myAsylum reLoaded

Blogger App for iPhone

2011-10-16T22:58:00.001+08:00

It seems like the Blogger app for iPhone has been released. I just installed it and am giving it a go.

In fact, this posting was done using the free app. My assessment so far? Rather primitive and needs a LOT of work.

That said, it's quite intuitive, allowing you to get started without bruising any brain cells trying to figure out how. But because it has been designed for the iPhone, it doesn't look so nice on the iPad.

Blogsy Test

2011-09-04T23:50:00.001+08:00

Technorati tags: Blogsy, Test Post, iPad Blogging Tools

This is a test of using Blogsy, a new blog authoring tool for the iPad that I recently installed. For the most part it works pretty okay.
(additional initial thoughts, and more, in the full post)

The only thing I don't like so far is the conversion of HTML paragraph tags to line breaks. I can add these quite easily in Write view, but once you swipe back to the WYSIWYG mode, they're automatically converted.

Kind of a bummer.

I will come in handy to post quickies that I'll revisit to put in proper look and feel. Pretty much how I use Amplify, come to think of it. Just have to remember NOT to preview!

Another annoying thing – Blogsy doesn’t handle the post-break code (using the HTML span tag) very well, and is another thing that needs fixing once I get a chance to download a post for editing.

In case you were wondering, the break code works fine on this post, because it’s been edited after posting.

One thing I could do is to do a posting without the break while on the road, and add that in later. Something to consider.

iPad Blogging

2011-09-02T10:36:00.001+08:00

Technorati tags: Blogger+, iPad, Test Post

Sometime back, I decided to give this blogging tool on iPad a go.

The tool is called Blogger+ and what it does is allow blog posts (and it works with Blogger, my platform of choice) to be created and posted directly from the iPad.

And for the most part it works pretty okay, except that it is nowhere near as flexible as Window's LiveWriter, which is what I normally use.
(the shortcomings of Blogger+, in the full post)

One of the main shortcomings is that while facilities are provided to embed pictures and other media, the choice of available online image repositories is limited. Another shortcoming I find is that this tool does not really cater to bloggers who use a standard template that is to be re-used.

But perhaps the biggest shortcoming is that while there is a text editor function built in, it treats text as whole objects, making template blogging impossible. It treats the template as an entirely different object altogether.

So now, we're gonna test what happens when one inserts blocks of text into the post.

This is the text that was inserted using the built-in text editor. After I complete this paragraph, I will go ahead and post this.

Testing the iframe YouTube code

2011-08-28T09:21:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: iFrame, Test, YouTube

Up till now, YouTube videos embedded in myAsylum posts have used the old Object tag code. So I thought that it would be a good idea to see if there are any issues with using the newer iFrame code.

The answer to that question: looks like it’s no problem.
(some iFrame thoughts, and more, in the full post)

One of the reasons for testing this is that a number of dynamic content sharing facilities on the Internet are starting to use the newer iFrame tag. Also, I believe that this may allow Flash-based content to be viewed on the iPad – not entirely sure at this point. Perhaps we’ll test that out when some content gets found...

In the meantime, the success of this test means that in the future, it’s bye-bye <object>... it’s old style, and we gotta move with the times!

IPad blogging Part 2

2011-04-10T16:53:00.001+08:00

This is my second attempt at using the iPad to draft a blog post out. The first one was to myAsylum. This time around, I'm posting this without using the usual template as a starting point, and test-posting it to this blog instead.

So, let's see how it looks...

Okay, except that the template stuff - like Technorati tags and the break-in-the post aren't included. Workaround? To keep the template permanently in drat, then copy it across whenever I need to post something new. A bit tedious having to compose in HTML, but until BloggerPlus has a WYSIWYG editor, or until the day Blogger comes out with an iPad app, this method will have to do.

It will definitely make it easier to blog on the go...

Testing the new Blogger editor

2009-10-03T13:18:00.003+08:00

Technorati tags: Blogger, New Editor, Try Out

Blogger recently updated it's post editor, a long-overdue revamp. One of the nice features is the break function, which in the past, could only be implemented by tweaking your template.

