Cloud Computing- How you can use it and why it is important
Unless you live in a cave and do not use technology there are very little chances that you have not heard about Cloud Computing. You might not know exactly what it is and how it functions but you must have heard of it and even used it in some or the other way. Don’t think so? You have used Gmail? That is cloud computing. Dropbox? There it is. It’s basically utilized by most of modern storage applications and whether you are aware of it or not your data is stored in the cloud which allows you to access it from any location. What is Cloud computing? Cloud computing in essence is utilization of pooled resources for providing resources to users as required. Its another feature is the ability to access the data remotely. There are many more uses and benefits of the cloud computing platform. Some of the main areas include: 1. Data storage and backup Today your data is your biggest asset. If you lose your data then your business would be hampered. On various occasions you would have experienced this and felt if only you had a backup of your data. With cloud backup services you can take regular backup of your data and access the data from anywhere. So next time you forget an important document you can easily get another copy of it. 2. Hosted Email For every business and individual email is a necessity. You cannot do without your emails. If you all you email are on your internal company servers then you are limited to accessing it in your office and when something goes wrong with the servers you are stuck without your emails and cannot work further. But with a cloud server you need not worry about anything. You can access your emails anytime and from anywhere on your laptop, tablet or your Smartphone as well. This is another reason many businesses have their emails hosted with external cloud service providers or use services like Google’s mail service. 3. Hosted Application and SaaS Before I answer why you should have hosted applications and Software as a Service, think about you working on your desktop and suddenly it crashes. You need to work on your assignment urgently and you are left with nothing. Getting your PC repaired is going to take time and even after that you cannot be assured if your data would be safe. However, with cloud being there you can rest assured that you would not need to face anything like this. There are various services like the Virtual desktop which is a cloud based desktop that you can simply login to and start using like your own PC anywhere. Then there is SaaS which is basically the software you have on your PC now made available in your browser. You can do your work like you do on your desktop using the software. But unlike the traditional software where you cannot use it anywhere else and do not have your saved data either with SaaS you can use your software from any location whether home or office and access all your data. There are various other benefits of SaaS such as usage based pricing so you do not have to pay for license fees and there is no need to update the software on a regular basis since as with SaaS, it gets done automatically. Another issue which is quite common is losing your laptop or tablet which has all your data. When this happens you are left helpless and risk losing all your important data. But if all your...
Read More10 Examples Of Unusual Navigation
I still remember the first time I came across a truly unique way of navigating a website. It was about ten years ago, and the page was for a small firm that dealt with web and graphic design. I had been hoping to hire them for my new blog, and it was the navigation page that sealed the deal for me. Rather than actual buttons, there were a series of stars on the backdrop of a sky. Nothing else was on the page, but the largest stars (that were in actual star shape and in metallic black and blue) were actual buttons to take you to the chosen page. None of them had writing, but when you hovered over it the star would rapidly spin and the sky background would dissolve enough that you could see a large text banner beneath. This banner stated the page the star linked to. This really impressed me. I had never seen anything so creatively done in a web design before, and since the name of the firm matched up with the design motif, it was even more incredible to me. That design has long since influenced me in how I look at layouts to this day. While that particular site is no longer up, here are ten other examples of unusual navigation on websites. 1. Stephen Vernon Clarke This portfolio for Stephen Vernon Clarke, a photographer and film maker, has an awesome overall design. The main page is just a single photo of himself. When you click on an arrow at the side it begins to scroll through a slideshow that features some of his photography work. In the top right hand corner is a small circle icons. When you hover over them they say things like Blog, Films, About, ect. 2. Small Stone Recordings US based record label Small Stone Recordings stuck with a theme that represented what they did for their navigation section. It shows an old fashioned car stereo. Different knobs go to different pages, such as information on their bands, tours press and contact information. 3. Yuna Kim I love this site. It uses simple geometric shapes in flat colors to make up both the design and the navigation. Hovering over each one takes you to a portfolio page, which is related to the column it has been placed in. Then there are a small shape headers at the top, which drop down text menus. 4. Racket Racket changes their layout all the time, so there is a chance you might see a different page by the time you read this than I am now. However, every time they change their layout it has a cool navigation format, even if it never stays consistent. Right now, everything is set on a single page that you scroll down. So there are no linked places for you to go to. As you move down the page you will find a contact form for quotes and questions, below that a slideshow that you control with side arrows to see former work, and below that is a collection of people they have worked for, and their social media profiles. 5. 75B This website is broken down into four sections that each take up a strip going down the page. These are for commissions, works, shop and about 75B. The final has a page for each of the staff members, showing a photo of them standing. Everything else is a glorified portfolio, but really well done. The whole website scrolls, so you only need the one page. Until you click on an icon...
