Web Musings

Multiple monitor displays with Sabrent USB-DH88

2011-07-14T07:01:00.000-07:00

After much searching, I finally decided to give CompUSA a call to see if they sold any devices that would allow me to connect more than one monitor to my laptop via my USB port. They told me they did and it would only cost me $50. I was so excited but unfortunately it was about 5 minutes to 7pm when I called on a Sunday so they were about to close. When Monday came around, I immediately went to the nearest CompUSA store to buy the Sabrent USB-DH88 USB External Video/Graphics to DVI/VGA/HDMI Adapter.

The adapter works very well with both my VGA and DVI monitors connected to my laptop via USB. It is great to be able to have 3 screens now - my laptop + 2 monitors!

2011-06-16T11:19:00.001-07:00

How to Learn a Programming Language

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Programming is a very complex skill that takes many years to master. This article will start you on your path towards mastery by explaining the choices you must make as a beginning programmer and guiding you to helpful tools and resources.

Steps

Decide what you want to do. Some programming applications with strong Web presence and good materials for beginners are game programming, Web site creation, automation of common tasks ("scripting"), text processing, and scientific problem solving. If you just think programming would be cool to learn and don't have any specific applications in mind, that's okay, but thinking about what you want to program in advance will help you make informed decisions during your learning experience.
Choose a programming language. Start with C to understand how exactly programs run and interact; then move on to C++. Python is a good general-purpose language, and it is easy to learn as well as being very powerful for all kinds of applications. Perl and Java are other popular languages for beginners. Research your target application to learn if there are languages you should definitely know (e.g. SQL for databases) or avoid. Don't be confused by jargon like "object-oriented", "concurrent", or "dynamic"; these all mean things, but you won't be able to understand them until you actually have some programming experience.
Find learning resources. Search the Web for good places to start on the languages mentioned above, and be sure to check the language's home page (if it has one) for an official guide or handbook. Also, find someone who already knows how to program. Online tutorials are nice, but they can be frustrating at times if you can't get answers to specific questions.
Start small. You can't expect to write a bestselling 700-page masterpiece if you have no practical writing experience; programming is the same way. Start with basic constructs and write small programs (10 to 30 lines) to test your understanding of the concepts. Stretch yourself, but don't try to run before you can walk.
Put in the time. It takes many hours of practicing problem-solving skills on different types of problems before you can call yourself an expert. Project Euler has many small programming assignments, ranked roughly by difficulty, that are useful for honing your skills and keeping in practice.
Keep at it. Programming can be very frustrating, but successfully completing a program can be intensely satisfying. Don't give up if you don't understand a concept; programming can be a very abstract thing to learn. When working on a particularly intricate problem, take periodic breaks to let your brain relax and relegate the problem to your subconscious mind.
Keep learning. Knowing one programming language is good, but knowing four or five is better. Regardless of what language you use most often, having knowledge of others to draw on will make you a better programmer and better able to understand common constructs and problems in the abstract. So learn several programming languages, especially two or three with different design philosophies, such as Lisp, Java, and Perl.

Tips

Start with C, it will give you a good background of how programs run and how memory is managed. If you start with Java or Python you will certainly get stuck with C and C++ later which can be a major problem.
Languages commonly used in Web development include Python, Ruby, PHP, ASP, and Java. Web developers also need to have a strong basis of HTML and JavaScript (which is not the same thing as Java), and are likely to find SQL useful as well.
If you are interested in game programming, investigate Python, C++, and Java. Of the three, C++ is probably the best performer, Python by far the easiest to learn, and Java best able to run on Windows, Mac OS, and Linux without change.
For automating tedious tasks ("scripting") on Windows, look up C# (which is similar to Java), Visual Basic or PowerShell; for other platforms, Perl, Python, and bash (or other shells) are common.
Tutorials of any sort are not sufficient to learn a language well. Try to find people around you who have the same interests, and learn from one another. Browse and join message boards so you can be exposed to the techniques and discussions of a dynamic programming community.
Print books can be a valuable resource, but ask an experienced programmer for recommendations before dumping money on what may be very well-hyped fluff.
Make use of up-to-date APIs (application programming interfaces) and official reference materials available from the software publisher.
When you learn something new, it is often helpful to implement it yourself and then tweak the design, predicting the results, to make sure you understand the concept.
For most people, programming something that interests them or that they can use is more interesting than textbook examples. Use a search engine to find out about projects that interest you.
Learn about Free software. Study the source code of the programs available at the Free software directory. Why re-invent the wheel when you can make it better? Just make sure you understand what you're programming.
References are there to help you. Don't be ashamed if you don't remember everything by heart; that comes with time. The important thing is knowing where to find reference material.
Talk to other programmers; read other programs. This is more important than any book or training course.
Get involved in a language standardization effort. It could be the ANSI C++ committee, or it could be deciding if your local coding style will have 2 or 4 space indentation levels. Either way, you learn about what other people like in a language, how deeply they feel so, and perhaps even a little about why they feel so.

