Visit the PhotoSource
International homepage! Nearly seventy different sections with all the
information you're looking for await you. Click
here.
ON-LINE
by Bill Hopkins
You Just Gotta Marvel...
The number of Internet users in China is around 132 million, reflecting a 32% increase over the prior year. According to the China Internet Network Information Center, there are 52 million users with broadband. Their communist government encourages Internet use for business and education, while at the same time it tries to block access to material the central government determines is subversive or pornographic. And that covers a lot of material.
Don't Forget the Insurance
A subscriber, after reading my December column about using a UPS (Uninterruptible
Power Supply) for computers and other electronics, wrote to tell of his experience
with a lightning strike at his business, which fried practically everything
plugged into a power outlet or a phone line. He brought up some good points.
One is having the proper business insurance to cover not only the cost of repair/replacement
of your business assets (often can be included in your homeowner's policy for
small home-based businesses), but also to carry business-interruption insurance.
Such insurance generally helps with the loss of income during the restoration
process, and with expenses of getting your photography business back on its
feet, including outside contractors (tech help, for example). Another is protecting
all entrance points, including phone lines, cable modems, etc. (most UPS have
an additional port to protect DSL and cable lines). Depending on your situation,
you may be able to have an electrician install a lightning arrester right at
your power panel (where the electric meter is). Couldn't hurt, especially if
you live or work in a lightning-prone area. Oh, and did I mention having a current
backup of your programs and data in an off-site location?
Those Annoying E-mail Taglines
Do you Yahoo!? Not if I can help it. One of the disadvantages of free e-mail
are those taglines automatically added to the end of your e-mail by the provider.
I'm sure you've seen them. For Blackberries, you can change the setting easily
by going to Messages, clicking on the dateline, selecting E-mail Settings from
the Options menu, then Auto Signature. You'll see the text there, and you can
delete it or change to something you prefer. Yahoo! is harder, as in cold-cash
harder. To remove their tagline, you have to sign up for Yahoo! Mail Plus, at
$20 a year. You'll also notice a decrease in the advertising on your e-mail
home page. It'd be a business expense, and would make your e-mails look more
professional.
Double-Digit Growth for Online Shopping
Interesting facts. Cyber Monday (Nov. 27, 2006) web traffic peaked at over 2.1
million people a minute, a 19% increase over the prior year. Dec. 13, 2006 set
a new record of online spending at $669 million. Amazon was launched in 1995
but didn't turn a profit until 2003. A survey by VISA of New York shoppers found
that 42% would rather clean their bathrooms than stand in line at the checkout
of a brick-and-mortar establishment.
Bill Hopkins is the Webmaster of PhotoSourceFolio* (www.photosourcefolio.com) and a regular contributor to PhotoStockNotes. Send comments via e-mail to wh@photosourcefolio.com. Fax: 1 818 831-0916. For on-line questions, contact Bill on the Kracker Barrel at www.photosource.com/board.
*Display 6 of your own images for photobuyers to view, on your page on the PhotoSource website.
|
Visit the PhotoSource
International homepage! Nearly seventy different sections with all the
information you're looking for await you. Click
here. |
|
This newsletter isn't free. It's Referware. By
receiving this, you agree to help someone each week -- on the Internet on
our Kracker Barrel http://www.photosource.com/board
, in a forum, with Email, or by sending/forwarding this newsletter to
photographer friends. The Internet is a treasurehouse for "Free" information.
The more everyone gives, the better off everyone is! |