Compare Cable vs. DSL September 8, 2009
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedOkay, so you are finally tired of those slow dial-up internet connections, and you want to go broadband. Good deal. But first, you may be wondering which type of broadband connection is best- DSL or Cable? Or, at least, which of the two gives you more speed for the price? Here we take a look at these two popular broadband connections and try to determine which one is better: DSL vs. Cable.
Cable Speed vs. DSL
The most common question that comes up is which type of connection is faster, DSL or Cable? To answer this, it is important to compare both upload and download speeds. Now, so you have something to compare these speeds to, your average dial-up connection is about 28 – 56 Kbps. Most often, however, you won’t be able to get 56k through dial up, as most services can not handle this speed.
The average speed of a DSL download is 1.0 – 1.5Mbps. That’s megabytes per second – about 20 times as fast as the fastest dial-up connection. This is fast, but consider Cable, which can give you up to 2 – 3Mbps. Thus, at least for downloading, cable can give you almost twice the speed of DSL – that’s impressive. On the upload side, however, cable and DSL are pretty evenly matched. They both provide about 100Kbps – 400Kbps. It seems that cable has won this battle.
What about Price and Quality of Service?
There is more to discuss here besides the speed of the connections. Take price for one. Cable and DSL connections are both going to be more expensive than dial-up. But, DSL seems to be the cheaper of the two at the moment. You can get a good DSL internet connection for about $35 – $45 per month. Cable modem will cost you about $45 or $50 (this price may be included in a cable TV package). These prices, however, are really close and they change almost from month to month.
DSL is nice because you can talk on the phone and be online at the same time. In addition, business-level DSL service provides guaranteed data rates, so your connection speed is never a surprise. On the other hand, DSL speed tends to decrease the further you are away from the data center, and it is typically not as widely available as Cable. Cable speeds are not dependent on distance from the data center, and is occasionally cheaper than DSL when included in a cable TV rate. A cable modem, however, may require costly professional installation, and there may exists some limitations on downloads and uploads. All of these factors should be taken into consideration when choosing either broadband service.
Bradley James is a senior editor at SciNet.cc, a website containing many helpful consumer electronics review articles. For more information on DSL and Cable technology, please visit our DSL vs Cable webpage.
Internet Speed: Facts and Figures July 28, 2009
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedI’ve been fascinated over the years by the rapid advances in technology. None more than Internet speed. The Internet is defined: a computer network consisting of a worldwide network of computer networks that use the TCP/IP network protocols to facilitate data transmission and exchange .
Speed is defined: the act or state of moving swiftly . When you combine these two, you get Internet speed. High Speed Internet!
Over the last few years the Internet has seen major advancements in the ability of the average Internet user to achieve speeds that could of never been imagined in the days of dial up Internet. According to Nielsen//NetRatings, the global standard for Internet audience measurement and analysis, reports that in the United States there are 39 million, or 13 percent of Americans, connecting via broadband in the U.S., the highest number to date. That number is expected to grow to 61.5 million by 2008.
In Europe the numbers were even better, broadband households in Europe increased by nearly 65% last year, a rate twice as fast as the US. The highest growth was in France, until recently an Internet laggard.
With Broadband provider prices continuing to decrease and subscribership continuing to grow, you can bet that Internet Speed will continue to amaze.
For more interesting facts on Internet speed & to take a speed test for your internet connection please visit our website. Internet Speed
About the Author: Gio Mangano is the owner of http://www.bandwidtht1.com which offers Instant quotes on T1 Line and business DSL. She also publishes a blog on online casino news & directory http://onlinecasinogambling1.blogspot.com
Making Your Website Attractive, Interesting, Engaging and Interactive June 8, 2009
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedIn this article you will learn the importance designing your website around your customers and their needs. A websites form and content is what will determine if a visitor will stay just a visitor or turn into your next customer. Today we will discuss how to accomplish the later.
To succeed at your online business (whether you are sellingyour own product/service or are selling for other merchantsas an affiliate), you need a Web site created just for that – a simple, focused site. One that is easy to build, maintenance-free, low cost, credible, and a powerful traffic-builder and customer-converter.
Having the right tool and the right product alone doesn’t insure the success of your website. There are many factors to be considered while designing a site. Unfortunately, most of these are easily ignored by Internet business owners.
Build It for Speed
It’s a fact of modern life – people are in a hurry. This means that you have between 10 and 30 seconds to capture your potential customer’s attention. Tominimize your load time, keep graphics small. Compress them where possible. Use flashy technology (JavaScript, Flash, Streaming Audio/Video, animation) sparingly and only if it is important to your presentation.
Target your Market
Know who your market is and make certain that your site caters to their needs. It is critical that your site reflect the values of your potential customers. Is your market mostly business professionals? If so, the site must be clean and professional. Is your product aimed mostly a teenagers and young adults? Then your site could be more informal and relaxed. The key here is to know your market and build the site to their preferences.
Focus the Site
Make certain your web site is focused on the goal, selling your product or service. A site offering many unrelated products is not necessarily unfocused, but this is often the case. If your business does offer many products, dedicate a unique page for each instead of trying to sell them all from one page.
Credibility Is Crucial
The most professionally designed site won’t sell if your customers don’t believe in you. A clear privacy statement is one way to build your credibility. Provide a prominent link to your privacy statement from every page on the site as well as from any location that you are asking your visitors for personal information. Provide legitimate contact information on line.
Navigation should be simple
Make site navigation easy and intuitive. Simple and smooth navigation adds to the convenience of the visitors. Add powerful search and catalog features. Many times a lot of visitors do not have the patience to navigate through the whole website to find what they are looking for.
Consistency is the key
Make sure the site is consistent in look, feel and design. Nothing is more jarring and disturbing to a customer than feeling as if they have just gone to another site. Keep colors and themes constant throughout the site.
Make your site interactive and personalized
Make your website interactive. Add feedback forms as well as email forms that allow your prospective customers to ask you any questions they might have pertaining to a product.
Personalization of your website is another key element that can lead to customer delight and can increase your sales.
Personalization technology provides you the analytic tools to facilitate cross-selling and up-selling when the customer is buying online. It would give you an idea of what products to cross-sell and up-sell. For example, when a person buys a CD player, a disc cleaner can also be offered.
Content is King
Good content sells a product. Ask yourself the following questions. Does your copy convey the message you wish to get across to your visitors? Is it compelling? Does it lead your visitor through the sales process? Have others review, critique and edit your copy to insure it is delivering the intended message. Always double check your spelling and grammar.
These eight, simple rules will go a long way toward the improvement of your website and most importantly, turn visitors into customers.
How I Profit Online While I Sleep
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedMoney can be made with the right product, a little imagination and determination. This same strategy can also be used by anyone who wants to make money while doing business on the web.
For people who have an existing website, this will already be quite easy. All the person has to do is maintain and update it from time to time or hire help like have an administrator do the work. One can put an ad in the website so people are informed of the opening. To get this news also to more people, the person can also put an in jobsites and email to friends who can help refer someone who is up to the task.
The other is making a computer program that uses the power of marketing and the web. This will allow the person to have an automated business that uses a variety of mediums for trainings and seminars, teleconferencing, emails and web casting that keeps track of everything.
For those who have not done a website, one should first think of the concept or what the site to be made is all about. Does the person want to make money by auctioning off the items of others, will the person distribute a product via the web or even create a site where people have to pay to become a member. There are many possibilities and when that has been worked out, the individual can already think of a domain name.
A lot of sites are created everyday so one should think of several catchy names in the event that another user is already using that domain name. When that has been done, one should think of keywords that people often use in searching for a website and have it posted in the various search engines to make it visible to the people.
Making more money means reaching more people. So, it is best to advertise. One good place to put up an ad is in email sites. When these came out a few years back, the designers did not expect it to generate millions of users and is still growing today. When members of these sites send messages to non members, these people have the option to join and sign up for free which also helps let people know the existence of ones website.
There are also other websites available but one has to pay monthly fee. If the price is reasonable to the person, one can put up pop-up ads or Meta tags which a user can click on to be diverted to ones website.
Another way of getting more traffic and money is doing it through Online forums. By answering the question posted by people and linking ones site to it, people will appreciate the help given and will soon be buying products and also referring the website to other people.
The best place to start selling a product when it is just the first of its kind in the market. For this to work a little research must be done to see its potential then one can pursue it if everything looks good.
One should be aware that the internet just like other industries experience trends. The things that are popular or may work today could change in the future. This is very similar to computer software that changes every 3 to 5 years.
Making ones website user friendly is essential in making people refer it to others. This can be done by letting friends and family try it first then ask feedback about the site. The most important thing to remember before launching it to the various websites is making sure that ones website is fully operational and will not have problems for users when logging on to it. It is very embarrassing for people to experience problems the first time which will surely discourage one from referring it to others and visiting it again.
Before launching the website to potential users, the person has to be sure everything is working. It is very embarrassing for people to experience problems the first time which will surely discourage one from referring it to others and visiting it again.
Web Directories For SEO June 5, 2009
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedIf you are looking for ways to promote your website, than web directories should definitely be considered a big part of your promotional plan. Web directories provide web visitors with a one- stop destination on the web to find the information they are looking for. Further, in using web directories, you can increase the visibility of your website and derive myriad benefits offered by web directories.
Let’s take a look at the benefits that webmasters derive from web directories:
1. Some webmasters might wonder why they should bother to submit to web directories when 80% of all website traffic comes from search engines. The answer is simple when you consider the following: what about the other 20%? When you are attempting to maximize the traffic that comes to your website, every little bit of promotion helps and web directories can help you gain a big chuck of that 20% of web traffic you have been missing out on.
2. Did you know that a key factor in the ranking algorithm of search engines is link popularity? By using web directories you will be creating more links that point directly to your site and the higher your ranking becomes in various search engines across the Internet. Further, everyone knows that a higher search engine ranking is equivalent to easier accessibility and easier accessibility equals more traffic for your website.
3. The first way to increase your link popularity is to include keywords in your hyperlinks. When you submit to web directories, the links you submit should not only lead to your site, but also should possess themed keywords within the links. The themed keywords will not only make your site easier to find, it will also increase the rating of your links in various search engines–again getting more, free web traffic for you.
4. Links that are created within web directories are votes for a site and they use your keywords within your hyperlinks to associate your link with certain key phrases. As such, the keywords you select are extremely important because they determine how often your links will be pulled up whenever a key phrase is associated with your created links. Therefore, It is a good idea to research the most popular keywords associated with your website theme before submitting your website to various web directories: the most popular keywords can make all of the difference in the world.
5. If you are submitting to various web directories, there are a few things that you need to consider. First, for a directory to be valuable, the pages you submit your listings to must, at minimum, be listed in various search engines. For instance, if you submit your links to a web directory that doesn’t appear in any search engines, chances are web visitors will not only have difficulty finding your website, but they will also have extreme difficulty finding the web directory you have listed your site in. In such cases, the listing in the web directory is a fruitless endeavor. Conversely, if you list your web site in several popular web directories and you utilize keywords in your hyperlink and short website description, you greatly increase the visibility and accessibility of your website.
6. The second consideration you must keep in mind when submitting to web directories is that when you are submitting your hyperlinks, you will derive the most benefit from submitting to directory pages that have a comparable theme to your website. For instance, if you have a website that is based on credit cards you will find that you get more web traffic from a web directory page that focuses on credit cards. Thus, when searching for web directories, look for web directories with topics that parallel the central focus of your website.
