Archive for January, 2009
Custom Web Site Builder Considerations – Looking For Easy Programs
January 31st, 2009 | 
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In todays technologically advanced marketplace there are several affordable Custom Web Site Builder programs offered. These software programs offer a extensive array of tools and devices through which a person can design and put up a website that is perfectly suited for personal or business use. In considering the need to find an easy design program that matches your own abilities and talents, you need to truthfully assess your own understanding of website design and building. You should also honestly assess your own abilities as the same pertain to the utilization of software products. It would be a shame to buy a custom web site builder software program that is too difficult for you to use. You may end up discouraged if not entirely defeated. Keep in mind, if you buy and try to use a software program that has tools and devices that outstrip your abilities and is very difficult to use, you will end up with a website that is not top notch. In addition to making certain that the software that you buy is of a user level that matches your abilities, you will want to make certain that the program includes features that match your needs. Here’s one example, many website builders require you to construct an entire site layout, or part of the site such as a homepage layout in one sitting. Therefore, there is no recognizable pause button in the software. This type of program would not be well suited to a person who maintains a full schedule and just does not have many blocks of available time to design a basic website. Today one will find many software programs on the market that allow a person to build and design a site layout in incremental phases. Therefore, you can work for as long as you desire in one sitting on the building of a website or on the development of a portion of a website. You decide and you are in control of the timing of the development of a web site.
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The Print Quality Of Refurbished Cartridges Compared To New Ones
Whether you invest in HP ink, HP laser cartridges, HP office supplies or indeed anything else that is part of the HP brand, what you can find right away is that all of the print cartridges that are put out by HP are OEM cartridges. OEM stands for Original Equipment Manufacturer and what they essentially are saying by that label is that the cartridges themselves were constructed in one of the HP manufacturing plants and is completely new in every way, shape and form. While there is nothing wrong with the concept of buying a new cartridge every time, there are certainly some disadvantages to it. Environmental concerns are of course there when the plastics don’t biodegrade and of course when you go a little further you see that the non-environmental concerns such as expensive prices are also things to worry about. Now, a number of different people that purchase printer cartridges have these concerns; both the concerns about the environment and more so for most people the concerns about their own pocketbook. But there is a general fear out there about purchasing either remanufactured cartridges or alternatively refurbished cartridges. First of all, most people don’t know the difference between the two and the people that do to quite a large extent believe that the quality suffers with either of those two options. Let’s take a closer look at both of these ideas, starting with the former. The difference between a remanufactured cartridge and a refurbished one is simple. A remanufactured cartridge is a cartridge that is created in a factory or a manufacturing plant using recycled materials. In other words, it is a re-created cartridge using parts of old and spent cartridges and simply just has new ink placed into it from the cartridges themselves. Refurbished cartridges on the other hand are not re-created. They are cartridges that are refilled with ink and given back to a person, either through the person doing the refilling themselves or someone else doing it for them. So that’s what it means to do either remanufacturing or refurbishment. As to the idea that the quality suffers under either or both of them, what you will find by actually doing it and testing it out is that this is not true at all. There are a number of tests that have been independently conducted about this issue and what they show almost unanimously is that remanufactured and refurbished cartridges do not have a significant quality difference from new and OEM printer cartridges. There is no difference in quality, but one is cheaper and more environmentally friendly. Therefore, the next time you are deciding between new and remanufactured, don’t let quality be a part of your decision.
