Trick And Tips Earn Internet: January 2014

Historical Findings in Astronomy

6:47 AM

Top 10 Tips for Online Shopping Security

10:12 AM

Just as fun as it can be to shop online, it can equally be risky at times. Not because you might just end up ordering the wrong size (thank god to the fact that there’s always an exchange window and you can courier it back) but because there are some safety issues that you need to keep in mind while swapping that plastic card of yours. With a dramatic increase in numbers of online purchasing portals, online flick stores, shopping windows, etc. it is becoming more and more crucial to keep a watch on where exactly you are stashing your card numbers in. There are scammers flopping in the online world like never before. So it helps to keep an eye before you decide to lay your hands on that beautiful dress or shoe you just spotted on the screen.

Here we lay down few safety procedures which once you ensure will make your experience equivalent to one that you have while visiting your nearest mart for picking stuff up.

1) Your computing environment should be very secured

Almost a no-brainer yet half the online population neglects this as a safety step. When you make purchases online, everything is encrypted. So if your computer is not protected of malicious software, your financial information and passwords will be stolen (as a matter of fact everything stands the chance of being stolen that are saved in your computer). So it is the first thing to ensure that the firewall is on. Also adding to it, try avoid shopping online from cyber cafes or using a public network. Financial transactions are better done through trusted computers.

2) Verify as to just how much you trust the store

There are correct ways of going about the shopping portal/ website you are trusting:

- If you already know the outlet of the brand or store you are purchasing form, go-ahead and have trust. In case anything goes wrong during the financial transaction, you can always walk in to the relevant store and get the problem sorted.

- If you have friends or family buying from a particular store/ portal, there’s nothing to worry much in that case then.

- If you do not know the store at all, BEWARE! Keep your eyes open. Read customer reviews or best is, do the store’s background check by looking at sites dedicated to reviewing e-stores. You find your store there, go ahead and make your picks.

3) Avail discount

Why pay extra when there can be options o availing discounts. There are many sites like indianprice.com, etc. which provide massive discounts via coupon codes. They have lots of stores registered with them and if your chosen store is registered, there you go hitting the jackpot. Cross-check and who knows you might just be lucky!

4) The too-good-to-be-true offers are not all that good always

You got no idea about the extent deceits can stretch. It’s not just on the online space but everywhere but when you are putting your money online, you can just be extra careful. It won’t hurt after all. Do not fall for the too-good-to-be-true offers. If they sound too unrealistic, there is no harm checking their reliability. They can be pretty unreal. Often purchasing from those sites can just be calling for bad luck. They can be low quality or stolen items or can also be cheap substitute of tall brands. The products might just never reach you or the portal merchant might just be playing all of it up for trading your bank details with someone else.

5) Stay alert while buying a gift-card

It is always nice to make your dear ones happy with the fabulous gift cards which are available online these days. But always read the terms and conditions carefully when buying one. Also, ensure the store from where you are buying is legitimate.

6) Do not trade too much of information

If the purchasing site is asking more information than you think is required, back off. It clearly is not reliable. The reliable sites would not go beyond asking name, contact details, email address, some method of payment, and at max your interest/ hobbies. But if you come across ones asking for driver’s license number, bank account information, social security information, etc. be cautious. It is a fraudulent one. There are hints that the merchant resell, rent or share your information. Alternatively, check the site’s privacy policy.

7) Make a unique password if required

Often online purchasing stores ask you to create an account with them. You need not do it but just in case it seems important to you or easy, then carry on. But ensure you choose a very strong password for the account. Make it unique.

8) Go a step high to ensure the security of the site

Hold on! Just before you enter any personal or credit card info onto a shopping site please do look at the URL. See if the web address on the page begins with "https:" and not "http." That little ‘s’ tells you the information is being encrypted to protect your information.

9) Wiring money through Western Union or Money Gram is not suggestible

Reliable sites generally do not make it a mandate for you to pay through wires. It is always wise to pay via credit or debit card. Wiring is suggestible to people you know but not to random strangers. So do not take the risk unnecessarily.

10) The grammar matters!

Might just sound very funny but do read the content that has gone on the website. If the content hosted by the portal/ the site is full of errors, typos, poor content, you can already sniff danger. They are not professional.

All in all, novice shoppers who are going to just start buying online should better stick with well known brands and famous online shopping portals rather than breaking their head in the smaller, less known ones. Once you get a grip of the online shopping fundamentals, you can always start your journey towards becoming the pro online shopper. But till then, have patience.

Author Bio:

This is a guest article contributed by Ajeet Sharma who works for IndianCoupons.com - a coupon site helps user shopping online by providing discount coupons, promotional codes and deals for all major online shopping stores.

Gaming

Difficulties In Importing Console Games to Mobile Operating Systems

9:55 AM

Game consoles are built with only one goal in mind, and that is to create an awesome gaming experience for gamers.

Serious gamers are mostly to be found playing console games and the rest almost exclusively use personal computers to play games. In the past, if one wished for a portable gaming device, then their options were limited to portable game consoles such as the Nintendo DS or Sony’s PSP.

However, smartphones and tablets have been steadily gaining ground as gaming platforms due to their portability, ubiquity, increasing processing power, better and bigger screens and an army of developers with the requisite skills to create games for the various mobile devices like the Android and Windows Phones. Of course, iPhone app development is included in the mix.

