My server died while I was in the process of moving. I have moved all my files to a new server. Hopefully this will make my website more reliable.

When I design a logo I design it with Adobe Illustrator. Doing this allows me to re size the logo to many different sizes and I can give you a logo that you can have re sized for signs, banners, or any other large format.

Upon final approval of your logo you will receive the following logo formats:

• eps - this is a vector format that will allow you to increase the size of the logo without losing quality. This is good for anything that will be printed with your logo on it.
• jpg and gif - these files a great for the web. They load quickly and can be used for web banners, ads, emails, and websites.
• tiff - A format recognized by most programs. This format cannot be enlarged without losing quality, but is higher quality than a jpg or gif and can be used for printing.
  
• psd with layers - this format can be edited in Adobe Photoshop and is great if you ever want to change the font or colors of your logo.
• All formats in black and white, reversed type, and full color.
• favicon - This is the little icon that is next to your url in a web browser and is also included when someone bookmarks your site.

Some of these formats are ones I have just recently added. If I have done design for you in the past and you have not received one of these formats, contact me.

Labels: design, gif, graphic formats, jpg, logo, tiff

I have a new CMS to offer my clients. CMS stands for "Content Management System". It allows the owner of the website to edit the content of their own website without any special programs or html knowledge. The client will access the CMS through an Internet browser using any Internet connection. This is great if you are on a trip and need to make a change on your website. No need to contact me, hire someone else to make the change, and you don't even need to be on a certain computer. If you have an Internet connection and an Internet browser, you can change your website content. The CMS has a WYSIWYG editor format. WYSIWYG stands for "what you see is what you get". The way the page looks in the editor is the way it will look in on the web page. I have offered an editor to my clients since I started doing web design. I like empowering my clients to take charge of their own site, making them less dependant on me and giving them control of their own site. It also saves them tons of money in maintenance fees.

New features included in the new CMS are:
multiple admin access
built in login
multiple users
multiple group options, this allows you to give special access to certain groups
built in calendar calendar (can be setup to only be accessed by certain groups)
stores old copies of pages, easy to revert back to old version if a mistake is made
random fortune (can be used for client quotes, etc)
multiple templates

The old CMS can be upgraded to the CMS for those of you who already have the CMS installed. The charge for an upgrade is $75. If you would like to have a CMS installed for your site, please contact me for a quote.

Labels: cms, web design, web maintenence, web updates

Upgrading your website is very important. If you are using a web script such as Zen Cart, Coppermine Gallery, phpBB, WordPress (hosted on your server, not theirs), you will want to upgrade these often. Hackers write scripts to search the Internet looking for holes in these (and other) web scripts. When a hole is found the script written by the hacker enters into your website and can do a lot of damage.

In the past couple of months I have had to clean up several messes left by hackers. On one particular site the store was hacked. The hacker was able to enter the admin and steal credit card information from a few customers. This is VERY bad. It ruins your reputation as an online store owner. No one wants to buy from a store that is vulnerable like that. This particular website hadn't been updated since it was installed over a year ago. It is important to keep on top of upgrades.

If you are unable to upgrade your site on your own, I can maintain your website for as little as $35/month. I will keep track of which web scripts need to be updated and perform the updates as needed. If you are interested let me know.

During these tough economic times people are having a hard time finding money to put toward website upgrades and updates. If you are struggling to make ends meet, but are in need of upgrades or other website services, let me know. I am willing to barter and trade for my services. I love scrapbooking, as many of my clients do and I am willing to do work for products!

It is important to me for your site to be secure. When my clients succeed, so do I. Contact me if you need work done and we can work something out for payment. Payment plans can be worked out.

I appreciate those that I have worked with this past year and look forward to working with many others year. I am excited to make your website dreams a reality!

Labels: barter, security, trade, web design, web maintenence, web updates

I recently completed a website for Gail Weber. She is a member of ScrapBiz. The name she chose for her company is Paradise Scrapbooking. Here is the logo she chose from the samples I came up with:
I installed my new cms for her along with Zen Cart, WordPress, and Coppermine Gallery. Many people are foregoing message boards these days. There is too much maintenance involved when running a message board. Instead they opt for a blog. Blogs are a great way to stay in touch with your customers, without the maintenance and headache of a message board.

Labels: blog, coppermine gallery, logo, store, web design

My computer has been infected by a trojan horse. These things can be nasty and annoying. They steal information off your computer and send it back to the person spreading it so that they can use your information. This information can be anything you type; credit card numbers, passwords, etc.

Kind of dumb how I got it. I should have known better. After performing an update on my desktop computer that runs Windows XP, I received a Security Center Alert message stating that there was suspicious software on my computer and I needed to enable protection. So I clicked on the button and downloaded the software that was supposed to be a firewall/virus scanner. Well, it wasn't, it was a trojan. Not sure where the initial suspicious software (the Security Center Alert) came from.

Now I am backing up all my data. It's going to take awhile, I have gigs and gigs of data. Then I will be reformatting my computer to start fresh and clean. Until everything is reformatted, reinstalled, and my information is put back on my computer I will not be able to do much in the way of web design. All my files and programs are on my desktop computer. I am using my laptop right now. There will be some things I will be able to do on here and I will be setting it up tomorrow to be able to complete some work that was promised to be completed soon.

Take this as a warning not to click on links to software that is NOT from Microsoft. They are not going to be sending you to some third party to download stuff, they will want to sell it to you themselves. Or give it to you because you use their software.

Labels: trojan horse, virus

Kim, the owner of the scrapbook retailers group ScrapBiz, contacted me a few months ago. She was ready for a new look. I have been a member of this group since 2003. I have been maintaining the ScrapBiz website since 2005. Kim found a template she really liked. I made changes to the template and added Kim's content to it. The website looks great, has more information than ever, and is easy to navigate.

One of the additions that was made to the website is the option to open a PhotoBookBiz. Kim has partnered with RocketLife to bring this great opportunity. To read more about starting a PhotoBookBiz visit ScrapBiz.

Labels: kim guymon, scrapbiz, web design