Archive for November, 2007
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Posted by Bloggeries in Sports
Bloggeries is going to review an interesting personal / sports blog and this one is going to focus on the topic of shark fishing. You can find this blog, called Fishing for Big Sharks. This blog is strictly about shark fishing, and emphasizes that the fishing is for BIG sharks, mostly catch and release. The blogger is known as Christo and writes from Mosselbay, South Africa. You can find out all there is you need to know about Christo and his interest through any of his most recent bloggeries: Light Tackle Boat Fishing, Amazing Shark Video, Back on the Beach and smiling, Violent Great White Shark Attack, Big Fish….Nice Surprise, Getting Withdrawal Symptoms, Fishing the Winter Blues, Hound Sharks at Santos Beach, Sharks Going Wild Again, and Really Bad Weather Again.
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Navigation on this blog is very straightforward as the blog is laid out very nicely and well organized. The header contains a beautiful shark picture, and the theme is black text on white background with a blue border lending much oceanic appeal to the entire blog. Links also are highlighted in blue. Bloggeries are left marginalized and there is a right navigation bar that contains an about and profile page, categories menu, AdSense, Google Search Bar, Archives Menu, and a healthy list of fishing and useful sites. You will also find here an extensive list of fish and shark pictures, sunset and nature photos, video clips on fishing and sharks, and some news bulletins pertaining to sharks. The categories menu is very extensive with categories divided into different shark types as well as some categories designated to fishing methods itself.
I will go with a 3 for this blog at this point. At the time of review the blog scores well for navigation, appearance, and content, however activity is really hurting the blog scores right now. This blog definitely needs more frequent updating in order to be a success, as bloggeries are coming in only every few weeks at the moment. When this blog was reviewed, the last bloggery was posted on September 7th. However, this blog is very aesthetically appealing for its niche, and is very well organized and easy to navigate. Adding to the appearance scores for the blog are the extensive and beautiful pictures that the blogger provides in just about every bloggery. If you are a nature lover, you will truly enjoy the aesthetic appeal of this site. The content is well written as well, and given that this is a personal blog, the personal voice the blogger gives to its readers is very well written. If this blogger is able to update his blog a little more frequently, he should see some success from it.
-Chrissie
Posted by Bloggeries in Humor
Many people that enjoy blogging enjoy reading blogs as well and the two past-times often go hand in hand. If you are looking for something fun to add to your reading list, you may want to check out the latest personal blog that Bloggeries is reviewing – the Irrelevant Title. That is to say, the name of the blog is The Title is Irrelevant… Or is it?. The blogger asks in his header, ‘The title is irrelevant…or is it?’ I am sure readers of the blog each have their own opinion to that answer as this is a blog on a little bit of everything, and some of nothing, but is very well done nonetheless. The blogger’s name is Gary, his purpose in life is to make people laugh and here he says you will find some of the most hilarious pieces of modern literature ever written. Or – the most awful piece of garbage. Gary doesn’t really care how you opine on his blogging, he’s going to do it anyway. Get a feel for the nothingness of this blog through any of his recent bloggeries: How Cool are You? Take This survey and find out!, Weird Phobias, Classmate Speech Evaluation, Words of Consolation, Nothing but Stupid…., My crazy story Pt.2, Why I Hate Making Phone Calls, If You Could Interview God…., Global Warming – The Silent Killer, and Some Toilet Humor.
Navigation on the blog is very simple and straightforward. Posts are left marginalized and there is a right navigation bar. Bloggeries are black text on white background with blue border and various shades of blue color theme with corresponding links in blue. In the right navigation system you will find an About page, Links menu, Previous Posts menu, and Archives Menu going back to September 2007. Bloggeries are written in essay format in the sense that each bloggery is fairly lengthy, it is clear this blogger is very dedicated to his writing. Some of the bloggeries contain relevant pictures, though the blog is more text than it is visual material. The content is well done, and appears in a strong personal voice matching the personal blog niche of this site. And overall the blog is a good read, you will smile, chuckle, and enjoy the tone of the blog. For me, it reminded me of a running series of Seinfeld episodes – humorous tales of pretty much nothing but you laugh nonetheless.
I will go with a 4 for this one, the blogger seems to be doing well on all counts. The content is well written and speaks to the audience, and the blog is fairly active as well. Currently bloggeries are coming in almost every day or every couple of days at most. Navigation on this blog is very easy. I might suggest a categories menu, but it may be difficult with the nature of this blog. However categories in keyword friendly terms may bring the blogger more traffic if he labels each of his posts with keywords. The blog is definitely unique, and definitely sustains the readers attention. I would suggest perhaps adding more pictures to the blog to make it more aesthetically pleasing, or to shorten up some of the posts. The bloggeries are fairly lengthy and it gives the blog a very texty look to it and for Internet readers, it may be difficult to stay on board with some of the posts. However, overall, this is a very good blog for one that has only been around for a few months and is well worth a coffee breaks read if you are looking for a good chuckle.
