definitions – Benediktson Computer, Inc.

Getting Your Webpage favored by the Search Engines

I have been told that it is an arcane art getting your webpage selected for prominent display by the search engines (getting the first listing or on the first page) and that it requires the efforts of a highly paid professional. I reject this notion; my experience has shown that a few straightforward and common sense tactics can get any web page favored by the search engines.

The various search engines are sufficiently open about what they “score” highly for selection. Recently, Google and Bing posted notes regarding changes to their scoring schemes; both now favor pages that include content for the vision challenged in addition to favoring “living” and “dynamic” pages. This is good news all around. The web has become very visually oriented; to the extent that, until recently, the sight impaired, and those with limited motor control (and a vast array of other situations that create challenges to experiencing web content) experienced the web in an extremely reduced quality.

Whatever the reason you are building a web presence, providing your message to the maximum audience is desirable. Being mindful of the newer guidelines for the search engines not only helps you get higher on the page but also allows you to include more of the potential audience. A marketing specialist can help you get a higher percentage of reached individuals to engage with your content, while building pages that the search engines favor helps you reach a larger audience; both factors are extremely important in forming a successful campaign.

There are simple things we (as builders of the website or blog) can do to achieve favor within these new guidelines. When posting a photograph, try fully describing both the photo and its association with the text or other materials surrounding it; often this can be entered as text in the “alternate text” field associated with the photo. Similarly, when embedding a video or a table of numbers, or a graph, fully describe it and how it applies to the material it is meant to enhance or exemplify. If you are using WordPress, media items (photos, videos, sound recordings, charts, etc.) can easily be annotated as you place them from the media library with a title, a caption (visible to all), alt text (used by screen readers, search engines, visible to those requesting text mode or whose browser settings prevent picture loading), a description (available to the same group as alt text). All of these can assist in getting search engine favor and in helping to identify the importance of that media to both the search engines and all viewers.

A quick hint for WordPress users; if you will use a media item multiple times and want different annotations, create multiple copies because the annotation stays with the library entry, not the “instance” on the page. As you format the “page” remember that we want the page to be dynamic; in this case, I refer to the ability of WordPress and other page layout products to format the page differently to optimize its appearance and function for various kinds of viewing devices (smartphone, tablet, PC, Mac, etc.). This can involve choosing larger fonts (14pt and above recommended for the small displays and the visually impaired); avoiding hard to read fonts (artsy but more difficult to read for all), and good white-space balance (this is many things but it amounts to adding white space to make paragraphs easier to spot, photos, tables, and graphs easily identified with the text they enliven but not jammed into, and more).

Understanding that the page will be reformatted based on the viewer’s device might lead to using larger or smaller elements (media or text); but, generally, the use of a moderate-sized and easy-to-read font for all text will go a long way here. Breaking up parts of the page to separate different thoughts you are expressing may also assist the reader (particularly after the dynamic page layout engine shapes it for small displays).

In addition, you want to include “tags”; this is your chance to give the search engines words or phrases that you think your content explains or is the answer to. If someone was searching for “this tag” I want my page provided at the top of the list or prominently in the list. This makes “tags” an important consideration and a powerful tool to get your page presented to those searching for your offerings. Depending on what tools you use to create your pages, “tags” will be available in different ways; in WordPress, each post and each page has a field that you can paste your tags into. A quick step back; when we were filling in the alternate text and description fields for media earlier, we would like to include (smoothly, artfully) those same tags in the descriptive text for those media. Back to “tags”; these are not sentences, the search engines are looking to match a key word or 2, maybe, 3-word phrase, and the “tags” themselves are primarily here for the search engines. It is extremely rare for a viewer of a page to dig in deep enough to ever see the tags associated with it.

Now that we have some content on our webpage, hopefully very attractive to readers and search engines alike, it will help to go to the various search engines and “register” our page. In this step, the search engine is, once again, informed of the “tags” for our intended content and audience and you may choose to pay for higher placement or for advertising space. Some of the engines will allow you to enter a description or even a lengthy briefing designed to grab attention to your link(s) and provide business and or personal information (address, hours, phone numbers, email address, etc.). This is a process you can do or have a service or even an app do for you; I prefer doing it myself as it often gives me hints about what the search engine is looking for and what other entities are doing that might be in competition with me.

Don’t forget the importance of keeping your page alive; the need for updating the content on your page and bringing new material to it weekly or monthly.

