What did we do 20 years ago when we wanted to know why? These days we have Google, Bing, Yahoo and others just waiting for us to ask them all sorts of questions.

Here are 5 questions I recently asked Google along with their auto-complete suggestions. I’m not sure how the auto-complete actually works but I would bet it’s based upon what others have already searched on.

Why is my child…

Why does my belly button…

Why does my hamster…

Why does my child…

In case you haven’t figures it out. Everyone seems to be obsessed with poop. So the last question I dare to ask Google is…

Why is my poop…

Left: Before fade-in Right: After fade-in

Google’s official announcement of this new design discusses the evolution of the fade-in effect. They tested approximately 10 variants of the fade-in effect. The one you see today tested neutral to positive on all key metrics, except for one: time to first action. At first they were concerned over this delay in user action but in the end they decided it was good for the user to notice the change, pause and then perform their task.

Minimalist Designs

Google’s minimalist design with lots of white space works. There are others who have copied the Google minimalist design in their products. Three companies that come to mind are:

• Indeed.com
• SimplyHired.com
• Craigslist

Indeed and SimplyHired basically copied the entire look and feel of Google. Craigslist is simply using a design from 1999 that still works today. Some people (designers in particular) will say that Craigslist is an ugly site, but the site works. No fluff, just underlined hyperlinks, breadcrumbs and zero distractions that prevent users from browsing the classified ads efficiently. On the usability front, it’s a formula that works for them. Monetarily, maybe not.

Providing users exactly what they want without overwhelming them with advertising is something that Google has mastered. According to the latest comScore data, Google controls 65.6% of the search market and is worth over $180 billion.

Facebook is in the middle of their new privacy settings roll-out to all of its 350+ million users. The next time you sign in to Facebook, you’ll be greeted with this screen. Please read this screen and think about what you’re doing before clicking the Save Settings button.

Once you’ve made your selections please do yourself a favor and double check an item labeled Search. It just might keep you from being fired, not being hired or losing your benefits.

On the top blue bar click on Settings > Privacy Settings. You’re now on the Privacy Settings page. Look for the section labeled Search.

Search This option controls who can see your search result on Facebook and in search engines. Click this option to see the details and make changes. Facebook Search Results I’ve set this to allow only friends that can search for me on Facebook. Remember, if you leave it set to everyone, any member of Facebook (recruiters, your boss, your mom) can view your information. Think, is everything you posted on Facebook PG-13? Public Search Results I’ve unchecked the setting Allow Indexing. If this little box is checked everything in your profile that is set to everyone can now be found by people searching on Google, Bing, Yahoo and more. I’m in the process of hiring an SEO Marketing Analyst and I’ll use all of the available online tools to find each candidate’s online profile. Remember, what you say on the internet will be found by someone and will be there for many years to come.

Now you may be wondering why I’m so guarded with my Facebook information. Facebook to me is where I share family photos and status updates with my friends and family. I’m not inappropriate with either, I just feel like it’s only to be shared with family and friends and not the whole world.

Check out the photos from our day at Thunder Valley.

My latest project involved photographing the employees of SnagAJob.com known as Snaggers. For those that don’t know, SnagAJob.com is the largest job board containing over 100,000 job listings for full-time, part-time and hourly jobs. If you’re looking for a new job or are just curious, go check out the best game in town for part-time jobs.

With over 100 photos to choose from, I’ve narrowed it down to six of my favorite photos. Everyone was so creative and fun to work with. Check them out and let me know what you think.

How to master the art of panning

With a little practice, you can master the art of panning and create some eye catching images. Read on for my tips on how to make images pop by panning.

What is panning?

Panning is the horizontal (sideways) movement of the camera as it scans a moving object.

It sounds complicated, but let me give you an example. Imagine yourself standing on the side of a busy road. You look left to see a red sports car coming towards you.  As your head moves from your left to your right to follow the moving object, you are panning.

What’s it used for?

Put simply, it implies movement. Take a look at the photo of the cyclist. It was shot with a shutter speed of 1/125th of a second with me panning from left to right with the moving object. I snapped the shutter just as the rider was directly in front of me and I kept following the rider until I was certain the photo was captured. See how the rider is in focus and the background and the moving parts of the bike is blurred? This gives the photo a feeling of speed. Had I taken the photo at a faster shutter speed, such as 1/1000 then everything in the picture would have been frozen in time. It would look as if the rider was sitting still and posing for the camera.

Tips on Successful Panning

Practice practice practice.

Stand with your feet shoulders width apart, arms tight to your body and set yourself up to take the photo as the object is right in front of you. Press the shutter when the object is directly in front of you but remember to continue to keep panning. If you stop as soon as you fully depress the shutter button then you will probably not have a nice crisp picture. Fluid motion is key and never stop immediately after pressing the shutter button.

The faster the object, the harder it is to get it right. Most panning can be done with a shutter speed somewhere between 1/40th to 1/250th of a second. A jogger might be 1/40th where a speeding car might require 1/250th of a second for a crisp photo.

Go vote now!

The winner will receive a $15,000 college scholarship. The school district that submits the most high quality entries will receive $10,000.

After you’ve cast your vote, go check out the original doodler, Dennis Hwang. As a Google intern in 2000, Google Webmaster Dennis Hwang began celebrating and marking worldwide events and holidays with doodles. Since then, the work of the doodle team has been seen by millions and reached cult status, with fans waiting with bated breath to see the next creation on the Google homepage.

1. Presentation of content
2. Usability performance testing

A recent test I conducted with the Lifestyle theme produced the following results:

• Pages per visit increased by 45%
• Bounce-rate decreased 27%
• Average time on site increased 29%

Those numbers are very impressive! It goes to show that usability and presentation is a major factor in obtaining and keeping visitors on your site.

We’ve been running the new skin on the SnagAJob.com job blog for just a few days and we’re already seeing similar results with the site.

There are literally thousands of FREE WordPress themes available for anyone to grab off of the WordPress site which are great for beginners and the hobbyist blogger. But when it’s time to deliver a professional blog for a client I highly recommend that you grab a Premium WordPress  Theme from the people at StudioPress.

If you’re thinking of using WordPress for your next project, please review the WordPress services we offer. Then feel  free to contact us.