| |
With the advancement of content management systems like Joomla, Wordpress and even ActiveRain, the adding and maintenance of posts becomes a snap because the need for HTML skills are replaced with WYSIWYG editors.
Some thoughts on this:
1. No standards exist to make editors all behave the same way
2. Some editors don't work all that well
3. Manipulating images can make people cranky
On Standards
What I've found is that some believe their lack of computer/web experience is the root of their frustration, not realizing that even web savvy users, if forced to use the same tools, feel the same pain. This is why many hard core web authors prefer to compose in text and insert their own HTML along the way.
However, in the open source world, there are a few very popular editors such as TinyMCE, which is what AR
uses here. You can see that some aspects of the editor are identical to what's used in Joomla and Wordpress:
Because it's open source, developers can choose to add or remove certain features based on needs. (Notice how in Joomla, there's an extra tab called Advanced which AR has removed)
On Editors that Suck
If you've spent anytime with the editor in version 2.3.x of Wordpress you have undoubtedly uttered "this thing sucks" more than once. If you're running any version previous to 2.5 a nice surprise is waiting for you when you upgrade as the editor has been much improved. That alone is worth the upgrade effort. Here's what the new editor looks like:
Images
When writing a blog or updating any type of web page, inserting an image is one of the parts that people often
fumble over. Like it or not, cropping and resizing images is part of what all web authors/editors have to deal with on a regular basis. Thumbnailing (making images smaller) can be made simple with a few tips/tools.
There's nothing wrong with using MS-Paint, but that can't be your only tool. One reason: Paint can't resize images. One way to manually thumbnail an image is to use Picasa with Paint. You adjust the size of the thumbnail image, then copy/paste into Paint where you can crop and save. Here are the steps to do that.
 One of my fave image tools is something called Picture Resizer which allows you to quickly thumbnail an image by dragging the target image on top of the program. What I like about it -- there is no user interface to learn. You name the program according to what size thumbnail you want to create... that's it.
So in this case, the r200.exe will generate 200 pixel wide images. If you want 150 wide images, then you would need only to rename the program to r150.exe.
If you appreciate simplicity, you'll love Picture Resizer 2.0. (oh, and it's free too)
http://rw-designer.com/picture-resize
My other favorite is Thumbnailer from a company called Smaller Animals.
I use this when I'm watermarking a group of images but is also excellent when you're doing edge fades. Thumbnailer is only $25 and their customer support is quite awesome.
Someone recently asked what does it take to write a good website proposal? They didn't tell what the site was, what it would do, if it already existed, ... all they had was a maximum budget. Here was my answer:
The construction cost of a website is based on what it does and how much function/content is required to achieve that end. So to state a maximum budget without knowing what you're building is like saying you will not pay more than x for painting an unknown house.
A good proposal accurately represents end user expectations and unless the development is simple, the statement of work must include the customer as one of the active members of the development team.
 Most poorly implemented websites result from designers not know how and/or customers not knowing what.
Customers are usually not so good at explaining their vision, often because they don't have one, and technical people sometimes are too eager based on what they think will suffice, or worse, what they did last time.
A good proposal includes:
- an explanation of the process that will be used (see design process below)
- at least one customer stakeholder being part of the group
- a list of tangible deliverables (what does the customer get?)
- a delivery timeline that ties to a payment schedule
- the conditions (e.g., same stakeholder must remain in the project for the duration)
- the exclusions (e.g., the price does not include lunch or beer) Here's an example of a design process that we have used in the past to help educate clients. And here's another doc that has been useful when customers want a proposal when no blueprint exists. In the end, a good proposal contains only enough information so to produce a win-win result and for that, there is no boilerplate. One size does not fit all.
 Recently we updated a2WiFi.com because we were holding the Best Of Awards and decided to expand the Google ads from one to four. What's interesting about this? Well, not sure if it's really interesting at all... but we used to get nothing but WiFi related ads. How to install one, where to buy WiFi gear, other hotspot directories...
Now just about every ad is about home values, apartment hunting and foreclosure listings.
Our keyword density hasn't changed... we still put at least one WiFi or wireless internet into each post. Guess this must be a sign of the times... that internet savvy agents are purchasing search terms outside the norm.
By the way, if you're from the Ann Arbor area, there are three bars in contention for the best WiFi place to have a beer while you check the MLX. If you are into such activity, you're invited to cast your vote.
 If you're like everyone else I know, you spend lots of time on your cell phone. You have a "package" from your cell provider that gives you x number of minutes. If you go over that limit, expect one large scary bill. They will not warn you. No simple email "heads-up" to let you know that your current consumption is on track to exceed your limit. Of course not. That would be like the video store calling you to remind you. No way. Not going to happen.
So here's an idea that's rock solid technology, both in performance and price... and a way to reduce your monthly
consumption of your precious cell minutes.
