grid posts

Filed under: Web services, Google, Search

Google Squared launches, puts search results in a grid

by Jay Hathaway Jun 3rd 2009

Google Squared, the new search tool from Google Labs, puts search results into a convenient spreadsheet format designed to help you get the basic facts about whatever you're searching for without clicking through to too many different websites. Search for "horror films," for example, and you'll get a list of movies with info like Author, Director, Cast, and Running Time. It's a great layout that's easy to read at a glance, but the results still need a lot of work.

I tried a search that I thought was right up Google Squared's alley: "current New York Times bestsellers," and the results were a jumble of categories, but no books. "Current box office" returned some recent movies, and some old ones that did really well when they came out. These are the kinds of searches Google Squared could hit a home run with, but it doesn't.

The example searches prove how well Google Squared could really work. Check out some terms like "roller coasters" and "U.S. Presidents" to see some nice glimmers of potential. The ability to customize your own square when no results are returned will also probably lead to much better results.

Tags: google, google-squared, grid, information, search, search-engine, squares

Filed under: Design, Developer, Productivity

Lay out websites easily using 960 Gridder

by Jay Hathaway May 1st 2009

If you're a web design who works with grid systems all the time, it's handy to have a way to put a customizable grid over any website. I wrote about Slammer, an OS X tool for gridding up any window, and readers asked if there was a non-Mac alternative. Here's one: the web-based 960 Gridder. It's a bookmarklet, so it's cross-platform and works in all major browsers.

Once you turn on 960 Gridder, the default grid will be displayed on top of your browser window. To change settings, go to the 960 Gridder sidebar over on the left, and adjust colors, opacity, gutters and spacing to your liking. There's even an option to reverse out the grid, in case you switch from a light to a dark page. 960 Gridder isn't a perfect solution, but it's a free one, and it helps in a pinch.

Tags: 960gridder, bookmarklet, browser, design, grid, web

Filed under: Design, Macintosh, Productivity

Slammer puts a grid over any window

by Jay Hathaway Mar 26th 2009

Grid systems are incredibly important to a lot of designers, but it can be time-consuming and frustrating to get a layout into an app that lets you draw a grid. Designs you're already working on are one thing, but what if you see a well-designed while you're just browsing and want to see a grid to find out more about how it's laid out? Slammer is an app for OS X (Leopard-only) that just throws an adjustable grid over any window.

Websites, application UIs, and anything you have open can all be quickly viewed under a grid with Slammer. You can adjust the spacing and positioning of the grid, and change the color so it doesn't blend in with what's underneath. You can save and share the grids you create, and a ruler -- which would be totally handy -- is listed as "coming soon." Automatic positioning also appears to be in the works, but it's honestly not too hard to position a Slammer grid yourself. If you design on a Mac, you'll love this app.

Tags: design, grid, grid-system, slammer

Filed under: Developer, Utilities, web 2.0

Flexigrid: slick Web 2.0 data grids with jQuery

by Jay Hathaway Jul 20th 2008

Flexigrid is a jQuery based way of making flexible data grids, either by inputting fresh data or grabbing it from an existing table, XML, or JSON source. The "flexi-" in Flexigrid refers to its resizable height, width and columns. Flexigrid also now has a toolbar, a search function, and its own API.

Although the API isn't documented yet, there's enough there to figure out how to do the most important things Flexigrid does: collecting and sorting your data. It'll use Ajax to populate your new grid from an XML source, and there's an auto-resizing function so you don't have to mess with your columns too much right off the bat. The CSS should also be editable, so you can hack in your own theme if you're ambitious.

Tags: data grid, DataGrid, Flexigrid, grid, jquery, web 2.0, Web2.0

Filed under: Fun, Hardware, News, Mods

Go go Veggie-puter!

by Ryan Carter Oct 21st 2006

This comes to you out of the "alright, that's a little odd (but also cool)" category of computer news. Those infamous MAKERs at Maker Faire have done it once again. Using nothing but old computers, they managed to jerry-rig together a 31-node "super *cough* computer." Not special you say? Not Download Squad material you say? Well, I think we would all agree that saving our environment is important [insert head-nod here]. These brave MAKERs decided to do just that, running their grid on a veggie-oil-powered generator. Applause for the MAKERs please. I know, not quite the Nobel prize-winner for sure, but still a homegrown (pardon the pun) grid running with old equipment that you could impress the family with at awkward holiday gatherings? Where do I sign? I'm sure I could conjure up about that many PCs just around my house by tripping in any direction. Dang, if I only had more free time!

Tags: cluster, ecogeek, grid, pc, pseudo-grid, supercomputer

Featured Time Waster

Graveyard Shift - zombie-busting Time Waster

With Halloween fast approaching, it's a great time to get in some practice defending your territory against zombies. In Graveyard Shift, you take aim at zombies and other creepy-crawlies, blasting them into splatters of cartoony green guts. It's a casual first-person shooter, and it's very easy to get the hang of - use the mouse to aim, click to fire. Graveyard Shift has at least 15 levels, and it might even have some secret stages I haven't unlocked yet. They key to getting good at Graveyard Shift is learning to use ...

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