Words of Leka

I am into making of brand new company, that will replace and upgrade Leka Web and Graphic Design Studio. New website comes along within new package. Almost everything will change, including approach and rules of the game. Stay tuned to learn more about this change. Deadline for finalization is scheduled for mid summer this year. I hope everything will work as planned.

And this one…

Not-Waving-But-Drowning
Originally uploaded by Fib

desiderata
Originally uploaded by Fib

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann, Desiderata, Copyright 1952.

silver-lining
Originally uploaded by Fib

A man who also made this photo.

I didn’t see anything like this for a long time. On some of his words and stories I cried. Some made me laugh. Mostly I smiled. This one is for keeping.

After testing BlogDesk I’ve found a couple hiccups, not really acceptable. For example, loading images into blog is almost impossible. Not being able to preview design with content is another thing.

So I try now Live Writer beta. It looks nice and comfortable. It does just what desktop blog publisher should do, to my humble opinion. Look here:

As I write this, I feel just fine. All works, no one crashes or such. Soon enough, I will be sure if this is the right piece of software for me…

• Spell checking looks ok.
• Web Preview allows you to see instantly how does it look like, while writing.
• Inserting images is a snap. It seems it is faster than you would expect it to be.
• Html editor is ok, too. It doesn’t put words or spaces in your mouth. It behaves, knowing it is your helper only. I am, myself, not much of a WYSIWYG type. I do most of my work in Notepad++ and Homesite. So, for me this doesn’t count.
• Now, maybe I am hooked for too long on Windows ( well, buy me Mac and I’ll sing other song! ), but this is just what I was expecting computer should do for me. It lets you write and insert objects, and check mistakes, and publish as draft (only to backstage), so you can still think about it before publishing. It does some other pleasant things as well, but I am not willing to go so deep into that.
• I am going crazy about image options in Live Writer! It is so easy and effective! At least, comparing to BlogDesk, and even to core WordPress image handling. Drop shadows and other effects done with one click (or two at most). Or, you can leave your images alone, by choosing “Use blog’s default”. So whatever you have set in your theme or blog’s options would affect images when published.
• Interface is simple and clear, not too many options and menu’s. It looks like front for admin thing in your blog, and then even simpler. This alone could be a good reason to use it!
• On the other side, there are some little annoyances in writing links, like: editor adds attribute “atomicselection” (where does this comes from? something only Live Writer knows?). And, if you specify that link should be opened in new window (which is not what you should do!), editor writes target="_new". What kind of target is this? Someone trying to write new rules?

All in all, nice piece of (beta) software. It can never replace live editing, but for fast and lazy blogging, straight out of your desktop, it looks just fine. You needn’t know anything about anything to post fine article. But, if you do care about fine details, do go to your blog’s backstage and do it all the way you want it.

Say, your internet connection sucks, or you have much to write and much to think during this process… Than, it can work for you ok. Or, you just don’t trust your browser (if you are not using modern one).
I am talking here much and I have never mentioned I am using WordPress! Well, now you know…

Live Writer works well with other big bunch of packages, but not with Blogger, for example. See for yourself, if it gets you anywhere with your thing. I am sure it would be good to Textpattern and b2evolution. Other well known blogs are probably supported. Ask me and I will test them for you.