The Graphyte» Featured Articles

Back to Black

The Graphyte — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 05:03:28 +0000

Its been over a year now since I have started using WordPress as a web design instrument and since then I have made several changes to the theme I initially downloaded to get started.

As we all know, when you install wordpress you have a built in default theme to work with, but you also have the option of downloading hundreds of free themes. At the time I found the Mimbo Magazine Theme created by Darren Hoyt , which was just what I was looking for. Thanks to Darren for creating and sharing such a great theme. I had minimal knowledge of CSS and using wordpress but if you tinker with anything long enough you eventually get your handle on things.

Since the original download I've changed the face of site quite a few times, and will continue to do so over time. No one website ever stays the same, it loses its appeal and I think the same can be said for Blog sites as well. I was nick named The Shadow Master while I worked for Thirteen WNET, perhaps for my constant determination to bring some depth and realism to anything I worked on. Its all about depth... being able to push another dimension into a piece is always challenging and rewarding. Photoshop and Illutstrator are like arm and hammer to any designer.

At First Glance::

As you start out from right to left the initial green and white color theme for Darren's original theme was what I started out with. I loved this theme as it was one of the first of its class that I started seeing being used for wordpress. I like the simple magazine style article arrangement and was immediately drawn in to the possibilities.

Back to the Drawing Board::

First steps were getting some signature header up there at the top and then getting away from boring rectangles and square shapes. I like adding icons and images that feel a bit more visceral and less like your just looking at an online app. I started rounding out the article images to appear on the site and testing out how it felt at this stage i was interested in the scrap book feel.

Color Theory::

Most blogs have monotone or duo tone color styles and tend to look plain. Use of color can be an exact science and definitely dictates the flow of a site as well as the ease of use in order for visitors to read your content. I like a lot of color and started thinking of how I can incorporate funky colors into the site.

Changing Things Up A Bit::

After modifying the header I still felt a lot could be done to this theme to help bring out the content but as any designer would do I tried to create a signature look. Bringing lots of color into the background was able to bring the content out and I received great feedback, so I knew I was on the right track.

Irony at its Best::

Sometime after going color crazy I was drifting back into wanting the site to look sleeker and more like something out of a Sci-fi movie. I was attracted by lots of white and gray. I wanted to give the site more depth and create a sort of interface as opposed to a just a homepage.

Wide Body::

The first difference here is that I incorporated more of the background into the design. Generally you will see that the body of content will meet both sides of the browsers unless on higher resolution. The downside of that however is that not many will see it, generally if your on a 1024x768 resolution you will only see a fraction of the background and the walls of the main table will be closer to the ends of the browser from left to right. However I decided to stick with it, for those who are on big boy resolution you wont miss a thing. I have worked on wide screen monitors for years and it can be misleading and cause you to forget about your intended audience. Since this is my own portfolio site I went for the wider look, and all was well.

The Color Wheel::

At this point i still struggled a little on what to do with the color of the site. I felt there was just too much white on the page and not enough focal attention on content. White is definitely easy on the eyes but all too boring. Going with baby puke green seemed like a good idea at the time, but quickly lead to going Aquafresh. I dig blue anything, but it still wasn't gelling (pardon the pun). I felt like I was still missing the depth for a techy interface. The side grills were inspired by Pc towers, which have always reminded me of Car grills. I was still trying to get a sleek finish on my interface.

Back to Black::

Going black was a bit accidental but most likely premeditated simultaneously. I inverted a screenshot of the last theme and was immediately taken back. The side grills and new lighting arrangement on the banner looked significantly better and brought out the focus on the body of content again. So it was back to the drawing board, I re-colored my layout in black using shades of gray and lighting it just right, and finally felt like I got the look I wanted. It's been a favorite for most visitors, and though it can be a bit tough to read white on black as mentioned by a former work colleague and friend I think its worth the sacrifice being that this is my body of work and less of content driven blog. Hope you have 20-20,

Blacklisted

The Graphyte — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 07:05:03 +0000

If you are a WordPress developer, designer, or blogger, new or old, one area of concern is that wordpress has many loop holes for spam bots and hackers to get a hold of personal data. Recently while developing another site I encountered such an issue. Security is one area that should not be over looked when starting or managing your wordpress site. Plugins are a major component to wordpress, with hundreds available at no cost, you can easily download hundreds of plugins without any real knowledge of the developer or the possible loop holes or back doors to those plugins that can potentially allow hackers to access your data. Plugin Developers can have the best of intentions when creating apps that can maximize the functionality of your web site but also not every developer has the time, or has been paid, to fool proof those plugins. Leaving weaknesses in the structure and creating a soft spot in the shell of you're website.