Read More100 Beautifully Designed Responsive WordPress Themes
Responsive WordPress themes are designed to render perfectly on any screen size, resolution and device. This simply means that you can focus more on the better aspects of your website without worrying about how and where your visitors choose to access your site. Today, websites are displayed on tablets, mobile devices, laptops, big screens, home computers, and applying and tweaking a WordPress responsive theme ensures that your website doesn’t disappoint at any time. With WordPress responsive themes, you do not need to worry about tweaking, updating or applying some extra code as the specific theme is your all in one solution. In light of this, responsive themes have become widely popular across the globe, and good news is that most of them can be used by both beginner and advanced users. To make this easier, most of these responsive themes are complete with detailed documentation, and if that doesn’t work, there’s always the prolific customer support or online forums to count on. Listed below are our top 100 WordPress responsive themes, and we hope they help you make a perfect choice. Lucid [ Demo Link ] Glamour is a magazine style WordPress theme that features a multi column homepage display, and allows visitors to browse through your content the way they want. Its responsive layout allows it to be rendered on any screen size, resolution or device, and is tagged with a host of features including shortcode compatibility, powerful options panel, unlimited Google fonts, translation ready and Adsense and SEO optimized. Trim [ Demo Link ] Just as the name reveals, Trim by Elegant theme is a fully responsive WordPress theme that is clean, minimalistic and exquisitely designed. Created to suit beginners and advanced users alike, Trim comes list of extensive features includes secure and valid code, unlimited color schemes and unparalleled support, complete localization, cross browser and shortcode compatibility and complimentary page templates. SimplePress [ Demo Link ] If you’re looking to uplift your website with a clean and professional look, SimplePress is an excellent choice. This fully responsive WordPress theme is appointed with an uncluttered homepage that features clear hierarchy and an elegant Javascript slider. Some of its appealing features include responsive design, theme options, shortcodes, and page templates. Avada [ Demo Link ] Avada is a fully responsive and retina ready WordPress theme that comes loaded with an overwhelming number of perks. Some of its most notable features include 5 header designs, intelligent admin panel, custom shortcodes and options, unlimited colors and fonts, and retina ready. Flexible [ Demo Link ] Flexible by Elegant Themes is a sleek and minimal WordPress theme that is equipped with plethora of features including font customizer, perpetual updates, unlimited color schemes, cross browser compatibility, unparalleled support, page templates and much more. Reveal [ Demo Link ] Reveal is a fully functional and responsive WordPress theme that is designed to look great no matter what screen size, resolution or device it is displayed on. Some of its appealing features are responsive layout, theme options, custom widgets, logo upload, button shortcodes, video support, Google Web Fonts and cross browser compatibility to name a few. Hero [ Demo Link ] Hero is a minimal and clean responsive WordPress theme that is specifically designed for individuals who want to showcase their best work in the best way. The most appealing characteristic of this theme is probably its parallax homepage banner, but there are also others such as slideshow shortcode, custom widgets, localization support, filterable portfolio, logo upload and responsive layout. SmartStart [ Demo Link ] SmartStart WP is a clean yet powerful responsive theme...
Read MoreTrusting Ecommerce Security Seals Affixed To Domain Names
Most of today’s shoppers are savvy enough to know that shopping online is a terrific convenience when ordering from a reputable company. While the fear of shopping online has significantly diminished over the last decade, more e-commerce shoppers know how to determine whether or not a site is trustworthy. A trust seal clearly displayed on the home page of a website is quickly noticed by the first time shopper, distinguishing the safe website from the fly-by-night business. However, there is much more to actual notion of safe web browsing than simply displaying a trust logo. Several years back, the FTC vehemently announced that one particular trust seal provider doesn’t really verify much at all, leading consumers to believe every site containing ‘Verified Secure’ protection labels is really trustworthy when, factually speaking, they were not. ControlScan was the company FTC investigators chastised for having lackluster protocols for checking the veracity of websites requesting seals. The company, since their injunctions, was simply told never to misrepresent themselves to anyone again. Since that time, many people have truly wondered how consumers can begin trusting security seals in electronic commerce today. We’ve researched several solutions which contrite businesses could consider to instill trust into hungry website shoppers when landing on your e-commerce-related domain names. Lay Your Business Out Clearly Figuratively speaking, security seals are theoretically given to businesses with exemplary SSL technologies, long histories of conducting fraud-free business and having their contact information visible to everyone who stops by. After all, many people wouldn’t stop into physical store locations with leaky roofing or known felons working the cash register; therefore, consumers want indemnification before shopping online with different merchants. To alleviate businesses from being deemed untrustworthy, here