For some reason it gives me a bigger thrill to know that I have 34 e-mail subscribers at Animal Intelligence than to know that I have 3400 e-mail subscribers at Get Rich Slowly. Why is that?
I think part of it is that I put very little effort into Animal Intelligence. It’s a topic about which I am very passionate (and let me tell you: I heartily appreciate all the links you folks send me, especially Dave and Nicole), but that blog has become marginalized since GRS took off. (All my blogs have, really.)
Yet despite the fact that I neglect AI, the readership has slowly grown. It’s tiny — about 100 RSS readers (including the 34 e-mail subscribers I mentioned earlier) — and maybe 4,000 visitors a month, but that’s fine. The site isn’t meant to have a huge audience. You should have seen me beam at earning $17.73 from AI last month. That meant more to me than the fact that GRS can now support me for a living.
Anyhow, as the day approaches that I’m going to officially cut back at Custom Box (instead of my current unofficial cutback), I’ll begin focusing more on my ancillary sites, including this one. I know it seems like I abandon foldedspace from time-to-time, but I never do in my mind. I love this place, and I love the fact that you guys have stuck with me for so long. I hope to reward your patience in the future. I just need to figure out how to make the transition to full-time professional blogger, you know?
As I was saying: I’m starting to pay more attention to my non-GRS sites. Animal Intelligence is going to get a quick face lift today. I’ve installed Visual Basic on my Mac and will work to write a script that can parse the old foldedspace files and convert them into something that WordPress can import. (I’m referring to the really old foldedspace files, the ones from before the crash.) Kris has also convinced me to attempt to convert my old foldedspace template — the one you all know and love — into a WordPress theme. This will take a little work, and I’m not going to return to a “one post on the front page” format, but I think it can be done.
Anyhow — stay tuned. With any luck, you’ll start to see more interesting stuff around here again. And lots more of my cats.
Conversion of the old template to a WP theme should not be too hard.
I’ve tinkered with some custom theme work before, let me know if you need a hand.
“That meant more to me than the fact that GRS can now support me for a living.”
I have two reactions to this sentence. The first is an appreciation of how incredibly successful GRS has been in a very short time, which is a direct result of your hard work. The second is an appreciation of your perspective on the situation… there are other things more important to you than success. To be both successful and level-headed, there’s a gift.
Well I think these developments are super cool, and I’m glad I get to say I “knew” you back in the day. 😀
“I’ve installed Visual Basic on my Mac and will work to write a script that can parse the old foldedspace files and convert them into something that WordPress can import.”
Perl! Perl, Perl, and Perl.
Perl.
Lemme know if I can help. Right tool for the job and all that, y’know?
John