Hey, we all have our gripes with Windows, but it’s really not all that bad. In fact, one guy has drawn up a few points of difference (or similarities, if you please) between good of Windows and those nasty viruses, and… well, Windows does come out looking pretty good (we think)! Windows is not a virus.

Here’s what viruses do:

• 1. They replicate quickly…okay,Windows does that.
• 2. Viruses use up valuable system resources, slowing down the system as they do so…okay,Windows does that.
• 3. Viruses will, from time to time, crash your hard disk… okay,Windows does that, too.
• 4. Viruses are usually carried, unknown to the user, along with valuable programs and systems. Sigh…Windows does that, too.
• 5. Viruses will occasionally make the user suspect their system is too slow (see 2) and the user will buy new hardware. Yup, that’s with Windows, too.

Until now it seems Windows is a virus but there are fundamental differences: viruses are well supported by their authors, are running on most systems, their program code so fast, compact and efficient and they tend to become more sophisticated as they mature. So,Windows is ‘not’ a virus!

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Ecommerce…Be Fast to Be First

Internet offers a visitor the advantage of moving from one storefront to another, within few clicks. As a result, the online shopper has little tolerance to a slow & inaccurate service from any web storeowner. When you are into ecommerce website development, ensure that web store provides fast loading.

In the following points, we suggest few tactics for fast website loading:

Do not overburden your web page with heavy images and programming code
One of the reasons for slow loading websites could be the file size of a web page due to the type & quantity of images used on a page or the complexity of code.

Programming Code
Write a programming code that occupies least memory and offers manageable compromise to the display. Also, use search engine friendly code, as majority of your traffic would come from search engines.

Images
Reduce the size of all images appearing on your online storefront to minimize the loading time. Alter the file format and dimensions to minimize the image size.

Do not use heavy images or too many images in a single page. It is better to be less creative then to be less business oriented.

Host your web store with a powerful hosting company
Consider a hosting company as the entrance to your store. Imagine the loss to your ecommerce website development efforts if the entrance is small in size or frequently disallows visitors to enter the store.

It is advisable to host your web store with a powerful hosting company that can manage more than expected traffic and can consistently support fast loading of websites.

Ecommerce works 24/7 and your store should be ready to entertain orders, all the time. Ensure that you host your store at a location that is secure and provides strong resistance to all Internet aggressions. After all, you do not want to display ‘we are closed’ to your ecommerce clients and create a negative impression.

Understand the Bandwidth resources of the targeted visitors
Understanding of the bandwidth limitations of your target audience can be valuable statistics in ecommerce website development. Build a ecommerce store that works without any delays or breaks at a bandwidth that is largely used by your target audience. Reducing the dependency on the web server, for functions that can be easily handled by the client machine, will increase the flexibility of your online store.

Test Your Ecommerce Store Periodically
Frequently test your ecommerce store for its average download time. Calculate the loading time at a bandwidth used by your target audience. It is also advisable to test the traffic handling & order processing capabilities of your store, especially during peak season of online shopping. Lastly, ensure the store is error free and offers a smooth transit to a user within your store.

In ecommerce, you have to be fast & accurate in providing what the customer wants from your storefront. If you fail to provide fast loading website you may end up having unsatisfied customers and lesser business.

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Individuals, of all different ages, enjoy meeting and communicating with other internet users.  Despite the fact that individuals of all ages use the internet to socialize, there are certain groups of individuals that do more than others. Those groups of individuals include students, both high school students and college students. For that reason, it is only fitting that there should be a social networking website that has a focus on these particular individuals. That networking website is known as Facebook.

Facebook may not be as well known as other popular social networking websites, such as Yahoo! 360 or MySpace, but it is still popular.  That popularity is mostly among high school students and college students, mostly because Facebook focuses on these individuals in particular.  With Facebook, you are required to register for a specific network. That network can either include the high school or college which you attended or are currently attending.  Once you have joined the website, you should easily be able to make contact with others who are in the same network.

The network in which you join can be considered an advantage of Facebook, as well as a disadvantage.  See, Facebook does not work like most other social networking websites.  Instead of being able to communicate with all site members, you are limited to contact with those that are in your particular network, the high school or college you that selected.  The creators of Facebook state that this is for your own safety.  Although it is safer for your profile and personal information to be viewed by a small number of individuals, you may not necessity want it to be that way.

Although a large amount of focus is placed on high school students and college students, Facebook has added another popular feature to their website. That feature is workplace networks. By joining a specific workplace network, you will be granted access to other community members who work for the same company as you. This feature is nice, especially since many companies have become large corporations or expanded across the country.  You may be able to make contact and become friends with a long-distance coworker that you never knew you had.

