The first image of Forkbombr’s layout, from July 2008.
On September 12, 512 Pixels will turn four. Well, actually, Forkbombr was founded four year ago, but I view them as the same site. Here’s a brief rundown of where it’s been, with a look toward the future.
(I wanted to get this post about before we get in to September, as I’m sure the news will be crazy all month.)
Site Stats
Here are some quick stats on 512 Pixels:
- I’ve published 1,743 posts, with a a total of 515,660 words. That puts my average word count at 295 per post.
- At 4,743 words, my Mountain Lion review is the single longest post on the site. The Writers I Read and Old Mac of the Month posts round out the list of the top ten longest posts.
- When exported as plain text, my posts compile just 4.5 MB worth of files.
- Last month, 59% of traffic came from the Safari browser, with Chrome and “Other” coming in second and third, with 19% and 14%, respectively.
- Over the last six months, and average of 58% of my pageviews came from the Mac, with Windows, the iPad and iPhone all nabbing 13% each.
- March 2012 was the biggest month ever for the site, thanks to this article. It ended up on the front page of Ars Technica, CNET, Daring Fireball, Mac Rumors, The Next Web, The Verge and more. The site slowed down, but never went offline completely, thanks to MediaTemple’s “QUICKLY ADD SOME MORE RESOURCES” feature.
- Speaking of MediaTemple, 512 Pixels currently runs on a 1 GB (dv) server with the company, with most images being served from Amazon S3. I’m tinkering with CDN stuff now, and hope to implement something soon.
Site Changes & Content
This year, 512 Pixels got some new paint, thanks to PJ McCormick. PJ was also instrumental in getting my Linked Lists posts up and running in the DF style, which we rolled out in July.
The site is now fully responsive, and looks great on the Mac, iPad and iPhone. There are still some little bits that need polishing, but I think reading 512 Pixels on the go has never been easier.
The 512 Podcast has been growing steadily since Myke and I launched it back in February. It’s a ton of fun to do, and has really gotten me out of my comfort zone behind the keyboard.
Bartending
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about my first book, Bartending: Memoirs of a Mac Genius.
To be honest, it wasn’t as widely embraced as I was hoping it would be. It sold well enough, but I think people wanted me to get in to the nitty-gritty details of what working at an Apple Store was like. I wasn’t prepared to do that, and I don’t think I misled people into thinking that.
I screwed up on the price. Initially, it was for sale at $8.99, but after about 48 hours, I dropped it to $4.99. It’s now just $2.99, but sales have basically dried up. I’m still proud of my work in the book, and I think now that I’ve published one, more will come, but it’s still hard to see my baby take such a beating in public.
The Business
In the spring, I registered “Hackett Technical Media, LLC” in the state of Tennessee. It wraps around the site and projects like Bartending. While I don’t make enough from the site (ads, membership, etc.) to go full-time yet, it’s continuing to grow. Thank you to those of you who are members or have donated in the past — I’m humbled by your support.
512 Pixels more than pays its bills. That’s all I can really ask for at this point.
The Future
I have another book project in the works. It’s very different from Bartending, and I’m looking forward to seeing it completed.
I expect to continue on my current trajectory of writing less about “tech news” and more about the culture and tools that technology provides. I also expect to continue to write more “personal” posts, and I have several articles about parenting and technology I’m working on. I also have a few freelance articles that will see the light of the day in the coming weeks. (I’ll be sure to link to them.)
I have some new Writers I Read interview in the pipeline. My newest project, System Extension has been a huge success. I can’t wait to get another edition out in a few weeks.
All in all, 512 Pixels is healthy. It’s growing, and continues to be read and linked to by awesome people around the web.
Here’s to the future.