FreeLeadsandFreeTraffic.com is still very much a work in progress.

A brand new theme, Semiomntics XO, new design and a new cleaner look. Still some bits to tidy up, a bit more work on the stylesheet to get the result I am after. All this of course takes time. So, so far..

Old Web Design on FreeLeadsandFreeTraffic

Old Free Leads and Free Traffic

FreeLeadsandFreeTraffic.com new Web Design

Still work to be done.

Free Leads and Free Traffic - new

When considering a new web design for any site one must take into  a few important factors.  First and foremost it must be customer-friendly, appealing to the eye, content clearly visible and easily navigated.

Web Design for Free Leads and Free Traffic

FreeLeadsandFreeTraffic is rather an old blog that has been neglected but not forgotten.  The design is outdated  and not very attractive. It needs a complete overhaul, a new design and a new future.

Old Web Design on Free Leads and Free Traffic

I have decided to change the appearance, the theme, and use the Semiomantics XO script which is much more versatile and appealing and technically more Google efficient. Also, too many plugins make the old site heavy and  slow to open.  The whole site  lacks personality.

Within the next few weeks I will endeavour to bring some life back to the site and a little modernity.

Website Themes

Website themes and templates that allow us to create a visually appealing look are what we are looking for when we want to brand ourselves in a professional way on the Internet.

With our own product – the Google efficient Semiomantics XO Scripts – we already get a spiffy SEO optimized technical setup that we then configure according to our needs and preferences ourselves… if we have the complex knowledge and skill. The alternative is to outsource to a professional Graphic Designer.

It’s an important choice and a clear Business decision.

Website Useability

Website useability in general is a crucial consideration in Website Design.

What it means is that Website Themes need to be customer-friendly and reader-oriented in various ways and on different levels for diverse needs.

Screen Resolutions

It starts with the simple fact that not everybody online sees the same; we all have different screens, different resolutions, different settings and different programs alltogether. Not to mention different browsers…

While I find this very disturbing as a graphic designer, I have to accept it and find the best way to offer my content, pictures, media… brief everything I show on my website in an optimal way to a maximum of readers, visitors and existing as well as potential customers.

As I now have a 23 inch screen, I know what I missed before… but also the constraints for everything I am doing in terms of Web Design.

While I personally love a highly aesthetic website design that leaves room for discovery – as I did on yesterday’s ‘beaming’ website theme – I am aware that while the web design is perfect for a photo blog, it’s not ideal when offering good web content – meaning that the ease of reading in that case was only possible through scrolling. It’s a little detail, however, it may cost a reader.

Therefore, minus points in terms of mere Web Design.

Just as the website navigation system should allow for easy and intuitive navigation between the different sections of a site, the typography should allow for fast reading in terms of color and fonts… and having almost black fonts on black, even if only partially, is in my view extremely sexy – yeah, it’s artistic and Dali would love it – but not appreciated in the fast & easy my brain got lost in the gym environment.

New Website Theme

Bearing the above in mind, I created a new website theme that solves the above issues while being elegant and totally in sync with my Brand – up to the subtle floral background based on a picture from my garden that I prepared in Photoshop.

Just the Bee missing, but be assured I’ll get to that one too :)

Bianca Gubalke Logo

Even the Bianca Gubalke Logo had to be slightly adapted in its nuances for maximum harmony with the delicate color scheme. Again, it’s always a matter of details and lots of work and testing until the desired result is achieved. And at the end it looks soooo easy. . . so obvious!

Simplicity so often if not always has a hidden history of lots of learning and doing it over and over again… until! Practice and Experience leads to Mastery…

As a next step I will have to think of Social Networks and adapt my Twitter account… no boredom ever – guaranteed!

This page is wiki editable click here to edit this page.

Read more…

• Circle Experiments 1
• Creating your own Signature
• Header Graphics
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Windows Live Movie Maker for Facebook

When starting to use the new Windows Live Pack and namely the Movie Maker you will immediately notice that Microsoft aims to make things simple, focusing on essentials and features most users want and concentrate on. This Apple like Mikey Mouse approach to things will be welcomed by the average user.

Windows Live Movie Maker includes an integrated up-loader for publishing on YouTube. To post your Pictures to Facebook, a plug-in is available.

Facebook Plug-in

The Facebook plug-in allows you to easily upload your pictures and videos to Facebook including the peoples tags you may have created.

Windows Live Movie Maker Facebook Plug-in

The plug-in works with Windows Live Movie Maker and with Windows Live Photo Gallery.

Get the plug-in from HERE and install it on your computer.

The Windows Live Pack works with Vista and Windows 7, not with XP.

PS: Join tonight’s Ycademy Live Call for implementation.

This page is wiki editable click here to edit this page.

Read also:

• Windows 7 Training
• Windows 7 Security
• Windows 7 Minimum Requirements
• Windows 7 Tips to Calibrate Colors
• Windows 7 Tips

Windows 7 Security

I have been asked about Windows 7 Security and Anti-virus packs. Here is what I am using on my main system which hangs 24/24 on the internet.

