The websites with folders and files set to the wrong permissions. The out-dated, vulnerability found plugins. The lack of file and database backups, a major crash, possibly wiping your work. Worse yet the websites running content management systems not updated, sitting there vulnerable, just waiting.

People worry about SEO, they worry about studying their site statistics, getting the sales pitch just right, reducing bounce rate and keeping people on site for longer, hoping they make contact or people hit the order button, they don’t realise their site is at risk. Other times they realise, but delay and kid themselves about those stories they hear, believing it won’t happen to them.

WordPress does a fantastic job of informing you of updates to their system and plugins. Joomla has an email update service. Modules exist to automate your backups or downloading a database is a few clicks away. I know WordPress and Joomla are just two giants amongst many and if modules don’t exist for your cms, hosts control panels often offer feature rich options. Scattered across the internet modules and code ready to lend a helping hand, though be weary of these as some could be harmful and malicious.

There are forums and freelance sites overflowing with developers, php junkies, eager to bid for your work. Plus the size of many communities to assist for free are incredible, even if you think you are secure it is worth taking the time every so often to visit, to see what others are discussing. Often people do have motivations for advising, but many don’t. I’m always impressed by the kind and generous souls at hand to advise.

With a few hours spend surfing, learning and a ftp client or browser at hand you can hugely increase the security of your site. If you don’t have the time, ask a trusted and qualified person to assist. Sometimes a migration from a long abandoned bespoke content management system is the only option. The time taken overwhelming, but the security gained worthwhile.

I’ve learnt the hard way. I’ve suffered the heartache of the data gone. The lack of an offsite or online backup and the time to replace data is painful. Now I’ve written a backup module myself. I’ve spent time securing sites and the job is never done, just waiting for your next series of security conscious updates. The predators are out there, the errors can happen, you are not immune, but doing your best is all you can do.

Does your business have a neglected website?

This blog post was written by Andrew from Vectis Solutions. If you have a neglected website check out http://www.vectissolutions.com , contact them to see how they can support you.

No related posts.

Written by: Michael R. Macias

Far too often in the business world the term return on investment (ROI) is used to justify actions or strategies. Though the term certainly has a place in the small business sector, it doesn’t fit everywhere. And there is one place it should never be used-social media. Imagine if all of us treated our “real” friends based on the concept of “ROI” like we do with our “virtual” ones. Chances are it would look a little something like this: “Today I hung out with Billy, but got nothing in return, so I won’t be doing that again, even if we’ve been friends for 20 years.” We’d all end up without any friends if we lived our lives that way. Well, the same rule should apply to any social media efforts your small business engages in. Using Facebook shouldn’t be about tracking ROI, or measuring the benefits of your friends. Granted, there are metrics or insights, available to show you how effective your messages are, but that shouldn’t define your efforts. Social media is about more than just sales conversions or coupon deliveries…it’s really about relationships. Today’s consumers want to feel connected to a brand, and have a personal relationship with it. It’s about engaging people, inspiring them, motivating them, and encouraging them to appreciate your brand. When you decide to dive into social media, think about treating it exactly as you would a new friend. As you get to know them, and they get to know you, you start to like each other more, and the next thing you know, you are introducing each other to new people. I believe in the business world we refer to that as word of mouth marketing. So before you try to rate your “virtual” friends, or create a system to track their value, stop and think, “Would I do this to Billy?”

This was a guest post and thank you Michael for taking the time to write this great post. You can find out more about Michael and his business at his website www.insidethecube.com . An impressive website and it is worth taking the time visit. Also you can follow Michael and his business on twitter http://twitter.com/CreativeQube.

No related posts.

Going green with eco-friendly products benefits the planet and it can also be a useful tool in cutting office operating costs. Environmentally conscious offices now have the option of selecting eco-friendly office gadgets to replace old ones that suck up electricity and pump out waste, and just because these products are ?green,? doesn?t mean they sacrifice usefulness or productivity. Here are five amazing eco-friendly office gadgets that will make you feel even better about saving money.

