It depends on what you want to do. If you want to show your photos to the whole world, then a site that touts open sharing is right for you. However, if you consider your photos to be private between you and your family and friends, then you’ll want to look for a site that is built for easy photo sharing, but allows you to easily restrict who can and cannot see your photos.

Easy photo sharing is more than just transferring or scanning your photos into your computer and uploading them to a sharing site. There are lots of sites that allow you to do that. The thing you need to watch out for is what happens to your photos once they’re on the photo sharing website, and does the site really feature easy photo sharing.

A brief history of easy photo sharing

The very early easy photo sharing sites appeared in the mid to late 1990s, but were mostly created to provide online print ordering. More appeared in the early part of this century, primarily to provide centralized access to photos.

At the same time, desktop photo management systems appeared. These were not Internet based, and still aren’t. They provide a way to manage photos on your computer, and sometimes have links to online storage sites.

A true easy photo sharing site will allow you to easily share your photos across the Internet with the people of your choice. Exposing all your photos for the entire world to see is not really sharing – it’s really more like a neighborhood open house for your photos and lacks the intimacy of sending a photo to a friend or relative.

Getting your photos onto an easy photo sharing site

Of course, photo sharing starts with a camera. Whether it’s a camera phone or a high-end digital Single Lens Reflex camera, you need to take the picture before you can share the picture. You may have some older prints around the house that you’d like to digitize and save to an easy photo sharing site.

With that in mind, a true easy photo sharing site will feature easy one step scanning and whole folder uploads.

With one step scanning, all you do is place your photo on your scanner and push a button. With whole folder uploads, you can upload hundreds of photos all at once, rather than browsing them in one at a time. With these two features, you can get the photos you want online as fast as possible, so you can start sharing them with the people you care about.

Free membership or paid subscription?

Many easy photo sharing sites require membership. But some will allow you to upload as many as 500 photos free, no membership required. If you have a digital camera, you likely already know that you will reach the upper limits of any free membership very quickly.

Some sites also put a limit on the maximum size of the photos you can upload. This is very inconvenient as the upload process will be stopped or paused as photos that are too large are kicked out of the process. Sites that put limits on the size of individual photos cannot be referred to as easy photo sharing sites.

Easy photo sharing means more than just sending an email

Sites that offer printing services are also convenient. Most do, and many offer roughly the same price and quality, so pay particular attention to how easy it is to order the prints, how easy it is to upload your photos, customer service, shipping options, etc. How well a site handles these services is an indication of whether or not it is an easy photo sharing site.

Also, true easy photo sharing sites will allow you to create, print and share photo albums, story books, greeting cards, calendars, and other photo gifts. These items should be easy to create, and feature high quality, both in terms of service and the finished product you receive.

In International Trade there are numerous opportunities available which if properly and timely explored can change your destiny. In the very recent past the most common source for business information used to be something termed as Business Directory. Every country had its own Business Directory. It often involved you to shuffle through loads of data and turn pages of voluminous directory for searching a buyer or seller or a product. Searching thousands of pages proved to be a tedious and time consuming exercise. Well… No more.

With the advent of Internet things have become pretty easy and fast. The intense task of going through gigantic Business Directory has become history. The Internet is in itself a gigantic Business Directory. It provides you with an exclusive recourse to all your queries related to International Trade. It facilitates free market participants for the entire global sourcing requirements efficiently and economically. The Internet is a door to Global Markets, where there are number of members who are in the B2B (Business to Business) market place. One such member is www.tradeeuropeglobal.com. Beneficiaries of this website have found it to be a veritable tool in the Export Import requirements. This website truly works as a gigantic Business Directory. You can search buyers, sellers, suppliers and products. You can post your profiles, product catalogues as well as buying or selling offers. Trade Leads are available for a variety of products spanning out to number of countries. The search categories are classified product wise as well as Country wise. For example if you are looking to source a Rolls-Royce car, Germany is the obvious choice and this website would provide you with the best leads. Not only Rolls-Royce car but there are so many other sub categories of products available from Germany. It can be very well said that on this gigantic directory, German Business Directory is in itself a mini directory. Lots of efforts and research has been put in to design a well laid out classification into different categories and sub categories. Any lead will show you Brief Description, Expiry Date, Detailed Description, Company Profile, Ratings/Comments, contact details and video presentation.

This website is constantly thriving to supplement various features and security parameters to detect and eliminate abuse and un-professionalism to have maximum safeguards for your business interests.

www.tradeeuropeglobal.com can save your cost by 50%. It can help you in taking a faster decision. It saves precious time and energy. In the current Global Markets, tradeeuropeglobal.com platform has proved itself be a powerful tool in the International Trade. What all you need to do is to register on the website with a valid email address and once you have done it you will join a rapidly growing network to reach businesses anywhere in the world.

