Fauteuils de l'Opéra de Paris

The Paris national Opera launched a fundraising campaign allowing visitors to choose, sponsor, and engrave a name on a seat in the Palais Garnier.
by via Awwwards - Sites of the day

How to Save Time on Social Media Using One Simple IFTTT Applet

Have you ever wished you had technology that responded to your every action? If it’s still a wish for you, then you haven’t discovered If This Then That, more commonly referred to as IFTTT. With this simple digital tool, you can command nearly anything (technology wise, and we’re only somewhat...

[ This is a content summary only. Visit our website http://ift.tt/1b4YgHQ for full links, other content, and more! ]

by Irfan Ahmad via Digital Information World

6 jQuery-inspired Native DOM Manipulation Methods You Should Know

When jQuery was released, one of the main reasons behind its meteoric rise to popularity was the ease with which it could select DOM elements, traverse them and modify their content. But that was way back in 2006. In those days we were stuck with Internet Explorer 7 and ECMAScript 5 was still a couple of years off.

Luckily, a lot has changed since then. Browsers have become considerably more standards compliant and native JavaScript has improved in leaps and bounds. And as things have improved, we have seen people questioning whether we still need jQuery. I'm not going to get into that argument here, rather I'd like to offer some food for thought, as I present six native DOM manipulation methods which were inspired by this great library. These are as follows:

• append()
• prepend()
• after()
• before()
• replaceWith()
• remove()

In this article I want to examine the similarities and the differences between these native DOM manipulation methods and their jQuery counterparts. Then hopefully, the next time you find yourself including jQuery for the sake of a convenience method or two, you might opt to embrace the power of vanilla JavaScript instead.

1. append()

The append method performs an insertion operation, that is, it adds nodes to the DOM tree. As the name indicates, it appends the passed arguments to the list of children of the node on which it is invoked. Consider the following example:

const parent = document.createElement('div')
const child1 = document.createElement('h1')
parent.append(child1)
parent.outerHTML
// <div><h1></h1></div>

const child2 = document.createElement('h2')
parent.append(child2)
parent.outerHTML
// <div><h1></h1><h2></h2></div>

At this point you would be forgiven for asking how this differs from the native appendChild method. Well, a first distinction is that append() can take multiple arguments at once, and the respective nodes will be appended to the list of children, just like the jQuery append method. Continuing the previous snippet:

const child3 = document.createElement('p')
const child4 = document.createElement('p')
const child5 = document.createElement('p')
parent.append(child3, child4, child5)
parent.outerHTML
/* Outputs:
<div>
  <h1></h1>
  <h2></h2>
  <p></p>
  <p></p>
  <p></p>
</div>
*/

Furthermore, an argument can be even a string. So, while with appendChild() a rather verbose syntax must be employed:

parent.appendChild(document.createTextNode('just some text'))

with append() the same operation is shorter:

parent.append('just some text')
parent.outerHTML
/* Outputs:
<div>
  <h1></h1>
  <h2></h2>
  <p></p>
  <p></p>
  <p></p>
  just some text
</div>
*/

The string is converted to a Text node, so any HTML is not parsed:

parent.append('<p>foo</p>')
parent.outerHTML
/* Outputs:
<div>
  <h1></h1>
  <h2></h2>
  <p></p>
  <p></p>
  <p></p>
  just some text
  &lt;p&gt;foo&lt;/p&gt;
</div>
*/

This is in contrast to the jQuery method, where strings of markup are parsed and the corresponding nodes are generated and inserted into the DOM tree.

As is usually the case, if the appended node it is already present in the tree, it is first removed from its old position:

const myParent = document.createElement('div')
const child = document.createElement('h1')
myParent.append(child)
const myOtherParent = document.createElement('div')
const myOtherParent.append(child)
myOtherParent.outerHTML
// <div><h1></h1></div>

myParent.outerHTML
// <div></div>"

A final difference between append() and appendChild() is that the latter returns the appended node, whereas the former returns undefined.

2. prepend()

The prepend method is very similar to append(). Children are added, but this time they are prepended to the list of children of the node on which the method is called, just before the first child:

const parent = document.createElement('div')
const child1 = document.createElement('p')
parent.prepend(child1)
parent.outerHTML
// <div><p></p></div>

const child2 = document.createElement('h2')
parent.prepend('just some text', child2)
parent.outerHTML
/* Outputs:
<div>
  just some text
  <h2></h2>
  <p></p>
</div>
*/

The return value of the method is undefined. The corresponding jQuery method is prepend().

