3rd Edition of SEO for Dummies is the Perfect SEO Companion was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.
Friday, October 30, 2015
3rd Edition of SEO for Dummies is the Perfect SEO Companion
Consumer search behaviour: stats and trends
Here's the skinny on all that's happening right now in search behaviour.
You're More Likely to Have Low Testosterone Sometime In Your Life Than You'd Think
Low T
Your risk for hypogonadism, plus a new treatment method.
We’re going to school you real quick on a condition you’ve probably never heard of but are likely to experience in your lifetime: Hypogonadism. The Mayo Clinic defines it as a disorder “in which the body doesn't produce enough testosterone—the hormone that plays a key role in masculine growth and development during puberty—or has an impaired ability to produce sperm or both.”
It’s exceedingly common—over 3 million new cases in the U.S. are reported each year—as you can be born with male hypogonadism or it can develop later in life from injury or infection.
Additionally, “Testosterone production declines with advancing age; 20 percent of men older than 60 years and 30 percent to 40 percent of men older than 80 years have serum testosterone levels that would be subnormal in their younger adult male counterparts," according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Is Low Testosterone Just a Part of Getting Older >>>
In some cases, male hypogonadism is treated with testosterone replacement therapy, according to a release about new research in the journal BJU International. While this can boost your energy levels, libido, and mood, there are some complications with testosterone replacement therapy; namely, it can trick your body into thinking it’s producing enough testosterone so it begins making less and less of its own. This, in turn, can severely decrease your sperm count and spiral into infertility since you need your own testosterone to produce sperm.
But this new research has found that restoring testosterone production in men is just as effective as replacing it—and it won't compromise your fertility.
In the study, this alternative approach to testosterone replacement focused on restoring the body’s natural testosterone production with a drug, similar to one used to help women ovulate, called Enclomiphene citrate. They compared this drug with Androgel, a topical testosterone gel, on overweight men with low testosterone (a.k.a. hypogonadism).
How to Fight “Manopause” and Low Testosterone >>>
Over the five months during the randomized studies, 44 men started on 12.5mg of the oral Enclomiphene citrate daily; the researchers upped the dosage to 35mg for 25 of these men (though they didn't say at what point). An additional 42 men received a topical 1.62 percent Androgel and 41 percent received a placebo. All had 10 clinic visits with one overnight stay to monitor results.
The researchers found men who took Enclomiphene citrate restored their blood testosterone levels to normal after 16 weeks while maintaining their sperm concentrations. The Androgel, on the other hand, restored blood testosterone levels in the men but caused marked reductions in their sperm concentrations by subduing the function of the testes.
"One of the basic tenets in medicine is to do no harm,” said study author and urologist Edward Kim, MD in the release. Something to remember: When it comes to safeguarding your fertility, restore your testosterone, don't replace it.
So, talk to your doctor about all your treatment options, including this new one, if you're suffering from hypogonadism.
5 Workouts to Boost Your Testosterone >>>
An Open Letter To Chairwoman Yellen From the Savers of America
Dear Chairwoman Janet Yellen:
We are a group of humble savers in traditional bank savings and money market accounts who are frustrated because, like millions of other Americans over the past six years, we are getting near zero interest. We want to know why the Federal Reserve, funded and heavily run by the banks, is keeping interest rates so low that we receive virtually no income for our hard-earned savings while the Fed lets the big banks borrow money for virtually no interest. It doesn't seem fair to put the burden of your Federal Reserve's monetary policies on the backs of those Americans who are the least positioned to demand fair play.
We follow the reporting on your tediously over-dramatic indecision as to when interest rates will be raised - and no one thinks that when you do, it will be any more than one quarter of one percent. We hear the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors and the various regional board presidents regularly present their views of the proper inflation and unemployment rate, and on stock market expectations that influence their calculations for keeping interest rates near-zero. But we never hear any mention of us - the savers of trillions of dollars who have been forced to make do with having the banks and mutual funds essentially provide a lock-box for our money while they use it to make a profit for their firms and, in the case of the giant banks and large mutual funds, pay their executives exorbitant salaries..
We are tired of this melodrama that exploits so many people who used to rely on interest income to pay some of their essential bills. Think about the elderly among us who need to supplement their social security checks every month.
On October 27, the Wall Street Journal headlined the latest rumors of twists and turns inside the secretive Federal Reserve: "Fed Strives For Clear Signal on Rate Move: As 2016 approaches, the central bank hopes to better manage market expectations."
What about the expectations of millions of American savers? It is unfortunately true that we are not organized; if we were, we would give you and the Congress the proper signals!
