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Is It Time to Reset HTML?

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HTML is one of the foundational building blocks of the Web. But just as web design best practices and techniques change over time, so does the code we use. As HTML evolves, some of its older markup has been deprecated while other parts have been repurposed.

Does that create more problems for us, though? Would we be better off starting over so we can make sure we’re all working from the same language rather than trying to edit out the bits we don’t want or need?

Problems With Holding Onto Legacy HTML

Let’s take a look at what happens when we amend the rules of HTML over time and how it impacts the Web:

1. It’s Risky to Leave Deprecated HTML Behind

Whether certain features have become outdated and need to go, or browsers have stopped supporting certain tags altogether, deprecated code eventually becomes a problem.

You’ll find a long list of deprecated HTML on the HTML.com website:

For many of these, HTML tags and attributes have been replaced by more efficient CSS styling. There are also examples of HTML deprecation because the features have become outdated (like frames).

Yet, there are still websites out there that contain deprecated HTML.

In some cases, the HTML sits silently on the other side of the website. If there’s enough of this errant code hanging around, though, those extra characters and directives could slow down your server’s processing time and render pages more slowly than usual.

In other cases, the HTML breaks features on the front-end of a website. Take, for instance, this warning from Mozilla regarding the <nobr> tag:

Using deprecated code can create inconsistent and poor experiences on the front-end. And when all browsers finally get on board and decide not to support an HTML tag anymore, all visitors will be left with a broken UI.

So, while it’s great that HTML5 has deprecated legacy HTML that’s no longer useful or necessary, that’s not to stop everyone from using it or leaving it behind on older websites. 

2. Legacy Code Focuses on Style; Not Semantics

As I mentioned, a lot of deprecated HTML has been phased out and replaced by CSS styling. And that’s a good thing.

Let me give you a simple example of this…

My favorite book is <i>The Stand</i> by Stephen King. The first time I read it, I didn’t sleep for <i>three days</i>. Thankfully, when I revisit it every year, I have fewer nightmares and can more greatly appreciate the storytelling aspect of it.

In the above paragraph, I’ve used the <i> tag to italicize several words.

In the early days of HTML,<i> stood for “italics” (the way<b> stood for “bold”). With HTML5, however,<i> will still render as italics, but its semantic meaning isn’t as broad. It’s been repurposed to indicate a stylistic change, which is important for things like book and film names, foreign words, and so on. To express emphasis, we use the <em> tag instead. 

Keeping the legacy <i> and <b> tags can lead to issues, though. 

In the statement above, I’ve italicized the name of the book (The Stand) as well as the number of sleepless nights I had (three days) with<i>. Whether the designer decides today, tomorrow or ten months down the road that they want to change the way literary or cinematic references are styled, my choice of HTML will stand in their way.

Because all of my italic text is indicated by <i>, styles can’t universally be applied to specific content (like book references). Instead, the designer would have to go through and clean up my code so that it looks like this:

My favorite book is <i>The Stand</i> by Stephen King. The first time I read it, I didn’t sleep for <em>three days</em>. Thankfully, when I inevitably revisit it every year, I have fewer nightmares and can more greatly appreciate the storytelling aspect of it.

This would then allow the semantically italicized content to remain intact while the designer or developer adjusts the styles of the book title here and across the site. (Though, really, the first italicized phrase should be surrounded by <cite> as it would be more semantically accurate.)

While it’s great that we’ve created guidelines for using legacy HTML today, keeping old code around can confuse writers, designers, and others who are familiar with the previous way of formatting content. By resetting HTML, throwing out old styles, and creating one language we use consistently across the web, we won’t create more work for ourselves later on.

3. Deprecated Code Hinders Accessibility

Another big reason why repurposed and deprecated HTML is a problem is because of accessibility.

For starters, when you leave deprecated and unsupported code behind, it’s likely to cause issues for screen readers, search engines, and browsers that use HTML for clues about the content.

Header tags (e.g.<h1>, <h2>, <h3>), for instance, aren’t just used to visibly break up large chunks of text. Header tags and, more specifically their hierarchy, present important information about the relationship between subjects on a page — and this is the kind of thing that screen readers and search engines pick up on.

That’s why we need to be very careful about the code we leave behind the scenes, even if readers on the front end can’t visibly see it. Let’s look at an example of how this can affect accessibility:

Is there an <i>à la carte</i> menu or is it just <i>prix fixe</i> tonight?

If a screen reader were to read over this sentence, the French phrases would be said with the same emphasis as any other italicized words on the page.

This is why HTML5 encourages semantic coding instead of purely stylistic.

The proper way to write HTML in the line above would be:

Is there an <i lang="fr">à la carte</i> menu or is it just <i lang="fr">prix fixe</i> tonight?

There are two reasons to do this:

  1. To indicate to screen readers that there’s a language change.
  2. To make it easier for designers or developers to create a custom style for foreign phrases.

Semantic coding is essential for designers that work on multilingual websites.

As the World Wide Web Consortium explains, languages like Japanese don’t use italicization or bolding for emphasis — at least not the way English speakers do.

So, to properly translate a page from English, a Japanese designer would need to remove the italics or bolding and add surrounding brackets to the words. However, if everything is coded with <i> and <b>, or there’s a mix of <i> and <em> and<b> and <strong>, it’s going to be really difficult to Find-and-Replace the correct HTML with ease.

So, if accessibility or internationalization are concerns for you at all, getting clear on the HTML you write with is going to be really important.

Wrap-Up

The fact of the matter is, it requires a lot of work to have the rules of HTML rewritten. So while it would be great to reset HTML, I don’t know that it’s all that practical.

All we can really do is stay abreast of what’s happening with the language, edit out legacy code from our websites the second it becomes deprecated, and always use tags and attributes that are supported. By playing around with deprecated or repurposed code, we only put the website visitors’ experience in jeopardy, so it’s best to take the time to clear out the old any chance we get.

If we can all get on the same page about this, problematic legacy HTML will eventually disappear from our websites and memories.

 

Featured image via Unsplash.

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The post Is It Time to Reset HTML? first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.


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Top Blogging Platforms Worth Considering in 2021

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Want to know which of the top blogging platforms you should consider using this year?

Blogging is still one of the best ways to draw attention to your brand, generate thought leadership, and build your credibility. Research suggests that US internet users spend 3x more of their browsing time on blogs than on email. Additionally, people view about 20 billion blog pages on average each month. 

So, how do you join the blogging revolution? You’ll need the right platform. 

Essentially, a blogging platform is a CMS (Content Management System) which supports blog creation. Many come with additional tools like SEO support and integrations with email marketing too. There are tons of great blogging platforms out there, which means knowing where to start searching can be tough. To help you, we’ve put together this list of the leading blogging platforms.

What to Look for in a Blogging Platform

Before we sort through our list of the leading blogging platforms, let’s start with a quick overview of what the best blogging solutions typically include. Notably, depending on what you’re going to be using your blog for, you may have other features to prioritize besides those listed here. These features will act as a starting point for your comparisons:

Ease of Use

Uploading, publishing, and sharing your blog shouldn’t be a headache. 

There are many website builders out there that seem to have blogging tacked on as an “extra” rather than having it built into the foundations of the software. This often leads to a clunky backend experience when you’re building your site. 

If you’re a new blogger or don’t want to spend time messing around with HTML and coding, make sure that your blogging environment is easy to use. The simpler it is to distribute your content, the more likely you’ll stick to your blogging strategy. 

Cost and Revenue Opportunities

Many of the top blogging platforms come with a fee to think about. Even if you use an open-source platform for blogging, you still need to consider domain names, hosting, and security costs. Finding the right balance between spend and return on investment is crucial. 

Remember, just because a blogging platform is cheap doesn’t mean it’s good value. Similarly, expensive software may not be the best for your business. Ideally, you want something that’s going to deliver a good blogging experience, combined with plenty of opportunities to grow your readership for the lowest possible price. 

If you want to get the best return on investment, focus on the kind of monetization options you can access with each platform. Medium, for instance, has a partner program that allows you to earn money on the posts that customers read. Platforms like Wix, WordPress, and Squarespace can all offer earning opportunities too. You can use them to place certain content behind a paywall, create subscriptions, and sell products or services. 