1. D1 Mini Atom PC

Despite this tiny PC?s size (it?s as tall as a roll of scotch tape and measures 20cm by 30.5cm), the D1 Mini Atom PC packs the punch of any traditional desktop computer. This micro-machine was designed for office workers and runs Windows 7 and office suite software on its 2 x 1.66 GHz processor, while consistently using less than 28 watts of electricity. The D1 is 67% smaller, weighs less, and uses far less juice than its closest competitors. And if the customer decides on the super fast SSD hard drive, the D1 doesn?t make a sound (no fan, it uses passive cooling). The D1 uses 80% less energy than other small form PCs, which can cut utility costs and keep energy from being wasted on clunky, old computers.

2. Cables Unlimited Eco-Friendly Battery-Free USB Wireless Optical Mouse

Wire-free, check. Battery-free, check. What? Check out this innovative wireless mouse that has eliminated the need to keep tossing dead batteries in the trashcan. When wireless mice first hit the scene, office workers cheered, but the landfills groaned as more and more disposable batteries were being tossed. This eco-friendly mouse gets its power directly from its mouse pad using RFID technology. Don?t worry about how it works, just think about how much money will be saved when replacing dead batteries is a thing of the past. The mouse has two scroll wheels and six buttons, which will certainly fit the needs of the average office employee.

3. Move Eco Plus DAB Radio

The Move Eco Plus rechargeable DAB digital and FM radio would fit brilliantly on any desk. Use the built-in speaker or headphone jack to stay entertained throughout the week, as this portable radio can play 40 hours of digital music on a single charge. Stay in tune and save some electricity with the Move Eco Plus DAB Radio.

4. EcoStapler

If there were some alternative to metal staples, offices could save on supplies and the planet would waste less metal. The inventive EcoStapler uses no staples and can clip up to three sheets, using a folding technique, in a single squeeze. It costs about as much as a traditional stapler and is perfect for attaching memos and cheques, while eliminating the need for paperclips.

5. Desktop Water-Powered Calculator

This is one cool calculator. Fill it with a splash of water every few months and this calculator is ready to crunch some numbers. Its electrodes power the calculator?s 12-digit display without a single battery, how neat is that? This product is sure to revolutionize the eco-friendly market.

We hope you enjoyed this article. This is a guest article by Dan Harrison who’s into green gadgets in a big way! Dan writes about low power PCs and eco gadgets on a daily basis, and always tries to use eco-friendly alternatives when buying green gadgets.

No related posts.

I regularly post book reviews and bits n bobs over at a website called Reading By Candlelight and wanted to quickly create an icon file for the site. Here is what I did:

1. Download and install ico.fx it’s a nifty free icon creation application for windows.
2. I decided to create a 32×32 icon, so clicked on new and choose that option.
3. I draw a rather bad image of a book.

4. Saved the file as favicon.ico and then uploaded to the root of your site via ftp. The same root directory you will find your index.php, .htaccess etc in. Often called www/home/html, /httpdocs, /public_html or similar.
5. I cleared my browsers cache and the icon is now displayed.

The above tips will also help for any website, not just wordpress blogs.

No related posts.

There is a service called ‘gravatar’ which many wordpress.com users will be familiar with. However gravatar is also used by many non-wordpress based systems also.

To add a ‘gravatar’ image you can either do so via wordpress.com or signup directly at gravatar.com . Importantly set the email address that you use when commenting around the web. Then if gravatar is used by that site it will display your profile image (avatar).

To create a stronger social presence you could use the same image you use at facebook, twitter etc .

Link: http://en.gravatar.com/

No related posts.

We work with our faithful PC’s day in and day out, sometimes for a year and sometimes for many, but then a new operating systems is released with more features, added security and with so much more charisma. But due to your PC being years old there is no way it can handle the demand of a new OS without an upgrade or two to run the new OS how it is supposed to run. Lets face it these days a computer has almost reached a point of being a consumable item with a maximum life span of 2 to 3 years. We way up the pro’s and con’s then at the end of the day we have to upgrade due to the new software that is being released for it.

I’m a PC user and I dream of better days when I could control if and when I wanted to update my PC / Laptop. I want my operating systems and software to be free and most of all where I do not have to worry that every time I open an email with an attachment, or go on to the internet it could be a virus, which could pass my credit card details or infect all my Files.

But this dream is a reality and the OS is called Ubuntu which is a Linux based Operating System.