Please, don't lecture us about the Fed not being "political." When you are the captives of the financial industry, led by the too-big-to-fail banks, you are generically "political." So political in fact that you have brazenly interpreted your legal authority as to become the de facto regulator of our economy, the de facto printer of money on a huge scale ("quantitative easing" is the euphemism for artificially boosting the stock market) and the leader of the Washington bailout machine crony capitalism when big business, especially a shaky Wall Street firm, indulges in manipulative, avaricious, speculative binges with our money.
When it comes to the Fed, Congress is mired in hypocrisy. The anti-regulation, de-regulation crowd on Capitol Hill shuts its mouth when it comes to the most powerful regulators of all - you and the Federal Reserve. Meanwhile, Congress goes along with the out-of-control, private government of the Fed--unaccountable to the national legislature. Moreover, your massive monetary injections scarcely led to any jobs on the ground, other than stock and bond processors.
So what do you advise us to do? Shop around? Forget it. The difference between banks, credit unions and mutual funds may be one-twentieth or one-tenth of one percent! That is, unless you want to tie up money, that you need regularly, in a longer term CD or Treasury. Even then interest rates are far less than they were ten years ago.
Maybe you're saying that we should try the stock market to get higher returns. Some of us have been impelled to do that, but too many have lost their peace of mind and much money in the market.
The Fed's near-zero interest rate policy isn't helping younger people with student loans (now over 1.3 trillion dollars), whose interest rate ranges from six to nine percent. It doesn't help millions of pay-day loan borrowers or victims of installment loan rackets - mostly the poor - whose interest rates, rolled over, can reach over 400 percent!
Chairwoman Yellen, I think you should sit down with your Nobel Prize winning husband, economist George Akerlof, who is known to be consumer-sensitive. Together, figure out what to do for tens of millions of Americans who, with more interest income, could stimulate the economy by spending toward the necessities of life.
For heaven's sake, you're a "liberal" from Berkeley! That is supposed to mean something other than to be indentured by the culture and jargon of the Federal Reserve. If you need further nudging on monetary and regulatory policies of the Fed, other than interest rate decisions, why not invite Berkeley Professor Robert Reich, one of your long-time friends and admirers, to lunch on your next trip home?
Start imagining what we, the savers, have to endure because of plutocratic, crony capitalism for which the Federal Reserve has long been a leading Tribune.
Can we expect your response?
Sincerely yours,
Savers of America
We are a group of humble savers in traditional bank savings and money market accounts who are frustrated because, like millions of other Americans over the past six years, we are getting near zero interest. We want to know why the Federal Reserve, funded and heavily run by the banks, is keeping interest rates so low that we receive virtually no income for our hard-earned savings while the Fed lets the big banks borrow money for virtually no interest. It doesn't seem fair to put the burden of your Federal Reserve's monetary policies on the backs of those Americans who are the least positioned to demand fair play.
We follow the reporting on your tediously over-dramatic indecision as to when interest rates will be raised - and no one thinks that when you do, it will be any more than one quarter of one percent. We hear the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors and the various regional board presidents regularly present their views of the proper inflation and unemployment rate, and on stock market expectations that influence their calculations for keeping interest rates near-zero. But we never hear any mention of us - the savers of trillions of dollars who have been forced to make do with having the banks and mutual funds essentially provide a lock-box for our money while they use it to make a profit for their firms and, in the case of the giant banks and large mutual funds, pay their executives exorbitant salaries..
We are tired of this melodrama that exploits so many people who used to rely on interest income to pay some of their essential bills. Think about the elderly among us who need to supplement their social security checks every month.
On October 27, the Wall Street Journal headlined the latest rumors of twists and turns inside the secretive Federal Reserve: "Fed Strives For Clear Signal on Rate Move: As 2016 approaches, the central bank hopes to better manage market expectations."
What about the expectations of millions of American savers? It is unfortunately true that we are not organized; if we were, we would give you and the Congress the proper signals!
Please, don't lecture us about the Fed not being "political." When you are the captives of the financial industry, led by the too-big-to-fail banks, you are generically "political." So political in fact that you have brazenly interpreted your legal authority as to become the de facto regulator of our economy, the de facto printer of money on a huge scale ("quantitative easing" is the euphemism for artificially boosting the stock market) and the leader of the Washington bailout machine crony capitalism when big business, especially a shaky Wall Street firm, indulges in manipulative, avaricious, speculative binges with our money.
When it comes to the Fed, Congress is mired in hypocrisy. The anti-regulation, de-regulation crowd on Capitol Hill shuts its mouth when it comes to the most powerful regulators of all - you and the Federal Reserve. Meanwhile, Congress goes along with the out-of-control, private government of the Fed--unaccountable to the national legislature. Moreover, your massive monetary injections scarcely led to any jobs on the ground, other than stock and bond processors.
