10 Questions with Wil of Spot Cool Stuff

1. Describe your blog in five sentences or less.
How about one phrase or less:  Destinations, gadgets, music, movies, websites and high design items with a WOW factor.

2. Link us to one post from your blog that best defines who you are.
Only one? My most recent post is still swirling in my mind. So, at this moment, I have to point you to Eat Breakfast With A Giraffe.  Besides the fact that I hope this post makes people go WOW, my intent was to make this place seem accessible. Almost anyone with the means can go experience it for themselves, you don’t need to be any great adventurer. I mean, how great is it that we live on a planet where there’s a Giraffe Manor?

3. What sets you apart from other bloggers?
Our WOW factor. And that we bring that sensibility (or try to) to all five categories we write about: travel, tech, media, websites, and design.

4. When and how did you first discover blogging?
At the same time bloggers first discovered blogging, back in the late 90s or early 2000s when I was working for the Discovery Channel Online.

5. What is your biggest pet peeve related to blogging or the internet?
Blogs that have more ads than useful content. I saw a blog yesterday (I wish I could remember the URL) that was literally dozens of adsense ads surrounding a blog post that was, wait for it, one sentence long.

6. Name one plugin, blogging widget, or service that you can’t live without.
Especially on the travel portion of Spot Cool Stuff I couldn’t live without my Folding Categories plugin; I have so many categories it would really be impossible otherwise.  The plugin I’m starting to like more and more is CommentLuv. I started using it in my Travel And Websites areas but might be expanding that to the others.

7. If you could choose anyone, living or dead, to write a guest post for your blog, who would it be and why?
How can you not go for some one dead if that option is out there?  Lots of names come to mind but in the end I’d have to say Leonardo da Vinci.  I’m not sure there’s ever been a person who has more sought out life’s WOW factors.

8. How has blogging made you a better person?
Interesting that you are assuming that it has. Writing, researching and making contact with others has certainly enriched my life. But made me a better person?  I’m not sure.

9. What are your tips for becoming a better blogger?
A friend of mine recently launched a blog and asked me to take a look. Her blog posts were written in light red text placed upon a medium-red background.  Naturally, I told her that her readers might find her color choice difficult to read and headache-inducing. Her reply: “But I like red!”  So my advice is this: Think about your blog from your reader’s point of view.  How does what you are writing appear to them? What’s THEIR experience on your blog and how can you make that better? What do they want to know?  On almost every blog I’ve been to (mine as well, in some ways) the blogger is far too self-centric.

10. Name one great blog that you read on a regular basis. What makes it unique?
Breed ‘Em And Weep – Excellent writing, combined with a delicious sense of humor and profound outlook on life.

1. Describe your blog in five sentences or less.
I’ve been blogging on and off for several years now on a range of subjects from mountain biking to network marketing, but I’ve never been fully focused and persistent. I’m engaged to be married next year and have a 3 month mountain bike tour planned as our honeymoon, so I needed to consolidate my businesses. I decided to start this blog as a way to focus my energies and ideas, and to share what I have learned about online business over the past 6 years. I discuss and teach marketing, business, and web design and although my blog is quite young, the feedback I’m getting is awesome!

2. Link us to one post from your blog that best defines who you are.
Using WordPress to Build Websites as a CMS
I’m trying to give as much pure content as I can with this blog. I’ve been designing websites commercially since 1999, so I’m hoping to give back a lot of the knowledge I’ve picked up from the online community.

3. What sets you apart from other bloggers?
There are plenty of bloggers in the Internet marketing niche, and there are plenty of very techie developers blogging out there, but I hope that I manage to bridge that gap. Although there are certainly technical elements to some of my posts, I try not to assume too much technical background and always try to appeal to newbies while still giving content with real depth to it.

4. When and how did you first discover blogging?
I honestly can’t remember when I first discovered blogging. I guess my first blog was of a 900 mile solo cycle trip I did in 2002, but I didn’t use a blogging platform – just updated the HTML each day! Can’t imagine doing that now. Life without Wordpress wouldn’t be the same at all!

5. What is your biggest pet peeve related to blogging or the internet?
It’s amazing to me how many people still spam out there, same with forums. You can be sure that every single day you get single one line comments or forum posts from people you never hear from again, just looking for that quick link rather than engage in the conversation.

6. Name one plugin, blogging widget, or service that you can’t live without.
Soooo many to choose from. I certainly wouldn’t want to be without Askimet, Simple tags is great (and simple just like it says!) but my number one would have to be WP_CodeShield which is such a help on a blog like mine which includes sample code from time to time.

7. If you could choose anyone, living or dead, to write a guest post for your blog, who would it be and why?
I guess it would have to be Larry Page – so much of what I read on blogs is speculation about Google and their algorithms. It would be great to hear it ’straight from the horses mouth’!