Ok now I can see there are endless questions firstly from people that have never heard of Linux or Ubuntu and secondly from Tech’s that instantly see command line installs and problems from not being able to run Windows Software, but believe me this is not a problem.

Let’s start from the beginning What is Linux?

Unlike other operating systems where one company own and develop all the code themselves, Linux has thousands of people sharing their work so that everyone can take advantage of it. It is a worldwide, co-operative effort between individuals and the world’s biggest IT companies to deliver an alternative, shared operating system that is Free and Open Source

About Ubuntu

Linux has moved on leaps and bounds over the years and has a Secure fully fledged desktop operating system which is easy, fast to use and puts the fun back into computing.

Ubuntu is a linux distribution and does not have the high demand on PC hardware like others operating systems, which means a company or home user now have the option to upgrade to Ubuntu operating system. Instead of the cost of upgrading or the cost of buying a new PC, laptops or server every time a new version of the operating system is realest.

Once Ubuntu is installed you will have access to over 2000 free open source applications and the list is always growing, this is due to the demand from the public and businesses alike. Finding software to match your current set-up can be done with ease.
Secure
Linux is inherently more secure than other operating systems. As a result, Ubuntu offers you a robust and secure desktop or server operating environment. For example, there are approximately 60,000 known viruses for Windows and approximately 40 known for Linux.

10 reasons why you should consider Ubuntu

1. Users love its friendly, familiar interface – it’s no coincidence that Ubuntu is the fastest growing new operating system in the world with over 10 million users worldwide.

2. It’s safe – Ubuntu is immune to Windows viruses, spyware, and many online threats, giving you a smooth, safe computing and browsing experience.

3. Ubuntu is getting better every day – thousands of expert developers, testers and users around the world are constantly improving Ubuntu and its many free applications, with free updates delivered automatically.

4. It just works – with your camera, printer and scanner; plus Ubuntu has all the software you need to get going straight away. Listen to music, watch videos, import and edit pictures, work on documents and spreadsheets, surf the internet, chat with friends and more!

5. Access over 2000 applications for free – Play games, plot your family tree or learn chemistry. Download all these and more with a single click – and all for free!

6. Ubuntu is the perfect, safe platform for your favourite web applications and services – such as Gmail, Flickr, Facebook, YouTube, MySpace, eBay and Skype, with no risk of Windows viruses and online threats.

7. Create documents, spreadsheets, and presentations and share them with Windows users – Ubuntu’s free office applications are familiar, compatible and easy to use such as openoffice.

8. Upgrade to each new Ubuntu release easily, every 6 months, for free. No messing about with CDs or validating licenses, no need for expert help – just download free and go!

9. Ubuntu is fully supported – Choose from world class commercial support from Canonical or free community support – there are thousands of Ubuntu users just like you who love to help out.

10. Ubuntu is free – free to download, use, copy, update and upgrade! Break free from constant, expensive, complicated upgrades – with Ubuntu. In fact, a complete new computer running Ubuntu can cost less than a copy of a commercial office software package.

Ubuntu is free and can also be installed as a duel boot system along with you current Windows operating systems.

How DSNetworx can support you

DSnetworx are an official partners for Ubuntu / Canonical and can offer there high class Support optional extra, this starts from as little as £32 + VAT a year for Ubuntu desktop operating system and Ubuntu server operating system support from £473.69 + VAT per year along with 3 year options.

If you have any questions please contact dhopwood@dsnetworx.co.uk or visit the website: http://www.dsnetworx.co.uk

No related posts.

So what is a flat file cms? They simply store their data in individual files or a file. No need for a database server such as MySQL to power your dynamic website. Often easier for non-tech savvy users to create and edit pages, rather than having to migrate around a complex cms.

So what are the pitfalls? Many are created by an individual, never get traction and are often abandoned. Active ones are generally developed by a lone coder and fail to gain a momentum. Like any product, it’s not just about the functionality and features, as any sales person would tell you. There are some though that have been around for a number of years and gained small followings. With active communities contributing code, modules, support and templates.

Often though these cms’s are slow to receive updates, which can be critical if a security flaw is found. Due to the lack of developer time and the size of communities, if a community actual exists for the cms in the first place.

