Zippy WiFi News

Logo Contest... Let's see what you all can come up with... What do you think about these?

2006-12-04T18:07:00Z

We want a cool new look... send in your best... get 1 year of free WiFi at an upgraded speed just for submitting a worth-while design... the person's whose design we like the best will get published and noted on all of our sites - as well as pocket a little bit... say $500.00 US! How's that for an incentive - plus he/she will also get free access to our networks!

How to Research and Utilize Valuable Search Keywords

2006-08-14T20:55:00Z

How to Research and Utilize Valuable Search Keywords

by Richard Drawhorn

Every search engine marketing professional understands the importance of choosing relevant keywords to include in web page content. Many factors must be considered during the keyword selection process and, once a list has been compiled, the keywords must be incorporated into the site content properly. In this article, I'll outline a general approach to selecting valuable keywords, and also suggest a few things to consider when optimizing your web site content.

At the beginning of any project, it's always best to define the goals. In the case of keyword research, the goals are to attract qualified traffic to the web site and (in the case of ecommerce sites) to convert visitors into paying customers. Notice that the goal is twofold: the first part involves pleasing search engines, and the second part involves pleasing people. Successful search engine marketers perform well on both of these fronts.

Compiling an Initial Keyword List

The first step in creating a good keyword list for a web site is to assemble a rough list that can then be refined through a selection process. The initial list can be created using a variety of simple techniques:

Evaluate your competitors' web sites to get an idea of the kinds of keywords they have targeted. This can be done easily by looking at the source code of your competitor's home page and studying the keywords contained within the Meta Keyword tag. If you have a copy of WebPosition software, the Meta keywords can be conveniently extracted from the source code of any web site.
Based on your own knowledge of the web site topic, add any keywords you think might be relevant. Imagine that you are somebody using the internet to find information, and add the keywords you might type into a search engine.
Use a keyword research tool like WordTracker to generate related keywords and phrases based upon an initial keyword search. Try several different keywords as a starting point, and you should find a broad list of related keywords.
Create new keyword phrases by combining keywords in the list into combinations that seem to make sense, and might plausibly be typed into a search engine. A spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel is useful to help create and organize these various keyword combinations.
Search the major search engine like Yahoo!, Google, or MSN for the top keywords on the list to find web sites that are already ranking well for those keywords. Study these sites and look for new ideas for keywords as well as potential content for your own site.

At this point, the list is probably much larger than expected, and you are wondering which of these keywords are most likely to drive relevant traffic to your site. It's time to refine the list by weeding out keywords that may attract the wrong types of visitors, or not generate much traffic at all.

Refining the Keyword List

Now that the initial list has been compiled, some additional research needs to be done. Using a keyword research tool like WordTracker, determine how many times each keyword has been typed into search engines. Keep in mind that these numbers indicate how popular keywords are, but the most popular words are not necessarily the best. First, remove any keywords from the list that have very low popularity numbers. Evaluate each of the more popular keywords by taking the following points into consideration:

How much competition is there for the keyword?
If the keyword in question has a million other web sites competing for the top position, it will be difficult to achieve good results. Often words that are very popular may be far too general to be of value. For example, if you are a real estate agent, you would not want to optimize for a general phrase like "real estate", since there are so many competing sites and the phrase is so general it could refer to real estate anywhere in the world. You would be much better off using phrases that limit the search to the area you work in ("Oregon real estate" or "Portland Oregon real estate"). WordTracker will display the number of competing pages for each keyword, and also calculate a useful parameter called the Keyword Effectiveness Index (KEI) which takes into account both the popularity and the competition for the keyword. Use this information to locate keywords that are popular, but do not have an overwhelming amount of competition.
Does the keyword address where the customer is in the buying process?
The most relevant keywords are those that have a high liklihood of converting a visitor to a paying customer. Often, the keywords typed into a search engine reflect whether the searcher is ready to make a purchase, or whether they are simply looking for information about a topic. Be sure to include keywords in your list that will capture these potential customers. For example, somebody who types "digital camera prices" into a search engine is probably closer to making a purchase than the person who simply types "digital cameras". You will find many variations of keywords related to your web site topic that provide clues about where the searcher is in the buying process.
Use a web analytics tool like WebTrends to gather additional information.
If you have a web analytics tool available for your web site, then use the data it has gathered for referring URLs. The referring URLs will let you know what keywords people have actually typed into search engines to find your site in the past. Try to locate any patterns in this data, such as keywords that may relate to a current event for example. If your web site has a built in search feature that allows users to search your own web site for content, then analyze that information as well. The keywords that your own visitors type into your local site search engine are often valuable keywords that can be used within your web site content to attract visitors to your site.

Now that the keyword list has been refined to contain only the best keywords based on your research, it's time to integrate these keywords into your content. This is where your knowledge of search engine optimization (SEO) and marketing will be put to use. First, use your SEO skills to place the keywords in the appropriate sections of the page. These include the Title tag, Meta elements, Header, Body, Links, and Alt text in your image tags. A tool such as WebPosition's Page Critic is useful at this stage. It provides information about the keyword frequency, prominence and other factors typically found in other pages already ranking well in the search engines. By emulating the keyword statistics of high ranking pages, you are improving the liklihood that your page will also be ranked well on search engines.

Create Compelling Copy for your Web Pages

Knowing where to place keywords and at what frequency is only half the battle. These considerations are of course important to achieve high rankings in search engines, but it's equally important to remember that your web site is there for the benefit of human beings. Good marketers realize that the style of language chosen often strongly affects a potential customer's course of action. If you write good copy that appeals to your customers, then your web site visitors are more likely to become customers.

If you find that you're having trouble using the keywords in the right context, then try creating new content that fits the keywords. Create resources that may not apply directly to the sale you are trying to make, but a potential customer might still find useful in some way. For example, if your online business sells gardening tools and supplies online, then you might consider publishing informational articles related to gardening. This kind of valuable content can attract visitors to your web site initially, and appeal to their positive feelings about gardening in general. If the visitor finds something useful on your web site, and in general has a positive experience navigating through the site, then its more likely that they will convert to a customer.

Conclusion

Conducting proper keyword research is a critical component of effective search engine marketing. Before spending time optimizing your web site content, be sure to do the necessary research to identify a list of keywords most likely to drive relevant traffic to your web site.

The Fundamentals of Search Engine Optimization

2006-08-14T20:35:00Z

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The Fundamentals of Search Engine Optimization

by Richard Drawhorn

The fundamental concepts behind Search Engine Optimization (SEO) are understood by most search engine marketers, but those new to the subject should find this article to be very useful. Informative articles on various aspects of SEO have been published here on MarketPosition.com over the years, and in this post I will summarize these concepts and provide links to relevant articles.

