Mashable! - Drund Gives Devs & Users All-in-One Tool for Connected Devic

Drund Gives Devs & Users All-in-One Tool for Connected Devices

Today, dev shop Azork has launched Drund, a broad, agnostic development and management platform for apps across all connected devices and browsers.

The platform also has an aspect for users, allowing them to “manage their online life from any Internet connected device,” according to a release.

Cross-platform development, especially in the mobile sector, is something of a rare and difficult promise to make. Developing not only for the two most popular mobile OSes but also for desktops and web browsers is a time- and resource-consuming consuming proposition; but leaning on “all-in-one” dev tools can sometimes lead to messy results and spaghetti code.

Drund makes the promise of “single platform development,” saying that devs can create each app just once and deploy it to any web or mobile browser — including IE, FireFox, Chrome, Safari, and all the mobile browsers, too.

Granted, the app won’t be a native mobile or desktop app; still, even having a mobile app that works across all kinds of devices and all browsers is a fairly major accomplishment. In other words, if Drund even works a little bit, it would help to eliminate a lot of the hassles of multi-platform development.

There are no subscription fees for using Drund as a developer. This poses an interesting advantage to devs who currently shell out 30% of profits to the App Store for iOS app revenues; using Drund and creating mobile-web apps, they would entirely bypass the App Store and the revenue split with Apple.

Then again, the downside is that devs entirely bypass the App Store — and the Android Market, for that matter. As web apps, even mobile web apps, these bits of software lose the immediate access and exposure of the verified native-app marketplace.

Yet on the other hand, who’s to say that mobile web development rather than native apps isn’t a valid...

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Increasing page views and traffic

Q: A friend mentioned that if I wanted better paid advertisements, I
should increase pageviews and traffic...I have not yet applied to
adsense as I'm blogging for 4 months palang. and I wanted to know how
to improve in these areas and be familiar with them.

Marami pong salamat.

Beth =D

A: Increase pageviews and traffic. You should promote your blog.
Meaning, go to Forums that talk about your topic and post a message
there in conversation mode. Not "announcing my blog!". Just talk to
people. What's a forum? Google Pets Forum if your blog is about pets
or you have a veterinarian blog. How many forums should you visit?
Say about 10. If that feels like a chore, your blog topic is wrong.
Try to blog about something you LIKE -so going to forums is going to
feel fun.

After that, go look for Facebook Groups of the same topic. Talk to
people like you do to normal people. Do not announce. Mention your
blog when it's necessary to mention it. Don't force it. Be natural.
Don't relentlessly photo tag people.

Plug your blog posts (the stuff in the blog) regularly in your own
Facebook Wall and Twitter Feed. Write thought provoking and
incomplete blog post titles.

Ok, read this thing again, I put in a lot of information to help you.

Now here's a faster technique: Locate a blogger (a human) who has a
big, popular blog on the same topic. Send an email or comment or wall
post to the person saying "You'd like to guest post" if possible.
Guest posting means you'll write something that the person likes and
post it in HIS BLOG. Tell him I'll write a review about the latest
Academy Awards 2011 being not "Social Network" friendly - because you
both have a film blog and he likes "The Social Network" film and hates
the fact that it did not win the Best Picture. At the end of your
post (or at the beginning) there's an explanation from him - who you
are and why you're posting in his [popular] blog.

Now repeat this for other popular bloggers in your topic.

Keep trying and doing.

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X-Men First Class

See the full gallery on posterous First posters from First Class ;) Posted via email from RATIO EX MACHINA

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Mashable! - One in Three Mobile Phone Owners Is a Regular Mobile Gamer [

One in Three Mobile Phone Owners Is a Regular Mobile Gamer [STUDY]

A new survey from casual gaming company PopCap shows that an incredibly high percentage of adults in the UK and U.S. is into mobile gaming.

This stat may be due in part to the uptick in smartphone adoption. According to a separate Nielsen survey, 31% of U.S. mobile users now own smartphones, and a Pew survey shows nearly half of cellphone users download and use mobile apps, too.

In PopCap‘s research, more than half (52%) of 2,425 respondents said they had played a game on a mobile device, whether their own device or someone else’s, at some time in the past. The percentage for UK respondents was significantly higher (73%) than the rate for U.S. respondents (44%).

Around one-third of all respondents had played a game on their own mobile phones within the past month, and one out of four respondents said they played games on a weekly basis. Still, some respondents admitted to only having played a mobile game once.

The biggest gaming group was smartphone users. A full 83% of smartphone-owning respondents said they had played at least one mobile game in the past week, putting them solidly in the “avid mobile gamer” category.

Interestingly, the male-to-female ratio in mobile gaming doesn’t show the pronounced gender gap seen in console and PC gaming. Men play slightly more than women by a slim margin of 2-10%. This fits pretty well with the current picture we have of the social gaming scene as a predominantly female market.

