Blog Spring Cleaning for the Fall
December 6th, 2008
While I’ve been quietly monitoring my results I haven’t completely laid off blogging. In fact I’ve been taking advantage of the time off to complete the blog theme, tweaking things here and there, adding this and taking away that.
Just when I think it’s all done another bug rears its ugly head. For example, I recently switched my preferred browser from Maxthon to Opera 9 (as all you Firefox users shake your head).
Well after making some tweaks, when I took a look at it in IE my middle column had disappeared way down to the bottom. Crap! It was back to the drawing board again and a simple adjustment to the CSS padding properties remedied that.
I’ve added a Google “Friend Connect” widget to the right-hand sidebar which I hope you will join. It looks promising and I hope to see your shining face there.
I modified the colors of the blog, making it a little more vibrant looking without the glare. I’m very happy with the way the menus turned out. I’ve tried so many different color combinations and I think the silver gradient looks best.
I also like the roll-over effect (like the piano keyboard effect in the right-hand sidebar menus). What’s amazing about it is I was able to create this with just CSS properties and no messy java scripts were needed.
Speaking of Opera, the main reason for me using it is because of the speed performance it offers. I’m fed up with sluggish IE and Firefox bloatware. It may not have as many plugins but I like instant gratification when I’m browsing and Opera really performs.
But what is really surprising is I discovered there a lot of powerful features under the hood that I never knew were there. You just have to poke around a little to find them.
What I enjoy the most (besides it’s amazing speed) is it’s built-in RSS feed reader. It really is a joy to use. I also like the customizable Toolbars and the small footprint. There’s lots of stuff available at your fingertips without the real estate.
At first blush Opera didn’t appeal to me because it’s initial install felt awkward. But once I set it up to my liking the browsing speed is phenomenal and a joy to use. Kinda like Crome on steroids.
All in all I’m feeling very positive about the changes. I’m really looking forward to getting back into the swing of things again. It must the Christmas spirit taking hold of me.
I have a dozen or so draft posts that I’m finishing and it won’t be long before I hit you with some kick-ass blog tips that I know you will enjoy.
Cheers and thanks for reading (and don’t forget to join my “Friend Connect”).
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Just when I think I’m pretty much set with a browser, photo editing package, music download service, etc., etc., someone like you comes along and stirs the fire again. Geesh! It’s no wonder my wife made me get my own laptop. She got tired of me changing the one she uses.
Thanks, once more, for providing food for thought. By the way, the theme changes are looking good.
Lees last blog post…PhotoHunt #139 - Breakfast
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Thanks Lee. I’m always available for stirring things up. After all that’s what I’m known for. There’s no point in changing now.
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Blog Bloke reply on December 6th, 2008 6:09 pm:
Hey Lee, please join my Google “Friend Connect” widget in the right-hand sidebar.
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I thought I did. I’ll make another attempt now. :0)
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I was right, I’m already there! :0)
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Yes, I saw it there after I made the comment. Strange. Thanks for making the extra effort.
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Blog Bloke reply on December 9th, 2008 4:54 pm:
Lee reply on December 9th, 2008 6:27 am:
Lee reply on December 9th, 2008 6:26 am:
Blog Bloke reply on December 6th, 2008 6:11 pm:
The theme is looking good buddy, keep coming with the updates.
I never even heard of Maxthon.
Dennis Edells last blog post…Your Link Just Got MORE Valuable!
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Thanks Dennis but you forgot to join my “Friend Connect” widget.
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Blog Bloke reply on December 7th, 2008 5:23 pm:
I might check out Opera. Firefox keeps crashing. But What about addons? Firefox rules for those.
Damiens last blog post…Music as Antidote for Stress
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Opera has some plugins but nowhere near what Firefox has. But don’t forget the more addons you have the slower FF becomes, so having a million plugins available is really counterproductive.
If fast is what you want in a browser, Opera has more power features than for example Chrome does with the blazing speed I need.
So far it has enough power features to satisfy me. It works a little differently than FF or IE so it takes a little getting used to. But the more I use it, the more I’m lovein’ it.
Thanks for dropping by Damien.
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Blog Bloke reply on December 10th, 2008 11:07 pm:
The theme looks great Bloke. Right now I have been Playing in Chrome(Google). Its pretty fast but has one major drawback. No Rss button. No biggie, I am not reading feeds much and just watch twitter for blog updates or go to the sites when I think of it.
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Good to have you back Curtis.
I can see using Chrome for the security features and visiting suspicious sites but I think I will stay with Opera for general browsing and Twittering. It has a great built-in feed reader that meets all my needs. Google Reader is always crashing on me.
Opera is elegant and F-A-S-T.
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Blog Bloke reply on December 12th, 2008 8:29 am:
I joined your google friends … I just added it to my blog a couple days ago .. look forward to seeing you around.
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Welcome to the community
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Blog Bloke reply on January 1st, 2009 9:41 pm:
I’m unlike most people (I think), I tend to enjoy change. Change every once in a while makes for good balance with stability.
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Change and me don’t usually get along that well in the real world. But in the virtual world I’m always seeking something new. Must be that ADD think
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Blog Bloke reply on January 24th, 2009 6:58 pm: