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Selling on eBay

AdminJan — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 22:47:43 +0000

Over 163 million people visited eBay in March 2010 (Nielsen.com). That makes eBay the fifth most visited website globally. While you probably don’t want to make your living off of eBay, it’s the largest pool of potential buyers on the internet, and a useful way to earn a little money. Learn how to get started.

DECIDING WHAT TO SELL
Collectables are the most popular items on eBay by category. They represent 17% of all eBay sales. Coming in second is Clothing/Shoe/Accessories at 11% and Entertainment at 11%. Find out the details at popular.ebay.com and pulse.ebay.com.

Still not sure about what to sell? Search amazon.com for product research. Amazon.com includes a Sales Ranking in the Product Details section. This incorporates current and historical sales data to indicate a product’s popularity. In the Amazon rating system, the lower the number the higher the sales.

PRICING YOUR ITEM

Press the “Sell an Item” link at the top right menu on eBay.com to get started. The What’s it Worth section helps you determine the average price for your item.

Need more detailed information? Use the advanced search to find all listings that have completed. (Under the Search Including section, check the Completed Listings box. Results include both sold and unsold listings including their prices.

I’ve sold textbooks, and DVD’s. Textbooks in their most recent addition are popular. Pick a time around the beginning of the quarter. I listed 3 textbooks a week before the University of California schools were about to start and sold the books with out any problem.

LISTING AN ITEM ON EBAY

How do you make your used product sound good and still be honest about the items condition? Here are a few descriptive terms that are useful:

Good condition with some wear.
Shows signs of wear.
The edges of the cover are slightly curling.
No highlighting. No markings.
Book comes without a book jacket.
DVD has been watched only once.

SHIPPING YOUR ITEM
One key to success on eBay – Keep your shipping costs down. USPS media mail provides an economical option for sending DVDs, CDs and books. Just buy your packing material in bulk.
Ebay and PayPal prints online shipping labels for USPS priority mail flat rate packages. There is a slight discount for online transaction. Payment comes out of the PayPal account automatically. It’s easy and fast. USPS include tracking with their online orders through PayPal.

Be careful though. Sometimes the flat rate can be more expensive than using Priority Mail by weight.

Use IFrame to Add Headers and menus to a Picasa Gallery

AdminJan — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 17:39:41 +0000

Now that you have a professional-looking Picasa Photo Gallery, you want to add the headers and menus to complete the look. Here is a simple solution to make this happen.

[Here's how to create a Picasa Photo Gallery on your website.]

VIEW DEMO

Generate a Picasa photo gallery. Add the gallery to your web site.
Check that the photo gallery displays properly. VIEW GALLERY WITHOUT HEADERS.
Create a web page that contains all of your headers and menus. Make sure this page displays properly and has plenty of space for the photo gallery. Save it anywhere you like on your server. (It doesn’t need to reside in the same directory with your Picasa gallery.)
Edit your webpage from step 2. Add this line to the html:
Change the width and height attributes to match Your photo gallery.
Save changes and run the web page. The photo gallery should appear in the iframe.

Adding headers and menus to a JAlbum Gallery

AdminJan — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 19:31:55 +0000

Now that you have a professional-looking Photo Gallery, you want to add the headers and menus to complete the look. Here is a simple solution to make this happen.

VIEW DEMO

Generate a JAlbum photo gallery. Add the gallery to your web site.
Check that the JAlbum displays properly. VIEW GALLERY WITHOUT HEADERS.
Create a web page that contains all of your headers and menus. Make sure this page displays properly and has plenty of space for the photo gallery. Save it anywhere you like on your server. (It doesn’t need to reside in the same directory with your JAlbum gallery.)
Edit your webpage from step 2. Add this line to the html:
Change the width and height attributes to match Your photo gallery.
Save changes and run the web page. The photo gallery should appear in the iframe.

Picasa Template Downloads

AdminJan — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 23:13:58 +0000

SIMPLEPHOTOBOX

SimplePhotoBox includes a gallery with a page of scrollable thumbnails and a slide show. Switch between small thumbnails, large thumbnails and detail photo slide show. Click here for installation instructions.

VIEW DEMO

DARKGALLERY

DarkGallery is a simple photo album that includes a gallery with scrollable thumbnails and a slide show. The slide show starts automatically on load. Stop the slideshow by clicking the pause button. Click here for installation instructions.

