Technology executives are betting that consumers will soon change how they make phone calls reducing the need for a phone line from a traditional provider. VoIP essentially turns telephone calls into just another piece of software running over an IP network, and due to this simplicity the future for VoIP seems promising.

Ever since Skype introduced software for voice calls on computers the industry has been buzzing. Google has entered the internet telephony market with an instant chat and voice app and is testing a Wi-Fi consumer service that has the potential to deliver data to wireless devices.

The technology companies are already starting to sell double purpose products such as cameras which appear standard but when a person slides the back of the device down, it reveals a full keyboard. Memory sticks that store from 64 megabytes to 1 gigabyte preloaded with a softphone are also now available. They come with a microphone and earphones.

Companies such as Google, Yahoo, and EarthLink have already played around with such technology. Last winter Yahoo added improved Voice over IP calling to its Yahoo Messenger. Google has also released Google Talk. AOL has told the world it would be providing a VoIP service called TotalTalk. AOL’s TotalTalk will essentially let people replace their traditional landlines. It has advanced communication features, such as unified voice, e-mail and instant messaging, and call-management.

Its probably accurate to say the phone companies will face a challenge with these momentous changes coming to the fore with VoIP technology.

In my view gaming notebooks have lost their once held specialist status. I recall when they were not so widespread. Despite the fact they weren’t good sellers they did have big margins. They were the notebook computers you dreamed of but were out of your grasp. Everybody reckoned they were the best laptops and justifiably so. They most likely weren’t good sellers though because I think the large number of us buy laptops that we can easily afford. The primary brands have recently begun taking advantage of massive opportunities in gaming notebooks, so that is all changing.

Laptops for gaming are usually not affordable by everyone and international brands know they can take advantage of the high profit margins even more with their levels of production. Profit margins have been so thin recently that this is a good chance to make more money by selling computers. They can also use their large marketing resources to induce the public further into spending their money or bringing out the credit cards to buy laptops like these ones. Local manufacturers certainly have their work cut out for them now. The high end technology will rapidly forge its path into the view of the average consumers. In addition the well known brand name will give customers greater confidence.

The buzz being created in regards to the latest brand name gaming notebook computers is making people perceive them to be the best laptops ever. I think that small companies could still have a chance. Consumers like to be able to customize because they can choose what is most desirable to them. Prospects of this sort are generally really educated concerning the technology involved, and hence can make like for like comparisons. If you are getting the laptop for gaming then certainly the performance is the first worry.

All consumers concur that it is a great thing. Ultimately it will push prices down even more and make the newest technology even more obtainable for everyone. Its tough to predict what will happen to be honest as the industry is a fast evolving one. Mobile technology is always advancing and the latest innovations will often be pricey initially. Greater competition typically provides improved products at cheaper prices so the future must be great.

http://www.rizeon.com offer a couple of really good value gaming laptops so check out their web site

Not so long a go it seemed like gaming notebooks were only attainable from particular retailers and they were traditionally custom made. The laptops were sold in low quantities but each systems had a high profit margin. They were the type of laptops wanted by many however the expense was just too big. If you a power hungry user they were basically the best laptop computers you could purchase. As badly as I desired one I was unable to afford to buy laptop computers like them. As of late it seems larger companies are all entering the market really quickly and things are shifting.

In my point of view they can get away by retailing them at a greater price if they desired. It is a great chance for them to claw back gross markup as the markup on standard laptops are so small nowadays. In addition they know they can sway prospects to buy laptop computers like these better than small outfits. Had I been a smaller reseller I would probably be thinking of ways to counteract this form of competition. In my opinion the large brands will dictate the market direction. I think buying from a recognisable brand additionally provides the perception of added value.

The manufacturers new laptops are receving a fair amount of accolades as being the best laptop computers from the media. Most likely you will not be able to get it custom built, however you will certainly be trapped into buying something that does not suit your needs. This surely should provide some encouragement to the littler competition. This is a huge selling feature that has to be mentioned. Generally a lot of comparisons of the tech specs will be carried out and the tech savy can tell what the better laptop actually is. If you are buying the notebook for gaming then certainly the performance is the first concern.

