Afterflux, a weblog written by a 16 year-old named Jack, is a mixture of the good and bad that is found in different proportions in the majority of websites.
I Am Jack’s Unnecessary Frontpage
— Afterflux begins with an introductory page that doesn’t seem to have much purpose. Sure, you can break out of frames on the off chance that you’re entrenched within them, and it’s nice to know what resolution you should have before entering the site, but other than that there’s little reason for delaying entrance to the main site.
I Am Jack’s Fondness For Clip Art
— Once inside the main site, you will be immediately impressed by the background image that gives the content a border of sorts. It’s very well done, although it could use being pressed right up to the page’s edge. However, the look is spoilt by what I consider unnecessary use of clip art. There is the mandatory stor trooper (granted I used to have one myself), each post begins with a pencil image greatly reminiscent of the mid-90s, and the banners (advertising the site itself) do not carry the colour scheme or design principles very well.
I Am Jack’s Teenage Blog
— Those of you who have read many teenage blogs already will be familiar with the tone and content of the posts here. That’s in no way a bad thing of course; despite what they themselves may think of the notion, most teenagers think and behave along similar, hormone-driven lines. So if you want to hear about school, first experiences of the working life, and other teenage events, visit Afterflux. The content is in no way bad, but maybe less interesting as it could. Of course, I am out of touch with today’s youth, so you should read for yourself rather than rely on my judgement.
I Am Jack’s Dislike For Obvious Structure
— Like so many of his generation, Jack shuns obvious descriptions for the various sections of his site. Instead of ‘About’ there is ‘Admire’, instead of ‘Blog’ there is ‘Babble’. Interesting. Unfortunately, Jack is also a little too reliant on the browser’s Back button, which is always a nuisance when you venture deeper into a site, but is especially distracting and disorienting when you are navigating within a frame.
All in all, I think Afterflux is worthy of a visit. I still don’t understand entirely why it was called Afterflux, but that’s irrelevant. Go and see Fight Club as well though.afterflux