San Diego Computer Repair Service: April 2008

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Learning About Blogging and Blog Marketing

The following article lists some simple, informative tips that will help you have a better experience with blog marketing.

Blogs, which are also known as web logs are all the rage right now online. Everyone has a blog, and everyone is making money by blogging. The question is how are they doing it? What is so special about a blog that you can make money by posting on it? First you should know that a blog is a little bit like an online journal. You can make posts in it about anything that you want to, and then publish it for the whole world to read. If you have never blogged before, it is a good idea to do so just for fun in the beginning, so that you can get a feel of what it is about.

Once you have become familiar with the blogging platform, and kind of get the jest of it, you will be ready to try and make some money at blogging. However, for a beginner blog marketer, you want to take it slow and one step at a time. You will need to do things in order and that will help keep you from getting overwhelmed with it all.

The first thing that you want to do is find a niche to blog about. This can be anything that you know, want to know, or want to learn. Become an expert in that field. The more you know, the better. The niche can be anything that you want it to be. It can be as complicated or as simple as you want it to be. Think about something that you know and love, something that you want to learn all about. You will come up with a niche that will be perfect before you know it.

Now that you know what your blog will be all about, you are ready to get down to business. First of all you want to decide how often you will update your blog. Will it be daily? Every other day? Maybe even weekly? Whichever you choose, stick with it and make sure that you hardly ever miss an update. Once you get readers to your blog you want them to know that you will update it as often as you say. They need to know how often to check and visit your blog for new information. If you post like you say you will, you will end up with a large reader base that will follow you anywhere.

Truthfully, the only difference between you and blog marketing experts is time. If you'll invest a little more time in reading, you'll be that much nearer to expert status when it comes to blog marketing.

So now that you have a niche, and have decided how often your blog will be updated, it is time to get down to some marketing. To begin with, you need to get back links. Back links are important and they mean that someone is linking to you. There are a few ways that you can get these much needed links. You can look around on the internet and find some sites that are relevant to your niche and request a link, or your can post comments on other blogs that are relevant and leave a link behind with your comment. Either way, they both work and they both count as links that you need to your blog.

Are you trying to sell things from your blog? If so you are going to find that promoting products in your blog is a great marketing technique that you can use as well. People do it everyday and make lots of money from it. Whether it is affiliate links, or your own products and services that you are promoting, you are going to find that blog marketing is one of the best ways to get the word out and let people know that you are in business. Marketing from your blog has never been easier.

With all of the great tools that are out there now for blog marketing, it is really hard to have a blog fail when you use them. Make sure that you ping your blog every time it is updated, and work on those links as they will make a huge difference.

Of course, it's impossible to put everything about blog marketing into just one article. But you can't deny that you've just added to your understanding about blog marketing, and that's time well spent.

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Monday, April 28, 2008

Reducing Load Time Through Image Optimization

If you're seriously interested in knowing about web design, you need to think beyond the basics. This informative article takes a closer look at things you need to know about web design.

Even though more and more Internet users switch to broadband every year, a large portion of the web's population is still running on good old dialup connections. It is therefore unwise to count them out of the equation when you're designing your website, and a very major consideration we have to make for dialup users is the loading time of your website.

Generally, all the text on your website will be loaded in a very short time even on a dialup connection. The culprit of slow-loading sites is mainly large images on your website, and it is very important to strike a delicate balance between using just enough images to attract your users and not to bog down the overall loading time of your site.

Think about what you've read so far. Does it reinforce what you already know about web design? Or was there something completely new? What about the remaining paragraphs?

You should also go to a greater length and optimize every image on your site to make sure it loads in the least time possible. What I really mean is to use image editing software to remove unnecessary information on your images, and thereby effectively reducing the file size of your image without affecting its appearance.

If you own Photoshop, it will be obvious to you that when you save an image as a JPEG file, a dialog box appears and lets you choose the "quality" of the JPEG image -- normally a setting of 8 to 10 is good enough as it will preserve the quality of your image while saving it at a small file size. If you do not have Photoshop, there are many free image compressors online that you can download and use to reduce your image's file size.

