𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑚𝑒 ݁˖˚♱

100 webmaster questions

1. Please introduce yourself.: my name is kay and i'm the webmistress of corsetlacedheart i love fashion, anime, manga, VN's, dolls, 2000's goth culture, the old web...what else can i say..i'm bad at introductions
2. How long have you been making websites?: discovered neocities/the indie web in 2019 so...7 years? on and off - at first i was very insecure about making websites since i was very inexperienced and teaching myself how to code, i saw all these beautiful sites and even if they were simple it seemed too far off my level...so i kept making them and deleting them thinking they weren't good enough...but through this process i got better and learnt more and although i'm not exactly where i'd like to be yet i think i have improved enough to make my brain happy and to maintain/keep this site !
3. And what got you into the hobby?: ~~controversial?? but~~ the first time i heard of neocities or the indie web in general was dissolvedgirl/sol pais, i checked out her site (unfortunately it's not available anymore, i'm sure it's on webarchive though) it was simple compared to what you would think of neocities pages nowadays, but it was intentional since it was 90's old web heaven, melancholy and vulnerable and mysterious -- i remember her music page vividly, with Nine Inch Nails, Deftones, Rammstein youtube videos embedded with fav lyrics from each song underneath, with iirc a classic gifcities old-web starry background, and it was like a whole world opened up to me because it was a medium of self-expression that was so unlike the popular cookie-cutter social medias at the time. it felt nostalgic and niche and all the things i was searching for, so i will be eternally grateful to her for inadvertently introducing me to not only lots of bands/artists i still listen to today, but this amazing hobby and a big part of my life these days, rest in peace angel
4. What kind of website are you most interested in?: i like crazy creative ARG style rabbit-hole sites like fauux and cameron's world, but i mainly gravitate to personal sites, i really love to see different people show their passions and oftentimes introduce me to things i need to watch/play/read/research, i also just love really pwetty aesthetics a colour coordinated, well thought out design/layout, graphics and gifs and lots of things to click on and look at are my favourite types of websites!
5. What's your workflow? Do you plan your websites out thoroughly or do you come up with the design as you go along?: usually i have a rough idea in my brain → draw a quick layout on MSPaint to visualise it and where my divs will be → do my code (w/ help from w3schools) and make sure everything works/be where it should be (i use screenfly to make sure it looks decent enough on other screen resolutions, v handy tool) → and then my favourite part is designing and collecting graphics/backgrounds/finding font etc...!
i would say i don't plan it out too thoroughly, i can kinda visualise how i want it to look and what looks 'right' and 'wrong' as i'm doing it, so generally i just design as i go along, it also helps if anything goes wrong i can just quickly adjust my design instead of being set on one thing and getting frustrated lol
6. Please link to your biggest inspirations.: dissolvedgirl

rxqueen/cherrywaves - i don't think she is on the indie web anymore *sobs* but she was one of my earliest inspirations around 2020ish! i esp loved her song shrine pages and nostalgia pages...i hope she's doing well wherever she is now

vrelle - being totally non-biased bc she's one of my best friends on here, her site is beautiful and has all the keys to my heart like antique clocks, moe girls and a monochrome theme ofc!

