Casual Games Are The Rage

A good article on how Microsoft is now jumping in on the "casual gaming" phenomenon. If you'll pardon the self-promotion, over on the right side is an ad for BigFish Games. Here is a great opportunity for you to jump on this bandwagon, if you will. Joe, over at Building Your MLM, Network Marketing Business, hooked me up with this he has enjoyed some success with it. This is my first active promotion of this product, but I plan to do more. If your a casual gamer, or know someone who is, head on over there or forward them this post. Have some fun and enjoy!

Game Stooge » Casual Games Are The Rage

BigFish Games

A little morning humor for all the parents out there...

My sister sent this to me. Blogger was down last night so I didn't get to edit it before this morning, but anyways, here it is for you parents...

For the parents...

My son came home from school one day,

with a smirk upon his face.

He decided he was smart enough,

to put me in my place.

"Guess what I learned in Civics Two,

that's taught by Mr. Wright?

It's all about the laws today,

The 'Children's Bill of Rights.'

It says I need not clean my room,

don't have to cut my hair

No one can tell me what to think,

or speak, or what to wear.

I have freedom from religion,

and regardless what you say,

I don't have to bow my head,

and I sure don't have to pray.

I can wear earrings if I want,

and pierce my tongue and nose.

I can read and watch just what I like,

get tattoos from head to toes.

And if you ever spank me,

I'll

charge you with a crime.

I'll back up all my charges,

with the marks on my behind.

Don't you ever touch me,

my body's only for my use,

not for your hugs and kisses,

that's just more child abuse.

Don't preach about your morals,

like your Mama did to you.

That's nothing more than mind control,

And it's illegal too!

Mom, I have these children's rights,

so you can't influence me,

or I'll call Children's Services Division,

better known as CSD."

Of course my first instinct was

to toss him out the door.

But the chance to teach him a lesson

made me think a little more.

I mulled it over carefully,

I couldn't let this go.

A smile crept upon my face,

he's messing with a pro.

Next day I took him shopping

at the local Goodwill Store.

I told him, "Pick out all you want,

there's shirts and pants

galore.

I've called and checked with CSD

who said they didn't care

if I bought you K-Mart shoes

instead of the Nike Air.

I've cancelled that appointment

to take your driver's test.

The CSD is unconcerned

so I'll decide what's best."

I said "No time to stop and eat,

or pick up stuff to munch.

And tomorrow you can start to learn

to make your own sack lunch.

Just save the raging appetite,

and wait till dinner time.

We're having liver and onions,

a favorite dish of mine."

I also rented out your room,

you'll take the couch instead.

The CSD only requires

a roof over your head.

Your clothing won't be trendy now,

I'll choose what we eat.

That allowance that you used to get,

will buy me something neat.

I'm selling off your jet ski,

dirt-bike and roller blades.

Check out the 'Parents Bill

of Rights',

It's in effect these days!

Hey hot shot, why are you crying,

Why are you down on your knee?

Maybe you should ask God to help you out,

instead of CSD..."

Send to all people that have teenagers or have already raised teenagers, or

have children who will soon be teenagers or those who will be parents

someday OR ANYONE WHO'D JUST GET A LAUGH ...I love this one!!!

MOM (Mean Old Mother)

Blues, Gunners provide classic Cup Final

A very good match indeed, as Chelsea prevails 2-1.

FOX Sports - England - Blues, Gunners provide classic Cup Final

Windy Saturday...

Woah... last Saturday we had the windstorm from hell here in North Texas. The winds were so strong that the sky was red from all the sand that was picked up in West Texas. There were power outages, trees uprooted and many roofs were damaged. We had the privilege of driving to my daughter's soccer match, in Plano, TX. just to have them cancel the game as we got there. True, it was much worse at 3:00 p.m., game time was 4:00 p.m., but by 5:00 p.m. the skies were clear. It was still windy, but not as bad. It was surreal.

Really reminded me of my youth... pt0ooie, excuse me as I spit sand out of my mouth... I remember having to ride my bike to basketball (yes, we played Little Dribbler's basketball... seriously) practice one Saturday morning. By the time we were done with practice, the wind had kicked up and the sand was everywhere. Now, remember we had just finished practice, so I was sorta sweaty... The bike ride home was almost directly south, except for a couple of turns, so by the time I got home, my whole RIGHT SIDE was caked in sand... Another time, my friend Larry had to go to Lubbock for some reason, and by the return trip, one of these sandstorms had kicked up and literally SANDBLASTED his car. Seriously, the whole right side of his car was flecked with small indentations in the finish that had been blasted away by the sand. He had to have the car re-painted.

I don't have any pictures from this past weekend... not sure why, as that was really dumb now that I think about it, but here's a picture my sister sent me from a storm rolling in near Brownfield, TX.













