It's March 1985 in Riverside, Iowa—population roughly 1,000—and councilmember Steve Miller stands up to propose that the town should claim to be the future birthplace of a fictional space captain.

Miller had read Gene Roddenberry's book The Making of Star Trek, which mentioned Captain Kirk came from "a small town in the state of Iowa" without specifying which one. Miller figured: Why not Riverside?

That single decision—made during a routine city council meeting while discussing themes for their annual town festival—turned Riverside into a global phenomenon. Today, they host an annual Trekfest drawing thousands of visitors from around the world and have turned a throwaway line from a Star Trek book into the centerpiece of the local tourism economy.

And it almost didn't happen because nobody wanted to second the motion.

We know this story well because our own Tom Foster and Dana Hinders recently visited The Voyage Home to experience this marketing phenomenon firsthand. What they found was genuine Iowa hospitality wrapped around a brand identity so committed that you can't help but respect it. The museum tells the story of both Riverside's history and its future famous resident—and the dedication is obvious in every detail.

If that doesn't perfectly encapsulate every missed marketing opportunity in the history of professional services, we don't know what does.

When "Why Not?" Beats "Why?"

Most marketing decisions in law firms, medical practices, and professional services operate on the "don't rock the boat" principle. Everyone wants to look professional, established, and serious—which is code for "exactly like every other practice in a 50-mile radius."

Your website probably says something like "Committed to Excellence" or "Your Trusted Partner" right above a stock photo of diverse people in business attire pointing enthusiastically at a laptop. 

Meanwhile, in Riverside, Iowa, a bunch of city council members said "You know what? Let's claim the future birthplace of Captain Kirk because a book mentioned Iowa and we need a better River Festival theme."

The result? Within months, Riverside had garnered global media coverage, secured decades of tourism revenue, and developed a brand identity so distinctive that William Shatner himself eventually appeared to film a reality TV show.

Your Practice Needs Its Own "Kirk Dirt"

When Riverside started fundraising for their Captain Kirk statue, they sold $3 vials of "Kirk dirt." Let that marinate for a second. They sold dirt. For three dollars. And people bought it.

Because it wasn't really about the dirt—it was about being part of something unique, quirky, and memorable.

Most practices are sitting on their own version of Kirk dirt—some unique angle, personal passion, or distinctive approach—and they're too afraid to actually use it.

The "Why Not?" Framework for Finding Your Kirk Dirt

Stop asking "Will this work?" and start asking "Why not?"

Step 1: Identify Your Secret Weapon

What do you genuinely care about outside your professional expertise? Not what you think you should care about—what actually lights you up? For Steve Miller, it was Star Trek. 

Step 2: Find the Connection

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if it breaks the image or not

How does that passion relate to what you do? Miller saw that Star Trek's exploration themes connected to Riverside's identity. You can connect your interests to your practice philosophy, your approach to client service, or your understanding of the problems you solve. For example, if you’re a family law attorney who fosters rescue dogs, maybe you position your practice around protecting what matters most—whether that's kids, pets, or family assets—and your brand around compassion backed by ferocity.

Step 3: Commit Fully

Riverside didn't half-ass their Captain Kirk claim. They changed their town slogan from "Where the Best Begins" to "Where the Trek Begins." They built a statue. They started selling dirt. They held annual festivals. They opened a volunteer-run museum dedicated to both their local history and their future famous resident. They made it a legitimate part of their identity.

You can't be "kind of" distinctive—you either commit or you don't.

The Bottom Line

As Tom and Dana discovered during their visit, what makes Riverside special isn't just the Star Trek connection—it's the genuine commitment to the bit combined with authentic Iowa hospitality. The museum volunteers are passionate about their town's unique story. The community has embraced this identity completely. And that authenticity is what makes it work.

Your practice has something equally distinctive waiting to be discovered. Some angle that's authentically you, genuinely interesting, and completely different from your competitors' carefully focus-grouped blandness.

The question isn't whether that distinctive angle exists—it's whether you're brave enough to actually use it.

After you've created content for your website, you can add a box at the end of your article to include "Related Links". These links are connected to other relevant pieces of information on your site, and they are helpful for a variety of reasons. 

 

 

Adding New Library Test Page 

 

 

Are you battling the persistent, often embarrassing challenge of nail fungus? You're not alone. In the unique climate of Colorado, countless individuals grapple with this common yet stubborn condition. But fear not! The path to healthier nails begins here, with insights straight from Colorado's top podiatrists.

Common Causes and Symptoms of Nail Fungus

Picture this: You're lacing up your hiking boots, ready to conquer one of Colorado's majestic fourteeners. Little do you know, the warm, moist environment inside 

your boots is the perfect breeding ground for nail fungus. But how do you know if you've fallen victim to this sneaky invader?

