Web Design and Graphics

Standard free instant messaging/live chat applications offer functions like file transfer, contact lists, the ability to have simultaneous conversations etc. These may be all the functions that a small business needs but larger organizations will require more sophisticated applications and live support those can work together. The solution to finding applications capable of this is to use enterprise versions of instant messaging applications and live chat software. These include titles like XMPP, Lotus Sametime, Microsoft Office Communicator, etc., which are often integrated with other enterprise applications such as workflow systems. These enterprise applications, or Enterprise Application Integration (EAI), are built to certain constraints, namely storing data in a common format.

There are two ways to combine the many disparate protocols:

1. One way is to combine the many disparate protocols inside the IM client application.

2. The other way is to combine the many disparate protocols inside the IM server application. This approach moves the task of communicating to the other services to the server. Clients need not know or care about other IM protocols. For example, LCS 2005 Public IM Connectivity. This approach is popular in XMPP servers; however, the so-called transport projects suffer the same reverse engineering difficulties as any other project involved with closed protocols or formats.

Some approaches allow organizations to create their own private instant messaging network by enabling them to limit access to the server (often with the IM network entirely behind their firewall) and administer user permissions. Other corporate messaging systems allow registered users to also connect from outside the corporation LAN, by using a secure firewall-friendly HTTPS-based protocol. Typically, a dedicated corporate IM server has several advantages such as pre-populated contact lists, integrated authentication, and better security and privacy.

Some networks have made changes to prevent them from being utilized by such multi-network IM clients. For example, Trillian had to release several revisions and patches to allow its users to access the MSN, AOL, and Yahoo! networks, after changes were made to these networks. The major IM providers typically cite the need for formal agreements as well as security concerns as reasons for making these changes.

The complex web of servers consists of computer systems installed with Web server software and connected to the Internet. These servers can be found in any facility with Internet connectivity. The process of maintaining and operating one the owner of the Web site, or it can be outsourced to a Web presence provider (WPP).

WPPs are typically companies with one or more data-center facilities that are connected to the Internet. Web hosting provided by WPPs can vary widely with respect to service quality and cost. Some providers consist simply of a room in the basement of a house and a tier-1 (T1) line connected to the local ISP. However, are corporations with state of the art hosting centers consisting of redundant fiber paths for high-speed Internet connections, redundant electrical power sources, a dry pipe–fire suppression system, and an experienced operations group, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Webhosting can be provided on a shared computer environment or on a dedicated computer system. When a Web site consists only of standard HTML code and receives a small number of visitors, shared hosting service is the best solution. When a Web site consists of complex common gateway interface (CGI) scripts and proprietary programs and receives a large number of visitors, dedicated hosting service is the best solution.

Instead of designing graphic intensive web sites that take ages to load, you can use HTML tables creatively to get a professional looking web page that loads super fast. This article discusses many useful table tips and tricks on designing a great web page. Live examples and cut ‘n’ paste code are also provided for you to try out some great designs.

Tips on using Tables

• Always give the width for each of the cells in a table. Make sure that the total of the cells in a row adds up to the table width. This will avoid many complications.
• Try not to merge or break apart cells within a table. This again causes all kinds of problems.
• When using widths or heights that are less than 10 pixels insert a shim or a transparent gif (1x 1 pixel). If you use Fireworks you will find a shim in your Fireworks file, or you can just export a 1x 1 transparent image and call it a shim. This trick is mainly for a table to work in a Netscape browser.
• Netscape cannot understand height in percentages, so if you ever need to give a height for your tables, make sure it is in terms of pixels.

Let’s try out some cool designs using only tables