© Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com
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Despite Google’s “Wall Street Darling” status, Yahoo! still
rates as the most popular cyber-destination, getting more
visitors than any other single website on the Internet.

With the recent surge in production and consumption of
online video, it’s no wonder that Yahoo! wants a piece of
the action, especially with the intense interest from
marketers eager to find the best way to cash-in with video
advertising.

Though Yahoo! cataloged online video long before Google’s
entry into the online video market, a massive redesign of
Yahoo!’s video interface indicates they want a bigger piece
of the online video pie.

When you log onto http://Video.Yahoo.com, it looks pretty
much like every other online video search engine, such as
YouTube.com or Video.Google.com.

You can search for videos by keywords as well as log in and
upload your own videos right through your web browser to
share with others online.

You can also easily share the videos with your friends in a
number of ways, including: posting it on your blog; sending
an email with a link; and adding it to your publicly
available favorites for others to see.

However, despite the similarities, Yahoo! Video does carry
some variations worth discussing.

Hosted vs. Linked Video

Virtually every single other major video directory on the
web hosts all the video that gets displayed on their sites.

Google Video, iFilm, YouTube and others all force the user
to upload video to their servers before inclusion in the
directory.

Yahoo! Video does both. Users can either upload their videos
through their web browsers to the Yahoo! servers or wait for
Yahoo! to find the videos and include them in their
directory.

The fact that Yahoo! includes remotely hosted videos in
their search results means you have a better chance of
finding the videos you want, since you get more potential
choices with each search.

However, it also means a greater chance of going on a wild
goose chase when a video file no longer exists on a remote
server.

Video File Formats

Almost every single other video directory converts uploaded
videos to the FLV file format before making them available
for viewing.

This enables both Mac and PC users to view videos using the
free Flash browser plug-in.

On the other hand, since they both host and link to video,
Yahoo! Video makes available multiple file formats,
including FLV, WMV (Windows Media Video), MPEG and more.

Since all of these formats don’t work on every computer and
operating system, I believe this will cause confusion among
users.

And, based on my experience, confusion causes people to look
elsewhere for what they want.

Overall, Yahoo!’s video service looks more like a “me too”
effort than a serious attempt at innovation.

Yahoo! does not include video in their main search results
page, the advertising on the video results page is not
targeted, and the multiple file formats will create
frustration for some users.

Despite any shortcomings, if you publish online video, of
course make sure you submit your video to Yahoo! simply
because the Web’s most popular site is bound to get you some
extra visitors.

–
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
co-creator of an amazing course that will teach you step-by-
step and click-by-click how to get your own money-making
videos posted online…

-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
“Finally! A Quick and Easy Way For YOU To Painlessly
Create, Post and PROFIT From Your Own Money-Making
Online Videos… Without Being a Computer Geek or
Paying Outrageous Fees To A Webmaster!”
=> http://www.WebsiteVideoSecrets.com
-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

© Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

I frequently get similar questions from viewers and
subscribers all over the world.

They often ask me “Jim, what do you think of So-and-So’s
product?” or “How does So-and-So’s product compare to your
product?” or “Should I buy So-and-So’s product?”

Typically these questions are about physical products,
software or information products.

People ask for my opinion not only because I write a
newspaper column, but also because I’ve produced and sold
tens-of-thousands of products to people all around the world
for the past nine years.

Bottom line: people want a clear, concise “yardstick”
against which to measure any online purchase so they never
feel ripped off.

Let me say right up front that I believe 100% in free-market
competition and that having multiple products and
perspectives on the same topic ultimately improves any
marketplace for everyone.

I thank the Firefox browser and Linux operating system for
getting Microsoft off its gigantic backside and addressing
some serious issues.

But, with so many new products coming to market online,
everyone must operate with a simple, effective criteria for
evaluating any offer, especially in the business arena.

Let me offer you the exact same 2-part benchmark I use to
evaluate any business offering that crosses my desktop.

This will help you avoid getting caught up in the “hysteria”
of the moment and buying on impulse, rather than on careful
thought.

