Seems like the time of year to do a Blog related review of the year so here goes…
Best Discovery:
ActiveWords, it’s awesome software. If you haven’t tried it, go and get your 60 day free trial right now. I held out for a whole 12 days before I purchasing and now would not use a PC without it. Thanks to Hobie at Mindjet for introducing me to it.
Best Blog Event:
It’s not a blog specific event but meeting many fellow CAD Bloggers and Readers(!) at Autodesk University was a highlight.
Best Comment:
On my most commented and most visited post “The Top Gear Stig”:
“Lets just end it here.....I AM THE STIG.... no-one knows my face so I can remain anonymous..mwahahahaha.” Pauline Jordan
At this point all those who don’t watch Top Gear wonder what is a Stig?
Best Podcast:
I have heard many great Podcasts this year but Skepticality - The Message stood out for the worst reason. Some question the value of Podcasts as a communication tool when there are so many other channels: blogs, email, web pages etc.
I found Skepticality several months after it started and was working through the show archive, in order, enjoying hearing Derek and Swoopy’s scientific, critical, skeptical, and humorous point of view of the crazy world we live in. I thought the show was great and then I heard The Message.
Words on a screen could never convey the emotion of that Podcast as Swoopy shared the shock and horror experienced when a friend, colleague or partner is in life threatening circumstances. Thankfully, after a close call, the outcome is positive and it was great to hear Derek return in the December editions of Skepticality. Looking forward to hearing more from both of you in the new year and wishing Derek all the best with his on going recovery.
Seeing nearly 10,000 visits to a holiday photo album only posted in April: Travel 2005 (Southern Cross Catlins Cycle)To the 9047 Visitors – to date – the South Island is much prettier place than a photo can ever show.
March, thanks to the somewhat controversial AutoCAD/ADT 2006 “Blogger Preview” posts and being “Shaaned”* my average 10,000 visits jumped to over 25,000. Thanks to TypePad for absorbing the extra bandwidth!* Shaaned is my term for the rapid growth of traffic after a link from Shaan Hurley’s Between The Lines ~ AutoCAD Blog.
Splitting the CAD and other content to separate blogs. Initially I thought it was a big mistake as for several months the only visitor to the other blog was me! That has changed and it has been rewarding watching it grow an audience of it’s own.
One day TypePad will notice this happening month after month…Your bandwidth allotment: 10 gigabytes per month
Actual bandwidth usage this month: 16 gigabytes (160.14%)
Two winners here because they are essential:
“Doh!” of the year:
Letting Shaan photograph me drunk in charge of a DWF at AU.
Just joking Shaan, I didn’t mind and I wasn’t drunk!
All of you (you got this far!), thanks to all who visit and to all I’ve met via the blog over the year.Have a Happy New Year and see you again in 2006!

RobiNZ CAD Blog
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