It seems the cheerful Google Adsense team has been very busy since the beginning of of 2012, disabling the Google adsense accounts of many reputable Adsense publishers, like Zac Johnson (and likely some not so reputable).  I feel a little late to the party, but now this webchicklet is happy to announce she too is no longer suitable material for the holier than thou Google Adsense program.  In fact, I lost two Adsense accounts in the past month, first my personal, and just today, my corporation’s Adsense account was disabled.  Yippee!

In the middle of March 2012, I got the dreaded email with the subject line: “Google AdSense Account Disabled” followed by the all too common vague google message body:

Hello,

After reviewing our records, we’ve determined that your AdSense account
poses a risk of generating invalid activity. Because we have a
responsibility to protect our AdWords advertisers from inflated costs due
to invalid activity, we’ve found it necessary to disable your AdSense
account. Your outstanding balance and Google’s share of the revenue will
both be fully refunded back to the affected advertisers.

Please understand that we need to take such steps to maintain the
effectiveness of Google’s advertising system, particularly the
advertiser-publisher relationship. We understand the inconvenience that
this may cause you, and we thank you in advance for your understanding and
cooperation.

If you have any questions or concerns about the actions we’ve taken, how
you can appeal this decision, or invalid activity in general, you can find
more information by visiting
http://www.google.com/adsense/support/bin/answer.py?answer=57153.

Sincerely,

The Google AdSense Team

As I’m sure you’re already aware, Google may be a very successful search engine business, but their Customer Service is NON EXISTANT.  There is no Google Customer Service phone number, there is no direct email address, there is NO HUMAN likely involved in this “decision” to shut down my Google Adsense Account(s) at all.  But while they are sticking the knife into your heart, they give you a dash of hope with the link to learn how to appeal their decision.  Naturally, it’s just a form, asking questions about how I think the “invalid activity” happened.  Meanwhile, they are the ones that would know what the invalid activity was, and they should damn well tell me what it was so I can defend myself and get my accounts back.

Being the pessimist that I am, I doubted much would come from my “Google Adsense Appeal”.  And I was right.  But at least they didn’t leave me hanging, as I’ve heard from others who waited months.  Instead, I got my answer in two days…

Hello,

Thank you for your appeal. We appreciate the additional information you’ve
provided, as well as your continued interest in the AdSense program.
However, after thoroughly re-reviewing your account data and taking your
feedback into consideration, our specialists have confirmed that we’re
unable to reinstate your AdSense account.

As a reminder, if you have any questions or concerns about your account,
the actions we’ve taken, or invalid activity in general, you can find more
information by visiting
http://www.google.com/adsense/support/bin/answer.py?answer=57153.

Sincerely,The Google AdSense Team

In some ways, losing my Google Adsense accounts is a positive, as it creates new, exciting opportunities to learn how to better monetize this site and a hundred others with an alternative to google adsense.  (Anyone got any suggestions?)  There is a majority of internet marketers out there that have always said Google Adsense doesn’t pay that well relative to other offers.  I always dismissed that view, and loved Google Adsense for it’s great ad inventory, layouts, and cpc.  In fact, I have made well over $200,000 via the Google Adsense program since late 2008, and have done so with integrity, and, certainly with no invalid activity on my part.

What pains me the most about having my Google Adsense accounts disabled are the following:

1.  The complete lack of details on what the mysterious “invalid activity” was

2.  The complete lack of warning that something was wrong and the opportunity to fix the problem, if one did in fact exist.

3.  The fact that they withhold the previous month’s payment, in addition to the fact that they lie and say they will be refunding that money to their advertisers.  Not only are they not likely refunding that money, but also, the advertisers received sales from the traffic I sent them.

