I bet no one noticed…
by stefwill on Sep.04, 2008, under News
Not much has changed on the front end of the site, but the back end has had a major overhaul.
In the wee hours of yesterday, I backed up the database, tar’d the htdocs and then hit the delete key on vastneonwolf. Five minutes later the site was back with a new engine.
I had realised that the old CMS I’d been using just wasn’t cut out to be a blog. Sure it’s great for my other site but not for a Vastneonwolf. For that I needed something a little more blog-centric.
Support Australian Publishers. (If you can afford it)
by stefwill on Sep.03, 2008, under Random Thoughts
Buying books in Australia is becoming an expensive game.
That said, I spend more money on books than on any other “luxury” item I buy. I love supporting Australian industries, but the Australian Publishing industry is making that really hard.
Some people have already noticed that there is a problem. In Rosemary Sorensen’s Book Wars article in The Australian (July 26, 2008), she says:
It’s not that long ago that Australian readers could expect to pay under $20 for a paperback and under $30 for a hardback; now it’s likelier to be $33 and $50, a disincentive of a different kind for readers.
Authority. Old media had it but is new media getting it?
by stefwill on Sep.01, 2008, under Random Thoughts
Thanks to the MWF, The 7:30 Report and Radio National, I’ve heard and seen a lot about Bloggers, Citizen Journalism and “New Media” journalism in the last week. All of the discussion seems to point to a decline in the quality and authority of traditional journalism and a consequent rise for Bloggers, although the kinds of websites that are producing quality reporting can hardly be called blogs any longer.
Show us yer Nogs!
Nogs, an abbreviation of News Blogs … No I really don’t think that will catch on.
So here we are…
by stefwill on Aug.26, 2008, under Links
It’s time to get serious with regards to updating this blog. So I’m going to start posting quite a bit from now on. It may only be one or two posts a week to start with but that will change over time as I get back into the swing of things.
To kick things off.
I’m addicted to Google Reader! It’s a web-based RSS feed aregator that has some features you won’t find anywhere else. The best of which is the ability to share posts with friends via email or with anyone with a Gmail account in your Google address book. Take a look at the GReader articles I’m sharing. I’m only subscribed to 14 feeds at the moment but it is already consuming a vast quantity of my day. Not that I’m complaining mind you 
Software for Writers
by stefwill on Mar.01, 2008, under Links, Reviews
Most writing software is only used once the hard yards, the research, the brainstorming and sleepless nights organising index cards are over. If all you need is a glorified typewriter, MS Word is fine. But if you’re like me, and you need a way to organise the random ideas in your head before you can get them onto the page, then you should try Scrivener for Mac or yWriter for PC. These are programs written for writers by writers.