Another aspect of Facebook that you may find inconvenient is their lack of available information, before you decide to become a community member.  When viewing their online website, which can be found at www.facebook.com, it is hard to tell whether or not the site is free to use.  Most online social networking sites will make this known right upfront, but Facebook does not.  Aside from the price, you should easily be able to obtain additional information on Facebook, before making the decision to become a member. This additional information may include how Facebook works, why you should become a member, how the invite process works, and general rules and restrictions that are in place.

If you are interested in joining the Facebook community, you should do what you should do with all other social networking websites, research.  By taking the time to research and examine everything that Facebook has to offer, you should be able to decide whether or not this popular networking community is what you were looking for.  There is a good chance that it will be, but if not, do not worry. There are literally an unlimited number of other social networking websites that you can join.

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Before you upgrade your Windows XP workstations to Windows Vista, be sure to check whether the hardware will support the upgrade. To do this, use the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor. Be sure however to download the latest version of Upgrade Advisor from the Microsoft Download Center, and be sure to plug in any peripherals such as printers, scanners, and so on before you run the utility. To run upgrade advisor, you need to be an administrator on your XP workstation and you need to have Internet connectivity. You also need to have the .NET 2.0 Framework installed and MSXML 6.0, which Upgrade Advisor will prompt you to download and install if you don’t already have these components installed on your workstations.

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More than ever, today’s web-savvy consumers use comparison shopping engines (CSEs) to research products before they make buying decisions. Since CSEs place the offerings of many merchants side by side, shoppers can compare prices and features at a glance. Are your products well represented in these search engines? This article reviews the major CSEs and provides some tactics to help web merchants get listed.

The Leading CSEs

The list of leading shopping engines in the United States includes Shopping.com™, Yahoo® Shopping, BizRate®, DealTime®, Shopzilla, NexTag®, MSN® Shopping, PriceGrabber, Froogle™, AOL Shopping, and mySimon. Shopping.com is the most popular CSE, followed by Yahoo Shopping and Froogle.

Kelkoo is the leading comparison shopping search engine for the United Kingdom and Europe. According to the company, 16 out of the top 20 e-commerce sites in the UK currently advertise through the engine.

Brief descriptions of the major CSEs and other engines are available from SearchEngineWatch.com

Choosing the Right CSEs for Your Business

While it is recommended that you list your products in as many CSEs as possible, web merchants should weigh the options carefully to determine which CSEs are the most appropriate and most effective for your online business.

You can start by researching all of the popular engines to determine which are the most popular with your customer base. All CSEs are not created equal; and some engines are more popular for some products than others. You should also determine where your competition is listed and ensure that your most competitive products are listed in that engine as well. If you are represented well by a search engine that is frequently visited by customers looking for your products, your chances of making a sale will be better!

For many merchants, a key differentiator is user-friendliness. Your products and their specifications have to be uploaded into the CSE. How easy is it for you to update data about your products? Is the process automatic or does it require that you log in to the site each time you want to make updates? The ease with which you can update your data will be in an important factor in determining how often you will upload products to the CSE. The level of complexity of the CSE will be sure to have an impact the effectiveness of your campaigns.

Tactics for Success

• Set a budget – Some of the CSEs offer basic listings for free. For example, Yahoo Shopping, Froogle, and PriceGrabber all offer free basic membership. However, in order to really leverage the benefits of these engines (and more advanced selling tools and privileges), you’ll want to participate in the paid listing programs. Note that some of the comparison engines require you to pay a commission when a sale is made. Others charge the merchant every time a user clicks through to one of your products. It is advisable that you find out which search engine offers the most ideal arrangement for you and then set a budget accordingly.
• Leverage product feeds – Most of the CSEs allow you to submit information about the products you want to sell via a “feed.” The feed is typically provided to the shopping site in a text or CSV file and includes product specifications such as name, description, price, image location, and shipping charges. The feeds make it easier for you to keep your product listings current on the CSEs.
• Carefully monitor and manage campaigns – All of the CSEs provide a web interface that lets you manage your listings and typically the cost-per-click (CPC) bidding process. It is recommended that merchants monitor their campaigns on a weekly or even daily basis and make adjustments as needed. The goal is to ensure products receive competitive listings on an ongoing basis.
• Differentiate – Since you’ll be going head-to-head with the competition on CSE sites, you need to do everything you can to make your products stand out. Advertising free shipping or a free gift with purchase could be the deciding factor that makes a shopper click through to your site instead of another merchant’s. Another way to differentiate is to use the ratings features on these sites to achieve high ratings. These rating systems can go a long way toward building trust with potential buyers.
• Stay current – The ever-widening world of CSEs changes often—and fast. You can stay current on the latest CSE news and strategies by reviewing sites like www.comparisonengines.com and www.searchenginewatch.com

Get going now!