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Four Critical Web Design Rules
When creating a new website or redesigning an existing site, there are four critical rules which the designer should follow to make the site effective and functional – and successful. 1. Easy to Read When building a website, the first thing you need to be sure of is that your website is easy to read. When you write content, remember that most web site visitors don’t read every word of a page – in fact, they only scan pages to find what they want. Break up Your Content Break up your pages and use headers between major ideas so people scanning your site can find what they want quickly. Use meaningful headers between each paragraph or major idea – this helps with SEO. Headers should be created with the H1 through H4 tags for SEO. Always use good writing structure. Additionally, avoid long paragraphs that run on. You should break up any long paragraphs. Color and Fonts To help readability, use high contrast colors between font and background. Black text against a white background may seem stark, but it is very readable. To make a website easy on the eyes, try an off-white background and a dark gray (almost black) text color. Things to avoid with content color: * Avoid vibrant background colors like purple or yellow. Such back colors make text difficult to read. * Avoid using an image behind your text. * Avoid using bright text colors on bright backgrounds. Fonts Matter One simple statement covers the font issue: Simple fonts are the best; the more fancy the font, the harder it is to read. Since many browsers only have the standard font set, use standard fonts. In reality, there is no “standard”, but there are certain fonts that are installed on most browsers. These include Arial, Verdana, Tahoma and Times New Roman. Your readers will see something different than you see if you use other fonts. Standard Compliant Browser for Development When developing and testing your site, use a Standards compliant browser like FireFox. If you develop your site to be standards compliant, it will work in most browsers, including MS Internet Explorer (IE). It is recommended that you test your site using the latest and last browser versions of IE (IE6 and IE7). To run multiple versions of IE on the same machine, TredoSoft has a free installer that will install multiple versions of IE. It works great! 2. Simplify Navigation The menus and links make up the navigation that the visitor uses to get from page to page in a site. Always plan a site around how people will get from page to page. A visitor to your site should be able to get to what they want within three clicks of their mouse. Multiple navigation points makes it easy to find things. Repeat the top menu and at the bottom. Also create a left or right menu. Using links within your text to other areas on your site. You can create links so that they are good for search engine optimization (SEO). There are generally two ways to create links within your text: * The wrong way: “For search engine optimization techniques, click here.” * The right way: “Good techniques for search engine optimization are important to use.” Using link text (anchor text) that describes what the link is about is the best way. Search engine web crawlers (programs that automatically index the contents of websites) visit your site, they “read” links. Spiders can index descriptive links into a subject or keyword category. Spiders have nothing to work with when reading a “click here” until it reaches the linked page. This is Cross Linking – use it as much as possible when it makes sense to do so when writing your content. 3. Consistent Design At most, one or two layouts should be used in your site design. As a reader browses your site, they should be able to get used to looking in the same place for your navigation, for your sub-navigation and for your content. That’s all there is to say about that. 4. Lower Page Weight is Better Page weight is the total size of a page on your site in bytes – code, text and images. Your site’s page weight makes a big difference to your viewers. Lighter page weight is better for your readers because the page will download faster. The faster a page downloads, the faster they will get to the content. What is Means to be Light * No large images. (unless the site’s purpose is to showcase images, art or photos) * Fewer images are better. * Optimize images for the web at no more than 72 dpi * Use as small an image dimension as possible for the given design. * Use a table td bgcolor attribute or a background-color style attribute for solid color backgrounds. * Make gradients horizontal or vertical (not diagonal) so that you can use a small image “strip” and repeat it. How “Heavy” Should a Web Page be? Certain studies show that 64K is a good maximum webpage size. 64K is a maximum, however it is still, in my opinion, really big! The smaller the page, the better. 25K is good, 15K is even better. There is a balance between design and function. It is a good idea to focus more on function. Try putting pages on your web host server as you build your site so you can test it as you go. For pages online, you can test the page weight to be sure you are on track. Ways to make pages lighter: * Use linked style sheets * Use DIVs instead of TABLEs where possible * Use simple repeating backgrounds for effect Summary Visitors to your website should be able to find what they are looking for within about three clicks. Making a site easy to read with consistent page design, and easy to navigate will make it easy to find information. You will be on the way to building a readable, effective, functional and hopefully successful website if you follow these rules.
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Posted in web | 
Tags: good web page, search engine optimization, SEO, web content, web design, website design | 
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Fly Around the World Reviewing Casinos
Do you have a story of something that happened in a casino that is so unbelievable that no one believes you when you tell it? If so this contest is for you. The more bizarre the story, the better your chances of winning the contest will be, but all stories must be true. Online-Casinos-789.com started an Unbelievable Tales from the Casino contest. All you need to do to enter is E-Mail your story of something odd, funny or unbelievable that happened to you or someone you were with in an online casino or casino during 2007 and you could win an all expense paid for two to Las Vegas for five days and four night at one of the strips 5 star hotel and casinos. All you need to do to qualify is to be over 21 years of age and submit your story about what happened to you in the casino and Online-casinos-789.com will post the best ones on their site. At the end of the year you, the reader will be able to vote on the best submission and the winner will win the trip to Las Vegas and be offered a glamorous job involving flying around the world and reviewing all that the worlds casinos have to offer.
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Posted in Internet Business |
Tags: casino, casinos, entertainment, gambling, poker, sports and leisure |
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What’s So Great About Midi Home Recording?
In a previous article on my website, I explained how to set up several MIDI instruments in a “daisy chain” that will allow you to play several electronic instruments at once from your MIDI keyboard. I then explained how you can use MIDI channels to allow each instrument in the chain to play different notes and sequences by setting them up to respond to and ignore messages on particular MIDI channels that you transmit from your MIDI keyboard. Setting things up this way allows you to have independent control of several different instruments at once by simply playing your MIDI keyboard, giving you a “one man band” effect. MIDI technology is in the process of revolutionizing the process of composing and recording music. It’s a democratic revolution too, because it allows anyone with average intelligence and a few hundred dollars to compose and record their own music, And with 16 MIDI channels, this music can get quite complex – there’s a lot more to MIDI than the “one-man band effect” of being able to play a bunch of instruments at once with independent control over each one. Since each action taken by the musician, from sounding a note to increasing the volume to adjusting the pitch, is sent through digital MIDI signals, a computer can be the last object in the chain of instruments and these digital commands can be recorded in a compact file. Since the digital MIDI signals are sent over 16 different channels, every single act of the musician on every single instrument in the chain can be recorded in a digital computer file, and the commands can easily be teased apart because MIDI messages are digital and they the same command is numbered slightly differently depending on which channel it’s being sent from. Because of this, you can record your masterpiece on your computer, then pull it apart and manipulate it and recombine it to create another song or just improve your original masterpiece. You can play it back anytime you like from your computer. If it’s romantic enough, hey, e-mail it your girlfriend.
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Hubris
Internet Explorer 7 Hits The Mean Streets It didn’t take long after Microsoft released Internet Explorer 7 for download for the exploits and vulnerabilities to appear, with many reporters and security companies scrambling over each other in order to publish about the new Internet Explorer flaw. Only, it wasn’t. Argument and counter-argument ensued, with Microsoft quickly defending the issue as being an Outlook Express issue and not an Internet Explorer flaw. That sleight of hand didn’t satisfy many, who pointed out that the same flaw had been identified back in April, when it was attributed to Internet Explorer 6. At the end of the day, Internet Explorer 7 is a possible vector to exploit an error in the handling of ‘mhtml:’ addresses – which can result in the disclosure of sensitive information. Unfortunately, this isn’t the only issue to have affected Internet Explorer 7, with earlier beta versions susceptible to the WMF vulnerabilities that were identified and patched over the 2005 – 2006 Christmas / New Year period. The unknown issues with Internet Explorer 7 are going to be a greater concern over coming months, as Microsoft is expected to use Automatic Update to provide the application to Windows XP SP2 users in November. A positive aspect is that many computer users will get to experience the improved CSS handling, improved security, tabbed browsing, and the other general improvements that Internet Explorer 7 brings to the system. Every Dog Barks At The Moon Sometimes Over the last couple of weeks, many security ‘experts’ and companies (including some of the biggest, most ‘respected’ names) have been busy displaying an amazing amount of hubris and arrogance in their coverage of what would normally be regarded as minor news items. After Apple Computer disclosed that an unknown, but believed to be very small, number of iPods were shipped with some Windows malware preinstalled (claims range from virus to adware), there was an almost unanimous hammering of the company’s claims. By Windows and Microsoft supporters (such as top Information Security companies and people). Almost all of the vitriol was focussed around the “we are upset at Windows for not being more hardy against such viruses, and even more upset with ourselves for not catching it.” statement, which appeared on Apple’s site (http://www.apple.com/support/windowsvirus/) in relation to the issue. Many called Apple ‘arrogant’, and attacked any perceived ills that they might have had with the company. Unfortunately, in their rush to attack Apple, most completely bypassed (or were unaware of) a broader incident that affected a joint promotion being run by McDonald’s and Coca-Cola in Japan, where 10,000 media players were distributed. Only, the players were infected with password stealing malware. Elsewhere, an unnamed expert, who crusades against hysteria and false claims in security (and, more frequently, terrorism), fell into their own trap recently. They claimed that firefighters who treated jelly (the gelatinous dessert) as a potential HAZMAT threat (before it had been identified) were over-reacting to it as a terror risk. While it does sound funny that firefighters would be running around in HAZMAT suits trying to deal with somebody’s unwanted dessert, it is a fairly standard practice when emergency services are faced with unknown substances that have been abandoned. Perhaps it is my background in aviation and engineering related fields, but nothing is done without a healthy factor of safety (risk management), and the initial response was completely appropriate. People have died because they didn’t know enough about the material that they were handling (Goiвnia, Asbestosis, Miner’s Lung, and others). Sometimes the simple answer is the correct answer, even if it might be misconstrued.
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Posted in web development |
Tags: apple, experts, getting it wrong, ie 7, Information Security, Internet Explorer, ipod, microsoft |
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Texas Holdem: 4 Betting Structures Explained
Even though the United States have made it illegal to gamble online, poker keeps on gaining popularity through the different tournaments that are shown on television such as the World Series of Poker by ESPN. This created a problematic situation: while players claim that poker is not a game of chance, the US government decided that it is. For a few weeks, panic erupted in the poker world as rumors spread like bushfires that this ban would stop all tournaments. But this proved to be untrue. In fact, because of the online gambling ban, the popularity of tournaments only increased. And in most of these tournaments, the favored game is Texas Holdem. This article focuses on those planning to take what was once their online casino pastime to a poker tournament close by. You will need to follow some basic betting structures, and we describe these for you. Even if they seem difficult to follow, don’t worry. Just practice these at home with friends and you will soon learn the flow of these wagering structures. Note: Remember that all the games rely on a basic maximum and minimum wager, and all the betting structures should be understood accordingly. Keep in mind that each game has a set limit that is fixed before the game commences. Once begun, the limit remains unchanged until the end. Note also that the tournament organizers or the casinos are those that decide these limits. 1) Structured Wagering Limit: This means that there are two limits you play to. During the first two rounds, you place wagers according to the lower sum, and then you start betting according to the higher amount set. When you find a game called according to two amounts such as 4/8 dollar limit, then, it means that this game will be played according to the structured wager. Another thing to remember when entering such poker games is that you can only place four wagers each round and not one more. 2) Spread Limit Wager: Here, you are free to place wagers in a pre-set range and you don’t have to place fixed bets. When you find that the limit is within a range then it means that you have found a game that will be played according to the spread limit. Examples are games which can be played between a range of twenty to a hundred dollars. Note that such games do turn out to be expensive because some might bet according to the high limit. Another variation of the spread limit bet is to have a range of four wagers. What this means is that there is a certain amount you can bet for the round before the flop, for the round on the flop, and on the round after the flop and a certain amount for the river. 3) Basic Pot Limit Bet: In such Texas Holdem games labeled as being played according to the basic pot limit, what it means is that you can place wagers anywhere between the amount that is the big blind and the total size of the game pot. Here too, take note that games such as these can result in high cash pots. 4) No Limit Betting: This is the one version that pulls in the high rollers from all over. Here, there is not limit at all one how much you wager or raise. Note that unless you are a high-roller or unless you have a tremendous amount of experience playing Texas Holdem at tournaments, stay clear of such games.