Hidden at the end of most website task lists is that pesky little duty of search engine optimization (SEO). Many consider SEO to be a post-production part of a website; a job for the marketing department or search engine marketing (SEM) vendor that is typically handled by the client or copywriter, not the developer. While this may be true to a degree, many of the more advantageous SEO tricks fall solely on the developer to implement before the website even launches.

With that said, I'd like to point out five SEO tips and misconceptions that hold true with nearly every website. more...

I was going to write an elegant overview on the current status of today's internet content providers, and how beating your competitors to the desktop was the holy grail of content delivery success, but, being a person who reads tutorials on a daily basis, I know what you really want - the code. So with that in mind, I'll sum up the purpose of this project in one sentence - Accessibility is king in today's content-based e-business world, and bypassing the browser to hit viewers on their desktop puts your app in the user's face first (widget success arguments aside).

In this tutorial, we will be constructing a Flash-based application that will let users search and browse directory listings from either the web of from their desktop. The app will connect with a secured data-server via PHP, gather data to turn public, then offer that data via XML to the flash application. This process is illustrated in the diagram below:

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Since I use ternary conditionals in some of the PHP examples featured on this site, I thought I would devote a little time to summarizing what they are, and, more importantly, why you might want to use them.

Ternary conditionals are a simple alternative for traditional If-Then statements. In terms of execution time, they are not significantly better than same-sized If-Then's, but they have other advantages, those being: more...

Tropical SEO has posted a great summary of Google's Supplemental Index (which can really hinder your SEO efforts), and how to get out of it. This page is worth a read if you are having difficulty with your Google positions. Also, if you haven't been there, Tropical SEO is an excellent resource for SEM-related advice, giving up great content in laid-back writing. more...

If you're not considering typos in a PPC campaign, you could be missing out on great opportunities for your online marketing plans. Why? Consider you are marketing to a fairly saturated market, and all of the hot keywords have at minimum 10 bids, and the toppers are running around $1.00/piece/per. Usual right? You continue along your PPC campaign, and see the expected results tumble in, and you can your client shake hands for a job-well-done. more...