Pretty layouts are nice and all but how important is ‘prettiness’ when it comes to blogging?

Let’s say a blog has some decent posts and information but their layout isn’t anything spectacular. Just a boring, simple layout. How likely is it that the content would catch your attention, and possibly even make you return?

Now let’s say the same thing for another blog - decent posts and information - but a much nicer layout. Is it more likely to catch your attention?

Or does layout not matter?

I’ve heard before that you need to have a decent layout if you want to get anywhere in the blog world. But while pretty layouts are nice eyecandy, the content is what should be important, right?

Does a pretty layout make up for mediocre content?

So, how much does a blog’s layout influence your opinion of the blog?

I’ll admit, it influences me a little bit. Call me shallow but I’m a sucker for pretty things. So if I had the choice between two blogs with similar content, I’d probably choose the prettier one.

But, content is still more important. So if a pretty blog’s content is not as good as another blog’s, then I would choose the other blog. A nice layout won’t make up for content, even if it is easier on the eyes.

Next, how important is an original blog layout?

People can download nice themes and use them for free, but the problem with that is multiple people can end up using the same look.

So, nice downloaded theme vs nice original theme - which do you prefer?

I’d go with nice original theme. There are some nice downloadable themes out there, but after awhile I get sick of seeing the same thing over and over.

Also, I think an original theme helps give a blog their own ‘look’. And if you want to stand out in the crowd, having your own image definitely helps.

March 23, 2007 Tofu Records went down for “relaunch”.  And they’ve been down since.

I had emailed them several months ago, but got no reply, and now the website is down. I guess Tofu Records isn’t coming back. Kind of sad.

I had a love/hate relationship with TR. They were around when HYDE came to the U.S which I am eternally grateful for.  They kept us up to date for all the info we needed. It was perfect timing - right after I graduated high school - so I was able to go. It was also nice having a Jrock source here in the U.S.

The forums though… They were a mess. The admin/mod was rarely around so there was constant fighting going on. If you disagreed with someone then you were an idiot, and if you were attracted to anyone then you were a stupid fangirl.

Fans were constantly ripping each other apart over who was a ‘better’ fan. There were so many times people on that forum ticked me off so bad that I wish I knew where they lived so I could punch them in the face.

The forum also got a lot of spam. Near the end of Tofu life the spam bots had found the forum and were leaving several messages a day. Tofu was using phpbb forum with no captcha so it was pretty easy for spambots to register and very difficult to get rid of them. Plus, like I said, tofuwebby was rarely around so us users were stuck sorting through all the spam posts.

But as much as the forum annoyed me, it did give me something to do. A place where I could go and talk with other Jmusic fans when I was bored.

I hope they come back one day, but with a better forum and some mods that are actually around. Extra points if they bring HYDE back.

I’m sure everyone has heard about the newest internet war.

All Scientology stories have been getting dugg to the front page on Digg, since nearly everyone is in support of Anon. Usually I get annoyed when I see the same things posted over and over again, but for this I’m okay with it.

I really don’t care if people believe in some of the Scientology stuff, but I don’t like the way the treat people.  Not only their own members, but also people who question and/or oppose them.

You can believe what you want, but you can’t infringe on the rights of others.

Plus killing/threatening/suing people is not a good promotional method for converting people.

I also don’t like the way you have to BUY enlightenment. If they were really out to help mankind then wouldn’t this enlightenment be free? With this setup, only people with money deserve to be enlightened.

If you’re poor and seeking enlightenment… too bad. You’re not worthy if you can’t pay up.

When it comes to this war, I do hope no one gets hurt. I hope all Anon members stay anonymous and don’t get caught. Who knows what would happen to them if they got caught.

I also think it’s interesting to watch a band of anonymous internet users take on a huge, powerful church.

It’ll be interesting to see how this all plays out.

Hello there lovers, now I don’t know about you but I suffer from something called ‘chronic boredom.’ Well, it’s not really chronic but sometimes it feels like it. And I suppose I could just go out and get a life but I’m too lazy. And it’s cold outside.

But yes, I get bored a lot. When I’m in my ‘bored phase’ I tend to jump around a lot in what I’m doing. Most things can’t hold my interest for too long because they don’t update/change/whatever fast enough.

So, what kind of places do I visit when I’m bored? I’m glad you asked! I will share with you various sites I visit in hopes of curbing my sudden onset of boredom. Perhaps you’ll find something that interests you in my little list.