7. Here’s a quick tip for you that can help you derive the most benefit from listing your hyperlink in web directories: watch out for Google Adwords as these are a good indicator of how Google at least categorizes the page. In other words, if you mirror your hyperlinks and descriptions to appear much like those seen in Google ads, you will more than likely increase your search engine ranking as well as your listing in various web directories.
8. In order to be successfully listed in any web directory, you will need to conform to the terms and conditions of the directory. Typically, web directories list a series of specific listing regulations that you must adhere to and it would pay for you to adhere to them. In addition, to improve the chances of your listing being accepted you should try to avoid promotional language and you should choose a category that is as close to your website theme as possible.
9. Webmasters have much to look forward to in terms of web directory posting. In fact, the next generations of web directories are now appearing that allows business card type pages. Not only do webmasters get the opportunity to post a short description of there website, but now they are afforded the opportunity to display their logo and contact information as well. Such offerings prove to be particularly appealing because eye catching logos and easy contact information will make a Webmaster’s website that much more appealing.
10. In the end, web directories are a valuable part of your web promotional program and should not be overlooked in terms of their value. Along with the use of search engines, and article databases, a Webmaster will be pleasantly surprised at the free advertising available on the Internet. Finally, the increase in web traffic that webmasters will reap is truly astonishing indeed.
Are PR and Marketing Key To Yahoo!’s Future?
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedIs PR and Marketing the Key to Yahoo!’s Future? Today, there is news that Google is “testing” its ebay-like auctions and it may soon release an electronic wallet.
Anyone who knows anything about Yahoo! knows that they implemented ebay-like auctions years ago (see http://auctions.yahoo.com), and have had an electronic wallet for years also (see http://wallet.yahoo.com).
Both of these products are FULLY tested, as are all Yahoo! products, by very very experienced software engineers, with excellent software engineering / QA skills, so that bugs are very rarely introduced into the “live” system – i.e. Yahoo! customers very rarely find bugs – Yahoo! employees find them first, before the software is made public. The wallet is highly secure and extremely reliable, and the auctions work spectacularly well and it is possible to purchase products often more cheaply than is possible on Ebay. The only fault with the Yahoo! versions of these products is that they have not been marketed fiercely enough – very few web users even know they exist!
Contrast this with Google, which appears to leave most of its products in “beta” mode forever, so that when their customers find bugs, they can use the excuse that the reason there are still bugs is because the product is a beta product.
My guess (though I cannot prove this, my experience in the software industry tells me that this is true) is that the real reason is because Google software teams hack together solutions very quickly to meet customer demand and that full software engineering and QA are not something that Google takes as seriously as does Yahoo!
This story is very similar to all the “new” products that Google comes up with..
Of course, everyone knows that Yahoo! Search (http://search.yahoo.com) was around long before Google gurgled its first goo. Unlike Google’s search (with its so called “Florida update”, and other accidental and/or catastrophic reorganizations of the search engine ranking criteria), Yahoo! has never upset its SEO audience by keeping its ranking algorithm secret, changing it drastically without warning, or accidentally changing it.. This is because all Yahoo! changes to the search engine (as is the case with all Yahoo! software) undergo Testing and Change Management (basic principles of software engineering that ensures that unexpected changes do not appear on the live web site). For some reason, publicity about Google’s severe mistakes in this area rarely hit the news stands and TV news, despite the fact that it cost lots of businesses a great deal of money! Likewise, Yahoo!’s sterling record in search ranking is rarely publicized in contrast to the Google flakiness.
Google Groups was implemented years after Yahoo! Groups (at http://groups.yahoo.com) – Google Groups is still in beta, years after it bought the newsgroups and software running them from Deja (Google has not changed it much since buying the ready made software and content from Deja, and for a long time after they bought it, much of it was read-only, rendering it almost totally useless during that time period).
