Blog Box

If you are in the market for a web hosting provider, you need to consider these factors:

• Do they have 24/7 support?
• Do they have phone support?
• How fast do they respond to support tickets?
• What is their system uptime?
• Are they up to date with patches/service packs and security fixes release for the software they use?
• Can you pay monthly or do you need to pay annually?
• Do they perform data backups?
• Does their system scalable?
• Read their Terms of Service and Acceptable Usage Policy before signing up.

These are just some of the many factors you need to consider in choosing a webhosting provider. You could usually get these info by reading user reviews and feedbacks and going to sites and forums with web hosting reviews.

Webhosting Geeks is one of the top webhosting review sites. They currently have a Top 10 Web Hosting - Best Web Hosts (2008) listing. They also have a listing of awards given to the best providers for Windows Hosting, Unix Hosting, Budget Hosting, VPS Hosting and even Dedicated Hosting. They also have various webhosting provider reviews. One of the notable providers that they reviewed was Bluehosting which garnered Web Hosting Geeks Editor’s Pick. It is a good thing however that the review also had various customer feedbacks where I found out that Bluehost doesn’t exactly deliver what they are selling on paper.

While you are at the site, you might as well check out their web hosting articles and a list of free webmaster resources which might be of use to you.

How about you? What factors are you looking for in a webhosting provider?

The 9-11 tragedy made a lot of people and businesses look further into their disaster recovery planning and business continuity planning solutions. Data backup is an integral part of DRP and BCP. But performing data backups onsite alone won’t give you the protection you would need should that particular site be compromised.

The most common backup strategy that companies have is having a copy of their backup media on site and another one to an off site facility where they are stored securely. Bigger companies with bigger budgets who have several sites also tend to replicate their data across several sites to achieve redundancy and have a robust backup solution.

Backup solutions don’t need to be expensive. There are plethora of options you can choose from if you are looking for solutions to backup up your personal files. Take Tilana System’s Tilana Reserve for instance who offer free continuous data protection (CDP).

You can take advantage of their Enterprise CDP infrastructure running on their Cloud storage system which runs on fully redundant systems.

You can avail of their free service or opt for their paid services which gives you bigger online storage capacity.

• FREE 1 GB for 12 months
• $4.95 per month for 5 GB
• $8.95 per month for 10 GB
• $16.95 per month for 20 GB
• $41.95 per month for 50 GB
• $79.95 per month for 100 GB
• $149.95 per month for 200 GB
• $219.95 per month for 300 GB

Tilana Reserve runs only on these Microsoft Windows operating systems:

• Windows Server 2008 (32-bit tested)
• Windows Server 2003
• Windows Vista
• Windows XP, 32-bit versions (SP2)
• Windows 2000 (SP4)
• Tilana Reserve is not compatible with Windows XP x64 (64-Bit) Edition.

Mac versions are currently being developed.

Download a copy of Tilana Reserve.

Instant messaging, broadband access and video conferencing over the internet has made webcams become somewhat a standard feature with most of the new laptops and all-in-one desktops currently available in the market today. If you happen to need a webcam but your current system doesn’t have it built-in or doesn’t have one bundled then you’ll have to buy one separately.

Finding the product that’s right for you is hard. Reading thousands of reviews and picking from hundreds of products is difficult and frustrating. It takes a lot of time to make sense of all this information and find the product that fits your needs. That is why Wize.com was built to solve this problem.

You will have to consider the following when choosing a webcam:

• Will you be using it on a laptop or a desktop or both?
• Will you be using it on a Windows, Mac, Linux?
• Do you need zoom, pan and tilt features?
• Do you need low light/night mode support?
• Do you need facial tracking features?
• What resolution do you need? Does it meet the picture quality you need?
• Does it have a built-in microphone?
• Is it within your budget?
• Is it user friendly?
• Is it sturdy? Does it break easily?
• Does it provide product support and warranty?

Whatever feature you need, you can easily compare various webcams that you like using Wize’s product comparison feature and find the best webcam that’s right for you.

How about you? What things do you consider when getting a new webcam?

INCOTERMS:  The Official Guide To The Interpreration of Trade Terms

FOB, CFR, and CIF are already outdated and are dangerous terms to use. Many use these terms without knowing the risks involved.  Eliminate the uncertainties and errors in the interpretation of trade transactions by understanding INCOTERMS — the global standard for the interpretation of trade terms.

Understand the 13 vital trade terms (EXW, FOB, FCA, FAS, CFR, CIF, CPT, CIP, DAF, DES, DEQ, DDU, DDP) which can have critical implications in your business. Incorporate them properly in your sales contracts to avoid disputes and litigation.  Learn the set of rules in INCOTERMS published by the International Chamber of Commerce.

