Linking within news stories

Responding to Paul Bradshaw's poser: when writing for the web do you think you should include links within an article, or leave it till afterwards?

Well I'm not sure there is a completely fail-safe right or wrong way?

Links within the story make logical sense, as adding them at the end may mean the read has forgotten their purpose or relativity.

Although linking at the end lets the reader read the story without distraction.

But if there are no links, then the stories become dead ends on the website, and that page becomes an exit page rather - BUT the external links take users away anyway?

On our site we add related internal links and useful documents in clearly spaced blocks either at a pertinent point near the top or the end of a story. But specific relevant links go within the flow.

Making money from online news

Paul Bradshaw's excellent series on the 21st century newsroom concluded with a round-up of how money can be made in the current online news climate.

A rapid development of online media has seen the newspaper industry struggle to keep up as the internet developed into multimedia and social-networking, but is now attempting to claw its way back with web2.0 redesigns and new business models aimed at maximising a multi platform approach to publishing.

This is easier said than done, but the nationals have taken the lead by improving their web offering by making sites more user friendly in terms of interaction and as a source of multimedia content.

The user and content are kings online, as there is a more level playing field than any other media, choice means online news sites must be lean, on the ball as well as clever about their revenue-making opportunities.

No one is making serious money from online news sites, there is no tried and tested business model.

But gradually as Paul points out we are figuring out what the customer wants, and bringing the audience and advertisers closer, in order to maximise value for money to the client and give the audience a more relevant commercial offering.

It is a steep learning curve for all inside the newspaper industry, as doing the 21st century news operation properly as the 2nd dotcom bubble grows means starting from scratch in some terms of technical and IT structures.

In order to maximise the examples and areas you rightly mention, companies have to really look at how they get content onto different platforms and how effectively and efficiently their advertising platforms work as inevitably money needs to be saved wherever possible.

Integration is key in terms of a multimedia approach to content, advertising and staffing. If your staff aren't ready or wholly willing to jump on the multimedia news publishing train it will hold up any progress.

Understanding RSS in plain English

The Commoncraft team have put together some great visual walk-throughs of webby terms and online services and tools.

Here's their explanation of RSS or Really Simple Syndication, to follow up they have even out together some FAQs:

BBC goes 2.0 beta-style

The new beta BBC homepage ticks all the customisation and functionality boxes with its new design and widget-driven layout.

Choose what, how and where your content is displayed. Choose your location to specify content, e.g. weather.

Apparently embedded video will be part of the finished product.

The retro clock and colour palettes work really well.

The features panel to the right will by all accounts reduce in size as it does overwhelm the page somewhat.

All in all, a decent user experience and great level of user control, but not losing the BBC's straightforward delivery of content.

the changing colour palette when features are selected is eye-catching, but not wholly necessary in its delivery.

They chosen colour should at least have some relation to a section of content within the site, or be less of a visual jump on the whole page.

Richard Titus (BBC's Acting Head of User Experience) and Sam England give more in depth behind the scenes backstory and analysis.

Here's a screenshot of the current layout and general personalisation options:

Netvibes going ginger

My start page of choice netvibes.com is about to upgrade to its ginger stage allowing users to create a time line of events and shared experiences, integrating more openly like a social network and make itself cross-compatible allowing developers to create widgets for the likes of facebook, myspace, Vista desktop gadgets and the iPhone.

I like netvibes' neat layout and simple way it lets me read related RSS feeds of content in tabs, as well as the usual widgets. It works pretty much the same as iGoogle and pageflakes, so its down to personal preference. See a video preview of netvibes' ginger features:


Netvibes Ginger: Add content from Maurice Svay on Vimeo.

10 songs: Ian Brown - F.E.A.R.

I cannot narrow it down to a favourite song, not even an order, but here's the starter, Ian Brown's epic and sublime but memorable and building F.E.A.R.

Strings definitely take good songs to another level, similarly Verve's Bittersweet Symphony sits alongside this one, but I will plump for Ian Brown.

Where's all the videos then?

I opened a new tab in Firefox to check out a video on YouTube, but it didn't react quick enough, so I end up on utube.com.

I wonder how much traffic they get from mistyped searches?

"Dear Utube.com,

Where all the videos then? Everybody's always talking about all the great and funny things but I cannot find anything on your site...

yours foolishly"

BBC answers own clown question

The BBC beta homepage screams at us 'Why are clowns so scary?', but the feature image (screenshot below) pretty much explains that one.

Thanks BBC.

Personally I'm not too horrified, but I have good friends who would not appreciate that image violating their dreams!

Who's in yourTest XI

England's squad for the New Zealand tour this year has caused plenty of discussion over at Aggers Beeb blog.

If only there were 11 obvious strong selections for the Test team, but that's half the fun isn't it?

Where would we be without feeling aggrieved at the promising youngster/in-form veteran being left out for some personal favourite of the captain or coach.

But realistically, for one reason or another (some of which not really explained or seemingly fair) we'll probably have to get used to not seeing any more of Geraint and Simon Jones, Paul Nixon, Chris Read (maybe he should move to Sussex), Mark Ramprakash and maybe even Andrew Flintoff (but I hope not)?! Discuss...

Back in the room

I've resurrected my Blogger account after more than a year in the wilderness.

It's quicker and easier to post here than my personal site, the Textpattern set-up isn't quite as accessible as Googleopolis's own Blogger, so here I am, and now I'm off to bed.

I seem to have a knack of going to bed later when I'm more tired? A rare gift?

Above or beyond the fold

For years the mysterious ways of allowing for the fold in web design gnawed away at me. Should this element be so low down? Should that list be above the fold? Where exactly is the fold for different users and browsers?

I try not to worry about where the fold will fall, and what might lurk beneath too much, as common practice, in recent newspaper website design in particular shows there's plenty of room below the fold for content.

Common design sense still dictates as long as the vital page components are clearly visible near the top of the view port, you should have some control of your visitors attention.

Milissa Tarquini writing for Boxes and Arrows states:
Branding must be above the fold. Navigation must be above the fold – or at least the beginning of the list of navigational choices. (If the list is well organized and displayed appropriately, scanning the list should help bring users down the page.) Big content (the primary content of the site) should begin above the fold.

Indeed as Milissa points out:

Because people think users don’t scroll. Jakob Nielsen wrote about the growing acceptance and understanding of scrolling in 19972, yet 10 years later we are still hearing that users don’t scroll.

Writing (upside down) for the web

Print journalism has its own established method of drawing readers into stories with cunning, witty headlines, leading to longer in-depth articles and reports, but online the method is turned on its head.

Online, less time and energy is spent reading long passages or articles, thus headlines and opening paragraphs should bring to the front the facts; the who, what, when, where of the story.

Inverted Pyramid

The inverted pyramid is a writing style where the summary of the article is presented in the beginning of the article. This approach makes use of the “waterfall effect” well-known in journalism where writers try to give their readers an instant idea about the topic they’re reporting. The article begins with a conclusion, followed by key points and finally the minor details such as background information. Since web users want instant gratification, the inverted pyramid style, as supported by Nielsen, is important for web writing and for better user experience. From Smashing Magazine, Usability tips

Writing for the web

When creating, editing and designing content for the web, get the message across as quickly as possible.

To do that, say as little as possible, and put the most useful and relevant content first.

Speak plainly and openly and use a tone of voice that's appropriate to the audience. From Web design from scratch

Successful newspapers online, the quest continues

Online newspapers are gradually finding their way to more successful times, as publishers unveil redesigns across the globe tap into best practices for design and usability, and the key areas of multimedia and interaction with the audience.