This is amazing news from a purchasers position. This should act to make the high end technology greatly accessible for the customer. Though I say that, I am not really sure of my claims. Whether laptop computer prices will be reduced on the whole is another subject however the best laptop computers are traditionally pricey. Strong Competition usually drives companies to do more and provide greater value so that looks good.

I reckon this company (http://www.rizeon.com/gaming_laptops/page.php) are quite inexpensive for the notebooks they are offering.

I have been meaning to write this column since the day I first bought a home computer in 1993. It probably was getting online that first prompted the desire to write this. What has been keeping me from writing this column until now is that every time I made an attempt, I would dissolve into a pool of tears and end up on the bed uttering vile profanities.

But here I am. I am bucking up. I am finally going to write this column. Maybe I should call it, “Why I hate computers, the Internet, and Bill ______!”

Let me first ask you something. If you spent a small fortune (and in 1993, computers cost a lot) to buy a high tech piece of equipment, wouldn’t you expect it to work? If you bought, let’s say, a brand-new Sony flat-screen television set, wouldn’t you expect to see The Guiding Light (or whatever program was your pleasure) when you hit the power switch?

What would you think if you hit the “on” button and the television just sat there doing nothing except making clicking sounds and scary humming noises? What would you think if you tried changing channels but only got a nicely-written message saying that the channel you selected is no longer in existence (and furthermore never had existed)? What would you think if you turned on the satellite only to get an error message telling you that you don’t have an account and if you ever had one, it has expired?

These are very legitimate questions. They get worse. What if you have been struggling with this wonderful, high-tech, never-before-has-the-world-seen-such-a-marvel television for years and years? What if you hit channel 4 but you get channel 4,450 instead? You call tech support and they tell you that your television isn’t programmed correctly. The geeks at Sony television lead you on a three-hour wild goose chase of fixes, after which they proudly announce that they have to be gods because they have miraculously cured your technical problem and your set will now work. Only, when you try it, it still does the same stupid thing.

Excuse me if I am wrong here, but when you pay a fortune for something that is supposed to do that for which it was designed, shouldn’t it do exactly that?

I about blew my flash memory when I read that Microsoft is releasing a new Windows Operating System.

But…but…Mr. Bill _____, why doesn’t the one I have work? Why not make the one that currently exists and tortures everyone all around planet Earth work? Why not end my suffering with the one that presently sits on a desk in my house and works only when it wants to?

Here is a problem, one that is probably all too familiar to you readers. I have had this problem for years with all the computers I have owned. Upon occasion, but not always, when I attempt to download the Windows Updates (which should be called The Windows OS killer!), they download and install nicely. Then it gives me the fatal, murderous message, You now must restart your computer.

When I do this, it causes some kind of “feedback loop” that makes my computer recycle FOREVER in the start-up mode. It never does anything but make a lot of noise, then reboots forever and ever, Amen!

It sounds, acts, and looks like what I can only imagine what a hard drive must go through when it is having cardiac arrest or a stroke.

If Sony television sold TVs that pulled this sort of nonsense that Mr. Bill ______ and his wunderkind geeks pull, they would soon not be selling many TVs.

What are we, the consumers, to do? We keep buying and buying and buying PC’s with OS’s that consistently do not work!

I have owned many computers since my first one in 1993. I have friends, co-workers, and colleagues who have owned many PC’s since PC’s were first born to make human’s lives miserable. All, and I mean all, have conspired to torture me and my friends with what is touted as “The Mother of all Operating SystemsWindows!”

Why do they want to release another Operating System when the one they’ve presently got does not work? Now, all of you reading this know that what I am writing is true. I am most certainly preaching to the Windows OS choir.

Windows OS works when and if IT wants to.

