page January 2017
Rememer to either to hit
the refresh button or re-type dogdragons.com if you have any problems.
Happy new year.
Back to the bikes.
As you know I spent a lot on time on the A-2-Z
of motorcycles past and present last month, I will be working on those
a little here and there this month, but my main focus in the winter months
is usually checking dead links and maintaining the web site generaly. It
works better than when I built it back on 1st Jan 2002. So 15 year on.
I should say the links didn't work as they do now, you had to copy and
past the link to make them work. That changed when I went .com 10 years
ago.
Yesterday I went through the dead links to my motorcycle
scrap yards page, which is an idea I had when I was building the bikers
shed . com back in '98 There were no directories then, and there
had never been a national page for breakers, but when you are looking for
second parts, for old classic machines, well I needed one. So I built one,
and published it for other motorcyclist/bikers to use. I will say that
things have changed a bit now many, many more companies are on line.
Today, I apdated and checked all the links I had in Cornwall,
Devon,
and Dorset , another idea
I put together back in '98. Back then though, the mobiles could not do
what they can now, it now works better than I though was possible, So I
do my best to keep them up to date. At some stage, I will put two lists,
those with web links, and then in the other, just addi's and phone numbers.
Anyway, enough said for now. I'm off for a beer.
09-01-2017
End of last week I added about 100 photo's from an old
album that I thought I'd already finished. All of them Classic
Japanese or classic racers, like Hailwoods
Honda RC 181. so I'm surprised I hadn't made the pages for them
Today, it's been back to the directories, as I checked the links
for Somerset & Wiltshire.
Might do more later if I get time. I have to fit a new speedo cable on
the fireblade next.
13-01-2017
Speedo was fitted, no worries.. Since then, I have updated Avon
and Durham. Deleted most
of my facebook links as they blocked me from using it. I'm still using
the same aol account as I had back in 2001, still at the same address as
I was 20 years ago, but they are being awkward. so... don't know if I'll
get it back or I'll have to make them remove all those photo's of
the Vintage & Classic bikes etc. We'll see.
13-01-2017
So far today, I have checked all the links on the East
Yorkshire page, North
Yorkshire, South
Yorkshire, Northumbria,
and, Lincolnshire
. Sorry to say I can not verify facebook only motorcycle business' Sorry
about that. I used to be able to cannect not just web site owners, but
those using E bay and facebook,. I still have no problems with web links
or E bay usuers. If you see a company with a ? after the name, they used
to have a web site and are probably still running. I have deleted the ones
I found in Company house.... I'm just opening my first beer of the day
as I start on the West
Yorkshire page.. bit of a big one that (no near as big as West
Midlands though). I'll be having a rest after that, might no West North
England tomorrow, or later next week.. bit busy Monday and Tuesday.
17-01-2017
I think I see one of the main problems I had with my internal links. If
you are using MSN you can't find my front door (me on the 1915 Harley Model
F ), so my flaming logo sends me to a 404 error. It seems that if
I refresh a page some browsers don't see it, again you get a 404 error
report. So I have decided to go through a lot of the pages, and remove
the link to my flaming logo. Any problems, try refresh, oy re type dogdragons.com
into your browse. I have deleted the links on my mail A-2-Z already (not
ty galleries in there as yet), Brackley,
16, Brackley
15, Brackley
14, Cassington
16, and Cassington
15, Cassington
14 (and with bigger photo's), and NEC
Mototrcycle Live 16. So you'll all have to use the cack button of you
browsers toolbar. One day I might re do the loges, but I'll have to make
sure I don't have to update the motorcycle page or it all falls apart ago.
I'd have no problems at all if Bing had found my index page, like Google
and Firefox managed to do. Still never mind.
18-01-2017
Trying to see if I can make a porch for Bing, keep the front door where
it is, change my motorcycle page to a static page for the Bing users,
(but let them into my blog page,) and add another photo link to an index
page I can mod without losing Bing, Google and Firefox users (No Idea how
it looks from Yahoo side of things, never tried it... I'm a bit worried
though. might lose the lot). Thing is, I do want to do a lot of thing to
change the does section. It's getting a little large and could make it
look so much better, but yet again, how many if any people would get lost
trying to find the changes... I guess we will see, as I'm going to do it
soon. So the links I just put up about Cassington, won't work after I do
so. Has to be done, the does list is just too long. - success!, nice looking
new rece[tion room I think, well posh. Might be a while befor I get really
started though, so remember to wipe your feet on the way in (refresh the
page)
Part two of todays Rebuild of the web site, the "More-Motorcycles"
page, built from the old motorcycle page, but, just a little modernised,
and probably works better on mobiles now.. I can set up video downloads
easily too now. I don't know how to run them in the pages themselves though.