Here are some choice quotes that show the last remaining barriers to success for newspapers online ventures: Friday’s Five: Top Misconceptions by Newspapers Online by Erin Teeling at bivingsreport.com:

"Largely, the web is an untapped resource for newspapers."

Littering a homepage with buttons and links distracts people's eyes and prevent them from focusing on anything. Newspapers are better off leading with a couple of big headlines and pictures, letting a strong navigation do the rest of the work."


Unless you really have something superior to offer, registration barriers are only going to hurt your traffic."


Newspapers can compete in online classifieds. But to do so, they need to revamp their systems for creating ads and make them much more user- and web-friendly."

- I would say that the classified market is a real tough one, where combining the print and online products in an efficient and effective way for the mass audience is the golden ticket.

"Barriers to entry to the online world–costs and technical requirements–are dropping everyday. The Web is getting easier and cheaper as we speak."

- As for the technical side of putting together websites, true there are countless tools online, many free, that can aid and enhance a new newspaper website. But for an existing site, with much aged backend coding and elderly databases, the path to web 2.0 is a long, time consuming and potentially expensive one.

Ultimate question for the survival of newspapers

Newspaper websites are picking up the pace, attracting more and more visitors as their print brethren are struggling to keep slip behind. The key is that web content is largely free, thus relying on online advertising and/or support from print revenues.

As independent.co.uk adds:

Three-quarters of the visitors to the Telegraph website do not currently buy the paper. They tend to be very desirably 15 years younger than all those ageing faithful readers. Shouldn't a major objective of websites be to achieve conversion?

Web readers expect and usually get news as it happens, so what can a print version, that has deadlines offer? There needs to be extra value cross-references to and from the paper for both to survive and feed off each other.

My solution would be to offer stories up in short, concise format online, leading to, and heavily promoting a fuller, objective follow-up story in print.

But this would effectively mean newsrooms producing two versions of all copy, tightly sub-editing copy immediately for a web audience, then subbing a full version ready for the paper.

As well as creating more work the news team, shouldn't full stories be archived online? Repeat story viewings via search engines and related backstories all add to page impressions.

The only other strategy is to provide content in the print offering that cannot be provided digitally. Currently CDs, DVDs, books and wallcharts are the solution, but surely there's only so long this tactic can work?

Web audience measurement

From: Measuring "engagement" online at Guardian: Organ Grinder:

Nielsen points out that publishers are having to look at different ways of assessing visitor numbers and usage, mostly because new technologies such as Ajax refresh page content without actually refreshing the whole page. That means the data would show a user had only viewed one page, but actually the content would have changed many times. Ah, the delights of web statistics...

Keeping online news fresh

What do people want to read about? Newspapers can tell when their front page leads return big sales spikes, or particular issues or campaigns elicit a lot of letters and feedback. Newspaper websites have far more understanding and hard figures backing up their decisions.

Online, the options are endless, what works and what doesn't, where, how and when your visitors arrived at your site can be measured in minute details. Most popular stories can be recorded, eye tracking enables designers to produce layouts tailored towards the sites audience preferences.

Measuring trends and activity

At work we are getting an upgrade to our WebTrends site analytics software, which will greatly enhance our ability to track success stories amongst our site structure, layouts and page elements.

I can see it being fascinating to pinpoint what choices we make are working across the site, but coupled with the danger of getting too caught up in the statistics and forgetting to get on with keeping the site fresh.

One of the key methods of keeping the site fresh in terms of content is breaking or updated news at pivotal times of the day. This needs to be habitual, keeping your regular visitors returning when they know there will be something new. Jodie Hopperton describes The Telegraph's similar strategy at editorsweblog.org:

The Telegraph in contrast has 'touchpoints' throughout the day which are in essence mini deadlines to ensure news is fresh at each of its peaks: before work (9am), lunchtime (1pm) and leaving work (6pm).

Landing pages

It is important to remember, unlike newspaper readers who more often begin their read via the front or back page, not everyone of your site visitors comes in through the front door. So it is important to make use of site navigation and to create relevant mini hub pages where more content can be found, encouraging more clicks from passing 'trade', Jodie Hopperton again:

The pattern of usage is different from print to web and many people come through search engines looking for specific content/stories rather than browsing whats on offer as you would normally do in a newspaper.

Another vital key for first time or passing visitors, particularly to localised news sites is a sense of community. Local issues and campaigns should be prevalent, and opportunities for visitors to get involved and have their say should be easily accessible, Hopperton once more:

Creating a community ensures that these readers come back to the site as a central point, it's a good way of guaranteeing a base readership (assuming that the site continues to provide the same level of quality).

Online content doesn't go out of date the same day

Stories online can become or stay popular for days after they were first published. Anne Spackman, Editor of Times Online comments: "even after 2-3 days, old news is still alive, particularly with multimedia."

We have frequently found popular stories, in terms of page views, several days after a story went live, when it was buried lower down headline lists. This gives more valuable feedback on what an audience prefers, it's certainly not a mandate for leading stories, but remembering topics and issues that generate interest is part of the editorial process in a digital news-on-demand environment.

Online advertising continues to rise

Online advertising now accounts for 11.4% of all ad spending in the UK compared with 10.9% for newspapers. Modern online advertising systems like DoubleClick enables advertisers to buy exactly what they want, when they want, directed at people more likely to be interested. This is one key benefit when selling ad space with more confidence to businesses used to buying print media ad space. You get exactly what you pay for.

There is never a guaranteed return on any ad spend in national or local newspapers, print advertising can be hit and miss, unless you are placed in targeted supplements or specific sections of a publication.

The web enables companies to target their customers like never before. The user practically asks for ads that are relevant to them, or at least the technology is there to enable sites to do it, the big search engines are prime examples.
Richard Wray and Katie Allen writing in Saturday 31 March's Guardian Business add:

In search engine media, the advertiser is the content itself," according to Warren Cowan, founder and chief executive of Greenlight, a search-marketing group. He said: "In search engine marketing users request the advertising they see. No other type of advertising has been able to tap into this type of 'user solicited' advertising".

Online newspapers should take up this opportunity, giving local visitors to their news content relevant local ad content, rather than random generic brands that may be of no interest locally or specifically to the viewer on any page.

Search advertising allows companies to vie for position on search engines, so when a user looks for cheap TV sets, a holiday, an iPod or a car, their brand comes out on top. Search marketing is the antithesis of traditional advertising. Traditional TV, radio and print advertising relies upon brands interrupting a connection between an individual viewer or reader and content meant to inform or entertain them.

As the Guardian article concludes, one area that has been contentious is measurement of web statistics. But the Audit Bureau of Circulations Electronic will later this month begin publishing online statistics to enable advertisers and web companies to be better informed about how successful sites are and audience reach.

Multimedia news content tips

Steve Outing at editorandpublisher.com discusses ways to use news content online, but not just on originating sites. We have to move away from thinking of a newspapers output as a two-dimensional nailed down format, particularly in terms of multimedia content.

Apologies for using the whole passage en masse, but it all makes great sense to me at this current stage of newspaper evolution:

Newspaper companies increasingly are moving resources into producing video. Early adopters like WashingtonPost.com have been doing it for years, but now even small newspaper companies are trying their hand at video and going toe-to-toe with local news broadcasters -- or experimenting with new forms of video journalism.

