bookmark_borderCardiac Pixie

To follow on from yesterday’s posts – and I suggest you have a quick skim of it and the comments or none of the following will make sense (but then, does it ever?) – I’d like to delve further into the whole “post titles” thang, how do you use them and what that may say about you (or quite possibly I’ll ramble on a bit and try to pretend that I’m quite clever).

Firstly a confession.

Bless me father, for I have sinned. I do not consider how people may find my site, I do not consider what they may be looking for when they come to my site, I am an evil sinner and by the power of the almighty Google, I ask for your forgiveness, blessing, and enough traffic to justify having adverts (subsequently allowing me to retire at 35).

Phew, that feels better. Now, where was I? Ohh yes.. just let me put away the ritual devil worshipping skull rosary beads.

Post titles then.

As Adrian notes my posts have a tendency to span topics, it’s an affliction brought on by this current design – I can’t bear the thought of a three line post sitting beneath those big green letters, so out of proportion *shudders* – and something I’ll be addressing soon(ish).

So what is my method? Well most of the time is startlingly similar to everyone else’s. I either go with something relevant and meaningful, something I reserve for factual posts (lessons, articles, whatever you want to call them), or I grab a song snippet or pop culture phrase. Lastly I use the Pirillo method.

This method is highly advanced and not for the faint hearted. It can take some time to master but is good to have as a fall back when the title fairy refuses to sprinkle some pixie dust on my brain. The tip itself was gleaned from an early edition of the Lockergnome newsletter (highly recommended).

So, if you think you can handle it, I’ll give you the method. Those of faint-heart should skip to the next paragraph (bemusement from reading my site is one thing, cardiac arrests quite another). Ready? It’s simple really leave the title to last and, once you’ve written your post, randomly pick two or three words to make the title. Simple. Typically your title will be nonsense and completely baffling but hey, no-one reads the titles, do they!?

OK, for those that skipped ahead I’ll be honest, it’s not that big a deal, go back and read the paragraph, the rest of us will meet you at the start of the next one (they gone? what a couple of suckers!).

And there you have, ladies and gentlepeeps, my cut out and throwaway guide on how to title your posts.

Now, the next bit is hidden from general view and is specifically in response to the comment the pixellated diva left on the post below. I have a feeling I know which will garner the most comments today… (and I know who’ll be first, although he’ll now spite me by not commenting until someone else has… you watch…).
Continue reading “Cardiac Pixie”

bookmark_borderBritBlog

Just a quick note. The guy(s) over at BritBlog are calling for some ideas and suggestions as they prepare to revamp their site and their service. I’m going to be involved on some level, but more on that later.

So, if you are a member of the BritBlog directory, check out the current list of new features and services and let them know what you think.

If you’re not a member of BritBlog then join up, and don’t forget that if you are Scottish or currently reside in Scotland, you can join Scottish Blogs as well.

bookmark_borderArterific

Lynn has left us (last week people, DO keep up) and the blogging world is sad. I’ve swapped postcards with her and despite my insistence that her name was Michelle on more than one occasion, she was always kind, helpful and just a lovely fuzzily warm person. I wish her well.

In a completely unrelated (as yet) moment I removed the blogroll from this site. Did anyone notice? That was last week as well, but given that I’ve not heard a peep from anyone I’m guessing it wasn’t used much anyway, right? MyBlogLog backs me up on this, which is good as that was one of the main reasons I installed it.

So, isn’t this awfully rude of me? Surely a blogwhore such as myself should have links up the wazoo, leaking all over the site, right? Well yes, I guess I should, I do feel a bit naughty but as last week progressed, and no-one called me on it, I wondered if it was really THAT big a deal?

Anyway, the blogroll may return at some point, you can access it on the links page anyway, but I think I may pick up the baton (or is that a knitting needle?) left by Lynn. She had a semi-regular feature, culled from a long forgotten internet “movement” – the AORTAL – where she’d proffer forth a couple of websites that she thought others would find interesting.

The idea kind of snuck up on me, but obviously my brain, prompted by Peter on Saturday and a few other factors, has decided that this is a good thing, and will tide me over until … well… later…

I’ll try and keep the feature regular, probably monthly but we’ll see how it goes.

bookmark_borderMeeted

Ohh so much to say, so little of it will make any sense if you weren’t there…

The problem with having fun is how quickly time flies. This was one of many thoughts that zipped across my brain as I trundled homeward on the train, gazing out of the window as the sun set, burning the sky.

In a way I was more nervous about this blogmeet as if only a couple of people had turned up for this one then I doubt if I’d already be thinking about the next one (yes yes, it’ll be Glasgow).

So, without reservation and with a great deal of sincerity I’d like to thank the following for turning up and making the day.. well… bloody great.

Photos from the event will appear here and on the blogs listed above (we’re a surprisingly photogenic bunch, even if I do say so myself).

Ohh and thanks to Richard for posting the list – despite being hugely organised I forgot to take home my notebook with everyone’s URLs written on it! But as David (wee) pointed out, I could have emailed it to myself from his laptop. Oh yes, some geekery was to be had, but I think the balance was pretty good.

