Archive for the ‘RevMe’ Category

Web Hosting Pal

Thursday, May 15th, 2008

With the horrible weather to hit the east coast this past week, it was no surprise to me when the servers went down. I kind of have them scattered about with different companies and the one located on the east coast was hit pretty hard with a nasty storm, borderline tornado. I know that there’s nothing I could control in that situation but now I’m thinking I need to move everything to a place where the biggest weather issue is the lack of rain. So after talking to Jackie I’m now looking for hosting companies based on the west coast. I’ve been poking around with Web Hosting Pal because they’re a fairly new resource where you can learn about a lot of different recommended web hosting companies.

Their description is pretty true to form. They’re a user-friendly guide to finding the right web host in your current price range. They give you a break down of every host in the database and even have recommendations for their top ten hosts on the Internet if you really have trouble making your choice. I’ve noticed a trend in many recommendations for BlueHost being the #1 host on the list. My only issue with them is the lack of ability to rent a server. Based on a few companies that I’ve dealt with that are hosted through this company – I’ve noticed there wasn’t really any downtime at all and that’s always a plus for someone running a business.

While I am considering leaving the hosting industry all together and focusing on the web design aspect of things, that doesn’t mean I’ll completely walk away and leave empty handed. Maybe one of those top ten hosts would be interested in buying my clients – heh.

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MaxWebDesign.eu

Thursday, April 17th, 2008

As I noted in a previous entry today, I’ve been floating around a lot of different websites in search for new and interesting ideas. I would also like to add a few more websites to my RSS reader (courtesy of Google of course) so finding any sites that will spark my interest are more than likely going to make it into my bookmarks. Today I found maxwebdesign.edu, it’s a blog for web design and being as I’ve done the same thing here on my own site. While there isn’t any major “Web Design” going on with this particular site, there are a lot of resources here for everything from improving your Google rankings to SEO. Based on it’s description, it’s a magazine styled web design related blog where the owner – Robert G – writes as much as he can about his projects, websites, marketing and SEO tips. I enjoyed going through all of the articles, I really like the way Robert has set the “featured article” on the header of the page. The current feature is “Using link popularity to boost your position” and after reading through it I have to say that anyone who’s new to any aspect of SEO would find this site to be a really good resource.

It’s worth checking out, trust me. Head on over to maxwebdesign.eu if you don’t believe me.

$8 RX Glasses

Tuesday, April 1st, 2008

While I absolutely hate to admit it, part of me believes that I’m beginning to lose my eyesight. When you look at a screen all day long and rarely focus on anything else, things just don’t work as well as they used to. I still have better eyesight than anyone I know, probably because I come from a family where almost everyone needs glasses in order to see, and my sister is one of them but she’ll NEVER admit to it until she’s completely blind and attempting to drive somewhere. My father on the other hand, he’s needed glasses on and off for quite some time to read and now he really can’t do much of anything without his glasses. Up until he was about 30 years-old he never needed them, he had better than 20/20 vision, now things are so blurred for him that he’s more than likely going to be blind at some point later on down the road.

Another person with really bad eye sight is Sean and unfortunately he doesn’t have medical insurance to even get his glasses fixed, let alone update the prescription in general. I do believe that with my search I landed upon what I believe to be a great discovery. They’re called Zenni Optical and they sell prescription glasses online. There’s a huge selection of frames with everything from single vision lenses to bifocals. They even have tinted sunglasses for those who need corrective sunglasses as well. I guess no one likes the “clip on” look anymore…heh. They sell internationally too, so no matter where you’re located you can still get the prescription you need.

The link that really caught my attention (the reason I found this company) $ 8 Zenni Optical Rx Eyeglasses when you see a link like that you’re initial thought is “Okay, scam time” but they really aren’t. If you read through reviews on their website you’ll find that 99% of the time, consumers whom have gone through their services have a 100% recommendation to friends and family members when it comes to going back to this company – time and time again.

It’s too bad that I can’t order anything for Sean yet, he hasn’t had an eye-exam in a few years and he’s due for another one before he can even consider picking up a new pair of glasses. Hell, maybe if insurance works out properly we’ll be able to pick up some contacts for him instead. Either way something needs to be done, right?

Eye Sight is going on me…

Friday, January 4th, 2008

Lately I’ve noticed that I’m having trouble seeing unless I’m looking at some kind of a brightview LCD monitor. I have no problem seeing on the Mac, I don’t even have trouble on this new monitor. When I’m looking at CRT’s or even TubeTV’s my attention span is null and void because I can’t get my eyes to focus. They keep crossing on me for some reason and then I wonder if I’m just over working these days.

Both Sean and my father have pretty bad eyesight. A few nights ago I put on Sean’s glasses before I put them on the nightstand for him, I could barely see anything in the room. My father’s are the same way, I get an instant headache. I know that they both can definitely get LASIK if they truly wanted to. Unfortunately there isn’t any insurance company that will cover that and it’s pretty damn expensive to pay for out of pocket, you know?

I just hope that this problem isn’t going to get worse.  I truly need to get my eyes taken care of or I’m really going to have some problems down the road, considering my eyes are my biggest employment perk right now, that and my hands.  My brain has been fried for years, but at least I’ve been able to see – you know?

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Furnishing

Thursday, January 3rd, 2008

I’m someone who likes to decorate, this is going to be the death of me when Sean and I finally do get into our own place. Of course the initial needs of basic furniture to get us by will be the first priority but I also like punches of color here and there and I know that no matter where we wind up we’re either going to have light colored carpets or hardwood floors. Rugs are a pretty big expense but it also depends on where you get them. If I’m going as far as putting one down in an apartment, naturally I’ll go through Wal-Mart and get a cheap one that will last us for as long as it needs to. I don’t personally see the point in spending a lot of money for something that isn’t going to go in a place we own and will be on the floor of a rental with lord knows what else in the room – you know?