8. How has blogging made you a better person?
Blogging has definitely given me a new focus and commitment. I try to be consistent with my posts, and plan ahead – something I need to do more of with the rest of my business and life!

9. What are your tips for becoming a better blogger?
Engage in a conversation – encourage and reply to comments, get inside your reader’s heads and find out what they want. If you can deliver content that is exactly what your visitors want, you’ll be a massive success!

10. Name one great blog that you read on a regular basis. What makes it unique?
Internet Business Mastery
OK so I know it’s a podcast primarily but these guys put out such great content and are the only ones in my niche who really focus on mindset and goals… plus they are genuinley funny – that’s important too!

The Blog – The Wooden Fish is an attractive looking blog featuring tech related articles, movie reviews, Wordpress discussion and even some great looking original desktop wallpapers for download.

The Blogger – Originally from China, George Yang now resides in San Diego and considers himself an elementary web designer, though it would be difficult to agree with that just by observing the work he’s done with his own site. George is fluent in Chinese, Spanish and English.

A Post We Luv – George writes a short but sweet review of Juno, a movie which I absolutely adored.

1. Describe your blog in five sentences or less.
Life is beautiful – isn’t it? There are so many things to enjoy, so sometimes you don’t even know what to do because you want to do everything :) One such thing for me is video games. I like it… No! I REALLY like to play games. PSP games are the one I’m interested the most. That’s why I’ve started my blog – everyone should enjoy this great console.

2. Link us to one post from your blog that best defines who you are.
LEGO Indiana Jones US Version – Enjoy great adventures!

3. What sets you apart from other bloggers?
Me and others? Everyone is apart – everyone is a unique one – that’s the reason!

4. When and how did you first discover blogging?
Em… i think it was 3 years ago.. thanks to Google ;)

5. What is your biggest pet peeve related to blogging or the internet?
Spam! Spam is the biggest pet peeve – sometimes it get’s too annoying…

6. Name one plugin, blogging widget, or service that you can’t live without.
Is there one? Never knew that :)

7. If you could choose anyone, living or dead, to write a guest post for your blog, who would it be and why?
I choose Qui-Gon Jinn – I like him. Why? It cannot be fully described with words. You must feel the Force to understand it.

8. How has blogging made you a better person?
One thing I know for sure – it teaches about what other people need.

9. What are your tips for becoming a better blogger?
An open mind is the main tip – Think, think and think once again!!

10. Name one great blog that you read on a regular basis. What makes it unique?
John Chow dot Com – example of the rule ”Think, think, and think once again!” – great results!

The authors of technoNix have been busy for the past year building up a great site for everything technology! And who isn’t interested in technology? If you’re currently on your computer, then this blog will apply to you!

This blog has a community feel, which is always great for a blog author. The more “at home” you can make your readers feel, the more frequently they will likely come by. The way these authors have addressed that is by creating a forum for discussions of various current technology issues. I think that’s a terrific idea and it looks like it’s been pretty popular! Way to go!

Additionally, technoNix has addressed a wide gammit of topics, and among some that piqued my curiosity were these:

Track Your Friends With Your Cellphone – for the stalker side of my aberrant personality (lol): this is a funny post about how Sprint is offering a service where it can tell you where your friends are every 15 minutes (yeah, I just don’t know how I feel about that!)

Microsoft Maps in 3D – Microsoft, via Virtual Earth, has launched, at the time of the original post, what was a beta program to show cities, along with buildings and topography in their 3D form. I’ve always been curious about what cities really look like, mainly ones I’ve never been to of course, and so this item was particularly interesting to me. IE and Firefox can view these maps but evidently only when the add-on’s been installed. Cool!

Microsoft Offers to Buy Yahoo for $44.6 Billion – this post was just representative of all of the “newsy” topics that technoNix offers about the industry.

And, if all of the above doesn’t tempt you to visit this blog, a giveaway surely will. technoNix is giving away a free game of Star Fighter! To enter the contest, go here. Good Luck!

One thing that has always really endeared me to Mark’s blog is the fact that he’s active within his own community and is very welcoming of new readers. I think those are two very important traits to have as a blogger. You can write stellar content but if you rarely respond to your readers or go out of your way to make them feel welcome, I think it’s less likely that you’ll find success with your blog, or it will at least take longer. With MeAndMyDrum you’ll not only find a friendly author in Mark, but the stellar content as well.

As a blogger, I think I would probably best describe Mark as a jack of all trades. He has a knack for being able to write about a little bit of everything on MeAndMyDrum. While you’ll most often find posts related to blogging tips and software, it’s not out of the ordinary to catch Mark writing about current events and topics which he’s passionate about. Throw in a little humor here and there and more than his share of link love, and it’s easy to see Mark has a great blog.

Since I’ve been reading MeAndMyDrum for so long, I thought I’d take a look back at some of my favorite posts Mark has written over the past year.

