Why Linux Mint is the most user-friendly desktop operating system

I've tried just about every desktop the world has had to offer. Through the years, I've seen the ridiculously complex to the overly simple, the hardly useful to the very useful. Of late, the desktop seems to be trying hard to migrate to touchscreen technology -- without much success. But even with this lack of success (and lack of adoption on the desktop), some of the operating systems -- such as Ubuntu Unity, GNOME 3, and some of Windows 8 -- are still trying to pimp the touchscreen-friendly features. Thing is, those desktops aren't terribly user friendly. GNOME 3 has been called a disaster. I wouldn't go that far, but it does have some hurdles keeping it from true user friendliness.

Then along comes Linux Mint 12, taking the current state of the desktop and scoring a slam dunk in the user-friendly game. That's right... a Linux desktop might have just pulled way out in front by taking the best of both worlds and mashing them together to create something really special. Let me share with you why I believe Linux Mint 12 is the best of the best in desktop goodness.

1: Smart desktop

This is the biggest thing Linux Mint has brought to the table. Mint has taken GNOME 3, sprinkled in a dash or two of GNOME 2, and allowed the end user to flavor to taste. Basically, Mint has a new desktop subsystem that lets you enable/disable features from GNOME 2 onto GNOME 3. This combination results in an incredibly user-friendly desktop. You want your Start menu? You've got it. You want your bottom panel? You've got it. It's all there, ready to help you create the perfect desktop just for you.

2: Package manager

I've stood strong that the Ubuntu Software Center has been the single best package manager out there. Until now. Linux Mint has given the Ubuntu Software Center a bit of a makeover, resulting in a package manager that is at least as good as the Ubuntu Software Center. Not only does Linux Mint ship with the new and improved Software Center, it also retains both Gdebi and Synaptic. So you have three (four, including the command line) means of installing software on your Linux Mint desktop.

3: Advanced settings

This is actually just a repackage of Ubuntu Tweak, which offers some configuration options not found in the standard configuration tools. In Linux Mint, it plays host to a few configurations. One of these is the enabling/disabling of the various extensions that make up the Mint GNOME Shell Extensions (MGSE). You can also change themes, window behavior, and more. This settings tool is separate from the regular "control panel" settings window. I wouldn't mind this being rolled into the regular settings tool to avoid the possibility of confusion, but it's a welcome addition to the desktop.

4: Startup screen

This is just a minor addition the Linux Mint team made, but I think it goes a long way in terms of aiding the user friendliness of the distribution. I've been railing for quite some time that Linux desktops need a startup screen that gives the new user ideas about where to go for more information. Linux Mint does this perfectly. And you can disable this feature once you're done with it.

5: Included applications

When you install Linux Mint 12, you have pretty much everything you need. Unlike many distributions, Mint didn't drop The Gimp (sounds like lyrics from an 80s rap song), and it retains most of the standard hits: LibreOffice (office suite), Firefox (Web browsing), Thunderbird (email), Nautilus (file management), Brasero (disk burning), Pidgin (instant messaging), Banshee (music), VLC (video), and much more. I was happy to see the retention of The Gimp, Banshee, and the addition of VLC.

6: Themes

There are two desktop themes -- along similar lines with Ubuntu -- a light and a dark theme. But in the case of Linux Mint, the included themes are actually quite nice. The Z-light theme is the default and is both professional and personable. I know, that might not make much sense, but think of it this way: Both of the Mint themes are well suited for either a business environment or a personal environment. And unlike the standard GNOME 3 windows, the Linux Mint windows retain the minimize buttons! These themes work and work well.

7: Samba

When you install Ubuntu, the process of sharing out folders is simple but usually requires the additional installation of Samba. If installed from the DVD version of Linux Mint, everything is included for the sharing of folders. So this process is a right-click away from sharing your folders on a Windows network. As simple as it gets.

8: Installation

The installation routine is borrowed from Ubuntu. It's easy. Its' incredibly easy. In fact, you would be hard pressed to find an easier installation for an operating system. Now I will say, if you're installing from the DVD, the process isn't quite as fast as the Ubuntu distribution. That should be understandable, considering more applications are installed by default.

9: Domain blocker

This is a nice little addition to any Linux desktop. This tool (Mint Nanny) offers a simple means of blocking various domains from being seen from the desktop. Effectively, Linux Mint comes complete with parental controls built -in. And this tool is simple to use. Fire it up, add the domains, watch 'em get blocked.

10: Mate

This is an amazing addition. If your hardware can't power GNOME 3, fear not. You can run Classic GNOME, thanks to Mate. Mate is a fork of GNOME 2 and is basically the 2D mode for GNOME. The Mate desktop includes a bottom panel, start button, system tray, and desktop launchers. Of course, you don't need to have less-powered hardware to enjoy a pseudo-GNOME 2 desktop. From the login screen, choose Mate and you're good to go.

