Learning Every Day

Life is a learning experience. I am working on the WordGrrls blog, changing to a new theme. It was great to have a new premium theme from Matt at WordPress.

I have nothing bad to say about Thesis, the WP theme. I still like it and may yet return to using it. One thing, it is quite simple to use and uncomplicated once you get the hang of where to find everything.

Now I am using Headway and finding it has too many options for fiddling with little things, overkill. I am still trying to work out the footer and I need to make the body of content fluid but have not found an option for that. Two fairly essential things. There isn't a lot of documentation (other than videos which I just don't want to deal with). But I have found some help from Headway Beginner.

Database Confusion

I feel I must find out more information about domains, databases and such written for the terminally stupid. I have a new domain which is hosted free with Hosting Matters. Nice deal, just pay once a year for the domain itself (it is added to my account where I pay to host wordgrrls.com). Anyway, I am trying to set it up with a lifestream blog-like thing. But, I keep stumbling over databases and passwords and whatever else. I don't know which are the right ones to use any more. There are some from the main domain, some from my installation of WordPress and some from other things which I have uninstalled. I kept them all in the same Notepad file. Maybe that was my first stupid mistake. Now I am confused. Luckily, Hosting Matters has very patient and understanding technical support. I will probably have it figured out by tomorrow and finally know which database is the one I should be using for everything.

I've Become Super Noob

I started writing as Super Noob on Lindsay's blog, Web Design for Idiots. Tonight I wrote the following as an introduction to who I am and why I'm someone who might have a reason to be writing there.

I'm posting this from my very messy desk with the TV on to my left and my nearly cold coffee at my right hand, in danger of wrecking my faithful little scanner. I'm a real woman. I'm a real, live, 40+, divorced Canadian woman, a writing legend in my own mind.

In June of 1996 I began on the Internet. I was an IRC diva for quite a long time. It was a lot of fun and most of it I really should not write about here. That's what personal blogs are all about. I wrote for a zine first, a small print publication called The Crying Clown. From there it was all online. At one point I was producing my own newsletter for writers, InkSplatters, sent out through what is now Yahoo Groups. I was a web writer for HerPlanet, BackWash, BellaOnline, Suite 101, WZ-ard.com and other sites, forums and newsletters some still living and some not. I still write for Creative Fat Grrl on LockerGnome, a babbly blog more than anything seriously functional. Writing for a network is a different educational experience than writing for yourself. Which is one reason I keep doing it.

I've had sites and then blogs of my own. I didn't begin online in the great time of blogging, I was here before that. So my first sites were put together with just HTML code as I learned and goofed it up. I've used software and I've cut and pasted code and I've hand coded my own pages. I'm not an expert, time alone isn't enough to make you an expert at web design or development. I have learned however and as I learn I see how much more there is to be explored and discovered. But, don't look to me expecting I'm a know-it-all. If I ever say that you can be sure I'm just laughing at myself.

I love creative things. I've done so many interesting forms of art, just to try them out. I made ASCII art for a few years. I continue to take digital photos of abandoned places here in Ontario, starting in 2006 when I bought my first digi camera. I'm also teaching myself to draw cartoons, some people even like them! This week I re-learned the art of cutting out paper doll chains so I could make them into a graphic for a blog. I really think it's important to keep the creativity and free writing in blogging. It would be a real shame if the personal journal and creative element of blogging were lost in the rush for SEO and money making.

Anyway, I'm here to help the less experienced blogger with my experiences. I've got a stack of great books about web design on my bookshelf and I will be using them (finally) for more than a place to hide my dust bunnies. I seem to collect books with great good intentions and then not get very far. You can also find me writing about web writing and posting writing ideas and prompts on my blog, Word Grrls.

ThatGrrl.ca

Completely off topic... did you know that a nail file works really well if you have an itchy spot on your back that you just can't reach? I've been rubbing my back on my chair tonight wishing for something to work. Then I had the great idea for the nail file (not one of those treacherous metal ones, just some cardboard type) and that worked great!

