Untwisted Vortex

Setting up NginX FastCGI Cache to work with WordPress

RT Cunningham — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 08:40:44 +0000

When I initially set up the NginX web server, I disregarded anything to do with caching because I was fairly happy with full-page caching using "Quick Cache". Quick Cache is only one of several WordPress plugins designed to do full-page caching. Setting up the NginX FastCGI cache looked like Greek to me and I'm pretty familiar with most of the NginX configuration options. Needless to say, I decided (yesterday) to set it up to work with WordPress. So I gathered up every reference I could find and started coding.

The NginX Configuration File

While it's not part of the full-page caching routines, the open file cache routine is necessary to reduce the number of times the server needs to open the same files. In the "http" section I added all of these:

[bash]
open_file_cache max=1000 inactive=20s;
open_file_cache_valid 30s;
open_file_cache_min_uses 2;
open_file_cache_errors on;
fastcgi_cache_path /var/cache/nginx levels=1:2 keys_zone=WORDPRESS:10m inactive=60m;
[/bash]

The Nginx Wiki explains all of this, but I need to clarify. The max for the open file cache is how many files you expect to be opened within about 30 seconds. 1000 seems like a good base number, especially when the automated spam bots hit in succession.

The keys_zone FastCGI is a name and how much shared memory to use and "inactive" describes how long the cache key (not a cached page) is valid for. I set it for 60 minutes, which is the same as I set for valid pages in the next area I worked on.

Virtual Domain Configuration

Right before the PHP-FPM section, I inserted this:

[bash]
location ~ /purge(/.*) {
fastcgi_cache_purge WORDPRESS $scheme$host$1$request_method;
allow (server_ip_address);
allow 127.0.0.1;
deny all;
}
[/bash]

The purge routine requires a module not included with the "approved" NginX version available from the Ubuntu repositories. I had to change it by executing add-apt-repository ppa:brianmercer/nginx and apt-get update and then apt-get install nginx-custom. The only module I found missing was the GEO module, but I'm not using it anyway.

The "WORDPRESS" part of the purge line is the name used in the NginX configuration file above. The "$1" part replaces the $request_uri part of cache key used later. This was the tricky part for me because its purpose isn't documented anywhere.

The cache purge module isn't really necessary if you're moderating comments – posted comments along with post and page changes would show up at the end of the cache hour. I'm only using it, in conjunction with a WordPress plugin, in case I want to increase the cache time to a much longer period. This is something I'll probably do after I've observed everything for about a month.

Now, within the area of the virtual host configuration that controls the FastCGI process of PHP-FPM, I added all this:

[bash]
set $nocache "";
if ($http_cookie ~ (comment_author_.*|wordpress_logged_in.*|wp-postpass_.*)) {
set $nocache "Y";
}
if ( $request_method ~ ^(HEAD|POST)$ ) {
set $nocache "Y";
}
fastcgi_no_cache $nocache;
fastcgi_cache_bypass $nocache;
fastcgi_cache_use_stale error timeout invalid_header http_500;
fastcgi_cache_key $scheme$host$request_uri$request_method;
fastcgi_cache WORDPRESS;
fastcgi_cache_valid 200 1h;
fastcgi_cache_valid 301 1h;
fastcgi_cache_valid 302 1h;
fastcgi_cache_valid any 1m;
[/bash]

The first "nocache" routine tells NginX not to cache posts or pages if someone is logged in or if someone just left a comment. The second "nocache" routine tells NginX that only "GET" requests are to be cached. The $request_method variable is how to control that and that's why it's part of the cache key.

I told the cache to be valid for one hour for 200, 301 and 302 responses and one minute for everything else (403, 404, 500, etc.). I could have combined the first three, but then it's easier to change one option without affecting the others this way.

Scheduled Posts

With WordPress, WP-Cron publishes scheduled posts. Everything I've read tells me I have to set up a separate cron job to make it happen when using the NginX cache. I'll believe it after I test it, with this very post. I've set this article to be published in about 10 minutes. If it publishes on schedule, I'll know not to worry about it. If it doesn't, I know I have some other work to do.