And mobile gamers aren’t just biding their time on mass transit; they’re also contributing to the bottom line of game manufacturers across the major mobile platforms. Around half of all mobile gamers in this survey said they had upgraded a free trial game to the full or paid version in the past year. And one out of four mobile gamers, or one out of three smartphone gamers, said they had bought “a dditional content”...

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Mashable! - Just How Many Verizon iPhones Have Been Sold?

Just How Many Verizon iPhones Have Been Sold?

Based on interviews with Reuters and the Wall Street Journal, some analysts are predicting that Apple has already moved 1 million Verizon iPhone units.

Neither Apple nor Verizon has released official sales information about the device, with the exception of an earlier report that Verizon iPhone sales have so far exceeded all previous initial phone launches in the carrier’s history.

Verizon’s Daniel Mead also attributed the embarrassingly short lines for the Verizon iPhone with the fact that 60% of purchases were made online.

As Fortune‘s Phillip Elmer-DeWitt notes, 60% of what? That’s the big question — and one Verizon says it won’t answer until its next quarterly earnings report.

TheStreet‘s Scott Moritz reads this 60% figure as confirmation that Apple and Verizon moved more than 1 million units the first weekend the dev ice was available. Moritz arrives at this number by using analyst estimates of 600,000 pre-orders. Assuming that number is accurate, that would account for 60% of launch sales, thus bringing the total to 1 million.

The iPhone 4 famously sold 1.7 million units in its debut weekend in June 2010.

We wouldn’t expect the Verizon sales to approach the iPhone 4 figures; after all, aside from the carrier, nothing about the device has significantly changed in eight months. Instead, it’s likely that the true demand of the Verizon iPhone — and its overall impact on AT&T’s churn — will be visible when the next iPhone launches. If history is any indicator, that will be in June.

We’re of two thoughts when it comes to the lack of any concrete Verizon iPhone sales figures. On the one hand, not having the information indicates that the figures have fallen short of expectations. On the other hand, the expectations of Verizon iPhone sa les could quite possibly...

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Mashable! - Futuristic Kiosk Spits Out Cash for Recycled Electronics

Futuristic Kiosk Spits Out Cash for Recycled Electronics

Imagine stopping by your neighborhood retailer, offloading an old cell phone or laptop via an in-store kiosk and picking up cash for your device, just as you would get cash for coins through Coinstar or rent and return a RedBox DVD.

It’s a futuristic idea with tangible value that startup ecoATM is already making a reality.

ecoATM, a San Diego-based startup, has roughly 15 kiosks scattered throughout the southern California region, some at Westfield shopping malls in San Diego. These kiosks offer consumers a cash incentive to recycle their electronics.

Plop in an expired cell phone, overplayed MP3 player, no-longer-wanted video game or used-up ink cartridge, and ecoATM will determine the product, its estimated value — while factoring in damage — and make you an offer you might not be able refuse: cash in exchange for recycling your device.

It claims to offer highly competitive retu rn rates, but its biggest value proposition may be the immediate gratification. From a consumer perspective, there’s very little reason not to use ecoATM over trying to hawk an old gadget online. The startup promises to wipe your device and spits out cash or store credit, no human contact required.

The system isn’t perfect. ecoATM eats the cost on the returned devices it can’t resell, and the process can take a few a minutes (see below) — but it is working. In one year of testing, ecoATM has recycled more than 50,000 devices, according to CMO and co-founder Mark Bowles. Bowles and team are mum on what that translates to in financial terms, nor are they willing to share how much it costs to produce each kiosk or the exact margin they make on recycled devices.

Right now, the startup is using its more than $14 million in funding to aggressively expand into more areas. Google can expect to see an ecoATM onsite in Mountain View within the next few weeks, and...

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Mashable! - YouTube Mocks Charlie Sheen’s Public Meltdown [VIDEOS]

YouTube Mocks Charlie Sheen's Public Meltdown [VIDEOS]

The YouTube community has responded to Charlie Sheen’s very public meltdown the way it always responds to celebs in trouble: by piling on.

In the past few days, there have been a ton of new Charlie Sheen videos. A search for “Charlie Sheen” on YouTube delivers more than 1,400 results from just the past week, according to YouTube Trends.

Some of the top videos on the site include the first part of Sheen’s interview with Alex Jones of InfoWars. That video has topped 232,000 views since it loaded on February 25.

But interpretations of Sheen’s bizarre behavior often come off as pretty bizarre themselves, like this report from NMAWorldEdition, which uses CGI animation to dramatize Sheen’s plight, including his self-proclaimed “fire-breathing fists.”

Slate is also getting some traction with an Xtranormal video offe ring its own dramatization of Slate‘s comments to Jones:

Finally, there’s “Crazier Than Charlie Sheen” an original song by live2tivo, who also penned a ditty for Angry Birds a while back.