Unexplained Mysteries Forum. I found this site awhile ago when I was looking up stuff on Cryptozoology. I tend to be interested in all kinds of weird stuff, so this forum is interesting. You can discuss all kinds of histories mysteries, conspiracies, unknown creatures, sightings, etc. I like to browse by there every now and then.

FictionPress - I used to read stories on fanfiction.net and have since moved to fictionpress. It’s a place for writers to post their original fiction and for readers to… read them. Some stories are horrible and cliche and some stories are pretty good.

I like some of the stories by Bleeding Air (aka hate to hope). Her stories are kind of twisted, but so far I like the ones I’ve read.

Aznv.tv - Streaming Asian tv. They offer Asian dramas and movies that you an stream for free. I believe most of the videos have subs. If you want to access more stuffs then you can upgrade to a premium account, but there are a lot of things you can watch with a free account. I visit there when I’m in a Japanesey mood.

Digg - Ah, Digg. I love this site because it has so many different things you can read about. News, tips, humory stuff. I can’t wait until they get the new comment system in place because the current one is horrible.

Overheard in New York - As well as the other ‘overheard’ websites. It’s full of snippets of conversations that people have overheard. Some of them are pretty amusing.

One Sentence - True stories told in one sentence. Some of them are random, some of them are confessions. Pretty simple but interesting.

And that’s all I can think of right now. But next time you’re bored, perhaps these websites can help you.

And please share any other websites of interest that might help alleviate the bored mind.

Hello my fellow bloggers and blog readers, I come bearing a question.

What kind of comments do you prefer?

It may seem like an odd question, but I’m serious. You see, when I’m commenting on someone else’s blog I’m always self conscious of my comments.

If I don’t have much to day - maybe only a couple words - I always feel like my comment is too short. I think Ah, I don’t want my comment to look like pointless spam. I try to leave at least a sentence, if I can.

But then if I have a lot to say, I feel like my comment is too long. They don’t want to read all this! There have been times that I leave a 3 or 4 paragraph long comment, but I always feel like I’m going to annoy the blogger if I do that too often. After all, you’ve got better things to do than read my essay comment.

So it made me wonder, What kind of comments to bloggers prefer?

Short and to the point or longer more detailed comments?

For myself, I like both. Short comments can be nice, especially because some people don’t have a whole lot to add, but longer comments give me something to work with. I think I’m more likely to reply to a longer comment, because I have something to reply to.

Most shorter comments I’ve seen don’t give me much to work with -they’re right to the point- so I have a harder time responding to them, so sometimes I don’t. I’m not the best at socializing, so a lot of the times I don’t know what to say.

I do like them though, since all comments are nice.

When I comment of other’s blogs I try to at least leave a sentence, if I can. And if I’m feeling chatty then I’ll try to cut my comment down to a paragraph or two. I do my best not to write out a whole book.

I also usually only comment if I have something to say. There are many many times where I read a post, and I want to comment to let the blogger know “Hey, I’m reading you!” but I don’t know how to reply to the post, so I end up not commenting at all. I’m not one of those people that can throw out some quick generic comment.

And my next question: What about commenting on older posts?

Do you comment on older posts? As a blogger, do you care if people comment on older posts?

I, myself, don’t mind if people do it. But when it comes to someone else’s blog I tend to avoid it. Even if the post is only a couple days old - and I really have something to say - I usually won’t. I feel awkward commenting on an old post. I feel like the conversation for that post is over and I should just move on to a newer one.

So bloggers and readers: What kind of comments do you prefer and what kind do you usually leave?

All you long term gaijins in Japan might have to dig out that old Japanese lesson book and put it to use.

According to Mainichi Daily News the government is going to “consider Japanese language ability as requirement for long-stay foreigners.”

The aim of the measures is to make it easier for the increasing number of non-Japanese in Japan to blend into the community, and provide an increased incentive for foreigners coming to Japan to learn Japanese.

I’m sort of 50/50 on this. One one hand, it sucks to have to be pushed to learn a language if you want to stay there. I mean, hey, if you want to run around like a headless chicken then go for it.

But on the other hand, it makes sense. If you’re going to stay in Japan(or any country) for long term, you should learn the language. If you’re going to have a job, buy things, and interact with the people there then you should have to learn to understand them. They shouldn’t have to speak English/Korean/whatever to understand you. It’s their country.

It’s a lot easier if everyone speaks the same language.

But being forced to learn a language might be kind of annoying, so I don’t know.

Think it will pass? Thoughts?