In the end it, it gives me great pleasure to thing that karma exists, and karma will bite the Evil Google in the ass some day.  As they continue to screw honest Adsense publishers by disabling their accounts for NO REASON, they will eventually lose the trust of ALL Google Adsense publishers.  Another company will see an opportunity to treat publishers more fairly, and with excellent customer service, and Google will go the way of the dodo, Research in Motion, and every other company that forgot who is most important to them.   Ironically,  I write this post in the hopes that it will rank well in the Google Search Engine so that I can spread the warning that Google will screw you eventually, so you should think twice about relying solely on Google Adsense.

Fuck you Google Adsense, Fuck you very much.

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

Related posts:

1. Google Adsense +1: Google To Add +1 To Adsense Ads For all the web publishers out there that rely on...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

When the phrase “social networks,” come to mind, of course Facebook is at the frontline. The site, accessed by over 800 million users globally, is the easiest way to reach out to the world. When the site launched the Facebook Timeline for Business, it didn’t only help regular users show their creative side – it presented an idea for businesses to promote themselves too.

The new Facebook Timeline for Business allows companies to put up a cover page at the top and groups personal information and interests together, to tell a coherent story about the company. The page is now easier to browse and read through, with posts placed side-by-side to each other, maximizing space for optimal viewing.

With the upcoming conversion of all profiles to the Timeline, what can businesses do to make the most out of it? Here are four ways.

The cover page – capture their attention
Humans are visual. It’s easier to get people interested over a photo rather than a lengthy text. With the cover photo occupying the first half of the page, it’s the most important piece that businesses should focus on to keep customers reading. It could be the company’s logo, a photo of the team managing the business, an announcement of an upcoming, major event or a tastefully-made image that represents the company. Whatever it is, it should give a preview of what the business is all about and what it is up to.

The “Timeline”– tell a story
Customers are interested to know how the business came about. This is now possible in the Timeline as the posts are placed chronologically, and from the bottom up, the history of the business is easier understood and better appreciated. Further, the Timeline also launched the “Milestone” – a functionality that helps businesses separate the most successful and memorable moments of its existence, something that viewers will surely appreciate.

Important posts can also now be pinned and highlighted. For a week, the Timeline will keep a pinned post on top of the other updates for more visibility. Moreover, Facebook also allows highlighting by displaying posts at twice the size of a normal one to put more emphasis. Businesses can use this to alert the world with upcoming products, new services to offer, recent highlights or even customer reviews that can invite more potential customers.

Larger images– painting a bigger picture 
As Facebook aims to chronicle a user’s life with status updates and the use of multimedia, the Timeline enhanced how images appear in the page. Now larger to draw more attention, business can accompany their milestones or updates with a photo – it could be a product under development, the company’s best sellers, or a display of how the business has helped others.

Overall, the images posted should support each other, and most importantly, the cover photo. Well-coordinated posts do more than tell a story; it also shows consistency and dedication to meeting a common goal.

Subscription and Messages – Make the business accessible 
The new Timeline gives the option for viewers to communicate with the companies. By turning on the subscriptions, businesses are now able to receive direct messages. Whether still new and starting, or established and popular, companies should never let the opportunity of interacting with customers slip. Answering questions, providing assistance and responding to constructive feedback are just some of the things that can be taken advantage of. Making the business accessible to the public fosters a sense of transparency and trust with the viewers.

For a sample of what a good Timeline looks like, just take a look at Facebook’s own. For a brand that the world already knows of, their page still manages to grab the viewers’ attention. From new offices to meeting prominent people to announcing new updates – this is what the Timeline is all about. It is not just a page to show off the best products and services business offers, but the values, beliefs and vision that a company stands up for.

Sam is an Internet marketer who writes about a variety of changes in the industry and how marketers can best take advantage of them. From finding a conversion optimization service to managing and tracking social media campaigns, he enjoys blogging about it all!

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I’ve dealt with a lot of different domain registrars over the past few years, thanks to my involvement in buying expiring domains at auction.  When you buy an expiring domain through a company like NameJet, part of the bid price (min. $69) goes towards one year of registration at the original registrar of the expiring domain.  Based on my experiences, I thought I’d tell you about the good, the bad, and the ugly of Domain Registrars, especially regarding transferring a domain out to another registrar.  And from the title, you know I’ll be explaining why I think Register.com is one of the WORST domain registration company.

