While at Mitch Altmans How to make cool things with Microcontrollers Workshop at the weekend I recorded quite a bit of video. I now need to cut most of this down in size and length. I have put a couple of these videos on youtube. They were taken with the incredibly inexpensive Kodak ZX1. The quality has been reduced for youtube and apologies for the hand shake that you inevitably get with these small cameras.

The first video is a great introduction from Mitch Altman and Jimmie P Rodgers explaining about hackerspaces (introduced by the great Antonio Roberts)

The second video is a great guide from Mitch Altman on how to solder properly

On Sunday I went to Mitch Altman’s How To Make Cool Things With Microcontrollers workshop organised by Fizzpop where with lots of help from Mitch Altman from Cornfield Electronics, Jimmie P Rogers and my son we made this:

What is it? Its a Mignonette Game a mini games console that you can build yourself. It comes pre- installed with a mini pacman type game but you can also download mini Space Invaders and mini Tetris.

photo credit: Huasonic

Social bookmarking buttons/badges for blogs have been popular for a long time  but with the success of Twitter the Tweetmeme button has become widely used especially with blogs like Mashable who can receive over 1000 re-tweets on popular posts. Then came along the  Facebook button which allows you to share a post on Facebook. Both of these buttons have official Wordpress plugins (links below) with lots of control over look and location although placement of multiple buttons can be trial and error. The plugins allow you to easily amend the CSS to layout the buttons on a single blog post.

At the time of writing the the CSS settings for the Tweetmeme and Facebook buttons are:

Tweetmeme:

float: right;

Facebook:

clear:right; float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top:10px

With Google Buzz now getting a lot of attention it was not going to be long before a Wordpress plugin was available to automatically post blog posts to Buzz. Mashable did an excellent post on the current plugins available and all of these without an API available from Google. Currently the Buzz plugin I am using relies on a Buzz user having Google Reader connected to their buzz account so it can post a link through and the counts of the Buzz’s is controlled by bit.ly. No doubt soon Google will open the API and make plugins easier.

• WordPress › TweetMeme Button « WordPress Plugins
  Tweetmeme Button for Wordpress as used on Mashable and other popular sites
  (tags: tools wordpress twitter blog plugin plugins)
• WordPress › Google Buzz Button For Wordpress « WordPress Plugins
  Google Buzz button for Wordpress similar to Tweetmeme button as used on Mashable
  (tags: wordpress blog plugins google icon buzz)
• WordPress › Facebook Share (New) Button « WordPress Plugins
  Share on Facebook button for Wordpress similar to the Tweetmeme button as used on mashable
  (tags: wordpress social plugins facebook plugin)

• TypePad Motion
  Open Source Social Media Platform from Typepad
  (tags: opensource software socialnetworking socialsoftware socialnetwork platform typepad sixapart)

• AddThis – Get Your Button Code
  Add this the social bookmarking badge has code for both Wordpress.com and Wordpress.org
  (tags: tools wordpress social plugin widget bookmarking sharing)
• Add to Any – Get the Share button for WordPress.com
  Add to any is a social bookmarking button that can be added to a hosted Wordpress.com site via a bookmarklet.
  (tags: wordpress blog tools web2.0 bookmarklet sharing webdesign buttons)

• How to Market on Flickr | Small Business Search Marketing
  Guide to using the social photo sharing site flickr for business.
  (tags: socialmedia howto socialnetworking social business flickr marketing photography seo images photos)

• Convert PowerPoint To Video: Guide To The Best Free Services
  Great post with list of ways to convert powerpoint presentations to video's that can then be uploaded to youtube or other sharing services if required.
  (tags: software tools video free conversion powerpoint youtube socialmedia)

Facebook turned 6 years old on Friday and as well as throwing a party they announced they will pass 400 million users this week. What makes this even more incredible is that they reached 350 million users in December only required a few short months to add another 50 million (they have added 200 million in less than 12 months). They also announced changes to the interface, which I noticed where introduced over the weekend for me, and as always appears to be getting mixed reactions.