Related wikiHows

Sources and Citations

How To Become A Hacker, an essay by Eric S. Raymond, has a section on learning to program upon which much of this how-to was based.
Teach Yourself Programming in Ten Years, by Peter S. Norvig, offers insight on what it takes to learn to program well.
What Programming Language Should I Learn? offers a brief analysis of some major languages and their strengths.
How Stuff Works: How Java Works An absolute-beginners guide to Java programming.
PHP Tutorials Learn more about creating php forms on your website
W3Schools This website contains tutorials, references and examples on languages such as PHP, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, SQL and other web oriented languages!

How to exclude your website visits in Google Analytics using a cookie.

2010-05-29T22:00:00.000-07:00

A very simple cookie based method to exclude your visits to your websites you administer without needing to use an IP filter...

Add this filter:
Name: Exclude Internal Visits
Type: Custom Filter - Exclude
Field: Campaign Source
Set to: ^exclude_me$

Then just go to www.YourDomain.com/?utm_source=exclude_me&utm_nooverride=1 (this will drop a 6month cookie which will not be overwitten)

You could either bookmark this page OR set your homepage in Firefox to mysearchengine|mydomain e.g.
http://www.google.com|http://www.yourdomain.com/?utm_source=exclude_me&utm_nooverride=1

This will open two tabs when your brower opens and loads the homepage.

Note: this assumes you are not using &utm_nooverride=1 in any other campaigns, and you need to do this on both FF & IE, and any windows user accounts - as they all set separate cookies.

Note2: be careful with exclude filters, if you acidentally selected "include" rather than "exclude" you would only see your own visits.

Learn more about using Google Analytics at Google's Conversion University

Watch videos provided by Google here: http://www.google.com/support/conversionuniversity/bin/static.py?hl=en&page=iq_learning_center.cs

The 7 Ps of Marketing

2009-09-10T05:56:00.001-07:00

The 7 Ps of Marketing

Take charge of your marketing efforts and beat the competition with this simple formula.

By Brian Tracy

URL: http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/article70824.html

Once you've developed your marketing strategy, there is a "Seven P Formula" you should use to continually evaluate and reevaluate your business activities. These seven are: product, price, promotion, place, packaging, positioning and people. As products, markets, customers and needs change rapidly, you must continually revisit these seven Ps to make sure you're on track and achieving the maximum results possible for you in today's marketplace.

Product

To begin with, develop the habit of looking at your product as though you were an outside marketing consultant brought in to help your company decide whether or not it's in the right business at this time. Ask critical questions such as, "Is your current product or service, or mix of products and services, appropriate and suitable for the market and the customers of today?"

Whenever you're having difficulty selling as much of your products or services as you'd like, you need to develop the habit of assessing your business honestly and asking, "Are these the right products or services for our customers today?"

Is there any product or service you're offering today that, knowing what you now know, you would not bring out again today? Compared to your competitors, is your product or service superior in some significant way to anything else available? If so, what is it? If not, could you develop an area of superiority? Should you be offering this product or service at all in the current marketplace?

Prices

The second P in the formula is price. Develop the habit of continually examining and reexamining the prices of the products and services you sell to make sure they're still appropriate to the realities of the current market. Sometimes you need to lower your prices. At other times, it may be appropriate to raise your prices. Many companies have found that the profitability of certain products or services doesn't justify the amount of effort and resources that go into producing them. By raising their prices, they may lose a percentage of their customers, but the remaining percentage generates a profit on every sale. Could this be appropriate for you?

Sometimes you need to change your terms and conditions of sale. Sometimes, by spreading your price over a series of months or years, you can sell far more than you are today, and the interest you can charge will more than make up for the delay in cash receipts. Sometimes you can combine products and services together with special offers and special promotions. Sometimes you can include free additional items that cost you very little to produce but make your prices appear far more attractive to your customers.

In business, as in nature, whenever you experience resistance or frustration in any part of your sales or marketing activities, be open to revisiting that area. Be open to the possibility that your current pricing structure is not ideal for the current market. Be open to the need to revise your prices, if necessary, to remain competitive, to survive and thrive in a fast-changing marketplace.

Promotion

The third habit in marketing and sales is to think in terms of promotion all the time. Promotion includes all the ways you tell your customers about your products or services and how you then market and sell to them.

Small changes in the way you promote and sell your products can lead to dramatic changes in your results. Even small changes in your advertising can lead immediately to higher sales. Experienced copywriters can often increase the response rate from advertising by 500 percent by simply changing the headline on an advertisement.

Large and small companies in every industry continually experiment with different ways of advertising, promoting, and selling their products and services. And here is the rule: Whatever method of marketing and sales you're using today will, sooner or later, stop working. Sometimes it will stop working for reasons you know, and sometimes it will be for reasons you don't know. In either case, your methods of marketing and sales will eventually stop working, and you'll have to develop new sales, marketing and advertising approaches, offerings, and strategies.

