Comments on: Muckbeast – New and Improved http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html Game Design, MUDs, MMOs, and Virtual Worlds Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:34:32 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.2 hourly 1 By: Kelly http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-43 Kelly Tue, 17 Feb 2009 01:02:55 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-43 Thanks for the explanation. I'm glad you're going to keep blogging at least. :) Thanks for the explanation. I’m glad you’re going to keep blogging at least. :)

]]> By: Muckbeast http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-40 Muckbeast Mon, 16 Feb 2009 20:03:51 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-40 I had to do it all by hand. :( Since the time I signed up with Today.com, they have radically changed the terms of the agreement without my consent. The forced theme change was one thing. The dramatic increase of ad placement in the MIDDLE of content was another. But the last straw was when they informed me they would no longer pay for posts that had links to articles I had written on <a href="http://www.brighthub.com/members/mhartman.aspx" rel="nofollow">Bright Hub</a>. That is just asinine imho. One of the most common formats for a blog posts goes something like this: <blockquote> Title I just read a really interesting article about TOPIC - ARTICLE TITLE WITH LINK. blah blah blah blog author's opinion, analysis, etc. of the article and then an invitation for blog readers to comment on it as well. </blockquote> The fact that I wrote the article should make no difference at all. My author hub at Bright Hub has a feed back to my blog, which means any time someone reads one of my articles on Bright Hub it drives (well, drove) traffic back to Today.com. During the month I started using my Bright Hub articles to get discussions going, my unique visitors total increased by 500%. Why they would take issue with that is asinine. The practice generates traffic for them as well, so they should stop being so selfish. This is part of an overall internet trend I am planning to write an article about later this month: the AOLization of the internet. Almost every site out there wants to be a walled garden that jealously guards the eyeballs of their readers and wants to pretend there are no other web sites on the internet. The idea of traffic/link exchanges is totally foreign to the current Web 2.0 crowd. It is really a negative force overall. Anyway, that's my mini-rant. I'll write a full rant at some point regarding Today.com and why I had to leave. Thanks for visiting, Kelly! I had to do it all by hand. :(

Since the time I signed up with Today.com, they have radically changed the terms of the agreement without my consent. The forced theme change was one thing. The dramatic increase of ad placement in the MIDDLE of content was another. But the last straw was when they informed me they would no longer pay for posts that had links to articles I had written on Bright Hub.

That is just asinine imho. One of the most common formats for a blog posts goes something like this:

Title

I just read a really interesting article about TOPIC – ARTICLE TITLE WITH LINK.

blah blah blah blog author’s opinion, analysis, etc. of the article and then an invitation for blog readers to comment on it as well.

The fact that I wrote the article should make no difference at all. My author hub at Bright Hub has a feed back to my blog, which means any time someone reads one of my articles on Bright Hub it drives (well, drove) traffic back to Today.com. During the month I started using my Bright Hub articles to get discussions going, my unique visitors total increased by 500%.

Why they would take issue with that is asinine. The practice generates traffic for them as well, so they should stop being so selfish.

This is part of an overall internet trend I am planning to write an article about later this month: the AOLization of the internet. Almost every site out there wants to be a walled garden that jealously guards the eyeballs of their readers and wants to pretend there are no other web sites on the internet. The idea of traffic/link exchanges is totally foreign to the current Web 2.0 crowd. It is really a negative force overall.

Anyway, that’s my mini-rant. I’ll write a full rant at some point regarding Today.com and why I had to leave. Thanks for visiting, Kelly!

]]> By: Kelly http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-39 Kelly Mon, 16 Feb 2009 13:52:28 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-39 How were you able to move all your entries to this new site? How were you able to move all your entries to this new site?

]]> By: Muckbeast http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-38 Muckbeast Mon, 16 Feb 2009 12:48:02 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-38 How is it looking now? Better? I also updated the way permalinks are created for the specific posts. For example, the direct URL to this page is now: http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html How is it looking now? Better?