Part #1 - I ask myself this question: Do I really need this
in my business or is this just something “new” for the sake
of something new?

If I realize that I’m just getting sucked into the “try
something new” mentality, I put the purchase on hold for 48
hours to “cool off.”

If I honestly decide I need the product, then I move on to
part 2.

Par #2 - I ask myself this question: Has the person selling
me this software, product or course actually DONE (more than
once) what they are selling me “how to” do - and can they
prove it?

If someone sells a piece of software, I want to know how
much time it saved, how much money it saved, how much effort
it helped avoid, and how much money was made as a result of
using it - and I want proof!

Let me simply repeat the mantra of the classic Wendy’s
commercial from the 1980’s: “Where’s the beef?”

If someone tries to sell you a piece of software that claims
to get 10,000 visitors to your site, ask to see screen shots
of their server logs and sales in their merchant account.

If someone tries to sell you a course on creating website
video, ask how many money-making videos they’ve put online
over the years (ask for specific URLs) and run like heck if
their personal website doesn’t have the first video on it
(or if they just put one up this week)!

You’ll never go wrong if, before you buy anything online,
you demand concrete, demonstrable proof that lives up to the
claims made by the person or company selling it.

In the immortal words of Ronald Reagan, “Trust but verify!”
–
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
creator of an amazing course that will teach you step-by-
step and click-by-click how to finally create your own
money-making mini-sites…

-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
“Finally! A Quick and Easy Way For YOU to Painlessly Set Up
Your OWN Moneymaking ‘Mini’ Websites… Without Being a
Computer Geek, Buying Expensive Software, or Paying
Outrageous Fees To A Webmaster!”

Click Here => http://www.MiniSiteCreator.com
-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

© Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
    http://www.thenetreporter.com
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Computers have an interesting way of stealing your time in small increments.

What do I mean?

Ten minutes of spam sorting per day equates to over 60 hours a year deleting email.

Five minutes per day spent looking for your to-do list comes out at over 30 hours a year of unproductive time.

Thought to represent the saviors of our lives, computers actually eat up our time in tiny, almost imperceptible bytes.

As the computer world grows increasingly complex, anyone or anything that removes clutter from your desktop (or your mind), save you time, or eliminate effort rates a closer look.

The answer to increased productivity and micro-time management may not lie in "bigger and better", but in "smaller and specialized."

Widgets, small specialized programs that typically run in the background while you do other things on your computer, may just hold the key to claiming back those lost seconds and minutes that add up over time.

Instead of trying to represent the "end all and be all" of software programs, "widgets" typically solve one - and only one - problem.

Whether it’s managing a to-do list, computer performance, activity tracking or managing your calendar, widgets can solve the little problems that add up quickly.

Side Note: As always, when installing unfamiliar software from the Internet, backup all sensitive files, update your anti-virus, turn on your spyware detector software and generally heighten your awareness of what’s taking place on your computer.

Log on to http://widgets.yahoo.com for a growing library of free widgets you can download and use right away.

However, to use the widgets you must install Yahoo!’s Widget Engine, which makes the whole process a bit cumbersome.

I would much prefer each widget stand on its own as an individual installation.

Also, Yahoo!’s organization of their widget library leaves a lot to be desired as it takes quite some digging to uncover some of the real gems.

To their credit, Yahoo! seems to be actively promoting third-party development of widgets which they in turn help distribute.

Log on to http://desktop.google.com and see Google’s answer to widgets with their "Google Gadgets," a collection of handy little apps designed to help you out with little tasks.

Probably the best offering for increased productivity is the Google Calendar V2 (though it apparently carries no reminder feature).

Like Yahoo!, you can’t run the gadgets without Google’s software installed.

Though most of the widgets you’ll find at these sites are not business related, they represent a trend toward micro-specialization in software development.

Solving one problem for a small group of people (niche audience) instead of trying to solve every problem for a huge group of people -like major software developers - makes a lot of sense.