Not only that, with every single new, off-the-shelf computer I have ever bought, I have had to spend an additional amount of money in software just to get the OS monster to work right. With the computer I bought in Mexico, I had to buy software for virus protection, firewalls, registry cleaners, file deletion, error nuking and fixing, defragging, and more.

You know this is so because you have had to do the same thing!

So, there, I have said it and do not feel one bit better. I do not know who to be madder at…Mr. Bill ____ of Microsoft or myself for my insistence in buying PC after PC.

I wonder if I can get a MAC in Mexico?

Now excuse me, please, while I start crying and fall on the bed.

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Type I and Type II supernovae have some characteristics in common while others are vastly different.

Type I supernovae consist of explosions of white dwarf stars composed primarily of oxygen and carbon. The white dwarf absorbs the mass of a colliding nearby neutron star to increase to a mass of 1.4 times our sun. Ensuing density and temperature conditions result in the carbon beginning to burn explosively. Within one second, a nuclear fireball is created and the entire star is blown to kingdom come. No remnant is left. All of the star’s mass is ejected into space at speeds from 6,000 to 8,000 miles per second. These projectiles primarily consist of heavier elements resulting from the nuclear fusion process, in addition to some small amount of oxygen and carbon. White dwarves contain almost no hydrogen and post-explosion measurements have been consistent with this. Very little presence of hydrogen has been found in the spectrum of Type I supernovae.

This is not true of Type II supernovae. Type II supernovae occur when stars with masses greater than eight solar masses run out of nuclear energy and implode upon themselves in an asymmetrical fashion. The exact causes of the Type II explosion remain undetermined. The ejection of neutrinos from the condensed core is known to be a factor as the neutrinos contain hundreds of times the energy necessary to cause the explosion. However it has been speculated that the neutrinos may actually carry too much energy away from the star. The core is left with too little energy for the necessary combustion. Theories have been proposed in which either emission of mass-energy streams known as “jets” or the creation of acoustic shock waves is responsible for the blast. Computer simulations hope to shed more light on these theories in the future.

Another known difference between Type I supernovae and Type II supernovae lie in the characteristics of the light specta emitted during the explosion. Type I supernovae always have a brightness of nearly 4 billion times our sun at the time of the explosion. A steadily decreasing light pattern follows. The subsequent light decrease at this constant rate is due to the radioactive decay of the heavier elements mentioned previously. Radioactive decay follows the universal time law of half-lives, with different elements having different half-lives as one of their properties. This can be used to measure the distance to nearby stars by considering Type I supernovae as so-called “standard candles”.

In Type II supernovae the “lightcurve” increases to a plateau a few months after the explosion. This comes from the expansion and cooling of the outer limits of the resulting ball of gas. Computer simulations verify this through the presence of large amounts of helium and hydrogen in the Type II light spectrum, gases which would be expected to be found after the breakdown of star materials from this type of explosion.

Type II supernovae are never found in elliptical galaxies. Rather their stars are usually found in the disks of spiral arms of galaxies. For this reason, thse are thought to be Population I stars. Population I stars form about two percent of stars and tend to be formed from heavier elements from previous giant stars. They are young, hot and luminous.

Type I supernovae on the other hand, usually occur in the core of elliptical galaxies. They are believed to be from Population II Stars. Population II stars are older, cooler, less luminous and composed of lighter elements.

Although the differences between Type I and Type II supernovae make them appear as different as apples and oranges, they both have their origins in explosions of super massive stars due to the collapse of their core and their ensuing fusion processes. Thus they lie in the same class of natural phenomena. Both play critical roles in stellar evolution and both contain enough unanswered questions to keep astrophysicists curious for the unforeseeable future.

David Craig

M.S. Physics - University of Minnesota

B.S. Computer Science - University of Oregon

Go to http://www.spacestuff.net/articles.html for more astronomy and space articles. as well as Nasa products from The Space Store, your only official authorized Nasa dealer.

