PUBLIC MARKS with tags blocks & module

As a developer, one area of frustration I've frequently encountered in the past is how to control block placement and visibility from code. One of the strengths of Drupal is the abililty to administer most of the site from the site itself. This powerful ability, among others, has spelled doom for the webmaster. At the same time, there are some parts of building a site that a case can be made that would be better accomplished with code. Building blocks is arguably one such case.