Here’s a list of the top 13 wordpress plugins

Admittedly this post is slightly biased because these are my 13 wordpress plugins, but I’ve spent so many hours on so many sites trying to find those that are worthwhile and work well.  The plugins combine and enhance SEO, website optimization and website speed.  I can quote from experience that they have worked for me and should work for you, but affectiveness may depend on the following:

1. Website Hardware – My website is on a shared server with a company called MidPhase.com  They do have some very good specs and you should be able to perform the plugins with out much hassle.
2. Website Genre – The style or topic of your website may influence the plugins you require. I.E. you might not want a ’special comment’ plugin when you have no need to enter comments.

So here are the plugins I recommend to you (in alphabetical order).

• Akismet – Akismet checks your comments against the Akismet web service to see if they look like spam. This is a great spam filter.
• All-in-one Bookmarking Button – Adds the SocialMarker.com bookmarking button at the bottom of every post.
• All in One SEO Pack – Out-of-the-box SEO for your Wordpress blog.
• Enforce www. Preference – Provides 301 redirects to queries with /index.php and enforces your use or non-use of www.
• FeedBurner FeedSmith – Originally authored by Steve Smith, this plugin detects all ways to access your original WordPress feeds and redirects them to your FeedBurner feed, so you can track every subscriber.
• Google XML Sitemaps – This plugin will generate a sitemaps.org compatible sitemap of your WordPress blog which is supported by Ask.com, Google, MSN Search and YAHOO.
• GZippy - GZippy re-enables gzip compression under WordPress 2.5.
• Subscribe To Comments – Allows readers to receive notifications of new comments that are posted to an entry.
• Ultimate Google Analytics - Enable Google Analytics on your blog. Has options to also track external links, mailto links and links to downloads on your own site.
• Wordpress Automatic Upgrade – Wordpress Automatic Upgrade allows a user to automatically upgrade the wordpress installation to the latest provided by wordpress.org  Uses the 5 steps provided in the wordpress upgrade instructions.
• WordPress Database Backup – On demand backup of your WordPress database.
• wp-cache – Very fast cache module.  Is composed of several modules, this plugin can configure and manage the whole system.  Once enabled, go to “Options” and select “WP-Cache”.
• Yet Another Related Posts Plugin – Returns a list of the related entries based on keyword matches, limited by a certain relatedness threshold.  New and improved, version 2.0!

Have I missed any good wordpress plugins? Tell me via The Guestbox!

The New iPod Touch Firmware Is Finally Here!

After a wait, the New ipod Touch firmware update has arrived. The update costs $9.95 (£5.99) and here are a list of features that are available.

The App Store

The App Store is the applications store, a place where you can purchase other little pieces of software. This is the main part of the software update.  Some of these apps are very impressive by using all of the ipod Touch’s features including accelerometer, touch screen, great picture quality and excellent sound quality.

MobileMe:

The iPhone 2.0 Software Update for iPod touch includes support for MobileMe, a new service that automatically keeps all your information up to date on every device you use.  Changes to your email, contacts, and calendar are pushed to the MobileMe “cloud,” which then pushes them to your Mac, PC, or WiFi-connected iPod touch.

Other New Features

Push Email with Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync: Email, contacts and calendar can now be pushed instantly to your iPod touch.

Contacts Search: Find people faster by tapping a name, address, or other data into a new search field.

Multiple Calendars: Have a calendar for work, a calendar for home, and more.

Scientific Calculator: Rotate to landscape view for solving complex science, maths and programming problems.

Improved Mail Attachment Viewing: View more types of attachments, including iWork and PowerPoint files.  Also save photos emailed to you in your library.

New Mail Management Features: Delete and move groups of email messages, reply from a different account and send with BCC.

January Software Update: With this update, you also get the earlier software updates from January.

New Mail Management Features: Delete and move groups of email messages, reply from a different account, and send with BCC.

Sources:

• Apple – Ipod touch – What’s New

All in all a great new update that revitalises the ipod Touch with some super cool features that have been eagerly anticipated.

Do You have a comment, thought or a suggestion?  Post it into the guestbox below!  If you enjoyed reading  this article, digg me by clicking the button ‘Bookmark’ below.

Google Maps Vs Live Search Maps

My review of the latest online web mapping software

Google Maps was the first to release the satellite imagery.   It remains the most popular, with loads of features and user friendly interface.

Pros:

• The display is Clean, uncluttered and simple.
• The Satellite imagery is higher quality than some of the competitors.
• Drag and drop maps.
• Easy Pan and zoom features.
• Natural Search Feature I.E. “Pizza Near Springville, Salt Lake City, Utah”.
• Lots of features and hacks.

Cons:

• Lots of data usage if used  by mobile.
• Rather plain & boring interface.