It today’s highly competitive world of web marketing and ecommerce, comparison shopping engines are a must if you want to compete effectively. If you are not already listed with these engines, it’s time to get going! This way, you can reap the benefits of increased traffic and sales these hugely popular sites can bring your online business.

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1. Fool Your Coworkers With the Refrigerator Handle Switch
On most fridges (certainly the ones in most offices), you can flip the hinges from one side to the other, allowing you, for example, to open the door on either side for corner placement. Typically, one switches the handle as well, but if you don’t, the refrigerator becomes a nearly unsolvable puzzle as victims pull and pull on the handle. If no one’s watching, some will even dig in their foot against a nearby counter and pull in vain directly against the hinges.

Make the switch to your office fridge right before the lunch rush, and settle in with a sandwich to watch the fun. The beauty of this prank is that once someone knows the trick, they can’t wait to see someone else fall for it.

2. Lock Your Buddy’s Shopping Cart at Lunch
Shopping carts are often protected against theft by a wheel-locking mechanism that’s triggered when the vehicle leaves a store’s premises. A yellow line is painted around the perimeter of say, the local market where you and a colleague might eat lunch tomorrow, and buried underneath it is a cable that emits a changing magnetic field signaling the carts to lock.

Build your own backpack-size, battery-powered yellow line to lock and unlock carts within the store, playing “red light/green light” with unwitting shoppers. That may sound a bit cruel, but the creator of this project on our site said most locked-out victims were laughing and talking to each other when stalled—and choosing a Saturday morning instead of a Monday afternoon seems to make a big difference in morale.

This is an advanced project utilizing high-current micro-controllers and signal processing, but the payoff in geek credibility is huge—and you can’t even come close to buying this at a prank shop. What’s more, once you’ve locked a friend’s cart and decided you can’t actually bring yourself to lock a stranger’s, you’ll still have a beefy H-bridge capable of controlling around a 50-volt, 30-amp-plus motor for your next build.

3. Germinate Your Cubicle Mate’s Keyboard
Got an environmentally conscious colleague whose Spring Break coincides with April Fools’ Day? Sprout some seeds to turn their keyboard green! Seeds will start growing almost anywhere where there’s a bit of water, so build a quick greenhouse on your own: Cover the keyboard with some wet paper towels or toilet paper, then throw it all in a large plastic bag Don’t worry, people have had success dishwashing their keyboards before, so some moist paper probably won’t cause any permanent damage.

This is a great prank because it’s obvious that at least a week of planning went into it. Worse comes to worst? Plead innocent: “I thought you were trying to be more green!” Not enough time to germinate seeds? Try hot gluing on 1 sq. ft. of real grass turf.

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Role of Personalization in Ecommerce Business Development

Effective personalization of web store not only helps in creating lasting impression on your visitor but also optimizes your resource utilization and hence generates higher ROI.

The importance of correct and effective communication with your clients cannot be overlooked. Ecommerce involves mediums of communication wherein one to one interaction gets minimized with your clients. Thus, to keep up the repo with your visitors becomes all the more challenging and asks for more creativity on the part of the web store owner. The interactive value of your website carries high importance.

Personalization in Ecommerce becomes all the more difficult but if done effectively, reaps better online business and helps you gain loyal consumers. In this article we discuss the important features that can be used to personalize you store and also highlight means to gain important information about your customers.

Personalization can be achieved through: -

Content & Communication:
The quality of the language used in the web store should be in tandem with the general tastes & preferences of the target audience. For Example: Product Description should stress upon that quality of a product that is valued most by the end user and not by the one which you think is the best.

Secondly, external communication carried out through Newsletters, or emails should require more personalization efforts to get better results.

Design & Layout:
Color combinations, template design, site navigation, font colors and size are few important aspects that can make you hit or miss a lead. Try to gain an insight of the targeted consumer minds before you start designing your ecommerce store.

Operational Flexibility:
Many a times, the targeted class would like to deal through a not-so-common payment method or would prefer a not-so-popular shipping carrier. You have to gauge the limitations or preferences of your consumers and adjust your web store.

Now comes the Big Question: How do You know about the needs of your Customer? Or What should be the ideal behavior with your customer?

