The Webline Blog

Vista and Web Development

Michael — Sat, 17 May 2008 23:09:29 +0000

Yesterday I finally took the plunge and purchased a new PC, an HP with Microsoft Vista. I've heard a lot of things about Vista, much of it not good, but I figured it was time to step up; I knew I'd need to sometime anyway, so why not now. As much as I like XP, times do change. So after 24 hours of using it, I'll admit it has some… Continue reading

ATT/Yahoo & Thunderbird Issues

Michael — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 01:27:41 +0000

Many people are having issues with their Mozilla Thunderbird email client not being able to send emails through their ATT/Yahoo account. I was having this same problem, however a support ticket to ATT/Yahoo gave me a solution which I am posting here for others to try. Continue reading

Entrecard: Business Cards for Blogs

Michael — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 16:21:45 +0000

Entrecard is a free system to help blogs advertise themselves on other blogs. Whether you run a business or personal blog, you can set up your own banner on other blogs to promote and get traffic. Continue reading

Static vs Dynamic; which do you need?

Michael — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 15:09:32 +0000

Both have their advantages and disadvantages; as a new website owner, you need to understand the capabilities, costs, server requirements and time involved ( for the designer and yourself ). Continue reading

IE8 Beta ….. we waited for this?

Michael — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 23:04:10 +0000

A lot of online articles lately have talked about the new Internet Explorer 8, how it would meet many of the css/html types of standards that other browsers were already up to speed on, that it would be vastly improved, blah this and blah that. Today I came across a blog that mentioned the release of IE8, and sure enough it is available for download in a Beta version. Now, I am not going into the bells & whistles and add-ons and new features here. I haven't gotten into it far enough to check them out, since my first goals… Continue reading

Daylight Savings Time not financially friendly to Indiana

Michael — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 22:23:52 +0000

According to a preliminary study by University of California Santa Barbara, DST increases residential electricity demand. Focusing on residential electricity demand, researchers conducted the first-ever study that using micro-data on households. The dataset consists of more than 7 million observations on monthly billing data for nearly all households in southern Indiana over a three year time frame. The main finding is that DST increases residential electricity demand ranging from 1 to 4 percent. The study shows some evidence of electricity savings during the spring, but the effect lessens near the end of the Daylight Savings Time… Continue reading

More ways to ruin your website

Michael — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 09:52:27 +0000

Previously I wrote about "How to ruin your website", yet in thinking about it, I came up with even more bad design ideas that are well past their days of glory, usefulness, and make most users want to run in the opposite direction. 1. Pop-Ups. Yes, we hate them, and even utilize software and browser settings to block them. There are other ways to make a little money. 2. Automatic Music. If we want music, we have radios and CD's and dozens of other ways to get it. If you're not a music website, don't force your users to listen… Continue reading

Free PC programs I commonly use.

Michael — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 18:20:58 +0000

One of the things about the PC I think we all appreciate are the non native Windows applications and programs that are available for our computers. It seems that you can find a downloadable program to do nearly anything, from games to business to finances to communications. Even better is when you come across a great application that not only works nicely, but is free to use. I've managed to come across many free programs that I use regularly, and offer a list of a few of them that maybe others will find helpful. 7-ZIP A free ZIP utility that replaces… Continue reading

How to ruin your website

Michael — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 10:37:24 +0000

I previously wrote about 10 things for better SEO on your site. Just as importantly, there are several things web designers ( usually people making their first site ) do that will turn off visitors, and search engines, to the point that they will turn the other way, running and screaming. Often, people creating their first site find out how to do simple little things that appear neat and cool… Continue reading

The Microwave Website

Michael — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 16:11:34 +0000

I think that in many ways, we now live in what I refer to as a "Microwave Society". By that, I mean that we have become accustomed to having things done instantly and easily .... no waiting, no lines, no wasted time. Instant satisfaction. We can bank, shop, & get educations, meet people without ever leaving our homes or even picking up a phone, send mail without using postage… Continue reading