Information Architects

The Motorola Droid is one of the best if not the best phones that Verizon has to offer. It performs unlike anything they have had to date, and the 2.1 upgrade with Flash 10.1 sometime in the future it promises to be an even better phone.

Applications can greatly enhance or frustrate the user, and with all the selections on the Android Market it is easy to lose sight of what is good. The Droid reminds me of my Mac in many ways, it installs and uninstalls applications very easily. Be aware that some applications leave folders on your phone that are not erased when they are uninstalled, and just like with your computer don’t install what you don’t need.

Here are some of the most reliable applications I use as a Web Developer.

1. Astro File Manager by Metago: Gives the user great access to files on the phone that might otherwise be hard to find.
2. Wordpress by Automatic, Inc: You can add new, edit, and remove pages or posts with this app.
3. Text Edit by Paul Mach: Great text editor with the ability to save in a variety of extensions.
4. View Web Source by James O’Brien: Does just what it says, copy and paste the code into text edit if you want to edit.
5. Advanced Task Killer Full by ReChild: Keeps your phone from being bogged down by apps running in the background.
6. Evernote by Evernote Corp: Great app for getting organized on projects with your clients.
7. AndFTP by LYESOFT: This little FTP client is amazing.
8. PdaNet by June Fabrics Technology Inc.: Use your phone as a modem for your computer.
9. Time Catcher by Intuit Labs: Brought to us buy QuickBooks and tracks your time on calls, working, and will export the data.
10. Photoshop.com Mobile by Adobe Systems: Minified photo editor with some common functions.

These applications are not in any kind of order so don’t put in stock in the layout. They all work well and do what they say they do.

I have found the stock browser to work very well within the Wordpress admin panel. There have been several times that I have launched complete Wordpress websites right from my phone, setting up a database created on a localhost, permalinks, home page, privacy, activating plug ins, and upgrading Wordpress.

If you use the Droid for Web Development, it will impress you.

Web Development can be one of the most difficult tasks to undertake. The varying degrees of involvement with the client can provide either useful or counterproductive elements in the overall product. Unfortunately, the compromises between form, function, and taste can leave a website as functional as someone who didn’t obey the warning label and put their hand under the lawn mower.

I have recently had one of these very painful experiences with such a customer who hired me to build a custom Wordpress theme. Once the theme was completed, the client decided to hire me to do their Search Engine Optimization for them. While on one hand they desired the benefits of a productive website they are mired in a site structure that will have cataclysmic effects on their search engine ranking until it is resolved. So they have chosen against my advice to keep hundreds of dead links, bad url’s, and a host of other web abominations. This is one of the biggest drawbacks of the do it yourself mentality using the great applications such as Wordpress. It is content management gone wrong.

We live in a time where we watch houses built in a week by an army of builders on TV, home improvement shows on how to do everything yourself, and the same mentality is alive on the internet. It is touted by many companies today that you can build your own website with drag and drop ease. While this becomes more of a reality, it also opens a Pandoras box of bad web applications. In the end, the client always blames the application for the elements not displaying as they would like not taking into account if they have no experience that might be the problem.

Web Development is more complex than drag and drop. To have a truly good web application there must be a well-written symphony of code, content, and imagery. Imagine a musical piece put together with drag and drop. There is no magic plug in, software, or company that can replace the need for handwritten code to fully optimize any web design.

Anyone with dedication can undertake the long process of learning how to develop a great website, but that long process is what is necessary. Web development from a professional will always cost far less than in the long run than an attempt without the knowledge or the tools. How many people actually save money trying to repair their own car, house, TV, etc? Web design/development is no different.

Search Engine Optimization is critical for developing an organic search ranking. There is no magic involved, unless following a specific blueprint is considered magic. SEO has some very solid structural parameters that if constructed properly will produce an organic traffic pulling website. The following is a quick guide to the on page optimization of of a website.

Content is very much the king of SEO, and titles will always be the crown of any content. It is important to understand that search bots read only words. Images count very little in the content category, but should be optimized properly with a descriptive title and alternate text for the best results.

What is good content? Relevance is the key to all good content, and if there is a product there should be a call to action. Relevant content will always contain the keywords used in the search, and concise descriptive text that is also keyword rich. Create text that tickles the search engine without boring the reader to tears.

