Visual Aesthetics – 10
The Freaky is perfectly designed using a scheme that is down to earth. The colors, fonts, and layout are all easy to look at, allowing all your attention to go to the content, which will definitely delight those who like the freaky.

User Friendliness – 10
From the get go, you will have no problems navigating The Freaky. Numerous categories are displayed at the top of the page, making sure you discover news items just as freaky as you like them. You can also easily access the most recent posts, latest headlines, and featured stories.

Reading Enjoyment – 10
I cannot imagine anyone not having a fun time reading The Freaky. Even if bizarre things may not be on your list of favorite things, you certainly will have your mind blown away by what you can read on this site!

Useful Info – 10
Technically, The Freaky will not offer you practical information. However, if a fun, light read is what you are all about, then you will find information that is useful in this respect.

Overall Experience - 10
Now and then, we all need a dose of fun that does not require you to analyze and be so serious. The Freaky will give you that and more. Want to discover all sorts of strange things? This is the site to bookmark!

Visual Aesthetics – 7
The Reyes Report has a very simple look, which is actually easy on the eyes. The header is customized, giving the blog it’s own look;and there are relevant images in the posts. I feel, however, that the blog’s overall aesthetics could use more work. There is a lot of space wasted and it gives off an “empty feeling.” More so, the images in the posts could be placed in such a way as to break up the long chunks of text every now and then. A little tweaking of the visual elements and things should be much better.

User Friendliness – 8
This blog loads up really quickly and you will not have to wait just to read a post. I also like how the fonts make it easy for the user to read.

Some suggestions: The archives could be placed at a more accessible location. I also looked for an About Me page but couldn’t find any. It would be really interesting to know more about the person behind the commentaries. Last, the Snap previews can get bothersome after a while. Maybe they can be lessened.

Reading Enjoyment – 10
It is always interesting to read the take of other people on important issues. I enjoyed reading The Reyes Report as the issues are definitely relevant. Not everyone may have the same point of view as the blogger, but that’s where a good discussion starts!

Useful Info – 10
Reading The Reyes Report is much like talking to a colleague or a friend about what you just read in the newspaper. It’s reading someone’s opinions and thoughts and then having a discussion. While some may not consider that as practical information, I think it is always useful to know and talk about what’s happening around you.

Overall Experience - 8
Content-wise, The Reyes Report has a lot going for it. People who want to exercise their discussion powers, this blog could be for you!

Visual Aesthetics – 6
The concept behind The Exaggerator is brilliant but the visuals could really use some work. The header (The Exaggerator) is quite attractive in it’s own way. The fonts could use more uniformity. The colors could be re-mixed to come up with something more coherent. The left column could also use some cleaning up.

User Friendliness – 7
I have to say that after looking at the front page of The Exaggerator, I got totally lost.

Reading Enjoyment – 8
The posts in The Exaggerator are well-written, with a satirical twist. Indeed, the blog presents daily news items in a quirky kind of way.

Useful Info – 9
As most of the posts are about real-life happenings, you can pick up a lot of information from The Exaggerator.

Overall Experience - 7
The Exaggerator really needs to work on the presentation of the content, which is good on its own. If you can bear the form, then there is good content to be had in this blog.

Visual Aesthetics – 10
Sod Blog has a newsy look to it but does not overdo things. The overall result is very pleasing to eye.

User Friendliness – 9
The owners of Sod Blog are very organized and systematic. No reader will get lost in this blog. My only problem is that the video news feed on the main page took a bit of time to load – nothing major, though.

Reading Enjoyment – 10
The owners of Sod Blog requires their bloggers to be able to write well – both in terms of style and grammar – and this is very evident in the blog posts. I really enjoyed reading the various entries from different authors.

Useful Info – 10
There’s a lot of useful information to be found in Sod Blog. You don’t even have to dig around for it.

Overall Experience - 10
The Sod Blog should be in your bookmarks – both for the fun of it and the information to be discovered.

Technorati Tags: news, community blog

Visual Aesthetics – 10
Very newsy – very apt for the theme of the blog.

User Friendliness – 10
Despite the enormous amount of content, it is very easy to get around the blog. The links and archives are very organized.

Reading Enjoyment – 10
What can I say? Reading news in its uncensored form is a very entertaining activity.

Useful Info – 8
I didn’t really find much by way of useful information in the blog but it sure made for an exciting read!

Overall Experience - 10
I think that The Daily B.S. should be a must for those who like to be updated on what’s going on in the world.

Technorati Tags:

Visual Aesthetics – 7
Frankly, I was disappointed with the visuals. When I read the submission e-mail, I was hoping for more stimulating pictures and a better layout. For a blog focusing on art, Digital Art fails to impress.

User Friendliness – 10
There is no problem in this area. Digital Art is very easy to navigate. Links to more information about the news items are included.

Reading Enjoyment – 7
Being a visual blog, there isn’t much to read in Digital Art. The artwork should have been enough to give enjoyment to readers but what is there isn’t really that visually pleasing.

Useful Info – 8
If you happen to be interested in the pieces of news featured in the sketches, then you would find some useful information in Digital Art, by way of the provided links.

