Hurricane Sandy reminds us of the need to have emergency food on hand. Utah prides itself on being a leader in the Food Storage Industry. Apparently, Utah preparedness shops are having a mini boom as people follow the hurricane and clean up.
I like the buckets of freeze dried food as they stay dry in adverse conditions and are easy to move about.
The one problem with dedicated food storage is that even freeze dried food ages. The bucket might have a 25 year shelf life, but you want to have it rotated out of your food storage shed well before reaching that expiration.
So, I thought I would end my blatant sales pitch for preparedness supplies with the actual worthwhile suggestion that anyone with old buckets of unexpired food storage to donate the food to your local church, foodbank or relief agency.
Times are tough and that funky food you've been storing could be put to good use by families in need in your community or by people made homeless by the storm.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Post Event Web Site
One of the odd things about the Internet is that event based web sites often get more traffic after the completion of the event than before the event.
I know, this the exact opposite of what web developers and event promoters want. As a promoter, I want a great deal of traffic the week before the event. What happens in cyberspace is that is that all the reviews, youtube videos and tweets related to an event flood in after the event is complete.
A smart webmaster or event promoter should plan in advance for the post event traffic. It is wise to have a post event publishing plan set well in advance of the event. Immediately, after the completion of the event, it is wise to thank participants and quickly post any recaps, scores and photos of the event.
You might want to link to reviews of the event. Linking to post event reviews builds web traffic to the next event.
Many people today use electronic calendars. While the event is on a person's mind, they will add it to their calendar even if the event is a year in advance. Having your event in a calendar followed and maintained by your users is the absolute most effective advertising in the universe.
A good post-event web site will have information about upcoming events or action items for the people who missed the event.
If you are hosting an annual event, it is wise to have the date of the next year's event up online immediately after the completion of this year's event.
A final note on events. Always include the year of the event. Search engines have a nasty habit of caching information. If you just have the date and month of an event on your page, the search engines might cache this information and your patrons just might get confusing information about your next event.
I know, this the exact opposite of what web developers and event promoters want. As a promoter, I want a great deal of traffic the week before the event. What happens in cyberspace is that is that all the reviews, youtube videos and tweets related to an event flood in after the event is complete.
A smart webmaster or event promoter should plan in advance for the post event traffic. It is wise to have a post event publishing plan set well in advance of the event. Immediately, after the completion of the event, it is wise to thank participants and quickly post any recaps, scores and photos of the event.
You might want to link to reviews of the event. Linking to post event reviews builds web traffic to the next event.
Many people today use electronic calendars. While the event is on a person's mind, they will add it to their calendar even if the event is a year in advance. Having your event in a calendar followed and maintained by your users is the absolute most effective advertising in the universe.
A good post-event web site will have information about upcoming events or action items for the people who missed the event.
If you are hosting an annual event, it is wise to have the date of the next year's event up online immediately after the completion of this year's event.
A final note on events. Always include the year of the event. Search engines have a nasty habit of caching information. If you just have the date and month of an event on your page, the search engines might cache this information and your patrons just might get confusing information about your next event.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Halloween Links
It's that time of year when all the ghosts start coming out of the attics.
I just updated the Salt Lake Halloween and Denver Halloween pages. I was surprised to find that many of the haunted houses are already up and running. The Halloween season seems to start earlier and earlier each year.
I suspect that the Internet is part of the cause of the trend. There is generally a lag between when you make a website and it appears in the search engine. So, if you want your web site to show up on search engines, you need to have it up and running several months before Halloween and you need to aggressively seek links to the site in September.
Shipping is the big problem for online costume shops. Online costume sales peak ten days before the holiday. To get those sales, your advertising has to be in full swing at the beginning of October.
The result is that what was once a single day event has prolonged into a long Halloween season.
Anyway, I cleaned up my Halloween links. After doing so, I checked the sites link report. The report shows that I've deleted 10,000 broken links to date. The report says I current display about 24,000 links and have deleted 10,000 of the links. About 30% of the sites I've added to the directory through the years have gone dark. That's sad.
I just updated the Salt Lake Halloween and Denver Halloween pages. I was surprised to find that many of the haunted houses are already up and running. The Halloween season seems to start earlier and earlier each year.
I suspect that the Internet is part of the cause of the trend. There is generally a lag between when you make a website and it appears in the search engine. So, if you want your web site to show up on search engines, you need to have it up and running several months before Halloween and you need to aggressively seek links to the site in September.
Shipping is the big problem for online costume shops. Online costume sales peak ten days before the holiday. To get those sales, your advertising has to be in full swing at the beginning of October.
The result is that what was once a single day event has prolonged into a long Halloween season.