Heralding a new age in the cosmos, Norwegian Kristian Birkeland predicted that the universe likely consisted of an exotic component that would later be called dark matter. His comments about this subject matter appeared in a description of the Norwegian Aurora Polaris Expedition (1902-1903). Birkeland’s ideas about the Expedition were published in the fateful year of 1913 which would see the rise of the socialist Federal Reserve System and the Income Tax in the United States of America, two key components of the communist manifesto. Evolutionary processes were in motion throughout all fields of endeavor. Economics, politics, science and the hearts and minds of men and women were in the balance whilst relativism not truth held sway over the modern imagination. Cosmology would suffer from the same ‘evolutionary’ mindset and Birkeland wrote as much:

“We have assumed that each stellar system in evolutions throws off electric corpuscles into space. It does not seem unreasonable therefore to think that the greater part of the material masses in the universe is found, not in the solar systems or nebulae, but in “empty” space.”

In this fashion, Birkeland predicted that because of the ‘evolutions’ present within the cosmos most of the matter in the universe must be found in ‘empty’ space rather than that which is observable in stellar objects. It is currently believed that only four percent of the universe is of this ordinary visible stellar type. Further, about a quarter of the universe is made up of the ubiquitous dark matter with the rest of the cosmos being filled with the even more bizarre dark energy. It was Fritz Zwicky, a swiss astrophysicist working for Caltech, who would further the concept of dark matter through the aegis of the Virial Theorem.

This mathematical relation is a formula which bounds the energy of a set of particles. In another dark year in the steady evolution to slavery since 1933 saw the removal of gold from the accounts of american citizenry, Zwicky used the Virial Theorem in an attempt to ascertain the validity of the dark matter hypothesis. He focussed his attention on the Coma galactic cluster and his analysis provided prima facie confirmation for the existence of dark matter. By evaluating the amount of movement of those galaxies at the periphery of the cluster he was able to approximately surmise the aggregate of all the matter therein.

He was astonished to learn that this sum total of mass is different from a separately computed estimate. This other value was obtained by analyzing the sum total of galaxies and the brightness of the Coma cluster. Juxtaposing this value with the periphery computation he observed that there was a discrepancy of at a minimum four hundredfold. Since the galaxies were insufficiently massive to cause the computed orbital velocities there must be some other mechanism to explain this phenomena. This conundrum became in the scientific lexicon the missing mass problem. Zwicky had established the need for the existence of an invisible source of mass hitherto unknown which must provide the necessary gravitational effect for the cluster.

Thus, it is a fact of the current state of cosmology that the greatest set of evidence for dark matter comes from this galactic gravitational data. Scientists have even made galactic curves describing the rotational properties of stars versus the distance from the galactic center. When the gravitational data is plotted it can be shown that only a small portion of the observed speeds are explicable by classical computations. In other words, there is a scarcity of visible mass in the observed galaxies to attribute the sum total of gravitational effects to visibly observable stars planets and galaxies. Thus, the simplest way to explain this galactic mystery of insufficient mass is to hypothesize a non-detectable type of mass known as dark matter which can be the cause for the gravitational effects.

As more and more data is collected on these and other aspects of the universe, formulae and cosmological postulates are generated describing the results so obtained. Fulfilling the requirements of the aforementioned aspects leads some scientists to propose several different types of dark matter. The four main types of dark matter are called 1- baryonic dark matter; 2- warm dark matter; 3- cold dark matter and 4- hot dark matter. Dark matter ranges from the known to the predicted, from black holes to brown dwarfs to the massive compact halo objects (MACHOs), the neutrino, axions, WIMPS or weakly interacting massive particles and the esoteric neutralino. However, there is an alternative explanation for the gravitational effects which originally created the dark matter concept.

