Digital Dream City

When is it appropriate to hire a graphic designer? When should you use Flash animation or HTML? We are joined by Sparxoo’s Senior Designer, Deirdre Zahl, to discuss the basics of web design and how entrepreneurs can utilize design for their brand.

Deirdre is a graphic designer with seven years of industry experience who specializes in web design. She has worked with clients ranging from top-tier luxury brands in the fashion industry such as CHANEL and MAC Cosmetics, commercial and residential real estate clients, Ann Taylor LOFT.com and other small e-commerce sites. She is also experienced in logo, brand and web development, as well as print and web design. She holds a BA in Communication Design from Skidmore College.

What is the purpose of web design? Web design is not just how a web page looks, it’s how users interact and have a relationship with it. It’s about designing an experience on a visual and functional level.

It’s incredible how subtle, functional changes can make tremendous impact. Consider the donate button for non-profits. If the button is not prominently displayed, it could greatly reduce the amount of donations. A solution could be as simple as changing the button to a bold color, like orange or red, or increasing its size.

Functionality also extends to search. The basic HTML on a website enables it to be indexed by search engine crawlers. The website has to have enough live content, tags and links that it can be picked up by Google in order to be found. While graphic treatments can enhance a site visually, they also limit its visibility to search engines. It is important to have a balance of both, proportionate to the goal of your business. E-commerce sites, for instance, or real estate listing services, would want to have a very high percentage of searchable content.

There are SEO specialists who can help with the technical side–implementing it from the back end. Designers have to consider this in crafting a site, adding visually friendly places for links, not overusing graphic or Flash elements and thinking about natural ways to interlink pages and sections of the website. When would an entrepreneur want to consider hiring a web designer?

Web design and layouts used to be the domain of tech-savvy professionals (think coding languages: HTML, Java, C++, etc.). In today’s digital world, there are incredible tools for non-professionals to create professional-looking websites. WordPress and SquareSpace enables anyone to design and manage a website. Thousands of web designers & developers have created…

To read more about web design basics, go to Sparxoo, a digital marketing, branding and business development blog.

Blogs have increased popularity over this past months. Many people have started to create their personal blogs to express their thoughts and feelings. Internet companies have also started their blogs to inform consumers on the latest product news and reviews.

Because of this, blogs are also being used as internet marketing media. Before, internet marketing is done by placing banners and links on popular websites, such as news and information sites. Links were also included on newsletters and marketing letters sent to the members of their mailing lists. Many people spend time reading blogs. People read their friend’s blogs, their favorite author’s blogs, blogs on topics that they are interested in, and blogs on product reviews. With the increasing popularity of blogging, it is even feared that people rely on blogs to get the latest news.

While getting news reports from blogs isn’t reliable, some people look for product reviews through blogs. In some cases, this is more dependable. While it is true that some media persons are being paid to write good reviews about a certain product, blog writers write about their actual experiences on products and services from a company. Since there are many people who read and start their own blogs, blogs are a good medium to market a product. With the increasing blog traffic means increase in product sales.

Blog traffic can be increased by joining affiliate programs and sites, which will list your blog under a certain search category or name. You can also have your blog advertised in popular websites. This, however, will cost some money and is not advisable if you have just started blogging. A writer who has just launched his/her blog will want as much traffic as possible to increase advertisements on the site. Also, some advertisers pay every time their link is clicked or the page that has their link is viewed.

When you have increased traffic on your blog, you should try to keep you visitors coming back and recommending your blog to friends and colleagues. This can be done by having informative or amusing content and good blog layout and design. You may develop your blog’s content or you can also acquire the services of a web content writer to provide you with the blog articles.

The blog’s layout and design also plays a big role. While most of the companies offering free blog hosting offer pre-selected templates, there are also some that allows customization that if you utilize this feature correctly can increase your blog’s traffic.

Here are a few tips to make your blog stand out from the millions of blogs out there that have standard designs.

* Customize the banner

The banner usually has the most generic designs that are common to the blogs from a blogging company or service. You can personalize this banner by having a graphic with the dimensions of the banner. You can also edit the graphic so that it will also include the title of your blog. In this case, you can create your own graphic or you can purchase professional looking graphics online for less than $10.

* Personalizing photos

Of course, most of the photos that you will be posting will be your own. However, if you don’t customize the photos before posting them, you may miss maximizing the enhancing benefits graphics can add to the page. Adding photo borders can help the photo stand out from the page. It can also add to the design of your blog. You can choose a standard border or you can also create your own border which can be associated with your blog’s templates.