The German business market has got high potential to offer to the global market. If you want your trade with German partners to be more profitable and effective on a long time basis then you can take the leads presented at the website www.tradeeuropeglobal.com to your best advantage.

There are lots of uses for corporate video. Increasingly popular are video news releases announcing a new or improved product. Many companies have found value in “how-to” instructional videos aimed at consumers. There are infomercials and testimonials continue to be one of the absolute best forms of advertising. Videos of a few happy customers praising your company could work magic for your marketing efforts. And you wouldn’t necessarily need to buy any broadcast time because all this — and more — can be loaded on your company’s web site.

Do your new employees feel welcome? In mid-size and larger organizations, it’s often difficult for a busy CEO to personally greet each new employee with a handshake. Until the CEO can schedule face time with a new recruit, a welcoming message from the “top dog” on DVD may work wonders. Into the narrative the boss can weave words about the company’s mission statement, relate a brief history of the firm, communicate a vision of its future, and explain how the organization expects each employee to treat its customers. If you opt for a hard copy, the recruit can take a DVD home and share it with family members. Or the boss’ full motion message can be placed on your corporate web site.

Then there’s the U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety & Health Administration — commonly known as OSHA. Its web site says, “Nearly every working man and woman in the nation comes under OSHA’s jurisdiction (with some exceptions such as miners, transportation workers, many public employees, and the self-employed).

OSHA’s mission is to assure the safety and health of America’s workers by setting and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach, and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging continual improvement in workplace safety and health.” The statement is a shining example of bureaucracy in full bloom. But write off its real meaning at your own peril! When these folks walk into your office flashing their badges, rest assured the results will be no picnic! Customized videos can be used as a tool to aid your company in its efforts to comply with OSHA standards. Videos can be utilized during new employee orientation and for on-going or “refresher” training of seasoned personnel. And as I’ve said before, they can be part of your company’s web site.

In today’s fast moving culture, video may indeed be the most effective method to communicate ideas. For years it has worked well for the folks on Madison Avenue where big advertisers and broadcast and cable networks meet. People like to watch.

Though movie theater attendance has been steadily declining — perhaps due in part to the growing popularity of the “third screen” (the Internet) — we’re still able to get our movie fix via DVD. Pundits say the Internet is about to change that too, claiming traditional television sets will soon be replaced by super-duper computers that will download program content directly from servers. But regardless of the device — from small screens on cell phones to 60 inch home theaters — the communication mode most likely to influence us will continue to be visual.

Nearly every person alive today has grown up in the heyday of mass media marketing. We’re all consumers of advertising — much of it on television. This probably won’t change. But the TV folks have taken note that the Internet is no longer a faint whistle heard blowing in the distance. They realize it now has become a large, lumbering freight train — headed right into town — bent on wreaking havoc to their bottom line. And they known it’s on track because they can feel the ground shaking. I’ll discuss more about the Internet and high technology later. Considering these facts, I hope you’re now “sold” on the advantages of corporate video!

With recent advances in technology — relatively inexpensive digital video recorders, computer software and hardware — it would seem that movie making for the masses is “an idea whose time has come.” Well, yes… and no.

Indeed, top notch consumer hardware and software is available. Just ask any teenager who aspires to become the next Steven Spielberg! But the successful and convincing production of a corporate video requires an element not found in a collection of wires, chips, lights, lenses, hard drives, LCD monitors, keyboards or other electronic gadgetry. That element is intellectual skill — and the expertise required to tell a story in a unique way. Because this skill is a learned trait, most writers don’t have it. Let me explain.

Keep in mind, Hollywood movies and most prime time television shows are designed to entertain. Script writers ply their trade with entertainment in mind. Their story lines rely upon aspects of conflict and drama as “hooks” to get audiences emotionally involved. Because you psychologically identify with the good guys, you’re “in their corner,” you root for them. When watching a comedy, you laugh at the “nutty guy” because in real life you know someone who’s almost exactly like him — psychologically you to tend to identify with the character. You’re hooked. With comedians and talk show hosts, you generally either love them or hate them — depending upon how close their humor content or world view matches your own. As in the other examples, you’re prone to identify with the performer.

With corporate video, writing objectives are different from those of entertainment. Though a good corporate piece needs to contain elements of entertainment — after all, we don’t want viewers to fall asleep! — Its primary purpose is to enlighten, or to teach, or to inform. Thus, when telling a story in the corporate arena, the writer and producer need to have a working knowledge of how adults learn. The entire corporate video production is built and scripted using this pedagogy.

For example, most adults are competency-based learners. They want to learn a skill or acquire knowledge that can be quickly applied to their immediate circumstances. Work-related situations present a more appropriate framework than academic or theoretical approaches. In other words, the astute writer or producer will employ active demonstrations using full motion video, rather than showing a talking head communicating abstract theory — or, worse yet — by displaying numerous lines of text on the screen.