Anyway, I cleaned up my Halloween links. After doing so, I checked the sites link report. The report shows that I've deleted 10,000 broken links to date. The report says I current display about 24,000 links and have deleted 10,000 of the links. About 30% of the sites I've added to the directory through the years have gone dark. That's sad.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Pubcon Anyone?
I was just looking at the web site for pubcon (This is a social media conference taking place in Las Vegas in October.)
The event looks like it will be a hoot. So, I need to figure out how to justify going to the event.
Well, I just happen to have a super fun social media business model in my back pocket. The business model is for a social networking sport.
It is a casual sport designed specifically for people who love social networking and media. People would meet periodically, like once a week (or once a month) play a fun game and meet new people while building web traffic for their business or blog.
Okay, the sport is called Juggleball. It works as follows: Everyone in the game is assigned a pair of numbered balls. If you get the number 1234, then you have the balls 1234 and -1234. People meet at a location then play a fun game that involves tossing the balls about and running. (The game lends itself to people of all activity levels.).
At the end of the game people leave with a different set of balls.
Each game will have a host. The host will record the balls at the beginning and end of each game. So, you might enter the game with balls 1234 and -1234 and end the game with two different balls: perhaps 765 and -456.
If the game catches on, the balls will start making an interesting social network map.
Needless to say, the first people who play the game will get in at a founding level. After we get a couple hundred players involved, I will form the International Juggleball Association. The people who get in at a ground level will be playing a founding role in the organization.
Participation in the game costs very little. I would have to make enough money to pay for a hotel in Las Vegas (I like the Days Inn), the balls and for the gas to drive to Las Vegas. I need to make about $300. If I could find 10 people interested in joining a social networking game at the ground level, I would want to charge about $30 to play the game.
Anyway, if you are going to Pubcon and would like to have a founding role in a new social networking game, or if you ever wanted to own your own professional sports team, please contact me. Give me your name and phone number.
PS: I really love the badlands of Utah. If you want to visit the National Parks of Southern Utah (camp in the desert) in the days before Pubcon, I would be happy to meet you at any number of locations in Utah.
The event looks like it will be a hoot. So, I need to figure out how to justify going to the event.
Well, I just happen to have a super fun social media business model in my back pocket. The business model is for a social networking sport.
It is a casual sport designed specifically for people who love social networking and media. People would meet periodically, like once a week (or once a month) play a fun game and meet new people while building web traffic for their business or blog.
Okay, the sport is called Juggleball. It works as follows: Everyone in the game is assigned a pair of numbered balls. If you get the number 1234, then you have the balls 1234 and -1234. People meet at a location then play a fun game that involves tossing the balls about and running. (The game lends itself to people of all activity levels.).
At the end of the game people leave with a different set of balls.
Each game will have a host. The host will record the balls at the beginning and end of each game. So, you might enter the game with balls 1234 and -1234 and end the game with two different balls: perhaps 765 and -456.
If the game catches on, the balls will start making an interesting social network map.
Needless to say, the first people who play the game will get in at a founding level. After we get a couple hundred players involved, I will form the International Juggleball Association. The people who get in at a ground level will be playing a founding role in the organization.
Participation in the game costs very little. I would have to make enough money to pay for a hotel in Las Vegas (I like the Days Inn), the balls and for the gas to drive to Las Vegas. I need to make about $300. If I could find 10 people interested in joining a social networking game at the ground level, I would want to charge about $30 to play the game.
Anyway, if you are going to Pubcon and would like to have a founding role in a new social networking game, or if you ever wanted to own your own professional sports team, please contact me. Give me your name and phone number.
PS: I really love the badlands of Utah. If you want to visit the National Parks of Southern Utah (camp in the desert) in the days before Pubcon, I would be happy to meet you at any number of locations in Utah.
Saturday, September 08, 2012
Domains for Sale HeberCity.biz and LinksAlive.com
I am taking a final stab at auctioning off HeberCity.biz on eBay. I moved the contents of the site to wasatch.utahcolor.com.
I also decided to like LinksAlive.com on Bido.com. If this domain sells, I will move the contents to a different domain.
I also decided to like LinksAlive.com on Bido.com. If this domain sells, I will move the contents to a different domain.
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Casual Exercise
Americans don't get enough exercise. When we do exercise, we have completely over the top expectations of our actions.
All of the popular team sports were designed to over-emphasize competition. The field of individual sports is dominated by absurdly long endurance sports like Iron Man Triathlons, multiday relays, etc..
The non-profit community hosts wonderful fundraising events that draw thousands of people once a year for a fun run in the park. But a 5K walk once a year is not enough.
There is an massive market in the United States at the moment for a new casual sport that takes place on a regular basis that helps keep people fit.
Imagine yourself starting a business where you met with fun people once a week, to engage in a physical activity. The cost of the sport was modest, and there was a money making component built into the sport so people needing a little extra cash could make a little extra cash?
