Cascading Style Sheets (or CSS) is a style language that enhances or can outright override the native Web and Mobile Browser rendered representation of HTML markup. Mastering CSS will enable you (browser-willing) to completely control the user interface and user experience of your applications.

In this article, we'll cover CSS Selectors and Media Types... but let's start first with a fundamental review of CSS, exactly what CSS is doing in a browser, and how CSS works with HTML and JavaScript via frameworks...

For those of you attending IamLUG (May 6-7 2013 in St. Louis, MO), I'm happy to announce that I'll be giving a session on enterprise gamification using IBM Notes Domino XPages.

Gamification is much more than giving someone a badge for their participation, and I'll be deep-diving into techniques employed in the gaming industry that are directly applicable to enterprise software and application development.

Here's the abstract:

Gamifying Enterprise Applications with IBM Notes Domino XPages

Gamification is altering the way users interact with enterprise applications. By creating an adaptive user interface based on user experience metrics and other gamification principles, we'll take you through how XPages can be used to help onboard new employees, educate employees on new business process, and improve user engagement, data quality and ROI. Learn how you can make any application easy and fun to use and implement these techniques within a week of getting back from IamLUG!

... so what can those attending expect?

I'm currently working on 4 demo applications that showcase the techniques and tactics that I'll be covering in the presentation and time willing, I'll be opening up the end of the session for a Q&A.

And as mentioned, this isn't going to be a "see, when they use the app, you give them a little diamond next to their avatar..." rehashing of gamification, but rather showing you how you can employ the same tactics that game developers use to take a n00b and make them l33t!

Will you be attending IamLUG 2013? If not, what are your thoughts on the best way to get this presentation out to you? YouTube Live (then recorded)? Twitch or UStream?! Let me know in the comments below.

And don't forget to Like/+1/Share to help spread the word!

I am always thinking of ways that we, the IBM Notes and Domino Application Development Community, can engage developers both within our community and -- most importantly for the long-term success of IBM Notes and Domino as an application platform -- beyond the existing community.

OpenNTF.org is apparently not only always thinking, but always doing as they just announced their latest sponsored XPages and Connections development contests...

(Click thru for more details...)

Did you miss the Wednesday 11AM livestream of the dominoGuru.com Hangout covering Enterprise Gamification for IBM Notes and Domino XPages application developers? Luckily, I've got you covered:

Chris Toohey (with Chris Warden, Monica Moira, and Roy Rumaner) discuss enterprise application gamification, personality profiling, and how IBM Notes and Domino XPages developers can get started using gaming industry tactics in their application development efforts. Salesforce automation, new hire onboarding, and more business topics are discussed!

I plan on having these hangouts weekly, and covering a variety of topics. If you're interested in a topic or even being a panelist, get in touch with me. If you want to participate during the actual livestream, simply tweet me and -- as you'll see during this week's hangout -- I'll do my best to respond.

Are you a fan of these hangouts? Like / Share / +1 to help spread the word, subscribe to the YouTube channel for the latest dominoGuru.com screencasts, hangouts, demos and videos, and make sure you follow me on Twitter @ChrisToohey for more!

I've setup a playlist for all of the dominoGuru.com Hangouts, which I'll be maintaining for all upcoming of these hangouts.

Surprisingly, I've already done more of these than we did episodes of YellowCast!

For those of you who enjoy these hangouts, remember that we'll be covering gamification today at 11AM Eastern US. Follow me on Twitter (@ChrisToohey) for more details and message me during the chat to participate!