Friday 27 February 2004

is blogging important and if so why

I was challenged recently by more than one person I know to explain and defend blogging. I had some good arguments but not enough.

What does blogging do for you?

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Posted by:   site admin | 07:09 | Comments (27)

beyond compare

I’ve often been compared to the comedienne Jennifer Saunders who has made at least half the world laugh so hard they’ve peed in their pants.

Ab Fab Fans know what I mean. Jennifer Saunders is a goddess in the pantheon. I’m honored at any comparison.

Here are some people that other people say I remind them of:

• Howard Stern (It’s my hair and brash Judaic bottom line)
• Elvis ( I can fake his voice really well)
• Sheryl Crow (hers too)

What do you think? Who do people say you are like?

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Posted by:   site admin | 06:25 | Comments (16)

Thursday 26 February 2004

sky is low

“ The sky is low, the clouds are mean ”
– Emily Dickinson

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Posted by:   site admin | 02:25 | Comments (25)

Tuesday 24 February 2004

bad bad broccoli

Well, it actually started as good broccoli. Very fresh, in the fridge only one day prior to cooking. I steamed it lightly last night as a side with dinner. Perfect!

Thing is, I must have been unbelievably exhausted because I cleaned up all the dinner dishes but I didn’t grab the steamer off of the stove. I’m usually very conscientious about putting food away. This morning, I went out to do errands, go to a meeting, and then to have my hair done. I left the house locked up for about six hours.

Whatever you do in life dear friends do not leave cooked broccoli or its remnants in any known place in your environment. When I opened the door to my house, I was nearly knocked over by the stench.

Oh well, chalk it up to another stupid food trick. I probably won’t want to eat broccoli again for a really, really long time.

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Posted by:   site admin | 04:06 | Comments (23)

Monday 23 February 2004

strangest place for a URL

What’s the strangest place you’ve ever seen a URL?

I was standing at my window on a fairly high floor at San Francisco’s Argent Hotel in 1999 and saw a bus pass on the street below with a URL painted on its top. I thought that was pretty novel.

Note to self: Avoid making political posts. You just end up having to explain yourself, sort of like a bad joke.

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Posted by:   site admin | 02:55 | Comments (23)

Sunday 22 February 2004

mapping to self

If you read weblogs I’m sure you’ve seen this – people are mapping out where they’ve been within their own countries. Next stop, the world!

Areas in blue are U.S. states I’ve visited. Areas in gray are U.S. states I’ve never been to.

Have a map to share? Stick the URL you-know-where.

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Posted by:   site admin | 04:17 | Comments (8)

please don’t ralph

Okay, I’ll admit it. I voted Nader last time and I will probably burn for it at some point.

But this time, it’s just wrong. Ralph, stop it. You should not be running. You are causing more harm than good in this case.

I have long loved Nader for his integrity and relentless consumer advocacy. But this is crap. Ralph Nader go home.

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Posted by:   site admin | 03:21 | Comments (16)

one sure piece of gold

In web years I’m a grandma at 41. That’s okay with me, because while I don’t have any kids of my own, I’ve had a rare honor. I’ve gotten to work with and watch talented web designers such as Tobias Horvath, Dunstan
Orchard, and Dave Shea grow and thrive and shine so brilliantly.

You might remember Eddie, a fellow who emailed me a couple of days ago asking for help dealing with HTML frames. I had a sense from his original email that he was quite young, so I wrote back and asked him how old he was. It turns out he is just 10 years old. I wrote him again and asked him to have his mom email me, and if she said it was okay, I’d send him some books, which she did.

She told me that Eddie is extremely interested in the web, and spends his time on the web or reading about web design. It reminds me that I still do that
too! I remain profoundly interested in the web and for a lot of really great reasons.

The biggest challenge I see right now when it comes to newcomers to web design and development – no matter their age – is how not to overload them with all our baggage of the last decade, yet still inspire and direct them toward web standards and intelligent practices.

I think that along with the books I’m going to send that Eddie would truly benefit from some words of encouragement and insight from others here.

One sure piece of gold in return, I promise.

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Posted by:   site admin | 02:11 | Comments (10)

Saturday 21 February 2004

mommy, i love you

This is a real email to me today. I am not making fun of the author. In fact, this email demonstrates to me that there are many among us – seasoned web designers, developers, and the weblogging community that are by geography, class or social status out of touch with newcomers to web design.

“ I have inherited your HTML 4 Book (Special Edition) book from my mommy, i am making a website and
i am trying to use frames but it doesn’t work!!!! ”

Eddie sent me this and I can only respond from my heart. Put away frames. Burn that damned book. But never, ever stop asking questions and trying to improve yourself. Thanks for your honesty, Eddie, and keep letting your mom know that you love her.

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Posted by:   site admin | 08:59 | Comments (5)

usability: drawing outside the lines

Usability pundits can pound their pulpy fists and pontificate ’til the peacocks come home, but there’s nothing like practicality to win the usability day.

Please enjoy my second Integrated Web Design column for InformIT: Usability: Drawing Outside the Lines.

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Posted by:   site admin | 05:40 | Comments (3)

Thursday 19 February 2004

the strangest job you’ve ever had

In a recent comment entry regarding my pepper picture Kirsten writes about how she was caught by security in a market while taking pictures:

“Turns out they thought I was a spy from a competing market – according to the thugs it happens all the time.”

This flashed me back on the strangest job I’ve ever had, which involved spying for a mortuary.

My boyfriend at the time and I were hired to visit mortuaries in our area and tell this rather elaborate lie that my father was dying of brain cancer (which he had already done years prior). We were to use this story to glean information regarding each mortuary’s services: Pricing, options (bury or burn), and so on with the goal of bringing back the competition’s info to the criminal who hired us.

I never felt comfortable with the deception so after a few times we stopped doing it. But talk about one for the “strangest job” record books!

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Posted by:   site admin | 04:40 | Comments (18)

Tuesday 17 February 2004

onshore insourcing?

Well, that’s what some techies in India are referring to what we in the United States call “offshore outsourcing.”

Either one affecting you?

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Posted by:   site admin | 12:10 | Comments (8)

damien rice

Any Damien Rice fans out there?

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Posted by:   site admin | 06:59 | Comments (10)

pick a peck of peppers

Beautiful peppers in the market today.

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Posted by:   site admin | 03:54 | Comments (9)

Monday 16 February 2004

spam spigot

Is it just me? Since 1 January 2004 I’ve had significantly reduced spam for no obvious reason. I filter on the server and in the client, too, and I have to say I witnessed about an 80% reduction in the gross amount of spam I’d been receiving.

This weekend however, it seems that someone opened the spigot and the spam traps are swelling to capacity.

And here I actually was thinking hey, maybe some relief was in sight.

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Posted by:   site admin | 12:08 | Comments (8)