is gazingus.org’s expandable UL script that plays nice with the clean semantic markup you already have.

And the second is Alessandro Fulciniti’s interesting use of javascript to create rounded corners.

Last week, Garret at yourtotalsite.com posted a mini-article and a nice pre-packaged .js file that will do this for you. Very nice. It’s a technique I’m warming up to as I’m building more complex user-forms for back-end admin tools. With the increase use of XMLHTTPRequest, where there isn’t a need for a full reload of the page, this technique becomes increasingly useful.

Some other related links include Nick Chapman’s version of the Javascript Class and Axentric’s slick Fade Anything technique.

A complex Table Inspector Favelet