NFT’s and Blockchain

I have been reading again and ran into a wonderful obfuscation of new technology. I refer to the term NFT or non-fungible token which is the technique or new technology being used to secure large transactions or to securely identify objects of value. This is a technique most easily understood when it is used with blockchain transactions thereby guaranteeing a secured transaction of a unique item (non-fungible).

Blockchain is a maturing technique for performing secure electronic transactions, exactly like the transaction when you make an order through Amazon. A blockchain is a completed transaction complete with redundant replicas held “in the open” (on the internet), security is enhanced because each participant has a complete record (or exhaustive ledger) of the transaction, by including non-fungible tokens, the item(s) become unique, greatly enhancing access for the intended owner while making it much more difficult to interfere with the intended delivery.

NFT’s are simply another means of improving the security of transactions (generally electronic transactions). No doubt we will find other uses; but, this is an adequate purpose for developing such a technology. The ability to create and securely exchange unique tokens simply makes any electronic transaction utilizing this technology far more secure. Previously, the combination of large prime numbers in a complicated series of formulas provided this security function; but like any mousetrap, the mice (hackers) eventually learn to breach and claim the cheese.

Security on the internet is not a fixed point; but, rather a moving target that requires constant innovation and vigilance. The more attractive the prize, the harder the hackers of the world will work to breach that security. Unfortunately, as they develop new tools and techniques for circumventing existing security systems and practices, they will sell that knowledge to finance their future attacks and developments. We, the consumers, get run over in the wash as amateur hackers gain access to professional tools and techniques. I believe that our best defense is to remain uninteresting.

Simple Guidance

Scams on the internet are so frustrating! What can you do? My first recommendation is a simple one. If you get a message, popup, or any other form of indication that you need some piece of software or update AND it is from a manufacturer you know or is very common in the industry, DO NOT click the link! Instead, use your browser and go to the manufacturer’s site and get the update or feature or software directly from the manufacturer’s website.

If there is any doubt in your mind whether you need the update or the software recommended ask someone in the profession (a consultant, geek squad, etc.) for guidance. It may be an indication you are being phished or have malware trying to get established on your computer.

As an additional thought on scams. When I suggest that people go to the manufacturer’s website I am not suggesting that you search for it, I mean type in the address directly in the browser’s address bar. If you don’t know the appropriate website, this is when you should be calling a professional for guidance. Really, most of us would much rather assist you before there is a huge mess to clean up.

Honest, that image is not from your antivirus package, that is a bug in its glory trying to get you to help it get installed.

The First Amendment and our right to Free Speech

Well, Benediktson Computer is once again in its Southwest office in Silver City, New Mexico. Yes, we were chased out of Montana by snowstorms and luckily made the trip safely with no major challenges or issues. I want to try and tackle a difficult topic for me; it has to do with what folks are calling a violation of their right to free speech. I may have a unique perspective on this topic.

First off, the right to free speech is not one that is provided by our government, the bill of rights (first amendment) protects us from infringement of this right by the government. I know there have been some appellate court decisions that appear to have broadened the scope of this protection; but, I am not aware of any high court decisions that have broadened this protection to the point that we are protected from censorship on private lands, services, hosts and so forth.

So, to be clear, Facebook, Twitter, etc. are private services hosted by corporations (presumably for profit) on privately owned and operated servers. Any act of censorship, restriction of content, or removal of content may be annoying; but, it in no way is a breach of anyone’s rights. If (and this is a big if) our government were to offer a similar type of service, then the first amendment might offer us some protection against content censoring on that service.

In addition, private groups hosted on any of these corporate services (please do not make the mistake of considering them government-sponsored or supported) have been given considerable freedom to choose what content they find acceptable (within the framework of the hosting service) and this may be quite a bit more restrictive in many ways (all of this without violating anyone’s rights).

As each of us joined (Facebook for example) we were offered a chance to view and then required to accept and agree to the terms of service for that service. While I will entertain the notion that there are some rights and priveledges of being an American Citizen that we simply cannot sign away, this, in no way, applies to content that we publish onto privately or corporately owned and operated services. One last point, when we publish content on a service (like Facebook) we are making that content public on that privately operated service, potentially causing the owners of that service to be responsible for that content (legally).

Some help with computer lingo

The Computer age has spawned some interesting additions to our vocabulary and some of this new vocabulary can be real difficult to properly understand. So, I offer the following to help real people understand some of this new, yet arcane, lingo.

First, some context so we are all firmly planted in the same world. Internet service is provided by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) and may be delivered in several ways; but, in all cases it is still just Internet Service. In your house or business there will be a Point of Provision (POP) and from there Internet service can be provided on a cable (Cat5 or Cat6) or through radio transmission (WiFi) to an assortment of devices (computer, phone, tablet, etc.).

