February 21, 2020 — The blockchain technology is receiving a lot of attention because of its ability to enhance security in trustless environments, enforce decentralization, and make processes efficient. In this tutorial, Alfrick Opidi demonstrates how to create a simple cryptocurrency, called smashingCoin, using the concepts of JavaScript classes and Node.js. Give it a try — it’s simpler than you think! Read more…

February 20, 2020 — iPhone was built to be comfortably used for one-handed operation, allowing for a smoother thumb movement across the screen. 90% of the smartphones sold today have >5-inch displays. Bigger screen real estate presents newer challenges and opportunities for app makers and designers. In this article, Maitrik Kataria will show you how designing apps for one-handed usage can solve those challenges. Read more…

February 19, 2020 — In this tutorial, Chidi Orji will show you how to build a React drag-and-drop component for file and image uploads. In the process, we’ll learn about the HTML drag-and-drop API. We will also learn how to use the useReducer hook for managing state in a React functional component. Read more…

February 18, 2020 — Whether you’re building a new site or you’re managing a live one, you can’t afford to make any changes without a process for cross-browser testing and a tool to do the heavy lifting for you. LambdaTest’s wide array of tests are the answer. From fully automated cross-browser tests to semi-automated tasks, we’re going to explore a much more efficient way to review your websites and all their browser iterations for errors. Read more…

February 17, 2020 — Does your website have a mascot that the audience isn’t responding well to or that outright hates it? Or maybe your new client has brought along a mascot that you’re unsure about? If a mascot’s design or messaging isn’t on point with an audience, there’s no sense in keeping it as is and losing business over it. Today, Suzanne Scacca is going to give you four options for turning your hated brand mascot into one the people love. Read more…

February 14, 2020 — It’s nice to have an overview of the most important things in one place, but do feel free to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and subscribe to our RSS feed. We like helping you stay on top of things and making life just a little bit easier! Fear not, we’ve got your backs! Our bi-weekly Smashing Podcast has you covered with a variety of topics across multiple levels of expertise. Read more…

February 13, 2020 — Almost all JavaScript projects that can be found out in the wild interact with a web service or API and either use it for authentications or getting user-related data. In this article, Kelvin Omereshone introduces Mirage JS, an API mocking library that lets you build, test and share a complete working JavaScript application without having to rely on any backend API or services. You’ll also learn how to set up Mirage JS with the progressive front-end framework, Vue.js. Read more…

February 12, 2020 — In a new series, Rachel Andrew breaks down the CSS Grid Layout specification. This time, Rachel Andrew will learn how to use the grid-template-areas property to define placement on the grid and find out how the property really works. If you haven’t used this layout method before, give it a try. We find that it is a lovely way to experiment with layouts and often use it when prototyping a layout — even if for one reason or another we will ultimately use a different method for the production version. Read more…

February 11, 2020 — Appointment and event booking can be a time-consuming and tedious task. Business owners don’t want to deal with it and their assistants aren’t always the most effective way to capture or handle this information. Web designers, on the other hand, can help. By using the Amelia booking plugin for WordPress, you can create booking widgets that collect more appointments (and revenue) for your clients. Read more…

February 11, 2020 — In this episode of the Smashing Podcast, we’re taking a look at UI Frameworks. How can the custom needs of a highly usable application be met with a set of off-the-shelf tools? Drew McLellan speaks to UX Designer Stéphanie Walter to find out what we should be considering when building on a UI framework. Read more…