Tag Archives: Site Improvements

“Fidalgo” is here: Welcome to the new Permanent Defense, circa 2016!

Announcements

Today, after many months of hard work, the team at NPI is pleased to unveil Permanent Defense 9.0, codenamed “Fidalgo”.

As you probably noticed from the moment you pulled up permanentdefense.org, the site looks a lot different than it used to, and that’s no accident. “Fidalgo” is nothing less than a sweeping, thoughtful top-to-bottom redesign.

The previous incarnation of the site, codenamed “Camano”, lasted for more than six years, which in Internet years is more like a century. We figured the time was ripe to give Permanent Defense’s online home a visual overhaul.

Unlike with “Camano”, however, not much has changed under-the-hood. Six years ago, when we migrated Permanent Defense to WordPress, we were confident we’d picked the perfect content management system for the project, and not a day has gone by since when we’ve regretted that decision. Because we already had a rock-solid backend to work with, we were able to concentrate on giving Permanent Defense a beautiful, polished new exterior that’s responsive, mobile-friendly, and pleasing to the eye.

“Fidalgo” isn’t merely eye candy, though. There’s also a plethora of new and improved content. Missing or incomplete pages from bygone years that weren’t previously imported from the archives are now part of the site, and there are a number of new pages, too. Here’s a summary of highlights of this new version:

  • Brand new responsive design. Whether you’re visiting from a smartphone, tablet, notebook, or desktop with a big high-resolution monitor, you’ll be able to browse a website that’s accessible, visually appealing, and neatly-organized.
  • Streamlined navigation. The new mobile-friendly Permanent Defense navbar makes it easy to move between pages and posts. It’s a modern replacement for the flat, antiquated set of buttons found in prior versions.
  • Breadcrumbs to aid in wayfinding. In addition to the new navbar, there’s also a breadcrumb widget providing contextual navigation assistance.
  • Updated graphics. Everywhere you look, you’ll see new graphics, with the notable and worthy exception of the timeless Permanent Defense logo that dates back to the site’s inception. The bigger your display, the more you’ll be able to see of Mount Baker, which graces the site’s nameplate.
  • Modern charts. The new Permanent Defense utilizes JavaScript and HTML5 to render charts instead of Adobe Flash, which is an insecure, dying technology.
  • New intuitive page hierarchy. Permanent Defense’s more than one hundred pages are now organized into an intuitive hierarchy, which simplifies browsing.

New pages include:

  • Current Campaigns. Learn about the right wing initiatives we’re presently fighting.
  • Think Before You Ink. What to be on guard against when approached by a petitioner.
  • Archive. Useful landing page for exploring old content.

And finally, be sure to check out our completely redesigned Dangerous Initiatives reference, which contains comprehensive, in-depth profiles of right wing initiatives that have appeared on Washington’s ballot during the Eyman error.

We took great care in redesigning the site not to break anything.

For the most part, PD’s permalinks have not changed, so you shouldn’t run into errors while following external links. Any permalinks that did change due to modifications to the site’s hierarchy were given redirects. Sadly, that’s something a lot of mass media outlets completely neglect to do when they launch new incarnations of their websites. We dislike broken links and link rot as much as you do, so we’ve done our best to ensure existing URLs continue to resolve properly.

We hope you enjoy the new Permanent Defense!

Permanent Defense’s post-election December Update is here!

Announcements

Here at Permanent Defense, we’ve been working hard to improve the experience of our supporters and the general public. We’ve made the following improvements to our site, which we’re excited to share.

