ArchaicAngel

I live on the West coast of the US and I am very interested in Ireland. I have herritage on both sides of my family that go back into Ireland and I have researched the country quite a bit and wish to someday visit. Granted, I don't much care for the termoil between religions and governments within Ireland, but as a visitor I would stay out of those sorts of affairs. I would also love to visit Germany, where I have extended family. My Oma (grandmother) was born and raised in a rural country area somewhere in Germany and I would like to go see this town. She is constantly talking about the mountains of Germany being the most beautiful in the world. I'd like to see that for myself someday.

Unfortunately, I am unable to edit my first post here so I am going to have to reply to my own topic for this updated graphic. This is pretty much the same title as the above image, with a few changes and additions. Again, let me know what you think... Image: click to enlarge

Thanks for all of the compliments and suggestions. As for the "C" and "D" text in the background of the image, I was just trying it out. I'm not quite sure, just yet, what my site's actual logo will be. I'm still working on that one and trying out different styles. I'll probably post some of the ideas I have in future edits. I really appreciate all of the commentary and suggestions you guys are giving, I may use some of them...

I figured that the logo above would have told you all you needed to know about what my site is going to be all about. But, just in case it doesn't. My site is basically going to be were new webmasters/mistresses may come to find editable graphics for their sites. I feel that allowing new webmasters/mistresses the opportunity to fiddle with a predesigned graphic will give them hands-on experiance for when they decide to create their very own graphics. I may, or may not, add a forum for discussions and tutorials on graphic designs and web development. There are quite a few of those already. But, I'll have to wait and see what sort of visitor ratio I have before deciding on that. Thanks for the compliments about my graphic..

Hey all, After a few days of thinking about it, I've decided to change what my site is going to be for. I've already got ideas on the template and images that I will create for my site, but I would like a few opinions on the title graphic I just created. Any suggestions or ideas are welcome, of course. Here's the title image: click to enlarge

I can relate, a bit, to what you are going through. I've never been home-schooled and probably wouldn't have minded it so much. But I also have a very, very obnoxious little brother, well, younger anyhow. He's actually bigger than I am, heighth and gurth wise. We are almost 2 years apart in age and he's followed me around asking questions, making noises and getting into my business for over a decade. I understand how truely annoying it is. But on the other hand, I would protect my brother from anything if I could. Sure, I want to strangle him at times. That's simply they way brothers are towards each other, for the most part. As for the home-schooling. I probably would have liked it more than attending public school. I never liked going to school and being around a few hundred thousand kids I didn't know. I was never a big socializer and probably never will be. In fact, I had an anxiety attack on a regular bases while attending public school. I even have a few gray hairs to proove that fact. I prefer being by myself, it's nice to have the quiet. But I can understand your frustration... For someone like myself it's a dream come true, but for someone who actually wants to meet people and make new friends, it would be a nightmare come to life. I hope that things begin to get better for you and that you might be able to convince your parents that you truely want to attend public schools. As for your younger brother, I'm sure you will grow to love him. Right now, he's a pest and you probably truely do hate him. But as you get older, you will come to appreciate having a younger brother. It doesn't seem likely to happen now, but trust me in that fact. I felt the exact same way about my younger brother as you do now. It passes...

I don't believe anyone could tell you, for certain, why your brother is taking drugs. But the most likely reason is probably something like an anorexic or belemic person. They don't feel they have any control over their own lives and the only thing they can control is their own bodies. If that is the case, it could take quite a bit of work on yours, your parents and his part. But the final decision is, of course, his. If he really doesn't want to give it up, no one else will be able to convince him to either. There is a possibility that this is all a rebel thing as well. Drugs are taboo, illegal and in most cases bad for you. Most teenagers take this as a challenge and decide that they want to try it. What a lot of teenagers do not realize is that it only takes one time to become addicted to something. Not true in all cases, but for the most part just one hit off of a dooby and someone can become addicted to the effects of the drug, the taste, the high, ect... It's sad, but that is usually the most common reason people become druggies. I hope your brother comes around and gets help so he stops needing the drugs. As is commonly stated, the first step to correcting a problem is to admit that there is one.