Source techrepulic

By: thecodewhiz On 11:19 PM

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Samsung Galaxy S5 vs S4: New Features

Samsung has announced the Galaxy S5, the successor to the Galaxy S4, during its Unpacked5 event at Mobile World Conference 2014 in Barcelona. After all the rumors and leaks, Samsung has finally unveiled its fifth flagship smartphone to take on Apple and Microsoft, as well as the many other Android OEMs.

Before you run out and buy the latest and greatest from the South Korean company, assuming you’re not interested in iOS or Windows Phone, you might want to check what exactly you’re getting for your hard-earned cash. We’ve put together the following table to show you what exactly Samsung has changed between the S4 and the S5.

	Galaxy S4	Galaxy S5
Storage	16GB, 32GB, 64GB	16GB, 32GB
Display	5-inch, 1920×1080, 441 ppi	5.1-inch, 1920×1080, 432 ppi
Processor	1.9 GHz Quad-Core / 1.6 GHz Octa-Core	2.5GHz Quad-Core
Memory	2GB RAM	2GB RAM
Rear Camera	13MP	16MP
Front Camera	2MP	2.1MP
Battery	2,600 mAh	2,800 mAh
Network	4G LTE Cat 3 100/50Mbps	4G LTE Cat.4 150/50Mbps
Connectivity	USB 2.0, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC	USB 3.0, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC
Height	5.38 inches (136.6 mm)	5.59 inches (142.0 mm)
Width	2.75 inches (69.8 mm)	2.85 inches (72.5 mm)
Depth	0.31 inches (7.9 mm)	0.32 inches (8.1 mm)
Weight	4.59 ounces (130 g)	5.11 ounces (145 g)
Colors	White/Black/Blue/Brown/Purple/Red/Pink	White/Black/Blue/Gold
OS	Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)	Android 4.4 (KitKat)

Given that the Samsung Galaxy S5 is expected to be priced similarly to the Samsung Galaxy S4, you’re essentially paying for a heavier, bigger, and more powerful device. The Galaxy S5 will arrive via Samsung’s retail channels and at carriers in April. Will you be getting one?

By: thecodewhiz On 10:32 PM

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Top 15 SEO and Online Marketing Myths

SEO and online marketing are two big areas that are quite confusing and with plenty technicalities. This as a result makes it hard for folks to understand what is and is not true.The shifting considerations of Google, and subsequent algorithm updates which hit the headlines, do nothing to help clear up this confusion and therefore it’s worth looking more closely and dispelling some of most commonly held myths which still remain persistent in the SEO business:

01. It's all about the rankings
Traditionally both clients and SEOs have been obsessed with rankings. Many customers still think that their website has a specific position in Google for a particular keyword. In reality this is not the case and this assumption can cloud the perception as to the effectiveness of an SEO campaign.
The reality is that given the degree of sophistication that Google has nowadays, it is no longer appropriate to talk about rankings but rather, average rankings. Google shows different results depending on multiple factors that are beyond the control of the webmaster: user’s geographic location, user’s search history, suggested contacts in G+, etc. In reality, websites can be optimised to "oscillate" around certain positions but will be subject to fluctuations depending on the searcher. Rather than considering Google rankings as the main KPI of your SEO campaign, these days it is far more appropriate to focus on traffic and conversion increases.


02. It's all about the links
This is another one of those myths that, although it has a basis in truth, is still very commonly misunderstood. As noted above, Google uses numerous factors to determine which position a page should rank for a search query. It is commonly held that backlinks are a key component of demonstrating influence which in turn positively affects a website ranking. However, not all links are created equal.
The best way to think of a link is as a comment on a website. To be considered of value, it must be genuine, truthful, well considered and informative to be considered as true to the final user - which in the case is Google. Forget link directories, press releases, etc. If a link is easy to get, it’s probably not worth it and might even have a negative effect.

03. Black hat SEO works, it's automated and cheap
Good SEO cannot be automated and neither is it cheap. In what is affectionately referred to as black hat SEO, historically, SEOs would try to find flaws in the Google algorithm and exploit them to get good rankings in Google. It is true that until a few years ago, these techniques could still be effective and function with a relatively high degree of automation. However, since Google began more severely penalising websites for these kind of practices - and particularly within their latest updates –black hat SEO is neither effective, nor cheap.


04. Google cannot read JavaScript
This is another one of those myths that even though Google has been quite explicit in its explanation, can still be an area of concern and confusion for many SEOs. Google can read JavaScript and, in accordance with the latest official statements, are getting better at crawling AJAX (dynamically loaded) content, although it can be more difficult for search engines to do this. Historically, AJAX applications have been difficult for search engines to process because content is produced dynamically by the browser and not visible to crawlers.
However, despite the efforts Google made to be better at interpreting JavaScript and AJAX specifically, there are several techniques we can use to help Google to crawl and index the information loaded dynamically. Reading about the pushState method or having a look at the Google Webmaster help section is a good way to start.

