Author: Zealus

Categories
flash

Sprout: The Online WYSIWYG Editor for Flash

Sprout is a browser-based, WYSIWYG editor for Flash with an interface reminiscent of Photoshop or Dreamweaver. Designers can use it to create, publish and track Flash widgets, websites and mashups, thereby obviating the need for them to work with programmers who would cost time and money, and who might not execute designs satisfactorily.

original | digg story

Unfortunately the service is still in closed beta, so I was not able to use it firsthand. However, the potential for it (as I derive from the video) is high. If my clients would be able to mash something up in such editor to show me how they want their flash animation to be done – just this would save us a lot of cost and time.

Can’t wait to try it myself.

Categories
domains

Domain Tasting Is About To End

As is was outlined in DotSauce post today – ICANN may be about to put an end to the domain tasting as we know it. The positive outcome is perfectly outlined in the referenced post above. However, not all is so bright.

With latest talks about ICANN changing ownership from US Department of Commerce to some international body run by UN, folks at domain name monopoly may have decided to soften up just a bit.

What this means is there is a lot of controversy about how domain industry should be run. Local governments are going crazy at the idea that they can own a piece of internet. Most governments, like Germany, immediately think China’s Great Firewall. Russia wants Cyrillic domain names and no access to outside networks unless explicitly permitted by senior party member (just kidding). All this is impossible while core domain name servers are run by US. Well, generally speaking, US can abuse its power here, but so far I didn’t hear any of this happened. And IT people are very cranky all over the world.

But stopping domain name tasting has at least one more negative aspect, at least from my personal perspective. The expired domain lists are about to get a lot larger. Watch out!

Categories
blog

The Irony of WordPress Themes

Most of WordPress bloggers know that there are hundreds of themes to make your blog different from others. Some bloggers create lists, contests and other blog theme promotion events. Of course, the presentation is important, there is no doubt about it.

What is, actually, puzzles me is that while we, bloggers, spend tremendous amounts of time tweaking and twisting quite a number of themes – most of the people read blogs through subscriptions – RSS or e-mail. All the beauty of
tweaked theme with endless hours invested is lost on the most loyal part of the audience.

Most people aren’t attracted by the theme the blog is using. They aren’t here to watch how masterfully blogger managed to blend AdSense with content with couple of banners and with affiliate links. They are here for content. They see the blog for a minute or two, or maybe even five, to determine if the blog is worth subscribing for.Then they proceed to subscribe to the feed. That’s about all the time that the theme is watched.

Sometimes the blog’s theme is so cumbersome, overloaded with ads that the content is almost lost. Yet, we can see quite a number of subscribers. They read the blog through the RSS or e-mail. They have something to say.

Strange, isn’t it? Bloggers overall make a hefty sum (that includes those who makes six figures and those who make six cents) off of the ads and affiliate links posted in the blog itself. Maybe, subconsciously, we reward loyal bloggers with absence of ads-in-your-face. Just as a way of saying thank you.

So, if you already reading this blog via any kind of subscription – thank you 🙂