Black Hat SEO

The first thing you need to know about black hat SEO is that
it’s not illegal in any way shape or form. You will not go to jail for engaging in any black
hat SEO technique and in most cases, you can’t be sued for it either (there are
exceptions which we’ll get to shortly). That said, black hat SEO is the sort of thing you
want to stay away from because it could cause you lots of problems. Here’s why:
Google publishes guidelines for the kind of SEO that they’ll approve of. There is also an
unwritten rule that most SEO professionals follow which states that “we’ll follow certain
basic rules of decency when we engage in SEO”. Black hat SEO violates these rules by
engaging in techniques which are generally considered sneaky and underhanded.
Some obvious examples of black hat SEO include keyword stuffing.

(where you send out thousands of worthless comments to blogs in the hope of getting
links from them which will provide you with those important backlinks).
Some of the less common methods of black hat SEO include things like Google Bowling
(this is where you send out spam links for another website which is your competitor in
the hopes of getting them beaten down in the rankings) and meta tag stuffing (where
you put in keywords in your meta tags which have no relationship to what you are
actually writing about – see above in history of SEO.

In most cases, these things are not illegal although if you deliberately damage the
reputation of your competitors and they prove it, you can be sued for slander), however
Google tends to frown on such things and will generally de-list your website or at the
very least lower your rankings, which ultimately means that you’ll lose out.
However, black hat SEO does have a place in the world of SEO. First of all, it’s useful
for teaching us techniques which are considered gray hat. For example, while mass
spamming is considered to be black hat, many SEO experts still try to get lots of links
out there, but with more targeted material which actually makes sense.

Black hat SEO can also be helpful at times, especially when you are trying to build a
site which is temporary and which will make money for a short while. A good example of
this is the JC Penney debacle. In this case, JC Penney was accused of using spam to
generate additional backlinks which helped them to rank higher in the SERPs for
popular search terms, thus cornering the market for a number of products, especially
during the busy Christmas season.

They were eventually caught and Google lowered their rankings for a number of search
terms, however they did reap millions of dollars in extra sales in the interim.


Another term you may often hear is the term Page Rank or PR and
no, PR doesn’t stand for press release or public relations when you’re talking about
SEO, unless the article you are reading is specifically about one of those things.

Rank is a system designed by Google to let you know how popular a given website is.
It’s an amalgam of a whole host of different factors, including number of backlinks, how
long the site has been around, how often it gets updates and more. PR ranges from 0 to
10 with 10 being the highest.
Most pages on the Internet have a PR of 0 or 1. These kinds of links tend to be easier to
get, however they are also worth less than links on better known websites. There is no
logarithmic scale which can tell you exactly what one link is worth on any given site
because a great many different factors go into deciding how much a link is worth as far
as Google is concerned (for example, if it's a blog comment link, that's worth less than a
link within the text of an article even if both of them are “do follow” links). However, a
page with higher PR is going to offer you significantly more value from a link than a
page with lower ranking.

To understand this, think of it as if the local anchor from Tulas, Oklahoma gave your
website an endorsement during her newscast. That's definitely useful and definitely
worth something. However, if you were to get Christiane Amanpour on This Week, a
nationally broadcast news show to give you a recommendation, then it would be worth
much more. Worth still more would be someone with major star power, for example if
Oprah were to give you a mention.

Read More

Top website design tips

website programmers should be to make the website experience as easy and pleasant for the user as possible. Clearly, well-designed pages with easily navigable layout are central to this, but they're not the whole story. We can go one step further by learning about our users and using information gained about them to personalize the website.

For example, imagine a user, whose name we asked on the first visit, returns to our website. We could welcome the user back to the website by greeting him or her by name. Another good example is given by a website, such as Amazon's, which incorporates the one-click purchasing system. By already knowing the user's purchasing details, such as credit card number and delivery address, we can allow the user to go from viewing a book to buying it in just one click, making the likelihood of the user purchasing it that much greater. Also, based on information, such as the previous purchases and browsing patterns of the user, it's possible to make book suggestions to the user.

Such personalization on websites requires that information about users be stored somewhere in between their visits to the website. We've previously talked about the fact that accessing the user's local file system from a web application is pretty much off limits due to security restrictions included in browsers. However, we, as website developers, can store small amounts of information in a special place on the user's local disc, using what is called a cookie. There may be a logical reason why they are named cookies.