I am currently looking at Facebook pages and the use of Facebook for businesses and a few useful links,  I have saved on delicious, are below (all my facebook related bookmarks can be found at http://delicious.com/philoakley/facebook)

• Facebook | Facebook Widgets
  Page of official Widgets nd badges available from Facebook including the fan box and page badge.
  (tags: facebook widgets widget tools webdesign social socialmedia socialnetworking badge)
• Facebook | Facebook Pages: How to Promote your Page off Facebook
  Find us on Facebook badge provided by facebook
  (tags: socialnetworking facebook marketing pages social_networking promotion badge)
• 10 Privacy Settings Every Facebook User Should Know
  Excellent post on privacy setting on Facebook to give you better control over your profile, photos etc
  (tags: socialmedia facebook socialnetworking privacy settings social-networking social_networking identity)
  8 Essential Apps for Your Brand’s Facebook Page
  Facebook applications that can be used on business pages from Mashable

  (tags: socialmedia twitter apps facebook applications business)
• Business Applications for Facebook | Small Business Marketing Blog from Duct Tape Marketing
  List of business applications for Facebook
  (tags: tools socialmedia apps socialnetworking business facebook marketing applications facebookapplications)

photo credit: Stéfan

I am always looking for screencasting software for Mac, Linux and even Windows. I have updated my links on delicious for some screencasting software with a few great lists below:

• TUAW Faceoff: Screencasting
  List of screencasting software for a Mac
  (tags: software tools mac screenshot screencast screencasting screencapture macosx screencasts)
• ScreenCasters – DonationCoder.com
  Comprehensive review of screencasting software
  (tags: software screencapture screencast videos windows)
• Coding Horror: Screencasting for Windows
  List of Windows screencasting software which can record you desktop for demo’s etc.
  (tags: software capture screenshot screencasting screencast screencasts recording windows)

photo credit: SC Fiasco

Looking for an emailing solution for a newsletter or email campaign? MailChimp is an excellent mass mailing solution which also has a plugins for the Wordpress blogging and content management system and Magento the open source e-commerce software. Links below to the two plugins:

• MailChimp Wordpress Plugin | MailChimp Email Marketing Blog
  (tags: mailchimp web2.0 wordpress plugins)
• Magento – Blog – MailChimp Integrates with Magento – eCommerce Software for Growth
  (tags: cms ecommerce marketing magento email)

photo credit: kruder396

Just discovered the Pomodoro Technique which is based on working exact 25 minute stints and taking regular breaks. I can definitely see some advantages with this although from my first few attempts I can say it is harder than you would first think. Link below to more details which includes excellent documentation.

• The Pomodoro Technique™
  Time Management technique for focussing on work in 25 minute blocks
  (tags: pomodoro time agile inspiration time-management procrastination technique gtd productivity)

photo credit: sachman75

Random Links and a random picture that I liked.

• Using Categories and Tags Effectively on Your Blog

  This post on using Tags and Categories on a blog was written by Michael Martin from Pro Blog Design.

  In terms of coding, categories and tags are almost identical. A category system could very easily be used as a tagging system, and vice versa.

  So what is it that makes the two different? And how are they best used?

  (tags: blogging categories blog tags tips tagging organization wordpress)
• How to Take a Screenshot in Linux (Ubuntu) | Webmaster Tips
  Great list which keeps expanding of lots of options to take screen captures in Linux, Ubunti and Gnome.
  (tags: linux screenshot howto ubuntu tips reference software tutorial)
• Screengrab Screen capture Add-on for Firefox
  It will capture what you can see in the window, the entire page, just a selection, a particular frame… basically it saves webpages as images – either to a file, or to the clipboard.
  (tags: firefox screenshot extension plugin tools addon browser extensions)
• 32 Ways to Use Facebook for Business
  (tags: facebook business socialmedia marketing howto tips socialnetworking social)

• Free and Open Source Screencasting Software Applications for Linux | TECH SOURCE FROM BOHOL
  List of screencasting software for Linux.
  (tags: linux video screencast screencasting software list tools training ubuntu)

• Renaissance – OpenOffice.org Wiki
  OpenOffice.org project to“Create a User Interface so that OpenOffice.org becomes the users' choice not only out of need, but also out of desire” OP
  (tags: openoffice opensource ux ui project design usability accessibility ooo)
• 10 Things to do After Installing WordPress | Pro Blog Design
  (tags: wordpress tips webdesign blog tutorial howto tutorials wordpress-tips blogging)

• Setup a MediaWiki – GLUG-BOM
  (tags: mediawiki setup wiki howto tips opensource wikipedia)
• Article epub Format on the Kindle
  Savory: Native Kindle epub and PDF Converter – O'Reilly Radar
  (tags: kindle pdf converter ebooks epub ebook savory amazon)

