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These are all  joyous events and I''m looking forward to them but it ...";s:2:"dc";a:3:{s:9:"publisher";s:14:"the dream life";s:7:"creator";s:8:"Lori-Lyn";s:4:"date";s:29:"Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:54:21 GMT";}s:7:"summary";s:236:"It''s the time of the year when social engagements take center stage. I glanced at the calendar today and noticed that my next two weekends are completely booked up. These are all  joyous events and I''m looking forward to them but it ...";}i:7;a:5:{s:5:"title";s:24:"Improve Your Self Esteem";s:4:"link";s:61:"http://amandalinehan.com/2009/10/29/improve-your-self-esteem/";s:11:"description";s:239:"Slide-together : now with cards Creative Commons License photo credit: fdecomite. Your self esteem is within your control. It may seem as if other people and events make you feel a certain way about yourself, but really, your emotions  ...";s:2:"dc";a:3:{s:9:"publisher";s:8:"Look Far";s:7:"creator";s:14:"Amanda Linehan";s:4:"date";s:29:"Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:00:41 GMT";}s:7:"summary";s:239:"Slide-together : now with cards Creative Commons License photo credit: fdecomite. Your self esteem is within your control. It may seem as if other people and events make you feel a certain way about yourself, but really, your emotions  ...";}i:8;a:5:{s:5:"title";s:79:"The love list project - I think I&#39;m going to try this for myself <b>...</b>";s:4:"link";s:65:"http://makeesha.com/the-love-list-project-i-think-im-going-to-try";s:11:"description";s:231:"via halfwaytonormal.com. I think this is a great idea and I plan to implement it in my life and suggest that David and I each start a love list and share them with each other. 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Go [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:517:"<p>It is with extremely great pleasure that I point you to the <a href="http://wordpressfoundation.org/2010/getting-off-the-ground/">first post</a> at the new <a href="http://wordpressfoundation.org/">WordPress Foundation site</a>. Not only am I excited about the things that will happen under the auspices of the Foundation, I&#8217;m excited to see a site running the 3.0 development version and the nascent theme called <em>2010</em>. Go <a href="http://wordpressfoundation.org">check it out</a> for yourself.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:67:"http://wordpress.org/development/2010/01/wordpress-foundation/feed/";}s:5:"slash";a:1:{s:8:"comments";s:1:"1";}s:7:"summary";s:314:"It is with extremely great pleasure that I point you to the first post at the new WordPress Foundation site. 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Go <a href="http://wordpressfoundation.org">check it out</a> for yourself.</p>\n";}i:1;a:13:{s:5:"title";s:29:"2010 Open Source Design Plans";s:4:"link";s:65:"http://wordpress.org/development/2010/01/2010-open-source-design/";s:8:"comments";s:74:"http://wordpress.org/development/2010/01/2010-open-source-design/#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:38:57 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:10:"Jane Wells";}s:8:"category";s:23:"CommunityUser Interface";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://wordpress.org/development/?p=1154";s:11:"description";s:332:"2010 is the year we dive into open source design. We&#8217;ve dipped our toes in this pool before (icon contest, graphic design component for Trac tickets, header refresh contest, etc.), but this year we&#8217;re going to cannonball and make a big splash. Here&#8217;s what you need to know if you want to get involved.\nA list [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:3855:"<p>2010 is the year we dive into open source design. We&#8217;ve dipped our toes in this pool before (icon contest, graphic design component for Trac tickets, header refresh contest, etc.), but this year we&#8217;re going to cannonball and make a big splash. Here&#8217;s what you need to know if you want to get involved.</p>\n<p><strong>A list for all seasons. </strong>Developers have the <a href="http://lists.automattic.com/mailman/listinfo/wp-hackers">wp-hackers mailing list</a> to discuss core and plugin code. Sometimes UI/UX stuff comes up and gets discussed there, but there is a whole universe of discussion around navigation labels, gradients, button styling, layouts, alignment, etc. that would be clutter on wp-hackers. Designers need a list to call their own, and now we have one. You can sign up for the <a href="http://lists.automattic.com/mailman/listinfo/wp-ui">wp-ui list</a> to discuss ways to improve the interface or user experience of WordPress, and to discuss progress on design-related projects for the open source project, like the design challenges we&#8217;re going to have.</p>\n<p><strong>Design Challenges.</strong> We learned a lot from the icon design and header refresh contests, and we want to do these kind of open design challenges on a regular basis to give UI/UX designers who want to contribute to the WordPress open source project more opportunities to do so. If we could do one per month, that would be ideal, keeping the challenges relatively bite-sized to allow potential contributors an easy way to get involved at first. As each challenge is posted, people can use the list to bounce ideas off each other and work toward optimal solutions. I&#8217;m hoping the design challenges will evolve to be less contest and more collaboration. We&#8217;ll announce the first one before the end of January, so if you&#8217;re interested, please sign up for the list! <em>(Hint: one will likely be a touch up to the Right Now dashboard module, to improve the information design, and there will be a couple of screen layout challenges coming up as well.)</em></p>\n<p><strong>Distributed Usability Testing.</strong><em> </em>We started to try this out last year, and several dozen usability professionals volunteered to help get the program going, but a combination of scheduling and infrastructure issues combined to stall the progress. Having the &#8220;UI/UX contributor team&#8221; infrastructure in place, starting with the mailing list, will make it much easier to get this project going again.</p>\n<p><strong>Chit-chat.</strong> The weekly developer chats in IRC at <a href="https://irclogs.wordpress.org/chanlog.php?channel=wordpress-dev">#wordpress-dev</a> have been very productive. 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Choosing a day and time for the chats will probably be the first discussion on the mailing list.</p>\n<p><strong>A blog of our own. </strong>Once again, taking a page from the code contributor infrastructure, we&#8217;ll set up a blog for UI/UX updates, announcements, progress reports, etc. This will be on WordPress.org in the nearish future, and will be announced to the mailing list when it is live.</p>\n<p>So, if you want to become a contributor to core WordPress by using your design skills, <a href="http://lists.automattic.com/mailman/listinfo/wp-ui">join the wp-ui mailing list</a> and get ready for a fun year!</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:70:"http://wordpress.org/development/2010/01/2010-open-source-design/feed/";}s:5:"slash";a:1:{s:8:"comments";s:1:"3";}s:7:"summary";s:332:"2010 is the year we dive into open source design. 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I hope so, because the new year has begun and a lot is going to be happening with WordPress in 2010, and you definitely want to be a part of it. Later this week the scope for version 3.0 (featuring the addition of MU functionality to the WordPress codebase) will [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:8301:"<p>Rested up from the holidays? I hope so, because the new year has begun and <strong>a lot </strong>is going to be happening with WordPress in 2010, and you definitely want to be a part of it. Later this week the scope for version 3.0 (featuring the addition of MU functionality to the WordPress codebase) will be decided in the IRC developer chat*, based on <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/345127">feedback provided by users like you</a>. But it&#8217;s no fun to live by IRC alone, which is why we love WordCamps. Attending a WordCamp gives you a chance to meet people in your local community who are working with WordPress, as well as core contributors, theme designers, plugin developers, Codex writers, support forum moderators and other WordPress volunteers who&#8217;ve made WordPress what it is today. Add this New Year&#8217;s Resolution to your 2010 list if it&#8217;s not on there already: Attend a WordCamp, meet at least 5 new local people, learn something new, and if you have the chance, buy a drink for someone who&#8217;s volunteered their time and expertise to the WordPress open source project. To help you keep your resolution, here is a list of the upcoming WordCamps for the next three months, followed by what I know so far about each one.</p>\n<p>January 8–9: <a href="http://atlantawordcamp.com/">WordCamp Atlanta</a><br />\nJanuary 23: <a href="http://wordcampboston.com/">WordCamp Boston</a><br />\nJanuary 30: <a href="http://www.wordcamp.gr/">WordCamp Greece</a> in Thessaloniki<br />\nJanuary 30: <a href="http://id.wordcamp.org/">WordCamp Indonesia</a> in Jakarta<br />\nFebruary 27: <a href="http://2010.wordcampfukuoka.com/">WordCamp Fukuoka</a><br />\nMarch 6–7: <a href="http://www.wordcampireland.com/">WordCamp Ireland</a> in Kilkenny<br />\nMarch 27–28: <a href="http://wordcamptoronto.com/">WordCamp Toronto</a></p>\n<h4>NORTH AMERICA</h4>\n<p><strong>January 8–9: <a href="http://atlantawordcamp.com/">WordCamp Atlanta</a>.</strong> First WordCamp of the year, and it&#8217;s already sold out &#8212; twice! They changed to a bigger venue based on demand, from Georgia Tech to the Atlanta campus of Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). They&#8217;re still letting people onto <a href="http://wordcampatl.eventbrite.com/">the waitlist</a>, if you&#8217;re interested. A guaranteed way to get in would be to <a href="http://atlantawordcamp.com/sponsor/sponsorship-opportunities/">sponsor</a> the event, and they&#8217;re taking last-minute sponsors right now. Atlanta will have sessions on Friday evening and all day Saturday. I&#8217;ll be opening the Saturday program with <em>WordPress Resolutions: What to Expect in 2010</em>. After a day of design, development and content track sessions, Lead Developer <a href="http://markjaquith.com/">Mark Jaquith</a> will take the closing slot for a Town Hall-style Q&amp;A.  The <a href="http://wordcampatl.eventbrite.com/">attendee list</a> (follow link, scroll down) includes a number of WordPress core contributors, theme/plugin developers, and support providers as well as proof that Atlanta has a strong WordPress user base.</p>\n<p><strong>January 23: <a href="http://wordcampboston.com/">WordCamp Boston</a>.</strong> I think WordCamp Boston is trying to one-up every WordCamp the organizers have been to, including the awesome NYC from November, and it looks like they might succeed. From <a href="http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/">Doc Searls</a> and <a href="http://www.hyperorg.com/blogger/">David Weinberger</a> as keynote speakers to the multiple-track, unconference and Ignite sessions to the sweet-looking venue and the party plans, this one has got it going on. I credit it in part to the fact that they are one of the few WordCamps to follow the advice of having an organizing team of more than just 2 or 3 people, so the work is better distributed. I see a number of familiar names on the <a href="http://wordcampboston.com/registration/attendees/">attendee list</a>, but even more that I don&#8217;t know, so I&#8217;m looking forward to meeting the Boston WordPress community. They&#8217;re still <a href="http://wordcampboston.com/registration/">selling tickets</a>, so if you&#8217;re in the northeast, you should try to make it. I&#8217;ll be at this one also, talking about how the merge with MU will affect the WordPress admin (by then we should have started figuring it out!).</p>\n<p><strong>March 27–28: <a href="http://wordcamptoronto.com/">WordCamp Toronto</a>.</strong> The last two Toronto WordCamps have been really good. I heard there would be one in March, but their site right now is just <a href="http://wordcamptoronto.com/">taking emails</a> for notification. I&#8217;ve contacted the organizer to see what&#8217;s up, and he says the site will likely go live this week. They&#8217;re looking for volunteers to help organize this year&#8217;s event, so if you&#8217;re interested, it would be a great opportunity to get involved. Believe me, volunteering at a WordCamp is one of the best ways to make sure you meet a lot of other attendees.</p>\n<h4>ASIA</h4>\n<p><strong>January 30: <a href="http://id.wordcamp.org/">WordCamp Indonesia</a>.</strong> WordCamp Indonesia will be in Jakarta again this year. I love how they worded the beginning of their <a href="http://id.wordcamp.org/conference-sessions/">sessions</a> page. &#8220;Come in, we’ll get you breakfast and coffee, you’ll register, there’ll be networking. It’ll be great.&#8221; There will be a single track of sessions, but there are several time slots set aside for ad-hoc discussion and breakout sessions.</p>\n<p><strong>February 27: <a href="http://2010.wordcampfukuoka.com/">WordCamp Fukuoka</a>.</strong> WordCamp Fukuoka is just getting its site up, too, so check back periodically a little later for more information. One of their visiting speakers will be <a href="http://noel.io/">Noel Jackson</a>, developer of the <a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/Press_This">Press This</a> bookmarklet as well as themes like <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/p2">P2</a> and <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/monotone">Monotone</a>/<a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/duotone">Duotone</a>.</p>\n<h4>EUROPE</h4>\n<p><strong>January 30: <a href="http://www.wordcamp.gr/">WordCamp Greece</a>.</strong> WordCamp Greece will be held in Thessaloniki, and they expect about 100-150 people to attend.The program includes regular sessions on the usual topics (how-to, programming, SEO, multi-language sites, etc) as well as &#8220;QuickRounds,&#8221; which will showcase Greek projects based on WordPress. I&#8217;m especially intrigued by the &#8220;WordPress vs. Expression Engine&#8221; session. Whenever people compare different publishing platforms, it&#8217;s interesting to see which features they highlight. I hope someone gets video from this one and posts it to the <a href="http://wordpress.tv/category/wordcamptv/">WordCamp section of WordPress.tv</a>.</p>\n<p><strong>March 6–7: <a href="http://www.wordcampireland.com/">WordCamp Ireland</a>.</strong> WordCamp Ireland will be in Kilkenny, and for such a geographically small country, it&#8217;s got an impressive list of <a href="http://www.wordcampireland.com/info/speakers/">speakers</a>, including <a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/">Donncha O Caoimh</a>, lead developer of <a href="http://mu.wordpress.org/">WordPress MU</a>. The program includes three tracks: Intro, Blogger, and Developer, and I think this will be the first WordCamp I&#8217;ve heard of that is deliberately <a href="http://www.wordcampireland.com/about/family-and-partner-friendly/">family-friendly</a>, with on-site child care. They&#8217;re also going to have a charging station for mobile devices, which is clever. It&#8217;s not confirmed yet, but I think I&#8217;ll be at this one, too.</p>\n<p>If you want to attend a WordCamp but don&#8217;t know of one near you, check out <a href="http://central.wordcamp.org/">WordCamp.org</a> for the official list (updated frequently). That&#8217;s also where you would start if you wanted to <a href="http://central.wordcamp.org/guidelines/">organize a WordCamp</a> in your area. </p>\n<p><em>*Developer chats are held Thursdays at 21:00 UTC in the #wordpress-dev channel at irc.freenode.com. </em></p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:67:"http://wordpress.org/development/2010/01/early-2010-wordcamps/feed/";}s:5:"slash";a:1:{s:8:"comments";s:1:"0";}s:7:"summary";s:297:"Rested up from the holidays? I hope so, because the new year has begun and a lot is going to be happening with WordPress in 2010, and you definitely want to be a part of it. Later this week the scope for version 3.0 (featuring the addition of MU functionality to the WordPress codebase) will [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:8301:"<p>Rested up from the holidays? I hope so, because the new year has begun and <strong>a lot </strong>is going to be happening with WordPress in 2010, and you definitely want to be a part of it. Later this week the scope for version 3.0 (featuring the addition of MU functionality to the WordPress codebase) will be decided in the IRC developer chat*, based on <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/345127">feedback provided by users like you</a>. But it&#8217;s no fun to live by IRC alone, which is why we love WordCamps. Attending a WordCamp gives you a chance to meet people in your local community who are working with WordPress, as well as core contributors, theme designers, plugin developers, Codex writers, support forum moderators and other WordPress volunteers who&#8217;ve made WordPress what it is today. Add this New Year&#8217;s Resolution to your 2010 list if it&#8217;s not on there already: Attend a WordCamp, meet at least 5 new local people, learn something new, and if you have the chance, buy a drink for someone who&#8217;s volunteered their time and expertise to the WordPress open source project. To help you keep your resolution, here is a list of the upcoming WordCamps for the next three months, followed by what I know so far about each one.</p>\n<p>January 8–9: <a href="http://atlantawordcamp.com/">WordCamp Atlanta</a><br />\nJanuary 23: <a href="http://wordcampboston.com/">WordCamp Boston</a><br />\nJanuary 30: <a href="http://www.wordcamp.gr/">WordCamp Greece</a> in Thessaloniki<br />\nJanuary 30: <a href="http://id.wordcamp.org/">WordCamp Indonesia</a> in Jakarta<br />\nFebruary 27: <a href="http://2010.wordcampfukuoka.com/">WordCamp Fukuoka</a><br />\nMarch 6–7: <a href="http://www.wordcampireland.com/">WordCamp Ireland</a> in Kilkenny<br />\nMarch 27–28: <a href="http://wordcamptoronto.com/">WordCamp Toronto</a></p>\n<h4>NORTH AMERICA</h4>\n<p><strong>January 8–9: <a href="http://atlantawordcamp.com/">WordCamp Atlanta</a>.</strong> First WordCamp of the year, and it&#8217;s already sold out &#8212; twice! They changed to a bigger venue based on demand, from Georgia Tech to the Atlanta campus of Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). They&#8217;re still letting people onto <a href="http://wordcampatl.eventbrite.com/">the waitlist</a>, if you&#8217;re interested. A guaranteed way to get in would be to <a href="http://atlantawordcamp.com/sponsor/sponsorship-opportunities/">sponsor</a> the event, and they&#8217;re taking last-minute sponsors right now. Atlanta will have sessions on Friday evening and all day Saturday. I&#8217;ll be opening the Saturday program with <em>WordPress Resolutions: What to Expect in 2010</em>. After a day of design, development and content track sessions, Lead Developer <a href="http://markjaquith.com/">Mark Jaquith</a> will take the closing slot for a Town Hall-style Q&amp;A.  The <a href="http://wordcampatl.eventbrite.com/">attendee list</a> (follow link, scroll down) includes a number of WordPress core contributors, theme/plugin developers, and support providers as well as proof that Atlanta has a strong WordPress user base.</p>\n<p><strong>January 23: <a href="http://wordcampboston.com/">WordCamp Boston</a>.</strong> I think WordCamp Boston is trying to one-up every WordCamp the organizers have been to, including the awesome NYC from November, and it looks like they might succeed. From <a href="http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/">Doc Searls</a> and <a href="http://www.hyperorg.com/blogger/">David Weinberger</a> as keynote speakers to the multiple-track, unconference and Ignite sessions to the sweet-looking venue and the party plans, this one has got it going on. I credit it in part to the fact that they are one of the few WordCamps to follow the advice of having an organizing team of more than just 2 or 3 people, so the work is better distributed. I see a number of familiar names on the <a href="http://wordcampboston.com/registration/attendees/">attendee list</a>, but even more that I don&#8217;t know, so I&#8217;m looking forward to meeting the Boston WordPress community. They&#8217;re still <a href="http://wordcampboston.com/registration/">selling tickets</a>, so if you&#8217;re in the northeast, you should try to make it. I&#8217;ll be at this one also, talking about how the merge with MU will affect the WordPress admin (by then we should have started figuring it out!).</p>\n<p><strong>March 27–28: <a href="http://wordcamptoronto.com/">WordCamp Toronto</a>.</strong> The last two Toronto WordCamps have been really good. I heard there would be one in March, but their site right now is just <a href="http://wordcamptoronto.com/">taking emails</a> for notification. I&#8217;ve contacted the organizer to see what&#8217;s up, and he says the site will likely go live this week. They&#8217;re looking for volunteers to help organize this year&#8217;s event, so if you&#8217;re interested, it would be a great opportunity to get involved. Believe me, volunteering at a WordCamp is one of the best ways to make sure you meet a lot of other attendees.</p>\n<h4>ASIA</h4>\n<p><strong>January 30: <a href="http://id.wordcamp.org/">WordCamp Indonesia</a>.</strong> WordCamp Indonesia will be in Jakarta again this year. I love how they worded the beginning of their <a href="http://id.wordcamp.org/conference-sessions/">sessions</a> page. &#8220;Come in, we’ll get you breakfast and coffee, you’ll register, there’ll be networking. It’ll be great.&#8221; There will be a single track of sessions, but there are several time slots set aside for ad-hoc discussion and breakout sessions.</p>\n<p><strong>February 27: <a href="http://2010.wordcampfukuoka.com/">WordCamp Fukuoka</a>.</strong> WordCamp Fukuoka is just getting its site up, too, so check back periodically a little later for more information. One of their visiting speakers will be <a href="http://noel.io/">Noel Jackson</a>, developer of the <a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/Press_This">Press This</a> bookmarklet as well as themes like <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/p2">P2</a> and <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/monotone">Monotone</a>/<a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/duotone">Duotone</a>.</p>\n<h4>EUROPE</h4>\n<p><strong>January 30: <a href="http://www.wordcamp.gr/">WordCamp Greece</a>.</strong> WordCamp Greece will be held in Thessaloniki, and they expect about 100-150 people to attend.The program includes regular sessions on the usual topics (how-to, programming, SEO, multi-language sites, etc) as well as &#8220;QuickRounds,&#8221; which will showcase Greek projects based on WordPress. I&#8217;m especially intrigued by the &#8220;WordPress vs. Expression Engine&#8221; session. Whenever people compare different publishing platforms, it&#8217;s interesting to see which features they highlight. I hope someone gets video from this one and posts it to the <a href="http://wordpress.tv/category/wordcamptv/">WordCamp section of WordPress.tv</a>.</p>\n<p><strong>March 6–7: <a href="http://www.wordcampireland.com/">WordCamp Ireland</a>.</strong> WordCamp Ireland will be in Kilkenny, and for such a geographically small country, it&#8217;s got an impressive list of <a href="http://www.wordcampireland.com/info/speakers/">speakers</a>, including <a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/">Donncha O Caoimh</a>, lead developer of <a href="http://mu.wordpress.org/">WordPress MU</a>. The program includes three tracks: Intro, Blogger, and Developer, and I think this will be the first WordCamp I&#8217;ve heard of that is deliberately <a href="http://www.wordcampireland.com/about/family-and-partner-friendly/">family-friendly</a>, with on-site child care. They&#8217;re also going to have a charging station for mobile devices, which is clever. It&#8217;s not confirmed yet, but I think I&#8217;ll be at this one, too.</p>\n<p>If you want to attend a WordCamp but don&#8217;t know of one near you, check out <a href="http://central.wordcamp.org/">WordCamp.org</a> for the official list (updated frequently). That&#8217;s also where you would start if you wanted to <a href="http://central.wordcamp.org/guidelines/">organize a WordCamp</a> in your area. </p>\n<p><em>*Developer chats are held Thursdays at 21:00 UTC in the #wordpress-dev channel at irc.freenode.com. </em></p>\n";}i:4;a:13:{s:5:"title";s:35:"WordPress 2.9.1 Release Candidate 1";s:4:"link";s:77:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-1-release-candidate-1/";s:8:"comments";s:86:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-1-release-candidate-1/#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 29 Dec 2009 23:27:23 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:10:"Ryan Boren";}s:8:"category";s:19:"DevelopmentReleases";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://wordpress.org/development/?p=1119";s:11:"description";s:334:"Thanks to everyone who tested 2.9.1 Beta 1.  We&#8217;re following that up with Release Candidate 1.  RC1 contains a few more fixes, bringing the number of fixed tickets up to 23.  If you are already running Beta 1, visit Tools-&#62;Upgrade in your blog&#8217;s admin to get RC1.  You can also  download the RC1 package and [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:682:"<p>Thanks to everyone who tested <a href="http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-1-beta-1/">2.9.1 Beta 1</a>.  We&#8217;re following that up with Release Candidate 1.  RC1 contains a few more fixes, bringing the number of <a href="http://core.trac.wordpress.org/query?status=closed&amp;group=resolution&amp;order=priority&amp;milestone=2.9.1&amp;resolution=fixed">fixed tickets</a> up to 23.  If you are already running Beta 1, visit Tools-&gt;Upgrade in your blog&#8217;s admin to get RC1.  You can also  <a href="http://wordpress.org/wordpress-2.9.1-RC1.zip">download the RC1 package</a> and install manually.  If all goes well, 2.9.1 will be here soon.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:82:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-1-release-candidate-1/feed/";}s:5:"slash";a:1:{s:8:"comments";s:1:"1";}s:7:"summary";s:334:"Thanks to everyone who tested 2.9.1 Beta 1.  We&#8217;re following that up with Release Candidate 1.  RC1 contains a few more fixes, bringing the number of fixed tickets up to 23.  If you are already running Beta 1, visit Tools-&#62;Upgrade in your blog&#8217;s admin to get RC1.  You can also  download the RC1 package and [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:682:"<p>Thanks to everyone who tested <a href="http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-1-beta-1/">2.9.1 Beta 1</a>.  We&#8217;re following that up with Release Candidate 1.  RC1 contains a few more fixes, bringing the number of <a href="http://core.trac.wordpress.org/query?status=closed&amp;group=resolution&amp;order=priority&amp;milestone=2.9.1&amp;resolution=fixed">fixed tickets</a> up to 23.  If you are already running Beta 1, visit Tools-&gt;Upgrade in your blog&#8217;s admin to get RC1.  You can also  <a href="http://wordpress.org/wordpress-2.9.1-RC1.zip">download the RC1 package</a> and install manually.  If all goes well, 2.9.1 will be here soon.</p>\n";}i:5;a:13:{s:5:"title";s:13:"Setting Scope";s:4:"link";s:55:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/setting-scope/";s:8:"comments";s:64:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/setting-scope/#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Fri, 25 Dec 2009 16:56:38 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:10:"Jane Wells";}s:8:"category";s:11:"Development";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://wordpress.org/development/?p=1096";s:11:"description";s:301:"Merry Christmas! One of the things that was discussed at the core commit team meetup was release scope (and scope creep). Now that 2.9 is out and it&#8217;s time to start thinking about 3.0, we think it would be appropriate to stop and take a breath before diving in, and make a plan in advance. [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:4722:"<p>Merry Christmas! One of the things that was discussed at the core commit team meetup was release scope (and scope creep). Now that 2.9 is out and it&#8217;s time to start thinking about 3.0, we think it would be appropriate to stop and take a breath before diving in, and make a plan in advance. What winds up happening is that during each release cycle a few new features are selected for inclusion, but then right up until feature freeze (and/or beta cycle), people keep adding feature requests, patches for enhancements, and ongoing bug reports. This means each release winds up getting pushed out later than planned, and with so many things going in per release, it becomes harder to catch new bugs.</p>\n<p>The as-long-as-we&#8217;re-not-in-freeze-yet model isn&#8217;t working. People wind up waiting months longer for new features they want, like Trash and Image Editing, because we&#8217;re still adding other things and then we need to test them all. If we kept the releases smaller feature-wise, we could push out the new stuff sooner (3 releases per year is the goal) and have more focused beta testing, making the releases themselves better. It&#8217;s hard, because everyone has their pet features and fixes, and if there&#8217;s a patch, why not get it in this release rather than waiting? Sometimes people complain that a patch has been waiting to be committed for weeks or months, but what no one ever seems to bring up is that sometimes patches introduce new bugs, and the more we add at once, the harder it is to keep it all well-tested on various platforms, in different hosting environments, etc. So. What&#8217;s our proposal?</p>\n<p>We take a page from the world of project management and we make a project plan <strong>before</strong> we jump into the dev cycle. We let everyone propose features and enhancements, and we choose a limited number to include in 3.0 (in this case we need to be especially stringent, because the merge of WordPress and WordPress MU will automatically mean a lot of work) and set a realistic release date that we stick to. We create a tentative set of features for the next two releases, to be re-evaluated at the beginning of the next cycle, so that people know the community is committed to certain features, as opposed to the vague &#8220;future release&#8221; label we now use for everything not included in the current version. We fix bugs that are reproducible and affect a large number of users before focusing on edge case bugs or bugs that haven&#8217;t been well-described or reproduced. We stop diverting our attention from agreed-upon goals when a &#8220;squeaky wheel&#8221; decides we should all be focused on something else. There are always things that pop up unexpectedly, but we need to do a better job of restraining ourselves when it comes to trying to sneak things into the current release (I include myself in this, of course&#8230;as a UX person I always wish we could do everything all at once!).</p>\n<p>As an open source project, we accomplish more when we work together than we do following individual agendas, and we need to keep our project focused on commonly-agreed-upon goals instead of following tangents whenever a community member starts to take us on one, regardless of whether it&#8217;s to follow a cool idea that everyone loves or a suggestion based on a personal agenda, and regardless of whether it&#8217;s a newbie who doesn&#8217;t know any better or a frequent contributor or committer who has a strong opinion and a loud voice (so to speak). The issue here is that it&#8217;s easy to get distracted, so we need to create a structure that will help us keep moving forward instead of getting sidetracked. We need to keep Trac clean for the current dev cycle so that it includes confirmed features and bug reports, and all new feature suggestions go into a different milestone.</p>\n<p>We think it&#8217;s at least worth a try. When we re-start the weekly IRC dev chats in 2010, the first meeting will be to talk about the scope of 3.0. When we&#8217;ve got a general agreement about what will be included, we&#8217;ll create the appropriate Trac tickets, and punt tickets for non-3.0 feature requests/enhancements to a future release so we can stay focused. New bug reports will still come in to the current milestone. It&#8217;s going to be hard. There are at least a dozen new features that I feel like we&#8217;ve pushed back multiple times that I&#8217;d like to see in core, but for this experiment, I&#8217;m just going to keep reminding myself, &#8220;You can do that with a plugin!&#8221;</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/345127">Sound off on the features you would like to see in version 3.0</a>.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:60:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/setting-scope/feed/";}s:5:"slash";a:1:{s:8:"comments";s:1:"6";}s:7:"summary";s:301:"Merry Christmas! One of the things that was discussed at the core commit team meetup was release scope (and scope creep). Now that 2.9 is out and it&#8217;s time to start thinking about 3.0, we think it would be appropriate to stop and take a breath before diving in, and make a plan in advance. [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:4722:"<p>Merry Christmas! One of the things that was discussed at the core commit team meetup was release scope (and scope creep). Now that 2.9 is out and it&#8217;s time to start thinking about 3.0, we think it would be appropriate to stop and take a breath before diving in, and make a plan in advance. What winds up happening is that during each release cycle a few new features are selected for inclusion, but then right up until feature freeze (and/or beta cycle), people keep adding feature requests, patches for enhancements, and ongoing bug reports. This means each release winds up getting pushed out later than planned, and with so many things going in per release, it becomes harder to catch new bugs.</p>\n<p>The as-long-as-we&#8217;re-not-in-freeze-yet model isn&#8217;t working. People wind up waiting months longer for new features they want, like Trash and Image Editing, because we&#8217;re still adding other things and then we need to test them all. If we kept the releases smaller feature-wise, we could push out the new stuff sooner (3 releases per year is the goal) and have more focused beta testing, making the releases themselves better. It&#8217;s hard, because everyone has their pet features and fixes, and if there&#8217;s a patch, why not get it in this release rather than waiting? Sometimes people complain that a patch has been waiting to be committed for weeks or months, but what no one ever seems to bring up is that sometimes patches introduce new bugs, and the more we add at once, the harder it is to keep it all well-tested on various platforms, in different hosting environments, etc. So. What&#8217;s our proposal?</p>\n<p>We take a page from the world of project management and we make a project plan <strong>before</strong> we jump into the dev cycle. We let everyone propose features and enhancements, and we choose a limited number to include in 3.0 (in this case we need to be especially stringent, because the merge of WordPress and WordPress MU will automatically mean a lot of work) and set a realistic release date that we stick to. We create a tentative set of features for the next two releases, to be re-evaluated at the beginning of the next cycle, so that people know the community is committed to certain features, as opposed to the vague &#8220;future release&#8221; label we now use for everything not included in the current version. We fix bugs that are reproducible and affect a large number of users before focusing on edge case bugs or bugs that haven&#8217;t been well-described or reproduced. We stop diverting our attention from agreed-upon goals when a &#8220;squeaky wheel&#8221; decides we should all be focused on something else. There are always things that pop up unexpectedly, but we need to do a better job of restraining ourselves when it comes to trying to sneak things into the current release (I include myself in this, of course&#8230;as a UX person I always wish we could do everything all at once!).</p>\n<p>As an open source project, we accomplish more when we work together than we do following individual agendas, and we need to keep our project focused on commonly-agreed-upon goals instead of following tangents whenever a community member starts to take us on one, regardless of whether it&#8217;s to follow a cool idea that everyone loves or a suggestion based on a personal agenda, and regardless of whether it&#8217;s a newbie who doesn&#8217;t know any better or a frequent contributor or committer who has a strong opinion and a loud voice (so to speak). The issue here is that it&#8217;s easy to get distracted, so we need to create a structure that will help us keep moving forward instead of getting sidetracked. We need to keep Trac clean for the current dev cycle so that it includes confirmed features and bug reports, and all new feature suggestions go into a different milestone.</p>\n<p>We think it&#8217;s at least worth a try. When we re-start the weekly IRC dev chats in 2010, the first meeting will be to talk about the scope of 3.0. When we&#8217;ve got a general agreement about what will be included, we&#8217;ll create the appropriate Trac tickets, and punt tickets for non-3.0 feature requests/enhancements to a future release so we can stay focused. New bug reports will still come in to the current milestone. It&#8217;s going to be hard. There are at least a dozen new features that I feel like we&#8217;ve pushed back multiple times that I&#8217;d like to see in core, but for this experiment, I&#8217;m just going to keep reminding myself, &#8220;You can do that with a plugin!&#8221;</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/345127">Sound off on the features you would like to see in version 3.0</a>.</p>\n";}i:6;a:13:{s:5:"title";s:22:"WordPress 2.9.1 Beta 1";s:4:"link";s:64:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-1-beta-1/";s:8:"comments";s:73:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-1-beta-1/#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 23 Dec 2009 19:58:34 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:10:"Ryan Boren";}s:8:"category";s:8:"Releases";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://wordpress.org/development/?p=1098";s:11:"description";s:354:"Unfortunately, the recent 2.9 release triggered a bug in certain versions of PHP&#8217;s curl extension.  With these versions of curl, scheduled posts and pingbacks are not processed correctly.  To fix this problem as well as a handful of other, lesser issues, we are quickly releasing 2.9.1, the first maintenance release of the 2.9 line.  Help [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:1162:"<p>Unfortunately, the recent 2.9 release triggered a bug in certain versions of PHP&#8217;s curl extension.  With these versions of curl, scheduled posts and pingbacks are not processed correctly.  To fix this problem as well as a handful of other, lesser issues, we are quickly releasing 2.9.1, the first maintenance release of the 2.9 line.  Help us get 2.9.1 ready to go by testing 2.9.1 Beta 1.  The easiest way to test Beta 1 is to install the <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wordpress-beta-tester/">WordPress Beta Tester</a> plugin, elect to get on the point release development track, and then perform an automatic upgrade via the Tools-&gt;Upgrade menu.  You can also <a href="http://wordpress.org/wordpress-2.9.1-beta1.zip">download the Beta 1 package</a> and install manually.  <a href="http://core.trac.wordpress.org/query?status=closed&amp;group=resolution&amp;order=priority&amp;milestone=2.9.1&amp;resolution=fixed">Fourteen tickets</a> have been fixed in 2.9.1 Beta 1.  Since the curl problem and a couple of other problems are dependent on specific hosting configurations, any and all testing help is greatly appreciated.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:69:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-1-beta-1/feed/";}s:5:"slash";a:1:{s:8:"comments";s:1:"1";}s:7:"summary";s:354:"Unfortunately, the recent 2.9 release triggered a bug in certain versions of PHP&#8217;s curl extension.  With these versions of curl, scheduled posts and pingbacks are not processed correctly.  To fix this problem as well as a handful of other, lesser issues, we are quickly releasing 2.9.1, the first maintenance release of the 2.9 line.  Help [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:1162:"<p>Unfortunately, the recent 2.9 release triggered a bug in certain versions of PHP&#8217;s curl extension.  With these versions of curl, scheduled posts and pingbacks are not processed correctly.  To fix this problem as well as a handful of other, lesser issues, we are quickly releasing 2.9.1, the first maintenance release of the 2.9 line.  Help us get 2.9.1 ready to go by testing 2.9.1 Beta 1.  The easiest way to test Beta 1 is to install the <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wordpress-beta-tester/">WordPress Beta Tester</a> plugin, elect to get on the point release development track, and then perform an automatic upgrade via the Tools-&gt;Upgrade menu.  You can also <a href="http://wordpress.org/wordpress-2.9.1-beta1.zip">download the Beta 1 package</a> and install manually.  <a href="http://core.trac.wordpress.org/query?status=closed&amp;group=resolution&amp;order=priority&amp;milestone=2.9.1&amp;resolution=fixed">Fourteen tickets</a> have been fixed in 2.9.1 Beta 1.  Since the curl problem and a couple of other problems are dependent on specific hosting configurations, any and all testing help is greatly appreciated.</p>\n";}i:7;a:13:{s:5:"title";s:25:"WordPress 2.9, oh so fine";s:4:"link";s:55:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9/";s:8:"comments";s:64:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9/#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sat, 19 Dec 2009 00:46:11 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:4:"Matt";}s:8:"category";s:8:"Releases";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://wordpress.org/development/?p=1075";s:11:"description";s:360:"I want to make you mine, all the time&#8230; oh wait. Hello. I&#8217;m here on behalf of the entire WordPress development team and community to announce the immediate availability of WordPress version 2.9 &#8220;Carmen&#8221; named in honor of magical jazz vocalist Carmen McRae (whom we&#8217;ve added to our Last.fm WP release station). You can upgrade [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:14105:"<p>I want to make you mine, all the time&#8230; oh wait. Hello. I&#8217;m here on behalf of the entire WordPress development team and community to announce the immediate availability of <a href="http://wordpress.org/download/">WordPress version 2.9 &#8220;Carmen&#8221;</a> named in honor of magical jazz vocalist <a href="http://www.carmenmcrae.com/">Carmen McRae</a> (whom we&#8217;ve <a href="http://www.last.fm/tag/wordpress-release-jazz">added to our Last.fm WP release station</a>). You can upgrade easily from your Dashboard by going to <strong>Tools</strong> &gt; <strong>Upgrade</strong>, or you can <a href="http://wordpress.org/download/">download from WordPress.org</a>. And of course, it wouldn&#8217;t be a major release without a short video summarizing some of the cool things about the new version:<br />\n<embed src="http://v.wordpress.com/wp-content/plugins/video/flvplayer.swf?ver=1.11" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="640" height="360" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" flashvars="guid=NBZ853Xn&amp;width=640&amp;height=360" title="Introducing WordPress 2.9 Carmen"></embed></p>\n<p>The coolest new stuff from a user point of view is:</p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Global undo/&#8221;trash&#8221; feature</strong>, which means that if you accidentally delete a post or comment you can bring it back from the grave (i.e., the Trash). This also eliminates those annoying &#8220;are you sure&#8221; messages we used to have on every delete.</li>\n<li><strong>Built-in image editor</strong> allows you to crop, edit, rotate, flip, and scale your images to show them who&#8217;s boss. This is the first wave of our many planned media-handling improvements.</li>\n<li><strong>Batch plugin update and compatibility checking,</strong> which means you can update 10 plugins at once, versus having to do multiple clicks for each one, and we&#8217;re using the new compatibility data from the plugins directory to give you a better idea of whether your plugins are compatible with new releases of WordPress. This should take the fear and hassle out of upgrading.</li>\n<li><a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/Embeds"><strong>Easier video embeds</strong></a> that allow you to just paste a URL on its own line and have it magically turn it into the proper embed code, with Oembed support for YouTube, Daily Motion, Blip.tv, Flickr, Hulu, Viddler, Qik, Revision3, Scribd, Google Video, Photobucket, PollDaddy, and WordPress.tv (and more in the next release).</li>\n</ol>\n<p>2.9 provides the smoothest ride yet because of a number of improvements under the hood and more subtle improvements you&#8217;ll begin to appreciate once you&#8217;ve been around the block a few times. Here&#8217;s just a sampling:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>We now have <code>rel=canonical</code> support for better SEO.</li>\n<li>There is automatic database optimization support, which you can enable in your <code>wp-config.php</code> file by adding <code>define(''WP_ALLOW_REPAIR'', true);</code>.</li>\n<li>Themes can register &#8220;post thumbnails&#8221; which allow them to attach an image to the post, especially useful for magazine-style themes.</li>\n<li>A new <code>commentmeta</code> table that allows arbitrary key/value pairs to be attached to comments, just like posts, so you can now expand greatly what you can do in the comment framework.</li>\n<li>Custom post types have been upgraded with better API support so you can juggle more types than just post, page, and attachment. (More of this planned for 3.0.)</li>\n<li>You can set custom theme directories, so a plugin can register a theme to be bundled with it or you can have multiple shared theme directories on your server.</li>\n<li>We&#8217;ve upgraded TinyMCE WYSIWYG editing and Simplepie.</li>\n<li>Sidebars can now have descriptions so it&#8217;s more obvious what and where they do what they do.</li>\n<li>Specify category templates not just by ID, like before, but by slug, which will make it easier for theme developers to do custom things with categories &#8212; like post types!</li>\n<li>Registration and profiles are now extensible to allow you to collect things more easily, like a user&#8217;s Twitter account or any other fields you can imagine.</li>\n<li>The XML-RPC API has been extended to allow changing the user registration option. We fixed some Atom API attachment issues.</li>\n<li>Create custom galleries with the new include and exclude attributes that allow you to pull attachments from any post, not just the current one.</li>\n<li>When you&#8217;re editing files in the theme and plugin editors it remembers your location and takes you back to that line after you save. (Thank goodness!!!)</li>\n<li>The Press This bookmarklet has been improved and is faster than ever; give it a try for on-the-fly blogging from wherever you are on the internet.</li>\n<li>Custom taxonomies are now included in the WXR export file and imported correctly.</li>\n<li>Better hooks and filters for excerpts, smilies, HTTP requests, user profiles, author links, taxonomies, SSL support, tag clouds, query_posts and WP_Query</li>\n</ul>\n<p>All of this and more is reflected in the <a href="http://core.trac.wordpress.org/query?status=closed&amp;milestone=2.9">over 500 tickets, bugs, and enhancements that WP developers in this release cycle</a>.