I believe this represents a trend that will spill over into the mainstream once a viable profit model develops.

Once people figure out how to make money with these "widgets" or "gadgets," you’ll see an explosion of mini-software applications performing a myriad of tasks people wonder how they previously ever got along without them.

–
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
co-author of an amazing new ebook that will teach you how
to use fr^e articles to quickly drive thousands of targeted
visitors to your website, affiliate links, or blogs…

-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Need MORE TRAFFIC to your website or affiliate links?
"Turn Words Into Traffic" reveals the secrets for driving
Thousands of NEW visitors to your website or affiliate
links… without spending a dime on advertising!
Click Here> http://www.turnwordsintotraffic.com
-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

© Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

I know a business that had their website hacked, their
entire customer database hijacked, and thousands of customer
credit card numbers stolen at the same time.

In the following months, the hackers did their best to steal
as much as they could from this business through a number of
"phishing" scams and direct email campaigns to their
customers posing as the business.

After many months of heartache, expense, and lost sleep,
this company was able to clean up the mess and the hackers
moved on to greener pastures.

What’s the lesson for all of us?

Whether you operate a multi-million dollar e-commerce
empire, or generate part-time income with a small eBay or
ebook enterprise, the following tips will help you fraud-
proof your online business before it’s too late!

~ Protect Your Passwords ~
Never share passwords for sensitive applications such as web
hosting, email, PayPal, bank accounts or anything else with
anyone.

If you must share hosting passwords with web designers or
programmers, change the password immediately after they
complete work.

Change all your sensitive passwords on a monthly basis.

~ Use Proven Service Providers ~
Custom programming is great until someone figures out how to
hack an unproven system.

Using credit card and shopping cart providers like
ClickBank, 1ShoppingCart, Authorize.net, and PayPal greatly
reduce the chances that your sensitive data will get hacked
and stolen online.

~ Shred Everything ~
A good, cross-cut shredder rates just about the best
investment you can make in online security.

Before throwing anything away, shred it!

The shredding list includes bank statements, check stubs,
lists of names and emails, printed emails, and anything else
that can lead someone back to you, a customer, an account,
or where you go or what you do online.

~ Fight The "Clone Wars" ~
Keep an eye out for illegal copies of your website posing as
you or your business.

If you find someone posing as you online, the easiest way to
shut them down is a direct frontal assault.

Contact their hosting company, their credit card processor,
and their domain name registrar about the illegal activity.

Threaten to sue them (the provider) if the illegal activity
does not cease immediately.

~ Troll eBay ~
Regularly check eBay for people selling bootleg copies of
your products.

Set up automated searches to email you any time a listing
gets placed with your name, product name or any reference
similar to your product.

Sign up with eBay’s Vero program to get the offenders shut
down immediately with a simple email from you.

~ What Mom Always Told You… ~
"Never talk to strangers!"

That means NEVER give ANY information to anyone via phone or
email, especially if they call you! Oh, guess what?

Your bank, hosting provider, email service, ISP, and PayPal
already know your username and PIN#… they don’t need to
call or email you to ask you to confirm it.

~ Additional Tips ~
Never leave your physical mail (incoming or outgoing) in
your mailbox overnight.

Don’t share any sensitive information with anyone who
doesn’t need to know it.

Be careful of any shareware you download and use because it
can contain spyware and even viruses intended to steal
critical information.

Use common sense and never think you’re invulnerable to an
attack that could derail your business with one little
misstep.

—
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
co-author of an amazing new ebook that will teach you how
to use fr^e articles to quickly drive thousands of targeted
visitors to your website, affiliate links, or blogs…

-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Need MORE TRAFFIC to your website or affiliate links?
"Turn Words Into Traffic" reveals the secrets for driving
Thousands of NEW visitors to your website or affiliate
links… without spending a dime on advertising!
Click Here> http://www.turnwordsintotraffic.com
-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

© Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Has this ever happened to you?

You need a photo for a website, brochure, flyer, or CD / DVD
cover.

