Archive for the ‘Technology’ Category

How To: Make a Bean Bag Tripod!

Posted 09 May 2010 — by HarriMac
Category Featured, Soulville, Technology

As you guys know, I’m an avid photographer and I love to travel. I’ve got a week long trip coming up and I’m flying to all my destinations so I went online to see if I could find a small travel tripod. The tripod I already have is about 24 inches long folded up and about five inches wide. Definitely not fitting in a daypack and I’m not a fan of tying stuff on for city exploring. I want to grab and go. After much searching and finding few options that would hold my camera weight, I started looking at photography boards about solutions. Considering that I’ll be in NYC to see Ellie, I saw that a couple places we’re going do not allow traditional tripods without a lot of hassle. But the most awesome comment suggested to use a bean bag tripod. I’d never heard of one, so of course I set out to see what I could find. I found an awesome product called THE pod, but every store I could find was sold out or would be far to expensive to get here before my trip. So I started searching for other bean bag tripods and found directions to make my own! I’ve edited them to post here and added a few helpful websites in case you’ve never sewn before or made anything like this.

More (yes MORE) free and great iPhone apps!

Posted 04 Mar 2010 — by HarriMac
Category Featured, Reviews, Soulville, Technology

It seems like I’ve been writing a lot of iPhone app posts lately. Probably because I have been. But I’ve had plenty of time to test some really neat free ones that I think you all will like. Check ‘em out and let me know what you think!!

Should parents use GPS Tracking devices?

Comments Off
Posted 03 Mar 2010 — by Ellie
Category Technology

I’m not a parent, but I can imagine how difficult it must be to monitor your child’s whereabouts and ensure their safety when they are not with you. Should parents use GPS Tracking devices to keep up with their kids, or should they trust their teenagers to do the right thing?

Even at 10 years old, while growing up in a suburb north of Boston, Jessica Fairbanks was in and out of trouble. She had tried drinking and smoking, and had developed a habit of constantly lying to her parents. When it came time for her to get her driver’s license, Jessica’s parents were scared to death.

Thinking of selling your site?

Comments Off
Posted 28 Feb 2010 — by Ellie
Category Technology

Domain Appraisal is the first step you should take after deciding to sell your site. Not only can you get a person to evaluate the value of your site, but you can also use the information for tax purposes or to help you decide how much to charge for advertising.

Look for domain appraisal that is non-automated and uses a variety of factors to determine the value of your site. Don’t let them just look at one or two factors and make a decision on how much your domain is worth! Look for appraisers who are experienced or have training in valuation.

Interview with The Web Boutique

Comments Off
Posted 18 Aug 2009 — by Ellie
Category Featured, Technology

TWBlogo

I sat down with Summer N., owner and lead designer of The Web Boutique, to get her thoughts on web and graphic design a few weeks ago and wanted to share her thoughts with you. The Web Boutique is a web and graphic design firm that does much more than that, including marketing solutions and consulting.

1. When and how did you get started in web and graphic design?

How to Add Facebook to the Sidebar Firefox 3.5

Comments Off
Posted 17 Aug 2009 — by Ellie
Category Technology

facebook_logo

Love Facebook?Add its chat to your sidebar in Fireofx 3.5.

  1. Navigate to Bookmarks > Organize Bookmarks. A window will open.
  2. Click on the folder where you want to place the bookmark. Now press Organize and Add New Bookmark.
  3. Name the bookmark “Facebook Chat” and paste http://www.facebook.com/presence/popout.php
  4. Checkmark the box that says “Load this Bookmark in the sidebar”
  5. Close the windows.
  6. Now try to use your new bookmark. Facebook chat will now open in your sidebar.

facebook chat in sidebar

Now you can chat with your friends without having to open Facebook in a separate tab.

SEO is for the birds

Posted 14 Aug 2009 — by Ellie
Category Technology

Enough with the rain ok?
Creative Commons License photo credit: racketrx

I love using a search engine to find information, but it comes as no surprise that even a tool as helpful as Google is gamed by people around the globe. How?

Search engine optimization, or SEO, is used not just for good, but for “evil,” too. Some SEO “experts” make their bread and butter by encouraging some of the worst practices in blogging – stuffing posts with keywords to generate higher search rankings and traffic, when the post may or may not be relevant for the searcher’s needs.

To Brand or Not to Brand Your Twitter Profile

Comments Off
Posted 11 Aug 2009 — by Ellie
Category Technology

Twitter is possibly the largest social networking site out there,and people are always looking for ways to make it help them improve other parts of their lives. There’s buzz around the blogosphere and Twitter about branding your Twitter profile to match your blog or website, keeping your profile in a certain niche or even using Twitter as a networking tool.

When marketing yourself, you want all pieces to look similar and cohesive: logo, business cards, letterhead, envelope, website, brochure, media kit, marketing materials, signage, etc.

You don’t have to follow everyone on Twitter!

Posted 04 Aug 2009 — by Ellie
Category Technology

TwitterTwitter is a great social networking tool for sharing with friends old and new. But with any social media phenomenon, there is a culture attached to it that can be borderline excessive.

Many people have started using auto-follow software to automatically follow any Twitter user who follows them, whether it is a real person or a bot. Other tactics include setting up alerts via various Twitter API-based clients for keywords and automatically following people who mention certain keywords in their tweets. These users are more concerned with follower counts than the quality of the people they follow.