Thanks for answering my questions. I just wasn't sure about your site with that pop-up on it. It's a little unnerving when someone adds a pop-up like that one to their sites. As for the layout and design of your website, I use a 1024x768 screen resolution. This happens to make your layout look a bit small for my browser window. That's not really all that unusual and other than that little problem, your site looks great. I would give it an 8 out of 10 for user-friendliness. But you should really get to work on the content and maybe tell everyone what your site is at least going to be about/for. It's really confusing to visit a site that offers a download when no one can figure out what the site is for. Love to see what you are planning to do with your site. Let us know when you update so we can go and see the changes you've made.

I'm not sure I get it. What is your site for/about. You have no descriptive text on your site that tells us anything about it. Although, the pop-up before your main page loads kinda suggests that you are doing something illegal... That wouldn't be a good thing on Xisto. My questions are: - What is your site for/about? - Why do you have a do not enter if you plan to prosecute pop-up? - Are you supporting, endorsing and/or suggesting illegal materials, thieft, ect.?

Dragonfly, If you notice, beneath your credit count (found on the main page) it lists the number of credits required for the different packages. After you have accumulated enough credits, you can go to the "Requests" board and ask for hosting, following the pinned format. If you apply correctly, you should have your account set up sometime within a 24 hour period. After your hosting is approved and set up by an admin, all you have to do is make sure you post regularly and that it's a lengthy, informative and useful post to earn more credits to keep your hosting account. It's a rather simple process. Just don't spam the forums with meaningless nonsense or the admins may take credits away from your total to compensate for the spam posting. That isn't something you're likely to want... Hope I helped a bit.

I agree with the majority, PNG is a better graphics format. It keeps the transparencies of graphics that GIF's wont. It also saves space better without taking anything away from the graphic, unlike GIF's which will distort your graphic if it has something like a drop shadow. The only downside to using PNG is that IE and MSN Explorer do not support the transparencies, so if someone is surfing your site using one of those two browsers, they will get a funny looking background on the image instead of seeing it the way it was made. But, if someone is smart, they would switch from IE and/or MSN Explorer to a more up-to-date browser. (i.e. Firefox, Opera, ect.) Though, I know, a lot of people still use MSN Explorer and/or IE because they are comfortable with the program. But, those people are missing out.

I got the following results from the two tests I took. They were rather amusing, as were some of the questions and answers you get to choose from. You are flashy, but lack substance. You like playing, but often you are annoying. Grow up. and You are Amiga OS. Ahead of your time. You keep a lot of balls in the air. If only your parents had given you more opportunities to suceed. I really like taking these sorts of test. They are rather fun and fill the time inbetween waiting for the bathroom and waiting for my files to upload/download. ...Lol

I could have sworn that posting information about warez, cracks and keygens was against Xisto forum rules. Has that changed at all? But in anycase, back to the topic at hand. I personally like Eye Candy 4000. It's one of the best filters/plug-ins I can think of for PhotoShop and/or PaintShop. It has some very good preset filters editing images and I don't know what I would do without it. Although, I will probably download and tryout that Filters Unlimited plug-in and see if it's really worth the price. Thanks for the plug-in info guys.

I still prefer HotScripts.com, But this site has some nice scripts and coding resources that could be useful in future creations, so I added it to my fav list. I might take the time to actually go through the entire site and see what these women have to offer. Thanks for the link!

I would have to say this is a question that has been haunting the human race since it's first intelligent thought. It's been around longer than any recorded history and no one will ever be given or have a definitive answer. It's a never-ending puzzle that will probably drive you crazy if you obsess about finding the answer. To tell you the truth, I don't think there really is an answer. At least, not one that anyone would understand. Besides all of that, if you actually did find the answer to this question, would you really want to know? If you knew the answer to the question of the meaning of life, what fun would you have living? It would take away purpose and fun in your life and you wouldn't have anything else to live for. I'm sure a lot of people don't believe that if they knew the meaning of life they would feel any different about their lives. But if this question has eluded the human race for so long, what makes people think we could handle it if it were answered? I say, don't worry about it. If you live your life to it's full potential, doing what you want to do, becoming who you want to be, the meaning of life is pointless because you lived it and had a wonderfully fulfilling life. That's all that really matters. I remember a quote from a book I once read that fits into this. "Don't let life lead you in circles, take the rein's and make life what you want." I believe this quote to be one of the more intelligent things I've read and don't believe that life is given to you, you make it. That's all there is... Live with it!