Next Day Update

WP-Cron does indeed FAIL when using the NginX FastCGI cache in this manner. After several tests, I've concluded the best way to set up a cron job to execute wp-cron.php is to:

1) Insert define('DISABLE_WP_CRON', true); near the beginning of wp-config.php (just after the comments at the top) and

2) Running a cron job every 10 minutes with wget http://example.com/wp-cron.php?doing_wp_cron > /dev/null 2>&1 (substituting the domain name, of course).

The cron job worked for me every time. Your mileage may vary.

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Setting up NginX FastCGI Cache to work with WordPress is a post from: Untwisted Vortex

Pool Cleaners and Supplies – How to keep your Pool Clean

RT Cunningham — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 13:20:08 +0000

In order for a swimming pool to maintain its appeal, it needs to be properly cleaned. Doing so makes it presentable and inviting as a dirty swimming pool filled with debris is not only unsightly, it can also present numerous health hazards. While hiring a professional cleaning crew will ensure the water in the pool is always clean, it is also advised that you purchase a quality swimming pool cleaner and accompanying supplies. This will ensure your pool remains in perfect and inviting condition and will not suffer any damage which debris in the pool can cause.

Pool cleaners are the equivalent of "underwater robots" which seemingly move around on their own on the floor of a swimming pool. As they move around on the floor's surface, a motor/hose combo will employ vacuum suction power that safely removes all the debris which may have collected since the last cleaning. While a pool cleaner does not provide a comprehensive cleaning that covers all every aspect of making a pool tidy, but it does a tremendous job of clearing settled debris out of the pool.

You do, however, need to be a little selective in the model of pool cleaner you choose. Not every pool cleaner is the same and there are numerous different name brands and models you can select from. The key is to pick the appropriate cleaner for the type of pool you own in order to ensure the cleanup job the cleaner performs is effective. The size and shape of your pool will factor into which pool cleaner your purchase. So, you will have to perform a little consumer research prior to deciding on which pool cleaner is the best one. As long as you know the dimensions of your pool, you should not have a difficult time starting the process of determining which model would be among the best.

There is, however, another consideration which must be addressed when trying to determine which pool cleaner would be the right one to select. You need to find a pool cleaner which is capable of handling the type of debris which can find its way into your pool. Depending upon where your pool is located, it may come in contact with leaves, branches, sand, and, of course, dirt. Different models of pool cleaners are better designed for different impurities and debris. You need to match your cleaner with what you intend it to deal with.

It also does not hurt to have an adequate amount of pool supplies on hand to deal with any cleaning issues which may arise. The heading of pool supplies is a rather vast one and can include pool covers, chlorine tabs, filters, and even accessories for the pool cleaner you have purchased. Having a few accessories or parts on hand for the pool cleaner to ensure it is always properly operational is never a bad plan. Common accessories could include leaf canisters or extra hoses for the cleaner.

You have probably invested quite a bit in your swimming pool already. A further investment in a pool cleaner and several supplies can ensure your pool always stays in perfect condition and looks inviting.

About the Author

Martin Jackson is part time blogger and online enthusiast. He contributes to many blogs, writing about inspirational pool design, pool equipment and supplies, pool chemicals and pool pumps.

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Pool Cleaners and Supplies – How to keep your Pool Clean is a post from: Untwisted Vortex

How to Build a Garden Koi Fish Pond

RT Cunningham — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 13:14:12 +0000

A fish pond can be a perfect addition to any small garden as it can be designed anywhere in the globe. The most preferred fish species for pond rearing are the Koi fish and the gold-fish. Koi species are a drum-shaped fishes with vivacious colors and have very playful behaviors from Japan. The Koi fish feeds on plants so they are kept in the pond with a few species of plants. Koi fishes are known to grow larger than the goldfish so they need quite a bigger pond as compared to the gold-fish.

The pond designed for Koi species should have a capacity of less than a thousand-gallon and be over three feet deeper. Before you find out how to build Koi fish garden pond, you must keep in mind that this species of fishes require caring plus savings. If you cannot allocate time aside, make sure you can hire someone to do that. The first thing you should do is list down all the required pond equipments and find out their prices then order from pond quip.