Nail fungus, or onychomycosis, is like an unwelcome houseguest that overstays its welcome. It can turn your nails yellow, thick, and brittle - not exactly the look you're going for when sandal season hits. The culprits? Tiny organisms called dermatophytes, which thrive in warm, damp environments. Sound familiar, fellow Coloradans?

7 Proven Home Remedies for Treating Nail Fungus

Now, let's get to the good stuff. Here are seven home remedies that can help you kick nail fungus to the curb:

1. Tea Tree Oil: Nature's antifungal powerhouse. Apply it directly to affected nails twice daily.
2. Apple Cider Vinegar Soak: A 15-minute foot bath can work wonders. Mix equal parts vinegar and warm water.
3. Oregano Oil: Mix with a carrier oil and apply to nails. It's like a pizza party for your feet, minus the calories!
4. Olive Leaf Extract: Take it orally or apply topically. It's like liquid gold for your nails.
5. Garlic: Crush it, mix with carrier oil, and apply. Bonus: Vampires will avoid your feet.
6. Coconut Oil: Moisturizes and fights fungus. What can't this miracle oil do?
7. Listerine Foot Soak: The same stuff that kills germs in your mouth can tackle foot fungus. Talk about versatility!

How Colorado's Environment Impacts Nail Health

  Living in Colorado is like being on a constant adventure. One day you're skiing in subzero temperatures, the next you're hiking under the scorching sun. This climate rollercoaster can wreak havoc on your nail health.

Our dry climate can lead to brittle nails, making them more susceptible to fungal invasions. And let's not forget about our love for outdoor activities. All that sweating in hiking boots? It's a fungal fiesta waiting to happen.

Preventing Nail Fungus: Expert Tips from Podiatrists

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, especially when it comes to nail fungus. Here's what our Colorado podiatrists recommend:

• Keep your feet dry, especially between toes. Consider it your post-adventure ritual.
• Wear breathable shoes. Your feet should be as free as a Colorado spirit.
• Don't go barefoot in public areas. Think of shower shoes as your feet's personal bodyguards.
• Trim nails regularly and straight across. It's like giving your nails a Rocky Mountain edge.
• Use antifungal sprays or powders. Consider it SPF for your feet.

When to Consult a Professional for Nail Fungus

Sometimes, even with our best efforts, nail fungus can be as stubborn as a mountain goat. If your home remedies aren't cutting it after a few weeks, it's time to call in the cavalry. At Podiatry Associates, we're ready to tackle even the toughest cases of nail fungus.

Don't let embarrassment hold you back. Remember, we've seen it all, and we're here to help, not judge. If you're experiencing severe discoloration, pain, or spreading infection, it's time to give us a call at 303-805-5156.

Maintaining Healthy Nails: Advice from Colorado Foot Specialists

Healthy nails are like the peaks of our beautiful Colorado mountains - strong, resilient, and a sight to behold. Here's how to keep your nails in tip-top shape:

• Moisturize regularly. Think of it as watering your nail garden.
• Eat a balanced diet rich in biotin. Your nails are what you eat!
• Avoid harsh chemicals. Treat your nails like you would our pristine Colorado wilderness.
• Give your nails a break from polish. Let them breathe the fresh mountain air.
• Stay hydrated. Your nails need water just like our Colorado rivers.

Remember, at Podiatry Associates, we believe that foot and ankle pain is not normal. Your journey to healthier nails and happier feet starts here. Whether you're dealing with nail fungus, heel pain, or need custom orthotics, we're here to guide you every step of the way.

Don't let nail fungus hold you back from enjoying all that Colorado has to offer. Take the first step towards healthier nails today. Call us at 303-805-5156 or visit our website to schedule an appointment. Together, we'll conquer nail fungus and keep your feet ready for your next Colorado adventure!

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Are you battling the persistent, often embarrassing challenge of nail fungus? You're not alone. In the unique climate of Colorado, countless individuals grapple with this common yet stubborn condition. But fear not! The path to healthier nails begins here, with insights straight from Colorado's top podiatrists.

Common Causes and Symptoms of Nail Fungus

Picture this: You're lacing up your hiking boots, ready to conquer one of Colorado's majestic fourteeners. Little do you know, the warm, moist environment inside 

your boots is the perfect breeding ground for nail fungus. But how do you know if you've fallen victim to this sneaky invader?