On the other hand, you can opt to save your images in PNG format to get the best quality at the least file size. You can also save your images in GIF format -- the image editing software clips away all the color information not used in your image, hence giving you the smallest file size possible. However, saving in GIF format will often compromise the appearance of your image, so make your choice wisely!

Sometimes it's tough to sort out all the details related to this subject, but I'm positive you'll have no trouble making sense of the information presented above.

Saturday, April 26, 2008

Develop Your SOHO Network

Have you ever wondered if what you know about security is accurate? Consider the following paragraphs and compare what you know to the latest info on security.

If you have a SOHO and you use more than one computer in the home, you don’t want to get two DSL connections to hook other computers up in the home with. Your husband might prefer to work in the basement while you work in the home office and your children might want to surf the net all at the same time. What you need to do is configure a wireless network in your home.

There are several options to consider in creating a wireless home network which is simply allowing other computers to communicate with one another in the same house. These computers can share an internet connection, printers, scanners, files and other gadgets and devices. If you have a SOHO business, you can partition applications and documents from certain users.

The different network types use different hardware, but they all have these components:

* More than one computer
* Hardware devices (such as a router) and software (either built in to the operating system or as a separate application).
* A path for the information to follow from one computer to another
The two most popular home network types are wireless and Ethernet networks. In both of these types, a routing device or router does most of the work by directing the traffic between the connected devices.

Ethernet networks are slowly phasing out because of the cables that you have to install. Wireless is becoming the standard for the home network because of the drop in cost of wireless components.

You connect the router to your dial-up, DSL or cable modem interface. This will allow several users to share one connection to the internet. Some of these routers are combo routers that combine both wireless and Ethernet technology.

Think about what you've read so far. Does it reinforce what you already know about security? Or was there something completely new? What about the remaining paragraphs?

If you're going to connect your network to the World Wide Web, you'll need a firewall. A firewall is simply a program or hardware device that protects your network from users that hack systems and offensive Web sites. Many software firewalls block all incoming information by default and prompt you for permission to allow the information to pass. In this way, a software firewall can learn which types of information you want to allow into your network.

There are fault tolerant firewall devices also build in routers in case of a network crash. These devices will make sure none of your information gets damaged.

It is a good idea to put a wireless network in your SOHO so that everyone can share access and use different computers instead of the business computer.

This article's coverage of the information is as complete as it can be today. But you should always leave open the possibility that future research could uncover new facts.

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Publishing a Successful Newsletter

The following paragraphs summarize the work of internet marketing experts who are completely familiar with all the aspects of internet marketing. Heed their advice to avoid any internet marketing surprises.

With newsletters, the quality far outweighs how often they are published. Listed below are some reason why..

Even though the main purpose of publishing a newsletter is enticing customers to visit your website, your customers want quality information. Your newsletter will be a representation of your website and business. If you don't put out a quality newsletter, you give the impression that your product is of lower quality.

When you begin planning to send out your newsletter you must think about what you want in it. You must give your readers what they want. Take the time to discover what your subscribers are interested in receiving from you. This can be accomplished in a couple of ways.

First you might want to conduct a poll or add an opinion box on your website. Question your visitors about what they'd like to see in a newsletter. Use the answers to develop your newsletter content. Asking will make your customer know you care about their opinion and it will answer your questions.

If you don't have accurate details regarding internet marketing, then you might make a bad choice on the subject. Don't let that happen: keep reading.

Another way is to you e-mail your customers and request their input. The information you receive to your e-mail can be processed the same as above. This method will also leave your customers knowing their opinion matters.

Even though it seems like common sense, it is necessary to mention that you need to get your customers to sign up for your newsletter. Sending unsolicited e-mails will make people angry-and that defeats the purpose of your newsletter.