After my one year is up after buying an expired domain, I like to transfer out the domain to one of my favorite domain registration companies, name.com or namecheap.com.  So, having bought 75+ domains over the past couple of years I have had plenty of interaction with the domain registration companies.  Two to three weeks before the domain expires I log into the current registrar and request the authorization code, or auth code, for short.  Then I go to name.com or namecheap.com and request to transfer the domain and I paste in the auth code.  Sounds easy, right?  Well, it is very quick and easy to transfer a domain, unless you’re transferring a domain from Register.com!

It’s Easy to transfer a domain out of EnomCentral

EnomCentral is one domain registrar that got it right.  You should make it easy for your customers to manage their domains, even when they want to transfer them out of EnomCentral.  When I transfer a domain out of Enomcentral,   it’s super easy to figure out how to request the auth code.  You just click on the domain you want to tsf out, and then you select the third option “Request Auth Code”.   That’s it!  A few SECONDS later, you get the email from EnomCentral with your auth code.  Five Stars for ENOM!

It’s Not So Easy to Transfer a Domain Out of Network Solutions

Network Solutions didn’t quite get it right, but they are not the worst registrar by any stretch of the imagination.  The big problem with them is they don’t make it easy to find the link to request your auth code to transfer out.  I an understand they don’t like to lose business, but it’s a little sleazy to make it difficult to find the auth code request link.  So when I go into my list of domains and click on the one I want to transfer out, you have to scroll WAY down to the bottom of the page, and in really fine print you’ll find the Request Auth code link.

The good news is, like EnomCentral, there is no hard sell to keep your domain with Network Solutions, and the authorization code email arrives in just a few minutes.  Nice!

It’s Extremely Difficult to Transfer a Domain out of Register.com

And now for the ugly.  Register.com just doesn’t seem to have the customer’s best interests in mind.  First, they email you tell you to “keep your web address up and running” even though they don’t expire for several months.  In that email they tell you renew now and save up to $27!  Wow that’s great, right?  Wrong.  That $27 you “save” is the three year renewal compared to THEIR one year renewal rate.  And their one year renewal is a whopping $35.  That’s right, at least $24 MORE than the majority of the domain registration companies out there today.

Next, they send you an email with the dire subject line of “IMPORTANT — Your web addresses are expiring”.  So I panick, and log in, and lo and behold, they don’t expire for another month!  Again, in this email they offer the amazing low price of $35 for one year renewal.   Gee, thanks!

And finally, when I do get around to transferring out of Register.com I log in, click on the domain(s) I want to transfer out ( and they do make you do one at a time too), I find the auth code link way down at the bottom of the page.  Then I get this warning page with an amazing offer of only $20 per year, woo hoo!:

Click Continue Transfer and I get this another dire warning screen:

But there not done there!  Nope, they want to “serve me better” by asking me why I want to transfer away from Register.com, etc….(you don’t have to answer these):

And finally…..you get to the last screen (REALLY!) where they give you there last example of ultra poor customer service.   They tell you it will take 4 – 5 days for them to get around to sending the auth code email.

I picture a large office, filled with monkeys sitting at desks, manually sending out authorization code emails.

I mean really?  Why does it take so long for them to send this auth code, when all other companies send it out immediately upon request?

After 3 days of no auth code, I called the Register.com customer service.  After waiting 10 minutes to talk to a rep, she told me it does indeed take longer when you request the auth code online, however if you call in they can do it right away!  Then of course, she tries to sell me on keep the domains with Register.com, or maybe I’d like to use them for hosing, etc , etc.

So there you have it.  If you can help it, do NOT register your domains with Register.com, and if you do get stuck with them through a domain auction purchase, be sure to begin the transfer process a little earlier than you would with any other registrar.