* Add a favicon

Don’t you think sites with icons on the address bar before the website’s URL are cool? Many people do. These favicons add a professional look to the URL. These easy to do using photo or graphic editing softwares.

* Check out blog templates, layouts, backgrounds, textures and skins from sites

There are sites that offer free blog templates, layouts, backgrounds, textures and skins. You can make use of these so your blog will not look generic like most of the blogs hosted by the service provider.

* Include RSS feeds

This is a cool way to inform people with newsreaders about your blog headlines. Tutorials on RSS feeds are available on the internet.

* Audio makes your blog more personal

Not only does audio personalizes the blog; it can also keep your visitors coming back. You can try having streaming radio stations, mp3 file or playlists loading with your blog.

* Advertisements

If you have signed-up with Google Ad-Sense, which I am sure you would like to do, make sure that the ads are conveniently placed that these will not hinder your readers’ ease in accessing the information on your blog.

Try using these tips and you can definitely increase and retain traffic on your blog.

Imagine a search engine that understands more than your search query, it understands your personality. Or, imagine never leaving your inbox — search, play games, collaborate, work, all in one location. We have examined the emerging and established consumer technologies from the past year to project what we should expect in 2010.

Already, we’re starting to see incredible paradigm shifts in real-time consumer technology (think Google Wave) and explosive growth in crowdsourcing. As we approach 2010, we are entering a new age of consumer technology were the web is the operating system and information is now.

Smart Computing — We are being bombarded with tremendous amounts of information every day. To make sense of our digital world, we are turning to smart computing technologies — such as web intelligence tools — to make our internet browsing experience more relevant than ever. We discuss how adaptive algorithms and GPS are bringing relevancy and order to our lives so we can make sense of the digital world around us.Digital Identity — Many of us have several social media profiles. LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace and Twitter just to name a few. In essence, our digital identities are fragmented across several social media platforms. We discuss how consistency and convenience are central elements that help us manage our digital identity.Real Time — It’s not enough to have this mornings news. The gap between when news happens and when it is delivered to us is narrowing with each evolution of real-time technology. We discuss how relevancy and immediacy are driving elements behind the real-time trend.Collaboration — If the rise in social media is any indicator, the web is drawing us closer together. The web enables us to overcome geographic barriers to find likeminded people, to share and exchange information on an unprecedented scale. This collaborative concept of the web is being applied in numerous ways, through crowdsourcing designers and micro-lenders to real-time e-mail collaboration.Cloud Computing — As we spend more time within our browser…

To read more about 2010 consumer tech trends, go to Sparxoo, a digital marketing, branding and business development blog.

PCW

PCWorld.com’s latest technology product news, presented in partnership with About.com

Audio/Video (424) Products (7421) Cameras (235) Smart Phones (347) Components (346) Software (1499) Computers (582) Storage (107) Networking (88) Topics (4120) Peripherals (281) Web (1080) Phones (1402)

The Macalope Weekly: Money, Money, Money

(News) The Zune HD is here! It’s gotten some good reviews but the Macalope thinks Microsoft might be leaving a monetization scheme on the table. Not so the recording…

Brain Quest Blast Off for IPhone,blogging, blogger,blogspot,make money from blog

(Reviews) If you have a child in elementary school, you’re probably familiar with Brain Quest: it is most visible in the children’s book sections of bookstores, in the…

New IPod Nano and IPod Touch Disassembled

(News) You’ve seen Apple roll out the new iPod nano and new iPod touch. Heck, you’ve heard what we have to say on both the new models. But perhaps you’re wondering what…

IPod Touch (late 2009)blogging, blogger,blogspot,make money from blog

(News) The launch of the original iPod touch in late 2007, in the aftermath of a summer of sheer iPhone frenzy, was anticlimactic. The new device was hobbled by its…

Report: Skype Founders Sue Skype

(News) Skype’s founders are suing Skype in a dispute over peer-to-peer technology, according to a report.

Soon to Sink, Pirate Bay’s Torrents Come Ashore,blogging, blogger,blogspot,make money from blog

(News) A group in Germany has set up a public kiosk that serves up torrents from The Pirate Bay over Wi-Fi.