You buy one of those 100,000 photo and clipart collections
on 10 CD-ROMs hoping to find the “perfect” picture, but
after hours of searching you find your brain tired, your
mouse hand numb, and no “perfect” photo in sight.

Fortunately, the photo and clipart business got a lot
smarter online, and anyone who ever needs good photos at
rock bottom prices stands to benefit.

Buying one of those mega-photo collections to find one photo
rates about the same as buying an entire aisle at the
supermarket in hopes of finding a single Snicker bar!

Personally, my shelves hold over 2,000,000 photo and clipart
images on over 100 CD-ROMs, most of which rate quite useless
to me.

To further complicate matters, photo collections on CD-ROM
tend to go out of date.

Many of the photo collections I bought in the mid-1990’s
contain photos of people from the 1980’s, so the hair,
clothes and even makeup look out-of-date.

The solution to this dilemma lies in the fact that you can
now buy photos online at bargain-basement prices.

Previously, in order to buy photos online, you either joined
a membership site, which charges a monthly fee, or you
bought by the photo from sites charging $100 or more for one
photo.

Do a search on google.com for “royalty free photo,” “stock
photo,” or “buyout photo” and you’ll find plenty of websites
offering photos at premium prices (not to mention the
confusion of finding what you want).

Two excellent options for buying photos and clipart are
ClipArt.com and BigStockPhoto.com.

Clipart.com charges a membership fee to browse their
database and download images.

Their best deal is the yearly subscription of $169.95
(equates to about $15 a month) with unlimited downloads.

This represents an excellent option if you plan to use a
large number of images over the year, but I found the actual
photos (they also carry clipart, sounds, illustrations and
more) about average.

At BigStockPhoto.com I found the photos much more compelling
and dramatic than ClipArt.com.

I also like the fact that BigStockPhoto.com lets you buy
only the photos you want by purchasing credits instead of
paying for a membership.

You can buy a single photo for $2.50, but the price per
picture goes down when you buy multiple credits (10 gives
you the first price break).

Whenever you buy images, carefully read the fine print in
the license about how you can and cannot use the images,
especially for commercial purposes.

It does you no good to buy an image you can’t use. Beware of
“free” clipart and photo websites, they can often display
images of dubious origin.

Also, free clipart sites frequently carry tons of banner and
pop-up advertising (along with some more sinister spyware
applications that install themselves automatically on your
computer).

Regardless of why you want them, buying images online now
rates much better than buying a huge clipart collection and
hoping to find what you need.

And, by purchasing only the pictures you need, you’ll save
yourself significant time and money in the long run.

–
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
creator of an amazing course that will teach you step-by-
step and click-by-click how to finally create your own
money-making mini-sites…

-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
“Finally! A Quick and Easy Way For YOU to Painlessly Set Up
Your OWN Moneymaking ‘Mini’ Websites… Without Being a
Computer Geek, Buying Expensive Software, or Paying
Outrageous Fees To A Webmaster!”

Click Here => http://www.MiniSiteCreator.com
-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

© Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
    http://www.thenetreporter.com
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

One of the biggest problems anyone faces online involves too much to do and not enough time to do it!

I’m not talking about the recreational Internet user who jumps online as a form of entertainment to check email, use Skype, or watch videos.

I’m referring to the people who make their living online or who use the Internet for a large part of their business activities.

If you fall into that category, the following tips will easily help you find an extra hour each working day.

* Filter Email - The #1 thing you can do to save time involves getting a handle on your email.

Ask any online business person and they’ll tell you email takes up a huge chunk of time.

To save time, you should separate your personal and business email with separate accounts and check the personal account once a day (saves 10 minutes per day).

You should also use a commercial spam filter such as Spamarrest.com to cut down on the spam you must wade through to find messages that do need your attention (saves 15 minutes per day).

* Use RoboForm - Using a password manager like Roboform.com cuts down on time spent tearing your desk or email program apart looking for usernames and passwords for an account you haven’t used in a while.

