Ryan Burnette Is Officially Back On Twitter
A Random article written by Ryan Burnette on May 3, 2010.I swore I would never do it, but Ryan Burnette is back on Twitter.
What do you think of the Apple iPad?
A Technology article written by Ryan Burnette on May 2, 2010.
I’d like to hear what everyone thinks of the Apple iPad. Link back to Ryan Burnette’s review of the Apple iPad so I can get some feedback. There are reviews all over the Internet, and the opinions I’ve heard so far tend to be very polarized. The vision I have for the iPad is a more convenient device than a laptop for class and meetings, but something that is more up-to-date than a spiral notebook and pen. I’ll have trouble not adding the iPad keyboard dock on as an accessory when I get around to actually purchasing one.
The Best Things About the iPad
I really enjoyed reading an iPad review by Dan Frakes at PCWorld. He identified a few major pros about the iPad that I totally agree with. The price, 3G capability with no contract, keyboard support, eBook support and word processing capabilities are great, and the iPad does it all while looking cool.
The Worst Things About the iPad
The iPad’s cons are probably easier to list and identify than the pros at this point. There is no doubt that the potential is there with this device. I find it ironic that the positive article I liked about the iPad came from PCWorld, while the negative counter-article came from MacWorld. Rob Griffiths at Macworld posted a response to the aforementioned article which lays out some of the annoying things that I happen to agree with on the iPad. The lack of a forward-facing camera, lack of multitasking capability (which I assume will no longer be an issue with the release of iPhone OS 4), and the shocking limitation of 720p video quality. I haven’t heard anyone talking about battery life much yet, but once a few of them age a bit I’m curious to see how this new gadget fares.
Other Thoughts
I was at the Apple Genius Bar the other day getting my Macbook Pro looked at, I asked about Jason Chen and the nerd just told me he didn’t know what I was talking about. I like how the ‘Geniuses’ make themselves feel important. Regarding the iPad though I asked if they had been dropping them or breaking them. The report was that they are a good shape for keeping in your hands while you are working, I didn’t see anyone drop one while I was in the store. They also reported that only one had come in with a broken glass so far.
Anyway
I’d love to get responses from anyone who has some iPad experience… thoughts, experiences, praises, complaints, jokes, dirty jokes, pictures with the iPad from anywhere in the world. Comment on the article or e-mail me.
Links
Apple iPad Keyboard Dock
The iPad’s Five Best Surprises
Five Worst Surprises
What Is Search Engine Optimization or SEO?
A Web Marketing article written by Ryan Burnette on April 23, 2010.Search engine optimization, or SEO, is a service which aims to improve the placement of a web site on a search engine’s organic results page. The higher a site appears in the search results list, the more visitors it will receive from the search engine.
Search Engine Results Page
Search engines such as Google separate their results page into Local, Orgnica and Pay-Per-Click regions.
The diagram on the right shows how a search might be returned by Google’s search engine in the event of a search with a geographical identifier. The map and local results at the top of the page are tailored both to your search and to Google’s impression of where you are located. Below the local results are organic results which we are all so familiar with. Organic SEO is most productive because most people tend to click on relevant organic links first. On the right and above the local results are pay-per-click areas which are always labeled ‘sponsored’ in some way to identify that they are paid advertising.
Organic SEO
SEO specifically targets organic searching. At TechStudio, my Jacksonville based SEO and Web Design company, we offer managed SEO campaigns for clients in an effort to achieve higher search rankings for clients who can profit from the increased exposure.
Local SEO
Local search, as pictured above organic results in the digram above, is a specialized search method used to display results within certain Geographical constraints. Typically a Google search might be made in general terms such as ‘plumber’, but in many cases this does not render geographically relevant results. A search that includes a location modifier, such as “SEO Jacksonville, FL” or “Web Design Jacksonville, FL“, is an explicit local search. A search that references a product or service that is typically consumed locally, such as “electrician” or “plumber”, is an implicit local search.
Local search advertising is a great way to market a business or service on the Internet because it is inexpensive and can be highly effective.
Google Adwords
Google Adwords is Google’s primary Internet advertising interface. Adwords allows for pain inclusion of advertising on relevant search pages. Adwords facilitates creation of advertising and selection of a target audience based on geographical identifiers and keywords. Each ad has an associated bid or budget which puts a cap on the number of clicks or impressions and also impacts placement.
Google Adwords is a great way to add impressions of any marketing plan to search-engine users.
Resurrecting A Dinosaur Laptop
A Technology article written by Ryan Burnette on September 28, 2009.
This week I ended up with a dinosaur laptop in my possession. I’m not exaggerating when I say that this thing is a piece of junk. I also have no inhibition in protesting that I fashion Toshiba laptops the Yugo of the industry. For those of you who don’t know, Yugo cars were around in the 80s, and they were one of the few cars that dealers had to worry about breaking down before they got within walking distance from the dealership.
The laptop in question is one of the oldest Pentium 4 laptops. A very slow 4200rpm hard drive and a challenged ram situation (512mb) made Windows run very slow on this piece. A majorly hosed up Windows installation to boot, another tech pun, made it just freeze in place and get choppy even moving the cursor or playing an mp3. Who knows who the original owner was, any chance of getting the driver CDs or original Windows installation disc are very slim.
Driver and Operating System reinstall discs can be acquired for a laptop like this. The older the computer, the harder it is to do. In the case of the old Toshiba, it is probably circling the drain anyway, so I would never spend the time.
The Snowball’s Chance
Download Ubuntu Linux
I’m naming the old Toshiba, you guessed it, Snowball!
I’m writing this blog post from it right now. The savior? Ubuntu Linux.
