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Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Bloggin' Stuff

Post #992


Alex the (Sometimes) Bloggin’ Cat

Alex says he’s tired of swimming in the muck of trying to get Word Press to do the things he wants it to do with his blog—you know, Alexicon: A Feline’s Life with his Human:

So the furball wants me to help him switch is blog to Blogger which I may eventually do but I tied up at the moment with other bloggin’ stuff, like the new blogroll on my sidebar (see below) and working on ideas for the 1000th Nick’s Bites post and trying to visit and read the couple hundred blogs I attempt (poorly) to keep up with.

Sooner or later I’ll help Alex create a new blog on Blogger. At the moment, however, I don’t think that the cat who owns me really cares that much. He’s having too much fun playing in this gorgeous Spring weather: at the moment it’s 77 F outside and the sun is brightly shining and the furball is, well, see for your self:



The New Blog List


I’ve been transferring all of the links to blogs that I read to the new Blog List thing that you can find in the Layout section of Blogger and you can see on my sidebar. Mine isn’t finished yet: there are still bunches of blogs to add, most of them beginning with letters that follow the letter M in the alphabet.

I don’t know how many blog links I have added to the Blog List or how many there will be if I ever finish. I do know that a lot of the blogs I used to read no longer exist. That’s sad. And some blogs have changed their name or location.

Anyway, adding blogs to the list is how I’ve been spending my time—a lot of time!—recently other than taking naps because these spider bites seem to make me tired.

If you are interested in the Blog List, here are the release notes from Blogger Buzz

Today we’re releasing a new page element for Layouts blogs: Blog List. The Blog List improves on our Link List page element by using blogs’ RSS and Atom feeds to show update times, post titles, and snippets.

Use a Blog List to put a blogroll in your sidebar, or make a few to categorize the blogs you read. The Blog List works well for any page that has an RSS or Atom feed, so you can get creative: link to news sites, podcasts, Twitter streams, search results, or anything else with a feed.

Here’s a quick summary of the features that a Blog List gives you:

  • Link to blogs, web pages, and feeds from your blog’s sidebar, with an optional favicon
  • For pages with RSS and Atom feeds, Blog List can show last updated time, post title, and a snippet of the latest post
  • Sort links alphabetically or by last update time
  • Show all links, or hide some behind a “show all” link
  • Import subscriptions from Google Reader
  • Blog List links are visible to search engine crawlers, so your blog’s PageRank and reputation flow to those you link to

Too Many KATZ

I subscribed and have been receiving five or more KATZ (LOL Cats) in my email every day for months. I am overwhelmed by them! There are too many to share on my Too Bad It’s Monday posts and they are too cute not to share. So, here are a few more to give you a smile or two and it ain’t even Monday:







26 comments:

  1. I tried the new Blogroll widget (since I'm rebuilding anway), but there were some sites it simply refused to add. I think it's checking RSS feeds, and if the site is a little wonky it just hangs up.

    So, I went back to the old way.

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  2. Thomas, what I've found is that, if the site doesn't have a RSS feed, you can still add it. However, the list won't provide the information about the latest blog post.

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  3. Hmmmm ... I may just have to explore this new little blogger widget!

    Now get to work on helping Alex get away from the "dark" side of WordPress *giggle*

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  4. I love that Alex video. The way he meanders down the walk and yawns and kind of stares at the camera. Alex is a bona fide movie star. And the music is purrfect.

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  5. ....Nick, these are great pictures! now for the serious stuff...did you get rid of that spider?? and, honestly, if you still feel bad, you need to go to a dr! even if you can't understand him~! but, if that spider hangs around, what if he bites ALEX??

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  6. DANA: After the two neat articles that Alex has written for Nick’s Bytes and his continued frustration with his own blog, I have told the furball that as soon as I complete the celebration of Nick’s Bytes 1000th blog post, I shall assist him in creating a new blog on blogger. As you may notice from the video starring Mr. Alex that I shot yesterday and posted today, he has found other activities, less complicated than blogging to occupy his time.

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  7. CHINA GIRL: I agree that Alex is becoming a bona fide movie star, especially if I continue starring him in short features. However, the question is: what kind of a movie star is the furball? You may notice from today’s clip that he is not an “action movie star.”