</p>\n<p>This release included code from over 140 contributors, here&#8217;s everyone we were able to identify: <a href="http://xavisys.com/">aaroncampbell (Aaron Campbell)</a>, <a href="http://sixohthree.com/">abackstrom (Adam Backstrom)</a>, <a href="http://www.aldenta.com/">aldenta (John Ford)</a>, <a href="http://alexking.org/">alexkingorg (Alex King)</a>, [amilanov], <a href="http://antony.lesuisse.org/">antonylesuisse (Antony Lesuisse)</a>, <a href="http://apeatling.wordpress.com/">apeatling (Andy Peatling)</a>, <a href="http://blog.apokalyptik.com/">apokalyptik (Demitrious Kelly)</a>, <a href="http://www.mailpress.org/">arena (André Renaut)</a>, <a href="http://digitalize.ca/">batmoo (Mohammad Jangda)</a>, <a href="http://bendunkle.com/">Ben Dunkle</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/benbe1987">BenBE1987</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://blog.bf-itservice.de/">Benjamin Flesch</a>, <a href="http://www.happyhumans.com/">bookchiq (Sarah Lewis)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/brianwhite">brianwhite</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/c0nstruct">c0nstruct</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.caesarsgrunt.com/">caesarsgrunt (Caesar Schinas)</a>, <a href="http://kniffenwebdesign.com/">CalebKniffen (Caleb Kniffen)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/chrisbliss18">chrisbliss18</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/chrisscott">chrisscott (Chris Scott)</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/christoph179">christoph179</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://coffee2code.com/">coffee2code (Scott Reilly)</a>, [cross country flight], <a href="http://www.curioso.org/">Curioso</a>, <a href="http://dave.pageportfolio.co.uk/">davecpage (Dave Page)</a>, <a href="http://dan-cole.com/">dcole07 (Dan Cole)</a>, <a href="http://dd32.id.au/">dd32 (Dion Hulse)</a>, <a href="http://op111.net/">demetris (ΔημήτÏης Κίκιζας)</a>, <a href="http://www.semiologic.com/">Denis-de-Bernardy</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/dj-wp">dj-wp</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/dwright">dwright</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://eddieringle.com/">eddieringle (Eddie Ringle)</a>, <a href="http://www.homelandstupidity.us/">error (Michael Hampton)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/ewestp">ewestp</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/fabifott">fabifott</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.ilfilosofo.com/">filosofo (Austin Matzko)</a>, <a href="http://justintadlock.com/">greenshady (Justin Tadlock)</a>, <a href="http://gsnedders.com/">gsnedders/link92 (Geoffrey Sneddon)</a>, <a href="http://hailin.wordpress.com/">hailin (Hailin Wu)</a>, <a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/User:Hakre">hakre</a>, <!--CODEX.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/hanilovesme">hanilovesme</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://ondskap.net/wp/">Harald Nesland</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/harrym">harrym</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://holizz.com/">holizz (Tom Adams)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/ikonst">ikonst</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://jacobsantos.com/">jacobsantos (Jacob Santos)</a>, <a href="http://jane.wordpress.com/">janeforshort (Jane Wells)</a>, <a href="http://om4.com.au/">jamescollins (James Collins)</a>, <a href="http://bethesignal.org/">jdub (Jeff Waugh)</a>, <a href="http://www.modulaweb.fr/">jeff_ (Jean-François “Jeffâ€ VIAL)</a>, <a href="http://simianuprising.com/">jeremyclarke (Jeremy Clarke)</a>, <a href="http://jeremy.visser.name/">JeremyVisser (Jeremy Visser)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/jikamens">jikamens</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/jmulley">jmulley</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/joern_w">Joern_W</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://devel.kostdoktorn.se/">johanee (Johan Eenfeldt)</a>, <a href="http://lud.icro.us/">johnbillion (John Blackbourn)</a>, <a href="http://johnjamesjacoby.com/">johnjamesjacoby (John James Jacoby)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/johnjosephbachir">johnjosephbachir (John Joseph Bachir)</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/jonathanrogers">JonathanRogers</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://yoast.com/">joostdevalk (Joost de Valk)</a>, <a href="http://rooibo.wordpress.com/">Jose Carlos Norte</a>, <a href="http://josephscott.org/">josephscott (Joseph Scott)</a>, <a href="http://tyco.ws/">junsuijin</a>, <a href="http://agapetry.net/">kevinB (Kevin Behrens)</a>, <a href="http://kometbomb.net/">kometbomb</a>, <a href="http://www.yuriko.net/">lilyfan (IKEDA Yuriko)</a>, [lostinlafayette], <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/madhyde">madhyde</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://subscribe2.wordpress.com/">MattyRob</a>, <a href="http://blogwaffe.com/">mdawaffe (Michael Adams)</a>, <a href="http://www.mittineague.com/">Mittineague</a>, <a href="http://blogyul.miqrogroove.com/">miqrogroove</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/morfiusx">morfiusx</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.misthaven.org.uk/blog/">mrmist (David McFarlane)</a>, <a href="http://nickmomrik.com/">mtdewvirus (Nick Momrik)</a>, <a href="http://urzenia.net/">mysz</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/nacin">nacin (Andrew Nacin)</a>, <a href="http://thebookofjoe.com/">nanochrome</a>, <a href="http://blog.detlog.org/">nao (Naoko  McCracken)</a>, <a href="http://www.nathanrice.net/">nathanrice (Nathan Rice)</a>, <a href="http://nikolay.bg/">nbachiyski (Ðиколай БачийÑки)</a>, <a href="http://www.niallkennedy.com/">niallkennedy (Niall Kennedy)</a>, <a href="http://nickohrn.com/">nickohrn (Nick Ohrn)</a>, <a href="http://www.rpmurphy.com/">ninjaWR (Ryan Murphy)</a>, <a href="http://noel.io/">noel (Noël Jackson)</a>, <a href="http://ottodestruct.com/">Otto42 (Samuel Wood)</a>, <a href="https://redmine.kirdev.sch.bme.hu/">pairg</a>, <a href="https://peaceable-whale.pip.verisignlabs.com/">peaceablewhale (Franklin Tse)</a>, <a href="http://cnpstudio.com/">prettyboymp (Michael Pretty)</a>, <a href="http://www.prodevstudio.net">ProDevStudio</a>, <a href="http://www.bdihot.co.il/">ramiy</a>, <a href="http://www.red-sweater.com/blog/">redsweater (Daniel Jalkut)</a>, <a href="http://ruslany.net/">ruslany</a>, <a href="http://unlettered.org/">sambauers (Sam Bauers)</a>, <a href="http://scribu.net/">scribu</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/sewar">Sewar</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/simek">Simek</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.simonwheatley.co.uk/">simonwheatley (Simon Wheatley)</a>, <a href="http://www.poradnik-webmastera.com/">sirzooro (Daniel Frużyński)</a>, <a href="http://sivel.net/">sivel (Matt Martz)</a>, <a href="http://skeltoac.com/">skeltoac (Andy Skelton)</a>, <a href="http://smallvoid.com/about/">snakefoot</a>, <a href="http://stephanreiter.info/">stephanreiter (Stephan Reiter)</a>, <a href="http://striderweb.com/nerdaphernalia/">strider72 (Stephen Rider)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/taco1991">taco1991</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://ideasilo.wordpress.com/">takayukister (Takayuki Miyoshi)</a>, <a href="http://tellyworth.wordpress.com/">tellyworth</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/tenpura">tenpura</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/usermrpapa">usermrpapa</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/utkarsh">utkarsh</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.viper007bond.com/">Viper007Bond</a>, <a href="http://blog.sjinks.org.ua/">vladimir_kolesnikov (Vladimir Kolesnikov)</a>, <a href="http://voxpelli.se/">VoxPelli (Pelle Wessman)</a>, [voyou1], <a href="http://emphaticallystatic.org/">wahgnube</a>, <a href="http://www.waltervos.com/">waltervos</a>, <a href="http://weston.ruter.net/">westonruter (Weston Ruter)</a>, <a href="http://willnorris.com/">wnorris (Will Norris)</a>, <a href="http://xentek.net/">xenlab (Eric Marden)</a>, <a href="http://blog.yoavfarhi.com/">yoavf (Yoav Farhi)</a>. Wowza!</p>\n<p>2.9 has been an exciting development cycle, and I must say it has whetted our appetite for 3.0, which is coming next (probably this spring) and will include at the very least the merge of MU with the WordPress core, and a new default theme. We can&#8217;t wait to start working on it. But first, some Carmen McRae tunes and a beer. Join us! <img src=''http://wordpress.org/development/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif'' alt='':)'' class=''wp-smiley'' /> </p>\n<p>(<em>After</em> you upgrade, of course!)</p>\n<p>I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:60:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/wordpress-2-9/feed/";}s:5:"slash";a:1:{s:8:"comments";s:2:"36";}s:7:"summary";s:360:"I want to make you mine, all the time&#8230; oh wait. Hello. I&#8217;m here on behalf of the entire WordPress development team and community to announce the immediate availability of WordPress version 2.9 &#8220;Carmen&#8221; named in honor of magical jazz vocalist Carmen McRae (whom we&#8217;ve added to our Last.fm WP release station). You can upgrade [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:14105:"<p>I want to make you mine, all the time&#8230; oh wait. Hello. I&#8217;m here on behalf of the entire WordPress development team and community to announce the immediate availability of <a href="http://wordpress.org/download/">WordPress version 2.9 &#8220;Carmen&#8221;</a> named in honor of magical jazz vocalist <a href="http://www.carmenmcrae.com/">Carmen McRae</a> (whom we&#8217;ve <a href="http://www.last.fm/tag/wordpress-release-jazz">added to our Last.fm WP release station</a>). You can upgrade easily from your Dashboard by going to <strong>Tools</strong> &gt; <strong>Upgrade</strong>, or you can <a href="http://wordpress.org/download/">download from WordPress.org</a>. And of course, it wouldn&#8217;t be a major release without a short video summarizing some of the cool things about the new version:<br />\n<embed src="http://v.wordpress.com/wp-content/plugins/video/flvplayer.swf?ver=1.11" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="640" height="360" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" flashvars="guid=NBZ853Xn&amp;width=640&amp;height=360" title="Introducing WordPress 2.9 Carmen"></embed></p>\n<p>The coolest new stuff from a user point of view is:</p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Global undo/&#8221;trash&#8221; feature</strong>, which means that if you accidentally delete a post or comment you can bring it back from the grave (i.e., the Trash). This also eliminates those annoying &#8220;are you sure&#8221; messages we used to have on every delete.</li>\n<li><strong>Built-in image editor</strong> allows you to crop, edit, rotate, flip, and scale your images to show them who&#8217;s boss. This is the first wave of our many planned media-handling improvements.</li>\n<li><strong>Batch plugin update and compatibility checking,</strong> which means you can update 10 plugins at once, versus having to do multiple clicks for each one, and we&#8217;re using the new compatibility data from the plugins directory to give you a better idea of whether your plugins are compatible with new releases of WordPress. This should take the fear and hassle out of upgrading.</li>\n<li><a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/Embeds"><strong>Easier video embeds</strong></a> that allow you to just paste a URL on its own line and have it magically turn it into the proper embed code, with Oembed support for YouTube, Daily Motion, Blip.tv, Flickr, Hulu, Viddler, Qik, Revision3, Scribd, Google Video, Photobucket, PollDaddy, and WordPress.tv (and more in the next release).</li>\n</ol>\n<p>2.9 provides the smoothest ride yet because of a number of improvements under the hood and more subtle improvements you&#8217;ll begin to appreciate once you&#8217;ve been around the block a few times. Here&#8217;s just a sampling:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>We now have <code>rel=canonical</code> support for better SEO.</li>\n<li>There is automatic database optimization support, which you can enable in your <code>wp-config.php</code> file by adding <code>define(''WP_ALLOW_REPAIR'', true);</code>.</li>\n<li>Themes can register &#8220;post thumbnails&#8221; which allow them to attach an image to the post, especially useful for magazine-style themes.</li>\n<li>A new <code>commentmeta</code> table that allows arbitrary key/value pairs to be attached to comments, just like posts, so you can now expand greatly what you can do in the comment framework.</li>\n<li>Custom post types have been upgraded with better API support so you can juggle more types than just post, page, and attachment. (More of this planned for 3.0.)</li>\n<li>You can set custom theme directories, so a plugin can register a theme to be bundled with it or you can have multiple shared theme directories on your server.</li>\n<li>We&#8217;ve upgraded TinyMCE WYSIWYG editing and Simplepie.</li>\n<li>Sidebars can now have descriptions so it&#8217;s more obvious what and where they do what they do.</li>\n<li>Specify category templates not just by ID, like before, but by slug, which will make it easier for theme developers to do custom things with categories &#8212; like post types!</li>\n<li>Registration and profiles are now extensible to allow you to collect things more easily, like a user&#8217;s Twitter account or any other fields you can imagine.</li>\n<li>The XML-RPC API has been extended to allow changing the user registration option. We fixed some Atom API attachment issues.</li>\n<li>Create custom galleries with the new include and exclude attributes that allow you to pull attachments from any post, not just the current one.</li>\n<li>When you&#8217;re editing files in the theme and plugin editors it remembers your location and takes you back to that line after you save. (Thank goodness!!!)</li>\n<li>The Press This bookmarklet has been improved and is faster than ever; give it a try for on-the-fly blogging from wherever you are on the internet.</li>\n<li>Custom taxonomies are now included in the WXR export file and imported correctly.</li>\n<li>Better hooks and filters for excerpts, smilies, HTTP requests, user profiles, author links, taxonomies, SSL support, tag clouds, query_posts and WP_Query</li>\n</ul>\n<p>All of this and more is reflected in the <a href="http://core.trac.wordpress.org/query?status=closed&amp;milestone=2.9">over 500 tickets, bugs, and enhancements that WP developers in this release cycle</a>.</p>\n<p>This release included code from over 140 contributors, here&#8217;s everyone we were able to identify: <a href="http://xavisys.com/">aaroncampbell (Aaron Campbell)</a>, <a href="http://sixohthree.com/">abackstrom (Adam Backstrom)</a>, <a href="http://www.aldenta.com/">aldenta (John Ford)</a>, <a href="http://alexking.org/">alexkingorg (Alex King)</a>, [amilanov], <a href="http://antony.lesuisse.org/">antonylesuisse (Antony Lesuisse)</a>, <a href="http://apeatling.wordpress.com/">apeatling (Andy Peatling)</a>, <a href="http://blog.apokalyptik.com/">apokalyptik (Demitrious Kelly)</a>, <a href="http://www.mailpress.org/">arena (André Renaut)</a>, <a href="http://digitalize.ca/">batmoo (Mohammad Jangda)</a>, <a href="http://bendunkle.com/">Ben Dunkle</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/benbe1987">BenBE1987</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://blog.bf-itservice.de/">Benjamin Flesch</a>, <a href="http://www.happyhumans.com/">bookchiq (Sarah Lewis)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/brianwhite">brianwhite</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/c0nstruct">c0nstruct</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.caesarsgrunt.com/">caesarsgrunt (Caesar Schinas)</a>, <a href="http://kniffenwebdesign.com/">CalebKniffen (Caleb Kniffen)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/chrisbliss18">chrisbliss18</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/chrisscott">chrisscott (Chris Scott)</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/christoph179">christoph179</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://coffee2code.com/">coffee2code (Scott Reilly)</a>, [cross country flight], <a href="http://www.curioso.org/">Curioso</a>, <a href="http://dave.pageportfolio.co.uk/">davecpage (Dave Page)</a>, <a href="http://dan-cole.com/">dcole07 (Dan Cole)</a>, <a href="http://dd32.id.au/">dd32 (Dion Hulse)</a>, <a href="http://op111.net/">demetris (ΔημήτÏης Κίκιζας)</a>, <a href="http://www.semiologic.com/">Denis-de-Bernardy</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/dj-wp">dj-wp</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/dwright">dwright</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://eddieringle.com/">eddieringle (Eddie Ringle)</a>, <a href="http://www.homelandstupidity.us/">error (Michael Hampton)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/ewestp">ewestp</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/fabifott">fabifott</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.ilfilosofo.com/">filosofo (Austin Matzko)</a>, <a href="http://justintadlock.com/">greenshady (Justin Tadlock)</a>, <a href="http://gsnedders.com/">gsnedders/link92 (Geoffrey Sneddon)</a>, <a href="http://hailin.wordpress.com/">hailin (Hailin Wu)</a>, <a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/User:Hakre">hakre</a>, <!--CODEX.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/hanilovesme">hanilovesme</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://ondskap.net/wp/">Harald Nesland</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/harrym">harrym</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://holizz.com/">holizz (Tom Adams)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/ikonst">ikonst</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://jacobsantos.com/">jacobsantos (Jacob Santos)</a>, <a href="http://jane.wordpress.com/">janeforshort (Jane Wells)</a>, <a href="http://om4.com.au/">jamescollins (James Collins)</a>, <a href="http://bethesignal.org/">jdub (Jeff Waugh)</a>, <a href="http://www.modulaweb.fr/">jeff_ (Jean-François “Jeffâ€ VIAL)</a>, <a href="http://simianuprising.com/">jeremyclarke (Jeremy Clarke)</a>, <a href="http://jeremy.visser.name/">JeremyVisser (Jeremy Visser)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/jikamens">jikamens</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/jmulley">jmulley</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/joern_w">Joern_W</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://devel.kostdoktorn.se/">johanee (Johan Eenfeldt)</a>, <a href="http://lud.icro.us/">johnbillion (John Blackbourn)</a>, <a href="http://johnjamesjacoby.com/">johnjamesjacoby (John James Jacoby)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/johnjosephbachir">johnjosephbachir (John Joseph Bachir)</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/jonathanrogers">JonathanRogers</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://yoast.com/">joostdevalk (Joost de Valk)</a>, <a href="http://rooibo.wordpress.com/">Jose Carlos Norte</a>, <a href="http://josephscott.org/">josephscott (Joseph Scott)</a>, <a href="http://tyco.ws/">junsuijin</a>, <a href="http://agapetry.net/">kevinB (Kevin Behrens)</a>, <a href="http://kometbomb.net/">kometbomb</a>, <a href="http://www.yuriko.net/">lilyfan (IKEDA Yuriko)</a>, [lostinlafayette], <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/madhyde">madhyde</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://subscribe2.wordpress.com/">MattyRob</a>, <a href="http://blogwaffe.com/">mdawaffe (Michael Adams)</a>, <a href="http://www.mittineague.com/">Mittineague</a>, <a href="http://blogyul.miqrogroove.com/">miqrogroove</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/morfiusx">morfiusx</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.misthaven.org.uk/blog/">mrmist (David McFarlane)</a>, <a href="http://nickmomrik.com/">mtdewvirus (Nick Momrik)</a>, <a href="http://urzenia.net/">mysz</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/nacin">nacin (Andrew Nacin)</a>, <a href="http://thebookofjoe.com/">nanochrome</a>, <a href="http://blog.detlog.org/">nao (Naoko  McCracken)</a>, <a href="http://www.nathanrice.net/">nathanrice (Nathan Rice)</a>, <a href="http://nikolay.bg/">nbachiyski (Ðиколай БачийÑки)</a>, <a href="http://www.niallkennedy.com/">niallkennedy (Niall Kennedy)</a>, <a href="http://nickohrn.com/">nickohrn (Nick Ohrn)</a>, <a href="http://www.rpmurphy.com/">ninjaWR (Ryan Murphy)</a>, <a href="http://noel.io/">noel (Noël Jackson)</a>, <a href="http://ottodestruct.com/">Otto42 (Samuel Wood)</a>, <a href="https://redmine.kirdev.sch.bme.hu/">pairg</a>, <a href="https://peaceable-whale.pip.verisignlabs.com/">peaceablewhale (Franklin Tse)</a>, <a href="http://cnpstudio.com/">prettyboymp (Michael Pretty)</a>, <a href="http://www.prodevstudio.net">ProDevStudio</a>, <a href="http://www.bdihot.co.il/">ramiy</a>, <a href="http://www.red-sweater.com/blog/">redsweater (Daniel Jalkut)</a>, <a href="http://ruslany.net/">ruslany</a>, <a href="http://unlettered.org/">sambauers (Sam Bauers)</a>, <a href="http://scribu.net/">scribu</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/sewar">Sewar</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/simek">Simek</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.simonwheatley.co.uk/">simonwheatley (Simon Wheatley)</a>, <a href="http://www.poradnik-webmastera.com/">sirzooro (Daniel Frużyński)</a>, <a href="http://sivel.net/">sivel (Matt Martz)</a>, <a href="http://skeltoac.com/">skeltoac (Andy Skelton)</a>, <a href="http://smallvoid.com/about/">snakefoot</a>, <a href="http://stephanreiter.info/">stephanreiter (Stephan Reiter)</a>, <a href="http://striderweb.com/nerdaphernalia/">strider72 (Stephen Rider)</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/taco1991">taco1991</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://ideasilo.wordpress.com/">takayukister (Takayuki Miyoshi)</a>, <a href="http://tellyworth.wordpress.com/">tellyworth</a>, <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/tenpura">tenpura</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/usermrpapa">usermrpapa</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://profiles.wordpress.org/utkarsh">utkarsh</a>, <!--PROFILES.wp.org--> <a href="http://www.viper007bond.com/">Viper007Bond</a>, <a href="http://blog.sjinks.org.ua/">vladimir_kolesnikov (Vladimir Kolesnikov)</a>, <a href="http://voxpelli.se/">VoxPelli (Pelle Wessman)</a>, [voyou1], <a href="http://emphaticallystatic.org/">wahgnube</a>, <a href="http://www.waltervos.com/">waltervos</a>, <a href="http://weston.ruter.net/">westonruter (Weston Ruter)</a>, <a href="http://willnorris.com/">wnorris (Will Norris)</a>, <a href="http://xentek.net/">xenlab (Eric Marden)</a>, <a href="http://blog.yoavfarhi.com/">yoavf (Yoav Farhi)</a>. Wowza!</p>\n<p>2.9 has been an exciting development cycle, and I must say it has whetted our appetite for 3.0, which is coming next (probably this spring) and will include at the very least the merge of MU with the WordPress core, and a new default theme. We can&#8217;t wait to start working on it. But first, some Carmen McRae tunes and a beer. Join us! <img src=''http://wordpress.org/development/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif'' alt='':)'' class=''wp-smiley'' /> </p>\n<p>(<em>After</em> you upgrade, of course!)</p>\n<p>I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season.</p>\n";}i:8;a:13:{s:5:"title";s:21:"2010: A Theme Odyssey";s:4:"link";s:62:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/2010-a-theme-odyssey/";s:8:"comments";s:71:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/2010-a-theme-odyssey/#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Fri, 18 Dec 2009 18:36:43 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:10:"Jane Wells";}s:8:"category";s:34:"Development2010defaultkubricktheme";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://wordpress.org/development/?p=1065";s:11:"description";s:327:"After the video from the core team meetup was posted, the topic that seemed to get the most attention on Twitter and various community sites was Matt&#8217;s announcement that there would be a new default theme in 2010, so I thought I&#8217;d start with that as the first of the meetup summaries.\nWhen Kubrick was bundled [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:2819:"<p>After the <a href="http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/core-team-meetup-results/">video from the core team meetup</a> was posted, the topic that seemed to get the most attention on Twitter and various community sites was Matt&#8217;s announcement that there would be a new default theme in 2010, so I thought I&#8217;d start with that as the first of the meetup summaries.</p>\n<p>When Kubrick was bundled with core back in 2005, it was a cutting edge theme. Custom header, rounded corners, clean design&#8230; if you were using WordPress back then, let&#8217;s face it, you were impressed. Time moves on, though, fashions change, new styles become old standards, and what was once cutting edge suddenly seems old-fashioned and out of date.</p>\n<p>So, a new bundled theme in 2010? We think it&#8217;s a good idea. Something nice and light that can serve as a good example theme, include newer theme-based features, and look nice (and current) on a public site. We&#8217;d like to introduce a new default theme with version 3.0, which is anticipated to come out in mid-2010 (hence the name), and think it would be good for it to blend well aesthetically with WordPress itself.</p>\n<p>I&#8217;d been advocating moving toward <a href="http://elastictheme.org/">Elastic</a>, the theme framework/WYSIWYG theme editor that was one of our Google Summer of Code student projects, but after some discussion I agreed with the guys that while Elastic is awesome and should be promoted as a community development project, it&#8217;s heavier than a default theme needs to be. The default theme doesn&#8217;t need to be a full-featured framework, it just needs to work well, look awesome, have good code and be a good starting point for beginning themers. We were thinking of a fairly minimalist design that would make it easy to customize.</p>\n<p>As for the code, there&#8217;s a question of if it will really be a new theme, or if it will be a re-styled and updated version of Kubrick.  We don&#8217;t know the final answer to that yet, because the ultimate decision will be made with the community&#8217;s input, but we believe all new markup is the way to go. What do you think? Without venturing into theme framework territory, are there features you think a new default theme should have? Some people have been <a href="http://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/9015">talking about it on Trac</a> over the past year, if you wonder what&#8217;s been tossed around so far. I thought about posting a poll here (you know how I love posting polls to gauge opinion), but in this case I think a discussion thread might be better, so that each vote can explain the reason behind it. So, have an opinion on what a new default theme should include? <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/342819">Weigh in at the forums</a>.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:67:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/2010-a-theme-odyssey/feed/";}s:5:"slash";a:1:{s:8:"comments";s:1:"0";}s:7:"summary";s:327:"After the video from the core team meetup was posted, the topic that seemed to get the most attention on Twitter and various community sites was Matt&#8217;s announcement that there would be a new default theme in 2010, so I thought I&#8217;d start with that as the first of the meetup summaries.\nWhen Kubrick was bundled [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:2819:"<p>After the <a href="http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/core-team-meetup-results/">video from the core team meetup</a> was posted, the topic that seemed to get the most attention on Twitter and various community sites was Matt&#8217;s announcement that there would be a new default theme in 2010, so I thought I&#8217;d start with that as the first of the meetup summaries.</p>\n<p>When Kubrick was bundled with core back in 2005, it was a cutting edge theme. Custom header, rounded corners, clean design&#8230; if you were using WordPress back then, let&#8217;s face it, you were impressed. Time moves on, though, fashions change, new styles become old standards, and what was once cutting edge suddenly seems old-fashioned and out of date.</p>\n<p>So, a new bundled theme in 2010? We think it&#8217;s a good idea. Something nice and light that can serve as a good example theme, include newer theme-based features, and look nice (and current) on a public site. We&#8217;d like to introduce a new default theme with version 3.0, which is anticipated to come out in mid-2010 (hence the name), and think it would be good for it to blend well aesthetically with WordPress itself.</p>\n<p>I&#8217;d been advocating moving toward <a href="http://elastictheme.org/">Elastic</a>, the theme framework/WYSIWYG theme editor that was one of our Google Summer of Code student projects, but after some discussion I agreed with the guys that while Elastic is awesome and should be promoted as a community development project, it&#8217;s heavier than a default theme needs to be. The default theme doesn&#8217;t need to be a full-featured framework, it just needs to work well, look awesome, have good code and be a good starting point for beginning themers. We were thinking of a fairly minimalist design that would make it easy to customize.</p>\n<p>As for the code, there&#8217;s a question of if it will really be a new theme, or if it will be a re-styled and updated version of Kubrick.  We don&#8217;t know the final answer to that yet, because the ultimate decision will be made with the community&#8217;s input, but we believe all new markup is the way to go. What do you think? Without venturing into theme framework territory, are there features you think a new default theme should have? Some people have been <a href="http://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/9015">talking about it on Trac</a> over the past year, if you wonder what&#8217;s been tossed around so far. I thought about posting a poll here (you know how I love posting polls to gauge opinion), but in this case I think a discussion thread might be better, so that each vote can explain the reason behind it. So, have an opinion on what a new default theme should include? <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/342819">Weigh in at the forums</a>.</p>\n";}i:9;a:13:{s:5:"title";s:23:"2.9 Release Candidate 1";s:4:"link";s:49:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/2-9-rc1/";s:8:"comments";s:58:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/2-9-rc1/#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 16 Dec 2009 18:33:39 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:4:"Matt";}s:8:"category";s:11:"Development";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://wordpress.org/development/?p=1057";s:11:"description";s:335:"We&#8217;re at that exciting point in WordPress development where the dev team feels like version 2.9 is complete and ready for the world.\nIf you&#8217;ve been waiting for your moment to pitch in, it&#8217;s now. First we need tech savvy testers to upgrade their blogs and kick the tires, make sure everything is rolling like you [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:1702:"<p>We&#8217;re at that exciting point in WordPress development where the dev team feels like version 2.9 is complete and ready for the world.</p>\n<p>If you&#8217;ve been waiting for your moment to pitch in, it&#8217;s now. First we need tech savvy testers to upgrade their blogs and kick the tires, make sure everything is rolling like you expect it to. <a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/Version_2.9">Here&#8217;s a list of all the fun and geeky new stuff in 2.9 to try out</a>. Second, and more importantly, we need everyone to test out their plugin compatibility.</p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re a user of plugins, there&#8217;s a groovy new compatibility feature on the plugin directory where you can vote on whether a plugin is compatible with a version or not and it&#8217;ll get registered in the new plugin compatibility checker. This is as a replacement to the old wiki-based lists we&#8217;d do before. To see it in action <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/akismet/">check out this Akismet plugin page</a>, as you can see 14 people have already registered that it&#8217;s compatible with 2.9.</p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re a plugin author, of course you should update your &#8220;Tested up to:&#8221; in the <code>readme.txt</code> for your plugin.</p>\n<p>If all goes according to plan, WordPress 2.9 will be out before the end of the week. <a href="http://wordpress.org/wordpress-2.9-RC1.zip">You can download the release candidate here</a>.</p>\n<p>For more details on the changes since Beta please review the <a href="https://core.trac.wordpress.org/log/?action=stop_on_copy&amp;mode=stop_on_copy&amp;rev=12416&amp;stop_rev=12315&amp;limit=150">revision log on Trac</a>, and happy testing!</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:54:"http://wordpress.org/development/2009/12/2-9-rc1/feed/";}s:5:"slash";a:1:{s:8:"comments";s:1:"0";}s:7:"summary";s:335:"We&#8217;re at that exciting point in WordPress development where the dev team feels like version 2.9 is complete and ready for the world.\nIf you&#8217;ve been waiting for your moment to pitch in, it&#8217;s now. First we need tech savvy testers to upgrade their blogs and kick the tires, make sure everything is rolling like you [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:1702:"<p>We&#8217;re at that exciting point in WordPress development where the dev team feels like version 2.9 is complete and ready for the world.</p>\n<p>If you&#8217;ve been waiting for your moment to pitch in, it&#8217;s now. First we need tech savvy testers to upgrade their blogs and kick the tires, make sure everything is rolling like you expect it to. <a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/Version_2.9">Here&#8217;s a list of all the fun and geeky new stuff in 2.9 to try out</a>. Second, and more importantly, we need everyone to test out their plugin compatibility.</p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re a user of plugins, there&#8217;s a groovy new compatibility feature on the plugin directory where you can vote on whether a plugin is compatible with a version or not and it&#8217;ll get registered in the new plugin compatibility checker. This is as a replacement to the old wiki-based lists we&#8217;d do before. To see it in action <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/akismet/">check out this Akismet plugin page</a>, as you can see 14 people have already registered that it&#8217;s compatible with 2.9.</p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re a plugin author, of course you should update your &#8220;Tested up to:&#8221; in the <code>readme.txt</code> for your plugin.</p>\n<p>If all goes according to plan, WordPress 2.9 will be out before the end of the week. <a href="http://wordpress.org/wordpress-2.9-RC1.zip">You can download the release candidate here</a>.</p>\n<p>For more details on the changes since Beta please review the <a href="https://core.trac.wordpress.org/log/?action=stop_on_copy&amp;mode=stop_on_copy&amp;rev=12416&amp;stop_rev=12315&amp;limit=150">revision log on Trac</a>, and happy testing!</p>\n";}}s:7:"channel";a:8:{s:5:"title";s:26:"WordPress Development Blog";s:4:"link";s:32:"http://wordpress.org/development";s:11:"description";s:33:"WordPress development and updates";s:13:"lastbuilddate";s:31:"Fri, 22 Jan 2010 05:38:09 +0000";s:9:"generator";s:29:"http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1";s:8:"language";s:2:"en";s:2:"sy";a:2:{s:12:"updateperiod";s:6:"hourly";s:15:"updatefrequency";s:1:"1";}s:7:"tagline";s:33:"WordPress development and updates";}s:9:"textinput";a:0:{}s:5:"image";a:0:{}s:9:"feed_type";s:3:"RSS";s:12:"feed_version";s:3:"2.0";s:5:"stack";a:0:{}s:9:"inchannel";b:0;s:6:"initem";b:0;s:9:"incontent";b:0;s:11:"intextinput";b:0;s:7:"inimage";b:0;s:13:"current_field";s:0:"";s:17:"current_namespace";b:0;s:19:"_CONTENT_CONSTRUCTS";a:6:{i:0;s:7:"content";i:1;s:7:"summary";i:2;s:4:"info";i:3;s:5:"title";i:4;s:7:"tagline";i:5;s:9:"copyright";}s:13:"last_modified";s:31:"Fri, 22 Jan 2010 05:38:09 GMT\r\n";s:4:"etag";s:36:""55da601fcc88af51ad6c9e661d5564b1"\r\n";}', 'no');
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(83, 0, 'rss_867bd5c64f85878d03a060509cd2f92c', 'O:9:"MagpieRSS":19:{s:6:"parser";i:0;s:12:"current_item";a:0:{}s:5:"items";a:50:{i:0;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:55:"Weblog Tools Collection: My Thoughts on Premium Plugins";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7690";s:4:"link";s:84:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/02/04/my-thoughts-on-premium-plugins/";s:11:"description";s:7288:"<p>Most of you have heard by now of the <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/02/03/good-luck-lester-chn/">departure of Lester Chan</a> from WordPress plugin development.  While he will continue to update his plugins as needed, all support will be terminated.</p>\n<p>As a plugin author myself, I&#8217;m not surprised by this news.  With the world economy still in the pits, more plugin authors are feeling the crunch.  While they would like to release free plugins for all, at the end of the day, there are bills to pay and mouths to feed.</p>\n<p>Within this article (rant?), I will go over the types of plugins I would pay for, an argument for paying for plugins, and go over several business models I see popping up.</p>\n<h3>Plugins I Would Pay For</h3>\n<p>Here are several categories that make a plugin something I would pay for (yours will undoubtedly be different).</p>\n<ul>\n<li>The plugin is a timesaver &#8211; Plugins such as <a href="http://akismet.com/">Akismet</a> and <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-spamfree/">WP Spam Free</a> save me from having to deal with SPAM.</li>\n<li>The plugin provides peace of mind &#8211; Plugins such as <a href="http://ilfilosofo.com/blog/wp-db-backup/">WordPress Database Backup</a> and <a href="http://www.w3-edge.com/wordpress-plugins/w3-total-cache/">W3 Total Cache</a> provide peace of mind.  My data gets backed up, and my blog is protected from an influx of traffic.</li>\n<li>The plugin helps my readers &#8211; Plugins such as <a href="http://txfx.net/code/wordpress/subscribe-to-comments/">Subscribe to Comments</a>, <a href="http://lesterchan.net/portfolio/programming/php/">PageNavi</a>, <a href="http://mitcho.com/code/yarpp/">Related Posts</a>, <a href="http://rauru.com/wordpress-popular-posts">Popular Posts</a>, and many others that improve the reader experience.</li>\n<li>The plugin makes something complicated simple &#8211; I&#8217;m thinking of creating <a href="http://www.arnebrachhold.de/redir/sitemap-home/">XML Sitemaps</a>, creating forms (<a href="http://www.deliciousdays.com/cforms-plugin/">cformsII</a> or <a href="http://www.gravityforms.com">Gravity Forms</a>), or listing podcasts (<a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/podpress/">PodPress</a>).</li>\n<li>The plugin fills a unique niche &#8211; An example includes the <a href="http://bravenewcode.com/wptouch">WP Touch plugin</a>, which is for mobile users of your WordPress-powered site.</li>\n</ul>\n<h3>An Argument for Paying for Plugins</h3>\n<p>In 2009, we saw the premium theme market jump into the stratosphere.  </p>\n<p>Jeff predicts the <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2009/12/23/trend-for-2010-paying-for-plugins/">same for plugins in 2010</a>.  </p>\n<p>One thing that has always confused me is that a lot of the &#8220;free plugins forever&#8221; advocates have a different opinion towards paying for themes.  Why is that so?</p>\n<p>Unless you purchase the theme&#8217;s developer license, you only get to use the theme on one site.  And if you&#8217;re like me, you probably go through three (sometimes four) themes a year (I&#8217;m never satisfied!).</p>\n<p>A plugin, however, is there before, during, and after the theme switch.  I can use it on more than one site (if the license permits), and upgrading it is much less of a hassle than themes.</p>\n<p>On my personal site, I&#8217;ve pretty much had the same plugins for 3-4 years running.  If I were to pay for those plugins, that&#8217;s a good return on investment in terms of mileage.</p>\n<p>For those who would never consider purchasing a plugin, remember, as the economy gets worse, your favorite plugin may be the next to get abandoned by its author for financial reasons.  It&#8217;s not at all uncommon, and I would argue that this is the rule, not the exception.</p>\n<h3>Plugin Business Models</h3>\n<p>Over the past year, I&#8217;ve observed several plugin business models crop up.  I will go over these briefly and weigh in on each.</p>\n<h4>Donation Model Only</h4>\n<p>Some plugin authors still choose to rely on donations for plugins.  For a minority of plugin authors, the amount of donations is sufficient.</p>\n<p>However, I haven&#8217;t experienced success with the donation model, even after pushing it heavily.  My most popular plugin received 1-3 donations every six months.  </p>\n<h4>Free Plugin &#8211; Charge for Support</h4>\n<p>While some plugin authors have been successful in charging for support, for the most part, users download the plugin and move on.</p>\n<p>An example is providing a download link for the plugin, and charging the user a subscription fee for support forums.</p>\n<p>One thing I don&#8217;t like about this model is that it reinforces the fact that the time to take coding/updating the plugin is trivial.  Sure, support takes up time, but maintaining the plugin takes up a lot of time also.</p>\n<h4>Free Plugin &#8211; Charge for Add-ons</h4>\n<p>Another model I&#8217;ve seen is a plugin being provided for free, but add-ons for the plugin are an extra fee.</p>\n<p>If the plugin proves popular enough, and the add-on is a must-have, you&#8217;ll likely find great success with this model.</p>\n<p>The time you spent coding the &#8220;base&#8221; plugin will be offset by the income you receive from the add-ons.</p>\n<h4>One-time Fee for Plugin &#8211; Extra for Support</h3>\n<p>Another model I&#8217;ve witnessed is the user being charged a set fee for the plugin.  If the user wants support, the user must subscribe to a forum of some sort.</p>\n<p>I personally disagree with this model as the user often pays more for support than what the actual plugin is worth.</p>\n<p>It&#8217;s also my opinion that if you charge for a plugin, support must be included.</p>\n<h4>One-time Fee for Plugin &#8211; Support Included</h4>\n<p>A model I&#8217;m fond of is just outright charging a fee for the plugin with support included.  </p>\n<p>The downside of this model is that the user should expect a higher price.  Since the user is paying only one time, the higher price compensates for all the support the user is expected to have over the lifetime of the plugin.  </p>\n<p>Typically the price goes higher for additional site licenses, as support is expected to increase.</p>\n<h4>Subscription Based Model</h4>\n<p>A subscription-based model allows you to spread costs across all of the subscribers.  The goal here is to gain as many subscribers as possible by charging a low price.</p>\n<p>As a result, support and upgrade costs will be spread amongst all subscribers, where each subscriber gets the overall benefit.  And since some subscribers will stick around for the next billing period, there is constant revenue.</p>\n<p>One thing to include is to have a &#8220;Buy Out&#8221; option, which will allow users a lifetime subscription for a set fee.  This is the One-time Fee option, so the price will be dramatically higher than a subscription cost.</p>\n<p>I personally chose this model for my first premium plugin and it has been fairly successful so far.</p>\n<h3>Conclusion</h3>\n<p>Within this post, I went over the types of plugins I would buy, my reasons for purchasing a plugin, and the various models I&#8217;ve seen crop up.</p>\n<p>I would love to hear your thoughts on any of these topics.  </p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:15:22 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:14:"Ronald Huereca";}s:7:"summary";s:7288:"<p>Most of you have heard by now of the <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/02/03/good-luck-lester-chn/">departure of Lester Chan</a> from WordPress plugin development.  While he will continue to update his plugins as needed, all support will be terminated.</p>\n<p>As a plugin author myself, I&#8217;m not surprised by this news.  With the world economy still in the pits, more plugin authors are feeling the crunch.  While they would like to release free plugins for all, at the end of the day, there are bills to pay and mouths to feed.</p>\n<p>Within this article (rant?), I will go over the types of plugins I would pay for, an argument for paying for plugins, and go over several business models I see popping up.</p>\n<h3>Plugins I Would Pay For</h3>\n<p>Here are several categories that make a plugin something I would pay for (yours will undoubtedly be different).</p>\n<ul>\n<li>The plugin is a timesaver &#8211; Plugins such as <a href="http://akismet.com/">Akismet</a> and <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-spamfree/">WP Spam Free</a> save me from having to deal with SPAM.</li>\n<li>The plugin provides peace of mind &#8211; Plugins such as <a href="http://ilfilosofo.com/blog/wp-db-backup/">WordPress Database Backup</a> and <a href="http://www.w3-edge.com/wordpress-plugins/w3-total-cache/">W3 Total Cache</a> provide peace of mind.  My data gets backed up, and my blog is protected from an influx of traffic.</li>\n<li>The plugin helps my readers &#8211; Plugins such as <a href="http://txfx.net/code/wordpress/subscribe-to-comments/">Subscribe to Comments</a>, <a href="http://lesterchan.net/portfolio/programming/php/">PageNavi</a>, <a href="http://mitcho.com/code/yarpp/">Related Posts</a>, <a href="http://rauru.com/wordpress-popular-posts">Popular Posts</a>, and many others that improve the reader experience.</li>\n<li>The plugin makes something complicated simple &#8211; I&#8217;m thinking of creating <a href="http://www.arnebrachhold.de/redir/sitemap-home/">XML Sitemaps</a>, creating forms (<a href="http://www.deliciousdays.com/cforms-plugin/">cformsII</a> or <a href="http://www.gravityforms.com">Gravity Forms</a>), or listing podcasts (<a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/podpress/">PodPress</a>).</li>\n<li>The plugin fills a unique niche &#8211; An example includes the <a href="http://bravenewcode.com/wptouch">WP Touch plugin</a>, which is for mobile users of your WordPress-powered site.</li>\n</ul>\n<h3>An Argument for Paying for Plugins</h3>\n<p>In 2009, we saw the premium theme market jump into the stratosphere.  </p>\n<p>Jeff predicts the <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2009/12/23/trend-for-2010-paying-for-plugins/">same for plugins in 2010</a>.  </p>\n<p>One thing that has always confused me is that a lot of the &#8220;free plugins forever&#8221; advocates have a different opinion towards paying for themes.  Why is that so?</p>\n<p>Unless you purchase the theme&#8217;s developer license, you only get to use the theme on one site.  And if you&#8217;re like me, you probably go through three (sometimes four) themes a year (I&#8217;m never satisfied!).</p>\n<p>A plugin, however, is there before, during, and after the theme switch.  I can use it on more than one site (if the license permits), and upgrading it is much less of a hassle than themes.</p>\n<p>On my personal site, I&#8217;ve pretty much had the same plugins for 3-4 years running.  If I were to pay for those plugins, that&#8217;s a good return on investment in terms of mileage.</p>\n<p>For those who would never consider purchasing a plugin, remember, as the economy gets worse, your favorite plugin may be the next to get abandoned by its author for financial reasons.  It&#8217;s not at all uncommon, and I would argue that this is the rule, not the exception.</p>\n<h3>Plugin Business Models</h3>\n<p>Over the past year, I&#8217;ve observed several plugin business models crop up.  I will go over these briefly and weigh in on each.</p>\n<h4>Donation Model Only</h4>\n<p>Some plugin authors still choose to rely on donations for plugins.  For a minority of plugin authors, the amount of donations is sufficient.</p>\n<p>However, I haven&#8217;t experienced success with the donation model, even after pushing it heavily.  My most popular plugin received 1-3 donations every six months.  </p>\n<h4>Free Plugin &#8211; Charge for Support</h4>\n<p>While some plugin authors have been successful in charging for support, for the most part, users download the plugin and move on.</p>\n<p>An example is providing a download link for the plugin, and charging the user a subscription fee for support forums.</p>\n<p>One thing I don&#8217;t like about this model is that it reinforces the fact that the time to take coding/updating the plugin is trivial.  Sure, support takes up time, but maintaining the plugin takes up a lot of time also.</p>\n<h4>Free Plugin &#8211; Charge for Add-ons</h4>\n<p>Another model I&#8217;ve seen is a plugin being provided for free, but add-ons for the plugin are an extra fee.</p>\n<p>If the plugin proves popular enough, and the add-on is a must-have, you&#8217;ll likely find great success with this model.</p>\n<p>The time you spent coding the &#8220;base&#8221; plugin will be offset by the income you receive from the add-ons.</p>\n<h4>One-time Fee for Plugin &#8211; Extra for Support</h3>\n<p>Another model I&#8217;ve witnessed is the user being charged a set fee for the plugin.  If the user wants support, the user must subscribe to a forum of some sort.</p>\n<p>I personally disagree with this model as the user often pays more for support than what the actual plugin is worth.</p>\n<p>It&#8217;s also my opinion that if you charge for a plugin, support must be included.</p>\n<h4>One-time Fee for Plugin &#8211; Support Included</h4>\n<p>A model I&#8217;m fond of is just outright charging a fee for the plugin with support included.  </p>\n<p>The downside of this model is that the user should expect a higher price.  