When putting together your newsletter, be certain to include informative articles that peak the interest of your subscribers. However, don't forget to include important information on your site, special offers, or freebies. Keep in mind your newsletter's purpose is to get customers to visit your site.

You'll also want to make a practice of including a little something in every newsletter that will encourage new visitors to you site. Free offers work exceptionally well. You will have to make certain the offer is good enough where current customers will pass on the information.

You should have enough information at this point to start publishing a newsletter. What you include is up to you and your customers. It might be a good idea to get that auto responder at this point if you still haven't gotten one. It will help distribute your newsletter.

This article's coverage of the information is as complete as it can be today. But you should always leave open the possibility that future research could uncover new facts.

Friday, April 18, 2008

Cheap and Fast Software

The following article includes pertinent information that may cause you to reconsider what you thought you understood. The most important thing is to study with an open mind and be willing to revise your understanding if necessary.

Visit any computer store today and you'll find what seems like miles and miles of software on sale. Certainly enticing buys, there are a few problems with buying software off the shelves. On the shelf, software - otherwise known as "commercial software" - can be expensive, and incompatible, and outdated when compared to what's available online. Fortunately, there's an alternative to commercial software and although it isn't new, it's one of the most under-exploited opportunities in the computer industry.

We're talking about shareware - software that you can try before buying.

Shareware has a long history and was rather popular in the days where BBS (bulletin board systems) reigned the online industry. It hasn't gone anywhere, but its competition with commercial software is fierce - so fierce that it tends to fall on the back burner among new computer users. This is unfortunate because shareware has so many advantages over commercial software.

One of those advantages is its cost. On the whole, shareware is generally cheaper than commercial software. But don't misinterpret the cost. With shareware, cheap does not equal low-quality and there are plenty of examples that prove shareware often outperforms the quality of commercial software time and time again. How much savings are we talking about? You could purchase a quality word processor, spreadsheet, database program, or system utility anywhere from a mere $15 to under a hundred. This is almost unheard of in stores like Best Buy, Circuit City, or Egghead, yet the shareware programs offered within this price range rival even Microsoft's Office suite.

Another advantage that shareware has over commercial software is its compatibility. We're not saying that shareware is compatible with all operating systems. What we're saying is that since we can try shareware before paying for it, we can determine if the software is completely compatible with our systems first. In other words, we can discover whether the software performs the way we want them to and should anyone try to do the same with commercial software, they'll be in for a big disappointment.

Is everything making sense so far? If not, I'm sure that with just a little more reading, all the facts will fall into place.

Commercial software policy doesn't even allow for returns, let alone "borrowing" them to try them.

The last advantage that shareware has over commercial software (but certainly not the least) is its applicability. Plain and simple, shareware is the best bet when you want to keep on top of the latest release of a particular program. Sure, computer stores do their best to keep their inventory up to date, but when you can download version 5.6042 of a shareware program as opposed to buying a commercial 3.0 version from the local computer shop, there's just no comparison.

Which brings up our next point. Just where does one get shareware? Shareware is all over the Internet and it's really hard not to bump into it. The most popular places to find shareware is within thousands of download libraries, however the companies (and even independent programmers behind shareware) are increasingly offering shareware from their own websites. A simple Google or Yahoo search for a particular type of program will yield all sorts of results that point you toward items that you can try before you buy.

Be aware however, that because shareware is not commercial software, you may not experience a full program the way you would if you bought the software out of a box. Shareware may or may not be limited - meaning that some functions may not be available to you until the program is paid for. These limitations are often small and don't interfere with the way its full version operations. They're really just implemented as a way to prompt payment. Remember that shareware is not freeware. You shouldn't try to use shareware as commercial software without paying for it.

About the only thing that's similar between shareware and commercial software is the way in which they may be bought. With a credit card, you can be the new owner of your own software within minutes.

Those who only know one or two facts about computers can be confused by misleading information. The best way to help those who are misled is to gently correct them with the truths you're learning here.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Simple, Yet Effective Ways to Make Your Small Business a Success

If you're seriously interested in knowing about small business tips, you need to think beyond the basics. This informative article takes a closer look at things you need to know about small business tips.

