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 There are times when you may want to include special symbols or characters in your HTML and XHTML pages without having to go through the hassle of creating a graphic image.
This might be as simple as putting a bullet before items in a list or nothing more than using ‘empty space’ to hold a column open. In most cases, what ever you are trying to do can be accomplished using (X)HTML code – rather than a graphic.
The most commonly used symbols and characters fall into these general categories:
- Characters with special meaning
- Accented characters (from Western European Languages)
- Punctuation characters
- Mathematical and technical characters
- Greek characters
- Shapes and arrows
Manipulating Symbols
Once you’ve decided which symbol or character you want to use, you can change its attributes to a certain degree by using <font> tags as well as the standard tags for bolding, italics, etc.. The font and other enhancements you make are the same as those you would use for any text string.
- Size
- Color
- Bold
- Italics, etc.
For example: To have a standard black diamond suit symbol ♦ display larger, in italics, bold and red in color you would use the following code:
Enhanced code: <font size=”+2″ color=”#FF0000″><i><b>♦</b></i></font> will display as ♦
Note: The code above is for HTML, if you want to use ‘enhanced’ symbols in Word Press – like we’ve done here – you’ll need to follow the Word Press format. The HTML code for web pages does not work the same in Word Press.
When enhancing symbols and characters you must use the same rules as for text.
If using standard HTML, you must place the closing tag for the attribute after the symbol code, i.e., </ attribute>. If you’re writing the page in XHTML you would need to use the appropriate closing tag . . . </ attribute />. Read more about the differences between HTML and XHTML here.
Symbol | Character Table
To help get you started using symbols, we’ve put together a table with some of the more commonly used symbols and characters. You can review the table and its contents from this link . . . http://www.powertoearnmoney.com/HTML/HTMLSymbolsCharacters.html.
 When first released in 1995, PHP was the official acronym for ‘Personal Home Page’. However, as it became more popular, and as its capabilities grew, PHP more commonly came to mean PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor - simply put, PHP is a language that handles data before it becomes HTML. You might say, PHP is an HTML embedded scripting language, meaning PHP can be written within your document’s HTML code. And, with HTML being the code used for building all web pages, if you can hand code HTML, you’ll find PHP is only slightly more complicated.
For example: You have an HTML page that contains a form requiring a calculation. This page will end in the extension .html. In addition to having the HTML form, you’ll need a second page containing the PHP script defining the task to be performed. This page will have the extension .php. The name used for the document containing the PHP script will need to be included in the HTML form document so the server will know what action to take regarding the information that has been input and then what to do with the output as shown in the sample below.
In this snippet of code from the .html page containing the form, the server is directed to take the action as defined in the ‘handle_calcT22.php’ script and then ‘post‘ the results.
Scripting vs. Programming
Using PHP as a scripting language means it is designed to do something, i.e., perform a calculation; however, only after an action is taken – e.g., a user submits a form. On the other hand, programming is used to write stand alone applications. Some programs used for programming – although we won’t cover them here – are Java, C and Perl.
Another thing to know about PHP is that everything it does occurs on the server – not on the viewer’s computer. To the contrary, JavaScript – one of the more popular scripting languages – has the event or action occurring in the web browser . . . also referred to as client-side.
One of the benefits of using PHP is that it can be used on servers running Windows, Macintosh, Unix as well as some other operating systems. Not only can PHP run on most operating systems, but also can be switched from one platform to another with limited or no modifications.
What PHP Can’t Do
Since PHP occurs server side, you cannot perform the following tasks:
- Create a new browser window
- Have pop-up alerts
- Add mouse-overs
- Resize the browser
- Generate and alter forms
- and more
None of these functions can be accomplished using PHP because the action occurs server-side and the actions above are client-side tasks. [ Available through Javascripts. ] So, why use PHP you ask?
The basic advantage of using PHP over HTML is that PHP makes your web pages more exciting – allowing you to customize them. For example, you could design your page to consider your visitor’s operating system or the time of day they visit. While you can customize your page to interact on a more personal level with your visitor, PHP can also interact with files and databases, handle email, as well as many other things HTML cannot do.
Some of the basic tasks you can perform with PHP are
- Create a Form
- Perform Calculations
- Create Arrays
- Create Templates
- Work with Date & Time
- Send Email
- Create Cookies
Conclusion
Just like with JavaScripts you don’t have to know how to write PHP scripts. There are a lot of free scripts on the Net available to download. They can easily be used with a little configuration. Two of our favorite free PHP scripts websites are
- http://www.hotscripts.com/
- http://phpform.net/
 Want to see how PHP works? Visit our website www.goldcoins-silverbullion.com – “Online Tools” – to see the PHP scripts we created that allow our visitors to calculate the gold value of their karat weight jewelry right there online . . . and see what it’s worth before selling it.