If an incomplete understanding of gravitation is factored into the picture, then it can be asserted that the dark matter interpretation is incorrect because some other cause is generating these phenomena. Several different contending theories have been developed to describe the observed galactic data. In particular, one of the main competing explanations is given by scalar tensor theories which try to combine the teachings of quantum mechanics with gravity. Amplifying these ideas leads to a variety of exotic ideas which challenge our most fundamental notions of physics and astronomy. Other concepts go even further and have been the subject of interest for astronomers like Dr. Riccardo Scarpa since these allow for a cosmology without the inclusion of the enigmatic dark matter.

Dr. Scarpa works at the European Southern Observatory in Santiago Chile using the Very Large Telescope Array at Paranal. With all of his experience in this field, it is interesting to note some of his most recent comments on the superfluous dark matter:

“Dark matter is the craziest idea we’ve ever had in astronomy. It can appear when you need it, it can do what you like, be distributed in any way you like. It is the fairy tale of astronomy.”

In view of these comments one should ask if another scientific idea might be on the verge of collapsing. Indeed, astronomers are routinely using these other theoretical principles on a daily basis in infrared observatories around the world. Thus, it is very likely that we are simply wrong about all of this dark matter. It is within all probability that the only dark matter that we will ever find is that ignorant dark matter between our ears.

Michael Strauss is an engineer and author of Requiem for Relativity the Collapse of Special Relativity, a serious critique on the fallacies of Special Relativity. To contact the author visit: www.relativitycollapse.net or www.relativitycollapse.com

Lightning is great to watch, and makes a superb subject for
videos or photographs - from a distance. But it’s pretty scary
when it strikes nearby, and every year there are news reports of
lightning fatalities.

So what are your chances of being struck by lightning?

Fortunately they are pretty slim. But that’s probably what the
hundred or so people killed by lightning in an average year
probably thought.

So while you or I are most unlikely to be struck, the
consequences are so severe that it’s worthwhile taking every
precaution to make sure that we don’t end up a lightning
statistic.

A Few Lightning Facts

• Although lightning is known from volcanic eruptions and
  in smoke from very large fires, it is always present in
  thunderstorms, and thunderstorms can occur anywhere and at any
  time of year. In the US they are most common in Florida and
  nearby states, and overall are most frequent from April to July.
  Lightning fatalities are most common in July, probably because
  more people are out of doors at that time of year.

• Lightning is a very high voltage electrical discharge, with
  its source in a thunder cloud. Most lightning moves between
  clouds, or from cloud to air. The cloud to ground strikes are
  rarer, but are the ones to worry about.

• Apart from floods, lightning causes more deaths than any
  other severe weather event, including tornadoes and hurricanes.
  Figures are not precise, but around 100 deaths occur in an
  average year, while injuries are at least ten times that number.

• Lightning injuries are most common before and after the
  storm has passed over - before and after the rain, winds and
  hail have caused people to take shelter. Another reason is that
  lightning bolts can travel distances of over 10 miles (16km)
  from the cloud before hitting the ground.These “bolts from the
  blue” may arrive before any thunder from the storm can be heard,
  and even before the storm clouds have been noticed.

• Deaths and injuries occur most commonly to outdoor workers,
  hikers, campers, and people involved in outdoor sport or
  picnics, including sporting teams. Quite often, the victims have
  delayed finding shelter until the last minute.

More information on lightning can be found at my website,
http://www.home-weather-stations-guide.com/lightning.html

Deaths and Injuries

A lightning strike is a very short lived, high voltage
electrical current, but has different effects to a home or
industrial electric shock. Most lightning fatalities are
instantaneous through failure of the heart or breathing, or
severe nervous damage.

Lightning deaths and injuries can occur in two ways - by a
direct strike, or indirectly from being within about 50 yards of
the strike. A short-lived electric current can travel through
damp soil, wet grass, water, and along fence wires, plumbing or
underground cables. This explains deaths or injuries to people
who are indoors but in contact with telephones, electrical
appliances or plumbing fixtures.

Unfortunately the effects of a non fatal lightning injury are
often severe and long lasting - often life changing. They can
include impaired mental ability and chronic pain.

