The first MODX meetup in Brighton.

In June, it was time for this year's third MODX meetup! This time Julian Weaver from Finetuned Limited invited us to the city of records: Brighton. In one afternoon, we learned all about web accessibility, got a sneak peek of ContentBlocks 2.0 and Graeme from GEL Studios told us how MODX has become an integral part of their business over the years. Find out more about our days in Brighton!

To make your website accessible.

In 2025, the European Accessibility Act (EAA) will go into effect. This law requires most companies to make their services digitally accessible. Chances are this will also apply to you! High time, then, to learn what we can do to make our websites (even) more accessible for all users. And that's exactly what Tim Luigjes of Census told us all about. 

Tim Luigjes of Census told us all about it.

To make your website accessible, it must comply with the Website Content Accessibility Guidelines. The main four sections in these are:

• Visible: Is all content available to everyone? 
  For example, provide text alternatives for non-textual content by filling alt tags for images, adding subtitles and descriptions for multimedia, and make sure there is sufficient contrast between different content.
• Operatorial: Are all functionalities usable by everyone? 
  Make your website functional for users who (can) only use a keyboard, give sufficient time to read and use content and avoid content that can cause physical reactions (such as flashing lights)
• Incomprehensible: Are the functionalities and content understandable to everyone?
  Write in simple and clear language, make sure web pages appear and work in a predictable way, and offer help to users to avoid and correct errors.
• Robust: Does the website work on every device, now and in the future?
  Use HTML and other technologies correctly, compatible with current and future tools, and provide a reliable and consistent user experience across different browsers and devices.

Test whether your website is accessible? You can! For automatic testing, you can use Lighthouse, WAVE or Axe. For manual testing, you can navigate with your keyboard, test the colour contrast and readability of texts, and try screen reader software to see how visually impaired or blind users can use your website.

Did you know that Brighton set the record of most people fitting into a Mini?

MODX as an integral part of your business.

GEL Studios has been a big MODX fan for years. Even after testing out different CMSs, they keep coming back to MODX. So it's no wonder Julian, invited Graeme from GEL Studios to talk about how they deploy MODX for their clients. And the stories rang far and wide. For instance, according to Graeme, the strength of MODX lies in its security. This stands like a rock when you compare it to WordPress, for instance. He told of a case where a customer had as many as 50 contexts in one MODX installation. So here were 50 different digital products in multiple languages in one CMS! GEL Studios also won an award once in the past for building a website where one could order a cinema ticket in one click. This while the other two nominees were super big agencies.

In Brighton, they love marathons. So much so that there are multiple records: one for the fastest half marathon dressed as a surfer (male), one for the fastest marathon dressed as a fairy (female), the fastest half marathon dressed as a bottle (male) and one for most marathons completed by twins. 

Even more freedom with ContentBlocks 2.0.

During the meetup, Mark Hamstra of modmore gave us a sneak preview of the revamped ContentBlocks! We won't tell too much yet, but with the new ContentBlocks, you can already see more clearly at the back end how a page will look at the front end. In addition, this new version gives a lot more customisation options per content block. To be continued!

In Brighton, the record has been set for the highest speed in a body-controlled and jet-powered suit at 136.891 km/h

And now... Brighton!

Naturally, we did not sit still before and after the meetup. In three days, we discovered beautiful Brighton via a hop-on, hop-off bus, many cafes and lovely tours by Julian himself! Here are a few more stunning snapshots from our days.