Over the past two years I have thoroughly enjoyed using my Palm Treo 700wx and I love having Windows Mobile as my mobile operating system. I was content with what I had until recently when the Apple iPhone 3G and other new technological advances in mobile devices had been announced. I have been doing a lot of reading about features included with these new devices and it’s enough to make anyone dizzy from information overload. Almost every blog post I read ends with a disclaimer which states that a newer, better, and more powerful device with even more functionality is on the horizon. » Read more: Why I chose the HTC Touch Pro instead of the Apple iPhone
Google Launches Google Chrome Web Browser
September 2, 2008 No comments »As predicted and often blogged about over the last few years, Google officially announced it is ready to take on the browser market. For years, it’s been Internet Explorer or (IE) and Mozilla Firefox or (FF) as the main 2 contenders and to be honest, the latest version of FF has been a disappointment for me. Firefox 3 has crashed on more than one occasion and this could be attributed to plug-ins but, the error windows do not give an indication, it simply asks me if I want to report the error. » Read more: Google Launches Google Chrome Web Browser
Matt Cutts Interview – The Hidden Text Argument is Over
July 29, 2008 No comments »I found this interview with Matt Cutts very interesting. Even after all of the backlash about Goolge’s section 508 compliance, it seems as though the debate about “hidden text” on a website is a confirmed killer of PageRank. For the last few years, there have been debates about the use of the hidden jump menu’s and other tactics used by Black Hatters and White Hatters, either way you choose to go, here it is from the horses mouth. Use hidden text at your own peril.
I also enjoyed the comment he made about Niche sites and starting small. I have been preaching that for years. Every time I have a client come in and say “I want to be #1 on Google when someone types in xxx”, I have to explain this.
Also, pay attention to the end of the interview when Matt is asked what he would do if he had more time on his hands.
Enjoy!
Adobe Flash is now Search Engine Friendly!
July 1, 2008 No comments »Big news in the web development world today. Adobe released a statement saying that it has been working with Search Engine engineers and they started to release algorithms that are searching for and indexing content in Flash based web content. Here is a blog post from Google on the matter.
What does this mean?
It means that you are going to start seeing more Flash content features and full-blown websites. Up until now, developers have had to use frames, alternate content and other forms of trickery to get their flash based content indexed in search engines, not anymore.
The iPhone and Mobile dilema
Unfortunately, with the current world-wide push to mobile devices such as the iPhone, which does not currently support Flash, Flash based web content will still need to be used with a caveat that a customer will be segregating their website from mobile users. Developers can still use sniffers and alternate content but, why? The ability to auto-scale Flash on a development level has been out for years. I really hope Apple opens its eyes on this and the issue of mobile TV. Time will tell. Do I even need to mention the issue of forcing customers to use AT&T?
The 3 Year Rule
Typically, engineers and developers are ~3 years ahead of consumers so, my hope is that in the next 3 years, the mobile players realize that we all like really cool websites with VIDEO and FLASH. Plain text might be cool to the WC3 but, consumers want eye candy. Visit the new Diablo 3 website for a recent example of some nicely done flash and video work. That is what I want my internet to be. What do you think?
How to Use Wordpress Blog Software
June 27, 2008 No comments »The first thing you need to know about WordPress is that it is free software. WordPress has a large development community which is constantly looking for bugs and security vulnerabilities. For this reason constant updates and feature enhancements are released.
Once a blog is installed by our engineers, you will receive a link and log in information. Below is a picture of a typical log in screen. » Read more: How to Use Wordpress Blog Software