• Pligg CMS | Open Source Content Management System
  Pligg is an open source Content Management System (CMS) that you can download and use for free. Pligg CMS provides social networking software that encourages visitors to register on your website so that they can submit content and connect with other users. Our software creates websites where stories are created and voted on by members, not website editors. Use Pligg content management system to start your own social networking community in minutes.
  (tags: cms opensource digg software pligg php ajax social)
• Elgg – Open Source Social Networking and Social Publishing Platform.
  Elgg empowers individuals, groups and institutions to create their own fully-featured social environment.
  (tags: opensource social software socialnetworking community socialsoftware cms)
• GetBoo – Get your bookmarks!
  social bookmarking open-source platform.
  (tags: bookmarking social bookmarks opensource del.icio.us)
• Scuttle | Get Scuttle at SourceForge.net
  Web-based social bookmarking system. Allows multiple users to store, share and tag their favourite links online.
  (tags: opensource php bookmarks del.icio.us social software bookmark)
• BuddyPress.org
  BuddyPress is a suite of WordPress plugins and themes, each adding a distinct new feature. BuddyPress contains all the features you’d expect from WordPress but aims to let members socially interact
  (tags: wordpress socialnetworking social buddypress opensource blogging wordpressmu cms tools)
• WordPress MU › Blog Tool and Publishing Platform
  Ever dream of running hundreds of thousands of blogs with a single install of WordPress?
  (tags: wordpress blog multiuser opensource blogging software cms blogs)

• HOW TO: Use Social Media for Better Health
  (tags: health socialmedia socialnetworking fitness nhs)

• Export All Your Google Docs to a ZIP File – Google Docs – Lifehacker
  There is a concern with data in the cloud that if you lose connection/access or whatever reason your data is lost. For this reason it is essential that you have a disaster recovery plan in the form of a backup. This has now been made much easier by a new export all feature in Google Docs. Google will now let you export all your Google docs (with a selection of file types) in one Zip file for backup.
  (tags: google googledocs backup export howto docs zip)
• Size limits : Getting to know Google Docs – Google Docs Help
  List of size limits and restrictions for Google Docs
  (tags: google googleapps googledocs)

• Download Google Chrome OS and Run it from a USB Drive
  (tags: google chrome usb chromeos os howto portable software)
• Go2.me – Exhaustive Google Product List
  Full list of all Google products (243 at date of posting)
  (tags: google list apps products)

• TechCrunch White Label Social Networking Platforms Chart
  List of White label Social Networking sites such as Ning with functional comparison
  (tags: socialnetworking web2.0 social comparison whitelabel software socialsoftware)

• Shutter – Featureful Screenshot Tool for Linux
  Screenshot tool for Linux
  (tags: linux screenshot software ubuntu tools screenshots utilities opensource)
• Magento – Wiki – Add Featured Products to Home Page
  Control what products show on Magento home page
  (tags: magento products featured homepage admin how-to page tutorial)

I love Wikipedia! I use it all the time including from my mobile devices. There are many incredible things about Wikipedia but two of the most striking is that the have no advertising or commercial relationships (long may this continue) and they second thing is that they only have 35 employees.

So it is very important that people who value and use the service should donate. Below is a link with further information  on their current fundraising drive and also butons and badges if you want to support Wikipedia on your website.

• Press releases/Wikimedia launches 2009 annual giving campaign – Wikimedia Foundation
  Sixth Annual Campaign to Protect Wikipedia Kicks Off
  (tags: wikipedia fundraising)
• Support/en – Wikimedia Foundation
  Buttons and badges for your website to support Wikipedia
  (tags: wikipedia support badges buttons fundraising webdesign)

• Install Google Chrome on Ubuntu 9.10 » ulyssesonline.com
  Install Google Chrome in Ubuntu 9.10 from Google's open source Chromium project.
  (tags: ubuntu chrome google opensource browser 9.10 karmic Koala)

There are many ’sharing’ plugins for Wordpress to help readers submit posts to Twitter, Delicious and other similar sites. I was looking for a plugin that I could change the icons on and add larger ones for the LottyBox blog so the submit links would be nice and clear. The links below show what I found specifically the Socialable plugin and the large Social me icons.  I was also helped by some handy CSS for adding larger icons.

