Month: January 1970

When I first saw the title of this “blog”, I thought it would delve into webdesign secrets and offer tips on how to create a functioning website and spruce it up a bit. Unfortunately what I got was a lot different to that!

Looking through the site which looks to be of a primitive design (not a good thing, for a web design company) we learn that the site is maintained by a man called Darren who’s been running MediaMystique since 2001. The blog itself has some really neat features such as the ability to be able to download every post as an Adobe .pdf file which would be perfect if the site offered informative tutorials but unfortunately, the feature isn’t used to it’s full potential as the posts lack concrete information and help!

Everyone of the valid posts are all trying to entice you into seeking the expertise of the web design company that maintains the blog (MediaMystique). I say valid posts because I would not classify some posts which only state contact details and consultation prices to be part of a blog. The actual posts themselves do reveal some information which would help you and I was interested in some of the posts which were explaining the uses of a CMS. They all posed questions which would give you food for thought when creating a site. The blog is very young however and there aren’t that many posts. More worryingly, there hasn’t been a post since mid-November.

If the blog had more specific posts such covering a wide spectrum of categories such as CSS, PHP, HTML etc then the blog would no doubt be a success and would probably attract a lot more traffic to the site and therefore potentially more customers to the business. As it stands however, everything that is posted on this site could be found on other sites that would also got into much more detail! Although I doubt they have a “download as pdf” feature – something I still think is brilliant!
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I feel somewhat qualified to write this review having been a Runescape player myself at one stage. To give you some background, Runescape (Run, escape?) is a browser based multiplayer game based in a medieval type setting. Its written in Javascript and runs in full 3D without any extra software which is impressive in itself and the gameplay is kid-friendly and involving.

The Runescape Newbie Guide is a blog devoted to helping players negotiate the gameplay and Valdesta, the 32 year old female player and author, happily answers player questions with helpful and detailed answers. I have to admit, even though I like playing MMPORPGs myself, I always found the dedication of players and webmasters like Valdesta really quite exceptional, if not a little intimidating. I for one, would not have the patience to pen user guides and regularly update a blog such as this but as a player, have always been grateful for those that do.

That said, this blog is not good bedtime reading for anyone except Runescape players and while thorough, is extremely topic-specific. The site is well designed with a customized blogger template and regular updates. Valdesta’s in-game avatar is a nice touch and to alleviate the bother of searching the menu navigation includes a “Noteworthy Posts” section for articles that deserve to be easily found. The link section is also a good resource for players.

Not a bad read at all and Valdesta writes well and informatively, offering the right advice to guide players onto personal Runescape success. Not a site for the all the rest of us non-runescape nerds obviously but a good resource for the uninitiated. NULL

Wow Gardens Blog is an informational site with regular updates an a wide range of gardening topics. If you’ve ever tended a garden then you are probably aware of just how fulfilling and satisfying it is to grow and maintain your own flowers, fruit or vegetables.

The author anonymous author provides tips and suggestions for seasonal gardening and includes an easily to navigate variety of categories including tips, products, seasonal gardening, seeds, flowers, vegetables, perennials and is referenced throughout by acknowledging sources. This is a good thing, in that citing your sources is generally good writing practice however every single article starts with the unchanging phrase “In a recent article…” which may be a comforting routine, but seems a little dry after a while and the links to sources are not clickable.

The Wow Gardens Blog seems like an excellent new resource for American gardeners and collates news articles in a straightforward summary meaning keen gardeners can simply log in to the blog for a good round up of recent news. There is little color either in the language or the design of the site which is a shame considering the topic.

The site design is actually quite nice in its simplicity, like a minimalist Japanese garden but did not awe me for a few reasons. Firstly, there are posts but nothing else. No profile, no links, faq or linkback to the parent site which actually has a little more color. Secondly, the CSS was completely broken in my Safari browser and works only in Internet Explorer (I’m no expert but spaces in URLs, particularly the CSS URL is not good code practice). Being a gardening site I would like to have also seen at least a little color or imagery instead of the safe but dull black-on-white text.

This blog is a good news source for American gardeners and has the potential to be a better resource for readers but could do with a touch up to the template design. Updates are regular an informative but lack the inspiration a gardener finds in their garden. NULL

Black marks on wood pulp… I was thrown for a loop when I read the name of this site. I was not sure what to expect. When I finally got the site to load, it had a deep red background with a very classy look. And I still didn’t have a clue what the site would be in regards too. I started taking my general glance down the site and noticed a few things: at the top there is a picture of books and on the side bar the author has posted the book he is currently reading.

I began reading through the posts. The author posts regularly and enjoys blogging. The site is a personal site that talks about many things with the majority of posts being about different books he is reading or books he would like to own/read. He spent numerous posts talking about the Penguin collection that he really hopes to purchase in the near future. The archives take a while to get to because you have to move through them by the month using his calendar option on the side bar.

The site is laid out in a 2 column style and has a classy burgundy color background, with white and yellow text. The font is easy to read and there is not a huge contrast of colors on the site. My only concern with the design of the site was the time it took to load. I am on a cable modem connection and the site took well over 20 seconds to load. I can only imagine what it would have been like on my 14k dial up connection.

Overall the site was nice. It was not offensive just provided the reader with thoughts or the author. I feel the site is a personal site and would appeal to the author’s friends or family. I did enjoy reviewing the site, I felt connected to the author due to the detail in the writings. I rate this site as a 3.75.
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My initial thought into this blog was simple; this blog is going to be about helping others. The blog has an initial thought at the very top and its theme is highlighted throughout the blog. “A public service weblog promoting ethics in action.” As I finished reading through the blog I found my initial thoughts to be correct.

The blog’s purpose is to give information to its readers about ways to help out in their community. It provides links and suggestions on many topics. Some of them include: What to do with that left over food after a group gathering or part, Consider class, Consider privacy… The list of helpful information goes on and on. Karama, the blog’s author, is very active in community service and her blog is just another part of her service. Karama informs the reader about things that she has been involved in to help others around the world and provides hyperlinks to those organizations.

The blog’s design is very simple. It has the main area of the site on the left column of the two column site. On the right is information typical to blogs: archives, links, about me… I would make a recommendation in this are. I would reorganize/clean up the right column. It appears to be unorganized and is distracting to the eyes of the reader.

I would recommend anyone to read this site. I am heavily involved in community service and understand the necessity of it. I feel the blog needs a little design work, but the content is sufficient and heavily informational to anyone interested in civil service. I rate this blog as a 3 due to some of the design concerns with the site. Overall it is a good read and it instigates its readers to help others.
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