Talking heads or lots of text signal a certain subconscious response in contemporary viewers. The message is “go to sleep!” And that is not part of making a Killer Corporate Video, but is more likely the norm. Preventing it is the subject of part 2 of this article.

Over the last 10 years, shoppers have figured out that they can avoid lines and traffic and get better prices on the internet than in the shopping malls. Since most online purchases are made across state lines, the cost for shipping is usually offset by not having to pay sales tax. When you drive to a brick and mortar store, park in the parking lot, and walk into the store, you are now trapped since there is no way you are leaving to visit other stores to comparison shop. On the other hand, the internet is located in your living room where thousands, if not millions, of stores compete against each other driving prices as low as possible. In addition, online stores pay much lower rent for warehousing their products compared to retail lease prices for brick and mortar stores. This allows them to lower their prices even further and keep much larger inventories on hand. Obtaining better prices online is quickly outweighing the impulsive need to have your purchase immediately upon checkout from a brick and mortar store. This is increasing the number of online shoppers every year as people across the country catch on to what others have already figured out.

Now I’m not saying that the great prices found on the internet are anything to sneeze at, but that wasn’t enough for me. Since my first online purchase in the late 90’s, I have become addicted to saving even more money by utilizing online coupons, coupon codes / promo codes, and cash back shopping.

Online coupons are just like normal coupons that you would use at the grocery store, but they are only for purchases made on the internet. Instead of cutting them out and providing them at the checkout counter, online coupons are redeemed during the online checkout process. There are two types of online coupons. The first is a “coupon code” which I’ve also seen called a promo code, promotion code, promotional code, and a discount code. The shopper just needs to enter the coupon code in the appropriate place during checkout and the discount is reflected immediately. The other online coupon I have encountered is usually provided by online coupon websites. Once you click on the coupon-embedded link displayed on the online coupon website, you’re directed to the retailer’s website in a new browser window to shop as you normally would. The coupon discount is automatically factored into the price at checkout. I find this method easier than tracking down coupon codes (but maybe not as much fun).

But when I discovered another method of saving money called Cash Back Shopping, online coupons alone weren’t enough for me. I’m going to share a secret with you that took me a number of years to uncover about how online shopping works. In order to generate sales, online stores use a method of marketing called Affiliate Network Marketing. The online store signs up with an affiliate network for a fee. The network then displays links to the retailer’s website for coupons, deals, promotions, and sales. Website owners copy these links and display them on their own websites in the hopes that their visitors will click on them and place an order. The website owner is paid a commission for each visitor who goes to an affiliate’s site and makes a purchase. Commissions on sales range from 3% to 10%. Hence, the birth of the online coupon website to earn commissions by bringing traffic to online retailers signed up with affiliate networks.

Soon after, cash-back shopping sites began to appear. These sites give back a percentage of the commission they earn, in the form of cash-back, to the actual online shopper making the purchase. So now online shoppers could redeem valuable coupons, such as 15% off your entire order from the retailer and then earn another 2- 5% cash-back from the online coupon website. On most cash-back shopping websites, money accumulates in an account and is then paid quarterly by check to the shopper. The fact that you can combine online coupons with cash-back shopping makes cash-back shopping websites that offer coupons a much better option than the plain old online coupon websites of the past.

Now that we have a brief history of online shopping under our belts, let’s move onto my latest discovery. I recently found a website that has taken online coupons and cash-back shopping to another level. Until now it was only possible for website owners to make commissions from affiliate networks by displaying coupon links on their websites. However, the site I found, www.CouponCactus.com, allows shoppers to earn money as well as save money.

Coupon Cactus developed a program so its members can automatically display a link to their own “Cactus Page” in the signature line at the bottom of all of their emails. If a person reading your email clicks the link in your signature line and makes a purchase through your Cactus Page, you will earn a commission. Nearly every area of the online arena has been utilized for major profit, except for the real estate in our own personal emails. To demonstrate the power of marketing in personal e-mails, here’s an example. Let’s assume the average person sends 10 emails per day, including both original emails and forwarded emails. If you send an email of interest to 10 friends, such as a funny joke or story, by tomorrow it will be in 100 inboxes and it will be in 1,000 inboxes by the day after. In the span of just two days, your one email with a link to your Cactus Page could reach 1,100 potential online shoppers. That’s not to mention the other nine emails you wrote that day. I personally send about 100 emails per day and have already begun to reap the benefits of Coupon Cactus membership. I’ve actually earned more than I’ve spent over the holidays! It was then that I was driven to seek out the owner of Coupon Cactus to find out more about how they came up with this idea and what was on the horizon.

I had the chance to interview David Fitterman, President & CEO of Coupon Cactus, LLC, which hosts the CouponCactus.com website, an online coupon, coupon code, and cash-back shopping website with a commission program for the average shopper.

John: David, first I’d like to thank you for giving me the tools to make some cash this holiday season on top of some very cool coupons I used to buy presents.

