72nd requested review is of quick! runs! journal
Rating out of 10: 7

layout etc. (2: 2)
Oh my! It is yellow, and it is Curious George hiding behind there! How cute.

Okay, enough of the gushiness. Even though Curious George was my favorite monkey as a kid, I still have to give my truthful estimation.

The background is distracting. You can’t even see all of Curious George’s head. I am thinking if you could, I’d like it a lot more. I say that because even though it is a somewhat busy background, the yellow tables make up for it.

I think this is the first request I have reviewed that functioned more like a blog than like a diary. I am considering altering some of my qualifications with this taken into consideration.

A blog to me is something that is different from a diary in that the author has the freedom to update it less regularly and with less content. Plus a blog is usually in a format like this one, with a lot of entries on one page at a time. It is easier that way because they can tend to be short blurbs rather than long-winded diary entries.

The format functions perfectly for a blog. I particularly like the calendar of entries. I am amazed because I haven’t seen many people using live journal that had such original looking layouts.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
Lots of fragments can get wearing.

Sometimes when writing is too unsystematic it bothers me.

Quotes from the blog: (2: 1)
“A high school diploma doesn't mean shit to me, at least not anymore. The only thing you need a diploma for is to be able to check off the "yes" box for the question that asks "Did you graduate from high school". Oh great! I graduated, now I can get that minimum wage job I always dreamed of!”

“The reason they have those hootchy girls up is because there's an audience that enjoys watching those hootchy girls dance around on stage. So it pisses me off when a girl walks on stage with almost nothing but a smile, then the honorable Maury Povich stops the girl in her tracks and says, ‘You can't come on stage looking like that! Here's this sweater. Now put it on or you're gone!’.”

I did not know hootchy was a word, but I am with you on this point.

"I guess that's why I never really buy winter clothing, because once winter ends I can't use those garments ever again. I hate putting away my winter clothing for the hot seasons, and then seeing them again the following winter. I look at them, and think ‘What the fuck was I thinking when I bought this?’"

Unique: (2: 1)
Oh come on! It’s Curious George.

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
I have a feeling I am going to get reamed for this one, but I sure as hell would. To put it simply, his randomness while on one hand irked me also amused me. Reading this thing was something akin to anticipation, I never knew what would pop out in text next.

This factor made the stay there very entertaining and enjoyable. There is also an element of sarcasm and just plain cynicism in almost every entry. Sometimes you just can’t go wrong with that kind of approach to writing a blog.

If there is something I do miss from this it is the longed for element of personal touch that brings the reader into the writer’s private feelings. That bond doesn’t get formed through snappy writing and funny quirks.


posted by Eli Moose on Tuesday, January 29, 2002

71st requested review is of girl-
Rating out of 10: 10

layout etc. (2: 2)
Simplicity rules the day when it comes to a good diary layout, and I find this one irresistible.

The IMAP gifs at the top and the bottom are small enough that they do not slow down loading, and yet snazzy enough to make the diary look elegant.

I think I am a gray and black kind of girl, and this gray is somewhat settling. Makes me feel peaceful when looking at it.

Although she does have her previous and next links at the top and the bottom, some people would argue that the little icons she uses at the top are not clearly identifiable. I know, I know, they look like arrows and I usually don’t mind them, but this time I would prefer if she made another little gif or used some text because the diary needs just a little bit more to give it some boost.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 2)
Reading her referring to someone as boy instead of a name is annoying. I want a name so I can feel like the writer is not withholding information, even if it is a made up name. I didn't find this annoying enough to take away a point.

Unique: (2: 2)
This whole diary is unique and stands out to me, simply because it moved me. It takes a lot to do that these days. I’ve read so many diaries that bore me that I did not know it was still possible.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 2)
"In truth, I do not form relationships with other people well at all. I am not an outgoing person, and it seems as though my gal is to be completely unnoticed as I wade through life. I obsess over the opinions that other people hold of me, and I worry so much about the possible negative nature of those perceptions that I somewhat unconsciously strive to never meet people."

I know how hard it is to be this honest, and I admire her for it.

"I don't know. I am not even convinced that I want to learn. In some secret part of my heart, I am desperately afraid that I will wake up on some morning and realize that I'm surely not in love with him. Maybe at that point in my life, I would be more prepared to live through such an event, but if it were to happen tomorrow, it'd be a catastrophe."

"Even more disastrous, though, would be if he were the one to wake up with such a realization.

I couldn't claim it as my own. I saw it passed around the cafeteria at lunch time. People took to reading passages aloud from time to time. I even saw a few people photocopy their favorite pages. No, I couldn't claim it. To my fellow students, I was a quiet, mousy girl who got good grades and stayed out of the spotlight. Frankly, that was the way I liked it, and I knew that claiming it would thrust me suddenly and violently into that spotlight."

Would I go back for another read? (2: 2)
Yes, oh yes! It has been a while since I felt this encouraged by a diary. I really love the way she writes; she has captivated me. I felt sad that it was so short because I read every single entry. I will be going back for sure. I am sure you will worship this diary. Everyone go read it right now!

I enjoy wonderful writing so much. I am still tickled pink.



posted by Eli Moose on Monday, January 28, 2002

Unfortunately the owners of the forum Threeway action, have written me and asked me to remove the posts I had used earlier on the site today in quoting things people are saying. They wanted me to secure permission first. Instead of doing that, the webpage is free for viewing here: Threeway action.

I thought it was about time that I did this again so here goes.

What people are saying about The Real Diary Critic:

"So I submitted my site for review. Just to see. And because I really just did want an honest opinion from a random person who doesn't know me, who didn't search me out or find me because of something we have in common. And while I don't agree with everything the reviewer says, I think each and every comment she made is accurate and the review is quite fair."
taken from: background noise

"I know that I can't get the kind of review I really want, like those at ReEntry, just by asking for it, but "the real diary critic" could provide me with feedback of one sort I'm interested in, specifically layout. I'm always interested in new opinions and suggestions about my layout. It would be a new experience, maybe an interesting one, to submit my journal for a review and see what happens."
taken from:This is how I feel

"Overall, she does have some good insight. And her site as been getting a lot of criticism from her reviews. She used to do unrequested reviews of people. Funny, huh? I think that rocks. And a lot of them weren't too nice, either. Even better, in my opinion. Then again, I hate people, so don't listen to me. All in all, I liked her review. She did was I wanted."
taken from: *fairy dust and hapi thoughts*

"I couldn't have said it better myself: 'In a world where diaries like Shifty Mold are in the top ten you have to know that something's just not right there...' This quote was supplied by The Real Diary Critic (who is just too great for words)."
taken from: mindlesspop

"Looking at that paragraph makes me remember ::shudder::. You wanna see something? I knew when I requested a review from Eli that I was in over my head. The woman is KILLER when it comes to reviews. Hard-assed, bad to the bone. But I did it. I requested it. And, boy, did she come through. I'm not complaining, because it's what I asked for, and she did give me some great critiquing, but whew. And she picked two good quotes, so I'm relatively happy. Thank you, Eli, should you happen to come back to see if I called you a bitch."
taken from: http://gbd.diaryland.com

"The "Real" Diary Critic reviewed my site yesterday. I got a kick out of that. She's right, though. *sigh* It's well past time for a revamp."
taken from: February Stars

"Because I am an attention whore I submitted my diary to be reviewed. Her reviews are honest and sometimes harsh, so I was worried. I shouldn't have been. She made me feel good about my writing, while giving me some helpful hints about the design, which are always welcome since I have an eye for design, but lack html skills or any real knowledge of website functionality."
taken from: my sweet exile
posted by Eli Moose on Monday, January 28, 2002

70th requested review is of this is what it sounds like... when doves cry
Rating out of 10: 3

layout etc. (2: 0)
Let me start this off with some more free advice. Please do not think, Hey I need to make my diary look different, so I will do all my text in italics. An entire diary of text formatted in italics is very hard to read. The fact that the text of this one is blue-green on black background does not help it any either.

