Social Media Marketing All-in-One For Dummies

The number of outlets for social media marketing is staggering. Blogs are just the beginning. Now you can choose from social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, social bookmarks sites such as Delicious, social news sites such as Digg, social shopping such as Kaboodle, social media sharing sites such as YouTube, and social communities such as Ning. This Cheat Sheet is a guide to the wealth of social media marketing platforms and resources.

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Four Secrets for Social Media Marketing Success

What you already know about online marketing will stand you in good stead. Start with these marketing basics and work from there to create a social media plan.

• Create a hub Web site or blog with a domain name that you own. Social media are a way to cast a wider net for your products or services. Ultimately, you still need to drive traffic to a core Web site or blog for additional information or purchasing.

  
  



• Develop a standard set of eight keywords or phrases and a page description for search engine optimization. Just as you optimize your Web site, optimize your social marketing content and profiles. Use the same description and terms over and over to improve your ranking on search engines, and to appear higher on internal search results for each social media outlet.

  
  



• Plan your marketing and work your plan. As with all other forms of marketing, your decisions are driven by your target audience. Market on the media outlets they use. Before you actually do anything, define your market, establish your goals, and decide how you will measure success.

  
  



• Keep it simple! Unless you have many people on your marketing team, you need to keep your social media efforts under control — or they will control you. Generally, you get better results by posting more often on a few sites than posting occasionally on many sites. Create a simple monthly schedule of activities that includes posting somewhere at least weekly.

  
  

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Great Social Marketing Resource Sites

The first phase in writing your social media marketing plan is research. Use the Web sites in this table to put together the best possible social media marketing plan for your company.

Web Site	Description
href="http://addictomatic.com/">Addict-o-matic	Search for the current buzz and trends on any topic
BIG Marketing for Small Business	Social media, online, and offline marketing tips
href="http://www.frogloop.com/social-network-calculator">FrogLoop	Online ROI calculator for social network campaigns
HubSpot	Inbound marketing blog
href="http://www.marketingprofs.com/marketing/library/100/social-media"> MarketingProfs	Social media marketing tips, including B2B
href="http://www.marketingsherpa.com/">MarketingSherpa	Social networking research with B2B focus
Mashable	Well-known social media guide
Online Marketing Blog	Blog about online and social marketing
href="http://www.practicalecommerce.com/blogs/5-The-Social-Retailer"> Practical eCommerce	Blog about social marketing for retailers
Quantcast	Demographic research on most sites
Slashdot	Social news service about technology
Social Media Marketing Group	Professional, non-promotional discussion group; approval required to join
Social Mention	Tracks post about topics on 100 social media services
href="http://social-networking-business.blogspot.com/">Social Networking Business	Social networking blog for business
href="http://www.socialnetworkingwatch.com/all_social_networking_statistics/index.html"> Social Networking Watch	Aggregates news and statistics for social networks
Technorati	Real-time blog search engine and index of blog popularity

Bookmark any sites you find most useful to continue accessing after you have your social media marketing plan in place.

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Twitter Applications

If Twitter is a part of your social media marketing, several applications can streamline your workflow. This table outlines several applications you may find helpful.

Web Site	Description
TwitPic	Upload your images to this site and add the URL to a tweet to share an image with your Twitter followers.
Digsby	A desktop application that lets you get e-mail alerts, instant message, and manage your social media accounts. Digsby is available as a free download for Mac, PC, and Linux.
Twitterfeed	Feed your blog posts to Twitter and Facebook.
Twhirl	A desktop application that lets you tweet without being on the Twitter Web site. You can also simultaneously post your Twitter updates to Facebook and Linkedin.
Twitterurly	Tracks the URLs most mentioned in tweets.
TWTpoll	Create polls for your Twitter followers.
Tweepler	An online application that makes it a breeze to manage your Twitter followers.

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Controlling the Social Media Monster

Using social media doesn't have to be a chore. Use these helpful tools and techniques to manage your social media campaigns. They’ll save you time, money, and stress.

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  Repetition is wonderful when it comes to keywords, tags, and labels. Utilizing the same core search terms and page description over and over on your Web site and all social media outlets, not only saves time but also improves ranking on search engine results.

  
  


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  Use tools like Ping.fm, hellotxt.com, Onlywire, or RSS (real simple syndication) to post similar content multiple places at once. For instance, you can simultaneously upload photos to multiple social media sharing outlets, or simultaneously post to your blog and Facebook.

  
  


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  Tweeting once or more a day is a real nuisance. Schedule tweets in advance so you don’t need to remember to log on with timely messages. Use tools like SocialOomph, twitresponse, or FutureTweets.

  
  


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  Keep track of daily social media activities. Schedule tasks for a month at a time or more with a simple calendar on Windows, Google, or Yahoo!

  
  


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  Correlate data from multiple sources. Configure one standard analytical package, such as Google Analytics or Woopra.com, to measure all your social media results.

  
  


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  Get organized! Create a master dashboard with links and tiered log-ins to all your social media outlets, tools, calendars, and analytic sites in one place. Configure Netvibes or HootSuite to meet your needs.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/social-media-marketing-allinone-for-dummies-cheat-.html

Working around Image Blocking in Your E-Mail Marketing Messages

Often, your prospects and customers can’t see the images in your marketing e-mails images immediately because most e-mail programs automatically block images in the preview pane to protect their users from seeing unwanted images. Your audience has to rely on From lines and Subject lines to decide whether to download your images, which is where the header of your message assumes major importance.

To get the most from a preview pane, use these tips to make sure your audience recognizes you and your business:

• Avoid placing large images at the top of your e-mails. Your audience’s preview pane may appear blank if an image at the top of your e-mail is as large as the average preview pane. Instead of using large images across the top of your e-mail, use a smaller image and include text above, below, or to one side of the image.

  
  



• Include titles and captions with images. Using text above and below your images helps your audience determine whether to view them.

  
  



• Use image descriptions in your HTML image references. An image description — also known as alt text — is a line of HTML code that tells an HTML reader to display text when images aren’t displayed. Alt text also displays in some e-mail browsers when a user places a mouse over an image without clicking.

  
  

  Most EMPs allow you to insert an image description when you upload an image without requiring you to know any HTML code.

  
  



• Add text at the top of your e-mail to ask your recipient to add your From address to his address book. Most e-mail applications automatically show images when the sender’s e-mail address is in the recipient’s address book or contacts list.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/working-around-image-blocking-in-your-email-market.navId-610165.html

Finding and Organizing Images in iPhoto

Figure 1: The key to keywords.

Above the list of keywords is a check mark. Its purpose is to flag all the photos you may want to pull together for a specific project. The check mark shows up in the lower-right corner of a thumbnail on selected images.

To assign keywords (or the check mark) to specific photos, follow these steps:

1. Select the specific picture.

2. Choose Photos --> Get Info.

3. Make sure that the Keywords Tab option under Get Info is highlighted.

4. Place a check mark next to the keyword (or keywords) you want to use for the image.

As an alternative to Steps 2 to 4, open the keywords pane at the lower-left corner of the screen by clicking the button that looks like a key. Drag the photo onto the appropriate keyword.

Assigning ratings

You can also assign ratings to pictures on a scale between zero and five stars. You can do this in the following ways with selected images:

• Choose Photos --> My Rating and click the number of stars you have in mind.