David: It’s our pleasure! You know, it’s not just a holiday thing though. Our members are pretty smart and they’ll be earning money year-round. I knew the idea made sense, but I’m surprised at how fast it’s taken off.

John: So how many members do you have, and what are the different ways the website is being used?

David: Sorry John, I can’t reveal any specific details about our membership since privacy is of the utmost importance. But I can say that we’re very pleased and much further along than we’d imagined at this point. We already have some great success stories about the ingenious ways our members are using the website.

John: That works for me.

David: Well, you already know that each member gets their own Cactus Page but we are currently beta testing functionality where they can personalize the top banner with a welcome message and display a picture or a logo. We have one beta tester who placed a picture of his two-year old son on his banner. His son is suffering from an illness and he’s raising money in his son’s name by sending out links to his Cactus Page explaining that all commissions on purchases will be used for his son’s medical treatment.

John: Wow, that’s a great story.

David: Yeah, we’re pretty proud of that one. I’m just glad that we’re able to offer him the tools to earn money for such a good cause. We have another member who’s using her Cactus Page so she gets commissions on all of the gifts purchased for her baby shower next month. There’s actually one other member doing the same thing, but for her wedding. It’s a cool idea. If their friends and relatives are going to be buying them presents anyway, they might as well earn cash-back on all of the purchases to buy something extra for the baby or to use on their honeymoon.

John: Man, I wish you guys were around when I got married!

David: Sorry about that! At least you know about us now and can use Coupon Cactus for all the other events and ideas you come up with. We also have a few beta testing companies who are using corporate Cactus Pages as an employee benefit. It’s a win-win situation. The employees use the coupons on the website to save money, and the company earns commissions on all the sales. One of the companies is using the earned commissions to pay for the annual holiday party for their employees. It turns out that the company is ending up using the coupons, more than the employees, to lower their business expenses and get cash back on top of the discounts.

John: That sounds like a pretty smart company. Now I know you’re busy and I really appreciate the time you’re taking to talk with me, but can you tell me anything more about future plans for the website?

David: Well, you know I can’t be too specific, but we do have a number of plans in the works. I can tell you that we recently implemented a new feature where if you refer someone to Coupon Cactus and they become a member, you’ll receive 25% of whatever they earn for as long as both of you are members. There are a number of sites out there that only give you just $5 for telling a friend. We looked at that model and it just didn’t work for us. This is the age of Web 2.0 and we figured our members should share in all of the profits. For example, if you refer a friend to Coupon Cactus and he earns $100 this quarter, he’ll receive a check for $100 and you’ll receive a check for an additional $25. Let’s say that the next quarter you refer nine more friends who each earn $50 and your first friend makes another $100… Hang on, let me get out my calculator… You’ll get a check for $137.50 for that quarter, just on the commissions made on your referral members. Not a bad deal for just referring some friends, and we have absolutely no limit to the number of referrals you can make.

John: This feature was the reason I had to track you down and talk to you. It’s brilliant, and like I mentioned earlier, it paid for all the presents I bought this year and then some.

David: You know, when this article comes out you should include your membership number so you can get referral commissions on anyone who signs up after reading it.

John: In this case I am one step ahead of you. Thank you again for sitting down to talk with me, and I wish you great success with Coupon Cactus.

David: Thanks for having me.

Now that I have disclosed my secrets on how shopping can actually be profitable I will shamelessly ask that you return the favor by entering my Cactus membership number 100033 as the member who referred you to Coupon Cactus when you sign up for free membership. Who knows, maybe my dreams will come true and I’ll get to be a millionaire one day.

Over the last 10 years, shoppers have figured out that they can avoid lines and traffic and get better prices on the internet than in the shopping malls. Since most online purchases are made across state lines, the cost for shipping is usually offset by not having to pay sales tax. When you drive to a brick and mortar store, park in the parking lot, and walk into the store, you are now trapped since there is no way you are leaving to visit other stores to comparison shop. On the other hand, the internet is located in your living room where thousands, if not millions, of stores compete against each other driving prices as low as possible. In addition, online stores pay much lower rent for warehousing their products compared to retail lease prices for brick and mortar stores. This allows them to lower their prices even further and keep much larger inventories on hand. Obtaining better prices online is quickly outweighing the impulsive need to have your purchase immediately upon checkout from a brick and mortar store. This is increasing the number of online shoppers every year as people across the country catch on to what others have already figured out.

Now I’m not saying that the great prices found on the internet are anything to sneeze at, but that wasn’t enough for me. Since my first online purchase in the late 90’s, I have become addicted to saving even more money by utilizing online coupons, coupon codes / promo codes, and cash back shopping.