Since the user is paying only one time, the higher price compensates for all the support the user is expected to have over the lifetime of the plugin.  </p>\n<p>Typically the price goes higher for additional site licenses, as support is expected to increase.</p>\n<h4>Subscription Based Model</h4>\n<p>A subscription-based model allows you to spread costs across all of the subscribers.  The goal here is to gain as many subscribers as possible by charging a low price.</p>\n<p>As a result, support and upgrade costs will be spread amongst all subscribers, where each subscriber gets the overall benefit.  And since some subscribers will stick around for the next billing period, there is constant revenue.</p>\n<p>One thing to include is to have a &#8220;Buy Out&#8221; option, which will allow users a lifetime subscription for a set fee.  This is the One-time Fee option, so the price will be dramatically higher than a subscription cost.</p>\n<p>I personally chose this model for my first premium plugin and it has been fairly successful so far.</p>\n<h3>Conclusion</h3>\n<p>Within this post, I went over the types of plugins I would buy, my reasons for purchasing a plugin, and the various models I&#8217;ve seen crop up.</p>\n<p>I would love to hear your thoughts on any of these topics.  </p>";}i:1;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:44:"BuddyPress: BuddyPress 1.2 Release Candidate";s:4:"guid";s:28:"http://buddypress.org/?p=779";s:4:"link";s:70:"http://buddypress.org/blog/community/buddypress-1-2-release-candidate/";s:11:"description";s:1545:"<p>The release candidate version of BuddyPress 1.2 is now <a href="http://buddypress.org/buddypress.1.2.rc.zip">ready for download</a> and testing (<a href="http://svn.buddypress.org/tags/1.2-rc/">svn link</a>). Thank you to those who have contributed so far, we&#8217;ve <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/timeline">closed over 125 tickets</a> since we released the beta last week.</p>\n<p>We&#8217;re almost there, but we still need your help with this final testing phase. We&#8217;re looking for testers on both standard WordPress and WordPress MU version 2.9.1 and above. You can also test the release candidate without installing on our <a href="http://testbp.org">testing community site</a>.</p>\n<p>As before you can find a <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/query?status=accepted&#038;status=assigned&#038;status=new&#038;status=reopened&#038;group=priority&#038;max=200&#038;order=priority&#038;col=id&#038;col=summary&#038;col=milestone&#038;col=status&#038;col=owner&#038;col=type&#038;col=priority&#038;milestone=1.2&#038;type=!enhancement">list of known issues</a> and a <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/newticket">place to post bugs</a> via the <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org">BuddyPress Trac installation</a>.</p>\n<p>There are also <a href="http://codex.buddypress.org/getting-started/upgrading-from-10x">instructions for upgrading test installations from previous versions of BuddyPress</a> on the <a href="http://codex.buddypress.org">codex</a>.</p>\n<p>Please do not post bugs in the comments as they may be missed.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:57:35 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:13:"Andy Peatling";}s:7:"summary";s:1545:"<p>The release candidate version of BuddyPress 1.2 is now <a href="http://buddypress.org/buddypress.1.2.rc.zip">ready for download</a> and testing (<a href="http://svn.buddypress.org/tags/1.2-rc/">svn link</a>). Thank you to those who have contributed so far, we&#8217;ve <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/timeline">closed over 125 tickets</a> since we released the beta last week.</p>\n<p>We&#8217;re almost there, but we still need your help with this final testing phase. We&#8217;re looking for testers on both standard WordPress and WordPress MU version 2.9.1 and above. You can also test the release candidate without installing on our <a href="http://testbp.org">testing community site</a>.</p>\n<p>As before you can find a <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/query?status=accepted&#038;status=assigned&#038;status=new&#038;status=reopened&#038;group=priority&#038;max=200&#038;order=priority&#038;col=id&#038;col=summary&#038;col=milestone&#038;col=status&#038;col=owner&#038;col=type&#038;col=priority&#038;milestone=1.2&#038;type=!enhancement">list of known issues</a> and a <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/newticket">place to post bugs</a> via the <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org">BuddyPress Trac installation</a>.</p>\n<p>There are also <a href="http://codex.buddypress.org/getting-started/upgrading-from-10x">instructions for upgrading test installations from previous versions of BuddyPress</a> on the <a href="http://codex.buddypress.org">codex</a>.</p>\n<p>Please do not post bugs in the comments as they may be missed.</p>";}i:2;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:54:"WordPress.tv: Introducing WordPress for BlackBerry 1.0";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3232";s:4:"link";s:72:"http://wordpress.tv/2010/02/04/introducing-wordpress-for-blackberry-1-0/";s:11:"description";s:1449:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-0">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3232&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2010/02/04/introducing-wordpress-for-blackberry-1-0/"><img alt="Introducing WordPress for BlackBerry 1.0" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/qlmrTsQc/blackberry1-2010videopress_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:34:09 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:12:"Michael Pick";}s:7:"summary";s:1449:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-0">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3232/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3232&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2010/02/04/introducing-wordpress-for-blackberry-1-0/"><img alt="Introducing WordPress for BlackBerry 1.0" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/qlmrTsQc/blackberry1-2010videopress_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:3;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:60:"Weblog Tools Collection: Easily Add Multiple Content Columns";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7679";s:4:"link";s:89:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/02/04/easily-add-multiple-content-columns/";s:11:"description";s:1331:"<p>Craig Buckler of SitePoint.com <a href="http://www.sitepoint.com/blogs/2010/02/04/split-wordpress-content-into-multiple-sections/">published a neat guide</a> today on how to split WordPres content into 2 or more columns. The explanation dives into various functions and parameters with use of the Read More tag but within the comments of the post, someone mentioned a plugin called <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-post-columns/">WP Post Columns</a> by Sam Burdge. I downloaded the plugin and to my surprise, it works very well and does not require any code editing. The magic lies within the shortcodes that need to be inserted into the content. For example, if you wanted two columns within your content, you would use the following shortcodes.</p>\n<p>[column width="47%" padding="6%"] Column 1 content goes here. [/column]<br />\n[column width="47%" padding="0"] Column 2 content goes here. [/column]<br />\n[end_columns]</p>\n<p>There are shortcodes for up to four columns within the content. I&#8217;ve rarely come across a theme or a WordPress powered site displaying content in this fashion but I imagine it would work well for Magazine or Newpaper type sites. For more information on plugin usage, read the <a href="http://www.samburdge.co.uk/wordpress/wp-post-columns-plugin-2">official plugin page</a>.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:30:13 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:13:"Jeff Chandler";}s:7:"summary";s:1331:"<p>Craig Buckler of SitePoint.com <a href="http://www.sitepoint.com/blogs/2010/02/04/split-wordpress-content-into-multiple-sections/">published a neat guide</a> today on how to split WordPres content into 2 or more columns. The explanation dives into various functions and parameters with use of the Read More tag but within the comments of the post, someone mentioned a plugin called <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-post-columns/">WP Post Columns</a> by Sam Burdge. I downloaded the plugin and to my surprise, it works very well and does not require any code editing. The magic lies within the shortcodes that need to be inserted into the content. For example, if you wanted two columns within your content, you would use the following shortcodes.</p>\n<p>[column width="47%" padding="6%"] Column 1 content goes here. [/column]<br />\n[column width="47%" padding="0"] Column 2 content goes here. [/column]<br />\n[end_columns]</p>\n<p>There are shortcodes for up to four columns within the content. I&#8217;ve rarely come across a theme or a WordPress powered site displaying content in this fashion but I imagine it would work well for Magazine or Newpaper type sites. For more information on plugin usage, read the <a href="http://www.samburdge.co.uk/wordpress/wp-post-columns-plugin-2">official plugin page</a>.</p>";}i:4;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:32:"Joseph: WordPress for BlackBerry";s:4:"guid";s:30:"http://josephscott.org/?p=1855";s:4:"link";s:65:"http://josephscott.org/archives/2010/02/wordpress-for-blackberry/";s:11:"description";s:1694:"<p>It&#8217;s a mobile app kind of week :-)</p>\n<p></p>\n<p>The <a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org/">WordPress BlackBerry App</a> is out of beta and ready with it&#8217;s <a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org/2010/02/04/version-1-0-videopress-support-improved-comments-and-app-world/">1.0 release</a>.  </p>\n<p>Just like the other WordPress mobile apps it&#8217;s open source and free.  You can find more help and info in the <a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org/faq/">FAQ</a>, <a href="http://blackberry.forums.wordpress.org/">forums</a>, and <a href="http://blackberry.trac.wordpress.org/">Trac site</a> (for tickets and patches).</p>\n<p>These mobile apps use XML-RPC to communicate with your WordPress blog, so make sure you have that enabled first.  You can find that in wp-admin under Settings -> Writing in the Remote Publishing section.</p>\n\n\n<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2010/02/wordpress-for-android/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress for Android">WordPress for Android</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2009/02/installing-wordpress-as-a-subversion-checkout-or-external-in-a-subdirectory/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Installing WordPress As A Subversion Checkout ( Or External ) In A Subdirectory">Installing WordPress As A Subversion Checkout ( Or External ) In A Subdirectory</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2009/04/wordpress-theme-authors-dont-forget-the-wp_head-function/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress Theme Authors, Don&#8217;t Forget The wp_head() Function">WordPress Theme Authors, Don&#8217;t Forget The wp_head() Function</a></li>\n</ol></p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:23:03 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:12:"Joseph Scott";}s:7:"summary";s:1694:"<p>It&#8217;s a mobile app kind of week :-)</p>\n<p></p>\n<p>The <a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org/">WordPress BlackBerry App</a> is out of beta and ready with it&#8217;s <a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org/2010/02/04/version-1-0-videopress-support-improved-comments-and-app-world/">1.0 release</a>.  </p>\n<p>Just like the other WordPress mobile apps it&#8217;s open source and free.  You can find more help and info in the <a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org/faq/">FAQ</a>, <a href="http://blackberry.forums.wordpress.org/">forums</a>, and <a href="http://blackberry.trac.wordpress.org/">Trac site</a> (for tickets and patches).</p>\n<p>These mobile apps use XML-RPC to communicate with your WordPress blog, so make sure you have that enabled first.  You can find that in wp-admin under Settings -> Writing in the Remote Publishing section.</p>\n\n\n<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2010/02/wordpress-for-android/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress for Android">WordPress for Android</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2009/02/installing-wordpress-as-a-subversion-checkout-or-external-in-a-subdirectory/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Installing WordPress As A Subversion Checkout ( Or External ) In A Subdirectory">Installing WordPress As A Subversion Checkout ( Or External ) In A Subdirectory</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2009/04/wordpress-theme-authors-dont-forget-the-wp_head-function/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress Theme Authors, Don&#8217;t Forget The wp_head() Function">WordPress Theme Authors, Don&#8217;t Forget The wp_head() Function</a></li>\n</ol></p>";}i:5;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:80:"WP Blackberry: Version 1.0: VideoPress Support, Improved Comments, and App World";s:4:"guid";s:38:"http://blackberry.wordpress.org/?p=209";s:4:"link";s:106:"http://blackberry.wordpress.org/2010/02/04/version-1-0-videopress-support-improved-comments-and-app-world/";s:11:"description";s:2952:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><p>Very happy to announce that the Open Source WordPress for BlackBerry app has wrapped up the beta phase, and version 1.0 is now <a href="http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/5802">available</a>.   Thank-you to the tens of thousands of beta users who have provided invaluable feedback and feature enhancement ideas these past few months.</p>\n<p>We submitted this version to the <a href="http://na.blackberry.com/eng/services/appworld/"> BlackBerry App World</a> and that&#8217;s been approved <a href="http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/5802">and is now ready for download.</a></p>\n<p>So what&#8217;s new in version 1.0:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Ability to record and upload videos from your phone. We now support both 3gp and 3g2 formats on older generation BlackBerry devices.</li>\n<li>Introducing support for the HD video service <a href="http://videopress.com">VideoPress</a>.</li>\n<li>Streamlined UI and functionality relating to comment moderation</li>\n<li>Overall enhancements to the speed and stability of the app</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Here&#8217;s a quick video overview of the app with all the latest features:<br />\n<ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-0">\n</div></ins></p>\n<p>For suggestions and support, please visit the <a href="http://blackberry.forums.wordpress.org/">forums</a>, and for developers who want to get involved, please check out <a href="http://blackberry.trac.wordpress.org/timeline">trac</a>. </p>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=blackberry.wordpress.org&blog=8247031&post=209&subd=wpblackberry&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org/2010/02/04/version-1-0-videopress-support-improved-comments-and-app-world/"><img alt="Introducing WordPress for Blackberry 1.0" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/qlmrTsQc/blackberry1-2010videopress_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:08:32 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:16:"Raanan Bar-Cohen";}s:7:"summary";s:2952:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><p>Very happy to announce that the Open Source WordPress for BlackBerry app has wrapped up the beta phase, and version 1.0 is now <a href="http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/5802">available</a>.   Thank-you to the tens of thousands of beta users who have provided invaluable feedback and feature enhancement ideas these past few months.</p>\n<p>We submitted this version to the <a href="http://na.blackberry.com/eng/services/appworld/"> BlackBerry App World</a> and that&#8217;s been approved <a href="http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/5802">and is now ready for download.</a></p>\n<p>So what&#8217;s new in version 1.0:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Ability to record and upload videos from your phone. We now support both 3gp and 3g2 formats on older generation BlackBerry devices.</li>\n<li>Introducing support for the HD video service <a href="http://videopress.com">VideoPress</a>.</li>\n<li>Streamlined UI and functionality relating to comment moderation</li>\n<li>Overall enhancements to the speed and stability of the app</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Here&#8217;s a quick video overview of the app with all the latest features:<br />\n<ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-0">\n</div></ins></p>\n<p>For suggestions and support, please visit the <a href="http://blackberry.forums.wordpress.org/">forums</a>, and for developers who want to get involved, please check out <a href="http://blackberry.trac.wordpress.org/timeline">trac</a>. </p>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wpblackberry.wordpress.com/209/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=blackberry.wordpress.org&blog=8247031&post=209&subd=wpblackberry&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org/2010/02/04/version-1-0-videopress-support-improved-comments-and-app-world/"><img alt="Introducing WordPress for Blackberry 1.0" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/qlmrTsQc/blackberry1-2010videopress_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:6;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:19:"Matt: Start Project";s:4:"guid";s:21:"http://ma.tt/?p=33681";s:4:"link";s:35:"http://ma.tt/2010/02/start-project/";s:11:"description";s:303:"<p><a href="http://kara.allthingsd.com/20100201/the-start-project-gets-startup-stars-as-advisers/">As reported on BoomTown</a>, I&#8217;m joining some cool folks including Biz Stone, Chris Sacca, Mike Tatum, and David Liu as an adviser to <a href="http://thestartproject.com/">The Start Project</a>.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 04 Feb 2010 02:27:34 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:4:"Matt";}s:7:"summary";s:303:"<p><a href="http://kara.allthingsd.com/20100201/the-start-project-gets-startup-stars-as-advisers/">As reported on BoomTown</a>, I&#8217;m joining some cool folks including Biz Stone, Chris Sacca, Mike Tatum, and David Liu as an adviser to <a href="http://thestartproject.com/">The Start Project</a>.</p>";}i:7;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:46:"WordPress.tv: Stephane Daury: Using Press This";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3299";s:4:"link";s:69:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/stephane-daury-using-press-this-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1444:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-18">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3299&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/stephane-daury-using-press-this-nyc09/"><img alt="Stephane Daury: Using Press This" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/6GIijevW/1686-28_wcnyc_ignite_press_this_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:00:08 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1444:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-18">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3299/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3299&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/stephane-daury-using-press-this-nyc09/"><img alt="Stephane Daury: Using Press This" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/6GIijevW/1686-28_wcnyc_ignite_press_this_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:8;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:40:"WordPress.tv: Beau Lebens: IntenseDebate";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3289";s:4:"link";s:63:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/beau-lebens-intensedebate-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1435:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-19">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3289&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/beau-lebens-intensedebate-nyc09/"><img alt="Beau Lebens: IntenseDebate" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/6O0Td1cJ/1686-27_wcnyc_ignite_intensedebate_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 03 Feb 2010 21:15:11 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1435:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-19">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3289/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3289&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/beau-lebens-intensedebate-nyc09/"><img alt="Beau Lebens: IntenseDebate" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/6O0Td1cJ/1686-27_wcnyc_ignite_intensedebate_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:9;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:46:"Weblog Tools Collection: Good Luck Lester Chan";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7666";s:4:"link";s:74:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/02/03/good-luck-lester-chn/";s:11:"description";s:2530:"<p>How many plugins do you run on your website that were created by <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/profile/gamerz">Lester &#8216;<strong>GaMerZ</strong>&#8216; Chan</a>? I&#8217;m guessing at least one or more. On <a href="http://www.wptavern.com">WPTavern.com</a>, I use three of them. I&#8217;ve been a huge fan of Lester ever since I discovered his assortment of plugins that provided functionality I didn&#8217;t think any WordPress site would want to be without. Features such as polls, easy page navigation, and nifty stats. I learned today that Lester is unable to provide support for his plugins due to a full time job he recently accepted. However, he states that he will try to keep the plugins working with newer versions of WordPress as time allows while also keeping the forum open to enable the community to help each other.</p>\n<blockquote><p>As you all know, I have been doing WordPress plugins and supporting it for the past 6 years. These 6 years of my life, I have been through my polytechnic education, my national service as well as my university education. I just graduated from university in December 2009 and have been looking for full-time jobs. I am offered a full-time job and will be starting work on 1st February 2010. </p>\n<p>I regret to say that I am NOT ABLE to provide support for my plugins anymore due to my full-time job commitment. I will leave this forum open and let the community help one another. However, I WILL still update my plugins whenever I can and you still can report bugs to me via email and I will try to fix it.</p></blockquote>\n<p>I&#8217;ve donated a chunk of change to Lester in the past, something he was very much appreciative for but there are quite a few vocal members of the community that argue Lester could have placed all the plugins behind a paid support model that might have negated the need for a full time job. I would not have paid for each individual plugin, but I would have paid a yearly fee that would cover the support costs of all of his current and future plugins. No one should be upset at Lester for pursuing other endeavors related to his career path. Also, it&#8217;s not as if he is completely abandoning development and support for his plugins so if his full time job doesn&#8217;t work out, we may very well see some sort of plugin club membership option from Lester in the future. </p>\n<p>So I wonder, what type of business model would Lester have to set up in order for you to consider paying for both the plugin and support? </p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 03 Feb 2010 16:59:08 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:13:"Jeff Chandler";}s:7:"summary";s:2530:"<p>How many plugins do you run on your website that were created by <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/profile/gamerz">Lester &#8216;<strong>GaMerZ</strong>&#8216; Chan</a>? I&#8217;m guessing at least one or more. On <a href="http://www.wptavern.com">WPTavern.com</a>, I use three of them. I&#8217;ve been a huge fan of Lester ever since I discovered his assortment of plugins that provided functionality I didn&#8217;t think any WordPress site would want to be without. Features such as polls, easy page navigation, and nifty stats. I learned today that Lester is unable to provide support for his plugins due to a full time job he recently accepted. However, he states that he will try to keep the plugins working with newer versions of WordPress as time allows while also keeping the forum open to enable the community to help each other.</p>\n<blockquote><p>As you all know, I have been doing WordPress plugins and supporting it for the past 6 years. These 6 years of my life, I have been through my polytechnic education, my national service as well as my university education. I just graduated from university in December 2009 and have been looking for full-time jobs. I am offered a full-time job and will be starting work on 1st February 2010. </p>\n<p>I regret to say that I am NOT ABLE to provide support for my plugins anymore due to my full-time job commitment. I will leave this forum open and let the community help one another. However, I WILL still update my plugins whenever I can and you still can report bugs to me via email and I will try to fix it.</p></blockquote>\n<p>I&#8217;ve donated a chunk of change to Lester in the past, something he was very much appreciative for but there are quite a few vocal members of the community that argue Lester could have placed all the plugins behind a paid support model that might have negated the need for a full time job. I would not have paid for each individual plugin, but I would have paid a yearly fee that would cover the support costs of all of his current and future plugins. No one should be upset at Lester for pursuing other endeavors related to his career path. Also, it&#8217;s not as if he is completely abandoning development and support for his plugins so if his full time job doesn&#8217;t work out, we may very well see some sort of plugin club membership option from Lester in the future. </p>\n<p>So I wonder, what type of business model would Lester have to set up in order for you to consider paying for both the plugin and support? </p>";}i:10;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:47:"WordPress.tv: Introducing WordPress for Android";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3242";s:4:"link";s:65:"http://wordpress.tv/2010/02/03/introducing-wordpress-for-android/";s:11:"description";s:1422:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-1">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3242&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2010/02/03/introducing-wordpress-for-android/"><img alt="Introducing WordPress for Android" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/73jyWIka/android-final_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 03 Feb 2010 16:24:33 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:12:"Michael Pick";}s:7:"summary";s:1422:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-1">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3242/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3242&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2010/02/03/introducing-wordpress-for-android/"><img alt="Introducing WordPress for Android" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/73jyWIka/android-final_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:11;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:53:"WordPress.tv: Daryl Koopersmith: Elastic Theme Editor";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3286";s:4:"link";s:70:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/daryl-koopersmith-elastic-ignite-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1449:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-20">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3286&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/daryl-koopersmith-elastic-ignite-nyc09/"><img alt="Daryl Koopersmith: Elastic Theme Editor" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/Jk0Ji3Xa/1686-25_wcnyc_ignite_elastic_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 03 Feb 2010 05:30:06 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1449:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-20">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3286/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3286&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/daryl-koopersmith-elastic-ignite-nyc09/"><img alt="Daryl Koopersmith: Elastic Theme Editor" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/Jk0Ji3Xa/1686-25_wcnyc_ignite_elastic_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:12;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:37:"Matt: WPtogo is now WordPress Android";s:4:"guid";s:21:"http://ma.tt/?p=33678";s:4:"link";s:53:"http://ma.tt/2010/02/wptogo-is-now-wordpress-android/";s:11:"description";s:459:"<p>We&#8217;ve just released <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/2010/02/02/wordpress-for-android-1-0/">WordPress for Android 1.0</a> which is a continuation of the WpToGo development now under an official WordPress banner, and of course as Free Software. Congrats to Dan and the team on making this happen. Mobile stuff is really starting to come together for WordPress. I&#8217;ve been playing with this on my Nexus One for about a week and loving it.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:29:53 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:4:"Matt";}s:7:"summary";s:459:"<p>We&#8217;ve just released <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/2010/02/02/wordpress-for-android-1-0/">WordPress for Android 1.0</a> which is a continuation of the WpToGo development now under an official WordPress banner, and of course as Free Software. Congrats to Dan and the team on making this happen. Mobile stuff is really starting to come together for WordPress. I&#8217;ve been playing with this on my Nexus One for about a week and loving it.</p>";}i:13;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:58:"Weblog Tools Collection: WordPress for Android 1.0 Release";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7664";s:4:"link";s:87:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/02/02/wordpress-for-android-1-0-release/";s:11:"description";s:875:"<p></p>\n<p><a href="http://android.wordpress.org/2010/02/02/wordpress-for-android-1-0/">WordPress for Android 1.0 Release</a>: The Open Source <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/">WordPress for Android</a> application is now <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/download/">available for download</a>. This is in addition to the <a href="http://iphone.wordpress.org">WordPress for iPhone</a> and <a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org">WordPress for BlackBerry</a> applications that are already available. It is built on top of the wpToGo application which has been taken over by the WordPress team and released as this Open Source Application. You can follow the development of the application at <a href="http://dev.android.wordpress.org/">dev.android.wordpress.org</a> and look for support on the <a href="http://android.forums.wordpress.org/">support forums</a>.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:28:58 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:10:"Mark Ghosh";}s:7:"summary";s:875:"<p></p>\n<p><a href="http://android.wordpress.org/2010/02/02/wordpress-for-android-1-0/">WordPress for Android 1.0 Release</a>: The Open Source <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/">WordPress for Android</a> application is now <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/download/">available for download</a>. This is in addition to the <a href="http://iphone.wordpress.org">WordPress for iPhone</a> and <a href="http://blackberry.wordpress.org">WordPress for BlackBerry</a> applications that are already available. It is built on top of the wpToGo application which has been taken over by the WordPress team and released as this Open Source Application. You can follow the development of the application at <a href="http://dev.android.wordpress.org/">dev.android.wordpress.org</a> and look for support on the <a href="http://android.forums.wordpress.org/">support forums</a>.</p>";}i:14;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:59:"Weblog Tools Collection: WordPress Theme Releases for 02/02";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7661";s:4:"link";s:89:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/02/02/wordpress-theme-releases-for-0202-2/";s:11:"description";s:2057:"<h4><a href="http://www.tipografo.org/wordpress-themes/paintbox-cms/">Paintbox CMS</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://www.tipografo.org/testrun/?themedemo=paintbox-cms"><img title="PaintBox" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/PaintBox.jpg" alt="PaintBox" width="200" height="123" /></a></p>\n<p>Paintbox-CMS is a grid based CMS theme layered on Tipografo&#8217;s Paintbox. It comes with a smooth 960 grid layout plus some creative jQuery effects for content loading. It outuputs some very light w3c valid xhtml\\css code.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.wordpressguitarthemes.com/rock-guitar-theme-for-wordpress/">Rock Guitar</a></h4>\n<p><img title="rockguitar" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/rockguitar.png" alt="rockguitar" width="200" height="87" /></p>\n<p>Two column theme with electric guitar graphics built to suit a blogger who writes about guitars, or just about rock music generally.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://fahrulazmi.com/pointsixcity-wordpress-theme/">PointSixCity</a></h4>\n<p><img title="pointsixcity" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/pointsixcity.jpg" alt="pointsixcity" width="200" height="108" /></p>\n<p>Single column, fixed layout, gravatar and widget ready theme</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.dynamicwp.net/free-themes/black-stone-theme/">Black Stone Theme</a></h4>\n<p><img title="blackStone" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/blackStone.jpg" alt="blackStone" width="200" height="117" /></p>\n<p>Fixed width, two column, widget and gravatar ready theme</p>\n<h4><a href="http://webhostinghelpguy.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress/5-free-baby-mom-and-dad-wordpress-themes/">5 Baby, Mom and Dad WordPress Themes</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://webhostinghelpguy.inmotionhosting.com/demos/?wptheme=Stuffed%20Animals"><img title="Stuffed Animals" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/StuffedAnimals.jpg" alt="Stuffed Animals" width="200" height="114" /></a></p>\n<p>Two column, widget-ready and gravatar-enabled</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 02 Feb 2010 22:15:18 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Perurry";}s:7:"summary";s:2057:"<h4><a href="http://www.tipografo.org/wordpress-themes/paintbox-cms/">Paintbox CMS</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://www.tipografo.org/testrun/?themedemo=paintbox-cms"><img title="PaintBox" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/PaintBox.jpg" alt="PaintBox" width="200" height="123" /></a></p>\n<p>Paintbox-CMS is a grid based CMS theme layered on Tipografo&#8217;s Paintbox. It comes with a smooth 960 grid layout plus some creative jQuery effects for content loading. It outuputs some very light w3c valid xhtml\\css code.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.wordpressguitarthemes.com/rock-guitar-theme-for-wordpress/">Rock Guitar</a></h4>\n<p><img title="rockguitar" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/rockguitar.png" alt="rockguitar" width="200" height="87" /></p>\n<p>Two column theme with electric guitar graphics built to suit a blogger who writes about guitars, or just about rock music generally.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://fahrulazmi.com/pointsixcity-wordpress-theme/">PointSixCity</a></h4>\n<p><img title="pointsixcity" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/pointsixcity.jpg" alt="pointsixcity" width="200" height="108" /></p>\n<p>Single column, fixed layout, gravatar and widget ready theme</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.dynamicwp.net/free-themes/black-stone-theme/">Black Stone Theme</a></h4>\n<p><img title="blackStone" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/blackStone.jpg" alt="blackStone" width="200" height="117" /></p>\n<p>Fixed width, two column, widget and gravatar ready theme</p>\n<h4><a href="http://webhostinghelpguy.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress/5-free-baby-mom-and-dad-wordpress-themes/">5 Baby, Mom and Dad WordPress Themes</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://webhostinghelpguy.inmotionhosting.com/demos/?wptheme=Stuffed%20Animals"><img title="Stuffed Animals" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/StuffedAnimals.jpg" alt="Stuffed Animals" width="200" height="114" /></a></p>\n<p>Two column, widget-ready and gravatar-enabled</p>";}i:15;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:29:"Joseph: WordPress for Android";s:4:"guid";s:30:"http://josephscott.org/?p=1847";s:4:"link";s:62:"http://josephscott.org/archives/2010/02/wordpress-for-android/";s:11:"description";s:1271:"<p></p>\n<p>Today the <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/">WordPress Android App</a> is out the door and open to the public ( <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/download/">download</a> ).</p>\n<p>Like the other WordPress mobile apps this one is open source, and we&#8217;re excited to have other people contribute and help.  There&#8217;s a <a href="http://dev.android.wordpress.org/">developer blog</a>, <a href="http://android.forums.wordpress.org/">support forum</a>, and <a href="https://android.trac.wordpress.org/">Trac install</a> for tickets and patches.</p>\n\n\n<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2010/02/wordpress-for-blackberry/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress for BlackBerry">WordPress for BlackBerry</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2009/06/wordpress-2-8-xml-rpc-and-atompub-changes/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress 2.8 &#8211; XML-RPC and AtomPub Changes">WordPress 2.8 &#8211; XML-RPC and AtomPub Changes</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-xml-rpc-and-atompub-changes/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress 2.9 &#8211; XML-RPC and AtomPub Changes">WordPress 2.9 &#8211; XML-RPC and AtomPub Changes</a></li>\n</ol></p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 02 Feb 2010 18:59:34 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:12:"Joseph Scott";}s:7:"summary";s:1271:"<p></p>\n<p>Today the <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/">WordPress Android App</a> is out the door and open to the public ( <a href="http://android.wordpress.org/download/">download</a> ).</p>\n<p>Like the other WordPress mobile apps this one is open source, and we&#8217;re excited to have other people contribute and help.  There&#8217;s a <a href="http://dev.android.wordpress.org/">developer blog</a>, <a href="http://android.forums.wordpress.org/">support forum</a>, and <a href="https://android.trac.wordpress.org/">Trac install</a> for tickets and patches.</p>\n\n\n<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2010/02/wordpress-for-blackberry/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress for BlackBerry">WordPress for BlackBerry</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2009/06/wordpress-2-8-xml-rpc-and-atompub-changes/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress 2.8 &#8211; XML-RPC and AtomPub Changes">WordPress 2.8 &#8211; XML-RPC and AtomPub Changes</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://josephscott.org/archives/2009/12/wordpress-2-9-xml-rpc-and-atompub-changes/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: WordPress 2.9 &#8211; XML-RPC and AtomPub Changes">WordPress 2.9 &#8211; XML-RPC and AtomPub Changes</a></li>\n</ol></p>";}i:16;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:70:"Publisher Blog: How-to: Nginx as a front-end proxy cache for WordPress";s:4:"guid";s:42:"http://publisherblog.automattic.com/?p=759";s:4:"link";s:101:"http://publisherblog.automattic.com/2010/02/01/how-to-nginx-as-a-front-end-proxy-cache-for-wordpress/";s:11:"description";s:2186:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><p>From Harvard Law&#8217;s Dan Collis-Puro,  a how-to on optimizing your WordPress MU install, using Nginx as a front-end proxy cache for WordPress:</p>\n<blockquote><p>We put an nginx caching proxy server in front of our wordpress mu install and sped it up dramatically – in some cases a thousandfold. I’ve packaged up a plugin, along with installation instructions here – WordPress Nginx proxy cache integrator.</p></blockquote>\n<p>You can read the full details on <a href="http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/djcp/2010/01/nginx-as-a-front-end-proxy-cache-for-wordpress/">Dan&#8217;s blog</a> and grab the plugin from the <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/nginx-proxy-cache-integrator/">WordPress.org plugin directory</a>.</p>\n<p>[ Visit <a href="http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/djcp/2010/01/nginx-as-a-front-end-proxy-cache-for-wordpress/">http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/djcp </a> ] </p>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=publisherblog.automattic.com&blog=1470857&post=759&subd=wordpresspublishers&ref=&feed=1" /></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 02 Feb 2010 02:06:13 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:16:"Raanan Bar-Cohen";}s:7:"summary";s:2186:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><p>From Harvard Law&#8217;s Dan Collis-Puro,  a how-to on optimizing your WordPress MU install, using Nginx as a front-end proxy cache for WordPress:</p>\n<blockquote><p>We put an nginx caching proxy server in front of our wordpress mu install and sped it up dramatically – in some cases a thousandfold. I’ve packaged up a plugin, along with installation instructions here – WordPress Nginx proxy cache integrator.</p></blockquote>\n<p>You can read the full details on <a href="http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/djcp/2010/01/nginx-as-a-front-end-proxy-cache-for-wordpress/">Dan&#8217;s blog</a> and grab the plugin from the <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/nginx-proxy-cache-integrator/">WordPress.org plugin directory</a>.</p>\n<p>[ Visit <a href="http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/djcp/2010/01/nginx-as-a-front-end-proxy-cache-for-wordpress/">http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/djcp </a> ] </p>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/759/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=publisherblog.automattic.com&blog=1470857&post=759&subd=wordpresspublishers&ref=&feed=1" /></div>";}i:17;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:28:"Matt: Better Firefox Checker";s:4:"guid";s:21:"http://ma.tt/?p=33675";s:4:"link";s:44:"http://ma.tt/2010/02/better-firefox-checker/";s:11:"description";s:743:"<p>After the Deadline, the enhanced spelling and grammar checker, <a href="http://blog.afterthedeadline.com/2010/02/01/after-the-deadline-for-firefox-released/">has just released</a> a <a href="http://firefox.afterthedeadline.com/">new extension for Firefox</a> that enables AtD functionality on any textarea on the web, which is really killer. This is one of the possibilities I was most excited about when we acquired AtD. For more check out the coverage on <a href="http://www.downloadsquad.com/2010/01/31/after-the-deadline-grammar-spell-check-addon-for-firefox-is-a-w/">Download Squad</a> and <a href="http://lifehacker.com/5461547/after-the-deadline-brings-better-grammar-and-spellchecking-to-firefox-and-its-awesome">Lifehacker</a>.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 02 Feb 2010 01:58:09 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:4:"Matt";}s:7:"summary";s:743:"<p>After the Deadline, the enhanced spelling and grammar checker, <a href="http://blog.afterthedeadline.com/2010/02/01/after-the-deadline-for-firefox-released/">has just released</a> a <a href="http://firefox.afterthedeadline.com/">new extension for Firefox</a> that enables AtD functionality on any textarea on the web, which is really killer. This is one of the possibilities I was most excited about when we acquired AtD. For more check out the coverage on <a href="http://www.downloadsquad.com/2010/01/31/after-the-deadline-grammar-spell-check-addon-for-firefox-is-a-w/">Download Squad</a> and <a href="http://lifehacker.com/5461547/after-the-deadline-brings-better-grammar-and-spellchecking-to-firefox-and-its-awesome">Lifehacker</a>.</p>";}i:18;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:39:"WordPress.tv: Daisy Olsen: Child Themes";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3278";s:4:"link";s:69:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/daisy-olsen-child-themes-ignite-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1439:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-15">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3278&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/daisy-olsen-child-themes-ignite-nyc09/"><img alt="Daisy Olsen: Child Themes" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/VrcdVeRV/1686-24_wcnyc_ignite_child_themes_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 01 Feb 2010 22:15:11 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1439:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-15">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3278/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3278&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/daisy-olsen-child-themes-ignite-nyc09/"><img alt="Daisy Olsen: Child Themes" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/VrcdVeRV/1686-24_wcnyc_ignite_child_themes_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:19;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:45:"WordPress.tv: Ted Mann: Hyperlocal Journalism";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3275";s:4:"link";s:75:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/ted-mann-hyperlocal-journalism-ignite-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1449:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-16">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3275&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/ted-mann-hyperlocal-journalism-ignite-nyc09/"><img alt="Ted Mann: Hyperlocal Journalism" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/Bxx8UZ7m/1686-23_wcnyc_ignite_hyperlocal_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 01 Feb 2010 22:00:11 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1449:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-16">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3275/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3275&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/ted-mann-hyperlocal-journalism-ignite-nyc09/"><img alt="Ted Mann: Hyperlocal Journalism" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/Bxx8UZ7m/1686-23_wcnyc_ignite_hyperlocal_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:20;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:37:"WordPress.tv: Jim Doran: Using jQuery";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3272";s:4:"link";s:61:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/jim-doran-jquery-ignite-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1423:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-17">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3272&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/jim-doran-jquery-ignite-nyc09/"><img alt="Jim Doran: Using jQuery" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/zHlL7w0o/1686-22_wcnyc_ignite_jquery_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 01 Feb 2010 21:30:11 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1423:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-17">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3272/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3272&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/jim-doran-jquery-ignite-nyc09/"><img alt="Jim Doran: Using jQuery" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/zHlL7w0o/1686-22_wcnyc_ignite_jquery_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:21;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:56:"WordPress.tv: Introducing After the Deadline for Firefox";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3266";s:4:"link";s:74:"http://wordpress.tv/2010/02/01/introducing-after-the-deadline-for-firefox/";s:11:"description";s:1439:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-2">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3266&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2010/02/01/introducing-after-the-deadline-for-firefox/"><img alt="Firefox: Check Spelling, Style, and Grammar" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/n3dZCS7D/atd-intro-1_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:47:54 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1439:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-2">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3266/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3266&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2010/02/01/introducing-after-the-deadline-for-firefox/"><img alt="Firefox: Check Spelling, Style, and Grammar" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/n3dZCS7D/atd-intro-1_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:22;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:71:"Weblog Tools Collection: An Inside Look At Organizing WordCamp New York";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7646";s:4:"link";s:100:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/02/01/an-inside-look-at-organizing-wordcamp-new-york/";s:11:"description";s:1320:"<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/wcnyclogo.png" rel="thumbnail"><img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/wcnyclogo.png" alt="" title="wcnyclogo" width="220" height="89" class="alignright size-full wp-image-7650" /></a>WordCamps are great events. It&#8217;s where users of WordPress that are local to the area can all get together in one place to share tips, talk strategy, and share knowledge with each other. However, putting these events together takes time and an incredible amount of hard work, as shown by <a href="http://2009.newyork.wordcamp.org/2010/01/28/wordcampnyc-finances-or-ode-to-wordcamp-organizers/">Steve Bruner&#8217;s post on the WCNYC blog</a>:</p>\n<blockquote><p>When you have 70+ speakers and volunteers working for gratis, you start out $2,500 in the hole. And when attendees started registering like crazy, it really was a double-edged sword. While registration was beginning to reflect the fruits of our labor, and the hype was building, my little budget spreadsheet was blinking red with every registration. I was laying out money for shirts, bags and food, and the sponsors weren’t showing up</p></blockquote>\n<p>For those that are willing to go through all of the trouble of putting a WordCamp together, I salute you!