Keyword Research
The first step in SEO is to identify the search terms for which you would like your web site to rank well on search engines. We might believe that we know these terms already, but our intuition is often incorrect about how popular or competitive search keywords actually are in reality. People use all kinds of variations of phrases as they are searching for information on the internet. It's important to identify these terms and use them in your site content exactly as people type them into search engines. To discover what these search terms are, a keyword research tool should be used. There are several free tools available, such as the Keyword Selector provided by Overture, but most of the robust keyword research tools are subscription based. For more information on how to start compiling a good keyword list, read How to Research and Utilize Valuable Search Keywords.

Web Site Optimization
You now have your well researched keyword list in hand, and are ready to use the keywords in your web site content. How should these search terms be integrated into your web pages? How often should the phrases be used, and in what sections of the pages? Those are excellent questions and the answers are not known exactly because they depend on the algorithms used by search engines. However, it is generally agreed upon that search engines look at several different sections of a page when evaluating its content:

Title tag
Heading tag
Meta Keyword and Meta Description tags
Text within the Body area
Link text and Link URL
ALT attribute for Image tags (the ALT tag may be less significant than other areas of the page)

Search engines look at the various sections of the document for repeating patterns of keywords or phrases. For this reason, it's important to have a keyword density within a specific range. What should that keyword density be? Software tools like WebPosition's Page Critic can help to answer that question. The Page Critic works by looking at the keyword density (and other statistics) of pages that are already ranking well on search engines. Since the search engines keep the details of how their algorithms work a secret, a reasonable strategy is to emulate pages that are well positioned.

Web Site Design
Aesthetics and user friendliness are important elements of web site design, but there are a number of other things to consider to ensure a web site will be as friendly to search engines as possible.

HTML Validation
It's important to ensure that the HTML code that makes up a web page is correctly formatted. If there are errors in the code, then search engine spiders may have difficulty indexing the page's content. Use a HTML Validator to check the formatting of HTML code, and read this article for more information on why this is important.
Site Map
It's always a good idea to create a site map to make it easy for search engine spiders to index the site's content. Link to every page on the web site that has relevant content, and place a link to the site map on the site's home page. It may also help to sign up for the Google Sitemaps program to help ensure your content is indexed by Google.
Develop a Site Theme
One aspect of web site design that is often overlooked is theme development. If possible, organize your content so that particular themes are reinforced. Read Reinforcing Ideas and Improving Relevance to Gain Better Rankings for ideas to consider when organizing your site content.
Avoid Duplicate Content
It's important to avoid duplicating content on the web site. Read Duplicate Content: How Does it Affect Your Rankings? for more information on how to avoid penalties associated with duplicate content.

Comply with Search Engines' Terms of Service
There are several practices to avoid to stay on good terms with search engines. Techniques like cloaking, hidden text, or spamming, for example, violate search engines' terms of service. If a site is found to be using these types of blackhat techniques, it will typically be removed from the search engine's index. Read this article for more information about practices to avoid.

Build Link Popularity
The Link Popularity of a page is a term that refers to the number of other web sites that link to that page. Search engines typically consider how many other sites link to a page as a factor in determining that page's ranking. The idea behind this is that if others link to a page, then they must consider that page's content to be valuable in some way. However, all links are not weighted equally and it's therefore important to try to encourage high quality web sites within your own theme area to link to your site. For a good overview of these concepts, read Link Popularity Considerations, and for some ideas about how to start building links read A Review of Link Building Strategies.

Monitor Performance
Once your optimized web site is online, you'll want to monitor its performance on the search engines. If the site is brand new, it should of course be submitted to the search engines, or perhaps resubmitted if necessary. Monitor the site's positions on search engines for keywords of interest to identify areas where the site is performing well and areas that can be improved. An excellent tool designed for this is WebPosition's Reporter feature. It creates formatted reports featuring graphs of positions over time, as well as useful parameters like the Keyword Visibility Index.

A web site that is positioned well in search engines should start receiving a significant number of visitors. To monitor traffic and other useful web site statistics, a web analytics solution such as WebTrends is recommended. Read Measuring Web Site Statistics as Part of Your SEO Strategy for more information about the benefits of web analytics.

Conclusion
The art of SEO is a set of skills that can be learned and implemented by anybody who manages a web site. However, proper optimization and maintenance of the site requires time and effort, and the fundamental elements of SEO discussed above must be put into practice. Those who find they do not have the time or desire to implement their own SEO program, read Outsourcing a SEO Program for some advice on how to best seek out professionals that can help.
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Top 5 Tips for Successful Search Engine Marketing

2006-08-14T20:25:00Z

This is taken froma friend's website - but it details exactly what I believe. I have also been a huge advocate of using existing technology and tools available to make your search engine optimization efforts as smooth and productive as possible... That said - I am posting this because I use and and reccommend the use of a tool that is priceless to me - Web Position, by Web Trends... I've arranged for all my clients and site visitors to be given a free 7 day trial, fully functional (except they lock some of the engines - but the software is 100% complete) for you to evaluate.. they do not ask for credit cards or anything unless, after toying with it, you decide to purchase it... neat eh? Here's the info on the top 5 tips for successful SEM and SEO.
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If you are new to the Search category, you're probably familiar with the term "Search Engine Optimization" (SEO) and have seen or heard the term "Search Engine Marketing" (SEM), but are not exactly sure what Search Engine Marketing really means. More than likely, you've heard the two terms used interchangeably and may think that they mean the same thing. Though they are similar, there is a dramatic difference between the two practices. Knowing and understanding the difference between these two terms, and more importantly, knowing how to take advantage of the differences is the key to overall success in marketing via search engines.

There has been a dramatic but subtle change over the past few years with regards to promoting websites via search engines. Rather than being two interchangeable terms, Search Engine Optimization is actually an element of Search Engine Marketing, with the other element being "Paid Search Media." It is those site owners and managers that truly understand this, and utilize it on their site along with all of the elements involved in each, that are achieving success on the search engines at a reasonable cost.

Let's define the terms before continuing.