Online coupons are just like normal coupons that you would use at the grocery store, but they are only for purchases made on the internet. Instead of cutting them out and providing them at the checkout counter, online coupons are redeemed during the online checkout process. There are two types of online coupons. The first is a “coupon code” which I’ve also seen called a promo code, promotion code, promotional code, and a discount code. The shopper just needs to enter the coupon code in the appropriate place during checkout and the discount is reflected immediately. The other online coupon I have encountered is usually provided by online coupon websites. Once you click on the coupon-embedded link displayed on the online coupon website, you’re directed to the retailer’s website in a new browser window to shop as you normally would. The coupon discount is automatically factored into the price at checkout. I find this method easier than tracking down coupon codes (but maybe not as much fun).

But when I discovered another method of saving money called Cash Back Shopping, online coupons alone weren’t enough for me. I’m going to share a secret with you that took me a number of years to uncover about how online shopping works. In order to generate sales, online stores use a method of marketing called Affiliate Network Marketing. The online store signs up with an affiliate network for a fee. The network then displays links to the retailer’s website for coupons, deals, promotions, and sales. Website owners copy these links and display them on their own websites in the hopes that their visitors will click on them and place an order. The website owner is paid a commission for each visitor who goes to an affiliate’s site and makes a purchase. Commissions on sales range from 3% to 10%. Hence, the birth of the online coupon website to earn commissions by bringing traffic to online retailers signed up with affiliate networks.

Soon after, cash-back shopping sites began to appear. These sites give back a percentage of the commission they earn, in the form of cash-back, to the actual online shopper making the purchase. So now online shoppers could redeem valuable coupons, such as 15% off your entire order from the retailer and then earn another 2- 5% cash-back from the online coupon website. On most cash-back shopping websites, money accumulates in an account and is then paid quarterly by check to the shopper. The fact that you can combine online coupons with cash-back shopping makes cash-back shopping websites that offer coupons a much better option than the plain old online coupon websites of the past.

Now that we have a brief history of online shopping under our belts, let’s move onto my latest discovery. I recently found a website that has taken online coupons and cash-back shopping to another level. Until now it was only possible for website owners to make commissions from affiliate networks by displaying coupon links on their websites. However, the site I found, http://CouponCactus.com, allows shoppers to earn money as well as save money.

Coupon Cactus developed a program so its members can automatically display a link to their own “Cactus Page” in the signature line at the bottom of all of their emails. If a person reading your email clicks the link in your signature line and makes a purchase through your Cactus Page, you will earn a commission. Nearly every area of the online arena has been utilized for major profit, except for the real estate in our own personal emails. To demonstrate the power of marketing in personal e-mails, here’s an example. Let’s assume the average person sends 10 emails per day, including both original emails and forwarded emails. If you send an email of interest to 10 friends, such as a funny joke or story, by tomorrow it will be in 100 inboxes and it will be in 1,000 inboxes by the day after. In the span of just two days, your one email with a link to your Cactus Page could reach 1,100 potential online shoppers. That’s not to mention the other nine emails you wrote that day. I personally send about 100 emails per day and have already begun to reap the benefits of Coupon Cactus membership. I’ve actually earned more than I’ve spent over the holidays! It was then that I was driven to seek out the owner of Coupon Cactus to find out more about how they came up with this idea and what was on the horizon.

I had the chance to interview David Fitterman, President & CEO of Coupon Cactus, LLC, which hosts the http://CouponCactus.com website, an online coupon, coupon code, and cash-back shopping website with a commission program for the average shopper.

John: David, first I’d like to thank you for giving me the tools to make some cash this holiday season on top of some very cool coupons I used to buy presents.

David: It’s our pleasure! You know, it’s not just a holiday thing though. Our members are pretty smart and they’ll be earning money year-round. I knew the idea made sense, but I’m surprised at how fast it’s taken off.

John: So how many members do you have, and what are the different ways the website is being used?

David: Sorry John, I can’t reveal any specific details about our membership since privacy is of the utmost importance. But I can say that we’re very pleased and much further along than we’d imagined at this point. We already have some great success stories about the ingenious ways our members are using the website.

John: That works for me.

David: Well, you already know that each member gets their own Cactus Page but we are currently beta testing functionality where they can personalize the top banner with a welcome message and display a picture or a logo. We have one beta tester who placed a picture of his two-year old son on his banner. His son is suffering from an illness and he’s raising money in his son’s name by sending out links to his Cactus Page explaining that all commissions on purchases will be used for his son’s medical treatment.

John: Wow, that’s a great story.

David: Yeah, we’re pretty proud of that one. I’m just glad that we’re able to offer him the tools to earn money for such a good cause. We have another member who’s using her Cactus Page so she gets commissions on all of the gifts purchased for her baby shower next month. There’s actually one other member doing the same thing, but for her wedding. It’s a cool idea. If their friends and relatives are going to be buying them presents anyway, they might as well earn cash-back on all of the purchases to buy something extra for the baby or to use on their honeymoon.

John: Man, I wish you guys were around when I got married!

