Saturday, January 30, 2010

Web Standards - No Margin for Error

The economic benefits of standardization are tangible. Once we can quantify them, companies will begin to realize the true potential of the Web-Standards.

Do Web standards give organizations a return on investment?Do Web standards make financial sense? The answer to these million-dollar questions is YES.

Web standards force you to error check. Simply declaring which version of XML you’re using will let you validate your pages against the specified Schema. Validation turns HTML into something like a scripting language.

Web standards simplify maintenance, since design is separate from content, but logically linked through a CSS file. This clear-cut separation makes it much easier for you to develop and maintain your pages in tandem.

Shorter development cycles not only result in cost-savings, but free up resources sooner, thereby increasing opportunity.

Web Standards improve user experience by adopting clean, standardized code which gives users a shortcut to accomplishing their goals on the website and in turn this also results in increased turnover due to more people using your site.

Some closing words
If you adopt the web standards way, you go through a learning process where you should grant yourself the liberty and time to experiment, make mistakes, "Learn,Unlearn and Re-learn. And don't forget to enjoy this transition, from my own experience I can tell it is worth the effort and leaves no margin for error.

©®Chitra Lele

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

The Inner Soldier

This New Year Do You Have The Fortitude To Be Someone New?

I will tell you HOW!

Most of our obstacles would melt away if, instead of cowering before them, we should make up our minds to walk boldly through them.
- Orison Swett Marden

Do you believe that fortitude is a quality reserved for soldiers? If you said yes then you need to re-read the famous quote given above. What is the similarity and difference between you and a soldier on the border? You both have many of the same fears. The only differentiating factor is that of fortitude.

Yes each one of us has a soldier within us. All we need to do is to get into action like a fervent soldier. A soldier fears nothing as he does not waste time in procrastinating rather he gets down to work – ‘Action all the way’ is his motto. If we follow the same principle in our lives then we can overcome all types of fears within us. We perceive the source of fear external and unknown to us, in reality it is all in the mind, within us. The only way to face these fears and map them into new enriching experiences is not to fall into the avoidance trap.

The methods you use to develop fortitude aren’t important. What's important is that you consciously do it. Just as a soldier on the front does. The ultimate measure of people is not where they stand in moments of stability, but where they stand in times of challenges.

Trust me the above points are not mere points if they are accompanied with appreciative enquiry and regular introspection. They will certainly given you a new vision and a new direction to lead life from within, inside out. You will control your fears; you will take charge of all your life battles. You will be your own Commander! Building up fortitude is not a one time activity rather is an ongoing one. Once you appreciate and accept this fact, you are definitely going to be on the right road where you will find far less resistance to change than before.

Friends, let me share a little ‘everyone knows’ secret with you. Don’t be afraid of your fears rather consider them as friends in disguise. Once you learn to keep your fears aside (not within) then they finally let you know who truly you are. Never forget your fears but ensure that they forget you. Once you let the others around you know who you really are, no one can thwart your efforts of rediscovering yourself altogether.

©®Chitra Lele