INTELLIPLANS Blog

In a nutshell: The U.S government and its law enforcement would be able to receive mountains of information from companies such as Facebook, Google, Twitter, and also your cell phone carrier simply by requesting it, no subpoena required. They would be able to use the information they gather for whatever purpose was deemed necessary, with NO LEGAL consequence.Also important is that the scope of this bill is NOT confined to US residents. The US government would be able to get information about anyone in the world that has a Facebook, Google or Twitter account.The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) is a proposed law in the United States which would allow for the sharing of Internet traffic information between the U.S. government and technology and manufacturing companies. The stated aim of the bill is to help the U.S government investigate cyber threats and ensure the security of networks against cyberattacks.[1]...

Before discussing helpdesk software, I'd like to list helpdesk functions and why having a website-based helpdesk is important. Helpdesk Software Functions A helpdesk does the following:

Help request management. Help request tracking. Managing a knowledge base or frequently asked questions. Resolving issues. Providing self-help resources.

Why Have a Helpdesk Customer support, no matter what your company provides (sales, services, etc.), is critical to customer satisfaction. A high customer satisfaction creates repeat business - one of the crucial factors of a successful enterprise. Having a helpdesk is one of the main keys to high customer satisfaction though customer support. Your customers need to contact you for a variety of reasons. Maybe they've lost the password to your website? Maybe they purchased the wrong item and need a return? Maybe they can't figure out how to properly install the memory chip you sold them? Sure, you can have your customers contact you directly...

Clearing Your DNS Cache Your DNS cache stores the locations (IP addresses) of pages you have recently viewed. If the location of the page changes before the entry in your DNS cache is updated, you will be unable to access the page. If you are encountering a high number of HTML 404 error codes, you may need to flush your DNS cache. Once you clear your DNS cache, your computer will query nameservers for the new DNS information you require. For more information about the HTML 404 error code, please visit the HTML 404 wikipedia article. The methods detailed below allow you to remove old and inaccurate DNS information that may result in 404 errors. Windows® XP, 2000, or Vista®

Open the Start menu. Go to Run. If you do not see the Run command in Vista, search for "run" in the Search bar. In the Run text box, type: ipconfig...

Maintaining a secure website is a top concern for many people. Everyone is looking for the one way to make sure their site is always running, safe, and secure. When someone expresses concern about the security of their site, I usually ask them how old their most recent backup is. Most don't know, or don't have any backup at all. The harsh reality is that no system is ever going to be 100% secure. It doesn't matter what that system is, be it Joomla or the mainframe system that runs your bank account. Its important to keep your system up to date and to defend against hackers, but at the same time keeping your site up and running means defending against several other factors that include hardware failures, failed business relationships, and security issues beyond your control. For example, if your hosting company doesn't keep their control panel software up to...

Internet Explorer is continuing to make Web browser marketplace gains.It seemed like a predictable trend: Watch Internet Explorer’s (IE's) market share drop. For the longest time, you could count on IE losing Web browser market share and either Chrome or Firefox picking up users. However, the latest October 2012 numbers from NetMarketShare show that IE is continuing to regain lost ground, thus ensuring its rule as the most popular desktop Web browser, with 54 percent of the market worldwide. IE’s still-above-the-halfway mark is followed by Mozilla's Firefox with 20 percent and with Google's Chrome nipping at its heels with 19 percent. The other "popular" Web browsers remain mired in the single digits. Apple's Safari comes in fourth with 5 percent and Opera takes fifth, hitting 2 percent only because we round up the percentages. IE has gained half-a-percentage point since September. This came mostly at the expense of Chrome, which dropped 0.31 percent while Firefox lost .09 percent....

The social network recently fixed a bug discovered by a developer who demonstrated how the loophole let him take over other people's accounts.A security hacker recently found a flaw in a Facebook system that allowed developers to access anyone's Facebook account through app permissions. Though Facebook has fixed this issue, Nir Goldshlager, a Web application security specialist who looks for these types of flaws professionally, found more app authorization bugs that need fixing, according to his blog. App permissions are what developers use to access the user data needed to run their apps. Users give them access permission when they install the apps. "I found a couple more OAuth flaws in Facebook, just waiting for a fix to post about it," Goldshlager wrote in his blog, where he detailed his findings. Facebook wouldn't comment on what other flaws Goldshlager may have found but did say the original bug he detected had...

