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  1. WordPress Now Powering Nearly a Quarter of New Active US Websites

    How You can be a Part of the Success of WordPress

    Powering 22 out of every 100 new active domains and 14.7% of the top million websites worldwide, WordPress has shown repeatedly that it is a viable force on the Web. In fact, in July, WordPress.com blogs exceeded the 50 million mark and each month there are 287 million people making 2.5 billion page views of WordPress.com blogs.

    At his State of the Word address in July, Matt Mullenweg, founder of WordPress, credited the success of WP with the ease of use and its affordability. This ease of use and customization is due in part to the 15,000 plugins available at WordPress.com and WordPress.org.

  2. 36 Best WordPress Plugins for Building your Business

    As one of the most popular blogging platforms and content management systems, WordPress is a “household name” for anyone familiar with web design. With its ease of use, customization and extensive features, WordPress is a one-stop solution for just about anything, thanks to the vast number of great WordPress plugins.

  3. WordPress 3.2 Update

    Yesterday Matt Mullenweg, a bigwig with the WordPress content management system, posted this:

    Last week we released WordPress 3.2, a version focused on making WP faster and lighter with a refreshed dashboard, new Twenty Eleven theme, a zen writing mode, and more: http://wordpress.org/news/2011/07/gershwin/

    We waited to email because there were some issues  with the JSON module on some web hosts, which the just-released version 3.2.1 fixes. Download from WordPress.org or click the update button in your dashboard to get the latest.What else is new? We’re doing a census of the WordPress World, if you have 5 minutes take this survey:

    http://wpsurvey.surveydaddy.com/s/wp-2011-e?src=ema

    We’re going to tally up the results and present them in my State of the Word talk next month in San Francisco, so send it to everyone you know who uses WordPress so we get the most representative sample.

    There are also some fun WordCamps approaching in San Diego, Portsmouth, Boston, Chicago, Fayetteville, St. Louis, San Francisco, and Los Angeles:

    http://central.wordcamp.org/

    Hope to see you at one soon!

    Stay cool,
    Matt

  4. What’s Up with WordPress?

    Wordpress LogoAs one of the most popular content management systems used, WordPress
    has been making headlines since its first release by Matt Mullenweg in 2003. It’s security and ease of use makes it ideal
    for web designers who want their site to be flexible with all of the plugins available, yet is still simple enough for the beginning
    blogger who just wants a place to update a few pages on their website occasionally.

  5. WordPress 3.0.4 Important Security Update

    Below is an update from WordPress.org:

    “Version 3.0.4 of WordPress, available immediately through the update page in your dashboard or for download here, is a very important update to apply to your sites as soon as possible because it fixes a core security bug in our HTML sanitation library, called KSES. I would rate this release as “critical.”

    I realize an update during the holidays is no fun, but this one is worth putting down the eggnog for. In the spirit of the holidays, consider helping your friends as well.”

  6. WordPress 3.0.2 Update

    Wordpress LogoWordPress 3.0.2 is available and is a mandatory security update for all previous WordPress versions.

    This maintenance release fixes a moderate security issue that could allow a malicious Author-level user to gain further access to the site, addresses a handful of bugs, and provides some additional security enhancements. Big thanks to Vladimir Kolesnikov for detailed and responsible disclosure of the security issue!

    Download 3.0.2 or update automatically from the Dashboard > Updates menu in your site’s admin area. You should update immediately even if you do not have untrusted users.

    http://wordpress.org/news/?p=1550

  7. Tech News Recap for Small Business

    Latest NewsThe world of technology is constantly changing. In fact, by the time you finish reading through this, chances are something new has been developed or released. However, here are some of the more recent advancements in technology, development and communication that you, as a business owner, might care about.

    Google:

    • Google announced the end of the Real Time
      Collaboration protocol WAVE which was introduced in 2009. WAVE was
      designed to replace e-mail and change online communication but was
      ultimately too complicated and confusing.
    • IE9 Beta was released
      Sept. 15. It has better graphic capabilities and allows you to pin
      websites to the task bar. In addition, IE9 offers improvements to CSS3
      selector support and a ledge for HTML canvas. For many, these changes
      are seen as too little too late as IE has slipped to 50% of the market share recently – a position it used to dominate.
    • Google Instant search- Search at
      the speed of type. Released Sept. 8, Google Instant Search takes what
      you have already typed, determines a likely completion and streams Real
      Time results based on these predictions. Google InstantI offers:
    • Relevant results quicker, so you can get what you are looking for faster
    • Results are listed before you finish typing; just stop typing, select and go
    • You can scroll to search, then see results instantly
    • Time
      saving-tests show that the average search saves 2 to 5 seconds per
      search, which translates into as much as 11 hours per second.

    Microsoft:

    • Bing Maps has a new interface with improved graphical tools for rich colors and better images.
    • Microsoft employees had a funeral procession for the iphone.Windows-powered phone and tablets are rumored to be on the way…somehow I doubt these new products will be sending the iphone to the afterlife, but it is good to see Microsoft in the news again 🙂

    Research in Motion

    • Blackberry announced what appears to be the first serious competitor for the iPad, dubbed the "PlayBook."

