How to Use the new HTML5 Canvas Element

About the canvas element in HTML5 - The canvas element is part of HTML5 and allows for dynamic, scriptable rendering of 2D shapes and bitmap images. It is a low level, procedural model that updates a bit map and does not have a built in scene graph. The canvas was initially introduced by Apple for use inside their own Mac OS X WebKit component, powering applications like Dashboard widgets and the Safari browser. Later, it was adopted by Gecko browsers and Opera and standardized by the WHATWG on new proposed specifications for next generation web technologies.

Canvas tutorial

Six Very Cool HTML5 JavaScript Video Players

HTML 5 makes embedding videos into your web pages easy without the need to use plugins.

No need to use Flash or Silverlight all you need is to use the new video tag and you're good to go. With the new video tag your video will play natively in the most recent crop of web browsers.

Sublime Video
Kaltura's HTML5 Media Library
Video for Everybody!
FlareVideo
Video JS
Open Standard Media (OSM) Player

Strategies for Optimizing Your Transactional Messages

Optimizing your marketing email transactional messages is a great strategy to get additional sales. This is a quick easy way and highly relevant form of marketing to build brand loyalty and increase your website’s sales.

Transactional messages are defined as all messages related to the customer’s purchase.

Transactional emails can bring anywhere from 3 to 6 times additional sales compared to regular promotional emails. Start by targeting customers that have purchased like items from you in the past. Perhaps something that compliments the item/items that were purchased in the past.

 By improving and optimizing your transactional messages you will increase your revenue with your current customer base. Transactional marketing is one of the most cost-effective ways that online retailers can increase revenue.

18 Creative Navigation Concepts that are Sure to get your Attention

Navigation can make or break your website. Now having said that there are those occasions when you just gotta have fun and experiment. The navigation schemes below offer a unique look into the head and eyes of creative designers. These creative sites may not play by the mainstream design rules, but you can't tell me that being a badboy or badgirl isn't fun. ;o)

If you like a sexy navigation concept that adds some visual appeal then you will enjoy these links. Let us know what you think or share your own links.

    * Jones Advertising Marketing and Design Chicago
    * Noroutine
    * Devroc Interiors
    * ConceptM
    * David Dinh Photorapher
    * Creative Storm
    * Salinas
    * Shaun Utter
    * Clara Collins
    * Craig Earl Photography
    * NickAd
    * Jeremy Cowart Photography
    * Rabotilnica
    * Howarths
    * Matt Dempsey
    * Utah Travel
    * Dragon Interactive
    * Curious Generation Group

Ten HTML5 Websites Worth Looking At

    * Fishtank
    * Gaga Debki
    * Exit9       
    * Resers Fine Foods
    * Eyestylesllc
    * The Green House
    * Inkpattern Magazine
    * Grigor Law
    * Circuito Unimed-Rio
    * Web Design Cardiff 

Reasons to Start Using HTML5 Today

There is a lot of excitement around HTML5, and well there should be because this major reworking of HTML brings functionality that is very exciting. Although the new standard is still being defined many parts of it are pretty much done. Many websites currently on the World Wide Web have already started using HTML5.

HTML5 is about using semantic markup and with it you can create elements that are more relevant to web sites thus making your markup more concise and readable. The new semantics give data meaning. It enables search engines to more accurately determine the various types of information on a page and create an outline, or table of contents if you will thus making it easier to index. Also with the new canvas tag you can generate exciting dynamic content.

Browsers are now also now more capable of understanding the new standards for HTML5, CSS3 and the JavaScript API's.  It is a fun time to be a front end web developer.

To see what HTML5 semantics your browser understands visit: http://www.findmebyip.com/

Great Examples of Web Site Usability Testing

Lisa Wehr from iMedia has done a NICE job of going through some industry specific websites and showing you how they test and evaluate websites. If you are a web designer or web developer this article is a great read that will help you understand web site usability if you don't understand it already. iMedia usability tests.

HTML5 Demo's Built Not Only for Just Chrome

The developer's over at Google have built some pretty cool HTML5 demos. While these demos were built with their Chrome browser in mind they also work in Firefox, IE9, Safari, and Opera.

While you are there make sure to check out Browser Pong! Very Cool! Not like anything we've seen before.

It's easy to spend a considerable amount of time going through this site to see all of the latest examples. Try to contain yourself from having too much fun.

Chrome Experiments - Not your mother's JavaScript.

Vital HTML5 Tutorials

HTML5 is a major reworking of the HTML standard; while it is not complete it is ready for primetime and can be used to create some vibrant exciting web sites. For example the canvas features are pretty much close to completion.

Make sure to look through our blog for additional articles on HTML5. Happy Coding!

    * HTML5 Unleashed: Tips, Tricks and Techniques
    * Coding Up a Web Design Concept into HTML & CSS
    * HTML 5 and CSS 3: The Techniques You’ll Soon Be Using
    * The Power of HTML 5 and CSS 3
    * Coding A HTML 5 Layout From Scratch
    * Touch The Future: Create An Elegant Website With HTML 5 And CSS3
    * Code a Backwards Compatible, One Page Portfolio with HTML5 and CSS3
    * Implementing HTML5 Drag and Drop: New Premium Tutorial
    * Have a Field Day with HTML5 Forms
    * Design & Code a Cool iPhone App Website in HTML5
    * How to Make an HTML5 iPhone App
    * Creating Mobile Web Applications with HTML 5
    * Creating Offline Mobile Web Applications with HTML 5
    * Hybrid Column Layout – Using HTML & CSS3 Only
    * How to Make All Browsers Render HTML5 Mark-up Correctly – Even IE6
    * My Top 5 HTML Coding Preferences
    * The HTML5 Video Element

Is it too early to use HTML5?

There is a fair amount of buzz out there regarding HTML5. After all there hasn't been a major update to HTML since HTML4. But, let’s analyze how we got here and where we are going to see if implementing HTML5 on new web sites is realistic. If nothing else the HTML5 buzz is well worth the hype, it offers many new and exciting changes.

The W3C started developing HTML5 in June of 2004 with the expectation of completing its development as a working draft by midyear 2007. HTML5 is currently slated to reach a Candidate Recommendation stage by 2012. It also has been stated that HTML5 will not reach a W3C Recommendation until 2022.

As you can see if you are developing HTML5 sites for today there is a high probability that your site may not work by the time the official working draft is released. The action we take with HTML5 is to have fun with it, implement it in a test based only mode and learn the new standard as it develops. By no means would we build a companies or individuals brand or reputation using the standard as it exists today.