So what do you advise us to do? Shop around? Forget it. The difference between banks, credit unions and mutual funds may be one-twentieth or one-tenth of one percent! That is, unless you want to tie up money, that you need regularly, in a longer term CD or Treasury. Even then interest rates are far less than they were ten years ago.
Maybe you're saying that we should try the stock market to get higher returns. Some of us have been impelled to do that, but too many have lost their peace of mind and much money in the market.
The Fed's near-zero interest rate policy isn't helping younger people with student loans (now over 1.3 trillion dollars), whose interest rate ranges from six to nine percent. It doesn't help millions of pay-day loan borrowers or victims of installment loan rackets - mostly the poor - whose interest rates, rolled over, can reach over 400 percent!
Chairwoman Yellen, I think you should sit down with your Nobel Prize winning husband, economist George Akerlof, who is known to be consumer-sensitive. Together, figure out what to do for tens of millions of Americans who, with more interest income, could stimulate the economy by spending toward the necessities of life.
For heaven's sake, you're a "liberal" from Berkeley! That is supposed to mean something other than to be indentured by the culture and jargon of the Federal Reserve. If you need further nudging on monetary and regulatory policies of the Fed, other than interest rate decisions, why not invite Berkeley Professor Robert Reich, one of your long-time friends and admirers, to lunch on your next trip home?
Start imagining what we, the savers, have to endure because of plutocratic, crony capitalism for which the Federal Reserve has long been a leading Tribune.
Can we expect your response?
Sincerely yours,
Savers of America
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Thursday, October 29, 2015
Detect and get rid of unwanted sneaky mobile redirects
In many cases, it is OK to show slightly different content on different devices. For example, optimizing the smaller space of a smartphone screen can mean that some content, like images, will have to be modified. Or you might want to store your website’s menu in a navigation drawer (find documentation here) to make mobile browsing easier and more effective. When implemented properly, these user-centric modifications can be understood very well by Google.
The situation is similar when it comes to mobile-only redirect. Redirecting mobile users to improve their mobile experience (like redirecting mobile users from example.com/url1 to m.example.com/url1) is often beneficial to them. But redirecting mobile users sneakily to a different content is bad for user experience and is against Google’s webmaster guidelines.
A frustrating experience: The same URL shows up in search results pages on desktop and on mobile. When a user clicks on this result on their desktop computer, the URL opens normally. However, when clicking on the same result on a smartphone, a redirect happens and an unrelated URL loads.
Who implements these mobile-only sneaky redirects?
There are cases where webmasters knowingly decide to put into place redirection rules for their mobile users. This is typically a webmaster guidelines violation, and we do take manual action against it when it harms Google users’ experience (see last section of this article).
But we’ve also observed situations where mobile-only sneaky redirects happen without site owners being aware of it:
- Advertising schemes that redirect mobile users specifically
A script/element installed to display ads and monetize content might be redirecting mobile users to a completely different site without the webmaster being aware of it.
- Mobile redirect as a result of the site being a target of hacking
In other cases, if your website has been hacked, a potential result can be redirects to spammy domains for mobile users only.
How do I detect if my site is doing sneaky mobile redirects?
- Check if you are redirected when you navigate to your site on your smartphone
We recommend you to check the mobile user experience of your site by visiting your pages from Google search results with a smartphone. When debugging, mobile emulation in desktop browsers is handy, mostly because you can test for many different devices. You can, for example, do it straight from your browser in Chrome, Firefox or Safari (for the latter, make sure you have enabled the “Show Develop menu in menu bar” feature).
- Listen to your users
Your users could see your site in a different way than you do. It’s always important to pay attention to user complaints, so you can hear of any issue related to mobile UX. - Monitor your users in your site’s analytics data
Unusual mobile user activity could be detected by looking at some of the data held in your website's analytics data. For example, looking at the average time spent on your site by your mobile users could be a good signal to watch: if all of a sudden, your mobile users (and only them) start spending much less time on your site than they used to, there might be an issue related to mobile redirections.
To be aware of wide changes in mobile user activity as soon as they happen, you can for example set up Google Analytics alerts. For example, you can set an alert to be warned in case of a sharp drop in average time spent on your site by mobile users, or a drop in mobile users (always take into account that big changes in those metrics are not a clear, direct signal that your site is doing mobile sneaky redirects).
I’ve detected sneaky redirects for my mobile users, and I did not set it up: what do I do?
- Make sure that your site is not hacked.
Check the Security Issues tool in the Search Console, if we have noticed any hack, you should get some information there.