Following can help your to find important insights:

Product Personalization Question:
Product personalization question invites the visitor write their specific taste or preferences for a particular product. This may help you know about the variants preferred, the modifications desired in the product and may such important aspects that can be used in future resource planning.

Comments during checkout
Request your customer to fill up the Feedback form describing his experience with the website during the check out process. This will give you important insights about the wants the visitor perceptions, his needs, satisfaction levels, suggested changes and most importantly its sends the message, “ U CARE ”. A structured responsive feedback form would be more appreciated and get higher responses. It would also help to get you the data in the structure you would have anticipated.

Product Review
Inviting visitors to review each product he might be visiting at your website acts as another Feed Back Mechanism. Visitors review can also be published to generate a feeling of third party advertising.

You may require custom shopping cart to accommodate these changes, as standard shopping cart software does not support such functionality.

The most important thing would be to work on the suggestions & feedback of your website visitors. Understanding a customer and making the changes as per their needs, highlights the value you offer to your customers. Personalize your offering and your web store to migrate normal customer to the level of loyal customers.

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If you enjoy using the internet to meet new people online, there is a good chance that you have heard of or even used a social networking website before.  Social networking websites are websites that allow internet users with the same interests, views, and beliefs to come together online.  In a way, a social networking site is similar to a community or neighborhood. Although there is a good chance that you have used a social networking service before, there is a chance that you haven’t.  If you haven’t but you are interested, you will have to find a social networking website to join.

When it comes to finding a social networking website, you will find that you literally have an unlimited number of different options.  Social networks have popped up all over the internet. Of course, you can join as many social networking sites as you would like to, but doing so can be tiring and time consuming.  Instead of signing up for a large number of social networking sites or the first one that you come across, you are advised to research and examine a particular site.  Doing so will enable to find and join the perfect social networking site, at least the one that is perfect for your needs.

As previously mentioned, when searching for a social networking website, you will find that you have a number of different options.  One of those options is likely to be FriendFinder. FriendFinder is known as one of the most popular online social networking websites. In a way, they are as just as well known as MySpace or Yahoo! 360.  If you are unsure as to whether or not you would like to join FriendFinder, you are encouraged to examine the site. After examining the features, the programs, and the benefits of joining, you may find that FriendFinder is a social networking community that you want to be a part of.

The goal of FriendFinder, as well as many other social networking websites, is to allow you to meet other internet users. With special search features and detailed profile pages, social networking websites allow you to find an individual who shares the same interests, views, or beliefs as yourself.  With many network community members posting their pictures, you could also, if you desire, choose a friend based on their physical appearance. Even though it is possible to do, it has led many individuals to misunderstand what FriendFinder is all about.  Unfortunately, a large number of individuals believe that it is solely an online dating site.

Of course there are always community members that will meet, date, or even get married. All social networking websites, including FriendFinder, have these types of close relationships.  However, FriendFinder is not necessarily classified as a dating website.  Although you can choose to date other members if you want, it is not required.  In fact, a large number of FriendFinder community members are not looking for a relationship, just an online friendship. This means that you should not feel any pressure when it comes to joining this popular online community.

Speaking of joining FriendFinder, you will also find that you have a number of different options. FriendFinder has a number of different membership plans. These plans start out as free and then increase from there.  A free membership plan will allow you to browse member profiles, chat, and send private messages.  Although there are a number of things that you can do at FriendFinder for free, you are encouraged to obtain one of their paying memberships, especially if you like the website. These paying membership grant you access to top of the line website features.

If you are interested in becoming a member of FriendFinder, whether it be a free member or a paying member, you are enounced to check out the FriendFinder website. That website can be found by visiting www.friendfinder.com. Although nothing is guaranteed, there is a good chance that you will like what you see, as well as meet a large number of community members that you may develop a close relationship with.  .

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A common sight when trying to get older software to work with Windows Vista is having to manually register DLL/OCX files using Regsvr32. There has been countless times where I have been working along in a piece of software and then all of a sudden it gives me an error about a DLL that it can’t access. The typical response to this is to run regsvr32 dllname.dll to register the DLL.

Occasionally, I run into Error 0×80004005 when registering these files. This error sounds highly complicated, but what it all boils down to is a rights issue. This error basically means that you don’t have the permissions to register the file you are trying to register.

This usually brings about the questions, “Wait! I’m logged in as an administrator?!”

Under previous versions of Windows, being logged in as an administrator is enough, but in Windows Vista there is a little thing called User Account Control (UAC) that prevents programs from running administrative tasks without first specifying that they are running as the administrator. This applies for the command prompt the same as it does for any other program. This being the case, right-click on the command prompt icon, and select “Run as Administrator”, and then try to register your DLL. This is a mistake that is usually frustrating enough that, once you figure it out, you won’t make too often.