Also, the grey bar with scrolling text may seem like a nifty way of spicing it up as well, but it only is distracting my eyes away from your writing.

I've mentioned this a bunch of times, but I really am not interested in what you are wearing, what your hair looks like, or what kind of music you are listening to. If you want to talk about those things so badly, why don't you incorporate that into your entries?

It took me a while to locate the previous and next link, which is way at the bottom of the page. Most of the time I want to go to the previous entry is when I finish reading the one I'm on. Imagine that! So why not put the link right there where it is easily accessible to me or any reader for that matter?

Regarding the photograph page, I would not suggest hosting at angelfire. Most people can put up with ads, but pop-up ones are the worst.

Under the sub-heading The Past she has links to old diaries of hers. I do not understand why when she wanted to change her diary she signed up for a new one. Doesn't she realize she is overloading diaryland with all her old diaries? What if someone wanted those login names?

This made me laugh: she has all these review sites linked but not this one. I have to wonder why. Maybe because I do not stroke egos?

What I do like is this layout is tride and true and easily adjustable. Throw in a previous:next link somewhere at the top and bottom of the entries and change the text and voila, you have a good format.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
Although this is being repeatitive, I have to mention the italics. Can we have regular text please?

Some of her entries are too short and non-detailed. I want details!

Please do not write things like this in your diary: *sighs*. Save that for your instant messenger buddies and write normally elsewhere okay?

What is this ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ?

Try to stay away from super long paragraphs, they tend to lose the reader midway through.

Unique: (2: 0)
Sorry, but not really.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 1)
"I think I am in shock of the entire night's situations. Including Paul trying to have sex with me in the bathroom while I was handcuffed to him and then a few hours later, Jason trying to get me to come home with him."

I really wish she would have gone into more detail here, that sounds interesting.

"I saw how Thya seperated her paragraphs and trains of thought and I thought it was a good idea so I decided to borrow it, but add my own happy little twist to it. Maybe then I will be able to seperate my own train of thought. Oh well, I am thinking about falling asleep. Going to sleep so early would be amazingly nice but I know I won't do it. I cannot go to bed before 11 on a Friday night."

So why didn't you separate this train of thought?

"Then Chris broke up with me. I tried to kill myself by taking 35 Tylenol. My body didn't take to it and I vomitted them all up after a few hours. The next morning, I had a miscarriage. I am definately sure that it was a miscarriage. I did not even know that I was pregnant, but apparently I was."

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
On the whole I'd say this rated as a 5 as far as content is concerned, yet I still wouldn't be inclined to revisit the site.

I know that I will be seared for saying this by all my critics, but teenage diaries are a dime a dozen. There are just so many out there that one has to be quite picky when it comes to reading material.

Some teens just know how to write more creatively than others. If a person is seriously interested in writing and growing as a writer while keeping a journal, they should frequent creative writing sites and study hard in writing classes.

posted by Eli Moose on Monday, January 28, 2002

69th requested review is of The Diary of a Phone Slut
Total out of 10: 5

layout etc. (2: 1)
Okay, first I want to talk about the way this thing is set up. I do not mind the introduction. I think it is needed. Except the first thing that comes to my mind is, why?

Why would someone want to keep a diary about the phone sex profession anyway? It seems to me that the online world is getting a bit away from the traditional purpose of a diary, and let me say this, I do not like that idea one iota.

I read diaries to read about someone’s personal life, and if that includes the fact that they work in the phone sex industry that is fine. I just do not see the point in using that as the theme of the diary. Except that it gets the writer a lot of attention without even trying. I think it would be better if it were something I found out through reading the diary.

I think this woman is shamelessly promoting the other adult sites she has linked. And baby, a diary is not the place to do that in my opinion.

Now that I have said that spiel, I can move on.

Let’s talk about colors now shall we? Pepto-Bismol pink — do I have indigestion? — I might by the time I finish the first entry.

The green she chooses is suitable, but definitely not something I would have chosen. The best colors are the crème and burgundy.

That picture of the woman on the pillow, where in the world did she find that? I think it is poor taste. The font is called papyrus and that has to go as well.

I do think the format is excellent. I am fond of how each page has two entries and a link at the top and bottom to the previous one and the index of entries.

The daily clix audio link is not something I clicked on, and the reason is because I am afraid of what is behind that door. Also, think about this for a moment, is it getting a lot of hits for clix really worth all the pimping that has to be done to get them?

Now I’m finished with my profound thoughts for the day.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
Fragments are everywhere.

Unique (2: 1)
You can just about say the whole idea is unique, but I have already communicated my thoughts about that already.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 1)
"So, I try to stress the sick-o kinks and the hardcore pervs because they are the tobacco of phone sex. You lose one year off your phone slut life for every regular demented ape you have to deal with. I should call the whole genre Cancer Johns."

"So they want to hear all about how I fucked the family Great Dane when I was fifteen. Sure I did. You ask for it, you got it, Toyota. One teenage girl getting pumped by a canine. Check."

I really did not want those thoughts in my head.

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
She deserves the one point here even though I would not go back to her diary. Why? Well, it is because she does write well. She has a sarcastic tone that makes her writing very interesting and easy to read. It is her content that does not interest me.

I really do not care to know about the life of a phone sex operator. Maybe if it branched out a little I would, but I seriously doubt it.

posted by Eli Moose on Saturday, January 26, 2002

68th requested review is of My Private Idaho
Total out of 10: 1

layout etc. (2: 1)
There are a few things that are off with this diary's layout.

First of all the colors need a revamp. Purple usually looks somewhat reasonable with green, but it all depends on the shades used. The color of the lizard/gecko graphic looks okay with the purple used for the background, but the green used for the table that the entries are in is completely wrong.

I am not into the font used for the title, but that is not a major issue.

As far as navigation is concerned I do not normally recommend the drop down boxes. Especially not at the very bottom of the page. The site ring links appear before the previous and next links do for the diary. That is completely wrong. I'm sure readers are more interested in the diary links than other links, so therefore they should take priority.

I know that having drop down boxes allows you more space on the actual page, but what exactly do you need space for anyway? This is a diary, not some huge, complicated site that needs drop down boxes. Think functionality, not look when it comes to designing these things.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 0)
Password protection makes the hair raise on the back of my neck. I do not think anyone is important enough to contact in order to get some stupid password. If you do not want people to read, do not write it.