If you're going to the trouble and expense of getting into video news, then make sure you spread it around; don't horde it on your own website and expect that to be enough.

Unlike some of the TV networks these days -- which send out the lawyers when one of their clips gets uploaded to YouTube by zealous fans -- newspaper companies should jump for joy that their video work can be distributed and seen by Youtube's huge audience. Think about getting your video work on multiple video services (there are lots of them).

Important, of course, is effectively incorporating your branding onto the videos. In caption fields, include the URL to get viewers to your website. Include a watermark logo in the video, and an intro that covers who produced this video, and perhaps sponsors.

Just as with newsworthy photos and Flickr, major news video can attract a significant audience on Youtube, et al. Newspaper companies should take advantage of what these online video services can offer in terms of exposure. And don't just tolerate your video work showing up on such services -- actively encourage and promote it!

Keep your headlines simple

Newspaper headlines in print can be quickly associated and placed in context along with surrounding images, graphics and sub-headings. But frequently online only headlines are are seen initially, meaning their composition is a key to that stories popularity.

The same is true of headlines on newspaper websites or blogs. Headlines need to be sharp, informative and visually strong. Clever play-on-words or sweeping emotive language will distract the reader.

Newspaper headlines in print can be quickly associated and placed in context along with surrounding images, graphics and sub-headings. But online sometimes only headings or headlines are are seen initially, for instance in search engine results or news aggregator sites, meaning their composition is a key to that stories popularity.

Traditional print writing style inverts this informative pyramid style, teasing the reader with emotive language and sparse yet intriguing imagery. But online it has to work the other way. Readers will rarely read long passages on screen, so the most newsworthy facts need to sit in the first three to four paragraphs.

The BBC do this for their news, where the first four paragraphs you read on the BBC News website will also be displayed on Ceefax. An example of reusing content without having to repackage it.

At one point during the film's [Snakes on a Plane] development, New Line altered the title to "Pacific Air Flight 121". Only Samuel L. Jackson's intervention prevented this disastrously-bland alternative from taking hold. In an interview at the start of the year, Jackson explained "I got on the set one day and heard they changed it, and I said, 'What are you doing here?'...They were afraid it gave too much away, and I said, "That's exactly what you should do. When audiences hear it, they say, 'We are there!'"

When users read the titles on your website, do they say the same?

Taken from the Etre.com newsletter #010 - August 2006.

Just say no to 'hits' measurement

Working in the new media industry I still find it's hard to get people used to measuring online success in terms of 'page impressions' and audience in 'Unique Visitors' (meanings of these below).

I find myself regularly (irritatingly condescendingly) correcting people who talk of 'hits', here's a definition of why hits are dead as a measurement of a web sites success:

"Hits: Requests for any single file on a Web server. A hit can be a request for a Web page or any element of that page, such as an image, a style sheet or an external JavaScript. Therefore, "hits" is a meaningless statistic for measuring Web traffic. A large number of hits on a website might mean that a site uses a lot of images or scripts on its pages, rather than that many people visit the site. "Unique visitors" over a defined period should be used to measure a site's popularity instead."

Measuring website statistics:

• Page impressions are the number of individual pages that are viewed on your site.


• Visits are the number of times a person or computer IP address is logged as having visited your site, regardless of how many pages the look at or what they do.


• Unique Users/Visitors are all the individual visitors to your site, if they visit more than once it still only counts as the same Unique Visitor of the chosen time period.

From the Online Journalism Review.

What will newspapers look like in 5 years?

Tabloids, supplements, give-aways, all have been tried to keep people buying newspapers over the last few years but news consumption is still in flux.

The tide is slowly turning against the printed newspaper, although it's death I suggest is not upon us.

The evolution and expansion of television and online news has given the public a constant output of rolling news coverage.

The printed word has its obvious limitations in the digital world, which leaves newspapers facing up to the possibility that their time as the news source of choice will fade.

That leaves newspapers with the job of producing websites that not only give users what they want, when they want it; as well as being a platform for expanding in the future; but also enable the editorial team to effectively and efficiently update the site.

The newspaper website

Newspapers in print, may have to trim down their output, while the quantity of constantly updated short sharp news is available online, a quality in-depth print product, filled with comment, opinion, features and measured commentary is published less frequently, maybe not even daily at regional level.

Part of the project for newspaper websites is a web standard design, layout, usability, accessibility and solid information architecture, but these depend on a clean and efficient backend of the site.

If old legacy code and creaky databases remain, producing interactive, multimedia friendly, well-designed pages will be hard, long and expensive work in the long-term.

The 24/7 editorial strategy

As revenue becomes tight at newspaper titles, staff and resources are cut and centralised, but the editorial team must remain strong and feel that they have some hope in a digital news future.

As The Guardian staff are now debating it sounds like a huge leap into multimedia 24/7 news coverage from working to print deadlines.

It is possible, with the right systems support and multimedia resources in place to streamline the editorial process, for the news team, with some realistic, quality training, can develop content skills to include relevant multimedia narrative tools to keep the modern news viewer's needs fulfilled.

There's no worn path for newspapers to tread in the digital world, so research, advice and a realistic approach is needed, along with a deep breath before making the leap!

The BBC are setting the standard for digital news as you would expect with the burden of making a profit lifted form their agenda, while newspapers, both national and local need to find their niches and their own distinctive voices. If they can do this efficiently and work out how to make some money along the way, then a digital strategy may keep them afloat.

The web still needs news editors

The growth of user generated content and socially driven news sites where users dictate the popular stories are numerous, but one ingredient remains essential.

Experienced editorial decisions about what is news will always be necessary. News providers on local and national levels will still be the gatekeepers, enhanced by the investigative blogger or dedicated and knowledgeable local citizen journalist.

These editors in turn gain feedback from what audiences of their own networks and the news aggregators find interesting and the cycle of quality news and more populist tabloid stories will happily continue.

Editors still have a very important function and that role will only increase in importance. They will be like a bartender at your favourite bar. People will go to them expecting the best information and as long as that information remains quality, those readers will continue to return.

Quote by: Jason Pontin; from: editorsweblog.org.

Never assume understanding online

To assume is to make an ass out of u and me.

I'd never heard that until recently, no really. But when working in the online world, it is a pertinent phrase. Just because I know how to find things quickly with Google, or what software is required to open a particular file type (not that I can claim to know them all!), it doesn't mean the audience that I am responsible for will.

This goes for developers, designers, content producers and all that are engulfed in a digital world, we should never take our audience's level of understanding for granted.

Many are able to bring in aspects of the offline world into their work that enhances the usability of products or services.

But for some digital workers it is often vital to step back from a piece of work, or some web specific copy to imagine what someone who rarely dabbles online might make of what's been created.

It is eye-opening to realise how many people visit a search engine to search for... a search engine. Part of me sniggers, but the less sneering side realises that a large part of the population don't go online everyday.

Not everyone is up to speed with the latest 'coolest' websites or crazes; they don't get their daily fix of news online; they prefer banking in a more human-interactive environment; and aren't sure about shopping in a paperless, digital world.

It's a responsibility of anyone producing any content or work seen online: making something advanced or ultra-modern is wasted if your target audience are unlikely to know how to use it easily. Myself included!

England's Ashes pain ends, but what now?

Fifth Ashes Test: Australia win by 10 wickets and the series 5-0, yes 5-0, no draws, no scraps for England.

And so an end to my nights of listening to an session of Test Match Special before dropping off to sleep assuming there is some hope of a decent days work by our boys abroad, only to be woken by the morning news that we had blown another opportunity and that the game was all but up.