I’ve always liked the idea of owning a massive oriental rug but they can get so expensive, you wonder if it’s really worth it for a high-traffic home…you know?  I’ve seen oriental rugs underneath white furniture that’s covered in plastic since no one’s allowed to step foot in the room that typical people would refer to as the “living room”.  I think it’s a shame to have such high-end things that you can’t even live in your own house.

Give me comfort with a punch of color!

Gambling and Online Casinos

Tuesday, January 1st, 2008

A few weeks ago Sean and I went up to Atlantic City to take quick weekend vacation. Unfortunately we didn’t win any money and came in just under breaking even so while it was a loss financially, it was still nice to get out of the house for a few days. Since then I’ve been itching to get back there, so much so that I’ve been pushing Sean to bring me back up for Valentines day. I’m not sure if that’s actually going to happen but it’s nice to look forward to it of course. Since then I’ve been floating around online and playing at all of the free casino based websites to get my fix. It would be nice to win some real money but I’m not going to push it. There’s no point in spending money since I’d like to bank it for Valentines day (if he brings me up, of course). I did a Google search for some newer casino sites (well, new to me at least) and came across a site with Casino Games Online called Commodore Casino. They have quite a few interesting things though. They’ve got 3D Gaming. Everything from a new 3D horse racing game and even a brand new 3D slot called Arctic Adventure. They’re working on releasing a golf and soccer target slot as well. There are a few new games you can view upcoming games by going to their website and poking around. I linked the PDF directly for those whom are too impatient to poke around, heh.

INC Paradise

Tuesday, October 9th, 2007

If you’re new to the game, then I’ll tell you that starting a business isn’t easy. Anyone who’s been down that road can tell you it from the get go. There are companies out there that do the bulk of the work for you, as far as legalizing things is concerned, and it really helps you out in the long run when you aren’t filling out a stack of paperwork while you’re trying to get your business off the ground at the same time. There’s a company out there that’s helping thousands of entrepreneurs start their own businesses each year. They don’t over charge you, and they help you out with all of the paperwork involved. They can setup a corporation or LLC in any state. For example, if you’re looking to start up a Nevada corporation, you could go to their website, request the proper forms and then go from there. The most popular state is Nevada but that’s because they’re a very business friendly state with no income taxes. Their business is based in Las Vegas, but they recently opened a branch in Memphis, TN.

The company I’m talking about is INC Paradise, they not only help you out with the paperwork but they also provide a space for you to start your business. They have a program for virtual offices and executive suites. You can use their office with free phones and internet. If you already have a space in mind, then naturally you’re not going to have to take this route but if you’re meeting clients at the local coffee shop and then working from home, it’s time to get yourself some office space. You can pay rent for a space or even build an extension onto your own home (if possible) but sometimes having your own office space would be a great thing to have once your business hits it big. Now this is naturally for those of us that are lucky enough to work in the computer world but when you’re looking to start up a bookstore, you’re obviously going to need to invest in some kind of a store front as well.

Lunarpages Webhosting

Wednesday, October 3rd, 2007

For those interested in affordable hosting, one resource you may be interested in is Lunarpages. Right now they’re offering Lunarpages Coupons which can save you some money when purchasing a web hosting plan from them. I don’t personally know anyone who uses Lunarpages, but I do know that based on some of the reviews I’ve read, many people are very happy with their services. Their webhosting is pretty affordable as well. Right now their basic hosting plan is $6.95 per month and includes 350GB of disk space and 3500 GB of bandwidth. You’re also given a free domain name for the life of your account, plus $700 worth of CoffeeCup Software is included for free. You also have the option of 10 add-on domains so you can manage all of your domains under one single account.

I personally own my own servers so I can’t really use their services but if I were to ever downgrade and take my 6 domains to another host, I’d more than likely consider Lunarpages before many of the other high-space and bandwidth based hosts out there. For me the domain option isn’t a big deal, I handle all of my registrations under my own account. But the unlimited MySQL Databases, Unlimited Parked domains and Unlimited Email is really a great thing to have when it comes to hosting. Granted, most people are fine with just one address that houses everything but I’m content with my webhosting, design and personal based email accounts. Having the option of adding as many as I please, maybe even starting up a free Pop3 email service seems like a fairly cool idea in my book. Sure, each account would have to be manually created but down the road you could easily invest in an automatic script.

This particular setup would be great for the “Just starting out” webmasters, as well as any company that has numerous employees who need to have business based email addresses. Anyone can sign up for a free gmail account but having your name attached to your companies domain, even by email address, makes you feel as though you’re more involved with the company than just for phone support – you know?

Check them out.

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Starting a Company?

Monday, August 27th, 2007

When I first started out with AGn Designs, Google searches of how to go about Starting your own company didn’t really bring up very much for me. However, eight years later, I was able to find something, while it’s of no true use to me, that’s a great resource for everyone looking to get their business up and running.

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Inexpensive and Free Advertising Options

Tuesday, August 21st, 2007

Advertising is a major part of running an Internet business. You need to figure out a way to connect consumers with your product, and in some cases don’t wish to spend millions of dollars on commercials during the superbowl. Now, naturally word of mouth will get someone very far but just for that extra ump, I’ve put together a few inexpensive and free advertising ideas for you.

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