The POP (point of provision or point of presence) is often referred to as a modem (modulator + demodulator) because it converts (modulates) the signal from the ISP into a signal that all of your favorite devices are designed to work with. It may also (in addition) be called a router. A router has the job of assigning addresses to all of your devices so you can request information (over the internet) and receive responses to your requests (and not everyone else’s), direct your requests (traffic) out to the internet and direct responses back to your device. In addition, it may have 1 or more (often 4) RJ45 (big phone plug) ports built-in for connecting devices via a wired connection (Cat5, Cat6, etc.). This router often provides wireless connections to the internet (WiFi) in addition.

WiFi (wireless fidelity) was a term coined for a family of wireless connection types to a Local Area Network(LAN). It was a term picked by the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance (now called the Wi-Fi Alliance) to refer to any of the protocols developed to provide wireless connectivity within a LAN. Thankfully, there is little reason to understand the protocols used in any given WiFi connection, rather it is only important to match them up (802.11 n connects to 802.11 n or 802.11 ac can connect to 802.11 n, g, or ac). In most cases the user of WiFi has no knowledge of which protocol is in use; it is simply WiFi.

LAN (Local Area Network) is the simple network in your house or business that connects your various devices to the internet and to each other. This network is often automatically administrated by your router. The casual user has no control or impact on how the LAN works, the router takes care of all of that including assigning addresses (a unique address for every device 192.168.0.2 for example), directing traffic in and out, and between devices as necessary. The LAN may be composed of a combination of wired and wireless (WiFi) connections.

WAN (Wide Area Network) generally refers to everything outside of your LAN, this is what your ISP connects you to (the internet). Connections in the WAN can be via satellite links, radio links, WiFi links, wired links, fiber optic links, and a few others. The important thing to remember is that all of this (the WAN) is beyond the user’s control.

A Wired Connection is most commonly done with twisted pair cable either Category 5(Cat5) or Category 6(Cat6); for networking, 2 twisted pairs are required and usually a cable consists of 4 twisted pairs with the rate of twist varying along the length of the cable. The twisting of a pair of wires is done to prevent interference in the signal carried by the cable. Both outside interference bothering the signal in the cable and the signal in the cable interfering with the outside world (televisions, cell phones, cordless phones, etc.) are greatly reduced or prevented through the twisting of wire pairs. In Category 5 not only are the paired wires variably twisted upon each other but, each pair in the bundle is also twisted with the other pairs in the bundle. The use of 4 pairs in a bundle (cable) that we see in Category 5 is the result of developed standards for cabling in businesses back when network and telephone were carried together on a single cable, one pair for the voice (phone), one pair for control (phone – choose a line, put on hold, etc.), and 2 pairs to carry network signal. Now, the third and fourth pairs are used to bypass a broken pair or carry a second network signal most often with commercial phone systems using a separate cable run.

A Switch is a common component of a wired network and simply provides a point of fan out for the cabling; that is, one cable in is replicated to a number of outgoing cables. The signal from any cable connected to the switch is sent to all the cables connected to the switch. This comes in very handy when you have more devices than your router has ports; a router with one port can connect to an 8 port switch and connect to 7 devices. If you have a single cable port in a room and want to connect to a printer and 2 computers, connecting a 4-port switch to the cable allows you to directly connect to those 3 devices.

Successful Communication, more definitions

More Communications assistance. When you are trying to get assistance from a technical support specialist or your IT person, it is helpful if you and that person have some common ground; some words that you can agree upon the proper use just for this event. Last week I started with a few words that I felt were basic necessities; this week a few more that are still very basic, that are necessary for good communication.