Review our additional resources on typical symptoms of hacked sites, and our case studies on hacked sites. - Audit third-party scripts/elements on your site
If your site is not hacked, then we recommend you take the time to investigate if third-party scripts/elements are causing the redirects. You can follow these steps:
A. Remove one by one the third-party scripts/elements you do not control from the redirecting page(s).
B. Check your site on a mobile device or through emulation between each script/element removal, and see when the redirect stops.
C. If you think a particular script/element is responsible for the sneaky redirect, consider removing it from your site, and debugging the issue with the script/element provider.
Last Thoughts on Sneaky Mobile Redirects
It's a violation of the Google Webmaster Guidelines to redirect a user to a page with the intent of displaying content other than what was made available to the search engine crawler (more information on sneaky redirects). To ensure quality search results for our users, the Google Search Quality team can take action on such sites, including removal of URLs from our index. When we take manual action, we send a message to the site owner via Search Console. Therefore, make sure you’ve set up a Search Console account.
Be sure to choose advertisers who are transparent on how they handle user traffic, to avoid unknowingly redirecting your own users. If you are interested in trust-building in the online advertising space, you may check out industry-wide best practices when participating in ad networks. For example, the Trustworthy Accountability Group’s (Interactive Advertising Bureau) Inventory Quality Guidelines are a good place to start. There are many ways to monetize your content with mobile solutions that provide a high quality user experience, be sure to use them.
If you have questions or comments about mobile-only redirects, join us in our Google Webmaster Support forum.
How cannibalisation can harm your search rankings
In this post we look at how related domains are competing against each other for search rankings.
Trend or treat: Searching for the top Halloween costumes
“How many days until Halloween?”
“What should I be for Halloween?”
In the weeks leading up to All Hallows’ Eve you turn to Google Search to ask these two crucial questions. So with just days left to perfect a costume for yourself, your kid, your pooch or your partner, here’s a look at some of the top Halloween costume trends across the United States. For more, see Frightgeist, our Google Trends Halloween hub.
Hair-raising
If your costume involves a certain familiar ‘do, prepare to have company. Get-ups based on the bombastic GOP candidate for President are spiking, with the top-related search being “Donald Trump wig.” And don’t go looking for blue or purple hair-dye at the last minute on Saturday: chances are it will already have been bought up by kids dressing up as Disney’s “Descendants” characters Mal and Evie.
And if you’re aiming for a unique costume, you might want to avoid buns on the side of your head too. “Star Wars” is the second most searched costume nationwide, and within that Princess Leia reigns supreme above Dark Side standbys Stormtrooper and Darth Vader.
Superhero Squad
“Suicide Squad” may not hit box offices until next summer, but one character from the film is already making a killing in costume searches. “Harley Quinn” takes the top search spot nationwide (rival Batman is in fifth place). But Harley and Bruce Wayne are just a few of the superheroes (and super villains) you can look for this weekend: People are also donning their cuffs for Wonder Woman, their creepy facepaint for Joker, their bodysuits for Catwoman, and their half shell as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (T-U-R-T-L-E Power!). Even lesser-known characters like Scarlet Witch, Vision, Wasp are getting a boost from film franchises like “The Avengers” and “Ant-Man.”
Frightful Fidos
“Dog costume” is always a top search around Halloween—but not because you’re dressing up as Snoopy or Scooby. No, you’re searching for the cutest costume for your four-legged friend. In addition to being adorable, the top dog costumes are just as “Star Wars”-filled as the top human costumes. We assume that’s because they’ve already got the fur and/or ears to make it work.
If dressing your pooch as Chewy feels like asking for trouble, other popular canine costumes include “lion,” “dinosaur,” “shark” and … Olaf. Because—ahem—you still can’t let “Frozen” go.
Better together
When you want a partner in crime or just want insurance against looking silly solo, couples costumes are the way to go. This year, you’re dressing up as famous pop culture pairs like Bonnie and Clyde (the top couples costume overall), Jasmine and Aladdin, Woody and Jessie from "Toy Story," Danny and Sandy from "Grease," and Barbie and Ken. You’re keeping that Halloween realness with searches for Gomez and Morticia Addams and Beetlejuice (#2 on the list, and based on Google Images subject to lots of interpretation). And you’re bringing new meaning to the phrase “I’m dressing up with my boo” with searches for a “Boo and Sully” costume from “Monsters, Inc.”
The treat in “trick or treat”
Even for adults, Halloween is an excuse to eat junk food. In the past month you’ve searched for candy corn, candy apples and Halloween variations on all of your favorite sweets, from donuts to pudding cups to Kit Kats. But one candy reigns supreme: marshmallows (no, not that marshmallow) are the top searched candy over the past month.
“What should I be for Halloween?”
In the weeks leading up to All Hallows’ Eve you turn to Google Search to ask these two crucial questions. So with just days left to perfect a costume for yourself, your kid, your pooch or your partner, here’s a look at some of the top Halloween costume trends across the United States. For more, see Frightgeist, our Google Trends Halloween hub.
