http://www.finchinfo.com/
So the redesign you guys helped with is now "live" as almost all of the articles have been converted to the new PHP format (the species profiles will be converted over soon). I even added a few new articles including several showcasing quotes and/or photos provided by some of you in this very forum!
e.g.
http://www.finchinfo.com/visitor_aviaries.php
http://www.finchinfo.com/finch_antics.php
There are still a ton of changes and additions to come (I have a VERY long to-do list!), but don't let that stop you from letting me know if there are any other changes you would like to see made. If something is broken or does not seem to look right with the new layouts (there are 4 layouts to chose from at the bottom of each page: default, art deco, spring, and magazine), let me know so I can fix things as needed. And as always, if you have any suggestions for additional content and so forth, let me know! I'm always open to new ideas.
Thanks everyone!
-Crystal
Finch Information Center Redesign Up and Running
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Crystal
- Brooding
- Posts: 1331
- Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2006 2:27 pm
- Location: Richmond, VA
- Contact:
-
Crystal
- Brooding
- Posts: 1331
- Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2006 2:27 pm
- Location: Richmond, VA
- Contact:
the daunting to-do list
The following represents just a few of the things I have planned for the future of the website (for those of you who are curious or who might like to comment on the potential usefulness of any of the following plans):
* Fix the classifieds section so that the "wanted/sale/trade" options are radio buttons (will help with searching the ads)
* Add fun quizzes such as "are you ready to own a finch?" and others that may test finch trivia and knowledge.
* Add articles detailing first aid supplies and breeding supplies Iincluding "breeding first aid" for egg binding/prolapse/hand feeding/etc.)
* When the finch health articles are published, include information about which illnesses are typically considered as "emergencies" vs. low priority, etc.
* Links found in each species profile should also be included on the "Finch Sites" links.
* Consider making the FAQ section into a "blog" format, so that comments can be added and/or reviews can be posted stating whether or not visitors have found the replies helpful.
* Consider adding a "breeder's corner" with a list of breeders which is kept up-to-date to help those who are trying to purchase certain species.
* Add the "water nanny" (including how to build one of your own) to the brooder possibilities on the breeding page.
* Go through all of the newly acquired avian text books to update all articles with any partinent information gleaned from them (i.e. add more information to articles from my ever growing collection of reference materials).
* Add videos of hand feeding (including crop tube use), safe finch restraint, banding application, sibling and parent feeding, male singing/courtship, and toenail clipping.
* In the appropriate articles, include a series of pictures of chicks growing from hatchling to fledging, as well as a series of pictures of candling from day 1 to hatching.
* For those birds I have not personally recorded, find recordings of their songs to link to from each species profile.
* Add to the links sections.
* Provide additional/alternate "egg food" recipes.
* Add more photos of mutations and hens (if dimorphic species) to the species profiles section to help new finch owners identify their birds.
* Add an article on humane euthanasia.
*Add more "layout styles" such as holiday themed layouts.
* Add even more new species after the current species profiles are completed.
(re)Write and publish the articles which are still of "coming soon" status:
-the missing species profiles
-aviary of the month
-tips for cage selection
-more aviary/enclosure "blue prints"
-cuttlebones: pros & cons
-common health problems related to malnutrition
- Prevention: the Best Policy
-Importance of Quarantine
-Importance of Hygiene
-Using Disinfectants
-Conditions of the Normal Finch
-Recognizing a Sick Finch
-First Aid for Finches
-Constructing a Hospital Cage
-Evaluating Finch Droppings
-Common Problems, Causes & Cures
-Trimming Nails and Beaks
-Veterinary Health Exam
-Diseases & Ailments
-Treatments & Dosages
-stimulating a pair to breed
-how lighting affects breeding
-young (hatchlings to maturity)
-breeding complications & troubleshooting
-hybridization and inbreeding
-loss of a mate/ "widowed" finches
-basic pigment information
-genetics for shaft-tails, owls, zebras, and societies
-FAQ sections
-anatomy of feet & nails
-anatomy of GI tract
-guide to dissection/necropsy of the finch
-anatomy of repro tract
-formation and fertilization of the egg
-parts of a feather
-types of feathers
-the basic physics of how finches fly
-chick embryo malpositions/deformities
-how to become lisenced to sell/trade finches in the US
I should mention it'll take me a million years to get all of this done, so it might not all ever come to be (and is certainly not listed in order of importance), but it's good to have goals, right?
