Communiqué
Google Optimized for Google
One of our developers sent out an excellent link today: Google designed for Google. It's funny, and really excellent commentary on grey hat search engine hacking. Check it out.
Okay, you looked? Great. That was the fun stuff. Now for the boring stuff...
There are two approaches to search engine optimization ("SEO"), black hat and white hat.
White hat SEO is simple. Write good content. Make it readable for humans. Google will reward you -- slowly, but surely.
Black hat SEO attempts to game the search engines by reverse-engineering their algorithms and then creating web pages that are custom-built for search engines. In the past, techniques included stuffing meta tags into page headers, creating pages of "invisible" white-on-white text, stuffing keywords into image alt tags, and the like.
Eventually the search engines started penalizing these techniques, and shifting to other methods of determining relevancy, such as using incoming links as a measure of legitimacy.
Today, a common black hat approach is to create "link farms" of hundreds or thousands of web sites that link to each other and are stuffed full of keywords; they rise in rankings as a block, and SEO firms sell links in these farms to their clients. Problem being that search engines have started to penalize link farms, which in turn hurts their clients.
Next black hat SEO companies have cottoned onto blogging. Earlier this year, I could hardly type a search term into Google without getting page full of bogus results from synthetic blogs hosted by Blogger, Blogspot, et al, ad nauseum. It's gotten better lately, so I think the search engines have figured out this approach too.
So what about that "Google designed for Google" example I started with? What is it?
Grey hat, I suppose. It's satirical, but it's becoming pretty common -- SEO consulting companies make recommendations to their clients which result in ugly, cluttered pages in which the content is crowded out by the attempts to stuff keywords and social bookmarking attempts. Technically, it's not gaming the search engines, but the pages end up much less usable.
Even if you do manage to get some new visitors to your site this quarter, are they going to like your page and actually pay attention to you? Or are they going to surf right back out? Remember, more than a decade after the web was created, the Back button is still the most used part of any web browser!
When the search engines inevitably start penalizing your grey hat activities and you cease getting referrals, where does it leave you?
(See also: Beware the snake oil, stick to the content.)
Okay, you looked? Great. That was the fun stuff. Now for the boring stuff...
There are two approaches to search engine optimization ("SEO"), black hat and white hat.
White hat SEO is simple. Write good content. Make it readable for humans. Google will reward you -- slowly, but surely.
Black hat SEO attempts to game the search engines by reverse-engineering their algorithms and then creating web pages that are custom-built for search engines. In the past, techniques included stuffing meta tags into page headers, creating pages of "invisible" white-on-white text, stuffing keywords into image alt tags, and the like.
Eventually the search engines started penalizing these techniques, and shifting to other methods of determining relevancy, such as using incoming links as a measure of legitimacy.
Today, a common black hat approach is to create "link farms" of hundreds or thousands of web sites that link to each other and are stuffed full of keywords; they rise in rankings as a block, and SEO firms sell links in these farms to their clients. Problem being that search engines have started to penalize link farms, which in turn hurts their clients.
Next black hat SEO companies have cottoned onto blogging. Earlier this year, I could hardly type a search term into Google without getting page full of bogus results from synthetic blogs hosted by Blogger, Blogspot, et al, ad nauseum. It's gotten better lately, so I think the search engines have figured out this approach too.
So what about that "Google designed for Google" example I started with? What is it?
Grey hat, I suppose. It's satirical, but it's becoming pretty common -- SEO consulting companies make recommendations to their clients which result in ugly, cluttered pages in which the content is crowded out by the attempts to stuff keywords and social bookmarking attempts. Technically, it's not gaming the search engines, but the pages end up much less usable.
Even if you do manage to get some new visitors to your site this quarter, are they going to like your page and actually pay attention to you? Or are they going to surf right back out? Remember, more than a decade after the web was created, the Back button is still the most used part of any web browser!
When the search engines inevitably start penalizing your grey hat activities and you cease getting referrals, where does it leave you?
(See also: Beware the snake oil, stick to the content.)
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iMarc is Hiring - Interactive Designer
iMarc is seeking an Interactive Designer with a strong emphasis on graphic interfaces, web design, brand building and visual problem solving skills. Candidate should also have a solid understanding of information architecture and user interface design as well as experience in design presentations.
Requirements:
* 1-3 years prior experience
* Strong sense of design fundamentals and type
* Understanding of HTML and CSS
* Advanced knowledge of Photoshop, Illustrator, Indesign and Flash (ActionScript a big plus)
* Team player that can work closely with clients
* Ability to handle a number of projects at once
* SEO understanding a plus but not a requirement
What iMarc Offers:
* Competitive Salary
* Excellent benefits including health and dental coverage
* Company-sponsored retirement plan
* A fun, engaging and creative work environment
* Located in beautiful Newburyport, MA
* Challenging, varied projects
How to Apply:
Email a PDF or Plain Text resume to designer@imarc.net / Inquiries without links to web-based work will probably be ignored.
No Calls Please.
