Te Awamutu Online Blog

Talking of the Finns...

Dave Owen — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 00:03:42 GMT

I always find it interesting to see what people around the world say about Te Awamutu. Having the Finn connection helps because there's a surprising number of Finn fans who know about our town and even make the pilgrimage here. Occasionally there's the inevitable condescending comment about TA being a hick town but usually people are quite complimentary.

Here's an example I noticed last night. It's a discussion about Crowded House hitting the road. It's a very long page - I found the whole thing interesting enough to read but if you want to pick out the TA references, click Control-F (Cmd-F on the Mac) and enter "Te Awamutu". That will show you the parts of the page where we're mentioned.

Neil Finn Video

Dave Owen — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 08:29:15 GMT

Courtesy of NZ On Screen, we have a nice documentary at TATV featuring Neil Finn's 2001 New Zealand tour. During the tour Neil formed a new band at every venue, made up of relatively unknown local talent and brought together in just a few days.

http://www.teawamutu.co.nz/community...Finn-for-a-Day

Changes at TATV

Dave Owen — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 03:32:18 GMT

It's been about a year since we introduced the new-look TATV. Although the new format has been popular, unfortunately it hasn't quite worked out for us. Amongst other problems, we haven't been able to integrate the registration systems for TATV and the forum in the way we'd hoped. We've been forced to fall back on Plan B, which is to modify the forum so that it can run TATV as well.

The upshot of this is that TATV is changing to be more closely integrated with the forum and blogs. There's a new layout but the categories are still the same. We've had to lose a few of the bells and whistles, but to be honest they weren't working well anyway.

On the plus side, you can now access all features at TATV and the forum with a single login. Once you've logged in you can post messages, comment and rate videos and blog posts, vote in polls, etc.

The move is happening in stages and for a while there will be some disruption, duplication and general confusion. Sorry about that, we'll try to get it all running smoothly ASAP.

You can see the latest version of TATV at www.teawamutu.co.nz/community/tatv.php

If you haven't yet registered at Te Awamutu Online, you can do so at www.teawamutu.co.nz/community/register.php

Response to Scott Elliott

Dave Owen — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 21:01:01 GMT

Today's Courier (PDF) features a letter from a local web designer by the name of Scott Elliott, followed by a response from myself. I've pasted them both below (if you've already read them, skip down to the full rebuttal):

I couldn't agree more with David Bowler's front page statement in the Courier last Thursday when he refers to a "third world power supply". However New Zealand is more like a third world country than many residents realise. I'm referring to website development and technology use in particular. The quality of websites that I have viewed in the Waikato is nothing short of appalling.
Most small businesses don't have an internet presence at all. Many of those that do have websites are written so poorly that the site is more likely to turn readers or customers away before the first page even loads.
Have the authors of these sites never heard of the W3C and are they unaware of industry standards?

It's not just the little guys either - all of these sites fail to meet the W3C standards:
Te Awamutu Online 8 errors 1 warning
Waipa District Council 98 errors 26 warnings (not bad for an organisation that enforces so many other standards);
Woolworths 102 errors 25 warnings;
Te Awamutu Chamber of Commerce 24 errors 1 warning;
Waikato DHB 18 errors 10 warnings;
Transpower 8 errors 3 warnings.

The list could be enormous and I'm not singling these organisations out for any special attention. I'm highlighting the very poor standards employed throughout most of New Zealand. Oh in case you're interested I checked out the Courier site to and it passed with no errors, well done you.
There is a reason for the standards - not everyone uses Microsoft's Internet Explorer (which does a reasonably good job of displaying most of these sites.) or a P.C. To access the internet, many use alternative browsers and devices and this is where poorly written sites fall apart. It seems the Kiwi culture of 'she'll be right' lives on.
Of course, it's all completely useless without electricity.