• Top 20 Social Bookmaking Plugins for Wordpress – Share your Posts : Speckyboy Design Magazine
  Top 20 Social Bookmaking Plugins for Wordpress – Share your Posts.
  (tags: wordpress plugins social plugin bookmark socialbookmarking design webdesign)
• Social.me by ~jwloh on deviantART
  Excellent Social Media Site icons. Perfect for social bookmarkinging links like Sociable for Wordpress
  (tags: icons webdesign free icon social socialmedia web2.0 images)
• Jazzing Up Yoast’s Sociable WordPress Plugin to Spur More Sharing — Webstractions Web Development
  Css Code that will allow you to use larger icons for the Sociable Wordpress plugin
  (tags: webdesign wordpress plugin css socialmedia socialnetworking)
• BlogPlay.com | The New Home of Sociable
  Sociable is a wordpress plugin that allows you to add a sharing link to different Social Media Sites (Twitter, Facebook etc) to the bottom of your blog posts.
  (tags: wordpress plugin social plugins web webdesign blog socialbookmarking socialmedia web2.0)
• 30 Amazingly Creative Social Bookmarks Icon Sets : Speckyboy Design Magazine
  This article is a list of the best and most creative Social Bookmark Icon Sets for your web sites or blogs.
  (tags: icons webdesign social icon design web2.0 socialmedia socialnetworking)

• 100 Great Google Docs Tips for Students & Educators | AccreditedOnlineColleges.org
  Great Google Docs Tips for every one including many shortcuts.
  (tags: google googledocs tips google-docs education google_docs howto productivity)

• BIGSHOT Google Analytics – Joomla! Extensions Directory
  This Plugin will add the Google Analytics Tracker Code to your site automagically.

  This Plugin was created as a better alternative to the several "module based" solutions that are out there. As far as I know this is the first and only Joomla! 1.5 Native Plugin that does this.

  (tags: joomla plugin extensions google analytics)
• Google Analytics Tracking Module – Joomla! Extensions Directory
  Google Analytics Tracking Module is a simple module for Joomla! 1.0.x. and Joomla! 1.5 used for inserting Google Analytics tracking code to the Joomla site as a module. This module makes it possible to add the tracking code before the closing body tag in template, which is recommended by Google. Module tracks all pages of Joomla cms including 3rd party components.
  (tags: joomla google analytics cms extension)

• TWITTER TOOLBOX: 60+ Twitter Tools
  Twitter is a great service, but it would be nothing without the other sites, tools, and apps that help you get the most out of it. Here Mashable highlight more than 60 of our favorite Twitter add-ons.
  (tags: twitter tools web2.0 social resources socialnetworking socialmedia)

• 20 Free eBooks About Social Media
  It’s interesting what you can find when you look around a bit on Google. I thought I’d look for a few new ebooks to read. I found 20 different ones that might be interesting to you. It never hurts to get a few different perspectives. In all cases, the first link is to a PDF file, the second link is to the site where it’s hosted.
  (tags: socialmedia ebooks social web2.0 socialnetworking free marketing ebook)
• Top 100 Best Social Media Books, Ever « Mellow Billow
  Comprehensive list of books on marketing in a web world
  (tags: socialmedia social marketing socialnetworking book resources reading twitter)
• Podiobooks.com – Serialized audio books in podcast form
  Great site for Audiobooks as podcasts many under a creative commons license and DRM free
  (tags: audiobooks podcast audio podcasts free mp3 book ebooks drmfree)
• Eastern Standard Tribe by Cory Doctorow – A free audio book from Podiobooks.com
  The book concerns itself with the conspiracies of management consultants around the world who form secret allegiences on the basis of the timezones that they choose to sleep in — everyone who keeps New York time all over the world ends up all pallsy-wallsy and savages those degenerates on Pacific time.
  (tags: podcast audio audiobooks)
• Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow – A free audio book from Podiobooks.com
  Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom Cory Doctorow's first was novel was released under a creative commons license so is available in many different formats including this Audiobook from Podiobooks.
  (tags: audiobooks creativecommons drmfree corydoctorow)

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFUm1PRxJOQ]

• 7 Twitter clients for Windows Mobile
  A list of 7 Twitter Clients for the Windows Mobile platform
  (tags: twitter clients windowsmobile windows socialmedia)