This is a test of that functionality, which if it works well, will mean that you won't see the rest of this post until after you click the "Read More" link below.
(the rest of it, in the full post)

So does it work? Yes, apparently so.

This is probably a much easier way to include a break, especially useful if your posts tend to be long, compared to previously how it was done, i.e. by tweaking your template. Especially for those less than comfortable with editing their template.

The new feature, however, is kind of moot for me, since these days, I edit my posts using an offline editor. My editor of choice is Windows Live Writer, which works quite nicely for me.

In any case, just thought I'd do this test post to see how it works out. One thing, however, is that the main page is now somehow kind of screwy - the background of the posts don't appear as they should.

Hmmm... so maybe it doesn't quite work as well as I thought, eh?

PUMPP Press Release Translation

2009-02-16T14:52:00.005+08:00

Technorati tags: Translation, Bahasa Malaysia, Musawah, myAsylum

The following is an English translation of a press release issued by the Pulau Pinang (Penang) branch of the Malaysian Ulama Association (PUMPP). The original Bahasa Malaysia version of the release can be found here (via the PUMPP blog). This translation is referenced to in a posting on myAsylum, related to PUMPP's objection to the Musawah Global Meeting, currently being held in Kuala Lumpur.

PUMPP CONDEMNS MUSAWAH THAT BRINGS THE LIBERAL ISLAM AGENDA TO MALAYSIA AND CHALLENGES BASIC PRINCIPLES OF ISLAM

The Pulau Pinang branch of the Malaysian Ulama Association hereby strongly condemns the ‘Musawah’ program, i.e. Global Movement for Equality and Justice in the Muslim Family, organized by the major Malaysian proponent of the deviant Islam Liberal, Sisters in Islam (SIS). The Musawah meeting is seen to wish to challenge the many basic principles of Islam, particularly in the area of syariah laws pertaining to women and family, that have been agreed upon and accepted by the consensus of eminent ulama.

This meeting is expected to be attended by various Liberal Muslim personalities whom the eminent Islamic ulama find objectionable. Those who will attend include Muhammad Khalid Masud, chairman of the Islamic Ideology Council of Pakistan, Farida Bennani from Morocco, Sana Benachour (Tunisia), Hussein Muhammad (Indonesia), Ziba Mir-Hosseini (Britain), Zainah Anwar (Malaysia), Siti Musdah Mulia (Indonesia) and Nur Rofia (Indonesia), plus non-Muslim activists like Cassandra Balchin (UK), and many more.

200 Muslim Liberalists have been invited from 40 countries, and will meet at the 5-star The Prince Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, on February 13, 2009, to attend the 5 day meeting. This closed-door meeting also does not allow participation from any party other than those by their closed invitation. PUMPP sees this well-funded meeting as possibly being supported by Western interests with the intention of liberalizing Islam, and hopes that the authorities will investigate the source of funding for the program.

This meeting will also give a negative perception of Malaysia, which may be seen as a country practicing Shariah laws that discriminate against women, especially when the meeting will be brought to the attention of representatives from the United Nations, with the presence of Professor Yakin Erturk (The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women), who will officially launch the meeting.

(the rest of the translation, in the full post)

PUMPP also criticizes the presence of national leaders for the offical launch of the program as not referring beforehand to the national religious authorities in the country, such as Jakim and the Council of Muftis.

Work papers and workshops that are to be conducted during the meeting are seen to have the intention of reinterpreting al-Quran and al-Hadith from women’s perspectives, that which are said to have been male biased all this while. Musawah will likely present issues pertaining to male/female equality within Islamic families, through laws such as polygamy, faraid (inheritance distribution), wife obedience, permission to leave the home, female aurat (parts of the body that must be covered), etc. These laws are likely to be challenged, contravening all the commandments brought by al-Quran and al-Sunnah.

PUMPP also hopes that non-Muslim groups and communities are not influenced by these Liberal Islam groups’ propaganda and will not interfere in matters of faith and principles of Islamic teachings, just as Islam teaches its followers to not interfere, and to respect teachings of other religions, as is stated in the Quran:

لَكُمْ دِينُكُمْ وَلِيَ دِينِ
(109:6) Unto you, your religous law, and unto me, mine!

