HumidCity

I am repeatedly asked about what tools I use in blogging, and for advice on how to do so more easily and effectively. The following is a rundown on useful web based tools that I use on a regular basis which I offer as a semi-comprehensive answer to these questions.

Flickr - Lets start with something colorful, like pictures. I use Flickr, and wholeheartedly recommend it. The free version is useful although limited. On the good side the paid version is only $25 a year. With a paid account you have 2 GB of upload for pictures and can store a near infinite number of them. My own account has over 10,000 images. It integrates a number of useful features, but the two most important for a blogger are the ability to blog an image directly from with Flickr and the ability to instantly generate source code for inserting images into posts in your normal editor.

Picnik - This is an online image editor which can pull an image directly out of your Flickr account and allow you to edit it. Its no Photshop, but its really good for basics like brightness, contrast, sepiatone, etc. When you are done you can either overwrite your original image or add it as a new one. Picnik fully supports image tagging and Flickr sets.

Flickr Toys - Another wonderful resource that ties directly into your Flickr Photostream. Its actually a collection of image manipulation toys thta allow you to do a number of things. You can make motivational posters, magazine covers, trading cards, and more. Tons of fun and terrific for those with a satirical bent.

Flock - Flock is a new browser, built on the Firefox core (if you are still using IE check out Flock and Firefox, you will switch I promise you!). It is a beautiful tool for a blogger. It has a built in feed reader which you can load up with feeds from sites you constantly refer to using a simple drag and drop interface. It also can integrate your Flickr or Photobucket pictures, showing them in a top bar where they can easily be dragged into posts. If you use del.icio.us (a social bookmarking service), the bookmarks can be configured to post to your online bookmarks. It also has a built in blog editor (which I do not use, see the write up on Performancing below).

Performancing - this is a blog editor extension for Firefox and Flock. It can be configured to post to multiple blogs on multiple platforms ranging from Blogger and LiveJournal to WordPress (there is even a MySpace plugin for it) While you’re in your browser just hit F8 and it opens in the lower half of your browser window. Using this in Flock with the photobar and the newsreader makes it extermely easy to craft a detailed post with pictures and attributed quotes. It is the only editor I use lately.

Hopefully this will be useful to someone out there. If it is let me know. If you have something to add that I missed let me know.
Now all you need is something to say…

Gmail is down again. This time for the past two days. If it’s on their end they owe their users some form of update on what the situation is. (Don’t tell me its BETA, its been on the net since well before Katrina and its an ad driven service.) It could also be the side effect of some sort of selective port blocking by Cox, or basic incompetence, or the fragile and unstable infrastructure of the city. I bet its Cox, my lovely wife informs me that she had no trouble accessing it from Tulane’s connection.

Damn annoying though.

Since the Storm the internet is our main way of staying in touch with scattered friends and family. All the “social” applications have taken on a new dimension. Displaced friends in Cincinatti and I watch each other’s current reading and movie intake, trading notes and comments back and forth through LibraryThing and Netflix. We share pictures in the same way on Flickr, even sharing our bookmarks with del.icio.us. And that doesn’t even touch the subject of blogs, online journals and MySpace.

All of these applications add community to the services they offer. Each alows you to interact and communicate on a common platform. While fun, and no doubt, useful to most, these have become an important means of staying in touch with each other and home. I can see that my friend Rachel is about to rent a truly awful movie when  I’m in Netflix and leave her a note saying it’s not worth the effort.  We can also add reviews as we watch things which they will see when going to rent it. Little bits of day to day interaction that allow a sembalance of normalcy.

We are a people who crave the society of our fellow New Orleanians: loud, boisterous, eating questionable things of aquatic origin, and with drink in hand. The City of Cyber Orleans knows no geographic borders. It stretches as far as our furthest displaced has gone and is accessible from any internet connection.  For those away its not home, but it helps. For those of us here it is a link to all our misssing loved ones.

Kind of like a William Gibson novel reinterpreted by Morgus The Magnificent.

Like many of us I find myself gearing up for possible evacuation. Alternating between optimism and dread about the season I still try to be ready for the lack of action should anything ugly go down. I tell myself its only logical to be prepared.

With that in mind I thought I might share some of the things I am doing to get ready for another possible Era of Exile. These are mostly things involving using internet technology and services, but since you are reading this I’m willing to bet you can cope.

• We have too many photos to take with us when evacuating. There are album upon album filling the shelves of a small bookcase. In order to make sure that the images themselves survive. I have been madly scanning them and uploading them to my new Flickr account. $20 a year gets you up to 2 Gigs of upload a month along with all the other niceties it offers (sharing, organization, etc). This means I do not even have to worry about grabbing discs when we leave.
• In order to make sure that no matter what I have contact info for everyone I am using a service called Plaxo. It is an address book that automatically updates. One change to my own info (if displaced) is automatically updated in my friend’s and family’s adress books. A really good way of keeping current, especially if we end up scattered again.
• All our CDs are now relocated to easily carried binders (love CaseLogic!)
• If you do not already have one advise setting up a blog or online journal. You do not have to use it, but does give you a single web address to give everyone before leaving. Computer access is common these days so you should be able to update it periodically, even from the road. This is a good way of keeping friends and family updated if you are on the move. Livejournal is especially useful for this as it is very comunity oriented and was a center of networking during Katrina.
• Whereas we only had one cat carrier befoer the storm (only used it for vet trips) we now have a full complement of five. If you hunt around you can find really nice soft sided ones that are collapsible for about $20 each.
• A new and interesting product we discovered on the run last year are disposable cat boxes. They are thin plastic cat boxes with a small amount of litter in them. You peel off the paper seal, let the wee beasties have some privacy, and throw it out when you’re finished. These were a godsend in a number of vehicles, hotels, etc.
• If there are keepsakes or items of sentimental value that you know you will not be able to take when you leave, photgraph them. Throw the photos up on Flickr (see above) and no matter what at least you will have the image.
• A stand alone, web based email account with a service like yahoo, hotmail, or gmail makes sure you can always communicate if you can get online. I personally prefer gmail, but your milage may vary.

If you have useful or creative ideas for prepping for the season please leave them in the comments. In the meantime I’m off to light some candles and hope it is not needed.