Forum Design and Promotion

Jay Sanders

There are two vital characteristics of any successful forum: A solid, user-friendly design and exposure across the World Wide Web.

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;}

 

This sounds like basic information, but it isn't nearly as easy to establish these things as it sounds. That's where we come in.

At MMI, we have both the resources and the expertise to help you achieve both goals. Our experienced staff of design and SEO specialists knows exactly how to manage forums so that they appeal to a diverse audience. Furthermore, we know exactly how to market your forum so that it can reach its maximum potential with its intended audience.

Forum design involves a complicated balance between style and simplicity. If a design is too complicated or extravagant, it can distract from the excellent content you have to offer. Likewise, a forum that is too bland and/or basic will likely bore most viewers. Maintaining the balance between these two extremes is what our staff can do, and we'll work directly with you to make sure that all of your preferences are taken care of.

The next step to building a successful forum lies in marketing it successfully. Here is where our great team of writers and SEO professionals comes into play. We can establish multiple members at your forum to help get your forum off the ground, including providing moderating services. At the same time, we'll take care of the arduous task of optimizing your forum for search engines.

For your forum, we will apply all of our SEO expertise, programming your forum so that the keywords we establish will show up higher in search engine rankings. At the same time, as we help your forum grow, we'll establish a thorough back link system that will keep your new visitors coming back for more content. Finally, our writing staff will stay with your forum until its small audience blooms into a thriving community of new and returning visitors.

This two-pronged approach is absolutely essential to building a successful forum, and we are absolutely committed to helping you take that journey. Whether you want to build a new forum from scratch or take your current one to the next level.

MMI is the best in the business at creating and promoting forums. We don't just design a forum and leave it to its own devices; we stay with the project until we've built you a successful community – guaranteed! 

Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com

How A Digital Media Player Will Transform Your Living Room

William Stanford

I have rarely met an individual that likes living with old technology.  Usually it is right about the time when you are comfortable with what gadgets you do have, a neighbor or a friend comes along and shows you their bright shiny new toy, and you know immediately that the your gadgets are now old, and you must upgrade if you want to hang with the Joneses. 

Right now, the manufacturers and electronics big box stores are all pushing the Bluray Players and telling you that they are the latest and greatest.  Well, before you go sinking your money into a Bluray, open your mind to the possibility that there may already be something on the market that will spell the end of the Bluray.  If you haven't heard of it yet, it is called a Digital Media Player and it will change your whole idea of how you get your digital content.

Almost everything these days is being built with WiFi technology to allow for wireless streaming communication with the internet.  Everything from our digital TV providers and cable services, to the television sets themselves.  Soon everything will connect to the internet wirelessly.  So what exactly is a digital media player and what does it do?  The concept is simple enough, a digital media player is a device that allows you to connect to your home network and the internet wirelessly to access online digital streaming content like movies and TV shows, and also to stream your personal media collection including your movies, music, and photos right to your living room or home theater room. 

What is interesting is that most DVDs that you buy today come with an additional copy of the movie called a digital copy that you can download straight from the movie company.  A recent example of this is the movie, "The Hangover".  After downloading movies and music through iTunes and these free digital copies, with a digital media player you would be able to stream the movie, in Full HD 1080p quality and Dolby Digital sound, right to your living room high definition TV set.  Some people are even creating backup copies of their entire DVD collections onto their home network.  Just imagine being able to watch your entire movie collection at any time with the push of a button.

Article Tags: Digital Media Player, Digital Media, Media Player, Living Room

Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com

Getting Your New Novus B54 Heavy Duty Stapler

Mono Machines

Novus produces yet another variety of staplers which is used for a long time and is looking comfortable to use as its structure sits in hand with ease. For such a stapler they have coined the name as "Novus B54 Heavy Duty Stapler"

