labs · 2007–2008
The Labs
The Labs opened on 20 March 2007, first on labs.gueschla.com and then under /labs/ on the main site. It held the author's own small tools, released for anyone to use. Four entries were listed by the time the blog went quiet.
- smoothbox.js2007–2008
Smoothbox
Thickbox's modal window, rewritten for MooTools. Images, galleries, inline content, iframes and AJAX in one box over a dimmed page.
- then
- Two frameworks on one page just to get a lightbox.
- now
- The
<dialog>element, built into every major browser.
- jsjuicer2007
JSJuicer Web Edition
A web front end for JSJuicer, a command-line JavaScript packer. Paste code, tick options, get a smaller file back.
- then
- Download a C++ tool and compile it to shave a script.
- now
- Minifiers run inside every build tool.
- green-chaud.col2008
Green Chaud
A light-on-dark colour theme for the Aptana editor, warm greens and soft yellows on charcoal. This site's code panels use it.
- then
- Hand-importing six .col files to rest your eyes.
- now
- Dark themes ship with every editor; this one lives on here.
- better-netvibes.user.js2008
Better Netvibes
A Greasemonkey userscript that gave the Netvibes start page two missing buttons: refresh every feed, and mark every feed as read.
- then
- Clicking through each tab to clear unread counts.
- now
- One-key mark-all-read in every feed reader.
- one-job.txt2026
Small free tools that do one job
A new entry. The Labs idea applied to today: a short list of free web tools that each do a single thing well.
JSJuicer Web Edition : This is the Web version of JSJuicer, a javascript compressor by Adrian Johnston.
Smoothbox : Smoothbox is the Mootools conversion of Cody Lindley’s Thickbox. Its purpose is to display content (images, iframed, ajax) in a modal window.
Better Netvibes : Better Netvibes is a greasemonkey script. It adds some nice functionalities to Netvibes.
Green Chaud : Green Chaud is a light on dark color theme for Aptana.
Not in the Labs
A post from 30 March 2008 recommends Show Address, a Thunderbird extension. It is sometimes listed alongside these tools, but the post points readers to another author's site for the download, so it was a recommendation, not a Labs project.
A new entry, 2026
The Labs tools all did one job. Small free tools that do one job applies the same test to today's web: a short list of free, single-purpose tools, grouped by the job they do.