Therefore, PUMPP condemns the implementation of this program, and sees it as potentially further damaging the faith of Muslims in Malaysia, leading to disunity of the Muslim community, and lead to a wrong perception of Islam by all parties, including the world community present, who will look at the developments in Malaysia.

Going Chrome

2008-09-14T16:34:00.002+08:00

Technorati tags: Browsers, Google Chrome, Review

Just when you thought it was safe to stick to your browser of choice (in my case IE - Internet Explorer, from Windows), Google comes along and totally messes up the browser equillibrium. Introducing Google Chrome.

Going Chrome... and reigniting the browser wars!

And like virtually everything else Google, it's in the perpetual Beta mode... and that's the scary part. Even at this stage, I am totally hooked. Line and sinker. Even with some of the kinks yet to be ironed out.
(going Chrome big time, and more, in the full post)

First off, the interface is uber simple and clean-looking. In fact, deceptively simple, at least at first glance. There are actually a lot of things going on "under the hood". The first thing you'll notice when you crank Chrome up is the thumbnail bookmark gallery, which is automatically generated, based on your browsing history. In other words, the user interface itself is dynamic, belying it's apparent simplicity.

Comparing Chrome to IE, another thing becomes apparent after using it for some time - resource management. I haven't actually done any tests, but Chrome seems to hog up less resources. Even better is that each tab is a separately encapsulated process, meaning that if a particular page you're browsing bombs on you, the other tabs are not effected.

The one major pain I find with Internet Explorer is that because it's so deeply embedded within and around the Windows Operating System, any browser fault tends to effect the rest of the processes running on your machine. Not so with Chrome. I've been using it for the better part of the whole of the last week or so (since its release), and I find that it's very non-intrusive in as far as the OS is concerned.

Being something from Google, the address bar also acts as a Google Search input window, which is a nice thing, with the added feature of having predictive URL suggestions or related item capability, partly based on your browsing history. So for people like me whose memory can sometimes go into sieve mode, it makes calling up web pages much easier, without having to rely on your bookmarks all the time.

There are other features, too, which I won't elaborate here. You can learn all about them here.

So why did Google build a browser?

At Google, we spend much of our time working inside a browser. We search, chat, email and collaborate in a browser. And like all of you, in our spare time, we shop, bank, read news and keep in touch with friends - all using a browser. People are spending an increasing amount of time online, and they're doing things never imagined when the web first appeared about 15 years ago.

Since we spend so much time online, we began seriously thinking about what kind of browser could exist if you started from scratch and built on the best elements out there. We realized that the web had evolved from mainly simple text pages to rich, interactive applications and that we needed to completely rethink the browser. What we really needed was not just a browser, but also a modern platform for web pages and applications, and that's what we set out to build.

On the surface, we designed a browser window that is streamlined and simple. To most people, it isn't the browser that matters. It's only a tool to run the important stuff - the pages, sites and applications that make up the web. Like the classic Google homepage, Google Chrome is clean and fast. It gets out of your way and gets you where you want to go.
(source: Google Chrome - Why we built a browser)

Chrome Beta promises to be a platform to power future web applications that "aren't even possible in today's browsers" - and somehow, I tend to believe what I'm hearing.

Now, any software product is bound to have kinks in it, particularly in the early stages of release.

There are certain websites that don't work very well with Chrome. At least not for the present. One of them is Photobucket, which I use as my image repository, both for this blog and my other blog, myAsylum. The problem I have is that it's not possible to upload pictures, and the source of this problem, I suspect, in how Chrome handles Java Scripts, which Photobucket uses for the various functions they offer. So, for uploading to Photobucket, at least for now, I still have to rely on IE.

I've also noticed the same thing with some of the Facebook applications that I've tried running on Chrome, which further reinforces my suspicion about the Java Script handling.

For the most part, however, my week-or-so long experience with Chrome has been more than satisfactory. For now, it's only available for use with Windows, but probably won't remain that way for long. Word is that development of Mac and Linux versions is ongoing.