Speed Test: Third-generation IPod Touch

(News) When Apple announced the new third-generation (3G) iPod touch models at last week’s Rock & Roll music event, the company’s touchscreen iPod received two…

Fifth-generation IPod Nano

(Reviews) Apple’s smallest screen-bearing iPod, the iPod nano, has evolved in impressive fashion. A highly capable and affordable performer in its previous two iterations…

With New Shuffles Released, 2G Shuffles off Its Mortal Coil

(News) When Apple updated the iPod shuffle in March to its present 1.8-by-0.7-by-0.3-inch form factor, it kept around the colorful second-generation model. Presumably…

Apple’s Music Event, in Holiday Colors

(News) Media and user reaction to Wednesday’s Apple “Rock and roll” event has been pretty much what it is for most Apple events: full of shock that unlikely rumors…

Hands on With the IPod Nano

(Reviews) As is the tradition at its iPod-themed press briefings, Apple opened a demo area to show off the new hardware announced just minutes before at Wednesday’s Rock…

Apple Boosts IPod Touch Capacity, Cuts 8GB Price

(News) Apple cut the price on its 8GB iPod touch Wednesday while boosting the performance and capacity of the other models of its touchscreen music player. Apple made…

Apple Bumps IPod Classic, Shuffle Models

(News) iPod classic

New Harman Kardon AV Receiver Plays Back IPod HD Video

(News) Harman Kardon on Wednesday rolled out new home A/V receivers including the AVR 1600, AVR 2600 and AVR 3600. The top-end AVR 3600 may be of particular interest to…

Apple Drops Prices on IPod Nanos, Touches, Classic

(News) What with the next Apple event just hours away, it would be nice if we had some sort of concrete sign of what they might be announcing. Instead, all we’ve got is…

Apple TV and the Future

(News) Tomorrow’s “It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll” Apple event is likely to be true to its name and focus exclusively on music–new iPods, a new version of iTunes, and…

Amazon Offers to Return Kindle Users Orwell Book or $30

(News) Amazon.com found itself in the center of a swirling vortex of controversy in July, following its move to remotely delete copies of two George Orwell books that…

Prototype Uses Gestures to Control Appliances

(News) Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute showed research that allowed users to turn on a light with a thumbs up gesture

Microsoft Gets Reprieve in Word Case

(News) Microsoft Gets Reprieve in Word Case

DocScanner for IPhone

(Reviews) The best iPhone apps perform a unique, powerful function that’s hard to mimic. DocScanner, which portends to scan a document in the same way a flatbed scanner…

Wine Ph.D. for IPhone

(Reviews) A fine wine ages slowly and gracefully. A fine iPhone app should be graphically interesting, user friendly… and fast. With Wine Ph.D. for the iPhone and iPod…

The Naked Truth About IPod Cameras

(News) As I suggested the other day, there’s been a lot of speculation that the next iPod models–the iPod touch, iPod nano, and iPod classic–will include cameras…

Birdpost for IPhone

(Reviews) Birdpost is the iPhone companion to Birdpost.com, a Web site where you and others can report and share bird sightings. It’s a great idea, but unfortunately the…

Nokia Works With Facebook on Tighter Mobile Integration

(News) Using a new smartphone app, some Nokia phone users will be able to publish their locations and status updates directly to Facebook.

Assorted IPhone Zombie Apps

(Reviews) Look, the likelihood of a bona fide Romeroesque zombie takeover is slightly smaller than your odds of being struck by lightning, winning the lottery, or even…

Watch Every Baseball Game With MLB’s IPhone App

(News) Three months after adding live video to its iPhone app, Major League Baseball has made another change that’s sure to please fans eager to follow the pennant…

Apple Confirms Sept. 9 ‘rock and Roll’ Event

(News) Apple is planning a special, invitation-only event for September 9, 2009, confirming rumors that have circulated on the Mac Web for the past couple of weeks.

A Utopian Musical Future One Step Closer?

(News) For nearly as long as the iPod’s existed, I’ve written about where that device may one day take us–with the ultimate destination being All Music, All the Time…

Microsoft Xbox 360 Price Cuts to Come Later for Asia

(News) Price reductions on the Xbox 360 will come later for Japan and the rest of the Asia Pacific region.

IFax for IPhone

(Reviews) Attorneys, real estate agents, and accountants all have one thing in common: they’re still using fax machines. When nothing else will do except a hard copy of…

Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite Price to Drop $100 in the US

(News) Microsoft matched Sony by slashing the price of its top-end Xbox 360 game console by $100 in the U.S.

