DeepBlueSky Blog

In 2009 the team here at Deep Blue Sky launched one of the first HTML5 and CSS3 testing websites as a tool to help the web community embrace new technologies.

The site, fmbip.com, has been well received for a couple of years now. More recently however, there's been a plethora of new and similar services spring up to the point where I've found it difficult to keep track of the options we now have available to us as web designers.

We felt it would be helpful if we rounded up a selection of the best and most popular services out there for you to evaluate. The following list is by no means comprehensive but I provides a good overview of the options available today.

Haz.io

Built by Philipp Bosch, haz.io uses the power of Modernzir to give you a quick overview of your browser’s support for recent technologies in the world of HTML, CSS and Javascript. Similar in concept to fmbip.com, the site features a striking green design and is responsive down to mobile for testing on the go!

There are currently some small glitches with edge case mobile device results but in general this site provides a really great overview.

http://haz.io/

HTML5Please

A community project contributed to by the likes of Paul Irish, html5please.us aims to provide users with a clear and opinionated statement on whether a given HTML5/CSS3 feature is ready to use.

Three statuses are availble to provide you with an instant answer:

1. Use (use with polyfill)
2. Caution (use with fallback)
3. Avoid (not well supported)

Given that it's produced by the people behind HTML5 Boilerplate, Modernizr and CSS3please Please you can be pretty sure that the tests are accurate, reliable and up to date. In short - a great resource.

http://html5please.us

Mobile HTML5

Unlike many of the other sites in this roundup mobilehtml5.org doesn't aim to provide a detailed breakdown of ever minor test. Instead it details whether a paritcular W3C Standard is supported or not.

As you'd expect from the title, the site focuses exclusively on mobile. Whilst it's still marked as "beta" it's brought to you by Nokia Developer Champion and mobile expert Maximiliano Firtman and so you can be confident it's a worthy resource.

http://mobilehtml5.org

The HTML5 Test

The HTML5 Test website tests your current browsers' support for HTML and CSS3 features and returns a score out of 475. Whilst the score itself is perhaps less useful, it's great to be able to quickly scan a well presented round up of the features support by your current browser.

The site provides test for a wide range of features and creator Niels Leenheer appears to be actively developing the site so expect more tests to be added as and when new features appear.

http://html5test.com

HTML5 Readiness

One of the more unusual layouts in this list, html5readiness.com provides the vistor with a series of bands representing different HTML5 & CSS3 features. Each band radiates outwards and is split into colours based on which browsers support the given feature.

The intention is to give an immediate visual overview of which features are best support. As a bonus you can also wind back the clock on the chart and see support from 2008 onwards.

http://html5readiness.com/

When can I use

Perhaps the most widely known site on this list, caniuse.com provides a comprehensives overview of HTML5 and CSS3 features and grades the support of each browser as:

• Supported
• Not supported
• Partially supported
• Support unknown

The tests encompass both older versions of each browser as well as what future versions are expected to implement. In theory this should allow you to make informed choices about whether to include a feature in your site. Combine that with the regular updates and caniuse.com becomes an indispensible part of any developers toolkit.

As a bonus the entire test suite which produces the tests can be found at tests.caniuse.com, which is extremely useful and interesting in and of itself.

caniuse.com

Quirksmode.org - compatibility tables

Managed by well known mobile platform strategist, consultant, and trainer Peter-Paul Koch, Quirksmode's compaitibity tables provide a wealth of information about browser compatibility. Tables are provided for CSS2 & 3, various DOM items as well as a smaller (as yet incomplete) set for HTML5.

Perhaps the most useful of these are the CSS tables which go into detail on a variety of features.

http://www.quirksmode.org/compatibility.html

FindMeByIP

Of course we couldn't have made this list without including our very own FindMeByIP.com. Recently relaunched it now features a range of new HTML5 and CSS3 tests and browser support tests all of which have been hand-checked against the other sites on this list.

In the pipeline is a page of Mobile device browser support which should prove extremely useful

http://fmbip.com/litmus/

I hope this has been a useful round up. If you think I've missed off any great resources please let us know in the comments and we'll be sure to update the list.

Here at DeepBlueSky we’re a little obsessive about monitoring things. To clarify, we mean our websites, servers, and general infrastructure: we like to provide the best service we possibly can, and to do this we have to measure performance and availability of all our services.