SCOTT ELLIOTT
Senior Consultant
www.bits2bytes.co.nz

Scott Elliott's simplistic view of web design is very misleading. W3C compliance is a worthy goal but it is neither a requirement nor a useful measure of overall website quality. The arguments are too many to include in this letter so I have written a detailed rebuttal at www.teawamutu.co.nz. I'll only make one point here:

W3C compliance must occasionally be sacrificed for a greater benefit. For example, in the case of Te Awamutu Online, Mr. Elliott claims to have found eight errors but he failed to notice that they are all generated by external applications - namely Google and Facebook. Our own HTML code is fully compliant but we have no control over Google or Facebook, so we make exceptions to incorporate advanced functionality from these "non-compliant" websites. The "errors" are inconsequential while the benefits to our users are significant.

Understanding the situations that require this type of compromise is a critical part of web design. When Mr. Elliot gets a few clients under his belt he'll begin to appreciate this reality. In the meantime he can busy himself fixing the 12 spelling and grammatical errors on his own home page.

DAVE OWEN
Te Awamutu Online
www.teawamutu.co.nz

The full rebuttal

Let me begin by acknowledging that Te Awamutu Online is imperfect. It is, after all, a community-driven website produced by volunteers and we always consider it a work in progress. It would be fair to criticise many aspects of our website, but Scott's criticism is unfair.

I'd also like to say that I have no appetite for public spats like this one. I would have preferred Scott to contact me privately - we could have had an enjoyable, productive conversation. But by going directly to the media and dumping on our website to promote his own business, he has set a different stage. He has publicly implied that I am incompetent so I am publicly defending myself, vigorously, with the following rebuttal...

Scott's criticism of local websites is based entirely on the fact that they fail to meet W3C standards. He implies that this makes them unstable or even unusable. The truth is much more complex.

What are W3C standards?

W3C is the name of an international consortium that recommends technical standards for browsers and websites. There is no requirement to follow their recommendations but it is a good idea to do so. Basically it helps to keep us all on the same track and avoid the nasty browser/website incompatibilities that plagued early versions of Netscape, Internet Explorer, etc.

If a web page is 100% compliant we say that it "validates", i.e. the underlying HTML code is 100% valid as measured by an automated test. You can test any web page at validator.w3.org.

Should web designers comply with W3C standards?

Yes, where possible. The Internet would be a much better place if all web designers made the effort to validate their web pages. However, sometimes it's not possible without unacceptable concessions.

In short, all web pages should either validate or have a justifiable reason for not validating.

What are these "errors" and "warnings"?

They are instances in a web page's HTML code that don't meet W3C specifications. In themselves they do not create any actual errors on the web page and the warnings do not indicate any danger - they only exist as a guide to help web developers.

Why do web pages fail validation?

In most cases it is due to poor quality control, as Scott says. The problem with Scott's position is that he has labelled all non-compliant websites as somehow "broken", which is not true.

Here's one example of why a good website can fail: The current HTML specifications are very limited, meaning that in order to create advanced website features, developers must often create new code that is not covered in the specifications. This is far from ideal but done properly, no problems occur. Browsers that can't understand the new code simply ignore it.

Scott claims that Waikato and New Zealand websites are particularly appalling because many of the "big" websites fail. He neglects to mention the big international sites that also fail, including Google, Facebook, Amazon, CNN, BBC News and just about everyone else. Are all their web developers incompetent? No, they realise that functionality wins over validation.

What happens when a web page fails validation?

Nothing. As long as the web page has been tested thoroughly it will display correctly. Of course if the page is actually broken, as opposed to just failing a validation test, that's a different story.

Why doesn't Te Awamutu Online validate?

If Scott had bothered to look further than our home page he would have noticed that, with a few exceptions, the rest of our website does validate. Our home page fails because we decided to incorporate functionality from Google and Facebook, which both fail due to the proprietary code they use*. In other words, the "errors" come from Google and Facebook, not us.

We stand by our decision to prioritise website functionality ahead of pedantic validation issues.

BTW, as Scott himself pointed out, the Courier website validates. I'm not sure if he realised that it's part of Te Awamutu Online.

Why is Scott Elliott so concerned about W3C standards?

Because his web design company uses W3C compliance as its main marketing strategy. I actually think that's a good idea - we could do with more designers who care about standards. All other things being equal, I'd recommend going to such a designer. However Scott has crossed the line between promoting best practices and promoting misleading information.

Scott Elliott is very critical of other people's mistakes, so his own track record must be super-clean, right?