Requirements:
* 1-3 years prior experience
* Strong sense of design fundamentals and type
* Understanding of HTML and CSS
* Advanced knowledge of Photoshop, Illustrator, Indesign and Flash (ActionScript a big plus)
* Team player that can work closely with clients
* Ability to handle a number of projects at once
* SEO understanding a plus but not a requirement
What iMarc Offers:
* Competitive Salary
* Excellent benefits including health and dental coverage
* Company-sponsored retirement plan
* A fun, engaging and creative work environment
* Located in beautiful Newburyport, MA
* Challenging, varied projects
How to Apply:
Email a PDF or Plain Text resume to designer@imarc.net / Inquiries without links to web-based work will probably be ignored.
No Calls Please.
Just Another iMarc IM Conversation
(11:00:22 AM) craigrukatimarc: i think we're meeting about it at 10:45 this morning
(11:00:27 AM) craigrukatimarc: ...
(11:00:30 AM) craigatimarc: PPFFF
(11:00:52 AM) craigrukatimarc: i say mrrr to your ppfff
(11:01:25 AM) craigatimarc: and i say garrghhh to your mrrrr in regards to my pfffff
(11:02:15 AM) craigrukatimarc: WINNER ->
(11:00:27 AM) craigrukatimarc: ...
(11:00:30 AM) craigatimarc: PPFFF
(11:00:52 AM) craigrukatimarc: i say mrrr to your ppfff
(11:01:25 AM) craigatimarc: and i say garrghhh to your mrrrr in regards to my pfffff
(11:02:15 AM) craigrukatimarc: WINNER ->
Firefox Html Validator on Ubuntu Gutsy
Recently here at work I took the plunge. I downloaded the beta version of Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon…gosh they have awesome names) and installed it on my workstation. Yes, it took me a little while to really get settled. Yes, I do boot up my old Windows XP install inside of VMWare in case I forgot something.
The reason I recently switched is because Wine has made some great improvements. Version 0.9.46 supports installing, activating and running Adobe Photoshop CS2. Also, my editor, PHPEd, is fully functioning. Granted, Photoshop CS2 is not running perfectly, but I don't spend too much time in there, and I know the remaining bugs will be fixed soon.
Anyway, back to Ubuntu. The only real snag I hit along the way was that the Html Validator extension for Firefox won’t install properly. First you get errors about libstdc++ not being found. I ran sudo apt-get install libstdc++5. This removed the first error, however another error appeared. Not only was I getting an error for the extension, but my back and forward buttons stopped working.
After a bit of forum reading, I downloaded the Ubuntu source for Firefox 2.0.0.6 and started bug fixing and compiling. About an hour or so later I came up with a working .xpi file.
To save anyone else from having to do this, here is a link to download the Html Validator Firefox extension v0.841 for Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon.
The reason I recently switched is because Wine has made some great improvements. Version 0.9.46 supports installing, activating and running Adobe Photoshop CS2. Also, my editor, PHPEd, is fully functioning. Granted, Photoshop CS2 is not running perfectly, but I don't spend too much time in there, and I know the remaining bugs will be fixed soon.
Anyway, back to Ubuntu. The only real snag I hit along the way was that the Html Validator extension for Firefox won’t install properly. First you get errors about libstdc++ not being found. I ran sudo apt-get install libstdc++5. This removed the first error, however another error appeared. Not only was I getting an error for the extension, but my back and forward buttons stopped working.
After a bit of forum reading, I downloaded the Ubuntu source for Firefox 2.0.0.6 and started bug fixing and compiling. About an hour or so later I came up with a working .xpi file.
To save anyone else from having to do this, here is a link to download the Html Validator Firefox extension v0.841 for Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon.
Lunchroom Banter (Volume XVI)
- Fred: How do you find out the hostname in Unix?
- Dave: Type
hostname - Fred: I love Unix.
pizzammmm...
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If it makes sense...
I was on the phone yesterday with my favorite client. She mentioned a quote that I'd never heard before. I think she was actually quoting one of her co-workers or managers, but this quote was more meaningful than the typical business-motivational quotes that get thrown around.
"If it makes sense, it will happen."
How true. Assuming that all parties are sensible people, if something does make sense, it will happen.
There's no need for the programmer, designer, stakeholder, client or bill-payer to worry. If a feature – or lack of a feature – really makes sense, it's going happen.
"Making sense" also needs to be universal. Just because something makes sense to me, doesn't mean it really makes sense.
So that's my mantra for October. "If it makes sense, it will happen."
These Things Happen, Volume I
Although we always blog about the funny things, the good things, the exciting things and the amazing things, we sometimes forget that life isn’t perfect, and that sometimes unfortunate things happen. Obviously enough, these things also happen at iMarc. You can’t quite call these bloopers, but they’re the little mishaps that can sometimes put the things you take for granted into perspective.
Read MoreDo you really need that?
When planning out a new web site, one of the key tasks we perform is deciding what parts of the site should be content managed, and what doesn't need it. And of those parts that require content management, define the data set and metadata that controls how it is published and displayed.
