Shout out for a Beta

[icarus]

singtoangels has been a doll helping with the Percy Ficathon site. So she asked me if I could find her a beta for her story.

Well, I couldn't find one right away, so darn it, I volunteered to do it myself.

I am cursing up a storm right about now.

I stayed home from school today, as I have an all-day conference on Saturday and a group project meeting on Sunday. I relaxed this morning by going through her story with a fine-toothed comb. Now, I'd only saved it to the Temp folder, but I just stepped away for a bit because WG wanted to check his email. Of course he took over. All I asked was that he not close any of my files.

Yahoo was running a bit slow, so he closed some programs.

Including the story.

It's gone. I searched with Explorer and all I find is a broken shortcut. I've checked the Temp files, everything. It's vanished.

I've used up my allotment. I don't have any large patches of free time until Tuesday afternoon. That's why I took today off. Hell.

I'm going to take another shot at finding singtoangels a beta.

Would anyone like to beta her story?

There were no SPAG errors, and only a few word recommendations. Everything I wrote had to do with clarification, story development and characterisation. She's the same person who wrote Idyllic Days for the Percy Ficathon.

Now tonight WG and I are going to review the basics of Microsoft Word 101: Saving Files, because this is not the first time. Though this is partially my fault. I popped it open and started typing instead of saving it first.

Comments

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Hi Sam!

I figured out how to make the links open in a new window. I put this up as a test, though I'm planning to replace everything with your new version. Check out the essay section (http://percyfest.muse-wanted.com/Icarus_Slash_Fiction/index2.html). I made the H1 fonts larger, though WG is right, the blue is hard to read.

We definitely need the essays and stories uploaded as individual files rather than linking to outside sources like LiveJournal. Gosh I hope I have enough space for this and the Percy-fest.

As for the Harry Potter fanfiction navigation links...

Should we have just one page that has all of the Harry Potter links, and then have the navigational links skip down using [link]#[jump to]?

I want to make it easy to update. I think if I create a separate page for each navigation button, then when I add a fic, I'll have to add that link to four different pages. If I have it skip down, then I'll still have to add the link in several places, but at least it's on the same page. So it's only one page to update.

What do you advise? I don't have any experience with this beyond making that mass of links on my current site.

That would mean that file-structure-wise we'd have:

1) A page with all the 'Harry Potter' links (sorted the various different ways)
- a folder with the Harry Potter stories.
2) A page with all the 'More Fiction' links (possibly a separate page for the outside links)
- a folder with all the Lord of the Rings stories
- another folder with all the original fics
3) A page with all the essay links
- a folder with all the essays
4) A page with the art links and the Quiz

Or do you think I should have a separate page for each navigaton button?

I wish I could just update one page and then have the buttons sort them like in Access, but for that I need PHP and a database I'm sure.

*Icarus sweeps off hat and bows.* I await your wisdom in this matter.

Icarus

PS -

[xenoface.livejournal.com]

Heh. to have a link open up in a new page the link code would most likely have to look like this:

< a href="#" target="_blank" >< /a >

If you ask me, i'd preffer to have a harry potter fiction foledr that would look something like this:

Icarus slash fiction

-hp(folder)
-rating.htm
-pairing.htm
-title.htm
-updates.htm
-fics(folder)
-fic.htm
-fic.htm
-fic.htm
-fic.htm
-fic.htm

For me, it would be more confusing to have a jump-to page with everything in it. It's easier to have it in different pages because there will be less data in each page and you won't get confused and it won't take that long to update. Besides, with separate pages, it would be easier to load. 0.o

When my site was hosted at geocities my page was full of jump-to my art links blah, blah, that sort of stuff and it is harder to update, trust me, i have alot of art. (err ... some got deleted when my computer got fixed. -_-)

also, the folder structure you've made is nice. very orderly.

Although ... the art links page doesn't really need to be in it's own folder. It just needs it's own separate page, also the quiz.

:3

so ... that's just me.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

*nods* Thank you.

Hey Sam, we've got to work on readability. Before you do too much, I found some things out while uploading links and working with the site last night.

Having the links scroll over the picture is gorgeous, but it's hard to read. If I were cruising this website I'd hit the back button because readability is the main point.

For a short list of links it works, but the main pages of Harry Potter stories have 80 links, with a paragraph of description each. Ouch.

When I uploaded them I found that it's too much to read in a tiny window. When you add the picture behind it... it's just not workable.

What if we had the Thangka image on the splash page, and just use the wings on the inside?

Your design is beautiful, but I think people would stop reading after clicking on a couple stories (and my goal is to get people addicted).

The iframe needs to be nearly twice that size, and it needs to not have a picture in the background distorting what people are trying to read.

I feel horrid and ungracious saying so, but it would be worse if I just nodded my head and then had to change it.

I've learned a lesson in web design here. If the site has little content, the focus needs to be on the design -- to keep interest. If there's a lot of content, the focus has to be on making that content accessible.

Icarus

[xenoface.livejournal.com]

kk, i understand, it'll be easy for me, since i'm used to it already ... heh.

Anyway, i just finished working on your splash page title and placing and stuff. I'll just put the picture of the thangka in the splash.

alright? and ... I'll sort of enlarge the iframe spage abit. :3

[xenoface.livejournal.com]

Oooh! Lookie! I fixed the layout! check it out!

I made it available in two different sizes/resolutions.

http://sams-corel.rocksyou.org/isf

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Oh. That's really nice. I really, really like it. This will work much better.

*Icarus rubs palms together.* And now for some uploads.

Icarus

[xenoface.livejournal.com]

:D glad u liked it~!!

I hope it works on all browsers now ... X.x