Location

The location of the specific pond matters a lot as it should be kept away from the sun so look for a place with a shade. If you prefer building it under a tree, make sure that the tree does not shed its leaves more often as it can end up being quite messy. Dry leaves tend to interfere with the ponds PH which can be detrimental to your fishes. A location which is surrounded by a wall is most preferred. Select a location less prone to flooding run offs as they tend to contaminate the water supply.

Pond construction

Use a rope or a garden hose to select the desired size and shape by laying it on the ground. You can also use a spray paint to mark the perimeter line and have your pond supplies ready. The design with many narrow necks plus sharp corners will require more liner and have various creases and folds. So make sure you plan well the edge type and width for your pond because this will affect the liner size you purchase.

Dig 4 cm deeper than the required height for lining using clear sand or clear pond-liner underlay. This will keep the liner safe from sharp objects like rocks and roots. Use a spirit level to ensure that it is leveled. Measure to see if the shelf level is the correct level plus make sure you eliminate all hard items.

Pond filling

Lay down your liner at the base of the pond and shelf edges and then use some few smooth stones around the edges to position the liner. Finally fill it with water and move the stones back while smoothing out the pleats formed. Finally you can finish the pond edges exactly the way you wanted to.

Make sure that you get a bigger filter and pump than the one required for your pond size and always keep them running as this will help break extra nutrients and wastes. Also this will make sure that the pond volume always passes the filter every two hours.

About the Author

Martin Jackson is a marketing manager and working for PondQuip, an Australian based company, with mission to provide you the best level of customer service in the field of pond equipment and supplies and aquariums and fish tanks

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How to Build a Garden Koi Fish Pond is a post from: Untwisted Vortex

How to make the most out of Summer

Annabelle — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 12:51:10 +0000

Summer is on its way and it tends to be everyone's favourite time of the year. If you have school-aged children, you get the luxury of having them home for the first month, you can enjoy your annual leave from work, celebrate Christmas, and welcome in the New Year.

Sadly summer always seems to go too fast, so this year make an effort to do it right – so that come autumn, you have no regrets. Here are some ways you can make sure you make the most out of this time of the year.

1. BYO BBQs.

An Aussie classic, get your friends together and start planning a number of these occasions to take you right through to the cooler weather, where all you'll need to do is switch the BBQ outside for a roast meal inside.

Nominate your friends who have the outdoor pool and great pool supplies to host, and aim for an occasion once a week or fortnight. There's nothing that will make the holiday season seem like it's lasting forever more than if you have something to look forward to every week – and BYO and BBQ food is easy and stress free. Perfect for after a day at the beach.

2. Beach time.

Start your weekends off with a bang and head to the beach before the sun gets too strong later on in the day.

Getting up early means you can then return home and relax in the shade and luxury of your own backyard: and if you have garden fencing, then you'll be able to enjoy the privacy and space you typically won't find at the beach.

3. Picnics.

When the weather gets cooler and unpredictable, picnics are much harder to plan and enjoy: and for some reason, they always seem more appealing when the weather prevents you from enjoying them.

Head to your local park or try somewhere new for a bit of excitement and a change of scenery. Come winter, if you haven't "picnicked" yourself out, remember you can always have an indoor picnic instead!

4. Get in shape.

Great weather is the perfect incentive for getting exercise and fresh air. It's time to walk to work, get into your biking and running, and make use of all the amazing walkways the city has to offer.

During the winter months, we typically put on weight because we stay indoors more due to the rain and wind – and winter fare tends to be heartier and heavier.

Make it a goal to really get in shape this summer, and you'll find the new you will be great motivation to keep up the fitness even during the cooler months as well.

5. Save some annual leave for winter.

If you can, save some annual leave for later on in the year, so you can have a holiday while everyone else is still working and suffering through the colder weather.

It might be difficult to head back to work slightly earlier during summer, especially if you have to witness everyone else still on vacation: but just think of how fabulous it will be to escape to somewhere else warm and hot later on in the year.