If you use a laptop and you are frequently in a WiFi zone, such as a coffee shop, then here's what you do:
First, before you begin, this is what you need:
- A WiFi ready laptop (all of them have this now!)
- A $15 headset that plugs into your laptop (speakers and a microphone)
Some laptops have these built-in, but go ahead and blow the $15 or $20 on a headset from BestBuy or wherever... the call quality is so good it will amaze you.
With your laptop and headset.... here we go...
1. Create an account on CALLCENTRIC.COM
This is what's called a SIP provider which is like a phone company but for your computer. Think of them as
AT&T except that you like doing busines with them. :)
It costs nothing to create an account at CallCentric. (If you're doing this for the first time and have no idea what this is about, then recruit a friend with a laptop to do this with you as like Alexander Bell, you'll need two people to create that "holy cow Watson, this is sweet!")
 After you create an account, you'll have a user name and a new phone number. To the left is what mine looks like.
This is your SIP phone number. Most will not know what that means, so enjoy feeling technically superior! (it doesn't matter if they know, you're doing this to reduce your cell phone bill) Important: You're not changing your phone number. This is for your outgoing calls only... A way to reduce your airtime minutes.
Next... (this is simple and free too)
2. Download a copy of XLite from CounterPath
 XLite is a software program that's free to download that will give you what's known as a "soft" phone. Soft means it's just a program on your laptop. It looks like a phone, it acts like one, but you can't clip it to your belt, put it in your purse or leave it in the men's room.
(They have Windows and Mac versions)
The image to the left is what my phone looks like. It installs quickly and the configuration part is pretty simple. (even works in Vista!)
3. Configure your XLite Phone
XLite, your soft phone, is not related to CallCentric, so if you have problems, you can't call them. Forget contacting CounterPath because why would they help you fix your free download? So, pay attention and you won't have to call either of them.
Once XLite is running, you need to connect your soft phone to your SIP provider (CallCentric). It's really easy, so hang with me here. When your phone loads, click the SIP Account Settings. Looks like this: 
Now just fill in five fields. It's the stuff you created over all CallCentric. Really simple. Here's what my settings look like.
Once you save this, your XLite phone should think for a few seconds, then show you a READY screen that looks like this... (except with your new SIP phone number) 
Now what can you do?
- Call any other CallCentric user anywhere in the world, for free
- Call any landline or mobile phone in the US for a flat fee of $20/month
- Pay as you go for about 2 cents per minute to anywhere in the US
As long as you're in a decent WiFi cafe you will have call quality that EXCEEDS what you're used to on your cell phone. I've tested this over and over again and even with the $15 headsets, it's simply amazing quality.
If you have any problems with this, and getting that first install is sometimes a challenge, drop me a note or call. We plan to write a short how-to on this and any feedback helps both of us.
http://apin.com 734-253-2305 (office num) PS. yes, this is a Skype type of service... but MUCH better, both quality and cost
A small agent office (5 people) wanted to upgrade their network and PCs. They've never had anything installed properly -- much like how we've all done... Run to Best Buy, purchase something, use CD install wizard, plug things in, then make a mental plan to circle back and clean up the wires, document it all... later.
I went in to assess the situation. It was medium bad, but I had seen worse. (Sidebar: I had seen *much* worse in data centers where I had spent many years as an IT manager at auto manufacturing plants)
 Here's a good indicator of their current status. They had wires hanging from the ceiling, those same wires suspended the network hub, the thing that supplied connectivity to the rest of the office. Hey, it doesn't weigh all that much, so technically, that's not all that terrible. But usually when you see this, there's lots of other issues that aren't as easily photographed.
They had plenty of issues: - Critical data stored on PCs with no backup
- Open access on their WiFi and no firewall
- Shared drives with no security
- No central storage -- at all But the most alarming part: They had no document management system. They would scan official client papers, convert them to PDFs and email them via public email accounts (like gmail, hotmail, yahoo...) They never considered the very scary downside that if their network was hacked OR if a client received one of their emails, it was potentially wide open to reception by anyone sitting next to said client at any WiFi coffee shop. This is major liability, not just an efficiency issue.
Back to not paying $100/hour for tech support...
So what it would take to fix all these things was pretty simple. We drafted an action list of what needed to be done.
Now all we needed was a techno-person to follow orders and get busy. I estimated it would take 20-30 hours to fully revamp their office. This is Ann Arbor where there is no shortage of technical people looking for contract gigs.
I ran an ad in CraigsList and within three days I had 18 good responses. That's more than I had expected, however, my assumption was correct: There are lots of locals willing to do this work for ~ $20/hour.
The challenge: If you're doing this on your own, now you have the chore of going through the 18 to find the one or two that will deliver effective services for that rate. If you're paying someone by the hour, (which is what most computer support people want), then you need to make sure
a.) you know what needs to be done and have listed it in clear techno term and
b.) they know what they're doing.