• Rebecca Blood :: Weblogs: A History And Perspective
  In 1998 there were just a handful of sites of the type that are now identified as weblogs (so named by Jorn Barger in December 1997). Jesse James Garrett, editor of Infosift, began compiling a list of "other sites like his" as he found them in his travels around the web. In November of that year, he sent that list to Cameron Barrett. Cameron published the list on Camworld, and others maintaining similar sites began sending their URLs to him for inclusion on the list. Jesse's 'page of only weblogs' lists the 23 known to be in existence at the beginning of 1999.
  (tags: blog history blogging blogs internet)

• monitter : real time, live twitter monitor | free live twitter embed widget
  Real time key word tracking tool for Twiiter. Great tool to see whats happening right now on the subjects that interest you.
  (tags: twitter tools tracking web2.0 search monitoring socialmedia widget)
• Twitter Alerts – TweetBeep.com
  Email alert service that updates you when your selected keywords are used in tweets plus other useful features.
  (tags: twitter tools tracking monitoring web2.0 search tweetbeep alert)

• Dynamic Drive- FavIcon Generator
  Create a favicon
  (tags: favicon generator webdesign tools icons design)

• Ari Herzog: 12 Ways to Use LinkedIn Today
  In the wake of numerous individuals and organizations realizing they either don't have a LinkedIn profile or need to update their existing one, here are 12 ways to use LinkedIn today.
  (tags: linkedin tips howto career socialmedia strategy)
• Logo (programming language) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  (tags: logo programming language kids education lisp turtle graphics)
• MathsNet Turtle Logo Applet – By Robert Duncan
  (tags: logo programming education kids turtle graphics fun software)

photo credit: psd

I have a Huawei 3G Dongle from T-Mobile. I got this one mainly because it had cross platform support and would work for all of my machines – Ubuntu Linux, Apple Mac and Windows, I have recently upgraded my Macbook from Tiger OSX 10.4 to Snow Leopard OSX 10.6. The upgrade went smoothly enough and until now I have had no issues with it but today found that the T-Mobile web n walk software does now not work (actually from looking around it did not work properly under Leopard OSX 10.5 either).

After  a little searching I can came across this excellent post from Ben Vallak

Quoting from Ben’s post follow these instructions to get it working:

1. Plug the Web ‘n’ Walk stick into your mac.
2. Open System Preferences and then ‘Network’
3. You should see a message about new connection devices (I think two are added for some reason: ‘DIAG’ and ‘HUAWEI Mobile’)
4. Select the ‘HUAWEI Mobile’ device in the left column
5. Enter *99# into ‘Telephone Number’
6. Click ‘Apply’ and then ‘Connect’

• Back up your iTunes library by copying to an external hard drive
  Always good to have a backup of your itunes library and the DVD backup is not always practical.
  (tags: itunes backup apple mac ipod)

• The Art of Community Available For Free Download | jonobacon@home
  Book about community from Ubuntu's Community Manager released uber a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike license. With this license that the book is under you have the following freedoms with the entire content:
  * to Share — to copy, distribute and transmit the work
  * to Remix — to adapt the work
  (tags: community free opensource sharealike)

• 10 Great Magento Extensions For Your E-Commerce Store – Platform – eCommerceCircle
  (tags: ecommerce extensions magento opensource)

• How To Create A Quality Lens
  The word "quality" has come up a lot lately on Squidoo, particularly when it comes to the Giant Squid Program. In order to be accepted you need 50 quality lenses, but what constitutes a "quality" lens? Here's what I think defines quality and how you can get there!
  (tags: squidoo hints)
• Common Newbie Squidoo Mistakes
  Making a Squidoo lens is easy. Making a good Squidoo lens, well, that's another story. A lot of Squidoo newbies ask veterans to critique their lenses, and most of these lenses are not nearly as good as they could be. (There are exceptions!)

  Hopefully this lens will help new lensmasters avoid some of the more common Squidoo pitfalls

  (tags: squidoo hints)
• Delicious Bookmarklet for Google Chrome
  How to install a delicious bookmarklet to add your favourite sites
  (tags: chrome delicious bookmark bookmarklet googlechrome)
• Breeze – the world's easiest Joomla template
  (tags: joomla web2.0 webdesign templates)

• YouTube Video Streams Top 1.2 Billion/Day
  We’ve been hearing for some time (starting with an ex-Youtube employee) that the number of video streams per day reported by Comscore, Nielsen and other metrics services way under-report on Youtube’s total video streams.
  (tags: youtube video techcrunch statistics google stats research)
• ComScore: Internet Population Passes One Billion; Top 15 Countries
  The number of people on the Internet surpassed one billion in December, according to comScore. The actual number is probably higher than that (Internet World Stats counted nearly 1.5 billion Web surfers worldwide as of June 30, 2008). In any case, only between 15 and 22 percent of the world’s population is on the Internet. We have a long way to go.
  (tags: internet statistics stats trends research comscore demographics)

I am always interested in reading information and advise on business blogging and I came across this book on scribd which I thought was quite good (below).