What do you think? Is this over the line? Is Sheen getting off too easy? Are you Charlie Sheen’d out? Have you seen any other good Sheen videos? Let us know in the comments.

More About: charlie sheen, parodies, Xtranormal, youtube

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Mashable! - Website Uses Dictator Game for (Mostly) Charity

Website Uses Dictator Game for (Mostly) Charity

There aren’t a ton of websites out there based on complicated thought games that are based on experimental economics. Part of that may have to do with the difficulty of turning thought experiments into viable websites. But what if that game could net you cash on a regular basis?

The Moral Experiment, a website developed by John Bushell, is part pyramid scheme (although he reasonably argues against that), part The Dictator Game, part online-giving app and part ethics study.

In a nutshell: The site charges a £1 monthly subscription fee. Users can subscribe for one, six or 12 months. However, that money goes to the person who referred you via his or her unique URL. The question then becomes whether you’ll keep that money, donate it to charity or some combination of both. That result is then tracked (entirely anonymously) based on criteria each user fills out when registering. Do men give mor e than women? Are certain age groups greedier than others? What factor does race or religion play?

“It will be interesting to see what participants will do with their moral earnings once they have made back their initial £1 subscription fee, essentially breaking even with one friend referral,” Bushell wrote on the site. “Most people on Facebook have at least 150 to 300 friends, the referral process could end up becoming very lucrative for the participants’ moral dilemma.”

The results, while anonymous, are sure to spark controversy especially when there’s no real way to verify an individual user’s age, religious affiliations, race, etc. Still, as of writing, 95% of the money has been donated to charity. It’s a pattern, despite the small user base, that reflects the economic game it’s modeled after.

The dictator game is an experiment in economics. A person (the dictator) is a given a sum of money that he or she can...

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Mashable! - The Oscars & Social Media by the Numbers

The Oscars & Social Media by the Numbers

The yearly Oscar telecast is no longer strictly a broadcast-only affair. The main show might still be relegated to television sets, but much of the real action took place online. Co-host James Franco wasn’t the only person tweeting during the ceremony — hundreds of thousands of others joined in, sharing their thoughts on who looked great (Christian Bale’s beard), who made waves (Melissa Leo in her acceptance speech) and who needs to host next year (Kevin Spacey, anyone?).

We’ve taken the time to synthesize the various social media related data points from the big show. Here’s how Oscar stacked up.

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TV Ratings

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With the lack of a major tent pole attraction like Avatar, industry analysts expected television ratings to dip for the 83rd Annual Academy Awards.

Early overnights indicate that household ratings were down 7 percent versus 2010.

The sh ow reported a 26.5 household rating, compared to last year’s 27.5. Notably, though, the ad-targeted 18-49 demographic rating is estimated to be 14.5 — which is on par with last year’s show.

ABC managed to spin the Fast National ratings, noting that the 37.6 million viewers surpassed the Emmy Awards, Grammy Awards and Golden Globes. ABC also points out that this was the second-biggest audience since 2007.

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Twitter

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As with the Super Bowl, the Grammy Awards and the Golden Globes, Twitter was a prime outlet for Oscar chatter.

We’re seeing conflicting numbers as to how many total tweets were generated by the Academy Awards. Tweetbeat tells us it estimates that 400,000 tweets were sent during the telecast, whereas TweetReach pegged the total number of tweets at 1,269,790.

During the show itself, a few specific moments generated major spikes in Twitter activity.

The first moment came early in the evening, when Melissa Leo dropped...

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Mashable! - U.S. Army Launches App for Soldier Blogs

U.S. Army Launches App for Soldier Blogs

The latest addition to the U.S. Army’s arsenal of recruitment tools is an iPhone app that launched Monday. The free app gives access to more than 600 soldier bloggers’ content as well as allowing users to share their own “Army Strong” stories, photos and videos.

A release from the U.S. Army Accessions Command called the app and a mobile website that also launched on Monday “a natural extension of the Army’s ongoing commitment to engage potential recruits via social media channels.”

Soldier Strong Stories, the site from which the app and mobile website pull content, launched in January 2008. Originally the site served as a blog platform exclusively for soldiers. In May 2010, it was updated to allow anyone with an army story to tell it.

When the platform opened to everybody, Army Accessions Lt. Gen. Benjamin Freakley told the Belvoir Eagle, "Soldiers shoul d join Army Strong Stories for a number of reasons…Online and in the media, the negative stories are always given a platform. Soldiers, every one of us, have some of the best stories to tell."

The new app will make it easier for soldiers to share their stories, but more importantly — at least from a recruiting perspective — easier for potential recruits to hear them.

More About: App, Soldier Strong Stories, u.s. army

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Mashable! - AT&T Rolls Out Location-Based Ad Messages

AT&T Rolls Out Location-Based Ad Messages

AT&T launched a new service Monday that shoots you special offers over your mobile phone when you’re near a participating store or brand.