3. after()

The after method is another insertion method, but this time it must be called on a child node, that is, a node with a definite parent. Nodes are inserted as adjacent siblings, as can be seen in the following example:

const parent = document.createElement('ul')
const child = document.createElement('li')
child.append('First item')
parent.append(child)
child.after(document.createElement('li'))
parent.outerHTML
// <ul><li>First item</li><li></li></ul>

The return value is undefined and in jQuery the similar operation is after().

4. before()

The before method is similar to after(), but now the nodes are inserted before the child node:

const parent = document.createElement('ul')
const child = document.createElement('li')
child.append('First item')
parent.append(child)

const child1 = document.createElement('li')
child1.append('Second item')

const child2 = document.createElement('li')
child2.append('Third item')

child.before(child1, child2)

parent.outerHTML
/* Outputs:
<ul>
  <li>Second item</li>
  <li>Third item</li>
  <li>First item</li>
</ul>
*/

Once again, the return value is undefined. The respective jQuery method is before().

Continue reading %6 jQuery-inspired Native DOM Manipulation Methods You Should Know%

by Giulio Mainardi via SitePoint

7 Famous Design Hacks You Can Steal From Star Wars

Star Wars: A New Hope was the first movie in the Star Wars franchise and one of the biggest successes in movie history. The film had a production budget of 11 million dollars, but made well over 700 million in the worldwide box office.

Like any movie released in the 70’s, George Lucas had no access to the jaw-dropping digital animation capabilities we take for granted today. Imagine having to create an entirely new galaxy, far, far away without even the most basic CGI help?

Instead, they worked entirely with traditional stop motion photography, models, and puppetry techniques to bring George Lucas’s universe to life.

But despite their lack of access to modern digital tech, the filmmakers succeeded in using some very common design tactics to achieve incredible creativity and produce a revolutionary series of films that continue to be referenced generation after generation.

Re-watching the films recently, a few classic design hacks caught my eye that you can apply when creating your own infographics, websites and user interfaces.

Hack #1 : Depth

One of the design tactics used incredibly well in the Star Wars series was that of depth. Depth is achieved by creating a sense of spacing between the background, mid-ground and foreground.

How depth is used in Star Wars:

Many of the Star Wars films are made up of multiple frames which portray massive expanses of space as well as wide landscapes. In this shot of C-3PO and R2-D2 standing together in the desert, you can see how the use of depth creates a sense of isolation and distance.

The desert seems never ending and the two characters appear a lot closer and more in focus to the viewer in relation to the abandoned ship wreckage in the distance. This is done by dividing the scene into three sections to add texture, with the two characters placed in the centre.

This allows us to see the illusion of distance. The use of light and shadow give their bodies a much more rounded appearance, while the ship in the background seems more flat and unfocused.

How to apply depth to your own designs:

When applying this principle to your own designs, try overlapping different elements across the foreground, mid-ground and background. By doing so, you’ll be able to create the effect of looking directly at the focal image or aspect of your design while other shapes in the distance come across as being farther in the distance.

Hack #2: Use Contrast

The next design hack is to create contrast. This is achieved by placing opposing visual elements side by side. In doing so you can create a dramatic effect, especially when using objects of varying sizes.

How contrast is used in Star Wars:

In this example from Return of the Jedi, we can see that the stories main heroes are displayed next to Jabba the Hutt’s large ship in a much smaller transportation device.

This acutely emphasizes the sheer dominance and power of Jabba the Hutt’s vessel. By contrasting both of these ships, our view is drawn to the much smaller transport. This creates tension based on its proximity to the larger ship.

How to apply contrast to your own designs:

When attempting to use contrast in your own work, try to depict the impact or importance of specific sets of data or information with as much physical contrast as possible. This is often seen in many infographic designs that require one data set to stand out from another.

This infographic example from Pfizer illustrates just how much of a fine they need to pay because of their profits:

By seeing the data displayed in such a way, the use of contrast tells us a story so much more dramatically than mere numbers ever could.

Hack #3: Exploit Negative Space

Another hack used is that of creating negative space. This is done to define an object and bring it into focus by surrounding it with white space. What this manages to accomplish is drawing attention to the focal point. Using negative space also provides a visual pause between different elements, making it easier for the viewer or reader to digest and process the important information.