Owning a reaction business opens up the opportunity to travel. If you owned a for profit "sports team" you can deduct travel expenses when you go to play games at the destination of your choice.
Anyway, if a group of people got together and did ___________ they just might be able to crack the lucrative recreation sports market.
I emphasize the cost of starting a ____________ sports team is negligible. The first people who are brave and respond might make some big bucks for taking a change.
If you contact me (giving me your location, name an phone number) I will give you info about the sport.
NOTE: I live in Utah. I will be traveling to Spokane in early August.
All of the popular team sports were designed to over-emphasize competition. The field of individual sports is dominated by absurdly long endurance sports like Iron Man Triathlons, multiday relays, etc..
The non-profit community hosts wonderful fundraising events that draw thousands of people once a year for a fun run in the park. But a 5K walk once a year is not enough.
There is an massive market in the United States at the moment for a new casual sport that takes place on a regular basis that helps keep people fit.
Imagine yourself starting a business where you met with fun people once a week, to engage in a physical activity. The cost of the sport was modest, and there was a money making component built into the sport so people needing a little extra cash could make a little extra cash?
Owning a reaction business opens up the opportunity to travel. If you owned a for profit "sports team" you can deduct travel expenses when you go to play games at the destination of your choice.
Anyway, if a group of people got together and did ___________ they just might be able to crack the lucrative recreation sports market.
I emphasize the cost of starting a ____________ sports team is negligible. The first people who are brave and respond might make some big bucks for taking a change.
If you contact me (giving me your location, name an phone number) I will give you info about the sport.
NOTE: I live in Utah. I will be traveling to Spokane in early August.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
We Need A Business Revolution
I read a blog post from a Ron Paul Supporter who appeared to be disheartened.
I confess. Although my sympathies lie with the free market message of Ron Paul, I was not an active voice for the candidate during his run for the presidency.
The reason is that I did not support Paul was because I realized that we cannot restore America through politics.
The American experiment was one with a limited government and unlimited people.
Sadly, our educational establishment fails to give students the tools they need to achieve their potential as a free people. Modern education teaches people they are entitled slaves and not free people.
To restore America, we need a business movement that helps people rediscover their potential as a free people.
The easiest way to accomplish this goal is in recreation.
Currently, the world of sports and recreation is dominated by the state or crony capitalists.
Look at high school sports and the NCAA: Most of the teams are owned by state entities and play in government owned arenas.
In professional sports, we see that most professional teams have exclusive contracts with local governments. They play incoliseums arenas which receive varying degrees of state funding.
State run sports is both static and exclusive.
Everyone needs to engage in exercise and recreation.
If we wish to fight the leviathan, the area of sports and recreation is prime playing field.
People who are disillusioned with politics could take to the playing field and excel.
Step back a moment and imagine yourself as the coach or owner of a professional sports team that you ran a couple weekends a year?
Would you enjoy owning a professional sports team?
Would you enjoy traveling to towns (of your choice) to meet and play with other people?
Would you enjoy having the name "Founding Member of ________" written after your name?
Would you like to engage in an activity that is all but guaranteed to feed ten of thousands of hits to your web site or blog?
Would you like to make a YouTube video that received hundreds of thousand of free links?
Would you like to engage in an activity that will put your name in the local newspaper or that will raise funds for the causes you find important?
Would you like to engage in an activity that raises awareness of the values of the free market and a free society?
Would you like to play a founding role in a company that requires little capital but has an unlimited potential?
Would you like to tell your grand children that you made a difference?
Anyway, I will free franchise to the first people contact me . Please give me your phone number and tell me where you are. I will contact you with more information on this chance of a lifetime.
I happen to live in Utah (I am not LDS). I will be traveling to Washington State in August.
NOTE: The sport is actually a game in which we create a social networking market. The game is physical discussion about the way markets work. The game involves simple physical activity and relay races.
I confess. Although my sympathies lie with the free market message of Ron Paul, I was not an active voice for the candidate during his run for the presidency.
The reason is that I did not support Paul was because I realized that we cannot restore America through politics.
The American experiment was one with a limited government and unlimited people.
Sadly, our educational establishment fails to give students the tools they need to achieve their potential as a free people. Modern education teaches people they are entitled slaves and not free people.
To restore America, we need a business movement that helps people rediscover their potential as a free people.
The easiest way to accomplish this goal is in recreation.
Currently, the world of sports and recreation is dominated by the state or crony capitalists.
Look at high school sports and the NCAA: Most of the teams are owned by state entities and play in government owned arenas.
In professional sports, we see that most professional teams have exclusive contracts with local governments. They play in
State run sports is both static and exclusive.
Everyone needs to engage in exercise and recreation.
If we wish to fight the leviathan, the area of sports and recreation is prime playing field.
People who are disillusioned with politics could take to the playing field and excel.
