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Those who use Windows based PCs have a ton of options as their disposal when it comes to third party blog editors. For example, Scribefire, Windows Live Writer, etc. If you’re on a Mac however, there is an interesting application which is proving to be a powerhouse for third party blog editing called MarsEdit.

MarsEdit which is developed and maintained by Red Sweater Software recently released version 2.3 of the software. The latest release now contains support for Tumblr.com which is another microblogging type service. Also new in this release is an overhauled media manager that opens much faster when using lots of photos. Technorati tags editing has been revised, and MarsEdit 2.3 sports improved weblog Favicon detection.

I don’t own a Mac so I can’t give this piece of software a trial run but based on everything I’ve read, it’s worth the $30.00.

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I wanted to take a moment to highlight some key aspects involved with SEO that you don’t need a rocket scientist to help you figure out.

Be Visible – Think about the journey users take to arrive on your site. Keywords, search queries, phrases, etc. Queries that include your domain name, business, or company name. Also think about generic phrases that people use such as ‘blogging with WordPress’. Last but not least, there is the search queries which contain three, four, or five word phrases that identify exactly what the user is looking for. The key to success is to ensure that you have visibility at each point in the user’s journey.

Get Indexed – Make sure your website is able to be crawled effectively by search engine spiders. You can accomplish this by using clean code in your sites design, lack of on page javascript, absence of inline CSS styles, and non dynamic URL paths. The bit about URLs can easily be taken cared of by using a publishing system which supports URL rewriting. This is also a good time to create a sitemap and submit that to the various search engines. Sitemaps tell search engine spiders exactly what to crawl, hence the name.

All About Relevancy – Search engines are based on algorithms, not human thought. So while you might be able to get away with publishing gobbly gook as content on the site that search engines love, it may not be useful for visitors to your site. This means there is a fine line between writing for humans, and writing for robots. My rule of thumb and something I’ve done since day one ands that is to write for humans. I write content that is relevant to my sites purpose, the subject at hand and I use relevant titles to describe content as well as keywords within the content. All of these things put together not only makes sense to humans, but also tells the search engines that my content is relevant towards a specific subject so that I’ll rank higher for when user’s look for information regarding the subject.

Authority Is A Good Thing – Authority is a good thing when it comes to search engines. Authority is generally measured by the number and quality of inbound links to your website. For example, the more inbound links to a site from similar sites known to the engine using keywords in the anchor text, the more authority is given to that receiving site. When talking about Google, they use something known as PageRank to determine a sites authority level. Due to changes in the Google algorithm, it is advised my many to stay away from certain types of link building techniques such as buying links, reciprocal linking and site wide links. If you concentrate on creating good, high quality linkbait, the links will come to you.

Playing action video games can boost an aspect of adult vision previously thought to be fixed, a US study shows.

Researchers found playing the games improved the ability to notice even very small changes in shades of grey against a uniform background.

This is important in situations such as driving at night, or in conditions of poor visibility.

The Nature Neuroscience study raises the possibility of using a video game training regime to improve vision.

"There is some evidence that the visual system can learn"
John Sloper
Moorfields Eye Hospital

Contrast sensitivity is often one of the first aspects of vision to be affected by ageing.

It can also be affected by conditions such as amblyopia, known as ‘lazy eye’.

Improving contrast sensitivity usually requires physical changes in eye optics, through eye surgery, glasses or contact lenses.

A team from the University of Rochester studied expert video game players and found that they had better contrast sensitivity when compared to players who played non-action video games.

These results were not because people with better contrast sensitivity were more likely to be action video game players – giving non-video game players intensive daily practice in video game playing improved this group’s performance on tests of contrast sensitivity.

Crucially, the improvements in this study were sustained for months or even years in some cases, suggesting that time spent in front of a computer screen is not necessarily harmful for vision, as has sometimes been suggested.

Unpredictable events

Lead researcher Dr Daphne Bavelier said it was likely that several aspects of playing video games combined to produce the beneficial effect.

The games immersed players in an environment where they had to be constantly ready to react to unpredictable events, and where visual information had to be responded to instantly in very precise physical ways.

In addition, the mere fact that the games were stimulating and rewarding should not be overlooked.

Dr Bavelier hopes to make use of the discovery to develop new ways to treat amblyopia.

The hope is that by using video games researchers can encourage the two eyes to work together, and restore the stereo vision which is lacking in people with a lazy eye.

Professor Gary Rubin, of the University College London Institute of Ophthalmology, said he was surprised by the findings.

He said other work had shown that it was possible to train people to improve some aspects of their vision – for instance, to widen the visual field.

But he said: "Contrast sensitivity is a very basic visual function, and usually they are more difficult to alter in adulthood.

"This is a small study, showing a small effect, but it was carefully done, and merits further investigation."

