Facebook Connect: Plugins to Integrate FB and WordPress

Let's go to TKP !!


When I first decided it was time to add Facebook Connect to a website, I figured it would be no big deal. Facebook is a social media powerhouse, I figured, so they must have tools to simplify the process. Plus, I use WordPress! So I was fairly confident that some enterprising developer had already created a plugin that would add Facebook Connect to the blog with a few clicks.


Boy was I naive. Adding Facebook to a WordPress site is harder than it sounds. I spent days testing out plugins with varying degrees of success. Each plugin had it’s own set of quirks, Facebook features that worked or didn’t, one plugin even shut down the whole site!


Luckily, integrating Facebook was not a total FAIL. After much testing and tribulation, Facebook Connect is now humming along happily. Visitors can login and comment using their Facebook ID, post comments back to their main stream, join the fan page with a single click and a handful of other nifty Facebook features that encourage visitor loyalty and interaction.


Take the benefit of my experience, and read this article before you begin the process of adding Facebook Connect to your WordPress website. Here are 3 different WordPress plugins for installing Facebook Connect.

Facebook Connect from Socialble.es

Easily one of the most popular FB connect plugins, Javier Reyes claims his plugin will: Build a community, Login using your Facebook account, Send comments to Facebook profile feed,Invite your friends to the blog community, See last visitors, Facebook share counter, Facebook fan page widget, Facebook comments box, Facebook user email store.
In truth, the plugin looks awesome on his site. And some users claim that it’s working great. However, I tried for three days to force Facebook Connect from Socialble to play nicely with my website. Most often, the plugin would work for an hour and then lead to a blank screen. Every page on the site (both front-end and admin) would just be a white screen. Often, this is a sign of memory issues. But, even reinstalling and turning off every other plugin on the site didn’t make it work.
The final reason that the Socialble.es plugin was a no-go for me is that the developer does not respond to help requests. I don’t expect developers to spend all their time offering up free assistance — especially on an already free plugin. But, the comment area and support forum are full of questions and the developer is conspicuously absent.
(* It seems that just after finishing this article, a new beta version of the Facebook Connect WordPress Plugin became available. It may solve some of the problems I talked about.)

WP-FacebookConnect by Adam Hupp

Adam is a Facebook Engineer, so using WP-FacebookConnect can be a good place to start. The plugin adds Facebook functionality to WordPress using the Facebook Connect APIs. Features include: signon with your Facebook account; Publish comments to the newsfeed; Comment avatars display Facebook profile photos.
Using this plugin is pretty simple. Install, activate, configure and you’re done. WP-FacebookConnect works well. Users could log in and Facebook avatars showed up in the comments section.
There were a few things I didn’t like, though. One is that the plugin creates a new WordPress user for each person that logs in via Facebook. In some cases this might be desirable, but it’s not really what I wanted. Second, was that after seeing all the “potential features” of the Sociable.es plugin, WP-FacebookConnect seemed limited.
If your Facebook integration needs are simple and you don’t want to work too hard on the configuring side, then WP-FacebookConnect is a great plugin. I have several clients where this plugin will be perfect.

Simple Facebook Connect

Ultimately, Simple Facebook Connect is the WordPress Plugin I decided to use for my site. Simple Facebook Connect is a modular plugin that breaks down the available Facebook features into separate plugins anchored by a base plugin.
Basically, the base plugin installs FB-Connect on your site and the secondary plugins add bits of code to add whatever Facebook goodies you’re looking for. In face, once you’ve activated the base plugin your website is Facebook Connect enabled and you don’t even need the other plugins. If you’re technically inclined you can now use XFBML tags to add any number of widgets directly into your template.
Here is a list of the currently available FB Connect sub-modules: Comment using Facebook Identity, Share button, User status widget (display your status in a sidebar), Fan box widget, Live Stream widget, Bookmark widget (get your site into the Facebook bookmark bar), Connect widget, Publish posts to your Facebook Application Page (manually, after the post is published).
Simple Facebook Connect was as easy to set up as it sounds and the developer, Otto, is responsive to user queries. He replied to my comment in just under two hours and has an active help stream going on his site.
Each of these Facebook Connect plugins behaves a little differently. You’ll need to judge for yourself what will work best with your current WordPress set-up. Just remember, all of the developers put a lot of time and energy into making the plugins. So after you settle on a plugin that makes you happy, send a little something to the developer. It’s the right thing to do, but more importantly, it will give them a reason to keep updating and improving so that the plugin you’re using today will still work down the road.