This means that you as a game developer/publisher have to decide which platform/s to target first when creating your game. If you, however, decide to target the console market, you would probably want to ‘transfer’ or port the game eventually to mobile operating systems due to their widespread use and potential market. There are, however, things you will need to do and challenges to take into consideration before you can successfully deploy your game on smartphones.

Challenges in Porting Games

One of the challenges to overcome is the difference in hardware. Smartphones have grown more powerful each year yet when you compare them with game consoles, they are way less powerful. Game consoles also have very powerful GPUs and thus handle graphics better. This means that a game that placed minimum strain on game consoles would not run at all in most smartphones and strain most tablets if they were placed under similar computing needs. This means that your game must be re-designed and re-worked, taking into consideration the target devices’ capabilities.

If you are porting your game so as to target mobile devices, you must also take into consideration the various hardware capabilities available on mobile devices but not on games controllers, such as the ability to control game play via a touchscreen.

Games targeted at mobile devices much also allow for the different functional purpose between mobile devices and game consoles: while a game can hog all resources on the game console assured it has all computing resources to itself, on mobile operating systems the game has to ‘play nice’ with other apps installed on the mobile devices. Given that no one would ever play your game again if it were the reason they missed an important interview or a deal fell through because a phone call was made but the game was using the CPU or speaker, you must change your game so that gives some activities (like incoming calls) priority, and resume gaming when the user returns.

You must also factor in the differences between the controllers for a game console and a mobile device. Most game controllers have some input devices such as joysticks not available to mobile devices, which similarly will have different controls such as swiping for mobile devices with touchscreens. Telling a gamer using a touchscreen smartphone to move the joystick to the left does not inspire much confidence in your game and shows lack of attention at best on the side of the game developer.

You may and probably will have to change the way the gamer interacts with your game, for example, by substituting touch motions for key presses. Another motivation for changing the interactivity mode and intensity of play not only due to computing resources required and controllers used is the target audience. Most game titles for home consoles are targeted towards hard-core gamers who will create time in their schedule for gaming and end up not sticking to it after they start playing, while most mobile devices games are for casual gamers catching a break in between classes or work. Thus, they need to be hooked to the game the first few times they play it and it must have shorter playtime.

Languages for the devices may also vary, requiring automatic code conversion and tweaking or a complete rewrite in the language supported.

Image Credit: franky242

blogging

Worst Rank-Destroying SEO Mistakes

12:08 AM

World of SEO is full of do-it-yourself experts, who only have a very basic grasp of what actually goes into a potentially successful campaign. If you believe that you belong to this category, you should know about some common, and potentially, very serious mistakes that are easy to avoid, but that could otherwise lead not only to all of your effort being completely futile, but actually cause the site that you are working on to be deindexed.

Choosing Inadequate Hosting

Naturally, if you intend on working on an already existing website, the owner may not be willing to change their hosting, but if you are considering optimizing a website that hasn’t been built yet, you should carefully consider your hosting options.

The provider has to be able to offer support for all the scripts and tools that your site will need, as well as afford you with enough resources so that the site doesn’t freeze as soon as your traffic spikes for the first time. Likewise, you need to make sure that you are not in a bad neighborhood, which is to say that your provider is not hosting spammy sites, as that might label you as a spammer as well.

Using Restricted Techniques

You have probably heard about three approaches to SEO – White, Gray and Black hat. Black Hat is the worst possible resort when it comes to Google-approved practices, it is considered to be unethical and because of these wrongful methods your website might easily get deindexed. This means strict avoidance of keyword stuffing, site scraping, cloaking, and others.

White Hat is completely different aspect of increasing your website’s visibility; it is the key to effective SEO. It allows keeping the integrity of the website while still existing within the frame of search engine’s terms of service. Provide great content made especially for the readers – not for the sake of links, find a solid keyword phrase that precisely represents your webpage, make your way to inbound linking and pay attention to page elements – visually break up your page with SEO-appropriate headings. If your methods do not comply with White Hat postulates – none of the SEO techniques are effective.

Not Doing Your Onsite Properly

A lot of people who are new to SEO focus on off page factors, like building the link portfolio and reaching out to people on different social networks. While these are important parts of an SEO strategy, you should only start dealing with them once you have a solid base, which is to say a site with decent onsite. This includes a number of things, like making sure that your page titles contain the keywords that you want to rank for; that you have optimized your internal linking structure for the best effect; that your page loading times are as low as possible; that you have an XML sitemap to help out the crawlers; that your bounce rate is at its minimum, as well as a number of other things.

Duplicated Pages

While it is sometimes impossible not to have several versions of a page, you should at least try to designate the canonical one, marking it as the one that crawlers should pay attention to. While having several versions of a same page is admissible in some instances, you should always be careful not to let this happen with your home page, as that could lead to significant loss of link value.

A little bit of planning goes a long way. Every bit of the effort you invest in preserving your good rankings is worth your time because it most definitely delivers great results.

Author Bio:

Leana Thorne is a devoted blogger and a regular contributor to several tech blogs. She enjoys sharing newly found information, and loves writing –currently is exploring ways of organic search engine optimization, and is always happy to be of help.

Gaming

Which Gaming Platform is Really the Cheapest?