Are you a small business owner? If you are, you likely already know that you have to compete with a large number of other businesses, many of which may be larger than your business or have more money to “toss,” around. While you may think that your size automatically puts you at a disadvantage, it doesn’t have to. There are a number of ways that you can go about making sure that your small business is a successful, profitable one; ways that actually require little or no work on your part.

One of the simplest, yet most effective ways that you can turn your small business into a success and keep it as one is by smiling. Yes, smiling. Many people, possibly even you, do not actually realize just how far a smile really goes. When it comes to buying a product or a service, from both large and small business owners, many customers want to feel appreciated or at least like they are being noticed. After all, without the customer, you and your small business employees wouldn’t even have jobs. That is why it is important that you and your employees always smile at your customers and always put on a happy front.

Small talk is another simple, yet effective way to make your small business a success. Small talk can be something as simple as asking any of your customers if they need help finding anything, if you run a retail store, or asking them about the weather outside. Small talk makes your customers feel important. It makes many consumers feel good that there is assistance available if it is needed, as well as the fact that some actually values their opinion or insight, even if it is only about the weather. That is why you and your employees are always advised to strike up a conversation with your customers. This conversation is what will likely keep them coming back for more.

Those of you not familiar with the latest on small business tips now have at least a basic understanding. But there's more to come.

As stated above, there are many people who tend to forget how much a smile can brighten up a person’s day. In addition to smiling, it seems as if some customer service workers have forgotten the importance of a simple thank you. When running a small business, your customers have the options of shopping with you or with a larger company, a larger company that have more products for sale, at lower prices. What often sets you and your competitors apart is your customer service. That is why it is advised that you and all of your employers thank all of your customers for their business and ask them to come again soon. Your customers do not have to shop at your store, but they do chose to do so; therefore, make sure you thank them for it.

Another way that you can help to ensure that your small business is a successful one, one that consumers love doing business with, is being polite on the phone to all callers. While this may seem like common sense, there are times when it can easily be forgotten. Sometimes it seems is if potential customers call with questions about store hours or a product at the worst possible time, often a time when you are busy. Although this may be frustrating to you, you are advised to stay calm, cool, and collective. If you need to, ask the caller to please hold on for a minute, but try not to keep them on hold for too long. Your actions or the actions of your employees on the phone will have a significant impact on whether or not the caller decides to become a paying customer later on.
As outlined above, being friendly, patient, and pleasant to deal with are simple, yet effective ways for you and your business to make a name for yourself; a positive name. That positive name is what may help to keep your business running strong and profitable for years to come.

Take time to consider the points presented above. What you learn may help you overcome your hesitation to take action.

Monday, April 14, 2008

Is Internet Marketing Working For You?

When most people think of internet marketing, what comes to mind is usually basic information that's not particularly interesting or beneficial. But there's a lot more to internet marketing than just the basics.

Determining whether or not your Internet marketing campaign is working for you is a very important part of the advertising process. This is so important because while there is a great deal of Internet marketing which can be done without a great deal of expense, other types of Internet marketing do have financial costs associated with them. Also, in both cases there is a time and energy burden to orchestrating the Internet marketing. For all of these reasons it is important for business owners to continuously evaluate their marketing techniques and strategies to determine what is working and what is not. This will help the business owner to focus his efforts on marketing strategies which are providing positive results as opposed to those which are either not providing results or are only providing lackluster results. This article will examine a few different marketing strategies as well as how business owners can evaluate the effectiveness of these strategies.

Affiliate marketing is certainly one of the most cost effective Internet marketing strategies available. This marketing strategy involves having other website owners known as affiliates post an advertisement on their websites to direct Internet traffic to your website. This marketing strategy is cost effective because in most cases the affiliate is only paid when he produces a desired result such as enticing an Internet user to click through the advertisement or to purchase a product or service once they click through the ad. While the business owner is only paying for the advertisement when it produces a desired effect, it is still worthwhile to evaluate the effectiveness of these ads to determine whether or not they are working well.

