Digital Media Stream

My young son (under a year) decided he wanted to be like his Dad and type on the computer. Somehow he ended up locking the FN key, so when I typed, the letter J, I got a 1. When I typed a u, I got a 4. You get the idea. I realized the FN key was locked, but I had no idea how to fix it. I tried and tried and I'm sure you have too.

The solution is hold the shift key and the Num Lk key at the same time. I hope that works for you. For other machines, you may want to try the ctrl or alt key with the Num Lk key.

Did that fix your FN Key lock problem?

We are not the first, nor will we be the last to write about this topic. Yet, no matter how basic this information may seem for the initiated, it is still new for more than three quarters of the people out there, especially individuals looking to start their own business and small business owners trying to figure out how to get online effectively.

This article is intended for those that are still figuring out how to get started with an online business, and if it is even the right choice for them. We have other articles about running an online business for those that have already made the choice and are now looking for detailed insights.

Why Online Business Works

Two of the biggest benefits of using the internet to do business are that it can reach a much wider geographic audience than a brick and mortar store, and there is in-depth and timely feedback on every decision that is implemented. Neither of these two factors guarantees success, but they open up new opportunities that wouldn’t exist offline.

Getting started with an online business is appealing to most people for two reasons; it can be managed at any time from almost anywhere and it can achieve success without the need for a lot of capital.

While these facts are true about running an online business, there is a mistaken assumption by some – propagated by many get rich quick schemers – that owning an online business is an easy path to riches without any hard work.

So you've come up with a new concept for a website or your trying to marketing your existing business online, and you need to come up with a domain name. Should I be a .com, .net, .biz? What should I name site? You think of the perfect domain, only to find out it's taken. You get the idea. It's the foundation of your e-business model, so you need to get it right, (or at least close). Here's some tips to get you started in the right direction:

Domain Tips For New Website

Dot Com, Dot Net, Dot Biz -- What Suffix should I get?

The correct use for each domain suffix has been blurred by the lack of available domains. The "dot com" is still a preferable suffix if you're involved any aspect of e-commerce. Outside of e-commerce, the other domains are acceptable and work well. You're on a "dot net" right now. The "dot net" suffix was initially set up for internet service providers, but many are now using the "dot net" for social networks. For the most part, the root of the domain is more important than the suffix. If you can get a "dot com" with the preferred root, then go with that. The "dot biz" and "dot net" with the preferred root are excellent fall backs.

The name of your site/product and your domain don't have to match -- Get a domain with keywords that are being search for.

This is just a quick review of the new ChunkIt! product from TigerLogic, with a couple tips included. I'm positive that there are many more uses that will be figured out in the next couple weeks.

5 cool ways to use ChunkIt by TigerLogic:

1. Use the term chunkit. The web is a dynamically created space, but with a term as new as this, search engines aren’t quite sure what to make of it. In the first 20 results from Google, TigerLogic’s homepage shows up, and so does this blog, and the Techcrunch blog, but otherwise the majority of the first 30 sites aren’t really about the new ChunkIt! product. Helpful to see these irrelevant chunks before wasting time at chunkit.com or chunkit.net.

2. Type “Larry Ellison compensation” into the ChunkIt! box and then click the Chunk Google (or other search engine) button. I wasn’t aware that he made that much and to find out I never had to go to any of the actual websites that were returned in the search results. Fast and informative. I wonder what Bill Gates makes?

3. Type “Earth Day Events” into the ChunkIt! box to see what you can find near you. Or check out the Green Apple Festival events listed at our parter site.

TigerLogic announced today that it is releasing a new Internet browser-based application called ChunkIt! that enhances the search experience of any popular search engine or webpage.

They are calling ChunkIt! a personal search engine (PSE), with the ability to rapidly search through thousands of search results so users can quickly determine where to find the exact chunk of information that they are looking for, in its original context.

The browser-based application works with popular search services, such as Google, Yahoo!, Microsoft Live Search, AOL and Ask to increase user productivity by extracting and displaying "chunks" of information alongside the search engine results to see beyond the simple search results.

The "chunks" are delivered in a dual panel page that display the chosen search engine results on the left and the ChunkIt! results of the key search words or phrase highlighted in the right panel. By clicking on the ChunkIt! icon next to each result, users are quickly taken directly to the highlighted chunk of information on the referenced Web page, thus eliminating the need to have multiple tabs or window open for one search.

Learn more about TigerLogic and ChunkIt! at http://www.tigerlogic.com/ChunkIt

My wife and I have been using a digital camera for the past few years and so I had forgotten the tediousness of searching through an old box of photos to find the one I needed. Last night, however, I had to find one of the old gems from my past (pre 1998). I'd include it here but, of course, it isn't digital.

It's a scary process to look through all the stages of life that can be shoved inside a box. Some pictures were amazing, but some were downright inappropriate for my sensitive workadaddy eyes.

So what do I do with all these forgotten snapshots. I want to, at least, convert the best of them into digital media, but making the effort seems beyond me. As always, I want easy answers that don't cost me anything. I'll look into it and see what I can suggest for anyone else who might be facing the same challenge.