Finally a quick note of thanks to the staff and owner of the Jolly Judge. Not only is it a nice pub, but the staff are great and we even got a round of drinks on the house. Very generous!

I’ll leave you now with one question, as asked by Peter: “Which is your favourite blog?” (and you are only allowed one!). That certainly got us all thinking!

bookmark_borderEdinbruuh

This time tomorrow I’ll be in sunny Edinburgh. Well technically speaking I’ll be in a pub in the basement of a building so the chances of getting any sun are remote. Too late to change the venue now though.

I’m quite looking forward to this blogmeet. The first one was exciting for different reasons, not least if anyone would turn up (thankfully someone did), but there is also the rather odd experiencing of meeting, what is essentially a group of strangers. This time round I think we’ll number between 5 and 10 depending on who arrives when, couple of people are coming along later, and if everyone makes it, and I’m hoping to get to meet three bloggers in particular who I’ve been reading for a long time, autographs will be sought!

Those of you have attended other blogmeets will realise that, of COURSE we don’t sit around and talk about HTML, WordPress, CSS, RSS or anything else along those lines. Believe it or not we are there because we are interested in meeting the PEOPLE behind the blogs, and believe it or not, nearly ALL of us are normal. Nearly…

I’m also going to head through a little earlier and have a wee wander round Edinburgh. It’s a city I’m only passingly familiar with, much to my shame. I’ve only ever been there for events (concerts, interviews and the like) and know the main parts reasonably well but much of it is lost on me – I have promised myself that I’ll take the Rebus Tour someday but not sure what Louise would get from that.

Anyway, to anyone in the Edinburgh area on Saturday it’s not too late to come along, even if you can only pop in for a wee while and to say hello, and meet some of the foremost members of Scottish Blogs*. I think this blogmeet will be the best attended so far, and can only lead to … er… more blogmeets? Next one will be in Glasgow though, there’s only SO much Edinburgh this west-coaster can handle in a year.

* or anyone who happens to turn up…

bookmark_borderHear me blog!

As someone else somewhere recently commented (can’t remember who or where, sorry!) blogging can be said to be like “shouting into a very large hole in the ground”.

I only mention that particular metaphor as it’s a fairly accurate description when you consider the core problem with those new to the blog world – scale. I’ve been pondering this since that Sunday Times article and think it might be worthwhile some of us taking a small step back so we can see the forest we are currently inhabiting.

Go on, step back, step out of the trees. Bloody long way, ain’t it. And what’s with all this marshland, not to mention the rotting blog corpses all over the place, the big shouty noises from behind that bush, and the fact that all the trees seem to be tightly gathered in bunches. Yipes, is that a pack of wolves!!? Ohh no my mistake, it’s a flutter of butterflies, how pretty. Ohh yeuch, I’ve just realised that the entire forest floor is covered in decomposing mulch and there is a distinct smell of bullshit.

Buggeration, now I’m lost.

Can’t see the forest for the trees? I can’t even find the path!

[Ed: Get off this metaphor train, next stop is No Reader City!]

Anyway my, partial, point is this. We all know journalists are lazy, so why are we surprised when they keep coming up with sweepingly awful generalisations about blogging? The view inside the “blogosphere” is very very different to that on the outside. I know where to find (what I consider to be) a lot of good blogs, I know which ones to avoid, I can tell the casual blogger from the dedicated hobbyist, but no-one from the press bothers to ask me. I bet they don’t ask you either.

Now, I’m no researcher (is it THAT obvious?) but given the sheer number of blogs, with more being added every minute, it’s almost no wonder that finding good examples is so hard. It’s not surprising that, when they see the size of the forest, our journalist cohorts plump for those sites on the fringes instead of delving past the sticky willows to find the richer pickings (lost my way a bit on that one, but you get what I mean).

Of course that isn’t an excuse, these journo guys and gals are paid to go that little bit further into the forest, but I think there shortcomings are understandable if not excusable. Mind you, even then, if all they can find is the dregs then I wonder why they keep writing articles about them?

What’s most odd is that this has been churning on and on and on for over two years now. Every now and then we get the equivalent of a small solar flare and every jumps up and down, shouts a lot, and tries to sound important and knowledgeable – The sun is exploding, the end of the world is nigh!! Blogging is the new journalism!! and so on. A few weeks later and everyone has put it to one side, only for the same arguments and babble to be dragged out later on.

So when a journalist gets some basic facts wrong about this little hobby of ours what should we do? Well, we are in a unique position to correct, few other hobbies have such an easily accessible, and global, interface so obviously there is plenty of scope for us to educate and enhance. Of course the view is that journalists, and this is where I’M generalising, are basically bashing blogs as they see them as a threat. If that’s the case then why don’t we take the high road here, be the grown up, and invite them in for a snoop around.

In the long run if bloggers and journalists are going to be competing (I wonder when a new term will be invented that will cover the new breed of blogging journalists that is sure to come about as both mediums become less and less distinct – joggists?? blornalists??) then the actions and noise that is currently being made is going to be used to set the scale. We have the bigger voice, it’s just a pity it is so fractious.

P.S. THIS may be another argument for why the Bloggies are a good thing. But I can’t be bothered taking it that far.