Features:

• Transit – Find destination using only public transport and Your legs (not much though).
• Driving Directions – Find quick and easy directions to go to… anywhere.  It incorporates Step-by-step driving directions, Multiple stops, Check live traffic conditions (select cities), Drag ‘n drop points to customize your route and use Street view to see where your going.
• Street View – Perhaps the coolest feature in Google Maps – View street level photographs (select cities), Take virtual walks; pan, rotate and zoom, Explore cityscapes landmarks, points
  of interest and Find shops, restaurants, parks, hotels and more.
• Add A Location – Add businesses, landmarks, and points of interest.
• Explore a Place – View local photos, YouTube videos and wikipedia articles, Discover popular searches and places of interest, Browse user-created maps or design your own.
• Create a Map – Mark your favourite places on your map, Draw lines and shapes to highlight paths and areas, Add your own text, photos, and videos, Share your map with friends and family.
• Add Content - Overlay information such as weather & photos, Select from a variety of interactive maps and tools, Save information to your own map.
• Find Businesses – Find businesses near a location or zip code, Get addresses, phone numbers, and directions, Read Reviews and write your own, Add your business to the map.

Live Search Maps is created by the people who made windows/  Their maps search feature is big competition to Google with many good features and excellent design, have a look!

Pros:

• Excellent high quality imagery.
• Good design and interface.
• Many very Cool Features.
• Easy to Use

Cons:

• Bad Searching tools – many simple searches result in ‘Not Found’
• Same Old Imagery.

Features:

• Bird’s Eye View - Their bird’s eye view is one of the best features I’ve ever come across giving crisp clear imagery.
• ClearFlow – The tool took five years for Microsoft’s Artificial Intelligence team to develop.  ClearFlow provides real-time traffic data to help drivers avoid traffic congestion.  Clearflow anticipates traffic patterns, while taking into account sporting/arena events, time of day and weather conditions, and then reflects the back ups and their consequential spill over onto city streets.
• Terrain – details are also available in 3D mode.
• Point Of Interest - A tool similar to Google Map’s version.
• Drawing on maps – A nifty little feature which enables people to draw on the map.
• Find Me – A location finder that can locate the user’s location

Overview

Both products feature many cool, useful and clever features.  With technologies developing so fast, I’m sure there will be faster and better tools coming out soon!

Do You Have Any Ideas not covered here?  Post them in the guest box below!

Sources:

1. Google Maps
2. Explore Some Of Google Maps Features

Notes:

Unfortunately some of the features mentioned will work only in certain US cities.

Here is a collection of funny,
interesting and memorable quotes from several sources that I hope
you’ll enjoy.

Any quote with the text ‘- Misquote‘ at the end of the phrase means that it was only
rumoured to have been said.

1. “Give me a place to stand and I shall move the world” – Archimedes.
2. “Trying is the first step towards failure” – Homer Simpson.
3. “Great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, small minds discuss people” – Eleanor Roosevelt.
4. “True knowledge exists in knowing that you know nothing” – Unknown.
5. “I have great faith in fools, my friends call it self-confidence” – Edgar Allan Poe.
6. “Me? I’m dishonest, and a dishonest man you can always trust to be dishonest.
   Honestly. It’s the honest ones you want to watch out for, because you can never
   predict when they’re going to do something incredibly… stupid” – Jack Sparrow.
7. “Silence is golden, but duct tape is silver” – Nate D.
8. “Save water, drink beer” – kattygirl84.
9. “Who lit the fuse on your tampon?” – Lolliebum.
10. Horn broken, watch for finger” – Car Bumper Sticker.
11. “If only I was rich, instead of beautiful” – Car Bumper Sticker.
12. “24 beers in a case, 24 hours in a day, coincidence?
    I think not” – Unknown.
13. TARDIS EXPRESS – when it absolutely, positively has to be there before you mailed it” – Unknown.
14. “Faith will move mountains” – Jon Marble.
15. “Find the silver lining in a mushroom cloud” - Unkown.
16. “The darkest hour is that before the dawn” – English Proverb.
17. “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned” – William Congreve.
18. May the Lord welcome you in Heaven, at least an hour before the Devil knows you’re dead” – Irish Proverb.
19. Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime” – Chinese Proverb.
20. Who has no children does not know what life is” – Proverb.
21. “Elementary, my dear Watson” - Holmes – Misquote: He never said this.
22. “Beam me up, Scotty” – James T. Kirk- Misquote - actual quote “Scotty, Beam me up”.
23. “God helps those who help themselves” – This is not a biblical quote but an ancient proverb that shows up
    in the literature of many cultures.
24. “Money is the root of all evil” - Misquote- In context: “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which
    while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”.
25. “Play it again, Sam” - Misquote - actual quote: “Play it Sam, for old times’ sake” – Ingrid Bergman (Casablanca).
26. “Luke, I am your father.” - Misquote - actual quote “No, I am your father.” – Darth Vader, Star Wars Episode V:
    The Empire Strikes Back.
27. “Do you feel lucky, punk?” – Clint Eastwood as Harry Callahan in Dirty Harry - Misquote -
    actual quote “Well Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, PUNK?”.
28. “Houston, we have a problem” - Misquote - actual quote “Houston, we’ve had a problem”.
29. “Let them eat cake” - Misquote - actual quote “If they have no bread, let them eat cake”.
30. Well, here’s another fine mess you’ve gotten me into” - Laurel & Hardy, USA.