Getting Work Done for Free: Best Microsoft Office Alternatives

Let's Go to TKP !!


Microsoft’s Office suite has long been the king of productivity software. And with good reason—it is the most full-featured office suite available. Not only is MS Office deployed extensively throughout enterprises, but many consumers rely on it for their day-to-day word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation needs, too.


But Microsoft Office isn’t cheap. Office Home and Student 2007 sells for $149.95 at the Microsoft Store (the 2008 Mac version is the same price). There are some discounts available for University students, but unless you’re in college you might be stuck paying the full price—which is why many folks are starting to look for alternatives.


Fortunately there are several quality, free Microsoft Office alternatives that are completely compatible with the famous word processor, spreadsheet, or presentation software. Each alternative product has its own strengths and weaknesses depending on how you prefer to get your work done.


If you’re looking for a free Microsoft Office download, good luck. However, we do have the next best thing. Here are our top choices for free Microsoft office alternatives:

OpenOffice.org

OpenOffice.org is by far the best desktop alternative to Microsoft Office. Oracle’s full-blown Office suite includes the ability to create documents, spreadsheets, presentations, diagrams, databases, as well as HTML and XML documents.  Microsoft Office users will be able to interact with your files, since everything is saved in compatible formats. Because the software and files reside on your hard drive, you don’t need to be connected to the Web to get work done. The interface and commands are very similar to what you may have experienced in previous versions of Office. The software is stable and can handle a wide range of productivity tasks.
If you are an advanced user, then you will enjoy taking advantage of the repository of extensions that are available. The developer community is pretty active, with options such as exporting your files to Google Docs and multiple templates.
The only downside is that some tasks take more clicks in OpenOffice than they do in Microsoft Office. And even though it is pretty full featured, from time you are likely to come across things that OpenOffice won’t do as well. But as alternatives go, if you want free desktop office software, OpenOffice is clearly at the top.

Google Docs

Google Docs is the most well-known online office suite. If you are a heavy user of Google services (Gmail, Google Chrome, Reader, etc.) then Docs will mesh quite well with your current ecosystem. The real strength of Google Docs is not as much in its feature set but its collaboration abilities. This is really ideal for students or anyone else who needs to work on a project with multiple authors. The entire group can work on the same document over the web without having to e-mail back and forth 100 different versions.
Google has lately beeen promoting Docs as cloud storage for all your files. Even if a file isn’t compatible with Docs, it can be stored in the cloud and then downloaded later at another location. By purchasing additional storage you could conceivably back up a significant amount of your files this way.
However, in its current form Google alone may not be a Microsoft alternative. It’s simply not strong enough to serve all of your productivity needs. The document editor especially leaves a lot of features to be desired with only a few fonts and very few capabilities for creating elaborate documents. Also, importing Office documents into Google Docs don’t always go smoothly. Often times the fonts, tables, frames, and other elements get a bit jumbled.
If you want to just bang out a quick file then Docs is great—but it’s not enough to completely replace your desktop software. So, while Docs is a fine online word processor and spreadsheet program, it can’t be truly considered a Microsoft Office alternative.

Zoho

Though not as popular as other options, Zoho offers the most comprehensive online office suite available. It is far more feature-rich than Google Docs and includes not only documents, spreadsheets, and presentations but also email, instant messaging, a job application tracking system, and other business and consumer oriented services. If you run a small business there is an upgrade package that can make Zoho the central hub for your businesses’s productivity.
Zoho’s interface is also a great hybrid between those who like the ribbon interface from Office 2007 and those who like the more traditional drop-down menus. The site is very stable and easy to navigate. The collaboration options are not as strong as Google’s, but it is the best set of features available if you want to do your word processing primarily on the web.