On the rare occasions when something is out of whack, we like to be told straight away so we can deal with whatever issues arise immediately. For this, we have our alerts and monitoring software. When something deviates from what it should be, we’re told. This could be a service being slower than it should be, or a spike in traffic, or any number of other things.

Recently we decided to try sending our alerts over twitter: we’ve almost always got one eye glued to our phone in anticipation of the next DM or mention, so it seemed like the most natural choice. To do this, we’ve stuck with our standard monitoring software, Nagios, and started using a piece of open source software called Twurl.

What is Twurl?

Twurl is a commandline tool like curl which provides a very simple way to access to twitter's API. The basics of setting this up are: create a twitter account for nagios, create a twitter dev account and an app, auth twurl to this app on the commandline, and then go on your merry way sending alerts.

A Nagios alert for using Twurl might look something like this:

# ‘notify-host-by-twurl’ command definition
define command {

command_name notify-host-by-twurl
command_line /usr/local/bin/twurl -d "status=d $CONTACTNAME$ $NOTIFICATIONTYPE$ : $TIME$ : $HOSTALIAS$ :: $HOSTSTATE$ ($HOSTOUTPUT$)" /1/statuses/update.xml

}

After putting this wherever you keep your commands in Nagios (commands.cfg, for instance), add the alert to the relevant services and hosts in the standard way. This is the simple, standard part, and there are many guides which cover the subject in great detail elsewhere.

NB:Contactname should be the person's twitter handle: any other Nagios macro can be used provided it references a valid twitter handle.

The clever bit. Skip to here if you know the bits above..

However, Nagios strips out all environment variables; Twurl relies on knowing the home directory of the user who is sending the message (in our case, the Nagios user) in order to access that user's Twurl credentials file. The result is that Twurl won't work with Nagios until a minor change to the code is made, as it will not know which directory to look in. The fix is as follows:

This is the file which needs to be modified:

 rcfile.rb 

In this file the first few lines should look like this:

module Twurl
class RCFile

FILE = '.twurlrc'
@directory ||= ENV['HOME']

class << self
attr_accessor :directory

And beneath is the modification:

module Twurl
class RCFile

FILE = '.twurlrc'
@directory ||= '/home/nagioshomedir/'

class << self
attr_accessor :directory

This modification means Nagios stripping environment variables no longer has any impact, and allows you to use it for alerts. Potentially, Twurl could be modified to accept a home-directory argument that would still assume whatever is in the ENV if it is available.

Oh, and one last thing to avoid tripping over: don't forget to follow your new monitor on twitter, and have it follow you too. If you don't do that, then your service's DMs won't land in your inbox when you need them most.

The Challenge

Explorers Connect came to DeepBlueSky looking for an agency to help them transform their static website into an interactive, thriving online social community for Explorers throughout the world. Check out the site at Explorers Connect.

Due to anticipated growth the team at Explorers needed a platform that would be able to scale quickly and effectively in order to meet their changing demands.

Expert Consultancy

Over the course of a few weeks DeepBlueSky worked with the team at Explorers in order to help them agree a specification which met their needs in terms of both budget and business goals. This expert consultancy proved to be invaluable to the team at Explorers and ensured the final website was delivered on spec and to a strict budget.

The brief was to produce a social platform for explorers and adventurers of any skill level, providing news on adventures, expeditions, professional explorers and local groups. The members of the website are then able to follow the different items on the website to receive regular updates via their personal news stream and email updates.

What we delivered

Having agreed a specification, the team at Deep Blue Sky rebuilt the entire Explorers Connect website from the ground up using the latest version of Deep Blue Sky's Spirit Framework; a development platform that can integrate Content Management, eCommerce, CRM and email marketing.

Fully integrated with social media, the site allows quick sign up via Facebook or Twitter ensuring that the team at Explorers can maximise their influence in the global market. Our web development team constructed a unique database that allows for multiple item types that have inherent qualities, such as following and commenting. Each member of the site can add new posts, follow items that they are interested in, and interact and discuss with other members by commenting on posts.

Want to know more?

Here at DeepBlueSky we provide a range of services from design and technical development to digital consultancy and social media integration.

To find out more about how we can help you contact us online or call 01225 444674.

Here at Deep Blue Sky, we've recently had some good experience in the area of producing "smart phone" apps.

Last year we launched an iPhone application for local business MES, whilst this year saw the beta launch of twiDAQ for Mobile.