Search Engine Marketing: The act of marketing a web site via search engines, whether this is improving rank in organic listings, purchasing paid listings or a combination thereof, along with other search engine related activities. (Source: SEMPO.org)
Search Engine Optimization: The act of altering a web site so that is does well in the organic, crawler- based listings of search engines. Also called "SEO." (Source: SEMPO.org)
Paid Search Media: Advertising programs where listings are guaranteed to appear in response to particular search terms, with higher ranking typically obtained by paying more than other advertisers. Also called "Paid Placement," "Pay Per Click" and "Cost per Click." (Source: SEMPO.org)

It is important to understand that there is no less value in performing Search Engine Optimization because of the rise in popularity of Paid Search Media and Pay Per Click (PPC) programs offered by companies such as Overture and Google (Adwords.) If anything, it has increased the importance of optimizing your web site, namely due to the fluctuating costs of PPC programs.

The following tips will enable you to take full advantage of Search Engine Marketing. They will also assist you in achieving your online goals as rapidly as possible, and at a very reasonable cost.

1. Understand your online business

There are a lot of business owners that believe their offline business is the same as their online business; that the two mimic each other. Usually, this is only partially correct. This is especially true when it comes to competitor analysis. Many times the companies you compete with offline are markedly different from the ones you compete with online and visa versa.

To begin understanding your online business, simply write a description of your company. Have your colleagues, family and friends do the same. If you own a brick and mortar business, ask your customers to describe your business for you. Most will be happy to provide feedback. You may find that many of the descriptions are similar, yet different.

Next, go online. Search for your competitors' sites and pay careful attention to how they are promoting and positioning themselves in the marketplace. Use the information you've already gathered about YOUR company and refine it to ensure you are properly differentiating yourself. Take the time to integrate your own identity, as you now understand it, and based upon feedback from others.

2. Understanding your online customer

Frequently, your online customer's profile WILL be similar to your offline customer. You should use this information when performing optimization to your website and when buying pay-per-click keywords.

It is important to understand that much like traditional, brick and mortar customers, there are different types of online customers. These customers will search very differently and can sometimes be segmented by gender, race, and income level. It has been proven that men search differently than women and further, older men and women search differently than younger men and women do.

Two excellent studies have been produced recently that discuss the different types of searchers. Those studies are:

Enquiro's Inside the Mind of the Searcher (free download registration required) is a first of its kind study covering the types of searchers using search engines, what search results caught their attention and what enticed them to click on results.

iProspect's Search Engine User's Attitudes (free download) is an in depth study that reveals the relationship between profession, age, education, race and sex and how that influence a persons' searches.

These studies will provide you with valuable insight to help you understand your customer base better. Once you have a thorough understanding of how your customers search, you will be better positioned to apply that knowledge to choosing the right keywords.

3. Determining a successful conversion

If you were to ask most web site owners what they want from their web site they'd say "to make money". That generally rings true even if they don't sell anything on or through the web site. Understanding what the true purpose of your web site is the first step to determining what to deem a successful conversion. After all, conversions will determine the success or failure of your website as a business tool.

If your web site is just brochure-ware, or used primarily as a promotion tool, a successful conversion may simply be traffic. Conversion may be measured as getting a user to browse through your web site, then filling out a contact form, placing a phone call or downloading a PDF.

If you sell something through your web site then a successful conversion will more than likely be defined as a completed transaction, or "selling something." Remember, your web site may even have multiple types of conversions.

It is impossible to determine the true success or failure of your search engine marketing efforts without first knowing what success is, as defined by setting standards of conversion for your site. Once you know what a success is, you can begin to track that success. Tracking is covered more thoroughly in Tip 5.

4. Researching, Choosing and Implementing Keywords

Researching, choosing, and implementing keywords can be one of the most daunting aspects of Search Engine Marketing. It is also one of the most important.

Researching Keywords

Now that you have a better understanding of your customer, your online business, and what constitutes a successful conversion, you can begin to develop the best keywords to meet your goals.

Fortunately, there are many well written tutorials and tools to help you succeed in researching, and choosing the right keywords. The August edition of Market Position has an excellent article on Choosing the Best Keywords.

This article provides you with the following keyword techniques:

Put yourself in the shoes of your target audience.
Target Niches.
Brainstorm for keywords in your category.
Choose only relevant keywords.
Understand that keywords can have multiple meanings

WordTracker is an excellent tool to conduct keyword research. It provides you with the ability to determine exactly what words are being used in search engines to find the products and services that you may offer. If you haven't tried WordTracker yet simply download the free trial of WebPosition Gold 3 and click on the WordTracker icon.

Choosing Keywords

Once you've compiled a thorough list of keywords using WordTracker you must decide the ways in which you are going to use those keywords.

Unfortunately most web sites do not have enough content, or aren't large enough to support all of the good, quality keywords you have found using these tools. Therefore, you should narrow your list. How?

You need to consider the following for each keyword on your list:

Does this keyword support my online goals?
Do I have the content to support this keyword? If yes, then is my page optimized for it?
Do I have to create content to support this keyword? If yes, then is it worth the creation effort or should I buy it through PPC?
Is it a seasonal word? If yes, then should I buy it through PPC or Optimize for it?

Pay Per Click keywords should be words that are seasonal, marginally related to your web site, or cannot be ranked for in a reasonable amount of time. PPC words will cost you more over a long period of time, so great caution needs to be exercised when participating in PPC programs. For an excellent PPC tutorial, see the WebPosition Gold 3 Page Critic.

Once you have created your final keyword list and have determined how those words are to be used through either PPC or SEO, then you can begin implementation.

If you have to build optimized web pages to take advantage of some of your selected keywords simply download the free trial of WebPosition and click on the Page Builder icon. With WebPosition, you can build and upload your optimized content all with one easy to use tool.

5. Tracking your rankings, website traffic and conversions

Now that you've completed the process of creating and launching your Search Engine Marketing program, you need to be able to determine if your efforts are succeeding. Of course, more online sales are an easy way to determine if your efforts are succeeding; however, there are many more metrics to analyze in order to get the most out of your efforts and money.

It is imperative that you be able to assess how your web site is ranking for the words you've targeted. You need to know, for sure, if those words are successful and are converting. You also need to know whether your SEO or PPC efforts are bringing you the most traffic and conversions.

Fortunately, WebPosition and WebTrends Analytics work together to provide you all the reports and answers. You can check your rankings across search engines and keywords, compare rankings to your actual traffic from those search engines and track conversions from your SEO and PPC efforts.

Zippy WiFi on the HUNT for co-op links and community tags!

2006-06-22T20:11:00Z

No amount of extended research will bring you to the top of search engine results... but a little persistance and a lot of good content with a good idea and you will see fantastic results...

Today, I realized how being so involved with business affairs can kick you in the butt if you are like me and like to be on the leading edge of technology and web marketing... I learned about tagging...