Fortunately affiliate marketing ads have a natural feedback mechanism which makes it easy to evaluate how well the ad is working. This feedback is provided in the form of code imbedded in the advertisement which specifies which affiliate generated the website visitors. This information is provided for the purposes of issuing payment to the affiliate but it can also provide the business owner with useful information on which affiliate ads are the most effective. This information is especially useful when the affiliates are posting different ads. The business owner may conclude the ads posted by the more successful affiliates are more appealing to potential customers and may opt to use this style of ad for all of their affiliates.

The more authentic information about internet marketing you know, the more likely people are to consider you a internet marketing expert. Read on for even more internet marketing facts that you can share.

Business owners who use Internet marketing strategies such as posting on message boards to promote their business might want to consider asking customers to complete a short survey when making a purchase. This survey can include useful demographic information which is always helpful for marketing as well as information regarding where the customer learned of the products or services you offer. Including the message board web address as one of the responses will give you a good indication of whether or not the message boards are helping to drive customers to your website. You may also have some unofficial feedback in terms of the response to your postings on the message board. If the general consensus is in support of your posts, you may infer you are generating some interest in your business or website through this tactic.

Finally, an Internet marketing strategy can be evaluated by studying website traffic results as well as sales receipts. Anytime you implement a new Internet marketing strategy or technique it is worthwhile to study your website traffic reports and sales receipts carefully to determine whether or not there is a spike in either traffic or sales immediately after the marketing effort. For example, if you send out an e-newsletter to those who have requested additional information about your products or services, you may notice there is an increase in traffic or sales soon afterwards. This is a good indication the e-newsletter was well received and effective. However, if there is not a marked increase in traffic or sales subsequent to the e-newsletter it indicates the marketing effort was not effective.

Now you can be a confident expert on internet marketing. OK, maybe not an expert. But you should have something to bring to the table next time you join a discussion on internet marketing.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

The New Age Of Communications For Businesses And Individuals

So what is computers really all about? The following report includes some fascinating information about computers--info you can use, not just the old stuff they used to tell you.

The new way for individuals and businesses to conduct phone conversations and conference calls is with Voip communications. The idea of finding a company that allows you to communicate over the internet has allowed many people to conduct business meetings and to keep in touch with family and friends. You no longer need a landline with a local phone company to talk around the world. When you add the video option to the package, you can conduct conference calls with business partners and associates as well as friends and family while seeing the person or persons you are talking too. This feature is for both phone and computers.

Vonage has gained popularity with people looking for the Voip option. You have a box that that hooks up to your phone line and it has a broadband connection. With this company, you can have unlimited international and local calls for a set amount a month. Many other companies offer the service as well, with different plans and options. The Voice over IP system helps people who need to work at home or you have a need for a lower phone bill other than what their local phone company has to offer.

The only drawback to having the Voip phone system is that you also have to sign up for a 911 service. Since you have the ability to select an area code other than the one you reside in, this can cause problems if you have to use the system. Many people do not realize this and have encountered problems. You are also going to pay an additional charge for the 911 service. This is a great way to save money if you already have a broadband connection. There are other options to the Voip telephony system as well.

Is everything making sense so far? If not, I'm sure that with just a little more reading, all the facts will fall into place.

One thing to keep in mind about using the Voip calling system is that depending on the type of service you have, you may need a different phone to use with the new phone system, it will have a USB plug, but they are relatively cheap. This is the only downfall to the Voip telephony because if you lose power you will lose your phone service.

Video conferencing is also hitting the top of the hot computer topics list because of the convenience and affordability that it offers. You can do this via computer or through a Voip line. You will more than likely need a software program for the computer, but this also depends on the system, you have to use. If you use the computer software, you can hook up every computer in your business that is connected to the network. This is becoming more popular because employees can remain at their desks and still participate in conferencing meetings.