Step back a moment and imagine yourself as the coach or owner of a professional sports team that you ran a couple weekends a year?
Would you enjoy owning a professional sports team?
Would you enjoy traveling to towns (of your choice) to meet and play with other people?
Would you enjoy having the name "Founding Member of ________" written after your name?
Would you like to engage in an activity that is all but guaranteed to feed ten of thousands of hits to your web site or blog?
Would you like to make a YouTube video that received hundreds of thousand of free links?
Would you like to engage in an activity that will put your name in the local newspaper or that will raise funds for the causes you find important?
Would you like to engage in an activity that raises awareness of the values of the free market and a free society?
Would you like to play a founding role in a company that requires little capital but has an unlimited potential?
Would you like to tell your grand children that you made a difference?
Anyway, I will free franchise to the first people contact me . Please give me your phone number and tell me where you are. I will contact you with more information on this chance of a lifetime.
I happen to live in Utah (I am not LDS). I will be traveling to Washington State in August.
NOTE: The sport is actually a game in which we create a social networking market. The game is physical discussion about the way markets work. The game involves simple physical activity and relay races.
Monday, July 02, 2012
Index of Indices
Dang. Revenue for Q2 was even worse than Q1. This was due largely to several advertisers going bankrupt. I am now in a desperate search for new advertisers.
I want to increase the exposure to the events in the calendar. I added a column to the master index that shows community events. The page Recreation Index is an index to the directory page titled "Recreation." It shows both the links and events on that page.
If I make a big effort to be consistent in categorizing the events, this feature will become useful for it will show the total number of links and events by state.
Unfortunately, I have some systematic inconsistencies. Specifically, when a directory becomes large, I start splitting it into subdirectories. If there's only one running club in town, I list the club in Recreation. If there are several, I create a subdirectory called Running. The result is that I list the Grand Juinction Rim Marathon in the "recreation" category and the Salt Lake Marathon in the "running" category. This means the master index fails to provide a comprehensive list of running events in a state.
As I play with the new program, I figure out a way to overcome that problem.
To get my revenue numbers back in the black, I probably need to show more shopping events and auctions..
I want to increase the exposure to the events in the calendar. I added a column to the master index that shows community events. The page Recreation Index is an index to the directory page titled "Recreation." It shows both the links and events on that page.
If I make a big effort to be consistent in categorizing the events, this feature will become useful for it will show the total number of links and events by state.
Unfortunately, I have some systematic inconsistencies. Specifically, when a directory becomes large, I start splitting it into subdirectories. If there's only one running club in town, I list the club in Recreation. If there are several, I create a subdirectory called Running. The result is that I list the Grand Juinction Rim Marathon in the "recreation" category and the Salt Lake Marathon in the "running" category. This means the master index fails to provide a comprehensive list of running events in a state.
As I play with the new program, I figure out a way to overcome that problem.
To get my revenue numbers back in the black, I probably need to show more shopping events and auctions..
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Rating Engine Change
The goal of the rating system in the Community Color sites is to help the best sites surface to the top.
The site had a rating engine and the rating engine would improve the profile of sites in the directory. Sadly, the engine was inundated with spam ratings.
I recently revived the rate engine. To rate a site, you must login.
If you log in, you will see a rate button next to each link. If you are not logged in, the program will show a rate link for any site receiving positive rates. Essentially, if you give a positive rating to a site, the directories will automatically give a second link to that site.
If you give a bad rating to a site, it might remove the second link.
My hope is that this rate engine will help give an extra boost to the best sites.
The site had a rating engine and the rating engine would improve the profile of sites in the directory. Sadly, the engine was inundated with spam ratings.
I recently revived the rate engine. To rate a site, you must login.
If you log in, you will see a rate button next to each link. If you are not logged in, the program will show a rate link for any site receiving positive rates. Essentially, if you give a positive rating to a site, the directories will automatically give a second link to that site.
If you give a bad rating to a site, it might remove the second link.
My hope is that this rate engine will help give an extra boost to the best sites.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
In Page Popup
I created my first inpage (css/div) popup! If you look at the Salt Lake Calendar, you will notice that the box for June 16, 2012 says that there are 8 items for the day. If you click the words "click here to view" the page will dim the calendar and display the eight items in the center of the page.
Clicking anywhere restores the main page.
The code for an in page pop up is a bear. Regular popups are easier, but the in page variety is slightly better for end user navigation.
Having added my first in page popup, I will probably add more.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
An Invitation to the Great Northwest
I've been staring at maps of the Northwest.
Would anyone in Washington State, Idaho, Western Montana, Oregon, Northern Nevada or Utah be interested in engaging in a recreational activity that will cost you about $20 and has the potential of making you some money.
The activity involves social networking and recreation. You will have to sell a product, but that's the way the market works.
I am interested in people who own or who want to own a small business (franchise). This activity can work with any existing business. It would be great for people who want to have a booth at the farmer's market, or for other small businesses looking for clever ways to expand their market.
So, anyway, the idea is that you will own a business that organizes games and sells the product I provide for the game. You will need to get a sales tax ID and pay taxes on sales.
If this idea sounds interesting, please contact me. Here is my contact form.
So, why am I looking at the Northwest?
Well, My niece is getting married in Washington State on August 3rd.
I live in Utah. (no, I am not LDS). Anway, I was thinking of driving up either I25 or US93 to Missoula then take I90 into Washington.
I happen to have a long lost relative in Oregon to visit. On the way back I would drop into central Oregon. I could drop as far south as Nevada on the way back.
BTW, I also have a wonderful presentation on free market health care reform called "The Medical Savings and Loan."
If you knew of a group interested in free market health care reform in Idaho, Western Montana, Washington, Oregon or Utah, I have a great presentation that argues that insurance (group funding of individual consumption) is the problem and that we need to restore a system of self-funded care.
The MS&L and this game are related but different activities.
If you contact me, we will need to arrange an activity that meshes up with my niece's wedding on August 3rd in Northwest Washington State ... either before or after the big event.
Would anyone in Washington State, Idaho, Western Montana, Oregon, Northern Nevada or Utah be interested in engaging in a recreational activity that will cost you about $20 and has the potential of making you some money.
The activity involves social networking and recreation. You will have to sell a product, but that's the way the market works.
I am interested in people who own or who want to own a small business (franchise). This activity can work with any existing business. It would be great for people who want to have a booth at the farmer's market, or for other small businesses looking for clever ways to expand their market.
So, anyway, the idea is that you will own a business that organizes games and sells the product I provide for the game. You will need to get a sales tax ID and pay taxes on sales.
If this idea sounds interesting, please contact me. Here is my contact form.
So, why am I looking at the Northwest?
Well, My niece is getting married in Washington State on August 3rd.
I live in Utah. (no, I am not LDS). Anway, I was thinking of driving up either I25 or US93 to Missoula then take I90 into Washington.
I happen to have a long lost relative in Oregon to visit. On the way back I would drop into central Oregon. I could drop as far south as Nevada on the way back.
BTW, I also have a wonderful presentation on free market health care reform called "The Medical Savings and Loan."
If you knew of a group interested in free market health care reform in Idaho, Western Montana, Washington, Oregon or Utah, I have a great presentation that argues that insurance (group funding of individual consumption) is the problem and that we need to restore a system of self-funded care.
The MS&L and this game are related but different activities.
If you contact me, we will need to arrange an activity that meshes up with my niece's wedding on August 3rd in Northwest Washington State ... either before or after the big event.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
The Rating Game
I turned the Community Color Rating Engine Back On.
Originally, I worked with some people who were adamantly opposed to login screens. So the rating engine accepted anonymous reviews. This was a big mistake! Spambots kept flooding the system with fake reviews.
I tried manually reading and removing the spam and finally capitulated by turning the engine off.
I really miss the rating system. The ratings program helped direct traffic to the best sites.
The Internet works on positive feedback. If you link the the best sites, they surface to the top.
I designed the rating system so that, when you give a site a positive rate, it gets an extra link!
If you went through the directories and gave good rates to the top sites, they would get more traffic.
As I no longer have a prohibition against requiring a login, I am turning the ratings engine back on for registered users. I will delete the reviews for any user that is clearly spamming the system.
Your Community Color User ID and password works for all sites in the Community Color family. I would really appreciate folks trolling through the Community Color Sites and rate the best local sites. Right now I have directories for communities in Utah, Colorado, Arizona and more.
A rating will stay active for 600 days (sites and businesses change every year or so).
The Ratings by Community Report shows a summary of recent ratings by community. It is super small right now because I just turned the rating engine back on.
PS: I will rate a bunch of sites under the user name kevind and yintercept just to test to make sure everything is working. While I am testing, I might accidentally break the screen, because I am engaged in the time honored tradition of cowboy programming. Yep, I program in production because I am one person with no financial resources.
Originally, I worked with some people who were adamantly opposed to login screens. So the rating engine accepted anonymous reviews. This was a big mistake! Spambots kept flooding the system with fake reviews.
I tried manually reading and removing the spam and finally capitulated by turning the engine off.
I really miss the rating system. The ratings program helped direct traffic to the best sites.
The Internet works on positive feedback. If you link the the best sites, they surface to the top.
I designed the rating system so that, when you give a site a positive rate, it gets an extra link!
If you went through the directories and gave good rates to the top sites, they would get more traffic.
As I no longer have a prohibition against requiring a login, I am turning the ratings engine back on for registered users. I will delete the reviews for any user that is clearly spamming the system.
Your Community Color User ID and password works for all sites in the Community Color family. I would really appreciate folks trolling through the Community Color Sites and rate the best local sites. Right now I have directories for communities in Utah, Colorado, Arizona and more.
A rating will stay active for 600 days (sites and businesses change every year or so).
The Ratings by Community Report shows a summary of recent ratings by community. It is super small right now because I just turned the rating engine back on.
PS: I will rate a bunch of sites under the user name kevind and yintercept just to test to make sure everything is working. While I am testing, I might accidentally break the screen, because I am engaged in the time honored tradition of cowboy programming. Yep, I program in production because I am one person with no financial resources.
Monday, June 11, 2012
Link Ratings
The Community Color sites have an unfortunate history of being attacked by spammers.
The sites featured a link rating and comment section that was being hit hard by spammers. As I was working on a different project. I turned the feature off.
The spam bots finally subsided, and I decided to add the rating buttons back on the site. This time, the site only accepts ratings from registered users.
I found it impossible to separate the spam from the info; so I deleted all of the ratings and comments from anonymous sources.
There is now a rate button next to each link in the directories. If you are registered and logged in, you can leave a rate. To prevent spam, I can delete ratings by user id or by IP address. The iFrame below shows the rate screen for the link rating page for this blog. If you are logged into gjct.com you will see the rate button. If not you will see a summary of ratings. I put in one test rating.
I admit, the primary reason for the rating page is that it gives each web site an extra link.
The sites featured a link rating and comment section that was being hit hard by spammers. As I was working on a different project. I turned the feature off.
The spam bots finally subsided, and I decided to add the rating buttons back on the site. This time, the site only accepts ratings from registered users.
I found it impossible to separate the spam from the info; so I deleted all of the ratings and comments from anonymous sources.
There is now a rate button next to each link in the directories. If you are registered and logged in, you can leave a rate. To prevent spam, I can delete ratings by user id or by IP address. The iFrame below shows the rate screen for the link rating page for this blog. If you are logged into gjct.com you will see the rate button. If not you will see a summary of ratings. I put in one test rating.
I admit, the primary reason for the rating page is that it gives each web site an extra link.
Sunday, May 27, 2012
To Sweeten the Deal
It is so beautiful outside. Wouldn't it be wonderful to have a summer opportunity that let you make a little cash while playing a social networking game out in the sun?
Wouldn't it be fun to be the boss instead of just a working stiff?
Wouldn't it be fun to own a business that involves the possibility of travel?
Did you know, if you owned a business that required you to travel, you get to deduct your traveling expenses? So, lets say you had a business that required that you travel to San Diego for a weekend to play a game on the beach,
Imagine an opportunity in which you organized games, sold a product to the people playing the game and kept most of money from the sales (minus the cost of the products and whatever the venue charges to reserve the playing field.)
Do you enjoy social networking. Wouldn't it be fun to have a business geared to social networking and recreation?
As this is a social networking game, I will sweeten the pot by giving the first people who respond a free web site and I will show you how to run your own web site (HTML, PHP, and all)
I am in Utah, but travel alot. To contact me, use This Contact Form. Leave your name, age (The first people should be over 18) telephone number and place you live. If you are traveling through Utah, please tell me when you are traveling. I will then call you and give you more detail.
Wouldn't it be fun to be the boss instead of just a working stiff?
Wouldn't it be fun to own a business that involves the possibility of travel?
Did you know, if you owned a business that required you to travel, you get to deduct your traveling expenses? So, lets say you had a business that required that you travel to San Diego for a weekend to play a game on the beach,
Imagine an opportunity in which you organized games, sold a product to the people playing the game and kept most of money from the sales (minus the cost of the products and whatever the venue charges to reserve the playing field.)
Do you enjoy social networking. Wouldn't it be fun to have a business geared to social networking and recreation?
As this is a social networking game, I will sweeten the pot by giving the first people who respond a free web site and I will show you how to run your own web site (HTML, PHP, and all)
I am in Utah, but travel alot. To contact me, use This Contact Form. Leave your name, age (The first people should be over 18) telephone number and place you live. If you are traveling through Utah, please tell me when you are traveling. I will then call you and give you more detail.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Summer Job Opportunity
They say the summer job market is weak.
If someone in Utah, Colorado, Idaho or is passing through Utah this summer is looking for an opportunity, I just happen to have an opportunity that would be ideal for an enterprising young college student.
The opportunity is open for both men and women.
The opportunity involves social networking and recreation. Essentially, you would be the owner/coach of a sports team.
I emphasize "opportunity." By opportunity, I mean that you will be starting your own business. It is a business that a person could carry on through school.
You will actually be inventing this opportunity. So, I don't know how much you will make ... if anything.