6:41 AM

Mobile Tips

Kids And Texting - 3 Dangers They May Face

8:24 AM

Many of my friends communicate with their children via text message. It’s easy for the kids to send a quick message from school or when they are at a friend’s house to update so their parents know what they are up to. In my generation, you didn’t need a cell phone when you were in middle school or high school, but now with families having busy schedules, it almost has become a necessity. Keeping in contact with your kids is the biggest benefit of text messaging. You can see an example of how text messaging was a lifeline to this parent whose child was on lockdown during the Arapaho shooting. Without his child having a cell phone, he would have been in the dark if his child was okay.

Despite some obvious benefits, there are some drawbacks to allowing your kids access to text messaging as well. Here are just 4 dangers that they may face when they have a cell phone and send texts.

Cyber Bullying

It seems like everyday that you turn on the news there is a new story about kids getting bullied or committing suicide because they were bullied. The attacks can come from people they know or even people that they meet on the internet. It’s becoming an epidemic.

Sexting

As kids get older and head into their teens, they start to get curious about their bodies and start wondering about their sexuality. Some teens have started to practice sexting, which involves sending naked pictures or suggestive text to people they know or would like to know. Many scandals have arisen from those text messages getting forwarded. Teens need to work hard to protect their reputations in a digital age and refraining from sexting is one way to do so. Since their relationships are young and volatile, a person who they trust now may be an enemy next week. What’s to stop that person from sharing those private texts that were sent?

Phishing Scams

Another way kids can become victims is through phishing scams. Even with the FCC cracking down, they still exist and kids are easy pray. They usually come in the form of a text message that tricks someone into replying. Once they reply, they are signed up for a premium service and their bill gets charged. They may never know they are being scammed.

Predators

Online predators are everywhere. They lurk on social media, forums and chat rooms. Make sure that your kids aren’t making themselves susceptible to these predators. Tell them to be wary of anyone who they don’t know contacting them online.

What’s the solution? Teach your kids to not give their number out to just anyone. Also, they should never be sharing their phone number on social media sites like Facebook. Unfortunately many have their number on Facebook right on their profile and may not even realize it. Some of those phone numbers show up in their “friends” contacts in their phones. I was surprised when I linked my social media accounts to my phone how many private phone numbers showed up. If their phone number is in their profile someone that they don’t know could be text messaging them.
Image Credit: David Castillo

Author Bio:

Jill Myers is a mom and drivers education instructor. When not helping others learn to drive, she is contributing her knowledge to the blog at Phone Sheriff, parental control software that helps parents keep track of what they are doing online.

apps

Future of Mobile Applications

8:30 AM

At the end of the year 2013, Google and Apple still remain the two prominent and strongest players in the mobile application development industry. The recent report of WSJ states that both of these mobile giants have more than 700,000 applications in their bucket and the rate is growing very fast. The report also explains that both these players have sued the technological sophistication very deliberately, as applications have gone beyond the circle of mobile only. There are now devices of Tablet PC, mobiles, gaming devices and recent television sets which these companies are eyeing on. But if we give a closer look then we cans see that the turnover rate of application from users’ download and usage point of view is very little in comparison to rate of production. The rate of iPhone apps that get some market exposure and prominence is 6% while that of Google is 9%. Therefore, if 1000 apps are produced every single month, then only 60- 90 apps are able to generate revenue while the other dies without being noticed.

One consideration for the iPhone application makers today is to analyze the market scope and also the market traffic. What is there are a number of cars available for cheap rates, but no roads to drive on? It is apparent that the sales of cars will be affected directly with the road traffic and availability, and the same applies for mobile applications. Though, the market is booming currently, the overall performance in terms of the profitability rate has decreased for both Apple and Google. It is apparent that if one thousand apps are produced and only 20 get market acceptance, the profitability rate will shrink.

For this reason, the application makers now have to put more attention to both the functioning and need of an application, along with its marketing strategies. With so many apps available in the market, consumers have a big choice pool available, and if the changed behavior of speediness, the decision is often made in the first few minutes. For this reason, it is quite apparent that if the application is not able to click in the first few minutes and is not presentable, there are high chances that it will end up being confined to the app stores only.

Jackson Richie, the CEO of a Muscovy, illustrates that there are nearly thousand, if not millions mobile applications for music and video. All applications are more or less same, as application makers cannot leave the basic parameters and requirements of a music or song application. So, what required here is extensive marketing and advertising of the application. If you are a little late in launching the app, you might be outrunned by the app that launched just before yours and offer nearly the same features. On the other hand, if you launch an application and your competitor launches a better app with more features, it will again menace the profitability and sustenance of the pap in the market. Thus, the question today is not what to produce, but how to market it!

Image Credit: kromkrathog

Infographics

Four Years in Jail For Using Facebook

7:06 AM

apps

Reinventing Reading through eBook Apps

8:03 AM

E-book readers and tablets have pushed book publishing into revolutionary directions. New developments include software that allows users to create end read interactive books. Do not confuse digital interactive books with eBooks. Both formats are quite different.

There is a distinction between eBooks and apps, which is not always clear to both consumers and publishers. Applications are often based on Android software or an iOS mobile operating system that was developed by Apple Inc, whereas eBooks are printed documents packaged in a specific format, like Mobipocket or the EPUB format, which is short for electronic publication. Enhanced eBooks (ePUB3) books are also competing for the attention of avid readers. What makes them different?

eBooks first appeared on devices like the Kindle. They have few interaction capabilities. You can search for content, flip the pages, change the font size to improve readability, and highlight words to get a definition from the dictionary, but that is about it.

