I redesigned the blog layout.
Duh.
I did it for lots of reasons. One is that I didn’t like the old design. I put it together myself based on someone else’s design, and the person who coded the style originally had lots of weird stuff in it, making it really hard to adjust. Second, I wasn’t happy with the layout; it was too scattered. Third, I had so many kludges in the WordPress code that I dreaded upgrades; it meant a lot of taking notes, rewriting, debugging. Now most of that sort of thing is located in the "theme", the style files. That’ll make upgrades much smoother (and I’ll note that this redesign was prompted in part due to pressure to upgrade to the latest WP release). Fourth, the big square Google ad is now gone, so the actual content of the post has physically moved up. Impact: more of the newest entry can be seen, so less scrolling for you.
One major difference, of course, is that the sidebars are now together on the right side. That should make it easier to read the content. A major change you might not actually notice is that the content section (where the blog entry sits) is now much wider; 570 pixels versus 485. That means images can be bigger, and on an astronomy blog that’s important.
Another change is that the left sidebar menu is gone, and the menu to the main site is now located as a button at the top of the page, below the logo. I’m not thrilled with that aspect, but I’m trying to figure out a better way. I’m happy to hear suggestions!
I may still fiddle with things, like the colors and such. I’m thinking of making the gray darker. We’ll see. I have some other changes coming, and I’ll mention those when the time comes. For now, though, if anything goes wrong, post a comment. If you like or don’t like something, post a comment. I may or may not do anything about it. 
OK, not really. But the nation’s silliest newspaper (and that’s saying a lot) is going out of business.
Sniff!
I know, it’s all a big joke, and a lot of folks think that anyone who takes it seriously maybe deserves what they get. And I can’t really fault the Weekly World News if some bonehead at Yahoo News picks up one of their more ridiculous stories and posts it as straight news, thus starting a minor internet scare that the world is coming to an end.
Come to think of it, I can’t hold the WWN at fault at all, any more than I would fault the Onion when some goober takes them seriously as well.
Dumbosity will happen no matter what. At least the WWN didn’t take themselves seriously, like the NYT and the Washington Post do… and the WWN was accurate at least as often as those two publications have been lately.
Well! I was all set to go see the movie Sunshine today so I could enjoy and review it… but it’s not playing in Boulder.
What?
That is incredible to me. We have more solar astronomers here per square centimeter than most every other place in the country. That alone should guarantee a screening! Maybe Boulder is too small, so I checked other places: it’s not even playing in Denver. That’s a rather fair-sized city.
I am very bummed. My friend Brian Cox was the science advisor, and his wife Gia blogged extensively about the making of the movie, so I am totally fired up (hahahaha) to see it. But I can’t.
Grrrr.
I know it came out in the UK some time ago, but I don’t think the DVD is out yet either. I am aware of other methods of obtaining it, but I’d prefer to keep this legal. I’ll see what I can do.
Update: Evidently it opens in limited release in the U.S., and will open in more theaters next week. Bummer.
Indulge me for a moment, please.
One thing I like about reading blogs is that a good writer can write on any topic and make it interesting. Through the sheer number of people blogging, you are likely to find some folks like that, but they are still rare gems.
Erin O’Brien is one such blogger. She cracks me up, every time, and it doesn’t matter what she blogs about. Her video blogs make me laugh, too, and sometimes all it takes is her mugging into the camera. That knowing look, the shared inside joke…
We’ve sent emails back and forth, and a little while back she sent me a copy of her book, Harvey and Eck. I have my own to write, and shouldn’t let myself get distracted, but how could I not read it through? It’s like sitting down next to Erin and having her whisper in my ear for hours, and I am but a mortal man.
She also sent me a CD with songs inspired by the Moon, as her book was so inspired. Again, how could I resist?
I have to mention: her blog is frequently (and wonderfully) NSFW. I won’t say why, but you’ll see when you go there.
For quite some time I have been meaning to write up something short, sweet, and pithy, explaining why saying evolution is just a theory is, well, dumb. It’s like saying the Eiffel Tower is just a tower.
But I don’t need to write it up: it’s now been done.
Evolution is not just a theory.
Short, sweet, and pithy. Referenced, too.
Best. Web. Comic. Evah.
"Home on the Strange" is about two fangeeks who turned out to be normal, yet still embrace their inner nerdity. You may understand why this might appeal to me. Plus, the Doctor Who two-parter (excerpted above) is the best thing ever ever ever. I swear the next time an evangelical comes to my door, they’ll get an earful about the man who went all about Gallifrey.
Tip o’ the TARDIS to KLCtheBookworm.
