What's 6 times 9 for?

6 times 9 is the home of the various tools and whatnot that I've created during the course of designing websites, which currently include:

  • 6 times 9 Media Library - An online application that allows you to build up a list of all your various media (DVDs, CDs, video games, etc.), categorise them by type, rate them, and keep track of any Items that you've lent to friends. It can be found at http://6x9media.appspot.com/.
  • 6 times 9 Web Search - A search form that allows you to search many different websites from one location. It can be used as a standalone website, and it can also be embedded into other pages.
  • CSS Page Layout Templates - A collection of simple page layouts that you're welcome to use. There are examples of each one, and I'm hoping it won't be too long before I add my ideas for more complex additions to the layouts.
  • Galsing Flickr - Galsing (short for 'Gallery Single') is a PHP script for creating single page photo archives (where 'single page' means that the script is a single file, not that all the photos are shown together on one page).
  • JavaScript & PHP Library - Some useful tools I've created using JavaScript and PHP.
  • Online Tools - Some useful (and some random) tools and calculators I've created, mainly using PHP, that are available for use on this site - although not necessarily available for download.
  • Warwick Blogs Grabber - A PHP script to take the RSS feed for a Warwick Blog, format it, and output the result to allow the blog to be mirrored on another website.
  • Web Design Guides - A variety of hints, tips, and guides - from general overviews to more in-depth walkthroughs - on various aspects of web design.

If you have any questions, comments, compliments, suggestions, complaints, or problems, feel free to send a message using the Contact Us form, and I'll get back to you as soon as I can.

What happened recently?

There's now an RSS feed for easy notification of the infrequent updates to all 6 times 9 projects, and the 5 most recent updates are shown below:

  1. UK Threat Level updated to version Bravo (2010-07-01)
  2. Warwick Blogs Grabber updated to version Foxtrot (2008-07-06)
  3. 6 times 9 Media Library updated to version Bravo (2008-06-24)
  4. 6 times 9 Media Library updated to version Alpha (2008-06-24)
  5. Latest Tweet updated to version Bravo (2008-05-24)

Why "6 times 9"?

It's a reference to the fantastic The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy trilogy by Douglas Adams - in the story the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything is found to be "42"; the Question itself is later incorrectly discovered to be "What do you get if you multiply 6 by 9?". In base 13, 6 times 9 happens to equal 42, but this is a coincidence, as Douglas Adams is on record as saying, Nobody writes jokes in base 13 [...] I may be a pretty sad person, but I don't make jokes in base 13.

You may also be interested in the similarly themed HTTP 404 Error page, and I also recommend you investigate the books if you haven't already read them; here's a a handy link to Amazon.co.uk.