Marketing and Growth Tools

Most blogging platforms will come with at least some tools to help you build your online presence. Wix and WordPress integrate with Google marketing, so you can purchase PPC campaigns and track your organic content through an SEO dashboard. 

The majority of CMS tools equipped with blogging capabilities also come with integrations for your email marketing service. This ensures you can create automated campaigns that inform your audience whenever a new blog post goes live. 

One of the best things about WordPress is how many plugins you can access to boost your readership levels. Access to extra tools like SEO solutions, landing form creators, and pop-ups can all boost your chances of converting and capturing leads. 

Custom Branding

If you’re keen to save money on your blogging platform, you might be tempted to start with a free version of a popular service. This is fine when you’re just testing the waters. However, you will need to spend extra if you want to remove the ads that other website builders put on your site. For instance, Wix’s free version will place ads on your pages and show the Wix identity in your footer. 

To build your own brand identity, you’re going to need to replace that CMS branding with your own. Look for a blogging service where you can buy your own domain name, customize your themes, and add your own colors, images, and logos into the mix. 

While tools like Medium won’t run ads on your campaigns, they also don’t allow you to customize your site to showcase your brand personality. It’s much easier to build a memorable identity when you can control what your site looks like. 

Upkeep and Maintenance

This ties in a little with the “ease of use” factor above. Before you invest in any blogging platform, think about how much work it’s going to require. A hosted blogging platform is pretty easy to manage because you don’t have to worry about security and uptime yourself.

Products like Wix and Squarespace will give you access to SSL certificates, patch security issues on your behalf, and handle other complicated site maintenance issues. WordPress and other open-source solutions require you to take more of a hands-on approach. You’ll need to manage your own web hosting and check the security of your site regularly. 

Flexibility

This feature is often overlooked in some guides to the best blogging platforms, but it’s also growing increasingly more important in today’s digital age. If you want your website to work for years to come, you need to make sure it’s flexible. This could mean that you look for something that allows you to upload different kinds of content, like written blogs and connecting podcasts. 

It could also mean investing in a service that has a lot of integrations and add-on options available. Plugins are fantastic for extending the functionality of your blog without having to move your entire site to another location. 

The right plugins can even allow you to transform your blog into a store if you decide to start selling your services or products later. 

The Best Blogging Platforms for 2021

Now we’ve covered what to look for in a blogging platform, we can begin to explore some of the top platforms on the market today. We’ve chosen these platforms for their ease of use, flexibility, performance, customization options, and value. 

WordPress

The best-known and most popular blogging platform in the world, WordPress is the go-to choice for most bloggers and website creators. Currently, there are around 64 million websites actively using WordPress as their chosen CMS. Usage stats also show that around 400 million people visit WordPress websites every month. 

WordPress powers most of the internet as one of the most flexible and easy-to-use platforms around. The biggest decision most users need to make is between WordPress.com and WordPress.org. 

You can create a blog for free at WordPress.com, and the company will host your site for you. However, you have to use a subdomain (rather than your own domain) with the free version. You’ll also lose control of your ads with the free package until you upgrade to a premium plan. 

A personal plan on WordPress.com starts at about $4 per month, and it removes all ads from your site. The more functionality you need, the more you’ll need to upgrade. WordPress.com is very easy to use and requires minimal initial setup, but it’s not very scalable. There are no custom themes, and you don’t technically “own” your blog this way. 

WordPress.org is a different story. With WordPress.org, you’re accessing an open-source blogging platform that allows you to build your site from scratch. You do need to purchase your own domain name and hosting with this service, but the software is free to use. 

WordPress.org is a lot more appealing to most bloggers because it’s so customizable. Features include:

  • Free and premium themes that you can customize to suit your brand;
  • Thousands of plugins to help with security, SEO, subscriptions, and more;
  • Gutenberg block editors to make creating and publishing blogs easy;
  • Tons of SEO friendly solutions to help you stand out online;
  • Access to a huge community of experts;
  • Infinite control over your design options;
  • Advanced user permissions and roles.

Pricing: WordPress.org is different from most blogging platforms because the foundation technology is free. You just pay for the a-la-carte options, like plugins, hosting, and domain name subscriptions. This means you can choose how expensive your site is going to be.

Pros:

  • Extremely easy to use with lots of community support available;
  • Free platform (though you do need to pay for the domain and hosting);
  • Lots of customization and plugin options to expand site functionality;
  • Search engine friendly as-standard, to help you grow;
  • Plenty of ways to make your brand stand out.

Cons:

  • It can be difficult to control your own website at first;
  • You have to manage your own backup and security;
  • Extra costs can quickly build up.

Squarespace

Squarespace is one of the more popular website design and blogging tools for people with a creative streak. Unlike WordPress.org, Squarespace gives you everything you need to build your own website straight out of the box. This includes hosting, the option to purchase your own domain name, and access to a range of beautiful templates. 

Squarespace stands out for its focus on small business owners. You can choose from a range of stunning designs and customize them however you choose with a convenient drag-and-drop builder. There’s also a fantastic customer service experience available from Squarespace, with a team that’s ready to help you with anything you need. 

Like many other hosted blogging platforms, you start on Squarespace by choosing the templates you like and customizing from there. There are some limitations in what you can do here, particularly if you have a lot of coding knowledge, making Squarespace less appealing to growing companies or larger brands. On the plus side, you do get features like:

  • Dedicated blogging templates to get you started;
  • Categories, tags, and featured post options;
  • Built-in scheduling for your blog posts;
  • Contributor roles and permissions;
  • Analytics to track your readers’ favorite posts;
  • Email marketing tools;
  • Social media and SEO solutions built-in;
  • Mobile app access.

Pricing: Compared to some of the other leading blogging solutions on the market, Squarespace is also quite affordable. The personal package at $12 per month will power a website with a stunning blog. You can also upgrade to the Business version for $18 per month, or if you decide to start selling your own products through your blog, you can transition to “Basic Commerce” at $26 per month.

Pros:

  • Squarespace is easy to use for beginners;
  • Fantastic range of stunning templates included;
  • SEO, email marketing, and social media marketing included;
  • SSL and HTTPS support;
  • Access to eCommerce features on some plans;
  • Useful analytics tools.

Cons:

  • Not very scalable for bigger brands;
  • Limited in terms of integrations and customization.

Medium

Medium is a different kind of blogging platform to many of the options mentioned here. This isn’t a tool you can use to build your own websites, like Wix or Squarespace. Instead, it’s a community you join with a monthly membership fee. 

Medium comes with a built-in audience, so you can immediately start speaking to customers and generating results from your content. As mentioned above, there’s also a Partner Program, which is free to join. The Partner Program allows you to earn money if people are reading your blogs regularly. 

For companies or individuals who just want to generate brand awareness but don’t want to invest in an entire blog-ready website yet, Medium can be a powerful choice. You can easily share posts and view what other people are posting. The biggest downside is that you can’t build an entire community and earn a fortune through your website with Medium. 

Medium is more like a social networking site, where you can begin to develop thought leadership than a true space to carve out your piece of the online world. But it does feature things like:

  • An easy-to-use environment for publishing content;
  • Analytics and insights into your campaigns;
  • Some design customization for your blog layout;
  • Access to a pre-existing audience of readers;
  • Support for monetization in the Partner program;
  • Access to picture uploading options;
  • Mobile-responsive blog posts.

Pricing: You don’t have to be a paid member of Medium to sign up for the partner program and start publishing blogs. This does make it a pretty good way to enhance your existing blogging strategy if you’re trying to generate more attention online. 

Pros:

  • Free to use for Partners and creators;
  • Excellent for appealing to already-engaged customers;
  • Easy to use, with no coding required;
  • No requirement to create a website or pay for hosting;
  • Communicate with a team of like-minded people.

Cons:

  • Limited customization options;
  • No ownership over your audience or readership;
  • Limitations to how you can make money (no ads).

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is among the most popular platforms for professionals in the world. It’s the go-to place for people in search of reliable ways to develop their professional network. Currently, there are around 756 million members on LinkedIn. When they’re not searching for connections with their peers or chatting about work opportunities, they’re checking out the content on the platform. 

