The first thing I did was look at other Bible websites. I saw databases. Makes perfect sense. PHP or ASPX would allow for changing menus, all tooltips, time lines, versions, chapters and verses will be database elements and it is possible to make the pages have static links.

The problem is I don’t know database programming and I have this unexplainable preference for static pages. Also, the Bible is the unchanging Word of God. So I remembered SSI and <!–#include FILE=”" –>. Added

Options +Includes
AddType text/html html
AddHandler server-parsed html

to .htaccess and pronto, I can call text files from inside .html files and basically cut and paste a web page.

I even found statements that SSI is faster than PHP as it is native to Apache. But I also found statements that SSI creates security risks. So what to do?

For now, I’ll build the website with includes and when finished I’ll use regexxer to modify all menus at the same time. To be continued…

It’s time revisit the subject. First of all, the statement above it’s true. Google shares your information with the apps developers who’s apps you download. I find nothing wrong with it, except Google being obscure about it. Although, since the developers know about it I would not call it a secret. So, is it OK for me to get your data when you get my app? I think so. Would less apps be downloaded if users would be aware the app developer gets their info? I’m sure it would.

Google deserves a spanking. Now, let’s look at Microsoft:

Years ago it was found that you can make new Windows 98 serial numbers by adding or subtracting multiples of 7. Years ago we found out about the “getadmin” Windows NT hack. Years ago a guy created admin@hotmail.com then sent out official-sounding email to an indeterminate number of people telling users that “The trial period for your free Hotmail Service is rapidly coming to a close.” Billions are spent every year on anti-virus software to protect Windows based systems. Historically, Microsoft products have been like a sieve where security is concerned.

While Microsoft does not give the user data to the developer, their software allows a lot of data to be stolen by “malicious persons” and a lot could be said about the famous by now “malicious person(s)”). I am upset with Google’s convenient legalese silly two-step attempt to keep their sharing policy obscure, although, as I said above, it’s not really a secret as long as the developers know about it.

Any grown-up knows that both Google and Microsoft are in business to make money, not to be nice. When I use their products I’m not their friend, just a costumer in a contractual situation. As such, I look at the bottom line:

And the bottom line is this: A lot more data was acquired by hackers exploiting Windows vulnerabilities then from rogue Android apps developers. After all, Google knows which developers have my data. Here’s how I read the quote from Scroogled: “We don’t share your personal data with developers the way Google does but we sure leave a lot of cracks open in our software for “malicious person(s)” to potentially steal your data unlike Google.

Which is better? Google, after a well deserved spanking. And another thing, up until now, I did not see Google criticizing their competition. I wish Microsoft would share data too with developers but make their software more secure.

Slideshow gallery.

How silly of an argument to compare Outlook with Gmail. Outlook requires a dedicated computer. Gmail is available on any device. Outlook costs money, Gmail is free. Outlook has had historical problems with large amounts of stored email, Gmail offers 10.1G (my account at the time I write this), takes a licking and keeps on ticking.

I started to have serious doubts about Microsoft’s future if their higher management condones such an advertising campaign. To me this only shows incompetence or desperation. What happened to “fix the problem not the blame”? How come Google doesn’t criticize anyone? Maybe they’re busy working, something Microsoft should try. I used both Microsoft and Google products for the last 20, respectively 14 years. I have yet to encounter a problem with Google products while constantly dealing with patches and service packs from Microsoft. Google offered everything free, Microsoft always charges.

Maybe it’s time Microsoft drops the stalinist-maoist command and control structure and enters the 21-st Century. Let’s hope they’ll have a change at the top, focus on work and innovation and use the huge pool of talent they have.

We welcome change and openness; for we believe that open source and free go together, that the advance of good computing can only strengthen the cause of world peace. There is one sign Mr. Balmer can make that would be unmistakable, that would advance dramatically the cause of open source and free. Mr. CEO Ballmer, if you seek good computing, if you seek prosperity for Microsoft, if you seek liberalization, come here to this Linux. Mr. Ballmer, switch to Linux. Mr. Ballmer, Mr. Ballmer, tear down your windows!

My background is in experiments, electronic and electromechanical R&D and design, testing, installation and commissioning. I learned the hard way the cost of not having the right tool. I’m sure Tesla or Farnsworth could have fixed a broken cell phone using only a kitchen knife, duct tape and superglue. Mere mortals such as myself need to have small screwdrivers, multimeters and schematics.

The same applies to good Austin Web Design, Web Hosting and SEO. If you’re a genius, I’m sure you can use your iPhone to do web design. I’m not a genius so I use:

1. A good ISP.

I think it’s hard to find a bad ISP these days but if you happen to use one, change. Web design, Web hosting and SEO means being online all the time. Yes, they all have outages but overall you need a good reliable connection decently fast (10×2 or more) with multiple public IP addresses (no need for statics). Why multiple public IP’s? Because you stay logged into your Google account on your Linux machine so you can access webmaster tools, Gmail and so on and you also need to be able to check SERP’s constantly from a different IP and a browser not logged into Google (My SERP’s are always higher when I check them from a browser logged into Google) and Google SERP’s are user and location dependent. No wireless! Use cables as you need reliability not fanciness. I use Time Warner Cable and have a 50X5 connection with 4 dynamic IP’s.