Place

The fourth P in the marketing mix is the place where your product or service is actually sold. Develop the habit of reviewing and reflecting upon the exact location where the customer meets the salesperson. Sometimes a change in place can lead to a rapid increase in sales.

You can sell your product in many different places. Some companies use direct selling, sending their salespeople out to personally meet and talk with the prospect. Some sell by telemarketing. Some sell through catalogs or mail order. Some sell at trade shows or in retail establishments. Some sell in joint ventures with other similar products or services. Some companies use manufacturers' representatives or distributors. Many companies use a combination of one or more of these methods.

In each case, the entrepreneur must make the right choice about the very best location or place for the customer to receive essential buying information on the product or service needed to make a buying decision. What is yours? In what way should you change it? Where else could you offer your products or services?

Packaging

The fifth element in the marketing mix is the packaging. Develop the habit of standing back and looking at every visual element in the packaging of your product or service through the eyes of a critical prospect. Remember, people form their first impression about you within the first 30 seconds of seeing you or some element of your company. Small improvements in the packaging or external appearance of your product or service can often lead to completely different reactions from your customers.

With regard to the packaging of your company, your product or service, you should think in terms of everything that the customer sees from the first moment of contact with your company all the way through the purchasing process.

Packaging refers to the way your product or service appears from the outside. Packaging also refers to your people and how they dress and groom. It refers to your offices, your waiting rooms, your brochures, your correspondence and every single visual element about your company. Everything counts. Everything helps or hurts. Everything affects your customer's confidence about dealing with you.

When IBM started under the guidance of Thomas J. Watson, Sr., he very early concluded that fully 99 percent of the visual contact a customer would have with his company, at least initially, would be represented by IBM salespeople. Because IBM was selling relatively sophisticated high-tech equipment, Watson knew customers would have to have a high level of confidence in the credibility of the salesperson. He therefore instituted a dress and grooming code that became an inflexible set of rules and regulations within IBM.

As a result, every salesperson was required to look like a professional in every respect. Every element of their clothing-including dark suits, dark ties, white shirts, conservative hairstyles, shined shoes, clean fingernails-and every other feature gave off the message of professionalism and competence. One of the highest compliments a person could receive was, "You look like someone from IBM."

Positioning

The next P is positioning. You should develop the habit of thinking continually about how you are positioned in the hearts and minds of your customers. How do people think and talk about you when you're not present? How do people think and talk about your company? What positioning do you have in your market, in terms of the specific words people use when they describe you and your offerings to others?

In the famous book by Al Reis and Jack Trout, Positioning, the authors point out that how you are seen and thought about by your customers is the critical determinant of your success in a competitive marketplace. Attribution theory says that most customers think of you in terms of a single attribute, either positive or negative. Sometimes it's "service." Sometimes it's "excellence." Sometimes it's "quality engineering," as with Mercedes Benz. Sometimes it's "the ultimate driving machine," as with BMW. In every case, how deeply entrenched that attribute is in the minds of your customers and prospective customers determines how readily they'll buy your product or service and how much they'll pay.

Develop the habit of thinking about how you could improve your positioning. Begin by determining the position you'd like to have. If you could create the ideal impression in the hearts and minds of your customers, what would it be? What would you have to do in every customer interaction to get your customers to think and talk about in that specific way? What changes do you need to make in the way interact with customers today in order to be seen as the very best choice for your customers of tomorrow?

People

The final P of the marketing mix is people. Develop the habit of thinking in terms of the people inside and outside of your business who are responsible for every element of your sales and marketing strategy and activities.

It's amazing how many entrepreneurs and businesspeople will work extremely hard to think through every element of the marketing strategy and the marketing mix, and then pay little attention to the fact that every single decision and policy has to be carried out by a specific person, in a specific way. Your ability to select, recruit, hire and retain the proper people, with the skills and abilities to do the job you need to have done, is more important than everything else put together.

In his best-selling book, Good to Great, Jim Collins discovered the most important factor applied by the best companies was that they first of all "got the right people on the bus, and the wrong people off the bus." Once these companies had hired the right people, the second step was to "get the right people in the right seats on the bus."

To be successful in business, you must develop the habit of thinking in terms of exactly who is going to carry out each task and responsibility. In many cases, it's not possible to move forward until you can attract and put the right person into the right position. Many of the best business plans ever developed sit on shelves today because the [people who created them] could not find the key people who could execute those plans.

Excerpted from Million Dollar Habits: Proven Power Practices to Double and Triple Your Income

Google AdWords Learning Center

2009-06-21T08:17:00.000-07:00

You know, one of the reasons why most people have difficulty using Google AdWords is because they don’t know how to use it properly. If you’re one of those people who are having a tough time with the set up, then the following link should help you out a lot.

It’s a whole bunch of videos from Google explaining each step of the set-up process. It’s an excellent resource, very informative and extremely comprehensive.