Like I've said before, if it is only one or two sentences, please spare me.

If I wanted to read your email I'd steal your password. But seriously, why do you think I would find just a pasted letter from someone would be interesting? If you are going to do that please limit it to small sections of quotes with some kind of comments. I take that back, just stop doing it period. There is so much of it in this diary that I do not think the writer has control over themselves enough to limit it.

Entries that are nothing but lyrics are not interseting either, nor are instant messenger conversations you have. I ache to read something of interest here, but where is it?

If you want to share a link with your readers do so, do not copy all of it and use that for a diary entry. I'm sorry but, does this person know how to write a diary?

Unique: (2: 0)
Nada.

Quotes from the diary (2: 0)
"it's been a long stressful day and i'm mostly brain-dead now. i think i'll go crawl into bed with kitties and read. i have so many new books right now that i can't catch up. i keep forgetting to go and buy more bookcases from wally world."

"i am melancholy. i am alone. tonight is a night where i can feel the patterns whirling in the universe, but i can't see how they apply to me. i know i'm on the path, but i don't know where it leads. all i know is this - i walk solitary."

More like this please?

Would I go back for another read? (2: 0)
I really tried to give this person the benefit of the doubt. I searched around for good entries, I truly did. It's not that I think they do not have intersting things to share, but I think they have no idea how to share them in good way.

I suggest instead of using letters and other people's words, start writing a mental stream and see what happens. Something someone said in a letter may make a good entry, but just pasting in emails is not how to communicate in a diary.

Good luck in your writing adventure.


posted by Eli Moose on Thursday, January 24, 2002

67th requested review is of not a pretty girl
Total out of 10: 5

layout etc. (2: 1)
I have never read or reviewed an open diary as of yet so this is a first for me. I personally abhor the format they offer their diarists.

I loathe the large advertisement located at the top of the page. If there weren’t so many other options out there for free web-space that didn’t take up so much of the page with their ads I wouldn’t be so rigid on this issue. Even Blogger’s banner ads are smaller than this one.

The whole diary seems like an ad for open diary. Almost every link takes you to one of their pages.

The best feature is the way the entries are laid out with great navigation. I have a problem with the fact that there is not a link on the individual entry pages that take you back to the diaries main page that you are reading. I got confused and ended up at the open diary index a few times.

There seems to be a serious lack of originality in this design, I mean what design? There is no graphic and the colors are boring blue and black. The main page is a listing of the entries on the left, which is not bad, and the biggest space available for design only has her links to the diaries she reads. Yawn.

Oh and by the way. Do away with those little emoticon things. They suck, pure and simple.

The Hearing, Surfing, Needing, Wanting thing that is at the beginning of the most recent entry is something I hope she is not planning on using from now on. The text is too small anyway.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
Being a clix whore is one thing, but calling yourself one in the links is annoying.

As well, I am repulsed by centered text on diaries. Please change that to a left alignment. Why, because it is so much easier to read that way.

Let me say this for the umpteenth time, please do not include your surveys etc. in your diary entries

Quotes from the diary: (2: 1)
"I don't know what I would have done if I saw him. One part of me wanted to just see him, not talk to him, just know he was there. Another piece of me wanted to have him there, standing behind me with his arms around my waist, whispering in my ear like all the other couples. For a brief moment I wished he was there for a quickie in a bathroom stall or corner of the bar or in his car."

"It's really hard having a best friend for a heroin addict sometimes. Wanting him not use, then watching withdrawl make him sicker and sicker until it's fucking unbearable. Feeling him shiver under the covers, his face clammy and lifeless, wishing him "better" yet knowing it will never happen if he keeps using. Running my fingers over the track marks and choking on tears as he says that it's time for him to go use again. Not holding him back because nothing I can say or do will make him not do it."

Intense.

"Logan came over Saturday night and Little Miss No-Self-Control yet again exercised my "friends with benefits" privileges. Jason and I got in a huge fight on the phone afterwards for obvious reasons. It's since been resolved."

Hrrm.

Unique:(2: 1)
Better writing than I’ve seen lately. So yeah, that’s unique.

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
Aside from some obvious problems with centered text and format of the whole diary, I really enjoyed it. She has a lot going on in her life to write about. I like reading this kind of diary because the events are so much different from my own that I can lose myself in the writer’s world for a while.

posted by Eli Moose on Wednesday, January 23, 2002

66th requested review is of Frostqube
Total out of 10: 4

layout etc. (2: 1)
The very first thing I noticed was color overload. My eyes hurt after the first three minutes.

The baby blue would not be so bad if the text was black. People need to get it through their heads that most of the time colored text is too hard to read and should not be used, period. The white text used for links is especially hard on the eyes and needs to be changed without a doubt.

The next thing is text size. Is there a valid reason why the text is so small? Why would you want someone squinting to read your diary? You do want people to read this right? I mean I thought that was the whole purpose.

The author of this diary seems to be obsessed with making things small. The whole layout is put inside a small box in the middle of the screen. Widen that thing up some. Make it bigger. Do not be afraid to use some more space. Half the time I am looking at diaries that use too much space, and the other half I’m looking at them with a microscope. Find a middle ground already, please?

This layout received one point because it is very functional as far as navigation is concerned (although I still want previous and next links at the top), and it has a totally cool graphic. I adore it.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
I am beginning to miss capital letters. It did not use to bother me, but I think that I prefer basic rules of writing to be followed. It just makes the sentences flow better for some reason.

Entries that consist of two sentences are a nuisance to me. If you have nothing more to say than that, do not write anything that day. You do not have to update these things daily to keep them interesting people.

I lose patience with ellipses. I hope that I have put a dent in this horrific trend. All I can say is this, join a support group. Tell yourself there are other ways to punctuate and stick to them.

There are typos here and there. A better edit would do the trick.

What we have here is another long paragraph writer. Stop and take a breath and put some spaces in-between those sentences!

Unique: (2: 0)
Not yet.

Quotes from the diary:(2: 1)
"oh, and i'm being stupid and stubborn, and im being CHRIS. literally. margot says i should call him and just say what’s up and talk to him. but i have problems when it comes to him. i want to be friends with him. i want to be good friends with him. i miss how things used to be before. before that whole "irina incident" and after margot met them... i mean, after that things changed. before that summer, a few months before all that, things used to be so different."

"Finally we left to chris’s house… as we got closer and closer to his house, the fast my heart was beating. I had no idea what would happen… but the whole night I was acting weird, and chris kinda noticed. But he didn’t really say anything until we got to his house. Everyone was sleeping… but only hs and and dan were there, both sleeping in the other rooms."

"The other half of me broke out of my little world of taciturnity and became less uptight. Over the short period of about a year and a half I changed so much. I try and deny the fact that certain people and friends had an affect on me, but they did. I know that now I grew out of it, and even though I still care what people think, and sometimes, even if it is for a short period of time, believe that I’m the person people think I am."

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
When I see some changes to the font size and color I’d be back in a flash. I wanted to read more as it was, but the strain on my eyes was too much to take. She’s a pretty teen with a lot to say.