Also known as the Novus B54 Long Arm Heavy Duty Stapler This unit has an Anti Blocking System that prevents staple jams and a Bypass System that prevents the overlapping of staple legs when stapling smaller quantities. This unit also has a 9 7/8" throat depth for greater reach across documents and binding booklets. It has a dual staple guide that encases the staples and provides superior performance and reliability. It has a stapling capacity from 20 sheets to 170 and sheets with a rotating anvil for bypass or parallel stapling. It also has a heavy duty durable base that provides support and durability for extended use. And lastly, has an adjustable paper depth guide for accuracy. Professionals prefer Dahle. Our German engineered trimmers feature a precision graduated, self-sharpening blade made of German Solingen steel. This blade cuts in either direction and maintains a perfectly honed edge every time it's used. Why trust your images with anything else? With over 75 years of experience, our products are designed to meet the strictest safety standards in both personal and professional grade products. You can have the peace of mind in knowing you are about to purchase a quality product that will provide many years of trouble free operation. The NOVUS brand indisputably owes its wide recognition, first and foremost, to the development of perfect technology for office systems and fastening tools since the company was founded in 1949. Reliability and innovative design are synonymous with a wide range of modern products today: products which have been designed to make office work more economical and easier, as well as professional fastening tools for craftsmen and DIY handymen.

Quick Overview:* Anti Blocking System and Bypass System. * 9 7/8" Throat Depth. * Dual Staple Guide and Stapling Capacity: 20-170 sheets. * Rotating Anvil and Heavy Duty Durable Base. * Adjustable Paper Depth Guide

In-Depth Look: UPC 076769000384 Manufactured In: Germany Manuf Part # 023-0038 Model B54 Shipping Weight 6 Expected Ship Date 1-2 Days Weight 6.0000 Warranty 5 Year Guarantee Dimensions 17 3/4" x 4" x 11" Operation Manual Capacity (sheets/staple) 170 Adj Throat Depth Guage No Staple Load Type Press Button Loading Staple Load Capacity 1000 Staple System Type Bypass Stapling System Throat Depth 9 7/8"

Article Tags: Heavy Duty Stapler, Heavy Duty, Duty Stapler, Throat Depth

Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com

The end of Yahoo! Search. Bing takes over.

Yahoo! is to abandon its own search technology, according to a deal it has made with Microsoft. Bing will power Yahoo! Search. Pandia looks at what it means for searchers.

So now it is clear. After much haggling, quarreling and hateful words, there will be a Yahoo!/Microsoft deal. However, we are not talking about Microsoft taking over Yahoo! and its search engine anymore. We are talking about a search and search advertising partnership.

While the original plan could entail that Microsoft (NSDQ:MSFT) took over Yahoo! (NSDQ:YHOO) to acquire its search technology, now it is the other way round. Microsoft's Bing search engine is to power Yahoo! search.

The end of the Yahoo! Search Engine

Seen in this light Microsoft's large investments in Bing makes even more sense. Microsoft turned Live Search into Bing not only to win the hearts and minds of the masses, but to convince Yahoo! that they have the technology needed to deliver decent search results.

It seems Yahoo! CEO Carol Bartz has come to the conclusion that Yahoo! cannot out-compete Microsoft in search. Microsoft has a much stronger financial stamina, and has proved that it is willing to invest a lot in search. Bartz cannot do that. Instead she will — to use her own expression — "ride their [i.e. Microsoft's] coattales".

Yahoo! originally wanted its own search technology

This means the end of the Yahoo! search engine, and also of a history that began with Yahoo! switching to Google (NSDQ:GOOG) as their search provider in 2002. To their dismay they found that the Powered by Google logo helped Google gain a larger following.

Yahoo! therefore decided to acquire its own search technology. First they bought Inktomi, then Overture (including AlltheWeb and AltaVista). In 2004 they developed the Yahoo! Search Engine on the basis of the Alltheweb, AltaVista and Inktomi search engines .

Although the Yahoo! Search Engine is decent enough, the company never managed to beat Google's frenzied pace of innovation. Moreover, it costs a lot to develop new search technology — and to run it — and Yahoo! has faced economical difficulties for a long time now. This is one way to cut their losses.

Yahoo will keep 88% of the search revenue generated off the sites it owns or operates. Microsoft gets the remaining 12%. That's not such a bad deal, considering that Yahoo! no longer have to invest in this kind of search technology.

Bartz puts it this way:

"In essence, we can get virtually all of our search revenue at no cost because Microsoft wants to make the investment and wants to win. That just frees me up to invest in a better portal, better display, better advertising."