Nail fungus, or onychomycosis, is like an unwelcome houseguest that overstays its welcome. It can turn your nails yellow, thick, and brittle - not exactly the look you're going for when sandal season hits. The culprits? Tiny organisms called dermatophytes, which thrive in warm, damp environments. Sound familiar, fellow Coloradans?

7 Proven Home Remedies for Treating Nail Fungus

Now, let's get to the good stuff. Here are seven home remedies that can help you kick nail fungus to the curb:

1. Tea Tree Oil: Nature's antifungal powerhouse. Apply it directly to affected nails twice daily.
2. Apple Cider Vinegar Soak: A 15-minute foot bath can work wonders. Mix equal parts vinegar and warm water.
3. Oregano Oil: Mix with a carrier oil and apply to nails. It's like a pizza party for your feet, minus the calories!
4. Olive Leaf Extract: Take it orally or apply topically. It's like liquid gold for your nails.
5. Garlic: Crush it, mix with carrier oil, and apply. Bonus: Vampires will avoid your feet.
6. Coconut Oil: Moisturizes and fights fungus. What can't this miracle oil do?
7. Listerine Foot Soak: The same stuff that kills germs in your mouth can tackle foot fungus. Talk about versatility!

How Colorado's Environment Impacts Nail Health

  Living in Colorado is like being on a constant adventure. One day you're skiing in subzero temperatures, the next you're hiking under the scorching sun. This climate rollercoaster can wreak havoc on your nail health.

Our dry climate can lead to brittle nails, making them more susceptible to fungal invasions. And let's not forget about our love for outdoor activities. All that sweating in hiking boots? It's a fungal fiesta waiting to happen.

Preventing Nail Fungus: Expert Tips from Podiatrists

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, especially when it comes to nail fungus. Here's what our Colorado podiatrists recommend:

• Keep your feet dry, especially between toes. Consider it your post-adventure ritual.
• Wear breathable shoes. Your feet should be as free as a Colorado spirit.
• Don't go barefoot in public areas. Think of shower shoes as your feet's personal bodyguards.
• Trim nails regularly and straight across. It's like giving your nails a Rocky Mountain edge.
• Use antifungal sprays or powders. Consider it SPF for your feet.

When to Consult a Professional for Nail Fungus

Sometimes, even with our best efforts, nail fungus can be as stubborn as a mountain goat. If your home remedies aren't cutting it after a few weeks, it's time to call in the cavalry. At Podiatry Associates, we're ready to tackle even the toughest cases of nail fungus.

Don't let embarrassment hold you back. Remember, we've seen it all, and we're here to help, not judge. If you're experiencing severe discoloration, pain, or spreading infection, it's time to give us a call at 303-805-5156.

Maintaining Healthy Nails: Advice from Colorado Foot Specialists

Healthy nails are like the peaks of our beautiful Colorado mountains - strong, resilient, and a sight to behold. Here's how to keep your nails in tip-top shape:

• Moisturize regularly. Think of it as watering your nail garden.
• Eat a balanced diet rich in biotin. Your nails are what you eat!
• Avoid harsh chemicals. Treat your nails like you would our pristine Colorado wilderness.
• Give your nails a break from polish. Let them breathe the fresh mountain air.
• Stay hydrated. Your nails need water just like our Colorado rivers.

Remember, at Podiatry Associates, we believe that foot and ankle pain is not normal. Your journey to healthier nails and happier feet starts here. Whether you're dealing with nail fungus, heel pain, or need custom orthotics, we're here to guide you every step of the way.

Don't let nail fungus hold you back from enjoying all that Colorado has to offer. Take the first step towards healthier nails today. Call us at 303-805-5156 or visit our website to schedule an appointment. Together, we'll conquer nail fungus and keep your feet ready for your next Colorado adventure!

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Header

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This is the body content. All of the important information goes here! Here are five reasons why this blog post is the COOLEST blog post! 

1. It's made using DSS.
2. It's structured for a great user experience.
3. It teaches you about the required content fields in DSS. 
4. It makes everyone smile.
5. Now you know what the body content looks like!

A column set adjusts its width to its container element. Because of their relative sizing the columns can change their absolute width when viewed on smaller devices, keeping their ratio to each other the same. When you are styling your columns you can lock the width of those that you already set. In this case only remaining columns will be resized, and the Locked columns will remain the same. Note: Sizes are locked in % not in pixels! If you don’t want a given column to appear on mobile, you can simply hide it with the display on mobile function.

You should understand that there are two parts to this process: resizing an image to fit a designated space on your website, and then adding the image to DSS. You can use any editing software to resize your image, but these instructions presume you will be using the Microsoft Office Picture Manager (PM).

Be sure to check out the DSS Training Center for all of our how-to videos. Questions? Call us at 888-886-0939. 