The term Dynamic HTML DHTML has rather a loose meaning, but essentially its purpose is to allow the elements and contents of a web page to be dynamically changed after the page has been loaded into the browser. For example, it can be used to change the size of text as the mouse pointer rolls over it. However, in addition, it also aims to enhance user interaction by making many more HTML elements respond to user actions.

In plain HTML, we can define what a page will contain and the appearance of its contents. However, after the page is built and downloaded to the user's browser, that's it. No changes can be made to the page's content or appearance. However, using DHTML we can change the appearance of existing content, add new content, and even remove content.

Read More

EMAIL BULK SERVICE

Email marketing is a powerful channel but also one that presents many
questions and difficulties. In their 2012 Email marketing benchmark,
marketingsherpa surveyed 2,735 companies and asked them to rank the
significance of 12 common email marketing challenges. In this chapter, we
will focus on the top five challenges and suggest some ideas through which
you can address these issues.


marketers want to amass valuable data across their different channels. For
instance, they might like to see the possible relationships between landing pages
and emails or to track the sales process of an email conversion. In addition to the
obvious reporting benefits such integration provides, it also opens the door to a
much more enjoyable experience for email subscribers.

Just think about it--if you could bridge the gap between email marketing
performance and social media activities, landing page conversions or new
customer acquisitions, you are that much closer to optimizing your sales funnel
and delivering content that your community loves.

In order to integrate your email marketing with your other data systems, you
need to use marketing softwarethat allows for that integration to take place.
In fact, integration is the foundation on which Hubspot’s softwarewas built
as it connects sEo, blogging, lead management and reporting with email
marketing and lead nurturing.

combining your different marketing databases allows for clear segmentation
and ability to better target your customers and prospects with relevant email
messages. once you have access to an integrated marketing system, keep
your buyer persona in mind and focus on the opportunity to target the right
audience with the right message.

the more targeted your email campaigns, the more content you’ll need. key to
promoting relevant content in email is to provide an offer that is connected to
the initial request. what action have your contacts taken on (or even off) your
website? Offer them content that fits with their intent and their needs.

to grow their email database, marketers sometimes purchase lists. this
practice will surely get you into trouble: it might add invalid addresses to your
list and thus pollute your entire database. Even if the addresses you acquired
are valid, the new recipients will most likely not be interested in your content
and either unsubscribe or not engage with your emails altogether. both of
these alternatives are undesirable.

to retain subscribers, a lot of companies send fewer emails, thinking that the
communication frequency might in some way define engagement. Rarity of
emails means they are more special, right? wrong. Frequency of emailing,
as we have established in our science of Email marketingresearch, doesn’t
necessarily negatively impact subscriber retention.

Read More

Ajax code

The keystone of AJAX is the XMLHttpRequest object.
Different browsers use different methods to create the XMLHttpRequest object.
Internet Explorer uses an ActiveXObject, while other browsers uses the built-in JavaScript object called XMLHttpRequest.

<html>
<body>

<script type="text/javascript">
function ajaxFunction()
  {
  var xmlHttp;
  try
    {
    // Firefox, Opera 8.0+, Safari
    xmlHttp=new XMLHttpRequest();
    }
  catch (e)
    {
    // Internet Explorer
    try
      {
      xmlHttp=new ActiveXObject("Msxml2.XMLHTTP");
      }
    catch (e)
      {
      try
        {
        xmlHttp=new ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP");
        }
      catch (e)
        {
        alert("Your browser does not support AJAX!");
        return false;
        }
      }
    }
  }
</script>

<form name="myForm">
Name: <input type="text" name="username" />
Time: <input type="text" name="time" />
</form>

</body>
</html>

Example explained: First create a variable xmlHttp to hold the XMLHttpRequest object.
Then try to create the object with XMLHttp=new XMLHttpRequest(). This is for the Firefox, Opera, and Safari browsers. If that fails, try xmlHttp=new ActiveXObject("Msxml2.XMLHTTP") which is for Internet Explorer 6.0+, if that also fails, try xmlHttp=new ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP") which is for Internet Explorer 5.5+
If none of the three methods work, the user has a very outdated browser, and he or she will get an alert stating that the browser doesn't support AJAX.
Note: The browser-specific code above is long and quite complex. However, this is the code you can use every time you need to create an XMLHttpRequest object, so you can just copy and paste it whenever you need it. The code above is compatible with all the popular browsers: Internet Explorer, Opera, Firefox, and Safari.
The next chapter shows how to use the XMLHttpRequest object to communicate with the server.