If you’re keen to develop your position as a thought leader but prefer social media accounts to full websites, LinkedIn is the perfect choice. The more you publish on LinkedIn, the more you’ll attract new people who might want to work with you, invest in your company, or just work as part of your team. 

LinkedIn is a great place to generate attention if you’re in the B2B marketplace because most professionals already have their own account. You can also earn social proof by getting people to “endorse” your work. Some of the features of LinkedIn for bloggers include:

  • Private messaging for interactions with connections;
  • Notifications to help you keep track of valuable content;
  • A full profile posting section where you can publish your blogs;
  • A convenient network of active B2B professionals;
  • Endorsements for social proof;
  • A resume and blogging platform in one (you can list your skills);
  • Job searching and employee searching features.

Pricing: It’s free to access a basic membership with LinkedIn, but you will be limited on some of the features you can unlock. For instance, you can only send messages to people already in your network, and you’ll have limited analytics. LinkedIn Premium gives you slightly more functionality, with Business accounts starting at around $29.95 per month. 

Pros: 

  • Tons of people ready to read your blogs;
  • Great for building your professional network;
  • Good environment for thought leadership;
  • Access to extra tools like job listings;
  • Notifications to keep you on top of relevant posts;
  • Engagement options like private messaging;
  • Reports and insights.

Cons: 

  • No access to full website branding;
  • Limits to how you can monetize your content;
  • You don’t own the site or your traffic.

Wix

Easily one of the most popular website building solutions for beginners, Wix can help you build both a blog and a fully-featured website. You can even design your own store with Wix and start selling products whenever you choose. 

Wix is a straightforward site builder which you can use to build a site in a matter of minutes. There are hundreds of website themes to choose from, and you can also add as many customizations as you choose with the convenient drag-and-drop editor. The blog manager section of the CMS is also simple and intuitive, with SEO and analytics built in already. 

Wix aims to make jumping into blogging as quick and painless as possible. Elements like comments, social tools, hashtags, and subscriber forms are already available, and you can add further plugins if you choose. There’s also the option to include sharing buttons for social media accounts like Twitter, Facebook, and more. Features of Wix include:

  • An extensive range of blog templates;
  • Drag-and-drop customization (no coding required);
  • Subscriber forms, comments, likes, and categories;
  • Social media connections;
  • Extra features like store access;
  • Analytics and insights;
  • Quick and easy blogging interface.

Pricing: 

The most basic features of the Wix website builder are free to use. With a free Wix account, you’ll get a subdomain where you can’t choose the name of your own website, unfortunately. However, you can add a custom domain for only $4.50 per month. If you want a full premium plan with Wix, costs start at $8.50 per month and extend to $24.50 per month.

Pros:

  • Lots of pre-built blogging themes;
  • Easy customization options with no coding skills required;
  • Quick and easy to load and publish blogs;
  • Connections with social media platforms;
  • Access to various third-party apps and integrations;
  • Free option for beginners.

Cons:

  • Some limitations to the free account;
  • Ecommerce features are limited to paid plans;
  • Not as scalable for bigger companies.

Ghost

Lesser known than some of the options we’ve discussed so far but still brimming with value, Ghost is a minimalist blogging platform that’s all about content creation. Ghost promises a range of ways for you to turn your blogging into a business, with access to customizable templates, newsletter integrations, premium subscriptions, and more. 

The dashboard for Ghost is clean and intuitive, with access to simple sections where you can add tags to your posts, create drafts, track published content, and access valuable insights. You’ll have an easy view of important metrics like email open rates and numbers of paid members at a glance. You can also find integrations to make your Ghost experience even better. 

Ghost works alongside things like Buffer, Stripe, Twitter, Slack, MailChimp, and many other tools so you can take your blog to the next level. There’s no need for any coding knowledge, and because everything is written in JavaScript, it’s ultra-fast too. Features include:

  • Easy-to-use and intuitive interface;
  • Blogging and writing focused;
  • Clean and clutter-free design;
  • Integrations with various powerful tools;
  • Super-fast JavaScript coding;
  • Lots of templates and customizations;
  • Comment, mobile apps, A/B testing, and more;
  • Analytics and reporting.

Pricing: There’s a 14-day free trial to get you started with Ghost, then subscriptions start at $9 per month when billed annually for up to 1,000 members, 1 staff user, 2k views per month, and an SSL and CDN. The same plan is $15 per month billed monthly. Prices go all the way up to $199 per month billed annually, or $249 per month for 1 million views per month, 35,000 members, 15 staff users, and a 99.99% uptime SLA. 

Pros: 

  • Focus on writing and blogging;
  • Clutter-free and clean backend environment;
  • Easy to use and speedy performance;
  • Lots of packages to choose from;
  • Great integration options.

Cons:

  • Some limitations in scalability;
  • Complicated setup when installed;
  • Not a huge number of themes.

Choosing Your Blogging Platform

Whether you’re blogging because you want to build your personal brand or you’re looking for a way to strengthen sales opportunities for your company, you’re going to need the right blogging platform. The options above are just some of the best blogging solutions available right now. 

Remember, do your research and explore the free versions available whenever possible, so you can confidently invest in the software that’s best for you.

 

Featured image via Unsplash.

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The post Top Blogging Platforms Worth Considering in 2021 first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.


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Killing Cloud Security Misconceptions: Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs)

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Background

The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) tells us the whole story just by its name — these are exposures and vulnerabilities that are common. But what happens when uncommon issues are discovered and exploited by attackers? What if attackers just want us to think they’d only exploit common issues and vulnerabilities?

Securing CVEs sounds like it should be the right place to start from. Exploring common vulnerabilities and exposure is where script kiddies start from, that’s what bots are exploiting, and none of us want to end up in the security hall of shame, set aside for organizations that were exploited and affected by ransomware, thanks to an unpatched CVE from months ago.

Source de l’article sur DZONE

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6 Ways Parallax Still Works in 2021 

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Parallax is a term that is applied loosely and frequently in the world of web design. As a trend, it has been popular and unpopular in equal measures for some time. However, it’s still one of the most valuable tools for animation in the digital world.

Parallax creates an illusion of depth when scrolling, a timeless effect that still has lots of value in the web design world.

Sure, parallax has its issues, from problems with usability, to concerns with mobile responsivity — but it’s also an interesting way to make a website stand out when done correctly.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the ways that parallax scrolling still works in 2021…

1. Parallax Tells A Story

Let’s start simple. 

One of the most effective ways to use parallax scrolling in the modern age is to tell a story. Today’s consumers want to have an emotional connection with the brands they buy from – now more than ever. Five years ago, studies showed that around 80% of customers want brands to tell stories, and that trend remains consistent to this day.

In the age of digital consumerism, where people can’t get to know a company in person through face-to-face interactions with its salespeople, companies need new ways to connect with their clients. Telling brand-driven stories is a way to highlight that your company is more than just a faceless entity – it’s something with real soul. 

Let’s look at the “Recap After Use” website, a portfolio belonging to the innovative Louie Sellers. This website showcases Louie’s skills with attention-grabbing visuals, including a parallax animation that makes it looks like Louie is drawing the page as you scroll through it.

This is the kind of exceptional animation that makes parallax scrolling more compelling. The animation isn’t there to make a visual difference to the page – it tells you something more about the person behind the website and what they can do.

2. Parallax Increases Website Visit Times

If a website effectively tells a story with parallax animation, you can also bet that’s going to keep customers or readers on a page for longer. Reducing bounce rate by increasing engagement is one of the main goals of any web designer. (Bounce rates, of course, refer to the percentage of site visitors that hit the back button after just seeing the first page of your website.)

While some people argue that parallax websites can hurt your SEO rankings if they slow down your site, there’s also the argument that the lack of a visually engaging page can harm SEO. Bounce rates drag down your ranking and make it harder to get audience attention. 

A parallax animation that tells a story and engages your audience through carefully delivered information is a great way to keep people around – even just for a little longer than usual. For instance, if you check out Alex Dram’s portfolio page here, you’ll see several shapes coming together during the parallax scrolling animation.

The shapes merge to tell a story about the visual experiences that Alex can create for customers. It’s a way to draw the eye and connect with the viewer without just writing about what you do through text. 

