Static-Romance.Org

I mentioned a few times on Twitter to a few of my followers that I was going to try out Windows Live Writer. I’ve never been a fan of updating my site via my desktop. It seemed unnecessary or perhaps full of errors. I quickly pushed it aside as one of my blogging options and continued to update from my browser. However, I read a post that mentioned desktop blog publishing clients so I decided to try out Windows Live Writer.

The initial setup was pretty simple. They asked for the blog URL, username, and password, so any authors of your blog can use it. Above is a picture of one of the setup screens. They posted a quick test post to retrieve my blog’s style while editing (which is optional). What’s great about the program is that it’s just like having a mini-dashboard:

- Your categories and tags are all transferred over.
- You can schedule posts just like you do in your dashboard.
- You can save your posts as drafts and transfer the drafts over to your site’s main admin panel.
- You can easily add photos and links. I haven’t tested other types of media yet, but photos and links are with a click of a button.
- It can handle multiple blogs. I currently use it to upgrade sites using Blogger and Wordpress.

However every great program has it cons.

- It became very glitchy when I attempted to do my Web Design Friday post, which is image/link heavy. I decided it’s best to do that from my Wordpress dashboard.

- I prefer to edit without using my site’s skin. It’s quite distracting for me when blogging, but can be helpful seeing how everything will be formatted after it’s posted.

I think it’s a pretty nice program. It even has plugins to add to your blog posts such as TweetMeme and other services. You should check it out! It’s really good for saving memory without having to load your browser. There’s plenty of other desktop blogging clients as well.

I have a confession. I haven’t used Firefox regularly since Google Chrome’s beta release last year. Although the beta was buggy, I became a faithful Chrome user. I could go on and on about how many people complained to me about Chrome, but I really didn’t care. I kept using Chrome anyway! I developed sites in Chrome, which was much easier to manage with cross-browser compatibility issues. For some reason, whenever I develop a site in Firefox, I always end up with more errors with cross-browser compatibility than I do with Chrome.

Don’t get me wrong! I would never say anything bad about Firefox. It’s still the number one browser for designers and developers. It has a lot to offer; but for me personally, I prefer Chrome. I’ve tried Safari and Opera and found their minimalism to be lacking of my needs. However, since my Google account is pretty much my life (Feedburner, Gmail, Google Reader, Google Calendar, Google Docs, and so on…), being able to create a separate desktop app from a browser is an amazing feature for me.

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Call me crazy but when I first heard about this album I was baffled. Posthumous albums always baffle me. Obviously a dedicated artist records many songs we may never hear, but it’s still a bit creepy. I guess I wasn’t expecting such a release ever.

After Lisa passed away in 2002, I was honestly a bit devastated. I grew up on TLC, specifically Lisa. She was my favorite member. For some reason I did idolize her in a strange way. I guess I felt a bit understanding of her lifestyle, even at a young age. I had to watch her memorial service on television and after that I figured it was some of the last I would hear about her.

Then in 2005 out of nowhere, R U the Girl popped up on my television. I wasn’t a fan of the show honestly. It was kind of cheesy, low-quality, interesting sometimes but mostly dull. In 2006, my cousin passed away. I was honestly taken aback when we visited the cemetery and found that Lisa was buried across the small lake. It was the first and last time I visited Lisa’s grave. As if I couldn’t get a break, in 2007, the Last Days of Left Eye was released on VH1. So I pretty much have felt like I’ve seen everything I could about her.

Then two weeks ago I get the news of this album being released. Safe to say, I just felt and still do feel like they should let her name rest in peace. Yesterday the album was offically released and I decided to download it this morning. Don’t worry I’m going to buy it Friday. After giving a thorough listen and getting over the creepiness, I wish Lisa’s solo career would’ve took off in the United States. This is definitely replacing 3D now and forever in my book. I always felt like 3D was a flop and just pushed out for the fans. There was no passion in that album and it showed. If it wouldn’t have been the last album with Lisa as a member of TLC, it wouldn’t have sold at all.

Eye Legacy is the only album I’ve listened to this year and it’s definitely worth buying. I never say that so it must be serious. Every track is different, brings a new sound, and has a different story to tell. Featuring tracks with Lil Mama, Chamillionaire, Bone Crusher, Missy Elliot, Free from 106th and Park, Bobby Valentino and other artists, this album is definitely not dated. It’s definitely my newest designing inspiration and I recommend it. It’s not cheesy. The songs actually make sense and they aren’t stupid. I have a very low tolerance for music lately so a quality album is hard to find.

Tracks to listen to: Legendary, L.I.S.A., Forever, Never Will Eye Eva, Let’s Just Do It, Let It Out, and just for fun to dance to Bounce.

So I’ve been waiting pretty much for this upgrade since October.  I have to admit, I was a bitty iffy about the changes but overall I am very pleased with the results. If you’ve been following the Wordpress development blog, you’ve been hearing about the new installment of the Wordpress blogging platform for months. Wordpress has been very involved with its clients by listening to the demands of  bloggers, designers, developers, and etc. have all put in to make a bigger and better Wordpress. They even allowed users to vote on the icons used in 2.7. (That really entertained me for ten minutes.) 

If you have never upgraded your Wordpress, you can learn how through this nifty little guide. If you’re completely new to Wordpress, this guide is for you. Before updating, you may want to check some of your plugins and de-activate them.
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