Anyway, I see improvements I have wanted to do for a long time, it was
the problem with second index page that held me back. Now I can go play
more with the rest of the site. I might be in pain, I might be very tired,
but I can smile,. Might even go buy a cigar tomorrow.
19-01-2017
Updated my "does" section yesterday,
are done for now. You might have to refresh the pages a few times in the
coming days, as that section is far from sorted. it just looks better on
the screen. Anyway, now you know how I get the photo's for the A-2-Z,
and you know I do research onto most of the bikes I photograph, which make
my web site one of the well used ones. I dI thought I knew a lot about
motorcycles when I started, but I had only scrathed the surface back then,
still have loads to learn. but, this is how I pass the time.
20-01-2017
I'm off to try to get my fire blade taxed again today. Before I go
though, I'm going to move all (or most) of the cassington
files, I think 2016
is in the right spot anyway, so any outside links should still work, for
earler years though, external links will no longer function. It's a big
move this so I'm keeping my fingers crossed it all goes smoothly. If it
does, I'll find time to re-link the flaming logos for 2016, 2015, and 2013
(think the logo links might well work on the other years if they have links
at all, I have learned a few new tricks since 1999
when I did my first Cassington. (partial success, I have to move a few
pages around on 2007, and 1999..
but I'll get those running a short time.
O.K. they have been all moved except 2007, couldn't get that
to run
. Do dot use the flaming logos though. Those links won't work yet.
I'll be sorting those out after I got the bike taxed. More later (probably)
Hit refresh if you've been in the new Does and Does
Cassington pages unless it sends you to the page showin the way to
a page where it tells you which pages have working logo links to my lobby.
Beer and dinner time (battared prawn sweet chillie scauce, rice with
peas and tings.)
21-01-2017
Rebuilt Cassinton
2007 page this morning, had to go through the achives on another computer
to find 7 of the machines I had pages for that had been deleted (due to
being in the A-2-Z and better
photo's were used to replace them).. Now they ate all rhere (well the one
with pages I found), and the flaming logos work too. Taking you straight
to my lobby area. I also realized, this morning, that I had forgotten to
change a link to the Cassington
does list. Sorted that too this morning. Might get more done yet tofay.
Bikes now taxed untill end of Jan 2018, Insurance and MoT not due 'till
Nov. no real worries on that except the usual maintenance. I did add some
links to the 1999 nec bik show, and found I had to refresh every
page to make the logos run, but that works too, bit bigger photo's too.
I also found some from the NEC 2003. Now there is not a full set from ther
on any of the hard drives I have internaly fitted into any of my computers....
BUT, think I might have them stashed in an old hard drive from an old dead
computer (got about 4 drives like that, so it might take me time to find
them again, so that, I'll do another day I think). I'm taking it easy for
the rest of the weekend now I think. On the whole, I'm pleased with the
progress so far. At least it looks as good on Firefox & Goggle, as
it does on MSN now.
23-01-2017
Could have built pages like the new GPZ1000RX
rebuild, but sometimes you need the imagination to work with the tech,
this time I've sussed it I think, even got a download running from a photo
of me and the machinetogether running. I'll be making more like this (already
working on the XS pages) . Now, I know the E.U. lot, don't like you doing
your own mechanics, because, they want you to be able to blame someone
else and claim nsurance, BUT, I, on my megre wages/whatever, could not
afford the #60 an hour it costs to get it done in a shop, besides that,
when it comes to the GPX750R, it shows that even the proffesionals can
get it wrong (it went through two shops before I found the cam timing was
out one tooth, and that was after riding it for a few months too... Note
the shops got shut down, putting more than one family out of work, the
mechanics, well, they work for someone else now, think they might have
learned more since, but can't be sure eh?). End of the day, I trust myself,
and IF I get it wrong, I blame myself, it causes less trouble that way
I find.
Off to make a nice roast beef dinner, and a beer I think.