This is the hottest thing since the computer or the internet. Businesses everywhere are switching to this type of communication within the company as well as outside the company communications. Because of this communication, businesses and individuals have more options for communicating rather than a landline with a local phone company or a cell phone. Look for more upgrades in this type of technology as more and more people start to rely on this as a sole means of communication in the very near future.

If you've picked some pointers about computers that you can put into action, then by all means, do so. You won't really be able to gain any benefits from your new knowledge if you don't use it.

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Computer Training Course

Do you ever feel like you know just enough about computer training to be dangerous? Let's see if we can fill in some of the gaps with the latest info from computer training experts.

There are several types of computer training course available to the person seeking to learn about computers today. In fact, the whole arena of computer training can be so intimidating that it is good to take your time in selecting what courses you are wanting to take. In this article, we will examine the outline of a computer training course that would appeal to the computer newbie. This course outline is not meant to be all inclusive, nor is it meant to be professional advice for someone looking to enter into the computer technology field. It is simply a broad outline of which subjects are suggested, and in what order, for someone to learn about computers. That being said, let's take a look at our suggested computer training course.

To start, it would be a good course of action to look at classes teaching the basics of how to operate a computer. Information for this computer training course should include things like the basics of using an operating system, how to save information on a hard drive, floppy drives (although they are quickly becoming obsolete), and CD / DVD ROM drives. It is a good idea in the computer training course to also learn some basics about the internal operation of the computer (i.e., what makes it tick, how it works). It may seem like it is best to leave information on how the memory works and what RAM actually stands for to the professionals ... however, this would be a mistake.

Those of you not familiar with the latest on computer training now have at least a basic understanding. But there's more to come.

It is important even for the average home computer user to understand some of these basics, as it will impact how they use the computer and their expectations of performance under certain work loads and software compatibilities, among other things.

Moving on from the basics, a computer training course should teach more advanced concepts as well. Some of these concepts would include back-up procedures, file maintenance, and data recovery. Security issues are also on the rise, with the increased usage of the Internet, and safeguarding your computer against viruses and other attacks should also be covered in a computer training course. All of these are items that the average computer user should be aware of how to operate. Just knowing this information can save you in the long run from calling that professional for a service call that could literally cost you as much as the computer did in the first place!

Last, but certainly not least, every personal computer user should learn how to install and replace the basic plug-and-play circuit boards or cards that are in every personal computer. A computer training course would simply not be complete without this information. There are many parts that are truly user-replaceable, but unless you know how, you will end up paying that tech big bucks for a simple part swap. Things like that newest video card, an upgraded modem card, installing a firewire card, network card or extra USB port card are very simple.

Unfortunately, unless you are selective in your outline of courses, many basic computer training courses will fail to train you in these aspects of computer maintenance.

It never hurts to be well-informed with the latest on computer training. Compare what you've learned here to future articles so that you can stay alert to changes in the area of computer training.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Pros and Cons of Flash-based Sites

Would you like to find out what those-in-the-know have to say about web design? The information in the article below comes straight from well-informed experts with special knowledge about web design.

Flash-based sites have been a craze since the past few years, and as Macromedia compiles more and more great features into Flash, we can only predict there will be more and more flash sites around the Internet. However, Flash based sites have been disputed to be bloated and unnecessary. Where exactly do we draw the line? Here's a simple breakdown.

The good:

Interactivity

Flash's Actionscript opens up a vast field of possibilities. Programmers and designers have used Flash to create interactve features ranging from very lively feedback forms to attractive Flash-based games. This whole new level of interactivity will always leave visitors coming back for more.

A standardized site

With Flash, you do not have to worry about cross-browser compatibility. No more woes over how a certain css code displays differently in Internet Explorer, Firefox and Opera. When you position your site elements in Flash, they will always appear as they are as long as the user has Flash Player installed.

Better expression through animation

Is everything making sense so far? If not, I'm sure that with just a little more reading, all the facts will fall into place.