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  8. Ah, Alex has SOME life! He doesn't look too worried about the state of his blog.

    Your blog list is great (and it looks like a lot of work)! I'll have to meander through your list.

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  9. LIBBY: Thank you for your concern. All cobwebs that we could find have been removed by Tasha on a step ladder (the old house has very high ceilings) and the areas where the webs stood sprayed with the spider killing pest control stuff that I displayed in yesterday’s blog post. Thus far we’ve seen no evidence of new webs—or any spiders. Should a pesky spider attempt to crawl where a web once stood, the spider killing spray (which instructions say lasts 90 days on a surface) should zap the bugger!

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  10. CAROL: Yes, Mr. Alex does have quite a hectic life. The other two activities of his normal day (that I didn’t video) were (1) napping curled beside me in bed and (2) being groomed/brushed/petted/snuggled by me each of the dozen or so times a day he demands that service. At the moment he has recently experienced both of those plus a snack of his favorite food and is napping beneath the high intensity lamp on my desk beside my computer. (Of course, I had to cease writing in order to clear a purrfect spot on which the furball now reclines).

    Yes, the new blog list has taken quite a bit of work. Of course, it wouldn’t have if I were not intrigued by so many excellent blogs and bloggers! Still, it is worth the effort, for I do gain pleasure from introducing folks to the blogs that I enjoy.

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  11. Thank you, Nick - I've never seen this feature before...

    I don't blame Alex for wanting to switch - you make it look too fun!!:)

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  12. ah, i am a daily reader of icanhazcheeseburgerz.com, a surefire way to avoid homework for the following hours, although my teachers never do seem to take that as a valid excuse...

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  13. Do help Alex with a new blog site. He is a funny writer. The Alex video was great, as were the KATZ. Thanks.

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  14. THanks for the ALex video and special ration of LOL cats!

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  15. That new Blog List thing is great. And I love that you sandwiched it between Alex and the KTAZ.

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  16. Excellent, Rev Saint! That blog list is a first-rate resource of blogs for non-bloggers such as I. The video of Alex is also superb: your video skills increase with each one.

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  17. The blogroll feature works well with google reader!
    Alex is adorable
    Pol x

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  18. Thanks for sending me that e-mail on how to change my blog list it took some time but its finshed i luckly only had 50 or 60 blogs to display the video of Alex was great! THe Katz pics are funny i love the last one!

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  19. Wow that new blogging feature looks interesting. Of course I think I am using an old style template so I do not think I can use but but that gives me more reason to think about changing.

    The weather has been nice. I like chilly nights and it has been getting darn right cold at nights lately.

    I can not believe it, I have slipped over 500 posts without realizing it. Wow, even with how few posts I have put up as of late it still adds up. I can not believe almost 1,000 posts. But then it is so you.

    I love the care-O-meter. I may need to print that one and put it on the wall at work. Sometimes I would so love to be able to flash that to someone.

    I hope you and Alex have a nice weekend.

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  20. Grrr! I just left a lovely (in my opinion) ;o) comment and blogger gobbled it up, told me it was a duplicate and spat them out! :o)
    What did I say?
    I think it went something like this....
    You knows I loves them catz!
    I once tried blogger but I couldn't maintain a readership and so I went to Wordpress. I find it easier than blogger but having said that I don't know if I gave blogger a preoper trial.
    .
    I wish I was out frolicking in the spring sunshine! Alex has the right idea.
    I hope the sleepiness subsides from the nasty Incey Wincey bite! x
    *copies comment ready to paste just in case!* :o)

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  21. Alex seems so nonchalant in that movie! I have never been particularly drawn to cats but I bet I would enjoy having an Alex cat around.

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  22. Fine video! I know nothing about blogging, but I have read Alex’s blog and your blog and I much prefer the setup of yours. I think Alex’s blog would be wonderful in the same format as your Bytes.

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  23. I looked at the blogroll widget on google and it's a great idea but I've only recently changed my blogroll into a little scrolling thingie as I had that much on my sidebar it went on forever.

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  24. my link list is way too complicated already to change it now!
    love the cats!!

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