Here is some information about tagging that was sent to me from one of my favorite ezines, http://www.sitepronews.com

SiteProNews: June 21, 2006 Feature Article

To Print: Click here or Select File/ Print from your Browser Menu.

  Article printed from SiteProNews: http://www.sitepronews.com
  HTML version available at: http://www.sitepronews.com/archives.html

Social Networks - Search Engine Marketing for Web2.0
By Warren Pattison (c) 2006

Social networks are getting a lot of attention these days
including Wikipedia, del.icio.us and MySpace. Along with the
buzz, these sites are also generating a lot of traffic! How can
you integrate links for these types of social network sites into
your search engine marketing program? While there are an
increasing number of social networks, this article will stick to
the above as they are kings of their domains so to speak.

I recently had the opportunity to attend Search Engine
Strategies in New York City this past February, 2006. While
attending a session in regards to community marketing tactics
using both Wikipedia and tagging, the panel asked the audience,
"Who here knows what Wikipedia and tagging are?" - less than
half the room raised their hands.

Let me give you an overview of these concepts.

Wikipedia is a free community content driven encyclopedia. I
have included an excerpt about Wikipedia from their about
section located at About Wikipedia
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:About)

   "Begun in 2001, Wikipedia has rapidly grown into the largest
    reference website on the Internet. The content of Wikipedia
    is free, written collaboratively by people from all around
    the world. This website is a wiki, which means that anyone
    with access to an Internet-connected computer can edit,
    correct, or improve information throughout the encyclopedia,
    simply by clicking the edit this page link (with a few minor
    exceptions such as protected articles)."

Your benefits of using Wikipedia as an online marketing strategy
are various. To begin with, your submitted content about your
product or company may be very short and simple to begin with.
As your content ages and more members view and contribute to
your content with edit revisions, your content submission will
grow and grow. For example, your submission may start out as a
forty word brief that may turn into a multi-page article.
Additionally, Wikipedia has a good Google Page Rank of 9 which
will help boost your website's PR with a quality backlink from
your submitted content. Finally, using keywords that relate to
your site in your contribution will assist you in controlling
more space within the search engine results' pages for your
particular brand, product or name. For example, doing a Google
Search for the term "Microsoft" returns a Wikipedia content
entry about Microsoft in the tenth position of the Google SERP
for "Microsoft".

You should only submit content about a famous person, a patented
product your company invented, a trademarked brand, famous
places, etc. When you write your content you will want to write
from an extremely neutral viewpoint. Don't write all sorts of
features and benefits; write more factual based information
related to your subject. Your focus needs to be the community
and not your subject. Tread lightly, the community is helpful to
assist you in producing additional content, but be careful of
keyword spamming and link spamming.

Although there are many benefits to using Wikipedia for SEM,
there are also just as many caveats to using it. Submitting
content to Wikipedia is a double-edged sword. You will only want
to contribute to Wikipedia if your product or service is of
relevance to the community. Using spammy techniques in your
content or submitting an entry that has no real value such as
"another affiliate website" could have the opposite of desired
effect by producing negative feedback about your brand or
product from the community.

Tagging on the other hand doesn't have quite the negative
drawbacks as posting to Wikipedia.

Del.icio.us (http://del.icio.us/) is a social bookmarking site
where members contribute links based on tags that anyone can
search. I have included their about page found at
del.icio.us/about below:

  "What is del.icio.us?

  del.icio.us is a collection of favorites - yours and everyone
  else's. Use del.icio.us to:

    • Keep links to your favorite articles, blogs, music,
      restaurant reviews, and more on del.icio.us and access
      them from any computer on the web.

    • Share favorites with friends, family, and colleagues.

    • Discover new things. Everything on del.icio.us is someone's
      favorite - they've already done the work of finding it.
      Explore and enjoy."

There are a few simple techniques for commercial tagging through
community type sites such as del.icio.us: create bookmark worthy
content or link bait, get your tags in front of the right people
or choose the right category, give your created tags only one
self generated bump in del.icio.us, rinse and repeat about once
a month. Below is an excerpt from del.icio.us to help you answer
what various parts of tags are:

Posts

When a user saves an item on del.icio.us, it is posted to the
front page as well as the tag page for each chosen tag. A sample
is below explaining the various information pieces:

Here is a del.icio.us example listing under the tag "web 2.0":

O'Reilly -- What Is Web 2.0   save this
---------------------------   ---------

by Scottcard to web2.0 oreilly article reference ... saved by 2938 other people .
   ---------    ------ ------- ------- --------- --------------------------

You will first notice the title with the link to the site, next
is an option to save the link to your tags. Secondly, you see a
Username Scottcard. Here you can click the username to see
Scottcard's tags. Next you can click on the next links to see
other related-sites within those tags. Lastly, you will see a
highlighted link where you can view the members who have saved
this site.

The good and the bad of tagging is that you will receive good
quality backlinks to your site and increase visibility. The bad
is that the majority of the time your tags will be removed from
community members because the members are technically savvy and
intolerant of any type of commercial push. Choose your keywords
wisely and make sure your tag is in the right place and
contributes to the community. Other tagging sites to consider
are: http://technorati.com/tags/ and http://digg.com/. There are
many others, but these are the ones that matter.

I see tagging or social bookmarking sites such as del.icio.us
gaining in popularity within the next three years as blogs did
two years ago. Yahoo has already taken notice by purchasing
del.icio.us and flickr (http://flickr.com/). Digg.com
(http://digg.com/)and furl.com (http://furl.com/) are also making
headway. Other sources to consider are the social network sites
for developing a web2.0 SEM strategy.

MySpace (http://www.myspace.com/) is the current king of social
networks, as it is literally a social-space network with 2.5
times more daily users than Google (psst, this is a huge untapped
market). The domain dates back to 1999 where it was originally
an online hard-drive of sorts. The current rendition took hold
in 2003 making MySpace barely three years old. The main
demographic is made up of teens to 20-somethings. The music
industry is currently using MySpace as a marketing tool, not the
labels themselves, but the bands. For example, Pearl Jam is
announcing their upcoming release for May with sample songs and
concert date announcements. One of their sample songs from their
upcoming albums is one of the most played songs across the
entire MySpace network. Independent film makers have also taken
notice. In February 2006, amateur filmmaker David Lehre released
a short film called MySpace: The Movie. This short film has
quickly become a hit, registering over six million views
following its release.