--------------edit
Things which have been done off the to-do list above so far:
* Add pop-up "tool tips" to the genetics articles and other articles containing definitions so that the words to be defined can be easily referenced.
* Add the ability to report broken links with the push of a single button. (actually I found an even BETTER way to do this where visitors don't have to do any work or push any buttons! Now every time a page is visited, an automatic process checks the links on the page; if any are broken, I am automatically e-mailed about it.)
* Fix the classifieds section so that the "wanted/sale/trade" options are radio buttons (will help with searching the ads)
* Add fun quizzes such as "are you ready to own a finch?" and others that may test finch trivia and knowledge.
* Add articles detailing first aid supplies and breeding supplies Iincluding "breeding first aid" for egg binding/prolapse/hand feeding/etc.)
* When the finch health articles are published, include information about which illnesses are typically considered as "emergencies" vs. low priority, etc.
* Links found in each species profile should also be included on the "Finch Sites" links.
* Consider making the FAQ section into a "blog" format, so that comments can be added and/or reviews can be posted stating whether or not visitors have found the replies helpful.
* Consider adding a "breeder's corner" with a list of breeders which is kept up-to-date to help those who are trying to purchase certain species.
* Add the "water nanny" (including how to build one of your own) to the brooder possibilities on the breeding page.
* Go through all of the newly acquired avian text books to update all articles with any partinent information gleaned from them (i.e. add more information to articles from my ever growing collection of reference materials).
* Add videos of hand feeding (including crop tube use), safe finch restraint, banding application, sibling and parent feeding, male singing/courtship, and toenail clipping.
* In the appropriate articles, include a series of pictures of chicks growing from hatchling to fledging, as well as a series of pictures of candling from day 1 to hatching.
* For those birds I have not personally recorded, find recordings of their songs to link to from each species profile.
* Add to the links sections.
* Provide additional/alternate "egg food" recipes.
* Add more photos of mutations and hens (if dimorphic species) to the species profiles section to help new finch owners identify their birds.
* Add an article on humane euthanasia.
*Add more "layout styles" such as holiday themed layouts.
* Add even more new species after the current species profiles are completed.
(re)Write and publish the articles which are still of "coming soon" status:
-the missing species profiles
-aviary of the month
-tips for cage selection
-more aviary/enclosure "blue prints"
-cuttlebones: pros & cons
-common health problems related to malnutrition
- Prevention: the Best Policy
-Importance of Quarantine
-Importance of Hygiene
-Using Disinfectants
-Conditions of the Normal Finch
-Recognizing a Sick Finch
-First Aid for Finches
-Constructing a Hospital Cage
-Evaluating Finch Droppings
-Common Problems, Causes & Cures
-Trimming Nails and Beaks
-Veterinary Health Exam
-Diseases & Ailments
-Treatments & Dosages
-stimulating a pair to breed
-how lighting affects breeding
-young (hatchlings to maturity)
-breeding complications & troubleshooting
-hybridization and inbreeding
-loss of a mate/ "widowed" finches
-basic pigment information
-genetics for shaft-tails, owls, zebras, and societies
-FAQ sections
-anatomy of feet & nails
-anatomy of GI tract
-guide to dissection/necropsy of the finch
-anatomy of repro tract
-formation and fertilization of the egg
-parts of a feather
-types of feathers
-the basic physics of how finches fly
-chick embryo malpositions/deformities
-how to become lisenced to sell/trade finches in the US
I should mention it'll take me a million years to get all of this done, so it might not all ever come to be (and is certainly not listed in order of importance), but it's good to have goals, right?
--------------edit
Things which have been done off the to-do list above so far:
* Add pop-up "tool tips" to the genetics articles and other articles containing definitions so that the words to be defined can be easily referenced.
* Add the ability to report broken links with the push of a single button. (actually I found an even BETTER way to do this where visitors don't have to do any work or push any buttons! Now every time a page is visited, an automatic process checks the links on the page; if any are broken, I am automatically e-mailed about it.)
Last edited by Crystal on Fri Feb 16, 2007 12:24 am, edited 2 times in total.
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tammieb
- Brooding
- Posts: 1241
- Joined: Sat Feb 11, 2006 7:00 pm
- Location: USA/Nebraska
- Contact:
