Maximize Website or Blog Revenue With AdSense Alternatives

Use Google AdSense and alternative PPC networks to maximize
website ad revenue. Image: arztsamui/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If you publish a blog or run your own website, you might want to monetize it through pay-per-click advertising. Google AdSense is the biggest and most widely-used online pay-per-click advertising networks, but you can also use alternative pay-per-click (PPC) networks to supplement or replace your AdSense revenue.

Many PPC networks provide realistic Google Adsense alternatives for smaller website and blog publishers Other advertising companies, such as the Microsoft and Yahoo! ad networks, usually prefer to work only with much larger publishers.

AdSense allows its publishers to display advertising from other pay per click ad networks, providing the advertisements do not contravene AdSense guidelines.

News: Xbox Drives Microsoft's Profit

The Xbox Kinect ad lit up in New York's Times Square.
Image: Microsoft Press Center

The economy might be in freefall across the world, with most industries hit by dwindling revenues, but Microsoft is bucking the trend.

Microsoft Corporation has announced record fourth-quarter revenue of $17.37 billion up to and including June 30, 2011. 


Microsoft Office software products and server software packages contributed to this improved bottom line, but one of the biggest money-spinners is the Entertainment and Devices Division, where revenue grew 30 percent for the fourth quarter and 45% for the full year, due to the popularity of the console, Kinect, and Xbox Live. Xbox 360 has been the top-selling game console in the U.S. over the past 12 months. 


Cleary, the security issues affecting the Sony Playstation have benefited Microsoft. Some game centers can't even give away Playstations after the personal data debacle earlier this year. 

Wake in Style With the Geneva S DAB Micro Stereo

The Geneva S DAB alarm clock radio. Image: Genevalabs.

Many people use the integrated alarm feature on their smart phones as an impromptu alarm clock. Either that or you might still use one of those ancient clock radios with tinny AM radio reception and the bright red or green LED time display that seems to light up your entire bedroom with an eerie glow.

If you’re struggling with a smart phone alarm clock or using an old-fashioned clock radio to wake you up in the morning, why not consider upgrading to something more effective and stylish. In fact, the Swiss-made Geneva S DAB radio alarm clock will stand proud on any bedside table and add a touch of class to any bedroom.

The Geneva S DAB radio clock alarm includes an Apple iPod dock so that you can channel music from your mobile device through the high-quality speakers. This is no surprise, because Geneva established its reputation as a manufacturer of top-of-the-range iPod docks.

As the name implies, the device also includes a DAB (Digital Audio Broadcasting) radio that receives the full range of public service broadcasting and commercial radio networks in the highest-quality sound. The DAB radio on the Geneva S includes six preset station positions for your favorite networks. In addition to that little lot, the Geneva S boasts FM radio reception and an audio jack for connecting non-iPod audio equipment.

Function should always come before form, but we can’t ignore the sleek good looks of the Geneva S. The speaker, radio and iPod dock are all contained within a glossy black, white or red box and, splendidly, the iPod dock rotates and pushes out of the main casing like one of the Thunderbirds emerging from Tracy Island.

The LED display is present behind the speaker screen, but definitely muted compared to the garish glow that radiates from the display of most clock radios. The red box of delights sits on a brushed aluminium stand, so you can still find room for other objects on your bedside table. If you can’t find the energy to reach over to the Geneva S, sit back in bed and use the steel and red remote control handset. The only trouble with the Geneva S DAB is that you’ll never want to get out of bed. It’s pricey, too, retailing at a cool £379.

Find Out if You've Been Blocked on Facebook

Search Facebook to see if you've been blocked. Image: Techlure.

You split up from your girlfriend or boyfriend and they suddenly disappear from your Facebook friends list. Have they simply “unfriended” you on Facebook or have they completely blocked you instead?

There’s no way to be certain that you’ve been blocked on Facebook, because Facebook doesn’t notify users when someone else has blocked them. So how can you tell if you’ve been blocked on Facebook?

One way to find out if another Facebook user has blocked you is to carry out a Facebook search for the user’s name. If your friend has simply unfriended you, he will still appear in Facebook search results. If your friend has blocked you or deactivated his Facebook account, he won’t appear in the Facebook search results.

Step-by-Step Guide to Finding Out Who Blocked You on Facebook

1. Sign in to Facebook.
2. Click the Search box, which you’ll find in the main navigation menu at the top of the homepage.
3. Enter your friend’s name into the input box. Facebook automatically displays a selection of results in the drop-down search pane. Choose See More Results to launch comprehensive search results in the main page.
4. Facebook now displays the search results for the name you entered in a new page. You can now remove applications, pages, groups and events from the search results so that Facebook displays only other users with the same name as your friend. To filter the results, click the People icon in the left-side options menu.
5. Carefully read through the list of people with the same name as your friend. Unfortunately, you need to check each and every name to see if your friend appears in the list.
6. Further filter the search results by clicking Location in the left-side options menu. Type the home city, region or country of your friend into the location box. Facebook now narrows the search results to people with the name and location you entered.
7. If you can’t find your friend in the search results, it’s likely that she has blocked you or deactivated her Facebook account. If you do find her in the search results, you can relax, she’s probably just unfriended you.

Remove 301 Redirects to Get Your Website Visitors Back

Do you have a 301 Redirect on your website, forwarding all your visitors to another website domain address?