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

Related posts:

1. How To Start A Website To Make Money Online Not a day goes by that someone asks me what...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

California based online goods payments processor once popular with affiliate marketers, has shut down many of their vendors, and affiliates, in certain markets.  While that in itself wouldn’t be a problem, Plimus shut down these vendors without warning!  Not even 24 hours notice, so no time to find an alternative payment and affiliate platform to sell their wares.   In addition they are withholding payments owed to vendors for up to 3 months, and plimus affiliates up to 30 days.

In an email to vendors just yesterday, Plimus explains “The credit card associations (including Visa and MasterCard) are increasing their scrutiny of merchants selling products within a number of online segments. Affected market segments include, but are not limited to, the following:

- Online auctions
- Foreign Exchange (FOREX)-related products
- Media
- Poker chips and other virtual currency

Next the complete lack of notice, the second scariest part of the plimus statement above is the “market segments include, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO….” portion.  Basically, if you’re using PLIMUS for products/services  in ANY market, they are saying, “dear valued customer, Plimus may have plans to screw you too, in the near future.”

If you sell affiliate products, either your own as a vendor, or someone else’s as an affiliate, I highly recommend you steer well clear of Plimus, as they clearly DO NOT have their clients best interests in mind.  Any company who would just shut down vendors with no warning after years of problem free service, clearly have another hidden agenda.  It’s rumored Plimus shut down these vendors and affiliates, and suspended outstanding payments owed indefinitely, due to a cash crunch on their part.  That is, Plimus doesn’t have enough cash to meet the payments they owe their vendors and afffiliates.  Is this true?  I certainly have no way of knowing.  Is it possible?  Definitely, as they decided to spring this sudden suspension just 4 days before they were obligated ot make payments to their vendors and affiliates.  Coincidence?  I’ll let you decide.

As an affiliate, this webchicklet only stands to lose $1200.  Vendors, on the other hand, stand to lose much, much more.  In addition, all their recurring payments with existing clients are lost forever!  Shame on you Plimus.  This incident shows a complete lack of any kind of professional conduct on Plimus’ part, as well as a complete lack of business ethics.

Here’s two different letters sent to vendors:

“Dear Vendor,

We are writing at this time to notify you we are exercising our right to suspend your account and payment as your business is in violation of the Plimus Prohibited Items Policy under this section: Financial services and of any type including and not limited to financial advice, all types of trading, insurance, currency exchange, trading signals, payment services.

Should there be any reference to Plimus on your web site, we ask that you remove it at this time.

In order to cover potential refunds and chargeback as well as any legal costs incurred to Plimus any payments due to you from Plimus are held for a period of three months and fifteen days starting from the last day of the month of your account suspension date; after which funds will be released to you per a monthly ongoing review and based on refund and chargeback impacting your account. In case of a negative balance in your Plimus account, Plimus will invoice you for the balance amount and expect payment within 30 business days.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish you success for the future and thank you for thinking of Plimus for your business needs.

Please let us know should you have any questions or concerns.”

and the other letter from Plimus:

The credit card associations (including Visa and MasterCard) are increasing their scrutiny of merchants selling products within a number of online segments. Affected market segments include, but are not limited to, the following:

- Online auctions
- Foreign Exchange (FOREX)-related products
- Media
- Poker chips and other virtual currency

As you offer products that fit within one or more of these segments, Plimus must now undertake a detailed and exhaustive review of your account, and its compatibility with the Plimus platform. This review will take approximately 30 days; at its conclusion, we hope to be able to advise you that we can continue to provide e-commerce services to your business.

During the period of this review, we must undertake two steps. First, the payout scheduled for the 15th of this month will be suspended for a period not to exceed 30 days, pending our confirmation that all transactions will be honored by the card associations. Second, your account will be suspended as of Thursday, January 12th, which will mean that no further transactions can take place until further notice.

