Yea, so have I. As always, I’m like “what’s going on!?” Here’s a lil’ knowledge to quench your curiosity:

The Supreme Court in the United States began its hearings on gay marriage today. The Human Rights Campaign, a group which supports and advocates for equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, has asked for people to use their red/pink equal logo to show support.

At this minute, there are 1.3 million likes on Facebook.

Though no decisions have been made to amend the Marriage Act in the United States, supporters are making their opinions on Social Media.

Viral Marketing is Amazing

Regardless of how you feel, isn’t the internet awesome? This is another great example of viral marketing at its best (see the Harlem Shake). Even better, these viral trends are just getting started – #viralmarketing.

You can view more information on their Facebook page.

Proof:

How To Do It

1. Visit OWC Computing and Purchase Your RAM

(it has a lifetime warranty).

2. Wait for it to arrive, install it, and be merry.

As of today (March 26, 2013) the price is $137.99 USD for two 8GB modules.

Conclusion

I love to max out my RAM on all computers. It’s an inexpensive way to increase its performance.

If you want to get the most out of ANY laptop or desktop, I highly recommend installing an SSD drive as well. I have never seen a better way to increase your boot time on a computer. We (Saucal) tricked out a 2010 Lenovo with an SSD and it loads quicker than our iPhones. No joke.

Cheers & good luck with your nerdiness.

Google has just launched it’s Evernote killer, Google Keep. Google Keep allows you to: keep task lists, save photos and take text and audio notes. The interface is similar to other Google services, which makes it easy to navigate. Currently it’s available as an app on Android 4.0 or higher. You may also access it at http://drive.google.com/keep. iPhone users are stuck with the web based version for now (I’ll wait for the app). You can also color code your lists, photos and notes.

Google Keep takes on Evernote Head to Head

It looks like Google is set on gaining some of Evernote’s market share. Both do similar options, however Google lacks the ability to read text in photos.

Something to consider – the interface for Keep looks very similar to Pinterest. As Pinterest made major changes over the past couple of days (removing social sharing and links), this has potential to gain traction.

Features

You have 2 layouts: You can view as one large column, or multiple columns. Keep also syncs with Google Drive, so it’s consistent across all platforms.

Annoying: On desktop view, when opening a note, or post, you cannot click outside of it to return to the main screen. Rather, Google has implemented a back button. The UI needs some work.

Conclusion: Google Keep is a Winner

If you have an Android device, download Google Keep now. For iPhone users, you will have to used the web-based version at http://drive.google.com/keep. Desktop users can use the same link.

Google Keep Photos

Until..

1. They realize that WordPress doesn’t update itself.
All open-source content management systems (CMS) require updates. This is because security flaws are patched, and new features are released. Not doing these updates can leave you prone to hackers.

2. What do you mean my website got hacked?
Yes, this happens. Actually, it happens a lot. I’ve had several of my websites get hacked. As a result, we keep several mirrors on our server. We also back up our sites to a secondary server, just in case.

Here’s an exercise for you:
a. Do not update WordPress for several months and let it get hacked.
b. Call your cheap hosting company and ask them how to fix it.
c. Realize there is nothing left for you to do but rebuild your site from scratch.

3. Cheap hosting is like sharing your internet connection with an entire city.
If you’ve ever used a website that required a database (WordPress) on a shared hosting environment, you know what I mean. There is no limit to how many sites can be hosted on one server. So, what happens is sometimes your site just.. never loads, it times out. Watch your SEO score go down the drain and have all potential customers bounce. Not fly.

Let’s talk Hosting:

There are 3 types of hosting. Let me bring back the “sharing internet” metaphor.

1. Shared (cheap) Hosting – this is like sharing your internet connection with an entire city. There are no restrictions on how many websites can be hosted on one server. They often get overloaded.
2. Virtual Dedicated – this is sharing your internet connection with an apartment building. You get a certain amount of disc space allocated to you. You share the RAM and CPU with other users.
3. Dedicated – this is like having your own internet connection. This is your own computer, to use all to yourself.

What You Need to Know

Managed vs. Unmanaged – when your server is unmanaged, you worry about patches and updates. With a managed server, the updates are all done for you.

WP Updates – WordPress needs to be updated. Sometimes a WP update can leave your website malfunctioning. When you have a good host, they will test and correct these issues for you. Often, your higher costs associated with good hosting will be made up in savings as you will not have to pay your web developer when your site goes awry.

Speed – You will lose a visitors attention if your site takes too long to load. Furthermore, slow load times hurts your SEO score. Don’t risk it.

Malware scanning – this is basically an antivirus software on your server.

What Your Host Needs to Know

There are other things you should know about your servers, such as:

Cage – is your server housed inside of a cage?

Power source – is there a backup power source?

Metered – are there restrictions on data transfer?

Connection Speed – 100 Mbit, 1000 Mbit, etc. This will determine the speeds of data transfer.

