Green Llama

I finished making the updates that I wanted, and uploaded the new theme. Strangely, everything appears to be working. That never, ever happens when I make any coding changes - there’s always something that breaks unexpectedly. But everything appears to be ok in Firefox and IE 7 at least. If you’re using some funky browser, then really, you should upgrade.

What did I change?

Not much really. I changed the subscription options - you can now subscribe to Green Llama via email. I also removed the comments subscription link because, really, who uses that?

The 4 125×125 ads are now prominently featured in the top right sidebar, just below my all-important subscription choices. There is still 1 free spot left, at least for the time being. If you want it, follow the directions.

The chronological Archives are no longer featured in my sidebar - they are only on the Archives page. If you want to follow the blog by month, that’s the place to do it. Less links on the main page is a good thing.

I also consolidated my categories, and got rid of probably 10 or so. Though there are now more category links in the sidebar, I didn’t have to pick at chose - they’re all showing.

Top commentators is gone. If you were on the list, then my apologies. I’m doing my best to reduce my outgoing links - I had way, way too many.

I added a sitewide disclaimer. If you have any questions about my motivation or knowledge, read it.

I also updated my About and Advertise pages.

That’s it?

Right about now you’re probably quite underwhelmed. I can’t say I blame you - I didn’t do much. This was just a theme refresh - not an overhaul. My focus was on cleaning up the design, and moving a lot of links off the sidebar. Google hates pages with too many links, and Google already hates me. Anything I can do to get on their good side is a step in the right direction, I suppose.

If I had the cash laying around, I’d likely pony up for a custom theme. Unfortunately that’s not in the cards right now, especially right after buying a new computer. If someone were to give me the money though…. but that’s a topic for another post.

Anyway, if you do find something that doesn’t seem to work right ( dead link, formatting problem ), then leave me a comment here and I’ll fix it.

Coming up in the next few days is a Green Llama theme refresh. Not a whole redesign, mind you, but a freshening. As part of the update, I’ll have 4 125×125 button ads available in the top right of my sidebar. These ads seem to be all the rage these days, so I figured I might as well jump on board. Currently I don’t have any 125×125 ads sold, so I’ll be offering them up for free until I have some takers. Here’s what you need to do:

• Email me at greenllama [DOT] net [AT] gmail [DOT] com. Include a 125×125 button ad ( static gif/jpg or animated gif is ok ), and the link you want attached to said ad.
• Site must be related in some way to the topic matter presented here - i.e. blogging, making money online, or even random crap. No unrelated sites, adult themed sites, or crazy stuff.
• I approve which ads go live and which ones don’t. It’s free, what more do you want?

I’ll be giving away these four slots on a first come, first serve basis, assuming they meet my criteria above. No guarantees on how long your ad will be live - they come down as I sell the slots. But it’s a way to get some free advertising, at least short-term. Leave a comment if you have any questions. Otherwise, email away. Oh, and rounded corners on your ads look great, if that helps.

Karate isn’t usually terribly interesting when you get down to it. I mean, it’s probably pretty cool being able to ninja-kick someone in the head for fun, and not get yelled at by anyone. But besides that it’s a lot of hard work, and not normally something that intrigues me at all.   Enter Topless Karate. Not much else I can say about this one - but it sure makes Karate more interesting, no doubt about that. As if I needed to make a note of it, that link is NSFW. Check out the look on these guys faces.

I don’t think there are a whole lot of people who have been kicked in the head by a topless woman who happens to be a karate expert.

I’m looking for a particular Wordpress plugin / function, but couldn’t find quite what I’m looking for.  I’m sure there are probably 50 plugins that do this, but whatever I can’t find them.  Here’s what I want.

• Display external RSS feeds ( 4 or 5 , in separate sections )
• Display only title of post - no content blurb
• No “powered by Feedburner” logo at the bottom, or other such nonsense.
• Works with Wordpress 2.3

Basically I’m setting up a section on my main company site that shows headlines from several of my other sites.  For all I know there’s a simple Wordpress call that does the trick.  If anyone can point me in the right direction, I would appreciate it.

There are times when it’s great to be different, and to stand apart from the crowd. But there are also times when it’s best to stick with what works - the tried and true method. Sometimes the way things have always been is good enough, and indeed better than a change. No idea what I’m talking about? Ok, here’s an example.

Darin.cc is a search engine marketing site that I read from time to time. Not too long ago, Darin dropped the coin for a new theme from Unique Blog Designs. The new look is great overall ( I personally would have made a few changes if it were my design, but hey it’s not. ), and really makes the site stand out quite well. What’s the problem? The header. The header image is a logo of the site’s name - nothing out of the ordinary. However, when you click on it, the link goes to the site’s RSS feed, rather than the main page of the blog.

There aren’t many things that are more annoying than this when reading a blog. The logo should take you to the main page, period. There’s no question about this, and there should be no debate. It’s simply annoying as hell to get sent to the feed subscription page. Every other theme on the planet ( that I’ve seen, anyway ) works the way it should.

I don’t mean to call Darin out - I like his site, and I think the new look is great. Just wanted to point out that, sometimes, it’s best not to change things for the sake of changing them.