I’ve just uploaded FeedDemon 2.1 Beta 3a, which corrects a few problems that people reported in yesterday’s beta. To get it, just stop by the FeedDemon Beta Site.
I’ve also updated the FeedDemon 2.1 Quick Reference Sheet to include the new keyboard shortcuts added in Beta 3.
Update 13-Nov-2006: The keyboard shortcuts listed below are no longer accurate. Please refer to the FeedDemon 2.1 Quick Reference Sheet for an up-to-date list of shortcuts.
FeedDemon 2.1 Beta 3 is now available – and I think keyboard users are going to like it, because the main focus of this build was making FeedDemon better for keyboarders.
Several web-based aggregators have added single-key shortcuts this year, and I’ve got to admit that they’re pretty handy, so I decided to do something similar. Starting with this build, the following shortcuts are enabled when the newspaper (browser) has the focus:
Since most of these shortcuts operate on a news item (article), I also had to add the notion of a selected item in the newspaper. This way you can use the arrow keys to navigate items and see the selected one highlighted. And this becomes even more useful when used in conjunction with the new Ctrl+D shortcut.
If you’re a heavy keyboard user, I’ll wager that Ctrl+D will quickly become your most frequently used shortcut. Ctrl+D marks the current newspaper page read and moves to the next page. If no more pages exist in the newspaper (or if a newspaper isn’t even showing), then it moves to the next unread feed.
And just to make sure I keep my keyboard users happy, I’ve also added these shortcuts:
Want to give it a try? Stop by the FeedDemon Beta Site to get it (and be sure to read the release notes before installing it). If you run into any problems with the beta, please let us know by posting to the FeedDemon 2.1 Beta Forum.
Now that Internet Explorer 7 is out, it’s time for TopStyle users to see it supported in TopStyle’s style inspector and style checker – which, as it turns out, is simple to do. Just download the file below and copy it to TopStyle’s \CSSDefs subfolder:
According to FeedDemon 2.1’s “Popular Topics” feature, this week’s big tech news is the release of Internet Explorer 7. I’ve tested both FeedDemon and TopStyle with the final release of IE7, and I’m glad to report that I didn’t run into any problems.
Surprisingly (to me, anyway), I’ve read a number of negative posts about IE7. Personally, I like IE7 – a lot. I’m sure that my saying that will cause some readers to write me off as yet another Microsoft ass-kisser, but that ignores the fact that I switched to Firefox a couple of years ago. I still like Firefox – especially all the great extensions that are available for it – but I’ve switched back to IE, and I don’t regret it.
However, like many developers, I’m still sore that Microsoft took such a long time to update IE. Windows users endured years of spyware and other vulnerabilities while Microsoft dragged their feet, slowing the progress of the web while they figured out their web service plans. IE7 is a nice piece of work, but it didn’t have to take so long.
Anyway…
One of the biggest (and most welcome) changes in the new IE is in its CSS support. IE6 had a number of CSS bugs and omissions that have caused excessive hair loss in web authors over the past few years, but IE7 is a major step forward CSS-wise. My favorite CSS addition? We finally have support for fixed positioning. Once IE7 is more prevalent, you can bet I’ll be using position:fixed in FeedDemon’s newspapers (using TopStyle, of course).
PS: Apologies for not enabling comments, but I’m going offline this weekend and don’t want to worry about the usual flood of comment spam.
Just noticed that the IE7 Quick Reference Sheet has been updated, and figured I’d create one for FeedDemon 2.1.
Hey, looks like FeedDemon 2.0 received the Editor’s Choice in CNET’s RSS reader roundup. Nice!
(Hmmm…wonder if they’d like FeedDemon 2.1 even more?)
I’m pleased to announce that FeedDemon 2.1 Beta 2a is now available. As you can see from the release notes, there are a lot of changes in FeedDemon 2.1, including:
As always, please keep in mind that this is a beta version, so I don’t recommend downloading it unless you’re comfortable using unfinished software. If you do download the beta and run into any problems with it, please let us know by posting in the FeedDemon 2.1 Beta Forum.
Note: This is a minor update from Beta 2, which was released earlier this week but never announced here. Please see this forum post for a list of changes since Beta 2.
The police aren’t 100% sure yet, but it sounds like the vehicle that hit me was stolen. The driver fled on foot two blocks from the accident scene, so I’d be surprised if he’s found.