Hair-raising
If your costume involves a certain familiar ‘do, prepare to have company. Get-ups based on the bombastic GOP candidate for President are spiking, with the top-related search being “Donald Trump wig.” And don’t go looking for blue or purple hair-dye at the last minute on Saturday: chances are it will already have been bought up by kids dressing up as Disney’s “Descendants” characters Mal and Evie.
Superhero Squad
“Suicide Squad” may not hit box offices until next summer, but one character from the film is already making a killing in costume searches. “Harley Quinn” takes the top search spot nationwide (rival Batman is in fifth place). But Harley and Bruce Wayne are just a few of the superheroes (and super villains) you can look for this weekend: People are also donning their cuffs for Wonder Woman, their creepy facepaint for Joker, their bodysuits for Catwoman, and their half shell as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (T-U-R-T-L-E Power!). Even lesser-known characters like Scarlet Witch, Vision, Wasp are getting a boost from film franchises like “The Avengers” and “Ant-Man.”
Frightful Fidos
“Dog costume” is always a top search around Halloween—but not because you’re dressing up as Snoopy or Scooby. No, you’re searching for the cutest costume for your four-legged friend. In addition to being adorable, the top dog costumes are just as “Star Wars”-filled as the top human costumes. We assume that’s because they’ve already got the fur and/or ears to make it work.
Better together
When you want a partner in crime or just want insurance against looking silly solo, couples costumes are the way to go. This year, you’re dressing up as famous pop culture pairs like Bonnie and Clyde (the top couples costume overall), Jasmine and Aladdin, Woody and Jessie from "Toy Story," Danny and Sandy from "Grease," and Barbie and Ken. You’re keeping that Halloween realness with searches for Gomez and Morticia Addams and Beetlejuice (#2 on the list, and based on Google Images subject to lots of interpretation). And you’re bringing new meaning to the phrase “I’m dressing up with my boo” with searches for a “Boo and Sully” costume from “Monsters, Inc.”
The treat in “trick or treat”
Even for adults, Halloween is an excuse to eat junk food. In the past month you’ve searched for candy corn, candy apples and Halloween variations on all of your favorite sweets, from donuts to pudding cups to Kit Kats. But one candy reigns supreme: marshmallows (no, not that marshmallow) are the top searched candy over the past month.
2 Big Things Changing SEO Forever — What’s New in SEO from SMX & Pubcon
2 Big Things Changing SEO Forever — What’s New in SEO from SMX & Pubcon was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.
- Machine learning algorithms ranking content based on searcher behavior feedback
- Predictive search serving searchers content before they ask
Here’s your front row seat to what’s new in SEO straight from SMX East and Pubcon Las Vegas.
Should You Go on a Sex Fast?
Sex Fast
Terry Crews did it. Should you?
When Russell Wilson came out in July of this year and said he and girlfriend Ciara are abstaining from sex until marriage they were met with a resounding, “huh?”
And just last week, former footballer and funnyman Terry Crews told HuffPost that he and his wife completed a 90-day “sex fast,” which got us thinking maybe these guys are on to something.
Those three months, Crews says, left him "more in love" and "more turned on" than ever. “…no sex, all relationship, all talk, all cuddle," he added. "I found that at the end of that 90 days ... I knew who she was, and it wasn't about 'Let's go out because I know I'm gonna get some sex later.' It was like, 'Let's go because I want to talk to you. I want to know you'."
For some people, sex helps them connect with their partner and for other people, they need to feel connected with their partner to desire sex, explains Megan Fleming, Ph.D., clinical psychologist and relationship therapist. Crews identifies with the latter.
"You're not looking for porn,” he said. “You're looking for someone to know you and love you at the same time. That's all you want—every man out there. But he's scared sometimes. That's why men put up big fronts."
If you’re still not convinced a so-called sex fast is for you, we outlined some of the reasons and benefits with Fleming’s advice.
Why Won't She Have Sex With Me? >>>
Reignite passion in your relationship…
“So often it’s truly about feeling like your partner sees and wants you,” Fleming says. Taking the routine of sex out of the picture can help you fall in love with your partner again and force you to take notice of things you’ve become desensitized to. Plus, when the duration of the fast is up you’ll be dying to match your newfound emotional intimacy with some physical intimacy. “Feeling desired by your partner is the biggest turn on,” Fleming adds. And knowing they desire you and you alone is perhaps even better.
