Wednesday, September 14, 2011

IF YOU LIKE “STUFFS” . . .

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If you are one of the few individuals who likes my blog “Stuffs”, along with me, you need to thank Bonjour Tristesse of the blogs ‘STUPID BLOG TRICKS’ and ‘BONJOUR TRISTESSE: FOREIGN INDIE AND CULT CINEMA’ for the fact that “Stuffs” is still a livin’, breathin’ blog.

Perhaps you’ve noticed the completely revamped look of ‘Stephen T. McCarthy STUFFS’. Yes, my blog has been redesigned but it wasn’t by design. The only way to save the blog was to upgrade it and alter its template.

In a nutshell, here’s what happened: I had recently been experiencing more than the usual number of ‘Blogger’ bugs, and then when I was attempting to post the blog bit VENICE BEACH, CALIFORNIA: “The Corner Of Ocean Ave. & Linnie Ave.” (Or, “An Ideal Place For Stream O’ Consciousness Experimentation”) I found that the Blogspot.com system refused to allow me to post the “Spirit Of Venice, California – Trailer” video at the bottom of my blog bit.

In an ill-advised attempt to correct the problem myself, I began “fooling” around (literally!) by clicking links and messing with my template, hoping something I clicked might correct the problem. Next thing I knew, “STUFFS” was hopelessly fouled up in so many ways I won’t even attempt to describe them all. We’ll just say it was an utterly useless Heap O’ Garbage.

After a day of desperate and futile fumbling, I threw in the towel. I posted a plea for help on Blogger’s “Help” page, and after a period of getting no response, I literally began composing my “Farewell To Y’All” blog bit.

I had several paragrahs of the final “Stuffs” blog bit written when suddenly I received a response; the Cavalry had ridden in to rescue “Stuffs” – and that one-person Cavalry was BONJOUR TRISTESSE.

We’ve all heard the expression “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, and that is a semi-true maxim. But it’s particularly accurate when it’s a techno-retarded old dog like me whose entire knowledge of computer science is this: An ability to “Cut And Paste” and the awarness of what a URL is (although I don’t know what the letters actually stand for).

After multiple back-and-forth comments to each other, and a little bit of experimentation, Bonjour Tristesse single-handedly saved “Stuffs” when I was pretty much resigned to the idea that the blog was a goner!

I don’t intend to blog forever, but I certainly wish to go out on my own terms. And I definitely hope that when I finally am dun bloggin’, all of the work I’ve put into my blog installments over the last few years will remain standing for awhile.

For a couple of days there, it really looked as if “Stuffs” was going to be abandoned as just a pile of junk on the side of the road; the visible aftermath of an Information Superhighway head-on collision with gigantic, alien bugs from cyberspace.

So, again, from me to Bonjour Tristesse, a very big THANK YOU for volunteering your own time to save “Stuffs”!

And from me to my readers: Please consider visiting and “Following” one or both of Bonjour Tristesse’s blogs . . .

‘STUPID BLOG TRICKS’

‘BONJOUR TRISTESSE: FOREIGN INDIE AND CULT CINEMA’

A Computer Illiterate but Extremely Grateful . . .

~ Stephen T. McCarthy

YE OLDE COMMENT POLICY: All comments, pro and con, are welcome. However, ad hominem attacks and disrespectful epithets will not be tolerated (read: "posted"). After all, this isn’t Amazon.com, so I don’t have to put up with that kind of bovine excrement.
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8 comments:

  1. What if we DON'T like "Stuffs?"

    What then, McDogg?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Just continue skimming it... or even ignore it altogether...now:

    "Should old acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind?...", etc., etc....

    ~ D-FensDogg
    'Loyal American Underground'

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm just glad I could help. Thank you for the very flattering mention.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thank YOU for being my hero when I really needed one!

    ~ D-FensDogg
    'Loyal American Underground'

    ReplyDelete
  5. Sp glad you were able to save it! :o)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks, AlliAllo ~
    Me too, but I needed lotsa help.

    If you get a chance, please scroll down to the bottom of the installment titled "VENICE BEACH: The Corner Of Ocean Ave. & Linnie Ave." and watch the short (just 4 min.) video that I have now been able to post there.

    That's the video I was attempting to put up which caused all the trouble. It's up now and I think it's kinda cool.

    All the musical excerpts are from the "Spirit Of Venice" compact disc, and at the 1:21 mark you'll see a roller-skater glide past a large mural reproduction of Van Gogh's "Starry Night".

    In fact, at one time there was a cafe on the Venice Beach Boardwalk called "Van Go's Ear". You'd probably dig Venice; it's a very free-spirited place, and hang around there long enough and there's virtually nuttin' you won't see eventually.

    Thanks for yer comment, my friend!

    ~ D-FensDogg
    'Loyal American Underground'

    ReplyDelete
  7. I like the brightened clean look of the new page. Thank goodness someone came along who knew something about blogs and such. This is why I'm cautious about changing anything on my blog page. I usually take baby steps--as I have been doing in the past month or so--in order to attain my blog goals.

    Now if I can just figure out what my real blogs are or should be.


    Lee
    Tossing It Out

    ReplyDelete
  8. BOIDMAN ~
    Surprisingly, I believe that for once, change really WAS good! I too like the new look and layout of my "Stuffs" blog better'n the old.

    But, in case you didn't fully grasp what I was saying here, this did NOT come about because I was attempting to make alterations to my blog.

    This is all the fortunate result of the unintended circumstance of me attempting to figure out why the Blogspot.com system suddenly would NOT allow me to upload YouTube videos to my "Stuffs" blog.

    I only started messing around with "Stuffs" because of the bugs in the Blogspot system.

    You'll notice that "Stuffs" now has the "Share Buttons" for Twitter and Facebook at the bottom of each installment. That's only because of all the trouble I had and the help I got from B.T.

    I still do not have those "Share Buttons" at the bottom of my F-FFF posts. And that's only because the Blogspot system has not-(YET)-f##ked-up my F-FFF blog.

    But I'm sure that day will come. Let's hope the end result is as positive as it turned out to be THIS time.

    ~ D-FensDogg
    'Loyal American Underground'

    ReplyDelete

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