You obviously don’t have to pay anything so when you have a hour or two spare, watch
them here: http://www.google.com/adwords/learningcenter/index.html

From: Emil Paz @ PPCBully

How to estimate your projects

2009-06-11T03:49:00.000-07:00

Here are some great tools and articles to help you when you need to estimate project costs for your clients. These are geared towards website development but can also be used for other types of projects as well. All of these were graciously provided by Sam Barnes in his Smashing Magazine post Effective Strategy To Estimate Time For Your Design Projects.

Web Development Project Estimator
A neat little online tool that allows designers and developers to quickly create cost estimates for web projects.
Tick
Simple to use time tracking tool that makes it easy to keep track of project budgets.
How to Estimate a Web Site Project
Patty Ayers discusses a five-step process for estimating web projects.
Simple process to estimate times and costs in a web project
Antonio Lupetti describes his process for creating web project cost estimates.
How to Accurately Estimate a Web Design Project
John Reeve talks about catering for the usual missing elements in estimates; project management, contingency time and margin for error.
Estimating Resource Time for Web Development Projects
Bill Breen explains one way to approach estimating time for web projects, and how the size of the project should influence you estimate ranges.
How To Estimate Time For A Project
A Sitepoint article by Alyssa Gregory.

Need a presentation? Slideshare to the rescue.

2009-03-22T07:02:00.000-07:00

What hasn't the web made easier? Now you can even get full slide show presentations in one convenient destination at Slideshare.com. This website is a great resource for anyone who needs to put together a presentation on virtually any topic.

You can upload powerpoint, OpenOffice, and PDF presentations. You can also access tons of others that have been uploaded my other users. Check out the slide show below for in inside look:

SlideShare Quick Tour - Summary of features & capabilities

View more presentations from Amit Ranjan.

5-Steps to Project Success

2009-01-16T09:09:00.001-08:00

Great and funny video! Powerful project management method in 5 steps - distilled into five words.

How to get web hosting for 1 cent with Hostgator.

2008-12-28T11:40:00.000-08:00

An excellent deal! Visit http://onlinedealz.info/hostgator.html and see 3 easy steps. Sometimes things that seem too good to be true are actually true. They even include hosting unlimited websites, unlimited disk space, and unlimited bandwidth! I am going to host many of my sites with them. Not to mention that they are #21 on the Inc. 5000. Sweet.

Affiliate Marketing Rocks! - What is affiliate marketing?

2008-12-09T21:13:00.000-08:00

What is affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing, in a nutshell, is a marketing practice which is primarily Internet-based. Typically the affiliate of a company directs web users to the company's web site on which they may choose to purchase products or services. The user may also submit contact information in order to be contacted by the company about the products or services it may provide for free or for a price. The affiliate is then paid on a per-sale or per-lead basis. The sale model is, in most cases, a percentage of the actual sale completed on the company's website or a flat dollar amount for the sale.

Why do companies have affiliate programs?

One of the main reasons companies have affiliate programs is the reduction in overhead that its affiliate program provides. The company does not have to staff in-house sales associates, pay for benefits, nor supply any physical materials in order to have its product(s) or service(s) marketed.

How does affiliate marketing work?

Check out this video from popular affiliate marketing author and consultant Rosalind Gardner who sums up affiliate marketing in a nutshell. She is also the author of the excellent ebook "The Super Affiliate Handbook" in which she tells how she earns over $500,000 a year via affiliate marketing.

Affiliate Marketing Rocks! - Intro

2008-11-25T09:47:00.000-08:00

Are you in the dark about what affiliate marketing is? Well maybe your aren't but I for one can say I was truly in the dark about the whole "affiliate thing". Even though I have been a member of great affiliate networks such as Commission Junction and LinkShare for years, I just recently realized I was just at the tip to the iceberg. It hasn't been until recently that I started to get the hang of selling using these channels--kind of. I say kind of because there is a ton to learn but also many benefits that go along with the knowledge gained. Over the next few days I will share what I have learned with you and maybe you will have a few tips as well. Stay tuned for this exciting and extremely beneficial series - Affiliate Marketing Rocks!

Image by: Pinko Marketing Wiki

Another excellent deal!

2008-11-22T09:41:00.000-08:00

I came upon another excellent deal recently. You can get $100 off the purchase of a Mac and Printer when you purchase online at the Apple.com website. Check it out:

http://onlinedealz.info/apple100off

Get $200 off Adobe CS4 Upgrades

2008-11-15T13:37:00.000-08:00

I came upon an excellent deal recently. You can get $200 off an upgrade to Adobe CS4. Who wouldn't want to get $200 to buy anything? Check it out:

http://rikahs.com/adobe200free

FREE Products for your business and personal life.

2008-08-21T11:24:00.001-07:00

Sometimes it is nice to get something for free. Especially when that something is an item or items that help you get ahead in your personal and business "life". Check out some of these free products:

250 FREE Business Cards and FREE Matching Website!

FREE T-Shirt and FREE Hat

BOGO - Buy One, Get One FREE. See website for details.

30% Off Plus Free Shipping on Orders over $50 at VistaPrint.com!