Beats for IPhone

(Reviews) If you dance–anywhere from a rave to your junior prom–you’ve seen it. The music is loud, the lights are low. Dancers are moving in time to a hypnotic beat…

Advanced Wi-Fi Sinks Old Ship’s Network Barriers

(News) Beam-forming Wi-Fi gear from Ruckus Wireless helps to get signals around metal walls on the Queen Mary floating hotel.

Airline Pilots Want Ban on Lithium Battery Shipments

(News) An airline pilot union is calling on the U.S. government to temporarily ban cargo shipments of lithium batteries.

Remastered Music: Making New From Old?

(News) I was recently delighted to receive a box set with re-releases of The Durutti Column’s first four albums. This band, led by Vini Reilly, has been one of my…

Remix David Bowie — Space Oddity for IPhone

(Reviews) For some reason, my mother never said that to get things done, I’d better not mess with Major Tom. If she had said it–I never really understood why anyone’s…

Microsoft Continues to Befriend Non-Windows Phones

(News) Microsoft has launched OneApp, which gives access to a Facebook, Twitter and Windows Live Messenger on cheaper phones from, for example, Nokia.

No ‘three Strikes’ Law Planned for Singapore, Agency Says

(News) There are no immediate plans to propose a ‘three-strikes’ antipiracy law in Singapore, a government regulatory agency said Monday.

The End of Free Lyrics?

(News) Something interesting happened to albums in the mid-60s. (No, not double-album covers and their utilitarian use.) With artists such as Bob Dylan, The Beatles…

Report: Singapore Considers ‘three Strikes’ Anti-piracy Law

(News) Singaporean authorities are reportedly studying the implementation of a ‘three strikes’ anti-piracy law.

Taiwan University Students Build Tour Guide Robot

(News) Taiwan University students showed off a new robot they developed that can create 2D and 3D maps of its surroundings using a variety of technologies.

Cut the Cable Bill

(News) Choice is great, but too many choices (and paying for them all) is a hard sell in a tough economy. Take your cable or satellite TV service, for example. Of the…

Quickoffice Mobile Office Suite for IPhone

(Reviews) It’s taken a while, but the mainstay apps in mobile computing–those intended for mobile business users who need to stay productive–are making their way to the…

New Owner Presents Details on Legal Pirate Bay

(News) Global Gaming Factory X, the prospective buyers of The Pirate Bay, will use a system that lets copyright owners remove content.

Microsoft Appeals Word Ruling, Asks for Stay

(News) Microsoft has asked a court to stay an injunction that could put a stop to Word sales.

Report: One in Four Songs Sold in U.S. Is From ITunes

(News) The NPD Group reported Tuesday that Apple’s iTunes Store is responsible for selling one in four songs in the United States.

Beyond HandBrake’s Defaults

(News) If you’re a Mac user interested in ripping your commercial DVDs to a format playable on an Apple TV, iPod, or iPhone, the free video transcoder, HandBrake 0.9.3…

Sony Moves E-reader Technology in the Right Direction

(News) I recently proclaimed the dangers of vendor lock-in in the nascent e-book reader market, so I was delighted this week to see Sony take a very positive step in…

Space Elevator: Science Fiction or Global Warming Cure?

(News) Researchers at a conference on Thursday discussed issues with building a space elevator.

Zensify for IPhone

(Reviews) Over the past two years, social networks have pretty much taken over the world. For some–especially among the younger generation–services such as Facebook and…

RealDVD Case & the Death of Fair Use

(News) Last April, when commenting on to the RealNetworks versus Media Giants case, I penned DVD Copying Case: Why You Should Care, I included these prescient words:

Injunction on Microsoft Word Unlikely to Halt Sales

(News) Microsoft received new fines and an injunction in a patent battle with i4i.

Tech Jargon Jumble

(News) Tech Jargon Jumble

Roku Player Adds Live MLB Streaming

(News) Roku on Monday announced that its $99 video player box, which previously played only Netflix and Amazon video content, would also support both live and…

Encyclopedia Britannica Loses Patent Ruling

(News) A Texas court ruled that two patents awarded to Encyclopedia Britannica are invalid.