And here's one I DID take in Lubbock, TX last summer as a sandstorm preceded a thunderstorm as it rolled in from the west. This was the weekend of the Great Class of '81 Pre-Reunion... well that's what I call it, as we ended up having another reunion during the Homecoming football game later last fall. I missed that one...

Coca-Cola redesigns cans

A new Coke can design was introduced in Japan in January. This preceded the world-wide introduction due in March. Used to drink LOTS of Coke, but it makes you fat... or in my case, fatter :|

Japan Today - News - Coca-Cola redesigns cans:
Coca-Cola redesigns cans

Tuesday, January 23, 2007 at 09:25 EST

[The newly designed Coca-Cola can, right, will go on sale in Japan on Jan 29, ahead of its worldwide release in March.]


The newly designed Coca-Cola can, right, will go on sale in Japan


TOKYO — Coca-Cola Japan Co has redesigned its cans and bottles as part of its 'The Coke Side of Life' marketing campaign. The beverage maker said Monday that the new look can will hit the Japanese market on Jan 29 before its introduction to the world market in March. 'We live in a world where we make choices every day and 'The Coke Side of Life' encourages people to make those choices positive ones,' said Marc Mathieu, senior vice president for carbonated soft drink core brands, marketing, srategy and innovation. 'This new campaign invites people to create their own positive reality, to be spontaneous, listen to their hearts and live in full color.'"

Vista WGA problems confirmed

Be careful with your install of Vista. There are definitely some gremlins with the the Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) so be aware of the possibility of having to reactivate your installation of Vista. It's a pain and the articles bring up some good points about the way Microsoft is handling these types of "security" related issues. Seems a bit over the top, at times. The Apple commercial is spot-on, albeit annoying...

» Vista WGA problems confirmed | Ed Bott’s Microsoft Report | ZDNet.com

Problems arise with Vista’s validation

It's Monday...

we have an Active Directory (AD) problem at work and there's not much to report on... but I'll get something interesting posted... maybe...

Oh, the Academy Awards were pretty much to form, except for the mild upset in the "Best Supporting Actor" category. I really thought Eddie Murphy would win that, but Alan Arkin was a good choice. Both movies are really good!

A few quick hits today

Academy Awards Tonight
If your family does a little Oscar pick contest, here's a convenient ballot to print out. We have done this for a few years now and we have a lot of fun with it. Sometimes we have prizes, sometimes it's just for fun...

Printable Oscar Ballot

Two New Commitments

The Horns got two commitments from a couple of Southlake Carroll kids. And UT cruised to a hard-fought win over the Sooners.

The two commitments are from Southlake Carroll, a current dynasty in Texas High School football and a "mythical" National Champion has won four 5A state titles and is 79-1 in the last five seasons. It's a winning program, and Coach Mack Brown loves winners.

and, finally...

UT Runs Away from OU

The victory over the Sooners was a tough one for the Horns and the loss really hurts the Sooners chances at making the NCAA Tournament, however, Capel has done a really good job under the cricumstances, like losing a lot of their top recruits, including one to UT.

Grapevine baseball player dies | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Latest News

I grieve for this young man tonight... Please keep his family in your prayers.

Grapevine baseball player dies | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Latest News

A Little Soccer (Football to the rest of the world) for Your Weekend?

We will definitely be looking to catch this match on Sunday, or whenever Fox Soccer Channel gets around to televising it... Chelsea and my daughter's club, the DFW Tornados, have a relationship/partnership where they send their coaches over here to do Player Development Camps. She really enjoys the camps and the coaches, so naturally our favorite EPL club is Chelsea. Her favorite player is Michael Essien, a bull of a mid-fielder, which is her position. Her other favorite player is also a Ghanian, Richard Kingston, goalkeeper, who plays for a club in Turkey.

The First Post : This weekend's big matches in England:

"CHELSEA v ARSENAL
SUNDAY, 3PM SKY SPORTS 1

So much for the top clubs not taking the lesser cup competition seriously! The League Cup has seen off a succession of sponsors in its 46-year history, but continues to attract heavyweight finalists in its beer-backed current incarnation.

Quadruple-chasing Chelsea won it for the third time just two years ago - Mourinho's first trophy in England. Ivorians Drogba and Kalou could lead the Blues line, while Toure and Eboue form the Gunners rearguard. Wenger has promised to stick with his young squad and the Brazilian beast Baptista (above), whose six brutal goals in two rounds got them to the final. After mealy- mouthed midweek musings from both managers, expect anything but a casual Cardiff encounter."

Is Bill's Skirt Chasin' Ways Hurting Hillary's Presidential Chances?

This is interesting, if short, article on Bill Clinton's "friendship" with Canadian, Belinda Stronach, who is described in the article as

" ...a true catch. She is single, youngish (she just turned 40), attractive, wealthy, impeccably well-connected and politically ambitious - glamorous in every respect."

