Space and Time
Mood:  spacey
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
ooohhhh....

Space and Time

This is the title of my latest blog renter. Her name is Melissa, from Kansas, and she is a great writer with an eclectic view on life. Master of irony she is as well. Go ahead and check her out on the right, along with my sponsors.

CIAO for now,
Randy

The JFK Assassination Scam
Mood:  irritated
Topic: Make Money with Your Blog
Sophos.com reports today that the latest email scam involves the JFK Assassination.

The JFK

Assassination Scam

People have theorized for years about an alleged cover-up or governmental conspiracy regarding JFK's death. There have been entire radio networks devoted to this and various other conspiracy theories. I take them all with a grain of salt, but the latest email scam seeks to prey on the conspiracy buffs.

The author of this scam claims he is a dying KGB agent with the TRUE story, from newly-found declassified CIA and KGB documents, the otherwise-unknown secrets. This author will allegedly sell you his secret knowledge, from which you can make a fortune by writing "shocking book(s) that will have success and bring you fame."

This is but the latest generation of the Nigerian Scam. Requesting the alleged "secret" information will only lead to a slew of requests for personal information, money, id theft, bank fraud, and various other offenses.

Was JFK's Assassination a secret cover-up? I'm not sure, but when I was at Tampa International Airport last week, I think I saw JFK hangin' out with Elvis. Go figure.

CIAO for now,
Randy

The Spider Trap
Mood:  bright
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
The following is another version of the "Blog and Ping" method variously outlined herein, except without as much work. Plus, it works with sites that don't have an RSS feed.

1. Get a free blog from Blogger.com
2. Get a free account at MyYahoo.com
3. Post links to the pages you want spidered by the search engines inside your blogger blog
4. Send the feed to your MyYahoo account

Also make sure you put a little unique content on the page. RSS feeds are a great resource for this.

CIAO for now,
Randy

Top 7 SEO Tools
Mood:  lucky
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
The following links come courtesty of Kim Roach. Feel free to use them and leave comments on their usefulness.

Top 7 SEO TOOLS

1) Cool SEO Tool

This tool allows you to see where your site stands versus the top 10 sites in Google for a particular keyword or phrase.

2) XML Sitemaps

This site provides strp-by-step instructions on creating XML sitemaps for your site for Google and text-based sitemaps for Yahoo, or even an HTML sitemap for human visitors.

3) SEObook Keyword Tool

Ms. Roach states that keyword phrases of 3 to 5 words convert more readily into sales and are much easier to rank high for.

4) URLTrends

Boost link popularity with this incredible tool.

5) DigitalPoint

This free tool allows you to monitor your search engine positions on 8 different search engines.

6) Link Harvester

This open-source tool allows you find out who is linking to your site.

7) < A href="http://www.webceo.com/">WebCEO

Ms. Roach calls it the MacDaddy of all the SEO tools, combining several of their features plus more.

CIAO for now,
Randy

Veguit for Free
Mood:  lucky
Topic: Biking
Today I stumbled across an incredible free offer that I couldn't help but share with you. It's called Veguit, and they will send you a free month's supply, all you have to pay is $4.95 S/H.



Veguit has 30+ organic extracts of vegetables and fruits. You take 2 capsules a day with a large glass of H2O, and it'll boost your body's antioxidant levels, which will help you stay young and healthy. Antioxidants also help boost your immune system, fight off depression, allergies, and a host of other benefits. For your own sake, try a free month's sample of Veguit today. You'll be glad you did.

CIAO for now,
Randy

Learn How to Make Money Online
Mood:  lucky
Topic: Make Money with Your Blog
I recently came across some links to some books that will help you build an income online. They are priced right and contain more than their purchase price in information. Get yours today!




CIAO for now!
Randy

How to Use Contextual Advertising
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
Today, I'm going to again demonstrate an effective use of article marketing. You are free to use this article for free on your website, provided you copy the entire article verbatim, including the source, title, author, and credits. This article is about contextual advertising.

How to Use

Contextual

Advertising

Although I've written a few other blog articles since my article on epilepsy, I've noticed that the contextual ads on my site (i.e., YPN and the selection of Amazon books) are still about epilepsy, although the subject has changed. I decided to investigate a little further and came to the following conclusions: The crawlers that determine what types of contextual advertising to display rely on 3 things (listed in order of relative importance).

