Archive for March, 2008


Time for an upgrade!

Mar 31

As you can see JKOgden.net has been updated, it’s been a over two years since I have actually implemented a new theme. I worked long and relentlessly on not only this theme but making sure every page used the same template and that the PHP was optimized for performance.

The primary colors are blue and green; blue being my favorite color and green matches well with blue. I kept the essential dictionary / notepad look and layout as it re-enforces the focal point of the site which is blogging and writing about Christianity. One of my goals was the give the site a Web 2.0 look and I believe that I succeeded as far as what JKOgden.net offers for content and interaction. I have Robin to thank for picking out the logo from many that I created. If you’re using Internet Explorer 6 or less I suggest upgrading to Internet Explorer 7 or Firefox due to some of the CSS and PNG graphics utilized.

Here’s a quick overview of the changes since version 3.1.3:

  • New theme that has a fresh clean look with consistent colors
  • Inactive navigation tabs are transparent until hovered or select
  • Selected and or hovered navigation tab shows the relevant “dictionary like page information” explanation
  • Most images now use “shadowbox” when selected
  • Random content is pulled and loaded by AJAX / PHP in the Christianity section
  • Updated WordPress (blogging software) to the latest version
    • Guests can now post without registering although anyone can register locally or log in with OpenID so please feel free to comment, I love to hear from my readers

The majority of the images and coding here were designed by me with the following exceptions:

  • Most of the little icon graphics were designed by famfamfam
  • Lightbox script and the effect that changes the “page information” when the mouse hovers over a tab was found at Dynamic Drive

Tags: Technical 3 Comments »


March Snowstorm

Mar 01

I woke to slight snow fall with the sun peering through the veil of gray clouds and a thin blanket of fresh snow covering. I read that Maine was to receive a snow storm this weekend, ranging from 1′ – 2′ of snow. After going through my morning readiness I headed to the gym and then to Hampden to work on a client’s computer. The development that my client currently resides is new and hosts very large 3 story houses with plenty of surrounding land. As I’m waiting for their computer to restart I look out the window to a near white-out of snow, the flakes very large and falling fast. After finishing my work I make my way home, not being familiar with development’s roads as well as not being able to see that well I quickly and embarrassingly find myself in a ditch. I called my insurance company stating that I need a tow truck to pull me out of the ditch and roughly 15 minutes of waiting they arrived and successfully pulled me out, my car did not suffer any damage from going off the road.

When I arrived home Robin was there waiting, thankfully she did not have any problems getting to my apartment. We decided to go outside and make snowmen during the storm since it is something we both have not done in a long time. I unpacked my snowsuit for Robin and found a pair of old insulated wind pants for me. We were able to create a James snowman and a Robin snowwoman in under an hour. We had a good time outside in the snow, it’s peaceful and reminds me of my childhood when my brother and I would be in our field making forts and large snowmen. Bangor received a little over 15” throughout Saturday.

Tags: Photos, Storm No Comments