Provide the following on each web page:

• Keyword rich META data for the title, description, and keywords
• CSS, and scripts should be in external files and linked in the head of the document
• Keyword rich header container with its own title, and description
• Keyword rich navigation
• Keyword rich page title/content that is meaningful, and easy on the eyes
• Add keyword relevant anchor text, and links
• Bold keywords in text
• Avoid huge blocks of text
• Keyword rich bulleted highlights for quick reference to main points. People like to get to the point as fast as possible, and the quicker they get there on each page the longer they may stay
• Keyword rich title tags, alternate text, and descriptions for all images on the site
• Keyword rich footer with navigation, copyright, and even some descriptive text touching on main points

Keyword rich does not mean unnecessary repetition; it is the well thought out execution of describing your page with relevance. Keywords are how the reader will find the web page, what they type in the search box is what you want in your page.

These on page efforts will help to optimize your local SEO efforts, however the greatest victories will come from off page efforts. Off page efforts consist of link building with high ranking sites through various methods. I will highlight off page SEO in my next post.

Wordpress 2.9 Carmen is here. Named after the jazz singer Carmen McRae, Wordpress 2.9 carries on the successful evolution of a great web application. The milestones that Wordpress has achieved over the last few years have been nothing short of amazing, the team has been able to maintain the publishing platform original intent, expand it into a comfortable CMS, and make it more useable with every release.

The Wordpress platform is by far one the easiest CMS platforms online today, but it is only as good as the version it is running. Just like computer updates, Wordpress needs to deal with version changes and threats both proactively and in retrospect. Upgrading to this new release is essential for the security and operation of any Wordpress installation.

First and foremost when performing any upgraded whether it is a website or computer, BACK IT UP. BACKING UP isn’t just for upgrades or installs, it should be part of the everday digital life regime. When things go wrong, and at some point they will, there is a way to recover. If all goes wrong don’t panic, remember an Internet search has a probable answer to the problem, or companies like Logistics Studio can get the site back in the game.

If a website is running an old version of Wordpress (pre automatic upgrade or 2.7) the upgrade should be performed with the documentation found at Wordpress Upgrade. If you are running 2.7 or above things should be automatic when the automatic upgrade button is pushed.

2.9 Carmen is faster at everything but she may not get along with your old pluggins. If there is a conflict, then it is time to rethink the structure of the sites pluggins. Not upgrading to the current version of Wordpress for the sake of a pluggin will open up the Pandora’s box of security and operation issues associated with out of date software. Many sites are bloated with pluggins to begin with, and should carefully evatluate what is necessary. A website should be focused like a great musician, and not a mockery like a one man band trying to play everything.

Logistics Studio has been running 2.9 since it was 2.9 rare, and never experienced one issue with the version. We are now proudly running 2.9 Carmen.

In web development, it is important to have the overall plan complete before beginning the web design process. Validation and optimization will suffer greatly if plans are not clearly defined prior to the job start. The best way to define a project, any project, is with a well written/detailed proposal with very clear descriptive text. A contract should follow the accepted proposal, finalizing the agreement.

Plans are the most critical part of web development. Sketches that detail container CSS speed up the design process, and minimize the debug process. Fact finding prior to the proposal is of the utmost importance. Find out as much detail as needed without wasting time. This initial information will be the foundation of the entire project. The better the fact finding the better the overall project results will be.

Break every project down into four simple blocks:

• Fact finding and investigation
• Initial design comps and proposal
• Contract and fulfillment
• Delivery and followup

Fact finding should be all about the client, their target market, and their budget. We need to find out what they like, don’t like, can afford, and what is good for the future of their site. Putting it together is where true design really happens. This is the foundation of the project from every aspect and ensures delivery of the best possible product.

Initial design comps should be somewhat rudimentary, and the customer should be aware of this. By doing comps it is possible to narrow down the focus to; hopefully, something the client will like, and that performs. Images, text, and graphics all cost money to implement so be sure they are calculated fairly in the proposal. Itemize extensions to be used noting that if it is one of the customers choosing it may not validate or work at all. Make the proposal descriptive about what they are getting, when they are getting it, what they are paying, and how the payments will be handled. This detailed proposal is the main attachment for the contract.

Once the proposal has been accepted finish the groundwork with a contract that covers everything the proposal did not. Include change orders, additional fee structure, and legal jargon. The design of the site should go smoothly because of the excellent foundation laid in the proposal. Build the application on a testing server where the client can check it out, provide feedback, and approve of it. Before delivery make sure, the package has been debugged thoroughly.

The awesome project has been delivered, the money has been paid, and everyone is happy. Right? No, make sure everything is going well with some follow up. Call, e-mail, or make a personal visit to check on the client with their new application. If there are any legitimate concerns about the application respond in writing, and rapidly take action to resolve it. After all is said and done ask whether the client would be willing to write a testimony for your company. By acting with these four principles, I have outlined the review will be stellar. Great business is all about communication from beginning to end.