I've heard plenty of stories of techies working for hours, then throwing up their hands, but still feeling fine handing you an invoice for time that produced no results.
So here's my suggestion:
First, realize you will always need a technical person to support your office.
Second, find someone local that has a small computer practice and offer to promote their business to your clients. If you've not tried Craigslist, give it a shot. (Here's the ad I ran that yielded the 18 responses)
Third, in exchange for reliable, reasonable-priced services, offer to create a relationship with said techno person to promote them to your clients. (if of course, they turn out to be a dependable hidden gem)
At least in our economy here, there are hundreds of very qualified IT people looking for opportunities, some that are being forced into entrepreneurship because of layoffs or buyout packages.
For years I've been saying that one day soon, Michigan will become competive with outsourcing to places like India. I'm making it official, at least in Michigan, that day has arrived.
When I'm writing something, I don't always finish it in one sitting. A new proposal or a whitepaper can take hours, as can a good blog. Creating posts/stories or documenting successful business practices is something best done, a little bit every day.
This is about how I remind myself to keep at it.
What I do is put a text document into the startup folder of my laptop. (The document is whatever I'm currently writing) Each time I fire up my PC, the text document pops up making it pretty much impossible to ignore. Even if I don't have time to add or edit, it's still a great way to keep the mental juices flowing.
If you want to nag yourself with your next blog-in-progress, here's what you do (assuming of course, you're running Windows)
1. Create a text file on your desktop (right-click, New/Text Doc) Name it something like, "MyNextPost" Put a sentence in there and save it. 
2. Go to your Start button and right click, then Open
3. Double-click Programs folder
4. Double-click Startup folder
5. Drag your MyNextPost document into the Startup folder (my current writing project is called eBook.txt)
If you decide you no longer want to be nagged by your text document each time you restart, just delete it from the Startup folder.
I know this is a boring post, but I said I would put this up here in my last, so here ya go.
Firefox will spell check in textarea fields (the place where you type your posts) but, by default, does not check in text input fields, such as where you enter the title.
To get FF to check spelling up there, here's all you have to do:
1. Type about:config into the browser (the place where you would normally put http://google.com) 
2. You will get a long list of the settings in Firefox. To find the one that needs to be modified, put layout.spellcheckDefault into the filter window. (or scroll down to the Ls which is way down there)
3. Now double-click the one item that should be visible and change the 1 to 2. Click OK and now you can start putting fancy/lengthy words into your title with confidence :)
And now, should your keyboard malfunction when entering the Title of your next blog... Firefox will let you know about it! 
Have I lost my mind posting something with that title? I hope not.
Here's what I've noticed...
Some write blogs directly inside of the blogging application. e.g., They open the edit window right here in AR and start typing. Don't do that!! This is not the best approach. Here's why:
You should compose your posts offline and you should use Notepad or any other generic text editor to create your copy. OFFLINE COMPOSING
Offline means you're not connected to the internet. This means you can write on your laptop anywhere, no WiFi needed. That's even another benefit! Why compose this way?
Because often the first thought that flows from your head to your fingers *may* not be your best version.
When you compose offline, you have time to proof and edit (and edit again) before going live. Also, when you write offline, you can hit SAVE, keeping a local copy safely tucked away on your frequently backed-up hard drive. :)
The risk of composing online: The most common is typos and grammar bloopers. More deadly is the browser crash potential. If you browser dies while you're in mid-post on AR ... poof! your work is gone!
THE TEXT EDITOR PART
 There are generally two components to a finished post. Copy and layout. These should not be done at the same time. Write the words, edit them, check the grammar, spell-check it... if you're not a good proofer, then have someone else give it a quick once-over.
When your copy has "been approved" THEN do your layout work which generally is cropping images.
With your approved copy and images, THEN head to ActiveRain and copy paste in your text. If you are using Firefox, you will have one last crack at typos as Firefox will underline those words that it doesn't recognize.
A tiny warning: Firefox does not check spelling in the title because the spell checker is enabled only for textarea fields, not text input fields. That's easy to change which I'll explain in my next post! (By the way, the reason for using a text editor is that is doesn't format the text. However, if you want bold, red fonts, then using Word or any other word processor is fine. Personally, I'm a text guy because I'm a big believer in keeping the copy and format efforts separate.)
A few posts ago I wrote something about a thing called DEEF box from cqSight which is some technology that allows websites to improve how they can connect with visitors. Below is a story from a real person who was moving to a new city. We asked her to tell us what it was like trying to make contact, in this case with an agent, with only help from Google.
Here's her story:
After weeks of long-distance interviews and dialogue, I get the call: You're hired. Ann Arbor, Michigan, location of incredible resources: the University of Michigan. The original Border's book store. Google AdWords, even. Zingerman's, here I come. A small city with great amenities and services, river, parks, bike trails. Restaurants, music, art—a great place to live... at least that's what I've been told.