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STEP 1: From Audience, select Traffic Sources then Sources, then Referrals.  This will show you WHERE your traffic comes from.  You can use this information to create custom segments to dig deeper into the habits of visitors from your various social media accounts.

STEP 2: Once you decide what you want to track, create a custom advanced segment so you can isolate traffic from that referral source.  Click “Advanced Segments” from the top of the screen you’re on.

STEP 3: Select “+New Custom Segment” from the lower right part of the screen.

STEP 4: Give your new segment a name.  This one is “Facebook Referrals”.  Then, change the drop-down next to “Include” to say “Source”.

STEP 5: Start typing the name of your Source in the field next to “Containing” – you’ll notice that GA will help you by showing sources that match what you type.

STEP 6: Click “Add ‘OR’ statement” to include more than one source – in this example, we include traffic from desktop and mobile Facebook users.

STEP 7: Upon clicking “Save Segment”, you are taken back into GA. Now you can navigate to any report in GA to get info just about visitors from the source you set up!

STEP 8: Here are some suggestions to get an understanding of how visitors from your various referral sources are interacting on your site.  You can see how engaged these visitors are, and tweak your social media marketing appropriately.

1. Go back to the Audience / Overview page. Are these visitors engaged? What is the Bounce Rate, Time on Site, Average Pages Viewed, etc.
2. Go to Audience / Demographics /Location. Where are these visitors coming from? Are they in your target area?
3. Go to Content / Site Content / Landing Pages. These are the pages that are attracting traffic from this referral source.
4. Go to Content / Site Content / All Pages.  What pages are they looking at while they are on your site?

Tip: Create a custom segment for each referral source you care about to track how well you’re engaging visitors from these sites.

While the best practice is to use hex or rgb because they are more standardized and work-with-able, the semantic ones are a fun way to make the, at first, intimidating world of code, a little more accessible.  

It turns out that, in addition to the standard colors we learned in preschool, there are a lot of--let's say--creative names, which remind us that tech people have a sense of humor and like to leave clues of it sometimes. We noticed things take a decidedly American West theme in the red-yellow spectrum :)

Here are some of our favorites:

Salmon Light and Dark

LightCoral

IndianRed <---yikes!

Tomato 

LemonChiffon

PapayaWhip

Moccasin

PeachPuff

Cornsilk

BlanchedAlmond

NavajoWhite

BurlyWood

Chocolate

SaddleBrown

Honeydew

MintCream

GhostWhite

OldLace

Going from the wide-eyed world of Peachpuff fuzz to the exhilarating world of #3C332E maturity

Eventually as one delves deeper into web design, projects will demand subtleties not afforded by the relatively small rolladex of semantic web colors. A simple example is having a graduated gradient. Another example if you were going to perform a mathematical operation on a color, like say with a preprocessor, semantic colors take a backseat to their integer-based counterparts as with:

@coolcolor=lighten(#CCC, 20%);

Related

The full list of x11 web colors can be found here!

What are developers to do?

Well, it has been the case that developers choose to either create a site with a “fixed” or “liquid” layout.

Fixed Layouts are those that are designed around a specific width. They remain that width no matter the browser’s window size. These sites allow more control over design and remain consistent across different platforms and browsers, but are sometimes looked down upon for not utilizing the full width of a browser window.

Liquid Layouts typically rely on % values to determine how wide the different elements on the site should be. These layouts utilize the full size of the browser window, adjusting for any screen width which is often viewed as the “best” solution. But liquid layouts suffer from their own set of problems. Browser windows are very often not set to full-screen, which can result in the squishing of all the content into a too-small area. Additionally, content elements (like images and video) must be a defined with a specific size, so can lose their desired effect if the browser window is too small or too large- even typical text content like short bulleted lists could suffer from the same ill-effects.

But both layout types have distinct pros and cons- how do you decide?

You may not have to. The emerging concept of Responsive Design is becoming a reality, combining the best of fixed and liquid layouts creating a unique user experience designed for any/all browser window sizes.

shannon@fosterwebmarketing.com

Continue with Responsive Designs , how they work, and how to develop them…

Connect with SEO?

Remember those days when most of the news was delivered on paper?

That’s when the term “above the fold” was coined. Since papers were sold and delivered literally folded in half, it became an industry standard to put the most intriguing news, photos, and headlines on the top half of the paper, enticing readers to buy and continue reading.

So how does that apply to the web?

Well, in the early 90’s the internet was becoming a public commodity, yet no one really knew how to effectively navigate the web. Sites were crude, there were very few standards, and mice didn’t come with standard scroll wheels. The phrase “above the fold” was adopted by web designers to refer to the portion of a website that could be seen before a user had to scroll.