We recognize that this represents a significant business challenge, and apologize for the inconvenience. If you believe your account should not be considered to be within one of the stated market segments, or if you have any questions of concerns, please contact Vendor Support directly.

And here’s the one sent to Plimus affiliates affected (I got mine at 10:40 ET!!):

Dear Affiliate –

The credit card associations (including Visa and MasterCard) are increasing their scrutiny of merchants selling products within a number of online segments.  Affected market segments include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Online auctions
• Foreign Exchange (FOREX)-related products
• Media
• Poker chips and other virtual currency

As you currently are promoting products that fit within one or more of these segments, Plimus must now undertake a detailed and exhaustive review of your account to assess the stability of the products sold via your efforts.

During the period of this review, we must suspend payments for your account for a period not to exceed 30 days, pending our confirmation that all transactions will be honored by the card associations.

We recognize that this represents a significant business challenge, and apologize for the inconvenience.  If you believe your account should not be considered to be focused on any of the stated market segments, or if you have any questions or concerns, please contact Vendor Support directly.

Best Regards

The Plimus Team

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

The Android OS phones continue to chip away at the iPhone market share, so it’s time we give some press to the amazing Android market with the top 5 Android Apps, free and paid, top 5 books, top grossing, top new free Android Apps, and top new Paid apps, and top movies.  These reports give you a quick grasp on what’s hot, what’s not, and what your need on your Android phone.

Here’s the top 5 Android Apps on Android Market, for the week ending Monday November 14, 2011:
Cut the RopeTop 5 Paid Android Apps:

1. Beautiful Widgets
2. Widget Locker Lockscreen
3. Swiftkey X Keyboard
4. PowerAMP Full Version

Top 5 Free Android Apps

1. Facebook For Android
2. Facebook Messenger
3. Angry Birds
4. Skype
5. Crack Your Screen

Top Grossing:

1. DocumentsToGo Full Versionm
2. Defender
3. Tap Fish
4. My Country
5. Lockout Security & Antivirus

Top 5 New Paid Android Apps:

1. Duke Nukem 3D
2. SimCity Deluxe
3. Need For Speed Hot Pursuit
4. ShadowGun
5. VinGo: SAQ, LCBO, BC Liquor

Top 5 Free Android Apps:

1. Defender
2. Contract Killer: Zombies
3. Kijiji Canada FREE
4. Virtual City Playground
5. Photo Warp

Top Selling Android Books:

1. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
2. The Cat’s Table by Michael Ondaatje
3. 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
4. The Help by Kathryn Stockett
5. Before I Go to Sleep by S. J. Watson

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

The trend towards cloud computing is currently one of the hottest in the tech world. For individuals, cloud computing offers online storage, document synchronization, and easy collaboration tools. For business, the trend means a move towards platforms that can host much of a company’s electronic data. These platforms further offer advanced security features, managed server configurations, and cloud-based infrastructure as a service (IaaS).
But what does cloud computing mean for you, the web designer? Or, more to the point, how can cloud computing improve your web design tools? While we are still at the forefront of the cloud revolution, and there’s little doubt that many yet to be developed cloud features will have an impact on web design, there are already a couple ways that the current technology can make your designing process an easier and better one.

First, cloud computing can allow you to design your webpage without needing to rely on programs installed on your computing. Instead of editing photos on your computer in Adobe, and being limited by the capabilities of your hardware and the amount you spend on software, you can now find programs that allow you to do all this online. Programs like Aviary can give web designers many of those tools needed for vector creation and image editing. These cloud-based services will often run faster and cost less than traditional ones, and they can be used from any computer, anywhere. Thus, the web designer can have greater flexibility and capabilities when they turn to the cloud.

Second, there are cloud services that provide web fonts – or online typefaces – for use by designers and developers. Rather than being stuck with the same old options given on a traditional computer, you can now go online and customize a typography that best fits your website. With better typography, a site can look bolder, come across as more unique, and vastly increase its read-ability. Some web designers see no need for this service, but many others have already forgotten what they did before it was available.