In order to write more creatively in your diary, I suggest you try finding more ways of telling the story. Go check out any site that gives topical suggestions or explains more creative writing tools. You do not have to change the content so much as the way it is presented in order to appeal to a larger audience.


posted by Eli Moose on Tuesday, January 22, 2002

65th requested review is of Let’s Take That Hell Ride Together
Total out of 10: 4

layout etc: (2: 1)
I’m not even sure if that is the right title because it only appears in the tool bar and not on the actual diary. Being title less is not that big of a deal, but I am partial to titles.

First thing I would do is just simply remove the in-line scroll. Take it away, do not use it, and the world would be happier without it. I promise. The fact that it is a relatively simple design is good, so why bother moving the text into a box with another scrollbar? Using a table makes navigation so much simpler.

I understand that you wanted your text to be the same size as the graphic you choose at the right, but this design is seriously limiting the amount of space that is seen on the page. I just don’t like it.

The design would not look bad if it weren’t for the fact that it is a diary entry, and you need to account for the length of these entries in the design. Account for it; do not just shove it away in an in-line scroll box.

I think I said that rather nicely.

One last thing that black colored scroll bar is irritating as hell. I want to be able to see the damn thing. Thank you.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 0)
Strings of one word followed by periods. This must be the new technique invented to use instead of slinging out the ellipses, although, she has an ellipsis problem as well.

Writing with more than one sentence fragment tends to bug me, as well as over doing parenthesis. If you have to ask, over doing it is using more than two per entry.

Reading things like ::dork:: really irritates me. I wish people would find out that there are lots of ways to write creatively without including things like that. If you have an emotion or want to say something, make a complete sentence please?

Cut back on the long paragraphs and you may find that people will read more that you have to say.

Please stop including internet tests as diary entries. Please, please, please.

Unique?(2: 1)
The section at the top of her diary where she puts her song of the day and cool person of the day etcetera is an interesting idea. I do not exactly like the way it is presented, but I think improved upon it would be something interesting for her readers.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 1)
"Fire is very cleansing. Yes, I realize that is a strange sentence, but it's true, you know? You burn something, and there's nothing left but ash. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust."

"I have a curse. I am convinced of this. There is this force field around me that attracts guys, makes them think they love me, and makes me hurt them."

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
This was one of those diaries that fell in the middle. I wouldn’t exactly say I hated it, but I also wouldn’t exactly say I enjoyed myself either.

It does not stand out to me, and basically when I choose to revisit a site I usually do so because something about it grabbed my attention.

posted by Eli Moose on Thursday, January 17, 2002

64th requested review is of February Stars
Rating out of 10: 6

layout etc:(2: 1)
With a name like February Stars I was envisioning something a bit more pink because of Valentines Day, cupid, and all that jazz. I was also expecting to see some stars, but I was disappointed in that area as well.

The layout is not altogether bad, but it needs something to spice it up a little. Maybe something that appears more like the title?

I like the way the navigation (linkage) is all located at the left in one single place. Sometimes when people start moving things around, figuring out where to find links can get confusing and I easily get lost. I also like the miniature monthly archive of the current month appearing on the main page.

Although I am not fond of disclaimers I did like the way this one was worded and it made me chuckle. Humor is the way to go as opposed to whiney complaints.

The cast page is quite colorful, but I think that sticking to around three matching colors in a palette would look better.

I wish there were previous and next links at the top and bottom of each entry. I can type that in my sleep by now.


Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
Overall I enjoyed the style of writing very much, but could do without the occasional over usage of ellipses and the asterisks around words.

Unique: (2: 1)
Uniqueness does not have to mean something that has never been done before, so therefore I give her a unique point for taking the time to change the status bar on her links to be quirky and fun.

I also really enjoyed the Michelle Undressed page. I found it a good combination of things to read about the author. She did a much better job than just filling out some survey and putting it on a diary page.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 2)
"The recipe then calls for the addition of one really good man. Make sure he is kind and gentle, with eyes that are safe to look into. Test his heart first; to make sure he is worthy of the task at hand. Not every man chosen is."

I like the way this entry was written.

"But really, when given the history of the past year, it's amazing. Here I am, talking to this nice guy, who listens politely and even somewhat interestedly, who doesn't tell me I'm full of shit, who doesn't scream in my face, who answers my questions without telling me how stupid I am, and I'm not bored."

"If only I could listen. Would I like what I heard? I think so, mostly. After all, no one is perfect, right? I'm sure there are things about me that bug him. I'm kind of all over the place sometimes. My thighs are kinda squishy and flabby. I'm an idiot about the Foo Fighters."

Her writing is very descriptive, honest, and easy to read.

Would I go back for another read?(2: 1)
I liked my time there very much. I felt like grabbing a cup of coffee and staying for a long time. I think it is not only the content here that grabs me, but also the way it is written. I do truly enjoy a well-written diary. I recommend it to everyone.

posted by Eli Moose on Wednesday, January 16, 2002

63rd requested review is of Love letters from a lunatic
Rating out of 10: 1

layout etc: (2: 0)
For starters let me just say that there are a lot of things going amiss here.

The picture of the butterfly is the paramount thing on the layout, and sorry to say that is not saying very much.

I loathe how every single thing is centered. The table is centered, the text is centered, and every link underneath is centered.

There is nothing worse than centered diary text. Well, except too many ellipses.

I am not sure what is going on with that font, but it does not look trendy to have alternating capital and lowercase letters. I dislike the font chosen in the first place, but this is beyond taking it too far. That is not appealing in the least. Please do not tell me someone thinks that looks nice?

There is one other thing that I find engaging here, and that is the theme of writing love letters, yes even from a lunatic. If done correctly, it could be a first-rate diary.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 0)
Before I even begin I am sure all of you know what my biggest problem is. Honestly this diary wins hands down on most abuse of ellipses I have ever seen.

I am a huge fan of well-structured paragraphs with sentences that end with more than one form of punctuation. The overall effect here is one continuous thought throughout the entire entry. I get dizzy from not knowing when to stop and take a breath.

Along with the ellipses, things are never capitalized, nor are there any other forms of punctuation like apostrophes etc. Call me crazy, but I like punctuation. This is completely horrendous. Maybe they asked me to review this as a joke?

Unique:(2: 1)
I have never seen love letters from a lunatic before, and like I mentioned earlier it could be a great idea. It is new so I think they may still have a chance to improve upon this idea.

There is a lunatictionary (dictionary) provided for assistance in reading the diary. That is unique, but it would be much better if it was not needed.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 0)
"i know you're breaking... and i don't know if i should cry or laugh... joe is getting back with his ex girlfriend... they had breakfast this morning "and yeah"... i dont care... i shouldnt care... cuz im about to do the same... so why does it hurt me so? i dont understnad... just yesterday he said i looked good and he was happy to see me... i guess i misinterpreted that... im such an idiot... but its ok..."

"has anything really changed except the title...? well i feel a little more secure, i suppose... but thas about all... im kinda giving him the benefit of the doubt that he wont hurt me... that now we have the committment, he wont do.. that... so yes... many dissapprove... "once a cheater, always a cheater"they say... or... "he cheats you once, its his fault; he cheats you twice, its yours" but i dont agree with that entirely..."