Enhanced eBooks allow easy integration of audio, video, and interactivity. This format may eventually be used for textbooks and other educational material. It is quite possible that, in the future, textbooks can read themselves. It is not quite clear if this would be beneficial to children, especially those still learning to read. On the other hand, it would be great to make notes on a book without destroying it, or being able to test your knowledge before moving on to the next chapter.

Creating a Digital Book

iBooks Author is an authoring application from Apple for Mac devices. The software allows the user to create a wide range of digital books, from historical novels and textbooks, to picture books and cookbooks. The computer software company Adobe joined the bandwagon by launching Digital Publishing Suite via InDesign for devices, such as the Android, iPad, and Blackberry. Other independent publishing platforms include Moglue and Mag+.

Interactive Electronic Books

Users can interact with the storyline in sight, sound, and touch by utilizing tablet PCs, like Google Nexus, Toshiba Excite, or Kindle Fire. It is quite a step up from common eBooks, which do not allow the reader to participate. The list of interactive eBooks includes travel guides with device GPS capabilities, pop-up book apps for children, cookbooks with video recipes and built-in cooking timers, or ordinary eBooks that were enhanced with interactivity features.

Grimm's Rapunzel ~ 3D Interactive Pop-up Book

Interactivity Levels

Interactivity should enhance reading experiences vastly. If it does not, the book should be removed from the interactive eBook category. Why is it important to be thorough? In the race to bring out the most publications and get more buyers, publishers throw books on the market with very few interactivity capabilities. Touching a button on a screen to make an animation move does not really add a lot of value of the story. Are you looking for a children’s book with a tremendous amount of interaction? Check out the example below.

“Cozmo's Day Off” is an amazing children’s interactive storybook. It was on the top-seller’s list for a long time, because of its many interactive features. This eBook contains over 100 original audio and animated interactions. There are so many of them that you have to wonder if it should be defined as a “book” or a “game.” Parents should review their options before deciding what a storybook’s purpose should be. The amount of required interaction will depend upon the child.

Creating Amazing Experiences

The sky is the limit, and interactivity can take book-reading experiences to a whole new level, one that cannot be reached through traditional publications. Interactive eBooks have evolved quite a bit since they were first introduced. They are no longer about touch interface controls. By adding different elements, parents and teachers can now encourage children to engage in the experience rather than to be a spectator.

While a lot of interactive eBooks are designed for children, adults can enjoy this development in reading practices just as much. “Martha Stewart Makes Cookies” iPad app is a great example. Aside from supplying more than 90 popular recipes, this book also lets you search recipes based on ingredients or by flavour. The book includes baking tips, instructional videos, kitchen timers, simple packaging ideas, shopping lists, sharing options, and much more.

Bakers can search to their heart’s content by employing the easy-to-use cookie wheel. It can be accessed by tapping on the navigation ribbon on the left side. This would not have been possible in a printed version of this book.

The Benefits of Interactive Learning

The mind of a child is like a dry sponge. It craves knowledge. Traditional classrooms are limited. They only deliver the educational material that is required by the school. Parents have the opportunity to save their kids from boredom by reading interactive eBooks together. The benefits are incredible, and include the following:

Students can work at their own pace, and review the content whenever it is convenient. They can go back to review information that was not quite clear. Advanced children can move on to the next book, instead of having to wait because some classmates need more time to understand the material. The smart ones will not be slowed down by the questions of other students.

Teachers can add material to interactive learning environments.

Educational institutions can lower their operational costs, as electronic books can be taken home. Kids can study where it is most convenient. This is a great solution for student living in remote areas or locations often plagued by extreme weather conditions.

Using a mouse and interacting with the characters helps children to become familiar with everyday technology.

Interactive eBooks are great educational tools. However, they were not created with the purpose of eliminating traditional, printed library books. Each type of reading material has a purpose. Combine them to get the best possible outcome.

Author Bio:

Stuart Gonsal is the co-founder and managing director of Lava Digital Agency, a boutique web design, development and digital strategy agency in Melbourne. Stuart believes in collaboration and that people and ideas are at the heart of every successful project. Follow Stuart on Linkedin, Google+ or visit at http://www.lava.com.au

games

Biggest Names And Their Biggest Games

7:39 AM

Despite the vast world of gaming on all types of platforms, there are only a handful of developers who are leading the way when it comes to the hardware and the games being released. There is a stunning amount of money being made by these companies, driving the gaming industry forward at a record pace. From the Xbox 360 to the WiiU, there is no doubt that the technology being put into game development will not slow down any time soon. At this time, the average United States home has at least one gaming platform while the majority have two gaming units in operation. Additionally, these game players are pouring a record $20.7 billion dollars into gaming on a yearly basis. The major players in this industry are releasing top games such as the Call of Duty series, Madden NFL installments, and physical games such as Just Dance 4. These games are moving units in numbers that stretch into the millions, encouraging future releases and the expansion of such noted franchises.

