What is jQuery?
To put it simply, jQuery is a library of programming code that allows programmers to create feature-rich websites without needing to create every feature from scratch. The jQuery library and plugins give programmers quick access to a slew of functionality including: animations, fading in/fading out content, accordions, dynamically loading in content from external URLs, and more! In other words, jQuery delivers on a lot of promises that have been undelivered in the past: easy implementation of advanced features. (See below for some cool demos of the technology)

Basic Functionality Demos
Accordions - http://jqueryui.com/demos/accordion/
Tabs - http://jqueryui.com/demos/tabs/
Color Animation (click the “toggle effect” button) – http://jqueryui.com/demos/animate/
Effects (select the option from the drop down, click “Run Effect”) – http://jqueryui.com/demos/effect/

Plugin Demos
AnythingSlider – http://css-tricks.com/examples/AnythingSlider/
Display Switch (click the icons in the upper left) – http://www.sohtanaka.com/web-design/examples/display-switch/
Thumbnail Gallery – http://www.queness.com/resources/html/thumbnail/index.html
Slide Panel – http://www.webdesignerwall.com/demo/jquery/simple-slide-panel.html
Animated Hover – http://www.webdesignerwall.com/demo/jquery/animated-hover2.html
(These are just a few examples that touch on just a few possibilities.)

How popular is jQuery?
Since the jQuery library is open-source and free to all, it is definitely priced right! A number of large websites use jQuery including: Twitter, Wikipedia, Amazon, Microsoft, Netflix, and WhiteHouse.gov. It has even received official support from Microsoft and has been paired with it’s enterprise development software. That means that jQuery is outpacing all other competing libraries and it is here to stay.

Google Trends: jQuery

Questions?
If you have any questions or comments, give us a call! We’d love to walk you through some more demos and show you all that jQuery can do for you! 949-748-6940

A blog is a type of specialized website that displays a series of articles that contain text or images.  Blogs are generally specialized by topic, for example fashion, politics or graphic design.  Blogs can be maintained by companies, organizations or individuals and can contain news or commentary on a particular subject.  Users are often able to comment on the blog topics generating an on-going conversation.  Users can also set up “blog readers” that allow them to automatically track blog articles from multiple blogs in a single location.

 
Why do I need a blog?

The following are some good reasons why you, your company, or your clients might need a blog: 

Build credibility
One thing that a blog does is help build credibility.  In a recent study* it was shown that 36% of online users think more positively about companies that have blogs.  Your credibility grows if the entries you are posting are relevant and accurate.  With a blog, you have the opportunity to become an authority in your field. 

Engage and Understand Your Customer Better
A blog can help you get to know your customers better by interacting with them directly.  You can post an article on a specific topic about your product and gain instant feedback from your audience.  Also, you can reply directly to comments to create a personal relationship with them.  You can build an interactive community around a specific topic or brand. 

Keep Your Audience Informed
Most companies use their blogs to keep their customers informed about topics relating to their business or their products.  You can use a blog to generate buzz about your new product, provide resources and FAQ’s or to educate people on certain topics or concerns. 

 Build Up Your Company for Prospective Customers
When prospective customers visit your blog, they will be able to learn more about your company.  If your blog posts are relevant and are saying the right things, these prospects will have an easier time trusting you with their business.  If your articles are useful and of interest, there is a better chance that your readers will forward the articles on to their friends and business contacts.

Increase your Visibility in Search Engine Results
A large component of effective search engine optimization (SEO) is having your site updated regularly with new content.  By having a blog that is producing new content on a regular basis, your search engine rankings will increase and you will be more visible in search results. 

How do I get a blog setup?

There are several free hosted blog services available such as Blogger that are fairly easy to set up and get going. Ideally you want a blog that can reside on your own site (for SEO purposes) and you will want to customize the appearance to your liking.  So if you’re looking to customize your blog, one great solution is to the open source platform blogging platform, WordPress.   

WordPress allows you to take their blog code and customize the look and feel of it using HTML and CSS.  You just need a hosting account that supports PHP and MySQL.  This software allows you take a custom design and incorporate it into a fully functional blog. 

Getting started?
Interested in getting a blog set up for your company or one of your clients?  Flip Studios can help you get started!  We make it easy.  Give us a call at 949-748-6940. 

Already blogging?
We would love to hear about your blog adventures.  What have you learned that could be useful to others?  What are some of the benefits you have found with blogging?  Feel free to comment below!

 * “Power to the People – Wave3” from Universal McCann

View Demo: http://page-flip.com/new-demos/03-kitchen-gorenje-2008/index.html

This tool allows you to import a PDF file of a catalog and turn it into an interactive experience for your customers.  Your customers can use their mouse to flip the pages of the catalog and zoom in on certain items.  Here are some other features of this software:

• Text search
• Customizable interface (design it to match your site)
• Viewers can download and/or print the PDF
• Table of contents interface
• Ability to create bookmarks
• Thumbnail view of all of the pages for easier browsing
• Permanently create a link to a specific page

The next time you need to display a catalog or any other book-type material on a website, think about using the “Flipping Book” to make it an interactive experience for your web visitors.

What do you think of this interactive tool?  Have you used it yet on a website?  Think it might give your customers a way to connect with their website visitors?

Chances are you have had to be creative to find a decent domain name and it’s been a frustrating process. Here is a great tool that can help you find your next domain name! Bust a Name is a website that allows you to find domain names that are currently available for purchase. You can enter in a slew of keywords (Granny, Garage, Car, Repair, etc.) and it will check all the combinations of domain names that are available for purchase. You can then narrow or broaden your search by selecting a variety of options including prefixes, suffixes, number of words, and more!

Bust A Name also has a lightning fast “Quick Domain Search” that checks for domain name availability right as you type out the domain name! That way you don’t have to wait around to find out if your domain name is available.

Check out Bust a Name here: www.bustaname.com