</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 01 Feb 2010 19:43:04 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:13:"Jeff Chandler";}s:7:"summary";s:1320:"<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/wcnyclogo.png" rel="thumbnail"><img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/wcnyclogo.png" alt="" title="wcnyclogo" width="220" height="89" class="alignright size-full wp-image-7650" /></a>WordCamps are great events. It&#8217;s where users of WordPress that are local to the area can all get together in one place to share tips, talk strategy, and share knowledge with each other. However, putting these events together takes time and an incredible amount of hard work, as shown by <a href="http://2009.newyork.wordcamp.org/2010/01/28/wordcampnyc-finances-or-ode-to-wordcamp-organizers/">Steve Bruner&#8217;s post on the WCNYC blog</a>:</p>\n<blockquote><p>When you have 70+ speakers and volunteers working for gratis, you start out $2,500 in the hole. And when attendees started registering like crazy, it really was a double-edged sword. While registration was beginning to reflect the fruits of our labor, and the hype was building, my little budget spreadsheet was blinking red with every registration. I was laying out money for shirts, bags and food, and the sponsors weren’t showing up</p></blockquote>\n<p>For those that are willing to go through all of the trouble of putting a WordCamp together, I salute you!</p>";}i:23;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:53:"Weblog Tools Collection: 24 Plugins for Stats Junkies";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7644";s:4:"link";s:82:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/31/24-plugins-for-stats-junkies/";s:11:"description";s:1053:"<p>The name of the linked post is actually <a href="http://www.appsheriff.com/software/tools-software/24-noble-wordpress-plugins-to-determine-the-performance-of-your-blog/">24 Noble Wordpress Plugins To Determine The Performance of your Blog</a>, but it is safe to say that you would artificially kill the performance of your blog if you were to install of them (read: don&#8217;t install them all). However, if you are a stats junky like me, you might be interested in some of the plugins mentioned in the App Sheriff post such as <strong>Feed Statistics</strong>, <strong>Live</strong>, <strong>Post and Comments Time</strong> and <strong>Social Traffic Monitor</strong>. Now most of the information provided by these plugins can be derived from regular statistics sources but the filters can be interesting for some folks. Head over to the App Sheriff and see what you *might* have been missing!</p>\n<p>We use WordPress.com stats, Statcounter and Google Analytics on this blog. I know that is two too many, but what can I say, I am a stats junky!</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 01 Feb 2010 01:06:32 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:10:"Mark Ghosh";}s:7:"summary";s:1053:"<p>The name of the linked post is actually <a href="http://www.appsheriff.com/software/tools-software/24-noble-wordpress-plugins-to-determine-the-performance-of-your-blog/">24 Noble Wordpress Plugins To Determine The Performance of your Blog</a>, but it is safe to say that you would artificially kill the performance of your blog if you were to install of them (read: don&#8217;t install them all). However, if you are a stats junky like me, you might be interested in some of the plugins mentioned in the App Sheriff post such as <strong>Feed Statistics</strong>, <strong>Live</strong>, <strong>Post and Comments Time</strong> and <strong>Social Traffic Monitor</strong>. Now most of the information provided by these plugins can be derived from regular statistics sources but the filters can be interesting for some folks. Head over to the App Sheriff and see what you *might* have been missing!</p>\n<p>We use WordPress.com stats, Statcounter and Google Analytics on this blog. I know that is two too many, but what can I say, I am a stats junky!</p>";}i:24;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:55:"Publisher Blog: WordPress as a CMS Case Study: WNET.org";s:4:"guid";s:42:"http://publisherblog.automattic.com/?p=755";s:4:"link";s:70:"http://publisherblog.automattic.com/2010/01/19/wordpress-cms-wnet-org/";s:11:"description";s:2119:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><p>Back in July <a href="http://publisherblog.automattic.com/2009/07/16/fifty-sites-ten-months-one-cms/">we posted about the remarkable project</a> that WNET (PBS of NYC) put together with Tierra to launch 50 sites in ten months using one CMS, WordPress.</p>\n<p>Dan Goldman and Jamie Trowbridge who headed up that project, were kind enough to present a case study of how it was all done, at the recent <a href="http://wordpress.tv/event/wordcamp-new-york/">WordCamp NYC</a>:<br />\n<ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-0">\n</div></ins></p>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=publisherblog.automattic.com&blog=1470857&post=755&subd=wordpresspublishers&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://publisherblog.automattic.com/2010/01/19/wordpress-cms-wnet-org/"><img alt="Dan Goldman and Jamie Trowbridge: WNET.org Case Study" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/U79YaU5T/1686-02_wcnyc_case_study_wnet2_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sat, 30 Jan 2010 19:45:18 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:16:"Raanan Bar-Cohen";}s:7:"summary";s:2119:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><p>Back in July <a href="http://publisherblog.automattic.com/2009/07/16/fifty-sites-ten-months-one-cms/">we posted about the remarkable project</a> that WNET (PBS of NYC) put together with Tierra to launch 50 sites in ten months using one CMS, WordPress.</p>\n<p>Dan Goldman and Jamie Trowbridge who headed up that project, were kind enough to present a case study of how it was all done, at the recent <a href="http://wordpress.tv/event/wordcamp-new-york/">WordCamp NYC</a>:<br />\n<ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-0">\n</div></ins></p>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wordpresspublishers.wordpress.com/755/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=publisherblog.automattic.com&blog=1470857&post=755&subd=wordpresspublishers&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://publisherblog.automattic.com/2010/01/19/wordpress-cms-wnet-org/"><img alt="Dan Goldman and Jamie Trowbridge: WNET.org Case Study" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/U79YaU5T/1686-02_wcnyc_case_study_wnet2_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:25;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:59:"Weblog Tools Collection: WordPress Theme Releases for 01/30";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7641";s:4:"link";s:87:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/30/wordpress-theme-releases-for-0130/";s:11:"description";s:1631:"<h4><a href="http://www.thewindowsplanet.com/elegance-lite-free-2-column-wordpress-theme">Elegance Lite</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://www.elegance.thewindowsplanet.com/"><img title="Elegance" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Elegance.jpg" alt="Elegance" width="200" height="114" /></a></p>\n<p>Elegance Lite is a 2 Column light weight theme with right sidebar. This stylish theme has Admin Options to easily change the Header Logo and Background Color of Theme. Apart from all regular features, it also has support for Threaded Comments and Sticky Post. Comments have Gravatar Support.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://wpgpl.com/themes/gunungkidul/">Gunungkidul</a></h4>\n<p><img title="Gunungkidul" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Gunungkidul.jpg" alt="Gunungkidul" width="200" height="177" /></p>\n<p>Two column, widget ready grid based theme with <a href="http://960.gs">960.gs</a> framework</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.businesswordpressthemes.info/download-clear-blue-sky-1-0/">Clear Blue Sky</a></h4>\n<p><img title="Clear Blue Sky" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/ClearBlueSky.png" alt="Clear Blue Sky" width="200" height="150" /></p>\n<p>A modern sky blue, two-columns theme with a clear, fresh look.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://gabrieljones.com/tweetpress-twitter-style-wordpress-theme/">TweetPress</a></h4>\n<p><img title="TweetPress" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/TweetPress.png" alt="TweetPress" width="200" height="150" /></p>\n<p>Two column theme to make your blog look exactly like your Twitter profile</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sat, 30 Jan 2010 17:57:04 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Perurry";}s:7:"summary";s:1631:"<h4><a href="http://www.thewindowsplanet.com/elegance-lite-free-2-column-wordpress-theme">Elegance Lite</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://www.elegance.thewindowsplanet.com/"><img title="Elegance" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Elegance.jpg" alt="Elegance" width="200" height="114" /></a></p>\n<p>Elegance Lite is a 2 Column light weight theme with right sidebar. This stylish theme has Admin Options to easily change the Header Logo and Background Color of Theme. Apart from all regular features, it also has support for Threaded Comments and Sticky Post. Comments have Gravatar Support.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://wpgpl.com/themes/gunungkidul/">Gunungkidul</a></h4>\n<p><img title="Gunungkidul" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Gunungkidul.jpg" alt="Gunungkidul" width="200" height="177" /></p>\n<p>Two column, widget ready grid based theme with <a href="http://960.gs">960.gs</a> framework</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.businesswordpressthemes.info/download-clear-blue-sky-1-0/">Clear Blue Sky</a></h4>\n<p><img title="Clear Blue Sky" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/ClearBlueSky.png" alt="Clear Blue Sky" width="200" height="150" /></p>\n<p>A modern sky blue, two-columns theme with a clear, fresh look.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://gabrieljones.com/tweetpress-twitter-style-wordpress-theme/">TweetPress</a></h4>\n<p><img title="TweetPress" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/TweetPress.png" alt="TweetPress" width="200" height="150" /></p>\n<p>Two column theme to make your blog look exactly like your Twitter profile</p>";}i:26;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:72:"Weblog Tools Collection: Plugin Review: WordPress Advanced Ticket System";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7629";s:4:"link";s:100:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/29/plugin-review-wordpress-advanced-ticket-system/";s:11:"description";s:3450:"<p>The other day, I had asked plugin developers to dish out their <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/26/plugin-developers-what-is-your-wishlist/">wish list</a> for the plugin repository. Olivier published a comment recommending a plugin called WATS or <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wats/">WordPress Advanced Ticketing System</a> as a way of handling support on your own website. </p>\n<p>After installation, users need to visit the Wats Options page within the Settings menu to configure the plugin. The top of the settings page has a donate button if you want to send a little coin to the plugin author which is not intrusive or bothersome. While configuring the plugin, you can click on each menu title to show detailed information about that settings group.</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/hiddenhelp.png" rel="thumbnail"><img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/hiddenhelp.png" alt="" title="hiddenhelp" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-7630" height="209" width="517" /></a></p>\n<p>The only problems I met when configuring this plugin is the user interface. Like I mentioned above, you can click on the settings title to show a hidden message that gives more details for the settings group but it&#8217;s not obvious this can be done. Also, while adding and editing the ticket priorities, I noticed that there is an icon to edit existing priority levels but the icon did not have a tool tip so it was not obvious that it was used to edit entries. Last but not least, the first button I see under the listings is REMOVE. The ADD button is further down below a status indicator. I think things could be rearranged to make a little more sense. For example, place the ADD, REMOVE buttons next to each other with a text field only appearing after the ADD button has been clicked. Directions for how to use this area of the configuration page also need to be added before this group of settings.</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/settingsUI.png" rel="thumbnail"><img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/settingsUI-300x107.png" alt="" title="settingsUI" class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-7631" height="107" width="300" /></a></p>\n<p>If you want to use WATS in conjunction with your main WordPress install, you can add new categories that can be configured to be open to submission. WATS has a front end ticket creation tool but the information for how to add this to a site was no where to be found until I browsed the <a href="http://www.lautre-monde.fr/wats-going-on/">plugin authors page</a>. You can use the following shortcode to add the form to a page or post: [WATS_TICKET_SUBMIT_FORM].</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/ticketcreated.png" rel="thumbnail"><img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/ticketcreated.png" alt="" title="ticketcreated" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-7632" height="331" width="530" /></a></p>\n<p>Once I approved the ticket, I was able to login and view its status. </p>\n<p>Overall, the plugin performed as expected. My only complaints lie in the user interface but those could be addressed in an update. For those looking for a ticketing system that bolts on easily to WordPress, this plugin looks like it could be what you&#8217;re looking for. </p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Fri, 29 Jan 2010 21:28:26 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:13:"Jeff Chandler";}s:7:"summary";s:3450:"<p>The other day, I had asked plugin developers to dish out their <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/26/plugin-developers-what-is-your-wishlist/">wish list</a> for the plugin repository. Olivier published a comment recommending a plugin called WATS or <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wats/">WordPress Advanced Ticketing System</a> as a way of handling support on your own website. </p>\n<p>After installation, users need to visit the Wats Options page within the Settings menu to configure the plugin. The top of the settings page has a donate button if you want to send a little coin to the plugin author which is not intrusive or bothersome. While configuring the plugin, you can click on each menu title to show detailed information about that settings group.</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/hiddenhelp.png" rel="thumbnail"><img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/hiddenhelp.png" alt="" title="hiddenhelp" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-7630" height="209" width="517" /></a></p>\n<p>The only problems I met when configuring this plugin is the user interface. Like I mentioned above, you can click on the settings title to show a hidden message that gives more details for the settings group but it&#8217;s not obvious this can be done. Also, while adding and editing the ticket priorities, I noticed that there is an icon to edit existing priority levels but the icon did not have a tool tip so it was not obvious that it was used to edit entries. Last but not least, the first button I see under the listings is REMOVE. The ADD button is further down below a status indicator. I think things could be rearranged to make a little more sense. For example, place the ADD, REMOVE buttons next to each other with a text field only appearing after the ADD button has been clicked. Directions for how to use this area of the configuration page also need to be added before this group of settings.</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/settingsUI.png" rel="thumbnail"><img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/settingsUI-300x107.png" alt="" title="settingsUI" class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-7631" height="107" width="300" /></a></p>\n<p>If you want to use WATS in conjunction with your main WordPress install, you can add new categories that can be configured to be open to submission. WATS has a front end ticket creation tool but the information for how to add this to a site was no where to be found until I browsed the <a href="http://www.lautre-monde.fr/wats-going-on/">plugin authors page</a>. You can use the following shortcode to add the form to a page or post: [WATS_TICKET_SUBMIT_FORM].</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/ticketcreated.png" rel="thumbnail"><img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/ticketcreated.png" alt="" title="ticketcreated" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-7632" height="331" width="530" /></a></p>\n<p>Once I approved the ticket, I was able to login and view its status. </p>\n<p>Overall, the plugin performed as expected. My only complaints lie in the user interface but those could be addressed in an update. For those looking for a ticketing system that bolts on easily to WordPress, this plugin looks like it could be what you&#8217;re looking for. </p>";}i:27;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:60:"Weblog Tools Collection: WordPress Plugin Releases for 01/28";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7625";s:4:"link";s:88:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/28/wordpress-plugin-releases-for-0128/";s:11:"description";s:3218:"<h3>New Plugins</h3>\n<p><a href="http://nodobidesign.nl/index.php?cat=concepten&amp;pagina=ndb_currency_plugin">NdB Currency</a></p>\n<p>This plugin is used to exchange currency values online. Main use is for American weblogs to convert their Dollar amounts into Euro currency values. It&#8217;s an easy to install, activate and forget wordpress plugin.</p>\n<p><a href="http://ptahdunbar.com/plugins/wordpress-loop/">WordPress Loop</a></p>\n<p>The WordPress Loop widget was written to allow users that don’t know their way around PHP to easily show their content in any way they’d like. The widget has over 35 options to choose from. Customize your WordPress loop by one or more post types, categories, tags, custom taxonomies, authors, dates, custom fields, and a whole lot more!</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.q2w3.ru/2010/01/25/1204/">Q2W3 Screen Options Hack Demo</a></p>\n<p>This is a demo for WordPress plugin developers. It shows how to create your own form for Screen Options panel.</p>\n<p><a href="http://plugins.trendwerk.nl/documentation/cms/">CMS</a></p>\n<p>A collection of plugins to make WordPress feel more like a CMS. It has some small adjustments and some bigger ones. Also includes some other plugins like Multiple content blocks, Page manager and a FAQ plugin.</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-post-footer/">WP Post Footer</a></p>\n<p>Easily create a library of code snippets that can be inserted at the end of blog posts. Perfect for adding &#8216;Call to Action&#8217; content at the end of a blog post to ask readers to take further action.</p>\n<h3>Updated Plugins</h3>\n<p><a href="http://markbeljaars.com/plugins/tocc-plugin/">Table of Contents Creator</a></p>\n<p>Table of Contents Creator automatically generates a highly customizable dynamic site wide table of contents that is always up-to-date.</p>\n<p><a href="http://markbeljaars.com/plugins/irobotstxt-seo/">iRobots.txt SEO</a></p>\n<p>iRobots.txt SEO is a fully customizable, optimized and secure robots.txt virtual file generator.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.benhuson.co.uk/wordpress-plugins/list-pages-at-depth/">List Pages at Depth</a></p>\n<p>A more powerful version of wp_list_pages() which allows you to specify a start depth.</p>\n<p><a href="http://kerrywebster.com/design/branded-login-screen-plugin/">Branded Login Screen</a></p>\n<p>Replace the default login screen on your blog with a custom branded screen</p>\n<p><a href="http://brandonallen.org/wordpress/plugins/edit-author-slug/">Edit Author Slug</a></p>\n<p>This plugin allows you to change the Author slug, without having to actually enter the database.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.seodesignsolutions.com/wordpress-seo/">SEO Ultimate</a></p>\n<p>This all-in-one SEO plugin can handle titles, meta, noindex, canonical tags, 404 monitoring, linkboxes, robots.txt, and more. Version 1.5 adds more built-in documentation.</p>\n<p><a href="http://alexking.org/projects/wordpress/readme?project=twitter-tools">Twitter Tools</a></p>\n<p>This plugin that creates an integration between your WordPress blog and your Twitter account. It allows you to pull your tweets into your blog (as posts and digests) and create new tweets on blog posts and from within WordPress.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 28 Jan 2010 19:12:54 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Perurry";}s:7:"summary";s:3218:"<h3>New Plugins</h3>\n<p><a href="http://nodobidesign.nl/index.php?cat=concepten&amp;pagina=ndb_currency_plugin">NdB Currency</a></p>\n<p>This plugin is used to exchange currency values online. Main use is for American weblogs to convert their Dollar amounts into Euro currency values. It&#8217;s an easy to install, activate and forget wordpress plugin.</p>\n<p><a href="http://ptahdunbar.com/plugins/wordpress-loop/">WordPress Loop</a></p>\n<p>The WordPress Loop widget was written to allow users that don’t know their way around PHP to easily show their content in any way they’d like. The widget has over 35 options to choose from. Customize your WordPress loop by one or more post types, categories, tags, custom taxonomies, authors, dates, custom fields, and a whole lot more!</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.q2w3.ru/2010/01/25/1204/">Q2W3 Screen Options Hack Demo</a></p>\n<p>This is a demo for WordPress plugin developers. It shows how to create your own form for Screen Options panel.</p>\n<p><a href="http://plugins.trendwerk.nl/documentation/cms/">CMS</a></p>\n<p>A collection of plugins to make WordPress feel more like a CMS. It has some small adjustments and some bigger ones. Also includes some other plugins like Multiple content blocks, Page manager and a FAQ plugin.</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-post-footer/">WP Post Footer</a></p>\n<p>Easily create a library of code snippets that can be inserted at the end of blog posts. Perfect for adding &#8216;Call to Action&#8217; content at the end of a blog post to ask readers to take further action.</p>\n<h3>Updated Plugins</h3>\n<p><a href="http://markbeljaars.com/plugins/tocc-plugin/">Table of Contents Creator</a></p>\n<p>Table of Contents Creator automatically generates a highly customizable dynamic site wide table of contents that is always up-to-date.</p>\n<p><a href="http://markbeljaars.com/plugins/irobotstxt-seo/">iRobots.txt SEO</a></p>\n<p>iRobots.txt SEO is a fully customizable, optimized and secure robots.txt virtual file generator.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.benhuson.co.uk/wordpress-plugins/list-pages-at-depth/">List Pages at Depth</a></p>\n<p>A more powerful version of wp_list_pages() which allows you to specify a start depth.</p>\n<p><a href="http://kerrywebster.com/design/branded-login-screen-plugin/">Branded Login Screen</a></p>\n<p>Replace the default login screen on your blog with a custom branded screen</p>\n<p><a href="http://brandonallen.org/wordpress/plugins/edit-author-slug/">Edit Author Slug</a></p>\n<p>This plugin allows you to change the Author slug, without having to actually enter the database.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.seodesignsolutions.com/wordpress-seo/">SEO Ultimate</a></p>\n<p>This all-in-one SEO plugin can handle titles, meta, noindex, canonical tags, 404 monitoring, linkboxes, robots.txt, and more. Version 1.5 adds more built-in documentation.</p>\n<p><a href="http://alexking.org/projects/wordpress/readme?project=twitter-tools">Twitter Tools</a></p>\n<p>This plugin that creates an integration between your WordPress blog and your Twitter account. It allows you to pull your tweets into your blog (as posts and digests) and create new tweets on blog posts and from within WordPress.</p>";}i:28;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:30:"Alex King: Twitter Tools 2.2.1";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://alexking.org/?p=4039";s:4:"link";s:55:"http://alexking.org/blog/2010/01/28/twitter-tools-2-2-1";s:11:"description";s:1704:"<p>I&#8217;ve released a new version of Twitter Tools, my <a href="http://wordpress.org/" rel="external">WordPress</a> plugin that creates a full 2-way integration between your blog and your Twitter account.</p>\n<p>This release addresses two bugs:</p>\n<ol>\n<li>The use of the native <code>json_decode()</code> function, required by the changes in WordPress 2.9 (version 2.1) created a problem for users with servers running 32-bit PHP. The <code>json_decode()</code> function treats the tweet ID field as an integer larger than it can handle, which causes the issues. Thanks to Joe Tortuga and Ciaran Walsh for sending in the fix. Of note: I haven&#8217;t had a chance to set up a 32-bit PHP install so I can&#8217;t reproduce this, but it appears to work for many based on <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/312067/page/2?replies=46#post-1367438" rel="external">forum feedback</a>. Yep, I&#8217;m still dealing with the ramifications from <a href="http://alexking.org/blog/2010/01/13/wordpress-2-9-and-php-libraries">this</a>.</li>\n<li>Typo-fix that should allow resetting digests properly (not sure when this broke). Thanks <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/353221#post-1370388" rel="external">lionel_chollet</a>.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>The download and more information are available on my <a href="http://alexking.org/projects/wordpress">WordPress Plugins page</a>.</p>\n<p>If you have any trouble with this, please contact the <a href="http://wphelpcenter.com">WordPress HelpCenter</a> (303-395-1346) or you can try the <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/" rel="external">WP Support Forums</a>.</p>\n<img src="http://alexking.org/wp/?ak_action=api_record_view&id=4039&type=feed" alt="" />";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 28 Jan 2010 15:24:53 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:4:"Alex";}s:7:"summary";s:1704:"<p>I&#8217;ve released a new version of Twitter Tools, my <a href="http://wordpress.org/" rel="external">WordPress</a> plugin that creates a full 2-way integration between your blog and your Twitter account.</p>\n<p>This release addresses two bugs:</p>\n<ol>\n<li>The use of the native <code>json_decode()</code> function, required by the changes in WordPress 2.9 (version 2.1) created a problem for users with servers running 32-bit PHP. The <code>json_decode()</code> function treats the tweet ID field as an integer larger than it can handle, which causes the issues. Thanks to Joe Tortuga and Ciaran Walsh for sending in the fix. Of note: I haven&#8217;t had a chance to set up a 32-bit PHP install so I can&#8217;t reproduce this, but it appears to work for many based on <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/312067/page/2?replies=46#post-1367438" rel="external">forum feedback</a>. Yep, I&#8217;m still dealing with the ramifications from <a href="http://alexking.org/blog/2010/01/13/wordpress-2-9-and-php-libraries">this</a>.</li>\n<li>Typo-fix that should allow resetting digests properly (not sure when this broke). Thanks <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/topic/353221#post-1370388" rel="external">lionel_chollet</a>.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>The download and more information are available on my <a href="http://alexking.org/projects/wordpress">WordPress Plugins page</a>.</p>\n<p>If you have any trouble with this, please contact the <a href="http://wphelpcenter.com">WordPress HelpCenter</a> (303-395-1346) or you can try the <a href="http://wordpress.org/support/" rel="external">WP Support Forums</a>.</p>\n<img src="http://alexking.org/wp/?ak_action=api_record_view&id=4039&type=feed" alt="" />";}i:29;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:55:"WordPress.tv: Scott Kingsley Clark: The Pods CMS Plugin";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3264";s:4:"link";s:63:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/scott-kingsley-clark-pods-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1432:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-21">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3264&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/scott-kingsley-clark-pods-nyc09/"><img alt="Scott Clark: The Pods CMS Plugin" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/LLcMublP/1686-21_wcnyc_ignite_pods_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 28 Jan 2010 01:00:06 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1432:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-21">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3264/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3264&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/scott-kingsley-clark-pods-nyc09/"><img alt="Scott Clark: The Pods CMS Plugin" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/LLcMublP/1686-21_wcnyc_ignite_pods_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:30;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:50:"WordPress.tv: Jeremy Clarke: Writing PHP with IDEs";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3261";s:4:"link";s:55:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/jeremy-clarke-ide-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1428:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-24">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3261&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/jeremy-clarke-ide-nyc09/"><img alt="Jeremy Clarke: Writing PHP with IDEs" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/kTHJxq1f/1686-20_wcnyc_ignite_ides_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 28 Jan 2010 00:45:09 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1428:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-24">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3261/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3261&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/jeremy-clarke-ide-nyc09/"><img alt="Jeremy Clarke: Writing PHP with IDEs" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/kTHJxq1f/1686-20_wcnyc_ignite_ides_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:31;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:50:"WordPress.tv: Lin Chen: Harvard Gazette Case Study";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3259";s:4:"link";s:57:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/lin-chen-case-study-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1433:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-14">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3259&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/lin-chen-case-study-nyc09/"><img alt="Lin Chen: Harvard Gazette Case Study" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/Cfu5qhjN/1686-19_wcnyc_ignite_harvard_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 28 Jan 2010 00:15:08 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1433:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-14">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3259/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3259&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/lin-chen-case-study-nyc09/"><img alt="Lin Chen: Harvard Gazette Case Study" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/Cfu5qhjN/1686-19_wcnyc_ignite_harvard_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:32;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:49:"Donncha: WP Super Cache with Object Cache support";s:4:"guid";s:29:"http://ocaoimh.ie/?p=89495667";s:4:"link";s:54:"http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-super-cache-object-cache-support/";s:11:"description";s:3818:"<p>Here&#8217;s a quick post to encourage brave testers. I&#8217;m adding object cache support to WP Super Cache so you&#8217;ll be able to store your cached files in a memcached backend instead of disk.</p>\n<p>It&#8217;s not complete but it&#8217;s running on this blog and well, you&#8217;re reading this which means it&#8217;s doing something and not breaking! If you want to give it a go grab the development version from <a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL3dvcmRwcmVzcy5vcmcvZXh0ZW5kL3BsdWdpbnMvd3Atc3VwZXItY2FjaGUvZG93bmxvYWQv">the download page</a>.</p>\n<p>There are few caveats,  but three spring to mind:</p>\n<ul>\n<li> It won&#8217;t cache anything for &#8220;known&#8221; users. That is users who are logged in or leave comments. Usually a tiny minority of the visitors to any site.</li>\n<li>  Refreshing of the cache is very incomplete. If you leave a comment, the cache for that page may not update immediately. The cache lifetime is set to 30 seconds, and after you leave a comment you become a &#8220;known user&#8221; and see the uncached version of the page anyway.</li>\n<li> When posts are updated the whole cache is invalidated.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>If you don&#8217;t know what memcached is, or how to set it up then you probably don&#8217;t want to test this. If you do, use Google and find out about them. Unfortunately I don&#8217;t have time to explain how to install it.</p>\n<p>Inspiration and some code taken from <a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL3dvcmRwcmVzcy5vcmcvZXh0ZW5kL3BsdWdpbnMvYmF0Y2FjaGUv">batcache</a>, the excellent caching plugin we use on WordPress.com.</p>\n<p><strong>Update!</strong> I updated the Changelog in the readme.txt and I&#8217;m looking for testers. Here&#8217;s what&#8217;s new in the development version:</p>\n<blockquote><p>* Added experimental object cache support.<br />\n* Added Chinese(Traditional) translation by Pseric.<br />\n* Added FAQ on WP-Cache vs Supercache files.<br />\n* Use Supercache file if WP-Cache file not found. Useful if mod_rewrite rules are broken or not working.<br />\n* Get mobile browser list from WP Mobile Edition if found. Warn user if .htaccess out of date.<br />\n* Make sure writer lock is unlocked after writing cache files.<br />\n* Added link to developer docs in readme.<br />\n* Added Ukranian translation by Vitaly Mylo.<br />\n* Added Upgrade Notice section to readme.<br />\n* Warn if zlib compression in PHP is enabled.<br />\n* Added compression troubleshooting answer. Props Vladimir (http://blog.sjinks.pro/)<br />\n* Added Japanese translation by Tai (http://tekapo.com/)<br />\n* Updated Italian translation.</p></blockquote>\n<p>The biggest changes are the addition of the object cache and a small change to the php code that serves cached wp-cache files. If the mod_rewrite rules on your site don&#8217;t work for whatever reason the plugin will look for the Supercache file and serve that instead. An extra header is added to the served page when this happens. It&#8217;s all in the readme.txt!</p>\n<p><strong>Related Posts</strong><ul><li><a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL29jYW9pbWguaWUvd2FudC10by10ZXN0LXRoZS1uZXctd3Atc3VwZXItY2FjaGUv" rel="">Want to test the new WP Super Cache?</a></li><li><a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL29jYW9pbWguaWUvd3Atc3VwZXItY2FjaGUtMDg0LXRoZS1nYXJiYWdlLWNvbGxlY3Rvci8=" rel="">WP Super Cache 0.8.4, the garbage collector</a></li><li><a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL29jYW9pbWguaWUvd3Atc3VwZXItY2FjaGUtMC05LTUv" rel="">WP Super Cache 0.9.5</a></li></ul></p> <img src="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?view=1&post_id=89495667" width="1" height="1" />";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 27 Jan 2010 16:02:03 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Donncha";}s:7:"summary";s:3818:"<p>Here&#8217;s a quick post to encourage brave testers. I&#8217;m adding object cache support to WP Super Cache so you&#8217;ll be able to store your cached files in a memcached backend instead of disk.</p>\n<p>It&#8217;s not complete but it&#8217;s running on this blog and well, you&#8217;re reading this which means it&#8217;s doing something and not breaking! If you want to give it a go grab the development version from <a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL3dvcmRwcmVzcy5vcmcvZXh0ZW5kL3BsdWdpbnMvd3Atc3VwZXItY2FjaGUvZG93bmxvYWQv">the download page</a>.</p>\n<p>There are few caveats,  but three spring to mind:</p>\n<ul>\n<li> It won&#8217;t cache anything for &#8220;known&#8221; users. That is users who are logged in or leave comments. Usually a tiny minority of the visitors to any site.</li>\n<li>  Refreshing of the cache is very incomplete. If you leave a comment, the cache for that page may not update immediately. The cache lifetime is set to 30 seconds, and after you leave a comment you become a &#8220;known user&#8221; and see the uncached version of the page anyway.</li>\n<li> When posts are updated the whole cache is invalidated.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>If you don&#8217;t know what memcached is, or how to set it up then you probably don&#8217;t want to test this. If you do, use Google and find out about them. Unfortunately I don&#8217;t have time to explain how to install it.</p>\n<p>Inspiration and some code taken from <a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL3dvcmRwcmVzcy5vcmcvZXh0ZW5kL3BsdWdpbnMvYmF0Y2FjaGUv">batcache</a>, the excellent caching plugin we use on WordPress.com.</p>\n<p><strong>Update!</strong> I updated the Changelog in the readme.txt and I&#8217;m looking for testers. Here&#8217;s what&#8217;s new in the development version:</p>\n<blockquote><p>* Added experimental object cache support.<br />\n* Added Chinese(Traditional) translation by Pseric.<br />\n* Added FAQ on WP-Cache vs Supercache files.<br />\n* Use Supercache file if WP-Cache file not found. Useful if mod_rewrite rules are broken or not working.<br />\n* Get mobile browser list from WP Mobile Edition if found. Warn user if .htaccess out of date.<br />\n* Make sure writer lock is unlocked after writing cache files.<br />\n* Added link to developer docs in readme.<br />\n* Added Ukranian translation by Vitaly Mylo.<br />\n* Added Upgrade Notice section to readme.<br />\n* Warn if zlib compression in PHP is enabled.<br />\n* Added compression troubleshooting answer. Props Vladimir (http://blog.sjinks.pro/)<br />\n* Added Japanese translation by Tai (http://tekapo.com/)<br />\n* Updated Italian translation.</p></blockquote>\n<p>The biggest changes are the addition of the object cache and a small change to the php code that serves cached wp-cache files. If the mod_rewrite rules on your site don&#8217;t work for whatever reason the plugin will look for the Supercache file and serve that instead. An extra header is added to the served page when this happens. It&#8217;s all in the readme.txt!</p>\n<p><strong>Related Posts</strong><ul><li><a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL29jYW9pbWguaWUvd2FudC10by10ZXN0LXRoZS1uZXctd3Atc3VwZXItY2FjaGUv" rel="">Want to test the new WP Super Cache?</a></li><li><a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL29jYW9pbWguaWUvd3Atc3VwZXItY2FjaGUtMDg0LXRoZS1nYXJiYWdlLWNvbGxlY3Rvci8=" rel="">WP Super Cache 0.8.4, the garbage collector</a></li><li><a href="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?url=aHR0cDovL29jYW9pbWguaWUvd3Atc3VwZXItY2FjaGUtMC05LTUv" rel="">WP Super Cache 0.9.5</a></li></ul></p> <img src="http://ocaoimh.ie/wp-content/plugins/feed-statistics.php?view=1&post_id=89495667" width="1" height="1" />";}i:33;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:26:"Matt: Cool Touch Interface";s:4:"guid";s:21:"http://ma.tt/?p=33672";s:4:"link";s:42:"http://ma.tt/2010/01/cool-touch-interface/";s:11:"description";s:565:"<p>While reading <a href="http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/10/12/why-touch-screens-on-the-desktop-dont-really-work/">Michael Arrington&#8217;s essay Why Desktop Touch Screens Don’t Really Work Well For Humans</a> I came across this video, which I thought was pretty cool.</p>\n<p></p>\n<p>Hopefully this whets your appetite for whatever comes out of Apple tomorrow. Should be an interesting day for WordPress.com as well: whenever Apple does a major announcement we blow past all our previous traffic records. The current one-day record is 63.5 million pageviews.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 27 Jan 2010 01:12:40 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:4:"Matt";}s:7:"summary";s:565:"<p>While reading <a href="http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/10/12/why-touch-screens-on-the-desktop-dont-really-work/">Michael Arrington&#8217;s essay Why Desktop Touch Screens Don’t Really Work Well For Humans</a> I came across this video, which I thought was pretty cool.</p>\n<p></p>\n<p>Hopefully this whets your appetite for whatever comes out of Apple tomorrow. Should be an interesting day for WordPress.com as well: whenever Apple does a major announcement we blow past all our previous traffic records. The current one-day record is 63.5 million pageviews.</p>";}i:34;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:74:"Weblog Tools Collection: 1 Year Domain Registration for $1.17 from GoDaddy";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7622";s:4:"link";s:102:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/26/1-year-domain-registration-for-1-17-from-godaddy/";s:11:"description";s:700:"<p>For all of you looking to register your new blog domains, <a href="http://www.godaddy.com">GoDaddy</a> is having another domain sale as they often do.</p>\n<p>Just enter <strong>BOWL2010</strong> in the coupon form to see the discounted price of 99 cents along with the additional 18 cents ICANN fee. If any of you are aware of other coupons to lower the price, please post in the comments. Thanks <a href="http://slickdeals.net/">SlickDeals</a></p>\n<p>While we are on the subject, <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2004/11/04/how-did-you-name-your-blog/">how did you name your blog</a>? Was it based on the domain name you could register or did you think about it for a while?</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 27 Jan 2010 00:52:01 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:10:"Mark Ghosh";}s:7:"summary";s:700:"<p>For all of you looking to register your new blog domains, <a href="http://www.godaddy.com">GoDaddy</a> is having another domain sale as they often do.</p>\n<p>Just enter <strong>BOWL2010</strong> in the coupon form to see the discounted price of 99 cents along with the additional 18 cents ICANN fee. If any of you are aware of other coupons to lower the price, please post in the comments. Thanks <a href="http://slickdeals.net/">SlickDeals</a></p>\n<p>While we are on the subject, <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2004/11/04/how-did-you-name-your-blog/">how did you name your blog</a>? Was it based on the domain name you could register or did you think about it for a while?</p>";}i:35;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:45:"WordPress.tv: John Hawkins: Canonical Plugins";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3256";s:4:"link";s:68:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/john-hawkins-canonical-plugins-nyc09/";s:11:"description";s:1441:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-22">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3256&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/john-hawkins-canonical-plugins-nyc09/"><img alt="John Hawkins: Canonical Plugins" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/fFKJK2wp/1686-18_wcnyc_ignite_canonical_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 27 Jan 2010 00:45:07 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1441:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-22">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3256/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3256&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/john-hawkins-canonical-plugins-nyc09/"><img alt="John Hawkins: Canonical Plugins" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/fFKJK2wp/1686-18_wcnyc_ignite_canonical_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:36;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:48:"WordPress.tv: Andy Peatling: Why Use BuddyPress?";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3252";s:4:"link";s:64:"http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/andy-peatling-why-use-buddypress/";s:11:"description";s:1441:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-23">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3252&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/andy-peatling-why-use-buddypress/"><img alt="Andy Peatling: Why Use BuddyPress?" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/QZB4mAwa/1686-17_wcnyc_ignite_buddypress_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Wed, 27 Jan 2010 00:30:11 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1441:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-23">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3252/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3252&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2009/11/15/andy-peatling-why-use-buddypress/"><img alt="Andy Peatling: Why Use BuddyPress?" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/QZB4mAwa/1686-17_wcnyc_ignite_buddypress_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:37;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:40:"WordPress.tv: Upgrading to WordPress 2.9";s:4:"guid";s:27:"http://wordpress.tv/?p=3245";s:4:"link";s:58:"http://wordpress.tv/2010/01/26/upgrading-to-wordpress-2-9/";s:11:"description";s:1419:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-3">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3245&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2010/01/26/upgrading-to-wordpress-2-9/"><img alt="Upgrading to Wordpress 2.9" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/KVOhy2dE/upgrade-to-wordrpess-2-9_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 26 Jan 2010 23:17:09 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Ryan Markel";}s:7:"summary";s:1419:"<div class="snap_preview"><br /><ins>\n<div class="video-player" id="x-video-3">\n</div></ins>\n  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godelicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/delicious/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gostumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/stumble/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/godigg/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/digg/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/goreddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/reddit/wptv.wordpress.com/3245/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=wordpress.tv&blog=5089392&post=3245&subd=wptv&ref=&feed=1" /></div><div><a href="http://wordpress.tv/2010/01/26/upgrading-to-wordpress-2-9/"><img alt="Upgrading to Wordpress 2.9" src="http://cdn.videos.wordpress.com/KVOhy2dE/upgrade-to-wordrpess-2-9_std.original.jpg" width="160" height="120" /></a></div>";}i:38;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:59:"Weblog Tools Collection: WordPress Theme Releases for 01/26";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7616";s:4:"link";s:87:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/26/wordpress-theme-releases-for-0126/";s:11:"description";s:1690:"<h4><a href="http://www.dynamicwp.net/free-themes/simple-magazine-red/">Simple Magazine Red</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://www.dynamicwp.net/demo/?preview_theme=Simple-Magazine-Red"><img title="simple Magazine Red" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/simpleMagazineRed.jpg" alt="simple Magazine Red" width="200" height="117" /></a></p>\n<p>Three column, fixed width, widget ready and gravatar ready theme</p>\n<h4><a href="http://tntbase.com/wordpress-themes/tnt-dark-green-golden-temptation/">TNT Dark Green Golden Temptation</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://tntbase.com/tntbasedemosite/?themedemo=TNT_Dark_Green_Golden_Temptation"><img title="TNT Dark Green Golden Temptation" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/TNTDarkGreenGoldenTemptation.png" alt="TNT Dark Green Golden Temptation" width="200" height="150" /></a></p>\n<p>Two column, widget ready theme (12 widgetized areas including 3 footer widget ready areas) with easy integration with twitter and FeedBurner</p>\n<h4><a href="http://webhostinghelpguy.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress/5-free-wedding-wordpress-themes/">5 Free Wedding Wordpress Themes</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://webhostinghelpguy.inmotionhosting.com/demos/?wptheme=Wedding%20Blogging"><img title="Wedding Blogging" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/WeddingBlogging.jpg" alt="Wedding Blogging" width="200" height="114" /></a></p>\n<p>Two column theme gravatar-enabled, widget-ready, and perfect for posting wedding pictures</p>\n<p>Are you WordPress theme developer? <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/submit-news/">Submit your themes</a> to get them listed in these release posts.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 26 Jan 2010 19:15:06 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Perurry";}s:7:"summary";s:1690:"<h4><a href="http://www.dynamicwp.net/free-themes/simple-magazine-red/">Simple Magazine Red</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://www.dynamicwp.net/demo/?preview_theme=Simple-Magazine-Red"><img title="simple Magazine Red" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/simpleMagazineRed.jpg" alt="simple Magazine Red" width="200" height="117" /></a></p>\n<p>Three column, fixed width, widget ready and gravatar ready theme</p>\n<h4><a href="http://tntbase.com/wordpress-themes/tnt-dark-green-golden-temptation/">TNT Dark Green Golden Temptation</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://tntbase.com/tntbasedemosite/?themedemo=TNT_Dark_Green_Golden_Temptation"><img title="TNT Dark Green Golden Temptation" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/TNTDarkGreenGoldenTemptation.png" alt="TNT Dark Green Golden Temptation" width="200" height="150" /></a></p>\n<p>Two column, widget ready theme (12 widgetized areas including 3 footer widget ready areas) with easy integration with twitter and FeedBurner</p>\n<h4><a href="http://webhostinghelpguy.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress/5-free-wedding-wordpress-themes/">5 Free Wedding Wordpress Themes</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://webhostinghelpguy.inmotionhosting.com/demos/?wptheme=Wedding%20Blogging"><img title="Wedding Blogging" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/WeddingBlogging.jpg" alt="Wedding Blogging" width="200" height="114" /></a></p>\n<p>Two column theme gravatar-enabled, widget-ready, and perfect for posting wedding pictures</p>\n<p>Are you WordPress theme developer? <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/submit-news/">Submit your themes</a> to get them listed in these release posts.</p>";}i:39;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:66:"Weblog Tools Collection: Plugin Developers: What Is Your Wishlist?";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7612";s:4:"link";s:93:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/26/plugin-developers-what-is-your-wishlist/";s:11:"description";s:1833:"<p>Back in October, we <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2009/10/27/are-your-plugins-compatible/">told you about the new compatibility box</a> that was added to the plugin pages within the repository. However, we&#8217;ve learned that this feature has one major drawback which is the crux behind <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/ideas/topic.php?id=3554">this idea</a> proposed by shinephp.</p>\n<blockquote><p>I propose to add the field e.g. &#8216;Problem description&#8217; required for input if visitor click &#8216;Broken&#8217; button in the Compatibility widget.</p></blockquote>\n<p>I&#8217;ve talked with a number of plugin developers and they have all said the same thing. The compatibility box is useless if feedback can not be tied to the rating. Sure, a support topic can be opened for the plugin but there is nothing tying that forum post to the broken rating. Mark Jaquith weighed in with an even better idea.</p>\n<blockquote><p>They should get a chance (or a mandate) to provide feedback, and that feedback should open a new support thread.</p>\n<p>However, first, plugin authors need to be able to resolve support threads about their plugin. Otherwise, they&#8217;re going to have a pile of duplicate threads. </p></blockquote>\n<p>I&#8217;m no plugin author, but I&#8217;d like to know from those who are what tools or processes need to be in place in order for you to continue using the repository versus your own setup. Obviously with your own setup, you can do whatever is necessary surrounding your plugin. The repository has its limits, especially when it comes to supporting plugins through the WordPress.org support forum that I hope Mark&#8217;s idea can address in the future. </p>\n<p>So as a plugin author, what is your wish list for the plugin repository to make things easier on you?</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 26 Jan 2010 18:17:19 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:13:"Jeff Chandler";}s:7:"summary";s:1833:"<p>Back in October, we <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2009/10/27/are-your-plugins-compatible/">told you about the new compatibility box</a> that was added to the plugin pages within the repository. However, we&#8217;ve learned that this feature has one major drawback which is the crux behind <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/ideas/topic.php?id=3554">this idea</a> proposed by shinephp.</p>\n<blockquote><p>I propose to add the field e.g. &#8216;Problem description&#8217; required for input if visitor click &#8216;Broken&#8217; button in the Compatibility widget.</p></blockquote>\n<p>I&#8217;ve talked with a number of plugin developers and they have all said the same thing. The compatibility box is useless if feedback can not be tied to the rating. Sure, a support topic can be opened for the plugin but there is nothing tying that forum post to the broken rating. Mark Jaquith weighed in with an even better idea.</p>\n<blockquote><p>They should get a chance (or a mandate) to provide feedback, and that feedback should open a new support thread.</p>\n<p>However, first, plugin authors need to be able to resolve support threads about their plugin. Otherwise, they&#8217;re going to have a pile of duplicate threads. </p></blockquote>\n<p>I&#8217;m no plugin author, but I&#8217;d like to know from those who are what tools or processes need to be in place in order for you to continue using the repository versus your own setup. Obviously with your own setup, you can do whatever is necessary surrounding your plugin. The repository has its limits, especially when it comes to supporting plugins through the WordPress.org support forum that I hope Mark&#8217;s idea can address in the future. </p>\n<p>So as a plugin author, what is your wish list for the plugin repository to make things easier on you?</p>";}i:40;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:39:"Matt: Ask Matt: Tips On Public Speaking";s:4:"guid";s:21:"http://ma.tt/?p=14757";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://ma.tt/2010/01/public-speaking/";s:11:"description";s:975:"<p>I get asked a lot about tips on public speaking because I do it so frequently. Positive response when I give a talk is generally proportional to how relaxed I was when giving the presentation and on good days I&#8217;ll get comments like people were able to relate to what I was saying or that watching me calmed them down. I don&#8217;t mention this in the video, but besides breathing and remembering the audience is there to see you do well, the best way to relax is to know your material down cold. I&#8217;ve lived and breathed WordPress for almost 7 years now, so I can talk about it for hours without thinking twice. I think practicing and knowing your material well comes across most in your body language which probably affects how people perceive your presentation more than what you say.</p>\n<p></p>\n<p>We recorded this before <a href="http://www.speakerconfessions.com/">Scott Berkun&#8217;s new book Speaker Confessions was out</a>, which I recommend now.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 26 Jan 2010 08:15:31 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:4:"Matt";}s:7:"summary";s:975:"<p>I get asked a lot about tips on public speaking because I do it so frequently. Positive response when I give a talk is generally proportional to how relaxed I was when giving the presentation and on good days I&#8217;ll get comments like people were able to relate to what I was saying or that watching me calmed them down. I don&#8217;t mention this in the video, but besides breathing and remembering the audience is there to see you do well, the best way to relax is to know your material down cold. I&#8217;ve lived and breathed WordPress for almost 7 years now, so I can talk about it for hours without thinking twice. I think practicing and knowing your material well comes across most in your body language which probably affects how people perceive your presentation more than what you say.</p>\n<p></p>\n<p>We recorded this before <a href="http://www.speakerconfessions.com/">Scott Berkun&#8217;s new book Speaker Confessions was out</a>, which I recommend now.</p>";}i:41;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:43:"Weblog Tools Collection: Do You Have Class?";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7609";s:4:"link";s:71:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/25/do-you-have-class/";s:11:"description";s:1244:"<p>I have hard time understanding the basis of this article but I wanted to link to it because I know many in the WeblogToolsCollection audience are coders themselves and it would be interesting to see the conversation that arises from Andrew&#8217;s post. <a href="http://www.arickmann.co.uk/wordpress-coders-have-no-class/">WordPress coders have no class</a>.  At least, that&#8217;s what Andrew says in his post that discusses object oriented code being used in a non-object oriented environment. </p>\n<blockquote><p>What do I mean by a non-object oriented environment? Well, firstly WordPress still does not require PHP5 for core code so there are limits to how many of the techniques it can use anyway. Secondly, WordPress has been around for a long time and has been developed by many contributors looking to achieve specific things with each patch without having a particular architecture imposed, except by committee.</p>\n<p>WordPress developers tend to start as users who learn PHP in fits-and-starts when they need to accomplish something. They move from echo statements in themes, to functions, to classes, picking up ‘best practices’ as they go.</p></blockquote>\n<p>Let Andrew know what you think by commenting on his blog. </p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:37:42 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:13:"Jeff Chandler";}s:7:"summary";s:1244:"<p>I have hard time understanding the basis of this article but I wanted to link to it because I know many in the WeblogToolsCollection audience are coders themselves and it would be interesting to see the conversation that arises from Andrew&#8217;s post. <a href="http://www.arickmann.co.uk/wordpress-coders-have-no-class/">WordPress coders have no class</a>.  At least, that&#8217;s what Andrew says in his post that discusses object oriented code being used in a non-object oriented environment. </p>\n<blockquote><p>What do I mean by a non-object oriented environment? Well, firstly WordPress still does not require PHP5 for core code so there are limits to how many of the techniques it can use anyway. Secondly, WordPress has been around for a long time and has been developed by many contributors looking to achieve specific things with each patch without having a particular architecture imposed, except by committee.</p>\n<p>WordPress developers tend to start as users who learn PHP in fits-and-starts when they need to accomplish something. They move from echo statements in themes, to functions, to classes, picking up ‘best practices’ as they go.</p></blockquote>\n<p>Let Andrew know what you think by commenting on his blog. </p>";}i:42;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:31:"BuddyPress: BuddyPress 1.2 Beta";s:4:"guid";s:28:"http://buddypress.org/?p=768";s:4:"link";s:52:"http://buddypress.org/blog/news/buddypress-1-2-beta/";s:11:"description";s:2079:"<p>Now alive and ready for testing is the <a href="http://buddypress.org/pre-release/buddypress.1.2.beta.zip">beta version of BuddyPress 1.2</a>.</p>\n<p>This version will work with both WordPress 2.9.1 and WordPress MU 2.9.1 or higher. We especially need standard WordPress installation testers to put BuddyPress through its paces. Installation instructions can be found in the readme.txt file.</p>\n<p>If you&#8217;d prefer to not download and install the beta version, you can always help with testing by registering on our <a href="http://testbp.org">testing community site</a>. This always runs the bleeding edge version of BuddyPress.</p>\n<p>You can find a <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/query?status=accepted&#038;status=assigned&#038;status=new&#038;status=reopened&#038;group=priority&#038;max=200&#038;order=priority&#038;col=id&#038;col=summary&#038;col=milestone&#038;col=status&#038;col=owner&#038;col=type&#038;col=priority&#038;milestone=1.2&#038;type=!enhancement">list of known issues</a> and a <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/newticket">place to post bugs</a> via the <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org">BuddyPress Trac</a> installation.</p>\n<h3>Testing Upgrades</h3>\n<p>If you&#8217;re going test upgrading a previous BuddyPress installation please read the following instructions (please only test backup copies when upgrading with a beta):</p>\n<ol>\n<li>If you&#8217;re using a custom theme that is not a child theme of bp-sn-parent, please download and install the <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/buddypress-backwards-compatibility">backwards compatibility plugin</a> before doing anything.</li>\n<li>Deactivate BuddyPress.</li>\n<li>Upload and overwrite your existing BuddyPress plugin directory.</li>\n<li>Delete &#8220;bp-default&#8221; and &#8220;bp-sn-parent&#8221; from your themes directory.</li>\n<li>Activate BuddyPress. You do not need to move any themes.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>We also now have a <a href="http://bpdevel.wordpress.com/">development blog</a>. Weekly meetings are held in IRC every Wednesday at 19:00 UTC. Happy testing!</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:23:56 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:13:"Andy Peatling";}s:7:"summary";s:2079:"<p>Now alive and ready for testing is the <a href="http://buddypress.org/pre-release/buddypress.1.2.beta.zip">beta version of BuddyPress 1.2</a>.</p>\n<p>This version will work with both WordPress 2.9.1 and WordPress MU 2.9.1 or higher. We especially need standard WordPress installation testers to put BuddyPress through its paces. Installation instructions can be found in the readme.txt file.</p>\n<p>If you&#8217;d prefer to not download and install the beta version, you can always help with testing by registering on our <a href="http://testbp.org">testing community site</a>. This always runs the bleeding edge version of BuddyPress.</p>\n<p>You can find a <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/query?status=accepted&#038;status=assigned&#038;status=new&#038;status=reopened&#038;group=priority&#038;max=200&#038;order=priority&#038;col=id&#038;col=summary&#038;col=milestone&#038;col=status&#038;col=owner&#038;col=type&#038;col=priority&#038;milestone=1.2&#038;type=!enhancement">list of known issues</a> and a <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org/newticket">place to post bugs</a> via the <a href="http://trac.buddypress.org">BuddyPress Trac</a> installation.</p>\n<h3>Testing Upgrades</h3>\n<p>If you&#8217;re going test upgrading a previous BuddyPress installation please read the following instructions (please only test backup copies when upgrading with a beta):</p>\n<ol>\n<li>If you&#8217;re using a custom theme that is not a child theme of bp-sn-parent, please download and install the <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/buddypress-backwards-compatibility">backwards compatibility plugin</a> before doing anything.</li>\n<li>Deactivate BuddyPress.</li>\n<li>Upload and overwrite your existing BuddyPress plugin directory.</li>\n<li>Delete &#8220;bp-default&#8221; and &#8220;bp-sn-parent&#8221; from your themes directory.</li>\n<li>Activate BuddyPress. You do not need to move any themes.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>We also now have a <a href="http://bpdevel.wordpress.com/">development blog</a>. Weekly meetings are held in IRC every Wednesday at 19:00 UTC. Happy testing!</p>";}i:43;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:52:"Dougal Campbell: WordPress 3.0 Multisite Terminology";s:4:"guid";s:33:"http://dougal.gunters.org/?p=1994";s:4:"link";s:132:"http://dougal.gunters.org/blog/2010/01/25/wordpress-3-0-multisite-terminology?utm_source=rss&amp;utm_medium=rss&amp;utm_campaign=rss";s:11:"description";s:2850:"<div><img width="150" height="150" src="http://dougal.gunters.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/wplogo-notext-rgb.png" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" title="WordPress" /></div><p><ins datetime="2010-01-25T14:58:18+00:00">One of the big changes coming in WordPress 3.0 is the merge of the WordPress MU code into the standard stand-alone WordPress codebase. When WordPress 3.0 is released, you will be able to choose to install it either as a single site, or in multi-site mode.</ins> With the migration from WordPress MU (MultiUser) to WordPress 3.0 (Multisite), I think there is a need for us to clarify some terminology. On the <a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/Mailing_Lists">wp-hackers mailing list</a>, I&#8217;ve seen several instances where people used the word &#8220;site&#8221; to mean different things, depending on who is writing, and the context of what they are trying to say.There is some overlap currently between how we discuss an individual site within the setup, versus the overall system which contains those sites.</p>\n<p>In WordPress MU, the term &#8220;site&#8221; tended to refer to the overall installation, covering multiple &#8220;blogs&#8221;. With WordPress 3.0 in Multisite mode, some people are conflating the terms &#8220;blog&#8221; and &#8220;site&#8221;, and it appears that &#8220;site&#8221; would be the preferred term. The new term for the overall system is &#8220;network&#8221;, as evidenced by the new <a href="http://wpengineer.com/wordpress-3-multisite-settings/">Network Settings page</a>. So instead of a &#8220;site&#8221; which contains multiple &#8220;blogs&#8221;, we have a &#8220;network&#8221; which contains multiple &#8220;sites&#8221;.</p>\n<p>The change in terminology might cause some confusion at first, especially among people who are already familiar with WordPress MU, and are used to the old terms. But I think that saying &#8220;site&#8221; instead of &#8220;blog&#8221; is better, because it avoids confusion for people who are building websites that are <em>not</em> blogs. With that in mind, it makes a lot of sense to talk about a WordPress installation as a network of sites.</p>\n\n\n<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href="http://dougal.gunters.org/blog/2008/01/22/reactivate-all-in-wp-25" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Reactivate All Plugins feature in WordPress 2.5">Reactivate All Plugins feature in WordPress 2.5</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://dougal.gunters.org/blog/2005/04/20/9rules-network-chooses-wordpress" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: 9rules Network chooses WordPress">9rules Network chooses WordPress</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://dougal.gunters.org/blog/2007/07/16/14-awesome-wordpress-powered-sites" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: 14+ Awesome WordPress-powered sites">14+ Awesome WordPress-powered sites</a></li>\n</ol></p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 25 Jan 2010 09:00:30 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:6:"Dougal";}s:7:"summary";s:2850:"<div><img width="150" height="150" src="http://dougal.gunters.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/wplogo-notext-rgb.png" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" title="WordPress" /></div><p><ins datetime="2010-01-25T14:58:18+00:00">One of the big changes coming in WordPress 3.0 is the merge of the WordPress MU code into the standard stand-alone WordPress codebase. When WordPress 3.0 is released, you will be able to choose to install it either as a single site, or in multi-site mode.</ins> With the migration from WordPress MU (MultiUser) to WordPress 3.0 (Multisite), I think there is a need for us to clarify some terminology. On the <a href="http://codex.wordpress.org/Mailing_Lists">wp-hackers mailing list</a>, I&#8217;ve seen several instances where people used the word &#8220;site&#8221; to mean different things, depending on who is writing, and the context of what they are trying to say.There is some overlap currently between how we discuss an individual site within the setup, versus the overall system which contains those sites.</p>\n<p>In WordPress MU, the term &#8220;site&#8221; tended to refer to the overall installation, covering multiple &#8220;blogs&#8221;. With WordPress 3.0 in Multisite mode, some people are conflating the terms &#8220;blog&#8221; and &#8220;site&#8221;, and it appears that &#8220;site&#8221; would be the preferred term. The new term for the overall system is &#8220;network&#8221;, as evidenced by the new <a href="http://wpengineer.com/wordpress-3-multisite-settings/">Network Settings page</a>. So instead of a &#8220;site&#8221; which contains multiple &#8220;blogs&#8221;, we have a &#8220;network&#8221; which contains multiple &#8220;sites&#8221;.</p>\n<p>The change in terminology might cause some confusion at first, especially among people who are already familiar with WordPress MU, and are used to the old terms. But I think that saying &#8220;site&#8221; instead of &#8220;blog&#8221; is better, because it avoids confusion for people who are building websites that are <em>not</em> blogs. With that in mind, it makes a lot of sense to talk about a WordPress installation as a network of sites.</p>\n\n\n<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href="http://dougal.gunters.org/blog/2008/01/22/reactivate-all-in-wp-25" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Reactivate All Plugins feature in WordPress 2.5">Reactivate All Plugins feature in WordPress 2.5</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://dougal.gunters.org/blog/2005/04/20/9rules-network-chooses-wordpress" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: 9rules Network chooses WordPress">9rules Network chooses WordPress</a></li>\n<li><a href="http://dougal.gunters.org/blog/2007/07/16/14-awesome-wordpress-powered-sites" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: 14+ Awesome WordPress-powered sites">14+ Awesome WordPress-powered sites</a></li>\n</ol></p>";}i:44;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:65:"Weblog Tools Collection: Are You Spamming Comments Inadvertently?";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7603";s:4:"link";s:93:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/24/are-you-spamming-comments-inadvertently/";s:11:"description";s:4497:"<p>In a blog post titles &#8220;<a href="http://ma.tt/2009/08/kill-your-community/">6 Steps to Kill Your Community</a>&#8220;, Matt listed &#8220;Allow Spam Through&#8221; as the second step and &#8220;Don&#8217;t Participate in Comments&#8221; as the fourth step to killing your community. We treat comments and reader participation very seriously at Weblog Tools Collection. We highlight commenters, try to identify the frequent comments who participate willingly and heuristically remove nofollow tags from the links of commenters who participate in the community. I have personally chosen and thanked frequent commenter by providing them deeper access and rights to the various portals, elevating and applauding their presence within the community and have chosen most of my co-authors based on their participation and passion within the communities that I purvey. In short, I agree with Matt in that relevant comments and passionate participation are the lifeblood of any community.</p>\n<p>But our little blog gets a <a href="http://blog.akismet.com/2006/05/15/second-most-spammed-man-in-the-world/">lot of attention from spammers</a>. We are listed on web pages that pin point nofollow blogs for spamming, splogs regularly repost our content and send us trackbacks and well disguised comments are often adorned with links to completely unrelated sites. Moderating comments takes a lot of effort from all of us (we are working on making this process simpler, stay tuned) and even then, some weirdness and mistakes slip past us. We have recently started noticing a lot of comments that seem mildly relevant but link to SEO sites or completely unrelated content that keeps changing.</p>\n<p>Do you change your commenters&#8217; URI often when posting comments? Are you under the impression that leaving comments with different links will give those links more exposure? Do you <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/13/shorturl-comment-spam-problem/">use Short URLs</a> to get around comment spam restrictions? More importantly, how many of you force yourself to comment to just spread your links around? Have you ever left a comment just to increase your comment count? Are you an SEO professional who regularly comments on blogs for SEO purposes? You might be doing yourself (and us) more harm than good.</p>\n<p>While we try our best to allow any and all relevant comments to be posted, we do actively remove suspicious comments. We make spam/spammer judgment calls every day, but spam is annoying and nasty and in my opinion, spam is like a leech that sucks off the goodness and leaves the host with nothing in return. It often clogs up the conversation and reduces relevancy. Just look at the latest comments on any old(er) blog with a popular post that has not been pruned and taken care of.</p>\n<p>We do however, actively promote, reward and encourage passionate comments. If you feel that we have missed a comment that should have been posted, please contact us. However, if you are changing your link on every comment and linking to various websites around the internet who have paid you for your SEO services, please do not send us an email asking us to approve them. Mostly, dont be evil <em>and</em> smug!</p>\n<p><em>How do you treat suspicious comments that have not been caught by Akismet? </em>We manually visit every comment waiting for moderation and actively remove suspicious comments and any older ones that might be related. It takes time but it is worth it.</p>\n<p><em>How do you reward your commenters? </em>We use <a href="http://rmarsh.com/plugins/highlight-comments/">Highlight Author Comments</a> and hacked up versions of various plugins for heuristics.</p>\n<p><em>Do you import comments from other places on the web? </em>No. We do not import comments from anywhere. The conversation is much more focused and we concentrate on quality versus quantity. We hope that our content, subject and demeanor encourage and crystallize commenting and participation. Other conversations about our posts on apps such as Digg, StumbleUpon and Twitter add nothing but noise wherein the real conversation in live comments get drowned out. I used to think that Trackbacks belonged in the comment flow. I have since changed my opinion after dealing with some posts with hundreds of comments.</p>\n<p><em>Do you turn off comments on old posts?</em> No. Old posts are gems. Conversations can get started on old topics and need to be allowed.</p>\n<p>What do you do?</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sun, 24 Jan 2010 23:54:30 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:10:"Mark Ghosh";}s:7:"summary";s:4497:"<p>In a blog post titles &#8220;<a href="http://ma.tt/2009/08/kill-your-community/">6 Steps to Kill Your Community</a>&#8220;, Matt listed &#8220;Allow Spam Through&#8221; as the second step and &#8220;Don&#8217;t Participate in Comments&#8221; as the fourth step to killing your community. We treat comments and reader participation very seriously at Weblog Tools Collection. We highlight commenters, try to identify the frequent comments who participate willingly and heuristically remove nofollow tags from the links of commenters who participate in the community. I have personally chosen and thanked frequent commenter by providing them deeper access and rights to the various portals, elevating and applauding their presence within the community and have chosen most of my co-authors based on their participation and passion within the communities that I purvey. In short, I agree with Matt in that relevant comments and passionate participation are the lifeblood of any community.</p>\n<p>But our little blog gets a <a href="http://blog.akismet.com/2006/05/15/second-most-spammed-man-in-the-world/">lot of attention from spammers</a>. We are listed on web pages that pin point nofollow blogs for spamming, splogs regularly repost our content and send us trackbacks and well disguised comments are often adorned with links to completely unrelated sites. Moderating comments takes a lot of effort from all of us (we are working on making this process simpler, stay tuned) and even then, some weirdness and mistakes slip past us. We have recently started noticing a lot of comments that seem mildly relevant but link to SEO sites or completely unrelated content that keeps changing.</p>\n<p>Do you change your commenters&#8217; URI often when posting comments? Are you under the impression that leaving comments with different links will give those links more exposure? Do you <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/13/shorturl-comment-spam-problem/">use Short URLs</a> to get around comment spam restrictions? More importantly, how many of you force yourself to comment to just spread your links around? Have you ever left a comment just to increase your comment count? Are you an SEO professional who regularly comments on blogs for SEO purposes? You might be doing yourself (and us) more harm than good.</p>\n<p>While we try our best to allow any and all relevant comments to be posted, we do actively remove suspicious comments. We make spam/spammer judgment calls every day, but spam is annoying and nasty and in my opinion, spam is like a leech that sucks off the goodness and leaves the host with nothing in return. It often clogs up the conversation and reduces relevancy. Just look at the latest comments on any old(er) blog with a popular post that has not been pruned and taken care of.</p>\n<p>We do however, actively promote, reward and encourage passionate comments. If you feel that we have missed a comment that should have been posted, please contact us. However, if you are changing your link on every comment and linking to various websites around the internet who have paid you for your SEO services, please do not send us an email asking us to approve them. Mostly, dont be evil <em>and</em> smug!</p>\n<p><em>How do you treat suspicious comments that have not been caught by Akismet? </em>We manually visit every comment waiting for moderation and actively remove suspicious comments and any older ones that might be related. It takes time but it is worth it.</p>\n<p><em>How do you reward your commenters? </em>We use <a href="http://rmarsh.com/plugins/highlight-comments/">Highlight Author Comments</a> and hacked up versions of various plugins for heuristics.</p>\n<p><em>Do you import comments from other places on the web? </em>No. We do not import comments from anywhere. The conversation is much more focused and we concentrate on quality versus quantity. We hope that our content, subject and demeanor encourage and crystallize commenting and participation. Other conversations about our posts on apps such as Digg, StumbleUpon and Twitter add nothing but noise wherein the real conversation in live comments get drowned out. I used to think that Trackbacks belonged in the comment flow. I have since changed my opinion after dealing with some posts with hundreds of comments.</p>\n<p><em>Do you turn off comments on old posts?</em> No. Old posts are gems. Conversations can get started on old topics and need to be allowed.</p>\n<p>What do you do?</p>";}i:45;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:59:"Weblog Tools Collection: WordPress Plugin Releases of 01/24";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7601";s:4:"link";s:87:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/24/wordpress-plugin-releases-of-0124/";s:11:"description";s:3262:"<h3>New Plugins</h3>\n<p><a href="http://www.placewidget.com/wordpress">PlaceWidget</a></p>\n<p>PlaceWidget for Wordpress simplifies the process of adding a PlaceWidget to your Wordpress blog. You can create and configure your PlaceWidget right in the Wordpress Dashboard, then embed it in your sidebar with a standard Wordpress widget.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.lumieredelune.com/encrelune/category-ancestor-plugin,2010,01">Category Ancestor</a></p>\n<p>Category Ancestor is a plugin that adds a function you can use anywhere in your theme : get_category_ancestor($thecat) to retrieve the highest level parent of any category.</p>\n<p><a href="http://plugins.trendwerk.nl/documentation/faq-you/">FAQ You</a></p>\n<p>It is a simple FAQ plugin where you can create Categories and put Questions in them. You can easily insert them in a page with the WYSIWYG editor. Able to turn JavaScript on or off.</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/freebie-images-free-stock-images-plugin/">Free Stock Images Plugin</a></p>\n<p>Spice up your blog with high quality free <a href="http://www.crestock.com">stock images</a> &amp; photos created by professional photographers and illustrators: Easy to use search interface with advanced filtering and Drag &amp; Drop functionality.</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/favicons/">Favicons</a></p>\n<p>Choose a favicon to make your site eye-catching and easily recognizable by visitors. You can choose to use as favicon your gravatar, a private icon or an image from the Icon Set included</p>\n<p><a href="http://josephrogermoore.com/leaveanote">Leave-a-Note Visual Commenting</a></p>\n<p>Leave-a-Note transforms your comments into post-it notes to drag and drop anywhere on the screen, saving the new position until it is moved again.</p>\n<p><a href="http://w-shadow.com/blog/2007/07/28/link-cloaking-plugin-for-wordpress/">Link Cloaking Plugin</a></p>\n<p>Automatically cloak all (or only selected) links in your posts and pages.</p>\n<h3>Updated Plugins</h3>\n<p><a href="http://coffee2code.com/wp-plugins/one-click-close-comments">One Click Close Comments</a></p>\n<p>Conveniently close or open comments for a post or page with one click.</p>\n<p><a href="http://coffee2code.com/wp-plugins/restrict-usernames">Restrict Usernames</a></p>\n<p>Restrict the usernames that new users may use when registering for your site.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.seodesignsolutions.com/wordpress-seo/">SEO Ultimate</a></p>\n<p>This all-in-one SEO plugin can handle titles, meta, noindex, canonical tags, 404 monitoring, linkboxes, robots.txt, and more. Version 1.4.1 uses the new Google Webmaster Tools verification code.</p>\n<p><a href="http://omninoggin.com/wordpress-plugins/wp-minify-wordpress-plugin/">WP Minify</a></p>\n<p>This plugin uses the Minify engine to combine and compress JS and CSS files to improve page load time.</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/yak-for-wordpress/">YAK for WordPress</a></p>\n<p>YAK is a shopping cart plugin for WordPress which associates products with weblog entries.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.pepak.net/wordpress/simple-download-monitor-plugin">Simple Download Monitor</a></p>\n<p>Count the number of downloads without having to maintain a comprehensive download page.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sun, 24 Jan 2010 17:20:00 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Perurry";}s:7:"summary";s:3262:"<h3>New Plugins</h3>\n<p><a href="http://www.placewidget.com/wordpress">PlaceWidget</a></p>\n<p>PlaceWidget for Wordpress simplifies the process of adding a PlaceWidget to your Wordpress blog. You can create and configure your PlaceWidget right in the Wordpress Dashboard, then embed it in your sidebar with a standard Wordpress widget.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.lumieredelune.com/encrelune/category-ancestor-plugin,2010,01">Category Ancestor</a></p>\n<p>Category Ancestor is a plugin that adds a function you can use anywhere in your theme : get_category_ancestor($thecat) to retrieve the highest level parent of any category.</p>\n<p><a href="http://plugins.trendwerk.nl/documentation/faq-you/">FAQ You</a></p>\n<p>It is a simple FAQ plugin where you can create Categories and put Questions in them. You can easily insert them in a page with the WYSIWYG editor. Able to turn JavaScript on or off.</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/freebie-images-free-stock-images-plugin/">Free Stock Images Plugin</a></p>\n<p>Spice up your blog with high quality free <a href="http://www.crestock.com">stock images</a> &amp; photos created by professional photographers and illustrators: Easy to use search interface with advanced filtering and Drag &amp; Drop functionality.</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/favicons/">Favicons</a></p>\n<p>Choose a favicon to make your site eye-catching and easily recognizable by visitors. You can choose to use as favicon your gravatar, a private icon or an image from the Icon Set included</p>\n<p><a href="http://josephrogermoore.com/leaveanote">Leave-a-Note Visual Commenting</a></p>\n<p>Leave-a-Note transforms your comments into post-it notes to drag and drop anywhere on the screen, saving the new position until it is moved again.</p>\n<p><a href="http://w-shadow.com/blog/2007/07/28/link-cloaking-plugin-for-wordpress/">Link Cloaking Plugin</a></p>\n<p>Automatically cloak all (or only selected) links in your posts and pages.</p>\n<h3>Updated Plugins</h3>\n<p><a href="http://coffee2code.com/wp-plugins/one-click-close-comments">One Click Close Comments</a></p>\n<p>Conveniently close or open comments for a post or page with one click.</p>\n<p><a href="http://coffee2code.com/wp-plugins/restrict-usernames">Restrict Usernames</a></p>\n<p>Restrict the usernames that new users may use when registering for your site.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.seodesignsolutions.com/wordpress-seo/">SEO Ultimate</a></p>\n<p>This all-in-one SEO plugin can handle titles, meta, noindex, canonical tags, 404 monitoring, linkboxes, robots.txt, and more. Version 1.4.1 uses the new Google Webmaster Tools verification code.</p>\n<p><a href="http://omninoggin.com/wordpress-plugins/wp-minify-wordpress-plugin/">WP Minify</a></p>\n<p>This plugin uses the Minify engine to combine and compress JS and CSS files to improve page load time.</p>\n<p><a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/yak-for-wordpress/">YAK for WordPress</a></p>\n<p>YAK is a shopping cart plugin for WordPress which associates products with weblog entries.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.pepak.net/wordpress/simple-download-monitor-plugin">Simple Download Monitor</a></p>\n<p>Count the number of downloads without having to maintain a comprehensive download page.</p>";}i:46;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:23:"Matt: To Munich for DLD";s:4:"guid";s:21:"http://ma.tt/?p=33665";s:4:"link";s:31:"http://ma.tt/2010/01/to-munich/";s:11:"description";s:342:"<p>I&#8217;m heading to Munich, Germany for <a href="http://www.dld-conference.com/">the DLD conference</a> where I&#8217;m going to be on a panel. If you&#8217;re there say howdy and I&#8217;ll show you my Apple Tablet. (Just kidding. <img src="http://ma.tt/blog/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" alt=":)" class="wp-smiley" /> )</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sat, 23 Jan 2010 10:39:33 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:4:"Matt";}s:7:"summary";s:342:"<p>I&#8217;m heading to Munich, Germany for <a href="http://www.dld-conference.com/">the DLD conference</a> where I&#8217;m going to be on a panel. If you&#8217;re there say howdy and I&#8217;ll show you my Apple Tablet. (Just kidding. <img src="http://ma.tt/blog/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" alt=":)" class="wp-smiley" /> )</p>";}i:47;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:44:"Lloyd: WordPress Declaration of Independence";s:4:"guid";s:30:"http://foolswisdom.com/?p=2303";s:4:"link";s:46:"http://foolswisdom.com/wordpress-independence/";s:11:"description";s:2045:"<blockquote><p>The WordPress Foundation is a charitable organization founded by Matt Mullenweg to further the mission of the WordPress open source project: to democratize publishing through Open Source, <a href="http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html">GPL</a> software.</p>\n<p>The point of the foundation is to ensure free access, in perpetuity, to the projects we support. People and businesses may come and go, so it is important to ensure that the source code for these projects will survive beyond the current contributor base, that we may create a <strong>stable platform for web publishing for generations to come</strong>. As part of this mission, the Foundation will be responsible for protecting the WordPress, WordCamp, and related trademarks. A 501(c)3 non-profit organization, the WordPress Foundation will also pursue a charter to educate the public about WordPress and related open source software.</p>\n<p>We hope to gather broad community support to make sure we can <strong>continue to serve the public good</strong> through freely accessible software.</p>\n<p><cite>About Web page, <a href="http://wordpressfoundation.org/">WordPress Foundation</a></cite></p></blockquote>\n<p>There are already a lot of great comments on the welcome post &#8220;<a href="http://wordpressfoundation.org/2010/getting-off-the-ground/">Getting off the ground</a>&#8220;. Here is a one of the many juicy comments made by <a href="http://ma.tt/">Matt</a> in response to a question posted there:</p>\n<blockquote><p>Sure, as a quick summary: [Wordpress.com and the Wordpress Foundation] completely separate, but share a similar name and my involvement. One is for-profit, the other non-profit. They both have similar goals in terms, but the Foundation can take a long-term multi-decade approach to solving these problems without regard for short term profit, market conditions, or shareholders. I’ve always had a vision for two simultaneous approaches to the WordPress way, the heart and the mind, but it’s just now coming together.</p></blockquote>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Fri, 22 Jan 2010 21:06:50 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:5:"Lloyd";}s:7:"summary";s:2045:"<blockquote><p>The WordPress Foundation is a charitable organization founded by Matt Mullenweg to further the mission of the WordPress open source project: to democratize publishing through Open Source, <a href="http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html">GPL</a> software.</p>\n<p>The point of the foundation is to ensure free access, in perpetuity, to the projects we support. People and businesses may come and go, so it is important to ensure that the source code for these projects will survive beyond the current contributor base, that we may create a <strong>stable platform for web publishing for generations to come</strong>. As part of this mission, the Foundation will be responsible for protecting the WordPress, WordCamp, and related trademarks. A 501(c)3 non-profit organization, the WordPress Foundation will also pursue a charter to educate the public about WordPress and related open source software.</p>\n<p>We hope to gather broad community support to make sure we can <strong>continue to serve the public good</strong> through freely accessible software.</p>\n<p><cite>About Web page, <a href="http://wordpressfoundation.org/">WordPress Foundation</a></cite></p></blockquote>\n<p>There are already a lot of great comments on the welcome post &#8220;<a href="http://wordpressfoundation.org/2010/getting-off-the-ground/">Getting off the ground</a>&#8220;. Here is a one of the many juicy comments made by <a href="http://ma.tt/">Matt</a> in response to a question posted there:</p>\n<blockquote><p>Sure, as a quick summary: [Wordpress.com and the Wordpress Foundation] completely separate, but share a similar name and my involvement. One is for-profit, the other non-profit. They both have similar goals in terms, but the Foundation can take a long-term multi-decade approach to solving these problems without regard for short term profit, market conditions, or shareholders. I’ve always had a vision for two simultaneous approaches to the WordPress way, the heart and the mind, but it’s just now coming together.</p></blockquote>";}i:48;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:59:"Weblog Tools Collection: WordPress Theme Releases for 01/22";s:4:"guid";s:40:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/?p=7594";s:4:"link";s:82:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/22/wordpress-theme-releases-for/";s:11:"description";s:2382:"<h4><a href="http://3oneseven.com/13/detox-wp-theme/">Detox</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://wp2.3oneseven.com/index.php?wptheme=Detox"><img title="detox" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/detox.png" alt="detox" width="200" height="139" /></a></p>\n<p>The Detox BuddyPress theme, clean magazine style for a BuddyPress powered site with the brandnew Detox WordPress Theme theme,<br />\nfeaturing a three column fluid theme layout, spiced up version of the <a href="http://wp2.3oneseven.com/index.php?wptheme=Detox">Detox 3.17 WordPress Theme</a>, enabled with flickr support, pagenavi support, frontpage slider, options panel, related posts and recent comments are built into the theme.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.longren.org/wordpress/unwakeable/">Unwakeable</a></h4>\n<p><img title="Unwakeable" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Unwakeable.jpg" alt="Unwakeable" width="200" height="118" /></p>\n<p>The Unwakeable <a href="http://www.wordpress.org/">WordPress</a> theme and is a combination of <a href="http://www.getk2.com/">K2</a> and <a href="http://openswitch.org/unsleepable">Unsleepable</a>. It uses K2 as a starting point, and replaced the default K2 header with a modified header from Unsleepable.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.kreativethemes.com/bright-sky/">Bright Sky</a></h4>\n<p><img title="brightsky-3d" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/brightsky3d.jpg" alt="brightsky-3d" width="200" height="131" /></p>\n<p>Two column theme with support for twitter and lifestream integration and an advertisement area and admin features</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.blogging-inside.de/2010/01/kostenloses-you-name-it-wordpress-theme/">You Name It</a></h4>\n<p><img title="younameit" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/younameit.png" alt="younameit" width="200" height="130" /></p>\n<p>You Name It is a simple WordPress Theme with two sidebars. Three sidebars support Adsense format 160px and 250px.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.tipografo.org/wordpress-themes/sysyphus/">Sysyphus</a></h4>\n<p><img title="Sysyphus" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Sysyphus.jpg" alt="Sysyphus" width="200" height="102" /></p>\n<p>Sysyphus is a 2 columns, Widget Ready, JQuery Powered, Wordpress Theme, with carefully hand-crafted graphics and W3C Valid Code.