Serif Free Software

Free versions of Serif software, includes WebPlus and DrawPlus for creating sites and making your own graphics. I found this a few years ago and never did do much to try them out. Now they are updated and still have free versions, which was nice to find. Or, you can pay and get a few more features. Or, go to the main site and get the latest versions of the same software. Pretty reasonable, even for the newest versions, when compares to DreamWeaver which is up to $500 now versus the $100 it was when I first got ahold of what is now an older version, before Adobe added it's name to the whole thing.

PodCasting WordPress

On my ever growing list of things to do. I want to learn more about podcasting. I seem to remember typing that here already, not so long ago. Anyway, still there.

I found a site that does a podcast about WordPress and blogging. Have not listened to it yet but the preview of links posted to the blog makes it sound good. Can't listen right now cause the Momborg (to borrow Claire's name for her Mother) is sleeping, trying to get rid of her cold.

I am even making a new tag for podcast on this blog. That gives me the hope I can find all the stuff I have bloggered about it when I actually do something about it. I do have a microphone, that's a start on the hardware. (Always be optimistic!)

The New Label Cloud... It Works!

My new label cloud came from Frivolous Motion. It works and looks great.

Trying Pullquotes

Have you tried pullquotes?

I'm trying pullquotes from Blog U. This is my first try to see if it works.

If it works it could be a lot of fun. Not a great idea to go crazy with it or use it on short posts. But, a short quote does get read if you have a long blabby post.

Found the Comment Club

The Comment Club is a group I found through a link on The Homesteading Housewife. Not looking for new members, they stopped at 35. Part of a Mommy Blogger group so not really for everyone. But they decided 35 were enough in the group as it would be harder to keep up with a really large group.

My Blog is Missing Me

We get so wrapped up in making our blog, finding people to read it (to notice that we have a blog) and suddenly we realize we need to actually put something into the blog, content wise. When I was not involved with Entrecard I was writing in my blog more often. I want to get back to that. The real point of having the blog was the writing of it, the creating and publishing.

I miss myself in my blog. When I read the posts I'm not really there. Just lurking around and occasionally leaving a note. It's not easy to find some balance. The funny thing is that people who do read your blog want to read the blog with you in it. If you write for your readers it becomes predictable and ordinary.

So lets all work on bringing ourselves back into our blogs. If you spend time card dropping for Entrecard or working on other promotion games, let them be on the sidelines. Keep yourself in the front lines.

Happy blogging.

Bloggers Without a Goodbye

Have you had a blogger you enjoyed reading, even got to know through email, who just disappeared one day? The blog taken down so there wasn't a thing left but what you remember. Strange when they do that isn't it? Makes me feel none of it ever really mattered.

It is different when someone has died. The blog just stays idle and eventually disappears if it's not on Blogger or one of the other free sites which keep everything.

Monique is posting about this. Was nice to read about other bloggers who have experienced and thought about mysteriously missing friends.

If Skye reads this... I still think of you.

How to Really Make Money from Blogging?

In reply to Ben's post about money making online:

The click me ads are never going to make big money cause they have had their time and now it's gone. People don't even look at the ads any more. Sidebar content may as well not exist unless it is something personal. I do find people notice my flickr badge which shows photos I have taken. But, the rest of the stuff on my sidebar may as well just be there for me. Which, most of it is.

I used to think the best way to use the Internet was the traditional way, the Information highway. But the highway is clogged up with billboards and you can't always find the highway through the signage.

Freelancing is great. If you can do that. I freelance but do not find the Internet useful in this. No one ever found my resume online except those who came to spam my email. So, not exceptionally useful.

These days I think the best way for a company/ business to use the Internet is to give information about themselves, offer sales/ coupons and such. But, don't hope people will find you. Bring the people to your site. Offer the link on business cards, flyers, and so on. The Internet can be information storage. The highway is just a traffic jam now.

