Search Australia mobile version now available for iPhone

Search Australia is now available on the iPhone so you can have the great single keyword access to the most popular sites Australian's visit, or add your own keywords to go direct to the sites you want. Search Australia uses the Google search engine to provide search results but limits the default results to be pages from domains using .au. You can still quickly search Google, Yahoo or Bind using the single first letter followed by a space and then what you're searching for.

To add Search Australia to your home page on your mobile do the following:
Go to http://www.justlocal.com.au/search/samobile/
Select the forward option in the icons at the bottom of the screen

Select Add to Home Screen

Change the text to Search

Press Add

 

Search Australia is now available from your Home Screen.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

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An interesting new product from Google called the Google Chromecast (not currently available in Australia)

This morning I read about a new gadget from Google called the Chromecast which I thought was interesting.

Google Chromecast makes all TVs smart... Read More

The Chromecast plugs into your TV’s HDMI port and provides streaming direct to your TV from the internet or from your Google Chrome browser on your computer. I have to say some of the information is a bit ambiguous as to how the device operates, but in time I’m sure the fact from the fiction will become clear. At $35USD it could be a good device which adds value to your TV experience. It will be very interesting to find out what it does or doesn’t do.

The Chromecast is not currently available in Australia according to the online Play Store. I suspect the easiest way to find out if it becomes available in Australia is to watch the Play Store.

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

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Commonwealth Bank's new site confuses users accessing NetBank.

The Commonwealth Bank recently launched their new site design and one user requested assistance because they couldn't find how to get onto NetBank. Previously NetBank was easy to find and was right there on the home page at the top right. The new design looks more like an online ad for the Commonwealth Bank rather than a site to quickly access the bank's services.

To find NetBank you need to select Products in the menu and then Online Banking when the menu pops down. There is no mention of NetBank in the main menus. If you click quickly you'll go to the product page and if you look towards the bottom you'll find Online Banking. There is also a direct link to NetBank at the very bottom of the page.

I thought this was a pretty strange redesign of the Commonwealth Bank's site. Over 20% of customer reach the Commonwealth Bank as a result of searching for NetBank and based on my own use of banking sites, the main feature I'd use would be the online banking service. In fact most of the time it is the only feature I use. To not have such an important service with a link prominent on the main screen for user convenience is unusual. It almost feels like the old supermarket trick where milk is at the back of the store, and since everyone needs milk they need to go through the store and in doing so may purchase other products.

My clients now have access to Search Australia as their default search engine and some have Search Australia set as their home page. To get to NetBank all they need to do is enter netbank into Search Australia and they'll go direct to the online banking page.  If your bank doesn't have direct access to their online banking page, with Search Australia you can set up your own keyword for your online banking page and go direct to the page. Select My Keywords on the Search Australia page and add your own list of favourite sites.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

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MyAnswers: Google's Blogger statistics produce huge numbers compared to other methods to collect stats. Why the difference?

The following MyAnswers solution 2369 is now available:

Google's Blogger statistics differ significantly from statistics collected from other methods by up to a factor of 20 times. Great if you want to feel good but not so great if you want meaningful statistics. I share the other techniques I use to provide more meaningful blog stats.

Click here to obtain the solution.

Click here for related solutions.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.MyAnswers.biz
(An Online Connections service.)

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Business Works in Camberwell using blog spamming to promote their business.

Whatever you do don't use low cost overseas organisation to blog spam to promote your business. Today I received a comment on my blog from Business Works which was obviously not written by a native English speaking person so I decided to investigate.

Business Works is located in Camberwell so whilst it is possible with our multicultural society that someone in their business is making a legitimate post on another companies blog, it isn't likely. I'm all for legitimate posts but when the sole aim is to add links back to a site to promote themselves I do not call this ethical and honourable behaviour which Business Works claim on their site is important to them.

So how can you tell if it is blog spam. The IP address for the person who wrote the post. In this case the IP address was 182.185.196.221, which is based in Pakistan. It is fairly obvious that Business Works has outsourced their blog spamming to a business located in Pakistan.

Don't make this mistake for your business. All those SEO emails you get every day are spam. If you fall into the trap of using a spammer then chances are you'll pay once for them to spam on your behalf and a second time when it damages your business reputation.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

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Alert: Re: Attn: Domain Notification - Expiration Notice

Every now and again I receive domain notices via email where the company issuing them isn’t a company I’m dealing with and in fact, if you read the notice carefully it is even difficult to tell who the notice is from. However the notice has one intent. To scare the domain holder into thinking their domain is about to expire.

As a matter of practice I recommend to clients to forward all notices to me to review because in the past clients have been concerned. This approach stops them making the mistake I’ve seen of others. Transferring their domains to a company they’ve never dealt with who charge them extra. In effect they’ve been hoodwinked.

If you receive any domain notification don’t act on the notification. Visit the site of your domain registrar and check the details for yourself. In this case I was being advised of a domain that had just expired when in actual fact them domain isn’t up for renewal until March 2014.

It amazes me that every day we are literally being attacked via the internet and no one seems to want to do anything about it. In this case the domain registrar who hosts the domain where the link would go to is in America. This is a scam and it would take seconds for the domain registrar to block the domain to ensure people aren’t scammed. Somehow they seem to take no responsibility even though their services make these scams possible. I believe technology already exists that could assist many people avoid scams but it will only happen when the will is there.

If you receive a domain renewal notification don’t trust it. Open your browser and go to the site where you registered your domain and check the details for your domain. Then if it needs to be renewed use the site to renew the domain.

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

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Should parents who let their children rack up charges on the Apple store be responsible?

There is no doubt that many people are racking up avoidable amounts on their mobile phones and Apple’s app store. Some of this is due to the way the systems work and lack of knowledge, but often taking simple precautions can completely remove the chance of such an incident happening.

Apple refunds dad $6,000 iPad bill racked up by 8-year-old... Read More

There is a very simple answer to stop inadvertent charging on Apple’s app store. Remove your credit card details. Then even if a child uses a parent’s iPhone or iPad there can’t be any charges if credit card details aren’t stored with the account.

The owners of app stores want you to have your credit card details registered to make impulse buying easy and make money. Remove your credit card details and only enter the details when you want to purchase something and the problem is solved.

In MyAnswers solution 2287 I share how I removed my credit card details off the Apple app store.

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

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