U.S. Navy Theme Available
February 13, 2010
I am excited to announce that I have received permission from the Navy to use their official emblem and release my theme. You can view the listing at https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/57885 and install it. Currently, the theme is listed as experimental while it waits on review and approval from Mozilla to be made public.
I have filled out the paperwork for the Air Force and Marines so hopefully I will get permission to use their official emblems soon. The Army will take a little longer because I couldn’t find their contact information but I was finally able to get an email to the proper department. Due to the recent snow on the East Coast however, they have not been able to get to their offices so I am still waiting for them to review my request.
Personalized Theme Customization
February 10, 2010
I get a lot of feedback from users for various reasons and one thing is certain, I cannot make everyone happy all of the time. Some users like light backgrounds with dark text while others like dark backgrounds with white text. People like different font sizes, different font colors, and various other looks within the theme.
I try to design my themes based on the majority of feedback but I want everyone to be able to view their theme the way they want it. There is a way for everyone to be happy but it requires a little self-customization by using the userChrome.css file. This file is located in your user profile directory but how you find that is different for each OS.
Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\[user name]\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[random string].default\chrome\
Windows Vista/7: C:\Users\[user name]\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[random string].default\chrome\
Mac OSX:
Windows users will find that they cannot see the Application Data folder unless they change their view settings to display hidden folders. XP users must click on Tools, then Folder Options. Vista/Win 7 users much click Organize, then Folder and Search Options. Then, select the view tab and change the settings to “Show hidden files and folders”.
In the chrome directory, you will likely see a file called userChrome-example.css file. You can rename it and delete -example. If you open this file you will see:
/*
* Edit this file and copy it as userChrome.css into your
* profile-directory/chrome/
*//*
* This file can be used to customize the look of Mozilla’s user interface
* You should consider using !important on rules which you want to
* override default settings.
*//*
* Do not remove the @namespace line — it’s required for correct functioning
*/
@namespace url(“http://www.mozilla.org/keymaster/gatekeeper/there.is.only.xul”); /* set default namespace to XUL *//*
* Some possible accessibility enhancements:
*/
/*
* Make all the default font sizes 20 pt:
*
* * {
* font-size: 20pt !important
* }
*/
/*
* Make menu items in particular 15 pt instead of the default size:
*
* menupopup > * {
* font-size: 15pt !important
* }
*/
/*
* Give the Location (URL) Bar a fixed-width font
*
* #urlbar {
* font-family: monospace !important;
* }
*//*
* For more examples see http://www.mozilla.org/unix/customizing.html
*/
You can add, change, and customize many different things in the theme that you do not like. Once you add the changes you want to make and save the file, your changes will appear once you restart Firefox. If you have any specific questions about to change something, please send me an email and I can give you the changes you would need to add to the userChrome.css file.
To make the Menu popup windows light with dark text, right click and save this file and place it in the appropriate directory listed above.
Ask Search Plugin Clarification
February 9, 2010
There seems to be a misunderstanding out there due to the purposeful spreading of misinformation by people who want to do nothing other than cause problems and attack AMO developers. One of the common things I read by people who leave negative reviews is that I hijack people's browsers by forcing them to install an Ask.com toolbar. Every bit of that accusation is false.- Nothing is hijacked. There is no adware or malware installed on a user's system. The only thing that the bundled Ask extension does is add a custom search plugin in the search window of the browser toolbar. This is added to the list of already available and installed plugins .
- Nothing is forced on a user. When installing the theme on AMO, a user must accept the EULA by clicking on the accept button. When installation begins, a popup window displays asking the user if they would like to proceed with the addition of the Ask.com search plugin. Nobody is required to use the search and you can switch back anytime. On my website, you must accept the EULA but there is no opt-in popup so the user has total control of what is being installed on their system.
- There is no toolbar installed. All that is added is the simple plugin making Ask.com a search option. Ask is set as the default search instead of Google. This is my main source of revenue to support the continued development of my current themes and the many more I have planned.
