Author: admin

“Thoughts with God” – quite a name for a weblog, don’t you think?

As par for the course for me when it comes to reviewing a site, I took a quick peek at the “about” section of “Thoughts with God”. This is where I learned the author lives exactly 11.6 miles from me, just a few blocks from the Mississippi River. It’s kind of easy to find this out when the author (Jason Witt) leaves his mailing address in the “about” section. Yikes.

There are other brief paragraphs in the about section that give readers some background information as to why Jason’s decided to tackle this topic in a blog-format and where his opinions may have originated. I was more intrigued about the weblog once I read into more about Jason and the purpose behind this site.

The layout is a two-column WordPress template that hasn’t been changed at all, with the exception of a PayPal link at the top of the sidebar. Not counting the default initial post that WordPress automatically implements into every blog that uses their software, the site has just over fifty posts that begin at the end of August 2007.

Each post is several short paragraphs long dealing with things like how we’re effected by God on a daily basis and how people today measure up to the stories we’ve heard and read about the Garden of Eden. Obviously, the posts written for “Thoughts with God” don’t give off a “light reading material” vibe. Religion is a deep subject, and this weblog is no exception to that rule.

I can’t say I’ve read a lot of religion-themed blogs in my days of spending entirely too much time on the Internet, but I can’t say I’ve ever wanted to either. The posts in “Thoughts with God” are noticeably thought provoking, but as a self-titled skeptic, I can’t help but want more information. Are these thoughts just those of the author? Is there written material to back these opinions up? Technically, each post is very well written, and Jason does a great job expressing his opinions through writing.

Every weblog out there serves a purpose of some sort – informational, entertainment, or anything in between. “Thoughts with God” can perhaps provide some religious background to those people questioning religion, or just needing some reassurance on their current beliefs. This won’t be a weblog for everyone, but really, what weblog is?
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It’s every bloggers dream to wind up being able to quit their jobs and live life a rock star solely based off the revenue their weblog generates. Anyone that keeps an online journal and says they haven’t thought about that is quite possibly lying. Personally, I make enough money off of my weblog to afford an addicting tattoo habit, but I never want to make that the prime focus of my personal weblog.

Because of this and all of the different “opportunities” (and I use that term loosely) that present themselves online, my eyes tend to roll across the floor when I find a site that’s geared towards nothing but that. Case in point? A weblog called “Online Income Opportunities”. Sure, I’ll review the site and boost your Google page rank, so more people will advertise on your site. Why not? Then maybe I can get rich for my superb writing skills and never have to work again.

The site loads and I’m instantly greeted with ads all over the three-column layout. A gigantic banner fills some of the top part of the screen, and a column listing all 15+ different sites where the author makes money while blogging fill one of the sidebar columns. It’s drab and boring. The most aesthetically appealing item on the weblog was some sort of widget the author of the blog has installed to allow people to review this site on the spot.

I wasn’t thrilled when I realized I was going to have to be reading entries dating back to September 06 that serve no purpose, but to make a few bucks here and there. The first post lets readers know that the author has been investing online for almost a year and she’ll be sharing her experience with the programs she’s joined.

Along one column of the blog, she mentions she lives in Bangalore, India. If that’s the case, it doesn’t really make much sense why she’d be blogging about house loans in the UK unless she was getting paid for it, right? And how the post written about the Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery office that she writes about and includes a nearly 600 x 500 pixel image of a photoshopped girl? This is the way about 99% of the entire weblog is written. The rest of the posts are the author telling the advertisers, I mean, readers that she’s going to be gone for a couple of days.

It’s a money-making blog. There’s no rhyme or reason to it. I can’t rank it any higher than I have.
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I knew right away that this was going to be a tech blog. Considering the fact that I am a major tech guy and have been on the web for a long time I have seen a lot of tech blogs.

Sean’s Software blog doesn’t look like most blogs, which is nice. It is using an original design and has some of the cool flashy web 2.0 features to it. I would expect this out of any new tech blog anyways, so I am glad it is there. The only complaint I have with the design is the number of ads on the site (more on this later).

The blog is short having just started on October 9th. Since then there have been a good number of posts, which is always good for a start up blog. The posts are well written and have a good friendly tone to them.

The blog’s posts are just what you expect them to be: about software. Almost all the posts are geared toward someone with at least some experience with the web. I don’t think an average blog reader would understand some of the posts, nor be interested in them.

For someone who has started a tech blog, I would think they would use the best possible archive solution which is list the archives by year/month. Unfortunately this author chose to use the calendar and older posts method. Since the blog is new, there are only 3 pages of archives, but the older posts will eventually become difficult to get to.

