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Whether it be for just your home or for your business, choosing the right computer system before you buy is a must.  I can speak from a professional point of view and also personal experience as I have bought multiple computers, helped friends, relatives and clients choose computers and also written various computer reviews.  I can speak from personal experience of making mistakes as I have picked the WRONG system a couple of times too!

Now, when it comes to buying a computer, most people will simply think about the one they have recently seen advertised on the television, in the local paper etc. and head down to the shop that stocks said computer.  That can be mistake number one.  Buying a ready-made computer setup can be very tempting and especially for an inexperienced computer user but it is certainly not always the best option.

When purchasing a computer, you should only really pay for what you know you will need.  Many people go out and buy a very expensive, high end specification base unit often costing  upwards of  £2000 (Two Thousand pounds), when really all they plan on doing with the computer is some office related work and some internet surfing.  Some people buy expensive computers just for the re-assurance that they will not go wrong and are more reliable than cheaper computer systems, but again, this is mistake number 2.

I will now run through the buying scenario as a new(ish) computer user or a first time buyer:

Firstly, you  should assess exactly what you need to use the computer for.  Get a pen and some paper and write down a list of everything you think you will need to do with your computer.  You might run out of ideas fairly quickly or not know at all, so it is a good idea to sit infront of a computer when doing this either at work, or at a friend’s house etc.  Or alternatively, sit with someone who knows what they are talking about when it comes down to the nitty-gritty.  My advice would be to not go straight to a computer shop without any idea of what you want as you will no doubt be coaxed into buying an expensive system that you neither particularly want at first, or need at all!  Computer shops sell computers for one thing, to make money.  So naturally, the staff aren’t going to be honest when it comes down to telling you that you do or do not need things.  Going to a computer shop without prior ideas / knowledge is mistake number 3.

Secondly, using your list; try and now find some computers that do exactly what you need them to do, without being capable of tracking space satellite dishes(!)  There are many different ways to look for a decent computer that does just what you need.  You can try websites like Ebay, Amazon, Google or your local paper and classifieds.  Although understanding what all of the computer related jargon means can be tough, below I have written out two examples, one of my own computer to show what I’ve got and why I need it, and also a basic example showing just what you will need for day to day browsing of the internet, chatting to friends and general office work.  To understand the statistics I have posted below, it may be useful to read our latest article – Understanding Computing / Desktop PC Jargon.

MY Computer:

• 1 Terrabyte Hard Drive + 350Gig removable HD.
  I need all of this space as I store a lot of things on my computer such as my designs, graphic designs, photographs, archives etc.
    
• Dual Core Processor
  It’s not the fastest processor in the world, but to be honest it works and it works well.  I am hoping to upgrade to quadcore soon!
   
• 3Gig RAM (Memory)
  Quite important for me to have a good amount of this due to having many things open at the same time.
    
• 512mb Radeon Graphics Card
  To ensure I get a good, quality picture.
   
• A High-Resolution flat screen monitor
  I can’t remember the exact size, 24″ or something similar.  Mainly to save space, it being a flat screen, but also for great picture quality.
     
• Lots of Software relating to business needs (web development, office processes etc.)
  For obvious reasons really, costing me a small fortune!
    
• To top it all off, running on Windows Vista Professional Operating System
  I’m not a fan of Apple Macs (I must be the only webdesigner in the world saying that!) and I only use Linux on our servers.  Windows is the option I have chosen for years and will probably be  the one I stick with.  I don’t particularly like change!
    

Basic Computer for everyday use: (I’d recommend)

• 120Gig Hard Drive
  Plenty enough to store all of your work, photos, music, movies and what ever else!
     
• At least, Pentium 4 or similar processor
  There really isn’t much point in splashing out for an expensive processor when you aren’t going to be running much on your PC at any one time.
    
• At least 1Gig of RAM (Memory)
  You do not need more than 1Gig of RAM for most things and you can actually design Full Flash websites for example, of computer with only 512megabytes (half a Gig) of RAM as I proved on a temporary computer earlier this year!
     