Plain Text Posts Becoming Dinosaurs?

We put so much time into getting fancy with our blogs. Then, more time into promoting them and getting them somewhat noticed in general. But the easiest post to make is just plain old text. No fussing with graphics or HTML code. Spellcheck will catch most of your spelling or typing mistakes. When a text post is so simple why are they becoming fewer and shorter?

In my own case I used to write a lot more. Babbling away about nothing much or some actual topic when one occurred to me. I'm not sure what happened. It's something I want to work on. When I get some extra time from everything else, all that fancy stuff.

Disqus

Disqus looks interesting. I found it being used on another blog this morning. Not sure about how much space it takes up on a post. Also it made leaving a comment kind of complicated. Took me awhile to find just where to click.

Disqus makes your comments more interactive for readers and easier to manage for you — all while connecting your community with other blogs.

What do you Regret as a Blogger?

This was the title of a post in Blog Tipz: What do you Regret as a Blogger?

I wrote:

I think it is an interesting question. I don't have an answer at the moment. I've been blogging since 1998 and still think of it as free expression more than a business. Really can not see blogging as a business at all in fact. It is still the media, not the actual business. The business is get rich quick, publishing or sales.

If I regret anything it would be that I didn't start sooner or more specifically, that I didn't spend more time on learning the technical side when I had more time and far more knowledgeable contacts through blogging. Nowadays you rarely get anyone to give a real reply through email. I used to get all kinds of feedback and information from other bloggers who were far more creative and accomplished technically than I am.

What do you regret, if anything?

Are you Timid about Moderating Comments?

What About Blog is posting about comment moderation. Not about spam comments but those who post something negative, mean or abusive. Sure there is freedom of speech, on paper. On your own blog you should be the one to draw the line. Debate about a topic is one thing. Would you accept a comment that is not constructive but just obnoxious? It would be different if your blog was about debate, arguments and so on. That kind of blog pulls out arguments from the readers.

In the case of my own blog I do not accept obnoxious comments. Why should I? This is my blog, my little web empire. I don't have to be excessively fair or nice to someone who comes and attacks me. I moderate the junk comments (those posting for the sake of sticking me with their link and nothing else) and I also have no guilt about moderating aggressive and obnoxious comments.

I seldom get such comments but there have been a few over the years I have been here. I used to have a regular reader who enjoyed a sarcastic witty banter. That was fun, once we both understood that was what it was. I miss HappyandBlue and wish he would show up again, surprise me. :) I check his old blog links now and then but he is never there.

Anyway, do you feel obligated to post every negative comment? Where do you draw the line on which comments you accept and which you do not? If you do post them all is it because you have that idea that nice girls never say no? Maybe that is something you should rethink. After all, it's your blog, you are in charge.

Project Wonderful

I didn't think much of Project Wonderful when I first began to notice it on various blogs. I don't think much of most sites which claim to give payouts to bloggers. They all seem to never actually get to the point where they pay out a cent. But I put it up on Word Grrls and so far, I have made 4 cents with PW, literally overnight. Four cents isn't much but at this rate I could actually see a pay out. That would be a change!

I'm considering adding it to this blog as well. Working on a new layout at the moment so it can wait till that is done.

Word Verification is Sadistic Use of Word Art

What is this? Modern art? No, word verification. Can you read all of these? They all came from Blogger's word verification. I just refreshed and they came up one after the other. No special efforts to find the worst of them, just six in a row. They're awful. I couldn't read them, can you?

If you are using word verification this is what you are inflicting upon your commenters (or those who choose not to translate the word verification and don't comment). Is this especially smart? I don't think so that's why I stopped using it ages ago. How badly do you need to use this? Why not turn it off and just use moderation? It leaves people waiting to see their comment posted but... they just finished typing it do they really need to visit it so soon?

