Graceful degradation is a design approach that ensures the basics of a website will still function even if specific individual parts of it stop working. The approach removes single points of failure: just because one thing stops working doesnt mean the system as a whole fails. A site following this principle fails in pieces instead of all at once, so the most important features remain available when some components encounter an error.The idea or the concept of single points of failure is well known in the manufacturing sector. Its one of the most common resilience strategies in manufacturing and supply chain operations. A factory with multiple sources of material can keep working even when one supplier becomes unavailable. However, its become increasingly crucial to web development as user expectations around availability and functionality rise.Data center redundancy is a common example of graceful degradation in web development. By using multiple server components, websites ensure theyll stay up when one or more servers fail. In a design context, it may look like guaranteeing the lack of support for a given feature in a users browser or device doesnt render an app unusable.Escalators are a familiar real-world example of the same concept. When they stop working, they can still get people from one floor to the next by acting as stairs. They may not be as functional as they normally are, but theyre not entirely useless.The BBC News webpage is a good example of graceful degradation in web design. As this screenshot shows, the site prioritizes loading navigation and the text within a news story over images. Consequently, slow speeds or old, incompatible browser plugins may make pictures unavailable, but the sites core function sharing the news is still accessible.In contrast, the Adobe Express website is an example of what happens without graceful degradation. Instead of making some features unavailable or dropping load times, the entire site is inaccessible on some browsers. Consequently, users have to update or switch software to use the web app, which isnt great for accessibility.Graceful Degradation vs. Progressive EnhancementThe graceful degradation approach acts as the opposite of progressive enhancement an approach in which a designer builds the basics of a website and progressively adds features that are turned on only if a browser is capable of running them. Each layer of features is turned off by default, allowing for one seamless user experience designed to work for everyone.There is much debate between designers about whether graceful degradation or progressive enhancement is the best way to build site functionality. In reality, though, both are important. Each method has unique pros and cons, so the two can complement each other to provide the most resilience.Progressive enhancement is a good strategy when building a new site or app because you ensure a functional experience for everyone from the start. However, new standards and issues can emerge in the future, which is where graceful degradation comes in. This approach helps you adjust an existing website to comply with new accessibility standards or resolve a compatibility problem you didnt notice earlier.Focusing solely on one design principle or the other will limit accessibility. Progressive enhancement alone struggles to account for post-launch functionality issues, while graceful degradation alone may fail to provide the most feature-rich baseline experience. Combining both will produce the best result.How Graceful Degradation Impacts AccessibilityEnsuring your site or app remains functional is crucial for accessibility. When core functions become unavailable, the platform is no longer accessible to anyone. On a smaller scale, if features like text-to-speech readers or video closed captioning stop working, users with sight difficulties may be unable to enjoy the site.Graceful degradations impact on accessibility is all the larger when considering varying device capabilities. As the average person spends 3.6 hours each day on their phone, failing to ensure a site supports less powerful mobile browsers will alienate a considerable chunk of your audience. Even if some complex functions may not work on mobile, sacrificing those to keep the bulk of the website available on phones ensures broader accessibility.Outdated browsers are another common accessibility issue you can address with graceful degradation. Consider this example from Fairleigh Dickinson University about Adobe Flash, which most modern browsers no longer support.Software still using Flash cannot use the multi-factor authentication feature in question. As a result, users with older programs cant log in. Graceful degradation may compromise by making some functionality unavailable to Flash-supporting browsers while still allowing general access. That way, people dont need to upgrade to use the service.How to Incorporate Graceful Degradation Into Your SiteGraceful degradation removes technological barriers to accessibility. In a broader sense, it also keeps your site or app running at all times, even amid unforeseen technical difficulties. While there are many ways you can achieve that, here are some general best practices to follow.Identify Mission-Critical FunctionsThe first step in ensuring graceful degradation is determining what your core functions are. You can only guarantee the availability of mission-critical features once you know whats essential and what isnt.Review your user data to see what your audience interacts with most these are generally elements worth prioritizing. Anything related to site security, transactions, and readability is also crucial. Infrequently used features or elements like video players and interactive maps are nice to have but okay to sacrifice if you must to ensure mission-critical components remain available.Build RedundancyOnce youve categorized site functions by criticality, you can ensure redundancy for the most important ones. That may mean replicating elements in a few forms to work on varying browsers or devices. Alternatively, you could provide multiple services to carry out important functions, like supporting alternate payment methods or providing both video and text versions of content.Remember that redundancy applies to the hardware your platform runs on, too. The Uptime Institute classifies data centers into tiers, which you can use to determine what redundant systems you need. Similarly, make sure you can run your site on multiple servers to avoid a crash should one go down.Accommodate All BrowsersRemember that graceful degradation is also about supporting software and hardware of varying capabilities. One of the most important considerations under that umbrella for web design is to accommodate outdated browsers.While mobile devices dont support Flash, some older versions of desktop browsers still use it. You can work with both by avoiding Flash you can often use HTML5 instead but not requiring users to have a non-Flash-supporting browser. Similarly, you can offer low-bandwidth, simple alternatives to any features that take up considerable processing power to keep things accessible on older systems.Remember to pay attention to newer softwares security settings, too. Error messages like this one a Microsoft user posted about can appear if a site does not support some browsers updated security protocols. Always keep up with updates from popular platforms like Chrome and Safari to meet these standards and avoid such access issues.Employ Load Balancing and CachingLoad balancing is another crucial step in graceful degradation. Many cloud services automatically distribute traffic between server resources to prevent overloading. Enabling this also ensures that requests can be processed on a different part of the system if another fails.Caching is similar. By storing critical data, you build a fallback plan if an external service or application program interface (API) doesnt work. When the API doesnt respond, you can load the cached data instead. As a result, caches significantly reduce latency in many cases, but you should be aware that you cant cache everything. Focus on the most critical functions.Test Before PublishingFinally, be sure to test your website for accessibility issues before taking it live. Access it from multiple devices, including various browser versions. See if you can run it on a single server to test its ability to balance loads.You likely wont discover all possible errors in testing, but its better to catch some than none. Remember to test your sites functionality before any updates or redesigns, too.Getting Started With Graceful DegradationDesigners, both big and small, can start their graceful degradation journey by tweaking some settings with their web hosting service. AWS offers guidance for managing failures you can use to build degradation into your sites architecture. Hosting providers should also allow you to upgrade your storage plan and configure your server settings to provide redundancy and balance loads.Businesses large enough to run their own data centers should install redundant server capacity and uninterruptible power supplies to keep things running. Smaller organizations can instead rely on their code, using semantic HTML to keep it simple enough for multiple browsers. Programming nonessential things like images and videos to stop when bandwidth is low will also help.Virtualization systems like Kubernetes are also useful as a way to scale site capacity and help load elements separately from one another to maintain accessibility. Testing tools like BrowserStack, WAVE, and CSS HTML Validator can assist you by revealing if your site has functional issues on some browsers or for certain users.At its core, web accessibility is about ensuring a platform works as intended for all people. While design features may be the most obvious part of that goal, technical defenses also play a role. A site is only accessible when it works, so you must keep it functional, even when unexpected hiccups occur.Graceful degradation is not a perfect solution, but it prevents a small issue from becoming a larger one. Following these five steps to implement it on your website or app will ensure that your work in creating an accessible design doesnt go to waste.