Overall Experience - 7
Digital Art could use more work on the artsy aspect. The concept is brilliant but the execution could use more work.

Technorati Tags: art, digital art, current events

Visual Aesthetics – 7
The blog is really quite plain – black text on a white background. There is a slight smattering of pictures to be found in some of the blog posts but they are not enough to give readers visual stimulation.

User Friendliness – 8
The blog entries are usually short and straight to the point, making it easy to browse through each one of them. I am not quite sure if it was just my Internet connection but I had a hard time loading the pages. There are links to the archives on the left column, though, making it easy to navigate the blog.

Reading Enjoyment – 8
The entries are interesting enough – some more than others. The blogger also offers his own unique thoughts on the issues that he presents. However, the writing style could be tweaked a bit for a more enjoyable experience.

Useful Info – 9
Exploring The Realities of Events offers a lot with regard to current events. In this respect, one could gain a lot of useful information.

Overall Experience - 8
I would recommend a visit or two to Exploring The Realities of Events. If you are that interested in what other people think about the goings on in the world, then more than that would be recommended.

Technorati Tags: news, current events

The French Journal

“A site for Francophiles. Notes on France, its culture, history, geography, food, wine, travel, and more…and, of course, Paris!”

Visual Aesthetics – 7

Neat and contained. However, the column for the content is a bit too small making the text look a bit too packed. The underlined links also do not look very nice although it is good for usability. This blog looks pleasant enough but would definitely benefit from a little dressing up.

User Friendliness – 8

Positives: Fast loading time. Readable though a bit too packed text. Distinct links. Informative posts. Organized sidebar. Neat look. Negatives: Very irritating Snaps. No link to previous posts at the bottom of the page.

Reading Enjoyment – 7

The entries all contain very informative content although most of them sound too newsy and dry for my taste.

Useful Info – 10

Though the author isn’t French and doesn’t live anywhere near France the blog is as useful as any if you want to learn anything about France. A very good resource on France indeed.

Overall Experience - 10

You wouldn’t really visit this site for the fun and relaxing reads but to get useful information.

Technorati Tags: France, Francophiles, French, Politics, Culture, Food, Travel, News

Foreign Perspectives

A blog all about France from the perspective if a foreigner. News and editorial on life in the south of France, a series on how to move here [to France] and some random musings too.

Visual Aesthetics – 6

Green. Simple. Some ads. Bit of formatting problem with the header when viewed through Firefox. Pleasant enough look but could use some improvement.

User Friendliness – 9

Fast loading time. Small but readable fonts except for the yellow fonts on the header, which doesn’t provide enough contrast. Nice entry layout. Organized sidebar. Has forums although it doesn’t seem to be generating any traffic. Very useful Directory.

Reading Enjoyment – 8

Interesting and very informative posts. The authors’ opinions might be unpopular to the (some) French who takes offence at time but they usually contain very valid points anyway. People who have an interest in what’s going on in France will surely enjoy reading the posts.

Useful Info – 10

Plenty of useful information here for both French and foreigners as well as tourists and residents of the country. You will find information about everything from French politics to food.

Overall Experience - 8

Very good news blog on France. Since the blog is not a simple news feed but an editorial you will find that reading this blog will definitely widen your horizons about the going ons in France, especially if you don’t leave there.

Technorati Tags: France, News, Editorial, French Politics, Bed and Breakfast, Tourist Information

Drishtikone: Perspective

According to the blog the word Drishtikone is a word used for Perspective in Hindi. This blog is indeed simply a collection of the author’s perspectives on just about everything you can think of.

Visual Aesthetics – 8

Interesting and colorful look. However I must confess that this blog is a bit too cluttered. There’s just too much going on in both the left and right sidebar. This blog will benefit greatly from a little organization and cleaning up. Please lessen the links or at least put them in expandable menus. I also think the sponsors deserve better placement.

User Friendliness – 9

This blog has some pretty interesting features for the user. There’s the polls, and the cartoon for the day, and the usual comment feature. My favorite though since it is something rarely seen in blogs is the Voicemail feature where you can send Desh a voice message. This blog is pretty user friendly with all the navigation features needed including a link to the homepage when you go to a static page, whose absence is a pet peeve of mine since most bloggers never think of adding that. Due to the clutter though you will need to scroll down a bit to go to the Navigation section where everything you will need to navigate between posts are located.

Reading Enjoyment – 10

This is one of the most interesting blogs I’ve ever read. With such varied topics like poverty in India, movies, terrorism, spirituality, politics, and so much more. Desh has a an opinion about almost everything and his discussions are very relevant to people from the US to Asia and Africa and just about everywhere else in the world. Superb writing of a real thinker. This blog is a must read.

User Info – 10

Each and every post contains something truly useful. I didn’t expect to learn reading just the front page of one blog. It’s so much fun to learn something new each day. Relevant, useful, and up-to-date. This blog is truly more than just about one man’s perspectives in life.

Overall Experience - 9

I would have loved to declare this a Bloggy Award Winner but I have to be fair. And since this blog really needs to improve on it visual appeal than I can’t do that. Content-wise though this blog is a winner already.

Technorati Tags: Perspectives, Information, Thoughts, India, US, Politics, Poverty, Issues, Current Events