Benefiting from MySpace traffic is pretty straight forward. You
will want to create a user profile and post links to your
company or websites such as blogs, feeds, etc. Profile note, you
can post html code in any field regarding your profile. Next,
create your social pipeline of users and keep the demographic
inline with any product or link you wish to shamelessly promote
in the future. You don't want to get spammy here either. The
downside would be getting your user profile terminated from
MySpace or members posting negative comments within your
profile. Again, tread lightly by thinking neutral and keep the
benefit of the community in mind.

The opportunity costs associated with community based SEM are
very high. However, tagging in particular may be time
prohibitive for most organizations as it requires a lot of trial
and error. Tagging can seem like a waste of time as most tagging
submissions will be removed by community members who find your
submission "spammy". Time spent on tagging isn't a problem for
most sole proprietors, but can be costly to your employer who is
left with little equitable return to show for your time spent.

Utilizing Web2.0 sites such as Wikipedia, del.icio.us and
MySpace, will prove effective for your business if done
properly. Remember to tread lightly, don't use "spammy"
techniques and stay neutral keeping the benefit of the community
at heart in your content development. Doing so will help your
business to avoid a negative backlash toward your brand from the
community you are developing content for.
================================================================
Warren Pattison is the Director of Search for Elixir Systems, a
full service search engine marketing company specializing in
organic search engine optimization services, online public
relations management and paid search or PPC management. For more
information visit http://www.elixirsystems.com. This article can
also be viewed at http://www.elixirsystems.com/articles/a060322.php
================================================================

Copyright © 2006 Jayde Online, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.

SiteProNews is a registered service mark of Jayde Online, Inc.

Don't have a big budget but still want a wifi hotspot? Here's a great Open Source FREE wifi in a box setup you can do from home!

2006-04-15T03:53:00Z

This info below is a great way to use easily available and affordable off-the-shelf hardware to get you up and running for minimal amount of initial $$... simple Linksys or similarly supported router with updated firmware - also gives you more control over your routers, even if you are not interested in sharing your connection - but we LOVE those that do!
Original Post on http://www.swarmhotspots.com forum.

A howto for DD-WRT, Chillispot and FreeRadius.
********Warning ********
Following these instructions will invalidate your Linksys warranty. You do so at your own risk. These instructions assume that you have an understanding of Linux, PHP MySQL and Apache. If you brick your AP you might get it back by holding down the reset pin for 20 seconds, unplug the power while still holding down the reset button for another 20 seconds and then plugging the power back in while still keeping the reset button held in for a further 20 seconds. This should bring it back to the defaults of whatever firmware you have installed. You should be able to login to 192.168.1.1
*******End of Warning********
Feel free to copy or use this information in any way you like'

What you will need:-

a) DD-WRT
Download the latest version here http://brainslayer.braincontrol.org/dd-wrt.v22.zip

b) FreeRadius
Download the latest version here ftp://ftp.freeradius.org/pub/radius/old/freeradius.1.0.3.tar.gz

c) phpMyPrepaid
Download the latest version here http://jabali.net/~carl/phpMyPrepaid.0.1.3RC2.tar
also download the radiusd.conf file from http://jabali.net/~carl/

d) Linsys WRT54G AP

e) You will also need PHP, Apache, MySQL amd MySql Delopment Modules,(These need to be setup first.) some patience, plenty of beer and cigarettes.

Step 1 DD-WRT/Chillispot Configuration

Configure the WRT-54G with the standard Linksys software and the use the upgrade firmware module to install the dd-wrt package on the AP.
*******IMPORTANT******* Use your cable connection to do the upgrade. NOT the wireless connection
Reboot the AP and login to your new firmare.
Set Dynamic configuration DHCP
Disable DHCP (Chillispot will manage DHCP for your clients.)
Change the Local IP of the AP to 192.168.10.1.
Set your gateway and DNS addresses.
Update changes and log back in to the new IP address.

Go to the administration page.
Enable Chillispot
Enter the IP address of your Radius server
Enter the DNS
Enter the redirect URL eg HTTPS://123.123.123.123/cgi-bin/hotspotlogin.cgi/ (MAke sure that the address ends in / and is https.)
Enter a shared key. (This can be anything you like, but keep a note of it you will need it later.)
Set DHCP Interface to Lan+Wlan
Enter a NAS id (Your name for your AP)
Enter a UAM secret (This is the password that Chilli will use to talk to hotspotlogin.cgi)
Save your settings and reboot the AP. Please give the AP about 10 minutes to reboot and initialise all the new services.

Step 2 FreeRadius Configuration.

Untar the FreeRadius tar file and enter its directory.
Type ./configure --with-experimental-modules
make
login as root and type make install
When this is finished copy the radiusd.conf file that you downloaded earlier to /usr/local/etc/raddb/
You should not need to edit radiusd.conf
Edit /usr/local/etc/raddb/sql.conf and in the SQL section make these changes
Quote:
# Database type
# Current supported are: rlm_sql_mysql, rlm_sql_postgresql,
# rlm_sql_iodbc, rlm_sql_oracle, rlm_sql_unixodbc, rlm_sql_freetds
driver = "rlm_sql_mysql"

# Connect info
server = "localhost"
login = "yourlogin"
password = "your password"

# Database table configuration
radius_db = "radius"

Edit the /usr/local/etc/raddb/clients.conf file and enter the details of your NAS (AP)
Quote:
client xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx { (This is the address of your NAS or WRT54G )
secret = xxxxxxx (The secret you entered in the Chilli Config)
shortname = private-network-9 (This can be any name)
nastype = other
( If you want to set up several AP's with one secret the IP address above should be 0.0.0.0/0 )
}

Step 3 hotspotlogin.cgi
Copy hotspotlogin.cgi from http://chillispot.org to /var/www/cgi-bin
Edit the file and change the secret to the UAM secret that you entered in the Chillispot configuration on the WRT54G

Step 4 phpMyPrepaid and MySQL

Extract the phpMyPrepaid file to a directory on your webserver eg /var/www/html/myprepaid
Create a MySQL database called radius and create a user and password for it. Use a script called db_mysql.db that you will find in the phpMyPrepaid download to create the database tables.
Edit the dbconnect.php file in the phpMyPrepaid directory and enter the username and password for your MySQL radius database. IMPORTANT Save this file behind your web directory or your passwords will be easy to hack.
Edit config.inc.php and change the line that points to dbconnect to wherever you have saved dbconnect.php
In your web browser got to http://yoursite.com/whereveryouputphpmyprepaid/ and create some tickets. Check your database to see if the users have been setup in radcheck. Launch FreeRadius as root with this command radiusd -xxyx -l stdout. Pick a user and password from your database and try to login from a wireless client. If you can then it is time for step 5. If not go back to step 1 and check everything.