Chrome works great with Blogger, by the way, although the alignment when you start a new post up can sometimes get a little screwy - not a big problem, though... just Reload the page, and things get back to looking like they.

If you're looking for a lean, mean, non-resource-hogging browser, I'd strongly recommend that you give Chrome a test-drive. My guess is that you'll like what you experience... the beauty and power of simplicity!

Widgets-Я-Us

2008-07-14T13:01:00.002+08:00

Technorati tags: Widgets, Gadgets, Esthetics

There are mixed opinions about the use of widgets on a blog. While they can add esthetic value to your blog, the drawback is usually that it increases page load time.

Pablo Picasso Art of the Day - among the countless gadgets/widgets you can find to decorate your blog with

In the previous version of myAsylum, I'll be the first to admit that I kind of went overboard with the widgets, plus other bits and bobs that I had included in the sidebar, especially those involving graphics, making the blog really slow to load.

As this is an experimental blog, there's more liberty to try things out. Today, I added the Date and Time widget (from Widgetbox) at the top of the sidebar. There are a couple of versions of the code, based on either JavaScript or Flash animation (relevant to Blogger). Myspace users can also add this widget quite easily.
(where to find widgets, and more, in the full post)

What's a widget, anyway? Essentially, they are encapsulated applications that you can embed in your webpage or blog without the need to do any hardcore coding. In fact, the code is loaded during pageload, and what you have in terms of actual code you have to include on your site are essentially pointers to where in cyberspace the actual code resides, what executable is required (for example, Flash), etc.

There are countless widgets available on the Internet, from the useful (like the date/time application), to the most worthless and waste of bandwidth types - like the one below the Time/Date widget.

Where can you find widgets? For a start, check out this wiki devoted to widgets, called Widgipedia (of course, what else would you call it?). Then, there's Widgetbox, mentioned earlier, where I found the Time/Date widget.

Google and Yahoo! have their own collections, too, called Gadgets and Widgets, respectively. I've used the ones from Google before on myAsylum, but not the ones from Yahoo.

Beyond that, just do a websearch for the terms "gadgets" or "widgets"... the choices are endless, truth be told. But my advice is this: pick, choose, experiment, and change often. Widgets can be fun things to have on your blog, but they do slow down load times, so don't go overboard.

New Blog List feature in Blogger

2008-06-06T16:14:00.001+08:00

Technorati tags: Blogger, New Feature, Blog List

One thing about blogging is that once you are comfortable with a particular platform, it's difficult to make the switch. myAsylum started on Blogger, and on Blogger it remains. No reason to switch, truth be told - especially when improvements and new features are constantly introduced.

The latest feature released for general use is the new Blog List. It's pretty much like a link list, only better, and more suited for use as a blog roll. I've implemented it here, but am still considering whether or not to put it on myAsylum.

You can see a 3-entry example at the top of the sidebar on the right.
(how to implement, and more in the full post)

Blogger has also released a How-To video on YouTube, as part of its Blogger Help series.

Unless you're totally uncomfortable with doing anything with your layout, it's actually a cake-walk to implement. No messing around with coding whatsoever.

So, why am I still considering whether or not to use it on myAsylum? Well, for one thing, the blogrolls currently are hidden until you expand them - this is not something Blogger does as a standard, and is a custom tweak. I've not had time to see if this can be done with the new Blog List or not.

What might be a better thing to do is to feature a few blogs at a time, as feature blogs, and select the post-snippet function which the new widget supports, but which I did not enable.

Malay Covenant Congress Resolution (A Translation)

2008-05-14T00:26:00.002+08:00

Technorati tags: Malaysia, Language, Culture, Fascism, Malay Language

This post contains my own translation of the Resolusi Kongress Permuafakatan Melayu (Malay Covenant Congress Resolution), which concluded on Sunday, May 4th, 2008. The version of the resolution may not be the final one.

The original resolution is in Bahasa Malaysia, and can be found here (via Qaiyum.net). This is probably not the best, or most accurate, of translations, but it's the closest that I could come up with, and probably conveys the gist of what the resolution is all about.