Want to learn more about PHP? Get the easy to understand Visual Quickstart Guide by Larry Ullman – PHP for the World Wide Web from Amazon. That’s our copy – you can see we use whatever is handy to mark our favorite places!
Using a standard Word Press blog is a very easy way to get your business on line, let others know what your doing (and monetize it at the same time  ) or start am Internet business targeting a particular niche. But did you know there are some changes you can make to your blog to give it a more professional look – and help you manage it more effectively. We’ll cover three (3) of those changes here – all easily implemented through the WP dashboard.
LOG-IN NAME
 When setting up your Word Press account, choose a User Name that reflects your niche or interest. Using a key-word is a good idea or if your blog is personal . . . try using a nickname or something that those who know you can relate to. If your blog is business oriented, choose a username that describes your business or is a relevant keyword. The log-in username is not always visible to visitors, but if it is displayed, you’ll look more ‘user-friendly’ and professional.
………..
CATEGORIES
Breaking your blog into categories is an excellent way to keep posts separated by topic. When you sign up for a Word Press account or use Fantastico through the cPanel of your hosting provider HostGator to create your own free-standing blog (www.yourdomain.com available through GoDaddy), you’ll find that one default category is already there – “Uncategorized” – not a very descriptive name nor is it something you want your visitors to see.
Leaving the default category as ‘Uncategorized’ is where WP will automatically place your post if you forget to assign (or create) a relevant category for that post. Having your post in a non-descript category like “Uncategorized” does not help at all in your efforts to get ranked in the search engines nor does it tell anyone anything useful about your post. Therefore, you want to change the default category name to something more helpful. Helpful to your visitors and helpful in your efforts to get ranked.
To change the default category name follow these steps:
- Log-in to your WP account.
- Go to ‘Settings, Writing’
- Here you will see (third item down) – Default Post Category (should show Uncategorized) If you have already created other categories, they will display when you click on the small ‘down’ arrow. If you have not created any categories, the box should be empty showing only the category ‘Uncategorized’.
- Highlight the category name ‘Uncategorized’ and type in the category name you want your posts to default to should you forget to choose or assign a category. Think about making this new default category name something relevant to your blog, niche or business. Something that will tie-in with everything you’re talking about.
- Save Changes
Once you’ve saved the changes, any post you forget to place in a category will automatically default to the newly named “Uncategorized” category – making your blog look much better.
SPAM FILTERING
Allowing comments on your blog is part of the fun and interaction with your visitors; however, there are those that will try to use your blog for comment spamming in an obvious attempt to get backlinks to their own website or blog.
Note: If you aren’t aware, there are programs out there that can be configured to automatically ‘spam’ comments to blogs to try and get hundreds of backlinks. So, if you’ve been getting comments that are nonsense, not relevant to your topic, or simply contain links to another site – you’ve probably gotten onto some one’s backlink list.
There is a way to help control these spam comments. You can add one or more of the following parameters to the ‘blacklist’ so the next time comments containing the information you’ve blacklisted come through from repeat spammers, they will automatically go to the ‘Spam’ folder.
The items you can add are:
- Word from the content
- Site URL
- Email
- IP Address
To add spammers to your WP blacklist, follow these steps:
- Log-in to your WP account
- In the Dashboard go to “Settings – Discussion”
- Scroll down the page until you come to “Comment Blacklist”
- Add in the information for the person or site you want to blacklist.
- Save Changes
Periodically update the blacklist to include new offenders or change the parameters for receiving comments.
Conclusion
Since WP is pretty much menu-driven, it’s very easy to make changes to almost anything. While you’re working through the steps above, take time to review the other options available in each section . . . you may find other things you can change to improve your WP experience. And if you looking for reliable providers, visit our Resource Page where we’ve posted all our favorite providers along with why we like them.
 You’ve heard me tout the virtues of Planet Ocean and their expertise in the Search Engine world – we’ll they’ve taken SEO (Search Engine Optimization) to another level ….. video. Their August Newsletter has an excellent, in depth article on how to optimize your hosted video.
Not only does this article address the essential elements of a video, but also it covers the issue of having an XML site map for your video….. why you need them and how you can build one… right down to the code you’ll need.
Currently videos are not able to be automatically indexed by the search engines because search engines rely on metadata. So, since videos don’t have ‘metadata’, if you want your video to show up in the search results, you’ll need to create an XML video sitemap.
But, for now let’s see what the seven SEO essentials for your hosted video are:
1 Choosing a file name -
Your video file name should contain keywords when possible. File names like 120609video1.mp4 describe absolutely nothing important to a search engine, where as embedding keywords like droid-x-review.mp4 will help the engine identify what the video is about. Just like image files, search engines have a terrible time figuring out the content of a video file is and must rely on external signals to define what the movie is about.