No comments needed.

Would I go back for another read? (2: 0)
You have got to be kidding me. No way, no how, never would I visit this site again. I cannot imagine this being fascinating to anyone, but I know someone out there will disagree with me. That is just the way it is. In order for this thing to entertain me there would have to be a complete makeover in the way it is written and the way it is presented. I just do not think it is possible for me to give all the pointers needed for that.


posted by Eli Moose on Wednesday, January 16, 2002

62nd requested review is of Curieux Matou
Rating out of 10: 6

layout etc: (2: 1)
First of all the name of the site is very original and stands out. I fancy the picture of the fan, which is the main graphic.

The colors-scheme is not altogether bad, but I find that looking at several dark colors grouped together for long periods is tough on my eyes. Therefore, I suggest using less color and lightening it up a little with some white space in there somewhere.

The navigation of the site is acceptable, although I think there needs to be a few changes to improve it. The side frame works well except I think that it needs to be made uniform. There are many different things going on there. All the different colors in text, sizes of text, images etc make it a little off kilter.

I think that the link journal logs could be renamed to archive as a result making it clearly marked for what it is.

I like how the archive is set up as a calendar with the titles of the entries inside the day it was written.

On the actual journal entry, the previous and next links are located off to the left in a column, I think of course that they would work better located at the top and bottom of each entry.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
Sometimes her paragraphs are too long and hard on the eyes. People are too afraid to break up their paragraphs, but it helps the online reader so much when you do.

Too many ellipses, everyone needs to go head to head with the dreaded period.

Unique:(2: 1)
I liked the pink comment box that use to be below the entries.

Quotes from the diary (2: 2)

"And I felt incredibly sad. Sad that he's growing up so fast, sad that he's leaving. I wondered if he knew how much I love him, and that I was thinking of him at that moment, and I wondered if he ever thought of me during his day. Tomorrow could come so fast, and he'll be gone."

"He told me that he's been a jerk latey for not showing me more affection. Honestly, I hadn't even noticed. I guess I've had a lot on my mind. But I thought about it, and he was right. I didn't say it. I'm sure I'm guilty of doing the same. And then he said he wanted to hold me, so we snuggled close and both fell back asleep."

That is so sweet


"I realize I say a lot of things that may lead you to believe that my mother is a terrible person, so I wanted to say some good things about her. Hmm.... well.. let's see... hmm.. I'm kidding."

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
While this diary is not what I would call a appalling, it is not something for me either. I think sometimes I need to have something in common with the writer in order to want to come back to the diary to read more, in this case I have not found it. I do recommend everyone checking it out that reads this site though, it was an enjoyable visit.

posted by Eli Moose on Tuesday, January 15, 2002

61st requested review is of nakedthought

Rating out of 10: 2

layout etc:(2: 2)
The actual layout is the best thing about this diary. Everything else leaves a lot to be desired.

You would think that the title should have given it away, but the naked pictures completely surprised me.

I think that the pictures themselves are slightly on the line of being tasteful and being too much for my innocent eyes. I do like the way they are all in shades of blue. I think it would be more tasteful if she blurred some of the images just a little bit.

The overall layout is really eye pleasing. I dig how the page is centered and everything falls nicely into place.

Get rid of that mood indicator, they are so last year.

If you find yourself wanting to add a disclaimer to your site as a means of getting some things off your chest, my advice is do not do it. When you read her disclaimer, you will see what I mean. It comes across as very whiney and defensive. I believe it starts you off on the wrong foot with a random reader if you put something like that on your site. This is a huge turn-off.

I think you should limit your diary entries to one per day and put all the other things (ie: pictures, poems, internet tests) you want to add onto the diary on other pages.

Annoying writing habits:(2: 0)
Unfortunately, even though the writer is not a native English speaker and shares that on her site, her writing still annoys me. I think that going into every single annoying writing habit in this case would be too much.

Secondly, it was extremely annoying to find six entries for one day full of random silly things that I did not care to look at. As I suggested earlier, that could be avoided by creating other pages for those things.


Unique:(2: 0)
No.


Quotes from the diary: (2: 0)
"so far, which is the best diary/journal review site you think? promotion time. nakedreviews, of course! *wink* and i still think that diaryreviews as the review sites pioneer in dland is one of the best. there's another really great review site: angry-inch. there's only a one reviewer there, but he gives you very useful suggestions to improve your diary without being "bitchy"."

Hey, what is wrong with being bitchy?!

"so, officially ... he made me his girlfriend!!!!! wow! isn't that a really really exploding news????? tiara has a boyfriend now after knowing that guy for almost a year. i asked him w/ther he remembers when the first time we wrote to each other and he couldn't recall it ... i told him it was end of march 2001 :)"

Just so you know I was not lying about the annoying writing habits.

"i'm not in a crossroad now. i know where my heart will lead me, but there are many things i have to learn and prepare before i reach my destination."

Would I go back for another read? (2: 0)
I think I can find other things to waste my time reading. I do not find her site interesting, and am truly in shock at some of the scores other review sites have given her.

posted by Eli Moose on Sunday, January 13, 2002

60th requested review is of Background Noise
Rating out of 10: 7

layout etc.: (2: 1)
This title is so catchy. I like it and I like the font used for it.

I really am keen on the black, white, and gray color-scheme. I think it works fine and keeps away from having too much color over-loading the senses.

I also am partial to the main graphic. I think I have seen this somewhere before though and if my memory serves me correctly it was in advertising for bluefly.net a while back.

I am not sure why the writer decided to make an entry page and a main diary page that look almost identical. By eliminating the main page, it will get rid of an extra-unneeded step to a rather simple web page.

A few things need to change on the main diary page. Instead of having the entries listed in a table at the right of the graphic, I would put them in columns below the picture. It looks strange the way they are only on the right-hand side of the page. This makes the page off balance, whereas by moving them below the picture, it would appear uniform. I suggest the same thing for the bio page.

I do like the idea of not starting the diary off with the current entry. This way people can choose what they want to read when they open the diary. It works out well if the writer does not update their diary daily.

The little icons used for links are nifty and appealing. Although the links are not clearly marked, there are alt tags that pop up when the mouse is over them, which works because there are not that many of them. I always suggest avoiding doing this whenever possible.

Moving the icon links over towards the middle and away from the far right of the page would help get away from the out of balanced look the page has right now. By positioning them more towards the center below the title, the effect will be a more balanced page.

I like how she adds pictures to some of her entries. It is like getting unexpected presents.

Uh-oh there are no previous and next links at the top, just when I needed it too!

Annoying writing habits: (2: 2 )
Either she does not have any, or she just did not annoy me, which in itself deserves these two points.

Unique: (2: 2)
She has a classy looking book review page that fits along nicely with her color scheme. I like how she alternates white text with gray tables.

I have seen maybe one other diarist that has a signature line at the end of their entries, but I still think it is unique.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 1)
“At night you don't notice things like six months worth of dust caked to the front of the television screen.”

I as well hate to dust.

“I've gotten a little better since those days when my relationships were based on how long I was able to keep track of the scrap of paper with your contact info on it. But I'm still pretty organizationally challenged.”