One problem I detected was an unwelcome Iframe on the site I was working on. It was hidden within the index file in the root folder of the site, but thankfully it was detectable using the firefox web developer plugin for the firefox browser. Again I say it was detectable, but I had no idea where it was within the theme I used for this site. The iframe itself was 1 pixel in height and 4 pixels in width, located at the top left corner of the browser. The developer tool merely pointed it out, but did not let me know where the foreign script was hidden. From my research online, thankfully I found some helpful tools that can actually help detect where hidden iframes are hidden within your site.

NoVirusThanks

No Virus thanks is one option you have for locating hidden iframes that house potentially malicious scripts. The name isn't the most attractive as is it may just scare you away but its safe and extremely helpful. You will be provided with a search box where you input the site name and or file and it will search the site for hidden iframes, bare in mind you can also search for malicious code page by page. For example if you have a particuar page that you would like to search inside a theme folder you can input the address to that file as well. Every file or folder can be scanned by inserting address into the search field. By the way thanks to sites like NoVirusThanks & Unmask Parasites for providing tools like this.

UnmaskParasites

Another option that provides the same assistance is Unmask Parasites. I made these two sites available for designers or developers less fortunate to have found a solution early on in there troubles, but also to create awareness, and hopefully derail unlawful entry into your site or database.

Getting Blacklisted

Now this is only part of the problem, when you encounter hidden scripts or code that is malicious in nature you will have a second issue to address. This is where getting blacklisted comes into play. This term refers to searching engines basically putting you on a blacklist and sighting your web site as a malicious site with faulty code or harmful coding. This may possibly lead to a MalWare warning when visiting your site. This is one of the warning signs I noticed when dealing with this code. The more research I did, the more aware I became of how large the issue is. WordPress is one of the most widely used blogging apps for websites, and its security weaknesses have been exploited because of its popularity.

The strongest advice I have to offer is to update whenever possible, and updating wordpress has become impressively easier. WordPress now handles updates internally with little effort, so there is no excuse for not being up to date with the latest version. These updates address security patches and have aggressively tackled weaknesses in the framework, but its not perfect and certainly not hack proof. Here are some helpful plugins for your blog, that can help you sleep at night after reading this. If your are lucky enough to find where the invasion is coming from, that should help you get off the endangered species list, once the scripts are removed from your site search engines will remove you from the blacklist and you will be able to regain any lost ground. Hopes this helps, Happy Hunting!

1. WordPress Database Backup

URL: http://www.ilfilosofo.com/blog/wp-db-backup/.

Description: This plugin does exactly what it says, it backs up your entire WP installation. This has got to be one of the first plugins you install upon first installation. You can back it up to your hard drive, on a server or even to a specified email address. Whether it be a rogue plugin or a hacker (or yourself) that crashes WP, WP Database Backup will reinstate everything as it should be. I like to think of it as my “WP system restore“.

2. Semisecure Login

URL: http://jamesmallen.net/2007/09/16/semisecure-login/.

Description: Semisecure increases the security of your WP Login, it uses client-side MD5 encryption on the password. JavaScript is required to enable encryption. When JavaScript is not available, the password is transmitted in plaintext (as normal), but authentication still completes in this case.

3. AskApache Password Protect

URL: http://www.askapache.com/wordpress/htaccess-password-protect.html.

Description: This will secure your WP Admin with a very powerful htaccess password protection, preventing all unwanted bots from entering your site.

4. Force SSL

URL: http://almosteffortless.com/wordpress/force-ssl/.