EA Electronic Arts has been in operation since 1979 and led 2012 in profits by earning an estimated $4 billion dollars. The company saw the most success from games such as Need for Speed and the Sims. Calling Redwood City, CA home base, this company is likely to stay on top for many years to come. The games that players can expect to see from them in the near future include Mirrors Edge 2, Battlefield 4, and Titanfall. Activision is the second-highest earner of game developers, pulling in over $4.8 billion in profits. Also situated in California, this company has sold over 40 million units with Guitar Hero alone. Other big sellers for this company have included the James Bond series, Tony Hawk games, and, of course, Call of Duty. Gamers are excited about the new and upcoming releases from this developer which will include Destiny and Call of Duty Ghosts.

Ubisoft has consistently kept its name in the game, earning more than $1.4 billion. Assassin's Creed allowed them to move over 57 million units while Just Dance sold over 42 million units. This company was founded in 1986 and has its headquarters in France. Among the new games heading the way of players are Watch Dogs and Rayman Legends. Microsoft Studios also managed to keep profits in the double-digit billions, earning $18.5 billion. The leading game franchises for this company includes Halo, Age of Empires, and Gears of War.

Biggest Names And Their Biggest Games

Computer Tips

How To Increase The Internet Speed in PC

11:35 PM

Are you slaving yourself to that PC in exchange of a completed coursework? Or are you catching after an oncoming deadline? The more urgent the nature of work, the higher your expectations is for that internet connection.

And when it fails to deliver, there’s no telling how worse it could be.

The slow net scenario

Now, at an era largely characterised by instant gratification, the sight of a loading icon – the circling arrow or the bar of green – could inspire automatic groans. Nobody wants them, unless this slow net thing is epidemic in your neighbourhood.

What are the causes of this slow internet connection? About.com’s “Internet for Beginners” has identified at least thirteen (13) causes.

Poor hardware

Incorrect router configuration

Leeching internet users

Un-upgraded NIC

Spyware/malware infection

Downloads

ISP’s routing signals

Outdated DNS

Full browser memory cache

Devices disrupt signals

Old PC

Open windows

Unattended dialog box

Take keen note these 13 represents the different possibilities. These may or may not necessarily disrupt bandwidth connection; it is up to you (dear user) to carefully weigh these things. The key to verifying it is by careful observation and simple logic (ie, is the connection faster with a new DNS, or not?).

Faster than energy bunnies

There are many ways of increasing your internet connection's speed. The best way to do it is to start with diagnosis. See through those aforementioned causes and learn which among those are causing your internet speed to drop.

Through a determined cause, you are able to appropriate a targeted solution. For instance, if the problem is caused by poor hardware, then you can purchase a newer and better model. If it’s about the incorrect router configuration, try to correct it or tap your friendly IT expert to do the works.

Or if the culprit of the internet snail-pace is your leeching neighbours (most likely the case for Wi-Fi connections), strengthen your connection’s password and utilise other security features. Infections, on the other hand, could be fixed through stringent scanning software.

Obviously, the nature of addressing your internet connection speed has something to do with the basics: consistent upgrades and investment in clearing ups. All of these serve to speed up that connection, probably faster than the proverbial energy bunnies.

Tech buddies

Apart from those, don’t skimp on tech savvy relationships. Try to foster a friendly (and not hostile) bond with that tech – the ones from the hardware distributor, the internet connection provider, the tech support team, and so on.

They’re your key to the better world of lightning speed connection. And though you might approach them for professional service, they would be willing to extend support if you’re consistently nice to them.

Awakened consciousness

Lastly, to increase the speed of your internet connection, try not to do things that could disrupt it. Avoid these disruptive things if it can be helped. And if the PC or any other device is shared among the members of the family, encourage them to perform the same measures.
Image Credit: ddpavumba

Author Bio:

Manuella Theissen works as a tech support for a widely recognised hardware brand. If not busy with clients, or writing stuff, Manuella can be observed at the local community service office, as she does code-writing tutorials for free.

Online Tips

E-learning: Taking Responsibility For Your Own Education

9:37 AM

It isn’t always easy for some students to finish, or even start, their higher education. After all, family obligations, work, and life can get in the way. Luckily, technology and e-Learning are now making it possible, and a little easier, to take responsibility for your own education and earn the degree you always wanted.

Taking your Education in Your Own Hands

In the past, it was only possible to take coursework in traditional classrooms. However, the demands from many students’ full-time jobs kept a lot of non-traditional students from being able to make it to class. As a result, their grades suffered and some students were even accused of being irresponsible, despite the fact that they were trying to care for their families and themselves in the only way they could at the time.

When it comes to eLearning, however, online classes offer the flexibility to learn and take courses in a different way. You can now take your education in your own hands. Students who wouldn’t have been able to regularly attend classes in a single city are now able to attend them virtually anywhere in the world-on their own schedule.

A Variety of Degrees

In addition to the flexibility that e-Learning offers its students, you’ll also find that many online learning institutions offer a variety of degrees and programs. These make it possible to find something for everyone, regardless as to what you’re interested in. This diversity is something that was seldom seen in the past.

For instance, some online program now offer as many as 20 or more online programs, including undergraduate degrees and even certificate programs which take considerably less amount of time to achieve. You can also find graduate degrees as well, which are becoming increasingly necessary in today’s world as competition is becoming fierce in the job market.