We all know what went wrong, with errors of judgement and poor performances along the way, but what for the future of the team:

Andrew Strauss: Obviously good enough, but needs to knuckle down more often and stop getting ropey umpiring decisions!

Ally Cook: Shows great promise, his mid-series Test century showed that, but needs to progress as he matures.

Ian Bell: Great improvements since the last Ashes, showed some guts on and off, could be a winner at number 3 if Vaughan doesn't return.

Kevin 'All or nothing' Pietersen: As the name suggests, it's a big impressive whackathon or not a lot from the shot-playing king.

Paul Collingwood: One monumental effort and some failures don't cement his place, but the lads got stamina and ability.

Freddie Flintoff: Never fully fit, too much responsibility, not enough support. By the end of the series he showed signs of his former self with bat and ball. He will be back, but as an all-rounder/captain, I'm still not convinced.

Gerry Jones: Can't be preferred to Read any more, unless he smacks a couple of tons early in the 2007 summer.

Chris Read: A fine keeper, but his batting has been shown up by the best. Surely his stop start career deserves another series to let him improve?

Matthew Hoggard: Dependable as ever, our bowling rock, get fit soon. Probably the only player to hold his head high at series end.

Jimmy Anderson: Personally I think he has shown enough promise to persevere with, some hanging around with the bat won't do him any harm!

Saj Mahmood: Personally he looks to ragged with bat and ball, and as for the schoolboy run out error of Warne in the final Test...

Harmy Harmison: Thankfully he ended the series in far better form than he began, unfortunately he began it in appalling form. Question marks still linger, but he isn't the worst tail ender.

Ashley Giles: An Tourus Horribilus for Gilo. As Warne put down the Ashes in 2005, an abiding moment for England will be his drop of Ponting in the Third Test. Hope he can put it behind him, but who knows how many opportunities he'll get now?...

Monty Panesar: He didn't set the world alight, but once he was rightfully given a chance he showed enough skill with the ball and courage with the bat to see him cemented as our first choice spinner.

Putting it in perspective, we were beaten by a very good, determined and experienced side, but now we need to address the shortcomings and power on this summer. By 2009, we may well have a more rounded side to challenge the new-look Aussies who should be without Hayden and Gilchrist by then.

Lets just forget the one-day series and World Cup, for I fear more of the current form will prevail!

Newspapers battle with the future

Why would you buy a printed newspaper when you can get all your news free online? Or why not just pick up a free paper?

The key to any strategy for current print news providers is deciding what and how to put content on their websites as currently very few papers have found success charging for content.

It isn't as simple as putting the print content straight onto the web, that is a one-way ticket to oblivion.

People turn to the web for breaking news now, first reports, following up watching longer analysis on TV and in the following days newspapers.

Advertising revenue from online newspapers is way behind print revenue, although this is improving, but I cannot currently see many printed titles being able to drop their cover price in order to encourage more readers that way.

What are newspaper good for?

People don't tend to read long news articles on a screen, personally I would rather print them off to read and take in later.

Lengthy feature or analytical articles are what print is and has always been good for.

This is part of the key to any level of success in the current murky media climate. Clever integration and cross-promotion of the print and online products.

If both products can be successful editorially and feed off each other, drawing audiences through their quality, then this can only help grow potential both advertising revenue streams.

The main problem for national and local titles is there is no tried and tested path for a successful future strategy. Their are titles that have large audiences and a strong presence online, particularly The Guardian in the UK and The New York Times in America.

Multimedia minefield

Broadband has enabled the web to embrace multimedia content, and this has trickled down to news organisations, including newspaper titles.

Podcasts have begat video reports, but the danger with treading into visual waters is that there are plenty of broadcasting operations who have far more understanding of the medium and can produce superior content.

Summing up

The future looks very uncertain, but the opportunity is there to reinvent newspapers for a digital age. The question will be: "But how do we do it?".

There is no simple answer, but one thing news providers must never forget is that content is king.

Taking your eye off the ball regarding producing relevant, intelligent and focussed news reports would be a big mistake, that is the one advantage news operations have over the majority of bloggers or citizen journalists.

The editorial team will always be the most vital resource, but newspaper owners must support them wisely and cleverly in order to keep the paper afloat in the coming decades.

Read more:
Papers battle online news sites from BBC Click technology programme.

More links on online newspapers and the future of newspapers.

Web accessibility. Who cares?

Web User reports Most websites fail accessibility tests. Simon Norris, managing director of Nomensa, said: "The Disability Rights Commission estimates that there are over 10 million people with disabilities in the UK and by ignoring accessibility and usability, companies are excluding over £80bn in untapped revenue."

Ignorance of web accessibility potentially leaves these companies open to legal action. Simon Norris comments: "Ignoring accessibility actively turns visitors away.”

Millions of people have difficulty browsing and interacting with the web. Online accessibility is about giving everyone the opportunity to see and use web content and services. Norris also added: "Conditions such as learning difficulties, cognitive impairments, visual impairments and Repetitive Strain Injury affect the way people access the internet"

Web design and development has to take this in to account, not because we feel we should, or because it's the law, but because making a site accessible (and thus usable) to as many people (and potential customers) as possible can only make good business sense. More links to accessible sites and articles.
File under: web design.

The popularity of the MySpace web design train-wreck

Commenting on Web 1.0 vs. Web 2.0: User Content and Lock-In, I think maybe Web 2.0 vs Web 1.0 is not necessarily the best scenario. Maybe it's simpler, maybe web standards is a waste of time, when you see how popular myspace is right now, and yet it's a web design train-wreck.

Somewhere between the popularity of MySpace and the simplistic usefulness of Basecamp lies the future of the Web. At least the near future, as trying to see too far ahead is becoming difficult as technology and software develops and mutates ever-quicker.

I've seen some disgusting looking MySpace sites, not just from a technical web production point of view, but visually the colours and layout are awful. But on the whole it obviously works, and as we all know people rarely actually complain about stuff they don't get or can't use online, they just go somewhere else and find what they want.

I couldn't survive at work without my Basecamp, to-do dynamic lists and email reminders saving me from searching through pages of written notes, ideas and lists.

But to those that don't work inside the web industry daily, something as simplistic as a MySpace page speaks - particularly younger web users - to them in a simple voice. Here is a wake-up call for all web designers of large and small-scale sites alike, the importance of engaging with your audience, in terms of not only the content, but the layout and visual structures.

Journalism meets blogging

How does the print journalism world adjust to the new media age of "citizen journalism", bloggers from all corners suddenly having a voice, opinion, a say on local and national issues and stories?

A columnist at the Philly Inquirer writes: “...the biggest evil of blogs is that first flaw, blogging's original sin: the discounting of news-gathering in favour of news analysis. Bloggers are forever telling us how easy journalism is, yet very few of them have ever really practiced it...but opinion writing is a tiny - and let's be honest, inconsequential - corner of the journalism world. Real journalism - the practice of adding to the store of public knowledge by reporting news - is a difficult, thankless, and often unpleasant task. Bloggers want no part of it.”

Bloggers without journalistic training or experience are no less worthy of reading. Coherent and articulate arguments and opinions are all valid. But surely the myriad of bloggers will not overrun the trained journalists backed by experienced news teams.

Writing regular articles and thoughts takes time and mental energy, as well as background reading and research to produce quality content. But not everyone has the time or inclination to do this for free.