Sounds like my aunt. She pretty much does the same thing. My aunt, just this past month, officially became divorced from her husband and is now set to marry a guy next month. She's always been that way from what my mother says. It seems to me that she still thinks she's 20 something years old when she is actually 44 years old. It's sad that she does this stuff to guys and herself. But I can freely admit that my aunt is very, very selfish and wants everything her way. Hell, she was living with us for a little less than a year. In the time she spent living with us, she was hitting on my dad. Fortunatly my dad just thought it was hilarious, as did my mother. I would just have to say sit back and hope she comes around. You can talk to her until your blue in the face and you probably wouldn't be able to change what she's doing to herself. As for this Wizard guy... I would ask him to never speak to me again and hope that he gets it the first time 'round.

I feel nothing for the war president bush has started. If, and this is a fairly large if, the draft is started, I would be the first ones puting my hands together at the wrist and saying "Take me away officer, cause I'm not serving a country that forces you to do so." It's wrong and I would never be a party to such actions. But I wouldn't run to Canada to get away from it either. Besides, canada now has a treaty with the US about that specific situation. You will be instantly deported back to the US for trial and lockup for being a traitor/deserter, ect. The other problem with trying to run from a draft is that you can be shot if found. It's a law that my father informed me of. He used to be an investigator in the US Air Force before retiring and I can deffinately take his word on that. But I also told him he would have a son in prison before he sees me in uniform. But that's me. A lot of people don't feel that way, and others feel that running is better and safer.

Personally, being a gay man and all, I don't care one way or the other what the church or goverment says is correct or wrong. I live my life the way I see fit and don't appologize to anyone for anything I might say or do. It's not in my nature to be the person who feels guilty about something I say and/or do. If I say something rude, I ment to say it. If I say or do something that happens to go against someone elses beliefs, get over it! It's my life, you don't have to pay any attention to me whatsoever. I've been this way all my life. I've never followed the "mainstream," I like to follow my own path and if I step on someones toes along the way, they should have gotten out of mine. It may sound heartless and cruel, but I don't think being honest with yourself and others is cruel at all. Some may mistake it for intentional cruelty. It is never my intention to hurt anyone and I don't believe it is right for someone to do the same to me. Sure, the truth can hurt. But that's just something everyone has to deal with sooner or later. I would personally prefer sooner rather than later and have it done with. No sense in delaying the inevitable. As for our government. They're hypocrites! Plain and simple. They say this is a country of "equal opportunity." Bah! What they mean to say is that if you think, look and feel exactly the same way they do, then you can have your freedoms and rights. Talk about the new world! It's not new, it's the same old situation, it just happens to have a new look. Gay marriage is just one of many issues in the US and other countries. There are more important issues in the world than if you can be LEGALLY married to a partner or not. I wouldn't get married, even if it were legal. I want absolutely nothing to do with any church. Which is exactly where marriage comes from. I don't need a piece of paper to tell me or my partner how much I love them. I have lips, a voice and actions that can do that just fine. Besides, having the benefits of marriage can be obtained through the law without having to deal with the church.