What more could a man ask for? Except that he is married to the front-running (as of now?) Democratic Presidential candidate. Bill, Bill, Bill... what are we gonna do with you? (I can just hear her staff uttering this as the walk away, shaking their heads...)

The First Post : Bill and Belinda’s excellent adventure

This is one of my wife's favorite recent skits on Saturday Night Live... Enjoy!

Google Premium: Don't get too excited | News.blog | CNET News.com

Google has announced their business-class versions of all of their web apps, Google Premium. Looks like a good start, but there are still holes or missing functionality. Personally, I only use Microsoft applications at work. For collaborative documents, I use the personal editions of Googles web apps. At home, most of our PCs have OpenOffice.Org loaded up on them, except for "The Wife's" PC, which must have MS Office for work compatibility... or something...

Google Premium: Don't get too excited | News.blog | CNET News.com: "Google Premium: Don't get too excited"

DailyTech - Canon Announces Five New Consumer Cameras

A couple of Canon announcements with your morning coffee, or whatever it is you might be imbibing at this time... First up are five new consumer level cameras ->

DailyTech - Canon Announces Five New Consumer Cameras

And the biggest news is a new professional-level camera, the 1D Mark III, here ->

Canon Launches Fastest D-SLR in the World




Anyone want to contribute to the "Roy Wants One Fund"?

Some link love and the Z-List meme

By way of Kumiko and Dosh Dosh, I'm going to try this Z-List meme. If you recall, Kumiko is the AGLOCO dissenter I wrote about a few days ago, but she has a lot good posts on her blog about her quest to make money on the internet. So here's the deal about the Z-list meme:

How can I participate in the Z List Meme?

Finally, the exact steps you need to follow in order to join the meme.

1. Create a new post on your blog.
2. Copy and Paste the entire list of blog links below
3. Add any blogs that you want to include near the top of the list. (This isn’t compulsory, so you can either add as many blogs as you want or none at all.)
4. Include the blog where you first got the list from, on the list in your post.
5. Do not include your own blog links on the list in your post.
6. Make sure that all links point to each blog’s homepage.
7. Publish the Post.

Do note that you can join the Z List meme even if your blog isn’t listed below. Just copy and paste any or both of the lists below, add Dosh Dosh and any other blogs you want to share on the list and publish it as a post in your blog.

Here's my list:

Just a Girl in short shorts talking about whatever
Hotel @nyware
The Thinking Blog
Snippy
Heather Kovar's blog
Build your MLM!

Here's the combined list from Komiko/Dosh Dosh

Dosh Dosh
Connected Internet
Blog-Op
Can I Make Big Money Online
Blogtrepreneur
Time to Budget
Blogging to Fame
Million Dollar Experiment heads Down Under
Kumiko’s Cash Quest
Calico Monkey
Internet Bazaar

Shotgun Marketing Blog
BrandSizzle
bizsolutionsplus
Customers Rock!
Being Peter Kim
Pow! Right Between The Eyes!
Billions With Zero Knowledge
Working at Home on the Internet
MapleLeaf 2.0
Two Hat Marketing
darrenbarefoot.com
The Emerging Brand
The Branding Blog
CrapHammer
Drew’s Marketing Minute
Golden Practices
Viaspire
Tell Ten Friends
Flooring the Consumer
Kinetic Ideas
Unconventional Thinking
Buzzoodle
NewsPaperGrl
The Copywriting Maven
Hee-Haw Marketing
Scott Burkett’s Pothole on the Infobahn
Multi-Cult Classics
Logic + Emotion
Branding & Marketing
Popcorn n Roses
On Influence & Automation
Bullshitobserver
Servant of Chaos
converstations
eSoup
Presentation Zen
Dmitry Linkov
aialone
John Wagner
Nick Rice
CKs Blog
Design Sojourn
Frozen Puck
The Sartorialist
Small Surfaces
Africa Unchained
Perspective
gDiapers
Marketing Nirvana
Bob Sutton
¡Hola! Oi! Hi!
Shut Up and Drink the Kool-Aid!
Women, Art, Life: Weaving It All Together
Community Guy
Social Media on the fly

UT routs Tech!

Great game for the Horns! My best friend is a huge Tech fan, so I know he's not happy this morning. Overall, it was a HUGE team win, since Kevin Durant didn't go off with a 40/20 night (eh, I exaggerate but not by much). It looks like Justin Mason and Damion James are the keys to this team being a serious contender when March Madness rolls around. Go Horns!

Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | SportsDay: Top Stories

Another Great Article from John Chow dot Com

John Chow writes on some of the strategies to increase links to your site. Very interesting article with great strategies.

Six Top Linking Strategies « John Chow dot Com

More offseason Cowboy news

The Cowboys have reached an agreement with starting center, Andre Gurode, that will make him a Cowboy through 2012.

Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | SportsDay: Top Stories

Dell's Ideastorm - A new way to get customer feedback

Dell is hard at work trying to win back old customers and gain new ones. They recently opened up the DellIdeaStorm web site, a customer feedback site. I've never had a problem with Dell's products or customer support, but many people have. Michael Dell has recently taken back the CEO title he had relinquished a couple of years back. This is one of the first signs of the new leadership and direction for this company.

Dell Idea Storm

Virtual PC 2007 made available

CNET reports that Virtual PC 2007 is being made available today from Microsoft. It is optimized for Vista and is part of several tools being made available to east Vista migration.

Virtual PC 2007 made available | CNET News.com

Here's another article about Vista annoyances from PC World:

Most Annoying Things About Vista

President's Day...

First time I've sat down at the keyboard today, so not much to write about. President's Day blahs, I suppose; I had get out to run some errands and it's a fairly nice day, just a bit windy.

Saturday was fairly eventful; I had to coach my daughter's soccer team (umm, they need to update this page) due to unforeseen circumstances. And no thanks to my coaching, we won. The girls played well on a COLD and WINDY morning. So far 2-0 for this Spring season with two shut-outs. Well played, girls!

Here's something to get you going. Texas politics is changing because of Barack Obama's candidacy for president. It's an interesting article. Can't say right now I'll support Mr. Obama for president, but he certainly made me a fan when he spoke at the 2004 Democratic convention. I'm not even sure why I was watching, but I'm glad I was. This will be an interesting election.

Here's another little tidbit: XM and Sirius to merge... Since I installed my iPod in my truck, I have had no need for the XM subscription, so I canceled it. I enjoyed it, but still it didn't make sense to continue to pay for that service. So now the two services will merge to create only one. Don't know if that's good or bad... generally competition is good for business, but in this case it seems it hindered both. We will see...

AGLOCO: Point of Dissension...

I am a member of AGLOCO; I have a link over to the right under the "My Links" section. This article from Komiko Suzuki presents a different perspective from those of John Chow and others. She has definitely made some waves... Personally, I don't know what the future holds for AGLOCO; I have "lost" some time, if you want to get technical, but in the big scheme of life it was very little. Nothing ventured; nothing gained...

Make Money Online at Kumiko's Cash Quest: AGLOCO Will Not Make Money Online! Ever!


Publish

Digital Photography School: How to Use Converging Lines to Enhance Your Photography

Interesting article with some tips on utilizing converging lines. I must admit, I like to take pictures but I'm no photographer. I should invest in some courses...

How to Use Converging Lines to Enhance Your Photography

The Man Who Said No to Wal-Mart

I recall reading this last year and thought it was a really interesting article, so I thought I would share it with you. It must really difficult to say no to Wal-Mart...

The Man Who Said No to Wal-Mart

A little UT basketball news to start the day

I haven't written much about the Longhorns basketball team, but this years team is quite exciting and dynamic. The college game is a different beast now that the new NBA draft rules has created a scenario where the BEST players have to attend college for at least 1-2 years. In the past these players would have gone directly to the pros, ala Lebron James. This year the two best players from high school are Greg Oden, Ohio St., and Kevin Durant, already considered by some, the best basketball player ever to play at UT. This story deals with speculation that young Mr. Durant will only play one year at UT before jumping to the NBA. Personally, I wouldn't blame him for doing just that, but if he wants to stay in school one more year to try to win a national title, then I'm all for that, too! Good luck, Kevin on whatever decision you make. Your stay at UT has been a fun ride, no matter if it's one year or two!

From the Dallas Morning News:

Will Durant go pro? Don't go there

02:46 AM CST on Thursday, February 15, 2007

By CHIP BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
chipbrown@dallasnews.com

AUSTIN – The father of Texas freshman Kevin Durant said Wednesday it's not a slam dunk that Durant will turn pro after this season.

"There's a chance he would come back to Texas next year," said Durant's father, Wayne Pratt. "Kevin is so young. There's not a rush for him to go to the NBA. Right now, we're not even talking about that. We're talking about winning the Big 12, and Kevin continuing to progress academically."

Durant, the Big 12's leading scorer (24.9 ppg) and rebounder (11.4 rpg), is tired of questions about whether he'll jump to the NBA after this season. He doesn't answer them anymore because he says it draws attention away from his teammates.

"Right now, I'm trying to win games at Texas," Durant said. "That's all I'm thinking about."

Pratt, a police officer at the Library of Congress in Washington D.C., said just because Kevin could be the first or second pick in this year's draft doesn't mean he'll turn pro.

"There's certain things that Kevin has to show and do before that decision is made, and we still have some things we need to see," Pratt said.

When asked about the goals Kevin needs to reach, Pratt is quick to point out that Kevin only turned 18 in September.

"It's a total thing – mentally, physically, all those things have to be intact before a decision can be made," Pratt said. "My wife and I have pretty good jobs. There's no rush for him to go to the NBA."