• Open the Information pane by clicking the little circled i button near the lower-left corner of the screen, and then click the representative dot next to Rating.

• While holding down the Command key, press the 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 key (representing the number of stars) on the keyboard.

Placing your work into albums

In the film age, really organized people took the time to methodically place prints into old-fashioned picture albums. Fortunately, the iPhoto equivalent of lumping pictures into albums is much simpler. The process is similar to creating playlists in iTunes. So, you can place all the pictures from your ski trip in one album, pictures of the high school reunion in another, and so on. Here's the drill:

1. Choose File --> New Album, or click the + button at the lower-left corner of the iPhoto screen.

2. Type a name for your album (Hawaii Honeymoon or Dance Recital, for example).

3. Click Create.

Creating a smart photo album

Just as you can create smart playlists in iTunes, you can sire smart albums in iPhoto based on specific criteria, such as keywords, photos you've rated highly, pictures taken with a particular camera, or the shutter speed. To create a smart album, follow these steps:

1. Choose File --> New Smart Album.

2. Type a name, just as you do with a regular album.

3. Select the conditions that must be met for pictures to be included in the Smart Album.

Viewing pictures

In the main viewing area, photos are displayed in the order in which you imported them. If you want to change the order, choose View --> Sort Photos, and then choose an option, such as By Film Roll or By Rating.

Under the View menu, you can also decide whether to display the titles, keywords, film rolls, and ratings of your photos.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/finding-and-organizing-images-in-iphoto.html

Common Network Attack Strategies: Password Attacks

Sometimes, people attempt password attacks on a running network system; but with passwords that lock accounts out after a few failed logon attempts, this network attack strategy isn't very productive. More typically, password attacks capture RAW logon traffic from the network or break into a backup of a domain controller or workstation on the network.

If an attacker reboots a workstation on a network from a CD or USB key, he can quickly grab a copy of the Windows SAM and security files from the Windows directory.

With these files in hand, the attacker can spend as much time as he wants trying to guess the passwords that are found in these files. In the case of the workstation, these security files give an attacker the local passwords on a computer, such as the local Administrator account; which he can then use to get a hold of network passwords which will provide more access to the network.

From the SAM file, an attacker can attempt to use two methods to crack these passwords:

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  Brute force attack: With this attack or password-guessing technique, the cracking software goes through every password possibility from a through to zzzzzzzzzz, including all possible numbers or punctuation characters. This process of finding a password can take a very long time, longer for every extra character put into the password.

  
  


• 
  

  Dictionary attack: This password-guessing technique can be done much faster, and it makes use of dictionary or word list files. These files are readily available on the Internet and include dictionaries such as the standard Oxford dictionary, every word found in the works of William Shakespeare, and even obscure or made-up language dictionaries such as Klingon.

  
  

  With these word lists in hand, the attacker can quickly compare these words to the hash values for the Windows passwords found in the SAM file. To speed things up even more, he can have his computer go through the dictionary files and create a password hash for every word, and then he just needs to compare the pregenerated hash values with those found in the SAM file.

  
  

  This process can give the attacker even more speed in finding these passwords. Despite warnings not to, many people still use standard dictionary words for their passwords.

  
  

To protect your network from these possibilities, you need to provide some level of protection to the local OS installations, especially for workstations that are in the public or in areas of high public access. Workstations that must be in those areas should have physical security preventing them from being rebooted from custom media.

Passwords used on these systems should be different from main domain client systems. Finally, use a strong password policy, which includes regular changes to the passwords and a requirement that the passwords should not be dictionary words.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/common-network-attack-strategies-password-attacks.html

How to Check Out Day Trading Service Providers before Buying

Trading software, training, and research services for day traders can get expensive, and some are outright scams. Even those that are legitimate (and most are) may not be right for you. Before you spend your money, do your research. Start with the free programs offered by the exchanges so you have enough knowledge to understand what a trading services purveyor is trying to do. Then check them out.

You have a ton of tools available to you to do your due diligence. A good place to start is the Internet. Go to your favorite search engine and enter the name of the program you’re looking at plus the word scam or rip-off and see what turns up. If nothing of much interest turns up, proceed to the regulatory agencies.

Anyone with even a little knowledge of search-engine optimization knows this tip. If your search turns up 50 blog posts with lines like “Why Company X is NOT a scam!!!” well, guess what? Company X probably has something to hide. Or just move on, because plenty of legitimate vendors that you can work with instead are out there.

You may learn very little about any given research firm from an Internet search or checks with the different regulatory organizations. That doesn’t mean the firm in question isn’t for real, just that it hasn’t caused any concerns so far.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission regulates options and futures markets, which are popular with day traders. Although not as well known as the Securities and Exchange Commission, its functions are similar. At its website, you can check out investor advisories, known scams, and recent enforcement efforts to see whether the vendor you’re thinking of working with is legitimate or too good to be true.

FINRA BrokerCheck

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) provides a handy service that lets you check on the current enforcement status of different brokerage firms and their employees, especially in the stock, bond, and options markets. Some of these firms and people may be offering research services or newsletters, so check to see whether they’ve had problems in the past. Then you can make decisions based on what you find. Some issues, such as a history of disputes over customer funds, should send you running.

National Futures Association BASIC

Futures are popular with day traders, and they’re regulated by the National Futures Association. Its Background Affiliation Status Information Center (BASIC) gives you information on people and firms registered with the National Futures Association.

Securities and Exchange Commission

The Securities and Exchange Commission offers lots of great information about every aspect of stock and bond investing, with a special emphasis on problems and scams to avoid. Don’t let the information scare you away from the market; use it to evaluate any services that you’re thinking of paying for.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-check-out-day-trading-service-providers-bef.html

How to Pick Your Preference: Male or Female Dog?

2 of 8 in Series:
The Essentials of Adopting a New Puppy

For most people, the choice of whether to choose a male dog or a female dog comes down to personal preference. You should consider some differences, however, because even spaying and neutering doesn’t make males and females the same.

If you do not plan to spay or neuter your pet the differences are more distinct. Unspayed females are generally moodier than unneutered males. Although males tend to be more constant in temperament, they can be annoying in their constant pursuit of such male-dog activities as sex, leg-lifting, and territory protection. (Some would say constancy isn’t a positive trait in these cases, and argue that some unneutered males aren’t just constant, but constantly annoying.)

Unspayed females usually come into season, or heat, for a couple weeks twice a year, during which time you need to deal with a varying amount of mess and the constant attention of canine suitors. Unneutered males may be less than attentive to your commands when the smell of females in heat beckons. They can also be more likely to challenge your leadership — or anyone else’s — at any time.

Studies show that young, unneutered males are the most likely to be involved in attacks on children. Spaying or neutering generally evens things out a bit. It makes females more emotionally constant and males less likely to fight or roam.

In some breeds, males are considerably larger than females — as much as 20 or 30 pounds and two or three inches.

Other differences aren’t so easily defined. In the more dominant breeds, such as the Rottweiler, a female may be sweeter and more anxious to please. In the more shy and standoffish breeds, such as the Shetland Sheepdog, a male may be more outgoing and friendly. In some breeds, such a Golden Retriever, you might not notice much difference at all, especially in altered pets.

