Internet

Using the Internet to Expand Your Small Business

January 4, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Using the Internet can help the small business owner expand his or her business quite quickly. By building a website for your company, millions of viewers will be able to see the product line you are offering or the services you perform. Whereas most businesses used to advertise in local newspapers and telephone books, today they are using the options available on the web.

Building a professional website for your business enables potential customers to be a click away from viewing what you have to offer. Although building a page for a business may require a lot of research, it is always worth the effort. If you have never built a web page before, there are plenty of designers that will put it together for you, usually for a minimal charge. Hiring a professional in web design may be the best way to go if you are unsure how to put a site together yourself, or if you are having trouble figuring out the best way to advertise.

There are a few tips available that small business owners state have helped them in the beginning. One is to make sure the page is detailed, but simple to operate. The fewer times a client has to click an icon, the better. Having your product or company description in full view is a good idea, along with having an area where the customer can perform a search. Most times a website will have a column that runs along the left side of the web page that has each product listed. In this way, the customer can almost immediately see if you have what they need, without having to drift through pages and pages of items they aren’t interested in at that time.

If you are unsure how to begin building your website, don’t hesitate to ask for help. There are great web designers available to walk you through the process or complete it for you if necessary.

Filed Under: Internet Tagged With: Small business

Who Uses Linux Operating Systems?

December 16, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image by Getty Images via @daylife

The Linux operating system has become a popular choice of many individuals and companies. While other operating systems might be unstable and offer security risks, Linux offers companies and individuals the chance to run their computers on a system that is stable and safe.

With all the buzz going on about Linux what and the wave of companies choosing to go with this operating system, here is a look at some of the popular companies that have made the switch to Linux operating systems.

Rental Offices. Personal businesses and retail companies all across the company are switching to the Linux operating system. Many Los Angeles apartments have rental offices that are hooked up through Linux so that they can fill out rental information as well as resident information.

Google. Google is pretty much the king of the Internet and Internet searches. All of its main branch computer systems are hooked up through the Linux system. Even Google servers for the search engines run on Linux.

Government agencies. Many government agencies across the globe are switching to Linux as a way to have a safer, more secure operating system than the ones used previously.

Amazon. Amazon made the switch to the Linux operating system within the past few years. There are thousands of computers within the Amazon offices that take orders, allow shipments to be shipped out and help in customer service areas. All of these computers run on Linux.

Hollywood film companies. Many Hollywood film companies that use 3-D technology rely upon the Linux operating system as a way to run their computers. There are less crashes and technical repairs that need to be done. It also allows these companies to work smoothly and not have as many technical issues.

These are just a quick look at some of the popular companies that are making the switch to the Linux operating system.

Filed Under: Internet, Linux, Operating Systems Tagged With: Google, Linux, Operating system

The Connected History of the Ethernet

December 14, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

A local area network, or LAN, might be what you’re connected to if you’re using your computer inside your home or another building. LANs connect computers within a relatively small area using Ethernet cables. You might recognize Ethernet cables, as it is most likely the manner in which you’re able to use the Internet right now. But what is the history of this networking standard? While it may seem like a new technology, the story of Ethernet begins back in 1973 in Palo Alto, California.

History

A researcher at the Xerox Corporation named Bob Metcalfe was the first to construct a working Ethernet network. Metcalfe was tasked with designing a system of networks for the Palo Alto Research Center that was able to connect the center’s computers to a new laser printer Xerox had just created. The challenge lied in constructing a fast network with the ability to connect to a large number of computers, something unheard of before the Ethernet.

In 1979, Metcalfe left the company to advance LAN technology, persuading companies such as Xerox, Intel and Digital Equipment to encourage the standardization of Ethernet.

Operation

Much like the Internet and all means of telecommunications, the Ethernet uses a protocol. The Ethernet’s protocol is called CSMA/CD, which includes three distinct components of the Ethernet’s operation. The first, carrier sense, ensures that computers connected to the network have carriers to send data through. The second, multiple access, means the connected computers can use the network as they please. The last, collision detection, confirms that simultaneous data sending does not interfere with each other and dispenses with corrupted data.

More than 70 percent of the world is connected through the Ethernet and local area networks, so the likelihood is high that you are as well. The Ethernet is fast and reliable thanks to the research of Metcalfe, and the technology is constantly improving.