Google Desktop search came after Yahoo! Desktop search (see http://desktop.yahoo.com) too (and – oh yes – it is still in beta).
Google’s shopping search service, Froogle, came a long time after Yahoo! Shopping (see http://shopping.yahoo.com). The Yahoo! product is vastly superior also, with lots of very useful content to aid in shopping decisions, comparison tools, rating and review facilities etc.
Google News came a long time after Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com) and, of course, it is still in beta! And, many would argue, is still inferior in many ways, to the Yahoo! offering – in terms of the diversity of news feeds on offer, the layout, and other factors.
Google Maps came along years after Yahoo! Maps (http://maps.yahoo.com), and is not only still in beta, it is full of little bugs which I, for one, find very annoying! Although there are some nice gimmicks in Google Maps (you can drag maps around), often such gimmicks are not what the user actually wants to do when using a map (I want to double-click and drill down on an area, like I can in Yahoo! Maps!), and other gimmicks, that would be useful, dont work – e.g it is easy to implement maps into other websites thanks to an open programming api – but that api often fails due to programming errors.
Gmail, likewise, has some nice gimmicks (some of which the user may actually want/need) but is full of bugs, is still in beta, and comes years after Yahoo! Mail (http://mail.yahoo.com) was well established. Yet Gmail got huge publicity because Google offered huge amounts of storage space as part of the deal for those signing up to the service (Yahoo! had, for a long time, offered a great amount of free space to its customers, – unlimited storage space on Yahoo! Photos (http://photos.yahoo.com), a 50Mb of free webspace courtesy of Geocities (http://geocities.yahoo.com), various amounts of free storage space for Yahoo! Briefcase (http://briefcase.yahoo.com) users, Yahoo! Notepad (http://notepad.yahoo.com) users and various amounts of space within many other facilities, all of which were fully integrated with Yahoo! Mail (http://mail.yahoo.com), helping users to organize their information more usefully (whereas Google’s space is all contained within mail, creating a mass of different types of information all stored in the same application, making it very difficult to organize, search or make use of) – and yet Google publicity suggested it was the first to offer so much free storage space. Maddeningly, in response, Yahoo! simply expanded the amount of free storage space associated directly with Yahoo! Mail accounts and kept quiet about its other offerings, and the benefits of organizing information in the way facilitated by Yahoo! offerings.
Google Toolbar is another idea that Yahoo! (http://toolbar.yahoo.com) had before Google, though it is one of the few Google pieces of software no longer in beta, that actually works and even may occasionally feature one or two gimmicks that Yahoo! should implement in its own toolbar (for example, web ranking is a useful feature for SEOs and webmasters, which Google came up with first)!
The unhappy “ig” (Google’s personalized home page) is Google’s half-hearted attempt at a personalized portal home page like my yahoo! (http://my.yahoo.com) but it is a very very poor attempt, and is a vastly inferior product. Its a shame more Yahoo! users do not realize how powerful my Yahoo! is. Again, a fault with Yahoo! marketing and PR, not with the product itself.
Moreover, I am aware of at least three “new” products that Google is about to announce that Yahoo! has had available to the public for a great deal of time..
It is clear that Google has a very strong Marketing and PR machine – it is no coincidence that so many TV shows, movies and adverts feature people “googling”, that so many news headlines feature Google’s name, nor that Google’s share price and revenues are going through the roof in comparison to that of Yahoo!
However, PR and Marketing are the ONLY reason for this.
So, what is wrong with the Yahoo! Marketing and PR machine? Why is Yahoo! allowing Google to grab the headlines for inferior copies of products that Yahoo! has had in its arsenal for many years?
Terry Semel, Jerry Yang et al ought to find out the answer to that question.. NOW!