Join tonight’s Ycademy call at 8 pm London to learn more and to implement your Windows Security.

Firewall for Windows 7

When 2 years back I uninstalled my Norton Internet Security pack, it was as if my Computer started breathing again. Nothing against the quality of Norton’s filters, but the program was so heavy, that my performance was suffering notably. Also, and this I noticed with most security programs, the interface is not really user-friendly. You need a PhD in firewall configuration in order to use the software efficiently. The basic settings are too timid and tend to scare people more than assuring them because of all the pop-ups indicating that Norton has just saved you again from a Trojan Horse, a Dragon, a witch or other horrors.

My experience is that the Windows Firewall is largely good enough for average and professional users. Maybe that real IT freaks miss all the little buttons and tabs to fine tune the configuration, but that’s a negligible minority anyway. (Yeahhh, I am one of those…).

So, with your Windows 7 just use your Windows Firewall in stead of charging your system with a heavy program (and your budget with 50 bucks per year).

In any case, don’t use two Firewalls; if you use an external program for the purpose, disable the Windows Firewall as running both will result in conflicting behaviors!

Antivirus for Windows 7

Without listing all the popular free and paid programs let me just recommend the

Microsoft Security Essentials

You can use them also on other Windows driven systems. The pack provides an antivirus solution which integrates perfectly with your Windows.

Microsoft Security Essentials are a Beta version (but then, what’s not beta these days anyway – Vista should never have made it even to beta :-)) and it’s free, provided you run Genuine Windows Software.

Microsoft Security Essentials

“Microsoft Security Essentials provides real-time protection for your home PC that guards against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software.

Microsoft Security Essentials is a free* download from Microsoft that is simple to install, easy to use, and always kept up to date so you can be assured your PC is protected by the latest technology. It’s easy to tell if your PC is secure — when you’re green, you’re good. It’s that simple.

Microsoft Security Essentials runs quietly and efficiently in the background so that you are free to use your Windows-based PC the way you want—without interruptions or long computer wait times.” (As per Microsoft)

The user interface is clear, easy to use and to set up. Read more about Alert Levels.

Why look for complex and costly solutions if an integrated solution is available for free?

PS: The Security Essentials are hooked to Microsoft’s SpyNet – read the terms.

Read also:

• Windows 7 Training
• Windows 7 Minimum Requirements
• Windows 7 Tips to Calibrate Colors
• Windows 7 Tips
• Windows 7 Multilingual Deployments

Branding your Website

Branding your Website sounds like the grand finale of something elaborated over time… and yes it is! However. . .

Branding your Website

Branding your Website is a prerequisite for building your online business, any business in fact.

As such, it is also a beginning, meaning the start of  ‘YOU’ as you wish to present yourself to the online community, to people you know and people you don’t know, reflecting who you are and what you wish to express – brief: your presence on the Internet.

Once there, forever there – it cannot be erased !

Branding on Social Networks

Branding on Social Networks means that you give yourself the same image wherever you go so people start recognizing you or your brand. On most Social Networks you are given ample opportunity and space to express and present yourself… so you wish to align everything you do in order to be easily recognized – and you can go retro, fun, classy, grunge, jazzy or wild… whatever you want, as long as it reflects a professional image. Your online fingerprint

While I still have work to do in terms of Media, my Author Blog is branded… and if you follow through the various posts and web graphics you see how my preferred colors were always interwoven with what I did and you’ll recognize a personal style that’s independent of colors and fonts.

It is simply terrific to see the laborious route we’ve taken on the “Path to Profitability” in our sophisticated daily Trainings and exclusive Ycademy Seminars month after month, year after year…. up to a point now where – like any major Corporate Company – we are building our own image online. The Internet levels out the playground between the Davids and the Goliaths and for all those who have been following, learning, applying and implementing with courage and consistency what was taught over the years the image and presence of the business concerned will be built solid and aligned with a longterm vision for success and fulfillment… and this within a fascinating environment: cyber space!

Here’s my Brand look on Twitter. . . although I am not happy with the quality of the screenshots; the red just bleeds…

Branding your Online Newspaper

Branding your Online Newspaper… where in fact this mysterious journey into the ‘Secret World of Code’ started – in my case Touch Vision Talk on a Semiomantics NewsCast Script – will be part of the Ycademy October Seminar to be held this coming weekend.  Not everybody was ready for even thinking of Branding… thus we now have a second chance to bring everything we do online in line. Including our Online Newspaper.

In the planned Workshop, we will get hands-on expert guidance on following through with the complex Coding and applying our Branding touch in terms of Web Design and Web Graphics to our Online Newspaper.

Another exciting weekend not to be missed – absolutely not!

This page is wiki editable click here to edit this page.

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• Creating Web Graphics for Nutrinsider
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