Yes, we can combine background and CSS3 by using linear-gradient and radial gradients types. Where rgb values varies the background CSS3 Gradients are compatible with only newer version of browsers
Example: Chrome>26.0 version and IE>10.0
Internet is a medium which evolves constantly and it is very hard to believe that CSS is nearing release of version 4. CSS4 has emerged as a buzzword in web technology arena with CSS Working Group’s release of first working draft on the same. World Wide Web Consortium, the governing body that oversees the development of web standards is already plotting the future of CSS with CCS4. Although CSS4 will not replace CSS3, the work on specifications will go on parallel with CSS3 modules. There are many innovative proposals in CSS4 including parent selector, UI states pseudo classes, reference combinators, logical combinations and namespaces. It has been reported that there is a proposal for responsive design in CSS4 and it will let a web developer apply preload states for slow connections.
Cascading script sheet is another much talked about feature of CSS4 and it will be extremely useful for enhancing interaction. According to seasoned web developers, CSS4 technology uses unobtrusive and function style syntax. CLISS (Command Line Interface Styling Script Sheet) is another best feature and it follows a very similar syntax to the CSS. Another fascinating attraction of CSS4 is proper email styling support and it is almost similar to CSS3. With the introduction of this web technology, some old properties have been reintroduced and some are introduced for the first time.
Parent Selector
Parent selector allows a web designer to style a parent element based on its child element and it is one of the favorite selectors of passionate web developers.
Reference Combinators
Reference combinator consists of two slashes in between CSS qualified names and these slashes are used to define the association between two compound selectors.
Location Pseudo-Classes
CSS4 has added few interesting pseudo classes to handle links such as :any-link, :local-link, :target, :scope, :link and :visited.
UI States Pseudo Classes
CSS4 introduces a set of UI states that will allow us to style elements depending on their user interface state. :enabled, :checked, :default, :valid and :invalid are the pseudo classes introduced in CSS4.
Logical Combinations
New logical combination pseudo class called: matches ( ) is one of the innovative attractions of CSS4.
It is learnt that some more features will be added to CCS4 very soon and they will undoubtedly make the experience of web developer easier. Variable declaration feature in CSS4 will reduce the amount of code redundancy experienced in previous versions of CSS4. It is brand new and no web browser actually supports these features of Cascading Style Sheet 4 yet. As CSS4 is built on CSS3, it is desirable to continue mastering CSS3, its features and applications.
As CSS4 is a work in progress, many of the new features may be removed in a later stage. As per industry reports, its new media features will probably include script, pointer, hover and luminosity. When CCS3 was introduced, neither its developers nor others thought that it would become so popular. It is perceived that the same miracle will happen in the case of CSS4 too. Web developers are quite fascinated by the elegant features of CSS4 and they are eagerly anticipating for its official release.
CSS Reset is file (with extension .css) which helps in reducing browser inconsistencies by creating common defaults styles for all browsers.
Downsides of “reset” file:
i) Creates new defaults that you may or may not want (unwanted code).
ii) Many a tiomes, developers end up re-writing the new defaults by styling many of them manually. Sometimes redundant code may creep in.
iii) It adds unnecessary load time.
iv) Developers own styles often gets overwritten,So a precautionary code has to be put in place (more code!)
A better alternative is to use Normalize.css
A Normalize CSS is acustom CSS file that will render all elements that comply with modern standards and are consistent. Other CSS files must not precede the normalize.css
The positive points:-
• Useful defaults are preserved.
• For a big range of elements, it normalizes the CSS
• It will fix bugs and common browser inconsistencies.
• Improves usability.
• Detailed comments explain what the code does.
Technology advancements has popularized a typography style in websites. The ability of selecting the appropriate font has broaden to the extreme to make websites attractive. Mix and Match typography has become the necessary features of web design for creating the best user experience. To improve the website look and feel in long run, selecting the right typographic plays the key role to leave viewers attractive. After years of working, many customers are focusing and pushing designers to go with mix and match typography style of usage in their websites.
With emergence of new trends popping up for better readability, there is raise in usage of usage of typography in web design. Most notably, retro typography on vintage style websites is quiet powerful across the web. This trend has been around for a while but now we are seeing this in full force for websites who want to set up their brand in bold and visually interesting ways. This Mix and Match typography relies on the designer’s ability to choose the right fonts to match not just the message, but the other typographic styles in use.
Some designers usually stick to one font to what they like, but it is good to mix and match fonts with the flow of website without effecting the overall look. Think of not to use too-small or too loopy fonts that are hard to read and look for long periods of time. Though there are several kinds of fonts available, look for the right mix and match typography that fits the mood and aesthetic of your design. Try out new things to achieve a desired effect for your website allowing viewers with maximum readability.