In Flash, one can make use of its animating features to convey a message in a much more efficient and effective way. Flash is a lightweight option for animation because it is vector based (and hence smaller file sizes) as opposed to real "movie files" that are raster based and hence much larger in size.

The bad and the ugly:

The Flash player

People have to download the Flash player in advance before they can view Flash movies, so by using Flash your visitor range will decrease considerably because not everyone will be willing to download the Flash player just to view your site. You'll also have to put in additional work in redirecting the user to the Flash download page if he or she doesn't have the player installed.

Site optimization

If your content was presented in Flash, most search engines wouldn't be able to index your content. Hence, you will not be able to rank well in search engines and there will be less traffic heading to your site.

Loading time

Users have to wait longer than usual to load Flash content compared to regular text and images, and some visitors might just lose their patience and click the Back button. The longer your Flash takes to load, the more you risk losing visitors.

The best way to go is to use Flash only when you absolutely need the interactivity and motion that comes with it. Otherwise, use a mixture of Flash and HTML or use pure text if your site is purely to present simple textual and graphical information.

Knowing enough about web design to make solid, informed choices cuts down on the fear factor. If you apply what you've just learned about web design, you should have nothing to worry about.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

The Use of Firewalls

The following article lists some simple, informative tips that will help you have a better experience with security.

Sometimes the most important aspects of a subject are not immediately obvious. Keep reading to get the complete picture.

A firewall is a system or group of systems that enforces an access control policy between several networks. The actual means by which this is accomplished varies widely, but in principle, the firewall can be thought of as a pair of devices which exists to block unwanted IP traffic and the other which exists to permit traffic.

Firewalls work by implementing various access control policies. It's also important to recognize that the firewall's configuration creates its policy based on the parameters you provide in your security control policy.

If you have a network in you SOHO business, you need firewall protection on the web side of your host and your networked computers. The Internet has hackers that seek to get into your network or server which makes life miserable for you and your system. The purpose of a firewall is to keep hackers out and to keep your system running proficiently and smoothly.

Even if you’re a small business, you should learn about the mechanics of how a firewall operates even if you have two computers on your network. There are many software packages out there such as, McAfee Internet Suite software that keeps hackers at bay. A firewall is also great for intranet access to certain applications that are critical which you have to put restrictions on.

Lastly, a firewall can act as your corporate ``ambassador'' to the Internet. McAfee Internet Suite does this. Every time someone tries to access your computer, McAfee will notify you and reject their access. It will tell you the IP address of the computer that wants access. You can automatically set these attributes to no.

Zone Alarm is another great software package which provides outstanding firewall protection. You can limit FTP upload capability to certain user profiles when putting information on the Internet and Zone Alarm also shows you the individual that is trying to break in.

Firewalls are needed because of data and programs that you don’t want destroyed by hackers. If you don’t have any firewalls set up for your computer or web host then you run the risk of losing data and getting viruses.

That's how things stand right now. Keep in mind that any subject can change over time, so be sure you keep up with the latest news.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Mailing List - Your Personal Money Maker

Imagine the next time you join a discussion about internet marketing. When you start sharing the fascinating internet marketing facts below, your friends will be absolutely amazed.

A mailing list can literally determine whether your business fails or succeeds. Though many of us may be a bit nervous by the idea of requesting e-mail addresses from possible customers for fear of scaring them away, it's a necessity if you want to get the increased traffic and major sales successful websites experience..

You might be questioning why a mailing list is so important it is referred to as a gold mine. That's a logical question. Most people don't understand how effective a tool a mailing list has the possibility of being. Let me explain.

How can you put a limit on learning more? The next section may contain that one little bit of wisdom that changes everything.

The first reason a mailing list is important is this: most people don't buy something during their initial visit to a website. Research has shown that the average internet customer makes an average of seven visits to the same site before actually buying something. In seven visits it isn't hard to lose a customer to competitors unless you give them a reason to return. That's where the mailing list enters the picture. If you can get visitors to sign up for your mailing list or newsletter, you have a way to lure them back to your site.