When deciding on a type of dog, concentrate on the breed or breed type rather than the gender, since the toughest male of an easy-going breed is probably a bigger cupcake than the mildest female of a breed with dominant tendencies. Talking to reputable breeders gives you a clear picture how the sexes differ, not only in the breed as a whole, but also in particular breeding lines.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-pick-your-preference-male-or-female-dog.html

Coaching Football by Motivating Players

Football is the ultimate team game, and you need to motivate your players to work as a team. Although the sport allows individuals in some positions (such as quarterbacks, who can elude defenders and scramble downfield) to create plays on their own, you and your team are much better off if you can get everyone to work together as a cohesive unit on the field.

Finding a surefire route to teaching the essence of teamwork among your players is difficult. Try getting the players to begin seeing the enormous benefits that accompany working as a team (rather than as a bunch of individuals) with the following pointers:

• Praise team efforts in practices and after the game. Recognize the efforts of the team whenever possible. If you're conducting a passing drill and the offensive unit scores a touchdown, you may tend to acknowledge the youngster who caught the touchdown pass or the quarterback who delivered the ball.

  
  

  But what about the other players involved? How about the blocking by the offensive line? How about the wide receiver on the other side of the field who ran such a good pattern that he lured the safety over to cover him, providing an easier target for the quarterback on the other side? When you spread your praise among all the players who play a role in scoring, players begin to understand that each of them plays a very important role on the team.

  
  



• Get the kids to praise one another. Encourage the kids who score touchdowns to acknowledge the teammates who helped get them to the end zone. Getting kids in the habit of giving one another high-fives or telling each other "great pass" or "nice block" forges bonds and strengthens team unity.

  
  



• Promote sideline support. Encourage players who aren't in the game to stay involved by cheering and supporting their teammates. This role keeps them involved in the action instead of glancing over to see what their parents are doing or what kind of food their friends are buying at the concession stand. Hearing teammates' cheers also provides extra encouragement for the players on the field.

  
  



• Allow individual freedom — at times. Although you should sometimes give players individual freedom to create plays on their own, you need to do so within the team setting. At some point during the game, you may want to give your quarterback a chance to run the ball after dropping back to pass, and calling these types of plays are part of the game. But when that player ignores an open teammate he could have passed to because he wants to run, he threatens team chemistry. Remind that player that he has teammates for a reason and to be sure to look out for them.

  
  



• Avoid the captain syndrome. Continually relying on two or three players to serve as team captains throughout the season elevates them above the rest of the squad, but giving every player the opportunity to lead warm-ups in practice or head a drill infuses the team with the sense that everyone's equal. In most youth football programs, "official" team captains usually aren't required until around the age of 14. Naming temporary captains is just another tool you can use to build kids' self-esteem and make them feel like valued team members.

  
  

Here are a few general tips you can employ to help spur your players on to become the best they can be after they buckle the chin straps:

• Love what you're doing. If you have a sincere passion for football and for teaching it to children, your excitement and enthusiasm will rub off on the team, and they'll respond accordingly.

  
  



• Set attainable goals for youngsters. Forget about trying to win every game or having the league's highest-scoring offense. Those aren't realistic goals for kids, some of whom are just learning how to properly put on all the safety equipment.

  
  

  If a child senses that your expectations are far-fetched, he wonders what's the point of even trying, and his play on the field suffers. This negatively impacts the entire team.

  
  



• Recognize the good things happening on the field. Stop practice to point out when a player does something really well, not just when a player makes a mistake. Being positive is simply one of the best motivational tools around.

  
  



• Don't motivate through fear or threats. Making a child run a lap for failing to perform at an expected level has no place in youth football. Kids are there to learn and to learn from their mistakes, not be humiliated or punished for them. This motivation-through-fear tactic is likely to chase members of your team away from the sport in the years to come. If he's giving everything he's got and it's just not clicking for some reason, find another method or take a different approach to teach the skill.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/coaching-football-by-motivating-players.html

For Seniors: Keep Personal Information Private on the Internet

The key to keeping personal information private is to avoid sharing information with the wrong people. While sharing personal information over the Internet with friends and family often enriches those relationships, exposing private information is always a risk, especially on the Internet.

Criminals come in all flavors, but the more savvy ones collect information in a very systematic way. Each bit of information is like another piece of a puzzle that, over time, collects to form a very clear picture of your life. After criminals collect and organize such information, they never throw it away because they may be able to use it many times over.

Fortunately, information exposure is a risk you have a great deal of control over. Before sharing information such as your date of birth, make sure that you're comfortable with how the recipient will use it.

• Address and phone number: Abuse of this information results in you receiving increased telemarketing calls and junk mail. Although less common, this information may also increase a scammer’s ability to steal your identity and make your home a more interesting target for break-ins.

  
  



• Names of husband/wife, father, and mother (including mother’s maiden name), siblings, children, and grandchildren: This information is very interesting to criminals, who can use it to gain your confidence and then scam you, or use it to guess your passwords or secret question answers, which often include family members’ names. This information may also expose additional family members to ID theft, fraud, and personal harm.

  
  



• Information about your car: Limit access to license plate numbers; VINs (vehicle identification numbers); registration information; make, model, and title number of car; your insurance carrier's name, coverage limits, loan information, and driver’s license number.

  
  

  The key criminal abuse of this information includes car theft (or theft of parts of the car) and insurance fraud. The type of car you drive may also indicate your financial status, and that adds one more piece of information to the pool of data criminals collect about you.

  
  



• Information about work history: In the hands of criminals, your work history can be very useful for “authenticating” the fraudsters and convincing people and organizations to provide them with more of your financial records or identity.

  
  



• Information about your credit status: This information can be abused in so many ways that any time you're asked to provide your credit status online, your answer should be no. Don’t fall for the temptation to check your credit scores for free through sites that aren't guaranteed reputable.

  
  

  Another frequent abuse of credit information is found in free mortgage calculators that ask you to put in all kinds of personal information in order for them to determine what credit you qualify for.

  
  

Many people leave messages on their e-mail—automated response letting people know when they'll be away from their offices. This is really helpful for colleagues, but exercise caution and limit who you provide the information to. Leaving a message that says, “Gone 11/2-11/12. I’m taking the family to Hawaii for ten days,” may make you a prime target for burglary.

You may need to show your work history, and so may post your résumé on Internet job or business networking sites. Be selective about where you post this information, create a separate e-mail account to list on the résumé, and tell what kinds of work you’ve done rather than give specifics about which companies and what dates.

Interested, legitimate employers can then contact you privately, and you won’t have given away your life history to the world. After you’ve landed the job, take down your résumé. Think of it as risk management — when you need a job, the risk of information exposure is less vital than the need to get the job, but make that info private again when it’s served its purpose.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/for-seniors-keep-personal-information-private-on-t.html

Use Hardware for Sharing an Internet Connection

Probably the most popular way to share an Internet connection is to buy a hardware device that connects to your Internet connection, which then connects to your LAN. These devices are referred to as cable/DSL routers. The main downside to a hardware Internet connection-sharing device is that it costs more than a software solution.

Cable/DSL routers are nice because they’re easy to set up and configure. Also, you can leave them on, which means constant Internet access for those on your LAN. You don’t have to worry about turning on another computer to connect to the Internet as you do with a software solution.

Apple’s AirPort Extreme Base Station and Time Capsule backup device are both Wireless Access Points (WAPs) for your network, but wait, they also act as Internet connection-sharing devices! (AirPort Express can’t share an Internet connection.) Some older flavors of AirPort Base Station even have a built-in v.90 modem for sharing a single 56 Kbps connection using a dialup account!