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How to make the most out of Summer is a post from: Untwisted Vortex

Make Money Online — Getting Traffic to your Website

RT Cunningham — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 22:31:18 +0000

Whether you like it or not, you're not going to make money online if you're not getting any traffic to your website. The holy grail of website traffic is search engine traffic, but it's not the only way to get it. Regardless, the easiest way to make money online is to get human eyeballs looking at your content. The only thing that separates your website from any other website is the value and uniqueness of your content.

Being Social

This is probably the easiest way to get people to visit your website, but only if you like being social. Like many others, I'm not very social online. Of course, you need friends and followers on the major social websites for this to work for you.

Facebook is the darling of social networking right now, but it won't always be the best. Google Plus is rising quickly as a better alternative for many reasons besides social networking. Of course, you still have Twitter, but how many "humans" actually follow the tweets of the average Joe?

Google Plus backlinks count for more than backlinks from the other social sites, at least when it comes to Google's search engine. In my experience, your personal page will work better than a dedicated business page when it comes to people actually following your links.

Bookmarking

Digg, StumbleUpon, Reddit, Slashdot and Fark are social linking networks, along with a few others I can't seem to remember. The rest of the bookmarking sites aren't really designed with being social in mind – the lack of comment responses (if comment forms are even available) is a telltale sign.

Planting bookmarks on various websites, if done manually, is time-consuming and yields very little fruit. Automating them is the only way to overcome the time aspect, and your results will vary. You can use automated software from your own PC, like Bookmarking Demon, or use an online service to do it for you. Either way, it may be cheap enough, but it's not going to be free.

I've experimented with social linking networks and various bookmarking services. Other than the occasional "flash in the pan", the effects are negligible unless you're using them constantly and consistently. As far as bookmarking services go, Social Maximizer and IMAutomator seem to work well but again, they're not free services.

Increasing your Chances of being Visited

The things I mention are the things people with a clue tend to harp on quite a bit. Unfortunately, most people will not listen. But that's okay because those who will listen will actually make money online.

Your HTML title (not necessarily the same as your post/article title) needs to be short and concise and yet contain the keywords concerning the content. You need to consider that only something like 67 characters will show up on the search engine results pages. A catchy title that still contains the necessary keywords will work wonders.

Your content needs to focus on both the keywords and related keywords. Staying on topic is the easiest way to do it naturally. You need internal links on every page, if at all possible, and they should point to related pages with related keywords.

Of course, I'm talking about things that help the search engines index your content, but they do more than that – they keep people on your website after they arrive, looking for more related content.

You may notice that I have multiple lists of links in the sidebar. Yes, there really are people who scan the sidebar looking for interesting content. This is why you need to identify and display popular pages and create other pages which group similar content pages together.

Okay, I got slightly off-track. Make your content appealing on social websites, like Facebook and Google Plus. Pictures and other images tend to get more attention than plain text. Once someone arrives at your website, it's up to you to keep them there. Your website needs to be aesthetically appealing and you need to minimize distractions, even if it means less ads per page than what you'd like.

Getting Backlinks

Getting backlinks, or links back to your website from other websites, is actually easier than it seems when you create compelling content and then make it widely available through social networks and bookmarking sites. You don't even need to care about what kinds of links you get.

The secret is a 4-step process (but wait for the 5th step):

1. Create the content – you have control.
2. Publicize the content – controlled backlinks.
3. Get visitors – you don't have control.
4. Visitors link from other websites – uncontrolled backlinks.

Step 5 is optional, but it works. Create new content based on what's being searched for and what people are linking to and then watch the previous four steps in action once again.

Pleading Guilty

In all honesty, I don't usually follow my own recommendations and that's because I'm patient. I'm relying more on the age of my domain name and the trust and authority I've generated over time. As long as I'm making enough money online to cover my web hosting fees, the cost of my Internet connection and buying or replacing my hardware and software, it's all good.

With as little as I've done as far as self-promotion goes (over more than 5 years), it's amazing that I still manage to draw 2000+ unique visitors per day. Imagine how many more I would get if I actively promoted this website socially and with bookmarking services.