2. A good hosting company. I use Hostgator. Every so often I take over a customer who has a web site hosted at his location and is running an exchange server in a closet all on a 7×768 cable modem. Come on! People that really need a server at their location, also need fiber and a dedicated IT guy. I have a job already so I don’t deal with them. In a couple of hours I move their website and email to my Hostgator reseller account, setup Gmail on their machines to send and receive their emails and pronto! Suddenly their website is fast, they have no more email problems and their office Internet gets faster. As I said before, be honest and don’t cheat! If you like Hostagator and decide to use it click my affiliate link and help support this blog. Thank you!

3. A good registrar. I use Godday. Nothing else to say here. If you decide to use Godaddy, please click my affiliate link and help support this blog. Thank You!

4. one Linux PC or laptop. I prefer the laptop, I can take it with me when I meet with customers. Specs? I have a 3 year old Athlon with 2G of RAM running Ubuntu 12.10 This is what I use to work with. Linux runs faster than Windows, is more stable than XP and you don’t need a virus checker. I got to the point where I do my editing in a text file and then use the Cpanel online editor. For art I use Gimp.

5. one Windows PC running windows 7 with IE 8. What for? I need to test pages in IE and also check SERP’s from another IP so I don’t get skewed results.

6. A Mac, optional. To test, but most of the time, if you do compliant design and it works in Chrome under Linux it will work on a MAC.

7. A tablet and a smart phone to test. I use Samsung.

8. IBP by Axandra. If you decide to purchase IBP, please click my affiliate link  and help support this blog. Thank you!

9. a paper notebook. I write down ideas, take notes when talking to a customer or supplier and make to do lists and have it all in one place accessible 24/7 no Internet or electricity necessary.

10. Good pens, pencils, erasers, sticky notes, tape, folders so on. What do I mean by good? Go to your neighborhood Hobby Lobby and Michael’s and check it out. You’d be surprised what a difference good writing instrument makes for your thinking process.

11. Coffee. I use Sumatra mandheling.

Laugh all you want, I think linearly, which is good many times but not all of the time. Hope this will help another linear thinker. And still, why would there be a second line for the mailing address if the content is not used?

Building the website and publishing it is just the beginning. The web changes constantly, search engines keep indexing and re-indexing, new websites come online and others disappear. Backlinks to my website are added and removed. All this constant state of flux requires I make regular changes so I keep the website SERP’s growing or at least constant. There are many articles with advice and it’s good to read a lot. Make only one change at a time and wait to see the effect it has. However, the best indicators are the SERP’s, Alexa rank and Google webmaster tools.

I keep a spreadsheet with the SERP’s for my search terms and the Alexa rank and plot the ranks day by day. It helps to see how fast my changes (text edit or new articles) propagate into changes in the SERP’s.

I check Google webmaster tools to see if it flags any errors (broken links, descriptions and so on). Here you find out if you’re doing fine or not. Any complaint Google has needs to be addressed fast. This is the best advice as it comes from Google and it’s specific to the website and it supersedes any advice I read online. I advise everyone to first address these items first and only after that try something different. If an online “SEO” checker declares your page good and Google flags errors, go with Google.

All these free tools give me an idea of how the website is doing SEOwise. I check everyday so I can correct fast any error and see how my changes, additions or deletions affect my SERP’s. I also run IBP reports once a month. This way I detect if my word density is within the range of the first 10 SERP listings for my search term.

All the above are tedious and time consuming but very simple to perform. I think it is obvious by now that good web design and SEO is more about details, organization and constancy than some secret knowledge which can be obtained by paying someone to teach you or “get your website” up there. I’m sure you noticed my writing style is mediocre. I try not to polish my articles too much and most changes I make are technical in nature not stylistic. I do this to make sure my content is original. Yes, the best way to be original is to be yourself! This way, my content will never be considered duplicate and removed from the index.

Which ones? I register with the ones below.

Google local, Bing local, Yahoo local It’s ok if you don’t have a brick and mortar store, you can describe location as off-limits for customers.

Yelp, Superpages, Yellow bot, Zip local, Foursquare, Local

Yellow Pages, Yellow book, Best of the web, Topix

So why bother? I registered with the listed directories, next day my traffic doubled.

Of course, web design today has to be tablet compatible. At this point a good size is 1024X768. Width is more important. Make sure it fits and unless you are a really good web designer stay away from auto-sizing web sites. Height? make sure the most important part of the page is visible and enticing so the visitor will scroll down.

Mobile, to do or not to do? I think the correct way to address the mobile web is the app. I don’t know how to make apps or how expensive they are to make. For a small business, what you really need is an accessible contact button or buttons. Click to email, click to call and click to text and or QR codes. My approach is to make a regular web site with big enough buttons, placed appropriately so they can be clicked from a smart phone.

The next level would be a mobile contact page that loads when accessed through a mobile device. The next level would be a mobile page for every regular page.

What other pages? The ones the customer wants and of course the standard ones: contact, privacy policy, portfolio, testimonials, and so on.

Sitemap, webmaster tools, analytics? Why bother? For one thing you make it easier on the search engine to find and index the site. Then you get to see if it finds errors, then you get to see the stats from its point of view.

It is good to tell the search engines when your site was updated or you added links, see any broken links and get tips: duplicate description or content, too short, too long and so on.