VIEW DEMO

WHITEGALLERY

WhiteGallery is a simple photo album that includes a gallery with scrollable thumbnails and a slide show. The slide show starts automatically on load. Stop the slideshow by clicking the pause button. Click here for installation instructions.

VIEW DEMO

WHITEGALLERY WITH LEFT DOCKING

WhiteGallery with left docking thumbnails. Click here for installation instructions.

VIEW DEMO

Create a Photo Gallery From Your Picasa Album

AdminJan — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 21:49:35 +0000

Picasa provides an option to export your photo album as an HTML webpage. For a more polished look, use one of the free Picasa templates available on the internet. Learn how to use Picasa to generate a photo gallery on your website.

View a Photo Gallery Demo

CREATE A WEB ALBUM IN PICASA
Use the Picasa application to create an album, or choose an existing album. Make sure the album is selected before you start the export. You can select individual photos or the entire album for export.

INSTALL THE TEMPLATES
- Search the internet for Picasa Templates.
- Download and unzip the template onto your computer in the folder:
  ProgramFiles/Google/Picasa3/web/templates
  
  [Mac Users: Use the Finder window to locate Picasa in the applications folder. Right Mouse Click on Picasa Application. Select Show Package Contents Copy the template folder into Contents->Resources->web->templates].
  
  (I used the DarkGallery template. Click here for template download.)
EXPORT THE ALBUM
- Bring up the Picasa Application.
- Make sure you have an album selected.
- Select menu: Album -> Export as HTML page
  Mac Users: Folder-> Export as HTML page
- The new window “Export as HTML Page” will appear. Once the desired export options are selected, choose a location for your photo gallery and press the Next button.
- The window “Select a Web Page Template” will appear. Choose your template. Now press the finish button. Picasa exports files into the location above. Transfer these files to the sever and your slideshow is ready to view!

Embed a Picasa Slide Show into Your Website

AdminJan — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:57:31 +0000

Picasa comes with a slideshow utility that can be embedded into any webpage. Setup is easy and the photo album maintainance is handled by Picasa. Learn how to display a Picasa slideshow in your website.

View a Slide Show Demo

View a Slide Show Demo in a WordPress Post

CREATE A WEB ALBUM IN PICASA
Use the Picasa application to create an album, or choose an existing Picasa album. Make sure your album is synced to the web. I set the Visibility to Public so anyone can view the photos.

RETRIEVE THE SLIDESHOW LINK FROM PICASA
- Open the Web Album in your favorite browser. (You can use the link “view online… ” from within the Picasa application.)
- Select “Link to this album “. (Found on the right column of the Web Album page.)
- Select: “Embed Slideshow “.
- The new window “Create a portable slideshow for your website…” will appear. Once the desired slideshow options are selected, copy the HTML text at the bottom of the window.
- Paste the HTML code into your webpage. [I use Dreamweaver to edit my web pages but something as simple as NotePad will do.]
  For Dreamweaver users: Bring up your web page in the Design tab. Click to mark the insertion point. Change to the Code tab. Paste the HTML code (Ctrl V). Save File.
  Now save these changes to the sever and your slideshow is ready to view!
  
  For WordPress: Log into WordPress administration. Create a new post or edit an existing post. Paste the HTML code from Picasa into the editor and save the changes.
  [If you created your website through a web hosting service like GoDaddy, you may need to use their web site editting services. Make sure you go into HTML mode before pasting.]

Capture 404 Errors Gracefully

AdminJan — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 17:38:47 +0000

Broken Links, Miss-spelled addresses, Unauthorized access, and Server Errors. Turn these errors into opportunities. Capture and keep visitors on your website after an error has occurred by customizing the error reporting page. Provide links, a search box, a back button and a fresh opportunity to explore your site.

Here’s the error page for this site: www.janbthomas.com/oops

1. Create a custom error page in HTML. Add links, a google search box and an identifying logo. Google has some web master tools to help.
I created a page called 404.html

2. Use FTP to copy 404.html to the server. The file 404.html will be displayed whenever the HTTP error code indicates the file is not found.

3. Identify this file to the web server by adding a reference line in the .htaccess file. (This may vary depending on your web hosting company.)

Here’s the line to add:
ErrorDocument 404 http://www.your_domain.com/404.html

4. Upload these changes to the server.

Here are some of the more common HTTP error codes:
Client Errors
400 Bad syntax
403 Forbidden
404 Not Found – Most common

Server Error
500 Internal Error

5. As an alternative, capture all errors with the same file by adding a few lines into the .htaccess file.

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule (.*) /errors.html

In this example, the HTML error page is called errors.html

Create a Photo Gallery Using JAlbum

AdminJan — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 14:38:39 +0000

When you want to display and share photography, it’s important to find a solution that is organized and professional. I like JAlbum because it transfers photos from my computer hard drive onto my website. I specifically chose JAlbum for one of my websites because it included a Flash slide show, and a Flash gallery on the same page.

The JAlbum website (www.jalbum.net) promotes its web hosting feature – JAlbum will provide users with web space for their photo gallery. I really prefer to let JAlbum publish photos on my own site. The JAlbum application installs and runs from a local drive, similar to Picasa. There are versions for Windows and Mac based operating systems.

VIEW A JALBUM GALLERY RUNNING ON MY WEBSITE

Here’s how to get started with JAlbum:
1. Install JAlbum onto your computer.
2. Open JAlbum and Create a New Album.
3. Add Photographs and Images to the Album.
4. Select a Skin (I choose FotoPlayer); or find skin from the internet: click on the “more skins” link to look on the jalbum site. Once you’ve selected a skin, the download and installation is done for you.
5. ADD WEB HOST INFORMATION FOR PHOTO ALBUM
Select Tools -> Publish/Manage from the menubar

Step 1: FTP ACCOUNT LOGIN (These FTP settings can be obtained through your web host provider.)
Server Name: (host / URL) eg. www.janbthomas.com
User Name: (FTP account name)
Password: (FTP password)
Step 2: Navigate to Host Subdirectory
Select the Close Button

6. Make the Album.
7. Click on the “Publish/Manage” Button to send your new album to your web server using JAlbum’s FTP utility.

This application is free and developers provide some really nice skins that can include both slide show and gallery features in one nice Flash package.

Next Step: Adding Headers and Menus to a JAlbum Gallery

Create a Photo Gallery From Your Picasa Album
Embed a Picasa Slideshow into Your Website

WordPress as a Content Management System

AdminJan — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 17:08:51 +0000

WordPress, the popular blog software, can be used as a content management system. Use the Post facility to write articles, just like bloggers. When you want to create an entire site, create Static Pages instead of Posts. These pages can be customized in php just like a traditional web page. Otherwise, use basic word processor features to design and update your web pages in WordPress. Create your own web site maintenance within the WordPress interface.

Tips for CMS:

Use Permalinks to create a more traditional URL.
Log In as administrator and change the blog settings:
Settings -> Permalinks
Custom Structure: /%postname%/
Create a Home Page and set this as the Front Page:
Settings -> Reading Settings
A Static Page
Front Page: (home page name)
Keep the number of Plugins to a minimum.
Get familiar with the themes directory
Especially these files:
header.php
sidebar.php
footer.php
Customize Static Pages by Adding a Template Page to the themes directory
Add the following comment to the top of the php file to label the template:< br/>
/*
Template Name: Home Page
*/
Now you can select this Home Page template when editting a static page in WordPress.

Using Picasa for Photo Sharing

AdminJan — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 17:02:48 +0000

Picasa is Google’s solution to photo sharing. Create albums online that friends and family can view and download. They don’t even need to create a Google account to view the photos. Choose between three sharing options: make your album public, allow access by invitation, and allow access by login only.

First step is to install the Picasa application on your computer. The application searches your computer for photos and organizes these photos in folders by date. Create albums by drag and drop. Click the “sync to web” button to save your albums or folders on the web. Click the “Web Albums” button to view the photos online.

View my public Web Albums

EMBED A SLIDESHOW INTO YOUR WEBSITE
Create a Flash slide show of your photos. Picasa generates HTML code that can be embedded into any webpage. Now you have your Picasa slide show running on your website. Update albums with out technical expertise.

Here’s an embedded slide show example: View the Embedded Slide Show
View a more detailed tutorial: Embed a Picasa Slideshow

PICASA PHOTO GALLERY ON YOUR WEBSITE
Create a Picasa photo gallery on your own website with the export option. For a more polished look, use one of the free Picasa templates on the web. Download and extract the template to the local directory: to the directory \Program Files\Google\Picasa3\web\templates\. Then go into Picasa and choose Album->Export as HTML Page. Now just use an FTP utility to upload your gallery to your web server.

Here’s the Gallery I created.
View a more detailed tutorial: Create a Photo Gallery From a Picasa Album

Happy Photo Sharing!