Report: Pimpin' Is In Fact Easy at 352 Media Group Posted 9/25/2008 by PeterV, VP, Marketing

That's right, kids...it's time for another edition of pimp my desk!  Last time we turned Evan's schoolteacher desk in to a work of art, and this time we had our hands full!  Kelly, one of our new project managers, was making the move from her windowless cave to a corner office.  However the new digs were a mess.  The desk was literally falling apart, there was "questionable" art on the walls...it needed help.  That's where I came in.

We decided to start from scratch with a brand new desk.  We incorporated Kelly's love of the Florida Gators and garden gnomes (sounds just like her match.com profile!) to complete the makeover.  Take a look.

We also made a 3D photosynth of the completed room...check it out just below the video.

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	T-Mobile launches Google Android G1 phone Posted 9/23/2008 by TomB, Acct Mgr

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	What is Managed Hosting from Rackspace? Posted 9/23/2008 by PeterV, VP, Marketing

Patrick from Rackspace, our hosting partner, was in the office this week, so we dragged him in to the studio for a quick chat.  Patrick took a few minutes to explain how managed hosting differs from other options like shared or collocated hosting.  We also chatted about the hosted email solutions rackspace offers, as well as their industry-leading "fanatical support." 

Let us know if you're in the market for hosting.  They do great work, and we'd love to introduce you!

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	Are you Cyber Safe? Posted 9/22/2008 by Raina, Project Mgr

One of my clients, (ISC)² is dedicated to spreading cyber security awareness through the world.  We wrapped up the development of Cyber Exchange recently and let the game begin...winners can win up to $1000 US cash! How exciting!

This worldwide company has just launched their new (ISC)² Cyber Exchange Web site where their members can upload materials, such as posters, videos, presentations and much more.  In an effort to make your community and organization cyber safe check out the Cyber Exchange downloads page. You can even rank materials, view the top five ranked materials and five most recently uploaded materials.

The story behind the Cyber Exchange initiative is interesting as well. Learn more about Cyber Security Awareness and how you can incorporate it with your community and organization. Be cyber safe...

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	301 redirects Posted 9/17/2008 by Declan, Acct Mgr

I am working on a solution at the moment for a potential client which involves 352 media collaborating with our search engine marketing partner Submitawebsite. 352 are been considered for a design and programming and SAW are been considered for a SEO/SEM campaign.

SAW and I got chatting about our proposed solution yesterday and the Dave (SAW account manager) noted that this specific client has 2 other domain names, and they are creating a duplicate content issue, and potentially holding the clients site back in rankings, However this can be solved by putting 301 redirects in place.

I was aware of 301 redirects, and have used them before, but I did not know that having a permanently redirect helps with search engine optimization.

So what does this mean to you and your site?

A user user might mis-type a URL -- for example, "www.353meida.com" and "www.532media.com". Companies often register these "misspelled" domains and re-direct them to the "correct" location: www.352media.com.

But some companies may have 3 domain names such as www.352media.com, www.353meida.com, and www.532media.com and all 3 websites have the exact same content uploaded and live on the server, Google deems this bad, and can punish you by lowering your ranking, or by removing you totally from their search engine.

The solution is a 301 Redirect (The code "301" is interpreted as "moved permanently) – you direct the other domains to your main site.

I have more than one domain, how do I set up a re-direct to avoid been penalized?

Below are a Couple of methods to implement URL Redirection

I plagiarized the following content from http://www.webconfs.com/how-to-redirect-a-webpage.php

IIS Redirect

In Internet services manager, right click on the file or folder you wish to redirect
Select the radio titled "a redirection to a URL".
Enter the redirection page
Check "The exact url entered above" and the "A permanent redirection for this resource"
Click on 'Apply'

ColdFusion Redirect

<.cfheader statuscode="301" statustext="Moved permanently">
<.cfheader name="Location" value="http://www.new-url.com">

PHP Redirect

<?
Header( "HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently" );
Header( "Location: http://www.new-url.com" );
?>

ASP Redirect

<%@ Language=VBScript %>
<%
Response.Status="301 Moved Permanently"
Response.AddHeader "Location","http://www.new-url.com/"
%>

ASP .NET Redirect

<script runat="server">
private void Page_Load(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
{
Response.Status = "301 Moved Permanently";
Response.AddHeader("Location","http://www.new-url.com");
}
</script>

JSP (Java) Redirect

<%
response.setStatus(301);
response.setHeader( "Location", "http://www.new-url.com/" );
response.setHeader( "Connection", "close" );
%>

CGI PERL Redirect

$q = new CGI;
print $q->redirect("http://www.new-url.com/");

Ruby on Rails Redirect

def old_action
headers["Status"] = "301 Moved Permanently"
redirect_to "http://www.new-url.com/"
end

Redirect Old domain to New domain (htaccess redirect)

Create a .htaccess file with the below code, it will ensure that all your directories and pages of your old domain will get correctly redirected to your new domain.
The .htaccess file needs to be placed in the root directory of your old website (i.e the same directory where your index file is placed)

Options +FollowSymLinks
RewriteEngine on
RewriteRule (.*) http://www.newdomain.com/$1 [R=301,L]

Please REPLACE www.newdomain.com in the above code with your actual domain name.