In a world where the office has become so much more than a row of desks and cubicles, Officetopia by Smarin is an innovative solution with adaptive and highly modular furniture made to perform for your individual space and specific needs. The collection was designed to improve overall office dynamics in order to foster an environment that supports connection, creativity, and productivity. Instead of viewing offices as just places to work, Officetopia sees these space as ecosystems for ideas, collaboration, and well-being.At the heart of Officetopia is a focus on what Smarin calls high-dimensionality cognitive spaces environments where tasks, information, and interactions are all interconnected rather than separate zones. In these dynamic spaces, employees arent confined by strict office boundaries. They are, instead, empowered to handle the complexities of modern work with an ease that inspires productivity. With Officetopia, each piece contributes to a thriving, flexible workspace.Each component in Officetopia is tailored to support every possible type of office environment: flex spaces, open areas, private offices, meeting zones, relaxation spots, and even green spaces. And Smarin has gone all-in with designs that are as functional as they are forward-thinking. The sChaise is an ergonomic office chair created to combat the side effects of a sedentary lifestyle. This unique chair nudges us towards a healthier, more movement-friendly workday.Then theres Dunes, a foam lounge chair designed for napping and relaxation. Different foam densities help provide the right amount of support where you most need it as you take a moment of rest.Finally, we have The Geometric Life series, a flexible, modular collection that seamlessly shifts between desk clusters, meeting tables, and room dividers, creating a playground of possibilities for evolving team dynamics.Through Officetopia, Smarin envisions spaces that foster innovation, collaboration, and, yes, even a little rest. In a work world thats constantly evolving, Officetopias adaptive approach is just what modern offices need to keep up.To learn more about the Officetopia collection by smarin, visit smarin.net.