David: Sorry about that! At least you know about us now and can use Coupon Cactus for all the other events and ideas you come up with. We also have a few beta testing companies who are using corporate Cactus Pages as an employee benefit. It’s a win-win situation. The employees use the coupons on the website to save money, and the company earns commissions on all the sales. One of the companies is using the earned commissions to pay for the annual holiday party for their employees. It turns out that the company is ending up using the coupons, more than the employees, to lower their business expenses and get cash back on top of the discounts.

John: That sounds like a pretty smart company. Now I know you’re busy and I really appreciate the time you’re taking to talk with me, but can you tell me anything more about future plans for the website?

David: Well, you know I can’t be too specific, but we do have a number of plans in the works. I can tell you that we recently implemented a new feature where if you refer someone to Coupon Cactus and they become a member, you’ll receive 25% of whatever they earn for as long as both of you are members. There are a number of sites out there that only give you just $5 for telling a friend. We looked at that model and it just didn’t work for us. This is the age of Web 2.0 and we figured our members should share in all of the profits. For example, if you refer a friend to Coupon Cactus and he earns $100 this quarter, he’ll receive a check for $100 and you’ll receive a check for an additional $25. Let’s say that the next quarter you refer nine more friends who each earn $50 and your first friend makes another $100… Hang on, let me get out my calculator… You’ll get a check for $137.50 for that quarter, just on the commissions made on your referral members. Not a bad deal for just referring some friends, and we have absolutely no limit to the number of referrals you can make.

John: This feature was the reason I had to track you down and talk to you. It’s brilliant, and like I mentioned earlier, it paid for all the presents I bought this year and then some.

David: You know, when this article comes out you should include your membership number so you can get referral commissions on anyone who signs up after reading it.

John: In this case I am one step ahead of you. Thank you again for sitting down to talk with me, and I wish you great success with Coupon Cactus.

David: Thanks for having me.

Now that I have disclosed my secrets on how shopping can actually be profitable I will shamelessly ask that you return the favor by entering my Cactus membership number 100033 as the member who referred you to Coupon Cactus when you sign up for free membership at http://CouponCactus.com. Who knows, maybe my dreams will come true and I’ll get to be a millionaire one day.

The History of Craigslist

Craigslist begin in 1995, essentially as an email list run by Craig Newmark for the purpose of keeping his friends informed of interesting events occurring in the San Francisco Bay Area. This system spread through word of mouth and the list grew. After sometime others began using the list to respond to the entire list with information about other events or as a way to make requests or exchange information. Those who began responding on Craigslist began posting items such as jobs, for sale items, apartment openings and other pieces of information. Newmark wrote software to enable participants to post this information onto the website which became known as Craigslist.org. Although Newmark was approached in 1997 about the possibility of running banner advertisements on his website, he declined this opportunity.

Finding Items for Sale on Craigslist

The for sale section of Craigslist is the place to find items which are for sale. This section is divided into a variety of different categories. Users can browse through appropriate categories to find other users offering items for sale which may be of interest to them. Those who cannot find an item they are seeking can take advantage of the wanted section to post an advertisement seeking a particular item as well as the price they are willing to pay for this item. When purchasing an item on Craigslist there is always the potential for receiving an item that is not in the condition described in the advertisement. Asking many questions is the best way to avoid this type of problem when making a purchase.

Finding Jobs on Craigslist

One of the most popular sections of Craigslist is the jobs section. Job seekers prefer Craigslist over other websites designed specifically for finding jobs because Craigslist offers those posting the job the opportunity to include information such as whether telecommuting is an option or the position is a contract position in addition to whether it is full time or part time. This is significant because many other websites do not include this information and job seekers who rely on the Internet are likely to be more interested in these options that offer greater flexibility.

Browsing through Craigslist for potential jobs is surprisingly easy. Job seekers simply enter the Craigslist website for the desired geographical region and select a category from the jobs section that describes their desired field of employment. Alternately job seekers can use the search feature to find their dream job.

In fact, information technology is all of these things, and more. It’s hardly new, however. Information technology is as old as the brain itself, if you think of the brain as an information processor. As far as I.T. being a science, even that goes back as far as the earliest attempts to communicate and store information.

And that is essentially what information technology is: the communication and storage of information, along with the ability to process and make use of the information stored. In this chapter, we’ll begin with a brief history of I.T., what it comprises today, and the different major types of I.T. systems available today.

A Short History of Information Technology

As human societies have grown in size and complexity, so has the need to collect, store and transmit information. While it could be argued that brains represent a form of “bio-information technology,” Greek word “Tektra” – from which we get the word “technology” – really refers to scientific or mechanical knowledge, particularly that which involves the use of tools. Therefore, we’ll begin our journey with humans first attempts to record and transmit knowledge through mechanical means.

The Neolithic Period and the Bronze Age

We might not have thought of it as “information technology” several thousand years ago when we as a species were painting animals on cave walls. But in fact that may be exactly what it was.