80% OFF Premium Business Cards & FREE Return Address Labels

Free Car Door Custom Magnet

FREE Personalized Note Pads

Viewing your website in different browsers and operating systems using Crossbrowsertesting.com

2008-08-19T21:43:00.001-07:00

Any web designer worth their salt knows that cross browser compatibility is important when developing websites for clients. The obstacle that many of us face is having those different web browsers and operating systems set up on our various test environments and servers. This is where Crossbrowsertesting.com comes into play. This website allows you to view any website using 3rd party remote systems that have many operating systems and browsers already set up on them. The only requirement is that you have Java Runtime Environment (get it here) installed on your local machine, which most of us do. Below are the steps you would follow to get the most out of Crossbrowsertesting.com. The first 5 minutes of any session are FREE but any longer period of time will cost you a small amount.

How to test your website in various browsers and operating systems:

Navigate to Crossbrowsertesting.com
Click the register below the sign in box to set up your free account.
Once your logged in you can click on the button labeled Launch Free Testing Service unless you opt to pay for the Priority Testing Service
A window will open that will allow you to pick the operating system and browser set up that you choose.
If you are using the free service then your session will become available in a few seconds or longer depending on the site traffic. When I tried out the service the longest I had to wait was 30 seconds.
Once you are logged on to the remote computer open the browser of your choice. If you aren't worried about your testing appearing in your Google Analytics stats then you can skip step 7.
Go to http://www.getip.com and record the IP address of the remote computer in order to place this IP into your Google Analytics filter later.
You can end your session by clicking the stop button at the top of the window in which the remote computer is running.
After logging off the remote computer you can see your Usage in the My Account section of the Crossbrowsertesting.com website. This helps you to keep track of which operating systems and browsers you have already tested.
That's it!

Internet Tips & Traps

2008-05-19T07:22:00.000-07:00

by StaffTechAlert - GoDaddy.com

"I can’t find what I’m looking for!” We’ve all felt lost when searching for something on the Web. With billions of pages of information, sometimes even the simplest search can seem like looking for a grain of salt on the beach. However, with a little inside knowledge of how search engines work, you can target your searches and find what you’re looking for a lot faster.

We’ve all felt lost when searching for something on the Web. With billions of pages of information, sometimes even the simplest search can seem like looking for a grain of salt on the beach. However, with a little inside knowledge of how search engines work, you can target your searches and find what you’re looking for a lot faster.

Search engines use automated software programs called spiders, bots or crawlers. These programs analyze Web pages and add the data they’ve collected to the search engine’s index. When you enter a term into a search engine, that term is checked against the search engine's index. Any Web pages matching the term are listed in the results page, with the closest match at the top.

Most people search the Web using keywords, which can be single words, phrases or proper names. Keywords are effective for very specific searches, but don’t do as well for general terms. For instance, searching for “Joe’s Bar and Grill” returns just under 4 million results from Google®. If you’re looking for a specific location and it doesn’t appear in the first ten results, you might feel like you’re looking for that grain of salt on the beach.

For phrase searches, quotes are your first best friend. For example, searching for Web Search Engine returns more than 15 million results. However, by putting that phrase in quotes you will drastically reduce the number of results to just under two million – and every result on the first page matches exactly the phrase you’re looking for. This one small tip is a huge time saver, but if you want to improve your search skills even further, you can use more advanced search techniques, such as Boolean searches or site-specific searches.

A Boolean search is based on the logical relationship among search terms. Boolean logic consists of three operators:

AND – If you are searching for information about Ford Mustangs and you search for ford mustang, the search engine returns results about President Ford and horses. However, if you search for ford AND mustang, your search engine returns only pages that have both of those terms. These days, many search engines default to AND. Always play it safe and consult the Help files at your search engine site to find out which logic is the default.
NOT – If you are searching for information about BlackBerry® devices and you search for blackberries, the search engine returns results about fruit and pies. However, if you search for blackberries NOT fruit NOT pies, your search engine returns items that are less likely to be about the tasty fruit and are instead about the “crackberries” we all know and love.
OR – If you search for cats, the results are limited to only pages that contain the word cats. However, if you search for cats OR felines OR kittens, your search engine returns pages that contain either the word cats, or the word felines, or the word kittens. This trick actually gives you MORE results, but can still be very helpful.

If you know what you’re looking for on a specific site but can’t find it when you look there, no problem – add a site-specific tag to your search. For example, if you want to find information about strep throat on WebMD.com, just enter “strep throat” site: webmd.com into the search engine. The “site:” command tells the search engine to limit its results to the site specified; in this case WebMD.com

With those few simple tips, you can greatly increase your search ability and get what you need on the Web in less time. That grain of salt is there–you just need to know how to look for it.

Happy Surfing!