Read More

AJAX is Based on Web Standards

AJAX stands for Asynchronous JavaScript And XML.
AJAX is a type of programming made popular in 2005 by Google (with Google Suggest).
AJAX is not a new programming language, but a new way to use existing standards.
With AJAX you can create better, faster, and more user-friendly web applications.
AJAX is based on JavaScript and HTTP requests.

Asynchronous JavaScript and XML

AJAX is not a new programming language, but a technique for creating better, faster, and more interactive web applications.


With AJAX, your JavaScript can communicate directly with the server, using the JavaScript XMLHttpRequest object. With this object, your JavaScript can trade data with a web server, without reloading the page.
AJAX uses asynchronous data transfer HTTP requests between the browser and the web server, allowing web pages to request small bits of information from the server instead of whole pages.
The AJAX technique makes Internet applications smaller, faster and more user-friendly.

In traditional JavaScript coding, if you want to get any information from a database or a file on the server, or send user information to a server, you will have to make an HTML form and GET or POST data to the server. The user will have to click the "Submit" button to send/get the information, wait for the server to respond, then a new page will load with the results.
Because the server returns a new page each time the user submits input, traditional web applications can run slowly and tend to be less user-friendly.

With AJAX, your JavaScript communicates directly with the server, through the JavaScript XMLHttpRequest object
With an HTTP request, a web page can make a request to, and get a response from a web server - without reloading the page. The user will stay on the same page, and he or she will not notice that scripts request pages, or send data to a server in the background.

Read More

What is Port Scanning

Port Scanning

Port scanning is a way of figuring out which ports are listening and accepting connections. Because most services run on standard, documented ports, this information can be used to determine which services are running. The simplest form of port scanning involves trying to open TCP connections to every possible port on the target system. While this is effective, it's also noisy and detectable. Also, when connections are established, services will normally log the IP address. To avoid this, several clever techniques have been invented to avoid detection.

A SYN scan is also sometimes called a half-open scan. This is because it doesn't actually open a full TCP connection. Recall the TCP/IP handshake: When a full connection is made, first a SYN packet is sent, then a SYN/ACK packet is sent back, and finally an ACK packet is returned to complete the handshake and open the connection. A SYN scan doesn't complete the handshake, so a full connection is never opened. Instead, only the initial SYN packet is sent, and the response is examined. If a SYN/ACK packet is received in response, that port must be accepting connections. This is recorded, and a RST packet is sent to tear down the connection to prevent the service from accidentally being DoSed.

X-mas, and Null Scans

In response to SYN scanning, new tools to detect and log half-open connections were created. So, yet another collection of techniques for stealth port scanning evolved: FIN, X-mas, and Null scans. These all involve sending a nonsensical packet to every port on the target system. If a port is listening, these packets just get ignored. However, if the port is closed and the implementation follows protocol (RFC 793), a RST packet will be sent. This difference can be used to detect which ports are accepting connections, without actually opening any connections.

The FIN scan sends a FIN packet, the X-mas scan sends a packet with FIN, URG, and PUSH turned on (named because the flags are lit up like a Christmas tree), and the Null scan sends a packet with no TCP flags set. While these types of scans are stealthier, they can also be unreliable. For instance, Microsoft's implementation of TCP doesn't send RST packets like it should, making this form of scanning ineffective.

Another way to avoid detection is to hide among several decoys. This technique simply spoofs connections from various decoy IP addresses in between each real port-scanning connection. The responses from the spoofed connections aren't needed, because they are simply misleads. However the spoofed decoy addresses must use real IP addresses of live hosts; otherwise the target may be accidentally be SYN flooded.

