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Interesting article: A marketer’s perspective: Link building .EDU/.GOV sites through social engineering #linkbuilding #seo #marketing

January 28th, 2010 · No Comments

How to Improve .EDU link requests using Academic metaphors:
http://searchengineland.com/how-to-improve-edu-link-requests-using-academic-metaphors-34472

“As a web marketer who is requesting high-quality links from the gatekeepers of academic sites, understanding the lingo and professional culture of the academic world can greatly improve your success rate. Academic environments can be a bit more formal and regulated than web or business world. When you get through to a blogger or .com webmaster and ask for a link, there’s usually a minimum of red tape: they’ll decide to link to you or they won’t. But when you get through to an academic webmaster or university professor, you’ll oftentimes encounter someone who isn’t outright opposed to granting you a link – but it feels much safer for them to not make a decision or personally advocate for an outsider’s proposal.”

The link above (How to…) is an interesting article about how to improve requests for EDU/.GOV sites using social engineering tactics. Why would a marketer go through the trouble of social engineering an EDU/.GOV contact? Because 24% of the Google search algorithm is based on, Trust/Authority of the host domain and Google holds .EDU/.GOV sites in high esteem. So having multiple back-links from .EDU/.GOV sites will boost your site/page search rankings providing more site traffic.

Search Rank Factors: http://www.seomoz.org/article/search-ranking-factors

Link Building Tactics: http://www.seomoz.org/article/search-ranking-factors#link-building

iPad, iTablet Costs Per Engadget #apple #ipad #itablet #engadget #stevejobs

January 27th, 2010 · No Comments

Data is WiFi and 3G

14.99 for 250 mb per month

29.00 for unlimited

no contract — can cancel at any time

Free data at AT&T WiFi hotspots

Uses micro sims cell cards so can use outside of the US

cost start at $499 - $800

[via: www.engadget.com]

More info here as well: http://www.macrumors.com/

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2346545,00.asp

The Internet is a buzz about Apple’s unveiling of the ipad #apple #ipad #stevejobs

January 27th, 2010 · No Comments

The Internet is a buzz about Apple’s unveiling of the ipad device, which features a large touch-screen and is designed for surfing the Web, reading, watching videos and playing music. The device looks like a large iPhone or iPod Touch. There’s speculation of monthly fees and the device may cost $699.

Hard to tell whom Apple’s target market is for this device because if you have an iphone will you want to plunk down another $500-$700 plus monthly fees for this device. If you are with another carrier, are you willing to shell out more money monthly in a recession? As for the Kindle, you only incur fees when purchasing books.

Data Cost

Data is WiFi and 3G

14.99 for 250 mb per month

29.00 for unlimited

$60.00 per month SPRINT

no contract — can cancel at any time

Free data at AT&T WiFi hotspots

uses micro sims cell cards so can use outside of the US

cost start at $499

I think I am going to wait for 3 - 6 months until the innovators and early adopters purchase and provide reviews. Then I will check eBay for prices. I am not sure this will be a Kindle, Netbook, and/or laptop replacement and I really can’t justify the monthly expense – Right now…

More info:

Apple and Amazon could be the best of enemies. Look at their entirely complimentary business strategies. Amazon sells content. The company went into the hardware business to spur more e-book sales. It intends to make a large profit selling e-textbooks for the new Kindle DX. Yeah, sure, Amazon makes money on the Kindle, but its heart is in the books. Apple sells hardware. Apple became the world’s leading online media store so it could sell more iPods. Its heart is in the iPods.

Amazon won’t stress out about this too much. It will still be selling e-books, and now it will be selling e-textbooks, too. The big losers will be newspapers and magazines that hope to sell Kindle subscriptions. They’ll be forced to put their free Web sites behind a pay wall or find some other way of making money. Textbook companies and traditional book publishers aren’t in so much danger, because they’ve never offered all of their content online free.

The iPad also won’t just be an e-book/Internet reader. It’s sure to be a terrific media player—a sort of widescreen iPod, the perfect thing for watching a movie in bed or on the plane. Apple won’t position it as a general-purpose computer, as the company doesn’t want to cannibalize its MacBook business.