I'm ready to find my new home, ASAP. With the internet I can find an agent quickly--this might even be fun. I'll leave my contact info, wait a bit for someone to call me. I'll go with the first friendly voice who answers my
questions and sounds like they care.
Naturally, Google brings up a slew of them. Too many in fact. The first one has a home page shows a toll-free number and tabs for "Contact Us" link and "My Home Finder."
That doesn't really help me.
I don't know anything about Ann Arbor neighborhoods— so forget talking to a receptionist or wading through listings by price range. I want to connect with an agent who is ready to get me the details on locations in the areas that fit me. I've got enough to do now, I want to find an agent that's going be my expert, representing me. I like doing things online and I want an agent who thinks like I do.
So...Contact Us it is but finding it isn't always so quick and easy. Ah, there it is, click ... whoa! the company's mailing address?? more phone numbers and department heads!? Do they really think I'm going to walk a letter over to the post office to find an agent??
My next move: The BACK button.
Next site. Phone number, more search for homes forms and no visible Contact Us. What's the deal here? Why don't they make it SIMPLE for me to give my name and email address?
Next. Next. Finally, I find one with a Contact Us form, even better, a Find an Agent tab. But Find an Agent just produces a list of names—with icons after each for their web sites and phone numbers. Why do I care
about their names and phone numbers? I just want to give someone my email address and have them call me!!
I could just start with the first and start dialing until someone answers their phone... No! That's not what I want! Maybe nice for the first few agents on the list I guess, but I don't want to search by phone and just because your name starts with A doesn't mean you're the best!
Finally I find a few with Contact Us forms but some with up to eight REQUIRED fields?? Why??? You just need my email, possibly my name. If you're worried about me being a spam robot, then ask me to add 2+4. I'm pretty sure spam robots can't do math. Sure, I can take the time to to enter all eight fields, but hey, this is a first date. We're not going steady yet!
I am irritated. Forget this. I pour a glass of wine, go to iTunes and use up the rest of that Xmas gift card. Maybe I'll try again tomorrow, but end up writing a friend in Ann Arbor to ask about some FSBOs in her neighborhood.
Of the 36 sites that I visited, the BACK button was used frequenlty; I left my email address on maybe 3 of them. The rest were too busy, too clumsy to navigate or the contact us form either required too much effort to find it or had too many fields to complete. Next time you look at your website, maybe think, "how easy is it for someone to contact me?" Curious to know which company was the best/worst? We posted some details on APIN.COM
We all use email for a living now. It's convenient. It creates a trail of history. It can even be oh so efficient because you can CC the world keeping everyone in the loop.
Just keep this in mind: Sometimes less is more. In business email, here are some rules I have developed over the many failed projects that crumbled, in part, due to botched electronic communication.
1. Don't CC someone unless they need to know. (and if you do need to let someone know and your email is monster long with old threads, tell them what part they need to read or send them a separate note with only the important stuff included)
2. NEVER BCC someone as a way of letting them in on a secret. They hit REPLY ALL and you're screwed.
3. Zero emotion unless it's a smiley face letting them know the closing is scheduled and will be problem-free. (even that's a risky one)
4. Keep sentences short. Read your note, then see how many words you can remove and still keep the same message.
5. Don't use LOL or LMAO abbreviations -- even if your 20-something buyer/seller does.
6. Include your contact info in every communication. Never make a customer search for how to call you.
7. Never SEND an email if you're angry. Writing it is fine, just don't send it until you've chilled. (also, if you do compose while you're agitated, DO NOT put the customer email address in there. USE YOUR address in the event of premature e-sendulation. 8. If you're sending important stuff and you're not a good writer, Have someone proof it. Presentation matters.
9. Don't spend time formatting the message. Use words to express what's needed, not 20 point red bold face fonts. If you need action, then end with ACTION NEEDED FROM YOU... (putting ACTION NEEDED in the subject is also a good idea)
10. Avoid slang especially when dealing with those who don't have English as their native language. If you need to drive home this point, go here and put in your favorite expression and see how it comes back. Now you know where "I think something got lost in the translation" originated. "I think we are kicking a dead horse here" translates to "Task the fact that we give a horse that dies here to an effect." ...and of course the obvious. Writing an email in ALL UPPER CASE means you are either really upset or a techno idiot, both impressions are good to avoid. :)
|
|
E.Kasey Kasemodel - Dexter, Mi - Tech Advice
Dexter, MI
More about me…
API Network Corp
Office Phone: (734) 253-2305
Email Me
A bunch of potentially clever ideas to help attract new buyers and sellers via internet activities.
 Links
Tags (Tag Cloud)
Archives
|
;)
Links;)
Tags (Tag Cloud);)
Archives