Facebook was hacked last week in a zero-day Java attack that struck the laptops of several of its engineers, not long after Twitter was hit.First Publish: 2/17/2013, 9:40 AMFacebook was hacked last week in a zero-day Java attack that struck the laptops of several of its engineers, not long after the Twitter micro social networking website was hit in a similar attack. Company said in an exclusive interview with Ars Technica that engineers became aware of the problem when a suspicious domain appear in the Facebook DNS request log. Requests were then tracked to the laptop of an engineer working on development of mobile apps. Analysis of the files on the laptop then led to discovery of other system that had been attacked by malware installed by the hackers. Systems that were infected by the malware were contained by a Facebook internal security team, according to the company. Working with an outside security...

Thursday, January 19, 2012 at 3:00 PMWebmaster Level: All In our ongoing effort to help you find more high-quality websites in search results, today we’re launching an algorithmic change that looks at the layout of a webpage and the amount of content you see on the page once you click on a result. As we’ve mentioned previously, we’ve heard complaints from users that if they click on a result and it’s difficult to find the actual content, they aren’t happy with the experience. Rather than scrolling down the page past a slew of ads, users want to see content right away. So sites that don’t have much content “above-the-fold” can be affected by this change. If you click on a website and the part of the website you see first either doesn’t have a lot of visible content above-the-fold or dedicates a large fraction of the site’s initial screen real estate...

Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at 2:45 PM Webmaster level: All Google has said before that search engine optimization, or SEO, can be positive and constructive—and we're not the only ones. Effective search engine optimization can make a site more crawlable and make individual pages more accessible and easier to find. Search engine optimization includes things as simple as keyword research to ensure that the right words are on the page, not just industry jargon that normal people will never type. “White hat” search engine optimizers often improve the usability of a site, help create great content, or make sites faster, which is good for both users and search engines. Good search engine optimization can also mean good marketing: thinking about creative ways to make a site more compelling, which can help with search engines as well as social media. The net result of making a great site is often greater awareness...

This is a great move from Google.  It's about time that fake webmasters get a reality check on their "SEO" work.In an article from Web Pro News, titled Are You Surprised That Google Doesn’t Like Paid Blog Networks?Maybe it's time to stop obsessing over meaningless linksGoogle has been cracking down on lesser quality content littering its search results a great deal over the past year – probably more than any other time in the search engine’s history. Obviously, to those who follow the search industry, the Panda update has been leading the charge in this area. Google has been de-indexing blog networks that webmasters have essentially been paying to get links. Do you think this will improve Google’s results? Share your thoughts in the comments. One way that content, including some lesser-quality content, has been able to manipulate Google’s algorithm is through paid links, and linking “schemes”. Google has long had...

Email newsletters offer one of the highest returns on investment in online marketing, second only to search marketing. But it only works when you do it right. Assuming you have interested subscribers; the following are the key parts of an email newsletter guaranteed to bring you success. 1. Subject line Your very first point of contact. Use this to tempt the reader to open the mail. I add the company name to every subject line to build trust over time. Readers learn that if the mail is from Sheepstealers then there will be something inside they will enjoy or find interesting. 2. Preview This text will appear in the preview pane of the email client when it arrives to the inbox. It should add to the subject line and provide more reasons to open the newsletter. 3. Main offer A clear offer with a strong call to action. A reader should...

Although Search Engine Optimization (SEO) does fall into two distinct categories there is no ethical stance on SEO.Don’t let a search Engine Optimiser sell you that they have ethical ways of working when optimising your site. Either a technique works or is doesn’t. Period.As long as you know the risks, there is nothing wrong with “Black Hat” SEO. It is not illegal or immoral. The only downfall is that your site MAY get black listed.People attempting to do SEO will invariably push the boundaries in trying to get their website to the top of the search engines. This article will briefly explain what to do and what not to do.Search Engine Optimization has two areas of functionality. White Hat SEO and Black Hat SEO.White Hat SEO - is typically working within the search engines guidelines, by working within the Search Engines guidelines your site should be safe and won’t face the...

Optimizing any web page involves both on-page and off-page optimization. Whereas on-page optimization emphasizes the use of carefully selected keywords to write a web page, off-page optimization is all about building links to the web page from other web pages as well as other websites. The leading search engines’ ranking algorithms have placed much importance on links that it is not possible to achieve a high-ranking based solely on competitive keywords.LinksThere are two basic types of links used in websites. One is the navigational link which connects pages within a site. The other one is the hypertext link which offer parenthetical material, footnotes, digression or parallel themes that can serve to provide relevant information in relation to the main content of the page. Both types of links however, can be disruptive or problematic in the overall site design when not used in its proper context.Links can distract attention especially if a...