It doesn't end with simply getting them to return. Another statistic shows that 70 percent of e-mail users have made a purchase after receiving an e-mail advertisement. Think about the number of sales you could be losing if you don't have your own mailing list.

There is a lot to think about where mailing lists are involved. Although you might be worried about giving the wrong impression when requesting a customer's e-mail address the figures speak loudly. Keep in mind; the people on your mailing list have requested e-mails from you, irregardless of whether they are newsletters, promotions, special offers or updates. These customers have given you their trust and that, in the end, is where your sales originate.

Now might be a good time to write down the main points covered above. The act of putting it down on paper will help you remember what's important about internet marketing.

Monday, April 7, 2008

Basic GUI Terminology Knowing What You're Working With Helps Technicians

So what is computers really all about? The following report includes some fascinating information about computers--info you can use, not just the old stuff they used to tell you.

Getting help with your computer software can be easier when you know the correct terms to use. One of the biggest problems that new computer users have with technical support is not knowing how to correctly describe the problem that they're having. And it isn't fair to expect a tech support person to automatically know what a "thing-a-ma-jingy," or "whatcha-ma-call-it" is.

The following describes the correct names for common components of software so that when you experience a problem, you can effectively describe an issue that you're having and a technician can readily resolve it.

User interface - this is the visual design of a program. It may contain squares, boxes, words, icons, and buttons. If you're experiencing insufficient memory for example, you might see black rectangles across the user interface of your software programs.

Title bar - this is the top-most part of a program that displays its own name or it may describe the contents displayed in another part of the interface. If a program is incorrectly coded, you may see a wrong description in this part of its interface.

Menu bar - this part of a program displays menu items and menu options. Some of the most common parts of a menu bar grants access to File commands, Open commands, Save commands, and Print commands. An example of an error in this part of an interface would be if an option was missing or grayed out (lighter in color).

Tool bar - this part of a program displays small icons across the top which represent tools. Clicking an icon will open a tool or process a command that might also exist on a program's menu bar. Problems in this part of an interface are uncommon, however if you find yourself repeatedly clicking an icon with no results, you can correctly describe the problem by referring to the toolbar.

Minimize, Restore, and Exit buttons - these three buttons are usually located on the right-most upper part of a program's interface and each allow you to minimize a program's screen, restore it to its original size, or shut down the program completely.

Think about what you've read so far. Does it reinforce what you already know about computers? Or was there something completely new? What about the remaining paragraphs?

Scroll bar - this convenient tool allows users to move data up and down the computer screen.

Status bar - this part of a program is located at the bottom-most part of its interface, and it usually displays small messages that indicate the progress of a command or task. If programmed incorrectly, an application might display the wrong information in this area.

Context menu - like the menu bar, a context menu displays when a user right-clicks on something. It displays commands just like what you see on a File menu or a Help menu.

Input box - input boxes are usually small rectangles that allow you to type data into a simple interfaces like a webpage or browser window. If you find that you can't type information into one of these, you can effectively resolve the issue with a technician by calling it an input box, rather than a "white rectangle," or "place to put in text."

Button - buttons perform a command after a user clicks them with a mouse. Problems occur when the text of a button is grayed out or if it doesn't appear to sink into the screen when clicked.

Check box - a check box is a small box that allows a user to indicate several choices among many. When clicked, a small "x" displays inside a box. Similar to the check box, a radio button allows a user to indicate a single choice among many. Problems with radio buttons and check boxes occur when a user makes one choice, but the interface reacts as if the user made many choices (or none at all). When describing a problem to a technician, be sure to indicate whether the problem occurs with a check box or a radio box. computer novices mistakenly interchange the names of both of these controls.

Those who only know one or two facts about computers can be confused by misleading information. The best way to help those who are misled is to gently correct them with the truths you're learning here.

San Diego Computer Repair Service