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Website Updates Page 2

Welcome to this update page where I will discuss my website and the updates I am engaged in. You may or may not find these notes of interest but I hope you do.

The goal of this page is to keep you updated as to the enhancements I am making to my site. Enhancements such as new pages and either new or updated information on topics discussed within this site. So if you are interested in what I am doing great, if not, well I must assume you will not be reading this page. Granted it won't be fancy, just basic information.

The changes listed here are from the newest to the oldest by the date I completed them and updated the site. It provides a written record of the evolution of this site as it grows and expands to help you.

Because this page was getting so long I decided to break it up into additional pages. This page covers the first entry up until August 22, 2011.

Latest Updates

August 22, 2011

I have been doing a lot of work under the hood these last couple of weeks. It is amazing how incompatible I made the site in just three months. My only excuse, when I don't know what I am doing in website design I have to learn on-the-job (OJT).

Of course OJT is nothing new for me as that method has been my primary way of learning everything I know. It can be very efficient and very productive IF, and it is a big if, you have an excellent instructor guiding you. In my website design case the only people I had guiding me were books, Lynda.com, and the two Misters': Trial and Error.

I got the website up and running just fine but I failed to consider SEO techniques during the initial development period, which is why I am now playing catch-up. In this latest release you may find errors on some of the pages. While these errors do not interfere with content they do make the page look bad. Rest assure they are being dealt with and will be corrected.

My goal is to put my website high in the rankings, like the first page of Google and Yahoo. I am a long way from achieving that goal, but I will achieve it. However I had to change focus from adding new material to correcting what I now have. Hence my full implementation of Change 3 has been delayed, which pushes all my planned changes further down the line. I do believe, however, that I will stay very close to my original timeline, missing self-imposed milestones only by a week or so. And while these milestones are important they take backseat to correcting and implementing proper SEO techniques, which now becomes my top priority.

Getting my website high in the rankings is critical for me and my business and I must engage in those positive activities which will get me there.

August 08, 2011

Most of the work to date has been under the hood with the objective being streamlining the website for SEO optimization, so physical changes aren't that much this time. I did change up the Index/Home page with a new write-up and made some minor changes to the menu system.

I am now involved in implementing Change 3 updates. There are a variety of changes I intend to make with this change, as I want to make the website more interesting and useful. I intend to add some new pages put I also need to make time for corrections and maintenance actions. That is I need to improve the existing pages and ensure they are falling in line with the website theme. I noticed that I messed up a little and need to make these corrections. Most of these changes affect the early pages when I first launched the website back in May.

July 31, 2011

As I mentioned I am beginning to make weekly changes to the website in order to help me maintain a handle on everything I am doing. Refer to the July 28 entry for detailed information on this strategy. While the "official" change was scheduled to happen on the 7th of August I have made some changes and updated the website this date. Technically the data in this release is considered to be the last of Change 2 (according to the original development plan) and I am beginning to work on Change 3 which is scheduled to be completed by the end of August. The release will be implemented in stages beginning on August 7th with new content published every Sunday thereafter.

For the completion of Change 2 I have implemented the following:

July 28, 2011

I'm making a lot of changes to the site and adding new pages all the time. Currently I have developed a plan to change the Index/Home page on a weekly basis. It is my intent to develop a newsletter and send it out weekly. The Index/Home page will reflect the basic content of the weekly newsletter with the newsletter going into more detail. At least that is the plan. As I approach implantation day I am studying all the themes I want to address and write the articles accordingly.

It is now in the plan to make weekly releases instead of just random ones. I am developing "themes" for each week and deciding what new pages I want to add, if any. At any rate improvements in both visible wording and under the hood tweaks will be standard, but not necessarily documented. Of course if I find a glaring error I intend to correct it immediately. As I explore my site I am finding areas that need improvement and I have placed these items on my list, so in the near future these discrepancies will be corrected.

I plan to release new changes every Sunday unless I am on vacation (which I don't plan on taking for awhile, more on that subject to follow). As I review and tweak my plan I am coming up with new and exciting ideas to increase the value of this website not to mention fixing the discrepancies I am finding. So I encourage you to check back at least once a week to see what is new.  Of course my blogs I update twice a week, Mondays and Thursdays so please check them out as well.

So these are the latest changes I am making in order to both enhance your visit experience and for me to keep my insanity. Now officially this plan takes effect in August and actually begins on Sunday the 7th. I am releasing this information now as I also plan to make some additional releases this Sunday the 31st. So check back then to see what I have added (if anything) to the site.

July 20, 2011

I've been busy applying for affiliate links and doing work under the hood these last few days. I've been searching the web for links for the various pages I have so that I can keep the content fresh and dull. The problem is the site is growing as I add new links and implement new ideas and I feel like I am losing control of it. So to that end I have developed a way to help keep track of what I work on and when.

I've updated Our Travels page and added some photos. I hope you enjoy them. I've also updated the blog with some new posts so check it out if so inclined. You might want to check out the Symphony page as well as I did a lot of work on that page.

