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About MG.com's Layouts

Here is where all of my previous layouts are kept. Ever wondered what the point was behind the layout? Well, now you can find out! (Even if you didn't wonder, or even cared.) ^_^; Also, please do not use my layouts for your site.

 Layout Name:
Clear Skies
 Layout lasted:
March 27th, 2007 -
 Hidden Agenda:
The previous layout had been up for over two years, and was really becoming dreary to me. I needed a new layout with a fresh outlook; one that made me want to take a deep breath. I eventually decided to look up "wind" on GettyImages.com, and wonder of wonders, I found this picture. It was exactly what I was looking for, as it always seems to turn out to be. I LOVE this layout. I love the simplicity and the sky-blue hue, the cute little chimes with cute little tags, and the light-colored sticks that hold them up that remind me of the beach my family used to go to. This is my ultimate layout. I would keep it up forever if I knew I wouldn't eventually grow tired of it. Which maybe I won't, so who knows.

This layout is also the first W3C standards compliant layout I have made. No, wait, the second layout of Potential holds that honor. Nevermind. It's the first Musogato.com layout that's standardized, as well as the first layout to be in PHP. Yay. It wasn't easy getting everything validated, and I'm still a little sore over losing the colored scrollbars, but I'm really happy with the end result. PHP layouts are so much fun, I think I'm going to continue this with all of my future layouts for all of my sites. Except maybe Distant Horizon, that site's a mess. ^^;;

 Layout Name:
. . . Heiwa no Jukko . . .
 Layout lasted:
March 4th, 2005 - March 26th, 2007
 Hidden Agenda:
I had been meaning to make a new layout for a while, but nothing I came up with really could match how I was feeling, or what I wanted to come after the previous Blue layout. Nothing... fit. But then, while wandering though Getty Images, I came across this beautifully tranquil photo of Lake Sohara in Japan, and I knew that this was what I was waiting for. After that, everything fell into place and it only took an hour or so to complete the layout.

The name of this layout, 'Heiwa no Jukko', is Japanese and basically means 'Tranquil Contemplation', which I think fits nicely. Hopefully this layout will inspire me (and everyone who sees it) to reflect who we are on the inside, and to share that with others. Or something like that. Maybe I should have quoted a proverb instead. =/ Anyway, the photo is from GettyImages, the fonts used is MicrogrammaDMedExt and Coronetl, pictures were edited/modified in PSP7, and html written in Notepad.

 Layout Name:
Blue
 Layout lasted:
February 27, 2004 - March 4th, 2005
 Hidden Agenda:
I needed a new layout -- the previous one with it's cold and dark aura felt like it was keeping me down. Like I couldn't create or update anything that was good enough. I needed the new layout to be free, to let myself express myself like how I wanted. And then I heard the song "Blue" from Cowboy Bebop's OST#3. Now that's what I call inspirational. ^-^; This layout seems somber blue to me, yet hopeful. Like glossy eyes gazing towards the heavens. I like that feeling.

The image of the dandelions is from Getty Images (no surprise there). The font used is called NevisonCasD and I got it from Font Freak. Html was done in Notepad, images were modified in PSP7, blah blah blah. I really like this layout a whole lot. I was also insanely lazy, which may explain why this layout lasted an entire year + 9 days. The first to have lasted so long, actually.

 Layout Name:
Frosted Dreams
 Layout lasted:
November 20, 2003 - Februrary 26, 2004
 Hidden Agenda:
This is one of my darkest colored layouts... ever. Even my blogs had more colorful layouts. But this also has one of the most beautiful pictures I've ever seen; so simple yet majestic. The way the black ocean shimmers under the white full moon is breath-taking. Or, at least to me it is.

Image was taken from Getty Images and was modified be me in PSP7. HTML was written in notepad, as usual. This particular layout used iframes. I liked it a lot.

 Layout Name:
Truth
 Layout lasted:
July 22, 2003 - November 19, 2003
 Hidden Agenda:
To make people appreciate the beauty of moss and other green things. Because green (and moss) are very under-appreciated. Uh-huh. But really, I felt Musogato needed a philosophical break, and what better way to show it than a moss-covered statue that won't stop staring at you. (Which I believe is secretly being controlled by that frog hiding in the shadows)
Anyway, the main image is from Getty Images, and then was modified by me to make the layout wonderfully mossy.

But why is this layout called "Truth" and what does that have to do with moss? Simple. Truth is what you make of it. Everything is just one big mystery, slowly unraveling like an onion as time goes by. Yet nothing is more mysterious as the past, especially if the past's details turn hazy. That mysterious past is represented by the large stone head, stained with moss as the ages went by. Finding truth is irrelevant. If you can find inner peace and sustain that harmony, despite the answers and setbacks you discover through life, only then will the meaning of truth be grasped. Because the story of life isn't about what is thrown your way, but how you throw it back.