1) The contextual advertising crawlers look at headings and then titles. Although the titles for my last several posts have changed, I have not used any headings, and the crawlers just see the last time I used both a heading and a title for my post. Don't get carried away with titles, though; one title within your article is sufficient, and make sure you surround it with the h1 and /h1 tags. Also, make sure you use the same title for your post and for your heading.

2) Contextual advertising crawlers really seem to enjoy numbered, ordered lists. Just make sure there is some genuine content in your lists, i.e., not just "My Favorite Numbers" with numbers 1 through 10. I'm not sure how the crawlers do it, but they see through such weak attempts to imitate genuine content.

3) Another thing the contextual advertising crawlers seem to enjoy is natural repitition of keywords. Some people have tried to abuse the system and have given a black eye to SEO in the process, by having pages with the same keyword or words just repeated a gazillion different times and placing some contextual advertising on the page. Not only is this bad webpage copy, but it results in lower rankings for the rest of us who are honestly trying to get some promotion for our pages using legitimate methods.

If you will observe in the above paragraphs, I have started each numbered point with a sentence about "contextual advertising crawlers," without being repetitious or using bad writing style. As a result of the above techniques, the contextual ads should display appropriate content.

'Course, too, don't forget to ping Yahoo, technorati, and the others when you're done!

Copyright 2006 Randy Hildebrand

CIAO for now,
Randy

Beware of the latest Spam Scam
Mood:  chillin'
Topic: Make Money with Your Blog
If you have spent any time at all trying to make some extra cash with your blog, you undoubtedly have received a LOT of spam emails. My computer was down for 3 days last week, and by the time I got internet service back, I had over a thousand spam emails.

I just have a few things to say about these SPAM emails...let the buyer beware. If an offer looks too good to be true, it probably is. The latest Spam Scam I refer to in the title, the so-called "pump and dump" scam, has actually been around for a while, but Sophos.com recently mentioned that this scam accounts for about 15 per cent of all spam emails.

The scam involves an email campaign that boosts the value of a company's stock so that spammers can make a quick profit. The spam usually uses images instead of text, which sometimes bypasses spam filters.

A "pump and dump" scam might read, "Bogus Industries This stock is extremely undervalued! Recommendation: Strong Buy Short-term forecast: 300+%! ACT NOW!"

Our recommendation is not only to NOT buy, but also to delete the email and add the sender to your blocked list. Most email services now have an option to mark an email as spam and to block any further emails from that server. I encourage you to use these.

Graham Cluley adds that "The people that act upon emails aren't skilled investors, and don't realise that purchasing the shares is likely to reap no reward, benefiting only the spammers, while creating a financial rollercoaster for the organisation in question."

As I say, let the buyer beware and don't lose your shirt on a scam!

CIAO for now,
Randy


Tags: spam

Posted by Randy at 4:33 PM ADT
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Maybe you SHOULD'NT get a job
Mood:  accident prone
Security Pro News warns us this week about "dream jobs" you might find posted online.

One of these "dream jobs" paying close to 6 figures, is called "Correspondence Manager" or "Import-Export Specialist." Simple job - your employer pays you to ship goods overseas.

The FBI, though, says this is a reshipping scam. The stuff you get at your door for shipping overseas has been purchased with stolen credit card info. Thieves from places like Nigeria are behind the scam, and don't expect any money in return.

Another "dream job" you might encounter is the prospective employer asking for bank information (i.e., for direct deposit) after an online interview. Instead, they drain your bank account.

Similarly, identity theft can take place if you give out too much personal information in an online interview form. So don't give out social security numbers or any personal information.

My own luck with online postings has not been that great, either. The only actual jobs I have gotten have been with temp agencies who posted on Monster. I.e., I could have skipped the whole online part and just walked into their offices.

I'm still working as a temp, but I have learned the value of face-to-face interviews and networking. You know someone who knows someone who knows someone who knows about an opening at a company.

So maybe you SHOULD'NT get a job advertised online and just hit the pavement with feet flying! Wish you the best in your employment ventures!

CIAO for now,
Randy

30 Types of Epilepsy
Mood:  cool
Topic: Create + Promote Blogs
Today, I'm going to again demonstrate an effective use of article marketing. You are free to use this article for free on your website, provided you copy the entire article verbatim, including the source, title, author, and credits. This article is about epilepsy, from a personal point of view.

30 Types of Epilepsy

I'm going to briefly talk about epilepsy, a condition I have had since 1978. In 1978, I was walking along the street and was hit by a truck. I was in a coma for three weeks and in the hospital for three months. As a result of the brain injury, I developed symptoms similar to epilepsy. I am going to discuss the various types of seizures that I have had over the years, and what I have done to try to cope with them. I'm not going to discuss the twenty-or-so other less-common types that I have no personal knowledge of. My fervent prayer is that this information may be a great benefit to you.