3. Parallax Develops Credibility

There’s a reason why both examples of parallax scrolling we’ve looked at so far are from creative portfolios. Parallax scrolling, with its excellent storytelling capabilities, is great for demonstrating your credibility as a digital expert. Basically, it’s a version of “showing” and not “telling” customers about your skills. 

You can tell someone that you know how to use tricky techniques like parallax animation correctly, but they’re less likely to believe you that way. If you can show that you have the skills to create something amazing, that’s more engaging. 

The OK Alpha team is a great company to reference when it comes to sensational design. This company seems to always be on the cutting edge of the latest trends, whether it’s bold typography or bright colors. To add to the impact of their website, the company has combined parallax effects into the mix to make everything more immersive as you scroll. 

This is a beautiful example of how companies in the design landscape can use techniques like parallax scrolling to show what they’re capable of. 

4. Parallax Makes Information More Fun

Most of us are naturally visual learners. We like to consume information in a way that’s refreshingly eye-catching and attractive. That’s why visual content generally earns more social shares and attention than written content. With parallax scrolling, companies that want to deliver valuable information and educational content to their audience can do so effectively.

Rather than just scrolling through a page and seeing lots of text, your customers can see images and graphs come to life alongside the blocks of text they’re reading. It’s like adding video demonstrations next to a textbook to help people better understand what they’re reading about. 

Look at the Web Design and Art History microsite from Webflow as an example. The company wants you to understand how web design and art have evolved over the years, but it doesn’t want to deliver that information in a boring format. The bright graphics and parallax animation work together to give you a more contextual, meaningful experience.

5. Parallax Replicates Another Medium

What if you could remind someone of their experience when reading a book or watching a video while telling them about a video or a novel? Parallax scrolling and animation can help with that. It’s a way of making your website feel like a video presentation or slideshow without the added components of implementing video players into your back end. 

Parallax scrolling also has another slight benefit over a standard video-based website. On a website that uses a video for a background, the video often plays automatically. This means that your visitors can’t control how quickly the video plays. 

On the other hand, parallax animations driven by scrolling action allow your customer to collect information at a pace that suits them. Take a look at the Story of the Goonies website, for instance. This stunning parallax site introduces you to the details you need to know about the movie in a way that makes it feel like the intro to a film.

The great thing about the parallax on this site is that the slow video-style design also gives you a dose of nostalgia – which ties in perfectly with the movie. 

6. Parallax Is More Memorable

What’s the main reason any designer does anything special to a website? To make it stand out, of course. Web design is all about conveying the unique essence of a brand, business, or entity in a way that’s going to make that client unforgettable. Although parallax isn’t as novel as it once was, it can still be a way to make your site stand out – if it’s used correctly. 

The key to success with parallax scrolling for memorability is making it smart. The layout needs to feel simple and intuitive. Everything needs to work well together, from the lightly shifting font to the various parallax effects that work together to draw the viewer’s eye (and attention). 

A great example comes from Jomor Design – another designer with a portfolio that really grabs your focus from the first second. The layout is beautifully done, with plenty of mini moments for engagement and interactions throughout. As you scroll through the site, you get a better idea of what the designer is all about. The little moments of animation make the whole experience so much more memorable. 

When your site is more memorable and engaging than that of your competition, you can drive many major benefits for your brand, including an improved bounce rate.

What To Remember When Using Parallax

Parallax is just like any other design technique. There are ways you can do it wonderfully, which engage and delight your audience. However, there are also a lot of areas where you can easily go wrong. When using any design element, the main thing to remember is that the primary focus should always be your users’ experiences. Parallax shouldn’t just be a way to show off your design knowledge. It’s just another feature that you can use to create an amazing website. 

Remember that user experience and visual appeal need to work perfectly together for parallax to work. If scrolling through the page is practically impossible for people on a mobile device, then you’re not going to get the results you want. If it’s difficult to take in the message you’re trying to send because the content is moving too quickly, again, your users will suffer. 

Remember the following tips:

  • Simple is better: Reduce the amount of content and visual elements on your page whenever you can. The less information there is to capture your customer’s attention, the less likely it is that you’re going to end up with a problem. 
  • Compress file sizes: Make sure that you’re not reducing the speed of your website by creating a huge single page with tons of high-quality images. You’re going to need to use the smallest possible file sizes. 
  • Check responsiveness: Make sure that the parallax effect works just as well on your smartphone or tablet as it would on a desktop. As more people move their browsing experiences into their palms, you can’t afford to ignore responsivity. 
  • Find the “wow”: Look at these examples of parallax websites. Every one stands out because it does something special with the scrolling effect. If you’re going to be using this strategy with your website, you need to make sure it’s worth the effort. Don’t just follow the same guidelines as everything else. Find the idea that’s going to make people take notice.

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Deno vs. Node: A Detailed Comparison

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What is Deno?

Deno a pristine method to compose worker-side JavaScript. It solves many of the problems that Node does. It was created by the same person as Node. It uses the V8 JavaScript engine under the hood but the rest of the runtime is implemented in Rust and Typescript.

What Reason Does Deno Utilize Rust?

Deno may be a safe TypeScript run-time on Chrome V8. It had been initially written in Go and now has been revamped in Rust to remain far away from potential garbage collector issues. Deno is like Node js yet is centered around security. The rationale that Deno made was JavaScript. Significantly more horrendous than having a competitor who understands your thing back to front, Deno was made expressly to fix what Dahl saw due to the crucial weaknesses of NodeJs — including security issues, use of a centralized repository system (npm), and heavy tooling.

Source de l’article sur DZONE

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Create Beautiful WordPress Pages with Optimized Images Using Elementor and ImageEngine

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WordPress powers nearly 40% of all websites, thanks to its commitment to making publication possible for everyone, for free. Combined with premium plugins and themes, it’s possibly the ultimate tool for building attractive, unique, and feature-rich websites without any coding or design experience.

However, you do pay the price for this experience, with WordPress and its third-party products not always being built for performance – whether it’s page loading times or SEO.

Image optimization is a particularly big concern. Images are one, if not the largest, contributors to page weight, and it’s growing significantly by the year. So, while images are crucial for beautifying your website pages, they are also one of the biggest factors slowing it down.

In terms of image optimization, WordPress+Elementor brings very little to the table. WordPress core now comes with both responsive syntax and lazy-loading. Elementor itself also only comes with responsive syntax out-of-the-box. However, these are baseline techniques for image optimization that will deliver the bare minimum of improvements.

This means that, while Elementor makes it easy to design sweet-looking WordPress pages (with tonnes of creatively utilized images), you will probably pay the price when it comes to performance. But don’t worry. We will show you how to dramatically improve web performance by over 30 points on scoring tools like Google’s PageSpeed Insight. 

Why Optimize Your Elementor Images with ImageEngine?

In general, image CDNs use various techniques to get image payloads as small as possible and deliver image content faster, all while minimizing the visual impact. ImageEngine is no different in that regard.

Firstly, ImageEngine, when used in auto mode, will apply all of the following optimizations that web performance tools like Google’s PageSpeed Insight recommend. For example:

  • Properly size images – ImageEngine automatically resizes images for optimal size-to-quality ratios depending on the screen size of the user device. ImageEngine supports Retina devices.
  • Efficiently encode images – Applies different rates of compression depending on the PPI of the user devices. For example, ImageEngine adapts and more aggressively compresses on higher PPI devices without losing visual quality.
  • Next-gen format conversion – Automatically converts images to the optimal next-gen format according to the browser, device, or OS. ImageEngine can convert images to WebP or JPEG-2000 as well as GIFs to MP4 or WebP.  AVIF is also available in a manual directive mode.
  • Strip unnecessary metadata

While these features are standard for most image CDNs, ImageEngine is unique for its use of WURFL device detection. This gives ImageEngine much deeper insight into the user device accessing a website page and, by extension, its images. Using the screen size, resolution, PPI, etc., ImageEngine can make more intelligent decisions regarding how to reduce image payloads while maintaining visual quality.

This is why ImageEngine brands itself as an “intelligent, device-aware” image CDN and why it can reduce image payloads by as much as 80% (if not more).

ImageEngine also provides a proprietary CDN service to accelerate image delivery. The CDN consists of 20 globally positioned PoPs with the device-aware logic built-in. This allows you to deliver image content faster in different regions while also serving images straight from the cache with a ~98% hit ratio.