It’s Ok to Lose
February 3, 2010
I was playing Monopoly Junior with my 5 year old and my wife and he started crying when he lost. He doesn't like losing and thinks he should win all the time. I had a talk with him about how losing in life is a good thing for a couple of reasons. Losing is a necessary counterpart to winning because you cannot truly appreciate the joy of winning unless you have felt the grief of losing. Also, perpetual winning inevitably results in complacency. You take things for granted when you forget what losing feels like. Losing reminds you that winning feels much better and drives you to get back there. Obviously, I simplified these thoughts down a little bit when talking to my 5 year old but you get the idea. When I taught high school math for five years, the idea of winning and losing constantly came up. I realized during those years that we are creating a society where losing is not allowed and everyone is a winner. I had students who had failed the previous 2 or 3 years of math but kept advancing to the next level. They were not held accountable for their inability to perform at a passing level because of "social promotion". When they got to high school, they had no comprehension of the necessity to perform at a certain level to pass the class. They blamed me when they did poorly on tests even though they did no homework, did not participate in class, and did not study for the test. They were not used to "losing" because they were always treated as "winners" simply because they tried their best. They were never driven to work harder because they had never known "losing" before. We even do this with our sports leagues for kids. When I was a kid, we kept score and had winners and losers for T-Ball, soccer, etc. As my boys are getting old enough to start playing in leagues, nobody keeps score. In soccer, nobody keeps track of how many goals are scored. Both teams are "winners". In T-Ball, everybody hits, no runs are counted, and nobody ever gets out. Every game ends in a tie. Competition is a key part of life. It makes us stronger, it causes us to work harder, it drives us to get better. It concerns me when I look at our society and see an entire generation growing up that thinks competition is a bad thing and that everyone can and should be a winner as long as they try their best. That was part of the reason I left teaching.Do Not Worry
February 1, 2010
The most commonly referenced section of the Bible is the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew 5-7, specifically the Beatitudes at the beginning of chapter 5. You know them, blessed are the meek, blessed are the merciful, blessed are the peacemakers, etc. They are quoted by Christians, non-Christians, Republicans, Democrats, men, women, etc. etc. etc. What isn't referenced much, however, is the section found in Matthew 6:25-34. It starts off by saying:Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?After explaining that the birds are taken care of and the lilies are beautifully dressed, it continues to say:
Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’...seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.It is human nature to worry about tomorrow. We want control of the events that will take place in our lives. We want to know what will happen if we make a certain decision, what will happen if we don't. Americans may be the most stressed out about the future. We live in a country blessed by resources, wealth, comfort, convenience, etc, yet so many of us are stressed out and depressed about our lives. We worry about what we don't have. We are anxious about what we can't have. We are jealous about what others do have. So much of our day is filled worrying about things we have very little control over. I am no exception. I don't like these verses. I don't want to focus on today and be content with what I have now. I want to make sure that what I have today will be enough to carry me through tomorrow and beyond. I want to worry about tomorrow and what I will eat and what I will wear and how much money I have and what will happen to me. 2009 has forced me to cling on to these verses and force myself not to worry. So often, I have had to focus on today and be thankful that we had enough to get us through. One day, we had just enough dimes in our piggy bank to buy enough gas to get us to the store to buy some food. It was sufficient for the day though. The next day took care of itself and we had enough to get us through that day. There were times when we had plenty so that we didn't need to worry about the next day but those days were few and far between. This past year has been a great life lesson. My wife and I have had less this past year than any of our other 10 years together. The lack of stuff has caused me to rely on God's provision more than ever and seek His Kingdom first. I haven't known often how the next day would be taken care of but it has been and in many different ways. Sufficient needs for the day have carried us for a little over a year now as I continue to get Virtus Designs going. Hopefully the day will come soon where it won't be a matter of not having enough for the next day, but rather, knowing that whether we have a lot or a little today, there is no need to worry about tomorrow because tomorrow will worry about itself.