Great web design site

[Tags: web design, new media]. Thanks to Mindy McAdams for pointing out this one: Web Design From Scratch is an excellent resource for all aspects of web design, from the design process itself to graphic design, site architecture, HTML and CSS.

PAS 78 Guide to Good Practice in Commissioning Accessible Websites

[Tags: web design, new media, accessibility]. Here's a document you should be familiar with if you're commissioning people to design websites - the PAS 78 Guide to Good Practice in Commissioning Accessible Websites. It "outlines good practice in commissioning websites that are accessible to and usable by disabled people". What a shame, then, that the BSI are charging £30 for businesses to access it themselves...

Interactive PR: Bad use of Flash

On my other site, Interactive PR, I write about Bad use of Flash

Sharing and streaming video

[Tags: web design, new media]. Here's a useful site if you want to stream media - Grouper. It's currently in beta but allows you to stream media to your own networks of up to 50 people. Also worth checking out is imeem, which also sells the whole personal networking thing.

Open Source online shop/e-commerce facility

[Tags: web design, new media]. If you're looking to set up an e-commerce project, it may be worth investigating osCommerce, an open source "set of out-of-the-box online shopping cart functionality that allows store owners to setup, run, and maintain their online stores with minimum effort and with no costs, license fees, or limitations involved."

Feedback is generally positive, although users must login before purchasing, which can drive away customers.

Online video and TV finally converge

[Tags: web design, new media]. From the 27th February Online Publisher's Association mailing:

"Online video and TV finally converge
We've heard so much about convergence and the digital living room, that we can be excused for not believing it would ever come. But now, after years of fits and starts, true convergence is starting to happen as TV content and online video are blurring their boundaries. DirecTV is offering a service for broadband users to download video to special boxes so it can provide a type of pay-per-view experience. NBC debuted a new TV show, "Conviction," via free iTunes downloads. The Wall Street Journal recently looked at this growing convergence in two separate articles. "A range of manufacturers and service providers are pushing devices such as new set-top boxes and specialized PCs to allow consumers to watch video from the Internet on their actual TV sets," wrote Kevin Delaney and Bobby White in one article. "But, in the meantime, consumers appear increasingly willing to view videos on their computer screens."

The other Journal article looked at the "industry land grab" happening among video startups online as online video goes mainstream. Taking center stage was Brightcove, a video startup that has helped Reuters distribute its video reports to any site that wants to run a player -- including the conservative blog Wizbang. Plus, Brightcove and other video sites such as YouTube promise to let anyone get their independent video in front of millions of people without traditional distribution. "Once, producers of films, TV shows and video material relied on other big companies -- broadcast networks, cable systems -- to get shows in front of an audience," wrote WSJ's Peter Grant. "Now, these new forms of distribution could turn anyone into a producer with a nearly endless array of possible outlets." The only downside? News.com reports all this online video is straining the Net's backbone.

»	Choices Expand for Watching TV on Your PC (WSJ; paid subscription required)
»	Online Video Goes Mainstream, Sparking an Industry Land Grab (WSJ; paid subscription required)
»	NBC launches new show with iTunes promo (Reuters)
»	Satellite-TV Firm Prepares to Offer Video Downloads (WSJ; paid subscription required)
»	TV catches the Net video bug (News.com)
»	Net video explosion triggers traffic jam worries (News.com)

"

Google Gmail for domains

[Tags: web design, new media]. Google are now offering Gmail for domains - as reported at Marketing Blog, who remarks:

"Features include:A control panel where you can, “create new users, modify
or suspend accounts, create aliases and lists, and customize the look and feel
of Gmail for marketingblog.com. You can even upload whole lists of new users
with the bulk upload feature, and assign administrative rights to multiple
accounts.”"

I'm not sure how many people would use this - do you need to own the domain? I'm assuming so, in which case you'd also own the email addresses and be able to redirect them (including to a Gmail account). I can see a certain advantage for companies too small to own an email server but too big to want to simply redirect.