Over the past few years, Nothing has cemented its status in the industry as a creator of tech thats both relatively high-end, and innovative in design. Now, however, the company is taking a new approach through the all-new Nothing Phone (2a) Plus Community Edition.The concept of the new phone is simple what if instead of designing the phone entirely in-house, it got input from its biggest fans? According to Nothing, over six months and 900 entries went into the design of not just the phone itself, but also new software elements and even the packaging of the phone.Keen observers of the Nothing brand, of course, will find the name of the device familiar, and indeed, the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus Community Edition is a revamped version of the original Nothing Phone (2a) Plus that came out just a few months ago. In other words, the new phone offers the same MediaTek processor, the same dual camera array, and so on.But whats really interesting about the phone is what the Nothing community chose to change about it. Notably, it has a glow-in-the-dark finish on the back, which frankly, is pretty cool. It charges by sunlight, so the glowing effect doesnt draw power from the battery in the phone.The wallpapers have drawn from community inspiration too. The Nothing Phone (2a) Plus Community Edition has six new wallpapers designed to mimic aspects of the rear of the phone, with a similar green tint to them. And, the packaging of the phone shows the rear camera with the surrounding green glow.Is the design change groundbreaking? Of course not but Nothings willingness to listen to its community certainly is commendable, especially amongst a sea of tech companies that take many years to listen to any feedback.Unfortunately, itll be hard to get the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus Community Edition for yourself as Nothing only made 1,000 units, but you can find out more information at nothing.tech.

If you thought ProtoPie was powerful before, get ready to unlock its full potential. Discover 3 more hacks to enhance your interactionsContinue reading on UX Collective

