Web Design Blog

In the 7-10 days after Hurricane Sandy hit our area (Northeast PA), we were entirely without electricity and cable service.  As a web developer, this would have assumedly resulted in a general lack of productivity.  Luckily, we had just switched from AT&T to Verizon a few months prior, so tethering is included with our data plan.  And, just last summer, we had our generator hard-wired into the house.  So, unlike most of my clients and colleagues who were waiting for services to be restored, I was able to keep plugging away.  I certainly wouldn't want to work off of my cell phone's data plan on a regular basis, but in a pinch, it works great.  Now, if only Verizon would let me talk on the phone and tether at the same time (cough cough)...

I've written previously about the importance of maintaining control over your website and wanted to post this follow-up.  In addition to having your site's domain registration in your company's name and billing, you also want to have your hosting account in your company's name and billing.  The reason?  You are able to choose who works on your site without moving your site to a different server.  Have a falling out with your web guy?  Or he/she simply fell off the face of the earth?  No problem, you have control over the hosting account.  Change the password and find a new consultant to work with.  Give them your new password.

As much as I personally despise the growing popularity of social services like Facebook and Twitter, they are excellent mediums for a 'normal consumer' to be heard by large corporations.  In the past, a single consumer would only be able to make phone calls and write letters, short of funding their own advertising to publicly shame a company.  With today's popularity of Facebook and Twitter, and the equally growing pressure for corporations to engage with their customers, it offers a lot of incentive for companies to resolve issues with customers.  Here are some of my own personal tips for getting good customer service.

With a "responsive" mobile-friendly template, we are able to use a standard CMS-driven site, and by using additional style sheets (CSS), re-flow your site onto smaller screen sizes.

Benefits:

• SEO Friendly: Google's officially recommended method for building mobile sites, won't harm rankings with duplicate URL issues 
• Easy to maintain: mobile site is integrated into existing control panels, no separate mobile-specific site to build or update
• Not device-dependent - adapts to mobile devices based on screen size, not device make & model (future proof)

For more information, or to get an estimate for building "responsive" technology into your existing site, contact us today!

This is a video walkthrough of a Joomla 2.5 site that I set up and did a bit of configuring / customization... for demonstration purposes.  I have been building sites with Joomla for over 4 years and am listed in the Joomla Resource Directory as a consultant. 

A few things I forgot to mention in the video, now that I've actually watched it myself:

• Joomla 2.5 comes with some handy "Add new" buttons that have already saved me a good amount of time.  They will let you get into the "Add New" screen for various sections of the control panel: menus, articles, categories, users, etc.
• When adding an "Image" in K2, you'll see that it resized and positioned my image automatically.  In addition, K2 creates five different sizes, so that you can easily use the various sizes throughout the site.  This is one of my favorite features of K2, it makes life simple for my clients!
• Shameless plug: If you're interested in hiring us to build, rebuild, or redesign your website, contact us today.  We will respond within 1-2 business days.

Like I've discussed previously, just because the Joomla team releases a new version of the software, this does NOT mean that you are obligated to partake!  For me, I've still got dozens of clients still using the Joomla 1.0 platform, so it's worthwhile for me to keep these sites running.  And, part of my pitch for using Joomla CMS software is because it is OPEN SOURCE.  So, attached below are a few files that I've compiled:

If you're running a business, you probably use good ole' stamps and envelopes for a variety of purposes: checks, invoices, direct mail, letters, etc.  The last time I sent out a direct mail piece, it consisted of a personal letter, a small trifold brochure, and a business card.  I sent 1000 of them, which translated into two boxes of 500 envelopes from Staples.  The cost, just for envelopes?  About $70.

Article: If you're a sole-proprietor or small business and need to get your name out, and anything like me, you've spent a considerable amount of time building and pruning your personal and business contacts.  In marketing terms, this may be your most valuable asset: your customer base.  These people know you already, and are (probably) the most likely to refer others to your and your business.

Rather than writing an article that dissects each CMS platform, I've decided to discuss the similarities between Joomla, Drupal, Wordpress, and ExpressionEngine.  Combined, these 4 platforms power more than 20% of all websites, so let's not choose sides just yet.

This is an administrator module (installed via normal Joomla 1.5 extension installer) that has been rearranged and customized for sites primarily running K2 for content management. [Based on: Admin Menu K2 on JED]

If you look at the screenshots, you'll see that I've moved a number of things in the control panel - users, modules, components, global configuration... I've moved these things based on my own personal experience building over 100 Joomla sites and training each client personally to make changes on their own.

To install:

1. Install via Joomla extension manager
2. Navigate to Extensions -> Modules -> Administrator
3. Edit the new K2 admin menu module, enable, assign to "menu" position
4. Disable the standard Joomla admin module