Is she my organizational twin?

“I don't get it. Any of it. What kind of creep shops for his life partner in a catalog? And what kind of woman wants to be married to that guy?”

“I wonder what the mailman thinks of us after seeing the kinds of mail we receive. He probably thinks Eli is a sick fuck. And I'm a witch.”

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
She is opinionated. She is funny. Some of her entries make you want to say, I did not need to know that. Some of the paragraphs you will want to skip over and on to the next thing, but one thing she is not is boring.

posted by Eli Moose on Thursday, January 10, 2002

59th requested review is of handyman
Rating out of 10: 6

layout etc: (2: 2)
This layout is not bad at all, although I did like the old one better. His theme fits his personality.

When things are good I am at a loss for words. People should take notes about layouts like this.

The right side evens out the page perfectly with the links, quick bio, favorites and the disclaimer. Then to the left there is a table for the entries equipped with front and back links at the top and bottom.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
I don't think there is anything wrong with writing about things you like, but this guy goes overboard with his thing for musicals. The first five entries I read were about one or another. Too much, too much I say.

Unique: (2: 1)
Using a live journal for online diary test results. Much better than bombarding those of us that do not care with that information.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 1)
"Brian and I were upset with Mom when she fell asleep during Moulin Rouge - and then she described it as "weird." I'm not surprised, considering she was asleep for everything except the can-can sequence at the beginning and the Spectacular Spectacular finale."

"But we're all going to die. Even if I were to lead the most secure, stable, boring life imaginable, I would still die. Death is inevitable, so what's the point in fearing it?"

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
I've been looking at his site off and on since I first received the request for review. I think it is interesting in ways, and annoying in others.

Maybe I just feel that he spends too much time talking about his hobbies and interests in his journal. When I go to read a diary, I expect to read more.

He has his own review site, which you know I had to take a tour through it. I did not find anything there that I have not already seen on any of the other diaryland review sites, although he did just begin it in this month.

If there was a word to describe handyman I think it would be overzealous. Currently he has five web-pages. A live journal page, a Rocky Horror themed page, a Moulin Rouge themed page, his diary page, and now a review page. I did not have time to look at them all, but he may be spreading himself a little too thin.

The biggest suggestion I have is a combination of all of these things. His next project should be combining all of this on to one central site and with some good navigation employed it could be a success. In doing this, I think he will feel less inclined to mention all the hobby stuff in his entries.


posted by Eli Moose on Tuesday, January 08, 2002

58th requested review is of Dragonscales
Rating out of 10: 3

layout etc: (2: 0)
I hate to start this off on a bad note, but this layout is killing me. So many ideas, yet all executed so horribly. Where do I begin?

Aahh. I know. That evil demonlike fade-in effect. I hate them!! It takes forever for the page to load. It is extremely annoying. I do NOT want to wait five to ten seconds every time I click a link. Get rid of it, and quickly.

Now. Your tables. What is going on??? It's a mess. Rather than nesting tables within the main table, you'd be better off just using three columns. That way, you won't have all that wasted space in between each section. This will also be a plus for visitors (like me) who have a screen resolution of 800x600, because then it will all fit without that horizontal scrollbar.

One of the main things that bothers me is the fact that your columns on the left and right sides are not the same size. It makes the layout look off-balance. They also don't really follow any pattern as far as alignment. The right table has everything centered, but in the left table, it's basically anything goes. In order for a layout like this to work well, you really need some uniformity.

You've also got way too much empty space. Is it really necessary for your tables to be so big? Everything looks so sparse.

Finally, the center table. I like it, with a few exceptions. It should be either narrower, or the flower image should be wider, to minimize that extra white space. Also, it would look better if the entries were not centered, and if you had more cellpadding. The entry text looks a little bit crowded.

I'm not even going to get started on the archives page. Yes, it's that bad.

My final suggestion is for your navigation. You have links all over the place, and it makes searching for certain ones a bit tedious. You really should put the links for Newest, Older, Guestbook, Email, etc in the same area to optimize viewing of the diary. And previous/next links at the top AND bottom.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
lol, ::grumbles::, and the ellipse. Stop using those!

"Fixing", as in "I'm fixing to go jogging." I realize you're southern, and that lots and lots of southern people say "fixing", but it's annoying.

Unique: (2: 0)
Hmm. Erm. Well, no. Sorry.

Quotes from the diary (2: 1)
"I wish I had some friends that didn't do drugs... that I actually had something in common with besides drinking... that had high self-esteem and didn't bitch about their weight. Shit.. I don't like how I look but I don't bitch about it all day. Gah! Especially since I have a reason to bitch. All my friends are Beautiful. Well.. I don't consider them my friends anymore. They're a bad influence on me and my daughter, so I choose not to see them anymore. I just want some friends."

I can empathise with that.

"I'm just so happy right now. That's what God does to you. If you believe. He fills my heart with joy and love, and puts my mind at ease. Your life is going to end no matter what... don't worry about the little things. Live life to the fullest, but don't let it consume you."

Awww. That was nice.

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
No, probably not. While there are some good interesting entries every now and then, mostly it's same old, same old. Don't get me wrong. I can see how some people really like this diary. It's just not for me. I don't really have any suggestions for content. It's just the journal of an everyday person, living an everyday life, and I can't fault that.
posted by Miranda on Monday, January 07, 2002

Just a note on annoying writing habits. If I happen to not catch them all, consider yourself lucky.

57th requested review is of big things etc.
Rating out of 10: 3

layout etc:(2: 0)

For starters I am not a big fan of anime. I know that a lot of people do like it and think it is incredibly cool, so I will try to let that slide.

The layout is designed with a very large screen space in mind. I do not think people understand that not everyone has huge monitors. In order to make your diary design appealing to a larger amount of people, design it with a general audience in mind.

I suggest to be more audience friendly a reduction in the size of the layout is an absolute must. All that blank white space is not needed anyway.

A way that space could be minimized would be through making the diary centered around the graphic with a two table combination underneath it. One for the links, the other for the entries. If the combination of those two tables were equal to the size of the graphic it would look much better.

If I've said this once I've said it a billion times. Stop using in-line scrolls. I do not see the point in them. For the most part they just screw up navigation and make reading the diary a chore. Simplicity rules for design, not complexity. Remember people are coming to read your diary, not run through a maze with their mouse.

First of all I begin by scrolling down and over to the right on the screen because it is so HUGE, then in order to read the entire entry I have to scroll down inside another box. What is the point? There is no reason for this people! For the love of diaries, please stop using these!!!

If I have to review another diary with this poor of a layout I am going to scream. This makes it very hard for me to want to waste my time reading anything.

One last thing. Why in the world are there so many archive links? I do not think it would be too much to combine some of those.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
I hate the word alrighty, so you know that annoyed me.

I also really have a thing for space inbetween paragraphs, which she does not use.

I found the occasional over-usage of ellipses, but nothing I could not tolerate.

Unique: (2: 1)
On some of the entries there is something titled substitute excerpts. I am not all that sure what is going on with these things because there is no rhyme or reason to them. It would be really cool if she incorporated a theme and used them regularly.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 1)
"Yuuka left for Japan on the 29th. I can't believe it. She's really not going to be there when I walk into school on Monday. It's just, not going to be the same without her."