True, some bloggers have made some money out of it, but it has to be almost a full-time job to be churning out lengthy quality writing at regular intervals.

For journalists and news teams it is an opportunity to break into new avenues of writing. Adding depth to articles there would otherwise not have been space for in the print world alone.

Speaking to the audience in more personal ways, taking a second look at stories with the benefit of hindsight and feeding the instant desires of those online readers who do not want to be tied down by waiting for the next days newspapers or the next weeks magazines or supplements.

The new journalistic age is still finding its feet, but the opportunities - providing some revenue streams can be found - could be rewarding for those currently inside journalism and those speaking from the blogosphere.

File under: newspapers and blogging.

Take a break, refresh your productivity

Particularly busy day at ET Towers today. It wasn't until I took a break in the afternoon to grab a few bits for dinner that my mind began to be a little more objective about my current workload.

I had more constructive ideas and clearer thoughts on issues that needed resolving in that forty minute break than the rest of the day.

When you have a busy day at work and you haven't got time to stop and take a break and be objective about how things are going it can be difficult to focus on the priorities and effectiveness of your routine.

Bill Gates wrote this in a 2005 Executive E-Mail column:

"A recent study showed that 56 percent of workers are overwhelmed by multiple simultaneous projects and interrupted too often; one-third say that multi-tasking and distractions are keeping them from stepping back to process and reflect on the work they’re doing. In the United Kingdom, it’s estimated that stress accounts for nearly one-third of absenteeism and sick leave." (Source: http://www.microsoft.com/mscorp/execmail/2005/05-19newworldofwork.asp

While technology makes many jobs and tasks easier, it also enables us to do more. But then we are almost expected to do more, but does this in some way stifle creativity and block clear thinking?

I find taking regular breaks, how often depending on the individual needs, clearing the mind, even for a few minutes can help to overcome a creative block, prepare for a nagging deadlines or bring fresh ideas to unsolved problems.

Review: Prague, Czech Republic

Sunday, March 12 until Wednesday, March 15 2006.

Our Gatwick flight was cancelled after nearly a foot of snow had fallen in the last 24 hours, closing the airport in Prague.

Things looked bleak but as it turned out Becky and I ended up on a later flight from Heathrow. The snow stopped and Prague's airport opened for business, welcoming us about 8 hours later than planned, but glad to be on holiday.

On our first full morning we found a very cold but bright day greeting us. Most challenging was the icy cobbled streets. But we managed to stay on our feet, and frankly the snow added to the picturesque view of the city.

Our photos from Prague

Everyone we had spoken to had good memories of Prague, and from the guide books and reviews it sounded perfect for a short break and change of scene.
Even though we went off-peak it was still awash with tourists from America and around Europe. Prague's popularity means that it is easy to get around and communicate as virtually all the locals we encountered spoke enough English to avoid embarrassing incidents.
We stayed at the Hotel Julian, just south of the Little Quarter to the west of the River Vltava. We travelled by foot, although there are plenty of buses and trams if needed. I found it to be good exercise and would rather be pounding the streets than sat a desk at work. Discuss.

Brief historical interlude

The Czech Republic is a country full of history. It gained independence in 1918 becoming Czechoslovakia, ending the 400-year reign of the Habsburgs. But it wasn't until the Velvet Revolution in 1989 when democracy returned, and in 1992 Czech Republic and Slovakia were formed.
But over the centuries, the Czechs have been busy, building elaborate buildings, churches and cathedrals. I've never seen so much impressive and ornate architecture.

Tourists galore, but impressive views

We headed for the Old Town Square, via the Charles Bridge, an impressive site, lined on both sides by statues of kings, princes and religious scenes. This was pretty busy with tourists. I imagine it must be a little too crowded in mid-summer, but it gives a great view up and down the river, with the castle spanning the northern view of the city.
The best way to enjoy the city is to stroll beyond the Old Town Square and down side streets and alleyways to get a less tourist-driven feel for Prague.

Church of St Nicholas, Little Quarter

We almost missed this stunning building as we walked through the Little Quarter to the west of the Charles Bridge. After seeing a steady stream of people heading in and out of a building, we ventured in, and were treated to a an array of ornate carvings, statues and a fantastic frescos adorning the ceiling.

Prague Castle

Prague Castle stretches along the hills, dominating the city skyline to the north. It was only about 30 minutes walk from the hotel, and gave stunning views across the river and city beyond.
It contains many buildings, courtyards, as well as the opportunity to see another country's version of the changing of the guards. St Vitus's Cathedral is another stunning cathedral, lined with stained glass windows, full of the history of Prague and the Czechs.

Old Town

Every hour the Town Hall Clock strikes and out troop the 12 Apostles, as this impressive Astronomical clock draws regular crowds.

Food and drink

Along the tourist route through the city, you will find no end of restaurants, bars and cafes. Plenty of European styles available and a good standard.
Becky was more adventurous trying some local Beef Goulash with dumplings, which was very nice. Be aware that these were no dumplings I had ever experienced, very filling. The prices varied, but even the popular restaurants charge no more than you would pay in this country.

Commonly the weight of any meat is listed on the menu, a relic of the communist era. And the beer is strong and cheap as you would expect from the Czechs, roughly 70 pence a pint. After pounding the streets check out the popular Kaverna (Cafe) Slavia, overlooking the river and watch the world go by. In the evening try Red, Hot & Blues, just off the Old Town Square, for some tasty Tex-Mex food and lively jazz and funky music every night.

Useful links:

• Prague tourism/holiday and hotel reviews - TripAdvisor


• Been There: Prague - guardian.co.uk

Building an online local newspaper in 2006

In a word, diversify. Online newspapers need to push on with their unique selling points; namely, local knowledge and a trusted brand bringing loyalty within the a local marketplace. These need to be visible online whilst providing a more user-driven site, accessible to all on any platform.

Aims & objectives

Encouraging interactivity and providing high standards of usability for users; using web standards and offering flexibility for the web producers.

Design & construction

• Usable and accessible to all potential users in any browser, on any platform (mobile, PDAs, etc).


• Clean design and layout, with clear branding links with any print editions.


• Consistent branding and navigation.


• Produced in semantic, web standard code (XHTML and CSS) to improve control of layout.


• Makes temporary changes within layout templates more flexible, make content viewable on any platform with minimum of extra development work and make future developments easier.

Content & features

The digital age is well and truly upon us, modern news providers are multimedia outlets where news is transmitted and received in new formats by ever hungry users devouring news and information as quickly as it is produced. As Media Guardian puts it: "With news websites starting to fill up with audio and video clips, we are seeing just the beginning of "convergence"."

• Regularly updated content, i.e. up to the minute news from the local news team.


• Follow-ups and updates of news from print edition. Established print working patterns would need to be augmented by an understanding of the web audience and skills in writing for the web.


• The written content would be more geared towards a web audience. Shorter sentences/paragraphs and use of bullet lists.


• Flexibility to change homepage features regularly with eye-catching content whilst keeping basic structure and layout.


• Use of audio and visual content to augment written articles (but not just for the sake of doing it).


• Alternative distribution methods: Email newsletters, RSS feeds, blogs, email alerts.


• Awareness of online news aggregators: Google News, Newsvine - "..to build a perfectly different, perfectly efficient way to read, write, and interact with the news." Read an analysis of Newsvine.


• Text containing terms related to article keywords more helpful for search engine ranking. Google's advice for your website: Content.

Relationship with the audience

• Giving them the content that they want, in the format they want it: RSS feeds, email updates for specific sections.