Description: For those will an SSL certificate, the Force SSL plugin for WordPress forces for an HTTPS connection for security purposes. This is useful for those who with to enforce a higher level of security regarding the delivery of WordPress content to the browser.

5. WP Security Scan

URL: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-security-scan/.

Description: I love this plugin, it scans your site for security issues and checks passwords, file permissions, database security, WP version hiding and WordPress admin protection/security. It also makes me a little paranoid.

6. Secure Files

URL: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/secure-files/#post-271.

Description: This plugin allows you to upload and download files from outside of your web document root for security purposes. When used in conjunction with a plugin that requires a user to be logged in to see your site, you can restrict file downloads to users that are logged in.

7. WP-SpamFree

URL: http://www.hybrid6.com/webgeek/plugins/wp-spamfree.

Description: I had heard a lot about this plugin before I tried it, it said it is better than Akismet. To be honest I never noticed much difference (I get 500+ spam a day at the moment) between the two. User choice I suppose. I wish there was a way to stop the spammers instead.

8. BackUpWordPress

URL: http://wordpress.designpraxis.at/plugins/backupwordpress/.

Description: Almost identical as the first plugin, just not as straight forward. The list of features goes on and on, this is for the WP Pro. Some features: Database backup including uploaded files, plugins, etc.; EMail notofication on new backups; Trigger backup manually; Set schedules for your backups; restore backups; Staggered SQL import; Automatically continue unfinished backups in background; Language Support. (And thats just the Easy Mode, wait until you see the advanced).

9. Anonymous WordPress Plugin Updates

URL: http://f00f.de/blog/2007/10/02/plugin-anonymous-wordpress-plugin-updates.html.

Description: Anonymizes the plugin update checking system which is a new feature in WordPress 2.3. The plugin prevents WordPress from transmitting a list of active plugins, the blog url and WordPress version. Ideal for privacy-aware administrators of WordPress installation.

10. Replace WP-Version

URL: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/replace-wp-version/#post-2859.

Description: (We have all read about the security issue of showing your WP version, this resolves it). If you’re running an older version of WordPress, anyone can view source to see what attacks might work against your blog. This plugin replace the WP-version with a random string < WP 2.4 and eliminate WP-version > WP 2.4

These are only Ten great plugins to look into when trying to secure your site, thanks to Specky Boy for compiling this list. You can also search wordpress plugins for more security options, and always keep in mind that you should cross reference all plugins to be added to your blog.

Get Checked

The Graphyte — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 20:21:03 +0000

I just recently finished the album cover and logo for musician Mike Check, which will be on a CD release in the coming weeks, as well as a newly anticipated web site http://MikeCheck1212.com to follow the CD. I've been a fan of the music for some time now, and will likely add featured tracks from the disk on the site, its compelling and new and that's just what the graphyte likes. The CD humbly named Check Me Out will have sixteen tracks and a versatile sound, as he plainly puts, check him out, and get checked.

I love cupcakes

The Graphyte — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 03:06:19 +0000

Friend and sister site to The Graphyte is www.ButtaCakes.com, a newly opened cupcake bakery in Greenport, Long Island. Butta' Cakes specializes in cupcakes, also creating amazing cakes, breads, pastries, & crepes. With a breakfast and lunch selection that is sure to make this a regular love affair. If you had a long day, go and unwind with some cheese or dessert fondue and a glass of wine. Greenport has some great vistas and has a great hometown feeling. To help celebrate this new venture and promote these tasty delights I have designed two T-shirts for Butta' Cakes that will soon be available through www.buttacakes.com. If your in the neighborhood stop by, location is 119 main street Greenport, NY 11944

Facebook 360

The Graphyte — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 05:43:09 +0000

So dig this, Facebook for Xbox 360? For those of you gaming nuts, including myself, realize that the 5 year bench mark is up! Officially both Xbox 360 and PS3 have hit there 5th year anniversary which means thats its just in time for the new kid to show up and shove there old asses violently off the block while deeply inserting there conglomerate fingers into your coin purse and taking your hard earned cash. Yes, we have hit the bench mark where next gen systems are in the shuffle and you get at least some sort of small dosage as to what the new big toy will be. Apparently both Sony and Microsoft are aware that the Mayan calendar ends in 2012 and there's no point in a new system....haha.