Kevin's mother, Wanda Pratt, is a manager for the U.S. Postal Service.

Durant made a 3.0 grade point average in the fall semester and has said he wants to improve on that this semester. He has told Texas officials will attend classes the entire spring semester, which concludes with finals in mid-May. The deadline for underclassmen to enter the NBA Draft is April 29.

AP

Kevin Durant's concern right now is lending a hand to coach Rick Barnes and Texas.

"Kevin is enjoying college life," Pratt said. "He's grown from a young boy to a young man, and he's doing well academically, which is most important to me and my wife."

Texas coach Rick Barnes said he's tired of reporters and TV commentators making assumptions about Durant jumping to the NBA. Barnes was even upset with Texas students who began chanting, "One More Year!" to Durant during Monday's victory against Oklahoma State.

"Kevin doesn't want it to be about him," Barnes said. "He thinks all that stuff takes away from the team. And all Kevin cares about are his teammates."

Barnes, whose Longhorns play at Baylor on Saturday, said Kevin's parents have been consistent in their message to him about Kevin's future.

"Kevin and his parents are smart, intelligent people, who are going to make their own decision," Barnes said. "They are not going to let other people make this decision for them."

Pratt said Kevin desperately wants to win a national title at Texas.

"Kevin's got to light that Tower up," Pratt said. "That's what we came there to do to help with getting that done. Coach Barnes laid the foundation and we just want to be a part of that. I'm looking forward to Texas being on top of the basketball world. If they play like they did Monday, I think they can get it done this season."

Cowboys Hire Two New Assistant Coaches

They have a few more positions to fill, but at least the staff is rounding out. I am not TOO excited about the Wade Phillips hire, but he has had some success. But it's very important to have a good staff and at least there's some experience with these two hires. Jason Garrett will be the offensive coordinator, a position he has never held. Last years play caller, Tony Sparano, is basically getting a demotion, even though the offense averaged almost 30 points a game. Mr. Sparano is a good coach, not to mention that both his son's played at Grapevine High, with my oldest son. He deserves better, imho...

Here's the story from the Dallas Morning News:

•Shop/Buy

•Services/Notices

•Dating Center

•Browse Classifieds

•Ticket Center

•Sell a Home

•Sell a Car

•Sell Stuff

•Post a Job

Cowboys add two coaches

07:50 PM CST on Wednesday, February 14, 2007

By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News
cwatkins@dallasnews.com

The Cowboys named Ray Sherman wide receivers coach and John Garrett tight ends coach Wednesday.

Sherman, who's spent 33 years as a coach, spent the last two with the Tennessee Titans as their receivers coach.

Ray Sherman

Before that, he spent five seasons in Green Bay as wide receivers coach. Sherman, who has worked for seven NFL teams, was an offensive coordinator for Minnesota (1999) and Pittsburgh (1998).

John Garrett, the brother of Jason Garrett, was an assistant coach at Virginia the last three years. This past season, John Garrett was the assistant head coach for the offense.

New Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said he's trying to hire all of his assistant coaches by the end of the week.

Phillips needs to hire a running backs coach and possibly a quarterbacks coach. Jason Garrett, according to sources, will become the offensive coordinator. He might also add quarterbacks to his job duties.

On the defensive side, Dallas needs a special teams coach and possibly a secondary coach. Todd Bowles, the current secondary coach, could be elevated to defensive coordinator.

Update: Cowboys hire another coach, from The Dallas Morning News

Peete hired as running backs coach

05:20 PM CST on Thursday, February 15, 2007

By TODD ARCHER / The Dallas Morning News
tarcher@dallasnews.com

Skip Peete

Wade Phillips added another assistant to his staff Thursday when Skip Peete agreed to be the Cowboys' running backs coach.

Peete, who would have been a candidate for the job had Norv Turner been named head coach, had been Oakland's running backs coach since 1998. His brother, Rodney, played for the Cowboys in 1994.

Peete, 43, will take over for Anthony Lynn, who joined Cleveland after his contract expired.

Yahoo! Answers: Your answer has been chosen as the best answer

I've answered ONE question on Yahoo! Answers... ONE frickin' question... I guess I better get busy and answer more!

Take me to Yahoo! Answers. I want to answer more questions!

	Hey, royboy81, look what you got! Congratulations, you've got a best answer and 10 extra points! Your answer to the following question really hit the spot and has been chosen as the best answer: HELP! hard drive suddenly not formatted. PLEASE HELP!? Go ahead, do your victory dance. Celebrate a little. Brag a little. Then come back and answer a few more questions! Thanks for sharing what you know and making someone's day. The Yahoo! Answers Team
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Seven Secrets for Improving Your Alexa Rating

Interesting article... I'm not sure if getting my Alexa rating up really matters. Some speculate that it only really matter to the top-tier sites, but I really don't know myself. I will have to look into this, but I will also get started on some of these and see if the improvements happen over time. In the meantime, read and decide for yourself if these are worth your time...