• Offer blogs, user feedback/input, blog comments.


• Still pushing commercial options.

Marketing & promotion

• Clear consistent branding across all off and online editions.


• Cross promotion of features and offers.


• Print edition pushing online only content and vice versa.

Revenue/Return on investment

• Targeted advertising within sections.


• Sponsorship of features/sections – cross-branded between off/online editions.


• Interactive competitions – use of SMS.


• Not overwhelming the homepage with advertising, but specific content can carry relevant advertising options.

TECHNOLOGY: Long life mobile battery 'vital'

Modern technology users want more power from their mobile products.
As mobile phones, PDAs and music players become more widely used, users are demanding higher specifications, more memory and longer battery life.
Read: BBC NEWS | Technology | Long life mobile battery 'vital'

Effective writing for page titles

Page titles should be such a simple aspect of Web page production. Yet a bit of thought, and broad understanding of a potential audience will go a long way to getting content more widely read.

Short, clean, meaningful and relevant. A title of the actual page your are on is what your are striving for. Not the name of the site, that can come afterwards, but when people are reading links, RSS feeds, and search engine results, the first half dozen words need to convey the purpose and benefits of the user visiting a page.

Don't try to be too clever, cryptic or pretend the content is something better than it actually is (visitors might be enticed once, but probably never again, and they might tell their friends, or the Web community!)

Nothing too long, but a brief and succint description of what the page is about. This may seem like more hard work than at first sight, but it will benefit the sites popularity among users and search engines alike.

DVD: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)

I just watched the The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005) DVD, and really enjoyed it. Frankly it was always going to be tough turning Douglas Adams' fantastic story into a movie, but that's what he always wanted, so now at least it's here.

It stays fairly true to the original story despite being a Hollywood funded flick, the cast dow ell to fill out the crazy scenes and showing off Adams' clever wit, sarcasm and irony.

And in the UK, there's a bonus disc with a making of, that starts from the day the Director gets the green light to start making it. It was a fascinating hour, a literal behind-the-scenes documentary giving a real feel of how the crew of animatronics experts, set-designers, etc. and cast put it all together.

FUN: Home of the video flick book

Get your mobile phone (and other) movies turned into flick books. Flick off you say, no it's true, and a genius idea. Visit: FlickFilms - Home of the video flick book

WEB DESIGN: 10 Reasons Clients Don't Care About Accessibility

Accessibility is a divisive issue in the workplace. Companies have varying degrees of interest/understanding in the issue.

Basically, it's about making Web pages accessible and usable for all, regardless of ability, device (e.g. computer or mobile), browser, or operating system. It makes production quicker, cheaper, simpler.

What more do you people want?

"It'’s the Law But There'’s None to Follow". Read: Digital Web Magazine - 10 Reasons Clients Don't Care About Accessibility

CRICKET: In praise of ... Richie Benaud

He always knew what to say, Richie Benaud was a great in, and broadcasting on the great game. And what a series to bow out on English soil. Possibly the greatest series ever, at least in the modern game. England have come through against the best team in the world.

The [replica] Ashes are coming home! Read: Guardian Unlimited Sport | Special reports | In praise of ... Richie Benaud

CRICKET: Players lambast incompetent Zimbabwe board

The maddeningly depressing situation for Zimbabwean cricketers shows no sign of letting up. Read: Cricinfo - Players lambast incompetent Zimbabwe board

FLIGHTS OFFER: British Airways/Ashes offer

Briish Airways are running an Ashes promotion, and it could be a real bargain.

"The Price of the fare, including taxes, will be equal to the number of runs scored by Australia (in their first innings).

The number of flights available for sale will be equal to the number of runs scored by England (in their first innings)."

Go here now: British Airways - Your questions

CRICKET: Zimbabwe players call for Chingoka and Bvute to quit

The key for the Zimbabwe players is sticking together. If they all sign the petition, they leave the board little option but to do something about the contract situation. They can't very continue with no players.
It is so frustrating that the ICC have remained on the fence, and that the wortld continues to sit by why the black racist elite of Zimbabwe misguidedly ravage anything that was good within the country. Read: Cricinfo - Players call for Chingoka and Bvute to quit

CRICKET: The Ashes comes down to the fifth and final Test at The Oval

From Wisden/Cricinfo: The Oval
"This is where it all began. The first-ever Test on English soil was played here in September 1880, resulting in an England win over Australia by five wickets, with WG Grace scoring a hundred on debut, and this is where a Test series in England traditionally ends.

More pertinently, this is the historic venue where the legend of the Ashes was born a couple of years after the inaugural Test, in August 1882. England, chasing only 85 to win, slumped from 51 for 2 to 78 all out. The next morning The Sporting Times published its famous mock obituary and the legend was born.

The Oval has witnessed many historic matches. England's dramatic one-wicket win in 1902 inspired by Gilbert Jessop's sensational hundred; Australia's 701 in 1934 as Don Bradman (244) and Bill Ponsford (266) put on 451 for the second wicket; England's 903 for 7 as they beat Australia by an innings and 579 runs in 1938; Bradman's farewell duck in 1948; Denis Compton scoring the boundary which meant England regained the Ashes in 1953; Michael Holding's 14 wickets on a featherbed in 1976; Devon Malcolm's 9 for 57 against South Africa in 1994.

Owned by the Duchy of Cornwall (who is the Prince of Wales, hence his feathers have appeared on Surrey's badge since 1915), The Oval came about in the 1790s when an oval road was laid round what was then a cabbage patch. When a subsequent market garden failed, the land was opened as a cricket ground in 1845 after 10,000 turfs were brought in from Tooting Common. It has been Surrey headquarters ever since, even though it has been well outside the county boundary for many years.

It has hosted many other important sporting occasions and can claim to be the most important general sports ground in the world. It staged the first FA Cup final in 1872 (won by Wanderers in front of 2000 spectators) and the following year the first England international (against Scotland). It was the home of the FA Cup final between 1874 and 1892. In 1876 it staged to the first England v Wales and England v Scotland rugby internationals, and in 1877 to rugby's Varsity match. In addition, it has witnessed rock concerts (The Who and The Faces in 1971), ice skating and the now traditional end-of-season Aussie Rules match. It was also a POW camp during the Second World War."

Sorry to copy verbatim, but Bring it on!!!

NATURE: Animated guide: Hurricanes

The Beeb shows how hurricanes start and what damage they can do. See: BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Animated guide: Hurricanes

NEW ORLEANS: Katrina's damage around New Orleans

See the Before/after pics of Katrina damage around New Orleans from satellite images.

NEWSPAPERS: Buy one, get all this free

The future of newspapers, on and offline is clear. Added value to the readers. More magazines, freebies, Websites, you tell them what you want, and if there's enough of an audience, you might get it. Read: MediaGuardian.co.uk | Media | Buy one, get all this free

LONDON ATTACKS: Video of 7/7 ringleader blames foreign policy

"He [Mohammad Sidique Khan] mocked British Muslims who condemned the attacks. 'We tell them treatment in kind is just,' he said." Murder is never just, innocent victims, his own countrymen, killed unjustly.