 Layout Name:
Smells like rain...
 Layout lasted:
June 3, 2003 - July 21, 2003
 Hidden Agenda:
This layout reminds me of home. Although a much nicer, prettier home. Oahu is SO much better than the Big Island. ;_; But anyway. There's no hidden meaning in this layout, either. It's just a nice tribute to my homestate. The top picture is of Oahu, which I took myself when I went there a few weeks before Graduation. Didn't I take a nice picture? I should be a photographer. Anyway, the title "Smells like rain..." came to me the morning I made this layout. The air was filled with the smell of rain. Yummy. The plumeria side bars I made myself in PSP7. The plumeria flowers themselves are from PSP tubes which I got from Plumeria Breeze, though the website no longer works.

This is the first Musogato.com layout that is not in frames. Big shocker, ne? Yup, this layout is just your somewhat basic tables. No wonder it only took me about 5 hours to write the html, create/edit the pictures, and then re-code the site. I'm proud. And I like this layout a lot too. So yay.

 Layout Name:
[ 2003 ]    Dreaming into the future
 Layout lasted:
January 1, 2003 - June 2, 2003
 Hidden Agenda:
Dang! This layout lasted really long! Practically five whole months! Wow. Erm, anyway... At Christmas '02 I was given a cute Japanese children's book called Korowan to Shiroi Kumo, made by Hisako Madokoro and art by Ken Kuroi, '97. The name translates to Korowan and the White Cloud. Basically it's about two puppies (Korowan being one of them) that find these clouds that look like a fish, a boat, and so on. So they go tell their kitty friend and they all have a grand time. It's a cute story. Anyway, on the back page of said book it shows the kitty dreaming about the fish-cloud. Awww, so cute! ^-^

I had to use it for the layout that introduced Musogato.com into the new year. I feel a little wierd about using a picture that I didn't draw to represent my site which showcases my original work. Kind of an oxymoron, isn't it? But the picture matches the site quite well, and if I drew my own representation of that picture, I'd feel even wierder. So, I'm using it. Yay. If any consolation though, this background picture I *did* make, in PSP7. The HTML was done in Notepad, as always.

 Layout Name:
Special December Edition
 Layout lasted:
December 2, 2002 - December 31, 2002
 Hidden Agenda:
I love the month of December, and since this was Musogato.com's first december, I thought I'd make it extra special. The theme is a dark blue, night sky type-of-thing. All of the starry graphics were made in Paint Shop Pro 7, including the main picture on the left (which can also be found in the Art section). I made that picture during the summer for no reason at all, and the weekend before I needed to post this layout I decided to use it as the main theme. The HTML part is simple frames and Iframes. It really did only take me a few days to make this layout.

Although it did have a splash/enter page, the most remarkable thing about this layout is that I *updated* it with new content *every week*. This has never happened in the history of Musogato.com. I'm lucky if I update twice in a layout's reign, and here in this one-month-only layout, I updated basically every weekend. !_! Told you there was something special about December! ^-^

 Layout Name:
(( Autumn Retreat ))
 Layout lasted:
October 5, 2002 - November 30, 2002
 Hidden Agenda:
This is one of my favorite layouts yet! It covered new ground in many areas for Musogato.com. It was my first layout to ever be on the actual front page, no intro pages or anything. It also was the first layout I ever had that was not only crisp and proffesional-like, but it had a working Midi player! (Midis borrowed have links back to their sites)

There is no deep hidden meaning for this particular layout. I just needed a new layout for the fall season, and decided to make a frames layout that looked like it was on one giant picture. It took a while to make, especially since most of the right half of the background picture wasn't actually in the picture. With use of PSP7, I was able to duplicate parts of the left half of the scene to make the entire picture longer to fit the layout I made. Personally, I think I did a good job. Now if only I could make it look the same in all computer screen resolutions...

 Layout Name:
~ Summer Revelations ~
 Layout lasted:
June 15, 2002 - October 5, 2002
 Hidden Agenda:
There's some spiritual backing to this layout; like it's giving off vibes of starting fresh, only stronger and wiser than before. I like this layout a lot, but I'm upset that I didn't fully use it. Too much free time usually brings out the worst in my lazy side. But anyway, there's a good poem that matches the text background. Served as inspiration for the whole layout, and that's why some of the lyrics are in the background. The little sea critters were a cute touch-up.

 Layout Name:
Life is but a Dream
 Layout lasted:
March 23, 2002 - June 13, 2002
 Hidden Agenda:
Ever get the feeling that everything was just a tad too sureal? Of course you have! Well, this layout tries to point this out with a bunch of lovely clouds. It's also kind of misleading, because just like blue skies can turn into grey storms, dreams can quickly turn into nightmares. So Life really is like a dream, because as a wise friend once told me; "every passing moment is a chance to turn it all around." So all that's really stopping it from going from good to bad or bad to good, is you.
Oh, and the red ladybug border? I made that GIF a while ago, and I didn't know what else to do with it. ^_^; Adds a good contrast to the blue, though.

I write my HTML in Notepad and I design my own layouts. I also make my own graphics, unless otherwise stated. Please do not use my layouts for your site.