Digital Hygiene

It was high time I cleaned up my internet presence. An exploit-riddled Wordpress install, billing that failed every month, domain in the clutches of a site from 2004, and email being fed through the google-brain. I've wanted to write on this site for ages, and each time my digital infrastructure would offend me so much that I'd never get around to publishing. The solution? Sort this shit out. And then write about it, obviously.

What Was Wrong

There was nothing actually wrong with any of the companies I was using for my internet setup. It all worked, just, but it was so scattered it really felt like I wasn't in control. Plus the email-reading thing. There was that.

My domain was with Easyspace. It was fine, but not exactly a nice user experience.  And since I care so much about user experience this seemed wrong. I like orange as much as the next guy, but the site is leaning towards RyanAir levels of busyness. 

My hosting was with 34sp, a company I chose as they were local (when I lived in Manchester) and gave me the kind of access that meant I could install whatever I wanted: Drupal, Wordpress, my own binaries and scripts. But time marches on, and right now I'm not maintaining anyone else sites, and my own needs are simpler. 

My email was with Google. Eesh. Like everyone else, in 2004 I scrambled to get an invite and move my mail to the startup-turning-to-superpower Google. Gmail was truly revolutionary: web mail that didn't suck. IMAP access, spam filtering, enough space for anybody and a cool address to boot. In 2011 while Google Apps For Business was still free I moved buy private address there too, thinking I was getting all these things for free. Nowadays, the privacy tradeoff just makes me feel little but sick. My email is just for me and my dog, thank you.

What Is Right

My domain is with Hover. There's really not much to say: it was easy to setup, easy to move to, and easy to makes changes.

My hosting is with Squarespace. I didn't have to write any Python, PHP, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Ruby. But if I wanted to, I could.

My email is with Hover. They have an option called "Big". It's big enough.

New Design

It's simple. It's also incomplete. I'm starting basic and will iterate and elaborate as I go. I don't get to do a lot of visual design generally, and so I'll likely use this site's design to try new things out.

My font is Garamond. Because it is 2015 and we are all adults here.

My colours are an orange for highlighting, a complimentary blue for links, and a black for contrast.

My template is Bedford. A great starting point and I have a soft spot for Brooklyn.

New Content

Steady on. For now I have just moved my original blog and the page for Map Overlay. New content will follow, in the form of new projects, new goals and new thinking. The main reason for overhauling number23 was that the scattered nature of all the parts was adding complexity to every change, and decision fatigue would set in each time I wanted to add something small, leading to procrastination and digital denial. Now that I'm back in control of all my horses, things are looking up for my creative output.

So there you have it, a new site. I'll try not to leave it so long next time.


If anyone tells you podcasting advertising doesn't work, I tell them that this site is brought to you by HoverSquarespace, and Pact Coffee.