Creating a website may seem to be a daunting task, especially if you have not done it before. However, the Internet has made so many things possible, and even easy, that practically anyone with the desire and willingness to learn can create a website on his own. There are so many guides you can follow which will teach you how to make a website. Let us do our share to help you in this regard with these simple steps to help you in starting a website if you are a complete newbie. [Read more…] about Starting a Website For a Complete Newbie
Web Tools
Attract More Twitter Followers Through Personalized Backgrounds
I’ve been trying to find out more about Twitter because I have a new goal to increase my Twitter followers. I’m in the midst of trying to reorient the whole thrust of my personal Twitter account and make it more streamlined in terms of content.
One of the things that I’ve been reading about regarding marketing your Twitter account is that it is easier to get more followers with a spruced up Twitter page. Various marketing experts and successful Twitter users have attested to the pull of a good Twitter background. [Read more…] about Attract More Twitter Followers Through Personalized Backgrounds
How do you say this and that?
“Between the two” OR “among the two”? What is the best sounding and most probably the right phrase to use between the two or should I say, among the two? Is there a tool that can help me with this?
Francesco Benetti from Italy had the same problem so he created Phras.in, a website that helps you decide on what phrase to use.
Simply enter two phrases that’s making your day miserable and watch the site show you the number of results instantly. Hit the contextualize button and see a side-by-side comparison of the two phrases based on its results. It’s a cool tool but does not necessarily mean that it’s a neat one. It’s still best to have a thesaurus and a dictionary close to you because the assumption that having higher number of results indicate common use and probably the right phrase does not really sound right. Phras.in, however, is a fast tool that’s nice to have around especially when you’re in search of the right phrase.
So let me go back, “between the two” or “among the two”? Let the results speak for itself.
The Evolution of Email
Ever wondered how long email has been around and how old the @ sign is? Our friends over at the Blog Herald sat down together with the crew of Infographiclabs and analysed the evolution of email. The result was another awesome infographic and looks at the history of email, how email functions, the spread of spam and some daily numbers for email.
I bet you all knew that Brazil the main spam provider is, followed by the USA, and not China?
In the teaser image below, a short timeline of the history of email. View the complete infographic over at The Blog Herald.
Yahoo Publishes Style Guide For Web Writing
Writing for the web is not an excuse for poor writing. This has always been a problem since there are a lot of bloggers and web site writers who have great ideas and excellent know how, but are sorely lacking in writing skills.
On the other hand, there are some good writers – in the traditional sense – who have encountered problems when writing for blogs and other web sites. Tech terms may prove to be difficult; formatting is another issue; and the list goes on and on.
Unlike academic writing, there really are no clear cut rules about writing for the web. Well, there are many rules – it’s just that we haven’t all agreed on one particular way of writing. That is, until Yahoo published its own Style Guide.
I am not that big of a Yahoo fan, but I am quite impressed that they took the initiative to create this Style Guide. It contains a huge amount of information covering the many aspects of writing for the Internet. From word lists (e.g., it’s 3D and not 3-D) to formatting tips to tips on how to write strong headlines – the Style Guide has a lot to offer.
Now I haven’t had the time to look at the Style Guide intently, but it does look promising. Access Yahoo’s Style Guide, the online version, and see for yourself. If you want the hard copy, you have to wait for it to be released on the 6th of July. I am happy to take a look at the online version first.
Let us know what you think about it.
Significantly Speed Up Your WordPress Blog in 9 Easy Steps
Your blog’s loading speed affects more than just user experience but is now a factor used by google to determine an overall ranking for your site. The reasoning is clear: according to Google and other search engines’ goals, which is to provide the most relevant search results from sites that offer the best user experience. Site speed is definitely something we cannot not ignore and should take advantage of every opportunity to improve.
Here are 9 effective techniques and tips that can be easily implemented to make your blog lightning fast.
1. Disable Unused Plugins
This is one of the easiest things we can do to reduce load times. I know many of us get carried away trying out the thousands of cool plugins available but we need to bear in mind the fact that they use system resources. Assess whether you need the plugins that you have installed and determine if they necessarily serve a useful purpose. Also, deactivated plugins that are not deleted can possibly create loopholes and back doors that hackers can exploit so delete them and maintain security for your blog. [Read more…] about Significantly Speed Up Your WordPress Blog in 9 Easy Steps