Links

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/Steve-Jobs-Apple-Tablet-iPad,9521.html

http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/27/live-from-the-apple-tablet-latest-creation-event/

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Less money for 2010, federal income tax withholding tables for 2010 #taxes #personalfinance #money

January 26th, 2010 · No Comments

Download now or preview on posterous

irs-tax-witholding-tables-revision-n1036.pdf (590 KB)

The federal income tax withholding tables for 2010 have changed. Due to this change, you may notice a slight increase in your income tax withheld resulting in less take home pay. You will see the difference in your first paycheck this year (January 14, 2010).

Life isn’t fair, keep on moving, don’t stop #life #soul2soul #donaldtrump

January 26th, 2010 · No Comments

Life isn’t fair! If you don’t like the cards you are dealt with, do something to change them. If you keep doing what your doing, you will keep getting what you’re getting. And for some reason, if you are unable to change them, keep moving forward and don’t look back. All you can do is trying and never quit.

Don’t get caught up in the IRS 2009 Dirty Dozen Tax Scams

January 21st, 2010 · No Comments

Tax time is approaching and so here’s the 2009 Internal Revenue Service, “dirty dozen” list of tax scams, including schemes involving phishing, hiding income offshore and false claims for refunds.

Phishing: Phishing is a tactic used by Internet-based scam artists to trick unsuspecting victims into revealing personal or financial information. The criminals use the information to steal the victim’s identity, access bank accounts, run up credit card charges or apply for loans in the victim’s name.

Hiding Income Offshore: The IRS aggressively pursues taxpayers and promoters involved in abusive offshore transactions. Taxpayers have tried to avoid or evade U.S. income tax by hiding income in offshore banks, brokerage accounts or through other entities.

Filing False or Misleading Forms: The IRS is seeing scam artists file false or misleading returns to claim refunds that they are not entitled to. Frivolous information returns, such as Form 1099-Original Issue Discount (OID), claiming false withholding credits are used to legitimize erroneous refund claims.

Abuse of Charitable Organizations and Deductions: The IRS continues to observe the misuse of tax-exempt organizations. Abuse includes arrangements to improperly shield income or assets from taxation and attempts by donors to maintain control over donated assets or income from donated property.

Return Preparer Fraud: Dishonest return preparers can cause many headaches for taxpayers who fall victim to their ploys. Such preparers derive financial gain by skimming a portion of their clients’ refunds and charging inflated fees for return preparation services. They attract new clients by promising large refunds.

Frivolous Arguments: Promoters of frivolous schemes encourage people to make unreasonable and unfounded claims to avoid paying the taxes they owe.

False Claims for Refund and Requests for Abatement: This scam involves a request for abatement of previously assessed tax using Form 843, Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement. Many individuals who try this have not previously filed tax returns.

Abusive Retirement Plans: The IRS continues to uncover abuses in retirement plan arrangements, including Roth Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs). The IRS is looking for transactions that taxpayers are using to avoid the limitations on contributions to IRAs as well as transactions that are not properly reported as early distributions.

Disguised Corporate Ownership: Some taxpayers form corporations and other entities in certain states for the primary purpose of disguising the ownership of a business or financial activity.

Zero Wages: Filing a phony wage- or income-related information return to replace a legitimate information return has been used as an illegal method to lower the amount of taxes owed. Typically, a Form 4852 (Substitute Form W-2) or a “corrected” Form 1099 is used as a way to improperly reduce taxable income to zero.

Misuse of Trusts: For years, unscrupulous promoters have urged taxpayers to transfer assets into trusts. While there are many legitimate, valid uses of trusts in tax and estate planning, some promoted transactions promise reduction of income subject to tax, deductions for personal expenses and reduced estate or gift taxes.

Fuel Tax Credit Scams: The IRS is receiving claims for the fuel tax credit that are unreasonable. Some taxpayers, such as farmers who use fuel for off-highway business purposes, may be eligible for the fuel tax credit. But some individuals are claiming the tax credit for nontaxable uses of fuel when their occupation or income level makes the claim unreasonable.

[via: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=206370,00.html]

easy to remember army strong leet passwords #leet #password #security #in

January 19th, 2010 · No Comments

Leet Passwords are easy to remember acronym passwords generated by combining the first letter of each word, randomly changing the case, and replacing alphanumeric characters with their Leet (1337)¹ equivalents, that is characters that look and/or sound the same ( Single ASCII 1337 Characters). Enter an easy to remember phrase such as "My wonderful dog Goldie is eight years old." or select a book, a page number and a sentence of X number of words. (X >= 8 and the first character of each word is unique).