CDN – A CDN is putting a mirror, or cache of your server on other servers around the world. This decreases your load time. For example, if I host Saucal.com in Canada, but we get a whole bunch of fans in Japan – the website will load slower due to latency. As a result, we copy our server content to a computer in Japan. This means our fans in Japan get ultra quick load times and we’re all happy.

Firewall – there are software and hardware versions. You should have both.

Would you like to learn more about hosting? Contact our sales department, or view our hosting options.

The default settings in WordPress are great for SEO, however to knock it out the park, you need to modify your title tags, page descriptions and more. The two best plugins I’ve used are:

SEO Ultimate
WordPress SEO by Yoast

2. XML Sitemap Submissions

This is included with WordPress SEO by Yoast. If you’re not using that plugin, I recommend:

Google XML Sitemaps

Google XML Sitemaps has recently been disallowed by WP Engine, so they recommend Better Google XML Sitemaps instead.

3. Cloud Backup

Saving a copy of your website outside of your primary server is essential. Quick restores are helpful, too.

WordPress Backup to Dropbox is free and it works well, however there is no quick restore option.

A paid option is BackupBuddy. BackupBuddy is as seamless as WPB2DB and it also includes and great tool for restoring your site, or moving it to a new server.

My only problem with BackupBuddy is that if you backup to Dropbox, it requests permission to your entire Dropbox folder. As I am unwilling to share that much data with a 3rd party, it’s a turn off for me. WPB2DB, on the other hand, only requires access to a sub-folder that it creates to store your backup.

4. Social Sharing

As sharing on social media is integral to your SEO score, you need to have the option to share your posts easily available. I recommend using:

ShareThis or,
Jetpack by WordPress.com

ShareThis is a great tool and it’s easy to get started. You will have to sign up for an account with them.

JetPack is built by the WP team, so it’s also a seamless integration. This will require an account with WordPress.

5. Commenting

The native comment system in WordPress is prone to spam (as any WP user will know).  Avoid buying spam plugins by requiring people to comment via Social Media.  This allows people to follow their comments and they don’t need to sign up for a WP account.  The best right now are:

Disqus
Livefyre
Jetpack by WordPress.com

6. Analytics

You need to know how many people are visiting, what they like to look at and where they exit your site.

Google Analytics for WordPress
HubSpot

Google Analytics is free (awesome). HubSpot is for more advanced users and goes far beyond basic analytics and is for marketing professionals.

2. Start Up Junkie
When it’s used: Often at start up events, when the person has no company to represent.
What it translates to: You have yet to build a real company.
Our advice: Similar to a serial entrepreneur, find a business that can last.

3. “Something” Ninja or Guru
When it’s used: Someone who thinks that they are better than others.  ”Marketing Ninja” or “Web Guru”, even “PHP Ninja”.
What it translates to:  Nothing really.  Are you an assassin dressed in black, carrying a sword?  A Guru is a Hindu teacher.  Are you really any of those?
Our advice: The trend is over, think of something different.

5 Quick Tips:

1. You’ve read Blogging Best Practices.

2. After you have written your blog, use the title of the blog in your social media push. These should be targeted keywords.

3. For every blog post, there should be Tweets, Facebook Posts, etc. for the next 3 days. 20 to 30 Tweets should be the norm.

4. If certain Tweets generate no traffic, try and re-tweet them at different times of the day.

5. You need analytics. If you’re not using Hubspot, I would recommend it. However, you can use something like bit.ly (for free) to shorten the URL to your blog, while giving you some analytics on different clicks.

1. Facebook includes deactivated and inactive accounts in your friends list

This results in a miscounting of the number of your friends. Chances are it’s less than is listed.

2. Yes, people unfriend you

After analyzing the people who removed me over the past year, I’ve come to two conclusions:

a. Some people like to make their list small, including only close family and friends.
b. Some people just don’t like you. Maybe it’s because you’re too cool, or maybe they find you annoying.

The Tool I Use

I use Unfriend Finder. A Google Chrome extension is available, which integrates seamlessly into my browser experience. There is an add-on for every major browser.

How it Works

The same way you get a notification when somebody adds you, I get one when somebody removes me.

Other Perks

You can also see friend requests you’ve sent that have not been approved. If someone isn’t my friend within 3-4 weeks, I usually withdraw my request. I think people are snobs if they make you wait that long. Or, they could never use Facebook, which is fine with me.

Think about the person you want to write to. What do you love about them? What do you find cute and adorable? Think about things you’ve done together and the times ahead. Take notes, trust us.

2. You’ve Got One Shot

Write as though everything depends on this letter. For all you know, it might.

3. Length

If you’ve only been dating awhile, keep it short and tasteful. For longer relationships, it’s important to send longer and more detailed letters.

4. Pencil, or the PC?

Writing a letter by hand is the most personal. If that’s not possible, I’m sure your girl (or guy) would love a cute note on Facebook, or Twitter. Ensure that it’s private, there are lots of Valentines haters.

5. Be a Softy

Emotional vulnerability is the name of the game. A good love letter should be embarrassing if it were discovered by an enemy. This is the chance to say it all.