ImageEngine also supports Chrome’s save data setting. If someone has a slow connection or has activated this setting, ImageEngine will automatically compress image payloads even more, to provide a better user experience on slower connections.

How to Use ImageEngine with WordPress and Elementor

If you’re using WordPress and Elementor, then chances are you want to spend as little time on development and other technicalities as possible. Luckily, ImageEngine is a highly streamlined tool that requires little to no effort to integrate or maintain with a WordPress site.

Assuming you already have a WordPress website with Elementor, here are the step-by-step instructions to use ImageEngine:

  1. Go to ImageEngine.io and sign up for a 30-day free trial.
  2. Provide ImageEngine with the URL of the website you want to optimize.
  3. Create an account (or sign up with your existing Google, GitHub, or ScientiaMobile account).
  4. Provide ImageEngine with the current origin where your images are served from. If you upload images to your WordPress website as usual, then that means providing your WordPress website address again.
  5. Finally, ImageEngine will generate an ImageEngine delivery address for you from where your optimized images will be served. This typically takes the form of: {randomstring}.cdn.imgeng.in. You can change the delivery address to something more meaningful from the dashboard, such as myimages.cdn.imgeng.in.

Now, to set up ImageEngine on your WordPress website:

  1. Go to the WordPress dashboard and head to Plugins -> Add New.
  2. Search for the “Image CDN” plugin by ImageEngine. When you find it, install and activate the plugin.

  1. Go to Settings -> Image CDN. OK, so this is the ImageEngine plugin dashboard. To configure it, all you need to do is:

a. Copy the delivery address you got from ImageEngine above and paste it in the “Delivery Address” field.

b. Tick the “Enable ImageEngine” box.

That’s literally it. All images that you use on your WordPress/Elementor pages should now be served via the ImageEngine CDN already optimized. 

ImageEngine is largely a “set-it-and-forget-it” tool. It will provide the best results in auto mode with no user input. However, you can override some of ImageEngine’s settings from the dashboard or by using URL directives to manipulate images.

For example, you can resize an image to 300 px width and convert it to WebP by changing the src attribute like this:

<img src="https://myimages.cdn.imgeng.in/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/banner-logo.png?imgeng=/w_300/f_webp">

However, use this only when necessary, as doing so will limit ImageEngine’s adaptability under different conditions.

What Improvement Can You Expect?

Let’s see what results you can expect from using an image CDN to improve your page loading times.

For this, I created two identical WordPress pages using the Elementor theme. The one page purely relied on WordPress and Elementor, while I installed and set up ImageEngine for the other. The page had some galleries as well as full-size images:

The pages used many high-quality images, as you might expect to find on a professional photography gallery, photography blog, stock photo website, large e-commerce site, etc. I then ran page performance tests using Chrome’s built-in Lighthouse audit tool, choosing scores representing the average results I got for each page.

For thoroughness, I tested both the mobile and desktop performance. However, I focused on the mobile results as these showcase more of the image CDN’s responsive capabilities. Mobile traffic also accounts for the majority share of internet traffic and seems to be the focus for search engines going forward.

So, first of all, let’s see the mobile score for the page without ImageEngine:

As you can see, there was definitely a struggle to deliver the huge amount of image content. Google has shown that 53% of mobile users abandon a page that takes more than 3s to load. So, clearly, this page has major concerns when it comes to user experience and retaining traffic.

The desktop version fared much better, although it still left much to be desired:

When digging into the reasons behind the slowdown, we can identify the following problems:

Most of the issues related somehow to the size and weight of the images. As you can see, Lighthouse identified a 3.8 MB payload while the total image payload of the entire page was close to 40 MB.

Now, let’s see what kind of improvement ImageEngine can make to these issues by looking at the mobile score first:

So, as you can see, a major improvement of 30 points over the standard WordPress/Elementor page. The time to load images was cut down by roughly 80% across the key core web vital metrics, such as FCP, LCP, and the overall Speed Index.

In fact, we just reached that critical 3s milestone for the FCP (the largest element on the visible area of the page when it initially loads), which creates the impression that the page has finished loading and will help you retain a lot of mobile traffic.

The desktop score was also much higher, and there was further improvement across the key performance metrics.

If we look at the performance problems still present, we see that images are almost completely removed as a concern. We also managed to bring down the initial 3.8 MB payload to around 1.46 MB, which is a ~62% reduction:

An unfortunate side effect of using WordPress and WordPress plugins is that you will almost inevitably face a performance hit due to all the additional JavaScript and CSS. This is part of the reason why we didn’t see even larger improvements. That’s the price you pay for the convenience of using these tools.

That being said, the more images you have on your pages, and the larger their sizes, the more significant the improvement will be.

It’s also worth noting that lazy-loaded images were loaded markedly faster with ImageEngine if you quickly scroll down the page, again making for an improved user experience.

Thanks to its intelligent image compression, there was also no visible loss in image quality, as you can see from this comparison:

Conclusion

So, as you can see, we can achieve significant performance improvements on image-heavy websites by using the ImageEngine image CDN, despite inherent performance issues using a CMS. This will translate to happier users, better search engine rankings, and an overall more successful website.

The best part is that ImageEngine stays true to the key principles of WordPress. You don’t have to worry about any of the nuts and bolts on the inside. And, ImageEngine will automatically adjust automation strategies as needed, future-proofing you against having to occasionally rework images for optimization.

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Poll: Is Basecamp Right To Shutdown Politics At Work?

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This week, in a move like something from a particularly eventful episode of The Office, popular project management app company Basecamp banned political and societal discussion in the company’s internal communications.

In a post that has been revised for “clarification,” the company’s co-founder Jason Fried listed six rules for employees: No societal or political discussions at work; No more ‘paternalistic’ benefits; No more committees; No more lingering on past decisions; No more 360 reviews; No forgetting what we do here.

A follow-up post from Heinemeier Hansson notes that Basecamp will still permit discussion of issues deemed central to its business like anti-trust and privacy; certain civil liberties are to be championed, while others, like racism and climate change, are not.

On the surface, it seems reasonable, Fried and co-founder David Heinemeier Hansson would like you to believe that it is. After all, people are paid to work, not soapbox, right?

So why, if they’re the ones being protected, are Basecamp’s employees angry about the move?

It turns out, multiple sources from inside Basecamp are reporting that the ‘political’ and ‘societal’ issues referred to in Fried’s public memo were, in fact, frank and open conversations about Basecamp itself.

As reported by The Verge, way back in 2009, a list of ‘funny’ customer names began circulating at the company — hardly respectful, potentially racist, and certainly inappropriate. The misalignment between co-founders and staff occurred when staff members attempted to hold discrete conversations about this and numerous other diversity and inclusivity failings at the company. Fried’s move appears to be a direct attempt to halt criticism of the status quo at Basecamp.

Basecamp itself is a highly political organization: The co-founders have written several books advocating certain societal change; they even provided a campaign headquarters and substantial donation for a candidate for Chicago mayor. Both co-founders are highly active on social media, using their business positions to elevate their personal views.

The truth is that the solo entrepreneur is an almost mythical beast. Successful startups require contributions from a range of skills and experience beyond any one individual. Jason Fried may be the frontman, strutting up and down the stage in spandex pants, with David Heinemeier Hansson playing lead guitar with his teeth, but behind them, there’s a drummer keeping time, and behind them all, there’s a crew of roadies without whom none of the equipment will arrive, let alone sound good.

Basecamp’s founders argue that the company has a mission, and that mission is to create apps that streamline the workplace. But how can you develop a product that is inclusive if staff cannot discuss what inclusive means? The answer is, you can’t.

Discussing racial bias in advertising or the impact of company wastage, climate change, or gender pay gaps in HR meetings are all political and societal and lead to a healthier, more united company.

As designers, we often say that you cannot not communicate; every decision is a design decision; there is no such thing as “adesign.” Likewise, choosing to be apolitical is itself a political choice. The only way it is feasible to run a company like this is to treat employees like robots (in the word’s original sense).

If employees feel the need to discuss exclusionary policies in the workplace, do the company founders, who benefit from those policies (or they would not be in place), have a moral or legal right to restrict those discussions?

