The confession
I thought it would be a good idea to have a full header on this website. This is how it used to be done in the old days – however, in the days of tablets, iPads, smart phones, and even iWatches in a week so, this is not the way to do it today. Well, I searched the web, found a brilliant tutorial and it all looked fine on my desktop and my wife’s lap top.
All went well until I demonstrated the site to a friend on an iPad and was horrified to see that only half the header had appeared. I then removed the full header, and made the right decision to split the header into a logo and a descriptive section. Unfortunately I made the mistake of ignoring the structure of the theme and tried to make the logo section much larger. This involved fiddling around with functions and css, both of which I can hack, but without detailed experience or knowledge. After many hours of
After many hours of work the header still looked bad on the iPad. In the end I completely reloaded the theme, used all the defaults and everything worked perfectly.
So what have I learnt today?
Experts usually know more than I do
The theme, Metro Pro, developed by StudioPress was specifically designed to be reactive, that is it was designed to display on any type of media – big, small or medium.
The relatively small logo area, 270 x 80 pixels, was there because that worked with the different types of media.
My little knowledge is a dangerous thing
I know enough css to make simple alterations. In theory, I understand the programming language php. I can make simple hacks and understand a little of what I am doing. However, my false confidence led me to fiddle after my first problem, which in turn lead to my making coding mistakes and twice I had to go back to the start.
When things start going wrong – stop
Don’t consolidate the error. Give yourself a little space. Drink tea, (I’m English). Come back to the problem when you are refreshed.
What I was doing was not important
My plan in April is to write quite a bit of content. The header section only has to look Ok at this stage. This is why I have done the graphics myself, rather than to pay a professional to do them. As it is I have not written around three articles and I have not spent enough time outside today in the lovely spring weather.
In the future
I’ll evaluate the design of the site in May or June, when I have over fifty posts. Then is the time to worry about the look and feel of the website.
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