Filed Under: Computers, Internet Tagged With: Data Communications, Ethernet, Fibre Channel over Ethernet, Intel, Intel Corporation, Local area network

The Advantages of Paying for Your Own Domain and Hosting

December 13, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

While a lot of the free options out there are a great way to get your feet wet when it comes to building a business through the computer, there are many advantages to paying for your own domain and hosting. Here are a few reasons why you should consider moving your free webpage to a paid one.

The biggest advantage to getting your own domain and hosting is that you are in absolute control over your content. You decide what goes on your website, even if it isn’t socially acceptable material. If you are relying on a free service you are at the mercy of what they deem acceptable if you violate their terms and conditions they have the right to revoke your website privileges at any time. This means you will lose all of the hard work you’ve done creating a strong readership.

Another good reason to get your own domain and hosting account is because a lot of the free services shut down relatively frequently. It’s really frustrating when you lose all of your work just because the service you were using decided to go out of business. The other risk you leave yourself open to when you decide to use free hosting and names is the fact that the service provider can decide to charge you at any time a lot of programs start out free but then move to paid platforms later.

Another convincing reason that paying for your own domain is a good idea is because when you own it you can then turn around and sell your website if you find out that it really doesn’t have the business potential that you thought it would initially. Just because the domain name is not useful to you anymore doesn’t mean that someone else can’t use it for their own purposes.

Filed Under: Computers, Internet, Web Hosting Tagged With: Computers and Internet, Domain name, Web hosting service

The Disadvantages of Free Websites

December 12, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

While free websites have a lot of perks to them, like easy drag and drop features, they also have a few disadvantages as well especially if you are trying to establish a well respected online business persona. Here are a few reasons why a free website might not be the way to go for you and your computer endeavors.

One of the biggest reasons why you might want to consider steering clear of the free website pull is because of the ads that will get placed on your pages. Unfortunately, many of the ads will not be geared toward your target audience which makes you lose a lot of readers very few people want to sift through the unrelated ads to get to your content. However, not all free websites place ads on your pages because they make money in other ways.

Another downside to having a free website is the fact that almost all of them will say free at the bottom. Most of the time the text is small and isn’t very obtrusive looking; however, it definitely isn’t what you want your readers to see when you are trying to look professional. If you are paying for your own hosting and domain you never have to deal with looking unprofessional because of the banners and advertisements that are placed on your page.

Unfortunately, most free websites aren’t very customizable. This is perfectly fine when you are first starting out since you probably won’t know very much HTML and coding at that time. However, once you gain a little bit more experience it’s always nice to know that you have full control over how your web page looks to the online community. You also don’t have very much control over what kind of content you can place on your page adult related stuff is normally out.

Filed Under: Computers, Internet, Safety, Web Hosting Tagged With: HTML, RSS, Web design, Web Design and Development, Website

How to Promote Your Computer Business

December 11, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

Aside from sitting down and planning out your computer business, promotion is one the most important aspects of your success. There are many different ways to successfully promote your business it really boils down to how much time you have available on your hands. Here are a few of the most common methods of promoting your new computer business.

One of the first things you should do when you start a computer business online is to sign up for some of the social media networking sites. Your readership isn’t going to be large at first, but eventually these social media sites will be one of the best ways to notify your readers of a change within your business. The key here is to create a link to your pages in your profile section and to update often. Consider it a way to keep them up to date with new articles and products.

Joining forums that are related to your business can also help you grow your readership and find potential customers. Just make sure that you read through the rules of the board carefully before you start placing links to your site in your signature or posts a lot of forums don’t allow that anymore. You should always try to bring something of value to your readers, whether you’re writing an article for your site or replying to a post on the forum.

Another great way to promote your computer based business is to write a few articles every couple of weeks for free publishing platforms. This helps get your name out there and generate a few back links. Many of them even offer a shared revenue program that gives you the potential to make some pocket change from the articles that you are submitting. Again, you’ll still want to provide value to your readers with these articles so don’t get over-promotional with these.