Read More

Linux-Essential Root Subdirectories

• bin Contains binary programs also known as an executables, which are programs that are ready to run. Most of the basic Unix commands such as ls and cp are in /bin. However, some of the files in /bin are not in binary format because shell scripts perform the tasks of binaries in modern systems.
• dev Contains device files. 
• etc The core system configuration directory (pronounced EHT-cee). User password, boot, device, networking, and other setup files are here. Many items in /etc are specific to the particular hardware on the machine — for example, the /etc/X11 directory contains the graphics card configuration.
• home Holds personal directories for normal users on the system. Most Unix installations conform to this standard.
• lib An abbreviation for library. In Linux, this directory holds library files containing code that executables can use. There are two types of libraries: static and shared. The /lib directory should contain only shared libraries, but other lib directories such as /usr/lib contain both varieties, as well as other auxiliary files.
• proc Provides system statistics through a directory-and-file interface that you can browse with standard Unix tools. Much of the /proc subdirectory structure on Linux is unique, but many other Unix variants have similar features.
• sbin The place to find system executables. Programs in sbin directories pertain to system management, so regular users usually do not have sbin components in their command paths. Many of the utilities don't work for normal users.
• tmp The place to put smaller temporary files that you don't care much about. Any user may read to and write from /tmp, but they may not have permission to access another user's files there. Some programs use this directory as a workspace. If something is extremely important, don't put it in /tmp. Most distributions clear /tmp when the machine boots, and some even remove its old files periodically. Don't fill /tmp either, because its space is usually shared with something critical (like the rest of /, for example).
• usr Pronounced as "user," but this subdirectory does not contain user files (there have been no user files in /usr on Unix systems long before Linux existed). Instead, /usr is a large directory hierarchy that looks a little like the root. The bulk of the Linux system resides in /usr. Many of the directory names in /usr are the same as in the root and hold the same type of files; /usr/bin and /usr/lib are two examples. The primary reason that the root does not contain the complete system is to keep space requirements low. 
• var The "variable" subdirectory, where programs record runtime information. System logging, user tracking, caches, and other files that system programs create and tend all go into /var. There is a /var/tmp similar to /tmp, but the system doesn't wipe it clean on boot.

Read More

Facebook

Facebook
is a social utility that connects people with friends and others who work,
 study and live around them. People use Facebook to keep up with friends.
Boosting the effectiveness of your Facebook publishing strategy is easy
 if you know the answers to these seven questions.

 Facebook brands must finally resolve their fate with Hispanic consumers.

Facebook agreed to pay some $16 billion for an app called WhatsApp this week,
 leading to widespread confusion and surprise among analysts,

Read More

Samsung launch a 13.3-inch tablet

South Korean electronics giant Samsung is reportedly planning to launch its largest 13.3-inch tablet along with other two tablets.a couple of weeks' break and the Galaxy S5 is ready for the next round. And it's only getting harder for the Samsung flagship - who would've thought we'd say this ahead of a head-to-head involving a Chinese smartphone.

The Samsung Galaxy S5 Active doesn't exist officially but there are traces of it all over the place, including Samsung's own web site. The support page for Scandinavian countries (Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark) have a placeholder page for the Samsung SM-G850F. From previous leaks we know the Galaxy S5 Active will have the same base specs as the regular Galaxy S5, which carries an IP67 certification (matching the Galaxy S4 Active). The new Active model might be be tougher, however, with a MIL-STD-810G rating. This rating guarantees protection from salt water (IP only covers fresh water), impacts, thermal shock and other kinds of potential damage.

The unlocked version of the Samsung Galaxy S5 Prime is said to retail for KRW900,000, which is roughly equivalent to €640 or $880. This is roughly the same price tag as the one the Galaxy S5 carried at launch, although the current flagship has already received a price cut and can be found for just under €550 in many markets. It's not the first time we are hearing of June release for the Galaxy S5 Prime, but it's still hard to believe that Samsung will be ready to release another flagship in just a month.

Read More

Samsung Galaxy S5

Samsung announced that they wouldn't be bringing Android KitKat to their aging Samsung Galaxy S3 smartphone, but that didn't stop the XDA and Android hacking community from porting it over anyway. As long as you don't have an issue with rooting your device and following the instructions on the forum (posted in the source link below), then you'll be able to enjoy KitKat on your S3.

 However, as with most custom ROMs, the KitKat ROM for the S3 isn't perfect. There are still some stability and usability issues, and not all features of the phone may function properly. Users may experience some glitches as well. However, if nearly all previous custom ROMs are any indication, the KitKat S3 ROM will get better with time as the community continues to work out the kinks. The community should be a large one as well, considering that the Galaxy S3 is an extremely popular handset and its user base was livid when they discovered that Samsung wouldn't be porting over Google's latest iteration of its mobile OS to their beloved device. It's interesting to note that the KitKat ROM file is too large to fit onto the Galaxy S3's internal storage; Samsung's pre-loaded bloatware is primarily to blame. Once it was removed, the hackers were able to successfully port it without any storage space issues.

Read More