Both of these could be termed "Mobile Apps" but there are fundemental differences between the two, which whilst obvious to us as developers are less obvious to our clients and business partners.

The 3 types of "app"

The three types of "app" currently available are:

1. Native
2. Web
3. Hybrid

Each of these has it's own advantages and disadvantages and it is vital that you and your business understand the differences in order to ensure you get the best return for your investment.

App Type #1: Native Application

I simple terms, a "Native" application is a downloadable app which is installed and run directly from the phone/device. The Genus Trait Handbook app is an example of a "Native" application.

Native applications are written specifically for the target mobile device's operating system (iOS, Android, Windows OS...etc) and are always in it's own specific coding language (Objective-C, Java...etc).

Each operating system requires the application to be written entirely from scratch in that language. This usually requires there to be a separate body of core application code for each device on which you wish to run the application.

So, for example, say you were developing an app to run on Windows Phone and iOS devices, then you would need one body of code for Windows and another entirely separate body of code for iOS.

As the languages are entirely different, each operating system also requires a developer skilled in that particular language to produce the application. Obviously these two factors can significantly increase development costs.

Advantages:

• fast,
• specifically tailored to operating system
• feels "Native" to the device

Disadvantages:

• more costly to build
• more costly to maintain
• narrow/limited audience
• maintaining multiple "versions" of the application across the various mobile device operating systems is labour intensive

App Type #2: Mobile Web Application

Unlike the "Native" application Mobile Web Applications are not downloadable from traditional app stores such as the Apple App Store or the Android Market. Instead they are more akin to a website which has been specifically developed and highly optimised to look and feel similiar to a native app.

This means - in theory at least - they can be accessed and run by anyone with a suitably modern smartphone no matter which device or operating system they happen to be using. The twiDAQ Mobile application (currently in beta) is an example of a web application.

Mobile Web applications are usually written using "open" web coding languages (HTML, CSS, Javascript) which are the foundation stone of almost every website on the internet. The primary benefit of this is that it means that your developers/agency can build a mobile app utilising the some of the technologies in which they are already proficient. This should help bring the cost down for you and your business.

Another point to consider is monetisation. Mobile Web Apps can't be distributed via the App stores, but if you believe your app provides a sufficiently important service then you could distribute it from behind a paywall. With no middle man, this means you can pocket nigh-on 100% of the profits of your app with no for lengthly approval processes. 

Advantages:

• runs on any device (Blackberry, iPhone, any Android Phone, any Windows...etc)
• single codebase means it's easy to update and maintain
• utilizes "open web" technologies meaning it's less costly to develop

Disadvantages:

• Not quite as slick/polished as a fully native application
• Requires initial web connection - although can be made to run largely offline.
• Can only be distributed via the web - no App Store distribution network.
• Offline storage of data is limited/capped - consider if your app is data intensive

App Type #3: Hybrid Application

A "Hybrid" application is essentially an application which is developed using "open web" technologies and then packaged up into a fully native application. Once packaged this application is essentially fully native and can be downloaded onto the device and also distributed via the various App stores.

As per the "Mobile Web " apprach, Hybrid applications utilize skills in which your developers should already been fluent. Whilst there is a learning curve to understanding the technologies involved in the "packaging process", the ability access all the features of a modern "smart phone" (camera, motion sensors...etc) via a single coding language potentially allows for faster and less costly development.

A major advantage of this approach is that there is one single codebase from which it is - in theory - possible tos produce several "native" versions of your application for:

• iOS
• Android
• Blackberry
• Windows Phone
• WebOS
• Symbian

...which pretty much covers the entire smartphone market!

It's worth considering that this technology is still relatively new, but a vibrant commuinity means that development is proceeding a-pace, with new capabilities being added at every turn.

Advantages:

• Single codebase produces multiple applications - extremely cost effective.
• Takes advantage of open web technologies in which your developer team will be already skilled - cost effective
• Native Application benefits - distribute via app stores, runs on device, has access to all features of device

Disadvantages:

• Perhaps not 100% as slick as a fully native application
• Potential for issues with debugging across various platforms as not writing pure "native" code
  Estimate Ballpark Costs

Final thoughts and recommendations

I you're looking for your app to reach the widest possible audience and also be ready to respond to changes in the mobile web market then either the "Hybrid" or the "Mobile Web Application" are the best options. These will also be the most cost effective in the long term both in terms of initial build cost and overall maintainability.

However, if you're happy to only target a specific device/operating system then perhaps the more polishied experience of a Native application is the best option.

