http://www.articletrader.com/ Articles at ArticleTrader en-us http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/common-web-design-mistakes-revealed.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/common-web-design-mistakes-revealed.html Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500 professional web design, you need to be found and you need stand out. Once a potential client arrives at your website you only have their attention for a short time. At a glance, potential clients need to quickly find what they are looking for.

Make your content easy to read. Although this is obvious, it is surprising how many websites have illegible text and graphics - content which feels compressed or stretched apart. Keep in mind that most people don't read words one letter at a time, but rather as a complete unit. If the wording is not easily read it will most likely not be read at all. Have coworkers, friends and family proof the website's readability, and then collect their feedback. If it's within your budget, hire a copywriter to review your website and make changes where appropriate. Your web developer should include this as part of their services.

Graphics are great, but only when they assist in understanding the message. All pictures should be clear and obvious. Too often pictures are not crisp and sharp, and not understandable. When using pictures to display your products or services, they should be the focus of the image, to not confuse your visitors. While commonly used stock photos are sometimes valuable, when displaying your products it is best to use custom photography or graphic design.

There is no room on a website for spelling or grammatical errors. Some common typographic errors include incorrect or inconsistent line or character spacing, incorrect, missing, or extra punctuation. Grammatical errors are equally as unimpressive. At the least, run your website content through a spelling and grammar check before posting it online for the world to read. The quality of a website’s content is a reflection of the business as a whole. As your website is an extension of your business, sloppiness and carelessness leave a bad impression on your visitors. If high quality is not represented through your website, poor quality is demonstrated towards your business' products and services.

Occasional errors may slip through the system. When this happens and when later pointed out, they must be dealt with immediately.

There are additional benefits to proofing and re-proofing your website. Product, price, and service changes can sometimes be forgotten, especially for businesses that are new to the Internet. Far too often websites are the last thing to be updated when processing a change throughout a business, if they are remembered at all.

Customers do not trust businesses with websites that are hard to read, hard to understand, and which are out of date. Careless mistakes and sloppy, confusing, or out-of-date information are a reflection of your business in general.


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Crocus Plains Software Ltd. is a leading software development services and enterprise solutions agency. Crocus Plains offers business services for web design and development, Internet marketing and search engine optimization, and customized enterprise software development. For more information, visit http://www.crocusplains.com

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/asp-vs.-php-a-quick-comparison.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/asp-vs.-php-a-quick-comparison.html Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500 dynamic web sites and applications, both ASP (Active Server Pages) and PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor) are popular development tools for web developers. Dynamic web sites provide an interactive experience for visitors, and can interact with information stored in databases. I will briefly review both web scripting languages to provide some insight into each.

ASP version 1.0 was developed by Microsoft in 1996 and has been systematically revised throughout the years, leading to its current release - ASP.NET 3.5.

PHP was developed in 1995 by the Danish/Greenlandic developer, Rasmus Lerdorf. Similar to ASP, PHP has greatly evolved from version 1.0, in its early years, to its current release, version 5.2.0. PHP is now produced and maintained by The PHP Group.

Platform

ASP web pages are stored and run on Microsoft's IIS (Internet Information Server) server platform.

PHP web pages can be stored and run on a variety of server platforms including Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Unix and Linux.

Cost

The latest versions of ASP have been released as part of Microsoft's .NET development framework and environment. An Express (limited feature set) version of ASP.NET is freely available from Microsoft; while the complete development environment will set you back approximately $700 USD. As ASP websites and applications require a Windows server, a server license is required. A license for the current version of Windows servers (Windows Server 2003 family), will set you back another $400 - $4,000 USD, depending on the version chosen. Most advanced websites and applications connect to a database for data storage. Similar to ASP.NET, Microsoft offers a limited feature version of their SQL Server database for free. A complete version ranges in from $4,000 - $25,000. While SQL Server database use is most common for ASP developers, free database solutions, such as MySQL are also available.

PHP is considered to be free software by the Free Software Foundation. PHP can be downloaded at no cost from The PHP Group. In contrast to ASP, PHP can be installed on the Linux platform. Linux operating systems are also free software, and can be downloaded and installed on servers at no cost. Most advanced PHP websites and applications connect to a MySQL database, which is also available as free software. Like ASP, PHP websites that are configured to run on Windows servers or with a SQL Server databases, require similar Microsoft licenses.

