On the Code Again

Today's Flog involves a subject not in the larger bold headlines of the moment - unless you are a True Geek and care about the details of technology, or, if like millions, you have become completely dependent on/addicted to your latest cell phone, Netbook-of-sorts (aka some kind of computer generated "pad" - ahem) and must be texting, tweeting, Facebooking, emailing (what's that?) every other minute. You must be plugged-in on some level or else you wouldn't be here, reading a blog on the Interwebs.

And I, of course, would not be writing on such a device and reading most of what is going on in the world from the same techno-based products most of us have at our fingertips. Therefore, we are in this together. Up to a point. Unless you are attempting to change the code in CSS or HTML while building a website, then our shared experience may take different paths.

I've taken the Flogging Whip to the amazingly mind-numbing coding structures and conflicting instructions in the past. Admittedly, there has been progress with my ability to learn the basics. But now I've hit another confusing wall and have had a headache from attempting to decipher what I honestly believe "should" be easy coding steps along with CLEAR instructions to do the seemingly simplest of web developer tricks.

Have your eyes glazed-over yet? "Is she going all techie again" you may ask? Yep. I am. However, to wake you up a bit before I go on, check this out! Beyoncé claims she DID NOT have a C-section! The much heralded birth (why? I don't know), was supposedly "natural and peaceful." Uh hum. Okay. Whatever.

Back to the issue at hand: I would like to do two-three things on a new website: Add custom social media icons in the "Header" area where the site's tile is placed. I also want to tighten the space within the "box" where several "widgets" have been posted. If you are not familiar with any of these terms, allow me to bring you back to temporary reality for a moment: Guess who is leading in the New Hampshire Primary today?


Okay. On with the ragging.... First, most "Headers" require a change in coding to add anything that is not static. So, that means I must change a few squiggly marks in CSS or HTML (or both) with great care in the perfect spot to make it happen. But, not all "Headers" are the same. So, one researches the information for a particular template's coding to make it interactive.

That's when the non-fun begins. One instruction may be different than someone else's instruction. The template's author's Support Page doesn't address a simple way to do this. So, on to a tech forum go I to find answers. No one speaks/writes to each other in plain language on those places. I then call a techie friend. Sorry, I'm having trouble, too, they say. Good luck!

Then I call a pro who I am willing to pay. Sure we'll do it, but first we need payment in advance and a promise to give us your First-Born. No thank you, I say. Been there with other "professionals" and "done that" and still they fall short and require endless emails and phone conversations for the most basic instructions. Draining on every level.

So I back away and decide to focus on changing the excess space in the "box." This is called the "Padding." More research on how to change the size. More conflicting instructions. I try a few. No change. Is it me, I wonder? Reading others' experiences trying to do a similar change shows that I am far from alone. "This didn't work" one will remark with a little ;( - while another goes on to tell us what they did to make it work. Great, I think! Finally! I copy the code, place it where it is supposed to go. Check it twice. And nothing changes.

Hours later, going to HTML For Dummies and other places where novices can learn basics, I'm still confused. I take a break from it all for a few days to save my already strained eyes from popping out of my head.

Okay, I think. I can at least connect my site to a Facebook SHARE code, among Twitter and others. I look for the codes. Facebook would prefer that people now "Like" a page rather than SHARE it, so I must hunt for the right code. I finally find it, but the custom, cool FB (and other) icons I have downloaded aren't syncing with the links. Plus, I still haven't found a way to add them to my "Header" without creating major complications.

I am a cat chasing my tail at this stage. Why continue, you might wonder? Well, I seem to have learned most of what I know in every area of Life through trial and error; making mistakes or running-up against roadblocks which have required me to learn-as-I-go, which is why I have made it as far as I have. I want to learn. I read and watch tutorials. Other times I use my basic brain coupled with intuition. Sometimes it's understandable and sometime it's not.

For today, all I will admit is that the "Padding" issue should relate to a room where I should place my weary body to bounce against for several hours, and the "Header" concern should be how to get rid of my headache.

Pssst. Lindsay Low-Hand may be portraying a young Elizabeth Taylor in an upcoming Lifetime Movie Channel production. OMG! Who is she sleeping speaking with these days?