But survival is better than the alternative, and immediate first
aid after a lightning strike is critical.

The first thing to remember is that the injured person is not
“live” - you won’t get a shock when you touch them.

Secondly, CPR - cardio pulmonary resuscitation - should always
be attempted if the victim has no pulse or is not breathing. A
lightning strike can stop either or both of the heart or
breathing.

Thirdly, medical attention is necessary, even if the person
seems to have recovered.

Reducing The Risk of a Lightning Strike

Many, if not most, lightning casualties are avoidable. The small
but real risks can be minimised by making a few small sacrifices
to your present enjoyment. The peace of mind you gain will make
it worthwhile.

Firstly, move to the safest possible shelter as soon as you are
aware of an approaching storm. Careful observation of the
weather is a good guide, and lightning detectors are definitely
worth considering, particularly if you are responsible for
others such as a children’s sports team or an outdoor work crew.

In most cases, once you can hear thunder you are within the
danger zone, and it’s time to move quickly.

Now I know that almost every time an early move to shelter will
turn out to be unnecessary, and you may not always get a warm
reception for your course of action. But imagine the alternative
if half a dozen kids are injured or worse after a lightning
strike during a soccer or baseball game.

The best shelter is a fully enclosed building, bearing in mind
the easily avoidable risks associated with telephones, electric
appliances and plumbing.

Next best is an all metal car with the windows closed -
preferably not parked at the top of a hill or under a tall tree.

Probably the third choice would be in a group of small trees -
assuming there are taller ones around. Tall trees are high risk,
as are isolated structures such as water tanks. Partly open
sheds are of dubious value and offer their occupants little
protection if struck.

Open spaces are dangerous places to be, and you should have
plenty of time to move elsewhere. Being the highest point in a
large area is not a good survival strategy.

If however you have no alternative, look for a lower area that
is not water logged, squat down on the balls of your feet, with
your head down. Don’t lie on the ground, and stay away from wire
fences.

And once you are safe, just sit back and enjoy the show.

Fair sentences!
“Objective Subjectivity is to appreciate the subjectivity own by a being,
without to try deform it [contaminate] with the subjectivity of the
appreciator!” Josif Visarionovitsch Djugaschvilli [otherwise STALIN]
Sentences are divided in ” Sincere and Honest” and ” False and Dishonest”.
The second group is extremely complicated and it doesn’t fit to be analyzed
here [do to author’s intellectual incompetence - note by translator]. The group remained we divided in: “Perfect sentences” are the Divine ones and
“Imperfect Sentences” are the Human ones.
Some sentences express facts [observed phenomena] and other desires [phenomena that should happen].
Opening the window: “it is cold!” or looking at the thermometer: “thermometer shows 12C”, the first sentence is “subjective”. The second, in the case of analog thermometer is less subjective. In the case of the digital thermometer the second sentence is objective!? But all the three sentences judges “tangible phenomenon”.
Other sentences on the “tangible” natural phenomena: “Delbert is cheerful
and happy”. -”Delbert’s brain is replete of endorphins”, are expressing the same phenomenon in a different way, they are almost totally impersonal and almost without any nuance of desire [subjectivity].
The sentence: “Rain should begin et 21 hours and finish at 4 hours, et
7 hours it should already be everything dry and the sun should shine!”
this sentence express the desire or the opinion [judging quality of the weather/climate] or the two!
Sentences that judge the intangible phenomena [moral, faith and justice]
are found in instincts. Most of the people possess almost identical
instincts. Nor like this a groups with genetic deviations. It is difficult
to analyze and to seek differences in almost equal judgments. But the
extremities, where the differences are expressive, are easy to analyze.
A student during a lively party declared, sincerely and solemnly:
“A MAN should be entitled to a woman a week!” the sentence was hazy;
hard to understand the meaning, lack to explain what is “right” in this
private case [in his conception]. The more lately it happened an injustice”
[according to his conception], the MAN [the student] was arrested;
because he disembowel [gutted] several women [what was “his right”].
An assaulter assaults a girl, this steps in the accelerator and flees,
the assaulter shoots the girl in back and kill her. The assaulter made “justice” according to his conception.
The sentence regarding intangible phenomenon is found in the individual
conception and this changes from individual to individual. Therefore a
universal Justice is a Chimera. In Catalonia, until Great Pompous,
Roman governor, prohibit, wealthy admirers god’s BAAL bought offerings
in fair, in Public Square. Great Pompous prohibited the sale in public;
ahead the sale was made in privacy. The Inquisition prohibited the
offerings of human being to BAAL and it punished offenders with death in
the fire. Since then the offerings are done in secrecy. The author of
the present has stand by e trial of a group of seven worshipers of BAAL.
The “acquired right” practiced during the millennia was undermined.
The credo freedom is one of the fundamental freedoms. In spite of this
most people finds correct to suppress this freedom brutally. It is the
conception of the justice of most that [almost] forms the laws.
The exclusionists seek a Chimera the “absolute justice”. Stalin had six
fingers on each foot. And as all abnormal ones he wanted to change the
world. God created the man with five fingers and for that reason Stalin
was expelled of the seminar.
Download Coffee Break Screen
http://oz.pro.br/coffee/coffee.zip
Sao Paulo, May of 2003 Konstantin 0tto