05. If you invest in Adwords it will improve your SEO performance
This statement has been mentioned for quite some time now and it wouldn’t be surprising to still be thought of by many SEOs. Some believe that Google 'helps' those who make a significant spend in web advertising via Adwords.
It is best to believe Google’s official stance in regards to this statement. Officially the Organic Search team are independent and isolated from the teams working in advertising. It makes no sense that Adwords modifies the organic search results. It isn’t good for the user or Google, and the truth is that Adwords doesn’t need any more incentives to retain customers.

10 more Myths  online marketing myths for your local business

01. We Must Have Our Keyword In The Domain Name
This isn’t necessary! For those businesses just starting out with a vague understanding of SEO, it may seem like this is necessary. For local search even more than regular keyword search, having the keyword embedded in your domain name likely isn’t going to lend advantage all that much above all the other promotional activities you really need to be doing in order to achieve rankings.
Additionally, it should be pointed out that for established businesses, somewhere around half of your search referral traffic is likely to be brand name searches; so over time, the best approach is to focus your domain on your company name.

02. We Have To Have Great Ratings/Reviews!
I’ve explained previously that averaged ratings are not a ranking factor in Google (except in cases where users are allowed to filter/reorder results based on rating values, and for those business types that appear in the Local Carousel, which may factor in reviews slightly more). Thus, if you think this is a requirement for rankings, you’re probably off.
Obviously, people everywhere often take criticism very seriously, and it can be a gut-punch when you pour your heart into your work and aren’t met with glowing admiration in return. Chefs have been known to commit suicide over the loss of a Michelin star, for instance (an obviously maladaptive response), and there have been lawsuits over reviews. There are repeated stories of businesses claiming to be unfairly damaged by Yelp reviews and other online review sites.
It’s true that ratings and reviews can have an impact on your business, but they’re not affecting rankings. To play it safe, follow tips to get more reviews, make reviews work for you and respond effectively to bad reviews.
I’d also argue that if you’re doing a number of the other promotional activities you should be conducting, these should influence reviews positively, and also reduce your vulnerability to any one review site (and to reviews in general). Good social media work and other content development can help ensure that review sites are not the only things ranking for your name searches.
Finally, having all positive reviews may actually reduce consumers’ trust that your reviews are real — having a few negative reviews is realistic for a business, and I’ve seen some owners who respond professionally and effectively to those, transforming lemons into lemonade!

03. Twitter And/Or Facebook Are Worthless For My Type Of Business
It’s altogether true that some types of businesses have an easier time attracting consumers that wish to interact with them on social media. Yet, even if you operate in a category of business where people don’t want to connect with you as much in social media, you probably need to be doing social media, anyway.
Social media profiles such as Twitter and Facebook pages provide you with assets to help proactively manage your online reputation, and they may help you outrank your competition.
If you’re in an industry where customers don’t want to connect much online (I bet plumbers, funeral homes, attorneys and doctors can relate), you might be able to help position yourself as an industry expert by focusing on networking with colleagues and commenting upon topics related to your field and curating related content.

04. We Need A Separate Listing For Each Of The Cities In Our Area!
Google has definitely given some preference to the companies with a physical location in the city being searched upon for quite some time; but, it is not as strong a factor as it has been in the past. A business can rank in multiple cities in Google without having a physical location and listing for each one, although there are certainly companies that will obtain virtual addresses to rank and to give them multiple local listings.
Keep in mind, though, that with multiple listings, you need to increase your SEO promotional work to handle each additional address, or else you could be diluting your promo efforts across all the locations. Google allows you to select a service area to cover multiple cities, and if you promote a single location/listing, you can focus your efforts on that one without the intrigue of juggling listings.

05. We Don’t Need To Optimize For Mobile For Our Type Of Business
I hate to tell you, but if you don’t understand how much mobile usage has been increasing for the past ten years, chances are you’re still using a buggy whip with your transportation, a Victrola for your music and are maybe even churning your own butter.
Around 40% of time spent online is on mobile devices now, and this percentage is only likely to grow. So, make sure your site is optimal for those devices. Google has stated that failure to optimize for mobile can now impact your rankings, so this is one myth you had better lose pretty quickly.

06. I Just Need To Do Some Quick SEO For My New Business To Rank Tops In Google Local!
If your business plan depends on this, and if you’re in a market area where your type of business has many competitors, I think you’re in trouble. Do the math to see what your chances are. If there are 300 other local businesses that do what you do, and there are only up to seven local businesses listed in the first page of Google searches for your primary keyword, that only gives you a 2.3% chance of showing up there!
Actually, the real math is much worse, because chances are quite a lot of your competitors may have an established “incumbent” status that gives them greater ranking power than a newbie with no online history. Yes, it’s absolutely possible to rank — but, you’ve not only got to be doing an exceptional job at SEO, you need to be investing considerably in multiple approaches to promoting your business to new consumers so that organic rankings are not your only hope of getting business.
Consider again the number of existing competitors and the limited number of slots to appear on page one — you can be doing everything right and still not show up there. Be realistic! And, by the way, competitive SEO for a highly competitive category and market area will not be “quick” — it will require ongoing, consistent development work.