Filed Under: Computers, Internet, Open Source, Search engine optimization Tagged With: Business, Facebook, Internet marketing, LinkedIn, Small business, Social media, Social network, Twitter

The Importance of Unique Content

December 10, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

One of the most important things you can do for you business when you are trying to establish your online brand is to use unique content. You can choose to write the content yourself or you can outsource to other people to do it for you. Either way, it’s vital that the work is not scraped off of someone else’s blog or website. Here are a few reasons why being unique is so important in the online world.

To start with, Google does not like duplicate content. If it finds several duplicate pieces of work it will either index just one of them and then let the rest slip into oblivion, or simply choose to not index any of the articles. Once your page is de-indexed you don’t stand a good chance at getting it back into the ranking game this really sucks when you’ve poured a lot of money and research into your business idea.

Writing unique content gives you an edge on your competition. Your readers are following you because they are interested in what you have to say not the person that is competing with you. If you start duplicating content you will begin to lose trust and interest from your followers which will in turn hurt your money making opportunities. Consumers don’t want to visit ten websites that all say the same thing give them a reason to buy from you, and you alone.

The most important reason that places unique content far above duplication is the fact that copying the work that someone else has done is just wrong. They took the time to research and write it, you shouldn’t steal that from them. If you want to use someone’s idea consider quoting them and then linking back to their website on yours, or just using it for inspiration.

Filed Under: Computers, Internet, Linux, Programming, Software

Why Finding a Good Sports Betting Site is Important

December 10, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image by Marit & Toomas Hinnosaar via Flickr

Some people think of online gambling as a scam run by casinos and other betting outlets in order to take their money. While not all online casinos, betting outlets and websites are scams, some of them are — so it’s important to know how to spot a scam and how to find the best sports betting sites out there.

By finding the best websites to place bets on you will ensure that you are giving your money to a trusted site that does not run scams on their customers. Some legitimate sites do not do anything illegal but they have rules and regulations that make a big impact on whether or not you will win on bets and how you will get paid out.

Firstly, the legitimate companies will have all their terms and conditions laid out on their website. This is important, as you will know what you are getting yourself into. Take the time to make sure that they do not have any odd rules regarding payouts. Some of these rules are that they will not pay to certain countries or you cannot get your winnings until you have spent a certain amount of money.

The best way to determine whether or not a site is legitimate is to take a close look at the website. It should have a twenty four hour customer service line that you can call if you encounter any problems. The site should also have legitimate advertising. This means that if the site is full of pay per click ads it is likely that they rely on the revenue from them for their income. Legitimate sites often sell advertising space instead.

Once you have found a site to be legitimate check to see if other customers are happy with their service. If they are it is sure to be a good sports betting website.

Filed Under: Internet Tagged With: Gambling, New Jersey, Online gambling, Sports betting

Defining Internet Cookies

December 6, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

When you hear the word, “cookies,” you think of warm cookies baking in your oven, but Internet cookies are completely different. Newspapers and magazines often define cookies as “programs that websites place on your hard disk.” As it turns out, the newspaper definition of Internet cookies is wrong. Computer experts claim that cookies aren’t programs. The newspapers also say that cookies “gather information about everything you do on the Internet.” This statement is also incorrect because cookies are incapable of gathering information about computer users or computers themselves. A more correct definition of an Internet cookie is a piece of text that a web server stores on your computer’s hard drive. In other words, they allow websites to store information on your computer in order to retrieve that information later on.

Let’s say, for example, that you use Internet Explorer to browser the web. You can actually view all the Internet cookies that are stored on your computer’s hard drive from your c:windowscookies directory. The directory contains text files with name-value pairs. The directory also contains a single file for each web site that you have visited. For example, web sites generate a unique ID for each visitor, and then stores that number on your computer in a text file.

The c:windowscookies directory contains simple text files. You can open the text file and view which Web site placed the file on your computer. The file name also displays the web site’s name. For example, if you visited goto.com, the web site will place a cookie on your computer, and the cookie file for the web site may look something like this:

UserID A9B3CD057892D www.goto.com

In the above example, the name of the pair is UserID, and the value is A9B3CD057892D. The first time you visit goto.com, the website will assign you a unique ID and store it on your computer.

You can also open the file by double-clicking it.

Filed Under: Internet, Open Source, Operating Systems, Software Tagged With: HTTP cookie, Internet Explorer, Web server, Website