A base station typically has several Ethernet connections for sharing a high-speed Internet connection, including a dedicated port to connect to a cable/DSL router and two or four ports to connect to other computers on the LAN. Along with acting as a wireless access point, Apple’s Time Capsule includes a built-in hard drive, allowing it to back up data from your MacBook wirelessly.

If you think that a cable/DSL router, a Time Capsule or an AirPort Extreme Base Station could be the karmic pathway for you to achieve your goal of sharing your Internet connection, here are some things to consider when deciding which device to buy for your LAN:

• Do you need a switch? Most cable/DSL routers have a small 3-, 4-, or 5-port switch built in. This multiport capability is nice because the same cable/DSL router that shares your Internet connection is also the centerpiece of your LAN where all your connections meet, thus saving you from having to buy a switch on top of the cost of the cable/DSL router.

  
  

  Some cable/DSL routers, however, have only a single Ethernet connection to connect to your LAN. So keep in mind that if you choose a device with a single LAN connection, you must supply your own switch that would then connect the cable/DSL router to the rest of your LAN.

  
  



• Got modem? If your only Internet connection is through a dial-up modem account, look for a built-in analog telephone modem on your cable/DSL router. You must have this feature if you want to use a hardware device to share your Internet connection.

  
  

  (Again, older versions of the AirPort Base Station are great for this because the modem is built in, but you’ll have to do some shopping on eBay or craigslist.)

  
  

  Even if you have cable/DSL service, some ISPs also include a dial-up account with your broadband access. With such a bountiful selection of connections, you can plug in your cable or DSL service to the cable/DSL router as well as use the dial-up account as a back-up in case your main service has problems.

  
  



• Want a printer with that? Some cable/DSL routers also have a port for connecting a printer — a great feature to have because it allows you to leave the printer connected and turned on so that anyone on the network can print to it anytime.

  
  

  (This is much better than connecting the printer to a computer and sharing it, because then the computer doing the sharing must always be on in order to make the printer available.) Mac OS X can send a print job to a printer by using Bonjour or TCP/IP, so just make sure that your printer is compatible with TCP/IP printing, also called LPR (Line Printer Remote).

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/use-hardware-for-sharing-an-internet-connection.html

Shih Tzu: The Ultimate Companion Dog

If you thought there was just something about the Shih Tzu's temperament that makes it a great furry friend to have around, you aren't wrong. Shih Tzu have been bred for generations to be the ultimate companion dog. Here are some of the reasons why those magnetic personality traits make your Shih Tzu simply irresistible.

Shih Tzu are devoted

Above all, a Shih Tzu is devoted, wholly and completely, to you and your needs. Sure, sometimes he likes to play with a toy or romp around the living room, but you can't ask for a better listener, lap warmer, or sympathetic furry ear.

Your Shih Tzu can sit at your feet for hours gently snoozing, but he doesn't forget to occasionally gaze up at you in adoration. If you want a dog who does his own thing and only occasionally bothers to notice you, this breed may not be the one for you. But if you desire a pet who thinks it's all about you, then this is your dog.

Shih Tzu are tranquil

You've heard of those yappy little ankle-biting lap dogs, right? Well, the Shih Tzu isn't one of them. Calm and self-possessed, the Shih Tzu watches and waits. Sure, he may bark at the delivery guy when he comes right up to the door, but he's not bred to be a watchdog.

Your Shih Tzu is too focused on you to worry about anybody else who may be walking by outside, and if somebody else comes in the house, your Shih Tzu thinks it's obvious that this new friend has arrived for the sole purpose of petting and loving him. Sure, exceptions do exist, and you'll find some dogs who bark a lot, especially among dogs who were never properly socialized. Some people talk more than others, and some Shih Tzu bark more than others. But in general, this dog isn't yippy or suspicious.

Shih Tzu have a sense of humor

Part of being a good buddy is having a sense of humor, and your funny little Shih Tzu quickly discovers how to make you laugh. Whether he's flipping his stuffed mouse toy into the air and then spinning around to see where it landed, pretending to play fetch then darting just out of reach when you try to take back the ball, or gazing at you with an expression so serious and concerned that your bad mood dissolves completely, your Shih Tzu brightens your day and puts a smile on your face. Who can resist that?

Shih Tzu are adaptable

As devoted as Shih Tzu may be, they also adapt well to new owners. Don't be offended. It isn't that your Shih Tzu doesn't worship you. It's just that he loves everybody else, too. Anyone willing to feed, pet, groom, and love a Shih Tzu becomes that dog's new best friend.

This factor in their behavior makes considering an older Shih Tzu for adoption an excellent decision. Shih Tzu don't waste away pining for a former owner and ignore you. And an older dog may already be housetrained (not a bad bonus, eh?). If you have a warm lap and a treat to share, your Shih Tzu will adapt just to his new home.

Shih Tzu are a bit arrogant

How can something so little and sweet also be so high and mighty? If your ancestors lived in the Imperial palace, you'd have a pretty healthy self-concept, too. The Shih Tzu reveals his natural arrogance in the way he stands, moves, and looks around with his flat little nose in the air. He may even look down his nose at someone he isn't quite sure deserves his attention — but probably not too often. Consider him a benevolent king.

And don't worry if you're not ancestry. Your Shih Tzu doesn't mind. He loves you just the same, and he's royal enough for both of you — he just has to show you who runs the castle once in awhile.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/shih-tzu-the-ultimate-companion-dog.html

The Disadvantages of Dividend Stocks

Although dividend stocks are generally less risky than non-dividend stocks, they do carry some risk and may not hold sufficient promise of rewards for some investors. To make a well-informed decision of whether dividend stocks are right for you, consider not just their pros, but their cons as well.

Whenever you sign on the dotted line with a broker, mutual fund manager, or other intermediary, he usually presents you with a long disclaimer that basically boils down to a single statement: “Past results are no guarantee of future performance.” In other words, yesterday’s winner can be tomorrow’s loser. Investing always carries some risk, and dividend stocks are no exception. A few dangers to be aware of:

• In general, dividend-paying companies see less price appreciation than growth stocks.

  
  



• Share prices can drop whether the stock pays dividends or not.

  
  



• Companies can slash or eliminate their dividend payments at any time for any reason. As a shareholder, you’re at the end of the line when checks are cut.

  
  



• Tax rates on dividends can rise, making dividend stocks a less attractive option — for the company to pay and for you to receive.

  
  

Not investing also carries risk. If you stuff your money in a mattress or bury it in a coffee can in the backyard, someone can steal it or mice, bugs, or inflation can eat away at it.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/the-disadvantages-of-dividend-stocks.html

How to Improve Your Work Breakdown Structure

Project managers should strive to constantly improve a project's work breakdown structure (WBS). You increase the chances of your project’s success when your WBS is accurate and complete and when people who will be performing the work understand and agree with it.

The following guidelines suggest some ways to improve your WBS’s accuracy and acceptance:

• Involve the people who’ll be doing the work. When possible, involve them during the initial development of the WBS. If they join the project after the initial planning, have them review and critique the WBS before they begin work.

  
  



• Review and include information from WBSs from similar projects. Review plans and consult people who’ve worked on projects similar to yours that were successful. Incorporate your findings into your WBS.

  
  



• Keep your WBS current. When you add, delete, or change WBS elements during your project, be sure to reflect these changes in your WBS.