</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Fri, 22 Jan 2010 19:45:15 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Perurry";}s:7:"summary";s:2382:"<h4><a href="http://3oneseven.com/13/detox-wp-theme/">Detox</a></h4>\n<p><a href="http://wp2.3oneseven.com/index.php?wptheme=Detox"><img title="detox" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/detox.png" alt="detox" width="200" height="139" /></a></p>\n<p>The Detox BuddyPress theme, clean magazine style for a BuddyPress powered site with the brandnew Detox WordPress Theme theme,<br />\nfeaturing a three column fluid theme layout, spiced up version of the <a href="http://wp2.3oneseven.com/index.php?wptheme=Detox">Detox 3.17 WordPress Theme</a>, enabled with flickr support, pagenavi support, frontpage slider, options panel, related posts and recent comments are built into the theme.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.longren.org/wordpress/unwakeable/">Unwakeable</a></h4>\n<p><img title="Unwakeable" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Unwakeable.jpg" alt="Unwakeable" width="200" height="118" /></p>\n<p>The Unwakeable <a href="http://www.wordpress.org/">WordPress</a> theme and is a combination of <a href="http://www.getk2.com/">K2</a> and <a href="http://openswitch.org/unsleepable">Unsleepable</a>. It uses K2 as a starting point, and replaced the default K2 header with a modified header from Unsleepable.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.kreativethemes.com/bright-sky/">Bright Sky</a></h4>\n<p><img title="brightsky-3d" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/brightsky3d.jpg" alt="brightsky-3d" width="200" height="131" /></p>\n<p>Two column theme with support for twitter and lifestream integration and an advertisement area and admin features</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.blogging-inside.de/2010/01/kostenloses-you-name-it-wordpress-theme/">You Name It</a></h4>\n<p><img title="younameit" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/younameit.png" alt="younameit" width="200" height="130" /></p>\n<p>You Name It is a simple WordPress Theme with two sidebars. Three sidebars support Adsense format 160px and 250px.</p>\n<h4><a href="http://www.tipografo.org/wordpress-themes/sysyphus/">Sysyphus</a></h4>\n<p><img title="Sysyphus" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Sysyphus.jpg" alt="Sysyphus" width="200" height="102" /></p>\n<p>Sysyphus is a 2 columns, Widget Ready, JQuery Powered, Wordpress Theme, with carefully hand-crafted graphics and W3C Valid Code.</p>";}i:49;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:72:"Weblog Tools Collection: Making Site Wide Changes on Your WordPress Blog";s:4:"guid";s:101:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/22/making-site-wide-changes-on-your-wordpress-blog/";s:4:"link";s:101:"http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/22/making-site-wide-changes-on-your-wordpress-blog/";s:11:"description";s:7283:"<p>Last week I wrote up a post to review the <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/16/real-time-find-and-replace-plug-in-review/">Real-Time Find and Replace Plugin</a> and the comments on that story about other methods to make site wide changes permanent sent me in search of another way to search and replace information in my SQL database.</p>\n<p>Now I consider myself pretty decent at geeky things but directly editing and messing with my site’s SQL database does not top my list of things to do.&#160; Neither does manually going through nearly 1,000 postings to make changes.</p>\n<p>What I found was a terrific plug-in that lets me perform a few different functions to make corrections or change info throughout my site.</p>\n<p><strong><em><u>Caveat:</u></em></strong> Before I get started – this plugin does make changes to your database. Play it safe and back up your info to protect your original data.</p>\n<p>With that said let me now introduce you to the <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/search-regex/">Search Regex Plugin</a> written by <a href="http://urbangiraffe.com/">John Godley</a>. </p>\n<p>The author provides the following description in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory:</p>\n<blockquote><p>Search Regex adds a powerful set of search and replace functions to WordPress. These go beyond the standard searching capabilities, and allow you to search and replace almost any data stored on your site. In addition to simple searches you have the full power of PHP&#8217;s regular expressions at your disposal.</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>The plugin is currently at version 1.4.9 and is dated from July 2009 however it is fully compatible with WordPress Version 2.9.1.</p>\n<p>So once you have downloaded and installed the plugin head to the Tools menu in the Admin interface:</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregex.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregex" border="0" alt="searchregex" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregex_thumb.png" width="139" height="190" /></a> </p>\n<p>Click on Search Regex to get to the main admin page:</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexmain.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexmain" border="0" alt="searchregexmain" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexmain_thumb.png" width="346" height="105" /></a> </p>\n<p>From this spot you can either <strong><em>Search</em></strong>; <strong><em>Replace</em></strong> or <strong><em>Replace and Save</em></strong>. Only the last one makes permanent changes to your database when you push the button.</p>\n<p>Lets review the options you can set for each one:</p>\n<p><strong><em>Source</em></strong> Dropdown Menu lets you pick the areas in the database that will be searched.</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexsourcedropdown.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexsourcedropdown" border="0" alt="searchregexsourcedropdown" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexsourcedropdown_thumb.png" width="164" height="186" /></a></p>\n<p><strong><em>Limit to</em></strong> Dropdown Menu restricts the number of entries that will be searched. This can be handy on a large site.</p>\n<p>&#160;<a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexlimitodropdown.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexlimitodropdown" border="0" alt="searchregexlimitodropdown" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexlimitodropdown_thumb.png" width="84" height="102" /></a> </p>\n<p><strong><em>Order By</em></strong> lets you choose to display the results of a search in either Ascending or Descending order.</p>\n<p>Once you make those choices you are ready to search.&#160; Type the phrase you want to find in the <strong><em>Search pattern</em></strong> box. I found that multi-line searches do not work so well with this plugin so I recommend you keep it short and exact.</p>\n<p>If all you want to do is find a handful or articles that have a certain phrase or word in them then click the <strong><em>Search</em></strong> button and you will see the following type of results:</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexresultssearch.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexresultssearch" border="0" alt="searchregexresultssearch" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexresultssearch_thumb.png" width="244" height="140" /></a> </p>\n<p>Each entry is on an alternating color line and if you look all the way over to the right on each line there is a link to either View the post as it appears on your site or Edit the post using the normal WordPress Edit screen. No changes are made to your database by using the <strong><em>Search</em></strong> button.</p>\n<p>The next button you can use is the <strong><em>Replace</em></strong> button and this one lets you preview the changes that would be made for each entry that matches your search and replace criteria. Those results show up like this:</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexreplaceresults.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexreplaceresults" border="0" alt="searchregexreplaceresults" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexreplaceresults_thumb.png" width="244" height="182" /></a> </p>\n<p>Just like with the <strong><em>Search</em></strong> button results, if you look over on the right hand side you will see links to either View the post, perform the Replace function for that entry only or open the post up using the standard WordPress admin edit screen. If your only making a few changes this is very handy to do them one at a time to make sure your changing the info you want to change.</p>\n<p>The last option you can use is one of the most powerful because it makes the change after you press the <strong><em>Replace and Save</em></strong> button.&#160; With this one you want to make sure the edit is exactly what you want to do.&#160; I recommend using the <strong><em>Replace </em></strong>button first to preview the matches it finds before executing the <strong><em>Replace and Save</em></strong>.</p>\n<p>I do not have a screen shot to show you that function because honestly I do not have a change to be made right now. However, the results page looks a lot like the <strong><em>Replace</em></strong> results except they have been made instead of just displayed for review.</p>\n<p>So there ya go – a very powerful tool in a small package.&#160; Let me close by repeating an earlier reminder – back up your database before executing any major changes using this plugin. You will be thankful that you did if you hit the wrong button <img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" alt=":-)" class="wp-smiley" /> </p>\n<p>So which do you prefer – this permanent change or the on the fly changes that are made by the <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/16/real-time-find-and-replace-plug-in-review/">Real-Time Find and Replace Plugin</a>?</p>";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:00:00 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:11:"Richard Hay";}s:7:"summary";s:7283:"<p>Last week I wrote up a post to review the <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/16/real-time-find-and-replace-plug-in-review/">Real-Time Find and Replace Plugin</a> and the comments on that story about other methods to make site wide changes permanent sent me in search of another way to search and replace information in my SQL database.</p>\n<p>Now I consider myself pretty decent at geeky things but directly editing and messing with my site’s SQL database does not top my list of things to do.&#160; Neither does manually going through nearly 1,000 postings to make changes.</p>\n<p>What I found was a terrific plug-in that lets me perform a few different functions to make corrections or change info throughout my site.</p>\n<p><strong><em><u>Caveat:</u></em></strong> Before I get started – this plugin does make changes to your database. Play it safe and back up your info to protect your original data.</p>\n<p>With that said let me now introduce you to the <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/search-regex/">Search Regex Plugin</a> written by <a href="http://urbangiraffe.com/">John Godley</a>. </p>\n<p>The author provides the following description in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory:</p>\n<blockquote><p>Search Regex adds a powerful set of search and replace functions to WordPress. These go beyond the standard searching capabilities, and allow you to search and replace almost any data stored on your site. In addition to simple searches you have the full power of PHP&#8217;s regular expressions at your disposal.</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>The plugin is currently at version 1.4.9 and is dated from July 2009 however it is fully compatible with WordPress Version 2.9.1.</p>\n<p>So once you have downloaded and installed the plugin head to the Tools menu in the Admin interface:</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregex.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregex" border="0" alt="searchregex" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregex_thumb.png" width="139" height="190" /></a> </p>\n<p>Click on Search Regex to get to the main admin page:</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexmain.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexmain" border="0" alt="searchregexmain" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexmain_thumb.png" width="346" height="105" /></a> </p>\n<p>From this spot you can either <strong><em>Search</em></strong>; <strong><em>Replace</em></strong> or <strong><em>Replace and Save</em></strong>. Only the last one makes permanent changes to your database when you push the button.</p>\n<p>Lets review the options you can set for each one:</p>\n<p><strong><em>Source</em></strong> Dropdown Menu lets you pick the areas in the database that will be searched.</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexsourcedropdown.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexsourcedropdown" border="0" alt="searchregexsourcedropdown" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexsourcedropdown_thumb.png" width="164" height="186" /></a></p>\n<p><strong><em>Limit to</em></strong> Dropdown Menu restricts the number of entries that will be searched. This can be handy on a large site.</p>\n<p>&#160;<a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexlimitodropdown.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexlimitodropdown" border="0" alt="searchregexlimitodropdown" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexlimitodropdown_thumb.png" width="84" height="102" /></a> </p>\n<p><strong><em>Order By</em></strong> lets you choose to display the results of a search in either Ascending or Descending order.</p>\n<p>Once you make those choices you are ready to search.&#160; Type the phrase you want to find in the <strong><em>Search pattern</em></strong> box. I found that multi-line searches do not work so well with this plugin so I recommend you keep it short and exact.</p>\n<p>If all you want to do is find a handful or articles that have a certain phrase or word in them then click the <strong><em>Search</em></strong> button and you will see the following type of results:</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexresultssearch.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexresultssearch" border="0" alt="searchregexresultssearch" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexresultssearch_thumb.png" width="244" height="140" /></a> </p>\n<p>Each entry is on an alternating color line and if you look all the way over to the right on each line there is a link to either View the post as it appears on your site or Edit the post using the normal WordPress Edit screen. No changes are made to your database by using the <strong><em>Search</em></strong> button.</p>\n<p>The next button you can use is the <strong><em>Replace</em></strong> button and this one lets you preview the changes that would be made for each entry that matches your search and replace criteria. Those results show up like this:</p>\n<p><a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexreplaceresults.png" rel="thumbnail"><img title="searchregexreplaceresults" border="0" alt="searchregexreplaceresults" src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/searchregexreplaceresults_thumb.png" width="244" height="182" /></a> </p>\n<p>Just like with the <strong><em>Search</em></strong> button results, if you look over on the right hand side you will see links to either View the post, perform the Replace function for that entry only or open the post up using the standard WordPress admin edit screen. If your only making a few changes this is very handy to do them one at a time to make sure your changing the info you want to change.</p>\n<p>The last option you can use is one of the most powerful because it makes the change after you press the <strong><em>Replace and Save</em></strong> button.&#160; With this one you want to make sure the edit is exactly what you want to do.&#160; I recommend using the <strong><em>Replace </em></strong>button first to preview the matches it finds before executing the <strong><em>Replace and Save</em></strong>.</p>\n<p>I do not have a screen shot to show you that function because honestly I do not have a change to be made right now. However, the results page looks a lot like the <strong><em>Replace</em></strong> results except they have been made instead of just displayed for review.</p>\n<p>So there ya go – a very powerful tool in a small package.&#160; Let me close by repeating an earlier reminder – back up your database before executing any major changes using this plugin. You will be thankful that you did if you hit the wrong button <img src="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" alt=":-)" class="wp-smiley" /> </p>\n<p>So which do you prefer – this permanent change or the on the fly changes that are made by the <a href="http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2010/01/16/real-time-find-and-replace-plug-in-review/">Real-Time Find and Replace Plugin</a>?</p>";}}s:7:"channel";a:5:{s:5:"title";s:16:"WordPress Planet";s:4:"link";s:28:"http://planet.wordpress.org/";s:8:"language";s:2:"en";s:11:"description";s:47:"WordPress Planet - http://planet.wordpress.org/";s:7:"tagline";s:47:"WordPress Planet - http://planet.wordpress.org/";}s:9:"textinput";a:0:{}s:5:"image";a:0:{}s:9:"feed_type";s:3:"RSS";s:12:"feed_version";s:3:"2.0";s:5:"stack";a:0:{}s:9:"inchannel";b:0;s:6:"initem";b:0;s:9:"incontent";b:0;s:11:"intextinput";b:0;s:7:"inimage";b:0;s:13:"current_field";s:0:"";s:17:"current_namespace";b:0;s:19:"_CONTENT_CONSTRUCTS";a:6:{i:0;s:7:"content";i:1;s:7:"summary";i:2;s:4:"info";i:3;s:5:"title";i:4;s:7:"tagline";i:5;s:9:"copyright";}s:4:"etag";s:25:""211d6-4b6b518f-f500bf"\r\n";s:13:"last_modified";s:31:"Thu, 04 Feb 2010 23:00:31 GMT\r\n";}', 'no');
INSERT INTO `wp_d8mand_options` (`option_id`, `blog_id`, `option_name`, `option_value`, `autoload`) VALUES
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Simple but flexible.";}i:1;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:33:"uberdose on "All in One SEO Pack"";s:4:"link";s:65:"http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/all-in-one-seo-pack/#post-753";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Fri, 30 Mar 2007 20:08:18 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:8:"uberdose";}s:4:"guid";s:40:"753@http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/";s:11:"description";s:92:"Automatically optimizes your Wordpress blog for Search Engines (Search Engine Optimization).";s:7:"summary";s:92:"Automatically optimizes your Wordpress blog for Search Engines (Search Engine Optimization).";}i:2;a:7:{s:5:"title";s:30:"arnee on "Google XML Sitemaps"";s:4:"link";s:70:"http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/google-sitemap-generator/#post-132";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Fri, 09 Mar 2007 22:31:32 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:5:"arnee";}s:4:"guid";s:40:"132@http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/";s:11:"description";s:105:"This plugin will generate a special XML sitemap which will help search engines to better index your 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(834, 0, 'rss_3435ddeeb40926379e6d8bba4d7629ea', 'O:9:"MagpieRSS":19:{s:6:"parser";i:0;s:12:"current_item";a:0:{}s:5:"items";a:10:{i:0;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:55:"What do you call that thing that’s not a coincidence?";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=233";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=233#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sat, 24 Jan 2009 19:19:42 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:71:"Belief, doubt &amp; hopecoincidencefriendshipGodmysteriouspay attention";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=233";s:11:"description";s:324:"\nPhoto by Gaetan Lee\nYesterday afternoon, I set out on foot to take care of some errands, wanting to soak in the sunshine and relative warmth.\nAs I walked, my mind wandered, as it is prone to do anyway, and even more so when I&#8217;m walking. I must have subconsciously recognized a small aching emptiness in me—one [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:6249:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/193227170_2f7ce35a61.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-234" title="193227170_2f7ce35a61" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/193227170_2f7ce35a61.jpg" alt="" width="459" height="345" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 330px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/gaetanlee/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Gaetan Lee</a></h5>\n<p>Yesterday afternoon, I set out on foot to take care of some errands, wanting to soak in the sunshine and relative warmth.</p>\n<p>As I walked, my mind wandered, as it is prone to do anyway, and even more so when I&#8217;m walking. I must have subconsciously recognized a small aching emptiness in me—one that I identify with my need for female companionship—because I started thinking about my friend Susan. I thought how nice it would be to sit down with her and talk. I even wondered if I should walk by her house on my way home from the post office and bank.</p>\n<p>Not two minutes later, about five blocks from my house,  I turned the corner and there was Susan. She was less than half a block away, walking straight towards me, pushing her one-year-old twins in their stroller through the slush.</p>\n<p>I was so surprised, that it took me a few seconds to realize it was actually her. It took her a few seconds to recognize me, too, mostly because she was lost in thought, distressed about some news she had just received. We were both heading downtown, so we started walking together, Susan venting, me listening (and the babies doing that great thing babies tend to do in strollers: sitting and staring).</p>\n<p>It suddenly occurred to me: <strong>Meeting Susan on that block, at that moment, when we both needed one another, simply couldn&#8217;t have been a coincidence.</strong></p>\n<h4>Why do these non-coincidences happen?</h4>\n<p>Lots of people have experiences like this. It seems we&#8217;re simultaneously awe-struck and a little freaked out when we reflect on something perfect that happened, but could so easily have gone a different way. Sometimes it&#8217;s a small gift, like running into a friend at the moment you most need one.</p>\n<p>Other times it&#8217;s a bigger message delivered at a bigger moment. A friend of mine was in Costa Rica about a year ago when he found out his mother had died. As he was walking the beach with his wife and son, processing his grief, he was compelled to walk toward the water&#8217;s edge, pause, and pick up a very ordinary-looking twig. On it, in blue ball point pen, someone had written—in English, mind you—&#8221;There is no love greater than a mother&#8217;s love for her child.&#8221;</p>\n<p>Why was that stick there, on that deserted beach? Why was he there? And why did he see it, and bend down to pick it up?</p>\n<p>OK, let&#8217;s pause here. Are any of you starting to feel a tiny bit nervous? Like any second I&#8217;m going to start talking about angels or destiny or something?</p>\n<p>You can relax. <strong>I really don&#8217;t know what to think of these stories, or what to call that &#8220;thing&#8221; that mysteriously happens in our lives from time to time.</strong></p>\n<p>All I can do is review the few things I do and don&#8217;t know about these moments, and see if any of you have thoughts and ideas to add to the mix.</p>\n<h4>What I know:</h4>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- In case you were wondering, I do happen have more than one friend in town. For some reason, at that moment, I was thinking about Susan (who happens to be someone I only get to see once a month or so).</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- There are numerous routes I can take from my house to the business district, about 10 blocks away. There are many routes Susan could take from her house to the bakery, where she was headed. There are many hours in a day, when we each could have set out on our errands. I could have easily decided I had too much work to do, and Susan could have decided it was too much trouble to bundle her babies up for an outing.</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- <strong>Clearly, I believe there&#8217;s something bigger going on—it&#8217;s not luck or coincidence doing its random work in our lives.</strong> You can point to &#8220;the stars&#8221; or thank &#8220;the gods&#8221; or call it &#8220;serendipity,&#8221; but something seems to orchestrate these moments in our lives, from time to time. I happen to think it&#8217;s God with a capital G, so that&#8217;s how I&#8217;ll reference it. If that makes you uncomfortable, feel free to swap in something else. I don&#8217;t want to lose anyone in the conversation.</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- Even though he could, God doesn&#8217;t make us do certain things, or make us walk in certain directions. In other words, I don&#8217;t believe this life is one big puppet show.</p>\n<h4>What I don&#8217;t know (well, there&#8217;s plenty, but here&#8217;s a taste):</h4>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- If God is in the business of making our paths cross with friends, and strategically placing message-delivering twigs, how does he decide when to make something like that happen, and when to not bother?</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- <strong>How are we supposed to feel about a God that steps in and takes care of things so perfectly at some moments, but seems to leave us hanging at others?</strong> Or about a God who seems to disproportionately make poetic things happen for some people more than others?</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- Do we have a role in ushering in these moments? Is it possible that moments like these are always on the brink of happening, and we just need to be awake and respectful of the nudgings? Could it be our responsibility to be open, and pay attention?</p>\n<p><strong>That&#8217;s all I&#8217;ve got right now. Which is why I really need you to chime in. What do <em>you</em> think?</strong></p>\n<h5>For more posts on similar topics, see:</h5>\n<h5><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=200" >Striving to be less intentional in 2009</a></h5>\n<h5><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=28" >An endless trail of crumbs</a></h5>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=233";}s:7:"summary";s:324:"\nPhoto by Gaetan Lee\nYesterday afternoon, I set out on foot to take care of some errands, wanting to soak in the sunshine and relative warmth.\nAs I walked, my mind wandered, as it is prone to do anyway, and even more so when I&#8217;m walking. I must have subconsciously recognized a small aching emptiness in me—one [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:6249:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/193227170_2f7ce35a61.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-234" title="193227170_2f7ce35a61" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/193227170_2f7ce35a61.jpg" alt="" width="459" height="345" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 330px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/gaetanlee/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Gaetan Lee</a></h5>\n<p>Yesterday afternoon, I set out on foot to take care of some errands, wanting to soak in the sunshine and relative warmth.</p>\n<p>As I walked, my mind wandered, as it is prone to do anyway, and even more so when I&#8217;m walking. I must have subconsciously recognized a small aching emptiness in me—one that I identify with my need for female companionship—because I started thinking about my friend Susan. I thought how nice it would be to sit down with her and talk. I even wondered if I should walk by her house on my way home from the post office and bank.</p>\n<p>Not two minutes later, about five blocks from my house,  I turned the corner and there was Susan. She was less than half a block away, walking straight towards me, pushing her one-year-old twins in their stroller through the slush.</p>\n<p>I was so surprised, that it took me a few seconds to realize it was actually her. It took her a few seconds to recognize me, too, mostly because she was lost in thought, distressed about some news she had just received. We were both heading downtown, so we started walking together, Susan venting, me listening (and the babies doing that great thing babies tend to do in strollers: sitting and staring).</p>\n<p>It suddenly occurred to me: <strong>Meeting Susan on that block, at that moment, when we both needed one another, simply couldn&#8217;t have been a coincidence.</strong></p>\n<h4>Why do these non-coincidences happen?</h4>\n<p>Lots of people have experiences like this. It seems we&#8217;re simultaneously awe-struck and a little freaked out when we reflect on something perfect that happened, but could so easily have gone a different way. Sometimes it&#8217;s a small gift, like running into a friend at the moment you most need one.</p>\n<p>Other times it&#8217;s a bigger message delivered at a bigger moment. A friend of mine was in Costa Rica about a year ago when he found out his mother had died. As he was walking the beach with his wife and son, processing his grief, he was compelled to walk toward the water&#8217;s edge, pause, and pick up a very ordinary-looking twig. On it, in blue ball point pen, someone had written—in English, mind you—&#8221;There is no love greater than a mother&#8217;s love for her child.&#8221;</p>\n<p>Why was that stick there, on that deserted beach? Why was he there? And why did he see it, and bend down to pick it up?</p>\n<p>OK, let&#8217;s pause here. Are any of you starting to feel a tiny bit nervous? Like any second I&#8217;m going to start talking about angels or destiny or something?</p>\n<p>You can relax. <strong>I really don&#8217;t know what to think of these stories, or what to call that &#8220;thing&#8221; that mysteriously happens in our lives from time to time.</strong></p>\n<p>All I can do is review the few things I do and don&#8217;t know about these moments, and see if any of you have thoughts and ideas to add to the mix.</p>\n<h4>What I know:</h4>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- In case you were wondering, I do happen have more than one friend in town. For some reason, at that moment, I was thinking about Susan (who happens to be someone I only get to see once a month or so).</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- There are numerous routes I can take from my house to the business district, about 10 blocks away. There are many routes Susan could take from her house to the bakery, where she was headed. There are many hours in a day, when we each could have set out on our errands. I could have easily decided I had too much work to do, and Susan could have decided it was too much trouble to bundle her babies up for an outing.</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- <strong>Clearly, I believe there&#8217;s something bigger going on—it&#8217;s not luck or coincidence doing its random work in our lives.</strong> You can point to &#8220;the stars&#8221; or thank &#8220;the gods&#8221; or call it &#8220;serendipity,&#8221; but something seems to orchestrate these moments in our lives, from time to time. I happen to think it&#8217;s God with a capital G, so that&#8217;s how I&#8217;ll reference it. If that makes you uncomfortable, feel free to swap in something else. I don&#8217;t want to lose anyone in the conversation.</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- Even though he could, God doesn&#8217;t make us do certain things, or make us walk in certain directions. In other words, I don&#8217;t believe this life is one big puppet show.</p>\n<h4>What I don&#8217;t know (well, there&#8217;s plenty, but here&#8217;s a taste):</h4>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- If God is in the business of making our paths cross with friends, and strategically placing message-delivering twigs, how does he decide when to make something like that happen, and when to not bother?</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- <strong>How are we supposed to feel about a God that steps in and takes care of things so perfectly at some moments, but seems to leave us hanging at others?</strong> Or about a God who seems to disproportionately make poetic things happen for some people more than others?</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- Do we have a role in ushering in these moments? Is it possible that moments like these are always on the brink of happening, and we just need to be awake and respectful of the nudgings? Could it be our responsibility to be open, and pay attention?</p>\n<p><strong>That&#8217;s all I&#8217;ve got right now. Which is why I really need you to chime in. What do <em>you</em> think?</strong></p>\n<h5>For more posts on similar topics, see:</h5>\n<h5><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=200" >Striving to be less intentional in 2009</a></h5>\n<h5><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=28" >An endless trail of crumbs</a></h5>\n";}i:1;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:36:"I want to hold your hand (so sue me)";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=231";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=231#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 22 Jan 2009 19:11:16 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:119:"Love, family &amp; communityaffectionBarack Obamachildrenconnectedgrowing-uphand-holdinglocal newslovemarriagereassured";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=231";s:11:"description";s:351:"\nPhoto by Katie Tegtmeyer\nJason managed to get his hands on a &#8220;keepsake&#8221; copy of The New York Times yesterday. When you think of all the powerful inauguration day images the Times had at their disposal, it&#8217;s interesting to see the photo they chose to feature, front and center.\nI absolutely LOVE it.\nThe first thing you notice, [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:6581:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/73056234_80b6273d38.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-232" title="73056234_80b6273d38" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/73056234_80b6273d38.jpg" alt="" width="433" height="293" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 270px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/katietegtmeyer/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Katie Tegtmeyer</a></h5>\n<p>Jason managed to get his hands on a &#8220;keepsake&#8221; copy of <em>The New York Times</em> yesterday. When you think of all the powerful inauguration day images the <em>Times</em> had at their disposal, it&#8217;s interesting to see <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/us/politics/21inaug.html" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.nytimes.com'');">the photo</a> they chose to feature, front and center.</p>\n<p>I absolutely LOVE it.</p>\n<p>The first thing you notice, of course, is the expressions on the faces of Michelle and Barack—particularly how they look in contrast to the serious, grim, white faces around them. (I realize the Obamas have reason to smile, and the secret service people have reason to be serious. It&#8217;s still a nice contrast.)</p>\n<p><strong>But my eyes were quickly drawn to what I love best about the photo: the Obamas&#8217; gloved, clasped hands.</strong></p>\n<p>Check it out. Olive green and black leather, firmly intertwined. And the way Michelle&#8217;s left hand reaches over to hug the arm of the hand she&#8217;s holding, just for emphasis? *Blissful sigh*</p>\n<p>It&#8217;s like a fairy tale to think that our President and First Lady might actually <em>be</em> as in love as they appear to be. They might even inspire a national renewal of loving marriages and affectionate acts—of gazes that take the time to lock, and of whispered words that inspire a smile.</p>\n<p>There&#8217;s also something else I love about this photo of the Obamas. I look at it and I think <em>I know what that feels like.</em></p>\n<p>No, I don&#8217;t know what it feels like to be the stars of the Presidential Inaugural Day Parade, or to have thousands upon thousands of adoring fans clapping and yelling and even crying as I walk by.</p>\n<p><strong>But I <em>do</em> know what it feels like to hold the hand of someone I love—to feel that reassuring pressure that says you&#8217;re all right, everything&#8217;s all right, we&#8217;re in this together.</strong> I know what it feels like to be so in love that you need to be physically connected; and then even after you are, it doesn&#8217;t quite express how you feel, so you hug the arm of the hand your holding, too.</p>\n<h4>Mission #1: Converting my man to a hand-holder</h4>\n<p>When Jason and I met, he actually had an aversion to holding hands. Let me be clear: Jason is the warmest, most affectionate husband and father around. Remember, he came from the womb of the longest-hugging-mother ever. (You can <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=225" >read about her here</a>.)</p>\n<p><span id="more-231"></span></p>\n<p>There was something about hand-holding in public, though, that felt uncomfortable to him. It seems to stem from the fact that the woman he dated for a few years before meeting me was anti-hand-holding, in a big way. He was conditioned to think it was silly, so I&#8217;ve had to gradually reverse those effects.</p>\n<p><strong>Like the best minor relationship struggles, our hand-holding issue became an inside joke for us. </strong>Once, early in our relationship, when Jason was trying to explain how he felt about hand-holding, he said it would be different if we were traveling and didn&#8217;t know anyone. &#8220;I&#8217;d be happy to hold your hand in Manhattan,&#8221; he explained. (As he recalls, my dry response was &#8220;Don&#8217;t do me any favors.&#8221;)</p>\n<p>Now Jason is mostly over this problem, but we&#8217;re still sharing a secret, in a small way, when we hold hands. That&#8217;s why it was extra funny that we ended up holding hands on the local news last week. We actually grabbed hands and started rather exuberantly swinging our arms when we noticed the camera, not thinking the clip would actually be used.</p>\n<p><em>(It&#8217;s really not worth watching, but if you must, you can check out <a href="http://www.wicd15.com/newsroom/top_stories/videos/wicd_vid_44.shtml" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.wicd15.com'');">this clip</a>. We&#8217;re crossing the street together, about halfway through, and then I&#8217;m interviewed about how cool it is that our town is getting Zipcars.)</em></p>\n<p>It&#8217;s not like we hold hands all the time when we walk. Usually, we don&#8217;t. And, in general, I&#8217;m not a huge fan of public displays of affection. There are certain forms that are clearly over the top.</p>\n<p>It never seems to fail, when I&#8217;m working on my computer at a cafe, that some long-lost pair of lovers (who in reality have probably been apart for all of three or four hours) is reunited, mere inches from my elbow. I live in a hormone-raging university town. This kind of thing happens a lot.</p>\n<p>But there&#8217;s definitely something special about hand-holding.</p>\n<h4>Remembering what it&#8217;s like to be a child</h4>\n<p>When I look at the picture of Michelle and Barack, and I think about my own strong desire, at certain moments, to hold my husband&#8217;s hand, it makes me wonder what exactly is at the heart of that impulse.</p>\n<p>As is often the case, my children trigger the light bulb in my mind and point me to the truth.</p>\n<p><strong>We never forget, it seems, what it was like to feel small and lost in such a big, confusing world. We never lose that deep urge to feel physically connected to someone who loves and accepts us, and is looking out for our best interests.</strong></p>\n<p>It&#8217;s something we never grow out of, even as we grow up, and maybe grow out of hand-holding for a while, then begin to see it as a romantic expression. I think as adults, every time we hold a hand we&#8217;re brought back to that same emotional place.</p>\n<p>This tweet, which I wrote at 3:15 p.m. on January 16, after walking my girls home from school, seems the perfect closing image:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">my kids are growing up so fast. I&#8217;m very glad to at least have one who still automatically reaches for my hand when we walk together.</span></em></p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=231";}s:7:"summary";s:351:"\nPhoto by Katie Tegtmeyer\nJason managed to get his hands on a &#8220;keepsake&#8221; copy of The New York Times yesterday. When you think of all the powerful inauguration day images the Times had at their disposal, it&#8217;s interesting to see the photo they chose to feature, front and center.\nI absolutely LOVE it.\nThe first thing you notice, [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:6581:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/73056234_80b6273d38.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-232" title="73056234_80b6273d38" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/73056234_80b6273d38.jpg" alt="" width="433" height="293" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 270px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/katietegtmeyer/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Katie Tegtmeyer</a></h5>\n<p>Jason managed to get his hands on a &#8220;keepsake&#8221; copy of <em>The New York Times</em> yesterday. When you think of all the powerful inauguration day images the <em>Times</em> had at their disposal, it&#8217;s interesting to see <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/21/us/politics/21inaug.html" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.nytimes.com'');">the photo</a> they chose to feature, front and center.</p>\n<p>I absolutely LOVE it.</p>\n<p>The first thing you notice, of course, is the expressions on the faces of Michelle and Barack—particularly how they look in contrast to the serious, grim, white faces around them. (I realize the Obamas have reason to smile, and the secret service people have reason to be serious. It&#8217;s still a nice contrast.)</p>\n<p><strong>But my eyes were quickly drawn to what I love best about the photo: the Obamas&#8217; gloved, clasped hands.</strong></p>\n<p>Check it out. Olive green and black leather, firmly intertwined. And the way Michelle&#8217;s left hand reaches over to hug the arm of the hand she&#8217;s holding, just for emphasis? *Blissful sigh*</p>\n<p>It&#8217;s like a fairy tale to think that our President and First Lady might actually <em>be</em> as in love as they appear to be. They might even inspire a national renewal of loving marriages and affectionate acts—of gazes that take the time to lock, and of whispered words that inspire a smile.</p>\n<p>There&#8217;s also something else I love about this photo of the Obamas. I look at it and I think <em>I know what that feels like.</em></p>\n<p>No, I don&#8217;t know what it feels like to be the stars of the Presidential Inaugural Day Parade, or to have thousands upon thousands of adoring fans clapping and yelling and even crying as I walk by.</p>\n<p><strong>But I <em>do</em> know what it feels like to hold the hand of someone I love—to feel that reassuring pressure that says you&#8217;re all right, everything&#8217;s all right, we&#8217;re in this together.</strong> I know what it feels like to be so in love that you need to be physically connected; and then even after you are, it doesn&#8217;t quite express how you feel, so you hug the arm of the hand your holding, too.</p>\n<h4>Mission #1: Converting my man to a hand-holder</h4>\n<p>When Jason and I met, he actually had an aversion to holding hands. Let me be clear: Jason is the warmest, most affectionate husband and father around. Remember, he came from the womb of the longest-hugging-mother ever. (You can <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=225" >read about her here</a>.)</p>\n<p><span id="more-231"></span></p>\n<p>There was something about hand-holding in public, though, that felt uncomfortable to him. It seems to stem from the fact that the woman he dated for a few years before meeting me was anti-hand-holding, in a big way. He was conditioned to think it was silly, so I&#8217;ve had to gradually reverse those effects.</p>\n<p><strong>Like the best minor relationship struggles, our hand-holding issue became an inside joke for us. </strong>Once, early in our relationship, when Jason was trying to explain how he felt about hand-holding, he said it would be different if we were traveling and didn&#8217;t know anyone. &#8220;I&#8217;d be happy to hold your hand in Manhattan,&#8221; he explained. (As he recalls, my dry response was &#8220;Don&#8217;t do me any favors.&#8221;)</p>\n<p>Now Jason is mostly over this problem, but we&#8217;re still sharing a secret, in a small way, when we hold hands. That&#8217;s why it was extra funny that we ended up holding hands on the local news last week. We actually grabbed hands and started rather exuberantly swinging our arms when we noticed the camera, not thinking the clip would actually be used.</p>\n<p><em>(It&#8217;s really not worth watching, but if you must, you can check out <a href="http://www.wicd15.com/newsroom/top_stories/videos/wicd_vid_44.shtml" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.wicd15.com'');">this clip</a>. We&#8217;re crossing the street together, about halfway through, and then I&#8217;m interviewed about how cool it is that our town is getting Zipcars.)</em></p>\n<p>It&#8217;s not like we hold hands all the time when we walk. Usually, we don&#8217;t. And, in general, I&#8217;m not a huge fan of public displays of affection. There are certain forms that are clearly over the top.</p>\n<p>It never seems to fail, when I&#8217;m working on my computer at a cafe, that some long-lost pair of lovers (who in reality have probably been apart for all of three or four hours) is reunited, mere inches from my elbow. I live in a hormone-raging university town. This kind of thing happens a lot.</p>\n<p>But there&#8217;s definitely something special about hand-holding.</p>\n<h4>Remembering what it&#8217;s like to be a child</h4>\n<p>When I look at the picture of Michelle and Barack, and I think about my own strong desire, at certain moments, to hold my husband&#8217;s hand, it makes me wonder what exactly is at the heart of that impulse.</p>\n<p>As is often the case, my children trigger the light bulb in my mind and point me to the truth.</p>\n<p><strong>We never forget, it seems, what it was like to feel small and lost in such a big, confusing world. We never lose that deep urge to feel physically connected to someone who loves and accepts us, and is looking out for our best interests.</strong></p>\n<p>It&#8217;s something we never grow out of, even as we grow up, and maybe grow out of hand-holding for a while, then begin to see it as a romantic expression. I think as adults, every time we hold a hand we&#8217;re brought back to that same emotional place.</p>\n<p>This tweet, which I wrote at 3:15 p.m. on January 16, after walking my girls home from school, seems the perfect closing image:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">my kids are growing up so fast. I&#8217;m very glad to at least have one who still automatically reaches for my hand when we walk together.</span></em></p>\n";}i:2;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:42:"Why I couldn’t be alone inauguration day";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=229";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=229#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 20 Jan 2009 23:04:00 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:101:"Culture, ideas &amp; paradigmsaloneBarack Obamaexhaleextrovertfreelancegatherinaugurationpanictwitter";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=229";s:11:"description";s:350:"\nPhoto by calculat0r\nI was really surprised to realize, at about 10 this morning, that I couldn&#8217;t bear to be alone today.\nI&#8217;ve written about being alone before. I&#8217;m an extrovert who has gotten pretty good at being alone these last several years. First I took the plunge into freelance writing, which meant working every day in [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:5159:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/3213300392_bb2911064e.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-230" title="3213300392_bb2911064e" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/3213300392_bb2911064e.jpg" alt="" width="349" height="466" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 210px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/calculat0r/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">calculat0r</a></h5>\n<p>I was really surprised to realize, at about 10 this morning, that I couldn&#8217;t bear to be alone today.</p>\n<p>I&#8217;ve written about being alone before. I&#8217;m an extrovert who has gotten pretty good at being alone these last several years. First I took the plunge into freelance writing, which meant working every day in isolation, away from the office interactions I was used to. Then I became a single mom, which translated to many evenings at home alone, after my girls were tucked in.