Which is why they have firmly planted there feet in the ground and have started to think out of the box. Both Sony and Microsoft have big plans for evolving both current systems. Microsoft seems to have there head slightly screwed on tighter as it seems, due to there flawless online commerce store, allowing you to basically get just about anything you need except that late night ham sandwich and a beer directly out of the box. Between movies and programming, if you have a nice and and strong internet connection there's just about nothing you cant get online.

Both Sony and Microsoft have incorporated online shopping, and with xbox signing on Netflix they seem to have the most potential right now. The new next thing to hit is Facebook on your xbox. I am currently a FB member and admit to liking its non messy interface, but also admit I cant stand the million senseless apps that constantly bombard me when logging in. I don't want a virtual beer, hug, kiss, teddy bear, werewolf bite, vampire bite, slap, chocolate or horoscope. Aside from that, its extremely easy to follow and a great social networking app.

Thank god you cant manipulate the page coding and have to visit someones page with a thousand glowing rhinestone lips that are animated. Xbox also released at E3 this year that twitter will be incorporated into the fold, which I personally don't care for. If anyone on this planet cares about what anyone else does second to second, then they don't have enough creative process, but just the same I welcome the useless app online simply because variety and options are key to the online gaming universe.

Below is a video scraped from thenextweb.com showing a demo of the app online.

Knowing

The Graphyte — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 06:49:59 +0000

Well as if we didn't have enough thoughts of world domination or destruction , movie studios keep pumping out the what if titles that generally pertain to something huge natural disasters. I'm guilty of all counts because i will be somewhere with plush seats when this one comes out. Not sure whats more entertaining here the CG or the countless efforts they take in giving Nick Cage a believable wig to wear in every movie hes in. The trailer is reminiscent of the movie 23 with Jim Carrey, it is based on world events happening on specific recorded dates that have been written on one specific piece of paper that was uncovered at a school that had buried a time capsule 5 years prior. This is a big CG film and it looks good so far, yet another 50 bucks to spend at the theatre when you take your date. Trailer is below.

Steel Revenge

The Graphyte — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 04:57:19 +0000

As we all knew, the transformers movie sequel has finally released its new trailer spot during superbowl. The original movie was a testament to new and innovative computer graphic technology. The first movie had great lighting and textures and fully captured the vision of the cartoon series at least in my mind. As a generation born parallel to some of the greatest boom in art, it was great to see the series not falter in its crossover depiction. Here' the latest info on the upcoming Transformers 2 movie from a IMDB scrape.

The battle for Earth has ended but the battle for the universe has just begun. After returning to Cybertron, Starscream assumes command of the Decepticons, and has decided to return to Earth with force. The Autobots believing that peace was possible finds out that Megatron's dead body has been stolen from the US Military by Skorpinox and revives him using his own spark. Now Megatron is back seeking revenge and with Starscream and more Decepticon reinforcements on the way, the Autobots with reinforcements of their own, may have more to deal with then meets the eye.

All Geared Up

The Graphyte — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 22:55:51 +0000

Finally the much anticipated sequel to Gears of War has finally been released and its an epic design for design team epic games. The game is easily the best looking project to hit the xbox 360 console, gameplay and mechanics have been polished and the game looks simply amazing on an HD TV. You just cant help playing the game and finding moments were you have to stop and look at the rain shimmering down a window pane or the nasty pulsing veins of the internal organs of a titanic rock worm that you have to fight your way out of. The game looks good and most importantly does not go heavy on the cheese.

The story is a good one, but not the most original, and what gives it a spicy kick is the cast of characters. Cole Train being the comic relief in the game and also a source for being a little extra and exploiting the multiple ways of killing the locust. The game has a great combination of tactical fighting as well as run and gun, simultaneously providing a great range of weaponry. All in all the game is a great look at how far console gaming has come and has definitely set the bar high for what is expected of games to come.

