Reader's Corner No. 57: Hundred-Word Language, Rich Results Testing Tool, Zero-Width Characters

It feels good to be back from break, all refreshed and ready to take on 2018! We are sharing all about a hundred-word language, Google's Rich Results testing tool, and zero-width characters.

How to Say Everything in a Hundred-Word Language

David Gouch

Source: The Atlantic

Takeaway: Constructed languages are languages that are designed in a vacuum before anyone actually speaks them (Esperanto is a famous example). They often have a very specific goal. A newer one of these languages is Toki Pona. It’s design goal is minimalism and positivity. Many see the intentionally limited vocabulary as a philosophical statement about the inherent ambiguity of communication. But I see another possibility: Because ambiguity is baked into the language, in order to use Toki Pona, you must reach beyond words — bring in gestures, facial expression, emotion. In other words, Toki Pona asks for actual attention and awareness between speakers. Something that can benefit all conversations, no matter the language.

Tags: #Communication


Introducing Rich Results & the Rich Results Testing Tool

David Minton

Source: Google Webmaster Central Blog

Takeaway: Google is making some updates to how structured data is handled. Formerly referred to as rich snippets, rich cards, or enriched results by Google, they will now all go by the description of "rich results." Structured data allows search engines like google to be able to easily understand pieces of content, such as store hours, move start times, or recipes, for more relevant searches as well as side-by-side comparisons in search results. To make it easier to properly implement rich results, Google offers a new testing tool to confirm syntax as well as diagnose any problems.

Tags: #Google, #SEO, #RichResults, #StructuredData


Zero-Width Characters

Jay Roberts

Source: Zach Aysan

Takeaway: It is never desirable to have unexpected undetectable characters in content. This goes double for source code. I've been using the Gremlins Sublime package to help highlight cases where zero-width characters creep into source code and data I'm working with.

Tags: #Programming


Want to make sure your code is well-written and efficient? DesignHammer can help check that out for you.

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