Although it is the first point in Fried’s list that has drawn most ire, it is the fourth item on the list that is most telling: “No more lingering or dwelling on past decisions.” Like a parent answering, “Because I said so,” Fried’s attitude to his staff is laid bare in one statement.

It turns out two wealthy white men would rather their employees not try to change the world or even their workplace.

When Coinbase announced a similar move last year, it lost 5% of its staff. If Basecamp suffered the same loss, it would amount to three people. Hardly a disaster. The question for the founders — who, judging by the number of follow-ups and clarifications they’ve published, are aware the ice they’re on is perilously thin — is whether this kind of controversy creates irreparable reputational damage.

 

Featured image via Pexels.

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Qu’est-ce qu’un Data Warehouse ?

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Un data warehouse (entrepôt de données) est un système de stockage numérique qui connecte et harmonise de grandes quantités de données provenant de nombreuses sources différentes. Il a pour but d’alimenter la Business Intelligence (BI), le reporting et l’analyse, ainsi que soutenir la conformité aux exigences réglementaires afin que les entreprises puissent exploiter leurs données et prendre des décisions intelligentes fondées sur les données. Les data warehouse stockent les données actuelles et historiques dans un seul et même endroit et constituent ainsi une source unique de vérité pour une organisation.

Les données sont envoyées vers un data warehouse à partir de systèmes opérationnels (tels qu’un système ERP ou CRM), de bases de données et de sources externes comme les systèmes partenaires, les appareils IoT, les applications météo ou les réseaux sociaux, généralement de manière régulière. L’émergence du cloud computing a changé la donne. Ces dernières années, le stockage des données a été déplacé de l’infrastructure sur site traditionnelle vers de multiples emplacements, y compris sur site, dans le Cloud privé et dans le Cloud public.

Les data warehouse modernes sont conçus pour gérer à la fois les données structurées et les données non structurées, comme les vidéos, les fichiers image et les données de capteurs. Certains utilisent les outils analytiques intégrés et la technologie de base de données in-memory (qui conserve l’ensemble de données dans la mémoire de l’ordinateur plutôt que dans l’espace disque) pour fournir un accès en temps réel à des données fiables et favoriser une prise de décision en toute confiance. Sans entreposage de données, il est très difficile de combiner des données provenant de sources hétérogènes, de s’assurer qu’elles sont au bon format pour les analyses et d’obtenir une vue des données sur le court terme et sur le long terme.

Schéma qui montre ce qu'est un data warehouse

Avantages de l’entreposage de données

Un data warehouse bien conçu constitue la base de tout programme de BI ou d’analyse réussi. Son principal objectif est d’alimenter les rapports, les tableaux de bord et les outils analytiques devenus indispensables aux entreprises d’aujourd’hui. Un entrepôt de données fournit les informations dont vous avez besoin pour prendre des décisions basées sur les données et vous aide à faire les bons choix, que ce soit pour le développement de nouveaux produits ou la gestion des niveaux de stock. Un data warehouse présente de nombreux avantages. En voici quelques-uns :

  • Un meilleur reporting analytique : grâce à l’entreposage de données, les décideurs ont accès à des données provenant de plusieurs sources et n’ont plus besoin de prendre des décisions basées sur des informations incomplètes.
  • Des requêtes plus rapides : les data warehouse sont spécialement conçus pour permettre l’extraction et l’analyse rapides des données. Avec un entrepôt de données, vous pouvez très rapidement demander de grandes quantités de données consolidées avec peu ou pas d’aide du service informatique.
  • Une amélioration de la qualité des données : avant de charger les données dans l’entrepôt de données le système met en place des nettoyages de données afin de garantir que les données sont converties dans un seul et même format dans le but de faciliter les analyses (et les décisions), qui reposent alors sur des données précises et de haute qualité.
  • Une visibilité sur les données historiques : en stockant de nombreuses données historiques, un data warehouse permet aux décideurs d’analyser les tendances et les défis passés, de faire des prévisions et d’améliorer l’organisation au quotidien.

Capture d'écran de la solution SAP Data Warehouse Cloud

Que peut stocker un data warehouse ?

Lorsque les data warehouse sont devenus populaires à la fin des années 1980, ils étaient conçus pour stocker des informations sur les personnes, les produits et les transactions. Ces données, appelées données structurées, étaient bien organisées et mises en forme pour en favoriser l’accès. Cependant, les entreprises ont rapidement voulu stocker, récupérer et analyser des données non structurées, comme des documents, des images, des vidéos, des e-mails, des publications sur les réseaux sociaux et des données brutes issues de capteurs.

Un entrepôt de données moderne peut contenir des données structurées et des données non structurées. En fusionnant ces types de données et en éliminant les silos qui les séparent, les entreprises peuvent obtenir une vue complète et globale sur les informations les plus précieuses.

Termes clés

Il est essentiel de bien comprendre un certain nombre de termes en lien avec les data warehouse. Les plus importants ont été définis ci-dessous. Découvrez d’autres termes et notre FAQ dans notre glossaire.

Data warehouse et base de données

Les bases de données et les data warehouse sont tous deux des systèmes de stockage de données, mais diffèrent de par leurs objectifs. Une base de données stocke généralement des données relatives à un domaine d’activité particulier. Un entrepôt de données stocke les données actuelles et historiques de l’ensemble de l’entreprise et alimente la BI et les outils analytiques. Les data warehouse utilisent un serveur de base de données pour extraire les données présentes dans les bases de données d’une organisation et disposent de fonctionnalités supplémentaires pour la modélisation des données, la gestion du cycle de vie des données, l’intégration des sources de données, etc.

Data warehouse et lac de données

Les data warehouse et les lacs de données sont utilisés pour stocker le Big Data, mais sont des systèmes de stockage très différents. Un data warehouse stocke des données qui ont été formatées dans un but spécifique, tandis qu’un lac de données stocke les données dans leur état brut, non traité, dont l’objectif n’a pas encore été défini. Les entrepôts de données et les lacs de données se complètent souvent. Par exemple, lorsque des données brutes stockées dans un lac s’avèrent utiles pour répondre à une question, elles peuvent être extraites, nettoyées, transformées et utilisées dans un data warehouse à des fins d’analyse. Le volume de données, les performances de la base de données et les coûts du stockage jouent un rôle important dans le choix de la solution de stockage adaptée.

Diagramme qui montre la différence entre un data warehouse et un lac de données

Data warehouse et datamart

Un datamart est une sous-section d’un data warehouse, partitionné spécifiquement pour un service ou un secteur d’activité, comme les ventes, le marketing ou la finance. Certains datamarts sont également créés à des fins opérationnelles autonomes. Alors qu’un data warehouse sert de magasin de données central pour l’ensemble de l’entreprise, un datamart utilise des données pertinentes à un groupe d’utilisateurs désigné. Ces utilisateurs peuvent alors accéder plus facilement aux données, accélérer leurs analyses et contrôler leurs propres données. Plusieurs datamarts sont souvent déployés dans un data warehouse.

Diagramme d'un data mart et de son fonctionnement

Quels sont les composants clés d’un data warehouse ?

Un data warehouse classique comporte quatre composants principaux : une base de données centrale, des outils ETL (extraction, transformation, chargement), des métadonnées et des outils d’accès. Tous ces composants sont conçus pour être rapides afin de vous assurer d’obtenir rapidement des résultats et vous permettre d’analyser les données à la volée.

Diagramme montrant les composants d'un data warehouse

  1. Base de données centrale : une base de données sert de fondement à votre data warehouse. Depuis le départ, on utilisait essentiellement des bases de données relationnelles standard exécutées sur site ou dans le Cloud. Mais en raison du Big Data, du besoin d’une véritable performance en temps réel et d’une réduction drastique des coûts de la RAM, les bases de données in-memory sont en train de monter en puissance.
  2. Intégration des données : les données sont extraites des systèmes source et modifiées pour aligner les informations afin qu’elles puissent être rapidement utilisées à des fins analytiques à l’aide de différentes approches d’intégration des données telles que l’ETL (extraction, transformation, chargement) et les services de réplication de données en temps réel, de traitement en masse, de transformation des données et de qualité et d’enrichissement des données.
  3. Métadonnées : les métadonnées sont des données relatives à vos données. Elles indiquent la source, l’utilisation, les valeurs et d’autres fonctionnalités des ensembles de données présents dans votre data warehouse. Il existe des métadonnées de gestion, qui ajoutent du contexte à vos données, et des métadonnées techniques, qui décrivent comment accéder aux données, définissent leur emplacement ainsi que leur structure.
  4. Outils d’accès du data warehouse : les outils d’accès permettent aux utilisateurs d’interagir avec les données de votre data warehouse. Exemples d’outils d’accès : outils de requête et de reporting, outils de développement d’applications, outils d’exploration de données et outils OLAP.

