Counter and RSS Feeds

Counter

It is a tool used for counting visits to a web page. Certain settings can be refined to unique visits, that is vists not from the same IP address. A counter can give status to your popularity to a user visiting your web page and also indicates to you whether any promotion to visiting your site is working on the www. Other web analysis tools include: 

- Clicktale

- Microsoft Gatineau

RSS

It stands for Really Simple Syndication. It is a web feed which can be published in different formats and used for fast, frequent updating of content. The content could be updates from webpages, blogs, news headlines or podcasts.

Google Reader

The reader is a web based aggregator which reads rss feeds offline and online. It allows you to share with your contacts and other groups of your feeds, specific articles from the feeds and favourite them. Basically an organsier specifically for feeds.

Technorati

Technorati boasts it is the "leading monitor of the world of weblogs", maybe to scare its competitors google and yahoo. It is a real-time search engine of blogs with a category directory to further refine your search to your interests. Technorati also has features such as photo, video sharing and searching. What makes it stand out a little bit more is its ranking of blogs. But then again, this isn't anywhere new. Digg are much more renown for its ranking of sites and blogs. 

In comparison to google:- does this mean google and all its features? igoogle? or google's blog search or the fact google own's youtube and blogspot? I'm guessing its google's search feature for blogs. If so, google's advanced search is very good when you're looking specifically for something. You can search for keywords in the blog, title, url, author and also give a posting date range to search between. Technorati is just a procrastination. You can't even sort your search results by its favourites or ranking. So what is the point of having it?! Granted, google does have rankings. But if you feel that by popularity always means a good blog, then go to digg.com

My Rank at the moment: 10,280,644

Authority: None

What's it mean?

Technorati Authority is the number of blogs linking to a website in the last six months. My ranking is the difference between where I am on a ladder of blogs from the number one position.

FTP

FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. Like http with loading web pages, FTP uses TCP/IP protocols to transfer data securely. FTP is usually used to download or upload files from/to a server. Some examples include game servers, voice servers and internet hosts.

The advantages of FTP are:

• The fact you share files between computers and programs
• Allow a more flexible way to store files. Say that you live in Australia, but want to store your files on a sever in America
• Also there's a certain reliability and efficiency with FTP which will only get better with more secure and faster methods in sending/receiving data.

FTP Criticisms

• Personal information such as passwords and file contents are sent in clear text. Meaning there's no encryption or security for sensitive information typed in by user. This allows hackers to easily retrive this information.
• It is difficult to filter traffic on FTP connections, even with a firewall.
• There's no error message to the receiver side of a transfer, if for example a transfer was interrupted.
• Also there is no timestamp on uploaded files.  

Templates

I picked a tictac blue template because of its simple layout. I've changed the banner graphic to one of my choosing. I've tried to change the template header, but found that the fading gray surrounging the blue 'tictac' graphic is the one image. Replacing it with anything else would lose itssmooth, integrated appearence. This is as opposed to it being 'blocky' or sticking out. I've searched for suitable texture that wouls add a unique feel to my blog. I've used ox skin as the background for topic headings. I've played around with fonts and its colour. I chose yellow for topic headings because it sticks out from the black texture. The backgroung is a tiled image which creates a pattern, adding a visual dynamic which distracts you from the dull gray in the body fields.

CSS

The great feature of style sheets is that it applies to the whole layout of the website, saving heaps of time for hardcoding. Layout, formatting and graphics are all defined in the style sheet. Easily accessible and usually fexible, css allows for quick updating or customisation of the site.

Other sites which collect bookmarks

www.connotea.org
www.furl.net/
www.netvouz.com/

My Accounts

Flickr
Del.icio.us

del.icio.us

Del.icio.us I believe dose not beat a search engine. I understand that it seeks tags in accordance with what you are searching for to list recommended websites, but it usually doesn't get what your looking for. Say a photoshop tutorial which includes video tutorials or something specific like a good recipe for lunch. It doesn't lookup what you'd want. Its only good for procrastination on the net. In other words, a waste of time.