7 Proven Strategies for Improving Your Alexa Ranking

By Michael Fleischner | Marketing Expert | Internet Marketing Secrets*

After spending two years building my own website, I was very disappointed that my Alexa ranking was still higher than one million. Alexa ranks each website based on the number of visitors it receives. The top ranked website, Yahoo! has an Alexa rating of 1 or 2. Less popular sites could be ranked up to 5,000,000.

In order to improve my Alexa rating, I spent about three weeks combing the web to find tips, secrets, and proven strategies for increasing my Alexa ranking. Unfortunately, many of the sites offering advice didn’t even have a high ranking themselves. Finally I discovered a number of sites ranked within the top 100,000 that were all applying the same “Alexa techniques” to improve their ranking. I’ve begun implementing a number of these techniques and have improved my Alexa ranking by 250,000 spots in just one week.

Here’s what you need to know. The basis for many of these techniques is the fact that your Alexa ranking is based reach and page views. However it only counts those who visit your site and have already downloaded the Alexa toolbar. Anyone can download the toolbar for free which is automatically added to your browser and tracks the sites you’re visiting. Increasing visits from those who do not have the Alexa toolbar installed will not help your Alexa ranking.

I’ve summarized the 7 strategies that I’ve discovered and applied to my own website to increase my Alexa ranking. Apply these strategies to your own website and see your ranking climb towards the top.

1. Download the Alexa toolbar and use it every day to visit your own website. Alexa even gives you the ability to co-brand the toolbar with your own logo and give it away. You can download the toolbar here: http://pages.alexa.com/prod_serv/associatetoolbar.html

2. Use Alexa redirection whenever you can. No matter when or where you provide a link to your website, be sure to use the equivalent Alexa redirect URL. For example, when providing a link to my website, I use http://redirect.alexa.com/redirect?marketingscoop.com. If you copy this URL into your browser, it will take you to MarketingScoop.com. To use this technique, simply replace the name of my website (marketingscoop) with yours.

3. Encourage your website visitors to add their positive testimonials on Alexa’s detailed listings page for your website. This can be done by placing a link to the appropriate Alexa page on your website and asking visitors to “Click here to rate this website”. You can find your detailed Alexa page here: http://www.alexa.com/data/details/?url=marketingscoop.com. Again, just replace the name of my website (marketingscoop) with yours. By clicking on the URL, visitors will be able to reach your detailed rating page and write a review using the review link located on the left hand side of the page.

4. Write your own site reviews on the top 100 rated Alexa sites and include your redirect URL. The top 500 domains, according to Alexa can be found at http://www.alexa.com/site/ds/top_500 When you write a review, be sure to use the redirection URL we discussed in number 2 above specifically for your website [http://redirect.alexa.com/redirect?marketingscoop.com].

5. Download the Alexa ranking button, traffic history graph, info links, and other traffic counters onto the page of your website that receives the most traffic. For example, at the bottom of my home page http://www.marketingscoop.com, I’ve added the Alexa ranking box. You can do the same for your own site by visiting http://www.alexa.com/site/site_stats/signup You’ll notice that I haven’t added the traffic history graph. This is because it wouldn’t look appropriate on my home page and because Alexa is only providing detailed history on the top 100,000 sites. So if you’re not in the top 100,000, site stats would not be available.

6. Take an inexpensive advertisement out on the ExactSeek search directory for only a few dollars per month at ExactSeek.com Search engine results are directly correlated with Alexa rankings. You’ll notice that if a website is highly ranked on ExactSeek, chances are that it will be highly ranked on Alexa.

7. Get listed on as many search engines as possible by placing a free listing in DMOZ. This is the largest human edited directory on the web and is co-branded among hundreds of thousands of sites. Be patient though, it often takes up to 5 months before you see your website listed after submission. Even though it takes longer than it should, you have little say in the matter because it’s so widely used across the Internet.

These simple Alexa strategies are easy to implement and will make a huge difference in your Alexa ranking. Ultimately you want visitors to do more than visit your home page, you want them to interact with your site. Be sure to optimize your home page for SEO purposes, ease of use, and interaction. Creating a positive user experience will get visitors to return again and again.

*Michael Fleischner is a marketing expert and the president of MarketingScoop.com. Visit today for free marketing information and marketing blog directory. Michael has more than 12 years of marketing experience and had appeared on The TODAY Show, Bloomberg Radio, and other major media. Visit his marketing blog for further details.

2000 Bloggers lives on

Wow, lots of stuff today...

On the subject of the 2000 Bloggers social experiment, I can't put it much better than this from TwoKnives...

Two Knives » Blog Archive » Lessons learned from blogging about blogging

Who is the Servant-Leader?