doctorarabelle - someone who i became moots with recently and instantly fell in love with her site, which *bonus points* is inspired by iosefka's clinic from bloodborne, the vintage clinic aesthetic is such a clear vision and is just beautifully designed also inspires me to add more details like sounds to my website!
7. What's your favourite part about making websites?: although everyone says 'it's not about the destination it's about the journey' or whatever, the product of my efforts is definitely my favourite part and seeing it all come together, i love the feeling of when you feel like a page is 90% done (it is NEVER 100% done in my eyes...*perfectionism*) and you can sit back and enjoy looking at it. i do like the process of coding when i'm not hitting any roadblocks and it's going smoothly, i kinda just zone out and listen to music, and feel like i'm somewhat being productive with my day. other than this i would say i also love collecting graphics from tumblr/pinterest, or more broadly designing in general
8. And the thing you struggle with the most?: i don't have a lot of patience when my code goes wrong...i get frustrated easily if something isn't working if i've spent like an hour on it, and then i feel stupid for not knowing the reason when i did everything right i just mistyped 'position: absolute:" instead of 'position: absolute;" and it's just that ONE small error that messes everything up...reminds me of a moment in Himawari... i guess i struggle with regulating my ability not to smash my laptop when something like this happens...
9. Do you keep the same layout on all of your pages? Or do you use different ones?: i was contemplating using the same layout for all pages at the very beginning but overtime i learnt that different things need different pages, for example right now my music tab is pretty cramped and i need a bigger layout to display the albums the way i want to with overlay etc..
i feel like it's more interesting to do different layouts and make them all unique for different pages so that's what i'm doing, i still try to keep it consistent with the overall theme of my site though
10. How confident are you with CSS?: a bit more confident with it than HTML ? i do like the design part more than the 'coding/putting it together' part after all...but don't like, test me on it or anything...
11. Do you know how to correctly use <dl>?: I TOLD YOU NOT TO TEST ME *betrayal*
12. What is your favourite HTML element?: i like <style>, <center>, <img src=>, <a href=>, <select>, but <iframe> is beginning to be my favourite because i just found out i can embed pinterest boards and it looks really good ! i tried to iframe my tumblr before but that kinda messed up tho...
3. If you're making a new web page from scratch, what is the first thing you do?: make incoherent doodles on MSPaint resembling what i want it to look like
14. Do you know JavaScript?: a little/no, i copy/paste it from tutorials... revoke my webmistress license officer..
15. How about PHP?: ...
16. Does your website have a theme that you stick to?: yes! i'm going for a elegant gothic/dark cabaret style, with some alice in wonderland elements... like a monochrome wonderland
17. Are you more focused on content or design?: mostly design right now since i'm trying to make my pages look as 'finished' as possible, but the content i consistently add are probably my outfit diary, pieces to my wardrobe and shrine pages in the future! all the other pages i hope to just keep as they are or switch them up/update at some point
18. Do you own a domain name? If not, would you ever want to?: i think i'm switching to .love soon, or .cc is cute too, i'm trying to find one that will match my current name the best bc i don't want to change it and .heart is sadly unavailable...
19. What do you think of nostalgia-focused or "retro" websites?: i like them a lot! in the future i've been toying with the idea of making a "true" retro goth darkwave-inspired page - for example scarybex or vampyra, like, what would my website look like if i was a goth in the 2000's?? i feel like they have so much charm to them and would love to honour that period of time on the internet that i'm so enamoured with
20. Is your HTML valid? Do you even check?: ....if it works, it works (my worst fear is a professional webdev looking at my code.. do not inspect source pls!!!)
21. What are your opinion on buttons and banners?: i love them! it's a fun challenge to encapsulate your whole site or your site's vibe into just a 88x32 space, it's almost like a chibi version of your site
i also just love the ones people make on tumblr or deviantart similar to stamps/blinkies about their fav media or interests, must add some at some point
22. What do you think of button walls in particular?: i love the sense of community they bring, i'm flattered when i see my button on a moots button wall and also it's an easy way to check out other sites from there if you love the look of someone's button !
i prefer to keep my neighbour's buttons on this page but i also have a small button wall i guess on my index when you click through the calender widget!
23. If you started over again, would you make something similar or completely different?: similar...my website is kinda an extension of my fashion style/aesthetic in general and it's not like my interests would rapidly change so i think it would turn out pretty much the same!