</p>\n<p>This morning, I was happy to send the girls off to school (for the first time since last Wednesday, I might add, to give you a sense of just <em>how</em> happy I was). After I kissed Jason goodbye, I was perfectly content to settle down at my computer in the sunny dining room, with the radio tuned to NPR so I could follow the inauguration happenings while I worked.</p>\n<p>At about 8:30, I Tweeted this (<a href="http://twitter.com/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/twitter.com'');">what&#8217;s a tweet</a>, you ask?):</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">feeling SO good. the girls are in school for the 1st time since last Wed., the sun is shining, and what&#8217;s-his-name is on his way out.</span></em></p>\n<p>Not surprisingly, it&#8217;s right when you think you have something <em>down</em> that you&#8217;re thrown off. For some reason, it didn&#8217;t occur to me that I wouldn&#8217;t want—no, wouldn&#8217;t be <em>able</em>—to experience the inauguration festivities alone.</p>\n<h4>Panic sets in</h4>\n<p>As I listened to the reporters do their play-by-play I got restless. And fidgety. To be honest, I almost panicked, as I realized that I. Could. Not. Witness. This. Historic. Moment. Alone. Period.</p>\n<p>Especially without a TV (I&#8217;ll explain that some other time).</p>\n<p>At approximately 10:30 CST, I Tweeted this:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">I feel so excited and antsy and far too alone. this is when working at home sucks. have to go find someplace with people. and a TV. </span></em></p>\n<p><span class="entry-content">And then, a few minutes later, this:</span><em><span class="entry-content"> </span></em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">OK. can&#8217;t be alone any more. J just called&#8211;I&#8217;m getting in the car now to meet him so we can experience this together.</span></em></p>\n<p>As I raced across town (where I live, &#8220;across town&#8221; translates to about an eight-minute drive) I listened to Rick Warren&#8217;s invocation in the car. He was reciting the Lord&#8217;s Prayer as I tried to refrain from muttering obscenities under my breath about the driver in front of me.</p>\n<p><span id="more-229"></span></p>\n<p>As I parked, I heard Joe Biden being sworn in. I walked into our friend&#8217;s living room, where Jason was waiting, just in time to hear Aretha Franklin sing America the Beautiful, as only she could, wearing a hat only she could pull off.</p>\n<p>I sat next to Jason and gripped his hand as we listened to Obama take his oath and give his speech.</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">finally with people and a TV, feeling overwhelmingly full, tingly, awe-struck. it&#8217;s done. unbelievable. no words.</span></em></p>\n<p><span class="entry-content">Well, no words except these, that suddenly crossed my mind as Bush and Cheney left the scene: </span></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span class="entry-content"><em>that big wind you just felt? that was the world exhaling.</em></span></p>\n<h4>The collective exhale</h4>\n<p>There were so many reasons, in that moment, to exhale. Not just to exhale, but to exhale together, in unison. As Obama said in his inaugural speech:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.</em></p>\n<p><em>We gather.</em> Yes. The first, most important thing we must do, starting today, is gather together, or as Rev. Joseph Lowery said in his benediction, <em><span class="entry-content">to turn </span></em><span class="entry-content">to</span><em><span class="entry-content"> each other, not on each other. </span></em><span class="entry-content">Amen. So let it be.<br />\n</span></p>\n<h5>For more posts about the election of Barack Obama, see:</h5>\n<h5><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=133" >Old baggage and new beginnings on election eve</a></h5>\n<h5><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=135" >What will our kids remember about election day?</a></h5>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=229";}s:7:"summary";s:350:"\nPhoto by calculat0r\nI was really surprised to realize, at about 10 this morning, that I couldn&#8217;t bear to be alone today.\nI&#8217;ve written about being alone before. I&#8217;m an extrovert who has gotten pretty good at being alone these last several years. First I took the plunge into freelance writing, which meant working every day in [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:5159:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/3213300392_bb2911064e.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-230" title="3213300392_bb2911064e" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/3213300392_bb2911064e.jpg" alt="" width="349" height="466" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 210px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/calculat0r/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">calculat0r</a></h5>\n<p>I was really surprised to realize, at about 10 this morning, that I couldn&#8217;t bear to be alone today.</p>\n<p>I&#8217;ve written about being alone before. I&#8217;m an extrovert who has gotten pretty good at being alone these last several years. First I took the plunge into freelance writing, which meant working every day in isolation, away from the office interactions I was used to. Then I became a single mom, which translated to many evenings at home alone, after my girls were tucked in.</p>\n<p>This morning, I was happy to send the girls off to school (for the first time since last Wednesday, I might add, to give you a sense of just <em>how</em> happy I was). After I kissed Jason goodbye, I was perfectly content to settle down at my computer in the sunny dining room, with the radio tuned to NPR so I could follow the inauguration happenings while I worked.</p>\n<p>At about 8:30, I Tweeted this (<a href="http://twitter.com/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/twitter.com'');">what&#8217;s a tweet</a>, you ask?):</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">feeling SO good. the girls are in school for the 1st time since last Wed., the sun is shining, and what&#8217;s-his-name is on his way out.</span></em></p>\n<p>Not surprisingly, it&#8217;s right when you think you have something <em>down</em> that you&#8217;re thrown off. For some reason, it didn&#8217;t occur to me that I wouldn&#8217;t want—no, wouldn&#8217;t be <em>able</em>—to experience the inauguration festivities alone.</p>\n<h4>Panic sets in</h4>\n<p>As I listened to the reporters do their play-by-play I got restless. And fidgety. To be honest, I almost panicked, as I realized that I. Could. Not. Witness. This. Historic. Moment. Alone. Period.</p>\n<p>Especially without a TV (I&#8217;ll explain that some other time).</p>\n<p>At approximately 10:30 CST, I Tweeted this:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">I feel so excited and antsy and far too alone. this is when working at home sucks. have to go find someplace with people. and a TV. </span></em></p>\n<p><span class="entry-content">And then, a few minutes later, this:</span><em><span class="entry-content"> </span></em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">OK. can&#8217;t be alone any more. J just called&#8211;I&#8217;m getting in the car now to meet him so we can experience this together.</span></em></p>\n<p>As I raced across town (where I live, &#8220;across town&#8221; translates to about an eight-minute drive) I listened to Rick Warren&#8217;s invocation in the car. He was reciting the Lord&#8217;s Prayer as I tried to refrain from muttering obscenities under my breath about the driver in front of me.</p>\n<p><span id="more-229"></span></p>\n<p>As I parked, I heard Joe Biden being sworn in. I walked into our friend&#8217;s living room, where Jason was waiting, just in time to hear Aretha Franklin sing America the Beautiful, as only she could, wearing a hat only she could pull off.</p>\n<p>I sat next to Jason and gripped his hand as we listened to Obama take his oath and give his speech.</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em><span class="entry-content">finally with people and a TV, feeling overwhelmingly full, tingly, awe-struck. it&#8217;s done. unbelievable. no words.</span></em></p>\n<p><span class="entry-content">Well, no words except these, that suddenly crossed my mind as Bush and Cheney left the scene: </span></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span class="entry-content"><em>that big wind you just felt? that was the world exhaling.</em></span></p>\n<h4>The collective exhale</h4>\n<p>There were so many reasons, in that moment, to exhale. Not just to exhale, but to exhale together, in unison. As Obama said in his inaugural speech:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.</em></p>\n<p><em>We gather.</em> Yes. The first, most important thing we must do, starting today, is gather together, or as Rev. Joseph Lowery said in his benediction, <em><span class="entry-content">to turn </span></em><span class="entry-content">to</span><em><span class="entry-content"> each other, not on each other. </span></em><span class="entry-content">Amen. So let it be.<br />\n</span></p>\n<h5>For more posts about the election of Barack Obama, see:</h5>\n<h5><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=133" >Old baggage and new beginnings on election eve</a></h5>\n<h5><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=135" >What will our kids remember about election day?</a></h5>\n";}i:3;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:40:"How Frankie Jean left Cali & became Mary";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=225";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=225#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:19:01 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:131:"Love, family &amp; communityacceptanceangrychicagofamilyfreedomHell''s Angelsinspirationmessymother-in-lawrebellionrunawayunexpected";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=225";s:11:"description";s:354:"\nPhoto by Clairity\nIf you&#8217;ve spent much time here, you&#8217;ve probably noticed that this blog is basically a laundry list of things I didn&#8217;t expect in my life. Luckily all of those things are woven with stories, which is probably what makes the blog worth reading.\nAnyway, here&#8217;s something I must add to the list: I didn&#8217;t [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:6388:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/119758983_f37608e4f5.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-226" title="119758983_f37608e4f5" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/119758983_f37608e4f5.jpg" alt="" width="396" height="376" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 270px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/clairity/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Clairity</a></h5>\n<p>If you&#8217;ve spent much time here, you&#8217;ve probably noticed that this blog is basically a laundry list of things I didn&#8217;t expect in my life. Luckily all of those things are woven with stories, which is probably what makes the blog worth reading.</p>\n<p>Anyway, here&#8217;s something I <em>must</em> add to the list: I didn&#8217;t expect to ever know a former teenage runaway who was eventually taken in by the Hell&#8217;s Angels. I <em>certainly</em> didn&#8217;t expect such a person to be my mother-in-law.</p>\n<p>See? I <em>told</em> you in my <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=223" >previous post </a>that my mother-in-law is one-of-a-kind. You thought I just meant she was a talented artist, or she baked amazing cakes, didn&#8217;t you? No, her story is a whole lot more interesting than that.</p>\n<h4>How a girl named Frankie Jean became Mary</h4>\n<p>I&#8217;ll kick the narrative off by saying that my mother-in-law was not given the name &#8220;Mary&#8221; by her parents, when she was born in Northern California in the 1950s. She was given the name Frankie Jean.</p>\n<p>I know—I would change that name as fast as I could, too. But Mary didn&#8217;t change it. The Hell&#8217;s Angels gave her the name Mary when they took her under their wing (nice eh? Angels and wings). They also got her a new social security card, and she&#8217;s been Mary ever since.</p>\n<p>Mary had good reason to persist in her efforts to run away from home. She tried several times before she finally succeeded. She is nothing if not determined.</p>\n<p>Eventually, she arrived in Chicago and decided to stay awhile. She was spare changing on the street when she met Tim, my father-in-law. He was handing out fliers to an event organized by <a href="http://www.areachicago.org/p/issues/6808/rising-angry/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.areachicago.org'');">Rising Up Angry</a>. I don&#8217;t know if Mary thought Tim looked extra fine, or if she just knew she was angry and might as well meet some other angry people. Whatever the inspiration, she went to the event, saw Tim there, and the rest is history, as they say.</p>\n<p><span id="more-225"></span></p>\n<h4>My husband: a product of sweet rebellion</h4>\n<p>Tim has an interesting story in his own right. He grew up in one of Chicago&#8217;s most affluent north suburbs, and went to what&#8217;s still considered one of the best public high schools in the country. About a month before he graduated in 1970, the Kent State shootings happened, and Tim dropped out of school. He couldn&#8217;t see the point of having a degree when everything seemed to be falling apart.</p>\n<p>In some ways, I&#8217;m sure that hooking up with a spare-changing runaway was the perfect frosting for Tim&#8217;s rebellion cake, but he and Mary are still married, so there was clearly more than rebellion at work.</p>\n<p>Mary&#8217;s life certainly improved after meeting Tim, but it was never easy-breezy, to say the least. They had very little money, even though they had a variety of jobs and Mary made some money arm wrestling in bars (true story).</p>\n<p>While Mary&#8217;s body struggled with alcohol and drugs, her heart and mind struggled to reconcile a lot that had happened in her past. She had a baby back in California to retrieve, along with family she had to deal with. Then in 1975, she had another baby—my husband, Jason. Mary and Tim eventually got married, and later had Jason&#8217;s sister.</p>\n<p>When Jason was in elementary school, Mary began working on the futures floor of the commodities market in Chicago, eventually working her way up into a career she&#8217;s had ever since. When Jason was 10, his parents were able to move their family out of a moderately dangerous Chicago neighborhood to a modest South Evanston neighborhood with good public schools. They started going to an Episcopal church, too, and Mary hasn&#8217;t had a drink for more than 20 years.</p>\n<h4>Just what I needed</h4>\n<p>Clearly, I don&#8217;t need to explain why I decided to tell Mary&#8217;s story. It has all the elements of a great story.</p>\n<p>But it also intersects with my own story in important ways. I&#8217;m not just talking about the fact that Mary and Tim made this baby who seems to have been put on this earth just for me to spend my life with.</p>\n<p>In the years leading up to <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=6" >when I met Jason</a>, in 2005, I was feeling really crappy about myself and my life. Part of me was wanting desperately to be the person everyone seemed to <em>think</em> I was: happy, put together, lucky, and just plain <em>good</em>. Another, even bigger part of me was dying to make peace with who I really was, while worrying, deep down, whether that kind of person could be loved by the people I wanted love from.</p>\n<p>So can you imagine what it felt like to meet Jason, and the wonderfully loving, fun, and messed up family he came from?</p>\n<p>It felt like love and complete acceptance. It felt like freedom—like nothing I could say or do, let alone anything I had ever done, could shock or upset them.</p>\n<p>It also made me really believe something I was just beginning to grasp: that the difficult messes we face ultimately save us, in the end. They save us from being oppressed and silent. They save us from being mediocre and false. They save us from staying where we are simply out of fear, or lack of inspiration.</p>\n<p>Which, of course, is why we have to keep telling our stories.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/p1010446.jpg" ><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-228" title="mary" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/p1010446-300x225.jpg" alt="My wonderful mother-in-law, Mary" width="300" height="225" /></a></p>\n<h5>My wonderful mother-in-law, Mary</h5>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=225";}s:7:"summary";s:354:"\nPhoto by Clairity\nIf you&#8217;ve spent much time here, you&#8217;ve probably noticed that this blog is basically a laundry list of things I didn&#8217;t expect in my life. Luckily all of those things are woven with stories, which is probably what makes the blog worth reading.\nAnyway, here&#8217;s something I must add to the list: I didn&#8217;t [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:6388:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/119758983_f37608e4f5.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-226" title="119758983_f37608e4f5" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/119758983_f37608e4f5.jpg" alt="" width="396" height="376" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 270px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/clairity/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Clairity</a></h5>\n<p>If you&#8217;ve spent much time here, you&#8217;ve probably noticed that this blog is basically a laundry list of things I didn&#8217;t expect in my life. Luckily all of those things are woven with stories, which is probably what makes the blog worth reading.</p>\n<p>Anyway, here&#8217;s something I <em>must</em> add to the list: I didn&#8217;t expect to ever know a former teenage runaway who was eventually taken in by the Hell&#8217;s Angels. I <em>certainly</em> didn&#8217;t expect such a person to be my mother-in-law.</p>\n<p>See? I <em>told</em> you in my <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=223" >previous post </a>that my mother-in-law is one-of-a-kind. You thought I just meant she was a talented artist, or she baked amazing cakes, didn&#8217;t you? No, her story is a whole lot more interesting than that.</p>\n<h4>How a girl named Frankie Jean became Mary</h4>\n<p>I&#8217;ll kick the narrative off by saying that my mother-in-law was not given the name &#8220;Mary&#8221; by her parents, when she was born in Northern California in the 1950s. She was given the name Frankie Jean.</p>\n<p>I know—I would change that name as fast as I could, too. But Mary didn&#8217;t change it. The Hell&#8217;s Angels gave her the name Mary when they took her under their wing (nice eh? Angels and wings). They also got her a new social security card, and she&#8217;s been Mary ever since.</p>\n<p>Mary had good reason to persist in her efforts to run away from home. She tried several times before she finally succeeded. She is nothing if not determined.</p>\n<p>Eventually, she arrived in Chicago and decided to stay awhile. She was spare changing on the street when she met Tim, my father-in-law. He was handing out fliers to an event organized by <a href="http://www.areachicago.org/p/issues/6808/rising-angry/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.areachicago.org'');">Rising Up Angry</a>. I don&#8217;t know if Mary thought Tim looked extra fine, or if she just knew she was angry and might as well meet some other angry people. Whatever the inspiration, she went to the event, saw Tim there, and the rest is history, as they say.</p>\n<p><span id="more-225"></span></p>\n<h4>My husband: a product of sweet rebellion</h4>\n<p>Tim has an interesting story in his own right. He grew up in one of Chicago&#8217;s most affluent north suburbs, and went to what&#8217;s still considered one of the best public high schools in the country. About a month before he graduated in 1970, the Kent State shootings happened, and Tim dropped out of school. He couldn&#8217;t see the point of having a degree when everything seemed to be falling apart.</p>\n<p>In some ways, I&#8217;m sure that hooking up with a spare-changing runaway was the perfect frosting for Tim&#8217;s rebellion cake, but he and Mary are still married, so there was clearly more than rebellion at work.</p>\n<p>Mary&#8217;s life certainly improved after meeting Tim, but it was never easy-breezy, to say the least. They had very little money, even though they had a variety of jobs and Mary made some money arm wrestling in bars (true story).</p>\n<p>While Mary&#8217;s body struggled with alcohol and drugs, her heart and mind struggled to reconcile a lot that had happened in her past. She had a baby back in California to retrieve, along with family she had to deal with. Then in 1975, she had another baby—my husband, Jason. Mary and Tim eventually got married, and later had Jason&#8217;s sister.</p>\n<p>When Jason was in elementary school, Mary began working on the futures floor of the commodities market in Chicago, eventually working her way up into a career she&#8217;s had ever since. When Jason was 10, his parents were able to move their family out of a moderately dangerous Chicago neighborhood to a modest South Evanston neighborhood with good public schools. They started going to an Episcopal church, too, and Mary hasn&#8217;t had a drink for more than 20 years.</p>\n<h4>Just what I needed</h4>\n<p>Clearly, I don&#8217;t need to explain why I decided to tell Mary&#8217;s story. It has all the elements of a great story.</p>\n<p>But it also intersects with my own story in important ways. I&#8217;m not just talking about the fact that Mary and Tim made this baby who seems to have been put on this earth just for me to spend my life with.</p>\n<p>In the years leading up to <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=6" >when I met Jason</a>, in 2005, I was feeling really crappy about myself and my life. Part of me was wanting desperately to be the person everyone seemed to <em>think</em> I was: happy, put together, lucky, and just plain <em>good</em>. Another, even bigger part of me was dying to make peace with who I really was, while worrying, deep down, whether that kind of person could be loved by the people I wanted love from.</p>\n<p>So can you imagine what it felt like to meet Jason, and the wonderfully loving, fun, and messed up family he came from?</p>\n<p>It felt like love and complete acceptance. It felt like freedom—like nothing I could say or do, let alone anything I had ever done, could shock or upset them.</p>\n<p>It also made me really believe something I was just beginning to grasp: that the difficult messes we face ultimately save us, in the end. They save us from being oppressed and silent. They save us from being mediocre and false. They save us from staying where we are simply out of fear, or lack of inspiration.</p>\n<p>Which, of course, is why we have to keep telling our stories.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/p1010446.jpg" ><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-228" title="mary" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/p1010446-300x225.jpg" alt="My wonderful mother-in-law, Mary" width="300" height="225" /></a></p>\n<h5>My wonderful mother-in-law, Mary</h5>\n";}i:4;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:30:"MIL stereotypes seem to be MIA";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=223";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=223#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sat, 17 Jan 2009 21:07:00 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:117:"Love, family &amp; communityconsequencesdivorcefamilyhugsmashupmother-in-lawnosystereotypessurveytwitterunconditional";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=223";s:11:"description";s:385:"\nPhoto by Smabs Sputzer\nDoes anyone know where the conglomerate of mother-in-law stereotypes comes from? Like was there some movie or TV show with a certain type of mother-in-law—the bossy, nosy, demanding, tiring type—and it was funny so it stuck?\nOr is there really some complex chemistry inherent in our relationships with our mother-in-laws? It&#8217;s probably something [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:5190:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2751237878_66d6a13c44.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-224" title="2751237878_66d6a13c44" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2751237878_66d6a13c44.jpg" alt="" width="453" height="328" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 300px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/10413717@N08/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Smabs Sputzer</a></h5>\n<p>Does anyone know where the conglomerate of mother-in-law stereotypes comes from? Like was there some movie or TV show with a certain type of mother-in-law—the bossy, nosy, demanding, tiring type—and it was funny so it stuck?</p>\n<p>Or is there really some complex chemistry inherent in our relationships with our mother-in-laws? It&#8217;s probably something Freud could explain. I&#8217;m going to email my friend Nathan, who’s a grad student in clinical psych, and find out.</p>\n<p>But in the meantime, I&#8217;m also conducting a highly scientific survey about mothers-in-law on <a href="https://twitter.com/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/twitter.com'');">Twitter</a> (although I’m pretty sure Nathan won’t approve of my methods, which is why he’s a psych grad student and I’m not).</p>\n<h4>The results are in: Most people <em>really like</em> their MILs</h4>\n<p>Here&#8217;s how a handful of people on Twitter responded to my request &#8220;<span class="entry-content">I need some quick help for a blog post on mother-in-laws. what are the stereotypical adjectives/images that come to mind? are they true 4 u?&#8221;</span></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@wisekaren: <em>My MIL is awesome. She and I are like 2 peas in a pod! I always say Andy married his mom. ;-)</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@jenluit: <em>my mil died three years ago. she was many things, but not stereotypical. She was brazen, funny, sad, loving, and super duper talented.</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span id="more-223"></span></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@Mrs_PJs: <em>I think nosy is a stereotype. I have to be careful what I tell mine (who I ADORE) b/c she tends to spread news quickly.</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@mksteele: <em>my friend&#8217;s mother in law is the spitting image of marie barone from everybody loves raymond. critical, passive aggressive, nosey</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em>@rharlow: <em>sorry, I&#8217;m in the LOVE category. quick question&#8230; were all you &#8220;love&#8221; responses from guys? I have a hunch they were.</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@Wordydiva: <em>I puffy heart my MIL&#8230; with glitter. I know this is not the case for all.</em></p>\n<p>Either no one on Twitter dared say anything negative about their own mother-in-law, or the whole mother-in-law schtick doesn’t hold water.</p>\n<h4>What makes <em>me</em> a MIL expert, you ask?</h4>\n<p>It doesn&#8217;t hold water for me, and I&#8217;m sort of a mother-in-law expert (only by virtue of having had first-hand experiences with <em>two</em> MILs, as opposed to one or none).</p>\n<p>There are many consequences of getting divorced and remarried that you never think of when you’re in the heart of the drama. You’re focused on dividing books and art and your best pans and knives, and worried about money and your kids, and how everyone’s going to hold up through it all.</p>\n<p><strong>You don’t sit around and ponder what it will be like to lose a whole family. At least I didn&#8217;t. You certainly don&#8217;t let your mind wander down the road far enough to imagine gaining a whole new family,</strong> like I eventually did when Jason and I got married in 2007.</p>\n<p>I&#8217;m thinking about all of this, because this weekend we’re heading up to Chicago to see all of Jason&#8217;s family—parents, siblings, an aunt and uncle, cousins, and even dogs (dogs-in-law?). Even though these in-laws have only technically been &#8220;mine&#8221; for about a year and a half, it seems like they&#8217;ve been my family for much longer (in a good way).</p>\n<p>My father-in-law is almost a mashup of my own wonderful mom and dad. It&#8217;s a really bizarre and comforting sensation. Sometimes it makes me feel <em>a bit too much</em> like Jason and I grew up in the same house. Eeww.</p>\n<p><strong>But then there&#8217;s my mother-in-law to remind me that Jason and I did <em>not</em>, in fact, share the same childhood. </strong>Mary feels like someone I&#8217;ve <em>never</em> known in all my life. Not even in another life.</p>\n<p>Mary is a one-of-a-kind, in all the best ways. She surprises me, inspires me, and makes me look at life from completely different angles. Her laugh is joyful, and she laughs freely at herself, which is far too rare a skill. Mary also gives the longest hugs I’ve ever been on the receiving end of, and she generally has a way of exuding unconditional love.</p>\n<p>Some day I want to write her whole life story, but for now I&#8217;m going to ask her if I can share some highlights of her story here, next week. Stay tuned.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=223";}s:7:"summary";s:385:"\nPhoto by Smabs Sputzer\nDoes anyone know where the conglomerate of mother-in-law stereotypes comes from? Like was there some movie or TV show with a certain type of mother-in-law—the bossy, nosy, demanding, tiring type—and it was funny so it stuck?\nOr is there really some complex chemistry inherent in our relationships with our mother-in-laws? It&#8217;s probably something [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:5190:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2751237878_66d6a13c44.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-224" title="2751237878_66d6a13c44" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2751237878_66d6a13c44.jpg" alt="" width="453" height="328" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 300px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/10413717@N08/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Smabs Sputzer</a></h5>\n<p>Does anyone know where the conglomerate of mother-in-law stereotypes comes from? Like was there some movie or TV show with a certain type of mother-in-law—the bossy, nosy, demanding, tiring type—and it was funny so it stuck?</p>\n<p>Or is there really some complex chemistry inherent in our relationships with our mother-in-laws? It&#8217;s probably something Freud could explain. I&#8217;m going to email my friend Nathan, who’s a grad student in clinical psych, and find out.</p>\n<p>But in the meantime, I&#8217;m also conducting a highly scientific survey about mothers-in-law on <a href="https://twitter.com/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/twitter.com'');">Twitter</a> (although I’m pretty sure Nathan won’t approve of my methods, which is why he’s a psych grad student and I’m not).</p>\n<h4>The results are in: Most people <em>really like</em> their MILs</h4>\n<p>Here&#8217;s how a handful of people on Twitter responded to my request &#8220;<span class="entry-content">I need some quick help for a blog post on mother-in-laws. what are the stereotypical adjectives/images that come to mind? are they true 4 u?&#8221;</span></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@wisekaren: <em>My MIL is awesome. She and I are like 2 peas in a pod! I always say Andy married his mom. ;-)</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@jenluit: <em>my mil died three years ago. she was many things, but not stereotypical. She was brazen, funny, sad, loving, and super duper talented.</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span id="more-223"></span></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@Mrs_PJs: <em>I think nosy is a stereotype. I have to be careful what I tell mine (who I ADORE) b/c she tends to spread news quickly.</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@mksteele: <em>my friend&#8217;s mother in law is the spitting image of marie barone from everybody loves raymond. critical, passive aggressive, nosey</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em></em>@rharlow: <em>sorry, I&#8217;m in the LOVE category. quick question&#8230; were all you &#8220;love&#8221; responses from guys? I have a hunch they were.</em></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">@Wordydiva: <em>I puffy heart my MIL&#8230; with glitter. I know this is not the case for all.</em></p>\n<p>Either no one on Twitter dared say anything negative about their own mother-in-law, or the whole mother-in-law schtick doesn’t hold water.</p>\n<h4>What makes <em>me</em> a MIL expert, you ask?</h4>\n<p>It doesn&#8217;t hold water for me, and I&#8217;m sort of a mother-in-law expert (only by virtue of having had first-hand experiences with <em>two</em> MILs, as opposed to one or none).</p>\n<p>There are many consequences of getting divorced and remarried that you never think of when you’re in the heart of the drama. You’re focused on dividing books and art and your best pans and knives, and worried about money and your kids, and how everyone’s going to hold up through it all.</p>\n<p><strong>You don’t sit around and ponder what it will be like to lose a whole family. At least I didn&#8217;t. You certainly don&#8217;t let your mind wander down the road far enough to imagine gaining a whole new family,</strong> like I eventually did when Jason and I got married in 2007.</p>\n<p>I&#8217;m thinking about all of this, because this weekend we’re heading up to Chicago to see all of Jason&#8217;s family—parents, siblings, an aunt and uncle, cousins, and even dogs (dogs-in-law?). Even though these in-laws have only technically been &#8220;mine&#8221; for about a year and a half, it seems like they&#8217;ve been my family for much longer (in a good way).</p>\n<p>My father-in-law is almost a mashup of my own wonderful mom and dad. It&#8217;s a really bizarre and comforting sensation. Sometimes it makes me feel <em>a bit too much</em> like Jason and I grew up in the same house. Eeww.</p>\n<p><strong>But then there&#8217;s my mother-in-law to remind me that Jason and I did <em>not</em>, in fact, share the same childhood. </strong>Mary feels like someone I&#8217;ve <em>never</em> known in all my life. Not even in another life.</p>\n<p>Mary is a one-of-a-kind, in all the best ways. She surprises me, inspires me, and makes me look at life from completely different angles. Her laugh is joyful, and she laughs freely at herself, which is far too rare a skill. Mary also gives the longest hugs I’ve ever been on the receiving end of, and she generally has a way of exuding unconditional love.</p>\n<p>Some day I want to write her whole life story, but for now I&#8217;m going to ask her if I can share some highlights of her story here, next week. Stay tuned.</p>\n";}i:5;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:36:"Eeking some magic out of a milestone";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=221";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=221#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Fri, 16 Jan 2009 01:28:08 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:105:"Culture, ideas &amp; paradigms100benchmarksblogcelebrationcommunitydoubtfanfaregrownupmilestonevulnerable";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=221";s:11:"description";s:296:"\nPhoto by John Spooner\nDo you remember when you were, oh, maybe 12 or 14, and you honestly thought you&#8217;d be a true grown up when you were 19?\nAnd then how at 19 you thought you&#8217;d be a bona fide adult when you were 25?\nBut then, at 25, maybe you felt annoyed when you were carded [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:6964:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2173368376_122a67fe20.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-222" title="2173368376_122a67fe20" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2173368376_122a67fe20.jpg" alt="" width="451" height="338" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 300px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/johnspooner/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">John Spooner</a></h5>\n<p>Do you remember when you were, oh, maybe 12 or 14, and you honestly thought you&#8217;d be a true grown up when you were 19?</p>\n<p>And then how at 19 you thought you&#8217;d be a bona fide adult when you were 25?</p>\n<p>But then, at 25, maybe you felt annoyed when you were carded at a bar, and when it seemed like you weren&#8217;t taken seriously by the man at the car dealership, or by a senior colleague at the office.</p>\n<p><strong>Often, when we finally reach those benchmarks we&#8217;ve been anticipating, we find they&#8217;re nothing like we imagined.</strong></p>\n<p>When it comes to getting older, we&#8217;re not nearly as wise and balanced as we thought we&#8217;d be by a certain age—in many ways we still feel like our teenage selves, just in more tired bodies, and with some surprise grey hair.</p>\n<p>When it comes to fitness, we might be able to run the distance we set as our original goal, but our bodies don&#8217;t look and feel like we imagined they would by then. And when we finally get a job with the salary we used to dream of, we still feel more financially strapped and stressed than we thought we would.</p>\n<h4>The magic number, minus the magic</h4>\n<p>This is my 100th published post here on Halfway to Normal. Almost exactly six months ago, when I resuscitated my blog after a several-month hiatus, I wrote my 32nd post. I didn&#8217;t know where this adventure would take me, I only knew I had stories to tell, so I had to give it a try and find out.</p>\n<p><span id="more-221"></span></p>\n<p>At that point, if I had paused to think ahead to my 100th post (which I didn&#8217;t, but I can pretend), I would have been in awe at the thought of it. I would inevitably know <em>so much</em> about blogging by then.</p>\n<p>By post 100, the whole process would be natural and seamless, right? I&#8217;d simply sit down four times a week to write my little observations and tell my little stories. I&#8217;d write quickly and efficiently, of course, baring my soul without a second thought, then clicking the &#8220;publish&#8221; button to send my thoughts out into the world.</p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s the reality (you can guess where this is going, I bet): Even though I <em>have</em> learned a lot about blogging and the so-called blogesphere—I&#8217;m not nearly as lost as I was—I still feel very much like a toddler. Maybe the more accurate analogy is that I feel like a teenager in a very foreign culture. Set loose with just a rudimentary language phrase book, no map and some spare change.</p>\n<p>At post 100, I still don&#8217;t have a blog roll published, to share with the rest of you links to the blogs I like to read. I still can&#8217;t figure out how to get the header next to my rss feed button (the orange one that lets you subscribe to my blog) to work like it should. Which reminds me, I have <em>no idea</em> how to find out how many people have even subscribed to my blog, if they were determined enough to find the right button in the first place.</p>\n<p>So I&#8217;m not tech savvy. But even when it comes to the actual writing, I&#8217;m still brimming with self-doubt every time I hit &#8220;publish&#8221; on a post that I think might be too sentimental, too &#8220;religious,&#8221; too vulnerable, or simply <em>too something</em>. And I still put far too much weight on reader comments and statistics, as I try to figure out what people like and don&#8217;t like.</p>\n<p>In other words, I thought I&#8217;d be at a very different place by the time I reached this moment.</p>\n<h4>Celebrate, even if the occasion isn&#8217;t quite what you imagined</h4>\n<p>I also thought I&#8217;d be all excited to do something fun and celebratory, like a big birthday bash, or a giveaway. (I guess other bloggers sometimes do these sorts of things when they hit this landmark.) I remember reading <a href="http://writerdad.com/blogging/happy-100/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/writerdad.com'');">the Happy 100 post</a> at <a href="http://writerdad.com/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/writerdad.com'');">Writer Dad</a>, a blog I really like. He posted a picture of balloons and asked people to leave comments sharing what they like about his blog, or what they think he could do better. I thought it was a great idea and even told him I might copy him when my big day came.</p>\n<p>Now that I&#8217;m here, it&#8217;s really tempting to just let the moment pass by without mention or fanfare, like someone who doesn&#8217;t tell anyone its his 40th birthday.</p>\n<p>But then, I realized that would be a bit like turning 21 and buying a bottle of wine to drink all alone. Even if 21 isn&#8217;t all that you imagined it might be, it&#8217;s still a milestone. There are still people around you, who care about you and feel like the moment is worth celebrating.</p>\n<p>And there&#8217;s lots to celebrate.<strong> Perhaps the most amazing thing about this moment, for me, involves thinking about all of you—the readers who one way or another found Halfway to Normal and continued coming back. </strong></p>\n<p>Even though I recently wrote <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=211" >a post</a> about how numbers don&#8217;t always mean that much, reaching this 100-post mark made me curious to see how many people have left comments on my blog in the past six months. Eight-eight different people. <em>Eighty-eight!</em> And only one of them is my mom (although she is, probably, my biggest fan). Most of those 88 people have commented more than once, gradually becoming a part of my community, even if I&#8217;ve never met them in person.</p>\n<p>So <em>you</em> are the people I&#8217;m going to have this little celebration with, however humble it might be. It&#8217;s important to mark occasions with others. It makes us more deliberate about looking back at where we were, and feeling a sense of accomplishment.</p>\n<p>Marking a milestone, much like the start of a new year, also gets us looking ahead to what&#8217;s next. And just today, &#8220;what&#8217;s next&#8221; for Halfway to Normal pretty much knocked on my virtual door, in the form of a talented blog designer with lots of skills and good ideas. Essentially, I&#8217;m going to mark this milestone by getting myself a present.</p>\n<p>I can&#8217;t think of a more fitting way to celebrate, and I can&#8217;t wait for you to be able to enjoy the results with me.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=221";}s:7:"summary";s:296:"\nPhoto by John Spooner\nDo you remember when you were, oh, maybe 12 or 14, and you honestly thought you&#8217;d be a true grown up when you were 19?\nAnd then how at 19 you thought you&#8217;d be a bona fide adult when you were 25?\nBut then, at 25, maybe you felt annoyed when you were carded [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:6964:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2173368376_122a67fe20.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-222" title="2173368376_122a67fe20" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2173368376_122a67fe20.jpg" alt="" width="451" height="338" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 300px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/johnspooner/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">John Spooner</a></h5>\n<p>Do you remember when you were, oh, maybe 12 or 14, and you honestly thought you&#8217;d be a true grown up when you were 19?</p>\n<p>And then how at 19 you thought you&#8217;d be a bona fide adult when you were 25?</p>\n<p>But then, at 25, maybe you felt annoyed when you were carded at a bar, and when it seemed like you weren&#8217;t taken seriously by the man at the car dealership, or by a senior colleague at the office.</p>\n<p><strong>Often, when we finally reach those benchmarks we&#8217;ve been anticipating, we find they&#8217;re nothing like we imagined.</strong></p>\n<p>When it comes to getting older, we&#8217;re not nearly as wise and balanced as we thought we&#8217;d be by a certain age—in many ways we still feel like our teenage selves, just in more tired bodies, and with some surprise grey hair.</p>\n<p>When it comes to fitness, we might be able to run the distance we set as our original goal, but our bodies don&#8217;t look and feel like we imagined they would by then. And when we finally get a job with the salary we used to dream of, we still feel more financially strapped and stressed than we thought we would.</p>\n<h4>The magic number, minus the magic</h4>\n<p>This is my 100th published post here on Halfway to Normal. Almost exactly six months ago, when I resuscitated my blog after a several-month hiatus, I wrote my 32nd post. I didn&#8217;t know where this adventure would take me, I only knew I had stories to tell, so I had to give it a try and find out.</p>\n<p><span id="more-221"></span></p>\n<p>At that point, if I had paused to think ahead to my 100th post (which I didn&#8217;t, but I can pretend), I would have been in awe at the thought of it. I would inevitably know <em>so much</em> about blogging by then.</p>\n<p>By post 100, the whole process would be natural and seamless, right? I&#8217;d simply sit down four times a week to write my little observations and tell my little stories. I&#8217;d write quickly and efficiently, of course, baring my soul without a second thought, then clicking the &#8220;publish&#8221; button to send my thoughts out into the world.</p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s the reality (you can guess where this is going, I bet): Even though I <em>have</em> learned a lot about blogging and the so-called blogesphere—I&#8217;m not nearly as lost as I was—I still feel very much like a toddler. Maybe the more accurate analogy is that I feel like a teenager in a very foreign culture. Set loose with just a rudimentary language phrase book, no map and some spare change.</p>\n<p>At post 100, I still don&#8217;t have a blog roll published, to share with the rest of you links to the blogs I like to read. I still can&#8217;t figure out how to get the header next to my rss feed button (the orange one that lets you subscribe to my blog) to work like it should. Which reminds me, I have <em>no idea</em> how to find out how many people have even subscribed to my blog, if they were determined enough to find the right button in the first place.</p>\n<p>So I&#8217;m not tech savvy. But even when it comes to the actual writing, I&#8217;m still brimming with self-doubt every time I hit &#8220;publish&#8221; on a post that I think might be too sentimental, too &#8220;religious,&#8221; too vulnerable, or simply <em>too something</em>. And I still put far too much weight on reader comments and statistics, as I try to figure out what people like and don&#8217;t like.</p>\n<p>In other words, I thought I&#8217;d be at a very different place by the time I reached this moment.</p>\n<h4>Celebrate, even if the occasion isn&#8217;t quite what you imagined</h4>\n<p>I also thought I&#8217;d be all excited to do something fun and celebratory, like a big birthday bash, or a giveaway. (I guess other bloggers sometimes do these sorts of things when they hit this landmark.) I remember reading <a href="http://writerdad.com/blogging/happy-100/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/writerdad.com'');">the Happy 100 post</a> at <a href="http://writerdad.com/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/writerdad.com'');">Writer Dad</a>, a blog I really like. He posted a picture of balloons and asked people to leave comments sharing what they like about his blog, or what they think he could do better. I thought it was a great idea and even told him I might copy him when my big day came.</p>\n<p>Now that I&#8217;m here, it&#8217;s really tempting to just let the moment pass by without mention or fanfare, like someone who doesn&#8217;t tell anyone its his 40th birthday.</p>\n<p>But then, I realized that would be a bit like turning 21 and buying a bottle of wine to drink all alone. Even if 21 isn&#8217;t all that you imagined it might be, it&#8217;s still a milestone. There are still people around you, who care about you and feel like the moment is worth celebrating.</p>\n<p>And there&#8217;s lots to celebrate.<strong> Perhaps the most amazing thing about this moment, for me, involves thinking about all of you—the readers who one way or another found Halfway to Normal and continued coming back. </strong></p>\n<p>Even though I recently wrote <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=211" >a post</a> about how numbers don&#8217;t always mean that much, reaching this 100-post mark made me curious to see how many people have left comments on my blog in the past six months. Eight-eight different people. <em>Eighty-eight!</em> And only one of them is my mom (although she is, probably, my biggest fan). Most of those 88 people have commented more than once, gradually becoming a part of my community, even if I&#8217;ve never met them in person.