When has killing, taking an eye for an eye ever been right, fair, moral? Never. Whatever religion you may follow or whatever background you are from, no one has the right to take the life of another, whatever wrongs that person may have had done to him, or those he has links with. Read: Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Video of 7/7 ringleader blames foreign policy

CRICKET: World’s apart, but arm in arm

Cricinfo reports "as five of India's cricketing stars took time away from their busy tour schedule to meet more than 100 orphans at a UNICEF-supported education project on the outskirts of Harare." Read: Cricinfo - World’s apart, but arm in arm

WEB DEV: Google Maps Mania

So how are New Media types around the world using the Google Maps API? Read the blog and see the ideas: Google Maps Mania

WEB DEV: How to make Google Maps™

From Sitepoint - "SFSurvey.com, a restaurant review site, has put together a video
tutorial and sample ASP script [1] that lets you get the Google
Maps API up and running on your website as quickly as possible." See: How to make Google Maps™ using ASP Classic when you don't have the longitude or Latitude

WEB DESIGN: Web journeys

Read Webcredible's article, "looking at how we interact with the world in our everyday life, we can learn some of the techniques we use and begin to understand why they work so well. We can then employ the same methods in web design to create a similarly easy experience.": Web journeys

CAN YOU SEE IT?: Google Maps

A face in the dunes? See: Google Maps

CRICKET: 'It's the beginning of an era for England'

Morning everyone... Richie Benaud speaks to Cricinfo. Read: Cricinfo - 'It's the beginning of an era for England'

GOT THE BOOT? Simply Fired

Might come in handy for us all at some point. Share horror stories, or just laugh at others misfortune. For now at least! See: Simply Fired | If You Don't Laugh, You'll Cry

WORK: Designers Inhouse — The inhouse webdesigners survival guide

"Sometimes you wish there was somebody else who actually understood what it was you do all day." In a nutshell. Yes.

ENVIRONMENT: Warming hits 'tipping point'

What's the hurry with all this global warming talk. Everything's fine, just ask George Bush and his crack team of money-hungry business buddies, er, I mean environmental analysts. Well, here's some more real evidence for you to ignore George $$$ Bush, to give you your full name: "Researchers who have recently returned from the region [western Sibera] found that an area of permafrost spanning a million square kilometres - the size of France and Germany combined - has started to melt for the first time since it formed 11,000 years ago at the end of the last ice age." Read: Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Warming hits 'tipping point'

CRICKET: Zimbabwe embarassed, again

Zimbabwean journalist Lawrence Moyo surveys the Test status of his home nation after they subside meekly to New Zealand inside 2 days. Read: The Herald - Zimbabwe News Online

FUNNY BOOKS: Modern Toss

Damn funny books, good for idling away spare, or not so spare time. Especially if your job is no laughing matter. See: shitflap cartoons | mr tourette & uncle peter

INTERNET: Giving New Meaning to 'Spyware'

Wired reports on the continuing battle against Spyware, messing with our computers minds! Read: Wired News: Giving New Meaning to 'Spyware'

WEB SITE CONSTRUCTION: Easy-peasy PHP 2

I shall be getting stuck into this later, as a good primer for utilising PHP in building a medium-sized Website, using includes and templates to control the layout and structure. Read: Digital Web Magazine - Easy-peasy PHP 2

Live 8, Hyde Park, London, July 2, 2005

Live 8, Hyde Park, London, July 2, 2005

Originally uploaded by richardk.

A view from the vast crowd at Live 8, as the evening arrived and the top name artists kept coming. An amazing and surreal event.

Barring some aching legs and back, we didn't notice the time go by as one impressive musical act after another came on for their cameo.

Interspersed with the important message that we were all here to understand the suffering going on across the world, particularly in Africa.

The images of starving children, sick and dying Africans was as powerful as any of the artists on show, and there were plenty of very impressive performances. Bob Geldof showed his face once or twice, along with other well-known faces, Bill Gates, Brad Pitt, Kofi Anan.

This was no ordinary event. Not only a once in a lifetime gig, but a chance to educate people and give them the opportunity to go away and make a difference, however small, for fellow humans who are not as fortunate.

Make Poverty History

THE WEB: The world at your fingertips

Google presents you with another nifty tool - Google Earth. Search anywhere in the world, and zoom in from space. I'm sure Microsoft are working on copying it for Longoverduehorn 7.8.5.1 as we speak, those crazy 'innovators'. Right I'm off to bed, as me and Becky are off to Hyde Park tomorrow, Live 8 awaits...

RANDOM: How to detect lies

I always thought body language and psychology was interesting, here are some tips to spot little fibbers. Read: How to detect lies - body language, reactions, speech patterns

WEB SITES: 50 Coolest Websites 2005

Time magazine picks 50 sites worth visiting online. Read: 50 Coolest Websites 2005 - TIME.com

PHOTOS: Glastonbury 2005 - It's Pilton down

Glastonbury as it should be, wet and muddy. Not funny if you're there of course, hopefully everyone will have survive unscathed, and let the music and culture play on. See: Glastonbury 2005: day one | It's Pilton down

WEB STANDARDS: Websites alienate Firefox users

BBC news bigs-up the Web Standards ideal. Read: BBC NEWS | Technology | Websites alienate Firefox users

REM @ Old Trafford, Manchester, June 17, 2005

REM, Old Trafford

Originally uploaded by richardk.

That's Michael Stipe in the corner, on the big screens, singing his religion.

Sorry, but REM were damn good on Friday in Manchester, a mixture of old and new tracks, that frankly all sounded good live.

IMAGES: sonar 2005 on Flickr

The 12th Barcelona International Festival of Advanced Music and Multimedia Art aka danhodgett's 'sonar 2005' slideshow on Flickr as seen by my good friend Dan Hodgett.

CRICKET: Australia crash to humbling defeat

The Ashes - Surely the site of Australia crash to humbling defeat, again, is too good to be true.

I mean there are plenty of reasons not to take the Twenty20 result along with this beating at the hands of a mid-table county side too seriously, but surely England, if they can stay fit, confident and focussed have their best chance of coming out on top this side of 1986?!

WEB DESIGN: Screen Grab Confab, vol. IV

Cameron Moll collects and shows a collection of what Web designers are producing in 2005... for some inspiration see: Screen Grab Confab, vol. IV ~ Authentic Boredom

BARGAINS: Apple Refurbished Store

Get your second-hand Apple products, like, say an iPod, for nearly half price. But they're from Apple, all shiny and almost new, and it's only open Wednesdays... Visit: Apple Refurbished Store

HUMOUR: John Moe's Pop-Song Correspondences.

After winning a Webby Award, this site is worth a read, and a chuckle or two. e.g. "Attention, Mr. Axl Rose: We Did Not Feel Welcome in the Jungle" Visit the world of: McSweeney's Internet Tendency: John Moe's Pop-Song Correspondences.

ENVIRONMENT: Revealed: how oil giant influenced Bush

So it's true, we all knew George Bush's presidency was run by big business, and now the cat is out of the bag. Climate change is a great idea, but not if it means making big oil businesses unhappy. Read: Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Revealed: how oil giant influenced Bush: "In briefing papers given before meetings to the US under-secretary of state, Paula Dobriansky, between 2001 and 2004, the administration is found thanking Exxon executives for the company's 'active involvement' in helping to determine climate change policy, and also seeking its advice on what climate change policies the company might find acceptable."

WEB DESIGN: Multiple CSS Background Images

Anyone for Multiple CSS Background Images? The HTML Dog shows us how.