Some of the most popular e-Learning online degree programs include, but are not limited to:

Marketing

Communications

Healthcare

Teaching

Business

More than Just a Classroom Experience

In an eLearning environment, you’re getting more than just a classroom experience. Students today require programs that fit into their professional life and relate to the work that they will eventually be doing in their prospective jobs. In online education, the programs help them learn the skills that they will need to be successful in their new roles as leaders within their jobs.

Most of the professors in the e-Learning programs have said that the flexibility of the programs allow them to adapt their classes to meet the needs of the students, too, so that they’re not creating the same cookie cutter classes over and over again.

Students enjoy being able to take a range of classes that will help them in all aspects of their career, and not just classes that are required of their majors. This can help give them a broader outlook of their professional world and give them the skills that will help them in a variety of experiences on down the road.

Taking Responsibility

Of course, it’s still up to the student to take responsibility for their education, but most students thrive in this and actually enjoy it more. They prefer being “in charge” of themselves and their actions and like it better than feeling as though someone is standing over them, watching. In the online process, coursework is organized on the internet by the instructor and the student must log in and complete the assignments and tests by a certain date. They must also take part in the classroom discussions as set up by the instructor.

Most students discover that the online learning environment isn’t that much different than being in a traditional classroom and is even fun. It’s important to be proactive. You must also give a lot of attention to your studies. As with most things, your online education eLearning experience will depend on how much you give to it. You’ll get back as much as you put into it.

For those wishing to expand their education and take responsibility for their future, eLearning offers a rich experience and the chance to broaden their horizons in an exciting frontier. Are you ready to take that next step into your future and take the responsibility for your education?

Author Bio:

David Miller is an educational researcher who has vast experience in the field of teaching, LMS Systems and online training. He is associated with prestigious universities and many leading educational research organizations. He’s also an ed-tech veteran, currently pursuing research in new eLearning developments, and is a contributing author with ProProfs.

Computer Tips

How Dirty is Your Keyboard

9:31 AM

I have been working in an office for the better part of ten years now; and one thing that I know for sure is that if my keyboard could talk, the stories it would tell will scare even the most die-hard Stephen King fan. I am not a very social person you see, and the one thing I really like to do is to get lunch and eat it right here, on my desk. Now that may be convenient for me, but as you may have already guessed, most of the food falls directly on my keyboard, behind the desk and on my chair. I must have eaten at least 90% of my meals this way, imagine all the food residue lying everywhere. If you are like me, then you know exactly what I am talking about. Just turn your own keyboard upside down and start shaking it like a toaster. Right off the bat, you will see remnants of your last 5 meals, plus some older ones. I know that this concept might not be appealing to you, but trust me when I say that if you make a much deeper analysis using some modern forensic equipment, you can even trace the first meal you ever had in front of that computer. But here is where the fun part begins. If you zoom even further, using a microscope for example, the horrors you are going to see will make you want to burn your keyboard and the rest of your office equipment.

Why is the Keyboard Dirty

For one, you keyboard doesn't have any protective coating. Like a typewriter, it is just a set of buttons hooked to a printer (graphic interface). The crevices between the keys are more than enough to permit whatever you are eating to fall inside your keyboard. This is not a matter of being 'hygienic' or anything like that, because even if you are very, very careful not to drop anything between the keys, you keyboard would still be dirty. I don't know how this happens, but your keyboard is basically one big magnet for everything nasty and unpleasant.

One more thing people neglect is their own greasy hands. I know how this sounds, but hear me out. Our hands and fingers secrete oils, and guess where those oils end up on? The keys of our keyboards, of course. If you look very carefully, you can actually make out which button your are using the most, just by the amount of greasy fingerprints on each one. Finger grease is the perfect medium on which bacteria thrive and reproduce.

Cleaning the keyboard

Now that we have established that your keyboard is very, very dirty, it is time to talk about some cleaning issues (yes, you will have to clean it now that you know how dirty it is). If it was up to me I would just buy a new keyboard every three months or so, but because most people can't do that, let us talk about actually cleaning our keyboard. The procedure itself is simplicity itself (in theory). You remove all the keys, you shake well, then put the keys back in their original order. I have done this several times now, (half the time ending in complete and total disaster).

Author Bio:

Rose Finchley works as a manager of http://www.cleancarpetlondon.com/. She loves to write and give advices about cleaning.

Cloud Computing

Cloud Computing Types

9:24 AM

Even though cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular solution for businesses and individuals alike, and even though a lot of people are using it in some form, quite often without even being aware of that, there are still a lot of those who are only superficially acquainted with the term. Cloud computing has been with us for a while, and during that time, several distinct types of clouds have been formulated, so this article will try and summarize the most important points regarding each of them.

Public

Public clouds are perhaps the most common type of this service out there and one that is most accessible and convenient for individual users, which is not to say that business can’t make great use of them. Any kind of cloud service that is offered from a single provider to numerous users, with hardware and software being owned by the provider can be considered a public cloud. In this kind of setup you are simply renting the services or resources, without having any kind of control over the platform itself. Public clouds can offer storage, web based applications, or a number of other services to their users, according to the one to many principle, which is to say all users are getting the same application, for instance, with the only difference being in their contract with the provider – a number of authorized users, limitations on application features and similar.