The opportunity involves being outdoor and playing a game.
The opportunity involves minimal investments. For example, you will be outdoors and will need sunscreen. a water bottle, etc.. You will need to get a Tax ID and will need to buy stuff for your business.
If anyone wants to take a risk and start a business for their summer job, please contact me. Leave your name, age and phone number.
If someone in Utah, Colorado, Idaho or is passing through Utah this summer is looking for an opportunity, I just happen to have an opportunity that would be ideal for an enterprising young college student.
The opportunity is open for both men and women.
The opportunity involves social networking and recreation. Essentially, you would be the owner/coach of a sports team.
I emphasize "opportunity." By opportunity, I mean that you will be starting your own business. It is a business that a person could carry on through school.
You will actually be inventing this opportunity. So, I don't know how much you will make ... if anything.
The opportunity involves being outdoor and playing a game.
The opportunity involves minimal investments. For example, you will be outdoors and will need sunscreen. a water bottle, etc.. You will need to get a Tax ID and will need to buy stuff for your business.
If anyone wants to take a risk and start a business for their summer job, please contact me. Leave your name, age and phone number.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Converting to HTML5
I am starting the long, slow process of converting all of the Community Color sites to HTML 5.
It appears that HTML 5 is cleaner and more user friendly than HTML 4 and XHTML. Perhaps I will become enthusiastic about HTML programming again.
I started with Mobile Sites.
It appears that HTML 5 is cleaner and more user friendly than HTML 4 and XHTML. Perhaps I will become enthusiastic about HTML programming again.
I started with Mobile Sites.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Anyone Up for a Game?
Do you like being active?
Do you like social networking?
Do you like the free market?
Would you like to make money playing games on the weekend? (or on the weekdays).
Do you like coaching or want to be a coach? (a life coach)?
Are you in the following states or planning a vacation to the following states this summer: Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, SoCal or Nevada?
To recap, if you would like to participate in a social networking sport and will be within a few hundred miles of Salt Lake this summer; please contact me, and I will get you set up. The game is pro-free market.
MODEL ONE: If you are planning a trip to Moab or Park City, and would like to play a fun game for a few hours, then go home owning a sports franchise that has unlimited potential, then you would be a great candidate.
MODEL TWO: If you own a business and would like to add a side product with unlimited potential. The product would give you a lot of free advertising and would draw people to your business at neglible cost ... and you happen to be planning a visit to Grand Junction, then contact me.
MODEL THREE: A person would like to make money at an activity booth at a Farmers' Market, Fair or community festival.
MODEL FOUR: A college student who would like to make some money playing games on the weekend, during Spring Break or during the summer.
The opportunity involves social networking and recreation (a physical outdoor activity with other people). Running is a physical activity with little interaction. This is a physical activity with substantial interaction.
Do you like social networking?
Do you like the free market?
Would you like to make money playing games on the weekend? (or on the weekdays).
Do you like coaching or want to be a coach? (a life coach)?
Are you in the following states or planning a vacation to the following states this summer: Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, SoCal or Nevada?
To recap, if you would like to participate in a social networking sport and will be within a few hundred miles of Salt Lake this summer; please contact me, and I will get you set up. The game is pro-free market.
MODEL ONE: If you are planning a trip to Moab or Park City, and would like to play a fun game for a few hours, then go home owning a sports franchise that has unlimited potential, then you would be a great candidate.
MODEL TWO: If you own a business and would like to add a side product with unlimited potential. The product would give you a lot of free advertising and would draw people to your business at neglible cost ... and you happen to be planning a visit to Grand Junction, then contact me.
MODEL THREE: A person would like to make money at an activity booth at a Farmers' Market, Fair or community festival.
MODEL FOUR: A college student who would like to make some money playing games on the weekend, during Spring Break or during the summer.
The opportunity involves social networking and recreation (a physical outdoor activity with other people). Running is a physical activity with little interaction. This is a physical activity with substantial interaction.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Miche Shells
I am tired of the world where I buy cheap stuff that I will either toss out or hoard. So, I am interested in finding things that have resell value. So, I spend time trolling eBay to see what people actually are buying.
Interestingly, I discovered that there is a robust after market for Miche Shells. Miche Bag of Salt Lake makes hand bags with interchangeable shells. This way you can match your shell to your wardrobe.
As people's wardrobes change, they will want to change shells, making for an interesting little after market. The online price for the shells seem to run from $25 to $50. Used shells seem to be going for $12 to $25 on ebay. Hmm, I would have done better investing in Miche Bag Shells than in the stock market.
It will be interesting to see if Miche creates a sustainable market, or if they oversaturate the market. Anyway, I will be keeping an eye out for used shells when I visit garage sales this summer.
Interestingly, I discovered that there is a robust after market for Miche Shells. Miche Bag of Salt Lake makes hand bags with interchangeable shells. This way you can match your shell to your wardrobe.
