Open Source: Firefox as Web Dev Tool

Firefox - web authoring reference pages

I am the first to admit that I am resistant to change. It took a lot for me to switch from Internet Explorer/Outlook Express to the Mozilla Suite (see some reasons why this switch is a good decision) a couple of years ago. I did install Firefox shortly after it was released on my second PC, but only ran it as an alternate browser. Aside from having a smaller footprint resource-wise and running a bit faster, I was not aware until last night the potential that Firefox has as web development tool.

Today, I installed the latest version of Firefox and the Thunderbird e-mail client (I had played with it a little bit on my other PC) on this PC and imported all my Mozilla mail settings. I am now a full FF/Tbird convert. I stumbled upon Firefox's DOM Inspector last night and was amazed at it. I have started exploring some the extensions available for Firefox and have installed a couple, including the Web Development extension. I would like to explore the DOM Inspector and the Web Dev extension in future posts.

I've been hand coding pages in MetaPad for years. I think it's time for a change. There are sophisticated tools out there- free, open-source tools- that can make a faster, more efficient process of it all. I just have to open my mind to the thought of using them, take the time to learn to use them, and get used to using them. I have a few links under the OpenSource section in the sidebar, and I hope to build on that- everything you need to develop a sophisticated site, free for the downloading.

Why Open Source software? From Open Source Advantages and Limitations, "In theory and in general, the supposed advantages of Open Source type of software are that it becomes more stable, adaptable, better in quality, more frequently revised and updated, more secure while remaining free."

And in a broader scope, "Over time, if fully developed, the new models of software development could produce innovative, cost-efficient software at much less cost than today... It could also help check the excesses of a market-dominated culture by fortifying these "gift culture" communities while mitigating worrisome concentrations of corporate power in the software industry."

I personally have had great experiences with Open Source (and other free) applications- without exception, considerably superior experiences over their commercial counterparts. Perhaps one day, I will set myself free from Microsoft altogether and learn how to operate from within the installation of Linux I have on another partition of my hard drive. :-)

<webcoding /> Mission Statement

It is with a great sense of anticipation and joy that I begin this blog. I am looking forward to the work I hope to do here- basically to explore solutions to the challenges I have come up against while working with XHTML, CSS, JavaScript, and PHP, with an emphasis on open source technologies.

I have come across many problem-solving opportunities in my classes, particularly with browser inconsistencies in the implementation of CSS. I only wish I had taken notes along the way rather than rely on my faulty memory. But I did gather an enormous list of links and have retained the work I did that included the workarounds and fixes.

Now I will have a place to document these things, hopefully cutting down on my Googling for solutions I have already implemented to problems I've previously encountered. I intend to link to my work, to examples, and to a list of resources I'll be organizing on the accompanying web site, webcoding.640k.net.