See YahooSupporter’s blog http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-4sU6UzIocqjUhnPaqIsNgU0-
What Your Web Host Should Provide For You – Part 4 Of the How To Build Your Web Site Series May 3, 2009
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedIn my previous articles in this series (Parts 1-3) on How To Build A Web Site both available here at EzineArticles.com) I began to outline just what is needed for the “real” web-site to succeed. In this article we are going to discuss what your web host (commonly known as a “server-farm“) should be offering you in the base package. There are quite a few excellent web hosting companies out there and you should be able to find one to suit your needs.
First let us make a few things clear.
1. You do not need to be physically close to your hosting company. They do not need to be in the same state nor in the same country for that matter. However, they should be able to provide their customers with uninterrupted, fast access to the internet backbone. The last thing you need is some bottleneck caused because you are paying someone to serve your site out on a web server that is connected with the same type of line you are!
2. All that being said, take into account that from time to time you will need to talk or email your hosting company. If you need to talk to them, and you are not in the same time zone that will cause some sleepless nights on your part. For instance. I live in Israel, and if I use a web hosting company in California, which is usually 10 hours behind us, then I must take that into account if I need to speak to a techie there.
3. Yes you should look for the best bang for your buck – but beware of the too-good-to-be-true deals. The Hosting company is in business to make money – not to do you a favor. So if it sounds too too too cheap or too too too good it probably is just the opposite, and you should stay away.
Okay now down to some particulars and some technical information which you will need to understand to correctly pick what you need from a hosting company.
- Amount of disk space – This is the amount of disk space your site will take up on the server. Packages usually begin at 100 mgs. and go up to 1 gig and beyond. Remember this is the physical allocation of how much your files will take up on the server.
- Bandwidth – This is crucial. Hosting companies create packages based on Bandwidth + Disk space. If your bandwidth is not unlimited be careful here. Every single person who hits your site, even if they stay for one second, uses your bandwidth. YOU USE IT TOO! When you upload and download files as well. This bandwidth gets monitored. And you are allowed X during one month. Go over, and you usually will pay through the nose. So be realistic. New web sites, unless they are built by Bill Gates, usually do not need a lot of bandwidth. Wait on the big MOMMA package until you REALLY need it. BUT do not underestimate it either. Ask the Host Provider what they think if you are in doubt.
- FTP access – A real MUST. If you do not know what FTP is and you are planning on building a web site….well we will deal with it in a future article. For now on your list of MUST HAVE is FTP access.
Okay now what should your Web Host be providing IN the package:
- At least ONE FREE domain name registration. This is the name of your site. www.yoursite.com or whatever. You already own a domain name? Does not make a difference. You may want another one and since it is part of the package then make sure they allow you to keep you the ability to register as long as you remain a client.
- FTP Access – Depending on the package you will get from one to XXX number of FTP accounts. Personally I have no idea why anyone would need more than say 5 FTP user names and passwords, but hey, who am I to argue when they throw in 100 FTP accounts!
- Disk size & Bandwidth – Make sure YOU ARE CLEAR ON THIS.
- Linux or Window Servers – see my previous article on these
- Are you going to use FrontPage? Then check to see if they have Frontpage Extensions installed. Most do, but it is important to check.
- PHP – Do they have it installed? If you are getting into web site building, then make sure you get PHP support. And here is a caveat. Find out just how much memory they have allocated for PHP use as well. 8 megs of memory is usually okay but 16 megs is much much better.
- ASP – Windows Servers If you are going to use ASP technology (MS answer to PHP) then make sure you have a Windows Server.
- Email Accounts – How many do they give you? Oy Vey you say. What do you need more than a couple of email accounts? Hah. Try this on for size…
webmaster@yoursite.com
support@yoursite.com
sales@yoursite.com
info@yoursite.com
james@yoursite.com
ellen@yoursite.com
newletter@yoursite.com
salesperson1@yoursite.com
salesperson2@yoursite.com
salesperson3@yoursite.com
salesperson4@yoursite.com
salesperson5@yoursite.com
salesperson6@yoursite.com
You never have enough email accounts! (And btw you can always gmail to create accounts as well. It is a great alternative though it does not have your domain name.) With your email you should be given web-based access with the ability to create accounts within your parameters and it should have auto responders as well.
