The Mikado theme started out much like any other. Having just switched to using habari as my blogging platform, a new theme was in order. The most crucial part of its development followed soon after in the form of yet another conversation with Sarah. We were debating the benefits of tables for layout vs. css. Now, it's not my intention to open that can of worms here, but that planted the seed for what would become the Mikado theme.

There are a host of really slick habari themes you can get that do all manner of amazing things with css. Mikado is the other side of the coin, achieving everything with old school html and a large helping of tables. Eruditorum.co.uk is, in fact, partying like it's 1999.

Or rather, like it's 1979. The other bit of the idea, and the Mikado name, came to me as I was driving home from work in my 1979 Chevy Luv Mikado. Sure, when quickly perused as she roars past you on the street, there isn't a lot to look at there. But what you aren't seeing from the outside is just how engaging and fun things are on the inside. Our modern cars have become so soft and insulated from everything that when you step back 29 years or so, it really is a different experience.

There are creaks, and shifting gears is a chunking movement. Not the quick flick of the wrist you'll find in the modern manual transmission. You've seen the commercial where the guy is locked in the car with a sleeping badger while a cannon is fired because it's so quiet inside? Not here. There are growling engine noises to be had, and the hole rusted in the passenger floor board assures that any pertinent sound from the outside world will make its way to you.

I can certainly appreciate the gains we've made with all manner of modern technology. This post is going together on a 22" wide screen LCD after all. Although, it's also being banged out on an IBM Model M keyboard that is almost as old as my truck. Progress is great, and things often do get better because of it. At the same time though, it's always worth taking a look back. Technology, whether it is vinyl records, rusty old trucks, or even web authoring that has fallen out of favor, often has a habit of sticking around.

So, there you have it. Them's the basics of what's behind the Mikado theme. Get a look at the source of the pages if you are really curious.