Expand your network using Ecademy.com

2008-05-01T09:19:00.000-07:00

I am sure many of you have heard about such websites as Facebook, Linkedin, and Plaxo but it seems many people have not heard of Ecademy. Ecademy is a great website that has the primary purpose of connecting business professionals from around the world. I particularly like Ecademy's open format which allows you to contact most anyone on the website that you think you share like interests with. From the moment I first joined the response has been amazing. I have contacted by all sorts of professionals who encouraged and guided me to create the best profile I could on the website. They also made many personal introductions and invited me to many networking functions around the country and the world. Ecademy is a wonderful resource that I know many business professionals can benefit from.

Why wait 3 months for a Passport?

2008-04-24T12:54:00.001-07:00

Apparently, the web can be used to speed up travel planning in more ways than one. Do you know anyone who may need their passport fast without the extended wait? I do....ME! Check out RushMyPassport.com. They have helped thousands of Americans get their passports on time by processing them in as little as 24 hours. It is a great service that has been featured in MSNBC and Forbes.

5 Ways to Tell If You Need a New Web Site or Redesign

2008-04-20T11:38:00.001-07:00

Author: Cara Lumen

I just recently created my fifth website in ten years. Why? Because it was time. I have changed and needed a new reflection on the internet. A new website gives you the opportunity to rethink, re-choose, reposition and rebrand. Here are some of the signs that it's time for a new one or a redesign of your old web site.

You aren't getting the results you want

The first clue that you need a new web site is that you are not getting the results you want. People are coming to your site but not opting in. Your conversion rate is minimal. Not a good sign of success. Look at your cpanel webstats and see the pattern of the past year. Chart your growth. I keep a chart of my web stats and mark on it what marketing strategies I put in place during a particular month so I can see how effective it was or was not as the case may be.

You may need a new opt in, a new design, stronger keywords, and new sales pages-- pretty much everything in order to get the results you deserve. A new web site lets you start fresh.

Is your web site getting the conversion rate you want?

Are you attracting the number of visitors to your site that you need to be successful?

Your niche has tightened and needs rebranding

This niche-tightening is an on-going process. We start out wanting to serve the world and, after time and sometimes trial and error, we figure out the type of people who need and want our services. As we do, we need to change our copy content and our product offering.

Several years I created a portal web site, which means people coming to my site had to make a choice on which of two websites they wanted to visit. One side was filled with philosophical and inspirational messages and the other was focused on internet marketing which also had some philosophy and inspiration but was definitely targeted for the pro-active internet marketer. You can imagine how different the copy and content was for each of those two sites. It was amazing what that simple change made in how differently I could interact with the visitors to each side. I even had two separate emagazines going. Sometimes a portal site is a great answer and sometimes it simply divides the visitors who come.

However, I recently took a hard look at the productive and not-so-productive areas of my business and saw that even though the philosophical side was an area of service that was true to my heart, it was not at all lucrative. So, I took a deep breath, released the purely philosophical side that wasn't profitable and designed a new website focused on the pro-active internet entrepreneur. The results were immediate as I focused my business in a much more targeted way.

Does your present web site address your most targeted niche?

Your services and products need repositioning

What do you want to offer? What do you no longer want to offer? List your income streams in lucrative order, then look at your web site and see if you are indeed promoting what people are seeking from you. I can't tell you the number of times I added specialized coaching packages in my previous site and what a relief it was to narrow myself to a more clearly defined niche.

I know I learn more every year, which means I organically have more to offer. Creating a new web site gave me time to rethink and re-choose. Once I narrowed my niche and dropped one of my websites, I also dropped some products from service. If I choose to promote them again I know now that I will have a separate website with a new name just for that target market.

What products or services are providing income and which ones are simply taking up space?

How can you promote the ones that are working in a more unique and innovative manner?

You are smarter and wiser now

Creating a new web site is about dressing properly for the occasion. You have changed since you designed your last site. What image do you want to project? Is it more professional? More casual? Harder sell? Softer sell?

Every new sales page I write is stronger and clearer than the one before. It's because I keep learning how to make choices and define my offering. I know more and can put it to work for both me and my clients.

Another benefit of creating a new web site is that you have the opportunity to rethink your navigation, add that media page you are now ready for, change your content strategy and strengthen your copy. You get to re-package and re-position your products and services.

How have you changed since your last web site and what do you need to upgrade, clarify, release, or improve?

You have more to offer

As entrepreneurs we continually have great ideas and the more we act on them the more diversified we become. However, stop and see how your business would benefit from having more than one web site. For instance, I coach people in web site content, information product development and internet marketing skills. At the moment they are all on one site. What if I created an entire site only about information product development rather than just devoting one page on my present site? It would have different keywords, more targeted articles, and it would address different needs than people who come to my site for content development and internet marketing. Perhaps you want to think it terms of two websites. How can you combine or leverage or repositions your existing products and services on a new web site.

Take a long hard look

Get your stats out, look over your income streams; look in your heart to see what you love to do and what you are doing because you think you should. Make a list of what people are asking you to provide for them, in service and in products. Notice how your business has changed. Do you need a new shopping cart or opt in offering? How can you bundle your products for great effectiveness. How effective is your affiliate program? Do you even have one?