About the Author

Professor of mathematics’ philosophy retired
I write articles in four languages, since 1946.
More of them are specific. oz@oz.pro.br

We all DO judge a book by its cover, and the same
saying goes for Web sites. I’ve seen many
entrepreneurs offer great information on their Web
pages, but compromise their image dramatically with a
few amateur mistakes that can be VERY unforgiving.

If you want to attract high quality clients and
customers, and convey that you’re a legitimate,
credible, and sought-after business, these five points
are a great launching pad to give your site that “big
company” look and feel.

<< 1. Start with a high-quality LOGO. >>

The one your kid created for you doesn’t count! I’m
talking about paying a designer to do one for you, and
it doesn’t have to cost in the thousands. If you don’t
have much of a budget, consider the following options:

For my E-zine Queen site, I used an online logo
service called “1800MyLogo”
(http://www.1800mylogo.com). At the time they charged
only $199 to design a professional logo based on my
business, style, and personal preferences. The whole
process only took about two weeks and was conducted
entirely over the Web. (To see the final result, take
a quick peek at http://www.ezine-queen.com)

I’ve also heard good things about
http://www.gotlogos.com, where you can get a quick Web
site logo for only $25!

<< 2. Get your own business DOMAIN NAME. >>

It’s just a fact that folks will feel safer shopping
at a site with its own domain name.

For example, if you were shopping online for a
circular saw, would you be more likely to purchase
from a hardware site called “www.bobshardware.com” or
the one whose URL is
“www.geocities.com/3339/bobshardware?” (This is a
fictional example, by the way.)

Having your own domain name implies you’re a “real”
company, and not Uncle Bob working in his kitchen at
night (even though you my very well be ; )).

There are several “bargain basement” places to buy
domain names, but the two most popular and credible
are still:
http://www.register.com
http://www.networksolutions.com

<< 3. Get (and USE) a business E-MAIL ADDRESS. >>

Nothing screams “amateur” like sending out
professional e-mail from a handle like
“fuzzybear4u@hotmail.com.” Once you get a domain name
for your Web site, have your hosting company set up a
professional e-mail *alias* for you.

Let’s go back to Bob, for example. Suppose Bob’s
e-mail has always been “BobSmith0002@earthlink.net.”
Now that he has his own domain name, he can instead
use
“bob@bobshardware.com”. He still KEEPS his Earthlink
address, because that’s where he’ll actually receive
his mail. But he should only GIVE OUT the new one on
his Web site, business cards, etc.