When it comes to web design, there are so amazing designers out there.  Most web designers are very creative and have a strong artistic background.  They are able to use their artistic talents to create layouts that are guaranteed to catch the eye of your visitors.  Unfortunately, there is one major thing that most web designers are missing.  The majority of web designers are not familiar with the concepts and implementation of search engine optimization techniques.  Even if a web designer has at least some basic knowledge of SEO, the majority do not worry about implementing search engine optimization strategies into their designs.While this may seem like a trivial detail, it can actually be the root of some major problems.  No matter how attractive your web site is, if it is not indexed by the major search engines, the traffic it receives is going to be minimal.  Once you realize this...

Traffic. Everyone wants free traffic, and what better way to get it than optimizing your site?There are some very simple things that you can do to optimize your site. If you want to get more from your website, then implement these strategies, use these tools, and make your website spider food for the search engines.Below are some of the best sites I have found for optimizing my sites.1. Check your site.Before you start tweaking your site, you need to make sure that it's either in Google or not banned by Google.The truth is, you want to optimize your site for Google, which is now the number one search engine in the world.It won't do you any good to optimize your site if Google won't accept it.Use this tool to check your site.Google Banned - http://www.googlebanned.com2. ToolkitsIf you can find the tools you need in a collection, this will save you a...

Ranking high in Google’s search results can have a phenomenal impact on the success of your business. You can either engage the expertise of a Search Engine Optimization company, or if you have the time, there are some changes you can make to your website yourself.Step 1: Keyword ResearchWhat keywords do you think your customers would type in to search for your products or services? A keyword can be one word (e.g. “optimisation”), but multiple keywords or keyword phrases are usually preferred, because they are more specific and more likely to be what your customers are looking for "Search Engine Optimization Company”. Write down as many as you can think of. Brainstorm with your team. Think of alternative words. Consider geographical phrases if they are important to your customer (e.g. “house cleaning Hornsby”). Also, get some ideas from your competitors’ websites. Try to make a list of 20-30 keyword phrases.Choose the...

Ranking high in Google’s search results can have a phenomenal impact on the success of your business. You can either engage the expertise of a Search Engine Optimization company, or if you have the time, there are some changes you can make to your website yourself.Step 1: Keyword ResearchWhat keywords do you think your customers would type in to search for your products or services? A keyword can be one word (e.g. "optimization"), but multiple keywords or keyword phrases are usually preferred, because they are more specific and more likely to be what your customers are looking for (eg. "Search Engine Optimization company"). Write down as many as you can think of. Brainstorm with your team. Think of alternative words. Consider geographical phrases if they are important to your customer (e.g. "Joomla SEO"). Also, get some ideas from your competitors’ websites. Try to make a list of 20-30 keyword phrases.Choose the...

Why Hiring an Experienced and Professional Website Development Company is the Best Choice Instead of Hiring a Freelancer. It is easy to hire website developers who not only promise great results, but may also have a great portfolio of past projects. In such a case, what would make a business or individual settle for an experienced and professional website developer instead of a freelancer? Here are some profound  reasons why. 1.  Major Complex Projects Some websites require specialized skill and support to manage. This is true with  solutions such as those offered to gaming clients, financial service providers and dynamic e-commerce online stores. As a result, it is important that such projects are outsourced to companies that can guarantee high levels of quality service and after sales support that in most instances is beyond the ability of modest freelance outfits. 2.  Total Quality Management A fully fledged web development company has...

That’s really interesting! Can I have a week to think over this idea? And you keep on thinking! You are good at it! There will be no scope statement we are welcoming creativity! We refuse to pay you for this logo, since it’s created the way we described it in the brief note! We imagined it that way – it means we made it! Can you give us 70% discount, we’ve got a low budget. Can you make this “yellow” more pure! I’ve mentioned brown and green but do not to take it literally! Two strips and underlining – it is not a unique design. When we confirmed options – we thought that, basing on the layout you’ll make a “creative” design and original website. You understand nothing! I send you a normal file, if you want to turn JPG logo into vector one, you need to poke it with...

Mountain View (ip-192.com): Small businesses in the U.S. often have a false sense of security and believe that their computers and networks are safe. 77 percent are under the impression that their company is immune to cyber threats such as hackers, viruses, and malware, according to the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA). Even worst, 83 percent of 1,015 U.S. small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) surveyed by the NCSA and Symantec have no formal cyber security plan. "We want U.S. small businesses to understand they cannot completely remain safe from cyber threats if they do not take the necessary precautions," said Michael Kaiser, executive director of the National Cyber Security Alliance. "A data breach or hacking incident can really harm SMBs and unfortunately lead to a lack of trust from consumers, partners and suppliers. Small businesses must make plans to protect their businesses from cyber threats and help employees stay safe online."...