However, i recently got an email from someone who was concerned about getting ripped off in an online transaction, googled some information from the deal and found my post eBay Scam. They subsequently did not take part in said deal…and were better off as a result. It’s just a small point, but for me it enforces the usefulness of something like a blog.

I will look into this problem sometime in the near future, however, for those that can’t wait – I would highly recommend Firefox!

I’ve also changed the way a single post displays, so that it now includes the sidebar, and enlarged the right-hand column to 500px from 470px to allow posting of Flickr photos. This was a little more tricky, so let me know if you notice anything that’s not displaying correctly.

Any comments on the new look would be much appreciated.

However, the bigger news is that my budding enterprise, Macdonald Sporrans, is now ambitiously branching out onto the mainstream world wide web through no less than 4 separate domain names (all pointing to the same site!). Macdonald-Sporrans.com will be hosting an online shopping paradise for all your highland dress needs in the very near future.

Interestingly, the majority of visitors use Internet Explorer Version 6.0! I’m rather surprised about that. I know that it’s still the most popular browser, but i figured that people who read blogs are probably more interested in technology, therefore are more likely to use Firefox. While this may still be the case, and the proportion of Firefox users over IE users may be higher for blog readers, i’m still a little disappointed Firefox is not KING!

Therefore, i’ve installed a link at the top of the page to allow anyone who doesn’t already have Firefox to download it now!

Current stats:
IE 6.0 – 37.25%
Firefox 2.0 – 24.51%
Safari – 14.71%
IE 7.0 – 12.75

Also rather interesting, Google accounts for over 77% of search engine referrals, and the term ‘sexist jokes’ accounts for over 44% of all searches! A small example, but an interesting insight into Google’s dominance of the search industry.

Initially this was started as a sort of travel journal – a way to keep in touch with everyone while i was away…without sending imposing group emails every two weeks to say what i’ve been doing. I really wanted it as a collection of lots of little stories about my travels and experiences, that anyone could drop in on and check out what i’d been up to…without necessarily having to read everything.

However, since returning last week…i’ve come to a junction. Either i can stop writing since i’m not travelling anymore (or write about the few places that i’ll go in Scotland/Europe), or i can continue the blog to be a snapshot of what’s going on in my life…despite the fact i’m not travelling.

Personally i enjoy writing it, and think that i will continue to write about things that interest me – whether they interest the reader or not…well, i hope they do! Hopefully my posts will still be interesting and funny (ermm…were they ever interesting or funny is still under debate!), but they will probably contain a lot less about Asian Experiences!

I had an interesting trip to East Kilbride with Suzy today, where we dropped my mum of, then had a lovely time strolling around the scenic spots such as the local Somerfield and Morrisons. We stopped off at Linlithgow on the way home and were far too tight to pay £3.50 to go into the palace…but it’s made me consider buying a membership to Historic Scotland (new window) – it would mean free entry to the Castle etc which would be cool (Edinburgh & Stirling). It’s a funny thing that i consider £3.50 to be expensive…but £27 for a membership a bargain! It’s also rather distressing that i would consider a membership to Historic Scotland (new window)…am i a middle aged (hhmm…make that old aged) man, trapped inside a 22 year old’s body!! Aaaahhhh….

I’m a fan of Google Personalised Homepage for reading blogs, news, word of the day etc etc, but this one kicks ass. You can have 3 different pages so can easily sort out what you’re viewing (ie page 1 for news and weather, page 2 for blogs etc), and because it’s Ajax (new window) based, it’s really easy and quick to use…never mind being colourful and fully customisable. Bring it on!

PS you may also notice a ‘Word of the Day’ section has been added to the side bar, underneath ‘Archives’ and above ‘Visitors’. Enjoy…

Firstly i had to set up some kind of copyright status for my photos so that i wouldn’t get ripped off by people copying them and using them (not for the guy who asked as he seems like a nice chap), but because i put lots of pictures online and anyone can download them and use them. Of course, this doesn’t stop that, but it lets people know that they are breaking the copyright act. Callum (new window) put me onto Creative Commons (new window) who provide free licenses for your work – you simply chose the type of license you want…and you’re protected.
I set up a new page (new window) on my site so that people can get some info on what i allow to be done with my photos, and it provides a handy link that i can pass to people who want to publish any of them.

Secondly, it made me marvel at the advancement of the internet and the catchphrase Web 2.0. This is Web 2.0 at its best. Someone setting up a website who wants pictures of Malaysia simply goes onto Flickr and searches for keywords that suit what he is looking for. Suddenly he no longer just has access to what photographers list on their personal sites, he doesn’t have to contact any expensive marketing agents or use intermediaries…in this case he doesn’t even need to pay for the photos! I find it hard to imagine a world where information is not so readily available.

If you haven’t already seen my photos…please check them out here (new window).

It only takes a minute and is not that much hassle…so please click the link on the right hand side…or click this handy link here!

Some photos will be on both sites, however they will be in different contexts, so depending on your mood…check both!