Office 2010 Beta

You might be wondering, “Wait, isn’t this supposed to be an article about alternatives to Microsoft Office?” Well yes, however the Office 2010 Beta is currently a free download. Sure, at some point this year it will probably self-destruct and Microsoft will force you to buy it, but that is no reason not to take advantage of the temporary freebie.
In fact, Office 2010 is very good and stable in its Beta form. Microsoft wisely replaced the ugly Office button with the File menu, so many users making the switch from older versions will be in for less shock. There are also some newer options for copying and pasting that help preserve formatting more effectively. But don’t get too attached—at some point the software will leave Beta and you will have to pay up.

Download or Cloud? Free Alternatives to Microsoft Office

Unless you are an Office devotee there are plenty of Microsoft alternatives that will get the job done. While Zoho and Google Docs do a great job of keeping your work stored in the cloud, you may have to consider if you want to rely on an Internet connection to get work done (there are options for working offline, but it’s still not as seamless as keeping files on the desktop). OpenOffice.org is an excellent option, though it won’t do everything that Office can.
In the end it may mean a combination of choices—using Google Docs or Zoho for online collaboration, and OpenOffice for desktop work. Either way, you will find there are plenty of free choices for getting work done.
What do you use when you need a Microsoft Office alternative? Do you have a favorite free Word Processor?

6 Tips to Secure Your Joomla Site

Let's go to TKP !!


It has been a boom year for hackers and web hacking. Tom Canavan, Joomla web security expert, identifies an increase of greater than 600% in overall hacking this last year. Tom’s book “Joomla! Web Security”, a Packt publication, expands on the threats of web security.


Hacker issues bothered a couple of our clients this year and if it didn’t do anything else for us, it sure kept us all on our toes. Hacking comes as more of an embarrassment than a true threat, however the results are damaging to intellectual property, brand identity and most of customer confidence. Hacking is a common occurrence on all public web platforms and CMS systems, however we continue to win the battle and have the ability to leverage one of the largest global networks of expert Joomla developers and programmers and are proud to say that the Joomla community is one of the fastest to respond.


It continues to be a battle to keep the bad guys out so we’ve gathered some tips and links to help you keep your Joomla website secure and safe.


Tip one: When building or planning any Joomla site make sure that you keep up with a good maintenance plan and figure these costs into your ongoing budget. A dynamic web site requires regular attention and this means an ongoing investment of time and resources to keep this up. Hackers pound away on the core CMS framework and 3rd party extensions looking for vulnerabilities. If you continue to ensure your core Joomla CMS and extensions are running with the latest security patches you will save yourself a lot of headaches by preventing a big percentage of vulnerabilities. The longer a component is out there and not patched the more chances a hacker has to break into your infrastructure. Keep in mind, that for any moderate web site, you put a lot of time and treasure into making this your home on the web and if you do not invest in protecting it the whole place can be blown up in a puff of smoke.


Tip two: As a Joomla Website Designer I would suggest that you work with professional components when possible and be willing to contribute to those projects too. The reason is, behind the code are real people and economics plays into the success and longevity of these components. It is quite a commitment to sustain the security and evolution of these development projects. The healthier you can help them become the healthier your code options will be to evolve your own web platform over a period of time.


Tip three: “Keep a clean house” so to speak. Make sure you clean out any unused components and modules. This will not only help reduce the options for a hacker to get in, it will also improve the performance of your site. Make sure file permissions are set to allow you the flexibility you need to build out content, but button down everything else to further minimize threats.


Tip Four: It doesn’t take a Joomla Developer to know that “P@ssw0rd” doesn’t make a very secure password. In fact, don’t rely on any password listed on DefaultPassword.com. The guys dealing in the hacking business have terrific tools, commonly known as Brute Force Tools and password crackers with them. They have dictionaries of common passwords and keystroke combinations that make it possible to crack almost any password. So one should make a password that is very hard to crack by using a combination of numbers, letters, and other different symbols with proper usage of upper and lower case. For “best practices” change your password every 30 days to prevent threats.


