Really Targeted Ads (TM)
Isn’t this hilarious?
We’ll be back to our scheduled program tomorrow.
January 31, 2008 say something
January 30, 2008 4 replies
On Being Critical
The Design Critique post hacking away on Read/WriteWeb’s design made people react. That’s a good thing, I think, because the whole idea with the post was to pick the RWW design apart, and give you my opinion on it. Especially Stephen found this offensive, and that sparked a debate with Fantan.
I like debates and disagreements. That’s fine.
What I find a bit discouraging in this affair is some, albeit a minority among those having commented and e-mail me on the subject but still, thinks that I’m in no position to criticize a site that’s bigger than Wisdump.
This is something I will never ever agree upon!
January 26, 2008 9 replies
Wisdump redesign concept, part 3
First of all, I’d like to give a big thank you to all of you who’ve been speaking up on the two redesign concepts I’ve posted. Your comments are appreciated, and - as you’ll hopefully will see - duly noted. I don’t always agree, but then again you won’t agree amongst yourselves either, so that’s fine. What would design be without a bit of controversy, eh?
That being said, the third redesign concept is here, with two different W logo solutions, and a brief explanation regarding the slanting design that you apparently either like or dislike.
January 25, 2008 13 replies
Design Critique: Read/WriteWeb
Read/WriteWeb is a great site, content-wise, I read it from time to time - I especially like Marshall Kirkpatrick’s writing style. Actually, all sites in the RWW Network, being Last100 and AltSearchEngine, as well as the podcast Read/WriteTalk, all reek of quality. That’s nice.
What’s not as nice is the design the flagship site, Read/WriteWeb sports. It’s a fairly new one, and a real downgrade if you ask me. I’ll tell you why.
January 24, 2008 say something
Automattic Rakes in Cash - How About a Timeline?
I take it you haven’t missed the fact that Automattic, the company behind WordPress and WordPress.com, secured a whopping $29.5m in funding. That is probably good news, right? I think so, since the founders will stay onboard and have great plans, at least according to Matt Mullenweg’s post.
Now here’s what I want, as a person working professionally with WordPress, offering both design and coding services, as well as using it as a tool for a lot of projects, be it my own or freelance work for clients.
So Matt & Co., I’d like a timeline.
January 23, 2008 8 replies
Wisdump redesign concept, part 2
The Wisdump redesign concept I posted previously have been updated. It still follows the same basic premise, but is now populated with more content, and the sidebar top isn’t as heavy.
January 22, 2008 3 replies
Linkbait is Boring
I’m no master of writing wicked linkbait, getting a thousand crazy linkage, reaching the frontpage of Digg, and so on. In a way, I pride myself with that, because most of this kind of content is downright boring.
Think about it, another 35 ways to do this or that list, do we need that?
At times, absolutely. Smashing Magazine is a proof of that, it’s often a great resource, since they’ve done all your research. Glancing over the content is boring though, as is writing that kind of posts, in my opinion. I guess they like it though, or make a bundle of it.
January 19, 2008 2 replies
The Design Police Sticker Set - Satisfying your Obnoxious Needs
Bad design? Want to be snarky, obnoxious, and rude to the poor people who’s responsible? Of course you do! Enter the Design Police, who want to bring bad design to justice. Download their Visual Enforcement Kit, and start annoying people by sticking words like “kern this”, “turn of the CAPS LOCK”, “widow”, and so on.
Fun stuff, and obviously a good way to get linked, eh?
January 18, 2008 6 replies
Ads between Post and Comments - the Next Big Thing?
Wisdump reader Gerard commented on the dummy design screenshot of the next version of Wisdump, wondering about the 125×125 pixel ad blocks that are so common on blogs these days.
However, the 125px ad blocks - aren’t we all becoming blind to these within the niche these days? I for one barely notice them anymore. Maybe there’s a challenge - to break that ad unit cliche?
Spot on, at least almost. While these 125×125 pixel ads certainly are very common, personally I at least give them a glance, and occasionally click them (which goes for all ads, I don’t shy away as a principle). To me, they haven’t degraded to the way one shies traditional banners on regular, ad-crammed sites, but maybe that’s just me.
January 16, 2008 11 replies
Wisdump redesign concepts
As I’ve hinted before, there’s a redesign of Wisdump - by yours truly - coming soon. I thought I’d share some elements from this design with you. Overall, the idea is to stay true to the whitespace look, but do a better job placing ads and such. Also, Wisdump will be sub-networked with related Splashpress sites, more on that later on.
