Karen GoatKeeper's Blog - Posts Tagged "website"
Ambivalent Happiness
Several years ago I dutifully started an author's website. My first book was still a draft. But a website was supposed to be very important.
Advice on such a website said to target your audience. Who was my audience? I'm still not sure. However my books cover topics of nature, country living, goats, middle grade coming of age and science. So my website pages grew in number.
Every week I posted a nature commentary, a country living commentary and a science project. I tried to master SEO and advertise. My website remained ignored.
Until the GoodReads giveaway.Suddenly people began to find my website.
Then my Outside Project began posting Investigations from "The Pumpkin Project" and more people began to visit.
Happiness. Delight. Terror.
A new set of studies just came out on bullying and child abuse. The effects last a life time. Those of bullying can even be more terrible than those of abuse.
Parents are so important teaching a child to have confidence in themselves. This can counter even terrible taunts.
But learning confidence as an adult gives a fragile confidence. Fear and uncertainty sit just under the surface.
I am truly happy that people seem to find something to like about my website. I am also terrified I will find a way to make a mess of it.
Advice on such a website said to target your audience. Who was my audience? I'm still not sure. However my books cover topics of nature, country living, goats, middle grade coming of age and science. So my website pages grew in number.
Every week I posted a nature commentary, a country living commentary and a science project. I tried to master SEO and advertise. My website remained ignored.
Until the GoodReads giveaway.Suddenly people began to find my website.
Then my Outside Project began posting Investigations from "The Pumpkin Project" and more people began to visit.
Happiness. Delight. Terror.
A new set of studies just came out on bullying and child abuse. The effects last a life time. Those of bullying can even be more terrible than those of abuse.
Parents are so important teaching a child to have confidence in themselves. This can counter even terrible taunts.
But learning confidence as an adult gives a fragile confidence. Fear and uncertainty sit just under the surface.
I am truly happy that people seem to find something to like about my website. I am also terrified I will find a way to make a mess of it.
Total Frustration
I've heard it said that bad luck is better than no luck at all. I question this. I hope I'm not to that point yet.
But this last week makes me wonder.
My website seems to have gone AWOL. This error message comes up saying the site can't be found.
The site did show up with Google Chrome but was blank.
I am trying to find out what happened. I do have last week's commentaries and science project if anyone wants me to email them out.
Any ideas to help me in my website quest are welcome. I have contacted my host service but haven't heard back yet.
In the meantime the Pumpkin Project continues inching along.
But this last week makes me wonder.
My website seems to have gone AWOL. This error message comes up saying the site can't be found.
The site did show up with Google Chrome but was blank.
I am trying to find out what happened. I do have last week's commentaries and science project if anyone wants me to email them out.
Any ideas to help me in my website quest are welcome. I have contacted my host service but haven't heard back yet.
In the meantime the Pumpkin Project continues inching along.
Ignorance In Action
Ignorance is not a crime in and of itself. However it can be costly.
Anymore ignorance seems touted and supported by politicians and religious groups. Media makes it look good. More and more people seem to flout being ignorant.
This can be costly to society.
Back to my problem.
My home computer is not online. Updates are not an issue.
The librarians did updates but this was not noticed.
My laptop must do updates.
But for some inexplicable reason I didn't think website updates were important.
The website disagreed. And it shut itself down.
My website is again up and running. I am thankful for that and for a web hostess who refrained from calling me an idiot at least to my face.
My computer ignorance is great. The holes are not easily noticed especially by me.
I am no longer ignorant about updates and my website. Maybe I will get it caught up in another week or so.
Anymore ignorance seems touted and supported by politicians and religious groups. Media makes it look good. More and more people seem to flout being ignorant.
This can be costly to society.
Back to my problem.
My home computer is not online. Updates are not an issue.
The librarians did updates but this was not noticed.
My laptop must do updates.
But for some inexplicable reason I didn't think website updates were important.
The website disagreed. And it shut itself down.
My website is again up and running. I am thankful for that and for a web hostess who refrained from calling me an idiot at least to my face.
My computer ignorance is great. The holes are not easily noticed especially by me.
I am no longer ignorant about updates and my website. Maybe I will get it caught up in another week or so.
What Good Is a Survey?
I keep reading about websites with lots of comments. Those running them talk about keeping in touch with their visitors, the interactions they have.
I know people visit my website. The only comments I normally get are SPAM blocked and disposed of by Akismet.
For several years now I've written two blogs and done a science project almost every week for my site. Is anyone reading them? The page view listings don't indicate this but people do come back.
What do these people like? What would they like to read about? I haven't much of a clue.
Enter the survey. It's not too hard to make one out on SurveyMonkey. I even figured out how to put it on my webpage.
So, for the next two weeks I will hope someone fills it out.
The next project, according to these highly successful website owners, is to create an email list and newsletter. This assumes someone is out there visiting and reading the website and would like to know more.
Perhaps the survey will tell me someone is there.
I know people visit my website. The only comments I normally get are SPAM blocked and disposed of by Akismet.
For several years now I've written two blogs and done a science project almost every week for my site. Is anyone reading them? The page view listings don't indicate this but people do come back.
What do these people like? What would they like to read about? I haven't much of a clue.
Enter the survey. It's not too hard to make one out on SurveyMonkey. I even figured out how to put it on my webpage.
So, for the next two weeks I will hope someone fills it out.
The next project, according to these highly successful website owners, is to create an email list and newsletter. This assumes someone is out there visiting and reading the website and would like to know more.
Perhaps the survey will tell me someone is there.