Ubuntu is a distribution, or one organizations particluar flavor, of the free, open-source operating system Linux. One of the major innovations that all distributions have been working towards lately is ease of use. For a long time, Linux was only for the more technical user. Even simple tasks like installing software required research, reading and sometimes a lot of forum thread conversations to get through. Ubuntu has made it a quick solution, installation will involve more mouse clicks than keystrokes.
Use It
I downloaded the installation CD, burned it to a disc, booted and began the OS install. Less than an hour later I was booting into Ubuntu for the first time. After setting up e-mail, chat and flash for the web browser, I began being productive. I took a desktop screenshot and a picture with my iPhone, edited the pictures with Gimp, then uploaded them and wrote this WordPress using Firefox and the quickly installed Flash plugin.
Ubuntu runs on almost any computer, is more efficient with resources than Windows, and is vastly less susceptible to viruses. It is a great way to do the basics, e-mail, chat and web browsing, costs nothing, and is easy to install.
How A Virus Infects Your Computer
A Technology article written by Ryan Burnette on September 22, 2009.For the past 10 years I have worked in various fields centered around computers. Even today TechStudio offers certain tech support level services to assist our clients. My friends and family also call me quite often to gripe about problems with their computers, and my tech associates and I oblige these requests gladly. Without working computers the world would fall apart, right? I was never saw the pre-computer era but I am assuming it was very unproductive. Anyway…
Throughout these endeavors we see all too often: massive virus infection. People often ask me what the cause is. Spouses suspect that their mates have been browsing web content that they shouldn’t have. Parents wonder if their children have been illegally downloading music and software on LimeWire. Conspiracy theorists think the virus software itself is spreading numerous viruses to keep the need up for yearly maintenance fees. Since we are asked this question so often, here is the most common way our ill-fated computers are being infected with unwanted, malicious software.
Malicious Internet Advertising
Just because Facebook is reputable and does not intentionally allow advertisements that seek to hijack your computer doesn’t mean they could not be fooled. This article from CNET describes a rogue ad which ended up on the New York Times web site. The paper was duped into posting the ad by someone posing to be a legitimate business. This is not an isolated incident, it happens all the time. Popular sites that sell large amount of advertising are constantly battling to keep the ads clean. Sometimes a malignant ad gets posted for a while, and one click can hijack your machine.
The lesson to learn from the New York Times example is simple. If an ad you find on a web site intrigues you, Google the subject matter first. If the advertisement in question is legitimate, it won’t be hard to relocate the company or product through a safer means… just Google it.
The PPC advertisers won’t like that I am advising this. Don’t blame me. Blame the spammers that are ruining Internet advertising for the rest of us.
Ads Posing As System Messages
A common trick up the villain’s sleeve to watch out for commonly used in advertising fraud is creating the ad itself to look like a system message (see image below). In the case of the New York Times’ infected ad, the post warned the user that their computer had an infection and clicking this link would direct them to some anti-virus software installation that would cure the problem. The jerks that create this malware actually post as the solution to the problem that they are creating.
The lesson is to learn what your anti-virus software is and stick to it. Be very wary of installing anything, or clicking a link on any web site unless you are completely sure what you are clicking on.
Posing As A Virus Scanner
Another common trick is to pose as a virus scanner. So often the worst virus infections we see are malware programs like Anti-Virus 2009. Programs that by general definition, are a virus themselves, that are wolves in sheep’s clothing.
The lesson here is to know the name of the virus scanner you are using. Make sure you are familiar with its pop-ups and functions, so when any alerts or dialogs pop up on your screen you can quickly and clearly identify them as genuine.
There Are Many More Ways
This is not to say that advertisements are the only way a virus can find its way to you. I do assert that it is the most common. Virus scanner technology now actively scans your e-mail and discs you put in your computer. I use AVG on most of my PCs that I manage, and even when someone downloads a virus on LimeWire or sharing software, AVG’s active scanner usually catches it.
AVG has taken steps towards curing this epidemic but integrating a system that shows web browser’s if a site is verified before they visit. The advancements however, have not stopped malicious ads from doing their job.
By being vigilant about what you click on, keeping a mainstream virus scanner up-to-date, and using a filtered e-mail service like Google or properly hosted Exchange, you will find yourself wasting less time with your computer on the fritz.
Sources
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1009_3-10351460-83.html
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10356174-56.html
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-10353402-245.html
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/05/30/mass_web_infection/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06/02/beladen_mass_website_infection/
The TechStudio Web Design Page Gets Another Makeover
A Web Marketing article written by Ryan Burnette on September 17, 2009.TechStudio is my web design, Internet marketing and search engine optimization company that I run here in Jacksonville, Florida. I recently gave the web site, techstudiojax.com, a complete redesign. It is based on the same branding and theme-concept as before, I just cleaned it up a bit…. and really put a focus on having concise content.
Building web sites really is one of my favorite things to do, and I hold firm to the belief that because I enjoy my work I do not fall under many of the downfalls and burdens life can place upon a person. I also take a lot of pride in my work, and doing a good job adds to my happiness.
So I am off my soapbox now. If you have time, take a moment to look at TechStudio. I would love suggestions on how to improve the clarity of the message, and if anyone has any questions about the company I can address those here as well.
Keep an eye out, I am redesigning my personal blog here as well, and will be integrating it into the main site and linking back and forth a lot more.
Trek Across the Panhandle
A Flying article written by Ryan Burnette on August 11, 2009.Sunday, August 9th I flew across the Florida panhandle from Craig Municipal to Pensacola Regional. I was busy dodging thunderstorms, but in between I snapped a couple pics from the iPhone.