Stay Tuned

Unless you plan to visit often, signing up for my feed e-mail (once a day) is probably the best way to follow along. I'll continue writing about making money online, even if it isn't often.

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Make Money Online — Getting Traffic to your Website is a post from: Untwisted Vortex

22 Things to Take Care of when you Travel with Seniors

RT Cunningham — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 13:10:38 +0000

If you're accompanying a beloved senior citizen on their travel, remember that it's not your travel, it's theirs. Seniors move at a different pace, and they have different needs, both physical and emotional. You'll have to learn how to fit your needs around theirs while you travel. Here are 22 tips to help you with that.

Location Tips

Pick cities instead of remote locations. You need to know that there's transportation available if your senior gets tired, or that there's a hospital nearby to handle medical emergencies.
Consider mobility issues; even physically fit senior citizens will have an issue navigating the countryside and coastlines of some regions.
Consider weather conditions. During summertime, the heat, complicated by summer crowds can seriously drain a senior's energy reserves.
Keep it simple. Don't cram in too many sights, locations and activities; seniors can get easily overwhelmed. Let them set their own pace. Be prepared to cut tours and side trips short if your senior tires easily.

Accommodation Tips

Look for vacation rentals. Seniors tend to get set in their routines; they can become cranky and hard to please if these routines are disturbed. Vacation rentals are more private and help stabilize seniors better than busy hotels can.
Don't ignore what you may consider minor details, such as a flight of steps to the hotel café, distance from your room to the car parking lot and so on.
Find out if there's a generator in case of power outage. Seniors tend to lose their perspective when it's dark and serious accidents can happen.

Management Tips

Learn to be patient. Remember that the lack of familiarity, low visibility and other issues can make even ordinary places hazardous for a senior. They cannot keep to your pace; you must therefore slow down yours. Also know that your senior may not share your enthusiasm levels and may take longer to get ready or recover from excursions.
Don't forget to include some free days just to lie around. Seniors get tired of too much activity and need to recoup their energies often.
If you're going to take small tours during your travel with your senior, make sure the tour companies offer partial or full refunds at least 48 hours in advance. You never know.
Most museums are huge buildings, with or without elevators. They may or may not be temperature controlled, either. The tile floors can be hard on aged feet and crowds can aggravate seniors. Do your homework online to avoid these issues.
Pay attention to cues. Sometimes seniors tend to "bear with it" in order to keep their young guardians happy. Pay attention to crabby, cranky behavior, emotional drama or silent sullenness. These can be signs that your senior needs rest and quiet.
Provide emotional comfort. Seniors don't like to be away from their home environment. Make sure you have a fully charged cell phone on hand so your senior can connect to friends and family back home whenever required.

Safety Tips

Keep the number of emergency services, a 24-hour pharmacy and the number of an English-speaking doctor handy. Ask for this information at your vacation rental or hotel when you check in.
Give them some emergency money, even if you're paying for most things. This is for their feeling of self-importance and also for emergencies.
Store both your passports in a safe place that you both know. Make sure that both of you have copies of each other's passports, travel itineraries, emergency contact numbers and all other important information.

Planning Tips

Keep an eye on the packing. Your senior may not be aware of airline luggage rules, luggage safety and so on. Personally supervise the packing and ensure that only the absolutely necessary items are packed.
Plan your travel with tour operators who specialize in the needs of seniors. Research your location in advance; know the climate, culture and language. Make wheelchair, seating needs and guide dogs arrangements in advance.

Health Tips

Make sure insurance is up to date, especially for existing illnesses.
Get prescriptions refilled for the duration of the tour. Get a doctor's certificate for prescriptions to show at security gates if required.
Get a complete pre-travel medical checkup done before you leave. This is especially important if there are any pre-existing diseases, or if your senior has experienced a stroke, heart attack or surgery recently.
Discuss dietary needs with your senior's doctor. Find out if you'll be able to get the same kind of diet at the locations you plan on visiting. Also discuss the impacts of different eating habits or change in eating times because of different timezones on your senior's health.