</p>\n<p>So <em>you</em> are the people I&#8217;m going to have this little celebration with, however humble it might be. It&#8217;s important to mark occasions with others. It makes us more deliberate about looking back at where we were, and feeling a sense of accomplishment.</p>\n<p>Marking a milestone, much like the start of a new year, also gets us looking ahead to what&#8217;s next. And just today, &#8220;what&#8217;s next&#8221; for Halfway to Normal pretty much knocked on my virtual door, in the form of a talented blog designer with lots of skills and good ideas. Essentially, I&#8217;m going to mark this milestone by getting myself a present.</p>\n<p>I can&#8217;t think of a more fitting way to celebrate, and I can&#8217;t wait for you to be able to enjoy the results with me.</p>\n";}i:6;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:38:"Sherpas, outdated technology and souls";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=219";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=219#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:10:29 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:77:"Belief, doubt &amp; hopechurchfrenzylistensherpaslowsoulwaitingword processor";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=219";s:11:"description";s:315:"\nPhoto by ilkerender\nThe other day I heard the phrase &#8220;Let your soul catch up with you&#8221; for the first time.\nYou know those moments when you see or hear or taste something for the first time, and you know right away it&#8217;s new and special? It was like that for me. &#8220;Let your soul catch up [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:5328:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2493920959_5fda2dbfb8.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-220" title="2493920959_5fda2dbfb8" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2493920959_5fda2dbfb8.jpg" alt="" width="333" height="500" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 210px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/ilker/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">ilkerender</a></h5>\n<p>The other day I heard the phrase <strong>&#8220;Let your soul catch up with you&#8221;</strong> for the first time.</p>\n<p>You know those moments when you see or hear or taste something for the first time, and you know right away it&#8217;s new and special? It was like that for me. &#8220;Let your soul catch up with you&#8221; resonated immediately, even before I had time to think about what it really meant or how it might translate in my life.</p>\n<p>I realize that this phrase has the potential to turn quickly cheesy. Imagine it, for instance, printed on an inspirational poster and hanging in the office of a Christian counselor, or as the title of a self-help book, written in an outdated font across a badly designed cover.</p>\n<p>But I heard the phrase in church, as spoken words coming out of the mouth of Jim, one of my favorite pastors. He was talking to us about listening to God—why it&#8217;s important, what keeps us from doing it, and how we can each find methods to help us to do it better in our own ways. <strong>I instantly realized that I am way too far out ahead of my soul, submerged deep in the white noise of life.</strong></p>\n<h4>Letting my words catch up with my ideas</h4>\n<p>The first image this phrase brought to me, strangely enough, was the sensation of working on those old word processor/typewriters of the late 80s and early 90s. Remember those? They looked like an electric typewriter but they had those little readout screens, and didn&#8217;t actually print out the section you had just typed until you hit return.</p>\n<p><span id="more-219"></span></p>\n<p>I have been an ultra-fast typist since taking typing class in high school (this seems like something random enough to safely boast about, right?). I distinctly remember working on those word processors, knowing exactly what I wanted to say, my fingers flying to keep up with my mind. And then I had to wait, as the words I had already typed eventually appeared on the little screen, waiting for them to catch up, like an echo of my thoughts.</p>\n<p><strong>Waiting was important—I didn&#8217;t want to get too far ahead of myself and end up making mistakes. </strong>The thoughts might take flight from my mind in an impressive fashion, but that didn&#8217;t mean they&#8217;d land properly or ring true once printed in black and white. When you hit return, after all, it was still ink on paper, just like a typewriter—making edits took some effort.</p>\n<p>So I waited for all of those ideas to catch up to me. I checked them against my heart and let them begin to settle in, before hitting return and picking up where I left off, ideas and fingers flying.</p>\n<p>At the time, I despised the word processor&#8217;s leisurely pace. I hated waiting, and felt sure that being held up in this fashion would set me back in some important way down the road.</p>\n<p>Now I can see that I&#8217;ve lost a lot of good along with whatever shreds of care and patience I had back then. Today, even a moderately slow computer or internet connection drives me batty. <strong>There are plenty of annoying interruptions in my day, but there isn&#8217;t anything forcing me to practice slowing down and waiting—not in my writing, and certainly not in my soul.</strong></p>\n<h4>Learning to be more like a sherpa than an old word processor</h4>\n<p>As Jim shared with us in his teaching Sunday, the phrase &#8220;Waiting for your soul to catch up&#8221; is actually rooted in Himalayan sherpas, not in outdated technology. (Isn&#8217;t it amazing how our minds naturally gravitate toward the analogies we can relate to?)</p>\n<p>The story is that sherpas, who spend a lot of time encouraging, pushing and pacing their climbers toward the summit, will suddenly stop climbing and put down their equipment, as if they&#8217;re waiting for something or someone.</p>\n<p>Not surprisingly, this seemingly random break is very disconcerting for many Westerners. When they ask why they&#8217;ve stopped climbing, the sherpas&#8217; reply is &#8220;We are waiting for our souls to catch up with our bodies.&#8221;</p>\n<p>I move too quickly. My thoughts fly and swirl, and I can generally relate to the word &#8220;frenzy&#8221; far more readily than to the word &#8220;calm.&#8221; I try to push through big ideas and major life changes in record pace; if they don&#8217;t resolve themselves quickly, my impulse is to simply abandon them and move on.</p>\n<p><strong>But I don&#8217;t want to get too far ahead of my soul, any more.</strong> I certainly don&#8217;t want to think of my soul as a clunky, antiquated, annoying old word processor that I&#8217;m forever waiting on.</p>\n<p>Instead, I want to be like the sherpa—to take in the view, to allow my racing mind and body to rest, and to respect the wise pace of my soul as it catches up.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=219";}s:7:"summary";s:315:"\nPhoto by ilkerender\nThe other day I heard the phrase &#8220;Let your soul catch up with you&#8221; for the first time.\nYou know those moments when you see or hear or taste something for the first time, and you know right away it&#8217;s new and special? It was like that for me. &#8220;Let your soul catch up [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:5328:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2493920959_5fda2dbfb8.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-220" title="2493920959_5fda2dbfb8" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2493920959_5fda2dbfb8.jpg" alt="" width="333" height="500" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 210px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/ilker/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">ilkerender</a></h5>\n<p>The other day I heard the phrase <strong>&#8220;Let your soul catch up with you&#8221;</strong> for the first time.</p>\n<p>You know those moments when you see or hear or taste something for the first time, and you know right away it&#8217;s new and special? It was like that for me. &#8220;Let your soul catch up with you&#8221; resonated immediately, even before I had time to think about what it really meant or how it might translate in my life.</p>\n<p>I realize that this phrase has the potential to turn quickly cheesy. Imagine it, for instance, printed on an inspirational poster and hanging in the office of a Christian counselor, or as the title of a self-help book, written in an outdated font across a badly designed cover.</p>\n<p>But I heard the phrase in church, as spoken words coming out of the mouth of Jim, one of my favorite pastors. He was talking to us about listening to God—why it&#8217;s important, what keeps us from doing it, and how we can each find methods to help us to do it better in our own ways. <strong>I instantly realized that I am way too far out ahead of my soul, submerged deep in the white noise of life.</strong></p>\n<h4>Letting my words catch up with my ideas</h4>\n<p>The first image this phrase brought to me, strangely enough, was the sensation of working on those old word processor/typewriters of the late 80s and early 90s. Remember those? They looked like an electric typewriter but they had those little readout screens, and didn&#8217;t actually print out the section you had just typed until you hit return.</p>\n<p><span id="more-219"></span></p>\n<p>I have been an ultra-fast typist since taking typing class in high school (this seems like something random enough to safely boast about, right?). I distinctly remember working on those word processors, knowing exactly what I wanted to say, my fingers flying to keep up with my mind. And then I had to wait, as the words I had already typed eventually appeared on the little screen, waiting for them to catch up, like an echo of my thoughts.</p>\n<p><strong>Waiting was important—I didn&#8217;t want to get too far ahead of myself and end up making mistakes. </strong>The thoughts might take flight from my mind in an impressive fashion, but that didn&#8217;t mean they&#8217;d land properly or ring true once printed in black and white. When you hit return, after all, it was still ink on paper, just like a typewriter—making edits took some effort.</p>\n<p>So I waited for all of those ideas to catch up to me. I checked them against my heart and let them begin to settle in, before hitting return and picking up where I left off, ideas and fingers flying.</p>\n<p>At the time, I despised the word processor&#8217;s leisurely pace. I hated waiting, and felt sure that being held up in this fashion would set me back in some important way down the road.</p>\n<p>Now I can see that I&#8217;ve lost a lot of good along with whatever shreds of care and patience I had back then. Today, even a moderately slow computer or internet connection drives me batty. <strong>There are plenty of annoying interruptions in my day, but there isn&#8217;t anything forcing me to practice slowing down and waiting—not in my writing, and certainly not in my soul.</strong></p>\n<h4>Learning to be more like a sherpa than an old word processor</h4>\n<p>As Jim shared with us in his teaching Sunday, the phrase &#8220;Waiting for your soul to catch up&#8221; is actually rooted in Himalayan sherpas, not in outdated technology. (Isn&#8217;t it amazing how our minds naturally gravitate toward the analogies we can relate to?)</p>\n<p>The story is that sherpas, who spend a lot of time encouraging, pushing and pacing their climbers toward the summit, will suddenly stop climbing and put down their equipment, as if they&#8217;re waiting for something or someone.</p>\n<p>Not surprisingly, this seemingly random break is very disconcerting for many Westerners. When they ask why they&#8217;ve stopped climbing, the sherpas&#8217; reply is &#8220;We are waiting for our souls to catch up with our bodies.&#8221;</p>\n<p>I move too quickly. My thoughts fly and swirl, and I can generally relate to the word &#8220;frenzy&#8221; far more readily than to the word &#8220;calm.&#8221; I try to push through big ideas and major life changes in record pace; if they don&#8217;t resolve themselves quickly, my impulse is to simply abandon them and move on.</p>\n<p><strong>But I don&#8217;t want to get too far ahead of my soul, any more.</strong> I certainly don&#8217;t want to think of my soul as a clunky, antiquated, annoying old word processor that I&#8217;m forever waiting on.</p>\n<p>Instead, I want to be like the sherpa—to take in the view, to allow my racing mind and body to rest, and to respect the wise pace of my soul as it catches up.</p>\n";}i:7;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:36:"Learning to call a mistake a mistake";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=215";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=215#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Mon, 12 Jan 2009 21:45:53 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:134:"Culture, ideas &amp; paradigmsadmitcarelessdefinitiondisappointmenterrorexpectationhumilitymediamistakesPresident Bushpress conference";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=215";s:11:"description";s:350:"\nPhoto by Charles Thompson\nThis morning, President Bush held what is most likely his last press conference of his presidency. As always, plenty of what came out of his mouth simultaneously maddened and mystified me. (For instance, when he said, &#8220;I never sold my soul for popularity.&#8221; That&#8217;s clear. Too bad he sold it for other [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:6020:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2585275184_e91b991fc1.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-216" title="2585275184_e91b991fc1" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2585275184_e91b991fc1.jpg" alt="" width="444" height="296" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 270px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/charlietphoto/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Charles Thompson</a></h5>\n<p>This morning, President Bush held what is most likely his last press conference of his presidency. As always, plenty of what came out of his mouth simultaneously maddened and mystified me. (For instance, when he said, &#8220;I never sold my soul for popularity.&#8221; That&#8217;s clear. Too bad he sold it for other reasons, like greed and revenge.)</p>\n<p>But what got me worked up more than anything else was his response to the question &#8220;What mistakes did you make in office?&#8221; Bush completely rephrased the question, substituting the word &#8220;disappointments&#8221; for &#8220;mistakes&#8221; in his response. Discovering there actually were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, for instance, was a &#8220;disappointment.&#8221;</p>\n<p><strong>Since when is &#8220;disappointment&#8221; a synonym for &#8220;mistake?&#8221;</strong></p>\n<p>Apparently since Bush claimed that it&#8217;s so, and the media blindly reported it that way. Most of today&#8217;s headlines on this matter say pretty much the same thing: <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090112/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_newser_mistakes" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/news.yahoo.com'');">&#8220;Bush cites mistakes, disappointments.&#8221;</a> The verb is just switched out from one headline to the next—some say &#8220;discusses,&#8221; some use &#8220;lists,&#8221; and I even saw a &#8220;concedes.&#8221; But always &#8220;mistakes, disappointments.&#8221; What&#8217;s with that comma?</p>\n<h4>Mistakenly using the wrong word has consequences</h4>\n<p>I totally get why an outgoing president would want to avoid talking about mistakes. George W. Bush isn&#8217;t the only outgoing president who has tried to sidestep the &#8220;mistake&#8221; question. (If anyone out there knows of an outgoing president who honestly owned up to mistakes and called them mistakes, please let me know who it was!)</p>\n<p>But when you look at the true definitions of those two words, and you look at some of the things that have come to pass under Bush&#8217;s leadership, his use of the word &#8220;disappointment&#8221; is offensive.</p>\n<p><span id="more-215"></span></p>\n<p>A <a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/mistake" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/dictionary.reference.com'');">&#8220;mistake&#8221; is defined as</a> &#8220;an error in action, calculation, opinion, or judgment caused by poor reasoning, carelessness, insufficient knowledge, etc.&#8221;</p>\n<p><a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/disappoint" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/dictionary.reference.com'');">&#8220;Disappoint&#8221; is defined as</a> &#8220;To fail to satisfy the hope, desire, or expectation of.&#8221; (And &#8220;disappointment&#8221; is simply &#8220;the state or feeling of being disappointed.&#8221;</p>\n<p>So I might be disappointed by the meal I ordered at my favorite restaurant, or by the customer service at a nice shoe store. But is it right to say the abuses at the Abu Graib prison were disappointing? Particularly if I was, at the time, the world&#8217;s most powerful person, with all the power necessary to put an end to those abuses?</p>\n<p>It&#8217;s true that the words &#8220;mistake&#8221; and &#8220;disappointment&#8221; can go hand in hand. I can make a mistake, which is generally thought of as an unintentional error, and can feel disappointed in myself and the results. But for me to focus immediately on my disappointment, skipping over the important process of admitting error and apologizing for it, is a dangerous, slippery slope.</p>\n<p><strong>I know, because I&#8217;m not very good at admitting my mistakes</strong>—my errors in judgment, my carelessness, my tendency to make hasty conclusions. Thank goodness I&#8217;m not the president of the United States!</p>\n<h4>Most of us could do better at admitting mistakes</h4>\n<p>I am a wife and mother and daughter and friend, though, so it&#8217;s important that I become better at this. Being able to say &#8220;I made a mistake, and I&#8217;m sorry about how it affected you&#8221; matters a lot to the people I care most about. It can also have a powerful ripple effect in my broader community. For starters, the more I learn to do this, the more likely my children will be to do the same in their lives, which will make it easier for their friends to follow suit.</p>\n<p>When it comes to so many of the people of the world who have real power—the CEOs and senators, and even the pastors and school principals—I&#8217;m saddened and frustrated by your lack of humility and strength, and in your failed leadership in this area. Yes, you&#8217;re human, just like all of us &#8220;normal&#8221; people sitting around me in the cafe as I write. And how do we so often define being &#8220;human?&#8221; That&#8217;s right: We say (perhaps too defensively) &#8220;I&#8217;m human, I make mistakes.&#8221;</p>\n<p>If the rest of us are saying we know you&#8217;re not perfect—it&#8217;s OK to <em>make</em> mistakes—why is it so hard for you powerful people to <em>admit</em> to those mistakes? And how different would the world be if you did?</p>\n<p>It might be a day of lasts for George W., but today marks a first for me: I&#8217;m actually going to thank our 43rd president for something—for making me think more carefully about the meaning of words, and for helping me see the importance of calling a mistake a mistake.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=215";}s:7:"summary";s:350:"\nPhoto by Charles Thompson\nThis morning, President Bush held what is most likely his last press conference of his presidency. As always, plenty of what came out of his mouth simultaneously maddened and mystified me. (For instance, when he said, &#8220;I never sold my soul for popularity.&#8221; That&#8217;s clear. Too bad he sold it for other [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:6020:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2585275184_e91b991fc1.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-216" title="2585275184_e91b991fc1" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/2585275184_e91b991fc1.jpg" alt="" width="444" height="296" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 270px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/charlietphoto/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Charles Thompson</a></h5>\n<p>This morning, President Bush held what is most likely his last press conference of his presidency. As always, plenty of what came out of his mouth simultaneously maddened and mystified me. (For instance, when he said, &#8220;I never sold my soul for popularity.&#8221; That&#8217;s clear. Too bad he sold it for other reasons, like greed and revenge.)</p>\n<p>But what got me worked up more than anything else was his response to the question &#8220;What mistakes did you make in office?&#8221; Bush completely rephrased the question, substituting the word &#8220;disappointments&#8221; for &#8220;mistakes&#8221; in his response. Discovering there actually were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, for instance, was a &#8220;disappointment.&#8221;</p>\n<p><strong>Since when is &#8220;disappointment&#8221; a synonym for &#8220;mistake?&#8221;</strong></p>\n<p>Apparently since Bush claimed that it&#8217;s so, and the media blindly reported it that way. Most of today&#8217;s headlines on this matter say pretty much the same thing: <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090112/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_newser_mistakes" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/news.yahoo.com'');">&#8220;Bush cites mistakes, disappointments.&#8221;</a> The verb is just switched out from one headline to the next—some say &#8220;discusses,&#8221; some use &#8220;lists,&#8221; and I even saw a &#8220;concedes.&#8221; But always &#8220;mistakes, disappointments.&#8221; What&#8217;s with that comma?</p>\n<h4>Mistakenly using the wrong word has consequences</h4>\n<p>I totally get why an outgoing president would want to avoid talking about mistakes. George W. Bush isn&#8217;t the only outgoing president who has tried to sidestep the &#8220;mistake&#8221; question. (If anyone out there knows of an outgoing president who honestly owned up to mistakes and called them mistakes, please let me know who it was!)</p>\n<p>But when you look at the true definitions of those two words, and you look at some of the things that have come to pass under Bush&#8217;s leadership, his use of the word &#8220;disappointment&#8221; is offensive.</p>\n<p><span id="more-215"></span></p>\n<p>A <a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/mistake" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/dictionary.reference.com'');">&#8220;mistake&#8221; is defined as</a> &#8220;an error in action, calculation, opinion, or judgment caused by poor reasoning, carelessness, insufficient knowledge, etc.&#8221;</p>\n<p><a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/disappoint" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/dictionary.reference.com'');">&#8220;Disappoint&#8221; is defined as</a> &#8220;To fail to satisfy the hope, desire, or expectation of.&#8221; (And &#8220;disappointment&#8221; is simply &#8220;the state or feeling of being disappointed.&#8221;</p>\n<p>So I might be disappointed by the meal I ordered at my favorite restaurant, or by the customer service at a nice shoe store. But is it right to say the abuses at the Abu Graib prison were disappointing? Particularly if I was, at the time, the world&#8217;s most powerful person, with all the power necessary to put an end to those abuses?</p>\n<p>It&#8217;s true that the words &#8220;mistake&#8221; and &#8220;disappointment&#8221; can go hand in hand. I can make a mistake, which is generally thought of as an unintentional error, and can feel disappointed in myself and the results. But for me to focus immediately on my disappointment, skipping over the important process of admitting error and apologizing for it, is a dangerous, slippery slope.</p>\n<p><strong>I know, because I&#8217;m not very good at admitting my mistakes</strong>—my errors in judgment, my carelessness, my tendency to make hasty conclusions. Thank goodness I&#8217;m not the president of the United States!</p>\n<h4>Most of us could do better at admitting mistakes</h4>\n<p>I am a wife and mother and daughter and friend, though, so it&#8217;s important that I become better at this. Being able to say &#8220;I made a mistake, and I&#8217;m sorry about how it affected you&#8221; matters a lot to the people I care most about. It can also have a powerful ripple effect in my broader community. For starters, the more I learn to do this, the more likely my children will be to do the same in their lives, which will make it easier for their friends to follow suit.</p>\n<p>When it comes to so many of the people of the world who have real power—the CEOs and senators, and even the pastors and school principals—I&#8217;m saddened and frustrated by your lack of humility and strength, and in your failed leadership in this area. Yes, you&#8217;re human, just like all of us &#8220;normal&#8221; people sitting around me in the cafe as I write. And how do we so often define being &#8220;human?&#8221; That&#8217;s right: We say (perhaps too defensively) &#8220;I&#8217;m human, I make mistakes.&#8221;</p>\n<p>If the rest of us are saying we know you&#8217;re not perfect—it&#8217;s OK to <em>make</em> mistakes—why is it so hard for you powerful people to <em>admit</em> to those mistakes? And how different would the world be if you did?</p>\n<p>It might be a day of lasts for George W., but today marks a first for me: I&#8217;m actually going to thank our 43rd president for something—for making me think more carefully about the meaning of words, and for helping me see the importance of calling a mistake a mistake.</p>\n";}i:8;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:15:"Remind me again";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=213";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=213#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sat, 10 Jan 2009 00:07:57 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:66:"Belief, doubt &amp; hopebrokenforgethoperememberremindedstorywhole";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=213";s:11:"description";s:347:"\nPhoto by atomicjeep\nI&#8217;ve encountered some important reminders this week.\nFirst I read this article, which reminds me that numbers don&#8217;t always mean what you first might think, and that not every brand of success can even be measured in numbers. Being reminded of this inspired to write the post When small is big and numbers are [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:4382:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/331179811_9ed79b86bf.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-214" title="331179811_9ed79b86bf" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/331179811_9ed79b86bf.jpg" alt="" width="414" height="274" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 300px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/atomicjeep/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">atomicjeep</a></h5>\n<p>I&#8217;ve encountered some important reminders this week.</p>\n<p>First I read <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/05/AR2009010503341.html?wprss=rss_print/asection" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.washingtonpost.com'');">this article</a>, which reminds me that numbers don&#8217;t always mean what you first might think, and that not every brand of success can even be measured in numbers. Being reminded of this inspired to write the post <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=211" >When small is big and numbers are nothing.</a></p>\n<p>A couple of hours after writing the post—which in large part was meant to comfort and distract me from my worries about blog stats and Twitter numbers—I received an email from a stranger. I asked her if I could share it here:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>I just loved your entry about your turning point &#8212; when you bought your house.  It made me cry, literally.  I have been at a similar turning point for a while now in my life, but unable to make that turn, probably because I only knew what I wanted to turn from, but not what I wanted to turn towards.  I think your story just gave me a warm, gentle, and much needed push on my back to have the courage, take the leap. so, thank you.</em></p>\n<p>This email, arriving out of the blue, reminds me of the primary reason I bother writing in the first place: I love the interaction and conversation. I love knowing that I&#8217;m not alone, and that my stories are touching someone else in small and sometimes even big ways.</p>\n<h4>Remembering where I&#8217;ve been</h4>\n<p>It also reminds me of where I&#8217;ve been. The post this reader is referencing—<a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=26" >A turning point with a street address</a>—is about what was happening in my life in early 2005, a very difficult time for me. I was clinging desperately to all the wrong things, and found myself feeling hopeless as I faced many important decisions.</p>\n<p><strong>I don&#8217;t want to forget that critical moment in my life.</strong> It says so much about who and where I am now, and about God&#8217;s grace in my life, and his ability to redeem my biggest messes.</p>\n<p><span id="more-213"></span></p>\n<p>Another reminder of this came in the form of a reader comment on the post <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=204" >Retracing my steps to the original idea</a>:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>A final thought: look at your life the last 4-5 years. Are they not only picture of God’s grace but also your willingness to be open and less intentional? How else would you have made it to where you are now? It’s quite a story.</em></p>\n<p>It <em>is</em> quite a story. Jason and I have shared it with others and marveled over it together, repeatedly.</p>\n<p>But like all stories that aren&#8217;t told and retold, with consistent enthusiasm and urgency, I can see how it is gradually fading. My life has been so good, for more than three years now—it&#8217;s easy to take it all for granted and to forget  where we were, and how far we&#8217;ve come.</p>\n<p>Which is why we need to be reminded.</p>\n<p>Here are a few of the stories from back when I first started my blog. I just took some time to re-read them and remember their place at the crux of my bigger story, of brokenness being made whole.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=6" >Love in unexpected places</a></p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=8" >A road trip with my husband&#8217;s ex-wife</a></p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=11" >Worship in a warehouse</a></p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=26" >A turning point with a street address</a></p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=32" >Two girls with all kinds of parents</a></p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=213";}s:7:"summary";s:347:"\nPhoto by atomicjeep\nI&#8217;ve encountered some important reminders this week.\nFirst I read this article, which reminds me that numbers don&#8217;t always mean what you first might think, and that not every brand of success can even be measured in numbers. Being reminded of this inspired to write the post When small is big and numbers are [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:4382:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/331179811_9ed79b86bf.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-214" title="331179811_9ed79b86bf" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/331179811_9ed79b86bf.jpg" alt="" width="414" height="274" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 300px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/atomicjeep/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">atomicjeep</a></h5>\n<p>I&#8217;ve encountered some important reminders this week.</p>\n<p>First I read <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/05/AR2009010503341.html?wprss=rss_print/asection" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.washingtonpost.com'');">this article</a>, which reminds me that numbers don&#8217;t always mean what you first might think, and that not every brand of success can even be measured in numbers. Being reminded of this inspired to write the post <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=211" >When small is big and numbers are nothing.</a></p>\n<p>A couple of hours after writing the post—which in large part was meant to comfort and distract me from my worries about blog stats and Twitter numbers—I received an email from a stranger. I asked her if I could share it here:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>I just loved your entry about your turning point &#8212; when you bought your house.  It made me cry, literally.  I have been at a similar turning point for a while now in my life, but unable to make that turn, probably because I only knew what I wanted to turn from, but not what I wanted to turn towards.  I think your story just gave me a warm, gentle, and much needed push on my back to have the courage, take the leap. so, thank you.</em></p>\n<p>This email, arriving out of the blue, reminds me of the primary reason I bother writing in the first place: I love the interaction and conversation. I love knowing that I&#8217;m not alone, and that my stories are touching someone else in small and sometimes even big ways.</p>\n<h4>Remembering where I&#8217;ve been</h4>\n<p>It also reminds me of where I&#8217;ve been. The post this reader is referencing—<a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=26" >A turning point with a street address</a>—is about what was happening in my life in early 2005, a very difficult time for me. I was clinging desperately to all the wrong things, and found myself feeling hopeless as I faced many important decisions.</p>\n<p><strong>I don&#8217;t want to forget that critical moment in my life.</strong> It says so much about who and where I am now, and about God&#8217;s grace in my life, and his ability to redeem my biggest messes.</p>\n<p><span id="more-213"></span></p>\n<p>Another reminder of this came in the form of a reader comment on the post <a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=204" >Retracing my steps to the original idea</a>:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><em>A final thought: look at your life the last 4-5 years. Are they not only picture of God’s grace but also your willingness to be open and less intentional? How else would you have made it to where you are now? It’s quite a story.</em></p>\n<p>It <em>is</em> quite a story. Jason and I have shared it with others and marveled over it together, repeatedly.</p>\n<p>But like all stories that aren&#8217;t told and retold, with consistent enthusiasm and urgency, I can see how it is gradually fading. My life has been so good, for more than three years now—it&#8217;s easy to take it all for granted and to forget  where we were, and how far we&#8217;ve come.</p>\n<p>Which is why we need to be reminded.</p>\n<p>Here are a few of the stories from back when I first started my blog. I just took some time to re-read them and remember their place at the crux of my bigger story, of brokenness being made whole.</p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=6" >Love in unexpected places</a></p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=8" >A road trip with my husband&#8217;s ex-wife</a></p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=11" >Worship in a warehouse</a></p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=26" >A turning point with a street address</a></p>\n<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=32" >Two girls with all kinds of parents</a></p>\n";}i:9;a:12:{s:5:"title";s:39:"When small is big & numbers are nothing";s:4:"link";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=211";s:8:"comments";s:46:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=211#comments";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:42:47 +0000";s:2:"dc";a:1:{s:7:"creator";s:7:"Kristin";}s:8:"category";s:168:"Belief, doubt &amp; hopeCulture, ideas &amp; paradigmsactivistchurchChurch-of-the-Savoirfacebookhumblinginspiringnumbersparadigm shiftpopularrankingssuccesstwitterworth";s:4:"guid";s:37:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=211";s:11:"description";s:316:"\nPhoto by Procsilas Moscas\nNumbers mean a lot to us. We are driven by them, because we measure success and worth by them.\nI, for instance, occasionally fret about how many followers I have on Twitter (about 150). The number means something to me because I can compare it to scores of others who have over 1,000 [...]";s:7:"content";a:1:{s:7:"encoded";s:5706:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/11314489_a7c52be257.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-212" title="11314489_a7c52be257" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/11314489_a7c52be257.jpg" alt="" width="426" height="320" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 270px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/procsilas/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Procsilas Moscas</a></h5>\n<p>Numbers mean a lot to us. We are driven by them, because we measure success and worth by them.</p>\n<p>I, for instance, occasionally fret about how many followers I have on Twitter (about 150). The number means something to me because I can compare it to scores of others who have over 1,000 and even as many as 30,000 followers. The other day I heard someone complaining about Facebook&#8217;s arbitrary friend limit (5,000) because he was rapidly approaching it. I had no idea there was a friend limit. Why would I? It isn&#8217;t likely that I—or any of my 240-some friends—need to worry.</p>\n<p>Before you start to wonder, I&#8217;m not about to be that kid in high school who pretends she actually doesn&#8217;t <em>want</em> to have more friends, because being popular really isn&#8217;t that cool anyway&#8230;. Of course, numbers <em>do</em> measure and mean something, in certain circumstances. People with that many Twitter followers and Facebook friends are clearly some combination of smart/interesting/kind/entertaining (along with savvy and determined, and most likely sleep-deprived).</p>\n<p><strong>But the opposite isn&#8217;t necessarily true. Smaller numbers, comparatively, do not always indicate the presence of all that&#8217;s dumb/boring/mean/humorless.</strong> I&#8217;ve been trying to remind myself of this and keep things in perspective as I build the kind of network a writer needs to get any attention in today&#8217;s world. It&#8217;s a steady, messy inner battle involving ego, reason, patience and humor.</p>\n<h4>What we can learn about numbers from a church</h4>\n<p>Today I read an article that was both inspiring and humbling, in unexpected ways. It did more to put the idea of numbers in perspective than anything I&#8217;ve heard or read in a long time. Check out these numbers:</p>\n<p><span id="more-211"></span></p>\n<p>For 60 years, the 91-year-old Gordon Cosby has been preaching at Church of the Savior. Since it was formed 6 decades ago, the church has been known throughout Washington D.C. as an activist powerhouse, starting dozens of organizations that serve thousands of people. Just to give you a sense of the scope, last year one of those organizations found jobs found for 800 people, while  another found 325 units of affordable housing for families in need.</p>\n<p>Sounds like the work of a mega church, doesn&#8217;t it? Actually, Church of the Savior is an anti-mega church. How small is it? When Cosby preached his final sermon last Sunday, about 70 people gathered to hear him speak.</p>\n<p>Why, when I read that, was my first though &#8220;How sad!&#8221;? Because <strong>I am blinded and fooled by numbers. Numbers are on the surface. To get what&#8217;s really behind the numbers—or to get past the numbers completely—you have to go deeper.</strong></p>\n<h4>Staying small has made their impact big</h4>\n<p>In this case, going deeper meant reading the rest of the <em>Washington Post</em> article, <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/05/AR2009010503341.html?wprss=rss_print/asection" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.washingtonpost.com'');">Activist D.C. Church Embraces Transition in the Name of Mission</a>. This is where the humbling and inspiring part kicked in.  Listen to just a few of the very cool things about this church:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- The article describes the church&#8217;s basic philosophy like this: &#8220;A commitment to serious, inward contemplation as well as ambitious social justice work. No spectators. Action over institution.&#8221;</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- The church has what the article calls an &#8220;aversion to bigness.&#8221; (I&#8217;ve always heard this called the &#8220;daughter church&#8221; model.) &#8220;In the mid-1970s, the church broke more fully into different groups. And in the late 1990s, Cosby rattled many church members by proposing that they go further: legally become separate entities and eventually dissolve the Church of the Saviour, the umbrella structure.&#8221;</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- The article quotes 91-year-old Cosby as saying this: &#8220;&#8216;We&#8217;ve got to move from believing so deeply to doing,&#8217; he preached. <strong>&#8216;We&#8217;ve got to keep in mind the discrepancy between belief and embodiment.&#8217;&#8221;</strong></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- And then there are these amazingly inspiring paradigm shifts: &#8220;After decades of bringing white, middle- and upper-class people into neighborhoods around Columbia Road and Adams Morgan to serve the poor and lecturing to seminarians and faith leaders, <strong>Cosby has concluded that societal change might go in the other direction.</strong>&#8220;</p>\n<p>Wow. Talk about turning it all on its head. It kind of reminds me of something someone said about the last being first and the poor being rich. And for some extra irony, get this: &#8220;[Cosby] noted that megachurches, now struggling to manage their size, have come to the church for guidance on how to be small.&#8221;</p>\n<p>I love it. I&#8217;m inspired. I&#8217;m ready to see the world differently.</p>\n";}s:3:"wfw";a:1:{s:10:"commentrss";s:47:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?feed=rss2&p=211";}s:7:"summary";s:316:"\nPhoto by Procsilas Moscas\nNumbers mean a lot to us. We are driven by them, because we measure success and worth by them.\nI, for instance, occasionally fret about how many followers I have on Twitter (about 150). The number means something to me because I can compare it to scores of others who have over 1,000 [...]";s:12:"atom_content";s:5706:"<p><a href="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/11314489_a7c52be257.jpg" ><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-212" title="11314489_a7c52be257" src="http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/11314489_a7c52be257.jpg" alt="" width="426" height="320" /></a></p>\n<h5 style="padding-left: 270px;">Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/procsilas/" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.flickr.com'');">Procsilas Moscas</a></h5>\n<p>Numbers mean a lot to us. We are driven by them, because we measure success and worth by them.</p>\n<p>I, for instance, occasionally fret about how many followers I have on Twitter (about 150). The number means something to me because I can compare it to scores of others who have over 1,000 and even as many as 30,000 followers. The other day I heard someone complaining about Facebook&#8217;s arbitrary friend limit (5,000) because he was rapidly approaching it. I had no idea there was a friend limit. Why would I? It isn&#8217;t likely that I—or any of my 240-some friends—need to worry.</p>\n<p>Before you start to wonder, I&#8217;m not about to be that kid in high school who pretends she actually doesn&#8217;t <em>want</em> to have more friends, because being popular really isn&#8217;t that cool anyway&#8230;. Of course, numbers <em>do</em> measure and mean something, in certain circumstances. People with that many Twitter followers and Facebook friends are clearly some combination of smart/interesting/kind/entertaining (along with savvy and determined, and most likely sleep-deprived).</p>\n<p><strong>But the opposite isn&#8217;t necessarily true. Smaller numbers, comparatively, do not always indicate the presence of all that&#8217;s dumb/boring/mean/humorless.</strong> I&#8217;ve been trying to remind myself of this and keep things in perspective as I build the kind of network a writer needs to get any attention in today&#8217;s world. It&#8217;s a steady, messy inner battle involving ego, reason, patience and humor.</p>\n<h4>What we can learn about numbers from a church</h4>\n<p>Today I read an article that was both inspiring and humbling, in unexpected ways. It did more to put the idea of numbers in perspective than anything I&#8217;ve heard or read in a long time. Check out these numbers:</p>\n<p><span id="more-211"></span></p>\n<p>For 60 years, the 91-year-old Gordon Cosby has been preaching at Church of the Savior. Since it was formed 6 decades ago, the church has been known throughout Washington D.C. as an activist powerhouse, starting dozens of organizations that serve thousands of people. Just to give you a sense of the scope, last year one of those organizations found jobs found for 800 people, while  another found 325 units of affordable housing for families in need.</p>\n<p>Sounds like the work of a mega church, doesn&#8217;t it? Actually, Church of the Savior is an anti-mega church. How small is it? When Cosby preached his final sermon last Sunday, about 70 people gathered to hear him speak.</p>\n<p>Why, when I read that, was my first though &#8220;How sad!&#8221;? Because <strong>I am blinded and fooled by numbers. Numbers are on the surface. To get what&#8217;s really behind the numbers—or to get past the numbers completely—you have to go deeper.</strong></p>\n<h4>Staying small has made their impact big</h4>\n<p>In this case, going deeper meant reading the rest of the <em>Washington Post</em> article, <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/05/AR2009010503341.html?wprss=rss_print/asection" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(''/outbound/article/www.washingtonpost.com'');">Activist D.C. Church Embraces Transition in the Name of Mission</a>. This is where the humbling and inspiring part kicked in.  Listen to just a few of the very cool things about this church:</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- The article describes the church&#8217;s basic philosophy like this: &#8220;A commitment to serious, inward contemplation as well as ambitious social justice work. No spectators. Action over institution.&#8221;</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- The church has what the article calls an &#8220;aversion to bigness.&#8221; (I&#8217;ve always heard this called the &#8220;daughter church&#8221; model.) &#8220;In the mid-1970s, the church broke more fully into different groups. And in the late 1990s, Cosby rattled many church members by proposing that they go further: legally become separate entities and eventually dissolve the Church of the Saviour, the umbrella structure.&#8221;</p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- The article quotes 91-year-old Cosby as saying this: &#8220;&#8216;We&#8217;ve got to move from believing so deeply to doing,&#8217; he preached. <strong>&#8216;We&#8217;ve got to keep in mind the discrepancy between belief and embodiment.&#8217;&#8221;</strong></p>\n<p style="padding-left: 30px;">- And then there are these amazingly inspiring paradigm shifts: &#8220;After decades of bringing white, middle- and upper-class people into neighborhoods around Columbia Road and Adams Morgan to serve the poor and lecturing to seminarians and faith leaders, <strong>Cosby has concluded that societal change might go in the other direction.</strong>&#8220;</p>\n<p>Wow. Talk about turning it all on its head. It kind of reminds me of something someone said about the last being first and the poor being rich. And for some extra irony, get this: &#8220;[Cosby] noted that megachurches, now struggling to manage their size, have come to the church for guidance on how to be small.&#8221;</p>\n<p>I love it. I&#8217;m inspired. I&#8217;m ready to see the world differently.</p>\n";}}s:7:"channel";a:7:{s:5:"title";s:17:"Halfway to Normal";s:4:"link";s:30:"http://www.halfwaytonormal.com";s:11:"description";s:24:"Living a life in between";s:7:"pubdate";s:31:"Sun, 25 Jan 2009 03:07:23 +0000";s:9:"generator";s:29:"http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1";s:8:"language";s:2:"en";s:7:"tagline";s:24:"Living a life in between";}s:9:"textinput";a:0:{}s:5:"image";a:0:{}s:9:"feed_type";s:3:"RSS";s:12:"feed_version";s:3:"2.0";s:5:"stack";a:0:{}s:9:"inchannel";b:0;s:6:"initem";b:0;s:9:"incontent";b:0;s:11:"intextinput";b:0;s:7:"inimage";b:0;s:13:"current_field";s:0:"";s:17:"current_namespace";b:0;s:19:"_CONTENT_CONSTRUCTS";a:6:{i:0;s:7:"content";i:1;s:7:"summary";i:2;s:4:"info";i:3;s:5:"title";i:4;s:7:"tagline";i:5;s:9:"copyright";}s:4:"etag";s:36:""059405874a8ef60ec739d074a0162769"\r\n";s:13:"last_modified";s:31:"Sun, 25 Jan 2009 03:07:23 GMT\r\n";}', 'no');
