On a more serious note, if you want to become a better writer (or learn how to write in general) then my best advice is to read a lot of books. (HT: Ben)

In spite of receiving a few compliments about the previous theme, I have chosen to switch to a different design. If I am counting correctly, this is the fifth WordPress template to grace Transformatum’s pages (sixth if you include the Blogger years). The motivation (and help) to change came from Shawn and Ben, who have been using Sandbox and Wordpress to style their tumble-blog hybrids. I have barely made any edits to this theme’s PHP files. What you see is all CSS. That might not mean much to you, but perhaps this will: with this latest update I have come to a few conclusions about my personal preferences and feelings for blog design.

1. Content is king; a pretty design does not a blog make.
2. Clutter (i.e., extra stuff) can be cool, but is hard to keep moving.
3. Whitespace is under-appreciated but often misunderstood.
4. Take a cue from car companies and carry throughout a design thread.
5. Unless you are Middle Eastern, entries belong on the left (think language).
6. Minimalism is not synonymous with ‘plain.’
7. You may go single for a while, but you always come back to sidebars.

However, please keep in mind that these opinions are subject to change at a moment’s notice. As Calvin of Calvin & Hobbes once said (emphasis added), “Some people are pragmatists, taking things as they come and making the best of the choices available. Some people are idealists, standing for principle and refusing to compromise. And some people just act on any whim that enters their heads. I pragmatically turn my whims into principles.”

For the record books, the current layout started as Simpla and was ported to Sandbox. From there I added special classes that correspond with categories in WordPress in order to create the tumble-hybrid look. I also intensified the colors slightly and tweaked a few features (hid this, added that, etc.). I will continue to make small updates over the coming days, but if you see anything amiss feel free to let me know. Also, if you have any “logo” ideas please pass them along. I think it is time for Transformatum to get a little more brand identity.

After three months of not having a little (but important) piece of code in my blog’s header, I have finally reinstalled and upgraded to the latest Mint.

Cartoon by Dave Walker. Find more cartoons you can freely re-use on your blog at We Blog Cartoons. HT: Tim