Roger is a contributing writer at adrenalin.com.au, a site that offers unique experiences like skydiving, rally driving, and helicopter flights in Sydney.

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22 Things to Take Care of when you Travel with Seniors is a post from: Untwisted Vortex

Autumn Tasks that Prepare your Garden for Spring

Annabelle — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 12:13:36 +0000

Autumn is often the time of year when most gardeners start packing up and putting away their gardening tools, content to forget about their garden until next spring. However, to be a true gardener, it is important to recognise that there are many things that need to be done at this time of year in order to prepare for the next growing season. A gardener's job is never complete: here are a few projects to add to your autumn gardening checklist.

Do a General Clean

You will be thanking yourself come spring if you take the time in autumn to clean up around your garden. Often this means removing any diseased or infected plants, dead-heading both annual and perennial flowers, as well as pruning and maintaining any structures you have such as greenhouses or watering systems. The more you do now, the faster you will be able to get your spring garden planted.

Start a Wish List

It's never too early to start planning what you want your garden to look like. Now is a good time to think back on all your garden successes and failures and modify your strategy. Make a list of all the plants you will want for your garden in the spring, and get the list to your grower early. This way, you are sure to get all the plants you want as well as have the necessary flowers delivered when you will need them.

Start a New Batch of Compost

Early autumn is a great time to start a new batch of compost to be ready in the spring. At this time of the year, you not only have a lot of green material but you can also collect a lot of brown material from the turning leaves as well, which helps you to have all of the composting ingredients you will need throughout the winter. If you live in a cooler climate, make sure you use a composter or even vermicomposter to make sure the materials are still being decomposed properly.

Plant Your Bulbs

Especially if you live in a cooler climate, autumn is the right time to plant your bulbs. Flower bulbs, garlic, onions and shallots planted in this season will automatically come up in the spring giving you an extended harvesting season of the edibles before you even plant the rest of your spring garden. In less cold climates, there are vegetables that can be planted in autumn and harvested throughout the winter such as carrots, parsnips, cabbage, kale, chard, Asian greens, broccoli and cauliflower.

Plant a Cover Crop

Cover crops are great for both protecting your garden during the cold season, as well as enriching your soil come spring. A cover crop can be planted in the fall, let grown in the winter and early spring and then cut and tilled directly into the soil before planting your spring garden. Cover crops provide nutrients for the soil as well as nitrogen-fixing bacteria, have root systems that break up the soil and inhibit weed growth and will generally improve the soil structure, water retention and aeration. Some good examples of a cover crop include clovers, beans, peas, vetch and favas. Be sure to cover the seeds of the cover crop with inoculants so as to keep new plants from sprouting when they shouldn't be.

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Autumn Tasks that Prepare your Garden for Spring is a post from: Untwisted Vortex

Boosting Home Office Productivity with Ergonomics

RT Cunningham — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:47:34 +0000

Improve work motivation, productivity, and overall health with comfort

Desk workers, or desk monkeys as I like to refer to people like myself who work from home and work at desks for the majority of the day, tend to suffer repetitive stress injuries due to doing sedentary tasks for multiple hours at a time. The human body is not conditioned to work at a computer all day, and as a result, it's taking a physical toll on our bodies. In fact, the body can expect to suffer multiple issues due to a job with little activity, including:

Stress on joints due to poor sitting posture (especially the back)
Physical fatigue from lack of activity
Neck and shoulder pain due to slumping
Carpal tunnel and wrist ailments due to repetitive stress (such as typing)
Sickness and work absences
Loss of mobility and quality of life
Eye strain and impaired vision
Reduction in productivity
Surgeries and medical bills

However, those who do work from a home office and at desks for long periods of the day can seek relief from ergonomic office furniture, for instance, some seeking a comfortable desk chair that helps to support the back, neck, and shoulders, and fix many of these workplace body issues.

How do ergonomics help a sedentary human body?