The service, called ShopAlert, is launching with the backing of Hewlett-Packard, Kmart, JetBlue, SC Johnson, Kibbles ‘n Bits and others. AT&T claims this is the first time a major operator in the U.S. is introducing such a program on a large scale.

ShopAlert, developed with Placecast, is currently available in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco. To get the service, consumers are directed to sign up at a dedicated site.

According to a release from AT&T, the messages “are enhanced with information such as weather, traffic, and local shopping area details to more effectively engage consumers.”

The release didn’t outline how close a consumer needed to be to get the messages. ShopAlert employs what the company calls a “geo-fence” around a retail location, event or geographic area and sends messages when consumers are within the area. AT&T reps could not be reached for comment.

Those brands, however, aren’t the first to use ShopAlerts. Placecast last year worked with The North Face to create geo-fences around stores, hiking areas, parks and locales that are popular with the brand’s customers. In December, Google also launched a beta program in December in which offers by marketers could be geotargeted.

Photo courtesy of iStock, sjlocke.

More About: att, Hewlett-Packard, mobile advertising, Placecast

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ProBlogger Blog Tips - Blogging for Dyslexic Readers

Blogging for Dyslexic Readers

This guest post is by Varda Epstein of CogniBeat.

Worldwide, about one in every ten people has dyslexia. In the U.S., Dr. Sally Shaywitz, a leading expert in the field, says that up to 20% of the U.S. population suffers from dyslexia. And yet, dyslexia is just one of any number of possible reading difficulties.

Any blogger who wants to reach the widest possible audience will want to be sensitive to the fact that some readers have reading issues. If you make your blog user-friendly for people with dyslexia and reading problems, it will stand out in the crowd. Those who enjoy blogs but find it difficult to read will reward your efforts by following your blog and recommending it to others who have reading difficulties.

Attracting and keeping readers with reading difficulties is not as daunting as it sounds. Most of what you need to know is stuff you're already doing. Good design and good writing solve most of the issues that make blogs illegible to the person with a reading problem.

On writing

Start by keeping paragraphs short and to the point. Those with reading issues find it hard to keep the place in a long paragraph. Shorter blocks of text are the ticket to readability.

In any event, good writing entails using just one idea per paragraph. That should be your rule of thumb. Keep paragraphs short and sweet to keep your dyslexic and other readers reading.

Layout, Fonts, and More

Don't double-space after periods, no matter what your teacher taught you in school. Once upon a time, manual typewriters necessitated using mono-spaced fonts. It was thought that double-spacing after periods would help make the ends of sentences more distinct.

Today, the fonts we use on the web have better proportions. As a result, double-spacing after periods has the effect of creating vertical rivers of white space within the text. This so-called "river effect" makes it hard for a dyslexic reader to find...

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Mashable! - 100+ Upcoming Social Media & Tech Events

100+ Upcoming Social Media & Tech Events

Every week, Mashable puts together a calendar of upcoming social media and web events, parties and conferences.

Would you like to have your conference or event listed here? If so, please request the Mashable Media Partnership Guidelines. If your event meets our requirements, contact us at least 45 days before your event to establish a media partnership with us. For more upcoming listings, check out Mashable’s‘s Events section.

In the meantime, here are some tips on how to network, share your information and/or promote your event(s) using social media:

• The Future of Event Planning and Social Media
• HOW TO: Plan and Promote Events with Social Media
• 35+ Ways to Find and Plan Events Online
• 8 Ways to Create Paperless Business Cards
• 5 Useful iPhone Apps for Business Networking

Ma shable’s Weekly Social Media and Marketing Event Guide is proudly supported by Eventbrite, the Web’s Event Marketplace.

Upcoming Mashable Events

Mashable SXSWi House — March 13-14, 2011, Austin, TX:
The Mashable SXSWi House 2011 will break the mold of the traditional SXSWi events schedule. Working with SXSWi and our partner sponsors, we will create a two-day platform that will include private events, VIP networking hours and large open parties. From Sunday, March 13 to Monday, March 14, Mashable will be hosting a combination of private events, open houses, meet-and-greet opportunities and of course, two nights of parties with open bars. The event is open to all 21+ SXSWi badge holders. Please RSVP on Eventbrite at http://sxswi.eventbrite.com.

Mashable Connect — May 12-14, 2011, Orlando, FL:
Mashable Connect 2011 will be an intimat e experience that brings...

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Mashable! - Online Sales To Increase 13% in Europe This Year [STATS]

Online Sales To Increase 13% in Europe This Year [STATS]

Online sales in western Europe are expected to increase 13% to €92 billion in 2011, after growing 18% to €81 billion in 2010.

According to Forrester, online sales will increase 10% year-over-year from now until 2015, matching the growth rate of online retail in the U.S. The consumer electronics category will lead the expansion, increasing its share of the e-commerce market from 25% to 28% by 2015; shoes will grow 13% year-over-year and clothing, the second-largest category, will generate €21 billion in online sales in 2015.

