Yes, this is way off the topic of web design, but it was funny and thought provoking:
The main argument is that since ice is 9% bigger by volume than water, it’s not likely that the polar ice caps melting would cause flooding. I have no idea about the validity of the argument because I can’t verify the amount of water such melting would release, or how that relates to the volume of the oceans, but presentation is everything!
April 15th, 2008
I just received an email from a friend that contained a transcript of a monologue Ben Stein delivered on CBS. Reading the message, I naively assumed it had been delivered over the weekend. Towards the end of the message, I started reading things that only a conservative Christian would say, and this confused me. When did Ben Stein convert?
It turns out that the kind folks at Snopes.com have done some research on this little round-robin email message, and discovered that the message began when a rough transcript of the monologue delivered on CBS December 18, 2005 was circulated via email. Sometime in 2006, someone added commentary to the end of the message that then was passed on as Mr. Stein’s own words.
This is a great example of urban legend, and some very valuable thoughts from Ben Stein on religion in America for this time of year. Read the story here.
So what’s the point of this anecdote? It’s a simple reminder that what we write in an email can live on … and on. It can come back to haunt us, be forwarded, twisted, and propogated … all by people who have no idea of the truth or error of the message they send. Perhaps that should make all of us think twice before we send an email message or hit the forward button.
November 3rd, 2006
It’s official. Logo Designers are now obsolete! Web2.0 Logo Creator is taking over our market share. 
I found this web site that parodies the current Web2.0 look from a link on Squidoo and just had to share it.
Here’s my new logo that was generated in about 3 seconds!
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Here’s the one I spent several hours creating myself:
Go figure. Not bad for a machine! Of course mine looks better in context.
August 18th, 2006
Though the response to this poll was not unanimous, most respondents felt that content is the most important factor to a Web site’s success. One weakness of this poll is that it did not define success or the type of Web site in consideration.
I have seen Web sites that seem to function very well as sales tools for design companies and yet they feature very little text content, focus on graphics and generate traffic by word of mouth. For Web sites such as these, design is of utmost importance.
For the lion’s share of Web sites that depend on search engine traffic rather than word of mouth, content is of the greatest value. In fact, it functions as a currency that “purchases” traffic from the many online search portals. For these Web sites, it is truly “publish or perish.”
Which element is most important to a Web site’s success?
* Short Page Load Time: 15% (3)
* Excellent Design: 20% (4)
* Valuable Content: 65% (13)
Total Votes : 20
June 22nd, 2006
I discussed a post on how to get more effect out of a business card here, and recently redesigned my own card. The design is admittedly conservative. This is because stability is highly prized by the business community, at least in this area.
I added my own twist on the back of the business card idea by including a coupon … we’ll see how it works. Take a look below:
June 16th, 2006
One of the ongoing frustrations of blogging, and of maintaining a Web site in general, is that though I can guess how many regular readers I have and even where they come from geographically, I don’t know anything about you with certainty. Let’s remedy that problem!
I would like to know who you are, a bit about your interests and why you’ve visited this site, and what I can do to make this blog more relevant to your information needs.
If you’re too timid to introduce yourself here, please visit my contact page and send me an email introduction. I will be delighted to hear from you!
June 3rd, 2006
The magic of flickr. A very easy form here will let you play with this flickr spelling feature.
March 29th, 2006
All right, I’ve had it. I am now officially tired of being enticed to read articles with titles like, “Is Google Dead?”, “Is Search Engine Optimization Dead?”, “Are Business Blogs Dead?”
A slightly toned down version questions the end of a company or trend in ominous tones … I just can’t resist clicking … “The End of Solution-Based Selling?”
Yes, I am a sucker for controversial ideas, but none of these articles delivered on my expectations! The titles (actually some are real and some fictional) grabbed my attention and clickthrough and the content didn’t even begin to discuss a death or even sickness. More importantly, they rarely actually report on how the trend, company or idea is faring.
At least the title of THIS post is accurate. Using phrases like “The End of …” and words like “Dead” in a title is annoying, and I won’t be a sucker any more.
No more death! I’m just not clicking through.
This gimmick is DEAD!
March 21st, 2006
The last survey was up for two weeks with moderate response, but the response was unanimous.
Those few brave souls who voted were given a choice between these two phrases:
The unanimous favorite was The best Web sites don’t make me wait.
This week’s poll is:
Which element is most important to a Web site’s success?
March 18th, 2006
College design student, Phil Renaud, has an interesting theory about the impact of typography on term-paper grades. This is insightful and fun reading!
March 12th, 2006
CSS Web design, e-commerce Web design, and internet marketing issues from the desk of Harvey A. Ramer at Design Delineations.
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