Ease of Use

ASP.NET is a pleasure to use for object-oriented programmers. The development interface is clean, intuitive and well implemented. The point and click interface and programming language may present a learning curve for seasoned developers.

PHP language syntax is familiar to programmers that have worked with other languages such as Perl, C and Java. While PHP is not a pure object-oriented language, it borrows the structure where it is convenient. As community support is strong with PHP, most questions by developers can be answered with only a quick Google search.

Conclusion

While ASP is a user friendly, sophisticated, development tool, associated licensing costs become a necessary evil. Where PHP lacks in luster, it makes up in leaps and bounds in familiarity and community support.

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Crocus Plains Software Ltd is a leading software development services and enterprise solutions agency. Crocus Plains offers business services for web design and development, Internet marketing and search engine optimization, and customized enterprise software development. http://www.crocusplains.com

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/computers/software/pre-packaged-vs.-custom-software.html http://www.articletrader.com/computers/software/pre-packaged-vs.-custom-software.html Fri, 04 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600 software developer who can create a custom application. As you can imagine, both solutions offer advantages and disadvantages. As a consumer with specific goals, you need to know the differences between these two options, and then decide which solution will best fit your needs.

Your first option, pre-packaged software, is just what its name indicates. These programs are available to the general public for general use, and are created for commonly performed tasks. They are not tailored to suit a business’ specific needs. One benefit of buying pre-packaged software is that you can assume that it works well for its intended purpose, and that its features are well tested. A second benefit is that pre-packaged software, in most cases, is not going to cost nearly as much as having a custom application developed. On the down side of things, since you are buying only what is pre-packaged and pre-build, you may not have the specific feature set that your business requires.

On the other hand, custom software applications also offer many benefits. The biggest and most obvious one being that you will be able to work with your software developer to build exactly what your business application requires. When you buy into custom software development, the application will be yours alone and will be made to suit your specific needs. But as mentioned above, to have an application that offers exactly what you require, you are going to have to pay a premium price.

Both types of software are valuable for businesses. For common routines performed by many businesses, buying software off the shelf may be the best way to go. But when your business needs specific actions and results, you need to consider a custom software application.


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Crocus Plains Software Ltd is a leading software development services and enterprise solutions agency. Crocus Plains offers business services for web design and development, Internet marketing and search engine optimization, and customized enterprise software development.
http://www.crocusplains.com

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/pregnancy/community-support-for-common-pregnancy-issues.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/pregnancy/community-support-for-common-pregnancy-issues.html Thu, 08 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0600
As you probably know, morning sickness is a very common issue during pregnancy. But what are you to do about this? While you could ask your doctor for advice, they may not give you the answers that you want to hear. In addition to working with your doctor, you could also ask others in your online pregnancy community for help. There is a good chance that many other women are going through the same thing as you. And guess what? Some of them might even have a solution for the problem that you are facing. In turn, you can gather answers from anybody who is interested in helping, and then take things from there.

For more serious problems, it is very important that you see a doctor as opposed to relying on advice from others. This does not mean that you should not ask questions of your online community, but you need to make your doctor aware of these issues. This way, they can monitor you closely and put you on the right track to a healthy pregnancy. You do not want to risk any major problems because you think that you can do everything on your own.

Overall, joining an online community is a great way to get support when you are pregnant. You can ask and answer questions so that your pregnancy is easier to deal with.

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OurLittleUniverse is a site that fosters friendship, support and a strong sense of community.
We want to stress the importance of getting help from the community and friends, for family issues, pregnancy, and caring for babies.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/pregnancy/need-pregnancy-help-turn-to-friends-family-and-online.html http://www.articletrader.com/home-and-family/pregnancy/need-pregnancy-help-turn-to-friends-family-and-online.html Thu, 08 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0600
Instead of feeling alone, you should always turn to others during your pregnancy. The question is: where are you going to find other people who you can connect with? As mentioned above, you will want to start out with friends and family. It is safe to say that they will be able to guide you, and quite possibly answer any questions that you have. When this fails, it is time to go online and find other women who are in the same boat as you.

Joining an online community which features a message board based around pregnancy is a great idea. As a member, you will be able to do two things. First off, you can ask questions that are bothering you. Chances are that another woman in the same position as you will be able to help out. To go along with this, you will also be able to provide your own advice in one of these communities. After all, it is a give and take atmosphere, and you should attempt to answer questions when you have an educated answer.