are simple avenues which businesses could utilize: Dedicate an entire page which clearly outlines your proprietors’ names, addresses and contact information, along with everything which accurately describes what your business is about. Always have customer service based in the same general locality as your business. Outsourcing may appear money-saving, yet it’s also trust-threatening to domain names of newer nature. Describe to customers specifically how you remain secure, entailing the steps which your company takes, or took, to keep their private information secured. Trust seals given by third party companies are good; forthcoming approaches by business owners are slightly more honest. Remember, customers aren’t particularly keen on trusting some seal; they want security in knowing your business proactively monitors traffic, transactions and quickly ameliorates hacker attempts. By outlining your entire safe shopping approach, customers will drop their shopping guards. Perform Due Diligence On Seal Providers Since trust seal providers believe they’re the authority on website protection certification, perhaps flipping the script on Trust Guard, VeriSign, Starfield or other companies providing these bulk seals by performing due diligence would help the business owner truly have ‘trust’ in their corner. Since several dozen certificate providers exist and charge varied fees for seal usage, perhaps start your search with the Better Business Bureau – the one source everyone trusts since they have physical locations around the USA and Canada. Other such procedural steps for screening potential trust seal providers include: Contact their company representative to inquire what makes them the go-to authority on trust seals. Collect as much information on partners, names or internal figures of high importance and make sure they, themselves, don’t have felonious intent. Check to make sure nobody within the business has previously been sued or mitigated against whatsoever. This should’ve been clearly represented when purchasing used domain names. Putting each trust seal vendor under the microscope will assure you, your business and customers that trust is...
Read More100 Photoshop Gradient Brushes
Photoshop Gradient Brushes Photoshop gradient and brushes are a great way to complete your bland project or create an astounding piece from scratch. Having a good collection of PS gradients is vital for any new and advanced web designer or blog owner, and this list will definitely help you boost your creativity. Fresh eMedia Gradient Brushes [ Download Link ] Create stunning pieces of artwork easily with these 13 gradient Photoshop gradient brushes. These brushes are easy to download and install and very well worth it. Gradient Designs Brushes [ Download Link ] This set of exciting gradient brushes are carved in various shapes and designs, which includes waves and swirls to bubbles, sunburst effects, tribal flames and much more. 70 Photoshop Gradient Brushes These gradient brushes by Bleedinonthefloor will definitely satisfy all your artistic acumen. This image pack of 70 gradient brushes are sure to spice up any project you may have in mind, and are great once you convert them. Gradient Brushes V.1 This gradient brush set is available in 2500 px each and is ideal for those looking to spruce large scale pictures. Photoshop Gradient Brushes This set of 25 rainbow brushes is available in various texture and color variants and are All 100X100 pix. Gradient Ray Brushes [ Download Link ] Brought to you by Stalwart designs, this gradient brush set is user friendly and is definitely a must have for any curious Photoshopper. Available in 6 brush variants 2500px and designed for CS-CS5, Circle Ray Brushes are your one stop solution for all your mass coloring needs. Block Gradient Brushes These brushes add a nice touch to sigs and are deigned to be used on LJ/GJ icons. They are ideal for those looking to revamp a bland project. In high demand, Block Gradient Brushes come in handy for any small or large Photoshop project. Abstract Waves Brushes [ Download Link ] Created by Stalwart design, these abstract wave brushes are destined to revive any bland Photoshop project. Available as 6 brushes at 2500px, this is definitely a must have add on. Abstract Gradient Brushes [ Download Link ] Again designed by Stalwart productions, these abstract gradient brushes are a guaranteed hit once added to your Photoshop endeavors. Compatible with CS – CS5, this collection is ideal for both beginners to the advanced level. Simply Soft Brushes [ Download Link ] Brought to you by differentxdreamz, this batch of 25 high resolution brushes for PS 7 is definitely worth getting. Simplicity This gradient brush set by differentxdreamz is a compilation of 15 high resolution brush sets that are designed for CS+. Generated from 1 default square brush combined with an ultransformed brush, simplicity gives you the freedom to make the shapes you want. Gradient Shape Brushes [ Download Link ] 6 Brushes 2500px that work great with Dynamic and Scatter settings. Fun with Vectors [ Download Link ] Brought to you by StarwaltDesign Brushes, these Photoshop gradient brushes are a combination of vector shapes that are divided between 4 Brushes of 2500px. Abstract Designs Vol 2 Brushes [ Download Link ] These 5 Brushes 2500px are a perfect combination of vivid color designs to make any Photoshop project come alive. Aurora Borealis Brushes [ Download Link ] Composed of various shapes of Aurora Borealis also dubbed as Northern Lights, this 22 gradient brush set is definitely a muct have for any Photoshop enthusiast. Egress Exciting colors and shapes is what you get with this gradient brush set. Brought to you by Monica, this Photoshop brush set is a must have for anyone with Photoshop. Abstract...
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