07. My Business Doesn’t Lend Itself To Photos/Videos
I’ve encountered this one sometimes when relating how to use images and video for local SEO. As a recap of the concept, using multimedia in your optimization efforts can give you more opportunities to appear in search results — particularly since Google and other search engines display blended search results that often include images and videos in addition to the regular search results. These pieces of content can also provide other opportunities for your business to be found, and they can help with your optimization.
In most cases, if you aren’t doing some amount of photo/video optimization, it’s probably because you haven’t let your imagination go. If your product or service isn’t all that interesting or photogenic, what about photographing production processes, company events or manufacturing processes? Or photographing other major events and sights in your area?

08. I Have To Know How Many Calls I Get From Each Different Channel Where My Business Listings Are Located — So, I Must Use Tracking Phone Numbers Everywhere
It may not be PC for a marketer like me to say that you don’t have to have more data, but, well… you don’t have to have this! Data is great, but not at the expense of actual performance. As a quick reprise of this issue: some agencies and businesses set up tracking phone numbers to be able to count how many calls they get from each information source where their listings appear.
The problem with this is that Google uses phone numbers as a unique identifier, and they crawl pages from many business information sources — if your business number is different in each place, it makes it more challenging for them to associate all the data with your listing, and therefore all of your ranking power might not get associated with your listing – reducing your chances to rank well in search results.
There are some ways to use tracking numbers on your website without causing issues, and you can use it on some types of advertising with no problem (like AdWords). Otherwise, if you don’t know what you’re doing — avoid this. Some solutions I’ve seen in the past could even potentially get you penalized.

09. We Need To Move To The Middle Of Our City To Get Google To Rank Us
Not exactly true, and not a reasonable approach to local SEO in most cases! As I’ve explained before, relocation for local rankings can be a case of mixing up cause and effect to some degree.
Google used to give huge preference to the centroid of a city area, but they’ve become more sophisticated, and there’s reason to believe that they give some preference to areas that have high degrees of popularity (i.e., a “PlaceRank” algorithm). This means that a city could have multiple areas that are popular (the center or downtown area, for example), and businesses located in such hotspots might have a little bit more ranking juice.
So, there’s an ounce of truth in the idea of relocating for SEO — it could lend you some benefit. But, your other promotional activities could help give you ranking power such that this isn’t a necessity. And, I’ve sometimes recommended methods for helping the area where you are located become more popular in and of itself — so, you could theoretically bring the popularity to your area rather than relocating. Moving your business isn’t required!

10. Microsites With Keyword-Focused Domains Are A Great Idea
This tactic went out with the Taft administration! This is probably one of the biggest overall SEO myths of all time — the idea that deploying masses of domains for every one of your keywords is somehow a shortcut to getting rankings and traffic for multiple different searches.
There was a period of time when this could work pretty effectively, but Google and other search engines are more sophisticated now. It’s been years and years since this worked. Even so, I still run into people with a cursory understanding of SEO who think they’ve hit upon a genius idea that no one else has thought up.
It’s completely true that having your keyword phrase in the domain name can lend some ranking advantage. However, you need many other strong ranking signals working in concert to enable the site to rank well — and, when people start rolling out these microsites en masse, they typically are doing it on a shoestring budget. All the work that you’d put into optimizing and promoting a single domain site begins to get diluted when your time and efforts are spread across many domains, and the result is that the individual microsites end up being fairly weak.
Worse yet, if you’re sloppy in doing it, you might end up publishing duplicate page content across many sites, further diluting your ranking power. Or, worst of all, if you do this in large enough quantity you could get outright penalized by Google for engineering a linking scheme.
You can launch an extra site for individual products or for your individual locations, but don’t think you can get away with launching many sites to the point where you’re spamming up the search results. Be realistic and only launch as many sites as you can reasonably develop with quality content and promote properly.

If you’ve found yourself convinced of any of these myths — shrug them off! Don’t let outdated info or outright fiction distract your local marketing efforts or hamstring what you need to be doing.

What are some more local marketing myths that you’ve run across? Share them in the comments below!