Secure and immediate access to all your passwords will save you an average of 5 minutes per day.

* Unsubscribe - Get off the lists of publications you either don’t read or don’t give maximum value for time spent.

Even casual skimming of one email newsletter or ezine will eat up several minutes of your day each time you do it.

Drop off 3 lists and you’ll save yourself at least 5 minutes per day.

* Use an Egg Timer - Flitting from task to task like a butterfly with ADD robs you of any chance for getting things done.

To increase your focus on specific tasks, use an egg timer to get yourself 100% focused on the task at hand for a specific chunk of time.

While the egg timer ticks, nothing else but the current task at hand matters.

This technique will net you at least 10 extra minutes of wasted time saved.

* Use a List - Few things waste more time than doing things you don’t need to do because you forgot the important things you should focus on right now.

Always operate with a list of prioritized tasks so you know what you should work on at any given moment.

Every 15 to 30 minutes you should ask yourself "Is what I’m working on right now the highest and best use of my time?"

This will net you at least 10 minutes per day in wasted time.

* Just Say "No" - Distractions abound on the Internet.

New products, new services, new videos, new jokes, new distractions come at us on a minute-by-minute basis.

Yet those distractions rob us of the precious time we desperately need to accomplish our own objectives and pursue our own agendas.

If some new product or exciting new opportunity comes along, let it sit for a day, or even just an hour, and then make a decision.

Many times the "new and exciting" loses its luster when you stop, take a break, and look at it from a distance.

This will easily save you at least 10 to 15 minutes a day in lost time.

My best advice involves operating with a strong purpose in your online business.

I’ve shown you simple strategies here to save an average of 65-70 minutes per day, but if you operate with a strong purpose, you’ll save even more.

Why?

Because a strong purpose helps you filter out any time-wasting activities that won’t get you where you want to go.

–
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
creator of an amazing course that will teach you step-by-
step and click-by-click how to finally create your own
money-making mini-sites…

-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
"Finally! A Quick and Easy Way For YOU to Painlessly Set Up
Your OWN Moneymaking ‘Mini’ Websites… Without Being a
Computer Geek, Buying Expensive Software, or Paying
Outrageous Fees To A Webmaster!"

Click Here => http://www.MiniSiteCreator.com
-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

(c) Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
    http://www.thenetreporter.com
=====================================

Surf the ‘Net for about 10 minutes and chances rate very high that
you’ll encounter an error of one kind or another.

Whether the error message pops up on your own computer or on a
website loaded in your browser, knowing what the error means can
help you solve the problem much faster and avoid hours of
frustration (especially in a situation where nothing you do will
solve the problem).

The following represent some of the more common error messages you
may encounter while surfing the Internet and what (if anything) you
can do to correct the situation.

Error: 404 File Not Found

This means the web server cannot find the file or web page you tried
to pull up in your web browser.

Almost nothing you can do will correct this situation. Try hitting
your web browser’s "Refresh" button to see if the page will load. If
not, email the website operator to let them know of the problem and
then move on.

(c) Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
    http://www.thenetreporter.com
=====================================

As the Web grows more crowded and just plain "noisy" with
information bombarding us from every angle, most people welcome any
tool, trick or shortcut to help them wade through the mountains of
data to find what they want.

Since your web browser represents your main window to the Internet,
it makes sense for any tool which enables you to find what you need
and get around faster online should sit right where you need it
most.

Introducing Web browser "toolbars," free little programs that work
with Internet Explorer and Netscape to put you several steps closer
to the information you need right now.

~ Google Toolbar ~ The free toolbar from search giant Google offers
the best search features of any toolbar we evaluated.

Not only does it allow you to search the web, but also enables you
to search within a website to find specific information.

The Google toolbar’s main features include "Page Rank," which gives
an indication of a website’s overall value based on your search
criteria and other factors, along with a "backwards links" function
which allows you to see which sites link to the website currently
loaded in your browser.

You can download the Google toolbar on your web browser by visiting
http://toolbar.google.com and following the simple installation
instruction.