Since users’ browser naivety was great, and patience small, sites began designing around the concept that the most important information needed to be presented at the top of the site. Based on the most common browser sizes at the time, sites began to place an inordinate amount of value on the content considered “above the fold”. The concept eventually devolved into smashing as much content as possible into x number of pixel height.

Are you saying there is no value to the notion of “above the fold”?

Not exactly. The idea wasn’t necessarily a bad one (though, even since its conception- it has been a subject of heated debate), but technology has grown and users have become more tech-savvy. Your web visitors are fully capable of scrolling; they know how to navigate using a site’s navigation bar, and even know how to use their browser buttons to go back, forward, and open new tabs.

 Beyond the users are the monitors- where exactly is the fold? In the mid-2000’s, the VAST majority of monitors were displaying at a resolution of 1024x768 pixels. That meant “the fold” was generally around 600 pixels. But take a moment and think about web viewing today. We have smart phones, tablets, monitors that can be flipped vertically, and a huge number of individuals using LCD TV’s for web browsing. A website’s “fold” no longer exists since there is no longer a standard. Most monitors today average 10+ resolution settings (and each produces a very different “fold” value), plus many users never full-screen their web browsers.

Unless monitor sizes re-standardize and web user knowledge regresses,

“Above the Fold” is dead.

For an awesome example of this and some more info, check out: http://iampaddy.com/lifebelow600/

We’ve had some worried clients ask us about the Google Exact Match Domain algorithm update, which started around 9/29/2012. Either they are concerned that their website was “penalized” by this change, or their SEO consultants told them that they’d been hit by it. Here's a summary of the analysis we did to tell if each site had been affected.

Unfortunately, both sites appear to have engaged in some questionable link building tactics. It is likely that the questionable link building tactics plus their exact match domain may have contributed to their drop in traffic. Let’s take a closer look.

What is the Exact Match Domain (EMD) update?

Basically, at the end of September Google announced that they were starting a new search algorithm filter, and it was going to be used periodically to "scrub" the search results to remove sites that were ranking unnaturally well based solely on their keyword-rich domain name. It was not intended to affect sites that had a keyword-rich domain, but also had good quality content or great brand recognition.

I won’t rehash what has been said so well elsewhere about the EMD update; please visit these sites for a more comprehensive overview (and tips for recovery):

• “The EMD Update: Like Panda & Penguin, Expect Further Refreshes To Come” by Danny Sullivan
• “Your Guide to Google’s EMD Algorithm Update” by Jayson DeMers

Case Study #1 of an EMD Related Drop

In the first case, the client contacted us wondering why their traffic had dropped so drastically. We suspected the EMD update due to the timing, but since we have other clients with keyword-rich domains we did a little more digging.

What would an EMD penalty look like?

Here is what this site looks like in Google Analytics. You can see that the drop here happened on 9/29/2012, which was right around the time that the EMD update hit.

The traffic drop in this case is significant.  Look at the 3 weeks since the drop, compared to 3 weeks prior – visits are down 47.44%.

Again, is the EMD update 100% to blame for this drop? Since our other sites with keyword-rich domain names were not affected we kept looking for potential issues.

First link clue: majority of backlinks from one domain, to one page

First, we noticed in Google Webmaster Tools that over 2,000 links were coming in from a blog run by another person in the same business. And all the links – every single one – went to one page on the affected site. Ouch. That is not a natural link signal.

Second clue: blog link network responsible for majority of links

The next 2 top domains sending links to this affected sites are also blogs run by other individuals in the same industry – that all linked to each other. In fact, further investigation using Site Explorer in our MajesticSEO Platinum account found that 88% of all backlinks discovered so far in 2012 for the affected site were from one of these 3 blogs. Another issue is that these blogs are on topics that are not related to the affected site's main focus.

Again, having so many links from 3 unrelated sites all run by peers – all linking together – may be perceived as these folks trading links for mutual benefit. This could be considered a “link scheme” by Google, which is defined by them as “excessive link exchanging ("Link to me and I'll link to you").”

Third clue: “spammy” keyword density

The top 6 keywords by backlink anchor text are all keyword phrases – there are no “natural” link indicators until position 7 (a more natural indicator would be the actual business name or the domain name – both which are commonly used in natural linking). In addition, two of these three blog sites use the same anchor text each time they link to the affected site. Only one of the sites varies the anchor text with some regularity.

Summary: EMD plus unnatural link signals may explain the site’s traffic drop

These clues all taken together – the date that the drop in traffic started, plus the overwhelming number of links coming from unrelated blogs that appear to link a group of people in the same industry together – suggest that the addition of the EMD filter may have been enough to cause the site to drop in Google’s rankings.