Step 5 Have a cup of coffee and unwind. If all is well you have finished. I'll keep an eye on this post and do my best to help anyone with problems.

Regards and good luck.

Sean Bracken

I have setup a test Radius system and a very easy way to configure a Linksys AP on my server. The link is http://swarmhotspots.com/chilli-test-area
_________________
http://swarmhotspots.com
http://freetextworld.com

Joomla! - the difference between modules and components

2006-04-10T00:30:00Z

originally posted at http://www.jlleblanc.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11&Itemid=52

Components vs. Modules

Please note: although the described use of parameters and module positions here are specific to Mambo 4.5, the concepts behind self-contained templates, modules, and components still apply for newer versions. -Joseph L. LeBlanc, 11/3/04

Quite often throughout the message boards on forums.opensourcematters.org, new Joomla users display confusion over modules and components. However, once this differentiation is made, the architecture of Joomla becomes very clear. So, what is the difference between a component and a module?

Here's the short answer: Modules can appear on any page and are usually very simple. Components load as their own page and can be quite complex.

This should be a satisfying answer if you are simply curious or don't have a lot of time to read about the wonders of the Joomla architecture. For those interested in more, there is quite a bit to discover. Let's start with the way a Joomla page actually loads…

When somebody visits your site, the index.php file is called from the root directory. This file loads many different classes and other pieces of code that make Joomla work. After all of this code loads, Joomla looks for the directory of the current template and attempts to load the index.php file located there. So, both the root directory and the template directory have their own index.php file, with the root index loading the template index for the layout.

The index.php file in the template directory looks mostly like a typical HTML file. Within this file, you should find the code <?php include_once('mainbody.php'); ?>. This tells PHP to stop writing lines of HTML and include the code from mainbody.php, which loads exactly one component. This means that every page in Joomla loads a component. (OK, well, you could remove the include for mainbody.php and no components would ever load, but this would severely limit the functionality of your site.) By default, Joomla will load the component corresponding to the first item in the menu. Typically this is the 'Home' item which points to the 'frontpage' component. Frontpage displays the introductions to news articles written by site authors. When you click to on a link for an article, it tells Mambo to load the 'content' component, along with the specific article to load from the database. Other links can tell Joomla to load other components.

In addition to including mainbody.php, the template will have many mosLoadModules() function calls, ie… mosLoadModules('left');. This code tells Joomla to load all of the modules in the 'left' position that are attached to the current component (default positions are left, right, top, bottom, inset, user1, and user2). When a module is configured in the backend, a selection list appears allowing the administrator to attach the module to certain components (or all of them, which is very typically the case). This allows the administrator to set, say, the login form on the front page, but not on subsequent pages. Templates are not required to load the modules for all the positions (or any at all!), but it is typically helpful to load at least one module so that there is a place for the menu, unless you wish to code your own navigation.

When visitors load your site, they probably won't know or care about the difference between modules and components. However, anyone using the administrator interface to modify the site will want to learn how to manage these elements. Modules can be installed from the install/uninstall option under the modules menu. This will provide a list of the modules installed from files, with a form for uploading more modules at the bottom.

When the 'Manage Modules' option is clicked on the menu, another list is presented with options for publishing/unpublishing, positioning, and ordering. This list may be longer than the first list, as custom content modules can be created. These modules are not fed from code in the modules folder, but are fed from content in the database as articles are. They appear just as other modules would.

All modules allow for the inclusion of parameters. Parameters allow module developers to give site administrators a way of changing the module's options without creating a complex interface. For instance, if a module developer wanted to give administrators control over the background color, a parameter could be defined in the module management. Administrators would click on the title of this module, then type backgroundcolor = green (or whichever color desired) on a single line in the 'Parameters' box.

Designing component administration requires much more effort, but results in easy to use interfaces that allow administrators to manage complex functionality. When a component's administrative interface is loaded, the file admin.[nameofthecomponent].php is executed from the /administrator/components/com_[nameofthecomponent] folder. This file then loads the appropriate interface for the current task or action. More about creating administrative interfaces can be discovered through the Daily Message Component Tutorial.

Once you understand the difference between components and modules, the general structure of Joomla as a whole becomes very clear. If you are comfortable with your PHP programming skills, you should not hesitate in creating your own components and modules. However, it is advisable to check mosforge.net first to search for open-source solutions already under development. Chances are that somebody has created the functionality you desire, or has released something very similar.

Increased coverage and Options with New Strix Systems Access Points announced Today!

2006-04-09T18:05:00Z

Ed Holt at Strix Systems, one of our favorite Access Point Manufacuters, has announced the release of their Second Generation OWS (outdoor wireless) AP's. Most of our network is based on the Strix Systems AP's and the amazingly efficient and dynamic mesh architecture they provide.

These new units are much the same in size and function - but with improved internal design making it much easier for the end operator to maintain the device and replace radio cards as needed. Add to this a huge increase in RF power on each card - from the older 100mW now to a tunable and software attenuable whopping 400mW! Improved gui management interfaces and a reliabilty which is guaranteed to make any operator happy. With these improvements we'll be able to manage our devices more easily and increase our per-unit coverage area without additional external amplifiers or large dish style antennaes. - it's no wonder why we love the folks at Strix!

Keep up the good work!

For more info on these devices, please see Strix Systems Corporate Website.

If you would like to help put more of these devices near you or would like to purchase several for your area or needs - we can sell them to you - direct. Ask a sales and network professional about which options are right for you. Average prices range from $4,549 to over $6,369 per node (multi radios) retail. We welcome donations to our cause to purchase more of these for our free community network.

Here are some pictures of the units:

It's happening - read more about recent deployments using similar equipment world-wide!

2006-04-09T07:27:00Z

THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO OFFICIALLY 'UNWIRES' IN CITYWIDE WIRELESS PROJECT USING STRIX SYSTEMS' WIRELESS MESH PRODUCTS

Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony Will Feature Demonstrations of Real-Time Video and Internet Access over Strix Systems’ Solution

April 3, 2006

CALABASAS, Calif., April 3, 2006 – Strix Systems, the leader in high-performance wireless mesh networking, today announced that its Access/One Network Outdoor Wireless System (OWS) will be featured at the City of Sacramento’s “Cutting the Wires” ceremony, which marks a milestone for the citywide wireless project. Strix expects that in the near future the Sacramento network, with 2,000-plus wireless mesh nodes planned, will be even larger than the Strix network in Tempe, Arizona, which is the largest citywide mesh deployment in the United States.