Focus on ads and content

This means that Yahoo! will focus on two business areas:

The first is content delivery. Yahoo! is very good at delivering content, from serious news to celebrity gossip. Let's not forget that Yahoo! as a complete portal is more popular that Google.

The second is advertising. Yahoo! will sell pay per click text ads for Yahoo! and Bing search and for the Yahoo! and Microsoft portals. This turns Yahoo! search marketing into a force to be reckoned with. Instead of covering some 20 percent of the US market, they now have 30 percent.

It should be noted, though, that the underlying technology for "self-serve ads" (i.e ads that are sold through an web-based sales system) will be Microsoft's AdCenter platform, not the inferior Panama system of Yahoo. Yahoo! will focus on "the premium search advertisers", i.e. those who need personal attention.

Microsoft benefits as well

For Microsoft this may look like a good deal for several reasons.

Having decided to challenge Google head on in the search engine race, Microsoft Bing will now be able to double in size while at the same time getting rid of a major competitor, namely Yahoo.

Secondly: Even if Microsoft does not gain control over Yahoo! this way, it saves a lot of money by not buying the company

High risks involved for both parties

Even if the deal makes economic sense for both parties, there are huge risks involved.

Since the two remain independent companies, there is always the danger that one of them may abandon ship.

For Yahoo! that would mean that they would have to get another search provider. There are not that many alternatives left, although Ask could be a possible contender.

Since the web-based text ad sales system will be based on Microsoft's technology, a breakup may leave Yahoo! with no direct web based sales system. It's present Panama system is not good enough, and there is no way they can afford to keep that one on a "just in case" back burner.

Yahoo! also risk going into the Google trap once more.

This time there will be a Powered by Bing logo on the search result pages. That could draw searchers over to Bing, although we admit that Bing is not the same threat as Google was in 2002. Google's technology was revolutionary. The one of Bing isn't.

Risks for Microsoft

The risk is much lower for Microsoft, who will have both a search engine and its own AdCenter technology to fall back on.

On the other hand, Microsoft will now be helping Yahoo! survive as a portal or content provider. Microsoft has it's own journalistic sites, like for instance MSN. Microsoft is now strengthening a competitor in that area.

Time table

Bing results should be appearing on the Yahoo! sites in the second half of 2010. This applies to web, image, video, news, shopping and local search. The Yahoo Directory, Yahoo Answers, Flickr and Delicious will probably survive.

Yahoo's pay per click text ads will appear on the sites of Microsoft the year after.

The term of the agreement is 10 years.

What will it mean for searchers?

There used to be three big players in the search engine field: Yahoo!, Google and Microsoft Live/Bing. They have been competing fiercely, an competition is normally a strong driver of innovation.

So even if the regular searcher may not miss the Yahoo! Search Technology — he or she is normally using only one search engine anyway — the searchers may suffer due to less intense innovation.

Both American politicians and the European Commission are bound to look at this from a competition view point. This deal could be construed as anti-competitive.

The recent Google/Yahoo deal was killed this way, although another portal site, AOL, which is powered by another search engine (Google), has not faced this problem. Google will probably play the antitrust card, though, trying to kill the deal.

On the other hand, the death of Yahoo! Search may make it easier for other search engines to get a foothold in the market, being that old timers like Ask or newcomers like Cuil and Yebol.

Furthermore, Yahoo! are allowed to improve the search interface of its Bing based search results. There may be innovation in that too.

The agreement does not, Microsoft says, cover "each company's web properties and products, email, instant messaging, display advertising, or any other aspect of the companies' businesses. "

Yahoo! Mail and Hotmail will continue to compete.

What does it means for search engine marketers?

People involved in optimizing sites for the search engines and running paid search campaigns for companies will probably find that this deal makes their lives easier.

They can now develop a methodology for optimizing for one search engine instead of two, and they need only to keep track of two pay per click campaigns (Google and Yahoo) instead of three.

