When will people learn what it is I don’t like with weblogs? Splash pages need to go. They were popular back in 1998, for about a month or two. There is no reason to have them on a blog in 2004. With that said, lets move onto the blog itself.
I have to admit that I have been an off and on frequenter of Colleen’s Den. I have to say that this current incarnation is by far my favorite. While I am not a big fan of white text on a black background, it is much better than the twinkling star background there used to be, or the one previous which didn’t load properly in my browser and I had to highlight all the text just to read it. So kudos goes to Colleen for improving her design.
The weblog itself is very personal. She posts about what is going on in her life with her kids, her husband, her friends, etc… She goes into detail about what is going on in her life. For instance, she went into great detail about her husband loosing his job because he was sick and what was going on at the work place. Other times she posts about things she has built or relationships with other people. All of it is told with a great deal of detail and emotion. And of course she posts about her blog and the changes she is going to make and what have you.
The posts to me read like someone wanting to talk but couldn’t find the right audience; so she went searching for it on the web. The people that frequent her site seem to be that audience that she needs/wants in that they listen and respond to questions, concerns and what have you within the comments of her blog. Its very rare that you can find a good audience for such means, but she has done it.
The archives are a bit tricky. One thing I like with archives is the ability to read them all by date. They are that way until January of this year and then they switch over to by headline. This was weird, because I would click the link for one headline, and get a completely different post. This needs to be fixed to ensure less confusion. In addition, she has set it up so that all of the links open in a new window, which is not needed if we are staying on her site since all the pages have links to all the archives (except old vs new archive system).
The about me page leads to another off-site page with just 60 things about Colleen. No intro, no actual this is what I do type thing, just 60 little factoids about her. She also has a small photo album on her site to give you a glimpse into her friends and family and her pets.
Overall there is a lot to read and feel at Colleen’s Den. Unfortunately for me, the posts are a little too much on the personal side of things and I tend to stay away from blogs like this. While I was able to understand what Colleen was going through, I am just not the type who wants to be taken on an emotional rollercoaster. I hope that Colleen will fix her design so it is easier to navigate. As I said, this isn’t the type of blog for me, but if you are looking to go on a journey with someone through all of the emotions then this is the site for you. Colleen’s Den