Erich Stauffer

Author: Erich Stauffer

  • Is Google Docs Cloud Computing?

    Ether Fleet’s Cloud Computing recently answered a couple of the most asked questions about cloud computing.

    A lot of people ask, “Is Google Docs Cloud Computing?” and they do a good job of answering that while Google Docs runs web-based apps such as a word processor, spreadsheet, presentations, and forms Google Docs itself is not could computing.

    The other popular question, “Is Windows Live Cloud Computing?” is very similar, with the difference being that some Windows Live applications are local desktop apps for the PC.

    Ether Fleet is a good resource for cloud computing news.

  • How to Go from VGA to HDMI?

    I have a client using a Vostro 2510 laptop who wanted to display the contents of demonstration from the computer onto a HD TV via HDMI. Unfortunately, the Vostro 2510 only has a VGA output, which is analog, and HDMI is digital, so we needed to get a VGA to HDMI converter box. I normally recommend buying through Amazon.com, but due to time constraints, they needed to get it somewhere local like Best Buy or Fry’s Electronics.

    If you get a converter box, make sure you get an HDMI cable long enough too. They come in 6 to 50 ft cables. The converter boxes are easy to use, plug-and-play devices, but make sure it comes with a VGA cable and audio cable, too. Once you have it, it’s a matter of connecting the VGA cable and audio from your computer to the box, plugging in the converter box to a power outlet, and then run the HDMI cable from the converter box to the TV. Change the input on the tv to HDMI and you’re all set to go. Here is a video on Youtube about how to use the device I’ve linked to above.

  • Are You Overwhelmed with Spam in Your Email?

    When business owners ask me what they can do about all the spam they’re getting, I recommend Google Apps. Not only does Gmail stop most of the spam they’ll get, but it also allows them to create email addresses for all of their employees, setup distribution groups, and access their email from anywhere, including their mobile devices.

    But while spam might be the reason to switch to Google Apps, Gmail is not the only benefit. Your company will also get shared calendar, contacts, documents, and an internal website which you can use as a wiki or as a CRM. And if the tools Google Apps provides by default aren’t enough for you, there are hundreds of add-on software packages for project management, accounting, and customer relationship management that make Google Apps one of the most compelling tools for business owners today.

    Erich Stauffer has helped many businesses switch over from their standard POP accounts to the enterprise-level services that Google Apps provides. If you’re looking to reduce spam in your email and communicate more effectively with your employees and your customers, Google Apps may be right for you.

  • Having Trouble Installing XP Professional on a Dell XPS 400

    I’ve been trying to install XP Professional on a Dell XPS 300 that originally came with XP Media Center Edition. It has a SATA hard drive that requires a driver before Windows Setup will recognize the hard drive. This requires using a program like nLite to create a ‘slipstreamed’ version of XP.

    Each iteration of this process involves copying the source files from the original CD, adding the drivers for the SATA drive, and then building and burning a new CD or DVD to try. I’ve done this 3 times so far and am on my 4th attempt. I’m pretty close to just buying Vista or Windows 7 to put on this machine in order to get it to join to a domain (Windows XP Media Center doesn’t join domains by default).

    [Update 1/1/2011: I ended up just swapping out the SATA drive with an IDE drive and moved forward. It’s like breaking down and using tables when you can’t get CSS to work (which I haven’t had to do in a while).]

  • Can’t Create New Google+ Plus Page?

    Is your Google+ Plus Create Page Button Grayed Out and Not Allowing You to Create New Google+ Plus Pages?

    I currently have 13 Google+ Pages, but I’m unable to create more because the “Create” button is no longer active. Has anyone else had this problem?

    [Update 1/2/2011: The “Create” button is red again and I can click on it. It seems Google+ put me in a waiting period and then released me.]

  • How to Find Your Top Keywords in the New Google Analytics

    If you’re like me, you had trouble originally finding where the top keywords were in the new Google Analytics dashboard. It used to be under Traffic Sources > Keywords, but now it’s under Traffic Sources > Sources > Search > Organic.

    Google Analytics Organic Search Keywords report shows Site Usage with Keyword, Visits, Pages/Visit, Average Time on Site, % New Visits, and Bounce Rate as the default metrics. Most of the time its best to have high Visits and a low Bounce Rate, but not always.

    When you’re reviewing your keywords, look for problems people are trying to solve, issues their having, or products their trying to find. If you’re not solving these problems, know the answer to these issues, or sell what they’re looking for, these are opportunities for you to grow.

    Erich Stauffer is a search engine optimization (SEO) web design firm located just north of Indianapolis. We specialize in helping business owners create great content to make it easy for people looking to solve problems to find them as the answer.

    What problems do you need solved?

  • Write What Matters to Your Customer

    I’ve been building sites with the thought process that content matters more than SEO. I’ve been doing that by solving peoples problems. I look for those problems by finding sticky posts on forums, reviewing Yahoo Answers questions, and reviewing search terms for people finding my site (only works after you have content).

    Here are some recent graphs of sites once I started using this method:

    What I’ve learned from that is that there are direct search results related to doing this strategy and I spend very little time backlinking because I don’t have to. They customers find me because I’m solving a problem for them – they look for me instead of me trying to bait Google to make them find me over someone else.

    After reading what this sales guy, Frank Rumbauskas of Never Cold Call (Again), has written and listening to his webinar, I’ve realized that the crux of his premise is that by creating content on your blog or in an email or fax that you send, you’re answering a problem, fixing something that your customers care about.

    The result is that you’re spending more of your time finding out what problems your customers are having, solving those problems and publishing the results so that other people who are looking for the same solutions find you and hire you. You’re no longer selling, you’re taking business as it comes to you, and it will.

    Don’t get me wrong, SEO is not useless. In fact it can be often be very useful as 70-80% of all traffic is organic vs. paid. I make part of my living from SEO web design, but I also make part of my income from affiliate marketing. Those are somewhat in juxtaposition as I make money from people who want more organic results and from people buying ads that display on my sites.

  • Top Posts of 2011

    Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2012

    We would like to thank you for your reading over the past year and look forward to 2012 together. As we look forward to 2012, lets take a look back at 2011.

    Here is a list of our top 20 posts from 2011 according to Google Analytics:

  • Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2012

    Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from Erich Stauffer Web Design and SEO

    We would like to thank you for your patronage over the past year and look forward to 2012 together.

    Here is a list of our top posts from 2011 according to Google Analytics:

    Convert Your Existing Web Site into a Blog

    Erich Stauffer is an Indianapolis-based SEO web design company specializing in converting static HTML web sites into dynamic, easily editable web sites with blogging functionality using WordPress – a powerful blogging platform that can be used as a CMS.

    You don’t have to lose the design you’ve already paid for. We can convert your site without changing the look. We’re not right for everybody, but for the clients we are, we do exceptional work.

    SEO Web Design Ensures High Search Ranking

    One of the easiest and most effective ways to drive traffic to your site is with content marketing via business blogging. No matter how your web site is setup now, we can add a blog and train you how to use it to effectively market your business.

    From the initial keyword and competitor analysis to the search engine optimization to the inbound marketing campaign, your website will be optimized to receive the traffic it deserves.