Buckets for IPhone

(Reviews) Buckets, a $4 task-management app from Press Start, aims to help you take control of your task list. The app features some clever interface elements, but is…

What We’re Watching and Listening to Right Now

(News) With so many great songs and albums, TV shows, movies, podcasts, and audiobooks out there, it can be hard to figure out what’s worth watching or listening to…

Sonos Controller 200 (CR200)

(Reviews) Sonos, makers of the Sonos Multi-Room Music System ( Macworld rated 5 out of 5 mice ), made an interesting decision several months ago. The company chose to…

To-Do List for IPhone

(Reviews) For just $3, To-Do List serves as a handy tool that can keep you organized in a pinch. The interface is easy to use, so it won’t add to the confusion of your…

Dealing With Podcast Glut

(News) Sometimes it’s possible to have too much of a good thing. Take podcasts, for example. They’re free and a lot of them offer great content. But they can take up a…

Apple’s Schiller Responds to Dictionary App Controversy

(News) We’ve become accustomed to the deafening sound of silence in response to criticism of the App Store, so it’s surprisingly gratifying that not only has Apple…

Make Sense of PC World’s ‘Find’ Numbers

(How To) Ever wondered about those numbers littered throughout the magazine? Here’s how they work, along with a software shortcut for using them.

Toshiba to Launch Fuel-cell Charger Soon

(News) Toshiba plans to launch an external battery charger based on a DMFC (direct methanol fuel cell) in the next two months, its new president said on Wednesday.

CheckSheet for IPhone

(Reviews) Today’s obsession with productivity has created a surplus of solutions promising to help us manage to-do lists. Included in that number is CheckSheet, a $3 app…

Intuit Offers Free Credit Card Processing App for IPhone

(News) QuickBooks maker Intuit on Tuesday announced the release of GoPayment, a free application for the iPhone and iPod touch designed to help businesses process…

Workamajig Releases Updates for IPhone Client

(News) Workamajig has updated the iPhone client for access to Workamajig Project Management Software to Version 10.0.2.7.

Android Moves Into Home Entertainment

(News) MIPS Technologies made the source code available to allow people to port Android applications to products running on MIPS chips.

Apple and U.K. Man Get Heated Over IPod Fire Claim

(News) Are iPods exploding all over the place? According to the Times Online, an iPod touch belonging to 11 year-old Ellie Stanborough of Liverpool, England, started…

Reports: RIAA Wins $675k in Damages From File Swapper

(News) Joel Tenenbaum was ordered to pay $22,500 each for 30 songs that he admitted to downloading and sharing.

Three Astronomy Apps for the IPhone

(News) With the recent news about outer space–the anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission, the July 15 Space Shuttle launch and today’s landing, the Jupiter impact–it’s…

Microsoft Plots Mobile Group Improvements

(News) Microsoft acknowledged to financial analysts that Windows Mobile has not performed well and it is working to turn that segment around.

Adapter Takes Mini DisplayPort Video, USB Audio to HDMI

(News) Apple’s new MacBooks and Mac minis come with snazzy Mini DisplayPort connectors, but if you want to hook one up to your HDTV via its HDMI port, Apple can’t…

PDF Reader Pro for IPhone

(Reviews) Does the iPhone really need a dedicated app for reading PDFs? After all, you can download them right from the phone’s Safari browser or when you receive a PDF…

Apple Re-enables Promo Codes for 17+ Apps

(News) At least one probably-unintended consequence of Apple’s recently imposed rating system for iPhone apps has been undone. An iPhone developer has confirmed to…

Twitterena for IPhone

(Reviews) The fact that the App Store boasts an already-crowded lineup of Twitter clients speaks to the exploding popularity of the microblogging service. Still, ask five…

Verizon Adds Hotspots to Consumer Broadband

(News) Verizon offered most of its wired broadband customers free access to Wi-Fi hotspots around the U.S.

Panasonic’s Tricycling Robot to Tackle Le Mans 24 Hours

(News) A Panasonic-developed tricycling robot will next week attempt to run around the Le Mans circuit for 24 hours on a single set of AA batteries.

Comics by Comixology on IPhone

(Reviews) The smell of fanboys is in the air in San Diego, and that can only mean one thing — it’s time for Comic-Con again. On Thursday, coinciding with the first day of…

Wi-Fi Group’s Basic Test Won’t Change With Final 11n

(News) The Wi-Fi Alliance will not change the basic requirements of its IEEE 802.11n certification process when the standard is finished later this year.

