First, take note of the body classes called when your site is viewed in IE (you can see this by viewing the source code in the right-click context menu when you’re on the page with the problems). In IE8, my about page looks something like this:
body class=”custom about ie ie8″

While in Firefox 3.5, my about page looks like this:
body class=”custom about”

This will enable you to create CSS rule(s) which will apply to your site only when users view it in an IE browser.

Second, in IE8 you can tweak your pages (much like Firebug for Firefox) with the built in Developer Tools (Navigate to the ‘Tools’ menu and you should see it beneath there).

The developer tools will open up in another window. Select the CSS tab at the top and then you should be able to select your custom.css style sheet from the drop down menu. As you un-check/check the boxes next to the different CSS rules, you will be able to see the changes made live to your webpage in the other window. You will also be able to change the current styles and add new ones (right-clicking in the developer tools window has some useful functions for adding rules to your style sheet).

Finally, changing your custom.css in developer tools won’t make your changes permanent, so once I get things right, I usually just make the changes manually to my custom.css (there may be a better way, but this is what works for me).

Good luck!

P.S.
Just to be clear, the information above refers to my setup which includes:

• Firefox 3.5
• IE8 (Thesis will apparently read which version of IE the site is viewed in and will display the appropriate body classes – IE6/IE7/etc. – allowing even more specific CSS rules)
• WordPress 2.8
• Thesis 1.5.1

When identifying the IE specific rules in your custom.css file, it is not necessary to include the .custom class specification. Instead, use the appropriate IE body class. For instance:

.ie #header { border-top: 1px; }

Some Related Resources

• http://diythemes.com/answers/custom-css-classes-posts-pages/
• http://diythemes.com/forums/customization/4838-how-do-i-link-custom-stylesheet-ie-browsers.html (members only)

The Basic Idea:
Allow users to create and publish spreadsheets with dynamically updating data online to their own websites. The method used to cull the data is quite easy -a little too easy if you have a desire to publish complex data results- and has the potential to make any Joe Shmoe an instant RSS expert (Not sure about this, but typically, RSS feeds allow for very little customization by the end user; this is unlike Google’s new dynamic cell formulas).
Here are the formulas users will apply in Google Spreadsheets:

GoogleLookup function
Syntax: =GoogleLookup(“entity”, “attribute”)

GoogleFinance function
Syntax: =GoogleFinance(“symbol”, “attribute”)

In The Past:
Only VB programmers and businesses wealthy enough to subscribe to Bloomberg and Reuters data services have been able to harness the vast amounts of dynamic data available over the internet. Today, they still are pretty much the only ones who can do this – Although, Google Spreadsheets has integrated these very interesting functions which at least takes a step in that direction.

The following is a live example embedded into this post:
(This was super easy)

Publishing your own dynamic spreadsheet:

1) If you haven’t already, sign up for a Google account. Play around with the above formulas until you’re happy with what the spreadsheet looks like (you’ll see the data dynamically populate the cell once you enter a “proper” attribute, entity and/or symbol – this wan’t so easy for me while messing with different LookUp function).

2) Click the “Publish” tab on the top right. Change the “Automatically update every 5 minutes?” option to YES. Now click on the “Re-Publish” button to save your settings.

3) Look further down in this section and click on “More publishing options”

4) For “File format” choose: HTML to embed in a webpage – adjust the other settings as desired.

5) Now, simply Generate URL and copy the HTML into your webpage (note: WordPress users should go into their options and revert from the RTF editor to avoid any problems).

Get examples & read more about these functions here:

For proof, look no further than a situation in September in which hundreds of thousands of people who use the popular social-networking site Facebook rebelled against a new feature that some charged was Big Brother-esque, Majoras said. Within days, the site’s founder had quieted some of the fury by giving people the option of turning off the “minifeed,” which shows people whenever someone in their network makes a change to their relationship status, favorite music or other profile information.

An aweful analogy; comparing Facebook to an ISP.

It’s like comparing a car maker with a toll road operator.

Check out the FTC hearings webcast and form your own opinion, but remember, it was a “free market” which produced Hitler’s Nazi party.

This week, Senator-R Jim DeMint gave his take on Network Neutrality – I was especially amused at the assertion he has made below:

Perspective: Why Net neutrality means more federal regulation
By Jim DeMint
Published: June 27, 2006
“It would be commercial suicide for any network provider to limit the ability of their customers to access any site or receive any service: Their customers would simply go elsewhere! Consumers have a growing number of choices of networks, and this competition will force networks to continuously upgrade their services. Federal regulation, on the other hand, would only reduce the quality and access of Internet services for all Americans.”

Telco’s & industry advocates have poured hoards of money into lobbying this issue. Translation: many well compensated senators & consultants working overtime on their behalf. Information – necessary for efficient free markets – is fortunately still available on congressional members; although with such freedoms being handed over to profit driven companies, this may not long be the case.

What Motivates a Senator
Monetary incentives tend to influence many of the views which individuals hold (economics 101). Contributions by the telco’s & other various industry advocates to Senator DeMint have clearly taken their toll on his ability to be objective – this is a toll to the tune of $132,849!

Various contributors to DeMint’s coffer…you be the judge:

Exerpt from: Wyche Burgess Freeman & Parham, P.A. website – Political Contributor ($23,300)

“We have played an important role in the creation and expansion of a number of major corporations located in Greenville, among them are a large diversified media organization”

Excerpt from: Babcock & Brown offers $2.36 billion for Irish telco Eircom – Political Contributor ($28,125)

“The bid for Eircom has been made four months after a failed takeover attempt for it by Swisscom AG, Switzerland’s largest telco.”

Excerpt from: Nelson Mullins Cyberwatch Newsletter – Political Contributor ($41,424)

Internet Bandwidth Neutrality
“A growing concern among large Internet-based companies is the dilemma being faced with large bandwidth charges. Those companies that provide the wires and fiber optics that connect the Internet believe that large “bandwidth hogs” should pay additional amounts to guarantee fast and efficient connections. To prevent such a move, companies such as Google and eBay are lobbying Congress to pass a law that would maintain “Net-neutrality”. In general, they are seeking a law that would prohibit telecommunications and cable companies from blocking or slowing down access to Web sites or for charging big bandwidth users a fee for priority access. The House of Representatives recently passed telecommunications legislation that did not include such neutrality provisions. However, the law did empower the Federal Communications Commission to investigate discrimination in online bandwidth access. Opponents of the Net-neutrality law argue that somebody must pay for the huge amount of bandwidth consumed by some large Internet sites. They state that if Internet service providers are not allowed to charge for greater-than-average bandwidth use, then the cost will end up being borne by the average consumer.”

Not to mention, the all-too-obvious:
AT&T – Political Contributor ($19,000)

Verizon Communications – Political Contributor ($21,000)

Nota Bena:
You can learn more about the other side of Net Neutrality by reading the founder of the internet’s thoughts and if you choose to do so, you can help protect Network Neutrality by going here: It’s Our Net.