Then get professional help

Invest in some content strategy coaching to help you sort out and focus your site map and offerings. A professional can help you focus your vision into a profitable internet presence. Hire a professional web designer to capture your essence in design. And get a copy writing coach to help you create the most compelling copy you can manage. Make this next web site the best ever!

Or do it yourself

Websites like Homestead have developed online sitebuilders that allow you do build your website yourself. Click on the link below to explore their offerings.

Homestead.com: Build a website, get traffic and sell online.

Viewing website in multiple versions of Internet Explorer - Dispelling the IE version Myth

2008-03-30T08:31:00.000-07:00

You can easily install multiple, standalone versions of Internet Explorer by using the Multiple IE Installer found here: http://tredosoft.com/Multiple_IE. The download link is: Download Multiple IE installer (10.3 MB). This is especially helpful when you want to view how you website looks in different versions of Internet Explorer.

10 Internet Myths

2008-03-01T02:35:00.000-08:00

1. This internet thing is going to be a revolution. - The revolution already happened. More than 150 million Americans who use the internet every day. Anybody who thinks they can worry about the internet later is completely wrong.

2. I don't need a website. - You're missing a chance to be open 24/7, essentially for free. Why would you not do that?

3. The Yellow Pages is all I need. - At least half your new customers are going online to find you, so you're automatically shutting them out [by not having a website]. In addition, it is a fact that you can't track Yellow Pages advertising the way you can online advertising.

4. My business is local. - There's no such thing as a local business anymore. Former local businesses such as banks, realtors and even dry cleaners have all gone virtual.

5. My website is only for new customers. - That's like saying repeat business doesn't matter. Your website may or may not be the reason people come to you, but it's definitely the reason people come back to you.

6. My site is just for customers. - What about employees, partners or suppliers? The ability to interact with these people over the web or from home gives you a huge amount of power and flexibility as you're growing your business.

7. My internet strategy is my website. - Your website is only the tip of the iceberg. Look to: e-mail newsletters, comparison sites, editorial sites, blogs, Web 2.0, social networking sites, lead generators and more.

8. Being small is a huge disadvantage. - By nature, customers would rather deal with small businesses. So embrace [being small], make it a competitive advantage, and tell your story.

9. The internet will make me rich. - Nothing substitutes for good business sense. People skills and your interactions with employees and customers become even more critical when dealing with an internet business. You have to work harder to create those interactions.

10. OK, I'll do whatever you say. - All entrepreneurs have to find their own way. It's a two-way street, so you still have to figure out your own path. Don't take what everyone says for granted.

- excerpts from http://www.entrepreneur.com

SSL Certificates

2008-03-01T01:33:00.000-08:00

For Web site owners who want to give their customers peace of mind by protecting their personal information (user names, passwords, credit card numbers, etc.), an SSL certificate is the way to go. SSL certificates encrypt the data that's transferred between a site and its visitors, making the data virtually impossible for hackers and other cyber criminals to decipher.

Currently, Go Daddy is the world's second largest SSL certificate provider (and growing fast)! Plus, our SSL Certificates are backed by our world-class, 24/7 support — if you ever call with questions, you'll always get a live person. Best of all, Go Daddy SSL certificates offer the same iron-clad protection but cost up to 75% LESS than many competitors!

Click the banner below to get your own SSL certificate now!

Make IE6 Act Right!

2008-01-05T09:12:00.001-08:00

After banging my head against the wall for hours trying several javascript plugins (JQuery.ifixpng & SuperSleight) to make my background png graphics appear correctly in IE6, I finally found my sparkling gem.

That gem is know as IE7 and no I am not talking about the actual IE7 browser. I am referring to the IE7 javascript library. Dean states on his site that "IE7 is a JavaScript library to make IE behave like a standards-compliant browser. It fixes many CSS issues and makes transparent PNG work correctly under IE5 and IE6." It definitely does!

I found this while reading this comment by Trevor Davis (thanks Trevor!) on the Day 1 post to 24ways - Transparent PNGs in Internet Explorer 6 about SuperSleight which, by the way, I couldn't get to work for my background pngs but of course it was probably something I was doing wrong.

Even though the IE7 javascript library has been around for a while I didn't know it existed in the sea of billions of web pages. Hope you or someone you know will find this useful.

Find Keyword Rich Domains With Traffic

2007-12-31T16:02:00.000-08:00

Have you ever had a great idea for a web site but could not think of one of those catchy domain names to buy for it? Well this method is by far one of the best techniques that I have come across in a while.

Get your contracts signed electronically!

2007-10-23T23:06:00.000-07:00

This may very well be the best web based solution for a business process that I have found in a long time! The company is EchoSign and they have a system which will allow you to upload your contracts and other documents in several different file formats and have them signed by several parties (if necessary) either electronically or with an actual signature.

The system has some great features as well such as: signed document notifications, automated reminders, contact management, document filing, and tons more.

Check it out today at: http://www.echosign.com

How do I upload large SQL files to MySQL?