"A lot of artists lip sync at their concerts, so what makes Brittney free for critisism when she does? I've seen J Lo do it and I've seen Pink do it. I find it annoying, but still, people's reasoning to dislike Brittney isn't too sensical."

" I wonder why all mothers can't be as understanding and thoughtful and ... well ... intelligent as others. For example, my 'old friend's' mother is a very over protective woman who doesn't let either of her children do anything on their own. My 'old friend' is so childish because of it, and I feel bad for her at times if she's not annoying me at that moment."

Would I go back for another read? (2: 0)
As it stands the answer is no. To be perfectly honest I felt too annoyed with the way it all worked.
posted by Eli Moose on Monday, January 07, 2002

56th requested review is of Subtle Knife
Rating out of 10: 4

layout etc: (2: 1)
I understand the love of Lord of the Rings, but I do not understand why someone thought it would look good to use a large photograph from the movie as their diary background. Even though it is broken up into several parts it is dumb, too big, and takes too long to load. Plus this theme is going to get old and fast.

No no no no no no. And again, I say no.

I had already written the review of this site when the diary had the picture of Legolas and just a day after I had written the review, the writer changed it. The old layout had the text inside an in-line scroll box. I am always less inclined to scroll down an in-line scroll than I am a normal scroll. If something is so unimportant that it has to tucked into a corner, then it probably isn't worth my time to read. I think it was to her advantage that she did away with that.

Now the text is squashed up against the right of my screen with very little cell padding. This design is much better, but needs to be padded a bit more for better viewing on smaller screens.

Also I do not like the text being in the bottom right corner of the screen. It is just not easy to read. It would look much better if it was somewhat centered; not exactly in the center, but not so far to the right extreme either.

The previous and next link is only located at the bottom of each entry. I really hate that, then again I'm an easy navigation guru.

By changing the design in the nick of time she earned a point, the other layout was going to get a 0.

I find it hard to believe the person that writes in this diary is a reviewer herself at naked reviews. Then I remembered that the few times I've visited that site I was not impressed and that not all reviewers are like me at all.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
She has several of the habits I've talked about over and over. Too many people use chat style writing in their diaries. I prefer it when people do not do that.

I think that there are way too many entire entries devoted to online tests and links. That bugs the hell out of me. If this is needed at all, please limit it to one page of links and whatnot.

Recently her entries are incredibly short, although in the past I noticed she was writing a lot more.

Unique: (2: 0)
No.

Quotes from the diary (2: 1)
"After seeing Legolas wandering over the screen for 3 hours I decided I really need to be in a relationship. I want to be able to rely on someone, to have the hold me and tell me everything will be ok."

"I am not going to hate her though. What is the point? Anyway I don't want this to carry on and everyone can you please stop giving her a hard time because it makes me feel bad."

"Actually a big reason I don't ever want to go to school is because I think I am too fat to go to school. Everyone is going to laugh at me."

I have to hand it to her for being real.

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
Actually I wouldn't. I think it is because I lose patience with the young and flighty. I gave her one point in this section because I think she spills her guts a lot in her diary. Not a lot of people do that; it is always worth a point. The thing about online diaries is that it is just not good enough to write about your life. Because the online journal in itself is a publication, in order to get readers one must write about one's life in such a way to interest others.

Some people were not meant to keep their diary online. That is just the facts. Yet it is such a popular thing to do.


posted by Eli Moose on Thursday, January 03, 2002

55th requested review is of John Powers
Rating out of 10: 9

layout etc: (2: 2)
The name makes me think of the Simpsons epidose when Homer decided to change his name to Max Power. It also makes me think of Austin Powers. And because both of those things make me smile, it should come as no surprise that this diary does as well.

The layout is equipped with different styles you can choose, from which is inventive but time consuming for me as a critic, so I asked Mr. Powers via email to tell me which template from his many choices he wanted me to review. He said I could use "Jenish" because that is the one that he uses.

There is not much to say about it except that it works very well. It is uncluttered and easy to navigate, complete with backwards and forwards links at the top and the bottom.

The only thing I think this format is lacking is some sort of graphic. One could argue that in that case I could choose one of the different ones that incorporate a graphic, and that would be correct. I like the design. I feel like saying two thumbs up, and I would if there was a link to the real diary critic! I'm joking, simplicity rules.

Annoying writing habits: (2: 1)
I can tell that someone thinks it is awfully clever to put line breaks in the middle of sentences. At first I thought it was sentence fragments before I figured it out.

I'm not very fond of all the run-on sentences either.

In the past had been an ellipsis abuser, he seems to have reformed since then.

Unique: (2: 2)
I did go through each choice available for the diary's template. I think this is a very inventive and creative. I do have to say though, that some of them would not have scored so high in my layout section. If you look at them ahem -busy backgrounds- ahem, you would know what I mean.

I also love his Jaded and Angsty horroscopes, as well as his advice-column. Very funny, I'm addicted.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 2)
"A tall lanky bored man imitates a drunken cherub and is found dead in sub zero weather with a frozen stream of piss emanating from his penis."

"I failed. Oh well. She's not upset and not outwardly angry because she said she didn't want anything, couldn't tell me what she wanted, and would rather just return it all and save the money for an engagement ring."

"why is it when two guys are getting together the next night,
it's plans...
...but when a guy and a girl hang out two days later
it's a date?"

The line spacing is the author's choice, which is a bit to eccentric for me. Actually it was double spaced not single spaced.

"My new apartment has 17 windows. The last place I just moved out of had two windows.
I've been squinting a lot."

Would I come back for another read? (2: 2)
I like it. He claims to write every morning and on weekends when he feels like it, so I do believe I will test this out and add it to my bookmarks. I can not believe I've not found this site before now.

Two diaries in a row that I like in the New Year. What is this world coming to? I think I like his writing style the most, which I consider to be umorous without being over-the-top. Good for you Mr. Powers, you have my attention.



posted by Eli Moose on Wednesday, January 02, 2002

54th requested review is of Blue Cad D. Net, Esquire.

Total out of 10: 6

layout etc: (2: 1)
To be honest, after viewing the eyesore of a main page, I was afraid to enter.

Luckily, the actual site's design is completely different. I'm not a fan of Guns and Roses, but the main image of Slash is awesome. Well done. In all, this is a good layout, however there are a few things I don't like.

The background color complements the image well, but it is just too tan for me. It makes me think of mud. Blegh. I'm also not fond of all that extra space off to the right of the page. It looks off balance. Another annoying thing: Little javascript pop up windows. They're okay in moderation, but every one of your links opens in one of them. They remind me of those God-awful pop up advertisements for the world's smallest webcam. I like to be able to see where I'll be clicking when I hover over a link, and with these windows, it isn't possible.

While I like weblog style journals, I don't like the way your archives are set up. Since you're currently residing at bluecad.net, it makes sense for those archives to be listed first. Instead, you've got links to your Pitas blog listed first (in alphabetical order rather than date), then a link to a 24 hour blog-a-thon, and then the bluecad.net archives. They are classified by date, but they're listed in order from oldest to most recent. Personally, I like it the other way around.