However that being said, a small flat file cms doesn’t need to compete with the large packages. It doesn’t need to offer bells and whistles. They are carving a market for themselves. The logically step for a site that will never be large. They don’t need communities the size of joomla or wordpress to be a cms to take note of and use.

What are the benefits of a flat file cms?

-    Speed. Flat file cms’s are generally faster than MySQL powered sites.
-    Easier to migrate between servers.
-    Generally less complex and smaller. Thus easier for novices to work with and take up less bandwidth and hosting space.
-    Often easier for non-tech savvy users to edit and create pages once the site has been initially setup.

Flat file cms’s generally lack the features that large cms’s have, however many can be upgraded by installing modules. You won’t find the huge number of available modules though, as you would for joomla or wordpress for example.

They are not geared towards hundred page sites, but for small niche sites they can be just what the doctor ordered.  So if you’re looking to setup your own small website, be it personal, small business or charity or even a micro site for an event, a flat file cms is worth considering.

So what are the recommendations? Well I’ve tried quite a lot, but my favourite has to be nanoCMS and the more developed fork called nanoCMS Community. I even like the cms so much, I setup the website www.nanocms.co.uk and am a strong community supporter and contributor. I’m going to be mean and leave the recommendation at the one.

Creating a dynamic website has never been so easy.

No related posts.

Automation and variety are your adorable friends. They will help you out and keep you on track. Put a few different solutions in place and soon you will hardly even notice it occurs. A worry, a chore, vanished unlike your data. Leaving you to monitor and the occasional update.

A backup doesn’t have to be every file, every piece of data. You can decide to just backup the changes, the new files and then every X times, make a full backup. This lowers your resource usage and saves time.

The tips below are for home users, the self employed and small businesses.

Bookmarks
Don’t forget the bookmarks. Not deemed important by most, missed by many when gone! Sign up and install Xmarks and backup those bookmarks. Plus other features link syncing across multiple machines and platforms.

The external hard drive
Installing another hard drive a pain? Perhaps a step beyond your current abilities? Connect a external hard drive via usb or network drive. Couple this with a nifty application like Cobian Backup, a dash of encryption if required and et voila. I’ve never brought an expensive external hard drive. A cheap usb caddy and a spare hard drive. Hard drives are incredibly cheap these days and putting your own external solution together could be cheaper.

The web
Backup your files to the web? Surely not! There is now a smorgasbord of solutions and range of features. Carbonite, Dropbox, Mozy and more. Why not dip your toe into the water with a solution like dropbox?

Offsite backup
I’ve just covered the web, which counts as offsite backup. However what about friends, family, home location? Software like the previous mentioned cobian have an encryption option. So don the mac, put on the sunglasses and look shady handing over an encypted dvd to someone you trust. Then if some unfortunate scenario occurs like a fire, your backup is just a stone throw away.

Email
Also you can consider forwarding a copy of your emails to a service like Google’s gmail for longterm storage. Another layer of backup.

No related posts.

Now before I begin this isn’t the ‘definitive’ guide and you use these recommendations at your own risk!

Research, research and research
From wanting a common item like hard drives to more unique units, give yourself the time to do the research. Try and assess pricing before contacting any suppliers.

Who are you buying from?
You can’t buy items without running eventually into an issue. A missing part, a device that doesn’t work, a damaged good. Don’t be scared before you make any purchases to discuss their procedures or look this up on their website. Especially if your buying expensive items or large volumes. Yes I know there are laws for majority of the readers visiting this blog regarding returned goods, but hassle, time and money are factors and you want a smooth process when it occurs.

Now google is your friend. Type in the companies name and do some research. Are they mentioned in forums? Has someone written a blog post? Now always take such entries with a pinch of salt. You are only reading one side of a story, the facts might not be correct. However you could form a picture either negative or positive due to this research and decide to not use that firm.

Confidence, Time and Patience
You might have seen a price on a website for an item. This could be a single unit purchase price or perhaps your interested in buying bulk. Regardless send an email to the sales team and mention you are gathering prices and would like a quote.

Now if you are looking to purchase large volumes, mention this and say you want to try out a company with an initial purchase before purchasing in larger quantity.