Firstly, epilepsy is a rather common condition. Doctors estimate that about 2 in every 100 people have a variety of epilepsy. Most websites list around 40 different types of seizures, but I chose the number 30 because that is how many common varieties there are, and the director of the epilepsy association I am with gave that as a ballpark.

Before I get into details, I want to categorically state that my case is probably unique, dealing with my unique brain trauma. Not everyone who has epilepsy will experience the same types or sequence of seizures that I have. I give my story to provide further insight into the many varieties of the curiosity known as epilepsy, not to diagnose or treat any medical condition.

1) When I arrived home after the hospital, for several years I experienced a type of simple partial seizure sometimes called abdominal epilepsy. Usually during my sleep, I would have bizarre nightmares with vomiting. This type of epilepsy is also referred to as autonomic epilepsy, because the autonomic nervous system is affected.

2) Not long thereafter, I began experiencing auras during my waking hours. Auras are kind of a warning sign of epilepsy, and, with me, were initially characterized by dilated pupils, a sense of deja vu, a flat metallic taste in my mouth, auditory and visual hallucinations, and vomiting. These were a combination of autonomic epilepsy and temporal lobe epilepsy, also known as a complex partial seizure.

3) As I grew older, the autonomic epilepsy episodes decreased, but I still experienced the auras, which are also known as simple partial seizures. Despite what some MDs may say, I did not and do not remember what occured in the auras, i.e., what I "saw" or "heard."

4) The usual trigger points for my auras were when I would a) be under a great deal of stress, b) not eat properly, and c) not get enough sleep. In isolation, none of these factors really bothers me, but combined, which frequently happens when I'm under a great deal of stress, I have frequent auras/simple partial seizures.

5) Last year, over 25 years after my car accident and shortly after undergoing oral surgery for the first time, I had what used to be called a grand mal, now referred to as a tonic-clonic seizure. It happened at night, as the ones in my childhood did, but this time, I let out a strange whooping cry, my muscles tightened up so I was quivering, my mouth was wide open, pupils dilated, and I fell out of bed. I only know these details because my wife described them to me later. She called for an ambulance to take me to the hospital, where I was given phenytoin and discharged.

Phenytoin, or Dilantin, is usually given for nocturnal seizures. I was eventually placed on a rather large dose of this medication, after trying to voluntarily take myself off the medicine. When I did this, I experienced several probably-simple partial seizures during the day. My hands would get extremely cold, my pupils would dilate, and I had enough awareness that I could tell others "It's coming," without really knowing what "it" was or being able to describe "it." Basically, I was having an absence seizure. Once again, I could not and cannot descibe the auditory/visual hallucination.

I went in for blood tests and found that I had a very low level of phenytoin in my system, and my dosage was increased.

Lessons I learned along the way are that you don't need to call 911 when someone is having a seizure, unless it's the first seizure or you get hurt. My seizures usually didn't last longer than a few minutes, and I was not in any situation where I would hurt myself.

Secondly, if you are on meds for epilepsy or seizure disorder, don't take yourself off of them. My seizures have finally come under control with medication. There have been some reports of seizure control using a ketonic diet, but before you get excited, let me tell you that that diet is a high-fat diet, and usually only works with children. It's very bad for adults.

6) Tips for people with epilepsy:
Here's some things that I have done and/or were recommended for me to help me cope.

I don't operate heavy machinery, even though my job sometimes requires it. I ask a coworker instead. Seizures themselves, as well as the side-effects of phenytoin, make me uncoordinated, a little dizzy at times. I have explained my health issues to my employer and they are fine with it.

I usually don't drive. Once I was driving in a nearby town and I think I probably had an absense seizure because I drove around for an hour to get to a place 10 minutes away. Not driving or operating heavy machinery are mostly for safety reasons.

I speak foreign languages, do puzzles, and meditate. These activities typically involve both sides of my brain, and serve as an organizing mechanism to battle the wild electrical storm epilepsy gives my brain. Meditation, too, relaxes me from my stress triggers. I usually count inventory at work in French or German.

Another suggestion, which I haven't put into effect as yet, is to put a light filter on the computer monitor and TV. Flickering lights from these sources have preceded a few of my seizures.



Copyright 2006 Randy Hildebrand