The total number of online buyers in Europe, which includes the EU-17 (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK), grew by 18% from 2009 to 2010, and is expected to grow from 157 million to 205 million. Currently, 57% of European adults buy online, up 13.4 million ( 9%) from 2009.

In Europe, the average online shopper spent €517 online in 2010, excluding travel and financial services products. Consumer electronics and computers accounted for the largest spend, followed by books, clothes and event tickets. On average, the British spent the most online (€871 per person); Spaniards spent the least (€255 per person). European adults are expected to spend €652 on average in 2015.

In the north — especially in the U.K. — e-commerce growth will cannibalize sales on other channels, while in the south a more multi-channel retail environment is emerging, in which online is one of several tools buyers use to inform purchasing decisions.

While European shoppers appreciate the convenience of online shopping — particularly the opportunities for expanded product selection and information, as well as competitive pricing — by and large, they still prefer the convenience of retail stores, whi ch allow for immediate access to goods...

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Mashable! - Sony Music Wants YOU: To Help Create Michael Jackson’s New V

Sony Music Wants YOU: To Help Create Michael Jackson's New Video

If you’re a diehard Michael Jackson fan just itching to exercise your artistic license, you’re in luck. Sony Music, along with Jackson’s estate, will soon be launching the “Behind The Mask” video project, which asks fans to contribute to a new music video for the song.

The project kicks off on March 7, at which time fans should head on over to a dedicated website. There, folks can select a move, lyric or crowd reaction to incorporate into the vid, or even use their webcams to contribute their own dance moves.

The director, Dennis Liu, will then pick the best clips and integrate them into the final video, which will be released during the first week in April.

If this formula sounds familiar to you, it’s because the project is being led by the creative team at Radical Media, who also worked on The Johnny Cash Project. That initiative yielded a crowdsourced video for Cas h’s “Ain’t Not Grave,” which was nominated for Best Short Form Music Video in the 53rd annual Grammy Awards (sadly, it lost out to the Fame Monster herself, Lady Gaga).

“Behind the Mask” is a song off of Michael, an album that posthumously dropped in December, and teased extensively on both Jackson’s website and on Ping pre-release.

More About: behind-the-mask, crowdsourcing, michael jackson

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January Bankruptcy Filings Are Down As Americans Fight Their Debt

January Bankruptcy Filings Are Down However Financial Experts Suggest That This May Not Be a Sign the Economy is Improving.

Anaheim, CA (Vocus/PRWEB) February 28, 2011

January bankruptcy filings are down, continuing the trend since the peak of the crisis last year. Filings were just above 90,000 the first time filings have been below 100,000 since January 2010. In comparison to December filings were down by 22%.

Is this a sign that the economy is showing an improvement? According to Strategic Director of Planning for Morgan Drexen, Susan Muzila says the answer is no. “The decline in bankruptcy filings during January doesn’t really show that there is improvement in the economy, January is typically the lowest filings month of the year. However, filings are down 9% on that of last year so this is a much better indicator on the economy of the US,” says Muzila.

Nationwide, filings amounted to about 305 filings per million adults, about one in every 3000 people. Only four states showed higher filings than last year. Delaware’s were 18% higher with Idaho, Utah, and California following closely behind.

Michael Perrero is a Utah resident dealing with over $11,000 in debt. Michael like so many consumers across America was dealing with high medical bills. Sadly, long after the death of his wife Michael is still dealing with high levels of debt. Michael describes the impact on his life of having high debt, “Very Stressed, that’s how it makes you feel, the economy is getting worse in Salt Lake City I had to take action” says Michael.

Michael engaged with an attorney based debt resolution company in Utah. He states now that his finances are back on track. It was a good experience all the way through. They communicated with me and did what they say they were going to do, “says Michael. Michael engaged with United Law Group under the supervision of attorney Jeffrey Golden a Morgan Drexen supported attorney. Mr.Golden also serves as the United States Bankruptcy Court as a trustee.

Morgan Drexen provide integrated legal support to attorneys across the nation therefore linking the critical workflow from front office to back office allowing for enhanced productivity for the consumer.

For Randall Russell it was also medical bills that lead to more than $20,00 in debt. “I was paying the minimum and it seemed like the debt was getting higher,” says Randall. He engaged with the Rosen & Winig law firm to settle his debt. Rosen & Winig is supported by the integrated legal services of Morgan Drexen.

Randall was thrilled with the attorney-based debt resolution services. “The fact that just everything started working just exactly like what they said. You know, exactly what I was told it’s what happened. “I thought everything was fair. I mean everything was told to me upfront and there wasn’t any surprises,” says Randall

“I sleep better at night I am now debt free,” continues Randall. Working with an attorney based debt resolution program is successful in the month of January more than 6,000 settlements were made by Morgan Drexen supported attorneys.

