SOFTA Ventures

A Taste of Coding Setting Up This Site

Never been a coder.  Worked with many over the years, but never really had my head inside any code.  OK so HTML and CSS is not really code, but a lot of the same strict coding principles apply:

• I can work odd times
• 2 lines of good code a day – is a good day
• I can get mad at the person who wrote the code I’m fixing – not my fault man
• Oh so that’s why they did it that way – was my fault man (all the while apologizing to the person who wrote the code I’m fixing)
• Coffee really helps – except when it doesn’t
• If working on one computer is good, working on five is even better – unless two of them are your wife’s
• This problem cannot be fixed, that’s just the way it is – until you find you can fix it
• Every problem you have, someone has had before you – and documented it ad nauseum in some forum somewhere
• Just when you think you are pretty smart you find that the ad nauseum part is the most helpful
• Must be universal to spouses – “All that time spent and it looks the same as it did yesterday.”

June 26th, 2009 Posted by Michael ORoark | SOFTA, development | no comments

Classes Paid Off – Well at Least in One Manner

Took a few classes this spirng on HTML and PHP coding.  Never thought that they would be put to use on a blog site.  But that certainly has been the case these past few weeks.  Although this site started as a fixed theme, we’ve done extensive “remodeling” using HTML code where allowed and tweaking the “CSS” to achieve our desired results.

Adding the highlight boxes in the “We Say ” section was the biggest challenge.  That contains the most custom HTML code. (Probably so poorly written HTML that a true coder would cringe, but hey like the inside of a wall only the outside matters. Umm until the water leaks.)

Still have a couple of nagging items.  Mainly the logo icon. It’s actually a background image added to the CSS.  Since adding an image proper is HTML code and you can’t do that in CSS nor in the WordPress site title boxes.  Problem is the logo looks good in Firefox, Safari (both on my Mac and on Windows) and IE8.  But in IE8 compatibility mode and in IE7 the logo is right in the middle of the header. Nothing I’ve tried so far in the CSS will make if move left. But being a methodical plodder when it comes to this I will eventually find the solution.

Or I’ll look at it and say, “Hey that doesn’t look so bad in the middle.” And leave it alone

June 26th, 2009 Posted by Michael ORoark | SOFTA, development | no comments