  
  



• Make assumptions regarding uncertain activities. If you’re not sure whether you’ll do a particular activity, make an assumption and prepare your WBS based on that assumption. Be sure to document that assumption. If your assumption proves to be wrong during the project, change your plan to reflect the true situation.

  
  



• Remember that your WBS identifies only your project’s deliverables; it doesn’t depict their chronological order. Nothing is wrong with including activities from left to right or top to bottom in the approximate order that you’ll perform them. However, in complex projects, you may have difficulty showing detailed interrelationships among activities in the WBS format. The purpose of the WBS is to ensure that you identify all project deliverables.

  
  

When writing your WBS, use action verbs when framing the titles of the activities that comprise a work package to clarify the nature of the work they entail. Action verbs can improve your time and resource estimates, your work assignments to team members, and your tracking and reporting because they provide a clear picture of what an activity entails.

Consider the assignment to prepare a report after a team meeting. Suppose you choose Draft Report to be one of its work packages. If you don’t break down Draft Report further, you haven’t indicated clearly whether it includes any or all of the following actions:

• Collecting information for the draft

  
  



• Determining length and format expectations and restrictions

  
  



• Handwriting the draft

  
  



• Reviewing the draft yourself before officially circulating it to others

  
  

But, if you simply word the work package Design and handwrite the draft report — voilà! Your scope of work is instantly clearer. A few well-chosen words at this level go a long way.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-improve-your-work-breakdown-structure.html

Promote Your Dog Photography Business Locally and Cheaply

Chances are you have a dog of your, and you’ve started a dog photography business, so why not put Sasquatch to work as well? Take him for an outing to your favorite dog park and let him break the ice. Anyone who cares about his dog enough to socialize with him at the park is a great candidate for a doggie photo session.

Consider bringing your camera as well to take some “practice” shots. If you start photographing other dogs at the park, their humans may even inquire as to how they can get a copy of the photos.

Feel free to give one or two away in hopes of securing a full-on photo session with them later, or try selling them as one-off packages. Either way, you’ve made a contact and quite possibly a sale.

Want to know the secret to advertising when you have zero budget for it? Get press instead! A story about you and/or your business holds a lot more weight than an advertisement you pay to place. Start small with online niche websites or blogs that may be interested in featuring a story about a pet photographer.

Figure out what sets you apart and approach your media outlets with ideas that appeal to their already established reader base. Decide which websites, magazines, and newspapers you’d be a good fit for and contact their editors or writers by dropping them a note to introduce yourself and then following up with them once a month or so.

If you’re persistent without being pesky, sooner or later that editor or writer will think of you when a story comes up that you may be a good source or topic for. Just like you build relationships with local businesses and even perfect strangers at the dog park, this one is about relationships as well. It is called public relations after all!

One of the easiest ways to promote yourself is simply by doing your job well. Nothing’s more powerful than a word-of-mouth referral in this business, or in this case, the sharing of a photo.

Every single photo you take for a client is a potential calling card that may land itself in front of that client’s family, friends, and co-workers. Create something eye-catching enough and people will surely stop to ask, “Wow, who took that?!”

Use your social media outlets to stay connected with clients as well. Ask your clients to “like” your Facebook business page and share it with their friends. Also, consider starting a monthly newsletter as a way to interact and connect with your past (and future) clients.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/promote-your-dog-photography-business-locally-and-.html

QuickBooks 2012 Statement of Cash Flows

Don’t spend too much time spinning your wheels trying to understand the QuickBooks 2012 Statement of Cash Flows. QuickBooks does supply a statement of cash flows, but you don’t need to use this statement. In fact, QuickBooks produces cash basis income statements, which give you almost the same information — and in a more easy-to-understand format.

Look at the following balance sheet for an imaginary hot dog stand at the beginning of the day.

A Simple Balance Sheet

Assets
Cash	$1,000
Inventory	3,000
Total assets	$4,000
Liabilities
Accounts payable	$2,000
Loan payable	1,000
Owner’s equity
S. Nelson, capital	1,000
Total liabilities and owner’s equity	$4,000

Now take a look this table, which shows the balance sheet at the end of the day, after operations for the hot dog stand have ended.

Another Simple Balance Sheet

Assets
Cash	$5,000
Inventory	0
Total assets	$5,000
Liabilities
Accounts payable	$0
Loan payable	0
Owner’s equity
S. Nelson, capital	5,000
Total liabilities and owner’s equity	$5,000

Notice that at the start of the day, cash equals $1,000, and at the end of the day, cash equals $5,000. The statement of cash flows explains why cash changes from the one number to the other number over a period of time. In other words, a statement of cash flows explains how cash goes from $1,000 at the start of the day to $5,000 at the end of the day.

The following table, not coincidentally, shows a statement of cash flows that explains how cash flowed for your imaginary hot dog stand business.

A Simple Statement of Cash Flows

Operating activities
Net income	$4,000
Decrease in accounts payable	(2,000)
Adjustment: decrease in inventory	3,000
Net cash provided by operating activities	$5,000
Financing activities
Decrease in notes payable	(1,000)
Net cash provided (used) by financing activities	(1,000)
Increase in cash	4,000
Cash balance at start of period	1,000
Cash balance at end of period	$5,000

By convention, accountants show negative numbers inside parentheses. These parentheses more clearly flag negative values than a simple minus sign would.

The last three lines of the statement of cash flows are all easily understandable. The cash balance at the end of the period, $5,000, shows what cash the business holds at the end of the day. The cash balance at the start of the period, $1,000, shows the cash that the business holds at the beginning of the day.

Both the cash balance at the start of the period and the cash balance at the end of the period tie to the cash balance values reported on the two balance sheets. Clearly, if you start the period with $1,000 and end the period with $5,000, cash has increased by $4,000. That’s an arithmetic certainty. No question there, right?

The financing activities of the statement of cash flows show how firm borrowing and firm debt repayment affect the firm cash flow. If the hot dog stand business uses its profits to repay the $1,000 loan payable — and, in this case, this is what happened — this $1,000 cash outflow shows up in the financing activities portion of the statement of cash flows as a negative $1,000.

The top portion of the statement of cash flows is often the trickiest to understand.

The operating activities portion of the statement of cash flows essentially shows the cash that comes from the profit. You see that the first line in the operating activities portion of the statement of cash flows is net income of $4,000. This is the net income amount reported on the income statement for the period.

However, the net income or operating profit reported on the business’s income statement isn’t necessarily the same thing as cash income or cash profit. A variety of factors must be adjusted in order to convert this net income amount to what’s essentially a cash operating profit amount.

For example, in the case of the hot dog stand business, if you use some of the profits to pay off all the accounts payable, this payoff uses up some of your cash profit. You can see that the decrease in the accounts payable from $2,000 to $0 over the day required, quite logically, $2,000 of the net income.

Another way to think about this is that essentially, you used up $2,000 of your cash profits to pay off accounts payable. Remember that the accounts payable is the amount that you owed your vendors for hot dogs and buns.

Another adjustment is required for the decrease in inventory. The decrease in inventory from the start of the period to the end of the period produces cash. Basically, you’re liquidating inventory. Another way to think about this is that although this inventory shows up as an expense for the day’s income statement, it isn’t purchased during the day. It doesn’t consume cash during the day; it was purchased at some point in the past.

