Following my implementation of a Flash based desktop widget for viewing RSS feeds, I decided to experiment with Mozilla Prism.

This idea is simple; rather than having to load up a web browser and type the url to a web app, you can instead create a mini app of it on your desktop. So for example, clicking on the icon for Facebook, will load that and only that into a stripped down web browser. No buttons, menu bars or tabs getting in the way, just simply the page you want.

To get more info, check out the Mozilla Labs blog, where you can also download a beta version for Mac (there are Linux and Windows flavours aswell, however the Windows version I tested doesn’t yet support Flash).

I have set this up to work with my main site, and in conjunction with cookies, allows you to go straight to your mySizzla account, where you can have access to your documents and calendar.

This is great, for when you want to get to your favourite web2.0 app, quickly and easily. The added advantage of the dock means that you can launch a web based app, just as you would a desktop based one. The line between web and desktop is starting to blur and merge. In my opinion this is great, as we will no longer be tied down by a platform or specific format - a.k.a the .doc format and the issues between the new 2007 version and now old 2003 versions (typical Microsoft)

So your a budding new web designer, or even a seasoned pro? Whatever your skill level, no master is complete without a good set of tools. Luckily for us there are lots of tools to help us on our way. The first thing to do is arm yourselves with a good web browser. My weapon of choice is Firefox as its simple, easy to use and there are lots of add-ons that are very useful. It is these add-ons that enable me as a web designer to be able to adjust and edit my sites, quickly and easily.

I have included my favourites here.

Firebug

Firebug integrates with Firefox to put a wealth of development tools at your fingertips while you browse. You can edit, debug, and monitor CSS, HTML, and JavaScript live in any web page.

Screengrab

It will save what you can see in the window, the entire page, just a selection, a particular frame… basically it saves webpages as images.

Web Developer Toolbar

Adds a menu and a toolbar with various web developer tools.

Foxmarks

If you use Firefox on more than one computer, you’ll want Foxmarks. Install Foxmarks on each computer, and it will work silently in the background to keep your bookmarks synchronized. You can also log in to my.foxmarks.com to manage your bookmarks from any computer.

In addition to this I use Coda to develop my web sites (Mac Only). Its pure ease of use is brilliant, and it includes a much better way to preview your sites than Dreamweaver.

CandyBar 3 is finally out. I’ve been really looking forward to the new features, and they include:

• Integrated CandyBar together with Pixadex with an entirely new interface
• Added large (512 x 512) icon support
• Leopard dock customization
• Additional system icons
• Quick Look integration
• More reliable system icon restoration, and much more

The program can be downloaded for a 15-day/250-icon limit trial here. The program is $29 for new users. Owners of either CandyBar 2 or Pixadex 2 can upgrade for $24. Owners of both Pixadex and CandyBar 2 can upgrade for $19. Any user who bought CandyBar 2 or Pixadex 2 after October 1, 2007 qualifies for a free upgrade.We can now finally customise that bloody dock!!

Just a quick update to my previous entry on how to make the stacks look pretty.

Rather than downloading FileXaminer I decided to modify the dates myself so all you now need to do is drop them into your stack and click arrange by date modified. It’s as simple as that!! enjoy.

To download the updated icons click here!

Seems that i’m not the only the one that isn’t a fan of the old IE browser. This is the icon for the Mac only CSSEdit.

(By the way look in the bottom left corner)

It made me smile non the less. Oh and IE/Windows fans, don’t bother with any silly comments!!

Here is a REALLY simple way to tidy up your stacks in Leopard. The basis for the idea was found over at XD’s blog. By default the stack will show the icon of the newest entry to the containing folder. The basic idea is to use a nice icon to always show in the stack, rather than the cluttered ‘mess‘ you see at present. We could simply add an icon and rename the icon to ‘aa’ and select sort by name for the stack. This isn’t exactly perfect as the whole idea of stacks is to show the most recent items of a folder for quick retreival. The original idea was to edit the files attributes via the terminal and change the modified date to one in the future. I found a tool that can basically do this and is a lot easier. Its called FileXaminer and is shareware (you get a 14day trial, which is more than enough time to change all of the dates of the icons).

Tip, select sort by date by right clicking on the icon in the dock rather than inside the folder.

To download the icons, click here. Ive also included a set of Adobe CS3 style icons!!

Thanks to XD for this!!

Enough said!!

Thats my Leopard disk right there on my MacBook today at about half two. Thats right - before it was officially released. I pre-ordered and it was delivered by special delivery.

This is my first blog entry written in Leopard, and what a breeze it was to install. It was as simple as: put the disk in, click install and sit back and relax. No troubled updates, hardware upgrades or re-formatting of disks for me (aka Vista). In all it took about 45 mins (although it did say 3hrs 38 when it first started)!

At the moment, Time Machine is working in the background making sure i’m backed up (wow is all I can say). The interface is so much better than the preview on the Apple site. Anyway, I won’t go on too much about how great Leopard is - i’ll let you judge for yourself. All that is left to say is, this is one amazing upgrade and well worth the money. (I’ve not even mentioned Coverflow, Spaces and Web Clips yet!!)

Are you ready for the most hyped software release of the century (I have no supported facts on this, but considering that the personal computers haven’t been mainstream for that long, and this is the best there has been so far, its a pretty safe conclusion)? No doubt blogs worldwide will go mental with reviews and posts about Leopard, filling up places such as Digg with repetitive headlines about new features. I will try and refrain from posting such blogs (although technically I suppose this one counts as such a post). Oh well, not long to go now, the weekend will be taken up, wasting hours messing with Leopard!

Just when you thought that Leopard was perfect with its 300+ new innovations Apple decides to give us another treat in the form of ‘Back to my Mac’. Put simply it allows  you to control and view your Mac from any other Mac (running Leopard) via your .Mac account. Without going into too much detail i’ll allow you to read Apple’s rather stunning review. This is just another reason why Apple is beating Microsoft - a better OS with even better add-ons.

Just a quick note. On the Apple site, it states that you must have an Apple Remote in order to use Front Row in Leopard. This may be a bit of a bummer for you guys that don’t own one. Fear not, Front Row is always there and can be accesed by hitting Command + Esc. You may already know this, but I thought i’d share it anyway. I wonder why Apple haven’t publised this?

By the way the Command button is the one with the ⌘ logo. You could also press F1, depending on the age of your machine.

If you do have an Apple Remote, head here to see some nifty little functions you may not know you can do with it.

Also this blog is brilliant for adding functions to Front Row, such as internet radio. Cheers guys.