While visiting with friends over the weekend, something caught my eye on their notebook computer. It was their work PC, and they had Internet Explorer open to their personal iGoogle page. What I saw on the page was a warning message, as shown below.

The message in a yellow box, prominently positioned below the search box read, ‘You’re currently using an older web browser. Upgrade now!’ When I pointed this out to my friend, she muttered something under her breath about this being an old, slow computer with old software on it. Sure enough, when I checked the version of the browser, it was a version of IE 6. When I pressed the issue, she said they cannot update the browser and everyone has issues with it.

This issue is not unique, and many corporate computer users will have old hardware and software. Many large companies have common “images” of the software on a computer and it is a big deal when something is changed on it, short of regular Windows patches. As a result, many corporate users have old versions of browsers. Since many people may be browsing to your Web site during the day or on a work PC from home, it is something you need to take into consideration ion the design and functionality of your Web site. Talk to any Web designer and developer and they hate old versions of the browsers, and they have a good reason for this angst, as older browsers do not support newer design and functional capabilities.

Get The Facts With Analytics

Issues with older browsers may impact some Web sites more than others. This depends on the demographic of the visitors to the Web site. The sure way to see if this is an issue or not is to check the analytics of your Web sites. By checking what browsers and versions of those browsers are loading your Web site, you will know if this is a large issue or not. Based on this information, you may have nothing to worry about, or you may need to have a conversation with your Web designer and developer to discuss appropriate action, from changes to warning messages. This is a conversation we at Dunkirk Systems, LLC frequently have with our clients and with prospective clients, and we are more than glad to talk with you about this as well.

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Have you ever used a talking or spirit board, commonly known as an Ouija board? Did it talk back to you? And by chance did it tell you and your family to move to Afghanistan? Believe it or not, it did for one family, and now their true story is being told in the book OUIJA – For The Record, written by Chicago author D. Lynn Cain.

To accompany her life story, she wanted a Web site to tell about the book, a blog to share stories, and a community forum for people to share their stories about their personal experiences with these boards. My Web consulting firm Dunkirk Systems, LLC and our design partners at Visible Logic, Inc. worked together with Cain to develop this Web site, blog and community at OuijaForTheRecord.com.

This was a great project, as it allowed us to be creative and tell a unique story. Bringing together people to share their experiences about Ouija boards is also a unique opportunity. The site is built on ExpressionEngine, a content management system which allows for the integration of all of the desired functionality of the site and community. Dunkirk has built other community sites with ExpressionEngine, including Active Travels and Lewis and Clark Road Trips. Emily Brackett of Visible Logic did a great job with the design of the site, including a hidden message on the home page – see if you can find it!

As I write this, I am still reading the book and will write my usual takeaways from it when I finish it. This is a unique story, and we learned a lot about it as we were strategizing the site early on. If you have interest in true-life stories, Ouija boards or paranormal activities, OUIJA – For The Record is surely a great read for you.

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ExpressionEngine is a content management system from EllisLab which we at Dunkirk Systems, LLC have used to develop several blogs and communities for clients. Like any tool, it is good to know others who work with it to share experiences and learn from. This is why I took the initiative to start an ExpressionEngine Meetup group in Chicago.

The first Meetup will be on Tuesday, March 23, at OfficePort Chicago in the Loop. We launch the first meeting of the Chicago ExpressionEngine Meetup with Michael Boyink, principal of Boyink Interactive and the founder of Train-ee, a leader in ExpressionEngine education.

For more information and to join, visit the Chicago ExpressionEngine Meetup at Meetup.com.

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It has served me well, and now it’s time for it to be in the hands of a start-up Web design and development business. I am talking about The Web Design Business Kit from SitePoint, which I have just posted for sale by auction on eBay. Below is a photo of the 2 binders and CD-ROM which make up the Kit.

The Kit consists of processes and procedures for owning and operating a Web design and development business. It is a step-by-step process that takes you through the business process of building a Web site and is supported by documentation and files in Excel and Word you can use right away in your business. Note the files are in Australian MS format but can easily adapted to US format. I purchased the Kit brand new a few years ago and learned quite a bit from it. The version 2.0 of this sells for almost $250.00. The content in the Kit is timeless.

The auction closes next Monday night, February 1, 2010, and bidding starts at a penny for this great buy.

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In the ever-changing and rapidly-developed world of the Web, errors happen. From browser incompatibilities to outright bad code, bugs occur and can cause everything from minor discomfort to outright pain for the Web visitor. Like any good Web consultant, we here at Dunkirk Systems, LLC want to fix them as quickly and efficiently as possible. And in order to do so, we need as much information as can be provided to me to troubleshoot and fix the issue.

The following is a list of types of information needed in order to research and fix a Web error, as well as detailed information for each area. Though it may not be possible to provide all of the answers to these questions, as much information as possible will help in getting the Web page or site back up and running properly.

Where are you and when?

• Computer type – PC, MAC, mobile device
• OS – Windows, OS-X, Linux, etc. and what version
• Monitor/screen resolution
• Browser – IE, Firefox, etc. and what version
• How connected to the Internet – work, home, public WiFi
• Any plugins or toolbars in the browser that can impact behavior?
• Any popup blockers?
• Date/time error occurred - not always vital, but can be used to check against Web server

What are you doing?

• What link/URL are you accessing?
• What were the steps that lead you to the error?
• Does the issue happen every time or just on occasion (e.g. when first opening the browser)
• Have you been able to recreate this issue on another computer?
• Have you recently cleared their browser cache? If not, do so and try again

What happened?

• Details of the error
• Screen shots of the entire desktop, not just the window at issue
• Any error messages that appear in the browser or on the desktop that the user observes but does not appear in a screenshot

What were you expecting?

• I ask this as there may, in some cases, be an issue with expectations

As you can see, there are a lot of issues that can play into a Web site error, and the number variables in play with the Web will only get larger as the number of devices and ways people connect to the Internet are created. Help us help you, as well as everyone else, build a beautiful – and functional – Web experience.

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