Apple Drops DRM Case Against Bluwiki

(News) The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and Apple are standing down over a legal dispute involving the Web site Bluwiki. Apple is no longer going after…

MIT Electric Car May Rival Gas Models on Performance

(News) Inside a plain-looking garage on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s campus, undergraduate Radu Gogoana and his team of fellow students are working on a…

IPod Touch Ascendant as Traditional IPod Sales Fall

(News) Apple’s record-setting quarterly financial results, released Tuesday, point out that the economic and marketing powerhouse that was the iPod has been eclipsed…

IEEE 802.11n Heads for a Finish in September

(News) The IEEE is expected to make 802.11n into a formal wireless LAN standard in September.

How Much Would You Pay to Go Eye-to-eye With Gundam?

(News) An online charity auction that had been running all week ended Friday with a winning bid of ¥2.6M (US$27,742) to go up to the top of the Tokyo Gundam statue.

IBank Mobile Finance App Debuts for IPhone

(News) This week IGG Software debuted their online banking application iBank Mobile for the iPhone and iPod Touch. iBank Mobile is designed as a companion to IGG’s…

Taiwan’s Wicatch Turns Back the Clock to Offer Free Wi-Fi

(News) Wicatch is moving forward with plans to offer free Wi-Fi wireless Internet service in Taiwan despite looming competition from WiMax technology.

Computer Modeling Helps Build Sun-powered Stadium

(News) When the 8th World Games opens in Taiwan on Thursday, the event will inaugurate a bold new stadium designed not only to power, cool and water itself, but also to…

Microsoft Aims Windows Embedded at Smartbooks

(News) Microsoft plans to use Windows Embedded to combat rival operating systems in smartbooks and a number of other devices meant to always be connected to the…

PC Makers Less Upbeat Than Google About Chrome OS

(News) PC vendors Google listed as Chrome OS partners said they are merely evaluating whether to work with the OS

Todo+Cal+Sync for IPhone

(Reviews) There’s certainly no shortage of to-do list managers available in the App Store, but Todo+Cal+Sync tries to put its own spin on things with support for the…

What’s Goin Down 2.0 Adds New User Interface

(News) What’s Goin Down 2.0, from Random Ideas, is a new release of the “professional-grade” TCP server network monitoring tool for the iPhone. The $5 application…

Music: Then, Now, and Tomorrow

(News) I was taking a car trip a few weeks ago, driving from the village where I live in the French Alps to Aix-en-Provence and back, about a 6-hour drive round-trip…

8Bitone for IPhone

(Reviews) A few iPhone apps are just a bit… unworldly. Leaf Trombone ( Macworld rated 4 out of 5 mice ) is one example–it’s basically Guitar Hero with leaves. Shazam (…

Korean Operators Join Forces on New Mobile Services

(News) South Korean operators KT, SK Telecom and LG Telecom have become the first to launch mobile services based on the Rich Communication Suite.

ZigBee Develops Standard for Devices Without Batteries

(News) The ZigBee Alliance is working on a standard that will let products power themselves using energy harvesting techniques, it said on Monday.

Toyota Research Achieves Brain Control of Wheelchair

(News) Researchers at Toyota and government-affiliated Riken have developed a brain-machine interface that allows for control of a wheelchair using thought.

Avoid Facebook Disasters

(How To) Avoid Facebook Disasters

Lithium Ion Batteries Heating up Japan-Korea Trade Tensions

(News) Japan is threatening to complain to the World Trade Organization if South Korea goes through with plans to require certification for lithium ion batteries.

Bugs & Fixes: Apple TV Deletes Files

(News) You launch iTunes. It immediately recognizes that your Apple TV is connected and initiates a sync. Nothing unusual so far.

Asian Mobile Operators Team up for Android

(News) A group including some of Asia’s most powerful mobile phone operators launched a campaign to encourage Android application development.

WLAN Market Slammed, but 802.11n Gains

(News) Dell’Oro said wireless LAN sales plummeted worldwide in the first quarter of this year.

Mariner Calc 1.2 for IPhone

(Reviews) Back in March, I reviewed Mariner Calc 1.0 ( Macworld rated 2.5 out of 5 mice ), a program that lets you edit Excel spreadsheets on your iPhone or iPod touch. At…

Two Useful IChat 4.0 Features

(News) Here are a couple of basic little iChat features you may not have discovered just yet. I believe both of these features require iChat 4.0, which shipped with OS…

Toodledo for IPhone

(Reviews) I’m always on the lookout for ways to improve my productivity. I’ve tried many task managers and to-do lists in my day. Toodledo, a US$4 app from Toodledo…

Rambus Pulls Some Infringement Claims Against Nvidia

(News) Nvidia on Monday said Rambus had filed motions with the U.S. ITC to stop investigating claims of Nvidia’s alleged infringement on four patents.

