It has been a while since I wrote a 'Flog the Blog Day' post. By my calculations it should be number 52 - if I count all the months since I first started LTW (17 November 2007; FIRST POST)
52 months equals 4 years and 4 months. 1058 published posts - not counting the static pages. And over 3000 comments from readers or myself. Almost 90.000 unique readers visited just over 200000 times. Google Analytics states they came from 175 countries. Not quite all nations on Earth, but close enough.
Greenland being the biggest exception. Does nobody sail in Greenland?
'Flog the Blog Day' is reserved for a post where I tell you what my plans are and for asking you, to give me some feedback on the blog and how I'm doing. Should I write different posts? Should the colour of my blog change? More or less advertising? Different style? What about this new three column design? Is it working?
Anything.
Please tell me what you think about layout, posting, commenting or whatever.
As for my plans: I'm preparing a new series for sailors. Going back to the basics.
Also in the pipeline are posts about the coming changes in the rules for the next cycle 2013-1016.
And I plan to review some books, programs and other 'accessories' that help with the rules. (I'm heavily involved in the next update of an iPhone/Android application called You-Tack)
I will continue with the (pillow)Cases until the Casebook is done and then have a look at the Call books for Match and Team Racing. I will try to explore the possibilities that other Social Media are providing to keep you informed about my travels and events. First one outside my own country is in two weeks, Act 1 in the Extreme Sailing Series to be sailed in Muscat, Oman.
But if you have suggestions, please don't hesitate to tell me (If you don't want to use the comments - Email me, please)
Thank you all for reading LTW!
J.
52 months equals 4 years and 4 months. 1058 published posts - not counting the static pages. And over 3000 comments from readers or myself. Almost 90.000 unique readers visited just over 200000 times. Google Analytics states they came from 175 countries. Not quite all nations on Earth, but close enough.
Greenland being the biggest exception. Does nobody sail in Greenland?
 |
| Hekla Havn, Greenland |
Anything.
Please tell me what you think about layout, posting, commenting or whatever.
As for my plans: I'm preparing a new series for sailors. Going back to the basics.
Also in the pipeline are posts about the coming changes in the rules for the next cycle 2013-1016.
And I plan to review some books, programs and other 'accessories' that help with the rules. (I'm heavily involved in the next update of an iPhone/Android application called You-Tack)
I will continue with the (pillow)Cases until the Casebook is done and then have a look at the Call books for Match and Team Racing. I will try to explore the possibilities that other Social Media are providing to keep you informed about my travels and events. First one outside my own country is in two weeks, Act 1 in the Extreme Sailing Series to be sailed in Muscat, Oman.
But if you have suggestions, please don't hesitate to tell me (If you don't want to use the comments - Email me, please)
Thank you all for reading LTW!
J.
Hi Jos,
ReplyDeleteI'm new here. I think you've got a great thing going, and if you have been consistent with your labels then the cross-indexing will be very helpful. I am having a lot of fun with the winter challenge... thank you for giving your time and experience for our benefit!
The only critique I can think of is the layout. It is cluttered for my taste. I think it's fine for a homepage, but I would love it if blogger allowed me to just jump to a given post and leave all the clutter behind (i.e. see just the post instead of everything). I don't know how many gadgets you've got pinned around the posts... in my opinion it's a good N-1 or N-2 too many :)
Thanks.
DeleteI am not disagreeing with you, but the way blogger has structured the website, forces me to make some concessions to the widgets in the sidebars.
I have already moved quite a lot to static pages and to anti-dated post-pages, to get rid of some of this clutter.
Perhaps I should clean 'house again'? I'll think about it.
Hi Jos,
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice new banner you have! I was happy to read that you're still enthusiastic to keep up the good work. I agree that the layout looks a bit crowded but also agree that it's quite difficult to manage so many things within the limitations of the blogger.
Do you dare to go to the dark side and tell sailors what goes on in protest committees and International Juries and how best to operate in the 'room'?
ReplyDeleteWhy is that the 'Dark Side'? Do they (we) have anything to hide?
DeleteFew sailors know how to manage the protest process. So many top level sailors spend thousands of hours developing their skills and their physical condition, then hundreds of thousands of dollars/euros/pounds on equipment, coaches, travel and competition but, when they walk into the 'room', the best description for their performance is 'incompetent'.
DeleteThat this problem is so widespread suggests an unspoken belief that, somehow, being skilled and knowledgeable in managing the protest process is vaguely dishonorable. It is the sailors who believe that the whole process is on the dark side as expressed commonly: "with a 100% solid case, you have a 50% chance of winning in the room." If they understood the process and procedures better, they could move the odds in their favor.
You are one hundred percent correct. I will and am preparing a couple of posts about this. I understand why you could use 'The Dark Side' in that context, but isn't that also perpetuation the unspoken belief about dishonesty?
DeleteI'll find a couple of big headlights to shine in this corner.
Thanks for confirming my assumptions, Hugh.
HI Jos,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the fun and educational blog!
I mentioned Look to Windward blog at two recent US Sailing seminars - for umpiring and judging. No one had heard of it. So perhaps you could find a way to publicize it more.
Working on it - using Social Media.
DeleteBut please keep mentioning LTW! I'm happy with every new sailor, judge, umpire or race official.
Thanks.