When you combine the net income, the accounts payable adjustment, and the inventory adjustment, you get the net cash provided by the operating activities. These three amounts combine to $5,000 of cash provided by the operations.

After you understand the details of the financing and operating activities areas of the statement of cash flows, the statement makes sense. Net cash provided by the operating activities equals $5,000. Financing activities reduce cash by $1,000. This means that cash actually increased over the period by $4,000, which explains why cash starts the period at $1,000 and ends the period at $5,000.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/quickbooks-2012-statement-of-cash-flows.html

Computer Security Information Resources

If you're looking for information about the latest tools, updates, and virus scans for your computer to boost security and protect your personal information, try the following websites for help:

• U.S. Computer Emergency Response Team

  
  



• Microsoft Security Web Site

  
  



• Microsoft Windows Update

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/computer-security-information-resources.html

Feeling Good When You Leave the Singing Lesson

Feeling good about your singing lesson is a two-way road. The purpose of a lesson is to gain more information about singing, so you want your teacher to focus on the work. However, you need to able to shoulder criticism well.

During a voice lesson, you’re doing plenty of singing, and your teacher needs to give you feedback on the sounds you’re making and offer suggestions on ways to improve those sounds.

Constructive criticism is about your singing technique and isn’t directed at you personally. If you feel that your teacher isn’t giving you positive feedback, ask for it.

Focusing on the work helps you see the teacher’s constructive criticism as a means to get you to the next level. If you expect your teacher to do nothing more than gush over your talents, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. Any teacher worth his salt isn’t going to shy away from telling you what you’re doing wrong (or right).

If you find a teacher who does nothing but praise you, you’re wasting your time, because that type of lesson doesn’t help you improve.

To feel confident at each lesson, you need to know what to practice. During your lesson, your teacher needs to suggest exercises for you to practice to help you improve your technique. He then needs to help you apply those concepts to songs that you’re singing. If you aren’t sure about what to practice, you can ask your teacher to clarify which exercises to focus on for the next lesson.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/feeling-good-when-you-leave-the-singing-lesson.html

Building Confidence in Sports

Sports psychology can help athletes looking to improve their confidence. You may be the strongest, tallest, most powerful athlete on the field, court, or track, but if you aren’t confident in your abilities, you’ll have trouble reaching your goals. Work on improving your confidence just as you work on developing your sport-specific skills, and your performance will soar.

• Realize that confidence fluctuates. Confidence for all athletes — even at the highest level — ebbs and flows. Confidence is not all-or-nothing. It’s a state of mind that fluctuates, so don’t beat yourself up when your confidence is lower. Just focus on improving, and your confidence will follow suit.

  
  



• Focus on yourself, not on others. Instead of thinking about how well your teammates or opponents are doing, think about your own performance and how you can improve. This is your athletic career, so you need to focus on what you need to do to improve as an athlete. And when you improve as an athlete, your confidence will increase.

  
  



• Focus on day-to-day success. When you have success every day in training — even the smallest of successes — your confidence rises. If your confidence rises a small amount each day, just think where you’ll be in one month, six months, or a year!

  
  



• Concentrate on the process, not outcomes. When you focus on improving your performance — the process of improving — you become more confident because you’re focusing on something you have control over. You can’t control outcomes — you may play your best game ever and still lose. If you’re focused on process, sure, you’ll be disappointed when you lose, but your confidence will remain high, because you’ll know you performed your best.

  
  



• Focus on what you’re doing right. Learning from your mistakes is important, but you don’t want to linger on them. If you spend too much time thinking about your mistakes, your confidence will wane. When you focus on what you’re doing right and correct your errors, your confidence will rise.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/building-confidence-in-sports.html

Top Five Economic Indicators

Looking for the best economic forecasting tools? Here are a few investor favorites that you can use to improve your investment decisions:

• Unemployment insurance: A rise in unemployment insurance claims is one of the earliest signs of a faltering economy. A one-week rise doesn't foretell a recession, but a persistent increase usually does. The Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report tracks job losses throughout the country.

  
  



• Personal spending: Consumers make the U.S. economy grow. When consumer spending rises, so does the economy. Likewise, when spending slows, a recession is likely to follow. Stay up to date with consumer spending habits with the Personal Income and Outlays report.

  
  



• Consumer sentiment: Consumers cut back on their spending when they're worried about their financial future. The University of Michigan's Consumer Sentiment Index is an excellent way to find out if people are worried or optimistic about their economic future.

  
  



• Business sentiment: Purchasing managers are the consumers of the business world, which is why it makes sense to ask them how businesses feel about the economy. The Institute of Supply Management does just that with its Manufacturing Report On Business^®.

  
  



• Inflation: When the Federal Reserve (the Fed) is on the lookout for inflation, it puts investors on pins and needles. If the Fed thinks inflation is rising, it'll put on the economic brakes by raising interest rates. Although knowledgeable investors and economists at the Fed use the PCE price deflator (PCE stands for personal consumption expenditures; the deflator is also called an implicit price deflator) to track inflation, the most popular inflation indicator is the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/top-five-economic-indicators.html

Making Your Mark with Trademarks

You can trademark all sorts of different things. Different types of marks distinguish your product, service or company from others. Here’s a brief description of the different marks:

• Product names and logos, commonly known as brands, or trademarks, which distinguish your product from others.

  
  



• Service marks, such as certification marks, and membership or association marks.

  
  



• Corporate identity, such as trade names, which are typically business names and logos.

  
  

A good trademark or service mark has the following characteristics:

• Original (do a search first)

  
  



• Distinctive character

  
  



• Recognisable

  
  



• Memorable

  
  



• Pleasant associations

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/making-your-mark-with-trademarks.html

The Pros and Cons of Buying Stock in Real Estate Investment Trusts

A Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) that pays a sizeable dividend and has a solid cash flow isn’t a sure thing, but it’s certainly worthy of consideration when you're looking to buy new stocks. When you buy a REIT, you’re becoming more of a real estate investor than a dividend stock investor, and such a move carries both advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages of Buying Stock in an REIT

A REIT offers several advantages to both stock and real estate investors:

• REITs must pay out at least 90 percent of their income as dividends. This requirement is the number one reason why investors buy REITs. Management can raise the payout to more than 90 percent but, by law, can’t lower it below 90 percent. In other words, management can’t decide to slash the dividend payment.

  
  



• Large payouts result in higher-than-average yields. For dividend investors, high yield is a primary consideration.

  
  



• REITs help diversify an investment portfolio. Because real estate values don’t generally correlate to stock prices, stock prices and real estate values can move together or in completely opposite directions. Unless a real estate slump triggers a financial crisis or vice versa, a portfolio that contains both stock and real estate holdings may provide some protection over slumps that affect only one or the other.

  
  



• REITs help diversify a real estate portfolio. Money pooled from many investors allows the trust to purchase more buildings than an individual would be able to buy alone. If you buy real estate on your own, you may lock up all your money in one building. A REIT gives you a piece of many different properties; that way, one underperforming building won’t ruin your portfolio.

  
  



• You can own real estate without the costs and hassles associated with real estate investing. You don’t have to find and research properties — the REIT’s managers do that for you.

  
  



• REITs own physical assets with a value all their own that can appreciate over time. As an investor, you own tangible assets that tend to rise in value over the long term.

  
  



• REITs are more liquid than typical real estate investments. Instead of selling the property to cash out, you simply sell your shares.