QlikView for IPhone

(Reviews) The concept of “business intelligence” is a misnomer, depending on where you work. Even with ubiquitous connections and vast storage, finding data about a…

Ming Dynasty Vase With Intel Atom, Anyone?

(News) ECS built a nifty living room computer based on Intel Atom processors camouflaged as a blue and white Ming Dynasty vase.

Mac News Briefs: LaCie Intros Home Media Players

(News) LaCie has released a pair of wireless high-definition media players aimed at allowing users to access and play content from their HD televisions.

Windows Server 2008 R2 to Be Released in October

(News) Microsoft said on Wednesday that its latest server product, Windows Server 2008 R2, will be broadly available on Oct. 22, the same time as Windows 7.

London ‘Pod Theft’ Signs Warn of Risky Streets

(News) It looks like the officials of the Lambeth borough of London are fed up with the rampant “pod” theft that’s been plaguing their region. Streets known to be…

Xbox 360 Service Improvements Put Apple TV to Shame

(News) Microsoft’s new plans to enhance its Xbox 360 video game console’s potential as a home entertainment hub may ultimately put pressure on Apple to improve the…

Quickoffice Files for IPhone

(Reviews) Quickoffice Files for IPhone

DSLR Camera Remote for IPhone Controls Canon Digital Cameras

(News) OnOne Software on Monday introduced DSLR Camera Remote for iPhone, an iPhone or iPod touch application that lets you control a Canon EOS digital camera tethered…

Zune HD = IPod Touch? Uh, No….

(News) Blame it on the rain, the resulting muck and mire, or the redwood curtain that separates Cupertino from Redmond, but it appears that news travels very slowly…

Microsoft’s Zune HD Coming in Fall With OLED, HD Radio

(News) Microsoft’s Zune HD Coming in Fall With OLED, HD Radio

Judge Weighs Testimony in RealDVD Copy Case

(News) Preliminary testimony has ended in the RealDVD case.

Having a well designed blog which reflects your blog’s subject is very important if you want to capture the attention of readers. Your blog should have a clean look and easy flow. If you are not a blog design expert, don’t worry, you have plenty of options.
The first consideration will be which blogging platform you are planning to use. If you choose Blogger, you may be stuck with the templates available at the site. If you look around, you may find some Blog skins or templates that may work with the new version of Blogger. Do an internet search and then play around with it. If you don’t have any luck, then you may have to go with the default templates. However, the good news is that the updated Blogger has a lot of options and you can dress up your blog with pictures and videos really easy. Going with one of the plainer templates and then adding some pictures and video will still allow you to create a really cool blog.
While there are many blog platforms, the only other one I am going to address in this article is WordPress. WordPress is a really popular blogging platform as you probably already know. There are also some really cool free templates that you can use. There are available templates for nearly every subject matter, which makes it great for you to pick up an appropriate one really quickly. Check out wpthemespot.com, wpskins.org and freewpthemes.net
Another option, as it concerns designing your blog, is to have one built. This allows you to have a blog created exactly how you want it. You won’t have to settle or try to make a template fit your blog. There are plenty of places where you can hire someone quite affordably to create a blog template for you. Try Get A Freelancer, Elance, Rentacoder and Guru for starters.
Having a professional looking, well put together blog will allow you to make a great first impression. It will also make people want to add your blog to their favorites and come back. Of course, your blog can’t just look good, it has to have some substance. A nice looking website will get you some attention but it won’t make readers commit. You have several options when it comes to designing your blog. You can use Blogger which comes with ready-made templates and then add pictures and videos to make it unique. If you choose to use WordPress, there are plenty of places where you can find free themes. Lastly, you can hire someone to create a design for you. You can look for designers at places like GetaFreelancer, Guru, Elance and Rentacoder. You can also check out internet marketing forums like Digital Point.
Investing a little bit of money or time to create a good looking blog will most likely be time or money well spent. A nice looking blog will make you appear more professional and give the impression that you are serious about your blog. If you take yourself seriously then other people are apt to so as well.