Sitting in an uncomfortable office chair for hours and days on end, no doubt, causes pain in the human body due to poor circulation, fatigue, and lack of productivity. For example, body experts claim that something as simple as slouching in a chair or hunching your shoulders will damage your spine, cause migraine headaches, and pain and nerve damage in the back and neck.

How do poor ergonomics affect your business?

Poor ergonomics also affect the employer (which in the case of work from home, is you) in the pocket book. For instance, studies show that companies with zero ergonomics programs in place can expect dramatic increases in workers' compensation reports—compared to companies that spend money on ergonomics programs are seeing workers' compensation claims cut by 60 to 90-percent since using ergonomic furniture drastically improved employee well-being overall.
Further money is lost just due to employers making more mistakes (scrapping parts, making administration blunders, etc.) due to the physical and mental fatigue associated with a sedentary work day. It makes sense; that employees working in an uncomfortable environment would be more prone to making mistakes on the job when performing tedious, sedentary tasks –like computer work or data entry.

4 tips for making your home office ergonomically-friendly

In order your home office to be considered ergonomically-friendly it must be equipped with the following:

1. An ergonomic office chair that supports the lower back and keeps the body in good posture. This will reduce lower back, upper back, neck, and shoulder pain.

2. An ergonomic computer monitor—meaning a monitor positioned in a spot that reduces neck strain and produces minimal screen glare to reduce eye fatigue.

3. An ergonomic keyboard—which greatly reduces aches and pains in the hands, wrists, elbows, arms, and shoulders.

4. An ergonomic computer mouse and mouse pad—which keeps the hands, wrists, and arms in a comfortable position, reducing tendonitis and carpals tunnel syndrome.

About the Author

Gina M. Casillo is a staff writer for Serenity Living Stores, your choice place to buy a Barcelona chair. She enjoys decorating the bedrooms for her active twin boys and writing about home décor – especially when it comes to the spaces she's most intimate with.

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Boosting Home Office Productivity with Ergonomics is a post from: Untwisted Vortex

Memories of Michael Jackson

RT Cunningham — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 19:52:43 +0000

To say that Michael Jackson had a profound impact on my life would be an understatement. Like other people in my age group (I'm 51), I grew up listening to the Jackson 5. I continued listening to Michael after I heard the Off The Wall album, while I was stationed with the US Marine Corps in San Diego, California. His death in 2009 was a shock, but I'm sure you already knew that.

The Eighties

To be honest, I listened to a variety of music in the 80s. I heard the songs from the Off The Wall album, for the first time however, while riding in the car of a black friend (a fellow Marine – yes, I said "black") and it was long before CDs were invented (everything seemed to be on cassette tape at the time).

San Diego had cable and so did I. I watched MTV when it was just starting out. Later, when I was stationed at Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, I spent more hours than I care to remember watching music videos on a music video jukebox. I didn't see a music video with Michael Jackson, however, until 1985.

When I met my wife in 1983, she was way more talented than I expected. She could do every dance move Michael Jackson had had ever done, except the moonwalk (and she was a professional folk dancer). Well, Michael didn't do the moonwalk in public until March 25, 1983 and I met her in May of 1983, so that could be expected.

I saw the Thriller video on MTV for the first time in 1985. 1985 is an important year for my family. I and my wife married in January and my younger son (I have an adopted older son) was born in November. This is the primary reason I listen to mostly eighties music these days. Of course, that isn't the only reason. I listen to music while I'm working online, at nuTsie, almost every day. I've listened to pre-80s music and post-80s music and I always return to the 80s music.

The Death of Michael Jackson and the Media Blitz

When Michael died in 2009, I made a conscious decision to avoid writing about it anywhere (other than a reference). The media had already had a field day for at least two weeks after that and it included the sales of his music. According to the reports I've read, 2009 was the highest revenue grossing year for his estate in history. That just seems wrong in so many ways.

Michael died at the age of 50 and not of natural causes. I'm 51 now, so I guess I've outlived him. That's nothing new, however, because Elvis Presley died at the age of 42 in 1977. It's entirely coincidental that Michael was briefly married to the daughter of Elvis, being the closest thing to the King of Pop having a relationship with the King of Rock.