Email: Any electronically transmitted message with one or more specific destinations. Smart phone texts are a special case where the recipient is identified by a phone number; more classic emails use an address made up of a mailbox name and server name separated by an at symbol “@”. For example george@gmail.com; george is the name on the mailbox and gmail.com is the name of the server (sometimes also called the service).
Email client: This is the program or App that is used to access your mailbox or mailboxes; it usually allows you to order all your emails (electronic letters) conveniently, compose outgoing email to whomever you desire and read those sent to you. It may also include a calendar and other handy functions.
Post: Post (verb), the act of sending material to the internet in electronic form; sending an email is one example, adding a comment or photo or video to a social media site are examples, tweeting is an example.
Post (noun), is the material, however simple or complex, sent to the internet. It can be blank (containing nothing) or extremely complex (an entire novel, a feature movie, etc.). Regardless of what it is, once it is a post, it no longer enjoys the privacy of your personal device, it now exists on the internet.
IM, or Instant Message: A form of information exchange which, in its simplest form, is an exchange between two persons over an electronic connection in which both are simultaneously active and sending each to the other. The resulting immediate receipt by the intended destination and ability to immediately respond was what set IM apart from Email. IM grew to include live messaging among groups with voice and live video or shared media previously prepared as a virtual meeting tool and much more.
Network: any group of devices connected for the purpose of information exchange; often with a single information transmission protocol. Telephone systems are one of the biggest and a very complicated example of a network; the internet is a good example, your in house printer sharing system is another example. Perhaps not too obvious is the tendency for networks to be inter-connected.
Modem: Technically a device which performs modulation and demodulation. In a more specific way, the device which extracts and converts network signals from a common carrier (phone lines, cable tv lines, fiber optic cable) to ethernet signal (or wifi) and also injects and converts local network signals (ethernet, or wifi) back onto the common carrier; thus providing two way communication for a given location. Sound confusing? A simple example is two people attaching a can to a single string and then talking to each other through the cans (the cans are modems in this example, the string is the common carrier; it works best of the string is taut).
Router: a network device that provides an interface (junction) between two or more networks; most current retail routers also include a small switch (see below) and wifi (wireless networking) capabilities. It is a common function for a router to take a single internet connection and provide access to that internet source to a local private network with the router managing local addresses for all the local network devices. In doing so it provides a layer of privacy for the local network while still providing internet access to those same devices.
Switch: a hub, the physical device that connects devices via cable to the other devices in a network. Commonly, the LAN (local area network) cable from a router plugs into one port on a switch and all the other wired devices in a network connect to other ports in the same switch thus connecting all of them together (physically); in this way the router can control communications between any and all devices in a network).

Next week I would like to expand on a topic that I believe is implied in several of these definitions and its impact on our day to day use of modern electronic devices; that is the topic of Privacy or Expectation of Privacy.

Vocabulary, computerese

Communication, successful communication, is important in so many interactions but it became painfully obvious to me last week when I was trying to assist a customer over the phone. We were both speaking english but we weren’t communicating. This wasn’t the first time I have experienced this issue; but it was a severe case and one that finally pushed me to action.
The problem, as it appears to me now, is that a lot of vocabulary has been built up surrounding modern computing and the tech industries. To be clear, I am not talking about the highly technical language of designers, programmers, security specialists and the like; I am talking about the day to day language that our children have grown up with, and those of us in the industry or supporting the industry have struggled to keep up with. What appears to have happened is that the majority of our population has never been exposed to this vocabulary; until recently they had no reason to know of its existence, let alone understand the words or their application.
A few examples of the vocabulary I am talking about are the words Desktop, Icon, or App. For persons of my father’s generation Desktop is understood as the surface of their desk; my daughter would recognize the same word as identifying the work surface on her tablet, where the Icons for Apps can be quickly located. It turns out that it doesn’t matter which Operating System (another bit of vocabulary) you have or which User Interface you use, most modern electronic devices have a Desktop, with Icons, for Apps. Being able to recognize what they are and which is which is really helpful when someone is providing assistance but cannot see the screen. Numerous times I have asked a client to “go to the desktop” and find a specific icon, only to have the client tell me there is no such thing; I will usually then describe the desired icon only to be told no, it isn’t anywhere. My mistake was at the beginning; we didn’t understand Desktop the same and they weren’t seeing what I expected them to see.
So, I offer a few definitions in the hope that they will assist in the beginnings of a shared understanding. From this shared understanding I hope to build the basis for more successful communication.

Desktop: (from Wiktionary) The main graphical user interface of an operating system, usually displaying icons, windows and background wallpaper.
Icon: a discreet picture or symbol which may be on a desktop or menu to provide direct access to some functionality, Application (app), or program.
App: an application or program to realize some simple or complex function.
User Interface: the collection of controls allowing a user access to the features of a computer, tablet, phone, or other electronic device; often used o provide simplified access to the operating system of a computer.
Operating System: the unified definitions and controls that provide a link between the user interface and components of a computational device. MS Windows is an integrated Operating System and User Interface; while IOS is a User Interface.
Browser: an app or program designed to provide generalized access to the internet or internet style content.

These definitions are not exhaustive; but are specific to the topic of providing a basis for a shared understanding when working on or talking about modern computers. I hope to provide more definitions next week in a follow up article to fill in some of the blanks left by this article.