John Beales

If you thought opening a link in a new window was bad…

We hear it all of the time, “Don’t open links in a new window.” However, sometimes it makes sense, whether it’s because a client insists on it, or because way the site is meant to be used, (and is used by its users), works better if some, links are opened in new windows. The fact of the matter is that sometimes you’ve just got to open a new window.

But, what happens when someone else decides to close that window? Confused users, that’s what.

I recently came across a site that does just that. It checks to see if there’s an opener object, (we’re talking javascript now), and if there is one, it redirects the opener to its address and closes itself.

Here’s the code:

function checkForPopup()
                {
                    if (typeof(window.opener) != 'undefined')
                    {
                        var queryString = window.location.search.substring(1);
                        if (queryString.indexOf('cliententry=true') == -1)
                        {
                            try
                            {
                                if(!window.opener.closed)
                                {
                                    window.opener.top.location = window.location;
                                    window.close();
                                }
                             }
                             catch(e)
                             {
                                //We Ignore this error becuase the user
                                //may have closed the opener
                             }
                        }
                    }
                }

Seriously! I was disgusted. There is no better way to mess with a user than that!

Recycle twice: Re-use before recycling

As part of my waste reduction challenge I am trying to re-use more things here at home before recycling them. I’ve already been using the back side of pages that I had printed and didn’t turn out right as note-paper, however I rarely print, (who prints these days?), so I ran out. Since then I have started re-using the blank parts of the junk mail that shows up in my mailbox – I just cut the usable parts out and recycle the rest. It’s amazing how many items have good-sized blank areas, for example, most envelopes have at least the back blank, and may have the entire inside blank as well.

Here’s my collection from just the last few days:

Electricity Eco-Challenge Update

In August I wrote about my Electricity Eco-Challenge here at the house. The goal was to reduce our power consumption as much as possible, without having to always live in the dark or anything. I now have an update almost a year later, and after the initial success the electrical savings have kept rolling in, (or not rolling in, depending on your point of view). Hydro-Quebec has a nice chart of my electrical use on their website:

As you may be able to see from the chart, (click it if you want a bigger version), for 6 months of the year we have reduced our use by 200kWh per month! At current rates, we saved $64.80 in the past year on our power bill. However, in real life we saved more, because by reducing our power consumption we kept our use below the threshold where the price of power increases.

We are now looking for ways to reduce our use even more. I have set up the office so I can shut off almost all of the phantom loads in it by flipping an easily-accessible powerbar switch. We’re also trying to hang dry as much of our laundry as possible. I’ll post again in a few months with results.

Garden, and a Waste Reduction Challenge

It seems to be springtime here in Montréal. The snow is pretty much melted, bulbs and some perennials are up, grass is getting greener, and most of the stuff that was hidden under the snow has been swept away. That means it’s time to garden!

I started early this year. Last week I started a bunch of different seeds, mostly herbs & flowers, (tomatoes will be bought), and I already have some cinnamon basil and marigold seedlings. The plan is to produce as much as possible! I’ll also try to write about it sometimes with photos as I have previously.

With the spring thaw I am once again able to access my composter, so starting today on Earth Day I am starting the Waste Reduction Eco-Challenge: a challenge to reduce the amount of garbage I throw out as much as possible. This won’t be as formal a challenge as the electricity eco-challenge, (update soon), it is more of a personal challenge without charts & stuff, but it is a challenge! The plan is to compost and recycle as much as possible, and to try not to bring as much stuff that needs to be thrown out into the house.

Al Gore Strikes Again!

Despite my several green-themed posts I just recently watched An Inconvenient Truth, and was amazed. I really hadn’t realized how much had changed in the past century, it’s incredible.

Now, Al Gore has a new slideshow that he’s presenting, and it’s pretty darn good. Here is the video from Ted:

Found via Earth2Tech.