7 Signs She Really Wants You >>>
Help you connect with your partner…
“I consider sex to be the glue of a relationship, because it brings dopamine and oxytocin, which give [feelings of] both pleasure and attachment to your nervous system,” Fleming says. A fast from sex can help determine if your relationship is more than just physical. If you can build a foundation—or build on the one you already have—by getting to learn more about your partner's background, interests, fears, hopes, etc., you can foster a stronger connection. “Sex enables you to feel truly alive and present with your partner,” she adds, so you can quite literally seal the deal on a stronger relationship after your fast by breaking abstinence with, yes, sex.
9 Ways to Tell if She's Stringing You Along >>>
Discern lust from love…
It’s difficult to discern lust from love in the initial stage of a relationship because the chemistry, passion, and neurotransmitter-fueled romantic “love cocktail” you’re drunk on is meant to end, Fleming explains. In the beginning, you feel an amazing connection but you don’t really know this person. It’s all projection. You’re in the “honeymoon phase.”
“For men like Russel Wilson, coming out and saying they aren’t having sex (delaying sex) because they want to focus on coming together as a couple, I think that’s great,” Fleming says. Taking the time to figure out if you truly like the person you’re dating—without the dopamine kick—helps you to get a better sense of what draws you to a person and the type of relationship you need that meets your core values and deepest needs.
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
14 ways to reduce your site's bounce rates
Here are several suggestions for ways to keep visitors from leaving your site and enticing them to stick around and view more pages.
Bringing the Internet within reach of 100 million Indonesians
Starting next year, the top three mobile network operators in Indonesia will begin testing Project Loon balloon-powered Internet. Over the next few years, we’re hoping that Loon will help put high-speed LTE Internet connections within reach of more than 100 million Indonesians, giving them access to the limitless educational, cultural, and economic opportunities of the Internet.
In Indonesia today, only about 1 out of every 3 people are connected to the web, and most of their connections are painfully slow. Many people live in areas without existing Internet infrastructure; on an archipelago of over 17,000 islands, with mountains and jungles, it’s difficult to run fiber optic cable or install mobile phone towers. That’s where Loon comes in. Loon balloons act like floating cell phone towers in the sky. Flying on the winds at altitudes twice as high as commercial planes, each one beams a connection down to the ground; as one balloon drifts out of range, another moves in to take its place. We hope this could help local operators extend the coverage of their existing networks, and reach further into rural and remote areas.
These tests with Indosat, Telkomsel, and XL Axiata are an important step toward bringing all of Indonesia online, and a key milestone for the Loon team as we continue to test, learn and expand the project.
Of course, to make the Internet not just accessible but useful, there’s more to do, and we have a wide variety of efforts underway in Indonesia and elsewhere to help achieve that goal. For example, Android One phones are helping to make affordable high-quality smartphones more accessible in places where most people first access the Internet on a mobile device. We’ve also built features for when connections are slow or nonexistent, such as Search Lite and offline videos on YouTube. And Google Translate for Bahasa and Sundanese can help knock down the language barrier between Indonesia and the rest of the web.
The Internet is still out of reach for too many people, but we’re making progress. If all goes well, soon many more millions of people in Indonesia will be able to bring their ideas, culture and businesses online. At that point, the sky’s the limit.
From left to right: Ririek Adriansyah, CEO of Telkomsel; Dian Siswarini, CEO of XL Axiata; Alexander Rusli, Indosat CEO; Mike Cassidy, VP, Loon; Sergey Brin, President, Alphabet Inc
In Indonesia today, only about 1 out of every 3 people are connected to the web, and most of their connections are painfully slow. Many people live in areas without existing Internet infrastructure; on an archipelago of over 17,000 islands, with mountains and jungles, it’s difficult to run fiber optic cable or install mobile phone towers. That’s where Loon comes in. Loon balloons act like floating cell phone towers in the sky. Flying on the winds at altitudes twice as high as commercial planes, each one beams a connection down to the ground; as one balloon drifts out of range, another moves in to take its place. We hope this could help local operators extend the coverage of their existing networks, and reach further into rural and remote areas.
Project Loon balloons travel approximately 20 km above the Earth’s surface in the stratosphere. Winds in the stratosphere are stratified, and each layer of wind varies in speed and direction. By moving with the wind, the balloons can be arranged to form one large communications network.
These tests with Indosat, Telkomsel, and XL Axiata are an important step toward bringing all of Indonesia online, and a key milestone for the Loon team as we continue to test, learn and expand the project.
Of course, to make the Internet not just accessible but useful, there’s more to do, and we have a wide variety of efforts underway in Indonesia and elsewhere to help achieve that goal. For example, Android One phones are helping to make affordable high-quality smartphones more accessible in places where most people first access the Internet on a mobile device. We’ve also built features for when connections are slow or nonexistent, such as Search Lite and offline videos on YouTube. And Google Translate for Bahasa and Sundanese can help knock down the language barrier between Indonesia and the rest of the web.