Ultimately SEO and online marketing have evolved massively in recent years and those who work in the sector should try to distinguish fact from fiction. In a world where Social Media, Digital PR and SEO are converging, we have to forget old misconceptions and start doing accurate marketing if we want to succeed in SEO.
Sources
Creativeblog
Search Engine Land

By: thecodewhiz On 9:28 AM

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7 Simple Ways to Protect Your Gmail Account

Despite the rise of social networks , email is still the way many of us communicate, according to Mike Rothman, analyst and president of Phoenix-based security research firm Securosis.
The problem is that email is also the communication channel that's most often left unprotected and, as such, vulnerable to attack. Here are 7 ways to protect your Gmail Account

1. Keep Your Account Recovery Options Up to DateP

Mobile telephone number: If you forget your password, or if there is unusual activity on your account, Google can send you a security code via SMS for you to prove you are who you say you are. If someone has your account password it's quite unlikely they've also got your mobile phone. Google will only use your number for security purposes. Important: Keep this up to date! This won't be of much use if Google sends security codes to a phone number you no longer use.P

Recovery email address: Similar to the mobile phone number, this is a different email address where Google will send security codes and other important security messages, like when you've forgotten your username and/or your password. If you don't have a second email address, you can always use the email address of someone you trust (like a spouse).P

Alternative email address: This is different from the recovery email address in that this is a second address that you can use to sign in to your Google account. It also cannot be a Gmail account or an address that's associated with a different Google account.P

2. Use Two-Step Verification

This may be the single best way to protect your account. When you log in from an untrusted device, you'll be prompted not only for your password but also for a six-digit code sent to you that's unique for your device. Even if someone has your password, if they don't have access to your secondary device where your code is sent, then they can't complete the login.P

In case of emergency (if you've lost your phone or its battery dies), you can also generate a list of ten one-use codes that you can print out and keep in a safe place to use when accessing Gmail from a previously untrusted device. Notice, that "two-step verification" is not necessarily the same as "two-factor authentication," which can be even tougher to crack.P

3. Use a Strong, Unique PasswordP

There are lots of places to get advice on how to create a strong password online, so I won't belabor it again here. Just as important, however, is to never use the password for your Google account anywhere else. Every month it seems there's news of a site that has had user credentials stolen. While you may not care about the data that was on that site, since so many people re-use passwords that's where the value lies for the bad guys.P

Think about it: If you forget the password to your bank account, where does the reset password link get sent? Your email address. The password for your email should be the strongest of all.P

4. Set Gmail to Always Use HTTPS (SSL)P

Unless there is a technical reason not to, you should have Gmail set to always use a secure connection (HTTPS). This setting is found under Settings > General > Browser Connection.P

5. When Using a Shared/Public Computer...P

Use "private" or "incognito" mode in the browser: These modes (available in most modern browsers) prevent the storage of web history, form data, or cookies. If you can't use this mode, be sure to clear history and cookies after you log out.P

Log out from your account when you're done: This should go without saying, but people forget.P

6. Don't Fall for Phishing AttemptsP

No site should be asking you for your Google Account password except Google. Don't enter your password on any page you reach after following a link, even from someone you trust. Go straight to https://www.gmail.com or https://accounts.google.com/ServiceLogin instead.P

7. Keep Your System Secure and Up-to-DateP

Keep up with OS and browser updates. Make sure you use a trustworthy malware/virus scanner and keep it up to date as well.

By: thecodewhiz On 7:11 AM

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11 Reasons SEO is a Science

SEO is a science because it operates according to mathematical laws that are statistical reliable and predictive of human behavior.

1.    #1 reason people come to your website (source: Forrester)

2.    80% of people click on a website that is on the natural or organic side of the search engine page (source: Search Engine Watch)

3.    35% click through to the website that is in the #1 position (source: SEO Book)

4.    90% click through on a website that is on the 1st page (source: Search Engine Watch)

5.    Algorithms that comprise hundreds of criteria determine how websites rise or fall in rank for specific keywords

6.    Volume of search for any keyword and key phrase can be easily known with tools the the Google Keyword Planner and Wordtracker.

7.    Demand for those keywords, if it is increasing or decreasing over time, is measurable through Google Trends. So you can even predict what their value is both now and in the future.

8.    Search rank of your domain or your competitors’  can be tracked for any keyword or key phrase to help understand the rise or fall in rank by Ispionage or Rank Checker.

9.    Number of  links that increase or decrease your authority in a particular area and also influences search rank can be found through Majestic SEO or Alexa.

10.  Value the links, whether they are high or low value authority, can be determined by SEO Majestic and Marketing Grader.

11.  Machines, or  search bots, that do the searches on Google, Yahoo, Bing and other search engines are programmed to even identify the underlying meanings behind by keywords to returns the most meaningful results. The is called Semantic Search, predicted to play a more important role with the Google ”Hummingbird” algorithm.

Source biznology

By: thecodewhiz On 6:41 AM

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How to Draft Eye-catching Social Media bios

Drafting eye-catching social media bios may be one of the few things you have ignored in your product or service marketing strategy. Of course you already have accounts on a bunch of different social media, and you are using them to your advantage! Your bios on social networks such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Google Plus is important part of how you’re represented on the Internet.

A great bio displays your personality and professionalism year-round, and it’s also a quick and easy way for you to garner interest from potential clients.Here are the most important things you need to know when writing different types of professional bios.

