A bit more on WordPress 2.5
Well, it seems that WP 2.5 is a little delayed – the current Trac shows it as “awaiting RC feedback” – despite being announced for a 17 March roll-out. Since writing about it a few days ago, I’ve really not touched it much but I’ve noticed that the updated (1.5.2) Defensio seems to work with it (even though Carl at Defensio told me that it doesn’t officially support it yet – which is more down to WP than it is to Defensio) – so that’s a step in the right direction. Ozh’s Absolute Comments, which is my other must-have that doesn’t currently support 2.5, is still waiting to be updated.
On the whole, I still can’t really see any compelling reason to upgrade to 2.5; anyone out there want to offer one?
Updated: well, it’s finally been officially released. I haven’t taken the plunge just yet and put it on this blog, but I have been doing some further testing on my local MAMP installation. Everything seems to be working OK but I’m still not sure about that new admin interface. Only time will tell on that I guess. Matt has written a lengthy post about the various changes that have gone on; how important those changes are to you as a blogger will depend very much on what type of blogger you are. I still haven’t found anything that really blows my skirt up, although I do like the improved support for tags.
Bipolar anyone?
I wrote a series of posts a little while ago that touched on the subjects of depression and suicide. They didn’t make for particularly uplifting reading, but they seemed to touch a nerve with a number of people and I got a number of comments about them.
I mention them again because one of the comments indicated that, while I was reluctant to call what I felt “depression”, it actually was. I was unsure at the time whether I agreed with that and let the comment pass without replying to it. I’m re-thinking that position now because of the way that I’ve been feeling over the last couple of days.
It’s not easy for me to talk about or describe my feelings. There are several reasons for this; chief amongst them are the fact that I’m fairly emotionally closed off and (to make it worse) my writing skills let me down; I get part of the idea across and then I lose my thread. I never was a good communicator.
I’m also generally reluctant to stand up and say that I have a particular health problem. Part of me sees it as weakness, part of me sees it as whinging or being histrionic (“It’s just a cold; you’re not dying”) and part of me just doesn’t believe it. I’m also acutely aware of what I think people that know me will say (“Don’t be such a twat” and things of that ilk, usually).
But having so recently been writing about and examining being on the downswing, I’ve become aware of my emotional state more than ever before in my life. Which is why over the last couple of days I’ve noticed that I’ve been feeling really, really hyper – definitely on the upswing. I’m not sure if anyone else around me has noticed it, but I’ve been generally in a much better mood, with bursts of total synapse overload, which have lead to complete and utter inane wittering, the need to just move about – swinging my arms, dancing, anything – and an overall feeling of happiness.
It’s definitely a good feeling, but I’m not sure what it means.
Champions
I’ve mentioned Eastbourne Borough FC a few times before on The New Wolfs Howl (mainly because Health Plus – my employer – started sponsoring them this season), and hopefully at least some of you have been following their progress as they battle at the top of the table with arch rivals Lewes to see who will win promotion.
This week the Reserve team (that’s them in the picture) brought another trophy home to Priory Lane by beating Worthing FC in the final of the Reserve Section Challenge Cup. A 5-2 win, no less!
So, well done to the guys and let’s hope it inspires their first team colleagues to go into the last few games of the season all guns blazing and get that promotion.
Blog Design
I’ve written before about blog themes and designs and you’ll have noticed that I change the theme for The New Wolfs Howl on a semi-regular basis. This is partly because I get bored with the look, but also partly because I never really find a design that is exactly what I want. Only having limited coding skills, and not being very visually creative, it’s also not really an option for me to come up with a design myself.
Which is where companies like Weborithm come in. They offer a custom-made blog design service – and they promise that no two designs will be the same. Having worked with a number of designers in print media, I know that isn’t as common a boast as you might hope. Taking a look around their website, you can check out some of the work they’ve previously done – and it looks good.
Prices start at $999, which when you look at everything you get is a rock-bottom price, so if you’re in the market for a personal design service why not check them out? Tell them Wolfie sent you.
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David Cameron breaks the rules
It is truly shocking. A politician has flouted the laws of the land. This could lead to a major breakdown in the fabric of our society; life as we know it could come to an end.
Except it won’t, because all David Cameron did was to flout some road laws whilst riding his pushbike. Yet, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was something a lot more serious, given all the media coverage that it’s getting. OK, so he ran a red light and went the wrong way up a one-way street while he was riding through London. Not exactly on a par with Watergate, is it?
It does, though, bring to the forefront an interesting discussion. Do the rules of the road apply to cyclists? You’d think they would, wouldn’t you, but there seem to be a large number of cyclists who don’t agree. Their reasoning is that, as the drivers don’t give them any respect, they need to flout the laws (like jumping red lights) to give themselves an advantage. It’s a safety thing, apparently.
I’ve driven cars, and I ride a motorcycle. I also ride a pushbike on occasion. I’ve seen the argument from all sides. Yes, some drivers are inconsiderate to cyclists. Yes, some cyclists ride like twats. But I remember back to my schooldays, when I did my Cycling Proficiency Certificate (not sure that exists anymore). During our training, we learnt how to be safe on the road, how to be aware of what was going on around us, but we also learnt that the rules of the road apply to all vehicles on the road – and a pushbike is a vehicle.
It’s as simple as that.
Wolfs Helpers