For people wanting more in depth and technical information (and want to use Wordpress) I can really recommend WordPress for Business Bloggers by Paul Thewlis.

Blogging for Business

• Facebook user numbers by country and Facebook usage by country as percentage of population
  Great piece of research on number of Facebook users showing % of penetration.
  (tags: facebook socialnetworking stats web2.0 statistics demographics)

• Going Google: The Apple Switch Ads for the Web App Era
  This week Google is launching the “Going Google” campaign, reports CNet, placing billboards in New York, Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco that encourage IT managers to switch from Microsoft products to Google Apps.
  (tags: google googleapps)

• TubeMogul.com | In-Depth Tracking, Analytics for Online Video | Web Video Syndication
  (tags: video youtube tools analytics statistics upload tracking)

• Battle for Wesnoth
  The Battle for Wesnoth is a free, turn-based tactical strategy game with a high fantasy theme, featuring both single-player, and online/hotseat multiplayer combat. Fight a desperate battle to reclaim the throne of Wesnoth, or take hand in any number of other adventures
  (tags: games opensource game strategy linux software free freeware windows mac crossplatform)
• OpenXML/ODF Translator Add-ins for Office
  The goal for this project is to provide translators to allow for interoperability between applications based on ODF (OpenDocument) standards (currently ODF 1.1) and Microsoft OpenXML based Office applications. As a part of this interoperability initiative, add-ins are being developed that can be installed on top of Microsoft Office Word (document processing), Excel (spreadsheet) and PowerPoint (presentation) applications (Office 2007 / 2003 / XP version) to allow for opening and saving OpenDocument format / ODF files (.odt, .ods and .odp) that adheres to ODF specifications. We also provide command line translator utilities that allow doing batch conversions.
  (tags: office OpenOffice odf microsoft opensource plugin word converter ooo)
• Sun ODF Plugin for Microsoft Office – Get It
  The Sun ODF Plugin for Microsoft Office gives users of Microsoft Office Word, Excel and PowerPoint the ability to read, edit and save to the ISO-standard Open Document Format (ODF).
  (tags: office OpenOffice odf plugin windows microsoft free sun ooo)
• feedmil.com
  Feedmil is a real-time feed search engine featuring a spam-free, topic-focused search for a variety of live streams from blogs, microblogs, podcasts, as well as public and social media. Feedmil’s goal is to help people search feeds of their current interest in the most efficient and easiest possible way through the use of innovative technologies.
  (tags: rss research web2.0 webapp feed)
• Integrated Gmail :: Add-ons for Firefox
  Gmail + Google Calendar + Google Reader + … + Gmail Labs = Integrated Gmail: All your Google Needs in One Place!
  (tags: firefox gmail google extension addons extensions plugin calendar)

• Paypal – Website Payments Pro
  Website Payments Pro allows you to accept payment directly on your website or by phone, fax and mail. Customers can pay you with all major debit and credit cards as well as PayPal balance and bank transfers.

  With this solution you get all the benefits of a merchant account and gateway in one solution. This package also includes PayPal Express Checkout which enables buyers to checkout in as little as three clicks.

  (tags: api ecommerce payment paypal merchant)
• Paypal API – Go Live Checklist
  Go Live Checklist

  After your application works with the PayPal Sandbox, and you are ready to move it into live production, review this checklist to make sure you aren’t forgetting any steps.