###

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Mashable! - Forrester: E-Commerce To Reach Nearly $300 Billion in U.S. b

Forrester: E-Commerce To Reach Nearly $300 Billion in U.S. by 2015 [STATS]

More About: e-commerce, forrester, retailFor more Business & Marketing coverage:Follow Mashable Business & Marketing on TwitterBecome a Fan on…

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Why BestStartPageEver.com Might Become Start Page of Choice for Many Internet Users

BestStartPageEver.com fills gaping hole in start page market; defies widget invasion in order to stay quick and clean

Washington, DC (PRWEB) February 28, 2011

Launched in early 2011, BestStartPageEver.com is an internet start page built around a simple premise: links and search tools—and nothing else. The Washington, DC-based online startup fulfills the need for a customizable start page without the distractions that have become common within the start page market.

In recent years, the internet has seen an invasion of widgets—Facebook plug-ins, Twitter feeds, calendars, mini-games, and more. While these sorts of widgets can be useful, they often create distractions and make pages load slower. This insight is particularly relevant in the case of start pages, which often try to cram as much as possible into one place. BestStartPageEver.com breaks the trend of excess by providing a fast-loading, distraction-free alternative.

BestStartPageEver.com has a simple design. The first column is for links, and the second column is for search tools. A clearly-labeled button allows users to customize their links and select their favorite search tools. Available search tools include Google, Wikipedia, YouTube, dictionary, weather, news, maps, and others.

By favoring simplicity over excess, BestStartPageEver.com is able to load significantly faster than iGoogle, Netvibes, MyYahoo, AOL, and MSN, according to page speed tests on webpageanalyzer.com and rapid.searchmetrics.com. In an age when speed and convenience are expected, BestStartPageEver.com has the potential to develop an enormous following.

About BestStartPageEver.com:
Launched in early 2011, BestStartPageEver.com is a customizable start page that aims for simplicity and speed in a market often characterized by clutter. The site was recently featured on KillerStartups.com and has garnered praise from around the globe. BestStartPageEver.com is based in Washington, DC. For more information, visithttp://www.beststartpageever.com.

Contact
Yaphi Berhanu
BestStartPageEver.com
press(at)beststartpageever(dot)com
202-494-0606

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Vocus Virtual Conference: Social Media. So what?

Free Half-Day Virtual Conference to Explore the Ins and Outs of Social Media

A leading provider of on-demand software for public relations management. Follow us on Twitter: @Vocus

Find out what businesses are still getting wrong and how to avoid going down that same path.

Lanham, MD (PRWEB) February 28, 2011

Vocus, Inc. (NASDAQ: VOCS), a leading provider of cloud-based marketing and PR software, is hosting a free half-day virtual conference on the big, powerful world of social media.

Social Media has changed the way people communicate and do business. It’s unavoidable, but without strategic planning it can go terribly wrong. Find out what businesses are still getting wrong and how to avoid going down that same path.

On Wednesday March 16th, from 11am-4pm ET, five social media experts will show you how to engage and influence your followers online.

Speakers include:

• The Revolutionary – Scott Stratten of UnMarketing
• The Savvy – Adam Singer of Lewis PR
• The Sage – Greg Jarboe, SEO-PR.com co-founder and YouTube author
• The Practical – Neil Schaffer of Windmills Marketing
• The Unafraid – David Brody of North Social

To register for the virtual conference, or for more information, please click on the following link: http://tinyurl.com/4vcnrov

About Vocus

Vocus, Inc. (NASDAQ: VOCS) is a leading provider of cloud-based marketing and PR software. Our web-based software suite helps organizations of all sizes to fundamentally change the way they communicate with both the media and the public, optimizing their visibility and increasing their ability to measure its impact. Our on-demand software addresses the critical functions of earned marketing including media relations, news distribution, news monitoring and social media. We deliver our solutions over the Internet using a secure, scalable application and system architecture, which allows our customers to eliminate expensive up-front hardware and software costs and to quickly deploy and adopt our on-demand software. Vocus is used by more than 30,000 organizations worldwide and is available in seven languages. Vocus is based in Lanham, MD with offices in North America, Europe and Asia. For more information, please visit vocus.com or call (800) 345-5572.

This release contains "forward-looking" statements that are made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These are statements that are predictive in nature, that depend upon or refer to future events or conditions, or that include words such as "may," "will," "expects," "projects," "anticipates," "estimates," "believes," "intends," "plans," "should," "seeks," and similar expressions. This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to, among other things, Vocus’ expectations and assumptions concerning future financial performance. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual future results to differ materially from those projected or contemplated in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may be significantly impacted by certain risks and uncertainties described in Vocus' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The risks and uncertainties referred to above include, but are not limited to, risks associated with possible fluctuations in our operating results and rate of growth, our history of operating losses, interruptions or delays in our service or our Web hosting, our business model, breach of our security measures, the emerging market in which we operate, our relatively limited operating history, our ability to hire, retain and motivate our employees and manage our growth, competition, our ability to continue to release and gain customer acceptance of new and improved versions of our service, successful customer deployment and utilization of our services, fluctuations in the number of shares outstanding, our ability to integrate acquisitions, foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates.