Click here for more details.

MOBILEPRO DEPLOYS STRIX PRODUCTS TO EXTEND LARGEST CONTIGUOUS BORDER-TO-BORDER WIRELESS MESH NETWORK IN THE U.S. TO GILBERT, ARIZONA

First Deployed in Tempe, Strix Network Now Serves Three Cities and Covers Over 187 Square Miles

March 16, 2006

CALABASAS, Calif., March 16, 2006 – Strix Systems, the leader in high-performance wireless mesh networking, today announced that the town of Gilbert, Arizona, has selected MobilePro Corp. to design, deploy, and operate a citywide wireless service based on Strix’s Access/One® Network Outdoor Wireless System (OWS). This represents a further expansion of the wireless mesh network that MobilePro first deployed as a citywide system in neighboring Tempe, Arizona, and then extended to the city of Chandler. The deployment is based on Strix’s multi-radio, multi-channel, and multi-RF mesh solution, which provides the highest capacity in the industry.

Click here for more details.

STRIX SYSTEMS TO SUPPLY CITY WIDE BROADBAND WIRELESS MESH NETWORK FOR VOICE/DATA/VIDEO SERVICES IN CHITTAGONG, BANGLADESH

February 22, 2006

CALABASAS, Calif., February 22, 2006 – Strix Systems, the leader in high-performance wireless mesh networking, today announced that Accatel, Inc., an international carrier based in New York, has partnered with Nextel Telecom (Bangladesh) to deploy a citywide wireless mesh network in Chittagong, Bangladesh. The network is based on Strix’s Access/One Network Outdoor Wireless System (OWS), a multi-radio, multi-channel, and multi-RF mesh solution that delivers the highest-capacity mesh system available today. The Strix network will provide phone and Internet service to residential and business customers in Chittagong.
Click here for more details.

MOBILEPRO SUBSIDIARY NEOREACH SELECTS STRIX SYSTEMS FOR CITY-WIDE WIRELESS MESH NETWORK IN CHANDLER, ARIZONA

January 30, 2006

CALABASAS, Calif., January 30, 2006 – Strix Systems, the leader in high-performance wireless mesh networking, today announced that NeoReach Wireless, has selected Strix’s Access/One Network Outdoor Wireless System (OWS) for its city-wide wireless mesh deployment in Chandler, AZ.
Click here for more details

More >>

Unfurling wireless mesh

Federal Computer Week, February 27, 2006

Wi-Fi deployments stretch across cities, countries, corporations

RCR Wireless News, February 27, 2006

More >>

Why are we doing this? Free city-wide wireless internet? It can't be true!

2006-04-09T06:08:00Z

So many have asked - "Why are you trying to GIVE away the internet?"

My Answer: "It was free to begin with..."

Sure, it costs money to operate and deploy the mesh network. Valuable resources, equipment expense and an enormous amount of time is invested into this project.

The reason it works - is because of people like you who can offer your expertise to everyone else - for FREE... we all benefit from the open knowledge and access our network can provide to those it covers.

Please leave all the headaches and details on how we keep financialy solvent to us. We thrive on your opinions and knowledge you can share. The more you visit our network and use it - the more others will too. It's quite simple actually - the internet was inteded to be free. The idea of charging for access to the internet - the ISP industry - is really a very new industry in the world, being barely 12 to 15 years old in most areas... Technology advances have enabled us to provide multiple levels of services to our communities we serve - some of these are completely at a loss, financially - but fear not - if even the most expensive to maintain and deploy network segment can find its way to attract just ONE person who can help our effort or answer questions by sharing their experiences or expertise on our community websites - it is well worth it!

Partnerships with local and national ISP's and WiFi roaming partners like Airpath and Boingo are on the way... soon your home or business ISP (dial-up, cable or DSL provider) will give you the option to add high speed priority city-wide wireless access to your service plan. Some may charge for it - as we intend to charge them for using our network backbone of wireless devices - others will roll it into the costs of your monthly contract with that particular ISP. Remeber this, however, - all proceeds from such relations will go to further the development and deployment of this network and all it's community websites.

Free wireless internet is provided on a limited bandwidth with some port restrictions (for safety and security) to encourage users to participate in the project. Those who need higher bandwidth and are capable of paying for it are encouraged to contact your ISP or one in our lists to setup an account. Free high speed access is provided to everyone who connects to our access points and nodes throughout the coverage areas - you can register for an account on the local community portal website and use that username and password from then on to authenticate to the wireless network and to the rest of the internet.*** We DO block publicly known sources of virus, spam, and certain non-beneficial materials known to be of poor taste which is not legal to display in public areas or through public services. If you want access to adult-related sites, please do so in the privacy of your own home. The free public access accounts will NOT have world-wide access and we may discontinue your use at any time if others in the network are affected negetively by your access. This is a COMMUNITY network. Please keep it clean! We monitor ALL traffic and work closely with federal and local authorities to catch and prosecute anyone conducting illegal activities over our networks.

If we all monitor our activities - and the activities of our children who are using the Internet - this can be a much safer place to visit, play on and learn from.

Typical bandwidth for unregisterd public users who are able to browse the local community websites and other partner web pages is upto 256kbps download and 128kpbs upload. This is still nearly 4 times faster than dialup!

We recommend service resellers to offer 3 tiers of priority broadband: 512Kbps Down, 1Mbps Down and 1.5Mbps down. These are near T-1 speeds, wirelessly. Our network is constantly evolving and adding physical ISP connections. As more connections are added these options will be greatly expanded. The hardware we use is capable of 100Mbps backbone network communications between each node - bidirectional per backbone radio. Most of our nodes have the ability to host not one, not two, not even three - but a whopping SIX radios per location. That affords us a lot of capacity for increased useage and ability to integrate well with emerging technologies like Voice over IP (VoIP).

Welcome to the future of the net! Welcome to wireless FREEDOM!

WelcomeToWichita and the ZippyWiFi Alliance!

We're backlogged! Many places to deploy access points - very little manual installation techs available!

2006-04-09T05:26:00Z

Wichita, Park City, Kechi, Valley Center, Newton, Maize, Goddard, Derby, Andover, Augusta, Rose Hill... So many requests are comming in to be the next location participant that we just can not keep up! Good news - mostly!

I'd like to be able to place our equipment at every location immediately as locations become available - it's just simply not possible for me to do it alone! I am urgenlty requesting assistance from anyone willing to help - we need a general contractor to work with us for permit requirements and electrical work. County and city employees whom can help streamline the permitting and install process are strongly encouraged to assist! Any help is appreciated - remember this is a free network for everyone to use. The equipment is VERY expensive - but very durable! To cover one square mile with wireless wall-to-wall coverage it takes between $40,000 and $70,000 depending on topology and types of obsticles - this is also highly dependent upon the availability and location of locations to place the nodes.