In this case, all is not lost. Other websites in our network have successfully removed excessive links from single blogs or blog networks like this and have seen their rankings improve. The lesson here is to make sure that you, your SEO company and your marketing team are not trying to game the system. This is also a good time to review your past marketing and SEO efforts to make sure that schemes you set in motion years ago (and that may have once helped) aren't now causing problems for your site.

I guess the first thing is to discuss the difference between bitmap and vector images. A bitmap image is a file with a set of instructions on how to layout pixels (color, position, etc).  A vector image is a file with a set of mathematical equations for the shape of an image (like this!). If you zoom in on bitmap images, things start to look “pixelated” because there’s a fixed level of detail in the file. If you zoom in on a vector image, things will always look smooth, because no matter how close you get the equations will re-render an image to that level of detail.

Why am I telling you this?

1. Because fonts are vector (like when you increased the size of a font it doesn’t become pixelated).
2. You can make your own fonts.
3. You can make a font character a symbol instead of a letter of the alphabet (whuzzzup windings!)
4. Unlike bitmap images, which require an image editor, you can edit the color and size of icon fonts on the fly which is awesome! CHECK IT OUT!

How to implement

Before you implement you gotta find an appropriate icon font. There are a lot of cool ones! Here are some examples

1. Since users of your website won’t have your specific icon font on their computer, you must insert a call to the icon font you’ve chosen either with an @fontface or a link to a font in the meta.
2. From here you have two options; either include the character reference in your HTML markup (somewhat frowned upon because its meaningless markup), or in a before/after pseudo-class with the character reference in the content property.
3. Make sure you call the appropriate font in the element style and there you have it!

Here's a video if you're interested!

Why it’s Advantageous

1. You can reduce the size of webpages because equation instructions are (generally) less immense than pixel instructions
2. You can “sprite” your fonts. You can create custom fonts with all of your icons AND an alphabetical font. WHOA!
3. They are incredibly easy to edit and customize, which saves time and resources.

Drawbacks

1. Unless you add a character to your HTML markup (which raises style vs. meaningless markup issues), they can only be implemented in a before or after pseudo class, which, at the time of this article, do not have animated transition support in WebKit /WTF, WebKit? Do you even lift?!).
   TLDR; You can’t make font icons’ hover animations smooth in chrome safari and ie 9 and before, using preferred methodology.
2. Font degradation is an issue with web browsers and OSes face. Check out this article on font rendering.
3. Lose the alt text, which is nice for Accessibility/SEO, so it should only be used for stylistic elements, or use an attribute like long description (which is on the W3C chopping block).

Related Links

1. Super sweet tutorial on the subject from Chris Coyier
2. Super easy utility to make your own custom fonts 

First of all, what is a link title attribute?

It is not the title tag - I've seen people confuse this in forums.  It is additional text you can add to an href link that does not show up on the page.  It typically only shows up on-hover as a tooltip over the link (if supported by the browser you're using).  This is where you find a title attribute in code:

[[a href="/contact.cfm" title="If You Need To Reach Us"]]Contact[[/a]]

And here is how this shows up on the website:

How are you supposed to use link title attributes?

You can use this attribute to add a tooltip, as you see in the example above. This tooltip is not mandatory, so if you're not using it then don't fret. If you're trying to improve usability, you can use it to provide additional information to a user who might be interested in clicking the link. However, keep one thing in mind: not all screen readers pick up title attributes for links, so never put really important information into this attribute. You don't want a user with a screen reader to miss out on something if they have their reader set to ignore title attributes.

Why can't I put my keywords into the link title attribute to boost my SEO?

Let's think about this a minute, and I'll start with a philosophical objection. What's the main piece of advice given out by experienced SEOs and search engines? Don't make changes to your site ONLY for the sake of SEO. If you want to stuff your keyword phrases into the title attribute thinking this will give you an edge, you're making a decision based solely on SEO. Instead, you should be thinking about your users. Will adding your keyword phrases to every link on your page make your site easier to use? Will it help users better navigate your site? No. You're doing this just to game the search engines. So, from a philosopical point of view we can say this is not a good idea.

What if you're not the philosophical sort? Let's consider the evidence. Have you done a study to see if putting your keyword phrases into the link title attribute helps your site rank better? Or did you just read it on a blog post from 10 years ago and think this was a good idea? I challenge you to find any reputable SEO who recommends this tactic, or who has found positive results - especially now, in the days of the Google over-optimization penalties. With all the talk of over-optimization, tactics like this are just asking for trouble.

