Anybody who has been browsing my site recently has probably noticed the constant change in graphics and functionality. This is because I have been experimenting and fine tuning many aspects of my site. I plan on doing some freelance work this summer, so I figure that I had better make everything here as user friendly as possible. Updates span from flashy jquery scripts to entirely reformatted code. I changed around my featured items as well.
One thing I have been tweaking is the page names. I wanted to keep the Modx setup, but I also wanted the url page names to be SEO friendly instead of something like index.php?id=1. So I did some research and finally got the built in SEO Friendly URL feature working, so now all of the page variables use url aliases to replace them. This means that search engines like google and yahoo can index my sites pages to be found. This should not only bring more traffic to this site, but also make it much easier to distinguish which page you are currently viewing.
Some other changes I've been working on are more flashy than practical. One of these such changes is the jquery top function scroller. If you click the top link at the bottom of the site, your browser will animate the trip back to the top. Pretty simple, and pretty slick. I have also been working on a nice little tool-tip function on mouse over of my featured items to tell the user what they are. I have added php snippets that actually tell the user how long it takes to load the page, and also when the site theme was last updated based upon the most recent time either the main template or style sheet was updated.
The final changes I have made are graphic tweeks and the addition of a more dynamic and user friendly contact form with a link to my paypal donation page. The graphic tweeks I have made include the main flag logo in the top left, which I simplified to look cleaner and crisper. I also re-designed the right sidebar entirely several times over. Added minor graphic tweeks and icons here and there, most of which will probably go unnoticed but add a nice touch nonetheless.
Look in the near future for a full fledged portfolio page with a unique design and much more for content than is in my featured items section. Things will keep improving on this site as long as I have the time, for now it's main purpose is to show to potential employers and clients as an example of my work.