There are further options available to web designers, and these can be found with minimal research. But even if cloud computing doesn’t appeal to you right now, it’s not going anywhere and it’s only likely to grow. For web designers, cloud computer will soon become a very important tool – if it is not already.

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Have you ever started a new website project and stared at your computer screen trying to figure out what color palette scheme to use for you shiny new website?  I have, in fact, just last week.  Some people are great at website design, some people are great at color scheme selection. Rarely, are people good at both.  So unless you’ve got deep pockets and can hire out the color selection process, you’ve got to come up with some great complimenting colors for your website.  Lucky for you, there are many online color palette generators to choose from that make your job easy.  Even luckier for you, this Webchicklet has done the leg work in checking out the various sites that provide this service.  Here are my top 4 best Color Palette Generators below.

To qualify as useful, every site had to give the option of uploading (directly from your computer) large photos to generate the color palette, and not limit the file size and/or picture resolution.  Some sites do limit the photo size, and at least one made you upload the photo to a website and then provide the picture url.  Far too much for this lazy Webchicklet!

Awesome Online Color Palette Generators

1.  Big Huge Labs (http://bighugelabs.com/colors.php)

I found the Color Palette Generator at Big Huge Labs provided the cleanest, easiest, and quickest user interface.  Sure, it has a lot of ads, but hey, they’ve got to pay the bills like everyone else, and they are providing a VERY useful service for FREE.  The color palette generated was the best of the bunch.  As you can see in the photo, Big Huge Labs gave me a great selection of colors based on my photo.  They also give you the option to download the swatches in Adobe Swatch Exchange (ASE) format for Photoshop and the like, AND also gives you the sample CSS  to copy and paste at your leisure.

2.  CSS Drive (http://www.cssdrive.com/imagepalette/)

CSS Drive has a nice looking, intuitive user interface for their color palette generator, and much less advertisements, too.   They provided a large number of color options, and also break them out in Light Color Palette, Medium Color Palette, Dark Color Palette, and Complete Color Palette.  So why aren’t they my number one?  Well, I may be a little bit simple, but I felt overwhelmed by the vast number of color options that this one provided.

3.  Pictaculous (http://www.pictaculous.com/)

I had high hopes for the Pictaculous color palette generator at first load.  I found it’s ultra clean, ad free main page very appealing.  However, I found that it took a while to generate the palette, and it only came up with 3 colors.   It does give the option to download an Adobe Swatch File.

4.  Color Hunter (http://www.colorhunter.com/)

Like all the others, Color Hunter is an easy to use, quick to produce, color palette generator, made a little bit too busy with the 3 large Google adsense ad banners.  They keep it pretty simple with only 5 colors generated from my photo….maybe a little to simple.  You can toggle vibrant/dull palettes, but the little icon is easy to miss with all the ads making me blind.  Another negative, there didn’t seem to be any sample css to copy or Adobe swatch to download.

So there you have it, next time you’re stuck on picking colors for your new website project, check out these free online color palette generators.  And remember these aren’t just for web developers!   You can certainly use a color palette generator to come up with some new colors for your house too!

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

For all the web publishers out there that rely on Google Adsense for website monetization, here’s a new twist.  Google has just announced to their publishers that they will be adding the +1 button to to Adsense for Content, as well as Adsense for Mobile Content.

Google says they will be adding the +1 button to image ads, animated gifs, and flash ads.  They say that the +1 will be yet another signal they use to determine whether an ad is relevant for a given site and/or user.  In that way, they will be able to deliver the best ads and therefore the most revenue for you, the Google Adsense publisher.

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

Related posts:

1. No One Likes Your Posts? Don’t Worry, Google Plus One’s For Sale Two segments of the internet population cheered when Google came...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Tablets and eReaders are frequently grouped into the same category which may seem harmless, but is ultimately like comparing the original Nintendo gaming system to the Wii. Numerous companies that specialize in eReaders actually market their products as tablets which for the general consumer can be a little confusing. While all tablets can perform the same functions as an eReader, an eReader definitely falls short in performance.