  • Critics’ Voices: Completely Redesigned! Critics’ Voices now has more quotes and opinions and a brand new, expanding on click navigational interface. Check out all your favorite critics and read more comments from site visitors.
  • Essays: Our Arguments. Read the new essay from Permanent Defense founder Andrew Villeneuve – Victory a triumph for Washington’s communities.
  • Press Box. The Press Box is now updated, with 24 stories accessible at once, and press archives just a click away. You can find all the articles you’ll ever need.
  • Home Page Improvements. Permanent Defense Home is improved, with a smaller, more streamlined Updates Center and a FAQ Center to help you out with your questions. Latest News is also now divided into three sections: News Brief, Spotlight, and Under the Radar to bring you the latest information from Permanent Defense.
  • Action Center Update. Now you can get your own Permanent Defense button from the Action Center to post on your own website!
  • About Us Update. The About Us page received an update, including a rewritten history of Permanent Defense and a more appealing design.
  • Elections Center. Catch the latest news and analysis on the governor’s race from the Elections Center. Also review results from statewide and federal races.
  • Release Center. From the Release Center, you can read Permanent Defense statements, content that appeared in our e-newsletter, Extra!, download PDFs and other files from our Document Library, and access links to resources on current topics.
  • Dangerous Initiatives. Updated for Initiative 892! Dangerous Initiatives gives you a history of all Eyman initiatives that ever made the ballot, with statistics, analysis, and a look at the effects of each initiative on Washington State.

POSTSCRIPT: Since this iteration of Permanent Defense was released in December of 2004, the site has been significantly reorganized, and many sections of the site have new names. Links are current, but names of pages may not be.

January Launch goes live!

Announcements

Today, Permanent Defense is introducing many new features as part of our January Launch update. Here’s a rundown of the changes we’ve made.

  • Higher resolution viewing. Got a 1024×768 resolution on your computer? You can now view Permanent Defense in a version tailored specifically for the higher resolution.
  • Archives improved. The existing archives were updated, renovated, and organized into folders, with new pages from last July’s renovation moved in. More pages were made available.
  • Broken links fixed. We fixed over a hundred broken or incomplete links on the site. If you find one we missed, contact us.
  • Public Services in Trouble. Check out the new Public Services in Trouble section, which highlights the threats to public services across the state and offers dozens of statistics and links for your information.
  • Homestead Exemption Center. The Homestead Exemption Center explains the proposal advocated by Permanent Defense which would balance the payment of property taxes but remain revenue neutral.
  • All new Interviews with Critics. Permanent Defense is proud to introduce new relevant questions and answers from some of Tim Eyman’s most noted critics about Tim’s latest proposal.
  • New Reasons to Oppose I-864. New initiative, new reasons. The Reasons to Oppose section is completely updated, with short summaries and facts on why you should be against Initiative 864.
  • New Essays. Read about why you should oppose Initiative 864, why Initiative 776’s precedent could have chilling effects for home rule, and why the Homestead Exemption is a good alternative.
  • New Design. You’ll notice the site uses Tahoma in the Essays section, which also has a brand new face and is more appealing and easier to navigate. The Links page was also slightly redesigned.
  • Important Updates. The Sound Transit page was brought up to speed, with new text and graphics. Editorials & Cartoons now has more columns and political cartoons for your enjoyment. Critics’ Voices was also updated with new quotes.

2003 July Relaunch brings many site improvements

Announcements

Note: The following is a post from the Permanent Defense archives that describes improvements made to the website in the summer of 2003. These improvements have been since superseded by multiple new versions of Permanent Defense’s website.

Permanent Defense has been working hard to improve the experience of supporters and visitors. We’ve made the following improvements to our site which we think make it easier to read and use.

Access

Getting to Permanent Defense and viewing its content has never been easier! Permanent Defense now has its own domain name! You can access PD by typing in its new URL, www.permanentdefense.org. Our old URL will continue to work as before.

Site speed

Elements were eliminated that made homepage loading slow. The Permanent Defense homepage should now load in less than 20 seconds over a 56k modem, and even faster on DSL, cable, or a fiber optics line.

New, more accessible archives!

We’re reorganized older content to make it easier to find. A new landing page has been created to house the Permanent Defense archives — find it here. You can read all the old essays, press stories, and web pages from 2002 and earlier in 2003.

Goodbye, errors

Dozens of broken links have been fixed, and incomplete pages finished! There should no longer be any broken internal links of any kind. If you do find a broken link, either internal or external, please promptly report it.

New menus

Permanent Defense’s website now utilizes menus to aid in navigation. Menus make important text stand out clearly and they serve as guides to content.

Reduced font size

To reduce the need to scroll, we reduced font sizes on most pages, while trying to keep it at a readable level. This should make it easier to view more content at once.

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Permanent Defense works to protect Washington by building a first line of defense against threats to the common wealth and Constitution of the Evergreen State — like Tim Eyman's initiative factory. Learn more.

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