Scalability of this kind of service, combined with the fact that users don’t have to own expensive hardware, make this setup extremely cost effective for businesses, but public cloud systems are still being plagued by chinks in their armor, which is to say security issues.

Private

Private cloud setups are mostly used by large corporations that require absolute control over their cloud, as well as an increased level of security. The corporation in question can decide to purchase the necessary hardware, or simply host their cloud with an external provider, but most prefer the former solutions, as the investment in hardware is more than justified by the additional increase in control that it affords. The cloud is only used by the corporation, and is completely isolated from other clouds, making it much more secure.

Hybrid

As can be inferred from its name, hybrid clouds are a combination of a private cloud with a public one. This allows the user to have an adequate level of control and security, but also to use the resources of a public cloud. This affords for great flexibility, as you can always limit the integration of the two clouds to perfectly suit your needs. Just like private clouds, you do need expert IT staff capable of maintaining the private cloud and the link with the public one.

Community

This term describes clusters of private clouds that remain separate on one level, but have a joint hub. This kind of setup is mostly used by related organizations that need access to the same kind of resources, but that have to stay separate. One of the examples of this kind of setup are different government organizations which need to be able to function individually, but which can also use a hub for the synchronization of their data and resources.
Image Credit: hin255

Author Bio:

Olivia Still is a blogger, technivore, cloud computing enthusiast, and online marketing consultant for a number of Australian companies. Currently exploring the possibilities of virtual private server.

Computer Tips

How to Resolve Connectivity Issues in Windows 8

10:15 AM

Sometimes it isn't always clear what is wrong with your computer when you can't connect to the internet, and Windows can be a little less than helpful by offering to search the internet to find a solution (who wouldn't want to know what genius added that option to the connectivity troubleshooting page?). However, in most cases a little bit of understanding as to what your computer is actually trying to tell you can help you to solve the problem; or at the very least identify the problem so that you know who needs to solve it.

There are three primary issues that could be causing your problems; your internet service provider, your connection hardware (hub, modem, router, Ethernet cable etc.) or your computer itself. Identifying where the problem is located is the first step, so try a little self-diagnosis first. This is particularly import with Windows 8, as many have experienced problems with the connectivity on this operating system and sometimes it is just a case of the software having a hiccup.

Step One

Start by clicking the wireless icon one desktop mode, this will bring up the side panel with all of your available internet connections. But the computer into airplane mode and leave for a few minutes, then turn off airplane mode and try connecting again. You may find that it takes a few minutes to establish the connection this time, but it might suddenly work.

This can be a problem with your ISP as much as your computer and is worth mentioning to them. Some Virgin Media packages for example have connectivity issues dealing with Windows 8 and recent operating Apple operating systems (such as iOS7).

Step Two

If it still isn't working try connecting to your internet through an Ethernet cable rather than using wireless internet. If you are able to connect and use the internet when hardwired there may be a problem with your modem or with the wireless adaptor within your computer. Most internet service providers will be happy enough to come out and replace your wireless modem, after testing with a replacement you should know whether it is the fault of the modem or the computer. If it is your computer you may need to have the wireless adaptor replaced.

Step Three

Try connecting to a different internet connection. Ask a neighbour if you can try connecting to their internet briefly to test your connection. If your problem connecting is on a laptop you can try connecting it at a friend’s house. This should give you a very clear indication as to whether your device is at fault or your internet connection. If your computer does connect to another wireless connection without a problem then it is most certainly your internet (which was mostly likely to be the case if Ethernet didn't work).

Resolution for Internet Fault

It is possible that the connection between your internet modem and phone socket is the problem, perhaps a new filter is needed or there is damage. However this is unlikely to happen suddenly for no apparent reason. The only way you can be sure of resolving the problem is to call your internet service provider for technical support. Either there is a fault with their service, which they can sometimes resolve remotely (perhaps your internet service was accidentally cancelled or otherwise altered in a way that caused a problem) or they will send a technician out to identify the cause of this problem.

Resolution for Computer / Laptop Problem

If the problem was with your wireless adaptor then you should be sure to have it replaced. However, if you were unable to connect to the internet using Ethernet both at home and at another location where the internet connection is known to be working then the fault could be something more serious with your device. Start by ensuring it is not in airplane mode, then run an anti-virus scan. Some viruses can have terrible impacts on your computer, including the disabling of your internet access; however this is nothing an up to date anti-virus can't deal with.

If you can't find a software problem and running the trouble shooting window hasn't helped you identify a problem then it is possible that you have just been incredibly unlucky and managed to damage your Ethernet port and wireless adaptor at the same time (did you perhaps drop the device onto concrete recently? Either way it is best to take it to the manufacturer and explain the problem – they should be able to help.

Note for laptop users – Some laptops have a switch on the side or bottom somewhere that will turn off the internet access. Look for this and or check the manual to identify whether or not your laptop has one and check it is turned on before taking it back to the manufacturer to report it as faulty.

Other issues

Fortunately, although Windows 8 can be a little prone to a few connectivity issues, it is very easy to use and the problems are fairly simple to resolve. Though these fixes will probably only work if you were not experiencing connectivity issues prior to needing resolutions for them. In other words; if you're having connectivity issues from the off there is a good chance you actually just set your internet connection up incorrectly, check your usernames and passwords are all correct and go through the manual while setting everything up. They all come with step by step instructions so it shouldn't be too difficult to find what you did wrong and fix it.