The Internet is still out of reach for too many people, but we’re making progress. If all goes well, soon many more millions of people in Indonesia will be able to bring their ideas, culture and businesses online. At that point, the sky’s the limit.
The World Series, Public Trust Doctrine and Small Businesses
Photo by Chung ChuAs fans in New York, Kansas City and beyond prepare for what promises to be an excellent World Series (and hopefully a victory for the Mets), focus naturally turns to the key question off the field: who is making money?
Earlier this week, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) estimated an economic impact of $11.6 million for each post-season game. Greg David, of Crain's, writes that the EDC estimate is exaggerated given that most fans attending the games are locals who would have spent money on something else. Whether or not these estimates are accurate, what many fans at Citi Field who cheer on their teams during the Series might be wondering is: what is going on across 126th Street?
Across from Citi Field lies an industrial neighborhood that was approved for redevelopment in 2013. However, the project plan hit a major barrier in July. A panel of appellate judges overturned a trial court judge's ruling permitting the construction of a mall on a section of parkland where Shea Stadium once stood. The ruling came down to the interpretation of a 1961 state law, written by Robert Moses, which "alienated" a section of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park so that Shea could be built. Alienation was required under a longstanding legal theory known as the public trust doctrine that requires the state act to affirmatively remove parkland from public use and convert to a different, non-parkland use. In this case, the judges held that the 1961 law permitting the stadium to be built did not permit construction of a shopping mall on mapped parkland.
Much was reported recently about the de Blasio administration's last minute decision not to join the developer -- Queens Development Group (a joint venture of the Related Companies and Sterling Equites, the Mets real estate arm) -- in appealing to New York's highest court, the Court of Appeals. The mayor, who announced last year an ambitious housing plan to create or preserve 200,000 units of affordable housing, wasn't convinced that enough residential units would be built for low-income New Yorkers. Key administration officials said that the plan as previously approved did not actually require affordable housing to be built, referring to a buy-out provision that permitted the developer to pay a fee in exchange for not building certain affordable residential units.
But housing is just one of many economic development concerns that was raised in the approval of the Willets Point redevelopment. Displacement of commercial tenant auto-repair shops, for instance, who were mostly evicted earlier this year, were largely ignored until a group of them initiated a lawsuit in 2014 similar to the case that is currently being appealed. At the time, I was part of a team that represented tenant businesses being displaced.
What hasn't been reported widely in this most recent news coverage is that a large number of auto repair shops previously operating on what is now city-owned land still aren't able to do business. Elsewhere in the city, owners of auto repair shops along Jerome Avenue in the Bronx are worried that they too will be forced out once a neighborhood rezoning occurs.
Housing demand, rising commercial rents, and changes in tastes will alter the blend of businesses operating in the city. In one extreme example, a fine-dining steakhouse now inhabits a building in Long Island City that formerly housed an auto repair shop. Whether or not these are positive results likely depends on personal preference, and political viewpoint. Regardless of one's viewpoint, vulnerable groups of low-wage workers and immigrant business owners are left in limbo by a stalled project.
For now, no one along the eastern side of 126th Street is making much money because of the World Series. We'll all have to wait and see whether that changes that in the near future, and how the public trust doctrine is interpreted to limit private development on public parks.
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Eight essentials for landing page optimization
A landing page that brings in new customers has a number of different parts. Neglecting a few of these can drastically reduce the success of your page.
This Is the Pullup Bar You Should Install in Your Home Gym
Nick Ferrari
Raise the Bar
Wall-mounted pullup bars are safer and way more versatile.
“The doorjamb ones are all pretty terrible,” trainer Will Lanier says, laughing. He’s referring to the most ubiquitous fitness equipment around: pullup bars. “The door models restrict the way you can use them, and even if you have the best door in the world, you could still fall off the wall.”
Instead, he recommends a “bitchin’ wall-mounted bar you screw into the studs of your wall so you never have to worry about showing up on YouTube with an #epicfail hashtag.” The bar he recommends most highly is Titan’s wall-mounted version pictured above ($75, titanfitness.com). “It’s made of steel and comes away from the wall by almost three feet, so you can do not only pullups but also ab work. You can also get a set of gymnastics rings and do dips and ring pullups or strict to straight muscle-ups. The Titan has so many workout options, you’ll definitely use it for more than just another thing to throw your dirty clothes on.”
More ways to Wi-Fi with the new ASUS OnHub
Whether you’re chatting with friends, streaming music or video calling family, Wi-Fi matters. You should have more router options that don’t involve spotty connections, messy cords and complicated settings. That’s why we introduced the first OnHub router this summer, designed to be fast, secure and easy to use—not to mention attractive enough to put out in the open, where Wi-Fi works best. Now, with our partner ASUS, we’re introducing the second member of our growing OnHub family.