The servant as leader is powerful concept that many organizations are embracing. The CIO at my company is a proponent of this methodology and I have been doing some research into the concepts and practices of this approach to leadership.

Who is the Servant-Leader?
The servant-leader is servant first. It begins
with the natural feeling that one wants to
serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings
one to aspire to lead. The difference manifests
itself in the care taken by the servant-first to make
sure that other people’s highest priority needs
are being served. The best test, and difficult to
administer, is: Do those served grow as persons;
do they, while being served, become healthier,
wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely them-
selves to become servants? And, what is the effect
on the least privileged in society; will they benefit,
or at least, not be further deprived?”
— from The Servant as Leader
by Robert K. Greenleaf

Also, just saw this announcement:

Mark your calendars

• June 28, 2007, The 12th Leadership Institute For Education (LIFE) in Dallas, Texas
• June 28 - 30, 2007, Servant-Leadership in a Flat World, the 17th international conference of the Greenleaf Center , at the Adam's Mark Hotel in downtown Dallas. Download the brochure now. Confirmed featured speakers:
  Dr. Stephen R. Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People
  Colleen Barrett, President of Southwest Airlines and named one of the world's 100 Most Powerful Women: by Forbes.com
  Juana Bordas, founder of the National Hispana Leadership Institute, author, and principal of Mestiza Leadership International

Character Counts

What Will Matter?

Ready or not,
Someday it will all come to an end

There will be no more sunrises
No minutes, hours or days

All the things you collected
Whether treasured or forgotten
Will pass to someone else

Your Wealth, Fame or Power
Will shrivel to irrelevance

It will not matter what you owned
Or what you were owed

Your grudges resentments, frustrations
And jealous will finally disappear

So too your hopes ambitions plans,
Your "To-do List" will expire

The wins and losses
That once seemed so important
Will fade away

It won't matter where you come from
Or on what side of tracks you lived,

At the end
It won't matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant.
Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant

So what will matter?
How will the value of your days measured?

What will matter is not that you bought,
but what you built

Not what you got
but what you GAVE

What will matter is not your success
But your significance

What will matter is not what you learned
but what you taught

What will matter is every act of integrity, Compassion, courage or sacrifice that enriched Empowered or encouraged others
To emulate your example

What will matter is not your competence
But your Character

Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident
It's not a matter of circumstance but of choice
Choose to live a life that Matters

~ The author is Michael Josephson whose web site is "Character Counts"

Welcome home, soldier!

One man's efforts to ensure that every soldier that passes through DFW Airport is given a proper welcome home! Korea and Vietnam vets were given the short end of the stick when they came home, but many are making sure that that never happens again.

Questions Couples Should Ask (Or Wish They Had) Before Marrying - New York Times

Interesting article... can't say we really asked each other ANY of these questions when we got married... 24 years ago! Don't know if any of the answers would have made a difference, but I will say that the answers then would hardly matter NOW. Things change and what might have been important when I was 20 are not as important as they are now. Still, some of the answers would have definitely helped get past some of the bad times...

Relationship experts report that too many couples fail to ask each other critical questions before marrying. Here are a few key ones that couples should consider asking:

1) Have we discussed whether or not to have children, and if the answer is yes, who is going to be the primary care giver?

2) Do we have a clear idea of each other’s financial obligations and goals, and do our ideas about spending and saving mesh?

3) Have we discussed our expectations for how the household will be maintained, and are we in agreement on who will manage the chores?

4) Have we fully disclosed our health histories, both physical and mental?

5) Is my partner affectionate to the degree that I expect?

6) Can we comfortably and openly discuss our sexual needs, preferences and fears?

7) Will there be a television in the bedroom?

8) Do we truly listen to each other and fairly consider one another’s ideas and complaints?

9) Have we reached a clear understanding of each other’s spiritual beliefs and needs, and have we discussed when and how our children will be exposed to religious/moral education?

10) Do we like and respect each other’s friends?

11) Do we value and respect each other’s parents, and is either of us concerned about whether the parents will interfere with the relationship?

12) What does my family do that annoys you?

13) Are there some things that you and I are NOT prepared to give up in the marriage?

14) If one of us were to be offered a career opportunity in a location far from the other’s family, are we prepared to move?

15) Does each of us feel fully confident in the other’s commitment to the marriage and believe that the bond can survive whatever challenges we may face?

Questions Couples Should Ask (Or Wish They Had) Before Marrying - New York Times

Ink is barely dry on the '07 signings...

And the Longhorns are already lining up the prospects for '08. This was the first of two Junior Days this month. Don't know much about the other prospects here, but Buckner is generally considered a national top recruit. Here is the list and the link follows:

WR Dan Buckner (6-4, 211), Allen High
OL Mark Buchanan (6-6, 270) Austin High
Athlete Brock Fitzhenry (5-9, 172) Giddings
CB D.J. Monroe (5-9, 157) Angleton
K/P Justin Tucker (6-1, 173) Austin Westlake
OL David Snow (6-4, 307) Gilmer

Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | SportsDay: Colleges: Texas

Update: Actually the list is up to nine.