WEB GRAPHICS: ‘Giving To Hiram’ masthead

Cameron Moll talks us through a Photoshop masthead design. Read: How-to: ‘Giving To Hiram’ masthead ~ Authentic Boredom

WEB DESIGN: Ten Questions for Russ Weakley

The man behind the Floatutorials, Listuorials, et al, gets a Web Standards grilling. Read: Web Standards Group - Ten Questions for Russ Weakley

WORK: 'Dull work a heart attack risk'

This is not good news. Read: BBC NEWS | Health | 'Dull work a heart attack risk'

MUSIC: How do you decode the new Coldplay album cover?

Guardian Unlimited | Life | How do you decode the new Coldplay album cover?

ONLINE DESIGN: So much time. So little to do.

Confessions of a Pixel Perfectionist - The software tools of a graphic designer. Read: Yellowlane | So much time. So little to do.

CRICKET: The little genius in the corner

Wisden interviews Graham Thorpe. Read: Cricinfo - The little genius in the corner. ""I would say a lot of the mental strength in cricket is to make the right decisions as many times as possible and not to be intimidated," he says. "The only time I can remember falling down was in my third Test when I was facing Shane Warne and Ian Healy said I was going to play for a red-inker [a not out]. My pride took over and I thought, `Sod you, I'll show you I'm not playing for a red-inker.' I bolted down the wicket and got stumped. [He had made 60]. That's the one time I've really been done by sledging. So you learn from that. You start with something, a basic kind of inner strength, and then you grow. You grow as a person and as a player.""

Glass Sculpture

Glass Sculpture

Originally uploaded by richardk.

An interesting sculpture in glass and stone at Burghley House, Stamford, where I visited in April 2005.

WEB DESIGN: CSS flick animation

Is there nothing CSS can't do? Well, obviously it isn't much use at doin the washing up or hoovering, but it can create some very neat flick-book style animations. And not a hint of Flash in sight. See: stu nicholls | the CSS playground | CSS flick animation

WEB DESIGN: A Few Tips On Estimating Web Projects

Because money makes the world go round. Read Asterisk's A Few Tips On Estimating Web Projects

IMAGES: A Flickr gallery of doom & gloom

Evening Standard Headline Crisis - a photoset on Flickr

SHOPPING ONLINE: UK's only money saving expert

Using debit/credit card's online is a risky business, but no more risky than handing it over in a random shop, but there are ways to keep yourself safe from fiscal harm. Read: UK's only money saving expert's guide to safer online shopping.

PHOTOGRAPHY: Enter corbis comp.

Like taking photos? Any good at it? Then enter the Corbis photography competition

POLITICS: Zimbabwe police destroy shanties

What is wrong with Mugabe. He has no compassion for his fellow Zimbabweans. No sense of duty to his people, making thousands of people homeless. Where is the sense? Read: BBC NEWS | Africa | Zimbabwe police destroy shanties

ENVIRONMENT: Appetite for Amazon destruction

Progress is not always good. The Amazon rainforest is gradually disappearing, tree by tree, year after year, all to fee our greedy western appetites. Read:BBC NEWS | Programmes | From Our Own Correspondent | Appetite for Amazon destruction: "It makes no sense at all to let market forces destroy a precious ecosystem that we all need for our survival and yet somehow we are letting it happen."

TV AD: Firefox promoted

A well put together ad promoting the virtues of Firefox. Vive le browser revolution. Watch the Quicktime video: firefox

DIGITAL MUSIC: IPod Plug-In Sets Music Free

The battle for control of music we own and/or purchase (!) continues as software and hardware devices are pitted against each other, bypassing controls and copyright issues, as the consumer drives demand. Read: Wired News: IPod Plug-In Sets Music Free

WEB ACCESSIBILITY: Ten Questions for Joe Clark

Mr Web Accessibility himself, and yes he did write a book! Read: Web Standards Group - Ten Questions for Joe Clark, including: skip links, title tags, PDFs, data tables, maybe not so 'fun fun fun', but relevant.

MUSIC: Arcade Fire - Funeral

On second listen I understood the passion and energy and melodies within this powerful album. Plenty of strong, memorable songs; a little Franz Ferdianand in its energy, but something of Talking Heads in there as well for me, and some melancholy and sadness thrown in. Well worth a listen, he said in a cliched reviewer style. CD WOW! - Arcade Fire - Funeral

HANDWRITING: Tips for improving your handwriting

Strained my right hand playing cricket at the weekend, so writing is a little painful, came across this via the Guardian Newsblog: www.paperpenalia - handwriting tips

WEB DESIGN: Image Attributes

mezzoblue § Image Attributes: "Questioning width and height values for images."

MUSIC: We Are Little Barrie

Get this 'perfect summer soundtrack'. All funky, soulful, rock and roll. See: Amazon.co.uk: Music: We Are Little Barrie

MUSIC: Police, nudity, furious punters and taking out U2

Miranda Sawyer follows Chris Martin around. Read: Guardian Unlimited | Arts Friday Review | Police, nudity, furious punters and taking out U2

GENERAL ELECTION 2005: The result in Peterborough

Where I'm living its Labour out, Conservative in. I voted Lib Dem, not a Tory fan, and not impressed with Labour's Helen Clark. See: Guardian Unlimited Politics | Aristotle | Peterborough. Oh and best of luck Tony B. you may have been a fool before, but just don't let the poeple down again!

WEB DESIGN: Content is king

Asterisk talks about the importance of content in relation to design. Read: Content vs. Design

WEB DESIGN: Usability testing without a budget

An often forgotten or ignored part of the production process, that can go along way to making a site work or fail. Read: Usability testing without a budget | 456 Berea Street: "It doesn’t really matter how much you know about usability – after working on a project for a couple of weeks you’ve become blind to many of the problems."

CULTURE: Why Pop Culture Is Good For You

Protein° Feed reports on whether Pop Culture is good for you or just mindless entertainment. I hope not, or I've been wasting a lot of time...

THE ELECTION, T-MINUS 3 DAYS: The war on Iraq was a sham, it wasn't even much of a war, we invaded, booted out Saddam, because George said so, then realised that's where the plan ended. Now the fallout from the episode is continuing to haunt Tony Blair, Guardian Unlimited Politics | Election 2005 | New British death returns war to election spotlight. Yes he was a fool for trusting a fool, but what's done is done, and if it's proven that he has broken laws, then he's got to go, but if not, and all the other MPs backed him up, then the other parties should stop putting up this smoke-screen and start telling the public what the future holds for Britain, rather than continuing to rake up the past.

It's mostly ifs and buts now, and we the people, NEED to know what will happen about education, crime, the environment - although by the sounds of it, someone had better remind the Conservatives about that. These are the things that will make a difference to the lives of the majority of the British public over the next five years. Unless of course George has more crazy taking-over-the-world-because-we-need-more-oil ideas.

INTERNET: The way things are. Sorry to rip a huge chunk of comment from Kottke's comments in A whole new internet? (kottke.org), but it's all true, after the dot com bust, companies panicked and only gave out money to develop sure-fire ways of getting a return on investment, while developing ideas and creative staff was not on many lists.

Read more: "When the dot com economy was crumbling in 2000 and 2001, I remember thinking at the time that although everyone I knew was out of work (myself included), that is was a good thing for the long term. One of the more pleasant side effects of the dot com boom was that billions of dollars were spent training indivduals how to design web sites, program, write, etc. In the years following the bust, when all those people were suddenly unemployed or stuck in high-paying jobs that they didn't care for very much but needed to pay the bills, they responded by starting to tinker around with all sorts of neat things, just for the hell of it. Because they could, because they wanted to, not because they had an artificial deadline to reach or some arbitrary client requests to satisfy."