Mike West

Recent Writing

1. JSLint needs some Bad Parts
   May 16, 2010

   One of the few tools that I consider truly indispensable when developing websites is JSLint. Too bad it’s almost impossible to contribute back to the project, and that the project’s run by someone who “will hurt your feelings.”

2. A JavaScript Detection Pattern
   March 06, 2010

   Progressive enhancement of our sites and applications has become a relatively well accepted best practice for web development. This article outlines a technique I've used successfully to ensure that core functionality is available without JavaScript, while maintaining a quality experience for the majority of users with JavaScript enabled.

3. CSS Rules of Thumb
   February 22, 2010

   Apropos of nothing, a few CSS tips that have nothing to do with browser incompatibilities, and everything to do with your own sanity when dealing with code you've written.

4. An Accessible Pagination Pattern
   February 09, 2010

   Pagination is a basic building block of the web, but it’s often implemented with markup that makes it less accessible than it ought to be. Here, I've outlined my preferred solution to the problem.

5. MacSpeech Dictate: First Impressions
   November 19, 2009

   I suspect that the first thing any developer does when they get their hands on MacSpeech Dictate is to begin writing a review of MacSpeech Dictate in MacSpeech Dictate. I am no exception.

6. My Jekyll Fork
   November 12, 2009

   Jekyll is a well-architected throwback to a time before Wordpress, when men were men, and HTML was static. I like the ideas it espouses, and have made a few improvements to it’s core. Here, I’ll point out some highlights of my fork in the hopes that they see usage beyond this site.

7. Fallow fields, revisited
   October 04, 2009

   I'm currently in the process of gutting my website, and rebuilding it piece by piece. I suspect I'm doing this to distract myself from the fact that I don’t seem to have anything interesting floating around my head to write about. Rather that catalog the failings of the system I'm replacing (for they are legion), in this article I'd like to touch on the carefully considered bits I'm keeping around.

8. Productivity Or My Lack Thereof
   September 23, 2009

   It’s becoming clear that I'm miserable at distinguishing between productivity and productivity porn.

9. Mnot's Redbot
   May 23, 2009

   Mark Nottingham has put together a really useful tool that aids in the analysis of the behavior of HTTP resources. I've started putting together a command line version based on the web version he’s released on GitHub.

10. Playing with Placemaker
    May 21, 2009