The Center for Global Best Practices invites entrepreneurs, importers, exporters, traders, bankers, transporters, insurers, lawyers, loan officers, business consultants, and decision-makers to attend this special seminar entitled, “INCOTERMS 2000″ scheduled on Friday, August 29, 2008 at The Peninsula Hotel, Makati City, Philippines.

INCOTERMS 2000
NEW INTERNATIONAL RULES IN THE INTERPRETATION OF TRADE TERMS

Course Contents

1. What are Incoterms? - Its purpose and scope.
2. What important matters are covered by the new Incoterms 2000 and what are the main changes?
3. How will Incoterms 2000 affect the relationship and specific responsibilities between seller & buyer?
4. What are the critical points under Incoterms 2000 for the transfer of risks and costs?
5. Which Incoterms 2000 are most appropriate for which mode of transportation?
6. A detailed diagrammatic analysis of the 13 trade terms under Incoterms 2000
7. Why EXW. FOB, CFR & CIF are dangerous terms to use?
8. Why FOB, CFR & CIF are no longer relevant for use in containerized shipment?
9. Relationship of Cargo Insurance with Incoterms
10. Relationship of Methods of Payment with Incoterms
11. Issues outside the scope of Incoterms 2000
12. Variances on Incoterms 2000: EXW (Loaded). FOB (Stowed), CFR (Landed), etc.

For inquiries, please call (+63 2) 842-7148 or telefax (+63 2) 842-7159.  You may also check details at www.cgbp.org.

Building your own website can be easy or complicated depending on which route you want to take. You can either make the website yourself or have somebody else do it for you.

Having somebody else design and develop the website for you would be the more logical choice if you don’t have the experience in web design. But if you want to get your hands dirty and learn something new along the way you might consider building the website by yourself.

If you decide to build the site yourself, you will need a graphics editor, a WYSIWYG HTML editor for more straightforward editing or a text editor if you only want to do some hardcore coding, a webhost where you upload your files and host your site and a lot of time to tinker with your website.

If you want to cut down on development time, you might want to consider using website templates.
Templates are for people who don’t want to spend big money on designers and don’t have a lot of time to spend designing their own Web site. Templates are for people who just want to select a great design, drop their content and text in and be done with it.

You can grab some free website templates all over the net. But if you are looking for high quality website templates you mind need to shell out a couple of dollars.

There are a lot of websites selling templates online. One of the few offering high quality website templates is Dreamtemplate.com. They currently have a subscription promo where they offer over 300 free templates and access to thousands for just $59.95 and the subscription is valid for one whole year! If you compute the price per template… it would turn out to be 6 U$ cents per template. That definitely is a great deal if you ask me.

Here are some reason to choose Dreamtemplate.com:

• Build as many sites as you want
• The freedom to use your templates for personal or corporate sites
• Lifetime access to your design
• Unlimited use of your template(s)
• Unique Design Concepts
• High Quality Graphics
• Photoshop PSD Files Included in Zips
• Optimized Images.

And that is not all. You also get access to over 50+ Brochure, PDF & InDesign Templates, 1000+ Royalty Free Stock Web Icons/Vectors and 160+ Joomla, WordPress Themes & oSCommerce Skins! How is that for a great deal?

HireAHelper.com is one of the leading providers of moving labor in the US.

Customers on the average saves over $300 when they rent their own truck and use HireAHelper.com’s labor providers.

HireAHelper.com is an Internet-based service provider that connects day laborers with people who need to get work done. Launched in June 2007 HireAHelper.com has drawn over 1,000 registered helpers in all 50 states. With sections for Moving Help, Landscaping Help, Cleaning Help, and General Help / Day Labor HireAHelper.com has you covered. HireAHelper.com is also the endorsed and sole moving labor provider for Realtor.com and Moving.com.

Here’s how it works:

1. Search and select a helper in your area.
Search for local helpers and receive an instant quote on each helper you select. Learn more about each helper in their individual profile and read reviews of their past performance.

2. Helper contacts you.
The helper you have requested will be in contact with you within 24 hours, if for some reason they cannot help you, you can choose another helper or choose to cancel the job. Once you offer a job to a helper and they accept, payment will be made with your credit card and you will receive a authorization code.

3. When the work is done hand them an authorization code.
After the worker has completed the work, simply hand them the authorization code you received during checkout and we will deposit the funds into their bank account.

