The Weblog Review

I couldn’t help but think that I had heard of this site before. When I first got to it, I knew I had seen it before but I couldn’t remember why. Then it occurred to me that I had reviewed this site, and sure enough I did back in January of this year.

The header is still the same for the most part as before, only this time it is spiced up for Halloween. In fact he now has multiple headers based on which month it is. He has headers for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentines Day, and is working on one for St. Patrick’s Day.

The blog is mostly about things going on in his life. This includes, but is not limited to, movies, traffic incidents, previous jobs and more. I really got a kick out of his post about slow drivers as that seems to be an issue I am dealing with recently.

Some things have changed ever so slightly since I last visited. It turns out this man of the cloth now carries a gun. I am still trying to figure out why he got a gun other than he could. I searched and searched, but did not find an answer to this question.

The design is still the same as I remember it though I could be wrong. It is just a simple two-column layout which looks like a modified word press template. One thing that did bother me was that in clicking the “previous entries” link, I was only given 4 or 5 entries. This resulted in a lot of work for me with regards to clicking since the author posts quiet frequently. Even when I selected the individual months, I was still forced to go 4 entries at a time. This was annoying.

The writing has taken on a more humorous tone to it which is nice. Since the first review I did, I have seen some subtle improvements which have made me change my thoughts on this blog. I am now going to give it a shot in my daily reads to see if I actually enjoy it on a daily basis, or if I just enjoyed reading the past 10 months of archives.
The Church of Dysfunction

When I traveled over to computer security I was expecting to read articles about current internet security problems. Instead I was disappointed. I ended up reading about how to setup a firewall, how to install anti-virus software, etc.

This site is a good site for the typical home computer user that doesn’t know anything about the dangers of being plugged into the internet. I would recommend most home users to check out this site for it tells you the useful information without the scare tactics tied to it. If you are an advanced computer user, this site is not for you…

The design was nice. It had a tan background with dark writing. Easy to read.

There is not that many posts right now, I would like to see more in the future. Maybe talk about issues that can put the non-computer person at risk. Like not locking down their wireless network they have setup at their house, or not updating their anti-virus software. I think information on phishing and pharming schemes would also be good information to give to the typical computer user.

Overall I would rate this site as a 3.5 for it is a good reference for the inexperienced computer user.
NULL

“a margin walker” is the title of the blog and I’m not sure what that means. Does the writer live life on the edge? And, if so, the edge of what? The subtitle, ” – Its [sic] about me – life – everything – the random thoughts of a twenty-something scotsman – ” suggests an attempt to speak to the larger world through an individual’s experience–to go from the specific to the general. The blog does not quite succeed

“a margin walker” has only existed since September 27, 2005. There are a total of forty-two posts, several of which are about installing a new template and many of which are quite short. At the one month mark, a blog is still finding it’s feet. In this case, the writer is still finding his voice. He tells vague personal stories, makes simplistic political commentary and is already discussing the searches that led to his blog. Give yourself some time to figure out why you are writing, what you’re going to focus on, what you want to write about and what level of privacy you are going to keep before you start with the meta-blogging. Please.

This writer tells us almost nothing about himself. He refers to a recently ended relationship without giving (many) details. It’s hard to get a handle on who he is. From one post to the next you don’t know whether to expect a rant on avian flu paranoia or a touching story about his mother’s battle with breast cancer. The quality of the writing is not great. There are grammar and syntax problems, but that may be the Scottish vernacular–it may just sound wrong to my ear.

There’s not enough content here. Not enough of a story to draw me in, let me know who he is or make me care about him. I’m sure he’s a nice fellow and I get some glimpses of him, but not enough to keep me reading.

On the design side, the template is pleasant. It is hosted on blogspot, pulled from Blogger Templates and it looks good. It’s easy to navigate and easy to read. The design might be the best thing about this blog. There are no links to speak of and no problems navigating the site.

There is not enough content for me to recommend this site. If the writer keeps at it and finds his voice, it may turn into something interesting. I’d come back in six to eight months and give it another chance.

NULL

“Part geek, part chic”, the caption says. Okay. It’s clearly a woman’s blog. I expected to find a lot of geek talk, but nah. There is just enough. As for the chic part, I don’t know.

As I read through, I have the impression that I have already read this blog. There’s something about the topics and the style. And yes!, I figured it out. This is Chandra –and you’ll find a very net profile of hers- and she used to post in another blog, Chandra’s Realm. Okay, it wasn’t that difficult to find that out, but I’m feeling like some kind of female Sherlock from the tropics (oh, yeah, so lame). It was good to see that I was familiar with the style. It would be a bad thing, I guess, if she had changed styles completely.

She writes about geek stuff, yes, but it’s not what is really important. She writes about… her life. The file of a married woman in her mid-twenties, who is really passionate about animals – especially cats. In her latest entries, you’ll find out about her yet to happen trip to New Orleans, where she will help rescuing pets that have been left behind. Oh, well, if that isn’t cool, I don’t know what is. She talks about politics, about being a vegan, about volunteer work. Posts are organized in categories. Finding an archive was impossible, but you can search inside her blog (if you know what you’re looking for, which would really help). I read all 4 pages available (her homepage is oddly presented that way) and couldn’t stop reading.

Design-wise, the blog is very simple but yet pretty. There are way too many banners on the side columns, though. She is into so many things, it’s hard to find your way around. All links work fine. And you can communicate with her by posting comments.

All things considered, I liked this blog. It’s not about anything in particular, it’s just about Chandra’s life, an ordinary person who writes in a very simple, personal and catchy way. I’ll give it a 4.
Chandra’s Realm

I briefly began sneaking around the “It Must Be Downhill From Here.” I liked the layout, except the fact all the text was centered. I felt the layout was very appropriate; however, I did not find any posts that would drag me into the blog whole heartedly.

The Weblog is about Jennifer’s life. It tells a lot about her life at “THE INN.” She recently quit working there; maybe that has been why her blog has not been active for the past month. She talked about the worst parts of her day and what pi**es her off. Though I agree with her on some aspects, I feel her blog would have greater appeal if it told more about her life rather than what makes her angry.

The design of the site is a blogger template. It has a simple blue background with poca dots. It has some images throughout the site, which was nice because it didn’t make the site feel blah. Also, all the text is centered, which I had a hard time reading.

She claimed that she joined The Weblog Review Staff to work on her writing career, I think she should use her blog to help increase her writing career. If Jennifer would do this it would increase her popularity, while drawing people into her blog and having them to return frequently. Some work is needed. There were some misspelled words, which is annoying when you are reading a blog. I rate this blog as a 3.
NULL