Tobiasly’s Blog

I have finished moving all my photos over to my New Photo Gallery. I also have quite a few new pictures up from my deployment, including some from Jordan and some new additions to the Tallil Airfield (Iraq) section.

I’ve also added a lot more pictures of Aloysius, plus a few assorted family pictures. Plus, everything is much better organized and easy to find. If you haven’t been there in a while, go take a look!

I am in the process of moving my entire website to a new server. Hopefully everything should be noticeably faster. If you notice anything that’s “broken”, please be sure to let me know!

You’ll notice a new link on the main page’s menu under “Syndication”. It is a link to this page in a special format called RSS 2.0, for “Really Simple Syndication, version 2″. RSS itself is written in a language called XML, for “Extensible Markup Language”.

Syndication is a means of publishing content from different sites in a standardized format. If you go to lots of sites with constantly-updated information like news, blogs, gossip/rumors, and the like, chances are you have seen the logo elsewhere as well.

Instead of going out to all those sites to look for updates every day, you can use RSS to collect all that information in one place. The program I use for this is called AmphetaDesk, which lets you create your own custom webpage right on your computer. Each item from your favorite Channels will be summarized, with links to the full item.

My dad let me know that this site got cut off when printing pages out. That should be fixed now… when printing a page, then entire left-hand menu will be removed, allowing more room for the content.

I’m getting much closer to having my online photo album completed, at which point I should have lots of new pictures ready to go!

I’ve added a few categories to break down my postings a bit further. Although most of my posts are about my military deployment, I will also post on other topics from time to time. If you don’t want to see the other stuff, click “National Guard” from the menu on the left.

After each item I post, you’ll see a link you can follow to read others’ comments, and add your own. You can leave comments anonymously, or leave your name and/or email/web address.

You can post pretty much anything you want, but because I have lots of different people reading this site, I’ll delete anything offensive. Of course, you can always send me an email by clicking my name at the end of each item.

I’ve been working quite a bit on the website since revamping it yesterday. It seems like everything is up and running now.

I’ve also finished importing some recent emails I’ve sent about me and my National Guard compatriots who are over here in the middle east. Hopefully I’ve given a bit of an angle into life over here that you can’t get from CNN.

Now that the front pages are taken care of, I’ll next focus on my photo albums — cleaning up the ones that are already there, plus posting a couple new ones. Here’s one that can’t wait though — my “puppy” Aloysius (he’s the Black Lab) with a newfound friend (her name is Rosie, a Yellow Lab that belongs to an aunt and uncle of Elizabeth’s)

Hi everyone… I am updating my website to include a blog, plus easier access to the photo albums.

So what is a blog, you ask? The word blog is short for web log, which is basically a periodic posting of whatever I feel is relevant, noteworthy, or interesting.

As most everyone who knows me knows, I’m currently deployed in the middle east with the Indiana Army National Guard, in support of operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. I’ll be importing some emails I sent out earlier in the year regarding my deployment and the fun we’ve been having over here.

Stay tuned!

My name is Tobias Lee Johnson, although I go by Toby. I am 29 years old; I have a wonderful wife, Elizabeth, and spastic Black Lab mix, Aloysius.

I live in Southern Indiana in the U.S.A. I work as a programmer for a large human resources consulting firm. I have always loved computers and gadgets, and although I have a minor in Computer Science (I have a B.S. in Chemistry), most of what I know about computers is self-taught.

I am also a first lieutenant in the Indiana Army National Guard (A Company, 1st Battalion, 152nd Infantry Regiment). I am a platoon leader currently deployed to the Middle East. For the time being, this blog mostly concentrates on my experiences during this deployment (naturally!).

You can view many more photos in my online Photo Gallery.

The name of this site, “Tobiasly”, is simply a play on my first and middle names. An online friend of mine used it as an adverb, as in “I need some tobiasly advice”; I liked it, and kept using it.