Constitution

Defend the special rights and position of the Malays, as enshrined in the constitution
Oppose any ammendments that can weaken the soveriegnity and position of the Malays in the Constitution and Laws of Malaysia
Oppose all arbitrary interpretations of any constitutional articles, selectively done for the sake of self-importance and racism

Politics

Request that the Malay Rulers Council to perfectly carry out the task, responsibility and obligation to fend for and protect the entire Malay soveriegnity
Oppose any human rights interpretations and democratic processes that set aside Malay soveriegnity
Demand that Constitutional provisions and bodies of law pertaining to national governance are maintained
Oppose any effort to politicize local government administration for the sake of maintaining peacefulness for all the people
To fight for the role of Malay soveriegnity as the core and ideology of Malay political parties, and reject any foreign ideology pertaining to a Malaysian Malaysia
Insist that Malay political parties fight for and develop strategic thinking for the endurance and direct application of Malay soveriegnity

(remainder of the translation, in the full post)

Economy

Demand the implementation of social justice and equal distribution of wealth for all citizens, as provided for in the Federal Constitution
Demand the implementation of the redistribution of economic ownership to achieve the aim of abolishment and eradication of race based economic activity
Widen the Economic Jihad movement, based on two broad targets, firstly to develop a dynamic stimulus for and empower the Malay community until the objective of 65% [economic] control is achieved, and secondly to reconstruct the economic system so that it is fairer and more equitable.
To create strategies for increased participation of Malay corporate bodies, with the aim of being dominant in the national and international economies

Islam

Demand effective control over the construction of houses of worship for other religions based on the principal of need based on community size and location.
Reject the idea of religious pluralism, which is against the nation's Constitution.

Malay Language

Reject any efforts to create a multiligualistic policy in this country
Demand that Article 152 of the Constitution be maintained, pertaining to the Malay language as the national language of the Federation
Ensure the position of the Malay language as the primary language of knowledge building and encouraging translations into the Malay language, and abolishing the use of English as the medium of instruction in all institutes of higher learning
Demand that the policy of teaching and examinations of Science and Mathematics entirely in the Malay language be implemented
Encourage the use of Jawi script as one of the forms of writing the Malay language

Education

Empower the national-type education system as the core of the national education system
Insist on the increased usage of the national language in the National Education System as the communication and knowledge vehicle to achieve racial development
Ensure that the education delivery gap is eradicated nationwide
Insist that nationhood studies, based on the Rukun Negara, is taught at all levels of schooling and higher education
Ensure that all private educational systems give priority to nationalistic elements in their teaching and learning systems
Insist that oral Malay language tests at all levels of examinations are implemented

Culture

Insistance that the National Cultural Policy be the basis for our image, nationally and internationally
Application of Islamic values and national culture as the basis of profound and meaningful practices within the Malaysian society
Strongly reject any idea, underlying principle, and implementation of multiculturalism, using skewed interpretations of the Constitution

Should you have any corrections, or improvements to offer, please do so via the comments.

New actual 2008 template

2008-04-01T11:14:00.001+08:00

Technorati tags: TagName01, TagName02, TagName03

After searching long and hard, testing, failing, testing again... I've finally found the template that I'll unleash for myAsylum.

What myAsylum looks like... for now

It's called Bloggerized Adsense, created by Isnaini, an Indonesian Blogger expert - terima kasih! Of course, there are some tweaks still to do, but the major test has been completed - that of including the expandable post code. For future reference, the instructions can be found here (note to self: expand the widgets first).
(more template thoughts, in the full post)

The only issue I have with this particular template is some of the spacing. Visually, it looks a little off. But no matter, these minor details can be tweaked later.

Another thing about this template is that the header image is configured via the Blog Elements GUI, which means that any change of layout later will cause the loss of this config. So, the image prepared for the new myAsylum look will only be put in after the template has been updated. Here's a preview:

Nice, no? I decided to retain the 4 ancients in the header graphic, for visual recognition continuity. Maybe one day they'll fade away... but for now, they remain. After all, they are the Committee!

And now, time to devote some human bandwidth to the April 1st prank... the kittified myAsylum... heh heh...

Blockquote Testing

2008-03-30T23:13:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: Formatting, New Template, Testing

This is a test of the new template's blockquote functionality and color. The following is a blockquote.