Consider this post from SEO Roundtable, aptly titled "Google's Algorithms Find Stuffed Title Attributes As Sneaky":

In any event, this is Google going on the record about something obvious - do not spam the title attribute. Well, do not spam anything.

I also talked to Damon Abramson, the in-house SEO at WeDoWebContent, and here is what he had to say:

Many studies have been done over the years completely decrementing Link Titles of any SEO value whatsoever. They are completely ignored by the search engines. However, image alt text and anchor text is always indexed and ranked so this is where the focus should stay.

So from a SEO smell test perspective, this is senseless since it adds no appreciable SEO value to the links and may even cause confusion to the visually impaired utilizing screen readers since the readers will now not only read the anchor text in the link but the link title as well. And if you utilize them wrong (spam –like repeating the anchor text) you CAN get penalized for it. So using something that gives you nothing but can potentially cost you something is not a move I would recommend.

However, if they are used properly to accurately describe the page the anchor text is linking to without keyword spamming, they won’t hurt the page at all. Just won’t help it.

Still don't believe me? Do your own search, ask your own respected SEO contacts.

Don't get so caught up in SEO that you neglect USABILITY

Remember how I said above that visually impaired users often set their screen readers to ignore title attributes? Why do you think somebody would do this? Because of how title attributes have been misused over the years by SEOs who think they can pump up their ratings by stuffing keywords into every nook and cranny of their site... and by the many older WordPress sites that duplicate the link anchor text in the title attribute field, turning the title attribute into useless, repetitive text.

It's true, if you have a WordPress blog you might want to look into this. By default WordPress used to make the title attribute of any page link the same as the anchor text. There used to be a popular plug-in to remove the title attributes, as many people found them to be a waste of space in their code and thought they contributed to a negative user experience. As of WordPress version 3.3, this functionality no longer exists - WordPress now leaves the title attribute blank - and you should too.

Look at it this way - if your link anchor text is so unclear that you think you need to provide extra information to your site user in the tooltip, then change the link anchor text. Don't slap a tooltip on top of an unclear link. And for goodness sakes please don't waste your time and risk your rankings by stuffing keywords into your link title attributes!

10. favicon.cc

http://www.favicon.cc/

One of the best free icon generators, favicon.cc allows you to create favicons from images or from scratch, and it even supports animations. The best feature of favicon.cc? A pixel by pixel interface that allows the user to create designs from scratch, or tweak uploaded designs. Complete with color picker and the ability to publish your favicon under a Creative commons license, favicon.cc has it goin’ on!

Dev tip: Favicons are aggressively cached by browsers- be sure to version your icon if you ever update it (e.g href=“mywebsite/images/favicon.ico?v=5”)

9. IconFinder

http://www.iconfinder.com/

This is search engine designed for icon searches. Customize your results for commercial vs non-commercial use. Iconfinder boasts 208,787 icons and 896 icon sets, making it a great place to find social icon sets and other random icons, pre-sorted and labeled- ready for your key-word search.

Dev tip: Add IconFinder to your search engine list and save space in your bookmarks! 

8. FontSquirrel

http://www.fontsquirrel.com/

How do you make an awesome place to find free fonts even better? @font-face kits and an @font-face generator. With the @font-face tag, you are no longer limited to web safe fonts, but making your embedded fonts completely cross browser compatible can be a pain. FontSquirrel takes that hurt away.  Each of FontSquirrel’s free @ font-face kits include:

• TrueType Fonts (Firefox 3.5+ , Opera 10+, Safari 3.1+, Chrome 4.0.249.4+)
• EOT fonts (IE 4+)
• WOFF fonts ( Firefox 3.6+, Internet Explorer 9+, Chrome 5+)
• SVG fonts (iPad and iPhone)
• Cufón fonts (just ‘cause)
• Demo.html and stylesheet.css

These kits make uploading and using fancy fonts as simple as possible. And if you need to create a more custom solution- they have an @font-face generator that allows you to add fonts and optimize them.

Dev tip: Avoid some browser bugs by including your @font-face tag as your first definition in your CSS

7. GoogleWeb Fonts

http://www.google.com/webfonts

Another great source for fonts, but instead of creating font packs to use on your server- goggle actually hosts these fonts! A simplein your head tag and you have a whole new font at your disposal. Fast load time, no extra files, with 516 choices and growing.

6. Colorzilla Browser Add-On

http://colorzilla.com/

What color is that? Good question. ColorZilla will tell you in a click. This add-on allows you to eye-drop color-pick any pixel on your browser and displays the hex and RBG values- automatically copying it to your clipboard for fast-pasting into other programs. Enabling the “status bar” info (which now overlays at the top of the screen) also provides quick access to great, helpful info by hovering over any element on the page. Info provided includes multiple values of color, elements tag, class and id, css calculated size, box object size and more. Have fun with the options and make this great tool work for you whenever you need fast access to an elements size or id/class.