  
  

Disadvantages of Buying Stock in an REIT

Because REITs allow you to invest in real estate, they carry risks associated with real estate investing as well as stock investing, including the following:

• Falling occupancy rates and increasing vacancies hurt revenues.

  
  



• Share prices can drop when property values fall.

  
  



• Share prices can fall with the broader stock market based on supply and demand of shares.

  
  



• High dividend payouts for REITs force management to take on debt to expand real estate holdings.

  
  



• Rising interest rates hurt profitability.

  
  



• Not all REIT dividends quality for 15-percent tax rates. Some are taxed as ordinary income.

  
  

Prior to investing in a REIT, consult a tax advisor to determine the net effect on your tax bill.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/the-pros-and-cons-of-buying-stock-in-real-estate-i.html

Network Troubleshooting: Cable Connections

The cables that connect client computers to the rest of the network are finicky beasts. They can break at a moment’s notice, and “break,” doesn't necessarily mean “to physically break in two.” Although some broken cables look like someone got to the cable with pruning shears, most cable problems aren’t visible to the naked eye.

• Twisted-pair cable: If your network uses twisted-pair cable, you can quickly tell whether the cable connection to the network is good by looking at the back of your computer. Look for a small light located near where the cable plugs in; if this light is glowing steadily, the cable is good.

  
  

  If the light is dark or it’s flashing intermittently, you have a cable problem (or a problem with the network card or the hub or switch that the other end of the cable is plugged in to).

  
  

  If the light isn’t glowing steadily, try removing the cable from your computer and reinserting it. This action may cure the weak connection.

  
  



• Patch cable: Hopefully, your network is wired so that each computer is connected to the network with a short (six feet or so) patch cable. One end of the patch cable plugs into the computer, and the other end plugs into a cable connector mounted on the wall. Try quickly disconnecting and reconnecting the patch cable. If that doesn’t do the trick, try to find a spare patch cable that you can use.

  
  



• Switches: Switches are prone to having cable problems, too — especially switches that are wired in a “professional manner,” involving a rat’s nest of patch cables. Be careful whenever you enter the lair of the rat’s nest. If you need to replace a patch cable, be very careful when you disconnect the suspected bad cable and reconnect the good cable in its place.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/network-troubleshooting-cable-connections.html

What Does Intermediate Accounting Cover?

Intermediate accounting delves into the more complex, more challenging aspects of accounting practices. It covers topics and accounting situations that go beyond the basics, including the following:

• Time value of money: Intermediate accounting involves advanced time value issues, such as deferred annuities and long-term bonds. Annuities are multiple payments over a period of time that you either make or receive. Deferred annuities are a type of annuity contract that delays payments to the investor until the investor elects to receive them. Long-terms bonds are bonds a business holds in another company that extends out more than twelve months into the future.

  
  



• Accounting for retail inventory: Inventory cost-flow assumptions, which are how the cost of inventory expenses on the income statement, are a big topic in financial accounting. An interesting expansion on this topic in intermediate accounting is accounting for retail inventory.

  
  

  The retail inventory method uses a cost ratio to convert the ending inventory valued at retail to cost. Basically, this works by taking goods available for sale at cost and dividing them by goods available for sale at retail. You can then multiply sales by the resulting percentage to come up with ending inventory at cost.

  
  



• Accounting for property, plant, and equipment: Intermediate accounting gets into the nitty-gritty of accounting for an involuntary conversions such as theft. When this happens, a company has to record the difference between insurance proceeds and the asset's net book value as gain or loss on disposal of asset.

  
  



• Research and development expenses (R&D): This thorny topic is rarely discussed in your financial accounting class. Intermediate accounting shows you how to handle the costs of R&D, such as when a drug company is developing a product to bring to market.

  
  



• Accounting for income taxes: No one likes income taxes and your financial accounting textbook discusses this topic minimally. Intermediate accounting to the rescue! Intermediate accounting covers how to calculate the difference between financial and tax accounting. A major difference between the two is financial and tax depreciation. Financial depreciation takes the long-way home while tax depreciation takes the short cut through the vacant lot! So net income between the two will differ.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/what-does-intermediate-accounting-cover.html

How to Calculate the Investment Amount

The first step in calculating a return is estimating the amount that you need to invest. Note you will need more than QuickBooks 2012 to make this calculation. Your best bet is to use Microsoft Excel. The amount you need to invest is similar to the check you write to a bank in order to buy a CD.

For example, suppose that you’re considering the purchase of a new office building. Just to keep everything really simple, suppose that you can buy a building that would house your offices for $350,000. Further suppose that you can finance $300,000 of this purchase with a mortgage from your friendly local bank. However, you also need to pay closing costs that equal $15,000.

The following table shows the initial investment that you must make in order to invest in a new office building. The bottom line amount is $65,000. The table shows how this amount gets calculated. The formula is pretty simple: The building costs $350,000, and you must pay $15,000 in closing costs. That totals $365,000.

The bank, however, will finance $300,000 of this amount. This means that you need to come up with $65,000 out of your own pocket.

Calculating the Investment

Price of building	$350,000
Less: Mortgage	300,000
Down payment	50,000
Add: Closing costs	15,000
Total initial investment	$65,000

Make sure that you understand why the initial investment, or the first check that you need to write, is $65,000. This is the investment that you make in the building.

In looking at the example of investing in an office building, for example, knowing what you have been paying in rent and what you may be able to save by buying your own building is exactly the sort of information that you need — and exactly the sort of information that the rich financial database of QuickBooks supplies.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-calculate-the-investment-amount.html

Online Storefront Software Requirement Definition

Your input from a marketing perspective of your requirements is essential to selecting the right storefront software. For instance, you may want promotion codes for special offers, statistics that tabulate sales by category and subcategory, or the ability to sequence the appearance of products on a catalog page. The downloadable Storefront Checklist may help you think through this process.

After you make the strategic business decisions and decide on your budget, you can prioritize the needs that the storefront must meet. If you ask developers to provide a quote, be sure to include your storefront requirements. Because the ultimate selection might have technical consequences, let your selected developer determine the specific package to implement.

Assess prospective developers for their e-commerce experience and determine which solutions they're capable of implementing. Because of the complexity of some storefronts, developers often specialize in one product line. Your selections of software, host, and developer are interdependent.

Your choices for selling online start with the simplest — a listing on eBay — or an inexpensive template for starter stores with a small catalog.

They range in complexity all the way to enterprise-level solutions for stores with thousands of products that integrate with inventory control, accounting, and retail point-of-sale (POS) software. As usual, the more flexible and complicated the store, the higher the price tag and the greater the technical skills required.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/online-storefront-software-requirement-definition.navId-811455.html

Emotional Intelligence For Dummies

Emotional intelligence involves understanding your emotions and the emotions of the people around you. Emotional awareness can help you in many different situations – at home, school, and work. In this Cheat Sheet you’ll find a definition of emotional intelligence and the key traits of an emotionally intelligent person, as well as helpful strategies for using emotional intelligence to calm down when you’re upset, interpret other people’s body language, and even deal with people you don’t like in the workplace.