This is where I would normally put stuff that has been quoted from other sources. In this case there is no spoon... err, other source...

Let's see how this looks.

Template Manipulation: Widget Work-around

2008-03-29T16:29:00.003+08:00

Technorati tags: Widgets, Blogger, Widget Data Save

This is a good guide on how to retain your widgets and (more importantly) widget data when you change layouts.

I've done some testing and it should work, provided that your widgets have data to begin with. The last test done was with widgets sans data, so obviously nothing appears - there should be a few linked lists after the Provider tab on the left (via the Hello Kitty template).
(Hello World, and Kitty, in the full post)

Depending on when you actually read this post, i.e. using which template, the Hello Kitty references may or may not make sense. This post was done while testing out the Hello Kitty template (it really is a cheezy template, but fits a specific purpose - which I won't devulge here).

In any case, the trials and tribulations suffered here will prove to be a good way to ensure that the main myAsylum template migration(s) can be done without much pain and suffering...

Baby steps... strange things with template manipulation

2008-03-15T15:18:00.002+08:00

Technorati tags: Layouts, Blogger Templates, Top Tab Concept

A word about templates and the widgets that occupy them.

If you're ever thinking of changing to a new template, there are some things you should keep in mind. Custom widgets (like the HTML code widget) don't port across when you do a save/restore. For HTML, only the wrapper gets copied, but not the code. So, make sure you save the code in a text file before you do any moving of widgets between blogs.

That's the reason why a lot of the stuff that used to be on this blog has disappeared. And which is why it's always a good idea to try the changes on a test blog (like this one) before unleashing the finalized layout in the main blog.
(more layout considerations, in the full post)

I'm also seriously considering reducing the number of AdSense ads, or at the very least relocating them on the page layout. One of the readers commented that myAsylum is too busy - and I tend to agree. Ad hoc changes over time do that to ya...

One layout I rather like is this one: Delectio (from eBlog Templates). I like the layout, but not so much the color scheme. I believe I will retain the dark aura of myAsylum. What I do like about it is the use of the top tabs, as a means to unclutter the main blog page(s).

The layout search continues...

Massive Changes Afoot

2008-03-12T15:08:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: Layout Change, Background Image, Experimentation

myAsylum has been using the same layout for almost a year now. And it's probably time for a change - drastic change.

As usual, the changes will be tested out here first, before unleashing it onto the main blog. For today, a background image has been added. This may or may not (likely not) be the final image that will be used. I'm still toying with the idea.

What I might do is unleash a very cheesy layout just for April 1... then unleash the actual new layout a day or so later... we'll see. Time is of the essence. Essence is of the chicken...

Experimenting with media players

2007-11-16T21:43:00.003+08:00

Technorati tags: Media Player, Testing, Hawaii 5-0

This is a simple player:

The code for this is:

<embed src="http://www.fileden.com/files/2006/8/4/154242/TV%20-%20Hawaii%205-0%20Theme.mp3" width="150" height="26" type="audio/mpeg mpga mp2 mp3" cursor="hand" autostart="false" loop="false"></embed>

Another version (using a Quicktime plugin):

With this one, however, make sure that the Autoplay attribute is changed to Autostart instead, otherwise, whatever value you put in won't matter, and the damn thing plays when you reload it anyway!

The code for this is:

<embed pluginspage="http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/" src="http://www.fileden.com/files/2006/8/4/154242/TV%20-%20Hawaii%205-0%20Theme.mp3" width="320" height="26" type="video/quicktime" autostart="false" controller="true" scale="tofit"></embed>

The only problem is that the cursor looks a little odd... probably it's the default setting or something. Originally the height was set to 18px. It appears that the best setting (to make sure all the buttons appear in full), is 26px. But you can play around with the settings if you like.

Third version, using Windows Media player:

The coding for the third version:

<embed pluginspage="http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/download/" src="http://www.fileden.com/files/2006/8/4/154242/TV%20-%20Hawaii%205-0%20Theme.mp3" width="320" height="26" type="application/x-mplayer2" autostart="0" showcontrols="1"></embed>

Testing the Blogger video function

2007-07-09T00:24:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: Video, Dugong, Baby Dugong

Been a long while since anything's been posted here. Blogger recently provided the functionality to test run new applications they're developing for the platform. It's called Blogger in Draft.