Being pregnant is fun and exciting, but can be difficult at the same time. Instead of feeling alone, turn to friends, family, and online communities for camaraderie. Soon enough you will have a network of connections that can help you along the way. And hopefully, you can help them as well!

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OurLittleUniverse is a site that fosters friendship, support and a strong sense of community.
We want to stress the importance of getting help from the community and friends, for family issues, pregnancy, and caring for babies.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/software-your-two-options.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/software-your-two-options.html Sun, 29 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0500
First off, pre-packaged software is exactly what it sounds like. These programs are available to the general public, and are not tailored to suit your needs. The nice thing about buying this type of software is that you know that it works, and there is plenty of information available on it. Not to mention the fact that pre-packaged software is not going to cost nearly as much as having a custom application developed. On the down side of things, since you are buying only what is available, you may not be able to get everything that you want.

On the other side of things, custom software applications also offer many benefits. The biggest one being that you will be able to tell your developer exactly what you are looking for. When you buy custom software, it will be made to suit your exact needs. But as mentioned above, to get what you want, you are going to have to pay a premium price. Is this something that you are willing to do?

There is nothing wrong with using both types of software. When it comes down to it, there are many times when buying off the shelf is the way to go. This will help to save you money, while still knowing what you are getting. But when you need specific action and results, you need to consider a custom software application.

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Crocus Plains Software Ltd is a leading software development services and enterprise solutions agency. Crocus Plains offers business services for web design and development, Internet marketing and search engine optimization, and customized enterprise software development.
http://www.crocusplains.com/

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/web-design-and-development-ask-for-a-portfolio.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/web-design-and-development-ask-for-a-portfolio.html Sun, 29 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0500
When it comes to hiring a company to assist you with web design and development, you need to ask for a portfolio; there is no way of getting around this. If you do not know what type of work a company has done in the past, how do you know that they will be able to help you with your project? The answer is you won’t!

Collecting portfolios from several web design and development companies is not as hard as it sounds. In fact, if you ask for this, you will more than likely get what you want within a few hours. After all, these companies want to earn your business, so they are going to be prompt with sending you a portfolio.

A web design and development portfolio will usually consist of past projects that a company has worked on. In most cases, you will be able to simply check out the live websites of their past projects. This will make it easy for you to decide what company is going to give you the best results.

There is no reason that you should hire a web design and development company before you see a portfolio. Many individuals and businesses end up hiring on reputation alone, and in the end they feel as if they were duped. But when you look over a portfolio first, it is safe to say that this will not happen to you.

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Crocus Plains Software Ltd is a leading software development services and enterprise solutions agency. Crocus Plains offers business services for web design and development, Internet marketing and search engine optimization, and customized enterprise software development.
http://www.crocusplains.com/

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/computers/software/mobilizing-the-back-office-web-enabling-a-desktop-application.html http://www.articletrader.com/computers/software/mobilizing-the-back-office-web-enabling-a-desktop-application.html Tue, 10 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0500
In today’s web-enabled market, administrators and end users can connect to a remote server via Internet and run all applications from anywhere in the world at anytime of day. Web-enabled client servers allow for minimal deployment while maintenance by IT staff and end users are much more effective at their daily tasks as a result.

Mainstream web-enabled software products are entirely Web-browser based. Basically, end users no longer need to manually install specialized software. Web-browser based products use a scripting language or browser plug-ins. Examples of scripting languages include PHP, ASP, Perl, Python and Ruby. Examples of browser plug-ins include a Java applet or an ActiveX component, which is used to make the client connection.

There are many matters to consider before converting a company’s client/server application to a fully-integrated Web-enabled application. Read on to learn the benefits and considerations.

BENEFITS

Implementing web applications is a feasible opportunity due to the inherent reliability of the Internet, expanding bandwidth capacity, availability of wireless access, improvements in security architectures—such as VPN's and firewall-protected computer systems--and the ever improving cost versus performance curve of computer components. These advances allow an organization to realize significant benefits, some of which are:

- The ability to access an application anytime and anywhere without incurring the cost and complexity of alternative
- Low cost development tools such as MySQL (free) and PHP (free)
- Low support costs associated with deploying application updates, maintenance, and troubleshooting

CONSIDERATIONS

When it comes to computer intensive job requirements, such as graphic design or software development, the traditional client/server architecture is the best mechanism. Its feature-rich user interface has a large impact on the user experience, efficiency and application performance. By having the program reside on the end user's computer, more functionality is possible above and beyond the user interface style.