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Could the “Do Not Track” Bill Do More Harm Than Good?:VIDEO

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Has Google Altered Your Title Tag Without Your Consent?

Has Google Altered Your Title Tag Without Your Consent?

By: Courtney Mills
2011-02-25

Weve told you a number of times how important title tags are to your websites ranking in Google. But Google doesnt seem to care about the hard work you put into the creating these tags, theyre simply going to alter them.

Has Google Altered Your Title Tag Without Your Consent?

There have been a number of complaints pop up on the WebmasterWorld forum that Google is selecting a different title from what the webmaster placed in their title tag.

It seems Google is not picky as to which sites it targets; Apple has even had its title tag changed (see example below).

Google's John Mueller explains why they are doing this:

In general, when we run across titles that appear to be sub-optimal, we may choose to rewrite them in the search results. This could happen when the titles are particularly short, shared across large parts of your site or appear to be mostly a collection of keywords. One thing you can do to help prevent this is to make sure that your titles and descriptions are relevant, unique and compelling, without being "stuffed" with too much boilerplate text across your site.

Though Google has provided a specific reason as to why people are seeing this sudden change in title tags, Matt Cutts has noted that the company reserves the right to suggest a different title from what the webmasters might have set. In the meantime, webmasters can take the following advice from Google:

Make sure each page on your site has a useful and descriptive page title (contained within the title tags). If a title tag is missing, or if the same title tag is used for many different pages, Google may use other text we find on the page. The HTML suggestions page in Webmaster Tools lists pages where Google has detected missing or problematic title tags. (To see this page, click Diagnostics in the left-hand menu of the site Dashboard. Then click HTML suggestions.)

So should webmaster start panicking? Is this a precursor to some big change soon to be announced by Google? Or is this a permanent change in the Google algorithm? We will have to just wait and watch.

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About the Author:
Courtney is an online marketing specialist at ineedhits - a leading search engine marketing firm with over 11 years experience. Courtney has been living and breathing marketing for over 2 years and specializes in web and permission email marketing and providing news and opinion to online marketing communities.

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What Google's Farmer Update Means to Your Business - Website Magazine - Website Magazine

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What Google's Farmer Update Means to Your Business - Website Magazine - Website Magazine

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ATTENTION: Registration Problems/Course Line Up