RB Ryan Roberson, Brenham
DB D.J. Monroe, Angleton
RB Jeremy Hills, Alief Elsik

Update #2: And now the list is up to 10...

LB Emmanuel Acho, Dallas St. Marks

Making Money with PPP???

In case you haven't noticed, I am an affiliate of PayPerPost.com. I have also completed and posted a couple of reviews for the service. So far, I have made $5.50. Will I get rich doing this? Nah, but it's interesting to look into a service like this and see what's available.

It is really quite easy to get started. Just sign up and submit your blog. If it meets their criteria you get an approval email and you are ready to look at “Opportunities” that match your interests and your blog’s subject matter. I haven’t really found too many opportunities that drew my interest, but the ones I have were fairly easy to write about and didn’t take much time… just a little effort!

The service has recently added features and added usability improvements to the site. One of the new features is the affiliate program which basically involves placing their adds on your blog or web-site. They provide all the add generation tools you need in the form of scripts that you copy and paste your site; quite easy. Usability changes make the site easier to use and easier to navigate. Opportunities you do not qualify for will pop up a “suggestion box” that is a polite way of telling you your blog need not apply. But it works and keeps you from getting too deep into an opportunity you do not qualify for. Very helpful so you don’t waste your time.

As I said, I don’t expect to get rich but it’s a way to stretch my writing skills and see if I have something worthwhile to say. It should at least be an exercise to learn something about myself.

Check it out yourself, if you want to try to make a little extra cash from your blogging activities.

Blog Advertising

Get More Done By Going Home On Time

This one goes out to my wife and everyone else she works with who thinks that the key to productivity is working late... Everyone has to put in some extra time at the office at crunch time, but is it really necessary? Balance, you fine people of the internet, B-A-L-A-N-C-E!

Open Loops: Get More Done By Going Home On Time via Lifehacker.

Recruiting: Longhorns make a statement

Looks like the Longhorns are gonna do well today.... But then, we already knew that, right? It will be interesting to see how well this class does in a couple of years. That's the real time to evaluate the greatness of a class.

Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Latest News

Lots of static...

Related to Tino Buntic's 2000 Bloggers experiment. TwoKnives weighs in with her thoughts and with links to, what appear to be, the original bemoaners (is that a word?) of the experiment and its consequential "positive" (as a negative?) change to their Technorati rankings. Mainly, TwoKnives is concerned that the links do not mean readers and she wants readers. Judging from the first few comments, Ms. Knives has readers! There are even "pile-on" comments on John Chow Dot Com about MyBlogLog. As I commented on TwoKnives, for me it's all about perspective. You can learn something from everyone you meet and you can find some value in every situation or circumstance. I choose to be positive about every experience - good or bad.

Update: Jeremiah Owyang, one of the original posters cited by TwoKnives, offers up some updates to his original post. Please read the updates!

Update2: More backlash about this. Now, Technorati has lumped us into the blog spam category. Just for putting a face on the blogosphere...

Great post here: How can we free ourselves from becoming the prisoner of our own thoughts?

Just ran across this unique story about life and how we deal with life's "baggage". Debojit writes some really insightful and interesting articles. I'm glad he "pinged" me this morning on MBL; I might have missed this...

Free Life Coaching - How to Be Your Own Life Coach: How can we free ourselves from becoming the prisoner of our own thoughts?

Wirefly... if your in the market for a cell phone

At the moment, I am not. But I certainly like to look. If I were in the market, Wirefly is definitely the place I would visit. Wirefly is carrier agnostic so it doesn't matter who the carrier is, you will be able to find a phone to your liking at an incredible price. Now if you are like me but still have a current contract, Wirefly is still a good place to look for a new phone because they can upgrade you at a great price by extending your contract! A great selection and a great price make for a nice combination. Right now, I'm using the Cingular 2125 and it does everything I need it to do, including all PDA functions like Calendar, e-mail, to do lists. It features a camera that does stills and video and a media player, for those times when I don't have my iPod with me (rarely!). Right now, you can actually make $50, after rebates, on this phone.

Cell Phone

That was then...

Remember this?
Musings and somesuch... that is all...: That was then...

Well, now look!!!

My blog is worth $50,808.60.
How much is your blog worth?

You can look at this two ways: Would someone pay me that amount for this site? or, Look how much my site has grown in a few months! I choose the latter, it's a bit more positive... and realistic!

A Different Perspective?

Found this site via Stefanie Sigurdson's site. Mr. Don Crowdis is 93 and has been blogging for a while now. He really has some cool stuff to say and has a lot left to do on this earth before he departs. I am in awe of the things this man has to say about life and coming to terms with the end of his. Very interesting.