Halo For Your Soul

The Graphyte — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 07:13:07 +0000

Want more halo for your soul, well get ready for the next two installments of the Halo franchise. Halo 3 Recon will be the next installment of the Halo storyline, but not before Bungi release its first RTS (real time strategy) game "Halo Wars" based loosely before the first Halo story, the game will be set in the time of when Spartan soldiers were among many and thriving, putting you up against the covenant.

Though the title looks promising it will only be a matter of time before we know for sure if Bungie can pull off its first RTS game, but since the creation of Halo which came off the shelf with great potential and success, Bungi has now gained the chops and money to work dilengently to bring us a solid new title. Further down the timeline Halo 3 Recon will be launched offering a brand new hero and a brand new style of game play. Recon being part of the new title one can only assume that the game will have more stealth involved and possibly requiring you to be more tactical in the game world. Very little information has been released but there is plenty of talk and a new juicy trailer to sink your teeth into.

Recon takes place in the Halo universe in the year 2552, during the events of Halo 2. While the characters of Halo 2 are on the alien ringworld known as Delta Halo, Recon follows what happens at the city of New Mombasa on Earth, in the midst of an invasion by the hostile Covenant.

Bungie community director Brian Jarrard stated in an interview that Recon "was a labor of love to [Bungie's] fans" who wanted more Halo-related content. Because Bungie did not want to do "more of the same", the main character as an ODST was chosen. "The ODSTs have always been fan favorites and the events that unfolded on Earth is something fans still clamor for after being "short changed" in Halo 2", Jarrard said, in reference to complaints that Halo 2 ended too abruptly.

In an interview on MTV on July 16, 2008, Microsoft’s head of Xbox business, Don Mattrick, stated that Bungie was working on a new Halo game for Microsoft, independent of the franchise spinoffs Halo Wars and Halo Chronicles. An announcement of the new Halo project was expected at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2008 game exposition, with Bungie unveiling a teaser on their web site, but the announcement was shelved by Microsoft. Microsoft stated that it wanted the game to have its own event.

In post-trailer interviews, Bungie staff members told gaming press that Recon is to be the last installment in the Halo trilogy. Though Bungie does not consider the Recon a full game (staff member Luke Smith compared it to The Frozen Throne, an expansion to Warcraft III), the game will ship with Halo 3 map packs, and Recon will not require Halo 3 to play. If that isn't enough of a Halo fix, talks of a movie have been confirmed but shooting has still not been scheduled so expect that it will most likely be on the radar for 2010, which seems adequate since this is a Sci-fi movie. Seems only right to enter a new decade with one of the greatest game titles to hit shelves, perhaps all the blunders of games turned into movie titles in the past will be a lesson to the director for this project. Recently movies have started to pop up on youtube of a halo teaser, which can be only be compared to a slightly low budget sci-fi channel version of a halo series. No one can say for sure but I doubt that a multi-million million dollar franchise like this would allow its movie transformation to look this poor, but only time will tell if this is a unpolished version of whats to come.

Play with your Sack

The Graphyte — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 06:00:49 +0000

Little big Planet is Sony's newly unveiled secret weapon this year, along with using it as a serious Powerpoint presentation during E3 to introduce its Fall lineup. Once again proving simplicity is always best, by design and by concept, though little big planet offers more then just a few customizable bean bag sacks. The game is unexpectedly deep as you can either choose to play through the developers initial level design, or create your own world, using the same options that the creators had in there tool box when drawing up the levels. The editor is simple and yet extremely deep, providing an almost endless combination of different worlds which can be uploaded and shared with other users online. Sony has had a slow start since launch, and a pretty dry batch of games, there exclusive titles have had very little to offer as well as there online shop.

A few months back they realized that Microsoft had the right idea by providing a multitude of options online in and in comparison they now both offer movies for download as well as past games for the past systems. Though Microsoft has had quite a head start in the network department, and they seemed to get it right, once out of the gate, bare in mind the hardware was more of an issue with faulty systems and a notorious red ring of death, which I experienced late last year. The PS3 is on the slow and steady with a new lineup this year and this game definitely sets the tone for online play as well as innovation. The "Little Big Planet" intro clip is below.