- Topics:
- apps
- css
- games
- javascript
- mobile
- node
- php
- speaking
- tehcl
- textmate
- tools
- video
- webgl
- published:
- 2010.03.28
- topics:
- css
- javascript
Update: The CSS2 text-shadow property sure is versatile. If you combine it with some CSS3 animations you can create a pretty decent vanishing smokey text effect.
A few months ago I made a fun flaming text effect simply by using some JavaScript and the good old CSS2 property text-shadow. I posted it on Twitter but never got around to posting it here. Today I pulled together another text effect, shining text, by using CSS3 properties and animation. I thought I'd cover both in one post.
Flaming Text Using CSS2 text-shadow
Now we're cooking with gas.
Most readers should see the previous line of text on fire since it just uses the CSS2 property text-shadow. If you don't see that you're probably using Internet Explorer or something. Do note, there's no use of images, and the text is still selectable.
The key to this effect is using multiple text shadows applied to the same text, each with a different color, position, and blur.
text-shadow: color1 x1 y1 blur1, color2 x2 y2 blur2, …;
Then you just jostle them around with some JavaScript. Open my flaming text example and view source. There's not a lot to it.
Shining Text Using CSS3 WebKit Properties
Check out the shine on this.
To see this effect, you're going to have to check it out in Safari, Chrome, or WebKit. Again, this effect uses no images and the text is selectable, and this time there isn't even any JavaScript involved. If you have an iPhone, the above effect is remarkably similar to the "slide to unlock" text animation on your lock screen.
This effect is created through a combination of a CSS3 gradient in the background, a CSS3 background clipping property which clips the background to the text, and a CSS3 animation to move the background gradient. I was inspired by a demo done by Trent Walton, and took it to the next level by removing the use of any image files. Open my shining text example and view source.
The background gradient is created with the -webkit-gradient CSS3 property. Firefox 3.6 added support for CSS gradients to the Firefox browser family.
The animation is created with a CSS3 animation. You can read more about these in Safari's Visual Effects Guide. CSS3 animations and transitions are on their way to Firefox 3.7.
The "trick" CSS property here to complete this effect is the CSS3 property -webkit-background-clip. This defines the region to which the CSS background property will be clipped. By using transparent or semi-transparent text and -webkit-background-clip: text I can make the background gradient only visible where the text is.
Welp, that's about it. I hope you found it enjoyable. Happy hacking!
- published:
- 2010.01.17
- topics:
- apps
- video
I lead the team of people for Student Unions & Activities at the University of Minnesota who built this touch screen building directory installed in Coffman Memorial Union. The directory is a web app running in WebKit on a Mac Mini attached to a touch screen monitor. No Flash was used. Many of the graphic elements like the panels and buttons are generated entirely with CSS3. The 3D floor diagrams were created with Google SketchUp. Here's a first look at the project which launched early on Friday, January 15th:
We used a usability test driven design process. We were able to completely redesign portions of the project in the week before it launched based on direct user feedback. We are continuing to test and make iterative improvements to the directory. Special thanks to the totally epic team that made this possible: Ellie, Ethan, Kamran, Ken, Sungho, and Trent. My leadership role included project management, creative direction, information architecture (IA), and user experience (UX). My development role included core PHP and MySQL work, as well as JavaScript work on the drag-and-drop administrative tool for the map data.
Update: This project won 4th place overall in the University of Minnesota 2011 Quality Fair! That's a huge honor, and I want to congratulate my former team at Student Unions & Activities for their continued work on this application.