Update 12/06/2024: Following ByteDance's lawsuit attempting to stop the so-called "TikTok ban," a panel of judges for the DC Circuit Court of Appeals has decided to uphold the controversial law. The decision leaves TikTok with a little over a month to find a U.S. buyer or otherwise get the law overturned before the January 19 deadline, leaving the company with two places to turn.TikTok could appeal the case to the Supreme Court, which seems to be in the playbook. In a statement reported by Bloomberg, TikTok spokesperson Michael Hughes wrote, "The Supreme Court has an established historical record of protecting Americans' right to free speech, and we expect they will do just that on this important constitutional issue."TikTok could also ask for help from the incoming administration. Since signing an executive order attempting to force ByteDance to choose between a sale and a ban in 2020, President-elect Donald Trump seems to have changed his tune on the TikTok ban, posting to Truth Social, "If you get rid of TikTok, Facebook and Zuckerschmuck will double their business. I don't want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better. They are a true Enemy of the People!"Coincidentally, ByteDance investor Jeff Yass contributed more than $46 million to Republicans during this year's election campaigns.Trump is set to take office one day after the upcoming ban, although it's within his discretion to choose how the law will be enforced. However, a relaxed enforcement could leave both the app and app stores in a tricky spot when it comes to future administrations. Within the law as it stands now, the president does have the power to extend the deadline by 90 days if it seems like significant progress is being made on a sale; however, given the Biden administration's role in signing the law, it is unlikely that the deadline will be extended before Trump takes office.This article's original text follows below:It's official: President Biden has signed a bill into law that could lead to banning TikTok in the United States. The House of Representatives passed its original bill back in March, while the Senate finally voted it in as part of a $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel, and Gaza on Tuesday. The legislation was passed with overwhelming bipartisan support in both chambers, and the President quickly signed it shortly after. So, TikTok in the U.S. is dead, right? Not quite.What is the TikTok ban bill?First and foremost, this bill doesn't "ban" TikTok outright. Even though the bill is now law, the app won't disappear from your smartphone immediately. Instead, the law demands that ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese-based parent company, divest its stake in the app to an American-owned company within nine months of the bill becoming law. President Biden can add another 90 days to that timeline if ByteDance appears to be making progress selling TikTok. (The House's original bill had a shorter timeline of six months.) If ByteDance were to refuse, then the app would face a ban in the U.S. It's similar to a tactic the Trump administration took in 2020: Trump signed an executive order forcing ByteDance to choose between a sale or being banned. The courts blocked the order, however, and the Biden administration later revoked it, replacing it with an order to review more apps that could potentially compromise American security.Lawmakers are increasingly concerned that TikTok's direct ties to China puts American users' data in jeopardy. These fears are not unfounded: In late 2022, ByteDance employees obtained the IP addresses of American journalists from their TikTok accounts, in an effort to discover the source of company leaks. Back in June, we learned that TikTok stores some user data from U.S.-based creators in China, after insisting the company keeps all American data within the United States. TikTok likely doesn't scrape more data from your smartphone than any other app you use. Congress couldn't care less about your privacy from an altruistic point of view. The government's concern, however, is that unlike Meta or Google apps, your data isn't being taken by an American company; rather, it's potentially leaking to a foreign nation, one with a complicated, if not adversarial, geopolitical relationship with the U.S. That, in addition to a potential for China to influence the content American users actually see on their feeds, is fueling an urgency with many lawmakers to do something about the massively popular app.Where do we go from here?All that said, TikTok's banishment is not certain. Look, this is America: If there's one thing we love in this country, it's a good deal. As such, now that the bill is officially a law, you better believe the business interests in the U.S. will be trying their darnedest to be the American company ByteDance sells to. We were seeing this play out before the Senate had even deliberated the bill: Former Activision CEO Bobby Kotick reportedly pitched the idea of buying TikTok at a dinner, which included OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman. Former Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin is building a group of investors with the goal of acquiring the app. (Is it a prerequisite to be a "former" something in order to buy TikTok?) If not, even Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary told Fox News in an interview he'd like to buy the app. Perhaps Microsoft, which was in talks to buy TikTok under the Trump administration, will try again. That said, who knows if ByteDance will actually sell. But it'll certainly have its choice of buyer if interested. No matter what, TikTok will not be banned before the 2024 election. Now that the timeline has been extended to nine months, with a potential 90-day extension on top of that, Americans will still be able to tune into news and opinions on the app all the way through Nov. 5, 2024. How that will impact the elections is all but certain: Will TikTok prove to be the election interference machine the U.S. government seems so concerned about? Will voters punish lawmakers and President Biden for putting the app in jeopardy, or will that not have much of an impact as the app will still be working when they go to the polls? So much about this story is up in the air: The one thing we know for sure is TikTok will still be with us until at least January 2025.

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.You can get thousands of free e-books over the course of 2024 if you know whereand whento look. All year long, Amazon is offering up free Kindle e-books to readers, with new opportunities popping up every month. This month, Prime members canget two free Kindle e-booksfrom Amazon's First Reads program in December.What is Amazon's First Reads?Amazon First Reads is a program aimed at Prime members that offers early access to new e-books across many genres, as curated by First Reads editors (one of your many Prime Member benefits). Prime members can choose to download one free e-book every month from a rotating listthough some months that number is bumped up to twoand non-members get them for a discounted price. These e-books can be read on any compatible Kindle device or via the free Kindle app. Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Now with a larger display, adjustable warm light, increased battery life, and faster page turns. $149.99 at Amazon Shop Now Shop Now $149.99 at Amazon How to get your free Amazon Kindle e-books in DecemberGo to the First Reads landing page to see the full list of e-books available this month. Once you find a book that seems interesting, click the "Shop Now" button from the First Reads landing page. Make sure youre not being redirected to the Kindle or Amazon mobile application, because you won't see the free book option there; instead, use your internet browser on your phone or computer. Make sure youre not clicking the Pre-order for... button, as that will direct you to pay; instead, click the Read for Free or the "Buy Now with 1-Click" button under the "First Reads" banner on the book's Amazon page (don't worry, you won't be charged). This will send the e-book directly to the Kindle linked to your Amazon account. You can see what it should look like from the screenshot below. Credit: Daniel Oropeza Youll know you did it right when you see a Thanks, [your name]! order summary indicating the e-book is being auto-delivered to the Kindle Cloud Reader.Free Amazon Kindle e-books available in December 2024This month, you can choose one from eight new Kindle e-books, plus get a second bonus choice from 15 past First Reads Kindle e-books. Once you select the first e-book from this month's selection, you will receive a promotion credit on your account that will be automatically applied to one of the 15 e-books.Amazon notes the genre for each of the books above the title, offering a quick way to narrow down your options. If you hover over the "See Editor Notes" under the "Shop Now" button, you'll be able to read a short description from the First Reads editor who picked the book. Here are your options for December 2024. Choose one of these 8 e-books: Thriller by Barbara Nickless (Author). The Drowning Game $4.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $4.99 at Amazon Book Club Fiction by Xavier Bosch (Author), Samantha Mateo (Translator). What the Light Touches: A Novel $4.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $4.99 at Amazon Short Story by Sarah Penner. The Conjurer's Wife: A Short Story $1.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $1.99 at Amazon Romance by Maisey Yates. Happy After All: A Novel $4.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $4.99 at Amazon Domestic Suspense by T.R. Ragan. Best House on the Block: A Thriller $5.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $5.99 at Amazon Contemporary Fiction by Teresa Driscoll. Close Your Eyes $4.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $4.99 at Amazon Nonfiction by Grace L. Williams. Give Her Credit: The Untold Account of a Women's Bank That Empowered a Generation $5.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $5.99 at Amazon Historical Fiction by Colin Mills. Bitter Passage: A Novel $4.99 at Amazon Get Deal Get Deal $4.99 at Amazon SEE 5 MORE Then, you can choose one of these 15 e-books. You'll have to choose "Buy now with 1-Click" and you should see the "Kindle Price" sum up to $0 after the credit discount.