- Tech Support – 24 X 7X 365 and I mean that. You have NO idea how many times on a Sunday night you will have to be in touch with some technical support cause you got the message “Server Unavailable” on your screen when you went to check your web site, and then swallowed a few hundred valium to calm down.
- MySql support – Do they have MySql? Do you “create” the tables or do they? Are you limited in the amount of tables? Do they allow PHPMyadmin access to the MYSQL tables?
There are a lot of other parameters as well. But these are the basics. Do research. Google and Yahoo and MSN search for Web Providers, Host Providers etc. You will find directories of all and user comments as well.
One final point. BEFORE you sign and pull out the Credit Card, and in less than 24 hours have your web site all set up – ASK YOUR PROVIDER FOR A FEW COMPANIES THEY HOST. Then on your own line access them with the URL. See how fast they appear on your screen. See what the access time is compared to what you are used to. If all of them are slow, then go to another provider. Don’t waste your time! (I didn’t say one – I said ALL!)
HTML pages will pop up usually. PHP pages take a bit more processing time. ASP pops up usually. So just use it as one of your measuring sticks, not to make the final assessment.
Ted Gross runs Virgin Earth Article Submissions which is designed to accept articles about any country, place historical event or current events in the world. Virgin Earth Article Submissions gladly accept articles about travel and places and countries – and of course places of interest. From small towns and museums to the MET in NYC. From ball parks to zoos. Places of interest all over the world. Ted Gross is also a published author and maintains a web site for his works And of course maintains his blog when the muses hit him.
Helpful Tips On Building A Website April 17, 2009
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedWhen you think about building a website, you need to take into consideration what others may think, not just what you like! Even though you may like it or think it is cool, your visitors may not! Here are some great things to keep in mind when you are building a website or when you maintain a website! Your website is a reflection of your business, products and services, so you want to keep a professional clean look at all times!
Here are just a few very simple design tips to keep in mind!
Sites Color Pattern
When you are deciding on a color or a few colors, try to stick with 2 or 3 colors that accent your logo or website header. If you are unsure of what colors to choose, check out some other websites, and pick out w few you like. Just remember, to pick something that is appealing to the eye, and colors that appeal to everyone. Also, keep all website pages the same in color, instead of changing each page to different colors.
Offer Easy Site Navigation
This is a very important issue to consider when designing a website. You should make sure that your visitors can find what they are looking for without searching for links or buttons. It is very common for a site to display their navigation menu on the left side of the website or at the top. This way every visitor can see the options without trying to look around.
Special Effects
Special effects such as mouse image trails, blinking text, spinning graphics, or even flash can be neat to look at, but can also become very annoying! An animated flash is very pretty and nice to see, however flash animation takes a bit of time to load on computer with dial up speed. The mouse trail graphics are cute to see for about 5 minutes, and then become annoying. Visitors come to a website to find, information or products, not cute little graphics floating all over! Even blinking text gets old, it looks very neat at first but then, becomes an eye sore and a headache! These effects are ok to add at a minimum, but you do not want them to take away from your websites content! When you add all of these special effects, remember that your website visitor may just leave the website before they are even done loading! What ever you do, don’t get to special effect happy!
Creating External Links
When you add links on your website that lead to another, always have them open a new window! This way your visitor can return to your website, they may not even realized they left!
Next Level Design Group is a full service
website design
& website
development company. Next Level Design Group designs graphics and websites
to help you establish your presence online with style and keep your customers
coming back! Visit http://www.nextleveldesigngroup.com for all of your web needs!
Creating a Favicon April 3, 2009
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedOnce, I attempted to create a favicon (the little graphic in the URL address box) for this Web site, but never did finish the work until now. I used a free program that allowed me to copy and paste an image to create an icon, but I believe it has spyware so I won’t share its name. There are many icon creators out there.