Here are a couple of pictures of my car – can’t believe I escaped without injury, and that Isaac wasn’t hurt far worse by all the broken glass.
That crazy poopin’ bird has been hitting my kitchen window all day, looking at me as though he’s saying, “Dude, where’s your car?”
Last night my 7-year-old son Isaac and I were driving home from his karate class, cracking silly jokes and making up goofy names for Star Wars characters (his favorite was “Luke Pottywalker”). Nearing a busy intersection, I slowed down, but the light was green so I kept going.
WHAM
Another driver slams into us. He ran the red light and hit us hard on the driver’s side.
Glass is flying everywhere, my car is no longer under my control. My son yells. We stop moving, all I see is pieces of glass. And blood.
The blood is coming from my son. It’s pouring down his neck.
I hold his hand, tell him everything’s going to be fine, hoping he hears the calmness in my voice and doesn’t see the panic in my eyes.
I see the other driver take off. Sounds like he’s got a flat tire, but the son-of-a-bitch drives off anyway. And nobody is stopping to see if we’re hurt – they just keep driving, like it’s not their business, they don’t have time to get involved.
I dial 911. They put me on hold. Dammit, answer my call! They answer, and I tell them what happened as calmly as I can. I’m bounced around to three different call centers. This is taking too long!
A kind woman (I never got her name) appeared at my son’s window and asked him his age, where he goes to school, anything to soothe him while I talked with 911. Thank you, you made up for the heartless souls who kept driving instead of checking on us.
The paramedics and the police are on their way. I hold my son’s hand, and I’m humbled by his strength. He tells me he’s fine – scared, but fine. We talk until the ambulance arrives.
The paramedics carefully sweep the broken glass from Isaac’s hair, face, shoulders, man, it’s everywhere. They gently lift him out of the car and place him on a stretcher, and I escape through the passenger door. Holding his hand the whole time, I follow as he’s placed in the ambulance. They tell us he’s okay – there’s a lot of blood, but nothing life-threatening. The blood is mainly from a cut below his chin, which is deep and will need stitches.
On the way to the hospital, they tell us they found the other vehicle – it was abandoned a few blocks from the accident. They haven’t found the other driver yet, but they will. The bastard hurt my son and fled the scene, but I’m trying to swallow my anger and focus on what’s important right now.
My wife meets us at the hospital, and we wait in the emergency room for an hour, my son strapped to a back board in a gurney the whole time. He’s uncomfortable, but we’re told he needs to stay on the back board until the doctor sees him in case he has a neck or back injury. We play games like rock, paper, scissors while we wait.
At one point Isaac did a few expert armpit farts while a nurse was in the room, and I’m secretly proud of him for doing that.
The doctor arrives, checks him out, and says his neck and back appear fine but they want to run a CAT scan to be sure. In the meantime, my adrenaline rush has worn off, and I realize my neck and shoulders are really sore, so I ask to get a CAT scan myself just to be safe. They strap me onto a board just like the one my son is on, which he thinks is pretty funny.
It takes forever, but we’re told we’re okay. Glass falls off Isaac as he sits up, and the doctor starts the process of suturing the wound on his chin. I tell Isaac that the stitches won’t hurt, but they need to give him a shot to take away the pain. The shot is awful – they have to give it to him right in the wound, and Isaac is trying not to cry but I know it’s hurting more than anything in his life ever has. I give him my hand and tell him to squeeze it as hard as he wants, and the shot is finally over. The suturing is gruesome, but it’s painless for Isaac. Six quick stitches, and it’s done.
We finally leave the hospital, and the ride home was nerve-wracking for both Isaac and myself. We relive the accident every time we perceive a car getting too close, and he worries out loud about the window breaking again. We get home around 1AM, and sleep comes easier than any of us expected.
This morning I’m able to reflect on the accident, thankful that it wasn’t worse. The flying glass could’ve caused far graver injuries, and given that the other car slammed head-first into the driver’s side, I’m amazed that I’m not really hurt (I’m glad I bought a Volvo). And Isaac just woke up, and he’s happy – elated, in fact, because he gets to skip school today and play video games (something he’s normally only permitted to do on weekends).
So I guess we’re fine. Shaken, but fine. And now another day starts.