HireAHelper.com also has a Learning Center which is a great place to get up to date information on a variety of topics that will be useful for homeowners. We have a team of professionals here to provide you with constant updates and new ways to make your life easier.

So whether you are looking for Washington movers, Chicago movers or New York movers, give HireAHelper.com a try!

Are you looking for new furniture for your home? Perhaps you are looking for something that is both a space saver and at the same time will serve you well.

Bar stools would be an excellent alternative to the usual bulky chairs or sofas if you have a limited space in your home.

Consider checking our PremierBarStools.com. They carry both expensive and inexpensive Counter Stools, Kitchen and Discount Bar Stools, Extra Tall Stools, Outdoor Stools and Tables, and Pub Table Sets.

You can choose from their inventory which comprises of various Metal, Wood, Upholstered, Backless, and Contemporary Barstools in all colors and sizes, so that you can match whatever interior design theme you have in your home or business.

Check out their vast inventory of 95 different Kitchen Bar Stools and Kitchen Island Barstools starting from US$75 up to US$399, 91 Discount Counter Height Bar Stools and Counter Stools with prices ranging from US$69.99 to US$274.99. They also have 17 different Extra Tall Stools and 18 Outdoors Stools and Tables to choose from.

You can even choose stools based on their seat height. Choose from stool heights ranging from 24-26 inches, 27-29 inches, 30-31 inches, 32-33 inches and 34-35 inches.

Best of all you can get all these items at a low wholesale pricing. They will even ship your orders to you for free if you live within the continental United States!.

If you are on a budget, you can easily choose items within your budget as you can browse through items based on price ranges under US$100, US$100 to US$250, US$250 to US$350 and US$350 & up.

Also check out their Clearance sale department every now and then as you can get as much as 33% off from the regular wholesale prices.

The people over at PremierBarStools.com are so confident about their products and at the same time reaffirming the thrust to make all clients satisfied with their purchases that they will give you a 30-day no questions asked return policy. How is that for a guarantee?

With an offer like this, what have you got to lose? Find your perfect new barstools and table sets today only at PremierBarStools.com!

Beauty Warehouse, based from Melrose Arch, Johannesburg, South Africa, provides professional beauty supplies to South African and Southern African salons and Spa’s. Their operation is strictly focused in business to business transactions. They pride themselves as the only online beauty supply store in South Africa.
You can shop for products from various categories such as Equipment, Furniture, Nails, Hair, Skin and Body brands, Waxing, Toweling, Massage, Sterilisation, Cutting instruments, tints and colors, downloadable items, Laser and IPL, facials, consumables, sports & health equipment and various miscellaneous items.

Beauty Warehouse Shop lets you choose from brands like Artic Ice, Esse, Evox, GermKill, Pro Color, Pro Quip, Orly, Parlux, Grimas, Indonesian Treasure, Kultt, Marica, Maya, MBI, Ms Venus, Nailite, Nutriwoman, Precision Fitness, Salon Care, Seasons of Reflections, Stadler, Star Nails, Tegoder, Tessiline, Toma and Wax Factor.

Fragrance House is Beauty Warehouse’ latest addition having brands such as Agent Provocateur, Andy Warhol, Anna Sui, Antonio Puig, Aramis, Armani, Benetton, Britney Spears, Burberry, Bvlgari, Cacharel, Calvin Klein, Carolina Herrera, Cartier, Cathy Guetta, Celine, Celine Dion, Cerruti, Chloe, Chopard, Christian Dior, Clinique, Coleen, Danielle Steel, David Beckham, Davidoff, Diesel, DKNY, Dolce & Gabbana, Dupont, Elizabeth Arden, Elizabeth Taylor, Escada, Estee Lauder, Everlast, Fendi, Ferrari, French Connection UK, Ghost, Giorgio Beverly Hills, Givenchy, Gloria Vanderbilt, Gres, Gucci, Guerlain, Hilary Duff, Hugo Boss, Hummer, Iceberg, Issey Miyake, Jasper Conran, Jean Paul Gaultier, Jeanne Arthes, Jlo, Joop, Juicy Couture, Kate Moss, Kenzo, Kylie Minogue, La Perla, Lacoste, Lancome, Lanvin, Mary-Kate And Ashley, Max Mara, Michael Kors, Miss Sixty, Montana, Morgan, Moschino, Nicole Farhi, Nina Ricci, Orlane, Oscar De La Renta, Paco Rabanne, Paloma Picasso, Paris Hilton, Paul Smith, Pierre Cardin, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Revlon, Roberto Cavalli, Rochas, Salvador Dali, Sarah Jessica Parker, Sean John, Shilpa Shetty, Slazenger, Snoopy, Stella McCartney, Thierry Mugler, Touch Of Cosmetics, Usher, Valentino, Van Clef, Vera Wang, Versace, Victoria Beckham, Vivienne Westwood, X Factor, Yves Saint Laurent available in their inventory

Beauty Warehouse positions itself as a one stop shop for all your beauty needs as they stock on all big brands and offer you items at great prices. They accept payments on all major credit cards and can even give you to purchase goods on credit if you have been their customer for quite some time already.