Tip Five: Look into the option of using a security monitoring service. Sometimes these services are available through your ISP. We have worked with the “Securelive” component built specifically for Joomla and so far this has been doing a great job. We had some performance issues while we were first getting this installed but now it works very well.


Tip six: Back up everything on a regular basis and don’t forget. Backing up will give you a much better sense of security. A good regular back-up routine will protect you from hackers and, just as importantly, guards against “human failures” as well. For help with your Joomla back-up routine, take a look at joomlaplug.com and akeebabackup.com for a couple Joomla component options that we have used for Joomla Website Development.

How to design websites that appeal across cultural divides

Let's go to TKP !!


When you’re designing websites for a global audience, you need to be aware of cultural differences that will affect the way they are viewed in different parts of the world. You cannot expect the exact same website to be well-received around the globe. You need to adapt your websites to allow for cultural differences and make sure they are equally effective in whichever region you are targeting.


Take your web content global


Content is the most important part of any website. The old saying ‘content is king’ still rings true. There are three main factors you need to consider with regards to your content:


It must be relevant and useful to your target audience. By ensuring that your content is well-written and relevant, you will not only be maintaining quality, but you will also ensure that it can be more effectively translated into other languages.


You need to make sure it is as universally understandable as possible. With 79% of web users not speaking English as their native language, at some point you are going to have to get your content translated if you want your websites to be truly accessible across different cultures. The best way of achieving this is to use a professional translator, but if your budget is tight, you may also consider an online machine translation tool, like Google Translate.


It should be appropriate across many cultures. This applies especially to visual content – you should be aware that some images may be perfectly acceptable in western cultures, but could be offensive in other parts of the world. For example, pictures of scantily-clad models may cause offence in some countries. Even a simple image of someone relaxing with their feet up, which is perfectly OK in most parts of the world, may cause offence in Thailand, where it is unacceptable to show the soles of the feet.
Keywords in a Foreign Language


Even if you decide to use an online translation service to translate the bulk of your website’s content, you should not rely on this method of translation for your keywords. Nor should you use direct dictionary translations. Your keywords are too important to entrust them to these methods of translation – they are just not accurate enough.


To ensure your search engine optimisation (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns are successful in other languages, you need to work with a professional translator to develop a good list of foreign-language keywords. This will save you a great deal of time and money in the long run, because you can be sure that you are targeting the keywords that people are using to search for your product in any market – there’s no point in building a great website if no one can find it.
CSS spans language barriers


Make sure to use CSS as your design tool when building your website, because by doing so, you are keeping the content separate from the design. This makes it far easier to develop versions of your website in different languages – it’s a simple matter of substituting the different translated text into your pre-existing CSS templates. You should also use Unicode UTF-8 character encoding because it is compatible with the widest range of language scripts.
Planning the layout for a global design


You can improve the cross-cultural accessibility of your website by carefully considering its design and layout. One of the main issues here is the fact that not all languages are read from left-to-right. This can impact on the usability of side navigation and sidebar content. For example, a left-hand navigation structure may not be very convenient for someone who reads from right-to-left.


The same principle applies to the theory that the eye is naturally drawn to the top-left area of a web page. For an Arabic reader, it may be the top-right. You can avoid usability issues with your navigation structure by employing a horizontal top navigation, which will be more universally usable.
Choosing colours for a cross-cultural audience


Colour is a very important part of web design, as it can affect the way your websites are perceived by different cultures. Most designers are aware of colour theory, which tells us that different colours can have different psychological effects on the people viewing them, and that the psychological impact of colour is strongly influenced by cultural factors. Put simply, colours mean different things to different people depending on their cultural viewpoint.


For example, in Islamic countries green usually has an important religious significance, whereas in Western cultures it may be more suggestive of environmental issues. In Korea, a name written in red indicates that the person is dead. You should examine your use of colour carefully to ensure you don’t make any cultural faux pas.


Put simply, cross-cultural web design is about being aware of the possible pitfalls highlighted here, and ensuring your websites are accessible to as many cultures as possible, a sensible move to take considering the increased internationalisation of the internet.