HoundsGood: Chronicles of a Virtual Volunteer

I have been looking for more ways to spread the word about this blog, and one popular choice is Pay Per Click advertising.  For the uninitiated, a site owner contributes a certain amount of money to purchasing ads on websites and are charged according to the number of clicks an ad gets.   This is very popular on Google.   Recently, Network Solutions, who is the domain registrar with one of the longest histories, got into the internet marketing game.    The jury is still out for me on this, but I admit the Network Solutions name makes me turn my head a little.  In fact, the very first domain we had registered in the 90s was purchased through them.    In reviewing their  program, it seems that they offer a more comprehensive plan, such as keyword research, site analysis, and ad copy.  You don’t want your whole campaign crashing and burning based on something only you think is catchy.    The other positive is that if your site deals with a local business, you won’t be placed on sites that will bring you calls for a plumber from five states away.

The  service may seem a bit pricey for sites that revolve around personal hobbies or blogging, but if your site is also about your livelihood, such a high percentage of business comes from the internet these days, it could be well worth it to you.

It has circulated around the internet for a few years that if you ask Google Maps to route you a New York to Paris trip, it will instruct you to swim across the Atlantic ocean.  Since the programmers obviously have a sense of humor, I typed in “Middle of Nowhere” to see if the map had an arrow pointing to my house.   It did not.  I can absolutely prove that I live in the Middle of Nowhere.  That is not to be confused with Middle Earth.  We are fresh out of Hobbits.

We still do not have cable in our community.  Actually 1/4 of the people here have it, but it hasn’t come to our side of the street yet.  We have been on the list to get DSL or broadband for two years.  The only internet connection available would be slow dial up that went on the blink during any rain storm.   The phone line hangs like a loose jump rope over the street. When you don’t see a new blog post in several days, just assume that it is rainy season.

Seduced by satellite internet commercials, we discovered that we had to pay $600 per month unless we put down a deposit of several thousand.  In that case, we “only” had to pay $300 a month.   Yikes!    I am jumping up and down now (but carefully as to not disturb the woodland creatures) because I just found out that Wild Blue has satellite internet service starting at $49.99 a month. Wow, maybe next the price of Betamax machines will come down and we can get one of those too!  I am kidding, of course, I meant VCRs.

There are a few small charities that I also know that are running on computers that are creaking along in the speed and memory department.   Sometimes they are donated, and they have little funds to upgrade the memory.

I can can definitely relate. This weekend, I spent a lot of time recombobulating Hal. To jog your memory, Hal 900 is my surly five year old PC. You will notice that my Hal’s name is one decimal point short of the famous Hal 9000 from 2001: A Space Oddyssey. The reason why is that my Hal doesn’t verbally speak and is otherwise an extra brick short of a load.

At least, I THOUGHT it couldn’t talk. The truth is, after I discovered the Port Library, I realized that Hal can communicate, I just do not speak the language. Of course, I can read html code, but the nebulous system errors are nothing that I ever experienced when I had a Mac.

One of Hal’s “Greatest Hits:”

62: ERROR_NO_SPOOL_SPACE

Looking up error 62 in the error code section, this means that I am trying to print something, but because there are so many other documents in the queue, there is no memory space to queue another one.  I have to be patient and wait.

There are code numbers that number in the thousands!  The next time your computer sasses back at you, make a note of the error code number and find out what you can do to correct the problem.  Sometimes it is human error.  Other times it is something more serious, but at least you can determine what you can easily correct and what may need a computer technician.  It can save a lot of money knowing ahead of time.

Sometimes I don’t have a lot to work with when it comes to some of the photos on this site. There are some that I take myself, but others I receive from charity evets and shelters were sometimes taken on the fly.  Often, even tweaking the color doesn’t work.  There are a lot of Photoshop Brushes to download and add to make the best of things.  There are brushes that create “old postcard stamp,” effects, fairy dust and more.