Architecture de data warehouse 

Auparavant, les data warehouse fonctionnaient par couches, lesquelles correspondaient au flux des données de gestion.

Diagramme de l'architecture d'un data warehouse

Couche de données

Les données sont extraites de vos sources, puis transformées et chargées dans le niveau inférieur à l’aide des outils ETL. Le niveau inférieur comprend votre serveur de base de données, les datamarts et les lacs de données. Les métadonnées sont créées à ce niveau et les outils d’intégration des données, tels que la virtualisation des données, sont utilisés pour combiner et agréger les données en toute transparence.

Couche sémantique

Au niveau intermédiaire, les serveurs OLAP (Online Analytical Processing) et OLTP (Online Transaction Processing) restructurent les données pour favoriser des requêtes et des analyses rapides et complexes.

Couche analytique

Le niveau supérieur est la couche du client frontend. Il contient les outils d’accès du data warehouse qui permettent aux utilisateurs d’interagir avec les données, de créer des tableaux de bord et des rapports, de suivre les KPI, d’explorer et d’analyser les données, de créer des applications, etc. Ce niveau inclut souvent un workbench  ou une zone de test pour l’exploration des données et le développement de nouveaux modèles de données.

Un data warehouse standard comprend les trois couches définies ci-dessus. Aujourd’hui, les entrepôts de données modernes combinent OLTP et OLAP dans un seul système.

Les data warehouse, conçus pour faciliter la prise de décision, ont été essentiellement créés et gérés par les équipes informatiques. Néanmoins, ces dernières années, ils ont évolué pour renforcer l’autonomie des utilisateurs fonctionnels, réduisant ainsi leur dépendance aux équipes informatiques pour accéder aux données et obtenir des informations exploitables. Parmi les fonctionnalités clés d’entreposage de données qui ont permis de renforcer l’autonomie des utilisateurs fonctionnels, on retrouve les suivantes :

  1. La couche sémantique ou de gestion fournit des expressions en langage naturel et permet à tout le monde de comprendre instantanément les données, de définir des relations entre les éléments dans le modèle de données et d’enrichir les zones de données avec de nouvelles informations.
  2. Les espaces de travail virtuels permettent aux équipes de regrouper les connexions et modèles de données dans un lieu sécurisé et géré, afin de mieux collaborer au sein d’un espace commun, avec un ensemble de données commun.
  3. Le Cloud a encore amélioré la prise de décision en permettant aux employés de disposer d’un large éventail d’outils et de fonctionnalités pour effectuer facilement des tâches d’analyse des données. Ils peuvent connecter de nouvelles applications et de nouvelles sources de données sans avoir besoin de faire appel aux équipes informatiques.

 

The Future of Analytics Has Arrived

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The Future of Analytics Has Arrived

Kate Wright, responsable de la Business Intelligence augmentée chez SAP, évoque la valeur d’un data warehouse Cloud moderne.

Les 7 principaux avantages d’un data warehouse Cloud  

Les data warehouse Cloud gagnent en popularité, à juste titre. Ces entrepôts modernes offrent plusieurs avantages par rapport aux versions sur site traditionnelles. Voici les sept principaux avantages d’un data warehouse Cloud :

  1. Déploiement rapide : grâce à l’entreposage de données Cloud, vous pouvez acquérir une puissance de calcul et un stockage de données presque illimités en quelques clics seulement, et créer votre propre data warehouse, datamarts et systèmes de test en quelques minutes.
  2. Faible coût total de possession (TCO) : les modèles de tarification du data warehouse en tant que service (DWaaS) sont établis de sorte que vous payez uniquement les ressources dont vous avez besoin, lorsque vous en avez besoin. Vous n’avez pas besoin de prévoir vos besoins à long terme ou de payer pour d’autres traitements tout au long de l’année. Vous pouvez également éviter les coûts initiaux tels que le matériel coûteux, les salles de serveurs et le personnel de maintenance. Séparer les coûts du stockage des coûts informatiques vous permet également de réduire les dépenses.
  3. Élasticité : un data warehouse Cloud vous permet d’ajuster vos capacités à la hausse ou à la baisse selon vos besoins. Le Cloud offre un environnement virtualisé et hautement distribué capable de gérer d’immenses volumes de données qui peuvent diminuer ou augmenter.
  4. Sécurité et restauration après sinistre : dans de nombreux cas, les data warehouse Cloud apportent une sécurité des données et un chiffrage plus forts que les entrepôts sur site. Les données sont également automatiquement dupliquées et sauvegardées, ce qui vous permet de minimiser le risque de perte de données.
  5. Technologies en temps réel : les data warehouse Cloud basés sur la technologie de base de données in-memory présentent des vitesses de traitement des données extrêmement rapides, offrant ainsi des données en temps réel et une connaissance instantanée de la situation.
  6. Nouvelles technologies : les data warehouse Cloud vous permettent d’intégrer facilement de nouvelles technologies telles que l’apprentissage automatique, qui peuvent fournir une expérience guidée aux utilisateurs fonctionnels et une aide décisionnelle sous la forme de suggestions de questions à poser, par exemple.
  7. Plus grande autonomie des utilisateurs fonctionnels : les data warehouse Cloud offrent aux employés, de manière globale et uniforme, une vue unique sur les données issues de nombreuses sources et un vaste ensemble d’outils et de fonctionnalités pour effectuer facilement des tâches d’analyse des données. Ils peuvent connecter de nouvelles applications et de nouvelles sources de données sans avoir besoin de faire appel aux équipes informatiques.
Capture d'écran de la solution SAP Data Warehouse Cloud
L’entreposage de données prend en charge l’analyse complète des dépenses de l’entreprise par service, fournisseur, région et statut, pour n’en citer que quelques-unes.

Meilleures pratiques concernant l’entreposage des données

Pour atteindre vos objectifs et économiser du temps et de l’argent, il est recommandé de suivre certaines étapes éprouvées lors de la création d’un data warehouse ou l’ajout de nouvelles applications à un entrepôt existant. Certaines sont axées sur votre activité tandis que d’autres s’inscrivent dans le cadre de votre programme informatique global. Vous pouvez commencer avec la liste de meilleures pratiques ci-dessous, mais vous en découvrirez d’autres au fil de vos collaborations avec vos partenaires technologiques et de services.

Meilleures pratiques métier

Meilleures pratiques informatiques

Définir les informations dont vous avez besoin. Une fois que vous aurez cerné vos besoins initiaux, vous serez en mesure de trouver les sources de données qui vous aideront à les combler. La plupart du temps, les groupes commerciaux, les clients et les fournisseurs auront des recommandations à vous faire. 

Surveiller la performance et la sécurité. Les informations de votre data warehouse sont certes précieuses, mais elles doivent quand même être facilement accessibles pour apporter de la valeur à l’entreprise. Surveillez attentivement l’utilisation du système pour vous assurer que les niveaux de performance sont élevés. 

Documenter l’emplacement, la structure et la qualité de vos données actuelles. Vous pouvez ensuite identifier les lacunes en matière de données et les règles de gestion pour transformer les données afin de répondre aux exigences de votre entrepôt.

Gérer les normes de qualité des données, les métadonnées, la structure et la gouvernance. De nouvelles sources de données précieuses sont régulièrement disponibles, mais nécessitent une gestion cohérente au sein d’un data warehouse. Suivez les procédures de nettoyage des données, de définition des métadonnées et de respect des normes de gouvernance.

Former une équipe. Cette équipe doit comprendre les dirigeants, les responsables et le personnel qui utiliseront et fourniront les informations. Par exemple, identifiez le reporting standard et les KPI dont ils ont besoin pour effectuer leurs tâches.

