Are People Becoming Greener Every Day?

Posted on May 18, 2012 by Matt
I was reading earlier how someone actually believes people are becoming greener every day because of awareness but I don’t think they have grasped the world  of today on any level.

We consume more there is no getting away from it I believe those in the developing world use around 10% of what we do in the West. How do we deal with this we give away our old TV’s, computers and everything else and ship it off as part of charity projects. So not only do the poor naturally consume less we are actually encouraging them to consume more and deal with our out of date consumer goods.

The West is in turmoil with its economies its not looking at going green its looking at saving money where possible and a lot of that is by clipping back on expensive green fads. Because a lot of it is fads until you actually get it to work and prove it can make a difference. We got rid of billions of plastic bags? Sorry to say this but so what? Its a visual illusion as its only a tiny part of the problem. You go to a supermarket that pre wraps food, puts it in a cardboard box before you even put it in the carrier bag. What happened to home cooking??

We are selectively going eco and green and to be honest if people think taking a few plastic bottles up the recycling bin on a Sunday is going to save the planet your kidding yourselves.

So what do I do? I buy local where possible, we grow our own herbs, I minimise my use of transportation, I introduce rainwater gathering, I do hydroponics,Aquaponics an permaculture yet I know already I make very little difference because my neighbours offset anything positive I do by buying habits. Because this is the truth unless you skip consumerism your wasting your time unless its a personal choice.

I try to be more green on things I can do because I don’t like waste. More importantly I am currently out in the Philippines where I see people putting even the smallest item into a plastic bag before staples and the receipt are added due to paranoia of theft. I then see the same plastic bags cluttering up the rivers which eventually cause choke points for water build up which in the heavy rains wash houses and people away.

The fact is at no point will anyone talk about the fact pollution is a major key issue in peoples lives that can and does kill others. The fact is throwing a plastic bag away may seem a minor issue of littering but what if that bag becomes 40,000 that clogs a river artery that then bursts killing a family?

Not trying to make people feel guilty by the way I just find the Philippines gives you the raw end of life if you want to take a look at it. If your happy ignoring the problem go ahead as its every persons choice what they decide to do in life not mine.

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I hate social networking sites.

Posted on May 16, 2012 by Matt

Its official I do hate social networking sites and its because I feel they don’t actually serve a positive purpose for people.

Internet marketers great idea it gives access straight to the roots as people are on Facebook, Twitter, Stumble Upon, Pinterest and everywhere else every single day. But what are they achieving? The web has become a circle where people generally just follow each other around like a survey of what is good and what isn’t. Yes I like that so I will click like or re-tweet so my friends can like or re-tweet as well until eventually I end up reading the same thing a year later. After I forget about it and do it all again. Has the web lost its use for the masses?

I love the internet, I remember spending hours setting up a yahoo group back when they were the new thing. I even remember spending hours editing code for a Bulletin board service running off the telephone at my parents as a kid. I even remember the LAN meet ups because it was the only real way to play games and meet people you bumped into online from time to time. But that is real social networking!

Social networking is not a thumbs up or a like button but actually spending time together, having a few beers and connecting your computers so you can shout abuse at each other across the room while playing Call Of Duty. In the same way a good way to iron out your PC problems and learn some new things as often newcomers would bring their computers more for a health check than anything else where a group of computer guys would more than happily reformat, reinstall and reboot machines for the beginner as its all part of the learning curve of being social.

Today I see more and more its about not actually doing anything but discussing other people or adding a photo or video of something your doing. Ok we know a little more about peoples personal lives but did we want to know? Did we learn anything? Did we enhance or improve our lives in some way? Generally not but 2,000 Facebook friends later things still better with the 8 guys that used to camp out in my dining room at weekends once a month for gaming contests, curry and beer.

Give me real interaction any day!

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Facebook Files Added To Groups

Posted on May 11, 2012 by Matt
Facebook have introduced files to its social networking site which may see it become one of the biggest file sharing networks on the web. Is this a good thing though?

I can see the benefit of sharing photos from events and documents as well as videos but what happens when piracy and other areas of the murky side of the web start to use Facebook?

I have to admit I am not a fan of Facebook as quite simply its moved in so many useless directions from when it first started. Ok its nice to meet school friends and other people you lose contact with but do really need to be constantly requested to play games?

This coming out of the Facebook office “With Files, you can share lecture notes, assignments, schedules and many other file types with members of a school group. Anyone in a school group can upload and download files within that group,”

Does raise even more concerns for me as Facebook really does need moving from the younger generations. Bullying, stalking, trolling and other “I can hide on the internet” type of harassments shouldn’t really be a threat to children. But actively encouraging schools to use Facebook without a doubt will no doubt increase the risks to children. Obviously from a parents point of view getting back to Farmville and other games that has made Facebook what it is do we really want our kids going to Facebook to check up on assignments? Its a time waster not an educator.

