One important interaction indicator on the web is the mouse cursor. The default cursor arrow changes into a pointing hand when you hover over links for example, which indicates they are indeed links and can be clicked on. It also changes into other things to differentiate context, for example it can change into a text input cursor when hovering over text fields to indicate you can type there.

When styling your website with CSS, in some cases you may lose the correct cursor type for certain elements. It’s important to retain this indicator as it will inform the user about how the item they’re hovering over can be used (see affordances). The solution is easy: if the cursor type is wrong, specify it using the CSS “cursor” property.

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Learn how to Create a Retro Animated Flip-Down Clock is a tutorial published by Nettus. They are showing how they create an animated flip down clock inspired by the 70’s. Using the Mootools framework, we are trying to replicate the flip action of the pads and make it as lifelike as possible. With it’s retro styling, it could be a really neat thing to add to your website.

The technique that they suggest is interesting and I see this tutorial applied on a maintenance page, something like “Back online in …. “. Pretty cool

Social media has become an integral part of modern society. There are general social networks with user bases larger than the population of most countries. There are niche sites for virtually every special interest out there. There are sites to share photos, videos, status updates, sites for meeting new people and sites to connect with old friends. It seems there are social solutions to just about every need.

Webdesignerdepot has reviewed the history and evolution of social media from its humble beginnings to the present day. Their conclusion is that Social media has come a long way since the days of BBSs and IRC chats and media continues to evolve on a daily basis. With major social networks and social media sites making changes and improvements on an almost daily basis, it’s sure to keep evolving in coming years.

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Jason McDonald has created a very well put together design patterns cheat sheet. You can download it or print it from his website.