REGISTRATION PROBLEMS Ah. technology! It's great when it works, but when it doesn't... We've experienced a glitch in our registration system. We do not currently have the ability to tell who signed up for which webinars so we are alerting everyone to the problem. Fortunately we are able to hold webinars. To access a webinar, please go to https://ventureneer.adobeconnect.com/webinars at the scheduled time. Your computer speakers will provide the best audio for the event. If you have trouble with the audio from your computer, we have a limited number of dial-in connections available on a first-come. first-served basis. To access one of the these connections, follow the instructions below: Conference Number: (800) 832-0736 Enter: * Room Number: 7282920 Enter: # Thank you for you patience. VENTURENEER WEBINARS For Nonprofits and Social Enterprises: Get to "Yes" By Unleashing Your Passion Transform your passion for your nonprofit or social enterprise into an effective, riveting presentation to funders and investors. Find out how in this free webinar from Ventureneer. The webinar will be held Tuesday, March 1, 2-3pm ET and will be taught by Pamela Ziemann, author of Giving Voice to Your Cause. For Small Businesses and Nonprofits: Get Peer Insights, Expert Analysis Small businesses recharge with training and peer support. Experience the energy and be part of the solution for real-life businesses in a new peer-support and coaching webinar from Ventureneer. Join Danielle Douglas, a Kauffman Foundation FastTrac facilitator, for this free webinar on Wednesday, March 2, 2011, from 12n-1pm ET. For Small Businesses:Tell A Story That Draws In Customers The story a business tells can boost its brand in the eyes of consumers. In Ventureneer's free webinar, Want to Have a Brand That Sticks? Give It A Good Story! small business owners and solo-preneurs will learn to tell a compelling story that draws customers in.Join Alan Siege of Small Business Management Consulting on Wednesday, March 16, 12pm-1pm ET. For Small Businesses: Tools to Build a Better Brand The reputation of a business -- its brand -- is its greatest asset. In an encore free webinar, Ventureneer shows small business owners, entrepreneurs, and solo-preneurs how to build their brand to attract more business. Join Alan Siege, Wednesday, March 16, 2011, from 12n-1 pm ET. For Small Businesses and Nonprofits: SEO in Plain English More than 1 billion questions are asked of Google every day, by "seekers," people who are actively looking for a new place to do business or to re-connect with one they liked. When your business is the answer to someone's question, you want to be at the top of the search results page; you want Google, Bing or Yahoo! to find you first. Ventureneer's free webinar will show you how to choose the right search engine optimization strategy (and what that means). Join Robert Weil of Blue Fly Business Solutions on Wednesday, March 16, 2pm-3pm ET. For Small Businesses and Nonprofits: Internet Marketing Essentials Internet Marketing is an elusive creature: What's hot today might be passé tomorrow. How does a business owner or nonprofit executive keep up? In Ventureneer's free webinar, held Thursday, March 24, 2-3 pm ET Internet Marketing Essentials for Small Businesses and Nonprofits, Maisha Walker will teach you how to make sense of the latest marketing trends; determine which tools and approaches are right for you; and learn the fundamentals of creating an Internet Marketing Action Plan. OTHER EVENTS 12-weeks of Coaching Helps Small Businesses Grow Quickly Become your own change-agent with the help of this 12-week, 24-session online seminar presented by Ventureneer's promotional partner, Inspire Enterprise. Sessions will be lively and interactive with a focus on how-to strategies, valuable advice, and individual and business development. The 2011 Sales & Marketing Playbook Conference Tuesday, March 22, 2011 | 8:00a - 1:00p The Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Avenue, Manhattan With most predictions calling for mild economic growth, businesses seeking to increase revenues need to have to be more aggressive with their sales and marketing initiatives. · Does your company struggle to get noticed among its competitors? · Are you aware of the latest proven sales & marketing tactics for the new normal? · Do you know the keys to shortening the sales cycle? · What elements must your website have to be validated by your prospects? At this one-of-a-kind conference, leading experts will provide attendees both the strategy and the tactics needed to create and execute the sales and marketing plans to help them achieve their goals for 2011. This event will feature six breakout sessions covering a variety of critical sales and marketing topics. Ventureneer subscribers receive a 15% discount with promo code ventureneer. RECENT BLOG POSTS The Mood of Your Listener will Determine which Story to Tell Uderstand the specific feeling of the person or people you're talking with and you'll communicate better with them. Is free web content just another way for corporations to exploit those who create the corporate value? Collaboration, the wiki-model, the chance for everyone to post their opinion: all wonderful benefits of the information age. Is the AOL purchase of the Huffington Post exploitive or a win-win? Doors Are Opening For Social Enterprises Seeking Funding, Support Funding and support social entrepreneurs is finally in view. Find out whose helping and what they're doing. SOCIAL MEDIA RESOURCES FOR NONPROFITS Check out Nonprofits + Social Media a one-stop, continually updated central resource about social media as they are used by nonprofits, which is sometimes different than the way for-profits use them. Also don't forget to check out our survey report, Nonprofits and Social Media: It Ain't Optional. Contact Geri Stengel geri@ventureneer.com

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Mashable! - 9 Apps To Make You Super Productive on Windows, Mac & Linux

9 Apps To Make You Super Productive on Windows, Mac & Linux

The Cross-Platform Apps Series is supported by VMware Fusion, the best way to run Windows on your Mac. Click Here to learn more about VMware Fusion. To keep up with VMware Fusion updates, follow the “TeamFusion” blog or on Twitter or Facebook.

You may think you’ve reached the peak possible productivity on Windows, Mac and Linux, but if you haven’t tried this collection of timesavers, it’s time to think again.

We found software that will help you type less, enhance your efficiency, help you find a needle in a haystack, keep track of the world and probably even help you sleep better. Many of these apps are cross-platform for Windows, Mac or Linux — and best of all, most are free.

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1. Nuance Dragon NaturallySpeaking

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You talk and it types. Even if you’re the fastest typist in the world, you can probably talk faster, and Nuan ce likes to say Dragon NaturallySpeaking lets you “type at the speed of thought.” This latest version doesn’t require lengthy training sessions, and its accuracy is astonishing. Pricing starts at $99 for the Home Edition, money well spent if you want to put your productivity in overdrive. The Premium Edition comes with a workable headset and is available for $154 on Amazon.

Platform: Mac, Windows
Price: $99 and up

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2. KeyText

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Don’t waste your time typing phrases, addresses and boilerplate text over and over. Here’s the solution: KeyText 3, an extraordinary convenience that makes it easy to slam down routine phrases with just a few keystrokes. That’s just the beginning of this powerful utility’s prowess, giving you multiple clipboards, a built-in scheduler to run programs and reminders, and automatic password filling.

Platform: Windows
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What Is Speed Rank?

I came across a great blog post over at SEOMoz this morning. They were discussing how page load speeds can affect Google page rank. We all know that the time it takes for your website to load can have sever implications for visitors to the site. The typical user will only wait for approximately 4-6 seconds for a page to load. What you may not have been aware of is that Google uses the page load speeds as part of their page ranking algorithm.

By Kyle Krenbrink
February 25, 201
1

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