Internet spammers once used 301 redirects in an attempt to hijack the search engine rankings of legitimate sites, but this practice became much less common when Google and other search engines updated their search algorithms to prevent indexing of redirected sites.

If you’ve just bought a website domain you might find that the previous owner implemented a 301 Redirect and forgot to remove it when he sold the site to you. Fortunately, there’s a relatively simple way to stop the 301 Redirect and get your visitors back. You can find out if there’s a 301 Redirect on your website, and remove the 301 Redirect, by editing the Htaccess file in your website’s root folder.

There's Nothing Flash About Apple's iPhone or iPad

Flash Player compatibility should be
a priority for the iPhone 4S or iPhone 5.

I will declare it now, I love my Apple iPhone 4 and I am also fond of the Apple iPad 2, but these groundbreaking mobile devices are not without their niggles.

One of the most frustrating omissions on the iPhone 4 and the iPad is the lack of compatibility with Flash player.

Many websites now use Flash to display video and animations. Usually this just presents the mild inconvenience of missing a whizzy website graphic or entertaining video clip, but sometimes the lack of Flash compatibility on the Apple iPhone and iPad can cause real inconvenience. For example, some online stores show interactive images of products on pages, which can help to inform the customer’s purchase decision.

While BlackBerry and Windows Phone users get to zoom-in and inspect the product, users of the Apple mobile device are left with that irritating small Flash player icon. In fact, BlackBerry in the U.K. is making PR bank with this, focusing the advertising campaign for its BlackBerry Playbook on the device's Flash compatibility.

Apple is a great, innovative organization. If it can’t resolve its differences with Adobe – the company that makes and markets the Flash player – then it needs to come up with an alternative application that is compatible with Flash for the iPhone 4S or the iPhone 5.

Have an 'Appy Summer With Your iPhone or iPad

Apple's iPad is the ideal travel help.

Summer's here and most of us will travel at some point, whether it's for the annual summer vacation, or a weekend away at the home of friends and family. Travel apps are among the most popular downloads for the Apple iPhone and Apple iPad. From restaurant, bar and pub guides to satellite navigation and flight trackers, you can find hundreds of travel apps for your Apple mobile device.

United Kingdom residents can make the most of the vast array of iPhone and iPad travel apps with a  little help from the Apple Store. Throughout this summer (2011) you can take advantage of free travel workshops at all 30 of Apple's UK stores.

As well as getting you up-to-speed with the vast range of travel apps, the workshops will teach you how to organize your holiday photos on your iPhone or iPad, and even given you some pointers for producing a stunning iMovie of your holiday activities that your friends will actually want to see. To find your nearest workshop, go to apple.com/uk/retail.

Make Your Images Clickable in Blogger

The free Blogger service from Google is an easy way to create and host a blog for sharing your thoughts, comments, news and information with the world.

A handy Blogger feature is the blog post editor tool, which allows you to create, format and edit your blog posts.

If you include photos or pictures on your Blogger blog, you might want to turn the images into hyperlinks to other pages on your blog or external websites and online services. Making an image clickable on Blogger is a straightforward job with Blogger’s HTML editor tool.

How to Find Website Backlinks With Yahoo! Site Explorer

Get website link intelligence with
Yahoo! Site Explorer. Image: Techlure.

Knowing how many websites or blogs link to your own site is an effective way of assessing the popularity of your site and understanding where your visitors come from. Backlinks are important, too, because it’s one of the factors taken into account by Google and other search engines index and rank your site. To search engines, a backlink is a vote of confidence in your site.

An easy way to find out which websites and blogs link to your site is with the free Yahoo! Site Explorer. Just register for a free Yahoo! Account and submit your website’s URL to get a comprehensive backlink report.

Enable ActiveX Controls for Facebook on Internet Explorer

The custom security settings in Internet Explorer. Photo: Techlure.

Do you keep getting that nag screen to install ActiveX controls on Microsoft Internet Explorer, Google Chrome or Firefox each time you try to use Facebook’s multi-photo upload tool?

If the answer is yes, you need to enable your Web browser to run ActiveX controls automatically. Many browsers switch off this function by default as a security precaution.

ActiveX controls add interactive and dynamic functions to websites, including video animations, interactive photo galleries and embedded video players, so enabling ActiveX controls on Microsoft Internet Explorer can really enhance your Web browsing experience.

Step-by-Step Guide to Enable ActiveX Controls on Microsoft Internet Explorer:

1. Launch Internet Explorer.
2. Click the Tools button labeled with the wrench/spanner icon in the top menu.
3. Click Internet Options in the drop-down menu, then slick the Security tab.
4. Find the Zone box. Click Internet, then Custom Level to launch the Security Settings dialog box.
5. Locate the ActiveX Controls and Plug-Ins section in the list of options.
6. Select the radio button beside Enable under each  ActiveX control option.
7. Click the OK button. You’ve successfully enabled ActiveX Controls in Internet Explorer and this should make uploading photos to Facebook much quicker.

Access Yahoo! Mail From IBM Lotus Notes

Save time on email by accessing your
Yahoo! Mail from Lotus Notes. Image: Techlure.

If you use IBM’s Lotus Notes email software on your office or home computer then you might not know that you can access multiple email accounts.

This is a great time-saver because it means you don’t have to access different websites to view all your email accounts.

To add the online Yahoo! Mail email service to Lotus Notes, use the “Internet Mail” option from Lotus Notes Account settings.