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If your goal is to sell a product or service on the web, there is nothing more crucial than being able to communicate the benefits of that product or service effectively. Yet the number of poorly written, dull, drab and lifeless web pages found on lots of ecommerce websites is nothing short of mind boggling. This article provides 10 tips to help you write more effective copy for your web pages.

Tip #1: Master the Basics
First and foremost, your copy must be grammatically correct and free of all spelling errors and typos. All major word processors include tools to help you check spelling and grammar; use them! Other things to look for include overall readability, punctuation errors, capitalization errors, word choice, and consistency of style. If you know your writing skills aren’t up to snuff, you may want to consider taking a class or hiring a professional copy writer to assist with the writing and or editing task.

Tip #2: Satisfy the Scanner
Writing for the web is different than writing for other mediums. Long flowery paragraphs and lengthy prose simply won’t cut it online. The golden rule of the writing for the web can be summed up in three words: keep it simple! Web writers should keep in mind that there is very little reading that actually gets done online. The majority of web surfers quickly scan web pages for the information they seek. Knowing this, keep paragraphs short, and use type styling such as bold to emphasize key points.

Tip #3: Use Subheads Liberally
Another great way to help web surfers parse information quickly is through the use of subheads. Use them liberally. One paragraph per subhead will help visitors parse the information more readily and help you convert those browsers into buyers. Remember, however, that is imperative to keep the headlines as well as the text short and to the point. See also the tip about creating effective headlines below.

Tip #4: Get Personal
In any sales writing—but especially online—you’ve got to make sure to personalize your message in order to make it more attractive to your customers. The best way to do this is to speak directly to them in the first person. Use the word “you” often. And include personal examples rather than general. For example, “This month we have created a special deal just for you, our valued customer.” Your customers will feel an affinity with copy that reaches out specifically to them.

Tip #5: Know Your Audience
The key to being able to communicate with your customers on a personal level is to know who they are! Of course, it is impossible to know every customer personally. However, it is likely that your customers fit into a certain demographic. For example, if you sell baby products, chances are you sell to mom and dads. The tone of the content on a baby product site would be far different from one that sells automotive parts, for example. Once you’ve identified who is shopping on your site, write using the language of your target audience. It’s okay to use industry buzz words and technical jargon where appropriate. Just be careful not to overdo it.

Tip #6: Be Consistent
A common mistake that many websites make is the failure to be consistent. This includes consistency of language used and grammatical style, as well as the amount of copy on each page. If you offer three products, the web page for Product A should have about the same amount of copy as the pages for Product B and Product C. This will not only help set expectations but it will go a long way to helping you establish a more professional appearance.

Tip #7: Create Urgency
If you operate an ecommerce site, your goal is very likely to get your customers to click the “Buy” button and then follow through with a purchase. Consequently, the language on your site needs to support this. Try experimenting with call-to-action language that encourages your customers to buy now. Consider incorporating special offer language as well. Something like: “Buy within the next 24 hours and receive a free a gift”. Place this copy on key pages during the checkout process to reduce shopping cart abandonment.

Tip #8: Demand Attention with Effective Headlines
Any journalist or newspaper editor will tell you that effective headlines sell newspapers. The same is true online. The headline or the heading at the top of your web pages provides you with an excellent opportunity to sell your product or service more effectively. Consider the following two headlines for the same product:

• Brand New Apple iPod Nano - New in Box with Free Shipping!
• Apple iPod Nano

Which of these headlines are you more likely to click?

Tip #9: Use Visual Aids
Remember the old adage, “a picture is worth a thousand words?” Heed this advice! If you are serious about selling online, you’ve got to supplement your web content with pictures, diagrams, drawings, etc. if you’re going to land the sale. After all, if you were buying something—say a baseball card, antique, or some other collectible—wouldn’t you rather see a photo of it, rather than relying on a description saying that it is in “mint” condition.

Tip #10: Be Search Engine Friendly
Writing top notch web pages for your website is pointless if no one can find them. Therefore, make sure that the content on your pages is friendly to the major search engines. At minimum, make sure you select keywords that describe the overall content of the page. Place them in page titles, headlines, and paragraph content. Including phrases in the body copy that you have used in your other tags (i.e. meta tags, alt tags, headings, title, etc.) will also help boost your rankings. Keep in mind, however, that search engine marketing is a delicate science. As such, you may want to enlist the help of a professional search engine marketing firm to employ these and other strategies to ensure your pages receive top billing.

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