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What It Means to Be an Emotionally Intelligent Person

Emotional intelligence has to do with a person’s ability to recognize, understand, and manage his or her own emotions and the emotions of others. Emotions can help us solve problems and guide our relationships, both at home and at work. Some people (with high emotional intelligence or EQ) harness the wisdom of emotions better than others. Emotionally intelligent people are easy to spot because they tend to:

• Successfully manage difficult situations

  
  



• Express themselves clearly

  
  



• Gain respect from others

  
  



• Influence other people

  
  



• Entice other people to help them out

  
  



• Keep cool under pressure

  
  



• Recognize their emotional reactions to people or situations

  
  



• Know how to say the “right” thing to get the right result

  
  



• Manage themselves effectively when negotiating

  
  



• Manage other people effectively when negotiating

  
  



• Motivate themselves to get things done

  
  



• Know how to be positive, even during difficult situations

  
  

Even if your EQ is low, you always have the potential to improve. So don’t fret — with practice, you can build on your existing skills to become more emotionally intelligent.

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Managing Anger with Emotional Intelligence

Hot emotions, such as anger and jealousy, tend to get you into trouble and can be difficult to manage and control. You can use emotional intelligence to turn hot emotions into cool emotions and calm yourself down with these distraction and coping techniques:

• Distraction: For example,

  
  
  
  

  • Count to ten.

    
    
  
  

  • Think of something incompatible with the situation, such as a warm, sunny beach.

    
    
  
  

  • Use humor or think of a funny situation.

    
    
  
  

  • Focus on your breathing, starting with air entering your body, down to your diaphragm, then out.

    
    
  
  
  
  



• Coping: For example,

  
  
  
  

  • Consider the situation from someone else’s perspective.

    
    
  
  

  • Take a more realistic look at your situation.

    
    
  
  

  • Look at the situation as though it happened a long time ago, which removes some of the shock and intensity that occurs soon after the event.

    
    
  
  

  • Focus on the situation, not the emotion.

    
    
  
  

  • Try to see the situation realistically, not as unrealistically and impossibly bad.

    
    
  
  

  • Be optimistic.

    
    
  
  
  
  

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Reading Body Language with Emotional Intelligence

Studies show that your body language communicates up to 50 percent of what you want to say. Paying attention to a person’s body language can help you begin to understand what he or she might really be feeling. Here are some important body-language signs to watch for:

• Anger: Hands on hips posture or arms folded, pounding heart, sweating and rapid breathing, fists clenched, eyes staring

  
  



• Happy: Relaxed body, smiling, open arms and legs, relaxed and prolonged eye contact

  
  



• Anxious: Restlessness, pounding heart, rapid breathing

  
  



• Interest: Leaning forward

  
  



• Fury: Cold focused stare, loud and rapid speech

  
  



• Sadness: Drooping body, downcast eyes, mouth turned down

  
  



• Surprise: Eyebrows up, wide eyes, mouth open, movement backward

  
  



• Embarrassment: Red or flushed face, looking away from others, avoiding direct eye contact, false smile or grimace

  
  

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Managing Your Emotions in the Workplace: Working with People You Don’t Like

At work, emotional intelligence can help you deal effectively with difficult people and situations. If you’re in the unfortunate position of working with people that you don’t like, you can follow these tips to get the most out of the time spent with your co-workers:

• Know your work style. Determine whether certain people bother you or whether you generally just want to work alone.

  
  



• Know your feelings. Decide whether you prefer to work with some people (either employees or certain types of customers) and not others. Structure your time to get more control over when you have to work with people you have negative feelings about.

  
  



• Pick a time of day. See whether you're more open to dealing with others at a particular time of day.

  
  



• Choose a place. Decide whether you're more comfortable working with others in a particular place (for example, standing at her desk so that you can decide when to leave).

  
  



• Plan ahead. Plan your interactions (set goals for the interactions) in advance so that you can structure them and control the time.

  
  



• Keep it short. Set the amount of time for your interactions in advance and try to stick to it.

  
  



• Be professional. Be pleasant, even you if you don’t like the person you have to deal with.

  
  

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dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/emotional-intelligence-for-dummies-cheat-sheet.html

M&A Transition: How to Get Along

After completing an M&A deal, you should be ready to be a part of the culture of the acquired company. Be willing to partake in local customs, and be sensitive to special events and occurrences in the community. Nothing creates division as much as being (or appearing to be) oblivious and uncaring to someone else’s cherished rituals.

Being friendly with employees is important, of course, but don’t go overboard and act too familiar. You shouldn’t be standoffish or aloof, but employees are looking for a leader, not a best buddy.

To demonstrate the importance of considering local customs, consider this story. A Buyer acquired a company whose custom was to pay a $100 Christmas bonus to all employees. When the Buyer gathered the employees for an announcement after the particularly difficult acquisition, the employees were worried that the new owner, a large PE firm, would cut that annual goodie.

Instead, the new owner announced the Christmas bonus would continue, and that each employee would also receive a special bonus of $500, paid immediately. Although paying people a bonus is no guarantee of making friends, continuing the annual bonus and adding a special bonus made talking about increasing the accountability of employees and discussing how employees would be compensated and rewarded for achieving goals much easier.

No matter what you do, you’re going to irritate someone. You can’t manage a business trying to please everyone. Don’t worry about it.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/ma-transition-how-to-get-along.html

Save Your HDR Image in Photomatix Pro

You have finished tone mapping an HDR image in Photomatix Pro. When you’re happy with the high dynamic range photo results, it’s time to process and save:

1. Click the Process button in the Details Enhancer.

   
   

   This applies the tone mapping settings to the HDR image and creates a low dynamic range image for you to save.

   
   

   You’ll see a progress dialog box.

   
   



2. Choose File→Save As.

   
   

   This calls up the Save As (Windows)/Save (Mac) dialog box. The things you want to note are Save As Type (Windows)/File Format (Mac), and the Open Saved Image(s) With check box, as explained in the following list:

   
   
   
   

   • File Name (Windows)/Save As (Mac): A name is generated for you based on the original images in the bracket or HDR filename with _tonemapped appended. Change as desired.

     
     
   
   

   • Save As Type (Windows)/File Format (Mac): Choose 16-bit TIFF for the highest quality (and largest file size), 8-bit TIFF for high quality, and JPEG for the lowest quality (and smallest size).

     
     

     If you’re a quality junkie, don’t choose anything but 16-bit TIFF. In reality, the difference between 16-bit and 8-bit TIFF is not that apparent. 8-bit TIFF is a reasonable compromise and will work in image editors that balk at 16-bit images. Choose JPEG only if you don’t want to perform further editing.

     
     

     JPEG is also a great format with which to compare the effects of different tone mapping settings on the same HDR image. Process them separately and save each as a JPEG. This makes the files smaller; they also load much faster if you want to switch back and forth to compare.

     
     
   
   

   • Save Tone Mapping Settings (Windows only): Leave this check box selected. You’ll have a permanent record of what settings you applied with each tone mapped image. You can recall it and use on other images or, if needed, reprocess the current HDR image and make small changes. The tone mapping settings are saved in an XMP file.

     
     

     The settings files are a form of XML, which have setting names and values as text. They can be read by a text editor or Web browser, if you’re curious.

     
     
   
   

   • Open Saved Image With (Mac): Select this check box, and after the image is saved, it will automatically open in the chosen application for further editing.

     
     
   
   
   
   



3. Close the image, and if desired, close Photomatix Pro.

   
   

   The tone mapped image is now ready to be edited further and published.

   
   

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/save-your-hdr-image-in-photomatix-pro.html