24. Are you envious of other people's websites?: i don't compare my site to others so i wouldn't say envious, maybe a lil jealous of people's skill level? but as for layouts/aes i feel like i'm very happy with mine rn and reflects my personality the most! moreso i would say i fall in love with other people's sites and then make a mental note of things i could improve mine like animations/sounds/making it more interactive etc.. (even tho it will take me 100 years)
25. What text editor do you use?: i'm boring, just the inbuilt neocities one...
26. Why do you use that one?: i tried editors with a preview before but i don't like how it resizes the screen, i want to see my whole screen with no disturbances so it is kinda annoying to keep saving and viewing my site on the neocities one but i'm just used to it atp!
27. Do you host your image files on your web server, or on another host?: although i have a lot saved, i'm genuinely awful at saving images to my site, because when i'm testing things out it's easier to just copy/paste links, but since i'm almost finished with my 'main' pages and relatively happy w how they look, at some point i will take a whole day off to download all the tumblr links i have floating around my code and lock them into my neocities !! i also use catbox/filegarden a lot too
28. This might not be relevant to you, but what's your opinion on the Neocities vs. Nekoweb debate?: i tried out nekoweb one time, i made the account, couldn't get used to the UI and dipped LOL i'm too used to neocities although a lot of lovely people have commented on my guestbook from nekoweb sites so i'm sure it can't be that bad over there?? the only problem i have is that i can't follow these people back (does nekoweb even have a following system?..) i will say although i like the geocities pun, nekoweb has the cuter name #sorryneocitiesmylove
29. How much server space would you estimate your main website takes up?: not that much..i think..?
30. Do you keep local backups of your files?: i download my entire site once in a while and also copy/paste my code down somewhere in case anything goes wrong, i'm not good at backing up anything but my neocities site lol
31. Do you prefer simple or highly visual websites?: the perfect balance is simple as well as highly visual imo, like not super eyestrain but not like, 2 words on a page lol, as long as i can read whats written i prefer highly visual!
32. Do you stick to certain colours? Do you do that on purpose, or is it your subconscious?: usually black and white and greys, i just like it when everything looks consistent and there's still so much you can do with that colour palette - also i dress that way usually so it's an extension of my style
33. Have you ever thought about quitting? Why?: not this site in particular, when i've quit before it's either because i got bored or burnt out or i didn't have time to make websites at that point in my life - nowadays i'm a lot more free and i've done so much to this site already so that kinda motivates me to keep going! i learned if i coded most of the day i'd get burnt out so i usually limit myself to 1-3 hrs a day and just make small improvements over a period of time rather than rushing to get it all done
34. Do you have many webmaster friends, or is it a solitary hobby?: only online friends, it would be so cool if i met someone irl who is a webmaster but idk if i'd be confident enough to bring up that i have a website irl
35. Do people in your real life know about your website?: nope, my mum has seen me code my index a bit and has seen some pages but if she saw the main content which is my outfits i think some of them would give her a heart attack LOL,, only my hb has full access to every part & even unfinished pages bc he never judges me for anything and he acc gives me advice sometimes bc he's programmer-brained, but yes he's the only one i would trust even though i don't write anything particularly personal here
36. Do you update your website very often? How often is "very often"?: everyday-every couple days?? even if its just adding someone's button who just followed me i try to keep on top of things or i'll forget, as for properly working on new pages and stuff that's maybe every week/couple weeks or so
37. And the overall design, do you change that much? Why or why not?: my site is constantly under construction in my eyes so in the future i will revamp a lot of pages once i'm satisfied with my main pages, but it probably won't look that different design wise, just improved...i think if i stopped making changes or adding stuff and just leaving a site how it is i would lose interest immediately, the fun part is improving and expanding it imo
38. Is your website more you-focused, hobby-focused, or outside world-focused?: me-focused and hobby-focused (fashion), i don't rlly go outside that much
39. Do you do web design professionally?: absolutely not my code is awful
40. If not, would you like to? And if you're comfortable answering, what do you do for work?: no ty! i feel like if you're a 'real' webdev you have to design websites for clients like law firms and banks and you can't add glitter-graphics or buttons or even a cute border to anything, so nooo thankyou! also my code sucks i just do what 'works' not to the most efficiency or whatever
41. Do you communicate with people by email very much?: i have a couple penpals i communicate with via email ! love them and it's always fun to read their mails, i like the delayed gratification of recieving an email vs instant messaging but some people i prefer to IM
