Pat Dryburgh

NRRW →

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I just added my talk to the Podcamp London 2010 sessions list. I haven’t worked out the whole talk, but have a fairly good idea of where I want it to go. Here’s the description I included on the site:

The attention span of internet users is short. In fact, you’ve probably already checked your tweets, been rick-rolled, and posted a blog entry since the time you started reading this paragraph. If you’ve got a message you want to communicate, you need to do it quickly, efficiently, and effectively. My talk will focus on how to narrow down your message to its core — perhaps even less than 140 characters.

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mikesalvatore asked: Did you experience "bliss" when you started blogging?

I wouldn’t say I experienced “bliss,” but the platform I used when I first started, Xanga, was incredibly simple and powerful. Both you and I and our classmates were all easily connected through our school group, and publishing to the site was so simple. Xanga had its headaches — including terrible advertising that it forced on its users — but had it not been for the Xanga platform I wouldn’t have gotten into blogging.

New Work Added to Portfolio →

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I’ve added some Fusion ads to the portfolio today.

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Which Blogging Platform Should You Use? (Infographic) I don’t know that this graphic could be any more biased, unless it was WordPress.org or a WordPress-focused blog (like wpbeginner.com) holding the survey itself. Problogger is exactly what its name suggests: a website focused on those who want to be professional bloggers1. I have no stats to back up the following claim, but my intuition tells me that no more than 5% of the world’s bloggers could even remotely consider themselves professional (though, I am sure many more wish they were). I am not wanting to harp on WordPress, or its community. It is a solid platform that I still work with all the time. However, for a large majority of people who ask me what they should use if they want to start blogging, I immediately jump to two services: Tumblr and Facebook. I suggest these because each come with such a low barrier for entry. Tumblr could not be easier: sign up, start posting. Its user interface is so intuitive that even those who aren’t net-savvy can find their way pretty easily2. I suggest Facebook as well, because like Tumblr, the barrier to getting started is incredibly low. Most people I know have a Facebook account, so that step is already complete. The notes application is simple, intuitive, and comes with a built-in audience. If the person using the Facebook notes app decides to move on from Facebook to bigger and better things, they can then set up their new blogging software to feed into the Facebook notes application, so their friends and family never miss a beat. A lot of geeks like me may harp on me about things like “data portability” and having control over the software they use, and they have valid arguments. I have read people argue that the mild frustration one faces setting up and dealing with software such as WordPress is worth the effort, because then the user has “more control.” I’m sorry, but I try my hardest to not force frustration upon people I care about, or those who use the things I create. I want the user to experience bliss when trying something new such as blogging. Why should we, as the tech community, be ok with the state of frustration caused by our products? If Tumblr came out with a solid iPad app, I would suggest to every single person who asks me what they should do to start blogging to buy and iPad, download the Tumblr app, and go. How could you go wrong with two of the most beginner-friendly products on the market today? Oh, right — they aren’t “open.” Well, I’m sorry, but “open” is not synonymous with “awesome.” Whatever that is. ↑ And, as Loren Brichter, developer of Tweetie for iPhone and Mac has taught, a good UI is also discoverable. I have learned so much more about the Tumblr dashboard UI from the time I started using it, and find pleasure in its hidden treasure trove of features. ↑

Which Blogging Platform Should You Use? (Infographic)

I don’t know that this graphic could be any more biased, unless it was WordPress.org or a WordPress-focused blog (like wpbeginner.com) holding the survey itself.

Problogger is exactly what its name suggests: a website focused on those who want to be professional bloggers1. I have no stats to back up the following claim, but my intuition tells me that no more than 5% of the world’s bloggers could even remotely consider themselves professional (though, I am sure many more wish they were).

I am not wanting to harp on WordPress, or its community. It is a solid platform that I still work with all the time. However, for a large majority of people who ask me what they should use if they want to start blogging, I immediately jump to two services: Tumblr and Facebook.

I suggest these because each come with such a low barrier for entry. Tumblr could not be easier: sign up, start posting. Its user interface is so intuitive that even those who aren’t net-savvy can find their way pretty easily2.

I suggest Facebook as well, because like Tumblr, the barrier to getting started is incredibly low. Most people I know have a Facebook account, so that step is already complete. The notes application is simple, intuitive, and comes with a built-in audience. If the person using the Facebook notes app decides to move on from Facebook to bigger and better things, they can then set up their new blogging software to feed into the Facebook notes application, so their friends and family never miss a beat.

