Stop SOPA and PIPA: Useful links and info

Posted on January 18, 2012 by

I want to point out, for those of you who don’t already know, that the big problem with these bills is not the piracy issue. It’s that they are so poorly and broadly written that they can be abused too easily.

If a large company feels a smaller company has infringed on it’s copyright, and it fills out the paperwork correctly, the smaller company is then blocked on the web and has to defend itself. That means it’s up to the smaller company to hire the lawyers and get the defense going. For a lot of small businesses that is a death sentence.

These bills will stifle innovation and growth because of the constant fear of being torn down. Honestly, it deters me from starting any sort of new website. Heaven forbid I link to a website that could cause me to be in violation.

Thanks for your time and for reading this far. If you didn’t just please go sign the petition.

Other useful links (some info may be a little outdated now):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_Online_Piracy_Act
http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-57329001-281/how-sopa-would-affect-you-faq/
http://mashable.com/2012/01/16/white-house-sopa-petition/
http://act2.freepress.net/sign/media_sopa
http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2zhuoc/list25.com/25-things-you-need-to-know-about-sopa/ 

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[jQuery] jQuery UI MultiSelect Widget

Posted on October 26, 2011 by

So like many UI developers, I am always looking for new and useful jQuery plugins that I can use to simplify forms and make things easier for the end user. One particular case had me trying to figure out how to make multiple selection possible in a limited space.

The answer came in the form of Eric Hynds’ jQuery UI MultiSelect Widget. This plugin packs so much into such a little area. It replaces the default multiple select tag with a jQuery UI styled combo box. That was really all I needed, but this little plugin packed in much more.

Eric out did himself and created a supporting plugin that helps to filter the content within the combo box. This added to the user friendliness that my project needed.

I think my only gripe is that there is no way to set an fixed width. While the minWidth property is wonderful, there is no way to keep the selection from growing larger. My suggestion would be to have a fixed width with the combo box able to be larger than the initial width of the selection box.

If you are looking for a great plugin that you can use in place of long checkbox lists or multiple select boxes, I highly recommend this one.

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[WordPress] Plugin: Multiple Galleries

Posted on September 30, 2011 by

So a few weeks ago I made a post about a plugin I found that helped to reign in a bit of WordPress’s default gallery habits. Today I found an even better solution

Multiple Galleries is so much better in the fact that you can have multiple galleries for each post. That and it’s a lot easier to opt out of having an image in the gallery.

I have no complaints about this plugin, it just works well.  Check it out if you want to have multiple galleries in your blog posts or pages and don’t care about having fancy lightboxes.

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[WordPress] Plugin: WordPress Gallery Hack

Posted on September 20, 2011 by

I rarely use the built in WordPress gallery feature, but having started a family blog with my wife, I found that it is more likely that I will use it in the future.

Only problem? No way to distinguish between images I have in the gallery and ones I want separate.

While researching my next move, I found that this was a known issue with WordPress and has yet to be addressed. Until that day, however, there is WordPress Gallery Hack. It’s not in the codex, so don’t try looking there.

This plugin adds a little link withing each gallery image that allows you to remove it from the gallery. It will still show up when you edit the gallery, but it will not be displayed in your post or page. This can be confusing when you first try it out, but once you get it, it’s worth it.

Now I don’t always use galleries, but when I do, I use Wordpress Gallery Hack

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[WordPress] Plugin: Admin Login As Different User

Posted on September 16, 2011 by

When I have to debug a plugin, it sometimes requires that I use different accounts to make sure everything is working. This also means that in the live setting, if a user has an issue that I can’t replicate, I have to login under there account. So how do I do that without changing their password each time? With a plugin!

I found Admin Login As Different User while searching through Google for a plugin to do exactly what the title implies. It’s so simple to use that I’m not sure I need to explain.

Install and activate the plugin, go to the plugin page under tools, and pick who you want to login as. Simple as that.

The plugin has saved me a lot of time and headaches since it’s an instant switch over to their profile. I think the only thing that I would change is to provide a link to switch back to your original account.

Small gripes aside, this is a wonderful plugin that any admin should seriously consider adding to their arsenal.

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