If you're unsure, I would suggest erring on the side of caution and looking at either Hybrid or "Mobile Web Application" approaches.

Of course this is only a basic overview and it's important to recognise that each project needs to be approached on it's own merits and requirements. If you're looking to produce your first app, why not speak to us at Deep Blue Sky today?

Early in 2011, Deep Blue Sky were chosen to design and build an innovative web application powered by data from social networking websites.

twiDAQ is an online stock exchange game where players compete to gain virtual capital and level-up to gain exciting rewards. The game works on many of the same principles as a real stock market, utilising statistics from Twitter to allow people to trade fantasy shares in celebrities, companies, TV shows and more.

Why did twiDAQ choose Deep Blue Sky?

twiDAQ chose to work with Deep Blue Sky specifically due to our experience with the latest web technologies (including HTML and CSS3), our proven design record and our ability to solve any technical problem not matter how challenging. As one of the most complicated website's Deep Blue Sky has ever been required to produce, twiDAQ testifies to the abiilty of our team to solve a range of visual and technical problems to produce a quality end product.

The Technical Challenge

To create the game mechanics, our technical team had to harness data from Twitter, skilfully manipulating it to create a realistic trading environment where trending patterns on Twitter trigger fluctuations in the twiDAQ marketplace. Happily the technical challenge of utilising the power of the social networks to drive twiDAQ came easily to our technical team, who regularly employ social networking tools to aid clients such as Dickies Workwear Ltd and Room for Romance.

All of the data generated by twiDAQ has to be stored and processed by Deep Blue Sky’s web framework Spirit, which is used to run all of our client projects from small businesses to large hotel booking sites. The ability of Spirit to cope with the huge volume of data generated by the game testifies to the platform's capacity to match the demands of any project.

The Design Challenge

The twiDAQ game was previously in live testing for 12 months during which time thousands of excited players signed up, buying and selling over 75 million shares.

Drawing on feedback gained during the trial period, our Design team redesigned the twiDAQ interface from the ground up. A robust design process of wireframes, storyboarding and user research ensured that we were able to produce a design which was no only visually appealing but also incorporated a wealth of exciting new features and enhancements to the gameplay.

Try it for yourself

Having sucessfully launched in early November, twiDAQ is now live and available to play online for free. Simply sign up at twidaq.com. Be warned however, it's extremely addictive!

If you'd like to speak to Deep Blue Sky about creating your online game or application get in touch online or simply call 01225 444674.

Deep Blue Sky work with a range of agencies to provide both design and technical solutions. In 2010 we were approached by a leading Bristol marketing agency to design and produce a promotional website for Wicked Pig, a popular snack brand here in the UK.

The Challenge

Wicked Pig wanted to promote their brand through a viral marketing campaign based on their microsite, Sty TV. As a result, Deep Blue Sky were selected to produce an exciting socially powered competition website where entrants would compete to pull the best "Snout Pout" (gurning face).

The primary challenge was to ensure that the website integrated with social networks in order to ensure widespread engagement from the target audience.

A secondary requirement was to produce a design that was exciting and visually appealing in order to ensure visitor retention and increase engagement.

What we delivered

Building on the current theme of the Sty TV website and following the strict brand guidelines provided by Wicked Pig, our design team created a design concept which was both "on brand" and visually enagaging. This was achieved thanks to a robust design process which included user research, wireframing and mooboarding, thereby ensureing that the final concept exceeded the expectations of our client.

Working alongside this, our technical developers produced the competition framework to complement the design. Building on the power of Deep Blue Sky's own Spirit web framework, the team were able to easily create the full competition mechnic, from user logins and account management to voting and automatic emails.

Socially Powered

A key part of the entire project was integration with social media. Deep Blue Sky's extensive experience with the technical side of Facebook and Twitter ensured that we were able to seemlessly weave social tools into the website to enhance the experience for user and provide greater viral potential for our client.

Thanks to our technical team, users were presented with a steamlined sign up process allowing them to login via previously created Twitter or Facebook accounts. Once authenticated, the website was able to automatically post to social "Walls" and "Streams" during each major interaction with the website, which served to enhance the site's visibility on various social network's.

Want to know more?

Sty TV is just one example of how DeepBlueSky work clients and their agencies to help them realise their marketing goals online. We provide a range of services from design and technical development to digital consultancy and social media integration.