In Photoshop (or whatever drawing program you have), I created a 16×16 pixel workspace. Added what I wanted in the icon (never could come up with a logo for the site, so I stuck with the m), select all (CTRL+A), copy (CTRL+C), and pasted it into the suspicious program. There, I saved it as “favicon.ico” and uploaded the file to my server.
It won’t work yet. First, add a line to the
of the index page. Here’s the line to add using XHTML standard formatting (if you’re using HTML, leave off the / at the end of the line):That’s it. The first time you try it, nothing might happen. Give it a little bit to take effect as that’s what happened with mine. You don’t have to specifically create a 16 x 16 pixel image to make it into an icon with the program.
Meryl K. Evans is the Content Maven behind meryl’s notes, eNewsletter Journal, and The Remediator Security Digest. She is also a PC Today columnist and a tour guide at InformIT. She is geared to tackle your editing, writing, content, and process needs. The native Texan resides in Plano, Texas, a heartbeat north of Dallas, and doesn’t wear a 10-gallon hat or cowboy boots.
5 Important Tips On How To Build A Professional Website March 9, 2009
Posted in : Hall Of Websters , comments closedCopyright 2006 Nikki Mhlanga
With the advent of the internet, a lot of business transactions are done online. Almost every business nowadays has a website.
Although some customers will go to the shop to buy the product from the shop, they firstly shop for what they are looking for and compare prices on line. It is now almost imperative that any business must have a website.
Whether you own a home based online business of any type, or you own a shop in your town or city, you need a website to let potential customers know that you exist and that you offer products or services or business opportunities they may be interested in.
If you do not have a website, then you are not represented on the largest and most popular medium of communication today.
What hints must you heed in order to build a professional website that will effectively promote your products or services and encourage visitors to actually buy from you?
A well presented website: A tidy and professional looking website is important. Your website is your store front, and you need to create very good first impressions, otherwise you lose potential customers.
A website that is easy to navigate: There is a lot of competition out there, and there are thousands of other businesses and websites from which customers can choose from. Customers expect an efficient and easy to navigate website where they can easily and quickly get what they are looking for.
You will need to have a clearly laid out outline of contents on your website which is easy to use and straightforward. This means that information and images of the products you are offering must be easy to find in your shopping section of your website; and they must be very clear to view. It is also important that your pages load quickly and that you have all the various options for completing an order form and paying for the products or services.
Use techniques that encourage browsing and impulse buys: Present your website in such a way that every visitor or customer is presented with an opportunity to buy more. Include product reviews or satisfied customers feedback on your products so that visitors are encouraged to buy. Include some comments about the products key benefits. If you sell a wide range of products, next to any main product, include some other complementary products which the buyer may need.
Have your contact details on your site and always be reachable: After-purchase service is very important, especially for online transactions. It is therefore critical that customers know who you are and how to contact you after they’ve made a purchase, or if they need further information about your product or service before they decide to purchase. Your contact information should be clearly visible on your site.
This will also help increase their confidence in doing business with you. It is also important that you check your website’s emails at least once everyday in case there is a customer needing some help. Your website is your shop which operates full time 365 days so you will need to be available as needed so that you keep your business running smoothly and your customers happy. A happy customer is a potential return business for you.
Include a feedback form: It is important that you constantly improve your website or products/services, and you can achieve this by having a feedback form on your website. A feed back form gives your customers an alternative way to reach you and it also informs you about what customers think about your products and services.
For you to maximize your business’ online sales, you will need a well present website that will encourage your visitors to buy the products or services you offer.
About the author:
—————————————————————–
Nikki Mhlanga is a trusted online residual income authority and provides valuable online residual income opportunities and resources through her website at: www.smart-homebiz.com/
You can also follow these 3 easy steps to make money online in the comfort of your own home : www.smart-homebiz.com/pips.html
—————————————————————–