At the time of writing this post, Scott's website is littered with serious spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. Personally I'd rather employ someone who can spell-check than someone who can validate HTML.

In addition, his website fails basic accessibility tests; for example, there is no way for a screen reader (for the visually impaired) to read the navigation menu. There are also other errors such as hyperlinks that go nowhere. These are bigger problems than failing validation.

Last words

Scott's company is a new entrant into the web design market. Apparently he is seeking local clients, in which case I suggest that he tries to make friends with the business community rather than attacking their professionalism. Members of the Chamber of Commerce, for example, are unlikely to be impressed that he criticised their website without knowing all the facts.

I don't make websites for clients but I'm often asked for local recommendations. I usually suggest Design onQ or Deni Vanin. (Any others? Let me know.)

Okay Scott, I've said my piece and I'm going to leave it at that. Despite the tone of this post I'd still be happy to meet you for a chat. It's a small town and we both have to live here, so why not see if we can make it work a bit better? Who knows, maybe we could put this sorry incident behind us and work towards a more mutually beneficial relationship?

The strive for excellence should be a cooperative effort. People like you and me should be sharing experience and learning from each other in a friendly environment, not bagging each other in the media. I'm up for a change of pace if you are.

Dave Owen
Manager, Te Awamutu Online
------------------------------------
Techy footnotes:
* I know there are workarounds to make FB & Google Calendar widgets validate but all the ones I've found involved ugly hacks - not an option IMO. If anyone knows how to make these widgets validate cleanly, please let me know.
* The next generation of web pages will use a new specification (HTML5) which is far more powerful - this should help a lot in allowing advanced features to validate.
* Technically I've misused a few words (e.g. code vs markup) but for this type of blog entry I prefer to use terms that are more likely to be understood.
* Regarding the various pages in our site that don't validate, there's a long story behind each of them - too long to bother with here.

TAC Class of 2000 Reunion

Dave Owen — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 04:13:17 GMT

A reunion is being organised for the Te Awamutu College Class of 2000, to be held on the weekend of 16th October 2010. For more details see the Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=148824628370

Videos: Museum and Rodeo

Dave Owen — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 10:54:18 GMT

A couple of new videos at TATV:
The Games People Play - The lastest interactive exhibition at the museum, featuring a variety of historical and modern games.
Waikato Rodeo - 50th anniversary event held at Kihikihi, 20th Feb 2010.

Te Awamutu AFC at TATV

Dave Owen — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 02:02:37 GMT

We'd like to welcome Te Awamutu Association Football Club on board at TATV. Steve, Kim and the team have made an excellent job of their website and videos. Using the TATV service they are able to create and upload videos directly to TATV and also embed the videos in their own website. It's much the same as Youtube but without the 10-minute duration limit.

Well done TA AFC, we look forward to seeing more of your videos in the future.

Christmas Spirit 2009

Dave Owen — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 09:14:30 GMT

In case you missed it in the Courier, here's a PDF file listing this year's Christmas events, Church services and business trading hours: Christmas Spirit 2009 (PDF, 650KB)

Website Update

Dave Owen — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:05:04 GMT

We've tweaked the look of our home page a little. In response to popular demand we've restored the "What's On" calendar, and we've added a new page for Hamilton events as well. Hopefully now it will be even easier to see what's happening in and around TA.

The "Random Local Website" link now features three websites at once, but more importantly, you can reload the links and see as many as you like.

The rest of the changes are minor cosmetic adjustments. Please let me know if you see any problems with the new format.

New Video Server for TATV

Dave Owen — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 04:27:30 GMT

We've just finished installing a new streaming video server for TATV. The main advantage of the new server is that you can jump to any part of a video without having to wait for it all to download first. Since we're getting quite a few long videos at TATV (an hour or more), this is a welcome improvement.

For example, today we released three videos from the Te Awamutu College 2009 Senior Prizegiving. If you only want to see one of the awards near the end, you would previously have had to wait for 60 minutes of video to download first. Now you can drag the "scrubber" on the video progress bar and move it right to where you want to watch.

Please let us know if you have any problems with the new system.

2009 Rosetown Scream Festival Preview

Dave Owen — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:07:14 GMT

The 2009 festival is underway! At TATV we have a short video featuring festival co-organiser Dean Taylor talking about highlights of the programme.