To find out more about how we can help you contact us online or call 01225 444674.

On Monday I gave the following short talk to the AGM of Bath's FSB branch.

My talk covered:

• Choosing who to build your site
• The basics of SEO
• Making sure your site is effective
• Choosing a CMS
• Twitter, Facebook and when to be social
• Measuring - particularly Google Analytics
• Ensuring longevity

Do: ensure your website adapts for a range of devices

With mobile growth expected to outstrip desktop use as soon as next year, it’s fairly safe to predict that the number of people accessing your website via a “device” (smart phone, tablet, television .etc) will expand. You need to ensure your website provides a suitable experience for whoever is accessing your site, wherever they are. However this doesn’t necessarily have to mean an expensive iPhone or Android app…

Recent technical developments in the online space have enabled web agencies to produce a single version of your website which scales up (both in terms of functionality and design) as your visitors’ device capabilities increase. This single site should provide a good experience whether you’re on the latest desktop PC/Mac or the most basic feature phone (and a range of devices in between), ensuring your visitors leave with a good impression of your business.

The extra work required to produce a “responsive” website is likely to cost you a little more, but the long term benefits of having a future-proof, mobile-ready website cannot be overstated.

Do: ensure your website is measurable

So you’ve got a future-proof website, but how will you know if the investment was worth it?

All too often businesses approach a new website build with no idea of how they will measure its success. Ask yourself: “how will I/my business/my boss know that the website is providing value for money?”. Perhaps it’s the number of contact form enquiries, or maybe the number of successful checkouts completed each month. Every business is different, but whatever the metric, modern web design agencies have a wealth of tracking solutions available to help you measure the performance of your website.

Be sure to communicate your goals clearly at the start of the project and ensure your agency is able to provide the data you need.

Do: Engage with your Agency

Modern web design is a complicated craft and your web design agency’s staff will be experts in their chosen field. Therefore in order for your website to be a success you will need to actively engage with your web designers to ensure they understand your requirements and have the resources necessary to complete your project.

In our experience the most successful businesses nominate a single individual within their company to be responsible for the website project. This person liaises with all internal stakeholders and ensures a smooth line of communication with the web design agency and visa versa. The result marries the technical expertise of your web design agency with your knowledge of your business’s customers to produce a great website which really works for your company.

Don’t: build it and leave it to run

Your website represents an on-going opportunity to invest in the growth of your business and enables you to market to a potentially massive audience. However, the web is a fast moving field and a poorly maintained or out-dated website can just as easily have a negative effect on your potential customers. Do not build your website and then leave it to languish.

A responsible agency should encourage their clients to continually invest in moving their website forward, providing them with the tools they require to manage their site and flexible financial solutions to ensure they have the on-going support they require.

Ultimately, regular investment in your website will help you avoid a painfully costly redesign every 2-3 years and instead enable you to focus on producing a relevant marketing platform for your business.

Don’t: do it on the cheap

Your website represents the public face of your company. You wouldn’t buy a cheap suit so why opt for a low cost “off the shelf” solution for your website?

A modern website requires a considerable amount of expertise to produce and so it’s vital you invest in engaging a good agency that will provide a high quality solution for your business, not necessarily the one offering the best “deal”. Remember, a good website will pay for itself whilst a poor website will only reflect badly on you and your business.

Don’t: assume you need social media

I’m sure you’ve heard it said that you must be on Twitter and/or Facebook to survive. After all everyone’s using it and so by not using it you’re missing a trick right? Not necessarily.

Not every business will be suitable for social media. For example if you’re target audience aren’t active on Facebook then employing someone to post the latest company news will consume resources to little or no gain.

Many companies do use social media to successfully engage with their customer base and if used effectively, the benefits can be huge. However, before you jump in head-first, you should assess the relative merits and decide whether the investment will provide value for money.

Deep Blue Sky has been working with twiDAQ to produce a virtual stock market game which will soon be available to play online. Working on many of the same principles as a real stock market, the game utilises statistics from Twitter to allow people to trade fantasy shares in celebrities, companies, TV shows and more.

Managing Director Jim Morrison explains, “twiDAQ adheres very closely to the stock-exchange metaphor, with people trading shares in the most popular Twitter accounts.”

“Players will compete to gain virtual capital and level-up to gain exciting rewards. The most savvy will be able to trade their way to top and beat their friends to be crowned master traders.”

