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Congratulations!
Thanks to all who entered to win Denver’s used Palm IIIe. The lucky winner was Elissa Sherman, President of MassAging (Massachusetts Aging Services Association). Promethius is proud to have developed MassAging’s website
(www.massaging.org) and to perform ongoing maintenance and content updates.
More House Cleaning
Promethius Consulting has a barely used Apple Power Mac G4 Cube running OS 9.0 that we would love to give to one lucky individual out there. The system comes complete with USB speakers, USB mouse and USB keyboard (sorry, no monitor). We’ll even throw in a copy of Dave™ software for easy communication in a PC environment.
Just complete this form and submit it by Friday, August 15, 2003 for your chance to win!
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Definition of the
Month
Courtesy of Webopedia...
Streaming
- A technique for transferring data such that it can be processed as a steady and continuous stream. Streaming technologies are becoming increasingly important with the growth of the Internet because most users do not have fast enough access to download large multimedia files quickly. With streaming, the client browser or plug-in can start displaying the data before the entire file has been transmitted.
For streaming to work, the client side receiving the data must be able to collect the data and send it as a steady stream to the application that is processing the data and converting it to sound or pictures. This means that if the streaming client receives the data more quickly than required, it needs to save the excess data in a buffer. If the data doesn't come quickly enough, however, the presentation of the data will not be smooth.
There are a number of competing streaming technologies emerging. For audio data on the Internet, the de facto standard is Progressive Network's RealAudio.
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PC WELCOMES NEW STAFF MEMBER
 We would like to introduce the newest member of the Promethius Family, Mr. Bill Allis. Bill has over fifteen years of experience in the computer business serving as network administrator, computer technician, and consultant.
Bill has a diverse educational background including a B.A. in Speech/Communications from Indiana University and a B.S. in Computer Science from Purdue University. His certifications include Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE), certified Novell Administrator (CNA), Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA), and several others.
Among a variety of personal interests and hobbies is a background in community theatre, both as an actor and as director/producer. We feel certain that Bill will make an excellent member of our team and yours. Please feel free to introduce yourself by calling the office or sending him an email
(ballis@promethius.com).
Pay Per Click Advertising
It used to be that websites had a fighting chance to be listed within the first few pages of a directory search as long as the site was a quality match with the search phrase. Those days are long gone. So how do you ensure that targeted traffic finds its way to your site?
Banner ads have been around for years but have never lived up to their potential. Reciprocal links are an important piece of an overall website marketing campaign, but don’t make much of a meaningful dent by themselves. So what seems to be working? Good old “pay-per-click” advertising offerings have been reworked and perfected by some of the biggest search engines around.
Google AdWords Program
This program places a small text advertisement on search engines on a “pay-per-click” basis. The little text ads appear next to search results on Google, and above search results on AOL. They also appear on Ask Jeeves, Teoma, Earthlink, and Sympatico, as well as Google Groups.
These are the basic features in a nutshell:
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You pay a fee per click through to your site. Most importantly,
you set the price that you are willing to pay per click through (from $.05 to $50).
You only pay when users actually click through to your
site.
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You set a daily budget for your campaign. For example, if you set aside a maximum of $20 per day, your ads stop running each day that your limit is reached.
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You decide which keywords your ads will run under. This allows for an extremely targeted campaign, and insures that
you are reaching only the people you want to reach.
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Target by
country. If you only want to advertise to the US, this can be easily achieved.
Yahoo Sponsor Results
This program lists your site immediately under the “Sponsor Results” section of a search on Yahoo. This is also a “pay-per-click” service.
These are the basic features in a nutshell:
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You pay a fee per click through to your site.
You set the price that you are willing to pay per click through.
You only pay when users actually click through to your site.
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You decide which keywords your ads will run under. This allows for an extremely targeted campaign, and insures that
you are reaching only the people you want to reach.
The Yahoo and Google programs are great in that they offer targeted results that are almost guaranteed. If your placement in these programs does not net you increased traffic, then something is seriously wrong with your approach or product offering. We give a slight advantage to the Google AdWords program because it allows you to set a daily budget, which is a great control feature
Yahoo doesn't yet offer.
 OFA in the Spotlight
From its home in Columbus, Ohio, OFA, an association of floriculture professionals, supports and promotes its members through lifelong learning, career enhancement, and public awareness. OFA annually hosts the world’s third largest trade show serving the floriculture industry. With over 10,500 attendees, it is by far the largest in the United States.
Click here to find out more about the OFA Short
Course.
Together, OFA and Promethius have made a concerted effort to stabilize and upgrade OFA’s communications network. Beginning in the spring of 2002, Promethius conducted an IT audit, including telephone interviews of staff members and consultants, on-site review of computer systems, membership database, telephone and voicemail systems, printers, photocopiers, website, network security, and office voice and data cabling. The audit report included recommendations and cost projections for upgrading and changing many of the items above.
Our recommendations included replacing much of the computer hardware and upgrading the network to MS Windows 2000 Server and upgrading the desktops to MS Windows XP and MAC OS 10. Our report helped to justify a much needed membership database change. Changing to the Noah® association management database has not only saved the association money, but it has given them more control over their data. Looking closely at the association’s website and telephone system made it clear that no immediate changes were necessary. While it might be easier to change all components, it is important to proceed with the understanding that rarely is it necessary to replace everything. All companies must be conscious of their missions and of their budgets.
OFA also selected Promethius to manage the implement of many of the changes that were approved by the board of directors. To date, these have included the hardware and software procurement, server and workstation upgrades, installation of an internal e-mail server (MS Exchange Server 2000), re-cabling for data and voice, and moving the servers and network hardware to a more secure environment. We are also assisting the internal IT staff with the day-to-day network administration duties.
Click here to see some of the
project.
If you have an interest in an IT Audit or the development of a road map of your future as it relates to communications, please call Promethius at 317/733-2388.
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