We’ll be kicking off with a series titled “WordPress Intro”, where we’ll cover the basics of using WordPress to manage your website. While this series will be especially beneficial for our clients, it’s meant for anyone and everyone who would like to gain more familiarity with the WordPress CMS.

Enjoy this week’s installment, and check back soon for more!

The iPhone was an immediate success and turned the smartphone industry on its head. Smartphone giants RIM and Palm were suddenly fighting to stay alive in an arena that they had once dominated without question. RIM’s futile (at best) attempt at competition with the Blackberry Storm and updated touch-compatible OS quickly fizzled out. Palm, if it were possible, fared even worse with their webOS (although it was a far superior product when compared to RIM’s offering, IMO). It wasn’t until the birth of Android that we saw some real signs of a competitor in the making.

Since its inception, Android has become the heavyweight champion in terms of shear numbers. Helping Android’s rapid growth was the fact that it was offered across many different carriers at a time when the iPhone was still tethered to AT&T. Also, the fact that Google offers it completely free attracted device manufacturers in hordes, further helping the growth surge.

While this is one of Android’s best features, it is also one of it’s worst. The iPhone and iOS experience is completely controlled by Apple…so quality and consistency are 100% guaranteed. On the other hand, when you have multiple manufacturers (who have absolutely nothing to do with the OS development) churning out devices left and right loaded with Google’s OS (modified willy-nilly however they see fit)…well, you see what I mean. You get some of the best devices, but also a lot of real lemons that leave users with a bad taste in their mouths when they hear the word “Android.”

Beyond the numbers, let’s take a real look at how the two mobile operating systems measure up to one another. If the sheer number of out-of-the-box features is the measuring stick, Android comes out on top, no questions asked…especially with the recent introduction of ICS. If you take a look at the sheer number of Apps available, though, the tables quickly turn in the other direction. For me personally, most of the apps I really use are available on both platforms…as are most of the features I really need. So neither argument was a decision-maker for me.

As far as moving to iOS from Android, let me tell you what WAS a decision maker for me. Simplicity. Intuitiveness. Beauty. Those are things that Android has anything BUT. If you are compartmental thinker, like me, you will welcome the clear, straightforward structure offered by iOS. Android, in sharp contrast, can be a confusing labyrinth of disconnected features and options. Are the features good? Absolutely (and I would like to see iOS borrow some of them)! Are they structured intuitively? Absolutely NOT. At least, not in my opinion.

Moving to iOS was like a breath of fresh air. In terms of it’s speed, performance, and simplicity, iOS is far ahead of Android. But, to be fair, I honestly believe this has a lot to do with the fact that Google does not have the control over both the OS and the device from start to finish the way Apple does. That said, Apple does have an uncanny ability to design products that are powerful enough for tech enthusiasts and simple enough for Granny alike. An ability that tends to set the standard to which other players in the industry are constantly measured.

Well, I’ve talked a lot about Android…but what about the other potential player in this game? I’m talking about Windows Mobile (hey, no laughing!). Despite being haunted with a consistently luke-warm reception, Microsoft really has a lot going for it’s mobile OS if it can just get over some hurdles.

1. They need to attract more app developers. Lots more. Period.
2. They need to attract more device manufacturers. The current selection of devices in the U.S. is sub-par at best.
3. They need to add support for dual-core processors and 4G (to be fair, the iPhone lacks the latter as well).
4. They need to overcome their reputation as the world’s least innovative, most predictable company.

Many people (this is my temptation to) don’t want to look twice at a smartphone when the words “Microsoft”, or “Windows” are involved. Microsoft isn’t cool. Microsoft isn’t trendy. Microsoft isn’t what the nerds and geeks are using these days. Whatever. The point is, Microsoft has something here, but whether they can gain the momentum that they desperately need to steal some market share remains to be seen.

Personally, I would enjoy some of the features…the concepts of live tiles and powerful integration with third-part services sound great. But until they have better devices and more apps, count me out. And considering all the other products and services I use are from either Apple or Google…they would have to REALLY capture my attention to pull me away from a device and OS that plays so nicely with the rest of my tech universe.

That’s all for today folks! This has mostly been opinion, I know, but I hope it’s been helpful to someone all the same.

Margins (Source)

1. For bound books 6″x9″ or smaller, use 0.5″ margins on the top, outside and bottom of books, and a 0.75″ inside margin.
2. For 8.5″x11″ documents (bound or unbound), use 1-inch margins.
3. Adjust margins, font size, and columns to produce 65-70 characters per line (including spaces).

Printers often require a minimum of 1/2 inch margins. Narrower margins risk smearing wet ink as the printing press’s rollers move the paper.

Justify Text?

YES! It is the standard for a book. Make sure that you justify your text, however, be careful not to leave “open lines”, or large spaces between words because of the justified text. This looks very unprofessional. Using Ragged Right text is another option which can be used for certain instances, quoting text, narrow columns. Around graphics, you may need to look at the text and choose which one works best.

Leading (Source)

Leading (which is pronounced “led”, as in: “he led you to the store”) is the space in between lines of text. It’s also called spacing, as in single-spaced, double-spaced, etc.
Fonts and leading are referred to as two numbers. E.g., “12/13″ or “12 on 13 points” is a 12-point font with 13 points of leading.

Single-spaced can be the same as the font size (called solid), e.g., a 12-point font on 12-point leading. Or it can be the font size plus one point, e.g., a 12-point font on 13 points of leading is single-spaced. Check what your word processor does.

A 12-point font with one-and-a-half spacing is 18 points of leading, or 12/18.

Indenting Paragraphs

Paragraphs should be indented slightly. There should be no space between indented paragraphs. The indentation should not be a “tab”, it should be a small indent. (Look many books to see the standards)

Header (Running Header) (Source)

To a typesetter, a header means a chapter or section title. What your word processor calls a header is called a running header by a typesetter.
Page numbers should at the outer margin of the running header. Use a font family distinctive from the text font family, e.g., Helvetica for the running header if your text is Times Roman. Also use a font size distinctive from the text font size, e.g., 10 points for the page number, if the text is 12 points.
The Chicago Manual of Style (1.94) advocates not putting the book title in the verso (left hand) running header. They reason that your readers don’t need to be reminded what book they’re reading. However, if a reader photocopies your book and the title is in the left hand header the title will show on each copy.

Chapter Header

The first page of each chapter should not have a running header.

Emphasising words

Simply put, you should use simple italics to emphasize words. These should all be avoided unless you want to express something very specific like “YELLING”: Capital letters, bold (this will change the “color” of the whole page, underlining (people will try to click it thinking it’s a link in their mind), or large letters if that can be helped. Simple is best.

Double Spacing after ending a Sentence

I’ll keep this simple. Don’t do it. Double spacing is a thing of the past and is no longer the standard. For a more in-depth history, check Wikipedia. If you have a document that is double spaced, do a simple “find/replace” and replace ”  ” with ” ” for a quick fix.

Thanks for checking in!