If you use Outlook Express or a similar e-mail
program, you can set it up so that your e-mails ONLY
show your e-mail alias and NOT your personal e-mail
address. (To do this in Outlook Express, go under the
“Tools” menu. Then choose “Accounts.” Then select the
account you use, and click “Properties.” Enter your
e-mail alias in both the “e-mail address” and “reply
address” fields.)

<< 4. Get a professional-looking Web site DESIGN. >>

This can mean either hiring a designer to do a custom
site for you, OR designing it yourself. Unless you’re
both trained extensively in HTML and have a background
in design, it’s well worth the money to hire someone.

Find prospective designers who work with small
businesses, ask to see samples of their work, and be
upfront about your budget. If their rates are higher
than you can afford, ask them if they have any
pre-designed Web site templates they can just insert
your information in, cutting down tremendously on
design time and cost.

If you do want to put together your own site, check
out the “corporate” section of
http://www.freewebtemplates.com for several neat
designs you can use at no charge. (TIP: Avoid the ones
with colored backgrounds; they’ll make it more
complicated for you, and your text will be harder to
read.)

Whatever design you choose, make it CONSISTENT on
every page of your site, by using the same design
elements such as borders, fonts, and colors.

<< 5. Tell us WHO YOU ARE and HOW TO REACH YOU. >>

Most of us (and rightfully so) are leery of purchasing

online from a company we’ve never heard of before. To
alleviate our fears, put contact information on every
page if you can, with a physical mailing address,
phone number, and e-mail address.

If you’re uncomfortable posting your home address,
lease a box at a mailing and shipping center and use
that address. Avoid using “P.O. box” in your address
if possible, which can appear suspicious. Real
companies have real addresses!

Also, get a *toll-free* number if you can it really
says “big company.” I got mine from my long distance
provider, 1Com (http://www.1cominc.com), because they
charge no setup fee or monthly fees I only pay for
the incoming calls at my usual great long distance
rates.

About the Author

Copywriter and consultant Alexandria Brown’s FREE
biweekly e-zine, “AKB MarCom Tips,” gives how-to tips
on creating compelling Web sites, brochures, and
e-zines. Learn easy ways to “write to sell” and
attract new customers today! Subscribe now at
http://www.akbwriting.com or via
mailto:AKBMarCom-On@lists.webvalence.com

Buying a CCNA / CCNP home lab is the best way to be totally
prepared for your Cisco exams. Most home labs are put together
one router or switch at a time, but many CCNA / CCNP candidates
prefer to buy kits where you get multiple routers and switches,
along with all the cables and other connection devices you’ll
need.

While this is a good idea, keep a few things in mind when
purchasing Cisco home lab kits.

Don’t buy anything you don’t need. The problem is that when
you’re first starting out with your Cisco home lab, you don’t
know everything that you need. (I sure didn’t!) Keep in mind
that you only need one transceiver per AUI port on a Cisco
router, so if you’re getting routers with two AUI ports in all,
you don’t need five transceivers in the kit. It doesn’t hurt to
have one spare, but three is a little too much.

More importantly, don’t buy kits with old CCNA or CCNP study
guides included. I’ve seen kits with books that were three years
old and were of no use to the candidate. If you see a kit that
looks good but includes books or manuals you just don’t want,
ask the vendor for a price that doesn’t include the books. It
never hurts to ask.

Watch the IOS version. Unless you’ve got access to IOS upgrades,
you’ll be working with the IOS version that’s on the routers and
switches when you buy the kit for a while. You don’t necessarily
need the latest and greatest IOS version for CCNA study, but
don’t buy routers with IOS versions beginning with “10″ unless
you have an IOS to upgrade them with. (And make sure the routers
have enough memory to handle the IOS you plan on putting on
them.)

Purchasing a Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Lab is one of the best
investments in your career that you will ever make. Exercise
just a bit of caution when purchasing your kit, and you’ll be on
your way to true Cisco success, in the exam room and on your
network!