Twas My Blog Before Christmas – This is a classic and definitely one of the most creative blog posts I’ve read. Mark takes a Christmas favorite and gives it a blogworthy spin.

Buh-Bye Blog Rush – Mark bids a somber good-bye to BlogRush, the blogging widget we all hardly knew.

How I Accessed Your Technorati Account – Mark broke a story about a little security breach at Technorati which would allow others to access your account. Surprisingly it took nearly a week for Technorati to respond. Maybe that shouldn’t be such a surprise actually.

A Future Me, A Future Interview – Mark conducts an interview with himself in response to a great meme created by the Baron of Brown Thoughts.

I’m hoping by now I’ve convinced you stop by MeAndDrum, grab the feed and become a regular reader, just as I am. Chances are you’ll discover that’s it not only an excellent blog, but also make a great new friend in Mark.

Phew!It’s been one of those weeks!You know,a week full of days you feel like singing Limp Bizkit’s “Break Stuff” in every stranger’s face you see.I am also becoming additcted to a certain word….”DORK”.Yeah,I said “DORK”!Imagine me walking down the pavement with my mp3 player plugged into my ears,wearing my SLAYER T-Shirt,shorts and slippers.A dude bumps into me….

Mithila:”It’s all about the he says,she says BULL ****!”

Dude:What was that?

Mithila:”I think you’d better quit,taking that ****.Or you’ll be leavin’ with a fat lip!”

Dude:You sick?Who do you think you are talking to you….

Mithila:DORK!!!

Yeah,that’s my story!One full week!!!

Oh!I am distracting myself!So….coming back to the review.Where were we?Oh we weren’t no where!Well,here’s the review!

The site is mostlylisa.com-Canada’s sexy geek blog.I’ve been a reader of Lisa’s blog for sometime,I’ve enjoyed pretty much everything she writes,but I’ve always had a question.A question I am still trying to answer.Who’s sexier?The geek?Or the Blog?While the blogger in me says it’s the blog,the DORK in me I mean,the “Adam” in me says it’s “You DORK!It’s the geek”.I’ll leave that for you to figure out.

Well,I know you don’t want me to copy paste her about section.So here’s what I really feel about the blog.

The tagline speaks for the blog.It’s a sexy geek blog.(Or probably THE sexy geek blog,because I haven’t found anything like this blog in the whole blogosphere.Tell me if you find something similar.)

Lisa blogs about everything from her life in Vancouver and modelling to Macs and the latest on Twitter.Say her latest post is about modelling (something I am not into really,to be honest with you),still the geeks will have something in it because….OK,you tell me.How many geeks you know are models?Or,how many models you know are sexy? I mean geeks?Ah,now you are getting it!

Well,entrecard seems to be the biggie these days.It has grown to something so huge that you feel like looking for the widget on the google homepage to drop your card.If you are one of those people DORKS who want to drop their card on every site they stumble upon,this is not the site for you.However,you can mark my word on this.Unlike some EC giants out there,lisa replies!May it be a comment,a facebook message or a digg shoutout,lisa replies.Um….I am not very sure about the digg shoutout,I am not very active on digg!!!

When you check her site out,don’t forget to peep into lisa’s photogrpahy section.It has some glamorous modelling pics,some really hilarious stuff,some geeky pics,cute stuff like rabbits,and some EMO dude smoking a fag….Oh the list goes on.Just check out that section ok?

I can’t teach you how to monetize your blog, but I can offer you some mostly intelligent conversation, moderately geeky tech talk, very funny mom stories, with the occasional rant thrown in for flavor. I’m so glad you’re here!

I’m not sure what drew me in first but I’ve found myself visiting again and again every day since that first time I came across the site. I think that Heather (aka Geek Mom) and I have a lot in common. We’re both authors over at Squidoo and she has some very interesting lenses over there. She’s even an Award Winning Monkey Brain at Squidoo. And we both like to craft things. Heather even has a shop called Small and Simple Gifts, which I found myself browsing around in looking at all the jewelry, blankets, and oragami mobiles she has made for sale. She has some very beautiful work.

Back to the blog… see how side tracked I get! One of her recent posts, New Nintendo “Software” for Mario Fans, showed off an adorable crocheted Super Mario that she found online! Totally cute. And while Heather knows a good gadget or geeky grown up toy when she sees one, she also knows all about the territory of motherhood, including the always amazing attraction of sick vomitting children and moms and the wonderment of new words that little boys make up all by themselves. Both are things which I can definitely relate to.

Why am I still talking? Why are you still reading? You’re supposed to be over at Geek Mom Mashup checking out all the fun geek amd mom stuff that Heather has written. As the blog says, Life is a mashup of toys and gadgets, hobbies and recipes, kids and odd socks, all held together with love and duct tape. I think you will enjoy it.