In addition to the redirect I would suggest that you contact every back linking site to modify their back link to point to your new website.

Note* This .htaccess method of redirection works ONLY on Linux servers having the Apache Mod-Rewrite moduled enabled.

Redirect to www (htaccess redirect)

Create a .htaccess file with the below code, it will ensure that all requests coming in to domain.com will get redirected to www.domain.com
The .htaccess file needs to be placed in the root directory of your old website (i.e the same directory where your index file is placed)

Options +FollowSymlinks
RewriteEngine on
rewritecond %{http_host} ^domain.com [nc]
rewriterule ^(.*)$ http://www.domain.com/$1 [r=301,nc]

Please REPLACE domain.com and www.newdomain.com with your actual domain name.

Note* This .htaccess method of redirection works ONLY on Linux servers having the Apache Mod-Rewrite moduled enabled.

How to Redirect HTML

Please refer to section titled 'How to Redirect with htaccess', if your site is hosted on a Linux Server and 'IIS Redirect', if your site is hosted on a Windows Server.

Speak to an expert.

I am not expert in this area, SEO/SEM (search engine optimization / search engine marketing) are beasts in their own right, so I highly recommend contacting a consultant if you are having search engine issues. I personally recommend www.submitawebsite.com (for bigger budgets) and for companies with more modest budgets I am a big fan of www.yoursearchadvisor.com (SEO) and www.ingenexdigital.com (SEM).

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	How Much Longer Will Microsoft Be the Company Everyone Loves To Hate? Posted 9/12/2008 by PeterV, VP, Marketing

It’s like any sports rivalry; your team can do no wrong and everything the opponent does, no matter how amazing, is dumb luck or a stupid move.  I’m speaking of course about people’s opinions about Microsoft.  While the opponent was Apple for years, now it’s sort of an Apple/Google combo.  I’ve been thinking about this issue for awhile now, and reading our CEO’s comments about Microsoft’s new commercials prompted me to put pen to paper, figuratively of course.

In this rivalry, Microsoft has played the role of the Yankees in their constant struggle against Boston.  Microsoft has a much longer history, a national following, tons of “championships,” and seems to address every problem by throwing more money at it than the competition can.  As a result, they are the company everyone loves to hate.

However, just like we’ve witnessed these past few years with the Red Sox, the tide is changing.  First it was apple with the huge success of the iPod that lead to great sales (and great commercials) for the mac.  Then Google comes out of the gates in 2004 and watches their stock rise as much as 600% due to a industry leading search and now browsers and promises of other software and gadgets.  Just look at the stock comparison, and you can see that Microsoft is less of the giant everyday when the bell rings in New York:



But here’s my real question: is there a point when Microsoft is surpassed by Google or Apple as the leaders in the hatred index?  People don’t perceive Microsoft well because of the “big brother” mentality.  However I’d argue google has a much higher stranglehold on our data with each passing day.  Between gmail with serves up targeted ads based on an email’s content to the search histories they hold, they are no less of a potential threat than Microsoft.  An then there’s Apple, who is every ounce to Music what Microsoft is to software.  iTunes sets the market, just like google does in search.  If your song isn’t on iTunes or your site isn’t in Google, you’re done.  End of story. 

So even though the landscape has changed, it simply comes down to perceptions.  The stereotypical artsy apple fans, sipping their starbucks in front of their clean, white macs, getting in to their jettas with an apple sticker on the back.  Then there are the super geeks, the programmers who spend their free time engrossed in Halo, all the while touting, and worshiping, everything Microsoft does.

While I’m not a developer, I’m still a big Microsoft fan.  I know many people who work there, I respect what the company has done and how they’ve influenced our everyday life.  And I find myself falling in to these traps.  I mean, I even defended the zune!  I try to use Live.com whenever possible, but I secretly go home and google to my heart’s content.  I make fun of Jan since he only has one mouse button on his Mac, but at the same time I lust after his iphone when I’m alone at night. 

I wish we could start over with a blank slate.  I wish each company could stake out their ground and then we wouldn’t have this issue.  But alas, each wants to do what the other is doing.  Microsoft, who makes amazing software, is desperately grasping for ground in the search battle while Google feels it necessary to enter the browser war where so many have failed before them.  All the while there’s Apple, who while they didn’t start there have carved out a billion dollar niche in the music and gadget space, but that doesn’t stop them from pushing the mac forward as hard as they can. 