John Sloper, a consultant at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London, said other researchers were also examining the potential for using video games to treat amblyopia.

He said: "There is some evidence that the visual system can learn."

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation

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An electronic spy network, based mainly in China, has infiltrated computers from government offices around the world, Canadian researchers say.

Experts at the University of Toronto said the network had infiltrated 1,295 computers 103 countries.

They include computers linked with the Dalai Lama – Tibet’s spiritual leader.

The researchers say they have no conclusive evidence that the Chinese government is involved. Beijing has denied any involvement.

The researchers were acting on a request from the Tibetan spiritual leader’s office to check whether the computers of his Tibetan exile network had been infiltrated.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation

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“It’s probably easier right now to find a problem, solve it and charge people than it is to find a job.”

That’s one of my favorite lines from the March 13 New York Times article, “Weary of Looking for Work, Some Create Their Own.”  It’s full of great advice whether you’re looking for a job or just looking to make a change.

I found it via Peter Bregman’s article on CNN.com this morning, “No job? Create your own!,” which is also a must-read because he takes a look at the facts behind the importance of creating your own opportunities:

There’s a lesson here for us. We’ve lost 4.4 million jobs since the economic mess started. And many of those jobs aren’t coming back. John Silvia, chief economist at Wachovia, told The New York Times, “There are going to be fewer stores, fewer factories, fewer financial services operations. Firms are making strategic decisions that they don’t want to be in their businesses.”

At this point, outplacement is just a bad bet. There is no place to be placed. Companies aren’t hiring, they’re firing.

And when eventually they do emerge from this recession, those companies that are still solvent won’t rehire to previous levels. Over the years, companies have gotten leaner as employees have gotten more productive. And they won’t rehire as much when times improve because they’ll want to keep their profit margins high. It’s quite possible that the age of big business tending to thousands of workers is coming to a close.

Looking for a job might make you feel better, but it won’t pay your mortgage. Don’t waste your time looking for a job that isn’t there.

Both these articles are full of great ideas and sound advice that would make for a good start to your day.

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Twitter has been the newest and biggest thing on the web for some time now, and yet still many people haven’t signed up, while others don’t even know what it is. For a quick summary, read the definition of Twitter as found on their support page:

Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent messages. People write short updates, often called “tweets” of 140 characters or fewer. These messages are posted to your profile or your blog, sent to your followers, and are searchable on Twitter search.

You can update and manage your Twitter account on the web, or even get an application for it to use on your phone or other portable device. This makes Twitter always available as a handy on-the-go resource, and you’re always able to keep in touch whenever needed.

Using Twitter, you can follow other users who you want to keep up with, as well as gather your own following. You can communicate with other users through private message or by @replies, which are done through the “tweet” messages themselves. As you see, Twitter is a great social networking site which can be used to do many different things. I will share some of the top reasons with you from a blogger’s point of view.

Promoting Your Blog/Site

Twitter can be used nearly better than any other social networking system to promote your visibility and reach on the web. Gathering a stream of followers is simple if you have people who are interested in what you have to say, and increasing your amount of followers is as easy as word of mouth and updating. Not only that, but putting yourself out there in front of all of these users is more simple than posting a 140 character message. If you’ve already got a blog, converting your current visitors to Twitter followers won’t be too hard.

After you have people who are keeping up with your Twitter account, you can share information about your blog and posts you have made by “tweeting” them, which in turn draws more visitors and pageviews to your site. And apart from that, it also increases the interactivity and closeness you have with your niche and your readers.

Twitter can also be used as a source to draw in new readers to your blog, not just as a way to provide interest for the old ones. As your presence on Twitter grows, so does the amount of traffic and new readership coming in to your site.

Getting to Know Your Readers

Twitter can be a fantastic way to develop relationships with other bloggers and your visitors. Don’t just make Twitter an extension of your blog, make it something a little more – bring your activity there down to a more personal level. Let your readers get to know another side of you there. And make sure you focus on your readers as well, and get to know them too. Ask questions where you value people’s honest opinions, and whenever you receive a message or a reply, take time to read it and respond if you can. Help as many of your followers as possible. Use any feedback you get to better your blog, your content, and what your site provides.

Learning New Things

And last but not least, use Twitter to broaden your knowledge and experiences. Keep up with and follow any person whose updates teach you about things you didn’t know before, and ask questions whenever you need to. If you have a following on Twitter and you need help with something or would like an opinion, just post an update discussing it. Twitter is one big caring, helping community. Give as much as you can to your followers and they’ll be happy to help you out whenever that time comes.

To learn more about how to use Twitter alongside your blog, read How I Use Twitter to Promote My Blog. And if you’d like to follow SuperBloggingTips.com on Twitter, you may do that here. Post your Twitter profiles in the comments box so we can follow you as well! And if you have any questions, feel free to ask.

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