42. Some people reject social media and use websites as a replacement. Do you keep social media outside of your website?: the only real social media i have are tiktok and tumblr - but i wouldn't put tumblr in the same box since i just reblog pretty pics and don't even post on there...tiktok on the other hand was more #scary for me to start, i started it so i could embed the videos into my outfit page and i thought why not just post it there too, but then the embeds messed up and i had to use mp4 (neocities take my money) and i was considering deleting it but i already made moots over there and everyone who i interact with is so nice, so i'm keeping it for now i acc rlly like my fyp/community over there
43. How about instant messengers? Do you use a mainstream one like Discord or Telegram? Or something like Matrix? Do you avoid them?: i use discord, it's kinda lame bc i don't have nitro but best believe i would make the cutest profile over there if i could (i'm not giving dc money...guess it's time to join some ekitten servers....jhfjksdfjh jkjk)
44. Do you listen to music while you work on websites? If so, what kinds of artists?: most of the time i do but sometimes i listen to podcasts/yt videos in the background!
my favourite artists specifically to code to and gets me in a flow state are sewerslvt/cynthoni, something i know all of the words to like ethel cain or the cure, and anime/game/VN OSTs...i don't like listening to new artists or discovering people while i'm coding bc i'll lose focus and start deep diving their wikipedia lol, if i rlly need to focus on a layout or something its silence...
45. Do you keep everything you make on one website, or do you have more than one?: just one neocities for now but i may make more in the future once i'm happy w/ my main site!
46. On a similar note, do you keep to one topic on your site, or many?: most of the pages are about fashion currently, but wait until i start my shrine pages..
47. Do you present your real self, or at least try? Or do you construct a persona on purpose?: hmm i'd be lying if i said i looked like how i do in my outfit videos everyday lmao but then agian i feel like i'm still my 'real self' in both ways and i still like all the same things and have the same personality so i don't think it's a persona (i'm just a catfish)
48. Have you ever made a good friend thanks to your website?: yes a few great friends!! i think neocities is a great place to make friends as it doesn't seem so transient / you're not lost in someone's hundreds of followers like other social media, it feels like you can really connect with people here and bond over interests more
49. Are you happy with the way HTML and CSS currently work?: yes i know generally what i'm doing so that always helps ! if it works it works i don't want anything to change bc i'm too lazy to learn new code..
50. What are practices that you think people should avoid?: spamming
51. What about under-utilised practices, or things you think people should do more?: ummm...following me...i think my follow button is under-utilised...more people should do this...
52. Do you use a lot of semantic HTML? Or are you guilty of generic structure?: idk what semantic HTML is, so generic ig!
53. Do you consider different browsers?: i consider different screen resolutions but not browsers..
54. Speaking of, what's your preferred browser? Convince your readers why they should use it.: usually on Chrome (can't tell if people hate that or not LOL) but i have firefox too...i just like it cause it's got a more appealing UI and i've been using it since forever so i'm a creature of habit
55. And what OS are you on?: windows whateveristhemostrecentupdate
56. Do you have a strong opinion on that, or do you just happen to use it?: just happen to use it !
57. Are your websites mobile-friendly?: some pages are i think? i never go on my site on mobile but i know my index definitely isn't, mostly i don't care though because i think if u want to make a small mobile responsive 'site' make a carrd or strawpage or something, i think 'proper' websites should be viewed on desktops like the old web God intended (me coping bc i can't make all my pages responsive yet)
58. What are your thoughts on autoplay?: if it's like hardcore techno it's a bit offputting but if it's just a game OST or something i don't mind and think it generally goes with the theme of the page! i'd personally rather have a webamp or something so you can pause it but autoplay is something i could use in the future it just has to be the right song & fit my pages!
59. What are your thoughts on webrings? Are you in any?: i think they're so cute and such a interesting way to discover new sites!
i'm in a couple right now, the cult of usakumya lolita webring and an idolring, will be joining some others soon ^.^
60. Do you have any web shrines? What do you like to see in that sort of page?: i have ideas for my shrines and have some mockups but would like to finish my main pages first! i think it's cool to see a lot of detail in those pages, for example if it's about a band going into your fave song lyrics and albums/ep's and even fave interviews etc... the more detail the better i think! also it's just pleasing to the eye to see a whole page about one specific thing, i really like oshikatsu for that reason too i think it just looks very pretty and put together and cohesive
61. Are your websites "cliche", in your opinion?: i guess maybe the colour scheme? idk..
62. What is your ideal website? Are you striving for that, or for something else?: not far off to what i have now i think, just something with more animations & interactive things and just subtle things that are forever piling on my to-do list
63. Are you an artist? Do you draw or design your own assets?: i draw a little sometimes, like once in a blue moon if i feel inspired but i don't really showcase it since i don't do it often enough !