Fournir une architecture agile. Plus vos unités d’affaires et d’entreprise utiliseront les données, plus vos besoins en matière de datamarts et d’entrepôts augmenteront. Une plate-forme flexible s’avérera bien plus utile qu’un produit limité et restrictif. 

Hiérarchiser vos applications de data warehouse. Sélectionnez un ou deux projets pilotes présentant des exigences raisonnables et une bonne valeur commerciale.

Automatiser les processus tels que la maintenance. Outre la valeur ajoutée apportée à la Business Intelligence, l’apprentissage automatique peut automatiser les fonctions de gestion technique du data warehouse pour maintenir la vitesse et réduire les coûts d’exploitation.

Choisir un partenaire technologique compétent pour l’entrepôt de données. Ce dernier doit offrir les services d’implémentation et l’expérience dont vous avez besoin pour la réalisation de vos projets. Assurez-vous qu’il puisse répondre à vos besoins en déploiement, y compris les services Cloud et les options sur site. 

Utiliser le Cloud de manière stratégique. Les unités d’affaires et les services ont des besoins en déploiement différents. Utilisez des systèmes sur site si nécessaire et misez sur des data warehouse Cloud pour bénéficier d’une évolutivité, d’une réduction des coûts et d’un accès sur téléphone et tablette.  

Développer un bon plan de projet. Travaillez avec votre équipe sur un plan et un calendrier réalistes qui rendent possible les communications et le reporting de statut.

En résumé 

Les data warehouse modernes, et, de plus en plus, les data warehouse Cloud, constitueront un élément clé de toute initiative de transformation numérique pour les entreprises mères et leurs unités d’affaires. Les data warehouse exploitent les systèmes de gestion actuels, en particulier lorsque vous combinez des données issues de plusieurs systèmes internes avec de nouvelles informations importantes provenant d’organisations externes.

Les tableaux de bord, les indicateurs de performance clés, les alertes et le reporting répondent aux exigences des cadres dirigeants, de la direction et du personnel, ainsi qu’aux besoins des clients et des fournisseurs importants. Les data warehouse fournissent également des outils d’exploration et d’analyse de données rapides et complexes, et n’ont pas d’impact sur les performances des autres systèmes de gestion.

Pictogramme qui représente un entrepôt de données

Découvrez la solution SAP Data Warehouse Cloud

Unifiez vos données et analyses pour prendre des décisions avisées et obtenir la flexibilité nécessaire pour un contrôle efficace des coûts, notamment grâce à un paiement selon l’utilisation.

En savoir plus

Publié en anglais sur insights.sap.com

The post Qu’est-ce qu’un Data Warehouse ? appeared first on SAP France News.

Source de l’article sur sap.com

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3 Effective Ways To Improve Your Site’s Carbon Footprint

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At the dawn of the web-era, there was much focus on how environmentally friendly websites were: we’d chop down fewer trees, ship fewer products, and travel less for business.

And because the web was small, any negative impact it had was relatively small. But the Internet’s no longer small, and neither is the impact it has on the environment. The average website uses 211,000g of CO2 per year, watching a video online outputs an estimated 0.2g of CO2 per second, and a single email can cost 50g of CO2.

In the next four years, the tech industry as a whole may use up to 20% of the world’s electricity and be responsible for 5.5% of global CO2 emissions.

The good news is that because websites are viewed many times, even small improvements can multiply into real change.

1. Reduce Energy Consumption

Through electricity use, the Internet generates around the same CO2 as most major countries. That carbon comes from two sources: the devices we use to access the Internet and the servers that host our data.

Computers heat up, and when they heat up, they slow down. Servers are especially vulnerable and use extraordinary amounts of energy to keep cool and functional, which is why Microsoft keeps throwing servers into the sea.

Make It Faster

The faster your site, the less data is used to serve it, and the less carbon it’s outputting; it’s that simple.

Reduce the Number of Resources Used

Everything you load on your site has an impact. You might think that a tiny PNG is too small to really impact your carbon footprint, but over thousands of page loads, its impact is multiplied. Anything you can do to reduce the number of actual files requested will reduce your carbon output. You can use sites like Ecograder to estimate your own site’s CO2 output.

Optimize Images

If there’s one thing you can do to reduce the size of your site, the amount of data that needs to be sent over the Internet to serve your site, and the resulting speed, it’s optimizing your images.

Nothing reduces a site’s footprint like optimizing images. It’s easy and free to reduce the size of JPGs and PNGs with a service like TinyPNG. Offer WebP to any browser that will accept them; it will boost your Lighthouse score and improve your CO2 usage.

Lazy Load Images

Lazy loading images means images are loaded as they are required; images at the top of a page always load, images further down only load when the user scrolls to them; if the user doesn’t scroll to the bottom of the page, they don’t load, saving you CO2.

Reduce The Amount Of JavaScript You Use

Yes, JavaScript is awesome. Yes, it can be hugely beneficial to UX. And yes, it munches on energy like it’s candy.

When a web page loads, it’s done, the total cost is in. If JavaScript keeps running in the background, redrawing the screen based on user interaction — as is the case with a parallax site — the web page keeps using up energy on the device.

Choose a Sustainable Hosting Company

You can reduce the power needs of a site, but you can’t eliminate them. One simple step is to opt for a hosting company that gets its electricity from sustainable sources such as wind power or solar.

Low←Tech Magazine is powered by a server that runs on solar energy and carries a warning that it may go offline. But it’s possible to host both reliably and sustainably. Many web hosts outsource their actual server management, so they have no control over how those servers are powered, but there are plenty of exceptions that guarantee green web hosting. Google Cloud aims to be the cleanest in the cloud industry. For green web hosting, I always recommend the all-round superb Kualo.

2. Be Inclusive

One of the biggest issues with the EV (Electric Vehicle) movement is that we’re replacing cars earlier than we normally would in a rush to move to “clean” driving.

A new EV certainly outputs less than a gas-powered vehicle when driven the same distance. Combine increased use — because owners think they are driving cleanly — with the fact that a new EV has to be manufactured, the minerals for batteries have to be mined (in horrific conditions), and it then needs to be shipped to you, and EVs are not as friendly as they appear — so go ahead, buy that vintage Porsche it’s probably better for the environment than a Tesla.

Support Legacy Devices

The same issue that applies to cars applies to devices. Every time we rush ahead to support the latest iPhone, we leave older generations behind. A device can and should last longer than two years.

This is not to say that you shouldn’t embrace modern web standards. Technologies like CSS Grid are excellent at reducing markup size and speeding up sites. CSS Grid has been well supported for over four years, and even “legacy” devices can handle it. If you can keep a phone for an extra six months, the environmental cost of that phone is reduced by 20%.

3. Help Users Make Good Choices

More and more people are trying to make good choices. We’re eating a healthier, balanced diet. We’re recycling clothes. We’re traveling by bike, and on foot, instead of by car. People want to do the right thing, and they seek out companies that aid them.

Improve Navigation

Anything that you can do to make your content more findable will mean fewer page loads and therefore consume fewer resources.

By improving your information architecture, improving your search accuracy, and improving on-page signposts like bread crumbs and link text, you help users find content faster.

Feelgood Feedback

When the environmental impact of a user’s actions are quantifiable, let them know. Users who care will appreciate it, and users who don’t will ignore it.

Raileurope.com adds a note to any quotation letting you know how much carbon you’ve saved by traveling by train instead of flying.

Don’t Remove the Shipping Rate

Many ecommerce sites offer free shipping, especially above a certain order value; it’s a good way to encourage higher sales. But absorbing the shipping cost implies that there is no shipping. By highlighting the shipping costs, even if they’re not passed on to the customer, you remind them that there is an environmental cost and a financial cost.

You can absorb the shipping rate without implying there is no cost by adding the shipping and then explicitly deducting it as a discount.

Sustainable Web Design Is Good For Business

The fundamentals of good web design are the fundamentals of sustainable web design.

Make it fast and usable, and you’ll also be making it energy efficient. Make it inclusive, and you’ll help the industry slow the ever-growing tendency to consume. Make it transparent, and you’ll help your users make good choices of their own. All of these things are not only good for the environment, but they also result in improved UX and SEO.

 

Featured image via Pexels.

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The post 3 Effective Ways To Improve Your Site’s Carbon Footprint first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.


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