...For now, anyway. I'm thoroughly impressed with the simplicity and speed of Keith's ReStyle. Turns out, the only frustration I experienced was self created by some long forgotten sloppy post code.



I'll still tinker around a bit with a little tweak here and there and I have to add my custom menus but I'm very satisfied with the look and feel.

If you like the look or want to use it as the basis for your own design, go ahead and install the skin. Links to the images are included the design info so feel free to download and use them, just please don't hotlink.

I wouldn't call it done quite yet but the design transition has begun. I'm a novice like many of you and struggle to keep track of what's what. Even the old Legacy template took me a lot of trial and error.

That's why I'm fairly impressed with the ReStyle engine. I started with Keith's 3 Column Layout #1, tinkered with some of the CSS values until I kind of 'got' it and then systematically worked through the requisite CSS changes until I successfully recreated the basic color scheme of my Steel Mesh design.

Like I said, I'm a novice and it was the first time I seriously attempted to "edit" a designs CSS. The whole process took me about an hour. And I'm starting to overcome my fear of CSS. I'm not sayin' I grasp it, but it's not so foreign anymore.

I'm not sure when I'll have time to continue re-decorating but in the meantime, the place looks a little more like home.

'tude.

It's awesome that EFx2 Restyle has launched. I'm still wanderin' around a bit trying to get a grasp on the new process so when I can make the time, I'll have it half-way figured out.

Coming soon(er or later): a custom Restyle design.

It's been over a month since I've had time to even think about a reading a blog, let alone post anything. I'm really tired of starting posts with an apology for my inattention to my online digs so I won't; the part of my life that puts coffee in the cup and broadband in the wall always comes first.

The month of May found me on an over-nighter to Cleveland, a day-trip to Orlando, a four day trip to Vegas (working, not playing), and securing and inhabiting (unexpectedly) a new domicile. So yeah, I've been a little busy.

The tale of the circumstances that led to the move is worth the telling but the back-story and set-up would take more time than I can spare this evening so I'll save it for another day. If you're a bottom-line-only person, it can be summed up in two words: karma and schadenfreude.

The summer TV season is on the horizon signaling the return of The 4400 (Sun June 17), Kyle-XY (Mon June 11), Big Brother (Thu July 5), and eventually Weeds (Mon July 30) so there will be no shortage of blog-fodder.

In the meantime, I'll be nosin' 'round a bit.

Heavy.com's The Superficial Friends are funny enough but throw in an hysterical parody of The Howard Stern Show, complete with the Whack-Pack. and you have cartoon gold! The animators at Camp Chaos are clearly Stern fans; they captured all the subtleties and inside(r) jokes that you're likely to hear on any given day.

Check it out...

[originally posted at Every Irrelevance]

Wanna check out some of the best music you've probably never heard and some great pop tunes you probably have? Tune in to my Last.FM station. Change the channel; you'll find lots of cool tunes.

I also updated the original post but a new, cleaner version of The Tragically Hip's Blonde Solid MP3 warrants its own post. I replaced the original file with one I edited with Nero. The sound is better; it's still not great, but it's about the best a very old MP3 from a cassette tape is gonna sound and it does sound better then before.

So, download it. Or don't. Whatever.

Listen to Blonde Solid:

If the player doesn't display properly, blame the QuickTime plugin. Activate the stupid QuickTime player by clicking on it, press 'spacebar' once, and a second time to play the track.

Download Blonde_Solid.mp3 (7259.6K)

Intrigued by the chatter one self-important blow-hard blogger started with a foot-stomping sniveling "pay attention to meeee" tantrum, I read through several of the related links featured in the number one spot at TechMeme. As a point of reference, the TechMeme link and any others hereafter were selected based on content, context, and relevance. That may seem a digression but it's actually the focus of the argument.

Apparently the cry-baby's sniffle-fit was, in a nutshell, because Engadget credited a different source instead of linking to his 4o minute video of a tour of an Intel chip factory when said cry-baby was sure he had himself a bona-fide scoop. A 40 minute scoop; on-line, that's an eternity.

Reciprocal links for the sake of reciprocating link-backs or linking with an absolute expectation or sense of entitlement is self-centered and arrogant. If a porn-blogger links to one of my Survivor screen-caps, it's ludicrous that anyone believes me obligated to reciprocate with a link-back to a porn site. I might email or PM the guy and say "thanks for the props" but that's about it.

If it's a different blog that's not objectionable and relevant to my content, I try to to always work in a mention. At the same time, if I'm impressed with their blog or site, it's gets recommended in a post and sidebar link.

If you have some time to waste and see the whole "A-list" concept for steaming pile it is is, follow the trail over at TechMeme. There are some relevant discussions about yesterday's blogs being today's big media and how that impacts "big(ger) bloggers" along with sharp snipes like:

"You’ve not seen [REDACTED] in full-on whine mode. There’s not a lot of rational thought. If you’ve ever seen a two-year old kicking and screaming because he couldn’t get a cookie, it’s about the same level of intelligent thought, although the two year old wins points for having a concrete issue."

And:

"...he was a low level evangelist looking for his “in”. He never made it up the ranks for a simple reason: he is not bright... His ideas are usually off, he isn’t thoughtful, he doesn’t understand customers (both enterprise users and consumers). ...using marketing to make people believe he is a valley insider. He isn’t. Go talk to any of the VCs, they laugh at him. Go talk to any of the big player companies, the grin and are polite, but they laugh and laugh. His blog isn’t worth reading, he has no power or influence. Just another whiner that wants to be popular."

Not mentioning cry-baby's name or linking to his blog illustrates my point of selective link inclusion. The TechMeme thread is relevant; another self-important, attention-whore blogger trying to drive traffic by any means necessary is not.

Some times too much noise is just too much noise.

STFU!

The multi-media menu in the right sidebar now includes a YouTube widget for quick access to the videos I've uploaded. Look for the "Scott-Tube" heading below the Stickam player and click on any video image to open it in a new window.



If you're into widgets, you should definitely check out WidgetBox for all kinds of cool and curious scripts. Registration is required but it's absolutely free. So, add your own widgets or play with mine. Or don't. Whatever.



TGIF, baby!

Another post that I'm inclined to begin with an apology or explanation for my intermittent presence but that would take time that just don't have. This is after all, about the blog. Considering I'm a rank amateur that sort of stabs at blogging when I can make the time, my TypePad blog has seen a steady increase in traffic.

I'm not interested in page ranks and huge numbers but what visitors respond to. Not literally, because few ever comment, but even random search engine hits end up with numerous pageviews. The numbers are dismal compared to "real" bloggers but it proved a theory; you can significantly increase traffic by giving visitors the content they're looking for.

The previous entry is a cross-post of a 2006 year in review from Every Irrelevance and I'll be cross-posting more. I've been reluctant to do so in the past because it felt a little like I'd be using EFx2 to promote my "other" blog.

Blogging's really about interaction and naturally, there's much more of that here. Plus, there may be some things you'll find interesting, like some night-time shots of this years international ice sculpture competition. There are more below, and more still at Flickr or Every Irrelevance.

So I'll see ya 'round.