2 Tell the viewer what you want them to do -
3. At the end of the video steer the viewer towards your intended goal.
3. Break up your content -
Having multiple video files lets you target more keyword combinations, and makes it easier for viewers to zoom in on the specific content they’re interested in. Say that you’re making a product installation video – don’t make the viewer wait till the end of the video to see the troubleshooting section. Break it out into a separate movie that they can watch when they need it.
4. Use text in your videos -
Sprinkle text in your videos where it makes sense, and include keywords as well. OCR Technology is making great strides and it’s just a matter of time before Google will be able to index text characters in a video and use that as part of the algorithm. Stay ahead of the game!
5. Make your voice and audio tracks clear -
This is not just for the benefit of your audience. YouTube is working on video transcription, which will lead to them being able to index content in your video. Google owns YouTube – the technology will likely make it into the crawler at some point, so make it easy for them, and of course, mention your keywords from time to time.
6. Evergreen content -
Avoid specific references to time and dates in your videos unless it fits the theme. Doing so can make the video seem stale and out of date when it’s not necessary.
7. Embed your brand -
Use your logo, Web site URL, Phone number or other appropriate branding signals in your videos.
Final Thought
If Planet Ocean isn’t part of your Internet business plan now, after reading the excerpts from this excellent article by John Heard, you’ll see why they need be a part of any Internet marketer’s toolbox.
For the complete article on video SEO and XML Video Sitemaps, get your subscription to Planet Ocean here today.
 Watched a webinar last week about optimizing landing pages. It was given by Tim Ash – a noted Internet guru. I have to say we watch a lot of webinars but this one was one of the best yet. The presentation was well done, concise and the information was excellent.
We’ve all heard about search engine optimization, but, probably haven’t given any thought – or very little - to optimizing a landing page. This was the first webinar I’d watched that specifically addressed the dos and don’ts of building a landing page. A landing page might be defined as the page you want the visitor to ‘land’ on – regardless if it is your website, an affiliate page, product page or opt-in page. It’s a page where you want something to happen.
In his hour long webinar, Tim addressed what he called the ‘seven deadly sins’ of landing pages. Below you will find a brief summary of those seven no-no’s.
No. 1 - Unclear call to action
Be specific about what you want the visitor to the page to do. Do you want them to click on something, fill-in a form, maybe buy something, etc.
No 2. – Too Many Choices
Don’t offer too many choices as this becomes confusing. If you’re like me, if there are too many choices or I’m not sure which product is best – I don’t do anything at all.
No. 3 – Limit information input
If you’re having someone sign-up or opt-in, don’t ask for any more information than is necessary to get the promised product to them. People are reluctant to give out any information that might be personal or result in their being harassed, i.e., if you’re sending something via email, you don’t need their address.
No. 4. – Too much text
Limit the amount of text. People don’t like to read big blocks of text. If you have a lot to say, break it down into small bites, ie., lists, small paragraphs.
No. 5 – Keep your promise
If you say you’ll do something, do it. Keep to the time schedule and if you say you’ll give them something ‘free’ . . . do it. In other words, don’t make them give more information, sign-up again, pay shipping/handling costs, etc. to get what you said you’d give them for ‘free’. (This one is a real turn-off to me.)
No. 6 – Visual distractions
No visual distractions – this means no blinking text, images, etc. Any time you have movement on the page – it is likely to distract the visitor and take them away from what you intended them to see.
No. 7 – Lack of trust
You want your visitor to feel like they can trust you. This can be accomplished through tenure (length of time online) or displaying various logos of trusted memberships, ie., Better Business Burea or Verisign.
Order your copy from Amazon:
Conclusion
 As with most webinars, they’re typically a teaser. Enough information to get your attention and get you interested, so you say, ‘Yeah, I want to do that’ . . . but not quite enough to give you the whole picture so that you can implement it.
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But not to worry – if you would like to learn more about landing page optimization – you can get Tim Ash’s book, Landing Page Optimization from Amazon.com. My copy just arrived today and I can’t wait to read it!
Footnote from David:
 When you purchase this book (under $25), you also get a $25 Google AdWords Gift included. And, if you’re like me, you like Free Shipping. So to qualify for the free shipping, I also purchased a Bamboo Graphics Tablet by Wacom at the same time.
We’ve been looking for a good tablet that …
- Got high review marks (this one got 4-1/2 stars on Amazon) and
- Fit our budget ….under $60.00
You can see the reviews and read more about the Bamboo graphics tablet by clicking here – Bamboo Graphics Tablet by Wacom.
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