I’ve been doing quite a bit of work to the site lately, trying to add some fun and informative little extras. One of the latest things I am testing is Snapshots. If you look at the links in this post, you will notice a little box above and to the right of each link. (If you don’t see the little boxes, hit your browser refresh button. You are probably looking at a cached version of the page.) Placing your mouse on that little box will give you more information about the link.
Sometimes SnapShots brings you the information you need, without your having to leave the site, while other times it lets you “look ahead,” before deciding if you want to follow a link or not. Go ahead and try it out on that word, “cached”. Now try the SnapShots link. To close the SnapShot, just move your mouse away or click anywhere outside the SnapShot box.
You might decide that you don’t like Snapshots. That’s okay, you can turn it off. If you decide to disable it, please let me know through the Contact button above. If more people like it than hate it, I will keep it. If the majority of you hate it, it’s history. Either way, let me know what you think! If you decide Snapshots is not for you, just click the Options icon in the upper right corner of the Snap Shot and opt out.
Scrolling down the page a bit you will find another new widget in the sidebar. SmartLinks allows you to display your links visually. I’m really excited about about Smartlinks. Once I have wrapped my mind around it I will be able to display the “Recommended Reading” and “Links” in a way I think you will like. Meantime, about all I have working correctly as of Saturday at midnight, is the display.
Notice that the link to Smartlinks takes you to Adaptive Blue, founded by well-known software architect, Alex Iskold. Alex is also regularly found writing great content over at Read/Write Web and is referenced extensively across the net. He was kind enough to stop by Wordout a bit ago and gave me some pointers via emails. (Thanks Alex!) The page you land on hosts a cool plugin for Firefox which allows you to set up your very own Smartlinks organizer. Click the button to see the show.
Well, that’s about it for this week. I want to thank every one of you for dropping by. Seeing my readership increasing each day gives me a feeling that I am doing something worthwhile. Sometimes I find it nearly impossible to stop working, trying to make this site a place you will like and pass on to your friends. Tonight, even though I have reams of stuff to write about and more coding to understand, well, tonight just isn’t one of those nights. Tonight, I am simply too tired.
I am Jon, and I am taking a break….