Using a combination of tools that included manganese “crayons” and clay that was colored with various pigments, early humans left these images on the walls of a cave near Lascaux, France and on cliffs in the Algerian Sahara.

These have been dated as being approximately 18,000 and 8,000 years old respectively. Unfortunately, there is no way to be certain exactly what message was being communicated (a problem our own descendants 15,000 years from now may very well encounter from what we leave behind!)

Since the images depict animals that were commonly hunted at the time, and given the importance of game animals to a hunting-gathering culture, it’s possible that such images were attempts to present information about such game, or part of a rite designed to ensure a successful hunt.

The invention of writing systems – including pictograms such as hieroglyphics, alphabetic writing and “syllabic” systems – seems to have taken place almost at the same time as the development of agriculture. Agriculture introduced such formerly unknown concepts as land ownership, advanced trade and the accumulation of wealth, which in turn led to more complex societal structures.

As you might expect, this necessitated more detailed and efficient record-keeping. Alphabetic writing has a substantial advantage over pictograms (hieroglyphs), because a relatively limited number of symbols (letters) can be used over and over in infinite combination to communicate nearly anything. (As you will see later, modern I.T. uses only two of these symbols!)

Preserving and storing such information posed certain challenges; information either had to be inscribed on stone or clay tablets (which were heavy) or animal skins, wax tablets or papyrus (which weren’t durable).

The Hellenistic World

The Classical Greeks were the first people of record to attempt to find scientific, rational explanations for natural phenomena. Some of the earliest proto-computers known were mechanical devices developed by the Greeks. One of these was a form of abacus (which also developed and was used in ancient China). The device facilitated and simplified mathematical calculation.

Consider REALLY early Greco-Roman Abacus

Another early computational device was the antikthera, greek in origin. An antikthera was discovered by a Greek sponge diver over a century ago, it was only recently that this 2100-year-old device was reconstructed and shown to be an early form of computer designed to chart the movements of the sun, moon and five planets known at the time.

Early Programmable Devices

By the time the gradual break-up and fall of the Roman Empire was complete in the year 476 C.E., scientific and technological advances in the Western world had ground to a halt. While much of the scientific knowledge of the Greeks was preserved by Irish monks and Arab scholars, it wasn’t until the fourteenth century that principles of engineering were rediscovered and applied to information. The first of these was of course the printing press.

Although the concept of movable type printing had been developed in China some four hundred years earlier, it was Gutenberg’s device in 1447 that revolutionized communications, making it easier and faster to record and disseminate information than ever before. The first truly programmable device would not come along for another 354 years, however.

The Jacquard Loom of 1801 was a product of the Industrial Revolution. This invention used a series of specially punched paper cards that functional as templates, allowing for the automatic weaving of highly intricate patterns. Those punch cards became very significant to computing in the 1950’s, 60’s and 70’s.

The next development was Charles Babbage’s “Analytical Machine” – a fully-programmable computer that unfortunately was never actually built. Babbage worked on designs from 1837 until his passing in 1871. This steam-powered mechanism would have also utilized punch cards, with a central processing unit (CPU) and a form of memory storage in the form of a system of pegs inserted into rotating barrels.

The Analytical Machine would have been capable of storing 1,000 numbers of up to fifty digits each, and perform six different mathematical operations, including the calculation of square roots. Babbage’s ideas were incorporated into early electronic computing devices being developed in the late 1930’s and 1940’s, although not all of these were actually programmable. The first truly programmable computers – able to store and use information – did not come into common use until the 1950’s, and yes – made use of punch cards (those born before 1965 may remember playing with them).

Of course most people born in the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s just take for granted that the Information Technology we have today is from fairley recent developments in science, mechanics and electronics. But we know different now don’t we. And therefore can better appreciate what we have available to us now.

Before we look at what businesses in 2008 are doing to communicate smarter and better it is perhaps a good idea to take look at how communication has progressed through the ages with a brief history of communication.

For example did you know that as far back as 3000BC, The Egyptians created a language by using pictures to communication? This language was hieroglyphics and examples of this can still today be found throughout Egypt. And if it is more traditional communication methods that interest you then about we fast forward to 105AD which is when the Chinese first started using paper and ink.

Other notable events in the history of communication include 1876 which is when Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, 1906 when the first wireless communication of human speech was made or 1936 when in London, England, the first television broadcast was made.

The truth is communication is constantly evolving. And as businesses throughout the world find it increasingly difficult to trade and gain a competitive advantage, different methods of communications are being used to help them stand out from the crowd.

Some examples of what companies are doing include video conferencing which allows both video and audio communication throughout the world. Not only does this method of communication save companies huge amounts in travel costs, time and money but it is greatly benefits the environment. Whereas to arrange a conference traditionally would have meant sending out invites, delegates traveling from all over to attend modern video conferencing means companies can save time, save money as well as reducing their carbon footprint by cutting down on the use of natural resources.