• Standard Graphics Card, Standard Sound Card, Any related software and Operating System.
  Using the standard, on-board graphics and sound cards are fine for most things if you don’t want to play high-res games etc.  Software necessary to you such as office software should only be bought if you do need it (which most people do), Anti-Virus systems should be installed to protect your PC and you should pick an operating system.  Me being biased, I would say windows.
       

All together, you can pick up a perfectly good second hand computer for less than £200!  If you want a new one you’re probably looking at around £399.  Building your own PC is an option but only really advised for experienced users.  Although it does work out much more performance for your money!  I build all of my machines from the ground up.

I hope this article has helped you to understand better buying a computer.  If you need to ask any questions, please email us on enquiries@4heroes.co.uk or if you would like us to recommend you some systems or even build you a custom one, please email us and we will arrange something tailored around you.

Computers are a very confusing subject to many people.  You have categories of people ranging from computer genius’ to computer literate to first-time-users and computing novices.  I’m here writing this blog article today to try and clear up the jargon used with desktop PCs & laptops to help you to be confident with your choice in computer, understand how your computer works and to eventually help you to purchase a computer.

I will start with each component in a computer and write a small description of what they are there for.  I will not list EVERY component, nor will I write exactly what they do but I will give you a good idea to help you to understand computers / Desktop PCs / Laptops just that bit more.
 

Case:

The computer case or shell is the basis of any computer unit.  Inside, is where the internal components sit to be connected to each other and guarded from dust and anything else potentially dangerous.  Cases come in many different shapes, sizes and styles.  Many cases are plain, some are big, some small, some thin, some wide, some cases, usually bought by online gamers and flashy technical people contain colourful neon lights inside the case and have glass side windows to show off the interior components being lit up by the neon lights.
 

Power Supply:

Some computer cases will come with a power supply pre-installed inside them, but most do not. As a result, it is necessary to get a power supply that works with your components and has sufficient power. Newer features such as modular cabling and efficiency ratings are also something to consider.  Remember, not all power supplies work with all motherboards and components, so it is best to ask a professional or anyone who definitely knows what they are doing.
 

Motherboard:

The motherboard is the backbone of the system. It determines the type of components that can be used with the system and the number of internal peripherals the system can support. It will directly impact the processor used and total amount of memory that can be supported. The motherboard is basically the large coloured board that sits up usually against the inside wall of the case and has all of the other components clipped into it.  They often come in different colours and again, depending on manufacturer, some are not compatible with other components especially components of different brands.

Processor:

The brain of the computer system. The processor tells the computer what is going on and handles any processes requested byt the user such as opening a software program, or running a virus scan etc.  The selection of processors used to be fairly simple but now, processors are sold with hundreds of different names and the jargon can be hard to understand.  You will probably heard of Dual Core, Quad Core, Pentium, Athlon etc etc.
 

Heat sink:

If the processor was purchased via the retail packaging, it will include the manufacturer heat sink. But for those who purchased an OEM processor, it will also be necessary to have a CPU cooler. Without it, your CPU will quickly burn itself out. Make sure that any heat sink you use is properly rated for your processor as well because again, not all are compatible with different branded CPU’s.
 

Memory:

Without memory, the computer will not be able to function. The CPU needs it to store the code to tell it how to properly process data. You will need to know the type that your motherboard uses and also determine how much as it directly impacts performance.  As a general rule, the more memory ( and this is not storage and hard-drive memory), the faster the computer and the more processes it can handle at any one given time.
  

Hard Drive:

The Hard Drive is the primary method of storage in all desktop computer systems.  They come in many different sizes running from very small 20 gigabytes all the way up to 20 Terabytes which is more than I could ever even think of using!  Hard drives come in a 3.5″ format and you will probably read this figure more times than just on this blog when it comes to looking at different drives.
  

CD/DVD Drive:

Optical drives are the component used to install 99% of all software now on a computer system. Without one, it will be hard to even get an operating system installed. Most drives these days are DVD burners that can also playback and record CDs as well.  Pretty much ALL computers you buy nowerdays come with these installed already.  They are inexpensive and a definite necessity!
  

Floppy Disk Drive: (Optional)

Once the primary means of removable storage and installing software, floppies have all but vanished from desktop computers. They still have their uses at times, but are no longer required. They are generally very small and have limited storage space.  They are rendered almost obsolete these days due to CDs/DVDs and removable storage such as USB pens etc.
  