This can often be a good idea to help discover any hurdles or issue, before you invest a large sum in their goods. For instance if your going to purchase 1-5 units, but might be purchasing larger volumes in the future, mention this. This could impact negatively on the pricing you are given for the initial purchase, but might prove beneficial later and help you walk away sooner from a supplier. Don’t contact any other sellers, just wait for this first response.

Now the sales team might be keen to speak on the phone. To assess you as a buyer and try and make the whole situation look like they are considering whether they want to actually sell to you! Don’t sound desperate, willing or allow yourself to purchase the item. Play it cool and just get the price and tell them you will get back to them.

Now you’ve got the price contact another seller. Again tell them you are looking to purchase the item(s), but this time say you’ve received quotes already, but looking for a more competitive price. Now it’s up to you whether you reveal your first price, but I wouldn’t reveal the companies name who gave you the quote. That’s poor form and unfair in my opinion.

Now you could decide to go back to the first firm and mention you’ve received a quote at x price and can they beat it? Don’t be scared to negotiate with the suppliers. At the end of the day this is part of business, don’t be scared or ashamed of asking for a better price.

Regardless if your buying in bulk, all firms will probably say they can look at the price later on for later purchases and often send you a list showing quantity pricing such as 1-9, 10+, 50+ etc. Don’t let later pricing deter you from achieving a good price now and you can always look at the pricing later.

Hidden Costs
Look for the hidden costs. Such as postage types. We are all familiar with this on ebay. Sell something for little, but charge expensive postage and delivery. I’ve not experienced this extreme obviously on bulk items, but look at the price of delivery and see if it impacts the purchase costs and thus your margins, especially on small purchases.

Support
Now factor in your earlier research and assess what level of support you can expect from the organisations. It’s not always about price, but making sure the goods are delivered timely and you receive the best follow up support. Why not try an initial smaller purchase as previously mentioned.

A hurdle
If you’re a start up company often there is a hurdle such as filling in forms, giving financial details and having a credit check run against you. Which is tough going for a small firm, especially startups. Don’t despair, explain you’re a new firm and at the end of a day people want business and how you pay for it, either receiving credit or paying beforehand is factor you need to consider if a hurdle appears.

Evaluation
Now this is actually a different ball game , depending on what your firm does. If you are evaluating products, mention you are gathering quotes, product and support details. You could ask for an evaluation unit (or sample depending on the type of good). In one firm I’ve been given evaluation units to keep or for set periods to allow me to assess whether to use the product. Obviously this has other factors, such as how unique the product is among others.

I hope this guide helps and leave feedback with your own advice.

No related posts.

The Nexus One has a slew of new features (like the new Android 2.1 OS, phone wide voice search, incredible multitasking support, and a full multitouch display) that a lot of other Android devices on the market don’t have and, in terms of speed and capability, really stands up against the iPhone’s (the 3GS and iPhone 3G included) on the market today.

Now, I’ve only had the device for a few days, but I can definitely say that my mobile productivity has increased greatly since switching from the iPhone already! The Nexus One is one of (if not) the fastest mobile phones available for purchase, with 512 MB of RAM and ROM and a 1 Ghz processor powering it, and because of this, and the Google Android OS’s ability to run multiple applications at at time, I’ve been able to scream through emails while surfing the web, listening to music, staying up to date on Facebook and Twitter, and taking notes in class, all at the same time, whereas on the iPhone I would have to jump from one app to the next individually, thus slowing down my work pace greatly (especially only on an iPhone 3G).

Another thing I will say is that the Google ecosystem just really seems to open up once you connect an Android device to your Google Account – suddenly things like Picasa, Google Voice and Maps, and so many other apps have new functionality and plug right into apps you’d already be using anyways. Its just a really easy and fun experience overall, and the way Android automatically backs up everything you do on the web for you, without any action on your behalf at all, is really convenient and great for when your always on the go.

I’ll leave you with a quick video of the Nexus One, and once I’ve spent a good amount of time with the phone I’ll definitely let you know if this device could truly be the toe-to-toe competitor of the iPhone we’ve all been waiting for!

The Google Nexus One – Unboxing And Quick Hands On Video

No related posts.