Unless you are getting hundreds of spam comments a day I don't see any reason to use word verification versus being your own comment moderator. Blogger will send them right to your email address. One click and you can post or toss it. You can even go to the moderation page on Blogger and check off the comments you want to post and get them all in one quick click.

So what's your excuse for using word art to moderate your blog for you? Lazy? Sadistic? Uninformed? Consider yourself informed... word verification sucks!

Creative Blog Spirit

I copied my own comment from Ben's blog cause I liked what I wrote. I'll read it next time I need blogging inspiration.

I think the best tip you can give about blogging is to make your blog your own. Your own voice, thoughts, etc. However you express yourself it has to be you. Don't copy someone else cause they have a good Google or Alexa rank or cause they run ads and make money.... blah blah blah. Those blogs all just become a blur. Do you actually read them or do you just skim them in case one of the masses actually comes up with an original thought some day.

I seldom even look at blogs about blogging. Only a few exceptions, those which have their own unique and individual voice. Those who may or may not be right but they don't just babble on saying the same party line as all the other blogs. This includes personal blogs.

If you write a personal blog and try to write for your readers you are not going to stick with it very long. You lose the point of it all if you try to sell your blog. Just write the damned thing and enjoy it. If it stops being fun, stop. Come back to it when you want to create something again.

Every blog should have a creative, free spirit. It's more than the voice you give it it's your whole attitude towards it. Does writing in your blog give you an uplifted feeling? Do you look forward to having something to post? Would you still be posting even if your hit counter only moves up a few times a year? What part of blogging matters to you? If it's money making or being famous you're here for the wrong reasons. You won't have staying power.

Get the Blog Clutter Bug

I think the biggest upcoming things for blogs is going to be about clutter and making them look cleaner overall. So many blogs are stuffed full of ads, traffic and seo rank related things that it's hard to find anything in the sidebar that could actually be interesting.

I found a few links today about fixing blog clutter.

Lorelle on Word Press has written about Cleaning Up and Decluttering.

Skelliewag has 50 Tips to Unclutter your Blog and A Guide to Creating a Minimalist Website

ProBlogger writes about Minimalist Blogging too.

Supper Blogging Tips has written Unclutter your Sidebar.

Blogging Tips has Remove the Clutter from your Blog.

Wisdump has the Resurrection of the Sidebar.

Pro Blog Design has Sidebar Redesign.

There are so many endless, bottomless posts about how to add more to your blog, your sidebar and your search rank. Why is there so very little good information to be found about making a site reduce it's clutter and become readable again?

To take it to the barebones of the clutter situation it's about taking what you need and keeping it and then tossing everything else, no excuses and no saving stuff you only think would be nice to keep or might be good later on or gives you an ego boost but does nothing for your blog itself or those coming to read your blog.

Decluttering does not have to be heartless. If you really can't delete it all consider making a footer with three columns. Just like sweeping the dirt under the rug, keeping a junk drawer in the kitchen or a closet stuffed full of stuff you don't have time to deal with.

There are also ways to roll up the clutter so it is not visible in full but available at the touch of a mouse. There are two types of roll away clutter busters and I'm not really sure what they official standard names are for them. Lets call one the scrolling window and the other the scrolling title.

Another plan to move clutter off your front page is to give it a page of it's own and just link back to it. Or, categories set up like an index with the same link back plan.

Free Traffic Exchange Sites

Sites that I have found for free traffic exchange. I'm not using all of these, I'm considering adding one of them. The trouble is making space above the fold for more than one. Also, not sure I want more cause they do look like ad clutter. But, I'm enjoying EntreCard and My Roomie is such a cheerful looking site. Likely some will stay and some will go, over time. I find the more stuff you try the more interesting things you find.

EntreCard

Spottt

My Roomie

BloggerSwap

Blog 125

Blog Explosion (Rent My Blog is currently offline, for maintenance they say but it seemed to be mothballed quite awhile).

If you know of others let me know.