Deliveries are typically delivered in 1-4 weeks. Give them a call if you need your items earlier.

Father’s day is just around the corner. Have you shopped around for the perfect gift for your dad? Perhaps you already have one! Dads usually are into gadgets and stuff. So shopping around online for that gift wouldn’t really be a bad idea.

I am not being a cheapskate here but I would want to get the biggest bang for every penny I spend. Let’s face it… who wouldn’t?

Watch out for those Father’s day special sale. Be on the look out for discount codes, discount vouchers, discount coupons and rebates.

DealLocker.com, which is currently in beta, having the tag line “because friends help friends get deals” is just one of the many websites that can help you in getting the latest discount coupons that you can use to buy and also save from some of the famous stores and brands.

Store coupons from Dell coupons, Amazon, BestBuy, GoDaddy, Hewlett Packard, JCPenney, Kohl’s, Nike, Macy’s, Old Navy, Orbitz, Quill, RitzCamera, ShopBop, Staples, Victoria’s Secret and the list goes on and on are up for grabs at DealLocker.

You can easily search coupons by category the likes of camera coupons, cell phones coupons, clothing coupons, computer coupons, hotel coupons, food coupons, nutrisystem coupons, travel coupons, software coupons and yes, even lingerie coupons.

They also have a coupon blog where you can read check out the latest deals and coupons available. If you want you can subscribe to their RSS feed so you always get informed everytime there is a new deal.

In the event that you stumble upon a discount coupon somewhere and it still isn’t listed at DealLocker don’t hesitate to give back to the community and share the details of that particular deal. Adding a new coupon is as easy as entering the url of the website, the coupon code and a short description about the coupon.

So how about you do you know of any other coupon sites that we can use for our Father’s day gift online shopping?

Are you still wearing eyeglasses? How about contact lenses? Have you heard of Lasik? Laser Surgery? Curious but nervous, one gets intimidated upon hearing these words as these relate to surgical treatment of the eyes. As it relates to one’s vision which is an all too important and basic function in life, as effective and permanent solution to one’s optical impairments? Is it 100$ safe? Is it 100% effective? Will there be complications?

As Lasik surgery sounds intimidating, will the cost be as intimidating too or more intimidating? Certainly these are questions that come to mind that need to be answered fully to the absolute satisfaction of the optically impaired and those of his or her loved ones.

Vision, 24×7, is too basic and important to be taken for granted that one has to know if indeed Lasik would be the best and most effective solution. One’s level of expectation as to what one expects out of Lasik and what Lasik can do on the other hand has to be weighed.

Lasik surgery is basically laser surgery to correct refractive errors in the eyes. It is the thus the treatment that reshapes the cornea to produce clear vision. Myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism can be treated by Lasik.

An experienced ophthalmologist would be a reliable resource who will determine if one is a good candidate for Lasik as he can do a comprehensive eye exam and medical history.

Lasik eye surgery, to most patients, has been found to be a safe and effective treatment and has in fact gained popularity with more than a million people undergoing Lasik surgery annually. Most patients are happy and satisfied with their Lasik treatment as it has improved their visual activity. Those who had successful Lasik treatments can already do away with the use of eye glasses or contact lenses. They enjoy the freedom of clear vision of 20/20 at all times and even indulge in any activity without restrictions.

But it doesn’t mean that Lasik is 100% risk free. There has been a small percentage of about 1 to 5% who experienced complications such as sensitivity to light, glared vision, dry eyes, loss of vision clarity and sensitivity. The good thing is that this incidents have been kept to a minimum with the continuous advancement of technology.

So are you up to it? I know I am. Time for me to save up to be able to pay for that Lasik surgery.

Being an employee and having an 8-5 job is good since you get a guaranteed source of income. There are people who wouldn’t want to be employees forever. Usually people would get employed to a company, get some needed experience, develop connections, develop some ideas and later on venture into their business.

Starting your business from scratch isn’t easy. You could probably try venturing to franchised businesses. Or if you have a group you could probably join forces and form setup your business so you can help each other out and also share the risk.