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Windows Live Writer – Downloading And Installing

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Matt

Getting to grips with blogging can be made easier with software like Windows Live Writer which is a free piece of software from Microsoft.

It was originally packaged on its own and for XP and people looking to get the older version I recommend using the first link on the video tutorial I have added. The newer version is part of Microsoft Essentials which is a Microsoft bundle of media gallery and other things related to general use. You can deselect the extra products so that you only download the Windows Live Writer and in the video below you can see both options available.

  • When looking for Windows Live Writer XP Version I recommend Google search term :- Windows Live Writer
  • When looking for Windows Live Writer Windows 7 Version I recommend Google search term :- windows live essentials

VIDEO BEING ADDED LATER!

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Are BlackHat SEO Days Numbered?

Posted on April 18, 2012 by Matt

Reading up on BlackHat SEO methods lately its been quite interesting due to the amount of discussions going on regarding if we are seeing the end of BlackHat SEO tactics.

I come from the old scene since I was a kid back in the 80s and 90s, pretty much interested in everything going on at that time in regards the hacking scenes as the web itself was still nothing more than a thought at that time. BBS systems were the norm as was black boxing, phone phreaking, hacking, AT+T and MCI fraud all amongst a pro-active community of what would be regarded as hacking as even the phone box at the end of your street was hijacked via phone freaking. Was I involved in all these things? All I can say is as an electronics student I had a keen interest on how everything worked hardware and software based. I have never been arrested for committing any crimes and have no interest in doing anything for profit.

But today’s guys of the past are no doubt the BlackHat SEO people who exploit and manipulate the web to generate traffic hits and profiteer with things like Adsense and specialised tools they create for the job. Question is are they actually doing anything illegal in the same way the old guys did? As obviously getting a phone box to drop the line so you can make free calls is highly illegal but is manipulating traffic to a specific website?

But also the fact Google seems to have take a huge bite of the internet apple to control and manipulate are we going to see tighter measures against people using BlackHat tactics simply because Google can. In other words Google finds traces of activity relating to BlackHat working and starts killing the websites by sandboxing and other methods. This is the discussions currently going on and the biggest thing seems to be many people looking at actually writing content over web spinning of articles which for me is a major plus as I can’t stand the fake articles on the internet. I do have an interest in things like backlinks and other stuff that doesn’t directly affect a users reading experience of the web. But I am concerned that Google may swap the BlackHat SEO guys for something more corporate.

For example start working out how the software is manipulating the web and destroying or ignoring its activities while large companies hiring 100 people in China can sit and do web manipulation manually completely left alone by Google at the same time giving a big advantage for big corporates over small companies. Will it happen or is it happening already is my question?

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Are Forums Still Useful On The Web?

Posted on April 18, 2012 by Matt

I have used forums going back to dial up years when only one person could log on at a time. Those years are gone but the usefulness of the sites has continued.

In recent months I feel like banging my head off the table with the nonsense I receive from Facebook daily. The “Do you really know this person?” when contacting school friends while at the same time it SPAMS me for my “latest updates” if I haven’t been online for a few days. I hate it!

Forums however bring sense and civility depending on which ones you use. I go onto an internet forum to discuss SEO or Web Design I meet people that actually know what they are talking about. No mention of “Like my page”, Look at me looking stupid in a photo or discussions about totally random stuff I don’t know what people are talking about.

In reality forums aren’t dead but seem to be the mature part of the internet in many ways as Facebook and social networking sites remind me of the joke “Look I have over 5,000 Myspace friends yet only 3 real ones”. I think that pretty much sums up how I feel about social networking. Its people all talking and nobody listening or caring. Forums on the other hand actually discuss things of interest and relevance and will always have their place on the web especially for specific niche’s.

Funny enough recently been heavily involved with LiveInThePhilippinesForum.com which is something I didn’t expect as although I do use forums from time to time in the last couple of years I did cut back drastically on anything Philippines related as it seemed a constant set of circles I was turning in which took up time and generated no income. But my recent involvement has been more on a social aspect as the people generally have been a lot more friendly and interesting than in past years. Not sure why but I suppose this is another reason forums are here to stay, because you can leave one you don’t like and join another.

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Why host your own blog?

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Matt

I’ve always hosted TropicalPenpals.com ourselves down to it originally being very cheap and I enjoyed tinkering around with the website I originally done via Dreamweaver before it became what is now a WordPress Blog. I have tried other software but keep coming back to WordPress due to it being easy to use and constantly being developed.

What does hosting your own blog got to do with the Philippines? If you look around you will see there is a redicolous amount of blogs on the Philippines that spring up and most only last 12 months as people lose interest or something else happens that stop their existance on the next renewal. If your about to do this mind PLEASE LET ME HAVE YOUR POSTS as its important to other readers and much better to be shoved into TP under your name somewhere than deleted off your server never to be seen again.