A lot of geeks like me may harp on me about things like “data portability” and having control over the software they use, and they have valid arguments. I have read people argue that the mild frustration one faces setting up and dealing with software such as WordPress is worth the effort, because then the user has “more control.”

I’m sorry, but I try my hardest to not force frustration upon people I care about, or those who use the things I create. I want the user to experience bliss when trying something new such as blogging. Why should we, as the tech community, be ok with the state of frustration caused by our products?

If Tumblr came out with a solid iPad app, I would suggest to every single person who asks me what they should do to start blogging to buy and iPad, download the Tumblr app, and go. How could you go wrong with two of the most beginner-friendly products on the market today?

Oh, right — they aren’t “open.” Well, I’m sorry, but “open” is not synonymous with “awesome.”

  1. Whatever that is. ↑
  2. And, as Loren Brichter, developer of Tweetie for iPhone and Mac has taught, a good UI is also discoverable. I have learned so much more about the Tumblr dashboard UI from the time I started using it, and find pleasure in its hidden treasure trove of features. ↑

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Back when I was using WordPress as my blog’s content software, I used Thematic and child themes to theme my site. I released two of the child themes I created for public use.

When I moved to Tumblr, the pages to those themes were lost, and while I would constantly have people visit the site searching for those themes, they would be met with a 404 page not found.

With Tumblr’s new Pages feature, I have been able to recreate the pages for the Junction and BLAMatic themes. They are once again available for download, however I will not be able to provide technical support for these themes. Of course, as they are open source, you are free to make any changes you like and release them on your own. If you do, please let me know at hello [at] patdryburgh.com and I’ll let my readers know!

Ask

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I’ve been avoiding this for some time now, but after some careful consideration have decided to open up the site to questions. I don’t give readers much of a voice on this blog, and feel this might help open up the conversation a bit beyond Twitter and email.

I make no promises that every question will be answered, however questions that cover a topic that interests me or that makes me seriously think will most likely appear here on the blog. My goal is to open conversation, not flood my blog with “will you go out with me?” requests. The answer is obviously “yes.”

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Where are the galleries for the best web content? Where are the lists of websites with thought-out, semantic code? Where are the sites that show off excellent information architecture? Perhaps most importantly, where are the galleries of websites that are actually driving business for companies, rather than simply acting as an online brochure? Sites that are successfully doing what they were meant to do.

I’m tired of seeing lots of pretty web sites.

Cameron Moll Moves to Tumblr →

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This is a fairly noteworthy move, as a prominent designer/blogger makes the leap from a hosted blogging solution to join us here on Tumblr. Cameron’s reasons for moving are somewhat unfortunate — no one wishes for another site to be attacked in any way — however I believe his decision will pay off in the long run.

The biggest change for me moving to Tumblr has been how little time I’ve spent worrying about keeping my blogging software up to date. I don’t worry about anyone hacking my site, because I know that Marco and the Tumblr team work diligently on my behalf to ensure my site is safe. With everything else going on in my life, I sure appreciate having one less thing to worry about.

Intensity in Ten Cities →

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Just launched the Intensity in Ten Cities 2010 Sampler page. Built using a combination of Campaign Monitor and the generosity of Shaun Inman, the site asks for the user’s email address, and in return the user is given a link to download 8 songs from bands featured on the Intensity in Ten Cities tour.

What I’m Looking For

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I am hoping this year to do more with my acoustic music. The last thing I want to do, however, is stand alone on stage with lights blasting in my face and a huge chasm between myself and the audience. What I’d really love is an empty room, with a big trendy rug on the floor for the performers to stand.

“Performers?” you ask? Yes, multiple performers. I really don’t want to play by myself ever again. There’s just nothing that interesting about just myself for people to want to see me perform more than once. That’s why I’m looking for some musicians to play along with me. If you’re in the London area and play one of these instruments, or know someone in the area who does, please don’t hesitate to contact me!

  • upright bass player
  • percussionist (djembe, congas, some bell instruments are a bonus)
  • string players - violin, viola, cello are all welcome to apply
  • beat boxer
  • pianist/keyboardist

If you play anything else, from a mean electric guitar to a glockenspiel, I would love to hear from you. My whole focus for this is to create something organic, birthed from a community of musicians and artists. If you’re interested, hit my email at hello [at] patdryburgh.com.