If your wireless internet is running slowly and/or dropping out frequently you may be too far from your wireless modem. Try moving the device and modem closer together or purchasing a wireless extender.

Image Credit: rajcreationzs

Author Bio:

Kate Critchlow is a writer passionate about technology, both new and old loving and writing about everything from web development to dial-up.

blogging

26 Tips For A Blogger - Learn From My Journal

6:35 AM

It would be much more, but I thought that at least this time I'll try to limit myself only to 26 tips for bloggers. Tips that I find useful and which can help you in your development as a blogger, increase traffic, online visibility, and blog monetization.

I write these tips as a result of my attempt to form some bloggers over time, so I could see some of the problems faced during the blog development.

Tips for a beginning blogger

1) Content is more important than design. Do not base your blog on a catchy design, if you have good content, interesting, attractive. And that can be learned.

2) How often do you write? Make a schedule and stick to it (it should be at least 2 times a week. More than two articles per week to keep up than to write one every day for 10 days, then disappear the next two months. Readers will notice your disappearance.

3) Do not ask the other bloggers for backlinks if you have not published anything on the website. It bothers me when I receive such requests. I recommend you ask for links to blogs that are at a similar level to you. Although I think the best would be to focus on writing content.

4) Do not focus on monetization if you have not posted anything on the site. Honestly, how likely do you think you will make money if you have not given anything?

5) No rattle or influencer other bloggers to give you share articles. Rather you can always ask about your articles, you can ask to give you an interview, etc. But if you're going to send emails to each of them and asking them to promote it, you risk creating a negative image. Plus, at some point they cease to help you.

6) Do not rely on traffic from another blogger (or more). Even if another blogger or influencer helps, do not count that you would pick up from this blog. I repeat: the only way to pick up a blog is to write content (articles) and striving to do better and better.

7) What do you write? Define issues that you will address and choose them as categories of the blog. Follow this strategy. If you have a blog about photography is stupid to write about the relationship of the couple and the care of cats and programming in PHP. Decide what niche you want to approach. When you feel that you are not satisfied with it then change blog direction, but do it consciously.

8) Do not overdo your share on Facebook. If you share in your articles to all Facebook pages, groups and profile of your Friends, you become annoying. Do not be naive, that you will not bring visitors, but you will create a negative image.

9) No email spam. If someone has not subscribed to your blog, do not submit articles by email.

10) Learn to write a title in a reasonably attractive way. I recommend the sites where you can read books online for free.

11) Read what you write out loud. That before publishing the article. If you think that something doesn't sounds good, rewrite the sentence. Rewrite article until you are satisfied. Usually this means to rewrite it several times. When you think it's good, publish it. There might be mistakes, you can correct later. You do not have to be perfect either.

12) Help others bloggers. Give them share to articles if they are good, give a like, tweet or leave a comment with your blog in the website field. Gradually you will be noted. Be careful not to get to the other side.

13) Don't open five blogs simultaneously. Start one, choose a name that makes sense and builds it. When big enough, you can start another project.

14) Get in touch with other bloggers. It's called networking. See what events are they present and be there. Create connections with them.

15) Respect your readers. If you promise something (eg that you write every day for a month) keep your promise.

16) Invest in your blog. At first just time and energy. As you can afford and you can also invest money.

17) Make a SEO strategy. Work on it.

18) Make a SMO strategy (Social Media Optimization). Work on it.

19) Work daily on your blog. You do not have to write every day. There are other tasks you can handle.

20) Become visible both online and offline. Get involved in community projects and online or face-to-face to ensure your visibility and exposure.

21) Do not leave spam comments on another blogs.

22) Do not let your blog be just a collection of separate items. Get links from your articles where possible.

23) Optimize your blog to keep your readers for it. On this side I worked mainly on literary style and focus on the more useful content. There are hundreds of ways to optimize the experience of readers.

24) The blog is not a democracy. There are the same rights for everyone involved. If we make an analogy, the blog is more like a dictatorship. When someone is making talks beyond measure is your duty to intervene.

25) Do not count that you will live from your blog. Unlikely you'll do that for quite a while, so make sure you have some source of income. You can make money from blogging, but it takes up time and work.

26) Periodically pick a day to do just administrative tasks. I usually do every Thursday and consists of tasks such as: replacement of broken links in articles, backup and database optimization, rewriting old articles, inserting links in articles (for example, take the last article and see where on the older articles you could put internal links).

There is a period (in many cases for over a year) in which you will not have any results. Most bloggers give in this time, disappointed that they do not see immediate results: traffic, website comments, likes etc. Unfortunately they do not come right away (unless you already have a very good online reputation).

I still believe that blogs (personal development blog or any niche) are a great tool and should be used extensively. The results will come, no matter how you started as a blogger.

If you already have a blog or want to make a website, give your opinion about the following topic: What problems did you encounter? What do you think should be avoided?

Author Bio:

Myself Abdul from Webhostinggenius.net. I am into SEO and Internet Marketing industry since 2009 serving small scale businesses to medium scale since then.And I’ve deployed all sorts SEO strategies and adword campaigns on all niches. I love to do anything related to Internet marketing and i can’t imagine doing anything else. You can contact me If you are having questions related to SEO, Internet Marketing, Social Media or Web hosting.

blogging

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