Rabbit Eye Movement

JSlint seems handy as a User Javascript. I found reference to it near the bottom of this Google/TiddlyWikiDev group page.

Good food, company and service were my evening at Juristen on Tuesday 24th January.

This is a semi-private post that I eventually may try to bring to the attention of Opera personnel as a proposed adjustment to their web content_Z. I am interested working part-time for Opera Software with web design, among other things, like marketing.

Part-time? Well, I enjoy teaching English and would rather not give it up completely. It is a pleasantly social activity─meeting plenty of people, helping them feel good─working with a demonstrable and immediate effect on their ability in a non-native language.

Secondly (and the selling point?), I believe that several heads are better than one, and so several overlapping part-time positions might add a useful dynamic to certain roles. This would introduce various kinds and levels of flexibility and enhance arguably critical word-of-mouth, word-of-blog and other positive "food-chain stakeholder" forms of marketing.

Open Source software developers report the idea "many eyeballs on the code helps its improvement". I suppose the proof is in the pudding, Linus. Applying the idea to web-based documentation and multimedia, several part-time designers of webpages ought to be as good as (if not better than) one or two full-timers.

Reference: Coding Under Pressure, though it refers to coding for games it is surely just as relevant to Opera staff.

High (and poor) quality web design and interface accessibility do make me feel opinionated. Even slight issues concerning website readability can get me started. However, typing at this time of night I am unlikely pick up all of my own oversights, so this entry will definitely be subject to revision. This entire blog ought to be subject to more consistency checks by me.

Opera's enthusiasts contribute to the company's success. In return they get the browser they prefer to use on the desktop.

Source: http://www.opera.com/company/jobs/10reasons/.

"Join us in shaping the future of the Web
Top ten reasons to work at Opera:

"Your work matters because you will help millions of people all over the world enjoy and use the Internet in an easy and efficient way on many platforms and devices. Make a difference!

"Democratize the Internet₄. We believe information and technology go hand in hand and that global teamwork is the cornerstone of living in the information age. We adhere to open standards (W3C) to support developing common protocols that promote the evolution and interoperability of the Web.

"Work with the best. Join an international, diverse, and close-knit team of some of the best, brightest, and inspiring people in the Web technology industry.

"Meet the world. With 265 people of 32 different nationalities working at Opera, you will make friends from all corners of the globe, which is amazing as it is now determined that the globe is indeed round₁.

"Be happy. We believe having fun at work is important to thrive and foster innovation. That is why we go to great lengths to cultivate a friendly, fun loving, informal, and happy work environment. Our "Friday Night at the Opera" with drinks and snacks to finish off the week with colleagues is very popular, so are our parties and get-togethers throughout the year.

"Be content₂. We have warm lunches and overtime₃ food in our cosy canteen (and of course a subsidized health club membership...), fresh fruit and juices, tea, hot chocolate, and a fully stacked coffee bar. In the summer you can enjoy the view of Oslo while casually dining on our rooftop balcony.

"Venture into the unknown. Innovation is the backbone of who we are and what we do. We strive to create new opportunities and solutions to be a leading light in the development of Web technologies.

"Live in Norway. Scandinavia is at the forefront of technological advancement, and living in Oslo, the beautiful capital of Norway, has attracted many of us to come to Opera. The clean air and picturesque landscape is a bonus we provide free of charge to all employees. Oh, and in Norway we have five weeks of paid vacation...

"Thrive at work. We know that responsibility fosters dedication, and don’t believe in micromanagement. We work in teams and rely on each other to get things done. Your responsibility and dedication mean you also have the freedom to manage your time and resources in your own way because we trust you and know you can do your job.

"Unleash your potential. Opera is an industry leader in the development of Web browser technology for the desktop and Internet devices markets, with a unique vision of what the Web can and should be. Every day new challenges arise that will put your problem-solving and creative skills on the test. Over and over again."

1: Corners can be rounded.

"With 265 people of 32 different nationalities working at Opera, you will make friends from all corners of the globe, which is amazing as it is now determined that the globe is indeed round" → "There are 265 people of 32 different nationalities working at Opera. You will make friends from all over the globe!"

Two sentences are better than one of 34 words. Indeed, the idea of the world not being flat does not help put the point across anyway. I hope nobody takes this criticism personally. Just me banging my drum. No meanness meant.

2: 'Be content' might be a euphemism for 'be happy with what you'll get─it's all you'll be getting'. 'Luxurious attention to detail' is a bit long for a proposed replacement, so that can be re-examined later.

3: I was surprised to read about overtime food. Is overtime really a good selling point? Is it not actually hinting at an inability to reduce a working culture of deadline pressures, or even schedule mismanagement such that it cannot minimize overtime?

It maybe unrealistic to pretend there is never a need for overtime, but that still does not really make overtime food a selling point. It might suggest poor scheduling management, however.

4: Isn't the Internet in democratic countries already democratic? Yes, it is, and despite Big IT's best efforts it is not in any way due to Opera Software. Democracy is a bruised and misused political term and as such may be less than effective to encourage adoption of web browser software, or to encourage new talent to apply to join the team.

As for the W3, it is arguable the organisation is more an oligarchy comprising those organisations with the technology and financial clout than something a democracy. So it might be better to market the standards conformity with emphasis on the idea of Opera being on the forefront of successful application of those standards.

A term like "shaping standards" might be more useful to get the most meaningful marketing message across.

Z:The footnotes will be re-ordered later.

It just occurred to me that this blog may lack the ability to refer to more than one stylesheet such that it is possible to choose between them. That would be disappointing. I'll have to get around to testing the issue out.

zengarden-sample.css

amaya.css

<style rel="/rdm/homes/blog/zengarden-sample.css" />
<style rel="/rdm/homes/blog/amaya.css" />

hop.js

("Somewhere")

<script language="javascript" type="text/js">
function hop(anchor) { document.location.href = '#'+anchor }
</script>

The XHTML content:
<form name="nav">
<select name="selec" onchange="hop(document.nav.selec.value)">
Choose a page position:
Somewhere
Somewhere else
</select>
</form>

<form name="pays">
<select name="selec" onchange="hop(document.pays.selec.value)">
<option value="#">Choose a page position: </option>
<option value="sw">Somewhere</option>
<option value="se">Somewhere else</option>
</select>
</form>

<a name="sw">Somewhere</a>

("Somewhere else")

<a name="se">Somewhere else</a>

Reference: Europages code source