Morrissey Speaks

Here are little technology morsels of information that should be tempting enough to want to dig into.  I’ll break it down into a byte-size format…

Here’s some cool Web sites that can do a blogger good.

*mashable – the hub of everything that has anything to do with social media.  A search engine and guide to online networking.

*Kevin Rose’s blog - the founder of digg.com and and all around smart guy who’s on the cutting edge of new technologies and how to make the old techonologies perform to the new standards.*Six Apart – A blog that breaks down how business can use social media.  A news source for branding.  I find it very useful.

*R2i – If you go to the homepage and then scroll to the “get informed” section you will have access to articles and information that has anything and everything to do with Web design, marketing, open source forums, and other good reference Web sites.

*Marketing Pilgram – This is another site that I found very useful.  It has information on things like SEO to blogging help, brand awareness on the Web and the like.

Each one of these sites are worth bookmarking and returning to.  They act almost like the New York Times to the online community. They will keep you informed of new information concerning anything in the category of blogging, Web design, HTML coding, open source codes and most importantly SEO.

Brand awareness can be obtained through many different routes via the Web.  These sites will help you sift through which route works best for you and your brand, something that should be throughly investigated.

cross roads

Computers are at the hub of our intelligence.  They are the headquarters for anything search-able, and more and more the center of our universe.

Spell-check auto corrects; predictive texts write what we mean to say; online presence takes precedence over our reality.

We live in a world where we edit ourselves before someone else does for us.

Our lives are so interconnected online, that a personal connection offline is almost awkward.  Online, we have a barrier of wires, and miles that separate the person from the responses.

It’s become a problem.  This is where an actual conversation thrusts a person into the emotional responses of the other.  They have to react quickly, and think on their feet; an art form that is slowly dwindling.

We’ve taken the virtual shorthand versions of communication and have applied it to how we form low-tech connections (a human connection).  It’s become a problem.

Even myself, I have fell prey to this phenomenon of IM Speak.  Example: LOL, WTF, ROTFL, etc. (Really, I think you’re kidding yourself if you don’t think you have.)

Often I find myself inserting emoticons into my real-time conversation.  Instead of just smiling, I have to think…insert smiley here. And when did a semi-colon and a parenthesis sign become complex enough to describe a smile?

I just got a new cell phone that has over 40 different emoticons, one of the being a smiley-face with what appears to be a cigarette in its mouth. =Q. –aside from that fact that t-mobile supports tobacco use, when did 40 characters on a keyboard become sufficient enough to describe anything I’m trying to convey?

Am I in support of this brand of connectivity? I’m still undecided.  If I ignore a phone call, or don’t answer a text immediately, or any of the other communication errs (I commit on a regular basis) why should I feel guilty about it? Sometimes a girl just wants to have some time and space, when did that become rude?

What do you think? (if you still can…jk jk =])   <Ironic I know>

Screenshot

Art often acts as a reflection of life.  Reality is captured.  Each layer of the artists’ personality becomes ingrained in their creation. Their work exposes their perception of life.

This type of exposure is personal.  It leaves them with an open wound, for critics to pour salt on.  So, it is a delicate operation to find someone else’s design that works for you.

But, I have done just that.  I choose this template because it has a clean design that is easy to navigate.  The bright pop of fuchsia at the top with a playful spritz of white adds a bit of panache that is inviting.

The layout of my blog is the welcome mat for my users. I want to make sure that it is friendly, approachable and easy on the eyes.  I think this theme does just that.

The blogs will be on the opening page, granting access to my writing quickly, versus having to scroll through multiple pages.

The white background will make sure that my words don’t get lost in a muddle of color and clutter.  I approach this area very cautiously, because even if content is on point, no one will read it if the neon pink wording gives them a headache!   Sometimes less is more.  In my opinion I feel that the white backdrop appears to be more professional and organized.

Ultimately, SEO trumps pretty colors, and a snappy design.  It doesn’t matter what I have on my site, if no one can find it.  The theme I have chosen was developed by the company Headsetoptions.org.  This organization designs around SEO, making my site ripe for the Google pickins’.

The other red carpet treatment the design rolls out for my viewership is an internal search engine.  They can easily search through the site to find what they want quickly.

This design caters to my readers, while providing the features that will get my blog noticed.

theme rolls out the red carpet for readers