To create the game mechanics, the Deep Blue Sky team harness data from Twitter, skilfully manipulating it to create a realistic trading environment where trending patterns on the social networking site trigger fluctuations in the twiDAQ marketplace.

The technical challenge of utilising the power of the social networks to drive twiDAQ came easily to the team at Deep Blue Sky, who regularly employ social networking tools to aid clients such as Dickies Workwear Ltd and Room for Romance.

The current version of the game was previously in live testing for 12 months during which time thousands of excited players signed up, buying and selling over 75 million shares.

All of the data generated was stored and processed by Deep Blue Sky’s
web framework Spirit, which is used to run all their client projects from small businesses to large hotel booking sites. The huge volume of data managed during the trial period alone, testifies to the platform's ability to match the demands of any project.

Drawing on feedback gained during the trial period, Deep Blue Sky has redesigned the twiDAQ interface. With a track record of producing attractive and user-friendly websites, their designers have worked to incorporate a wealth of exciting new features and further enhancements to the gameplay.

A flexible development process has enabled the agency to efficiently prototype the design, applying their knowledge of the latest web technologies – including HTML5 – to create an exciting interface which marries engaging user experience with visual design to great effect.

Senior Designer, David Smith added, “I think users will be really excited to see the new and innovative elements of gameplay that our design team have introduced to twiDAQ. The new interface really illustrates the power of the new technologies we have available on the web.”

To keep up to date with all the news from Deep Blue Sky you can follow them on Twitter @deepbluetweets or visit www.deepbluesky.com

A young, pioneering digital agency from Bath is continuing to go from strength to strength amidst a competitive market.

Over the past 12 months, innovative web firm Deep Blue Sky has doubled the size of its team and relocated to bigger offices as a result.

The company, formed in November 2008 by Managing Director Jim Morrison, was previously based in a unit at Green Park Station, but following several major contract wins the operation has moved to offices in Beehive Yard to accommodate four new members of staff.

The new space is double the size of their previous unit, and the move has also enabled the company to invest £10,000 in new equipment.

New staff members Zach Dowd, John Hackett and Dan Brandon have joined Jim Morrison, David Smith and Henry Everett as part of a team which has worked with companies including Dickies, American Express and Hewlett Packard.

Jim Morrison says that he puts the success of the business down to an innovative approach to gaining tangible results for businesses in what can be a difficult market place.

“The move to new offices has been a big step for us but we had simply outgrown the offices where I set the business up. It’s definitely an exciting time for Deep Blue Sky – we’re working on some big projects for a really diverse range of clients from national companies down to local businesses.”

“Deep Blue Sky always approaches contracts with a creative and pioneering mentality which has definitely helped to set us apart from the competition. It has certainly contributed to our success over the past 18 months as well as the success of the clients we work with.”

"One major area of focus this year is the extension of our web applications to iPhone, Android and iPad applications and the development of some very interesting new business tools for handheld devices."

In addition to its contracted workload, Deep Blue Sky ensures that time is set apart each week to allow the team to develop new and exciting ideas for the web.

As part its commitment to innovation, last year the company offered a prize of £10,000 worth of web design to the individual who could come up with the most innovative idea. The competition attracted entries from around the world, with the winning idea coming from Canada.

To keep up to date with all the news from Deep Blue Sky you can follow them on Twitter @deepbluetweets or visit www.deepbluesky.com

First up: Individuals.

The meaning and implications of “free” software.

Ubuntu is, in my opinion, already good enough to not have to compete on cost. So it is only a happy coincidence that it does: no license fees or distribution costs spells a cheaper computer, whether it is for yourself or your company. The word free in this context has another connotation though: it is free to use, and free to modify. Modifying Ubuntu and the majority of the software it runs is not just permitted, but encouraged. So if you’re an interested amateur or a professional with free time, you can do what you like with your operating system. If you’re just an end user this might not sound interesting, but the benefit for non-coders is simply that coders will usually share whatever they make in the same way that Linux itself is shared.
The outcome of this is that Ubuntu (and Linux in general) has thousands of applications, great and small, to handle virtually any task. Just a few examples are OpenOffice for your spreadsheets and word documents, Banshee to organise your music into a library and export it onto mp3 players, Firefox and Chrome for powerful, fast, secure browsers, and a lot more beside.

Setting it up, keeping it running:

Configuration is also simple: from the moment you hit “install” you use a functional but very pretty interface that hides everything you don’t need to look at. That’s a pretty broad category, because as you’d expect, it can work most things out by itself. All you need to do is make a few choices of applications to install and name a few users and you’re ready to go. Likewise, after installation, everything is covered: there are utilities for every task from networks to filesystems that let you look after your computer for you, while letting you play around and customise things your own way. Setting up networks, display settings, and all those little things that make your computer more enjoyable to use, can be considered trivial tasks.
There’s a little problem with this, though: this doesn’t “one-up” Windows or OSX on functionality, though: it attains parity, but without the price tag. The real advantages lie in Ubuntu’s package management system. Windows and OSX don’t have the same wealth of free applications, and they definitely don’t have the simple, elegant method of delivery that Ubuntu (and other Linux distributions) do.

Pierce de resistance: software, packages, and what might be thought of as “apps”...

There are several ways to use the package manager: if you’re from the early 90s and want to pretend you’re in a film with Jonny Lee Miller, you can use the command line, but if you’re from the 21st century, there are two main options: the first is synaptic, the second is the Ubuntu Software Center. Both perform the same job: installing things, and making sure that they work when they’re installed. The relatively minor difference is one is a little simpler, but one is a little more versatile.
The Ubuntu Software Center might seem a little familiar to those who have used the App Store for Android or iPhone: it is essentially the same thing, except for your computer. Software is categorised so it is easy to narrow down your search if you don’t know the exact name of an application you’re looking for. It’ll then download install your application and any other dependent applications, with a minimum of fuss and usually zero intervention. In short: if you can use the App Store for your iPhone, you can make the most of this.
Synaptic on the other hand is a little trickier: it works on roughly the same principle but is aimed more at power users and allows you more control over your packages: downgrading, accessing unstable developer packages, and so on. On the whole Synaptic is aimed more at power users and administrators, and provides an interface that balances flexibility with user friendliness.
Whether you use Synaptic or Ubuntu Software Center, your computer will always be updated automatically (though, being a polite operating system, Ubuntu usually asks you first). This keeps your computer secure, as you get security fixes within hours of their release, keeps software stable, as you get bugfixes within hours of release, and means your applications keep getting better, as, you guessed it, you get improvements within hours of release!
So that’s just a few of the many reasons to use Ubuntu: as a developer I find it lets me work in a pleasant environment while also letting me look underneath that nice environment at the beating heart of my system, at whatever level of depth I so choose. In the tech community however, there is a saying. The saying is “tl;dr”, which stands for “too long; didn’t read!”. So here’s the skinny:

• Ubuntu is Free and Open Source, and so has an enormous back-catalog of software to use at no cost.
• Ubuntu offers an experience on par (or superior to, in the author’s opinion!) with Windows and OSX while costing considerably less.
• Ubuntu’s software manager offers a way of finding and installing software that your mother could use.
• Ubuntu keeps your software up to date and keeps your computer secure and fast.

For Businesses!

The user case is covered above, but why should your business run Ubuntu? We’ve already covered the fact it is easily on par with Windows and OSX, the fact it is free, easy, and versatile. What we haven’t talked about yet is just how versatile it is.

Servers

Ubuntu isn’t just a desktop operating system, it can also be used as a server. It can serve your web pages, send your emails, run your databases and perform any other task a server might be asked to do. It is, however, a little harder to write about the distinct advantages of the server of Ubuntu, not because it lacks them, but because Linux server are and have been a standard for a considerable period of time: Ubuntu is one of the newer, shinier contenders in the Linux server arena, but variants such as Debian and RedHat (aka Fedora) and CentOS have been around for years. The majority of the world’s servers run some variant of Linux: any company from Google to your Internet Service Provider at home could be picked as an example, and with endorsements like Google, who needs to think twice?
The particular advantages of Ubuntu for a server are the ability to use applications such as Landscape, which allows for centralised administration of multiple machines, the availability of software (through the package manager described above) and support (one chat room dedicated to Ubuntu regularly has over 1500 users) which are both free and abundant, and the bottom-up configuration of the software itself.

Developers and customisation

This harks back to Free and Open source software again: when the source code for an application is available, that means we can build upon it ourselves. Windows and OSX are both proprietary (while OSX is based upon free software, the majority of the system itself is property of Apple and can’t be modified, which also holds true for the majority of OSX apps) where Linux isn’t.
So let’s say we have the majority of our needs fulfilled by a particular piece of software, but some functionality is lacking. There are a few things we can do:

• We could pay someone to write that software for us, release it into the community, and see if it will grow and be maintained by the community (which it often is).
• We could employ someone permanently to write the software and maintain it, as well as looking after our servers and providing support to the end users.
• We could see if someone else has already written the modification and made it available for everyone to use. The chances are if that’s the case, it can be installed through the package manager we talked about earlier!