Have you got a quote that you like and would like to share? Just post it into the guest box.

Sources:

1. Quote
   Geek
2. Wikiquote

Buy Cans OF Cocaine!

A new energy drink has been launched by a company called: ‘Ocke Cokey’ (now what other drinks company does that name remind me of?) which contains 350% the amount of caffeine that the drink ‘Red Bull’ contains.  Its introduction will probably cause some concerns amongst young people over the need to create shelf space for this high energy drink cocktail. The U.S. version contains Wasabi (also know as Japanese horseradish – very nice with Sushi) and cinnamon to “numb the throat to stimulate the effects of having cocaine”. The British version which is made from caffeine-packed guarana, will be packaged in red cans (see image below) with the words: “Cut Cocaine” spelled out in a white granular substance (leaving little to the imagination).

With that sort of name of course you will create controversy and news, some bad and some good, either way – good for the brand.  Because of it’s controversial name and what it means to the general public and specifically teenagers, of course the stuff will be bought in bucket loads, initially at least.  On my way to school I see many kids of all ages with cans of Lucosade, Red-Bull or both.  Next you’ll see kids with their hands on this stuff, bouncing off the walls until first break at least.  Caffeine is probably not good for anyone (especially in these quantities) and many schools have banned Red-Bull and similar drinks because those who drink it get hyperactive and it’s most likely full of additional e-numbers that we could do without.  Now this may sound a little dramatic, but trying to create a link between energy drinks and drug use is pushing the boundaries of what’s decent – isn’t it?

Drinks these days, oh-well, it will probably keep night-clubbers, long distance truck drivers and the sales reps happy.

What Do You Think? Have Your say in the guest box below.

Sources

• The Daily Telegraph

iPod Touch & iPhone Software Update Wish-list

These are updates for the iPod Touch and iPhone, that I would like to see from Apple within the near future. Both products are a good buy, the contract for iPhone is impressive especially with unlimited Internet access and the iPod Touch prices are competitive and for what I paid, I got some very advanced technology in a ultra slim and sleek format.

Saying that, the iPod could easily be updated and here are some suggested updates:

1. Third party software – Currently the only way to enable third party apps is via Jailbreaking – which will void the warranty.
2. More Stable Software – Unfortunately when loading some websites the iPod crashes.  Fortunately it will default back to the home screen.
3. Cut & Paste – It would be great if there was a function that enabled you to cut and paste, E.G. cut a quote from e-mail to the web browser,
4. Texting Multiple Contacts – I own an iPod Touch, but I hear that lots of people would like the ability to send a text message to multiple contacts.
5. Faster Wi-Fi – While the iPod and iPhone have an impressive Wi-Fi connectivity, I believe that most users would appreciate faster Wi-Fi internet.
6. File manager/explorer – A feature which enables you to brows the files and folders within your device.
7. Java and Flash in Safari – Java and Flash are both new(ish) technologies which are like mini programs that you can implement into a webpage. The little green timer on the ‘About Me’ page is Java.
8. Search Function – An ability that allows you to search contacts, notes and e-mails.
9. FM Radio Tuner – A lot of devices already have this built-in, but an FM radio Tuner would be interesting.
10. Faster Internet via cellular networks - Like the Wi-Fi above but many people think that faster internet via cellular networks, 3G would be good!
11. IM Client – A client for Instant messaging such as: Windows Live (previously MSN), Google Talk, Jabber, AIM and others.
12. Voice Recorder – A voice recorder to record notes and other things.
13. Outlook Notes Sync – If the notes in the device could be synchronised.
14. Free Ringtones – The ability to get free ringtones instead of paying for them.
15. Games – Games to play even if they are simple, the fact that these devices are touch screen should make this fun.  It will probably be released in time with the future versions of the SDK.
16. Video Record Mode – Record video would be great.
17. BCC option for email – A BCC option for email would also be useful.
18. Stereo Bluetooth – Stereo bluetooth to talk on a headset.
19. Send A Text Without Signal - to send a text without signal and transmit once in signal.
20. Send And Receive – to send and receive multimedia (video, photo and sound).
21. Download – to download from the internet.
22. Ignore Rotation – (whilst it’s a great feature that does indeed have its uses) the ability to turn ‘auto-rotate’ off would be nice at times.
23. Voice Dialling – Dial with your voice.
24. Delete More than one e-mail at a time - speaks for itself.
25. Email download – Downloads the email before reading it.
26. Landscape Keypad Mode - The ability to use the whole screen for typing.

Thanks For Reading, Dan