There are numerous CSS frameworks that are used to develop web applications such as Sass and LESS. They are both CSS based frameworks but the complexity of app handled by these frameworks are different. Each of these frameworks is suited for different web app development. Here I have provided a brief introduction between these frameworks and its features.
Sass is an extension of CSS3, adding nested rules, variables, mixins, selector inheritance, and more. It’s translated to well-formatted, standard CSS using the command line tool or a web-framework plugin. Sass has two syntaxes. The older syntax, called “the indented syntax” uses a syntax similar to Haml. It makes use of indentation to separate code blocks and newline characters to separate rules. The newer syntax, “SCSS” uses block formatting like that of CSS. It uses curly brackets to denote code blocks and semicolons to separate lines within a block. The indented syntax and SCSS files are generally given the extensions .sass and .scss respectively. Both these syntaxes are fully supported – there is no functional difference between them.
Features of Sass:
SASS is an excellent scripting language for web app development. But using it with frameworks makes web development even easier and enjoyable. One great thing about SASS is it has built in CSS color math. One can automatically change the color of the menu and the hover state manually. Another great way to use SASS is you can organize all of your CSS into a single file. It simply adds more power and better organizational tools, making it an easy choice as a go-to replacement.
LESS is a dynamic style sheet language that allows developers to reuse CSS elements and write LESS code with the same semantics. The LESS compiler is written in JavaScript, so you can just include it in your page along with your LESS stylesheet. It has everything that CSS is missing like Variables, Mixins, Nested rules, Operators and functions, Namespaces for grouping variables and mixins etc.
The similarity between these SCSS and LESS frameworks is its features and functions. But they slightly differ in syntax. They make web app development easier for the programmers and facilitate them to create intriguing web applications. SASS is only accessible to Ruby/Rails environments, while LessCSS can be used by anyone, with any languages, or just plain HTML website. For developers adopting these frameworks, it is essential to understand the paradigm shift these frameworks bring to client side application development.
Most of the high class web applications that normally we see on the web depend on a delicate set of UI libraries, controls and frameworks. The Web UI is basically an HTML, CSS, and Javascript based application that is used to construct and manage the server appliance from a remote client. In order to build a consistent and reliable UI (User Interface), you need to extend your Web UI. There are several types of UI frameworks available in multiple languages, in the market. These frameworks are used to create the user interfaces to turn up the desired task quickly. But it is important to choose the right web UI framework for the project to develop more flexible and error free applications.
Frameworks often help speed up the development process by providing necessary functionality that is “out of the box”. This includes things such as user and role management, data access, caching, and much more. These frameworks help you simplify the more important details of design and stays focused on project management by alleviating the need to reinvent the wheel for common development needs. For development of web applications, there is a need of technologies all at once – HTML, CSS and JavaScript for the presentation purpose and there are others such as PHP, Java, and .NET that handle more of the dynamic aspects of the application.
There are UI frameworks that often help speed up the development process by providing necessary functionality used in web applications, web sites, web desktops, widgets, modal dialogs, standalone windows and much more to name. JavaScript UI framework is one of the basic component that is used by most applications for buttons, tabs, menus, trees, and dialogs, etc. On the other hand, there are rich and well organized widgets that control the web 2.0 applications by using the Prototype JavaScript Framework.
There are various integrated set of tools to enable developers to develop user interfaces for different types of web applications. Normally, these tools include an XML markup language, cross-platform library, JavaScript runtime, data binding engine, page compiler, runtime inspector, control library, animation engine, cross-platform library, Ajax as well as back button support. These frameworks add the value based features in different websites and web application development process. Most of them will have unique features specific to that particular framework in terms of platform compatibility, portability, database compatibility, general performance, security, web services and language support etc. and are suitable for key development functions. So before diving in, it’s necessary to have an idea of the most commonly used frameworks that can significantly result in more secure applications.
User Interface refers to the aspects of hardware or software which can be seen by the human user, and the commands and mechanisms the user uses to control its operation and input data. While User Interface Design is often used for computer systems, it is the part of any system exposed to a user. As per a research survey, it is found that many people are facing problems with poorly designed websites. Some of their problems include vision problems, level of discomfort, and stress at work. So in this article, I would like to highlight why good user interface design is important and discuss the consequences of poor design.