It's easy to over-specify, and easy to add features that aren't actually needed.
I present as an example the iMarc blog. Read More
Four iMarc Websites Nominated for 2007 MITX Awards
iMarc is proud to announce that four of our websites have been selected as a finalists in The 12th Annual MITX Awards. Held annually by the Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange, the MITX Awards recognize excellence in the creation of web innovations designed, produced or developed in New England.
In the Corporate Training and Support category, Lawyer Prep is one of the nominees.
http://www.lawyerprep.com/
In the Government category, Massachusetts Housing Partnership Fund is a finalist.
http://www.mhp.net/
Massachusetts Society of CPAs is selected as a finalist in the nonprofit category.
http://www.mscpaonline.org/
Finally, iMarc's own website is nominated in the Professional Services category.
http://imarc.net
All finalists for the 2007 MITX Awards can be viewed on the MITX website.
Begun in 1996, the MITX Awards has grown to the largest and most prestigious awards competition in the country for technology innovations and celebrates the best creative and technological accomplishments emerging from New England.
“New England continues to be a thriving center of technological and creative innovation. We are thrilled to report continued growth in awards entries year on year, as well as in our organization in general,” said Kiki Mills, executive director of MITX. “Our awards finalists consistently raise the bar and we are very proud to provide the platform to showcase their work to the public.”
"iMarc is proud to work with such great clients as Lawyer Prep, Mass. Housing Partnership Fund, and Mass. Society of CPAs. We're excited for this years' MITX awards and honored to be nominated in four categories," said Karin Klapak, iMarc's Director of Sales and Marketing.
iMarc will be recognized with the other finalists at a gala awards ceremony traditionally attended by over 900 of the region’s top interactive technology and business professionals. Winners will be announced at the ceremony in the Boston Marriott Copley Place on Thursday, November 8th. Tickets can be purchased at www.mitxawards.org.
The 2007 MITX Awards program is sponsored by Backbone Media, Berman Gobin Creative, Digitas, DLA Piper, Doubleclick, Eyewonder, Fidelity Investments, IBM, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC and Technology Review.
About MITX
Established in 1996, MITX—the Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange is the leading industry organization focused on the web, bringing together digital technology, marketing and media. Reaching more than 6,000 professionals in New England, MITX is a dynamic and growing community of thought leaders, collaborators, and individuals in search of insight, education and opportunity. MITX hosts over 60 events annually from specialized roundtables, monthly panel discussions and networking events to conferences, forums and two of the largest awards recognition programs in the country. For more information go to www.mitx.org
In the Corporate Training and Support category, Lawyer Prep is one of the nominees.
http://www.lawyerprep.com/
In the Government category, Massachusetts Housing Partnership Fund is a finalist.
http://www.mhp.net/
Massachusetts Society of CPAs is selected as a finalist in the nonprofit category.
http://www.mscpaonline.org/
Finally, iMarc's own website is nominated in the Professional Services category.
http://imarc.net
All finalists for the 2007 MITX Awards can be viewed on the MITX website.
Begun in 1996, the MITX Awards has grown to the largest and most prestigious awards competition in the country for technology innovations and celebrates the best creative and technological accomplishments emerging from New England.
“New England continues to be a thriving center of technological and creative innovation. We are thrilled to report continued growth in awards entries year on year, as well as in our organization in general,” said Kiki Mills, executive director of MITX. “Our awards finalists consistently raise the bar and we are very proud to provide the platform to showcase their work to the public.”
"iMarc is proud to work with such great clients as Lawyer Prep, Mass. Housing Partnership Fund, and Mass. Society of CPAs. We're excited for this years' MITX awards and honored to be nominated in four categories," said Karin Klapak, iMarc's Director of Sales and Marketing.
iMarc will be recognized with the other finalists at a gala awards ceremony traditionally attended by over 900 of the region’s top interactive technology and business professionals. Winners will be announced at the ceremony in the Boston Marriott Copley Place on Thursday, November 8th. Tickets can be purchased at www.mitxawards.org.
The 2007 MITX Awards program is sponsored by Backbone Media, Berman Gobin Creative, Digitas, DLA Piper, Doubleclick, Eyewonder, Fidelity Investments, IBM, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC and Technology Review.
About MITX
Established in 1996, MITX—the Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange is the leading industry organization focused on the web, bringing together digital technology, marketing and media. Reaching more than 6,000 professionals in New England, MITX is a dynamic and growing community of thought leaders, collaborators, and individuals in search of insight, education and opportunity. MITX hosts over 60 events annually from specialized roundtables, monthly panel discussions and networking events to conferences, forums and two of the largest awards recognition programs in the country. For more information go to www.mitx.org
Tooting the horn
Since iMarc merged our News & Blog functions into a single Communique, we haven't really been promoting our recent work. Wiffle ball, avoiding snake oil, virtualization and the Darwine project, web standards, development tools, sure. Tooting our horn? Not so much.
Pity. Because we have some truly awesome clients.
Here's what we've been up to this year...
Read More
Hiring: We’re hiring a
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