At any rate between adding new affiliates, updating existing pages, and working under the hood I have been rather busy. Busy but productive.

July 15, 2011

I'm shaking up the site a little bit to keep it fresh and unpredictable. The first thing you may notice is (if you've been here before) is the change-up of the Home page. It was too stale, it needed a make-over.

Next I moved most of the information that was on the Home page to a new About page. I even added a small photo of yours truly (why I did that I may never really understand).

I created a new Forgotten and Lost page. I've activated it but I haven't put in all the links yet. I did put in one main link which I found to be most interesting. I think this page is my most emotional page, at least for me. I have a soft spot for the past and looking at all these photos seem to affect me for some reason. But that's just me. At any rate more links will be included in the next few days.

I made a new blog entry, about politics and personal change. You might want to take a read.

Because of the work I am doing under the hood I have disabled the "What's New" function for a short time. I will bring it back later, but for now I really don't need it.

I'm working under the hood to optimize load speeds and correct errors and/or sentence structure (as needed). However it never ceases to amaze me when I make one enhancement I mess up something else. This should not be happening, but Murphy's Law always dictates. Hence the lesson: ALWAYS RESPECT MURPHY'S LAW!

I updated the Movie link on the Entertainment Page. The link now opens a new page with links to various movie websites.

A new blog is scheduled to be released in the early morning hours on 11 July. Just in case you want to check it out. I also added a new screenplay for download. I hope you enjoy it.

July 7, 2011

I have been on a self-help kick since last November. Coming off a minor depression state-of-mind I began to document my thoughts via missives I wrote earlier this year. Those missives are now becoming my blogs. To that end I decided to add a new page to the Reference section, a Self-Help/Motivation page. Here you will find some links  to websites I visit all the time, websites that help me, help me.

While I have added only a few links (I just thought of this page today) I have strong intentions to add more data, more links, and more encouragement to the page. With that I encourage you to check it out. You may decide that instead of making a living you could learn to live a life.

I also updated my blog with another article in case you want to check it out.

July 4, 2011

The following updates were added:

I finally got around to updating the Government page. I add several links which connect to various federal government sites such as the IRS (bummer). I also added state links so you can find your states' information rather quickly.

In addition to updating the Government page I posted a new blog, just in case you want to check it out.

By the way, Happy Birthday America.

June 26, 2011

The following updates were added:

The "What's New" page is a new addition to the site. It is a quick overview of what new features/changes have occurred as of the date specified. There are no links on the page and it deals with only one date at a time. Unlike this page the What's New page is strictly generic with no explanations about the changes and it does not keep a running log about the changes (that's what this page is for). It's really only for a matter of convenience should you be interested in seeing what has changed in the website since your last visit (if anything). For details you still need to come here. It does open in a new window for convenience.

I'm still working on my blog and doing work under the hood. As I learn new styles and techniques (something the younger generation already knows) I incorporate those techniques into my website. Of course us old folks, who were never raised on cell phones or websites, need to learn these tricks of the trade.

June 24, 2011

I've begun working and learning how to use Wordpress for blogging. I have a lot of thoughts that I want to share and the best way to do that is with a blog. Of course you can access my blog via the Blog link at the bottom of any page (except this one).

Learning new concepts has always interested me and blogging is no different. There is a learning curve that I am engaged in at this point but that is what makes this so much fun.

June 20, 2011

Added the blog page, made minor corrections and adjustments to other pages.

June 19, 2011

I have been working under the hood of the site to make it better, only to realize that I need more training. So the changes I made over the last week had to be discarded because I realized that what I was trying to do was taking up too much valuable time. It's not that I have abandoned my changes, on the contrary I just put them on the back burner for a short time.

Why? Because the changes I was attempting would do nothing to enhance the profitability of my site.  And profitability is what this website is all about. While the "enhancements" would make the the site better I discovered that my ROTI (Return on Time Investment) was not efficient to the fulfillment of my goals. Hence I needed to adjust my approach and refocus on those items that would provide the best ROTI for me.

I do not feel like I wasted a lot of time in my efforts to "enhance" my site as I learned a lot during the process. But realistically the site functions ok the way it is, and at the appropriate time the enhancements I have in mind will come about. Just not right now.

Some other changes I made was adding a new article to the site, ROTI. By the way how are you investing your time these days?

June 8, 2011

I have been on a road trip since the 30th of May and just got back. I have some data I want to add to the site and over the next couple of days I will be writing it up and posting it. I just wanted to post this so you wouldn't think I had abandoned this project. I have a lot to do on this site and forgetting about it is not on the agenda.

May 30, 2011

Summary:

Notice: Just for grins and giggles, I have to meet with clients this next week so I won't have a chance to update this site for awhile. However, by the time I get back I should have some new data and information to share with you. Lots of things are happening, great and wonderful things. So stand by.

 

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© 2011 GP McClure