OnHub routers are meant to be displayed proudly, and to get rid of the headaches you usually associate with home Wi-Fi. That makes ASUS a great partner, since they design intuitive products that focus on the ways real people use them. Like our first router, the ASUS OnHub comes with faster Wi-Fi, easy set-up, and simple management with the Google On app.
With the ASUS OnHub, we’re also introducing Wave Control, which lets you boost the Wi-Fi speed for a particular device by simply waving your hand over the top of the ASUS OnHub—great for busy houses.
OnHub routers are designed to stay fresh and get better over time. So in addition to the new ASUS router, in the coming week we’re rolling out our first software update with several performance improvements, including a new smart antenna algorithm. Phone in the kitchen? Laptop in the living room? OnHub will intelligently select the best combination of antennas to direct Wi-Fi to your devices, based on their location and orientation. The best part is, if you already have an OnHub, your router will automatically update when your network is quiet so it won’t interrupt your connection. Learn more about OnHub's platform:
Beginning this week, select retailers will open pre-orders for the ASUS OnHub for $219.99. Visit our website to pre-order the ASUS OnHub—available in the U.S.—or purchase the TP-LINK OnHub, available in the U.S. and in Canada.
With our partner ASUS, we’re introducing the second member of our growing OnHub family.
With the ASUS OnHub, we’re also introducing Wave Control, which lets you boost the Wi-Fi speed for a particular device by simply waving your hand over the top of the ASUS OnHub—great for busy houses.
Beginning this week, select retailers will open pre-orders for the ASUS OnHub for $219.99. Visit our website to pre-order the ASUS OnHub—available in the U.S.—or purchase the TP-LINK OnHub, available in the U.S. and in Canada.
With our partner ASUS, we’re introducing the second member of our growing OnHub family.
Dr. Elisa Port Tells Us Which Lifestyle Factors Will Increase The Risk Of Breast Cancer
Breast cancer information has never been more widespread, but knowing how to separate fact from fiction isn't easy. So we were thrilled to have Dr. Elisa Port on the show with us. Dr. Port is director of the Dubin Breast Center, and, as a surgeon, performs more than 300 operations a year. She just released The New Generation Breast Cancer Book, a guide to recovery for the newly diagnosed woman.
Dr. Port shares with us the two main lifestyle risk factors that can increase a woman’s risk for getting breast cancer.
What about smoking?
While it may seem worse, there is no direct link between smoking, "that we know of," and breast cancer. There is plenty of evidence suggesting that smoking is a leading cause in many other cancers, from lung cancer, to esophageal cancer, to cancer of the neck and mouth, so don't let the lack of breast correlation deter you.
See the rest of the interview with Dr. Elisa Port!
And be sure to check out Dr. Port's New Generation Breast Cancer Book, available in bookstores everywhere.
You can submit all your questions for our future guests on Mondays with Marlo on Twitter and Facebook.
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Dr. Port shares with us the two main lifestyle risk factors that can increase a woman’s risk for getting breast cancer.
- Obesity
- Heavy Alcohol Intake Dr. Port also warns that alcohol consumption of more than "4-5 drinks per week" may increase your risk of getting breast cancer. The reason for this connection goes back to hormones, and how our body processes them. Hormones are broken down by the liver; Alcohol is also broken down by the liver. "If the liver is too busy breaking down alcohol, it doesn't have the bandwidth to break down the hormones," says Dr. Port, which may in turn lead to breast cancer. The risk doesn't stop there though - women who drink heavily, and do get breast cancer, are at a "higher risk of the breast cancer coming back."
While we don't know exactly what causes any cancer, studies indicate a strong link between hormones and breast cancer. A lifetime of exposure to estrogen, the female sex hormone, "may lead to a higher risk of breast cancer," says Dr. Port. For post menopausal women, one of the biggest sources of estrogen is fat. The more fat your body is storing, the more estrogen it will create, no matter what age you are.
What about smoking?
While it may seem worse, there is no direct link between smoking, "that we know of," and breast cancer. There is plenty of evidence suggesting that smoking is a leading cause in many other cancers, from lung cancer, to esophageal cancer, to cancer of the neck and mouth, so don't let the lack of breast correlation deter you.
See the rest of the interview with Dr. Elisa Port!
And be sure to check out Dr. Port's New Generation Breast Cancer Book, available in bookstores everywhere.
You can submit all your questions for our future guests on Mondays with Marlo on Twitter and Facebook.
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Weekly NewsletterSign up to receive my email newsletter each week - It will keep you up-to-date on upcoming articles, Mondays with Marlo guests, videos, and more!
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-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
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