Welcome Aboard!

These sites are brewing at Lazytea - watch them steep... 

DroverCattleDogs.com
DaltonGangKennels.com (Dave Dalton's Yukon Quest Sled Dog Team!)
Judi Rideout Studios and Dachshunds www.judirideout.com
Redesign for DuWest-ACDs.com
North Atlantic Australian Cattle Dog Club NAACDC.com
Summer Horton, author
BadGirlCreekFarm.com
Lonestar Malinois
Lonestar Dutch Shepherds
Fan't Fryske Lan Stabijhouns
Bags Wags N Rags
Picaloon Saloon
City of Exiles - Writer Bri Maresh - hosting
Jean Tatro - Writer
redesign of AROHNE.com
Van de Visenhoeve Working Dogs

ACDCA2007.com
ACDCA2008.com
ACDCA2009.com


September 02, 2007

Why hire someone to build your website?

A friend once joked with me, "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to build a web page." And he was right. In this day of $50 "Website Construction Kits" practically anyone with a little time and money can put together a web page. These packages work well enough for simple, personal web pages, but often lack the depth and attention to detail that is necessary for a business website. If these packages truly made it that simple the web would be filled with nothing but beautiful, professional sites, and I'd be out of business.

The truth is that creating an effective professional website is more complicated than simply putting some pictures and text on a page. Like creating a "bricks and mortar" business you need to consider an array of variables that affect the size, scope and style of the "site" your are creating. Who is your potential web market? What does your website add to your existing business? What is the most effective way of capturing their interest, and their loyalty? These are only a few of the questions you should ask yourself as you go about the business of creating your online presence.

May 25, 2007

New things and old

Today's site updates included VandeVisenhoeve, AustralianCattleDog.com, and foundation work on BonifaceStudios.com, Duwest-ACDs.com, and DaltonGangKennels.com.

Wrote a publishing proposal for MSVWA's anthology.

Updated software and am preparing for a weekend away from my own computer (eeeeK!)

Contacted 2 new clients and am testing a new posting program called Ecto which so far seems to be really nifty.

Let's me post from youtube, flickr, and Amazon with a click of a button.  Has built in spell checker and loads of markup bells and whistles.  This may  just replace Blogjet and Scribefire as my post method of choice quite quickly.

The girls remain quite demanding.  I think the end of the school year euphoria hits homeschoolers as hard as it hits public school kids.

 Rita head shot

May 23, 2007

Just Breathe -

One of my favorite sounds is the sound of wind through the leaves.  Monday was the first day of the hushed chatter of spring leaves in the wind.  I realize over a week ago I last posted to this blog.  I haven’t forgotten my faithful readers. 

 

Is it VooDoo or Digital DooDoo?

Actually, I opened the blog post window on several occasions and had long posts nearly finished when disaster struck:  power outage (strange, strange one), blue screen computer crash, browser crash…  So, I have been a little trepid about attempting an update.  I will be sure to save this in drafts and am using a different software so I will not lose the entire post in the event of another crisis.

Maybelle is now SIX

On Monday the 14th Miss Maybelle Rose turned 6.  She wore her new bicycle helmet, ballerina dress, and knee pads constantly for days.  On a sugar-high from her pinata candy, she actually was a little more grounded after the event filled day.  She is still full of ideas and initiative to prove her “adult” status at 6.  Needless to tell you parents out there, this requires quite a bit of my energy and attention

Deadlines Approach

I am under the gun to complete some rather large projects before June 1.  The pressure is on.  Of course, the digital demons are at work so what should be simple often isn’t.  With these deadlines looming, I’ve kept my nose to the grindstone and have limited smaller updates and more complicated image based updates until after June 1.  I have subcontracted out some scanning and code cleaning though I need to find another arrangement as the turn-around time is simply too long.