I fully read, while not understanding some, of your message. It all kind of melts into one big rant about everything. Nowadays it isn't hard to find something wrong with the way things work and the way people think. It's common among everyone, even you. You may be in denial about being judgemental, but everyone is to a degree. It's just the way you are brought up. Everyone is for or against something about something. No getting around that particular fact. As for you rant about z's. I was completely confused by that, you didn't explain what it is about Americans and Z's that has you so hot and bothered. I couldn't possibly think of anything wrong with a Z. It's a letter in the alphabet. I'll admit, not used frequently in actual words, but still used occasionally. As for your music rant, the three bands you posted about that are on your favorites list, I personally do not like. They're "music," if you can call it that sounds horrid and I can't quite understand why anyone listens to them. I do, however, agree with you about the marketing of rock and roll. Just about any band you could possibly hear now is considered rock by the music industries. I personally do not feel that listening to the radio is worth the effort any more. I buy cd's and listen to music I can actually stand to listen to. Queen was and still is the best thing that ever happened to music. Freddy Mercury, I believe, was bisexual and I could have told you that the first time I saw the man. But that makes no difference to the sound of his music or his artistic talents. He was a brilliant man who wrote and sang brilliant songs. In conclusion to this little ramble of mine, ranting about anthing wrong with the world is pointless. You can't change the world with words, only actions. Saying what you like or do not like will only give you comfort for a short period, because later you will find that it changes absolutely nothing.

Xedos, I really appreciate the back-up of what I had to say. But I just wanted to correct you on one small, but fairly important, point. You refer to me as "she" when, in fact, I am a "he." I don't really have a problem with the fact that you mistook me for a woman. It happens to me quite frequently, even when people see me. But I figured I would set the record straight here and now.

That doesn't seem to be a really unique opinion of the way the world works. Many people have that same view on technology and it's advancements. Technologies sole purpose is to make human lives easier. That is not in question. I do, however, agree that all the technologies in this world now have in fact made the human race lazier and less inclined to do things the harder way, even if it is better. Although, for everyone who rants and raves about how technology is a curse to the human race, it doesn't effect the constant use of it. Even those against the use of technology still utilize it in some fashion or other. There really is no getting around that. It's in human nature to find and take the easier route. On a side note, I remember watching this show about prophecy and armageddon on television a while back. There is a theory, or rather a prophecy, that says every few thousand years humans technologic advancements will turn on them and start attacking them. All this right down to the house they live within. Supposedly this is supposed to happen again sometime in our lifetimes, I don't remember exactly when they mentioned it was supposed to happen. But I found that to be a very interesting prophecy.

Very nice site. Seems to have been around for some time now as well. If and when I get hosting, I might go back to that site and see what's available. Thanks for sharing the site with us.

I hope that you realize that posts such as this aren't getting you any credits to regain your site. In fact, posts such as the one you posted here will more than likely just get the admins/mods angry and probably get your site permanently disabled. You should post quality posts to get your hosting back instead of a simple two word sentence.

I use the internet for a variety of reasons. Although, I mainly use it for doing research on things for school, personal knowledge and most importantly, inspiration for things in my life.1.) Research and Learning2.) Inspiration3.) Searching for Textures/Art for graphics4.) Software Downloads/Updates5.) Music Downloads/Information6.) Chatrooms/Forums7.) Gaming/Tips and Strategies8.) Trial & Error Web Development9.) Enjoyment It's all pretty basic, most everyone uses the internet for a lot of those reasons and I am no different about why I use the net. It's the best place for information and softwares.

Your little tiff about Mexicans taking white peoples jobs is nothing more or less than racism. You've completely ignored that there are many different people migrating to the US each year. It's not just Mexicans. Besides, this is supposed to be "The land of the free" not "The land of Americans." If you want to get technical on the point that Mexicans aren't American, take a good look at a map of the world. Mexico is part of the North American continent. That makes every person who lives on it American. I think you meant to say United States Citizens, right? In any case, people migrating to the states with or without visas have every right to a job as a citizen of this country. They worked hard and earned that job while over half of the US people sit on their every-widening butts. Everyone in the US has equal opportunity, what they don't understand is it's up to you to take advantage of that opportunity. Just because you are born in the US doesn't mean you automatically get everything you desire out of life. You still have to work for it, just like in every other part of the world. P.S. If you think that I am just flapping my lips about something I know nothing about. I am also a citizen of the US, born and raised. I still believe that a majority of US population is lazy and feel they deserve credit for it.