Here is Yahoo's Carol Bartz commenting on the deal with Microsoft:

6 Tips to Optimize Your Website for iPhone

Ordinary websites are receiving more traffic from mobile devices than ever before. Even if you have no immediate plans to serve a microsite to your iPhone visitors, there are steps you can take to make your current website more iPhone friendly. Below we will explore several techniques you can perform to present optimized content for these users.

Using styles optimized for MobileSafari
How does your website look on the iPhone? How will the size and order of your page elements affect an iPhone user's experience? Do you have to zoom into a content area to read content? Can you easily enter text in a search field?

These are some of the questions iPhone microsite development addresses. Consider the number of pixels allocated as padding between your navigation options. If you don't have enough space in between your navigation elements, your site will present difficulties for users trying to navigate using their fingers instead of a mouse. An average persons index finger is roughly 40-70 pixels in width, therefore you should consider leaving extra space between navigation elements or making them larger to allow for easy interaction.

Fortunately, you can make these modifications by using an iPhone specific style sheet (as we discuss here). In this way, it is possible to style your sites content separately for these visitors.

Setting Default Zoom
MobileSafari allows you to zoom and rotate page views to more clearly navigate content, but you can easily minimize the need for your users to do so. For example, if your home page loads with extra space on the left and right sides, this will carry over into the default presentation for iPhone visitors. However, you can instruct MobileSafari to zoom into a web pages content by default.

To accomplish this, we set the viewport width to the width of the device by adding the following declaration to the head of your HTML file:

 <meta name = "viewport" content = "width = device-width">

To set the initial scale to 1.0, add this to the head of your HTML file:

 <meta name = "viewport" content = "initial-scale = 1.0">  

To set the initial scale and to turn off user scaling, add this to the head of your HTML file:

 <meta name = "viewport" content = "initial-scale = 2.3, user-scalable = no"> 

We utilize the viewport meta tag to improve the presentation of your web content on iPhone. This meta tag sets the width and initial scale of the viewport. Add the appropriate viewport meta data to the head of the document to instruct the browser to present your content in as large a context as possible on the iPhone's screen.

iPhone Viewport Orientation
The iPhone supports both landscape and portrait views. You can specify CSS based on viewport orientation which is determined using JavaScript and updated in the orient attribute of the body element. We've outlined some of the benefits of using iPhone specific style sheets in a previous article.

To achieve this, you target the browser with

 body[orient="landscape"]

or

 body[orient="portrait"]

The following javascript detects and sets the iPhone's viewport orientation by evaluating the innerWidth property of the window object and setting the orient attribute of the body element at regular intervals:

 var updateLayout = function() {   if (window.innerWidth != currentWidth) {     currentWidth = window.innerWidth;     var orient = (currentWidth == 320) ? "profile" : "landscape";     document.body.setAttribute("orient", orient);     window.scrollTo(0, 1);   } };  iPhone.DomLoad(updateLayout); setInterval(updateLayout, 500); 

Hiding the iPhone toolbar
With one line of JavaScript you can hide the big toolbar:

 window.scrollTo(0, 1);

Include this line of code to the phone's orientation detection JavaScript, and the toolbar will reappear when the orientation is changed. Simply omit this line if you want the toolbar to show. This is discussed in more detail in our article "How to hide the address bar in MobileSafari".

Optimize Images
If you recall optimizing images for 28.8 kbit/s modems you may want to skip this section. Its worth considering the average connection speed of an iPhone user over EDGE is considerably slower than typical transfer rates on conventional computers. As of this writing 3g is unavailable on the iPhone, Nonetheless, considering your user's minimum connection speed should be considered part of your standard website development procedure. We recommend you consider serving re-optimized assets to these users and avoiding the use of large images or other weighty media on your website. Animated gifs are unsupported at this time and gracefully display the first frame of the animation.

No Flash Support
While it may be coming shortly, currently you are unable to view flash content on the iPhone. But what if you already have flash creative on your site? We trust you are presenting alternate content to non-flash enabled visitors, as iPhone visitors attempting to view your flash movies will instead see the default plugin not found image. There are several packages freely available which perform this detection or you can use the tools built into the Flash authoring environment.

These are just a few of the techniques website owners can use to make their content more easily accessible by iPhone visitors. Let us know what you think.

-Shaun Mackey