Sites Updated

The following sites were updated during the past week:

Don’t fret if you don’t get regular updates here for a few days; I am putting my nose back to the grindstone.  Can’t risk missing these deadlines -

Dalton Gang Kennels & ACDCA 2007 will be at 90% before our busy Memorial Day Weekend of kennel sitting and gardening begins

Alaska Tracking Fields
Tracking Fields – AKC Tracking in Alaska

Biker Chick
Miss Maybelle – 6

 

 

May 12, 2007

A strange Saturday

I was supposed to shoot at the OTCC trials today.  I simply couldn't even walk when I got up this morning.  Took half the day to get my feet under me and my head clear.  Tomorrow, I hope to finish up on the dogs and take the girls to the Musk Ox farm to celebrate mother's day with the baby musk ox.  I think Maybelle will truly love it.

Nice weather.  Chai did arrange for a cloudburst during his grooming session so he is 1/2 furminated.  Silly dog - has a direct pipeline to the weather gods.  Sure was a lot of hair on that dog.

Tracking Saturday was great fun.  I miss working with Rita.  Hopefully, I will be where I can resume tracking one day. 

May 10, 2007

won wainy wednesday

I guess some days progress seems quite slow.  Things take time. Dragons appear and leprechauns are at work.  Reminds me of heading through a thicket I've not been through before each time I set up a new site.  When reworking old websites previously built by another developer, there are always surprises (some not so pleasant).  I have to try to work with the existing file systems even if I am reworking the layout and navigation.  This can be a challenge.  It is a challenge with few rewards and since most of the work goes on behind the scenes without being logged in this blog, I'm sure it seems as if I'm doing nothing at all.  Renaming files, moving them, changing coding, altering scripts, making design decisions and reworking those decisions takes much more time than one can imagine.

Today, it was rainy.  Maybelle asked to go to the playground.  Now, I used to take Jean rain or no.  I think it's good for kids to play in all weather.  Broke my heart to have to tell her I couldn't.  She's getting quite upset with the amount of time mommy is giving to work and not play or her "education".  Some of these "volunteer" gigs may have to lie fallow for a while so I can be with my little girl before she's all grown up. I vowed when I started this that nothing would come before my children.  I need to remember that vow and how I felt being shoved aside for every phone call, customer, or guest that walked through the door. 

I should feel blessed that my children are home and not getting into mischief elsewhere.  They are very strong, healthy, and intelligent children with very healthy imaginations.  Both girls have talents and gifts in the arts.  A mother couldn't ask for more. 



May 09, 2007

Is it only Tuesday?

May 08, 2007

Happy 63rd Birthday, Edward!

May 07, 2007

Weekends are for working....apparently

May 06, 2007

A List Apart: Articles: The Web Design Survey, 2007

Designers, developers, project managers. Writers and editors. Information architects and usability specialists. People who make websites have been at it for more than a dozen years, yet almost nothing is known, statistically, about our profession. Who are we? Where do we live? What are our titles, our skills, our educational backgrounds? Where and with whom do we work? What do we earn? What do we value?

It’s time we learned the answers to these and other questions about web design. And nobody is better qualified than the readers of A List Apart to provide the answers. Participate in our first annual survey to increase knowledge of web design and boost respect for the profession. Selected participants, chosen by random drawing, will win one free ticket to An Event Apart event held in the continental U.S.; an Apple 30GB video iPod, an Event Apart jump drive, or a funky A List Apart T-shirt.1

I-took-the-2007-survey

A List Apart: Articles: The Web Design Survey, 2007.

May 05, 2007

End of another week - a NEW site FINISHED!

And the greatest news of all -- I have finally "finished" Drover Cattle Dogs for David and Christina Swanson in Minnesota.  They get my award for most patient clients ever - They paid me for their website last Thanksgiving! I am just now getting it finished. 

DuWest and Dalton Gang are next up.  I won't breathe until those two huge projects are wrapped up.  Then, maybe I can return to updating and having a summer.  Oh!  Wait - there is that darn ACDCA 2007 nationals site and NAACDC.  And, and and and...

Well, at least there is one less task ahead of me.



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