Challenges of getting into a ‘deep work’ state
Read Cal Newport's book Deep Work for a refreshing take on the state of our minds in the 21st century. Also, the following video is a must watch if you think that social media could be impacting your attention span. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3E7hkPZ-HTk I've been noticing more and more lately how social media use has an effect [...]
Using utility classes (like Tachyons) on a Drupal 7 project
We all want to move quickly to create awesome interfaces right? Well, if you're on Drupal 7, you know that it isn't exactly the best system to quickly make great front end interfaces with. I've recently found that using Panels/Panelizer and the Tachyons' spacing classes, I can crank out interfaces very quickly. This is beautiful [...]
Happy New Year
Happy New Year to all my family, friends, acquaintances, co-workers, people I have done business with (and anyone else not covered by those categories). May your 2018 be filled with not only the completion of personal and professional goals, but with contentment with who you are and where you are in this life.
2017 year end review
2017 marked the first year in our new home. We got it (mostly) decorated and have loved having guests over to enjoy some dinner, games and conversation. This post is one of my favorites to write every year because it allows me to look back on the year and evaluate what I've learned and determine [...]
The most important design principle: Be inclusive
I've made some previous posts about design systems, which are all the rage in 2017. We are still working through the creation of one at my organization. One of the core parts of design systems are principles. These principles ideally shape the future of design for an organization. The most important thing that I keep [...]
Using different template (tpl.php) files for a specific content type in Drupal 7
Use case In one of our sites, we post email communications that were sent out as all-campus announcements on our website. The problem is, our basic web template does not look like an email template. So I thought, "I wonder if I could just load a separate set of tpl.php files based on the content [...]
How to do a basic accessibility audit on your site
Here are some tools and methods for running an accessibility audit on your site. This can be a little bit easier if you already have a design system or component library in place, but it isn't necessary to gain some insights into how your site can be more accessible. The way I usually do it [...]
Launching a college news site with Drupal
SUNY Oswego recently switched from a legacy install of Expression Engine to integrating with the rest of our web platform and using Drupal hosted by Acquia to "re-design" our new News site. Hopefully this post will help others thinking of migrating to Drupal and provide some helpful tips if you're already in the process of [...]
Crafting a design system for higher education
As a front-end developer at a University, I can see first hand why design systems can be such an integral part of an organization's communication (and marketing) strategy. This post aims to explain the reasons why large organizations, including higher education, can benefit from having a robust design system in place. What process is like [...]