Now youve got one less thing you have to fish for in your pocket or purse at the airport. Starting today, Google Wallet can carry a digital copy of your US passport and use them at Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) checkpoints.If you want to add your passport to Googles virtual wallet, first youll need to download the Google Wallet app and log into your account or create one. Check the prompt create an ID pass with your US passport and follow the instructions. The app will ask you to take a video selfie to verify your identity and scan the security chip in your passport. It should only take a few minutes for Google to confirm your identity.Your digital passport wont work at every airport. Currently, there are 27 states (and Puerto Rico) with at least one airport that accepts digital forms of identification. The TSA website can show you which states and airports accept digital IDs.Google has been testing the use and storage of digital passports in Google Wallet for some time. Several states have started accepting digital IDs just in the last few months. New Mexico is the newest state to accept digital IDs including drivers licenses and state IDs in Apple Wallet and Google Wallet.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/google-wallet-can-now-hold-your-us-passport-215133683.html?src=rss

SpaceX completed its first Starlink direct-to-cell satellite constellation this week. On Wednesday, the company launched 20 satellites aboard a Falcon 9 rocket, 13 of which can communicate directly with cell phones without extra equipment.The completed constellation follows the FCCs approval of a deal between SpaceX and T-Mobile last week. The companies announced the partnership in 2022, touting plans for a future where phones can be connected to the world even in the middle of the ocean. SpaceX says the satellite constellation acts like a cellphone tower in space, allowing network integration similar to a standard roaming partner.On Thursday, SpaceX posted on X that the direct-to-cell satellites will immediately connect over laser backhaul to the Starlink constellation, eliminate dead zones and provide peace of mind when customers need it most. The company sent and received its first text messages through T-Mobiles network early this year.The low-earth-orbit constellation has 6,799 operational satellites, and Space.com reports that about 330 can communicate directly with cell phones. On Thursday, Elon Musk said unmodified cell phones would enjoy a bandwidth of around 10Mbps per beam. He said future constellations will be capable of much greater throughput.The companies will presumably go into more detail for consumers once Starlink Direct to Cell is available. Its currently targeted for next year. However, the constellation isnt locked into T-Mobile alone. Android Central reports that SpaceX senior director Ben Longmier said shortly after the deployment that the satellites are open for business for any teleco in the world.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/spacex-completes-starlinks-first-direct-to-cell-constellation-212549713.html?src=rss

Free asset: get Epic Games' free Project Titan Unreal Engine sample. The 8km x 8km open-world UE5 environment, created during a massive art jam, comes with video training and custom plugins and tools.https://www.cgchannel.com/2024/12/download-epic-games-free-project-titan-unreal-engine-sample/

Check out beloFX's wintry invisible effects from George Clooney/Brad Pitt action comedy Wolfs Watch the full video on the beloFX Vimeo channel: https://vimeo.com/1023969536