2007-10-13T11:03:00.000-07:00

The Problem

I just had to blog about this one... I was banging my head against the wall trying to get a 37 Mb MySQL dump to import into a MySQL database. I Googled all types of terms such as: "uploading large sql into mysql", "importing large databases", and other such terms and kept on coming up with stuff I couldn't use. This was primarily because of the size limitations imposed by PHP, PHPMyAdmin, no access to SSH, and other culprits. But after about 3 hours I finally found a beautiful solution.

The Solution

The solution to my problem is using the MySQL Tools provided by MySQL. Best of all they are all FREE. Below is a brief synopsis from the MySQL web site.

MySQL Migration Toolkit

The MySQL Migration Toolkit is a powerful framework that enables you to quickly migrate your proprietary databases to MySQL. Using a Wizard-driven interface, the MySQL Migration Toolkit implements a proven methodology and walks you through the necessary steps to successfully complete a database migration project. Learn more >>

MySQL Administrator

MySQL Administrator is a powerful visual administration tool that makes it easy to administer and monitor your MySQL environment and gain significantly better visibility into how your databases are operating. MySQL Administrator now integrates database management and maintenance into a single, seamless environment, with a clear and intuitive graphical user interface. Learn more >>

MySQL Query Browser

MySQL Query Browser is the easiest visual tool for creating, executing, and optimizing SQL queries for your MySQL Database Server. The MySQL Query Browser gives you a complete set of drag-and-drop tools to visually build, analyze and manage your queries. Learn more >>

MySQL Workbench

MySQL Workbench is a database modeling tool for MySQL. You can use it to design and create new database schemas, document existing databases and even perform complex migrations to MySQL. Learn more >>

Tableless Form Builder

2007-10-11T22:11:00.000-07:00

Today I found a new online form builder that is makes tableless forms a cinch. Only problem is that it didn't validate when put to the test. So you may want to tweak it a little to pass validation.

The obviously AJAX based interface is very easy to use. After creating the form you are able to download the html, css, js, png fix, images, and IE css fix all in one convenient zip file. Check it out here to cut down the time you are putting in to creating forms: http://www.phpform.org

Also if you know of a form builder that is even better, please post a link to it. Thanks!

Use Google Reader to manage your podcast subscriptions

2007-09-28T07:59:00.000-07:00

I have been using Google Reader to have a central, web-based location to read and listen to podcasts, blogs, and tons of other RSS Feed connected services for which I have subscriptions. Google Reader is very useful and fast. Best of all it is web based so I don't have to worry about using any local app installed on my computer. Check it out at http://www.google.com/reader. You will need to have/set up a Google account -- which is FREE!

Google does offer a solution to those of you who wish to use the reader offline called Google Gears. Check out Google Gears at http://gears.google.com.

Great Web Design Podcast

2007-09-28T07:44:00.000-07:00

I recently found a great podcast for web designers which many of you may already be aware of. It is called Boagworld and can be found at http://www.boagworld.com/podcast/index.html. These guys give great tips on how to run and market a web design business. Extremely helpful!

Google Launches Hosted Website Search for SMBs

2007-07-18T16:02:00.000-07:00

Google Custom Search Business Edition is a hosted, fee-based site search service aimed at small and medium-size businesses—but available for any Web site—that adds Google-type indexing and customized-search capabilities. The service's free version displays advertisements; companies with larger, more complicated sites can have the ads turned off for as little as $100 per year or buy the Google Search Appliance itself to provide site and intranet search behind the firewall. (1)

This only adds more steam to the engine as businesses can not only take advantage of Google's AdWords and AdSense programs but they can now fully leverage the capabilities of Google's search engine on their own web sites.

Sign up for Google AdWords

Sign up for Google AdSense

(1) Excerpt from eWeek Channel Insider 7/18/07

The Action-Packed JavaScript Trilogy

2007-06-29T20:18:00.000-07:00

I found this video tutorial on Moo Tools! If you didn't know JavaScript before you will after viewing these and with practice...of course.

The JavaScript Programming Language
Theory of the DOM
Advanced JavaScript

Firefox Trouble? Want a fresh start? Uninstall & reinstall

2007-06-23T11:37:00.000-07:00

Uninstall: "Start -> Control Panel -> Add or Remove Programs." and delete folders:

C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox
or if different folder where installed

and

C:\Docs & Sett\username\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox
or if you use old Windows (9x)
C:\WINDOWS\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox

Then reinstall Firefox!

Note: In WinXP you may have to go to the "Tools -> Folder Options -> View Tab -> Hidden files and folders -> select Show Hidden files and folders -> click OK" to see the Application Data folder or the folders inside it

Cool CSS Implementation

2007-06-23T11:12:00.000-07:00

I recently found this cool presentation on Google Video. It details how to implement tableless design. You might want to skip ahead to around 9:30min. to avoid all the introduction stuff with the music.

Supporting web site: http://stopdesign.com/present/2004/ddw-seattle/tables/