As I said, the number of ads bugs me. It makes it seem like this blog is set up to just be a “make money” blog and not a “lets inform our users” blog. This is disappointing. I understand the need and the want to make money off your blog, but at what expense? The ads distract from the content and that is why people show up to the site.

Overall this isn’t anything new in the world of tech blogs. It seems more like someone trying to make a quick buck off a blog. There are some improvements that need to be made to this site, but it has its potential.
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Sean’s Software Blog has a pretty obvious title from the get go and that’s something I can appreciate. While I consider myself a geek to a certain degree, I had an idea going into this blog that it would be quite a bit over my head and that assumption wasn’t too far off at all.

I was very pleased when the site loaded. It loaded very quickly, and is done in a very clean, crisp design. It’s very simple to navigate and helpful for readers. More bloggers should take this approach when choosing the design and layout of their site. The three-column layout provides multiple ways to navigate around the site, as well as the standard blogger fare – links, a calendar, and various external links the author finds interesting.

As the site grows, it will become more and more cumbersome to click through the archives by subject. For now, it’s convenient when only looking for a particular subject, but I can’t see it working well with more entries.

I was also pleased when I found a brief “About Me” section where the author lets everyone know why he’s putting together this weblog and what he hopes to achieve from it. I’d have to say the author is absolutely on the right track.

As I’d mentioned before, I was afraid most of the information on the site would be above my head and it was. In the few short weeks that this blog has been up and running, Sean’s talked about various databases and different links he’s found on the web that might be of interest to those very invested in the software world. An average reader, however, will be just as lost as I was.

Sean’s Software Blog definitely has potential. It’s very new at this point, and hasn’t attracted many readers/commenters. As long as the author keeps posting on a regular basis, this has the potential to turn into a well-trusted software-related blog.
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Oh dear. Weddings. I’ve been married nearly 17 years, so I kind of cringed when realizing I’d have to review a wedding blog. I swear if I ever have to get married again, I’m just getting my pastor to come to my backyard to do the ceremony, and I’ll have a pot-luck and I’ll spring for the wine.

While I loved my own wedding, I’ve just watched three people (my sister included) go through hell in planning their weddings. So I was a little reluctant to revisit some of the topics I knew would be presented herein.

My attitude changed rather quickly, and this was a very nice blog to visit. I realized quickly that this was not a personal blog, but a business blog supporting the Truly Wedding Favors company. As far as blogs done by businesses go, this one is a great read.

The writers provide a great deal of information to brides-to-be on all aspects of planning their wedding, not just what favors to pick. And it’s not all “buffet or sit down, which do you choose?” kinds of topics. Our blog contributors also celebrate anniversaries of couples who are in it “for the long haul.” There are entries about celebrities and weddings too, like how Shakira has too much to do to plan her wedding, and how jeesh, she’s like every other bride out there in the end, isn’t she? And if you are a famous R&B starlet, don’t forget your panties and bra under your dress when you go to your conservative family’s weddings! Yikes!

This is a beautifully laid out blog, with gorgeous complimentary colors. Very bridal in look and feel. The site navigation is easy to read and resides the left column and a wide, white readable area on the right. A link back to the corporate site store is at the top of the page, so if you’re visiting and interested in shopping, you’re right there in a matter of seconds.

It was also exciting to read about how the fires in Southern California were having a direct impact on this particular business… and I was horrified to read about the truck being looted. Having that kind of a glimpse into a business blog is really an interesting and fascinating aspect for a reader.

I have only two criticisms. First, there are several contributors to the blog, but they offer no “about us” page. A nice “about us” page would be a great addition to the site. It would let readers know who Melissa, Mercedes, Courtney, Kori Ellis, Wendy, Eric and Amber et al are and upon what authority they speak to proffering advice on weddings. The first entry by Melissa talks about why they started the blog… but it really doesn’t give us an idea who everyone is. I really like that in a blog, to get to know the thinker behind the thoughts.

Secondly, and this is a huge issue for me online, there are several instances where the blog authors do not include proper citation of resources. Entries are accentuated with lovely photographs, but no copyright is cited on them. On some entries which are obviously culled from web stories or researched from news or magazine articles, no citation is given at all. A link to the original news story online, or proper citation of source should appear at the end of the entry. There are some entries that do point to an online story, and I’d like to see that done across the board if possible. The information is all interesting, and it was fun to read. I’m just a real proponent of proper citation and would love to see that started here before the blog grows further.

I will change the category to “Business” from “Personal” because “Personal” indicates a blog written from a personal perspective on one’s life and observances. There is some of that in here, but with several links-back to the webstore of Truly Wedding Favors, it isn’t the right category.

Be sure that when I do know someone who is getting married I’ll point them in the direction of this blog for a helpful and informative (and sometimes very funny) online guide as they plug away at their plans. I give the Truly Wedding Blog a 4.0 rating.NULL