This is a test of some of the new features introduced to Blogger. Just a post to test 'em out. This is the new Video gadget.

Most of you following the main myAsylum blog will probably have seen this before on YouTube. It's about the death of a baby Dugong (Manatee) that was found injured, and kept in captivity at an island resort off the coast of Terengganu, Malaysia. Presumably, the videos are stored on the Blogger servers.

Verdict? Not too bad, except that the sound reproduction isn't all that fantastic. Had the same problem with YouTube when I uploaded it there. Plays great in Windows Media Player, though. The other bad part is the time it takes to upload a video. Looks like myAsylum will probably continue to use the usual method - upload to YouTube.

On the sidebar, you'll see a poll, which will be set up after this post has been completed. I'll be testing some of the new functionalities, as and when they're released.

In case you stumbled upon this blog

2007-05-27T11:28:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: Humor, myAsylum, Blogging

Lately, Walski's noticed that this test blog has been getting a few hits. Nice.

But really, unless you're interested in the pains of getting the New Blogger to work the way Walski wanted to earlier this year, there's really nothing much of interest here. myAsylum, Walski's primary blog, is much more interesting.

Stay here as long as you want, though.... no harm in that whatsoever.

The journey is now complete

2007-01-26T12:44:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: myAsylum, Redesign, New Blogger

Finally the task is now complete, and the new layout has just been implemented on the main myAsylum blog. There are still a few tweaks to do, but the biggest headache is now over.

Walski can now concentrate on content, which has been neglected for the past week or so.

And what is to become of this blog? Well, it shall remain as Walski's testing and playground to try out other bits and bobs. Maybe this blog may evolve into a blog-design related site... who knows.

One lesson learned, however. Doing a full template save does not save widget contents. Perhaps what Walski forgot to do was to expand the widgets first before saving - maybe that's the reason why a number of things did not copy across to myAsylum as expected.

That, therefore shall be the next experiment... and another thing Walski just noticed... the timezone settings for this blog are incorrect as well... oh well, live and learn, eh?

Expandable post summaries

2007-01-22T02:21:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: Layout, Blog, Blogger

One of the features implemented that should enable this template to go live is the Expandable Post Summary feature. This post tests it.
(let's see if this works, in the full post)

If all goes well, this portion of the post should not appear on the main page.

Coming closer to the new look

2007-01-20T11:39:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: Blogging, Layout, Design

Changed the layout to 3-column, and adjusted the coloring. This looks closer to what the envisioned new myAsylum will look like. Target implementation: by January 21 - myAsylum's first anniversary.

Getting the template to behave... some more homework required

2007-01-18T19:02:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: Blog, Design, Pain

Looks like it's gonna be more work before the template can actually go live. Will probably also use 3rd party code for the Adsense ads (more flexibility on formats).

First success

2006-12-20T18:26:00.000+08:00

Technorati tags: Miscellaneous, Rantings, Thoughts

First success - putting a picture in the header. Now we next try to change the text size and case orientation, just like in the original myAsylum.

Reloaded

2006-12-20T18:16:00.001+08:00

Technorati tags: Miscellaneous, Rantings, Thoughts

This be the new look, trying to be just like the old look... in time, it will happen. In time.

If that didn't make any sense whatsoever, I don't blame you... This blog was created as a companion site to myAsylum, where I test changes to be made to that site before implementing them.

These would include changes to templates/blog-skins, new widgets, new CSS/xHTML/HTML constructs, etc. Occassionally, it will also touch on neat services that I may consider adding (or have added) to myAsylum.

While not a technology blog, per se, it does touch on blogging technology. Since knowing how to manipulate scripting languages is a pre-requisite to creating attractive looking blogs (or at least I think so), I created this site also as a means to learn more about programming in these languages.

The template used here will change quite frequently, as and when I find new neat layouts to test out... So don't be surprised if the next time you happen by for a visit, it will look like a totally different blog!