Another option is buying a business that has been running for quite some time. Even big companies have been doing this. You see big companies with the likes of Google and Microsoft buying smaller companies left and right. There are a lot of businesses for sale in the market right now. You’ll just have to take your time and do your homework as to which business for sale would be your best choice.

BizBen is a site that is all about Buying and Selling Businesses. It is one of the oldest and best in the industry. They have had thousands of businesses listed in our database and get a few hundred new businesses listed every week. They also have many articles, tips and other helpful information for people that are new to the process of buying or selling your business.

So whether you are selling a business or interested in buying one, drop by BizBen and check out what they have in store for you.

Do you have credit cards or perhaps a debit card? Let us face it in this day and age having a credit card is essential whether you use it often or just for contingency.

Some would also argue that using plastic is safer than paying in cash.

How did you choose your credit card? What benefits does your credit card company give you?

There is a multitude of options in choosing a credit card. You can opt to get a personal credit card or even avail of a business credit card. There are even credit cards that give you rebates and cash back on top of the points you rack up everytime you make a purchase.

There are also specialty cards like student credit cards and even prepaid credit cards.

If you plan not to use your credit card you would probably be better off getting no annual fee credit cards.

It might also be a good idea to avail of balance transfer credit cards if you have a significant amount of credit card debt from one of your cards. Using balance transfer to a different card, if done right, could help you out in paying for your debt with a lower interest rate.

Whatever type of card you plan get drop by CreditCardsClub.com to get some tips and get side-by-side comparisons of various credit cards.

The advent of the web has definitely made communication easier and more cost efficient. Gone are the days that we need to spend a lot on long distance calls with the availability of VoIP. Web conferences and meetings can be done easily and immediately so we no longer have to travel hundreds or even thousands of miles away just to meet with the people we need to get in touch with.

There are a lot of options if you want to have web conferencing. The most practical and affordable option would have to be using instant messaging software with the likes of Yahoo! Messenger, Microsoft’s Live Messenger, Skype and the list goes on.

If you want more functionality and you need to interact with a larger audience you would be better off with web conferencing software and services. The most famous ones available in the market would be WebEx, Microsoft’s LiveMeeting, Adobe’s Acrobat Connect and Citrix’s GoToMeeting.

That is all good if you have a big budget or don’t do web conferencing often. But if you plan to do a lot of web conferencing, you would be better off having your own web conferencing appliance so you won’t need to pay any service fees every time you use their service.

RHUB is one of the providers that have bundled four applications: web conferencing, web seminar, remote support and remote access all into one appliance.

Having one device to do all that has the benefits of easier manageability and reliability since it is a dedicated appliance and at the same time save you a lot of money in the long haul and it even all the features that other web conferencing services provide.

Best of all, since you own it, you control it!

Do you travel often? Have you booked your flights and hotel accommodations online? You are all set With just a few keystrokes and mouseclicks! Convenient isn’t it?

Looking for a hotel online used to entail entering either a zip code, state or city where you want to stay. You then get a textual list of hotels within the city, suburb or town that you have chosen. The thing is if you are not familiar with the area, you might not have an idea as to where that hotel really is. Wouldn’t it be great if you could look for a hotel using a map?

The guys over at TravelingNetwork.com just recently launched a new mapping feature to their website which allows the user to map hotels of any particular city within the United States! But it doesn’t stop there. You can actually pick a hotel and check various information about that particular hotel. And here is the best part… you can reserve your hotel accommodation right there and then confidently and easily through their hotel reservation system.

The whole process is actually easy

Step 1: Pick a state
Step 2: Pick a city
Step 3: Pick a hotel on the map

Their system now even features the ability to add user waypoints to any map! Cool huh!?

So whether your looking for Chicago hotels or in Los Angeles, do check out TravelingNetwork.com to experience a new way in booking your hotel online.

Mac lovers used to have both PCs and Macs simply because there weren’t that much games that can run on macs. That has drastically change these past couple of years especially with Apple’s adoption of Intel’s architecture which also brought about ease of development by the software companies.

Let us not forget those small but very addictive games. Take for instance sudoku, Jewel match for mac, neptune’s secret for mac and many more. If you like to be updated on those small and new games made for the mac, check out Mac games and more.

Mac games and more is a website that delivers fresh weekly news on both mac software and hardware. You also get to read reviews on some of the latest mac software especially free mac games, some mac shareware and even mac freeware.

Mac Games and More is maintained by Cate Defrise. The site’s main purpose is to help recognize and publicize the work of independent Mac developers who work really hard but seem to go unnoticed.

So drop by Mac Games and More for the latest scoop on those shareware mac games and help those mac game developers along the way.