Me blame my mechanic for mistakes, yeah, often, we always settle
ot of court and I pay myself a fiver every time. I'm insured on them, and
they have MoT's so I see no problem really, Most problems are found well
before I go out on the road, and I don't go far until I am happy the the
machine is running well at running well, I don't want to be trying to fix
things at the side of the road like I used to, in the days before mobile
phones and having to hitch hike to find spares, and hitch back to fix things.
Old school biker/motorcyclist that). Oh by the way, it costs me about 600-700
punds a year in spares to keep my fireblade up to spec. I don't know how
much it would it would cost if I had labour costs too. The times I have
had to wait for the RAC or the AA to turn up (good lot, both of them),
just for them to tell me that they are not trained to deal with motorcycles,
so I borrow the tools to fix, some times they have had to find parts, some
times they have had to take me home, but it usually took over four hours
before the bike was on a trailer... I can do without that. So I keep my
machine well prepared, doubt most car drivers can say the same thing eh?
If you ask me (and no one did as far I know) Next years cannonball
winner should be the one who does the most miles on the road. Not who gets
there first. (I think I do have some friends in that lot somewhere)
24-01-2017
Still got a bit of a headach, but not quite as it was yesterday.
Never mind eh? I've been working on my Does
Mechanics page, 4 of the sections now say Version 3, which means I
have modiified those pages, checked the links etc. Might do a bit
more later.
(as for Walker... Think she'd have made a better sheild maiden than
a Christian, just my opinion that, I don't hate her, but the amount I helped
her with machanincal stuff, and got fonny words and faces from her, well,
I just gave up.. That was a long time ago)
Make that 5 sections, might take a bit of time to do 3 of the them,
Ny Fireblade page, it looks like I got to turn a photo or two.
And as for those who were calling me Mr Care in the community,
I hope you got lawyers. I never designed the web site for the mobile phone,
until NOW! It worked well on computer and tablet, as long as you were not
on Bing and maybe a couple of other networks, but think I have fixed
the problems that many have had, and why they say it dod not work... it
didn't work for you because you didn't have the right equipment, or were
just too daft to turn your phone 90 degrees, in some cases.
Anyway, having a bit of a hard logging in to make some ajustments,
as it seems to be a bit busy in there. What with a lot of folks trying
to use phones to see which bits work and which do not. I do have some ideas
on how to make the directories easier for phmobile phone users too, but
you will have to wait a little for that. It won't take too ;ong to do when
I get started though.
More later (IF I can get in).
I moved over my fireblade pages today, and tried to delete a
bad link, it's just missing, rather being dodgy, gut no matter times I
try to change the page, it won't let me.... think it's very busy page (think
my fan club are in there, and yes, I think I have one now. I'll have to
get used to it I suppose. I'll try not to get too much of an ego about
it if I can help it. Egos' cause a lot of problems. I know I'm not the
best web designer out there, not the best mechanic, and I don't think myself
a pin up model anyway. I just try to be me and keep my cool.... later if
I can get my head around it.
IDid I hear someone say too slow to load?, well I'm not changing
the picture sizes down, it's over 20,000 photo's, but the main ones, I
wanted to keep together, but comprimise, I've sstarted to split the show
pages into groups of 9-12 machines, those are faster to load even for me.
Takes me a bit more time to do so. BUT, as it is early days of the Version
3, I can split down the the three cassington galleries too, from on it
should be easy enough.... Test this on your smart phone if you want:
Click Here for
last months page
The old Blog:
My Page 63
Thought I'd mention the 1.5 million hits in the last 11 months or so.,
no lie from my webalizer stat reader. I don't know how namy use the site,
but it is quite a few, it tells me roughly how many countries they come
from too. it's global
(146,000 hits for last month shows there is still plent of interest
in the site at least) Remember it is my hobby site. it is not a business'
there is no advertizing, no phone line to place an order, the bank advised
me not to put an account for anyone else to give me donations too, but
there is an e mail address for you, si@dogdragons.com. or stores if you
have a uk based, Irish based or New Zealand motorcycle business you want
to list... I only cover 5 countries when it comes to small business' and
global if your a manufacturer, ... I do know that many manufacturers can
not deliver world wide, so it is always best to see where they are available,,,
I like to list them all, just because I like to see all the different ones.)
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