Monthly Archives: August 2009

Using Multiple Resolution Images to Decrease Page Load Time

Ever since browsers began supporting images, web page authors have fought a constant battle to balance image use against file size. Weapons used in this battle have ranged from compression to spriting to delayed loading. Browsers and internet connections are getting faster and faster all the time which removes some of the pressure in the tiniest-but-nicest balancing act, however perceived page load time is still arguably one of the more important ‘features’ of a web page.

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Fueling the Software Engineer

SEPTA trains are fueled by electricity.  Automobiles are fueled by gasoline.  Sailing ships are fueled by the wind.  But at Azavea, software engineers are fueled by something very special.

Software Engineer's Blend

Software Engineer's Blend - Just the right mix of know-how and eccentric geek chic!

Much thanks to Black Sheep Coffee for this custom blend!

Ubiquity Firefox Plugin

I have been following the Ubiquity project from Mozilla Labs, and I gotta say, it’s pretty rad. If you are a Javascript Ninja or an aspiring one, Ubiquity can make your web surfing super slick.

I slapped together a browser command that I use to search our internal wiki in record time. Sample code included!

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OpenLayers Map Centering and the International Date Line

I recently came across another piece of OpenLayers to be aware of when working with maps that wrap the International Date Line. I store the map extent throughout a user’s session so they can leave the map page, come back, and still see the same set of results as when they left. Unfortunately, the map was sometimes taking a stored location in the North Pacific and displaying Northern Africa instead! Obviously not what I want it to do…

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