- published:
- 2010.01.10
Well, yesterday was the last day of 2009, and today starts a new decade. Hello 2010. You are so shiny and futuristic looking. Anyway, I figured I'd succumb to the incredibly predictable year-in-review post. So what did I do in 2009? I did quite a bit actually, and writing this post helps to remind me of that... otherwise I just have a tendency to think of all the things I didn't accomplish. Also, I find years tend to blur together without any reflection. Here's a handy little timeline [made with pure CSS and no images, don't-chya-know] of oh-nine:
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
Phwew... I got tired typing that, and even more tired re-reading it. Where do I get off thinking I didn't get anything done in 2009? It is a year I should definitely be proud of. Other things from the year not in the timeline: a bunch of browser bugs I found and submitted over the course of the year, countless projects at my full-time job at the University of Minnesota (probably most memorable is launching a complete redesign of the Events & Conferences site), and a ton of new friends gained and connections made.
My stated resolution for 2009 was to, "Help the collective improvement of the web." I'd say I kept that promise to myself (probably a personal first for a New Year's resolution). Every bug I submitted, every patch I wrote, and every crazy thing I tried to get web browsers to do were all my contributions to the vast collection of brilliant people out there who all helped to make 2009 the year that web browsers really got awesome.
In 2010 I will continue to work to make the web more awesomer [sic], and I'm also making some personal resolutions to dig deeply in the mobile web, spend a lot of time on interactive design and games, and also make way more time for doodling and drawing.
Another important statement I made back at the beginning of 2009 was that I believe making connections is perhaps the most important thing to be doing. I am genuinely grateful for every single connection I made with so many people over the last year, both new connections and re-connections. 2009 was a banner year in that regard, but staying connected is just as much a 2010 New Year's resolution for me. I look forward to attending more conferences, working with more people, helping people succeed at their passions, and being inspired by the work done by all of you brilliant folks.
Have a great 2010! Oh, and if you are interested, check out the CSS for no-images-used timeline.
- published:
- 2009.12.21
- topics:
- css
- javascript
My latest project is a little "Web Two-Point-Snow" fun I put together as my personal holiday gift to the internet, or should I say winternet… winternet? Ok, I'll stop. Anyway, the Winternetizer adds festive, fancy, 100% Flash-free flakes of falling snow to any website.
You'll have a much better experience using a browser that Santa has on his Nice List such as Safari, Firefox 3.5+, or Chrome. In fact, in those browsers, I'd go so far as to say the snow looks so real you will find yourself flopping on the ground to make snow angels. Give it a try now before you read about the super cool technical details behind it:
(Incidentally, you can also add the JavaScript directly to your own site to delight your visitors. The Winternetizer project page has details.)
The Secrets to Better Snow
Yes, it is true that falling snow scripts go back probably over a decade. We've all seen it done using falling snowflake GIFs, or falling periods, or the trusty asterisk (which to be fair, is a great six-sided stand-in for an actual flake).
However, if you have a modern browser, you will have noticed that my falling snow script has depth-of-field blurring and parallax, flakes that rotate as they fall, and you lucky Mac users no doubt noticed the pretty actual snowflake graphics. The total effect is accomplished with text, CSS, and JavaScript — no Flash, no PNGs, no GIFs, no Canvas.
- published:
- 2009.12.02
- topics:
- css
- javascript
- video
FlipBox is another LightBox clone (a JavaScript photo gallery tool) where the new twist is a fun "3D" tile flipping animation effect. It is much easier to demonstrate than to explain, so I decided to do my first screencast with audio (be gentle!) so I could show you what FlipBox is all about. Incidentally, Mac OSX 10.6 Snow Leopard has a great free screen capture tool built into QuickTime. Sorry in advance if the volume is a little low. Real action starts at 0:45:
More About FlipBox
FlipBox is jQuery-based and makes use of my rotate3Di plugin to create a 3D-like isometric tile flipping effect using the CSS3 transform property currently only supported by Safari, Chrome, and Firefox 3.5+. (That's another reason why I wanted to record a video demo.) If you happen to have an awesome web browser, you can check out a live demo of FlipBox.
In it's current state, with only a little preparation by the user, FlipBox is already a simple to use LightBox-like tool. There's a few other demos with this concept I hope to put together, and I would also like to write proper documentation and do a release.