I also updated the way permalinks are created for the specific posts. For example, the direct URL to this page is now:

http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html

]]> By: Milawe http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-36 Milawe Sun, 15 Feb 2009 21:33:41 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-36 Think about ditching the 4 shades of gray (pick one?) and the yellow, I think. You'll still be kicking around with gray, white, black, blue, and purple. That's 5. Oops. I found some green, too. Think about ditching the 4 shades of gray (pick one?) and the yellow, I think. You’ll still be kicking around with gray, white, black, blue, and purple. That’s 5. Oops. I found some green, too.

]]> By: Muckbeast http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-35 Muckbeast Sun, 15 Feb 2009 19:01:14 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-35 The default background color for comments alternates between white and light grey. But my comments are always light blue, as an editor/administrator. Do you think the alternating colors for user comments is not a good feature? It is mainly there for distinguishing between comments. # of colors: Too many colors, eh? Lets see. For things in a white or grey background, text is black, purple is the main link color, blue when you mouse over it. For things that have a black background, white is the text color, and yellow for links. Then the side bars have grey text for links - something I do not like and want to change to purple like the other links as soon as I can find where to change that. Too much? The default background color for comments alternates between white and light grey. But my comments are always light blue, as an editor/administrator. Do you think the alternating colors for user comments is not a good feature? It is mainly there for distinguishing between comments.

# of colors: Too many colors, eh? Lets see. For things in a white or grey background, text is black, purple is the main link color, blue when you mouse over it. For things that have a black background, white is the text color, and yellow for links. Then the side bars have grey text for links – something I do not like and want to change to purple like the other links as soon as I can find where to change that.

Too much?

]]> By: Longasc http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-34 Longasc Sun, 15 Feb 2009 12:20:05 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-34 BTW, Sony Online Entertainment starts some kind of browser MMO aimed for <18 players and families that requires no installation, lowest hardware requirements but a broadband connection. It also has alternative payment methods, mini subscription plus buying extra content and so on. Maybe something for Test, regarding the payment model, not sure about the content. Just google "SOE Free Realms". BTW, Sony Online Entertainment starts some kind of browser MMO aimed for <18 players and families that requires no installation, lowest hardware requirements but a broadband connection. It also has alternative payment methods, mini subscription plus buying extra content and so on. Maybe something for Test, regarding the payment model, not sure about the content. Just google “SOE Free Realms”.

]]> By: Longasc http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-33 Longasc Sun, 15 Feb 2009 10:58:27 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-33 @Muckbeast: Sure, feel free to modify and do whatever you want. It is not like it was ME who created the eerie header graphic, actually. ;) BTW, my first comment here has a white background. But then the colors of the comments change light grey - light blue - light grey - light blue ... so why is the first comment's background the only WHITE one. Have fun fiddling around with the blog design! :) P.S.: My necromancer dress doll in Guild Wars goes by the 4 color rule Black-intense Red-White-a bit light grey... ;) @Muckbeast: Sure, feel free to modify and do whatever you want. It is not like it was ME who created the eerie header graphic, actually. ;)

BTW, my first comment here has a white background. But then the colors of the comments change light grey – light blue – light grey – light blue … so why is the first comment’s background the only WHITE one.

Have fun fiddling around with the blog design! :)

P.S.: My necromancer dress doll in Guild Wars goes by the 4 color rule Black-intense Red-White-a bit light grey… ;)

]]> By: Milawe http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-30 Milawe Sun, 15 Feb 2009 02:11:13 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-30 I'm very much a person who believes in the 3 color rule for almost everything I do. You want to have three prominent colors on anything you do and leave it at that. So far, I've counted seven on yours. (Ours?) Want me to take a stab at it? I’m very much a person who believes in the 3 color rule for almost everything I do. You want to have three prominent colors on anything you do and leave it at that. So far, I’ve counted seven on yours. (Ours?) Want me to take a stab at it?

]]> By: Muckbeast http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/meta/muckbeast-new-and-improved.html/comment-page-1#comment-26 Muckbeast Sat, 14 Feb 2009 21:06:24 +0000 http://www.frogdice.com/muckbeast/?p=74#comment-26 You know, that purple version of the header graphic actually pulls the colors of the site together better in my opinion. I'm going to experiment with that, if you don't mind Longasc. You know, that purple version of the header graphic actually pulls the colors of the site together better in my opinion.

I’m going to experiment with that, if you don’t mind Longasc.

]]>