Other web-enabling technology considerations include:

- Concern about client-sessions being confused, hacked or abused. While web-enabled applications are not completely hack proof, web applications can be designed to be very secure; current technologies provide protection for a wide range of intrusions.
- It is difficult to access outside hardware and devices. While this is possible, it requires special engineering and configuration efforts.
- There are potential instability issues due to the installation of the desktop application’s drivers or other required software updates.
- Web-enabled applications may run slow and experience downtime due to data being sent over the network wires via specialized display protocols.
- Extra efforts are required to ensure these advantages are fully realized in a Web application. Besides the expected storyboarding, prototyping and usability studies, the developers will need to provide tools for Web-based administering, monitoring and tuning of the application.

SUMMARY

The bottom line of Web-enabled applications is to make the jobs of IT administrators and end users easier while increasing productivity. The choice to convert from a client/server application to a Web-enabled application depends on individual corporation needs. Web-based technology has been helpful for corporations that want an easy maintenance and a relatively low total cost of ownership. It is important to evaluate the pros and cons of Web-enabled technology before converting. Organizations considering conversion should speak to a qualified conversion technology provider to help with the evaluation process.

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Peter Kuczaj is the Founder and President of Crocus Plains Software Ltd, a leading software development services and enterprise solutions agency. Crocus Plains offers sophisticated Web-enabling conversion solutions for client/server applications. For more information, visit CrocusPlains.com.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/web-design-hire-help.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/web-design-hire-help.html Mon, 26 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0500
To get the most out of your internet experience, you need to start things out by hiring a web design company to get you off the ground. Remember, the design of your website will go a long way in determining your success. You need to make sure that the web design company you hire is qualified to do the job.

When hiring help, here are three details that you should consider.

1. Ask for a portfolio of past work before you sign on with any web design firm. When you can see what a company has done in the past, you will be able to get a feel as to whether or not they fit in with your needs.

2. You should not hire web design help based on cost alone, but just like anything else this is always a factor to consider. You may want to request several quotes so that you can determine which one best suits your budget.

3. Hiring a web design company is all about getting what you want. In other words, you will want to make sure that the company you hire is willing to work with you to meet all your needs. This is why steps one and two listed above are so important.

When it comes to getting involved with the internet, your website design will dictate your success. Instead of taking on this job without any background or skills, you should instead hire a professional web design firm. Sure, you will have to pay for this service, but in the end you will be glad that you did so.

There are plenty of web design companies to choose from. Do your research, and hire the one that is best suited to your needs.

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Visit Crocus Plains Software Ltd. web site design, web site development and custom software services. Specializing in professional business web design and development. Services include web site design, web site development, custom software development, search engine optimization (SEO), internet marketing, copy, photography and graphic design.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/internet-marketing-getting-started.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-design/internet-marketing-getting-started.html Sat, 24 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0500
If you want to get started with internet marketing you will need to learn a bit more about this industry. First off, why do you need internet marketing skills? The main reason for this is if you own a website. When you have a website you will want to drive traffic to it. And of course, internet marketing is the best way that this can be done.

When it comes to getting started with internet marketing, you should gather as much information as possible. This is a popular topic, and for this reason you should not have any problems finding plenty of information both on and offline. Just make sure that when you are searching for internet marketing information that you are getting it from people who are knowledgeable.

If internet marketing is a bit out of your realm, your next best bet is to get in touch with a firm that specializes in this. There are many companies that will work on your behalf to make sure that your internet marketing campaign is a success. Sure, you will have to pay for this service, but in the end you will more than make your money back.

As you can imagine, getting started with internet marketing is only the tip of the iceberg. After you have decided that you need to form a marketing campaign, you will then need to look into all of your options. As mentioned above, internet marketing is a large field and you can do many things to make this work to your advantage.

Overall, to learn about internet marketing you will want to do your own research and also consider hiring a firm to work on your behalf.

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Visit Crocus Plains Software Ltd. web site design, web site development and custom software services. Specializing in professional business web design and development. Services include web site design, web site development, custom software development, search engine optimization (SEO), internet marketing, copy, photography and graphic design.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]>