    Apple:

    • Apple recently recanted on their stance on allowing Flash to run on their iOS device. Now we wait and see if Adobe cares.
    • Apple
      X Code IDE can manage all testing devices, packaging iPhone apps with
      correct certificates, install apps on devices and has a remote debugger
      which connects to the devices in Real Time to help developers manage
      breakpoints as the app is controlled on the device.
    • Latest
      version of XCode is XCode 4 which is bundled with Mac OSX V 10.6
      allowing 7 new multi-tasking services which improve user experience. The
      IAd displays interactive content without leaving the app and has 1,500
      new APIs.

    Adobe:

    • Flash Player 10.1 for the
      mobile has been re-designed and optimized to reduce memory needs by 50%
      and has hand held features like accelerometer and smart zooming which
      scales Flash to full screen.
    • Adobe Air improvements provide
      better applications outside the mobile browser and across multiple
      operating systems. The key improvement is better working Flash on mobile
      devices which pleases both designers and consumers.

    Software & Development:

    • Magiq-This
      marketing tool can be used on any system. It allows you to collect data
      which can then be implemented into creating a site that is geared
      toward specific guests.  (e.g. Those who find your page by searching for
      a keyword will get a different homepage-if you choose such an option.)
      Or, you could base your homepages appearance on different text, images
      or a different search variable. The program uses "gnomes" that perform
      geolocation, image replacement and other tasks. Each time a gnome is
      employed you are charged-its minimum monthly cost is only a measly $790.
    • Firebug1.5/Firebug Lite 1.3–
      FREE! This can be used with Firefox, IE6+, Safari, Opera and Chrome. 
      The Firefox extension is simple to use and gives you an overview of the
      page being considered. It has separate tabs for DOM, HTML and CSS so you
      can find what you are looking for easily. Also, you can enable specific
      panels to make checking JavaScript and others easier. On pages without
      scrutinization needs, Firebug automatically removes itself.

    WordPress:

    • Ability to sell both tangible and digital products with licensed keys
    • Ability to sell affiliate products with your or other affiliate products
    • Multiple payment options (PayPal, WorldPay, Cash @ Store…)
    • Custom shipping calculation
    • Information capture at point of sale

    Mobile Advances:

    • SendFlow-
      a web-based platform which allows users to design, broadcast and manage
      interactive SMS text and voice messages. Two-way messages can be
      answered in Real Time using land-lines, mobile phones and Internet
      transports, like Google-talk.
    • Percent Mobile- A fully hosted mobile
      analytics service that measures and analyzes mobile traffic to one’s
      website. Percent Mobile is designed to help you understand your guests
      so will better know how to serve them.
    • 2nd quarter
      data from NPD Group shows Android as the top selling OS in American
      smartphones. Google says that 200,000 Androids are being activated
      daily.

    Social Media:

    • Recent studies
      show that Twitter users are the most influential consumers on the web.
      Daily Twitter users are, compared to non-Twitter users:
    • 6x more likely to publish online articles
    • 5x more likely to post blogs
    • 7x more likely to post Wikis
    • 3x more likely to post product reviews
    • FaceBook advertising has increased 10-fold in the past year.
    • FlowTown–
      This web based tool allows clients to import and connect e-mail
      addresses to real people on the social web.  Flowtown provides profile
      information such as location, age, and gender as well as any social
      networks that current e-mail contacts are using. FlowTown clients can
      use this information to better their marketing campaigns. MailChimp recently implemented a similar ability, called Social Pro.
    • Research by Nielsen Co. shows that Americans spend 22.7% of their time using social media sites.

     

    Sources:

    Website Magazine, October 2010; pages 6, 7, 42 & 43

    www.Googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/search-now-faster-thatn-speed-of-type.html

    Website Magazine, April 2010; pages 6-8, 16

    Practical Web Design, Sept. 2010

  8. What is PHP Programming and Why Should you Care?

    So you want to develop a website where that you can track phone calls, emails and follow ups, as well as manage billing , inventory/ and the status of team projects. Or perhaps you want to create your own online community or social media website. No Problem! Thanks to the versatility of the open source programming language PHP, you can do that and more! Designed by Rasmus Lerdorf in order to pass his resume online and then collect data, PHP has continued to be used by web developers for a variety of needs and web-based applications.  PHP is lauded by programmers for many reasons, but these factors are best summed up as follows:

    • PHP can be used to create exceptional web pages and interact with info on the web
    • It can be used as a go between with users and databases (Such as MySQL)
    • Compatibility with almost any Internet server
    • PHP/MySQL-based open source solutions are free to use and can be found easily online, such as ImpressCMS or WordPress
    • The syntax is simple and has many similarities to C or Java. In addition, it can be used easily on Windows, Macs, UNIX and other programming platforms.
    • PHP, though free, is also secure, when used properly

    PHP LogoSome of the more common uses of PHP programming are:

    • Online inventory management systems – track what you have in stock and who is ordering what products/service
    • Content management systems – manage your website yourself easily online
    • Online photo galleries – store photos of products, customers, family, etc.
    • Ecommerce systems –  sell products online with a shopping cart
    • Community social portals – create your own version of Facebook, perhaps?

    In addition to the many uses of custom PHP development are several attractive benefits that make it practical for everyone involved. These benefits are because PHP is an open source framework.

    • PHP custom programming costs less than other languages, typically.
    • Because it is simple, it takes less time to have your website live.
    • The flexibility of PHP makes it perfect for an abundance of website designs and customization options.

    PHP is one of the more versatile tools in the programmer’s toolbox. If you are looking for a way to ramp up your website, PHP is just the tool. Contact Page Progressive to see how custom PHP can be used to help you.

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