The eReader, whether it be a Nook, Kindle, or Kobu, can perform only basic functions. The screen itself was designed to reduce strain on the eyes and to reduce overall glare. The focus of these devices was to allow people the ability to read the books they want on the go, and to give them the ability to download them no matter where they are.

Only recently have many of these eReaders begun to incorporate web browsers, and many of them are in their beta phase. They just don’t function on the same speed as a tablet. Simply put, you only buy an eReader to read books, magazines, or other print items.

Tablets, on the other hand, are practically large smart phones without the ability to make calls or mini laptops without keyboards. They have advanced IT Management teams running the apps that are created for them, superior Wi-Fi and browsing capabilities, and a large variety of functions that can help a person to anything from read the morning paper to create their monthly budget.

Recently, I heard that Amazon intended to sell 5 million tablets in their next quarter. I was stunned, but mainly because I didn’t even realize that they had a tablet available. After realizing that they were talking about the Kindle, I felt a little mislead. The Kindle isn’t a tablet.

A tablet is a highly functional mobile device, such as the iPad 2 or Galaxy 10.1. With a tablet, you can play games, scour the web, and play around on your Facebook profile. An eReader is simply that – an electronic device used for reading. It’s a great device to have for travel as no one wants to tote around heavy books in their carry-on, but otherwise – that’s all an eReader offers: convenience.

So before you invest in a Kindle or a Nook, consider all that you will be missing out on if you invest your money in one of these devices. Why spend $200 on a device that only provides access to printed items, when you could spend a little more on a tablet that allows you the same type of access while also providing you with several other features – including basics like internet browsing.

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Two segments of the internet population cheered when Google came out with Google Plus One, those that provide great content day in and day out, and those that make a (great) living selling to new markets. And the latest, greatest new market is the Google Plus One for sale market. That’s right, you can buy Google Plus one’s until your ATM tells you you can’t.

So you’ve got the big websites that put out new, unique content on a regular basis. They are happy because there thousands (millions) of daily readers, like what they read and click on the Google Plus One button. These, Google Plus One’s are, in a way, a popularity contest not unlike the Facebook like, or the Digg, etc. But Google Plus Ones are different in one big way, at least according to Google: More Google Plus Ones = higher rankings and/or traffic from the Google search engine. So it’s not wonder that web entities who put out great content are happy, as they are rewarded with increasingly higher rankings and traffic in the Google Search engine wars. Win/Win.

But what about the majority of sites out there that put out copied, rewritten, reworded, regurgitated, bad grammar, well you get the idea….CRAP content? What about them and their search engine rankings? They go to all that trouble to set up a WordPress blog, copy some material from another site, or better yet, set up an auto blog CRAP posting machine, and now suddenly Google changes the landscape on them!?

Not to worry CRAP spinners, those new market makers have swarmed to your rescue, out of the goodness of their hearts (or maybe for the money). They’ve set up shop and created thousands of Buy Google Plus One e-stores, websites, or just sell them on Fiverr.com. People are selling “real” google plus one votes for anywhere from 20 to 100 or more Plus One’s for 5 bucks. So, as expected, now the lazy crap spinners can just open their wallets and “try” to improve their rankings on Google. I say “try” because it’s not yet known whether these Plus One votes really do help your rankings or not. The only thing I’m sure of: these guys selling the Plus One votes are making a crap-load of money.

Here’s a screenshot from Fiverr.com ( a great site to find cheap freelancers) searching for Google Plus One…..note at the top there are 208 best matches:

So, what do you think about Google Plus One?  Have you noticed your rankings improve?  Did you buy Google Plus One’s?  Have checked out any of the Google Plus One’s for sale sites?  Let our readers know whether they worked for you.

©2012 WebChicklet | Just a Geek Girl. All Rights Reserved.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.