Anyway back to why to host your own first thing it can be fairly cheap to get started with and I have put a link below where you can search for a name if interested as well as it will throw up the prices at the same time. The reason for this is .com, co.uk. , .me or whatever your extension is are all different prices although would recommend buying the .com if available as it will rank higher on search engines also its a long-term commitment for a small amount of cash. I have several domains myself registered with Moniker.com and haven’t had any problems with the company at all.

Now when it comes to actual server space your domain name and server don’t have to be on the same company or even in the same country. My hosting is actually done via Hostgator who I wouldn’t recommend as the problem I have with them are server load. I have shoe horned the blog onto their site at the moment but was hoping to move it. Problem is the site is so big it can’t be taken off in one chunk as it produces too much server load which then Hostgator stops the process. Which is why I am looking at Fat Cow for November as I will be looking to take on a full server if the site continues to grow and Fat Cow seems to offer the best deal for the money as well as had lots of good feedback from them.

affiliate_link

Now you may not need a big amount of space initially but once you start piling on photos and maybe some video that you don’t want hosted at Youtube you will find that your budget hosting you would get somewhere else a lot cheaper stops wanting you. Because what happens is like the package above if you got that you can actually add other domains to your space and then sub it out. Not sure your supposed to but who checks? So say its $4.67 a month and you have 10 other friends with small blogs or maybe you talk other people into it then you sell them an annual package for $30 or even $20 (not including domain name) and suddenly the $4.67 isn’t costing you anything infact your making a good profit. Which is how these people offer cheap hosting but as you can see it wouldn’t take much for you to be making the money yourself with a little work. So better with a bigger package as it allows you to have a fat blog/site at the same time rent out some extra space to cover your costs.

Now why host your own blog? Well you can see the advantages of selling the extra space but also there is advertisements that turn revenue and most people talk about Adsense as if its a big earner I will be honest with you for the amount of space it takes its pennies in comparison to some good affiliate networks out there. The main drive though should be the content on your blog and enjoying doing it. The more good information you have in there the more interest you will have that will build over time. The main thing to remember though is it doesn’t happen over night.

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Can you make money with a travel blog?

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Matt

 

This came about for a couple of reasons, the first one being people assuming there is no money in blogging but also the fact that there is an age gap in technology between different groups of Expats in the Philippines which often people will ask me can you make money with a travel blog?

Now I haven’t added in all streams of income but 3 of my main ones just so you can see what is possible in a month on a blog and a good niche market (the Philippines isn’t one!) can earn as much as £3,000 a month for a blogger.

can you make money with a travel blog?

 

can you make money with a travel blog?

can you make money with a travel blog?

Now the possibility of reaching a higher income as well as keeping your blog in a direction are tied closely together. E.g. if you decide to write on the Philippines and start writing more about your coin collection you would actually be better setting up a secondary blog just on coin collection as your damaging both types of writing as its going off on a tangent. Also content is the most important thing on building a blog as new and interesting blog posts brings people daily to read your blog posts.

Although remember your primary goal should be writing not cash, the money I generate off the blog generally goes back into it with things like the motorcycle and the saw I will buy this month as the motorcycle allows me to travel and the saw will start to show some of the wood projects I can and will be doing here in Cebu, Philippines. I never looked at the blog as a business originally and even today its still more about sharing information than anything else. I know of several blogs that are funding international trips for their authors but generally the photography and blogs are of a very high standard which shows if you keep reinvesting a good writer with a good camera could travel the world on the back of their writing.

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Is Google Adsense a good revenue stream?

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Matt

Had someone complaining about the fact we have Adsense on the blog after the problems I had with the company before but a post way back a month after the problems the blog had it was rectified.

But one thing I want to clear up is a comparison between Adsense and good affiliate programs which will show you why Adsense doesn’t give the same level of payback. If you imagine Adsense is around 2000 impressions a day to give around $60 – $100 for most blogs which means their adverts are seen around 2000 times PER DAY on your blog yet if you took an Affiliate like Adbeans a good well placed single advert/link can earn you $200 per month and its interlinked in such a way you hardly notice its there where getting good revenue from Adsense involves giving it all the best advertisement slots on your blog/site on every page/post you can see where I am coming from. Adsense is easy to install and easy to use as its pretty much just giving up places on pages but for the better affiliate programs they need to contact you directly which are the prime differences that not all sites suit the needs of Affiliate marketing companies for a good placement which is why Adsense makes sense for many sites as its not as fussy.

Same as any good web developer will tell you to not add Adsense into your site/blog until you’ve built it up as it puts people off reading your articles and even then they themselves prefer people to use more direct sales such as e.g. TropicalPenpals.com contacting hotels/restaurants in the area and getting them to buy advertisement slots instead.

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