Good user interface design is important because, the need for the design and development of user interfaces that support the tasks people want to do has become an important issue. Users are more comfortable with computer systems that are easy to use, easy to understand, and enable them to attain their goals with minimum frustration. Good user interfaces can lead to benefits such as higher staff productivity, lower staff turnover, higher staff morale, and higher job satisfaction. Economically, these benefits should translate into lower operating costs. Bad user interfaces, on the other hand, may result in stress and unhappiness among staff, leading to high staff turnover, reduced productivity, and, consequently, financial losses for the organizations.
As presentation of web design have much to do with the success of any company. It is important to come up with a user friendly approach to get better results and attract the targeted audience. So considering reliable human factors is of great importance to the organizations during the website design and development, otherwise you may also lose the chances of driving traffic to your site which would eventually affect your business performance. So streamlining your website by following the human factors is a great way to improve the performance.
There are three factors that should be considered for the design of a successful user interface websites; development factors, visibility factors and acceptance factors. Here is the list of things that must be taken into consideration: human abilities, clear conceptual model, navigation, page layout, typography, headings, links, text appearance, color and texture, images, animation, audio and video effects etc. By taking care of these characteristics, organizations can effectively design good interface design, thereby reducing costs, employee turnover, and increasing user satisfaction, productivity, and quality services.
Responsive design represents the simplest way to reach users across multiple devices ensuring a seamless user experience. It has been widely used these days with the growing popularity of mobile devices. Responsive design has been very important for organizations looking to optimize their online content.
It consists of a mix of flexible grids and layouts, images and an intelligent use of CSS media queries that extend the functionality of media types by allowing more precise labeling of style sheets. It has features that make websites adjust to various screen sizes and resolution. It has revolutionized the look and feel of websites across all platforms. The key benefit of this responsive design is that it renders only one version of the website for all kinds of devices, which saves both time and money. With many new devices with varied screen sizes, responsive design is a great solution to many critical web challenges. With responsive design, the HTML is the same for every visiting device and each time a page loads on mobile it also loads all of the HTML elements including images & scripts intended for the tablet and desktop sites. Every time a user visits your site they view the full page content by default – no matter which device they are using.
Increased usage of the internet and exploration of web applications on tablet and mobile devices has been the driving force behind this development. It has enabled clients to deliver an optimum visual experience across any device thereby positioning their brands to achieve better search engine rankings in the future.
Technology trends are increasingly growing today with the developers building robust and more complex applications. Almost all of the rich web applications that we currently see on the web rely on a subtle set of UI controls, libraries and frameworks. There are so many options out there to provide a consistent, reliable, and highly interactive user interface, but selecting the right library or a framework can be overwhelming. To have an idea of all the possible alternatives, in this article we will explore what constitutes best practices with regard to jQuery and, furthermore, why angular is a good choice of a framework to implement.
jQuery as we all know it has become an essential library when it comes to common functions and adding JavaScript functionality to a website. But when it comes to some of the web applications that are large and complex, jQuery alone cannot be used to provide a stable foundation to write quality, maintainable code. Consequently, MVC frameworks have emerged to provide more structured and maintainable code when developing these applications.
There are many JavaScript frameworks, which provide a solid structure for your code whilst also offering some extra functionality to turn up the desired task quickly. To name a few- Angular.js, Backbone.js, EmberJS, KnockoutJS, etc. all these frameworks have their own perspectives based on the functionality, features, size, dependencies and interoperability. Based on the statistical reports of Infoq.com, it is found that AngularJS has been the preferable framework in most of the cases. Also Angular has jQuery dependency, which makes it a good choice for web development. Angular provides a ready framework that works with multiple libraries which can be added on as required.
Let say, if you would like to send some requests to a backend server and display the results on a web page and vice versa. We can perform this simply in both Angular and jQuery. But with Angular it goes really well against jQuery with one big difference. It does not involve us to think of the back and forth DOM translations as opulent to jQuery. In jQuery, the view and the logic or behavior which affects those elements is left to the developer to split them. In jQuery, if we wish to update a specific DOM element with backend data it has to be coded. There is no separation as to which is the data and which is the controller of the data.
That’s where AngularJS comes into play with its two way data binding. Angular separates the UI data and the UI representation of data. The code in AngularJS is the translation of data to the DOM and vice versa. Angular makes this binding ideal, while increasing productivity. This is the best way to separate data and the HTML view code.
Angular provides rich ‘desktop like’ applications and features that you don’t get with using a jQuery library.
When looking for a comprehensive all-in-one solution, AngularJS is the right choice between the two. Its two-way data binding, in-built directives and filters allows developers to build applications very rapidly. So if you are looking for a lightweight and modular front-end framework for developing fast and powerful web interfaces, AngularJS is the apt framework to build complex applications. I hope this post has made you think about Angular.js as being a more than viable replacement to jQuery.