Transformers Movie Review

by @katiedoyle

People people PEOPLE!

Have you seen this movie? You haven’t?
Well let me tell ya, you’re in for a treat.

You know the kind you get from the dentist after he drills into your teeth? The ones that are worth, like, a penny. The ones that you get bored with after two seconds and then want to smash under a car but they DON’T BREAK BECAUSE THEY ARE FAR TOO RESILIENT! That is what the experience of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen was like. It’s all shiny and new but once you get into it…awful. Just awful. I’ve seen a lot of bad movies and bad television and bad everything, but I’ve always felt like I grew from the experience. The only thing growing from this experience is Michael Bay’s bank account and many a geeks fury. I want my three hours back.

Interview: Selene Bowlby of iDesign Studios

by @geekgirls

 

Geek Girls Network: When did you first become interested in Web Site Design?

Selene Bowlby: I was first introduced to the internet back in high school, where all I had access to were text-based freenets and bulletin board services. It wasn’t long before I created my first (terribly designed) web site which was hosted in the Geocities Paris and Soho neighborhoods.

Although I majored in graphic design in college, at this point the internet was nothing more than a hobby for me. My career goal at that time was creating designs for print, such as advertisements, corporate identity, brochures, etc.

As I dabbled more in the emerging technology of the internet, my interest in the web grew tremendously. By the time I graduated, I was 100% positive that I wanted to focus on web site design and development.

GGN: What has been your favorite / most memorable project that you have worked on?

Dead Future “How I Became a Zombie”

by @geekgirls

The Grim Crew brings about their own flavor of sequential storytelling, short stories and more. Raised by stories of mythology, fairy tales, and bad horror movies from the 80s, they plan to bring their unique twist to the world.

Their group on Project Fanboy recently held a contest, “How I Became a Zombie”. The contest asked just this question. Participants were asked to write about how they theoretically became a zombie at the start of the Zombiocalypse. My entry won runner up and as a prize, my likeness will be drawn in the upcoming book “Dead Future“!!

10 Secret Sites for Web Designers

By @geekgirls

Well, they might not be secrets exactly, but no one told me which sites could help and why when I started out in the web design field. And there are so many online resources to help, after your website is up and running. Here’s what I use on a regular basis and why:

Elements of a Successful Website

By @geekgirls

Websites are essential in creating a finite place for any business in the World Wide Web. Although I’m sure this list can be debated, added to and rearranged, these are the most important-to-mention elements of a successful website:

Know your Audience. Before any layout, wire-framing or graphics are even discussed, the target audience must be identified. Who are you providing information for and what do they need to know? Create a clear environment for your audience to ensure that accessing information and resources will be effortless. Consider addressing the needs of your online visitors with features such as frequently asked questions, printable resources, and agency contact information. Guide users to the proper content with a navigational bar, or page menu, that defines each section of the site. Another option includes requiring a user logon feature for automatic direction to the correct area of resources.

WordPress for the N00BIE who wants to be the GURU

By @Pavlina20

WordPress is hands-down the leader for web publishing. It is the Mac-daddy, the best, and the most awesome. I started out my wee home on the internet with blogspot account, then that turned into Blogger (owned by Google) and I just didn’t have the freedom there to do what I wanted very easily. I am no code master. To this day when I need to change my template I have a list of resources that I must go-to for the proper code. Whoa, let me back up. Templates, did I say? Yes. Template. Welcome to the world of WordPress.

@Pavlina20

@Pavlina20

Pavlina currently resides (in the real world) in the planned city of Columbia, MD which is located between Washington DC and Baltimore, MD.  There she plots her eventual subjugation of the world by knowing everything. She has degrees in chemistry, math, more chemistry and a little bit of chemistry on the top. She is known through the internet as Pavlina20 and you may often find her twittering about randomness, or cursing her own fate at her home on the internet at Life is not for the Lving, a how to guide for the maladjusted.

She enjoys playing games Final Fantasy on her DS, sewing and creating costumes both for work and play, playing with her two small children, watching TV, reading books, listening to podcasts and podcast novels, and trying to find a way to extend the day so she can fit all that in and still get 8 hours a sleep per day.

Marketing Strategy Needs SEO

By Lisa Kaslyn

Many of the businesses I speak with share some perplexity when it comes to their Inbound Marketing strategy, and its primary tactic, search engine optimization (SEO). Here’s a simplified way of looking at it: If traditional marketing is about pushing information – sometimes intrusively- out to customers, (i.e., advertising, trade shows, telemarketing, direct mail, and email) then inbound or new marketing is more about making your business findable in a world where customers have more control over what information they receive and how they receive it.