Why do I bring it up now? Well, I was just listening to both Billie Jean and Beat It at nuTsie and it just felt like the right time.

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Memories of Michael Jackson is a post from: Untwisted Vortex

How does Google know that the Content on my Website is the Original Content?

RT Cunningham — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:24:04 +0000

It's a good question: How does Google know that the content on my website is the original content? I don't have the answers, but I have some educated guesses. Since I'm not privy to what the Google indexing algorithm contains, guessing is the best that I can do. Some of the suggestions I've read, from Google's top support forum contributors no less, are things you do after your content has been scraped or stolen. I'll go over some of the suggestions and offer a few of my own.

Copyright Suggestions

One suggestion is to copyright your content using a service like MyFreeCopyright to register your content and protect it with a digital fingerprint, in case you need to prove you're the copyright owner.

That's all well and good if you've slaved hours to produce your independently achieved words of wisdom, but only for the proof factor. You would still have to invoke the DMCA to get the content removed from wherever you find it. That process takes time and time is something that the Googlebot doesn't consider, especially when it's crawling certain websites two or three times a day (like mine).

The fact is, under current US copyright laws, your content is automatically covered by a copyright the minute you publish it. Proving that you're the original publisher is actually pretty easy and Google helps you do it, if you do the things you should be doing in the first place.

Another suggestion is to use Copyscape to find copies or your content on the web and then take appropriate action. I don't know about you but unless a particular website is copying all of your content, I consider it an incredible waste of time. Most people who copy content are copying content from so many sources it doesn't look natural to Google and in turn, don't get the search traffic they're looking for.

Other Suggestions

I've come across other suggestions that make a lot more sense, but I won't give the people who offer the suggestions any credit because I've already mentioned them in more places than I care to remember.

Internal links: Besides telling Google what your preferred keywords are from page to page on your website, scrapers tend to scrape everything from a page, or at least the main content. Your internal links will point back to your "real" website and that's an indicator the Googlebot can't ignore. So, in the very least, you should have at least one internal link that points to another page on your website. You can even have that link pointing back to the same page – See the end of this article (before the "Categories" tags) for an example of one way to do it.

RSS Feed Links: Some scrapers scrape directly from your RSS feed. With WordPress, a number of plugins are available to add the originating link to the top or the bottom of the feed. You need to use something like this as well.

My Suggestions

Along with the other suggestions above, I have at least one more. Pinging: WordPress comes with one pinging service already placed in the settings. Don't remove it unless you replace it with something else. If you don't use WordPress, you can still find software that produces feeds and pings various services.

I recommend the Pingshot feature of Google FeedBurner. Get a plugin or write some code yourself; it doesn't matter. Find a way to redirect your feeds through FeedBurner. If you don't have a feed or you don't want one, there are services available where you can manually ping. It's a pain in the keester to do it that way, but it can be done; it should be done.

I'm pretty sure the Google algorithm can tell who pinged a particular title the first time, signifying original content. If it can't, the backlinks produced by scraped content (scrapers who haven't removed those links) will definitely point to the right place.

Link Confessional

I'll be honest, getting authority for your website domain name is probably the best way to develop trust in the eyes of the Google algorithm. You get that authority by getting links pointing to your domain name and your content. As I slowly approach the end of my sixth year with Untwisted Vortex, I can honestly say that I haven't pursued backlinks very much. I rely on Directory Maximizer to get links pointing from web directories to my domain name and that's the brunt of it. There are some services out there that will do automated bookmarking and such and I think I'll be testing one shortly, but it's really just an after thought. I'm not in a hurry.

I can tell you one thing, right here right now; my website traffic levels wouldn't be where they are today without getting backlinks and I don't have to worry about Google not knowing my content is original. I'll end this article on that note.

But wait! There's more!

Scott Ludtke of Liberty Web Marketing pointed me to an article at Connect Online Services titled "Establishing Ownership of Your Content". Apparently, Google is working on a way to identify the exact original content, but isn't ready to release any information about it yet.

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How does Google know that the Content on my Website is the Original Content? is a post from: Untwisted Vortex