  (tags: api paypal magento ecommerce)

• children reading tips parents can use
  (tags: reading teaching parenting ks1 literacy phonics)
• Teach a Child to Read
  Dedicated to the thousands of children who need to improve their reading skills, and to their parents who want to help them succeed.
  (tags: reading education literacy phonics teaching kids learning parenting ks1)

• Primary Resources – Free teaching resources, lesson plans, teaching ideas & worksheets for primary and elementary teachers
  (tags: resources teaching primary education worksheets literacy maths free school parenting ks1)

I am currently building and ecommerce site for my wife’s business using the open source ecommerce software Magento. Magento has got  a lot of good press since its launch and has won many awards and is very well thought of. There is no doubt that Magento is very funtional and flexible, Google and Paypal integration is particulary good. Essentially Magento is a Content Magento System but as user friendly as Wordpress it is not. Like most great open source projects there is normally an answer to most issues on the web (via google) and below are a few links that have helped me a long the way. As I have still not completed my site no doubt there will be more links to come.

• Magento – How to add Products to your home page
  (tags: magento ecommerce tutorial products)
• Magento Connect – Blank Theme – Overview – eCommerce Software for Growth
  this is a sample skeleton theme for Magento designers.
  (tags: magento theme blank templates opensource)
• Magento Connect – Linen Stretch Theme – Overview – eCommerce Software for Growth
  Simple and clean (and free) Magento theme.
  (tags: magento themes opesource ecommerce)
• How to Import Products into Magento | ChaseSagum.com
  There’s a little confusion among some on how to import products into a Magento ecommerce store. I spent some time today researching and trying to find the best method on doing this. The reason for my research is because there was no simple documentation anywhere that I could find on how to import products. Magento actually has built a pretty robust import/export mechanism into the ecommerce cms that has a ton of flexibility to do many things. I’m not going to cover all of those. This is just for those of you who simply just want to import products into their Magento cart.
  (tags: magento import ecommerce howto cms products opensource)
• Magento – Home – eCommerce Software for Growth
  Open Source e-commerse software. Magento has excellent functionality and lots of potential especially with its Magento Connect extension system allowing additional functionality to be added through plugins.
  (tags: ecommerce opensource php cms e-commerce shopping business software)
• Magento Connect – Royal Mail Domestic and International Shipping – Reviews
  Plugin to add a Royal Mail shipping options to Magento the opensource ecommerce solution.
  (tags: magento royalmail extension opensource)
• Magento – Screencasts – Working with Paypal -
  Video of setting up Magento with PayPal
  (tags: magento paypal ecommerce opensource)
• Magento – Wiki – Moving Magento To Another Server
  The following article will outline the steps and commands involved to successfully transfer Magento from one server to another. This article assumes you have a basic understanding of SSH, and that you have SSH access on both servers.
  (tags: magento migration server tutorial howto backup moving)

Finally got round to haveing a look at the difference between Facebook Groups and Facebook Pages. I had aleady setup a Facebook Group for my wifes business (here) but after looking at the links below I have now set up a Business Page here which I think for a business is a better idea.

In my opnion the faceook ‘Page’ suits is better suited to businesses highlighting events and allows you to show your favourite pages (and of course be shown in other ‘pages’ favourite pages). There is lots more information  adn comparison on the links below:

• 34 Links on How to Promote Your Small Business on Facebook « Web 2.0 For Small Biz
  Should your business have a presence of Facebook? What does it take to create a Facebook page or group for your biz? What do you do next to promote it?
  (tags: marketing facebook)
• Facebook groups vs. Facebook pages : Tim’s Blog
  (tags: socialmedia socialnetworking facebook groups pages)
• Facebook Groups vs. Pages – the goggles do nothing
  Facebook recently released a new feature designed for companies and charities to set up an online presence called a “Page.”
  (tags: web2.0 socialmedia socialnetworking facebook groups pages)

• Facebook Statistics, Demographics, Reports, and News – CheckFacebook
  CheckFacebook.com is not affiliated with Facebook. Each day, CheckFacebook.com tracks data reported from Facebook’s advertising tool to help marketers and researchers understand how Facebook is spreading across the globe.
  (tags: facebook statistics socialmedia demographics socialnetworking)

• Draw
  DRAW – from a quick sketch to a complex plan, DRAW gives you the tools to communicate with graphics and diagrams. With a maximum page size of 300cm by 300cm, DRAW is powerful tool for technical or general posters, etc. Cross platform support Linux, Windows and Mac
  (tags: software opensource openoffice draw visio diagrams)
• The KOffice Project – Kivio
  Kivio is an easy to use diagramming and flowcharting application with tight integration to the other KOffice applications. It enables you to create network diagrams, organisation charts, flowcharts and more. Kivio is designed for Linux and the KDE desktop.
  (tags: linux software opensource tools visio)