Video / Graphics Card:

Unless the motherboard comes with a video connector, it will be necessary to install a video card into the computer system. Most graphics cards use the new PCI Express interface, but you may still find some motherboards that still use the older AGP interface that is rapidly being discontinued.  When buying a computer for gaming or entertainment purposes, it is recommended to buy one with a good, high specification graphics card.  As a rule, the higher the memory on the card, the higher the standard of graphics and the better the picture.
  

Sound Card: (Optional)

Most motherboards now feature some form of built-in sound controller on them. As a result, sound cards are not required unless you want higher fidelity computer audio or less reliance upon the CPU to assist with the computer audio. Using a computer when requiring high quality sound such as for music production or again gaming purposes, sound cards are easily upgradable and you can now buy external sound cards that often plug straight into USB slots.

Network Card: (Optional)

Ethernet has become such common media for networking computers, that this should be a standard feature on all motherboards. Some motherboards even feature wireless network adapters built in. If your motherboard does not have an Ethernet connector, it may be necessary to install a PCI Ethernet board or maybe a 802.11 wireless card.

Modem (Optional)

Broadband has become more and more popular, but there are still a number of people who can only get connected to the net through a dial-up modem. Be sure to get a PCI based card as few motherboards now feature any of the old ISA clots.
 

USB Slots (Universal Serial Bus)

USB slots come as standard in pretty much all common, modern PC systems now.  They are a fast, updated way of connecting removable storage and media to your computer and also a great and fast way of transferring and moving files about.  USB is allot like Firewire but can be faster and is more common.  Firewire is found on some older computers but is again, like many older features, becoming almost obsolete.

  
I realise the above guide is all about the hardware and there are a few components missing.  Please remember that hardware is not the only thing to think about as you also need software of various kinds.  Firstly, your operating system.  An operating system is what your computer runs on.  Examples of these are Microsoft Windows, Apple’s MAC and various Freeware such as Linux.  After operating systems, you must think about software to suit your purposes such as office software and definitely, anti-virus software.  Many of these cost money but there are plenty of Freeware alternatives if you search around a bit.

I hope this article has cleared things up abit for you and I hope you now understand the basic jargon on a desktop PC / Computer.  If you have any questions or would just like a general chat about anything you do not understand and would like to know, please email us on  enquiries@4heroes.co.uk

Our Next article will be about choosing which computer is right for you and buying a computer.

One of the questions I get asked very often is how easy was it to set up my own company at such a young age.  Now, although I am not based from home during office hours, I do have alot of knowledge into how to set up a home business.  There are many factors when thinking about setting up a home office, I am not going to list them all, but I am going to cover the basics in setting up your company from home.

Although figuring out how to set up your home office is just the first of many tasks in establishing your home business, you can figure out how to set up and organise your home office with careful planning.  Some people choose to out-source the work and hire a professional organiser such as a design consultant.

When you become a consultant, it often makes sense to start by working from home. When you work at home, your home office offers many advantages. These include the possibilities of deducting mortgage interest, maintenance, utilities, cleaning, and upkeep. You probably also have many resources already available in your home such as a computer, internet connection, telephone line and furniture.  For many people, setting up a home business just means putting a computer and a phone in a corner of the dining room, living room, spare bedroom, den or basement.  You’d be surprised how good it feels not only to start your own company, but to setup an office in your home seeing the project through from start to finish.
So what do you need to start your business running from home?  Consider these points before you start planning your home office.

Planning your home office needs:

• How often will you work from home? Will you work for a couple of hours at night or are you planning a full-time venture?
• What work will you be doing? A communications consultant may simply need a computer, whereas a financial planning consultant may need space to meet clients, spread out financial plans, or assemble direct mail campaigns.  Setting up a Web design Company from home is a fraily straight forward process due to the lack of overheads and the use of readily-available resources.
• Do you need to meet in person with your clients or business contacts / suppliers?  You do not need to meet in your home, many consultants tend to meet business contacts in coffee shops and the likes.  I myself tend to use a coffee bar in Hartlepool I am a big fan of!
• Do you share your office or home with others?  Although it’s nice to be able to shut out disturbances by closing a door, many consultants find that they can manage by working when other members of the household are at work or school (or even sleeping!).
• Do you need to separate work and home?  Some people find it can be hard to keep these separate and can be easily distracted by home-life being mixed in with office life at ALL times.

