all lies was created from scratch using a good old windows text editor. i did use frontpage to help debug it, and there were a lot of bugs. the website uses stylesheets, although i could not get linked stylesheets to debug in netscape (see why i hate netscape), so for the time being, every page can feel special because it has its very own stylesheet.

in addition to using frontpage, i learned a lot from webmonkey.com. they cover a plethora of web-related topics. anyone interested in learning how to author from scratch (like me), or those who want to make programs like frontpage work better for them, webmonkey is the place to go. webmonkey is not just for beginners and is a good resource for any amateur web developer. in other words, i can't recommend it enough.

graphics and the like were used using photoshop. While the page was tested with internet explorer and netscape, my design comes through best with internet explorer > v4.0. all lies is accessible with netscape, but netscape does not translate the bells and whistles of all lies (again, reference why i hate netscape.

i live true to the geek bruin name, because i am a purist when it comes to html editing. my methods are minimalist, an at times my web design can come through as trite, but i believe the by paring away the crap (notice there is no music, "blink," image backgrounds, or skinned cursors. you didn't have to download a plugin to view this site, did you? ) my page is faster and easily read. don't get me wrong, i do like the bells and whistles; my pages use javascript and stylesheets, and in time they will include cgi and flash--but it is also my goal to provide some convenient version of this website for almost any user. but perhaps more importantly, i am a purist in the sense that i will use certain technologies only when useful, and not to just make your cursor turn into a happy face when it rolls over links.

enough about that, what about this "i code my own html" crap? an intelligent reader may ask (and if you're still reading now, you probably are not), why learn html when there is so much software out there that doesn't require knowledge of html?

well, i have many reasons:

1. i am a control freak. i want things just so, and in order to do that it is necessary to know the code. (i sound like a freak. oh wait, i am. whew! adverted that one.)

2. i am obsessed with being able to say, "yeah i did that from scratch." i churn my own butter too.

3. multiple platforms: if you want your page to work on both netscape and explorer (the two most used browsers), you will have to do at least some debugging.

4. i have an interest in programming, and html is a good place to start.

5. speed. knowing the code, and learning how to clean up the code in your files can make pages load faster, and with fewer errors. many software applications like frontpage, while very powerful, add extraneous code to your files, and like empty calories, they just make you fat and slow. webmonkey (see sidebar for specific links) has some good articles on how to clean up your files. i haven't read all of their articles, but i have found that i've learned a lot from writing and testing the files myself.

i know that while html is powerful in its own right, it is becoming antiquated with snazzier, more interactive things. i know this. in time this page will progress to more spiffy, interactive and streamlined media. since yahoo (geocities) will not allow cgi, flash and more javascript is what you'll see next, and then who knows what. depending on how popular this becomes, i might buy some space that's ad and restriction free. thanks for reading. (FIN)