the last thing i drew is the ultimate yuri couple Erika and Chidori from when i finished the Flowers visual novel series, i drew & painted them on paper and glued them/lace to Taeyeon CD's since they matched the theme...(rip sorry girl i'm streaming u) i really like the doily embroidery/art people do so i was inspired by that shape
as for assets i don't right now except make my own buttons, but maybe in the future!
64. What are your favourite resource sites?: my go to is tumblr/pinterest for graphics/backgrounds, on tumblr blogs like animatedglittergraphics, bugsdeco, priestboy, pixel-soup and whatever i can find when i search for rentry graphics or pixels/favicons
i also love glitter-graphics for the old web aesthetic, neckdoll free materials site & w3schools/codepen/github/stack overflow for layouts
65. Is there a habit you just can't get away from no matter how hard you try?: leaving font as the very last thing to do on the page and half-assing it...also making the same scrollbar cutomization for each page so far lol
66. What's your biggest advice for a new webmaster?: it's okay to suck at first and don't make too many pages at once! just work on the index and you can do everything else later, otherwise you start to feel overwhelmed and the chances of quitting are high (speaking from experience) it's okay to work on something for months and years, all your favourite sites that inspired you to make one have hundreds if not thousands of hours put into them so don't give up! (says the person whos given up like 20 times)
67. Do you keep all your styling in CSS? Or do you hard-code some?: mostly all in css!
68. What do you think of frameset layouts?: i don't use them so i have no thoughts..
69. How about table-based layouts?: more of a fan of tables, i still kinda suck at them i can't do them off the top of my head, i use generators to help me, but i understand how they work and they look clean and nice
70. Do you subscribe to the ideas of "one-column", "two-column" and "three-column" layouts? Do you use any of these?: 1-2 columns is the sweet spot for me, the pages that do have columns on my site currently have this layout
71. Do you spend longer on the HTML or the CSS?: css for sure, unless i'm fixing something on the html
72. Have you ever made a page with no CSS? It's useful for your thoughts.: NEVER!! a page without css is like....a lolita dress without a petticoat ! a goth without her eyeliner !
73. Do you ever find yourself making layouts with nothing to put on them? Or do you only make layouts when the need arises?: only when the need arises, there's no point if i'm not making a page or anything
74. Would you consider yourself a beginner? Or advanced? Somewhere in the middle?: maybe somewhere in the middle? but definitely have more to learn!
75. Do you have a habit of looking at the source code of websites you visit?: i used to when i was first starting out just to get the jist of how it was written and how some elements worked, but i never really do nowadays
76. How did YOU learn how to make websites?: w3schools/codepen/help from stack overflow and A LOT of trial and error!
77. Do you ever force elements to do things they're not supposed to?: yes...*looks at my endless amounts of margin-top on everything to move stuff around*
78. Thoughts on floating elements?: i use them sometimes? if it's already in some code from w3schools or something, but i would rather not, it's like a 50/50 if they work for me....but good thing i have my margins heheh
79. When you're sizing stuff, what do you use first? Do you use px, em, %, or something else?: % for most things esp if the page is responsive i always remember to try to use it, a lot of things are in px, i never really use em
80. Do you have a favourite font?: right now the main font i use for titles is Meie Script which i love, but for the main text font i usually choose one from this free webfonts page until i find one i like, i also love and want to use this Yume Nikki font in the future for my shrine!
81. Would you run a website with another person? How would that work?: sure, i don't know how it would work on neocities since i don't even think there's an option to share a site but it would be cute ! my hb and i do some hobbies together like MTG or watching anime it'd be cool to make a site based on that which we can both use
82. Do you surf the Web to find new personal websites very often?: when i have time i try and check out others sites as much as possible and go on a lil follow-spree, but only really on neocities, i don't even know how to find places on nekoweb or other indie websites yet..
83. Do you bookmark other people's websites? How would you feel knowing someone else bookmarked yours?: yes sometimes! esp old web ones that are still alive like scarybex as i mentioned earlier, and also some on webarchive, or just cool sites like this that i currently have in my bookmarks folder just to make sure i don't lose them and remember to add them to my links page
i would feel so flattered! someone actually already told me they bookmarked my old site but when they went to check back later it disappeared (bc i deleted it GAHH), it was only live for like 2 weeks and i thought it was trash so when they told me that i was shocked but so grateful