Draft Eye-catching Social Media bios #1

 Show, don’t tell: “What have I done” > “Who I am”  Lots of us are fans, enthusiasts, thinkers and gurus on our social media profiles. But might it be more powerful if we talked instead about harnessing ideas, wrangling revenue, obsessing over culture and shepherding our teams?

The “show, don’t tell” principle of writing means focusing on what you do, not who you are – and that means action verbs. Try this list of action verbs for resumes and see if any of them add a little power to your profile.

LinkedIn senior manager for corporate communications Krista Canfield says the more details, the better to add some show to your tell.

“Don’t just say you’re creative. Make sure you reference specific projects you worked on that demonstrate your creativity,” she says.

Draft Eye-catching Social Media bios #2

 Tailor your keywords specifically to your audience. “Your Twitter bio should position you as an expert in your field who serves a specific audience,”says Dan Schawbel, author of Promote Yourself.

According to a PayScale Inc. study Schwabel was involved in, 65% of managers want to hire and promote subject matter experts.

Skip the generalist route and focus on what you’re an expert at. Those areas of focus are your keywords, and they should be front and center in any professional bio. All social media profiles are searchable to some degree, so being specific positions you to be able to be found easily for what you’re best at.

Draft Eye-catching Social Media bios #3

Keep language fresh and avoid buzzwords like the following: It happens – a once loved and useful word stops being so useful when it’s overtaxed. In your professional bio, think over the language and make sure it feels fresh, not overused.

Draft Eye-catching Social Media bios #4

 Answer one question for the reader: “What’s in it for me?” No matter what feats you’ve accomplished, potential followers mostly want to know one thing about you: What’s in it for me?

In marketing, that’s known as a value proposition – the promise of value to be delivered. What can followers expect from you? What value do you bring?

Draft Eye-catching Social Media bios #5

 Get personal and hire a stand-up comedian to write your bio: That last little tidbit of the bio – usually where a funny quip or a more personal fact goes – often trips us up the most. Being funny is tough – that’s why social media agency owner Gary Vaynerchuk often hires stand-up comedians to write social media posts. And it’s tough to pick one element of a fully rounded personality to focus on.

The key again, is specificity. Lots of us love social media, coffee and bacon. But if you love llamas, jelly donuts and spelunking, you just might stand out and connect with some interesting new people. Tell a one-of-a-kind story. What hobbies and passions are uniquely yours?

Draft Eye-catching Social Media bios #6

Revisit often: As your skills, areas of interest and expertise evolve, so should your bio. Check it every quarter or so to make sure it still reflects you the best it can.“The very best practitioners of short writing on blogs, on social networks, are people who are working over their prose. They’re revising it, with the same care they would if they were putting it on paper,” says Clark.

Source: bufferappblog

By: thecodewhiz On 6:34 AM

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Facebook buys Whatsapp for $19bn

Facebook has agreed to buy the mobile messaging company WhatsApp for $19bn (£11.4bn), the social network has announced.
The company said in a statement that it would pay $4bn (£2.4bn) in cash and $15bn (£9bn) in Facebook shares as part of the deal.
The app's founders and employees will get $3bn (£1.8bn) of the shares as restricted stock that will vest over four years after the deal closes.
The purchase marks the largest single acquisition in Facebook's 10-year history.
WhatsApp is a real-time mobile messaging service with more than 450 million monthly users. The app has more than one million new registered users each day.
WhatsApp will "continue to operate independently and retain its brand" despite the acquisition, Facebook said.
"WhatsApp is on a path to connect one billion people. The services that reach that milestone are all incredibly valuable," Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said.
Founded by a Ukrainian immigrant who dropped out of college, Jan Koum, and a Stanford alumnus, Brian Acton, WhatsApp is a Silicon Valley startup fairytale.
"I've known (WhatsApp CEO) Jan (Koum) for a long time and I'm excited to partner with him and his team to make the world more open and connected."
He added that the service "doesn't get as much attention in the US as it deserves because its community started off growing in Europe, India and Latin America.
"But WhatsApp is a very important and valuable worldwide communication network.
"In fact, WhatsApp is the only widely used app we've ever seen that has more engagement and a higher percent of people using it daily than Facebook itself."
The acquisition will also see Mr Koum - a former Yahoo! engineer - join Facebook's board of directors.
"WhatsApp's extremely high user engagement and rapid growth are driven by the simple, powerful and instantaneous messaging capabilities we provide," Mr Koum said.
"We're excited and honoured to partner with Mark and Facebook as we continue to bring our product to more people around the world."