Even more than just the company’s marketing strategies, we as loyal customers need to put our allegiances’ aside and admit when the other company does something better.  Why should you use a search you feel is inferior or a gadget that isn’t ideal?  To keep up appearances?  Hey, the iPod still works great with your PC, and Google works just fine in Internet Explorer (though it does look a tad funny on my machine in ie8 beta, but I digress). 

So let’s call a truce.  Don’t hate everything Microsoft because it comes from Redmond.  Acknowledge that hippy in the coffee shop might actually have a job, and don’t assume Google is slowing trying to steal your identity. 

Oh, and Geoff?  Those Microsoft commercials are hilarious.  And no, you’re not supposed to get them yet.  They’re part of a bigger story that will unfold over several spots.  I saw the second last night and was cracking up.  Just be patient and wait for the payoff.  But I know that won’t happen…just look at the comments from the second ad on youtube.  These people are worse than partisan democrats and republicans!

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	Microsoft's New TV Ad Baffles Me Posted 9/11/2008 by Geoff, Pres/CEO

I have tremendous respect for Microsoft and how they operate as a business.  (It doesn't hurt that they are one of our top clients too).  But their new TV commercial really doesn't make sense to me.  Take a look:




What makes it even more disappointing to me is that I like Bill Gates and I am a huge Jerry Sienfeld fan.  I'm disappointed the combination doesn't work here.  I just think the writing is bad.  Strange, dry humor that underdelivers.

I'm not the only one who feels this way.  A blogger for Computer World wrote "It's one of the worst, most pointless ads in history", while a headline in the Sydney Morning Herald read " 'Bizarre' Microsoft ad misses mark."

Worse, I have no idea what this commercial is actually promoting.  I'm guessing Microsoft is tired of getting bashed in the funny Mac vs. PC commercials, so they wanted to have a creative commercial of their own.  Unfortunately the Mac vs. PC commercials are legitimately entertaining, while this is not.

I did read that one of the ad producers' goals was to get people talking.  I guess that worked... but maybe not in a good way.

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	More than Just Color Posted 9/11/2008 by JanS, Acct Mgr

One of the stages we go through during the planning of a Web site for our clients involves a design consultation of sorts.  A very important aspect of these consultations involve the client's desired emotional/esthetic feel for the site.  You can talk about industry and business goals till you are blue in the face, but it really comes down to how your visitor feels when they are on the site and if that compels them to do whatever it is that you want them to do on your site.  Whether that's buy something, fill out a form or simply find out more about your company.  .

I've always been impressed with how well our designers take this feedback to create the initial design.  They clearly have a good handle on how to use color and layout to convey these emotions.  That handle of course can always get better.



Cymbolism looks to take this art form a step further and attempt to quantify our association between colors, emotions and words.  On their site you are presented with a word, it's definition and a small pallet of colors.  Once you choose a color, it shows you a distribution of other users picks for that word.  Things like love and hot are heavily skewed towards Red but words like elegant, contemporary or secure have less concrete results.  Their blog also has some interesting posts about the nature of color.

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	What's New @ 352, September '08 Webisode Posted 9/11/2008 by PeterV, VP, Marketing

Another month, another episode.  There were some great sites that launched, and some interesting news in the Web world.  Take a look:

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	Saves more than just TV Shows Posted 9/3/2008 by JanS, Acct Mgr

You would think the ability to load up on TV shows to watch at your convenience would lead to couch potato marathons, many extra hours of TV watching, and disassociation from others, especially your significant other.  

Not so says NDS. 43% of users actually report improvements in their relationships since purchasing a DVR.  Upon further inspection the DVR is less demotivating than you might think.

Among many other things, if you're in the mood to watch TV you're probably going to end up surfing and watching total crap even if nothing is on.  Not so with a DVR.  You've always got content at your finger tips and can get your fix without surfing for hours.   More quality time to spend with your loved one is always good for the relationship.  Also, there is no reason to fight over which show to watch if you both have different favorites on at the same time.  Most DVR's can record one show while watching another.  You're also more likely to watch each other's shows proving unique bonding time. 

In my humble opinion the biggest reason for the DVRs relationship power is the pause button.  No need to get frustrated if you're watching something important and your significant other needs you to do a chore.... pause, take out garbage, get a beer, unpause.  Everyone's happy.  

Steve Tranter, vice president, broadband and interactive delivery, NDS Americas says,"It's one of those technologies that, once you use it, it makes you wonder how you coped before."

What do you think...  helped, hurt, no effect?

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