84. What do you want people to be most impressed with when they see your website?: i recently revamped my index so i hope thats a good first impression and i'm v satisfied with it rn! content-wise i would say my outfits since i try to take the time to style them well and try to keep getting better at it, i'm the happiest when people say they like my outfits hehe
85. Are you interested in technology outside of websites? Do you collect?: a little! i'm not a super tech person, my hb builds computers and stuff so i'm not like that, but i love the old technology aesthetic, idk if this counts but i really love the look of the Gameboy Advance SP (esp tribal one omg) and old consoles and music players and stuff like that! i want to collect so many old PS2 games but everyone has driven up the price of the horror games i love so much...
86. How often and for how long are you online?: pretty much all the time...for me the outside world is fun every once in a while but i'd rather be coding or dressing up in my room...and i'm very privileged to be able to do so rn!!
87. When it comes to your website, who is your target audience?: i'm not really sure, whoever likes my site i guess! but truthfully...girls..i love girls
88. Have you ever been interested in XHTML?: i'm not sure what that is, so if i was interested i would've known about it..
89. Do you program in general? Have you ever written a program for use with or on your website, not counting simple JavaScript?: nope, but my hb is an amazing programmer! he does it for work all day and i can't help but look in awe at his code because it looks so complicated compared to html/css...he's so smart and i'm so proud of him hehe
90. Speaking of programs that help you make websites, what do you think of static site generators (SSGs)? Have you ever used one?: uhh...i'll have to do more research on that, i saw something about Markdown and i'm very new to markdown sites so maybe i would be interested?
91. Do you keep a hitcounter? Why or why not?: nope, because i forgot that they existed and keep forgetting to put one on my index when i see one on someone else's site!! *writes on to-do list*
92. Do you frequent forums? Which ones?: not really, i only read reddit or old fuwanovel threads sometimes if they count lol
93. Do you write your page content directly into the editor, or do you prepare it elsewhere, like a text document or a Word document?: directly into the editor!
94. Do you think you appear cool to others? A more accurate answer now: do other people ever say you're cool?: i got called cool yesterday *embarrassed*...i never feel that cool, maybe it's a complex from being one of the most unpopular people in my whole year at school (weeb + emo + british high school i'm sure u can see how that went...) but i'm extremely flattered when people say that, it makes me feel like a cool older sister or something i def think that other people and other sites are way cooler than mine though!
95. Are you embarrassed of your old work? Have you ever deleted everything out of shame?: i wouldn't say super embarrassed or anything, it's more like that time of my life has passed and i more associate it with that time rather than being ashamed of any old sites or anything, but i sure don't want anything dug up today because my code was genuinely awful fgdhjfgh
96. Would you close down your website if you couldn't update it, or would you leave an archive?: leave an archive! i've put in too many hours to this site already i wanna at least leave something behind...even after i die i think it'll be cool for people to see it in like 100 years or something, i wonder if they'll look at our sites as ultra retro like how we look at 90's sites now, and then they'll try and recreate them like how some people make 90's nostalgia sites
97. Do you reveal a lot about yourself on your website? Or are you more secretive?: sometimes, i'm not secretive on purpose or anything it's just i don't have a personal diary or a blog type page yet (thinking of making one after my main pages though) but i reveal little things here and there, on this page and my fashion page esp right now, but in the future i will reveal a little more! i have thoughts like 'who is gonna read/care about this?' but that might be something i have to get over bc i read most of my moots diary entries and pieces they have written and stuff and i never think it's weird or oversharing, i think i'm too in my head about that
98. Are you willing to reveal who your best online friend is, and/or if they have a website?: idk if i can assign one person but as for neocities friends i would say i talk most with vrelle and elle from here!
99. And do you optimise the images on your website?: nah no time for all of that at least rn
100. We're out of time! How do you feel after answering 100 questions? ....other than exhausted.: i feel stupid bc you kept asking questions like XHTML and static websites...no but this was fun i do need a nap now though

about the webmistress

webrings

cliques

quiz results coming soon ♡

100 webmaster questions

graphics collection

blinkie collection

stamp collection