Facebook is known to make bold moves to thwart competitors - it famously bought Instagram for $1bn after a weekend of negotiations.
Source skynews

By: thecodewhiz On 6:19 AM

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Best of CES 2014

Another Consumer Electronics Show has come and gone, and some killer new products were unleashed in Las Vegas. Here are our favorites: The things we think you'll be buying this year.
hoosing the best products of CES 2014 was tougher than usual this year, thanks to the level of innovation on display. It's pretty settled at this point that people love their phones, tablets, computers, and big TVs, and we saw plenty of those. But it wasn't just more of the same. Thanks to trends at the show including wearables, cutting-edge display technology, 3D printers, robotic toys, and smart cars, the emerging product categories are truly exciting this time around.
There were plenty of highlights at the show this year, along with some lowlights—Michael Bay's bizarre stage antics at the Samsung press conference, for one. But in the end, CES is about consumer electronics, not marketing stunts.
In choosing the best of CES 2014, we caution that we haven't actually tested or reviewed any of the products in this story, since they haven't been released yet. Some may never even make it to market, and of the ones that do, it's possible some will fall short of their promises. Instead, these are the products we found the most compelling and innovative at CES this year. This is the stuff we can't wait to test to tell you if it's worth your money. Watch this video for more from cnn money

By: thecodewhiz On 11:09 AM

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Longtime video game ban lifted: China

China has lifted its longtime ban on video game consoles, opening a lucrative new market for manufacturers including Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft.

The State Council said in a statement that it will now allow consoles to be manufactured in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, an experimental testing ground for economic reform.

China had implemented a blanket restriction on the manufacture and sale of consoles and games in 2000, denying gaming companies access to the world's most populous nation. Chinese officials had cited worries over violent content and the potential for moral decay in explaining the ban.

Nintendo shares jumped more than 10% in Tokyo, while  added 1%.Sony , which had unveiled a new streaming game service in Las Vegas, was flat in New York trading on Tuesday.

With the ban in place, Chinese gamers keen to try consoles were forced to rely the black market to find the latest hardware. Controversial game titles -- which are still frequently banned by the government -- were also available from underground suppliers.

Yet the restrictions did little to slow the proliferation of PC, online and mobile gaming in China, all of which flourished in the absence of console-based entertainment.

It's not yet clear whether manufacturers will embrace the Shanghai experiment.

While most video game consoles are already manufactured by contractors based in China, the new rule requires units sold domestically in China to be built in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone. The requirement could force manufacturers to shift supply chains and open new facilities in order to sell in China.

There is also no guarantee the rule change will stick. The State Council described the repeal as "temporary" and regulators will need to approve foreign products.

Still, the rule change suggests the government is moving forward with reforms in Shanghai.

The city's free trade zone -- 29 square kilometers in area -- is an experiment in promoting trade, expanding foreign investment access and liberalizing the financial sector, all of which are tightly controlled and regulated now by the government.

China's general framework for the area includes expanded foreign access in industries that previously placed heavy restrictions on outside companies, including banking.

CNN

By: thecodewhiz On 1:10 PM

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12 Hot Tech Trends to check in 2014

Major technology changes are usually or mostly refinements of the pre-existing technologies.These days, innovation tends to happen on a nano-scale, which means most people cannot see or experience that evolution.Below are the 12 hot trends to check on the year 2014.

1. The car becomes a node in the Internet of things. 
All the major automakers will be at CES this year showing off their connected car projects. While some have been at the show before, this is the first year I see them really trying to make a strong statement about smarter cars and their connection to the Internet either directly via an embedded 4G radio or through a smartphone. This is actually a big deal and a highly competitive advantage for those that get it right. The more upscale cars will probably be the smartest, with smartphones figuring in to how they'll deliver a lot of top-notch services. However, Ford, Chevy, and other mid-range cars will also be adding Internet-connected intelligence.

2. 4K TVs and monitors will be cheaper.
At Dell World last week, Michael Dell said the company would have 4K monitors on the market sometime in 2014 for around $1,000. Its cheapest model now is $3,495. At least one television manufacturer is said to be launching a 4K TV at around $1,000 at the show, and I expect to see others that will probably be priced around $2,500. That's well below at the range of $3,500 to $12,000 that they go for today. I realize that there is very little programmed content available to take advantage of 4K, but I expect personal content will get quite a boost as I hear digital camera vendors will show 4K products at the show at much lower prices than we have today. Meanwhile, many studios are moving to the 4K format, so we could finally see some trajectory of these Super HD products starting in 2014.

3. Digital health moves to the forefront.
This part of the market is really poised to take off. There are already dozens of health-related products like Nike's FuelBand, Jawbone's UP, Fitbit, and Misfit's Shine that can be used as part of a personal health-monitoring system. iHealth has a digitally connected glucose testing kit and its digital blood pressure cuff uses the iPhone for controlling the cuff and delivering the data to a user.

4. 2-in-1s take off.
Intel has new ads out pushing 2-in-1s. Their theme is a tablet when you need it and a laptop when you want it. Some folks think these 2-in-1s represent the future of laptops and I tend to think this might be the case.