It also doesn't make sense to me that you've got links to your past layouts in the archives section, when they're just screenshots. You've already mentioned in the paragraph at the top of the archives page that you've kept the old layouts on the archives, so it just seems redundant to include the screenshots when we'll get to see them in all their glory anyway. Maybe these links would be better placed in the portfolio section.

What's with putting a period in the middle of each section's title (PORT.FOLIO, ARCH.IVES, RINGS.CLIQUES, etc.)? It looks silly, not dramatic or cool. They're just words, for God's sake. Not sentences.

Annoying writing habits: ( 2: 2)
My goodness. I didn't find a single one. Bravo!

Unique: (2: 2)
I really liked the Randomized Magnetic Poetry on the community page. I've never seen something like this on a webpage before. I also like how she did her bio page. It was set up well, and very interesting.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 1)
"I quit cold turkey. I lost contact with all my dealers, I moved, I changed phone numbers, and that was all it took. If you don't have a connect, you can't get it (unless you want to buy from a stranger who probably stepped on it with powdered sugar, or if you want to buy from an undercover cop). I was sick of feeling paranoid and sluggish all the time, I looked awful (lost 15 lbs, going from 120 to 104-ish, and my mom asked how I lost "all that weight", and that was a sign to stop), plus I started stealing from my best friend. It was time to end it, so I did. Screw rehab. I was stronger than a drug. I have never tried heroin and never smoked or shot cocaine. I always snorted the powdered drugs. If you need to shoot a drug into your vein, you're basically asking to die (from an overdose or AIDS). Besides, heroin created Pearl Jam, so I can't touch that drug."

That's an interesting way to look at it

"Bought a new domain name today. It's a good one, too. I can't divulge it because it will have my real name and all my real personal information. You didn't think Raspil was my real name, right? Next month, I will buy the space and get the portfolio up and running. I took some more cam pics tonight; I like my little cam. I'll probably make some more Photoshop brushes tonight, something more utilitarian."

This is what she talks about now. Webdesign stuff. How about more on your life? Not everyone wants to hear about Photoshop brushes, new layouts, and webcams.

Would I go back for another read? (2: 0)
While I rather enjoyed the articles, the entries didn't really hold a lot of substance, or my attention, for that matter. So no, probably not.

posted by Miranda on Tuesday, January 01, 2002

Happy new year. I've had a great break and am ready to resume the site. Thanks for all the continued support. If you hadn't noticed, we now have a gif on the site available for anyone that wants to use it to link back to us.

53rd requested review is of *fairy dust and happy thoughts

Total out of 10: 6

layout etc: (2: 1)
I think a bottle of pink pepto-bismol threw up on this page! Although pink is not on the whole a bad color to use, I think the peachy color with the pink background is overdoing it.

I like the picture she choose of herself (I assume) as her main graphic because it has that fun flirty feel that her diary takes on as a theme.

I would prefer to see some white-space or another light color along with some black text. Use color as an accent part of the page, not the whole of the page. I do not know if anyone knows what I am talking about, but if you use colored text it always seems to overload my senses. Choose your pallet wisely and know where to place the color without giving your reader a pink-dosed headache. Also, you just can not go wrong with black text because it is always easy to read on most backgrounds.

Personally the rest of the layout is a tried and true table ensamble that works for me except for a few size, color, and proportion things. Let me point out what I think needs to be done:

The top table with the picture in it is ok, although the picture does not quite need to be that big.

I think the title takes up too much space at the top of the diary. Get rid of that space, it is not needed. The eye is drawn to space and that is not what you want going on there.

Additonally I think the left table needs to be reduced in size by about half the amount. In order to keep the picture the same size as the table you may want to consider resizing it as well. I dont think those links need that much space; plus I'd much rather see the entry part of the diary take up more space than it already does on the screen. Trying to keep the size of your screen compact and not so spread out is a good rule of thumb. It helps those out there who do not own huge monitors.

Not many people pay enough attention to their layouts to include v-link colors. It would help out the readers that read a lot of entries at one time if you simply set it up to be a different shade than your text color so they know which ones they have already read.

Kudos for the before and after links at the top and bottom of the entry. I have found another person that realizes how much easier they are for those of us reading lots of entries!

Annoying writing habits: ( 2: 1)
Stop using initials instead of some name. Make up a name if you really care about being anonymous. But it takes the fun out of it for the reader to have to read an initial. If someone writes with names, it leaves the illusion that they found your diary under your bed and are reading it in secret.

Cutesy smiley faces and chat-style writing add to what I think the writer wants as her "personal feel" diary, but nonetheless are still pet peeves of mine.

There are a lot of typos through-out the whole diary. I know diaryland doesn't have a spell-check, but I think it would be wise to incorporate one of your own before putting it up for the world to see.

Saying things like I love you all, may be endearing to some people, but it takes the personal level a little too far for my taste.

Unique: (2: 1)
I liked some of her poetry, and that is unique enough for one point from me.

Quotes from the diary: (2: 2)
"I'm not really depressed, just trying to come back down from the euphoric state that watching that movie brought me to. I enjoy the dreamy, not-real quality my life takes after movie induced escapism, but coming back to reality just makes me depressed. I don't think I should be allowed to watch movies."

Descriptive writing, I wish she would use this on all levels.

"I had a really good sleep last night, so I didn't have my cup of coffee that I normally have in the mornings at work. I actually held out until coffee break!!! this makes me happy because it saved me calories. Oh!! You don't know, do you? I'm dieting a bit because I'm drowning in my fat. Ok, maybe not, but I've gained about 5-10 pounds and don't fit my work clothes properly and don't want to spend money on new clothes."

I think I've read the complaint about not having morning coffee at least 5 times by now. Someone needs new material for diary entries.

"In case any of my avid readers are wondering what is wrong with me lately, I'll tell you - I've been obesessed about the past. All of my relationships I had with people in Kamloops, things that happened when I was a teenager, things I did as a young adult, everything. I don't want to think about that stuff, because it makes me feel like I should have done things differently, when I don't think that I should have. I mean that I don't want to regret things that I said or did, because they should be learning experiences, and I must have done them for a reason, even if I can't remember exactly what that reason is now."

This is one paragraph that could be made into a real juicy, really good diary entry. I have no idea why people shy away from sharing more about themselves. If you don't want people to know, then why do you keep a public diary?

Would I go back for another read? (2: 1)
Her diary entries read like personal letters to the reader, or bits of conversation. It's fun, light and easy to read. Sometimes the personalness of it makes you want to grab a cup of coffee and talk back, but at times there is just not enough. Keep in mind that when you write as if you know the reader, as well as giving it the pesonal feel, it could also be keeping you from really saying what you want in the diary.

Most of the diary's content is on the surface, ie: not enough sleep, hating work, etc. I want more! Dig deeper, open yourself up. Look for topic a day sites to give you some material other than the small tid-bits from your day. Use your diary as a means of writing therapy. I promise if you write it, the readers will come.


posted by Eli Moose on Tuesday, January 01, 2002