Even everyday tasks like shopping have been improved with different types of communication now being available. Long gone are the days of having to drive to the store only to find the item you are looking to purchase is no longer available. The internet, SMS or using your cell phone from the most unlikely of locations can all now be used to check stock levels, make purchases and be kept up to date with the latest information.

Another way in which businesses of all types are now improving their communication as well as the safety and security within their company is by using modern two way radio. Two Way Radios allow schools, retailers and businesses on large sites to communicate over a wide area for a fraction of the cost of other forms of communication. These portable radios which are available from companies including Motorola, Kenwood, Entel and ICOM provide a robust, reliable and highly effective way for companies to stay in touch whilst making sure their staff and customers are as safe as possible.

Communication in industry is the key to success and often makes the difference between those companies that are struggling and those that are highly successful. Choose the right methods of communication for your company and what your profits soar.

The bill also sent shock waves throughout the financial industry. Banks and other financial institutions suddenly found themselves burdened with law enforcement responsibilities that they were ill equipped to handle. UIGEA placed the burden of enforcement squarely on the backs of banks without any federal funding to compensate for these new unwanted mandates.

One of the effects of this legislation is a massive loss of potential revenue for the federal government. A recent study conducted by the top accounting firm of Pricewaterhouse Cooper found that the United States government is missing out on potential revenue to the tune of $7 to $42.8 billion dollars. Thanks to UIGEA most of this money is now going to offshore banks and governments.

The report was presented last week to members of congress by Representative Jim McDermott. (D-Wash) McDermott, like most people grounded in reality, realizes that Americans continue to gamble online despite the passage of UIGEA. Representative brings up two very important issues. The first is the loss of much needed revenue for a government that is in debt for trillions of dollars. The second issue is consumer protection. In his own words “Instead of this ineffective attempt to prevent adults from gambling over the Internet, we need a more sensible approach to protect consumers and ensure that revenues that now flow offshore stay here in the U.S. and are therefore subject to taxation. A new, safer, more sensible approach is needed to regulate Internet gambling and protect consumers.”

Representative McDermott realizes that gambling prohibition has been ineffective and that as thing are now online gamblers are without protection and are at the mercy of offshore banks some of which have less than stellar reputations. Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass) has introduced a bill that would essentially repeal UIGEA and would introduce licensing and regulation of internet gambling in the US. Prohibition of gambling has been as effective as alcohol prohibition which many older Americans remember with distaste. Like alcohol prohibition the ban on gambling has spawned an underground economy, untaxed, unregulated, and easily invaded by criminal elements.

The ban on internet gambling has also created ill will against the United States from the World Trade Organization and the European Union. The suit By Antigua against the US could wreak havoc with agreements regarding intellectual property rights. The US barely dodged the bullet in a settlement with the EU that could have cost the US taxpayer billions.

The US has a national debt of trillions and the revenue from online gambling would help in many ways. It could help put the country back on the road to solvency and finance shortfalls of under funded social programs like social security. As it stands now unknown amounts of money leave the US on a daily basis depriving the government of much needed revenue. Revenue collected from gambling could possibly forestall the need for future tax increases.

Whether its poker, online bingo, or the many other forms of gambling available online, the legalization, regulation, and taxation of online gambling would benefit all concerned and the government could get on with more important issues facing the nation. It is fervently hoped that both Frank’s and McDermott’s bills will pass– and soon.

A Brief History Of Clickbank

Clickbank is a pioneer in the field. It was started in 1998 to provide a platform for new businesses to set up shop, and sell their goods and services online. At that time, selling goods online was not as simple as it is now. New businesses with no credit card history had a tough time getting their own merchant account and credit card processing.

Today, Clickbank is the retail market for all kinds of digital goods and services, right from e-books to software to any downloadable goods you could possibly want. It has over 10,000 products and services with its list of registered vendors. It has a massive network of affiliate marketers who promote these products.

What makes Clickbank tick? The secret to its success lies in it widespread reach. As an online marketplace, millions of potential customers all over the world can access it. The advantage of being an online marketplace also extends to the ease with which anyone can sign up as an affiliate. What’s more, Clickbank acts as the intermediary. They will process all the payments for each sale and send the proceeds to the vendors twice a month. They also take care of after sales services, like refunds and returned goods, and pay out the commissions to the affiliates.

Clickbank is a great place to start your own online venture, or to turn your surfing hours into an income generator. The first time user may need a little guidance, but once you grasp the basic idea, it is really quite simple.

If you are looking to sign up as a vendor, all you have to do is register yourself, make the necessary web pages available with all the info about your products, and start selling right away. You only have to pay a small amount of a little over a dollar per sale to Clickbank for their services and as much as you wish to affiliates.

As an affiliate, you have the freedom to choose just which products to promote from the huge list of vendors. Before you choose the products, make sure they meet your standards. All the info you need is available right there with the inbuilt directory, so you only need to do a keyword search. So go right ahead and get clicking!