MISC Topics Hosting vs. Server Deprecation Always think semantics before style
Running your own server vs. paying for hosting A common dilemma
Server Setup Dedicated Computer ($100-???) Linux + Apache (free) Internet Service with static IP (approx $100/month) Server upgrades require your attention (I think I’m worth $125/hour)
Hosting Economy – massively shared server on cloud – shared IP, folder redirects via provider DNS – $5/month Dedicated/Managed – Real machine (rack mounted) with processor, memory, and static IP – $150+/month Virtual & Cloud – Scalable – add more processors, memory, bandwidth – Virtual static IP, recycled via provider DNS – $40+/month
Facebook PHP application run on Harvard server Moved to economy host to become independent Economy host would not scale up. Switched to massive dedicated hosts Currently, runs their own servers with custom architecture – “insourcing” – Probably about 30,000 high-end rack-mounted machines that are geo-distributed in at least 5 locations
Deprecation is a good thing Why certain tags turned bad and why one tag has made a comeback
The worst offenders and
The elusive tag engineering/engineers/html/html-tag- history.html engineering/engineers/html/html-tag- history.html Deprecated HTML 4.01 CSS makes it obsolete, but actually has semantic meaning – Indicates proper Chinese name – Widely used to indicate a misspelled word
The nightmare of Frames Page located at
The nightmare of Frames
Semantics over Style What is it? vs. how it should look?
The worst offenders In marking up content with HTML or creating HTML structure, always ask yourself: – What is this content? Never even consider this question: – What should this content look like?
Exercise How should this be marked up? Boston CelticsBoston, MATD Garden1946 Brooklyn NetsBrooklyn, New York City, NYBarclays Center1976 New York KnicksManhattan, New York City, NYMadison Square Garden1946 Philadelphia 76ersPhiladelphia, PAWells Fargo Center1949 Toronto RaptorsToronto, ONAir Canada Centre1995
CSS Cascading Style Sheets. What does “Cascading” really mean?
The Cascade The most specific rules are applied first at the source (top of waterfall) Any unspecified attributes cascade to the lower level, i.e., less specific, more general rules Repeat until all CSS rules are examined Any unspecified attribute gets the “default style” (the base of the waterfall) Content flows down the cascade and the rules (like the rocks of the cliff) shape the presentation of the content (i.e., shapes how the waterfall will look).