This shocking news suddenly occured to the Bad Managers editor as he updated the links page this morning.

"Holy cow," he was reported to have exclaimed. "People go to the links page... they see a link that they like... you know, click on it... and they go to a brand new site that is more to their taste. But the Bad Managers site is the kicking off point - and that makes it a portal in my book."

The Software Reality editor is given some much needed advice. For pity's sake, the Sun is shining outside...

The newly formulated "portal springboard kick-off zone" gives users a selection of links, separated into different subject categories.

"It's been there, largely unchanged, since the site began," he mused, "only now, just by adding a few more links, it just feels like it's a portal. I mean what's really different? Nothing! And yet it's a portal now... Or is it a hub? Or a vortal? Ouch, my poor aching head..."

"In fact the only thing missing," he pondered, "is the personalisation aspect. What we need is the ability for each user to totally customise the front page - so they decide whether the What's New section comes first, or the bit below that appears at the top. That would add a genuine value proposition to my new portal."

He then realised that users can still personalise their experience to a certain extent, just by fiddling with their browser settings - they can switch off images, Javascript, style sheets etc, ranging the experience from totally minimalist to the full-on 100% multimedia extravanganza that is the Bad Manager site links portal.

Or of course they can browse to a different site, thus customising their experience to a whole new level.

So with personalisation sorted, all the site needs now is some microscopic WAP content that nobody will ever bother to read. "I could just fill it with six-month old Cricket scores," he thought excitedly.

Netcenter
Hey look, it's a portal...

Yahoo
And another one! Funny, I always thought Yahoo was just a search engine. But nooo, it's got to be a full-fledged portal, just like every other goddamned friggin' web site on the planet...

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