Satellite View for Virtual Te Awamutu

Dave Owen — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 22:37:23 GMT

At last we have "satellite view" images available at Google Earth and Virtual Te Awamutu. Go to www.teawamutu.co.nz/vta and click the Satellite or Hybrid button on the map.

Herd of Te Awamutu

Dave Owen — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 05:26:23 GMT

The latest suggestion for a new promotional theme in Te Awamutu is bound to get a reaction.

The idea: Encourage local businesses to purchase a life-sized decorative cow and display it for the public (see attached example images). Over time a "herd" of interesting cattle will be developed, providing a talking point and reason to visit TA.

The idea is borrowed from Cow Parade, which is apparently the largest and most successful public art event in the world.

i-Site manager Lynne Fenwick is quick to point out that this isn't about being called a "cow town". Unfortunately, after being labelled that way in the Courier, that's how a number of people I've spoken to see it.

Personally I'm fence-sitting for now, at least until a few questions have been answered. On the whole I have to say I think it has some appeal. As a business owner I'd be tempted to get a cow. However I'm worried about the ongoing cost, given the history of local vandalism. I'm also not convinced that we need to copy the cow theme. Maybe there are other options. For example, who doesn't love the giant lizard at ReptileZ Pets Supplies? Maybe we could develop a theme of sculptures celebrating native wildlife? It would fit with the Maungatautari project well.

Another question is bound to be "Aren't we the rose town?" I won't go into that now except to say I don't think there needs to be a conflict. Whether or not we continue to claim rosetown status is another story altogether.

Anyway, if a few issues can be worked through I do think there's great potential in this. My questions will be:

- Do the cows need to be imported or can they be made locally?
- Are there any environmental issues with manufacture? Indeed, do cows represent a good environmental image anyway?
- What about vandalism? According to the Cow Parade website, the cows do get damaged and require maintenance.
- Are there any legal issues, given that Cow Parade holds certain IP rights over their cow designs?
- Are there any Health & Safety issues? What exactly is the liability situation if someone gets injured falling off my cow?
- Do the residents of Te Awamutu want this?

I'll try to get answers and post them in the comments.

Attached Images

Should Waipa Residents Pee in the Shower?

Dave Owen — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 00:12:53 GMT

I had to chuckle when I heard about councillor George Simmons' unusual suggestion at the last Waipa District Council meeting: "Thousands of litres of treated water would be saved by peeing in the shower".

He's right of course. Whatever you think of the practice, the issue of using drinkable water for flushing toilets is likely to become an issue in the years ahead. The Brazilians are taking the matter quite seriously with an advertising campaign...

Welcome to the New Website

Dave Owen — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 09:52:45 GMT

Welcome to the long-awaited new Te Awamutu Online website. Thanks for your patience! :smile: After all the waiting it was still a last-minute panic but hopefully it's all working okay now.

Here's a quick look at some of the new features:

The Courier website has a whole new look. You can now search the Courier archives for text, or browse by thumbnail images back to 2004.

TATV is now set up like a video sharing site. It's still technically a beta version and we've got a lot of work to do on it yet, but we're excited about the new direction. We hope to start adding regular new videos this year in conjunction with various local organisations. Contact us if you'd like to join the video production team.

The Virtual Town has been completely remade using Google Maps and Google Street View. As you may have seen on Google Earth, the street view images of Te Awamutu aren't exactly flattering and there are some important parts missing. We've added a few panoramas of our own to help fill the gaps. Other features include a directory of locations, Google Earth layers, and the ability to create a link directly to any part of Virtual Te Awamutu (for example, you could create a link for your website showing the location of your business).

There are lots of small additions and tweaks such as Google News for TA, Invited Bloggers and Kid's Space. One of my favourite new sections is the Regent Theatre home page - check out the history pages if you have a spare hour!

One thing we are aware of: You'll need a fairly recent browser and Flash player to use the site properly. For example, Internet Explorer 6 makes a bit of a mess of things - sorry but that's a compromise we felt was justified in order to future-proof the site.

Please let us know if you have any problems or questions about the new site.

Cheers,
Dave Owen