This is how it works:  A programmer can submit brushes and patterns if they follow the resolution and thumbnail criteria. Then, anyone can download the brush and use it.  The creator can ad their identity to the brush, just like individuals who create blog templates for free download can.   This way, someone can share, and get the benefit of promoting themselves at the same time.

Here is a photo of Anastasia, a dog that had been stuck at a shelter.  Don’t worry, she was rescued and is on her way to a happy home.   The photo was very dark and there wasn’t much I could do with it.     My current version of Photoshop had a cut out that I used to add visual interest to distract you from the unflxable lighting problem.

Bookmark this page, as later (tomorrow!) I am going to reveal how I transformed it once again with one of the patterns or brushes that I found at Brusheezy.com.   I have been playing around all afternoon with them like a kid locked in a toy store. It is definitely worth downloading a few and using them to pretty things up, or to create a background layer.  Remember to keep coming back to watch this photo come to life.

Better yet, download a few toys yourself and challenge me to a “photo-edit-off.”  I know that’s not really a word, but their are Cook Offs aren’t there?   You have my permission to copy Anastasia’s photo if you want to try your hand at it and challenge me to a Photoshop dual.   (Walk ten paces and draw!)  Let’s see what we come up with.

A few months ago, I had a major spyware problem with good old Hal. I call my computer Hal due to the ongoing issues I have that make me swear that the only explanation sometimes that it is so defunct is because it is sentient and it just likes to watch me squirm. I lost all the pictures I had collected for four years of dogs and cats that have been saved from a few different shelters. I was very upset, but it was my fault that I downloaded a program versus a data file.

There are a few infections I could have avoided if I had gone to the library at File Extension DMG. They have a complete and comprehensive list of every file extension out there. Most everyone is familiar with .jpg and .wav, but there are many more that are unfamiliar that people automatically accept downloads of. It is especially important, if you are not a programmer, to aquaint yourself with them.  Not only does the library explain what the file extension means, but has information on how to download a file with that extension. You can scan for errors in those particular types of files, too.

Not all files are infected just because they have a particular extension, but I would have been more aware. You can bet I’ve bookmarked it and am checking it regularly

I am pretty tied down to my desktop computer. When there is so much going on, I often wish I had a laptop, so I could just “go” when times are what they are.  I would dart from home, to coffee shops, and to anywhere on the road that had a signal.  My husband has one, and I considered replacing mine and getting a laptop when we were in a better state of financial affairs.  One small problem: My “over the hill” computer is the hub of the home network.   With a purchase also comes the need to upgrade the internet service, as the new computer would fly.

Maybe the answer for me is to look into Charter.  They offer high speed internet and phone service, but right now they are offering extra incentive.   I might just lucky and winning one in the Charter Laptop-a-Day Giveaway. An HP Compaq Presario C770US will be given away each day for 30 days. When you place an order online for Charter services, not only will you have a chance to win the computer, but you will receive a gas card worth $100.    The odds in winning are very attractive and make folks like me, who never seem to win anything, believe they can win.   Afterall, I have a 1:1 chance of winning a gift card for gas.  I like those odds!

I sometimes work off of website templates, but often I design sites and graphics from scratch. There is an array of services out there that allow someone with no knowledge of html code to “design” a quick website and be on the web. This is why I think that the value of hiring a professional gets a little diluted. There are people who have talked about hiring me, and what sometimes it comes down to is that they believe that they can do it themselves because so-and-so did. Then I ask them how so-and-so’s website looks or if they really have the time to create and maintain one. It is fine for a personal page, but they often quickly see when approaching web design for a site that they are promoting their business or charity with, it has to look pleasing to the eye. If the website is barely functional, how is someone going to think a charity uses their time or resources?

Network Solutions used to be just known for internet domain registry years ago, but now have an in house design department, where they can offer people design packages as well. You can get something simple, or for under $1500, you can get something that is a bit more custom and flexible. There are drawbacks from going with an all inclusive service, as you may not get everything you want as when you pick and choose from a variety of functions a la carte from a variety of providers, but for a lot of people time equals money as well. If you are not a tinkerer like I am, you may want to make them one of the services you do some research on.