This spells control, above all else: a huge outside vendor might not care about your concerns, but a company on a retainer or individual on the payroll has to. That means you get listened to, and it means problems are fixed sooner rather than later.

Security

Ubuntu is easy out of the box, but doesn’t have the same history of being flawed and insecure out of the box as other operating systems. This is a trait of most Linux distributions, but with the benefits which have already discussed, the general agreement is that Ubuntu is ahead of the pack due to its parity of security and advanced user features.

Lower barrier to entry

This is where we mention price. If you’re a small or medium business, you might want to keep your overheads down. Community support, no license fees, and a robust operating system all save money. That's all there is to it.
One thing people reading this might want to save is time, so here’s another brief summary:

• Linux is already the industry standard for servers, and for good reason. Ubuntu is one of many server distributions, but has a reputation for being shiny and pleasant to use.
• Cost: if product X costs £100 and is just as good as product Y, why spend more?
• Secure: you don’t lose your data or your sanity!

The Grand Finale: Governments!

Death and taxes

This might be construed as political. It shouldn’t be, though. Simply put, would you rather your tax money was spent on a license from a private company, or a developer whose work can be in the public domain and whose code contributions can be used by any business, anywhere? This is an investment opportunity that keeps on giving: software written once can reduce costs an infinite number of times, which engenders prosperity in an economy. A license amounts to a tax on computers, and without the need to pay a license, everyone benefits.
An example might be a piece of software (say, accounting software) that for instance, the French government wanted to be translated into French. If it is proprietary, it is a difficult and irritatingly long term process for all involved, but if it is open source, it can yield a real economic benefit, insofar as any French person or company can then use that software. Localisation is, in reality, a pretty trivial issue compared to most things, but the principle stands: functionality created once can be shared forever. Truly, the gift that keeps on giving: instead of replicating efforts, we replicate benefits.

But you forgot Ubuntu!

Settle down, settle down. I’m writing about Ubuntu first and foremost. With Ubuntu we have a large, established project already being carried forward by a huge community and an array of businesses and organisations who are invested in the software. So aside from the inherent power of Linux being customisable, auditable, and secure, it is actually usable by the average politician!

At DeepBlueSky both myself and Dan, our accounts manager, use Ubuntu on our home computers: the days of Linux being for specialists are over. Although that said, I like to think I’m a specialist. But it might be another story for Dan.

Brue Valley Farms approached DeepBlueSky to redesign their outdated website to improve their brand recognition and support their new business objectives in trade and supply.

The Challenge

To compete in such a tough industry, Brue Valley Farms needed to market their "brand" and credentials to consumers and trade buyers respectively.

DeepBlueSky were tasked with producing a website which was aesthetically appealing and "on brand" but was also able to effectively convey information about quality, business credentials and pedigree.

What we delivered

Having carefully studied Brue Valley's target audiences, our web design team produced a simple, yet visually rich design which accurately reflects Brue Valley's desired brand image to both consumers and trade buyers.

Given that both DeepBlueSky and Brue Valley had a history of viral video marketing (see CheddarVision) the use of video to engage an audience was an obvious choice. Through the use of carefully crafted video "shorts" the website delivers and engaging rich media experience which allows Brue Valley to communicate with their consumers in a friendly and light hearted manner.

Similarly, attention to detail in the design of content structure (sitemap, navigation..etc), layout and typography produces a website which is simple to navigate, browse and read. This ensures that Brue Valley's trade buyer audience can quickly and easily access the information they require, all whilst being immersed in the Brue Valley "brand".

Full CMS and Blogging

Brue Valley took advantage of the power of Deep Blue Sky's Spirit Framework development platform to manage their website content and publish their own Blog featuring updates from the farmyard.

Powered exclusively by the Spirit Blog module add-on, the Blog enables Brue Valley to write content, upload photos and manage comments all from a simple easy-to-use interface.

Want to know more?

Brue Valley Farm is yet another example of how DeepBlueSky can use the Spirit Framework to deliver a cost effective website for a small business.

To find out how we can help you call us on 01225 444674.