As people's wardrobes change, they will want to change shells, making for an interesting little after market. The online price for the shells seem to run from $25 to $50. Used shells seem to be going for $12 to $25 on ebay. Hmm, I would have done better investing in Miche Bag Shells than in the stock market.
It will be interesting to see if Miche creates a sustainable market, or if they oversaturate the market. Anyway, I will be keeping an eye out for used shells when I visit garage sales this summer.
Saturday, April 07, 2012
Anyone Up for a Game?
I get the feeling that people are hungry for something new.
They want something that is active, that isn't mean.
This morning, I discovered a whole slew of web sites about a sport called Pickleball. Pickleball is a cross between badminton and tennis. The game uses paddles and slow balls; so the game is not as fast as tennis, but involves more strategy.
Because the game values strategy over speed, people of all ages can play the game. In the videos I viewed, people appeared to be having fun.
Because more people can play, pickleball can become part of a more dynamic community than football, basketball or other traditional team sports.
This sport was created in the 1960s. I remember coming across it a long time ago. Wouldn't it be fun to be part of the group that created a new sport?
Way back in the 1980s, I invented a game called juggleball. Juggleball turns the entire concept of a team sport on its head. Most team sports are about vanquishing the opposition team.
The most interesting part of juggling is learning how to toss balls with others. In a toss, both people have a ball and toss it in the air at the same time. Hopefully, the other person will catch it.
You don't have to know how to juggle to play juggleball, you just have to be able to coordinate a toss with another person.
Basically, the sport involves juggle relays. In the sport, you would run with a ball to a base. Coordinate a toss then run to another base. Whoever is best at coordinating tosses with others wins.
In juggleball, people compete to see who is best at cooperating.
I live in a place where people are notoriously close-minded (Utah). In the thirty years since I came up with the idea, I've never been able to find anyone interested in actually living life.
I hope to hit the road this summer. If anyone is interested in taking a leading role in inventing a new social networking sport ... they can contact me.
They want something that is active, that isn't mean.
This morning, I discovered a whole slew of web sites about a sport called Pickleball. Pickleball is a cross between badminton and tennis. The game uses paddles and slow balls; so the game is not as fast as tennis, but involves more strategy.
Because the game values strategy over speed, people of all ages can play the game. In the videos I viewed, people appeared to be having fun.
Because more people can play, pickleball can become part of a more dynamic community than football, basketball or other traditional team sports.
This sport was created in the 1960s. I remember coming across it a long time ago. Wouldn't it be fun to be part of the group that created a new sport?
Way back in the 1980s, I invented a game called juggleball. Juggleball turns the entire concept of a team sport on its head. Most team sports are about vanquishing the opposition team.
The most interesting part of juggling is learning how to toss balls with others. In a toss, both people have a ball and toss it in the air at the same time. Hopefully, the other person will catch it.
You don't have to know how to juggle to play juggleball, you just have to be able to coordinate a toss with another person.
Basically, the sport involves juggle relays. In the sport, you would run with a ball to a base. Coordinate a toss then run to another base. Whoever is best at coordinating tosses with others wins.
In juggleball, people compete to see who is best at cooperating.
I live in a place where people are notoriously close-minded (Utah). In the thirty years since I came up with the idea, I've never been able to find anyone interested in actually living life.
I hope to hit the road this summer. If anyone is interested in taking a leading role in inventing a new social networking sport ... they can contact me.
Monday, April 02, 2012
Income Dropped Again
I tally up the income for the Community Color sites on the first day of the quarter. It appears to have dropped again.
My revenue report shows I have 658 active advertisers, but made only $569.21. The directories cost about $200 a month or $600 to host; The sites are now officially operating in the red.
Due to hardware errors at my web host, I suffered a solid three weeks of down time in September and lost pretty much all of the inbound links to the sites.
On the plus side, the traffic is finally starting to recover ... however, I fear advertising rates for the site has dropped to the point that the marketing plan is no longer feasible for the site.
The sites started with several interactive features. I've systematically turned off all interactive features because the inevitably became full of spam and ugly-speak. I might take a stab at new features ... but realize that my time is better spent on other projects.
My revenue report shows I have 658 active advertisers, but made only $569.21. The directories cost about $200 a month or $600 to host; The sites are now officially operating in the red.
Due to hardware errors at my web host, I suffered a solid three weeks of down time in September and lost pretty much all of the inbound links to the sites.
On the plus side, the traffic is finally starting to recover ... however, I fear advertising rates for the site has dropped to the point that the marketing plan is no longer feasible for the site.
The sites started with several interactive features. I've systematically turned off all interactive features because the inevitably became full of spam and ugly-speak. I might take a stab at new features ... but realize that my time is better spent on other projects.
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