Government Regulation of Blogs!

File this one under This Ticks Me OFF!!!

Blogging has been a tool which has allowed the amateur to get up on their own pedestal and communicate literally with the world. It has been the ultimate in freedom of speech. Additionally, it became a great leveler in that you did not have to go to journalism school to be a reporter in any given subject. Currently, that freedom is in the process of being limited. Nothing makes me cringe more than government interjecting itself into a process where it is not necessary. There are so many other issues they have to tackle instead.

On October 5, 2009, the Federal Trade Commission Commissioners voted 4 to 0 to regulate blogging. This ruling mandates that bloggers disclose any conflicts of interest and that the disclosure must be “clear and conspicuous” for the viewer to easily see. If someone does not divulge their conflicts of interest, they will be fined up to $11,000 per instance. The proposal was created under the auspices that bloggers are paid for their reviews both positive and negative on products and services. For me this is completely distressing. That essentially removes the freedom once enjoyed by the independent blogger.

For example, if I had a bad experience with a company – perhaps I worked for them in the past and then went to work for a competitor. If I blog against the first company without divulging the link to the second company - even if I no longer work there, my ability to freely express my displeasure is removed.

It is as if the FTC, like others in power, is once again assuming the consumer is inherently stupid and unable to know that some bloggers are paid to ‘like’ or ‘dislike’ products or services. Obviously, I am frustrated by any limitations on the technology, which enabled more people to speak their mind and share ideas with others.

This is almost as ignorant as the current legislation from Jay Rockefeller looking to regulate and control use of the Internet from the US only as if we actually owned the entire thing anyway.

More Later,

CH

Web Site Attractiveness...give my site a makeover!

Focusing on the beauty of the site - then getting more readers to be part of the site.

After years in the beauty industry, this is a subject I can relate to well. There are so many things which can be done to make a website more attractive in a design and visual sense. But, that is not the only reason why we might make a change. If the site is geared for example to an older clientele, then we would want to make sure that there is an adequate contrast between background and text, large enough fonts for ease in reading, less clutter, simple messages - especially for some who rarely use computers, hearing impaired and sight impaired add ons which lets the user independently use the site and so on.

Having chosen Blogger as my blogging software, I am limited to either the templates they provide or my own creativity. Having a relevant, well organized blog will enable me to have more readers. I have also chosen Google Analytics to evaluate performance of the blog.

The W3C discusses the need for accessibility in the Web - my paper will cover this and the exciting thing is that they are seeking to address how the following can be manipulated to support access for all:

• online shopper with color blindness (user control of style sheets)
• reporter with repetitive stress injury (keyboard equivalents for mouse-driven commands; access-key)
• online student who is deaf (captioned audio portions of multimedia files)
• accountant with blindness (appropriate markup of tables, alternative text, abbreviations, and acronyms; synchronization of visual, speech, and braille display)
• classroom student with dyslexia (use of supplemental graphics; freezing animated graphics; multiple search options)
• retiree with aging-related conditions, managing personal finances (magnification; stopping scrolling text; avoiding pop-up windows)
• supermarket assistant with cognitive disability (clear and simple language; consistent design; consistent navigation options; multiple search options)
• teenager with deaf-blindness, seeking entertainment (user control of style sheets; accessible multimedia; device-independent access; labelled frames; appropriate table markup

Source: W3C - How People with Disabilities Use the Web.

More Later,

CH

Analyzing the Web via Web Analytics

After some research, I have found a wealth of tools that are available for you to analyze the performance of a website/blog etc. From a marketing perspective, this is so invaluable as you can make educated decisions based on factual data.

However, from a conspiracy theorist perspective, 'I always feel like somebody's watching me, and I have no privacy.' (I am sure you saw the Geico googly eyes or else remembered that horrible 80's song) On a more serious note, it really is a concern for me that people are able to maintain their privacy while accessing the information that they would like to learn. There is a systematic process tracking users behavior and sites visited. I love watching Forensic Files when they prove what someone was doing on their computer at the same time that something nefarious occurred. We think we are able to maintain privacy but in reality, there is little anymore - that is the price that we are paying for the instant access to information.

If you can afford it, Omniture offers excellent web analytics - via two key packages: SiteCatalyst and Discover. What I liked about their product is the focus on enhancing the mobile user's experience and an additional focus on tracking the use of Web 2.0 for marketing to customers.

Conversely, if you would like a solid, analytical package which is free, yes I said free, then look no further than Google Analytics. For my purposes, this can be the go to package for an entrepreneur, amateur blogger or moderate to large business.

Both will track the traffic to the website or blog and the set up of a Google Analytics account requires little extra effort. Reports are delivered in a dashboard setup with the ability to be modified for your preferences.

I have begun tracking this blog and will be working to add new features that will improve the number of people who are reading it.

More later,

CH

Software as a Service or another way to avoid paying Microsoft for products....

Hello Again,

Software as a Service - idea good; execution bad. Truly, I feel like the Geico Caveman (Cavewoman) using Software as a service in lieu of my Enterprise edition Word 2007 with full functionality, ancillary support and every possible bell and whistle. This reminds me of someone using Microsoft Works instead of Office. Sure you can create a document, spreadsheet etc. but the full set of tools is always in the other version.

Take for instance Google Docs - there is a presentation component which mimics PowerPoint. Being a PowerPoint junkie since version 4.0 - I am dating myself here and prior to that using Freelance Graphics since the early nineties - now in terms of technology I am old - I enjoy being able to seamlessly integrate. If I was looking for a place to create presentations and not have to use another software package then this would be great. However, the integration back into PowerPoint from Google is not seamless and in fact, requires recreation at times. I had issues having the templates not mesh and then it caused a little extra work. In a pinch, I will consider using this but in my everyday practice, I have full versions of the desired applications on my computers and prefer to have full functionality. With GE dropping Microsoft Applications all together in favor of this technology, I think it is a financial decision that may prove to be shortsighted and political in nature. But then again, I question GE often after knowing how they treated a friend of mine who was an employee...

More later...
CH

Hulu-Hoop!

I have never in my many years in school before been blessed with a homework assignment that told me to watch television! Imagine my surprise when given this one. All of my favorite shows are on opposite the evenings when we have class. On Tuesdays I miss my favorite - Hell's Kitchen. On Thursdays, it is a double shot where I miss Bones and Fringe! I don't think Dr. Watson would like me missing class for Gordon Ramsay but they both have great accents! Likewise, I doubt if Dr. Piercy would want us to miss for the other shows.

The greatest invention ever - since the last greatest invention - the iPod.....is Hulu. It allows me to watch television on demand when I need it - and believe me, it is a fix - mind numbing entertainment/edutainment is just what I need on Fridays after teaching all day long.

I can sit with my laptop in the recliner with my feet up and watch everything back to back. Now, I am afraid I am going to turn into what Hulu wants per their commercials - someone who has turned into a mindnumbed robot doing the ailens' bidding.

Incidentally, it is the 50th anniversary of The Twilight Zone and I am looking forward to finding those classics on demand.

More later, after a brief word from our sponsor!

CH