To Join Us: please send comment to Eric@GoZippy.com or call Eric at 316-518-9350.

Who are we?

2006-04-09T03:25:00Z

First - Let me say thank you to all the local business owners, chamber of commerce members, city and county officials and everyone else who has helped in this adventure. Without your support the Freedom Team and our WiFi Alliance Partners would have nothing.

Started in April, 2006, the Zippy WiFi Alliance and the Zippy WiFi Freedom Team are groups of individuals who have helped and continue to help us reach our goals of advancing mobility and connectivity within the city of Wichita, Kansas. We have realized the value in the advancements in wireless communications and technologies which make it happen.

Through a unique partnership of free individuals consisting of techie-types who help with design or network structure, business owners who donate and/or host access points at their establishments as well as all the local city and county officials who have made waves to allow our network hardware on owned buildings and other verticle assets who desired to bring current technology to our area.

Our network is something of a paradigmal shift in the way we think about the internet and IP based connectivity. We have painstakenly researched and tested hardware and software from various vendors. We are now proud to say that our efforts are paying off - for the benefit of EVERYONE.

Free Public Access : Though limited somewhat in nature for security of the entire network, most wireless 802.11 WiFi standard equipment can connect to our network - anywhere. Free public access is granted when you join our community web portal at http://www.mycitylounge.com . Until such time - you are free to browse that site and all the content it provides about our city as well as the website(s) of everyone and every business who has supported our effort to grow. This includes Federal, State, County and local municipal department websites, corporate sponsor sites, local and national ISP's (who are allowed to resell our network capacity), down to the local techie part-time guys (and gals) who help maintain any part of our many sites, forums, network gear or who help with marketing our services to people that can help us grow faster.
Corporate VLAN : Hey Mr. or Mrs. Big Wig - Need to connect to your private corporate network from ANYWHERE in the city? Do you need a secure, encrypted connection? We can do it! FREE!***while we would like to set up everyone on a private VLAN who requests this service, we simply can not meet the demands currently. Sponsors are given first priority in the waiting list. Due to extensive time required to set up this service for each comapny, certain restrictions apply. Call us to learn more.
Government Services : ATTENTION Mayors, Council Members, and County Commissioners - How much time is wasted by field employees driving back and forth to job sites simply to get paperwork or to file something. You can now offer every employee access to your private secured network at many locations in the city using out backbone of wireless access points in and around the city of Wichita. We are currently working on deploying more Generation 2 Access Points which include the ability to service government and emergency service frequency spectrum. Please see posts elsewhere on this site which demonstrate the return on investment and cost savings (and in some cases life-saving) results achieved by similar networks deployed by FOR PROFIT groups and municipalities around the world.
EMERGENCY SERVICES : With ability to tune to FCC regulated 4.9Ghz for Government and Emergency Services - our network works flawlessly and seemlessly as you drive through the city and coverage areas within our mesh network. Broadband internet is now available to each Police Officer with an enabled vehicle and laptop - to each ambulance - to each fire truck. Real-time streaming video of remote locations for supervisors, scene investigators and emergency response / FEMA personnel. We need more of your support locally to encourage federal, local and state grant funding to help us build this vital part of our network.
City-Sponsored and Private Locations: Imagine - free indoor and outdoor internet access at various locations around town - even in motion! Consider a busy dad going to a ball getting real-time stock news on his WiFi enabled PDA or cell phone - able to watch the game with the rest of the family and still stay ahead of the competition by making timely trades - making emails - taking pictures of the game and sending them to various family members around the world via email - as they happen! Think about larger city and county owned facilities being able to offer visitors and vendors access to the internet and all the e-commerce which will then result from such availability of broadband signals.
Restaurants, Destinations and Clubs : Offer free hotspot services to connect your clients and customers to all the others in town who support each other - PROMOTE LOCAL BUSINESS by adding an access point to your destination! We will add your website to our white-list of addresses everyone is allowed to visit - from anywhere in the network and we will add your name to our sponsors page! What better way to get noticed? Add our logo to your website, print and/or radio and television ads and receive priority banner rotations and sponsorships of our news letters and forums.
Hotels and Inns : We can provide wireless internet access to all of your rooms and common areas! Attract more conferences and guests with these services! Ask for our solutions department to get started.

The Zippy WiFi Alliance is the group of businesses, corporations, partnerships, hardware vendors, banks and financial partners as well as governmental agencies who support our effort financialy through donations, strategic partnerships, discounted pricing and or access to other owned assets and assistance which furthers the development of our network.

The Zippy WiFi Freedom Team are individuals from every walk of life and expertise who join us to provide one or more service or task necessary to complete for our overall objective to be reached. This includes programmers, support staff, bandit-sign makers, business partners, elected officials and government employees. From jobs as small as moderating a single forum topic or category on the one of our community websites to advanced coding, scripting and design work provided by professional and hobbists alike. School teachers who donate time to browse our site looking for spelling errors and who post teaching techniques for other teachers and help tutor students via our interactive classroom and chalkboards... These people are the core members of our WiFi Freedom Team as they are the ones who donate their time, skills and knowledge to us in an effort to help all of you, now and for years to come!

There's no guessing at how large our venture can grow - the network will grow or die at the hands of those it serves. If you want to be a part of our adventure into the future of mobility and connectivity - please JOIN US. Financial contributions are welcomed - but not necessary to join our team. Send an email to Eric@GoZippy.com and let me know what you can do - there are many jobs and hats to be filled and many more not yet defined!

Send donations through PayPal by sending to Eric@GoZippy.com. Eric Henderson, founder of the Zippy network of companies is a licensed real estate broker in the state of Kansas and a disabled US Navy Veteran with a long history of involvement in technology and comuters. This is his vision he is sharing with all of you.

A network, robust and available to everyone, which is designed to encourage creativity, economic development, residential and employer retention and attention to our area. To give the ability and freedom for all to access community resources and the valuable data contained on the many local community, government and organizational websites. A network which is dynamic, fail-safe and secure enough even for emergency services and governmental agencies - yet fast and smart enough to handle emerging technologies like Voice Over IP (VoIP) phone calls, streaming media, and hundreds of concurent web downloads and users browsing the internet - without dedrigation to the quality of service it provides to each user. This is the technology that can save lives and boost an economy all in one!