Wikipedia,” leet, also known as eleet or leetspeak, is an alternative alphabet for the English language that is used primarily on the Internet. It uses various combinations of ASCII characters to replace Latinate letters. For example, leet spellings of the word leet include 1337 and l33t; eleet may be spelled 31337 or 3l33t. The term leet is derived from the word elite. The leet alphabet is a specialized form of symbolic writing. Leet may also be considered a substitution cipher, although many dialects or linguistic varieties exist in different online communities. The term leet is also used as an adjective to describe formidable prowess or accomplishment, especially in the fields of online gaming and in its original usage, computer hacking.”

Via: http://www.goodpassword.com/

FUD, WHO, Vaccines, & Conspiracies theories: population control through manmade disease and vaccines #vaccines #fud #conspiracy

January 14th, 2010 · No Comments

Fear Uncertainty Doubt (FUD), WHO, Vaccines, & Conspiracies theories: population control through manmade disease and vaccines #vaccines #fud #conspiracy

Thinking about FUD, I watched a show during the Christmas break about conspiracies and normally I keep a jaundiced eye but this one started to make a bit of sense. The show was about the Flu and the accompanying vaccine – the marketing as an epidemic or pandemic and why.

The show theorized there is a ‘conspiracy’ at play by an elite secret group, Bilderberg Group (BG)” to regulate the population through creating and marketing asian/swine/etc flu and vaccines. The show theorizes BG controls the World Health Organization (WHO) and for the most part influences the US and the CDC too and its aim is to curb the world’s population to 500M [using the flu and vaccine] so that it (the earth) can sustain itself (food, water, & natural resources etc).

The conspiracy theorists claim WHO has created these flu strains and marketed the vaccines [at the behest of BG] to whip the world into a frenzy (FUD) and by doing this WHO/CDC can administer the vaccines which will either kill or render one sterile through a substance in the vaccine called ‘squalene’. If the flu and squalene don’t kill you, it will render you sterile by attacking your immune and reproductive system.

The show referenced an American doctor who worked for WHO now living in Panama (supposedly) that agreed to come on camera to discuss these allegations and conspiracies. The doctor said BG is already carrying out global policy and there’s nothing anyone can do to stop it as she referenced the US would use military to enforce the vaccine administration as it used military in Louisiana during Katrina. In addition, the show also referenced the American Stonehenge, created 1980, by RC Christian, located in Elberton, Georgia, USA. The stones have 10 principles inscribed on them in 8 languages with the first principle reading,” Maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature”

All this sounds too fantastical to believe but I suspect there’s a bit of truth in it though… Below are the references.

Georgia Guidestones: American Stonehenge: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_Guidestones#Location

Bilderberger Group: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilderbergers

Trilateral Commission: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trilateral_Commission

Squalene: The Swine Flu Vaccine (PDF)

World Health Organization (WHO) Pads Pockets (PDF)

Download now or preview on posterous

Squalene-The Swine Flu Vaccine.pdf (57 KB)

Download now or preview on posterous

WHO Advisor Secretly Pads Pocket.pdf (81 KB)

Glenn Beck & Sarah Palin’s Worst Nightmare: An America Without Minorities #glennbeck #sarahpalin #kaiwright #education

January 14th, 2010 · No Comments

Glenn Beck & Sarah Palin’s Worst Nightmare: An America Without Minorities: Since Reconstruction, we have talked about race and opportunity in America as though it’s a problem for some of us only: Black people are poor; what should good white folks do to help them? That construction has always offered false comfort to a country that leverages deep inequality to fuel massive growth. But as we barrel toward the point where blacks and Latinos can no longer be dismissed as “minority” populations, it’s a fantasy Americans cannot continue to indulge.

… This is a frightening prospect for the America who will undoubtedly continue to lose its creative and innovation edge diminishing its GDP and economy as a world leader…

Full article: http://www.theroot.com/views/glenn-becks-worst-nightmare-america-without-minorities?gt1=38002

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