-Chrissie
Posted by Bloggeries in Politics
If you are looking for a good political blog to sink your teeth, and your opinions into, you may want to have a look at the Take a Stand Against Liberals blog. I do offer a reader advisory warning on this spot however, if you are looking for a clean blog without profanity, this may not be the one for you. The blog is politically motivated with a definite stance and strongly voiced opinions and as such, does contain some language for the over 18 crowd. This language is not pervasive on the blog and only comes up now and again, but nonetheless, due to this content, the advisory is issued. However, if you are the type that this does not bother, you will probably love this blog, particularly if you enjoy hearing strong opinions. The blog offers a fresh voice with the purpose of ‘screwing politically correct b.s.’ and offers in its header a quote by Ronald Reagan: “It has been said that politics is the second oldest profession. I have learned that it bears a striking resemblance to the first.” The blogger with this fresh voice is known as Jenn of the Jungle and hails from California. She offers in her profile information that the blog is entirely her own opinions and invites you to either disagree or otherwise while at the same time noting that death threats are not welcome. She disclaims that the blog is not endorsed by anyone, other than of course her dog Liberty who may be running for President I 2008. You will get a great taste for this blog in just the first few bloggeries you get to read: Be Vewy Qwiet, We’re Huntin’ Tewwowists; Lieberman Tells it like it is; Charges Dismissed; More Idiocy in Coloradistan; Par Tay Another Dead Terrorist!; I Love I.C.E.; and Winning Hearts and Minds.
You will find navigation on this blog very simple. The header sports a patriotic banner supporting the troops with a blinking banner that throws out slogans such as “We stand with Israel”, “Defeat Islamo Fascism”, “Islam is not a religion of Peace”, and “Infidel Blogger” among many more like minded quips. The blog is cleanly laid out with black text on white background with many colors through ads and banners adding some pizazz to the blog without overwhelming it with distraction. Bloggeries are left marginalized and there is a right navigation system that contains ads, About Me page, Last Posts menu, Archives going back to September 2005, Links and Awards (such as Best Political Blog), Email me Info, and Blog Widget Buttons. The only thing I do not see in the navigation system is a categories menu, though I do see labels attached to each post. Labels for this blog include the like of ‘Screw Terrorists’, ‘Illegal Immigration’, ‘Bill Clinton is a tool’, ‘Indoctrination Centers’, and ‘Muslims take over the World’ to name a few.
I am going to go ahead and give this blog a 4.5/5. There is little that I can offer in the way of improvement as this blog is clearly doing very well. This is noted through its hits counter of over 170k and its well established readership that offers a running commentary on every post. The blog is neatly laid out and easy to navigate though I would suggest a categories menu for the right navigation system. The appearance scores also do well with relevant pictures adding meaning to every post. Likewise, the content is fresh and unique and offers a crisply written style that I think would be an enjoyable read to anyone, regardless of what way they swing politically. The only other suggestion I would add for this blog is that it make a move to its own domain. The readership could clearly sustain it, and the blogger would be able to retain permanent ownership of the obviously unique writing style. This is a definite recommend from this reviewer and will definitely get a bookmark from me.
-Chrissie
Posted by Bloggeries in Blogging
If you are looking for another site or blog that can offer you additional insight on how to make your blog even better than it already is, then you may want to check out Blog Duck. This site is a blog that provides blogging tips and ideas and is geared towards helping people become better bloggers. You will find here ideas, articles, and information perfect for either the novice or the expert blogger. The owner, CEO, and webmaster of Blog Duck is Brian Alrdich, and he has been around the blogging block for awhile and can offer you some know-hows on what has and has not worked for him. An example of this would be in his anecdote on how using the likeness of Blog mogul John Chow backfired on him. While Brian has some contributing authors working for him at Blog Duck, you can still get a true sense for his personal voice, and his involvement at Blog Duck through any of the recent bloggeries: Is Your Blog Worth it?, When I Used to Think It Was OK to Use John Chow’s Likeness, Get Blog Rushed Already, A Quick Review of RevieWOW, Think and Don’t Drink and Blog, Why Being a Cow is Better Than Being a Chow, and When Hardware Held Me Back.
Blog Duck offers a clean design and layout making it very easy to navigate. Bloggeries are left marginalized and are black text on white background and links highlighted in blue. Though I have yet to understand the meaning of the duck theme, or the name of the blog, I think it’s cute and provides a unique feel to the blog. The header is in large bold lettering and includes a duck motif. Blog Duck contains two navigation systems, one in the right navigation bar, and a top navigation menu as well. In the top navigation menu you will find the Home link, About Blog Duck, Become an Author link, and a Contact Me section. In the right navigation system you find subscription buttons, a list of the 5 current blog authors that takes you to their own blogs or websites, a Categories Menu, Blogroll, Recent Readers widget, Recent Comments menu, and sponsors and ads. The categories menu is comprehensive and contains everything you would expect in a blog advice blog such as Alexa info, Google info, blogging, make money online, increase traffic, ideas, social bookmarks, reviews, speed linking, and many more.
I am going with a 4/5 on this one. I really enjoyed reading this blog and the blogger is definitely a credible source when it comes to advice and tips on blogging. I think the content has a unique personal voice that fellow bloggers will enjoy reading. The blog contains both sound advice with anecdotal speak so it is not only informative, but an enjoyable read. Blog Duck also scores well on navigation, appearance, and uniqueness criteria as all of these aspects make the blog a very easy read. My only complaint would be that there is not enough activity, and this is not to say I am complaining, but serves as a compliment to Blog Duck. The blog is well done, and would be much more successful with more frequent activity. This is the kind of blog that could retain a healthy readership, and would be more successful at that with more activity. Currently the last bloggery noted is October 19, and the bloggeries prior to that are coming in once every week or so. Simply put, we want more Blog Duck! The tips and advice are certainly well worth it.
-Chrissie
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