Archive for January, 2007

January 12th, 2007

I am screaming and punching myself - Review

Posted by Bloggeries in Spotlight

nullIt is nice to be able to sit down knowing that you are about to review a site that you really enjoyed reading. I won’t lie, alot of the time I quickly read 3 or 4 posts and check out some sections of blogs before reviewing them, after-all first impressions count! However, I am about to review a blog I found interesting, clean and well written that blog is… I am screaming and punching myself, no don’t worry I have not gone crazy, that indeed is the name of the blog. While I do not agree with everything in the blog, the posts do give me a insight into what the blog author is like.

Being a web designer myself I am always interested in blog designs, I feel a bad design can ruin the blog, while a good one can really send it into the limelight. This blog is well designed when it comes to aspects such as the colors. The main color used on the blog is maroon, however in generally there is not to much color on the blog, which in this case is a good example of keeping the blog clean. Dispite this, clean does not have to mean dull. The posts themselves keep the blog looking interesting, with well formatted post images that look like that fit right into the design, the viewer will not feel like they are looking at a block of text with no visual advancements. The images used in the blog are of small file size and have been edited to fit into the space given for posts, unlike some other blogs who just copy images from here-there and everywhere. The blog creator includes several things on the left menu, including a somewhat scary picture of the author! The Recent Posts allows for the viewer to quickly browse the posts, which on a blog such as this it is handy to keep up with recent posts. Also it includes Categories, some blogs have recently started to drop using Categories and it good to see that this blog has decided to keep them. There is a select amount of Categories and each pretty much are based around the popular culture topic. However the design in this blog in no way the best bit, the content is pure gold.

Effort really has been put into the posts, with both the use of good images that really work well with the posts content and the great writing style. The posts are long, however not to drawn out and stay directly on topic. Grammar is used well and none of the posts are dull in anyway. The posts cover a wide range of content, however unlike some blogs the posts are always on topic and tend not to walk away from what the blog is about, which is great to see, and it shows dedication from the blog creator.

Overall it was great to review this blog, and while I can’t really point out anything I don’t like, I would love to here your views to see if you to find this a interesting blog. We are giving it our max score, yes this blog has scored a Blogging great 5/5!

We are Bloggeries would like to thank the Blog creator for the donation, donations are a sure way to make sure your blog is quickly reviewed, and while we do our best to review all blogs submitted to us, it may not always be possible without a donation. Donations however do not effect the final ranking of the blog, as all reviews here at Bloggeries are fair and honest views.

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January 9th, 2007

Ghislain’s Blog, it confused us!

Posted by Bloggeries in Reviews

nullWell after a short break from all of us at Bloggeries I am back with a review! Ghislain’s Blog is a blog about… well I don’t know! The blog itself has no real direction and as such I can’t point out one thing which the blog is about, in fact, after reading it for a good amount of time, I just feel confused, and the strange text formatting does not help a thing! However not all is lost, the design is fabulous!

The design consists of mainly grey, and while this may seem a bit down for some people it uses the color without looking bland. While there is no one single thing that really shouts at you from the design, the shades of grey going from light to dark really bring out a depth within the design. The design could do with being slightly more unique however, and the lack of any logo or header image means the user will not be able to instantly recognize the blog, and being that the design is not unique to this blog, it could mean the average Joe can’t tell Ghislain’s Blog from another random blog using the same design. There are 3 columns within this design, something many blogs try to avoid doing due to not allowing enough space for the written content, however, unlike many other attempts to use the 3 column design, this one pulls it off. The content is on the left and the two menus on the right, this means that the user can quickly view the content without having to view between two menus. The first menu uses a lot of images, and this can really create problems for users with slower internet speeds, the pictures are random and like the rest of the blog, have no one direction. The 2nd menu is short, and for some it may seem pointless to have two menus if you do not have enough to fit onto them. Visually the menus have plenty of color due to the pictures, and while the issue with speed is present, it does add more of an element of change between the content and the menu.

The content is strange to say the least, while I am trying to work out what it is about, it does not help that it has strange formatting, some what in the style of old ransom notes demanding money. What small amount of written content there is within the blog is written well, and if it was not for the formatting it would be much grander. That is really all I can say about the content, as I can not find a direction, and to really review content I need to know what the heck it is about!

Overall it is a shame this blogs content is ruined by strange formatting and lack of direction, otherwise it would be a great blog, the design is great and only ruined by the pictures. I see this blog going far if some more effort was put into it, and it was cleared up slightly. I shall be rating this blog a 2. The content really let it down, but the design has helped it.

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