How negative space is used in Star Wars:

Here’s a scene from A New Hope that presents C-3PO standing by himself in Tatooine. The desert acts as the negative space surrounding C-3PO. By depicting this character as a solitary figure, he is brought into much greater focus.

This also sends a symbolic message to viewers and helps them better understand just how isolated the character feels.

How to apply negative space to your own designs:

If you want to draw your viewer’s attention to focus on a specific object, avoid grouping too many objects closely together. What this does is that it makes it difficult for people to distinguish one item from another. You don’t want to distract your audience, you want to draw them into the most important element.

Let’s say that you’re designing a pricing page for a website. You can use negative space around some of the primary features you want to highlight, or around the package you want to push people to by surrounding it in more negative space.

You can also try layering various background components to tackle both depth as well as negative space.

Here’s an example of a simple way that this can be done:

Notice how your eye is entirely drawn to the penguin icon in this screenshot.

Hack #4:Get some Perspective

Perspective is used to create dynamic compositions. Based on their placement, this lets certain objects and figures appear more dominant. You can use lines to direct perspective and help your audience feel like they are either the character or within the scene itself.

How perspective is used in Star Wars:

Here is another shot from Return of the Jedi. What made this movie, and the entire Star Wars series so ahead of its time were the shots of the interior and exterior of the various ships that were taken from different angles.

With the earlier movies, the filming of the ships was all done with the use of miniature models created by Colin Cantwell. Large interior shots often combined live action footage with ‘glass matte paintings’ – exquisitely hand-painted oil-on-glass frames.

In order to convey the impression of vastness and detail, the filmmakers had to be very creative in the way they composed each scene.

In this image, you can see how the straight lines of the reactor core point down to create an arrow shape. This gives the impression that we are looking down.

The effect is also enhanced by the use of light at the bottom, which draws the audience’s gaze to the base of the core. You might be realizing that the use of perspective has a lot of similarities with that of depth, and this is partly because both have a lot to do with the placement and size of objects in the background, mid-ground and foreground.

How to apply perspective to your own designs:

When applying perspective, start with a focal point that you want to guide your audience’s eye towards. Draw lines away from that point and towards you to guide them in the direction you want them to look at.

Hack #5: Attaining Symmetry

Now we’re at our fifth hack – using symmetry in design. Symmetry is used to balance a design and – you guessed it – highlight its focal object. You might be noticing how a lot of these design hacks have something in common – they all have to do with bringing focus to one specific part of your overall creation.

How symmetry is used in Star Wars:

In this scene from A New Hope, you can spot the uniformity and order. Shots with objects that are not balanced can sometimes confuse the viewer and give the impression of chaos. There are times when this is a conscious decision that is made, however, if you are trying to provide balance in a specific image, symmetry is the way to achieve that.

As you can see, Luke, Han Solo, and Chewbacca are flanked on either side by rows of soldiers that look exactly alike. In fact, look closely and you’ll see most of the green foreground guys are copies of 4 or 5 soldiers. Tricky, huh?

As they make their way down a straight path you can clearly see the way the lines are pointing to the stage in the background.

How to apply symmetry to your own designs:

In order to achieve a similar effect, you can create symmetry by mirroring different design components on each side of your canvas, and by placing the focal objects in the middle of the composition. Here’s an outline of how this is done in the shot above.

Can you see how the path, the stage, and the people are all mirror images of each other?

Continue reading %7 Famous Design Hacks You Can Steal From Star Wars%

by Nadya Khoja via SitePoint

jQuery.rest – jQuery Plugin for RESTful APIs

jQuery.rest is a jQuery plugin for easy consumption of RESTful APIs.

by via jQuery-Plugins.net RSS Feed

Building a 3D Rotating Carousel with CSS and JavaScript

A lot has been said on the use of traditional 2D carousels, for example this piece on Smashing Magazine covers this subject. There’s no simple yes or no answer to the ‘should I use a carousel?’ question; it depends on the particular situation. When I started researching this topic, I didn’t need a 3D carousel, […]

Continue reading %Building a 3D Rotating Carousel with CSS and JavaScript%

by Giulio Mainardi via SitePoint

Data Of Thrones

Informative (and impressive) One Pager for 'Data of Thrones' - presenting all the character and house info you'll need to catch up with series, Game of Thrones. Smart microsite marketing effort this by data specialists, Yaguara.

by Rob Hope via One Page Love