The Weblog Review

Kory Mohr, the primary (if not sole) contributor to Frontier Broadband’s Fixed Wireless News has used Pyra’s Blogger to not only enhance Frontier Broadband’s business site, but to provide timely technical information, as well. This creative and highly practical use of the weblog format will assuredly be welcomed by readers who have an unquenchable thirst for technical knowledge, particulary in the field of broadband innovations.



Casual readers and those searching for entertainment and/or personal insight need not bother with Frontier Broadband’s weblog, as the blog is targeted only at those with an interest in computer service technologies. This is a true specialized news site; updated often and with timely, well-chosen links. The layout is clean and spare, highly utilitarian and complimentary to its content. In fact, Frontier Broadband’s entire site is professional, as well it should be given the nature of the company’s business.



Compared to the typical weblog, Frontier Broadband’s Fixed Wireless News may seem dull and it’s content may be perceived as overwhelmingly technical. However, the reader should bear in mind that this is not a typical blog but a news source for a specific field. With this in mind, Frontier Broadband earns a high rating for both its content and style.Frontier Broadband fixed wireless news

If one is in the market for a plethora of anti-Usama bin Laden links, ImOvaHereNow is a good starting point. ImOvaHereNow also makes for a nice launching pad into the arena of stupid Internet tricks and visual ‘net humor. Unfortunately, it offers little else in the way of content and the sophomoric humor begins to wear thin after the first few posts.



ImOvaHereNow is not an especially sophisticated site, as is evident not only by its content, but also by its layout. It is, however, fairly easy to navigate and it views equally well in NS 6 and MSIE 5+. Upon loading the page in MSIE, the reader is greeted with a .wav of a child saying something to the effect of “I’m over here now, sat down.” After browsing through several pages of the site and being continually greeted with the same .wav, one is inclined to turn his or her sound off. As with the author’s content, the .wav file begins to irritate rather quickly; also, it detracts from the overall site.



As a humor site, ImOvaHereNow fulfills its obligation to the reader by providing an assortment of links to current events related juvenile humor. However, this site offers little to no original content and will prove tedious for readers who prefer personal perspectives.ImOvaHereNow

There is no doubt that in character has character, that of a 15 year old ambitious high school student. This weblog makes no pretense to be anything but a personal diary of sorts; and the author can best be defined by her choice of personal links and the content of her entries.



In character is one of the few blogs that actually views better in Netscape (reviewer uses NS 6) than MSIE 5+. It is not known if this is intentional on the part of the author; and, would-be readers should note that viewing with anything other than NS 6 can be frustrating. The content area is cramped, and although the author does provide side scroll bars within the frames, the frames themselves are not resizable. The font used is quite small and can make reading the author’s entries difficult. It seems fairly obvious that this is an experimental site for the author, one where the layout may change and, perhaps, evolve rapidly. Recommended site improvements include an enlarged content area, larger font, and an absence of frames.



In character’s content will certainly appeal to other teens, in that the author often writes of school, friends, and creative projects. The author is also quite intelligent and she is given to moral and philosophical thought on various topics ranging from poverty to terrorist activity. Unfortunately, the author does not update regularly and the lack of posts may leave the reader unsatisfied with his or her visit. To note, the author is also literate and her grammar is fairly clean despite the overuse of ellipses (i.e. …).



Potential readers of in character must be willing to give the author time to develop her own, well-defined style and voice on the ‘net. If the author maintains the site and determines to post on a more regular basis, it is wholly possible that in character will evolve into a highly entertaining, creative, and informative weblog. Finding one’s own niche on the ‘net can be a lengthly journey of sorts and it seems that the author of in character is well on her way to establishing her own vision and voice.







in character

I was really turned off when I went to this site because the site did not fit my window. Meaning I wasn’t able to get the whole site to be viewed on my screen. I couldn’t even alter the size of the window to get see the whole sidebar menu which had the links to take you around the site. On top of that, the window for the blog was really small making you have to scroll every few sentences which I didn’t like to do. I lost the arrow to click to scroll down because I practically disappeared. I don’t know if the site’s layout is new and being altered or what, but I found the layout a bit irritating.



Anyway, the blog. Blog was okay, nothing too exciting to rave about. I was only able to read about 4-5 posts from what was in the window. Sounded like the writer was going through some life changes dealing with school and college. She brought up one thing about the Internet about people, especially young girls who are giving out very personal information and made some good points about it. “Stalkers are fanatical about those they follow, and what better way to gain a stalker than to share your intimate details daily with them.”



Despite the site layout which I think would need some work, I think over all the site’s okay.

f.a.d.e.d.s.p.a.r.k.l.e.s

Qwertyuiop is not the average weblog. It is striking in appearance, stunning in content, and pointedly mixes together a welcomed blend of author commentary and well-chosen links. However, one must have a predilection for British politics and a further interest in world-wide current events in order to truly savor qwertyuiop; for it is not the typical personal weblog in that it does not strive to entertain, but to inform.



The author, Martin Griffiths, is both intelligent and concise in his observations. He does not pander to his audience and he seems to assume that qwertyuiop’s average reader is, at the very least, on par with his own base of knowledge. This assumption may prove too much for the casual reader, as the author offers no tantalizing hooks to draw one into his posts. Either the reader finds the content of interest, or he doesn’t. One does not necessarily feel invited to further explore the author’s posts, despite the fact that he often provides external links. And, though qwertyuiop may be categorized as a personal weblog, it tends to read as a public news source issued with a bit of personal perspective.



The layout of qwertyuiop is quite pleasing, melding a frame-like effect with an easy-to-read content area. Navigation has been carefully constructed and mostly condensed to menus for ease of use; however, many links to other parts of the author’s site are not yet active. The addition of more personal information in regard to the author would be a welcome addition, as it would help define the author’s point of view.



Qwertyuiop, while an excellent weblog with strong overall design, is not a mainstream blog and it does not appear as though the author has any intention of moving it in that direction. This weblog will appeal to readers who enjoy serious, yet dynamic, political content. Readers seeking a light and amusing read will not find it here.qwertyuiop