In a sense, CES will be the big coming-out party for 2-in-1s since we should see about 50 new models launch at the show. Intel, Microsoft, and pretty much all of the vendors will be showing new models in this category and although I don't think we will see huge volume in 2014, this campaign from these folks is a multiyear one since they are very bullish on this concept. Worth checking out if you are at CES or watching from the sidelines.

5. Curved televisions pull people in.
LG's 105-inch curved TV that will be introduced at CES is stunning. Samsung will also show off its version of a curved TV. This will be a big issue at the show as the TV makers strive to try differentiate themselves in a very crowded market. Although curved TVs are more about innovation, they could represent a new angle on the future of televisions themselves.

6. 3D printers revolutionize manufacturing.
While 3D has not caught on in TVs there is real interest in 3D when it comes to printers. We will see 3D printers as low as $499 at CES and many in the $999 to $1,299 range for what you might call a prosumer interested in 3D printing. Although these will really still be used for consumer experimentation, I see them as important to drive the learning curve within the prosumer and professional markets. I kind of liken the intro of low-cost 3D printers to the early days of desktop publishing (DTP) when it came on the scene in 1985. In the way DTP revolutionized the publishing world, 3D printing could become an important tool for visualization and light manufacturing.

7. Smart home and smart light bulbs come home.
We have been talking about smart homes for almost two decades now but only recently have we seen this area really become interesting. Products like Nest's thermostat andsmoke alarm and the many new smart light bulbs and other home devices with Internet connections are finally giving us a glimpse of what a smart connected home can be. This will also be a big theme at this year's show and another thing that will be interesting to follow.

8. Wearables continue trending.
While Google Glass had the big buzz in 2013, the concept of wearables is still in its early stages. The most successful wearables so far are ones used to monitor health, walking, pulse, and more. This year we saw some smartwatches hit the scene but they have years before someone brings the right form, function, fashion design, and technology into a smartwatch that really gets traction from mainstream consumers. CES has a dedicated education track on wearables this year as well as a small section focused on wearables. 2014 won't be a big year for wearables, but we will see some new and innovative products in this space and the products we see at CES could give us more insight on what wearables will mean to the tech market and their direction.

I am sure there will be a lot of other products that get attention, such as new consumer-related robots, Android running on Windows PCs, new digital cameras, and smarter digital video recorders. However, as I have surveyed the pre-show material and looked into my own research on CES trends, the areas I shared above I believe will represent most of the news coming out of CES 2014.

 9. Internet of things

At the 2013 IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin, technology company Philips demonstrated a concept called the HomeCooker Next that could time cooking, change temperature and stir food -- using a smartphone. The Nest thermostat not only can control your home’s temperature remotely, it also learns your behavior and makes adjustments accordingly.

The networking of our physical world will continue to boom in 2014. Connected devices are no longer just limited to smartphones and computers. Everything from door locks and home appliances to bikes and watches can now be networked.

 10. Robots on the rise

Will the machines become self-aware in 2014? We certainly hope not, but advancing technology in robotics and artificial intelligence are definitely on the rise.
Google acquired a portfolio of incredible robots with its purchase of Boston Dynamics in 2013, including the Cheetah, Petman and Atlas, making spectators wonder what the tech giant has planned for the machines.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is challenging robot-makers to address the need for rescue workers in dangerous emergency response situations. The DARPA robotics challenge is underway and will have finals happening at the end of 2014. Winners will receive a $2 million prize.

 11. Machines in the sky
Keep an eye on the sky in 2014 because unmanned aerial vehicles – or drones – are about to become a big part of the airspace.
Amazon made a big splash when CEO Jeff Bezos on “60 Minutes” revealed plans for a drone that would deliver packages in 30 minutes. But a handful of other drones garnered attention in 2013, including drones that could deliver beer at a festival and pizza to a home in the United Kingdom.

In 2013, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released its first annual roadmap to address concerns that are arising with the increased use of drones in American airspace, paving the way for clear regulations of the flying devices. The FAA recently announced the locations of six drone test sites in the United States, setting the stage for what could be the next booming industry.

12. Cloud wars

You'll hear a stronger desktop PC death rattle in 2014, as consumers finally embrace cloud storage. Consequently, they'll soon need a lot more than the 5-20 GB standard with most mobile services.
Amazon, Apple, Microsoft and Google will get serious about marketing and advertising consumer cloud storage, access and work options. They'll also compete more directly, which may result in a price-per-gigabyte war.
Microsoft kicked the competition off in 2013 with 200 GB of free cloud storage — with a Surface 2 tablet purchase.
However, most consumers in 2013 still didn't understand how cloud-based storage works. The disparity of tools, interfaces and storage options is "clouding" what should be a clear picture: The days of storing locally are nearing an end.

In 2014, cloud storage producers will conduct an education, pricing and marketing offensive. By the end of next year, external hard drive sales will decline and cloud storage adoption will have skyrocketed.

By: thecodewhiz On 11:23 AM

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