5. Google PageSpeed Insights

https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights

Ever wonder what is slowing down your site? Google’s PageSpeed Insights won’t hold back. Telling you like it is- your site will receive a grade (out of 100), and offer suggestions on how to improve the speed of your site. Simply enter the url, click submit and you will receive a list of suggestions classified under high, medium, and low priority- also offered are experimental rules that could help your load time. The tool even gives you a pat on the back for the things you’ve already done. And who wouldn’t like to hear Google tell you you’ve done a good job?

4. W3C Validator

http://validator.w3.org/

Straight from the W3C, this is THE tool to validate your markup for web files. Validation can be done via url, upload, or direct input into a text field. W3C validator will automatically detect your Doctype and encoding unless otherwise specified, and your error/warning results are sortable, even showing line numbers for debugging. Not one of the most “fun” tools in our top ten, but definitely one of the most helpful for coding standards compliant websites.

3.  Ultimate CSS Gradient Generator from ColorZilla

http://www.colorzilla.com/gradient-editor/

Aptly named the “Ultimate” CSS gradient generator, this tool really is fantastic. With this easy to use interface, you can create cross-browser compatible CSS driven gradients. No more images! In fact- one great feature is the ability to re-create an existing gradient into CSS by just uploading the image!! You can also paste in browser specific gradient code which will get translated into the various cross-browser CSS. We could go on about the numerous features and presets, but you are probably just better off checking it out yourself.

Dev tip: Don’t forget about your ability to utilize transparency with RBG colors- hex code may be lighter weight- but it doesn’t offer the same flexibility as RBG

2. CSS3Generator

http://css3generator.com/

Can we say HANDY? CSS3Generator is a simple interface that creates cross-browser compatible code for: box shadows, text-shadows, border radius, and so much more. While it is important for any developer to understand how the tool works- it is also important to learn the skill of copy and paste. A boxed preview area and internal text all you to see your code in action dynamically, and with browser support icons directly above the generated code, you know exactly where it is going to work.

1. FireBug / Chrome’s Developer Tools

Firebug: https://getfirebug.com/

Chrome: native (just right-click and “Inspect Element”) Ta-da!

Now to number 1... yes- this is a tie. The largest source of debate within our team is which browser inspector is the best? And the answer really comes down to your taste. The interfaces differ slightly and each have marginally different features, but we believe it has a little to do with how your brain organizes information, and a lot more to do with which browser you like better.

Where they share their undeniable benefits are in their abilities to modify CSS styles and HTML layout in real-time, debug JavaScript, and analyze usage/performance. These tools cannot be beat in development, and work especially well when working in template environments.

Honorable Mentions-

The following tools didn’t make the top ten list but are worth a mention:

• FTP on the Go- FTP Client for iPhone (has a pro version for iPad) http://www.ftponthego.com/
• Subtle Patterns- downloadable image squares for use as repeatable “tiles” for web backgrounds http://subtlepatterns.com/ 
• Hipster Ipsum - a new twist on Lorem Ipsum (dummy text)- Hipster Ipsum, this one you really just have to see to believe http://hipsteripsum.me/

Bidleman covers many forthcoming developments in modern browser capability that sent butterflies in my belly, but the one thing that meant the most to me was a little CSS candidate called Flex-Box

The Problem

I can remember long ago, when I was still just starting to get down on web design, there was the persistent agony of positioning things; and in particular centering things and spacing like-elements evenly.  It leads to some very messy cases, the most frequent of which went something like:

.element{position:absolute;left:50%;width:80px;margin-left: -40px; /*half the width of the element*/}

‘Awkwardly large amount of code, but it worked...unless you wanted to keep the width dynamic…

It gets very complicated, and frustrating, and probably led to the disappearance of countless packages of double stuffed Oreos, in many “eat your feelings” related episodes.

The Solution

It’s the vestiges of these early torments that makes me so pumped about flex-boxes, because positioning is super easy. Ill let Bidleman take it from here. Enjoy!!!

Drawbacks?

Right now, browser support is weak and essentially all contingent on browser prefixes. Sadly, flex-box will still require browser prefixes for the foreseeable future. Step in the right direction though!

Fun Fact:

Did you know 9 out of 10 Paul Irishes Agree that Flex-Boxes are trill and will drastically reduce the level of misery associated of positioning elements?!

Related Links:

CSS3 Flexible Box Layout Explained