Setting up your home office for all your functions

Before you start shopping and organizing your space, define your home office needs. You’ll want to make sure you have:

• A designated workspace. You need a place to call “home” for your home office.  But this doesn’t mean you need a separate room.  Millions of home business owners work from their dining rooms, living rooms, closets, stair landings, attics, or even a corner of the bedroom. If you own a service business, like consulting, you probably don’t need to store merchandise or other supplies – you don’t need a lot of space.  Just pick somewhere that has good lighting, ventilation, and minimal noise if possible.  Make the best of what you have and try to personalise the space to make you feel more comfortable and to help you concentrate.
• Somewhere to sit while you work – even if you’re using the dining room table, make sure you have a flat surface, chair and lighting. Make sure the furniture is at the right height for you, so that you can avoid any Health and Safety issues and help prevent back and neck injuries.
• A system for managing and storing paper and filings– if you previously worked in an office, you may be surprised by the amount of paper you’ll now need to manage.  You’ll need to keep receipts for everything related to your business and your business use of home – mortgage interest, utilities, meals and entertainment, supplies, auto insurance and more.  You’ll need filing cabinets, bankers boxes, stacking inbox /outbox trays, working file storage, file folders and more.
• A way to connect with business contacts: In the old days, this just meant a telephone.  Nowadays, this typically means you’ll need a computer, cordless phone, cell phone, Internet connection and multifunction printer.  You probably don’t need a dedicated fax line when you’re starting out.  Most documents come by email or courier.
• A few things to make your office seem comfortable.  Depending on your space and budget, this could mean paint, photos, a framed inspirational quote, a personalised  mouse mat or anything else that helps you feel like you’re in a comfortable workspace.

So, I haven’t delved into the prices of setting up a Business from your Home as I promised myself I wouldn’t.  Trying to give people prices, even rough prices, proves to be too tricky as they never seem to be the same for any two people.  Different types of businesses will need different budgets to setup your office at home.  Just remember, you are not alone in quest to setup your office at home.  There are lots of Government funded grants available to help you get set up.

There are local grants for different regions and also Government sponsorship grants.  These grants often will only account for 50% of the costs or less meaning you must come up with the funding to match the other 50%.  Again, if you use your head here, this is simple too as if you get two grants, as many people do and I have seen my clients do, one grant will pay 50% and the other grant the other 50%.

I hope that this blog has outlined just how simple it can be to set up a business at home.  It does not have to be a costly process.  If I was to give one piece of advice and really emphasise it, it would be to put money away before you try to setup your own business from home. This money can be used to help your initial funding but could more importantly be used as a rainy day fund.  If, for example, you get a few weeks with no business, this emergency fund can pay the bills for you.

There are endless amounts of things you should and should not do when Designing a Website.  There are also many, many lists on the Internet telling you what you should do and what you should not do.  I like to think I’ve created below, a definitive list to help anyone who fancies giving DIY webdesign a go.

Remember, webdesign takes time and experience.  It does not come over night and this is by no means a guide on how to create websites.  Some of the points below are so obvious, they might insult you but please, take them into account as I have found hundreds of websites that do the little things wrong and those little things lead to big problems in the long-run.  Website Design should not be taken lightly and if your unsure about anything, contact a Professional Website Design company.  All the better if they are local to you I.E  – Hartlepool Web Design Company

Now, for the Definitive list of 40 Tips on how NOT to Design Websites:

1. Do NOT use intricate fonts that are hard to read: You may think that using fancy fonts on your website adds a good look and while you may be right, they also might be hard to read and therefore make your readers lose interest.  Fonts should be clear and easy to read and should match website designs on a constant theme throughout the website.
2. Make your text paragraphs easy to Skim Read: you will find that most of your readers will scan through the text on your website before committing to read it.  This means you should make text easy to skim and easy for your readers to pick out important articles by laying it out well.  Using short paragraphs, clear fonts and bullet points are a must.  People love lists and reading  a list is much easier and more interesting than reading long paragraphs.
3. Let the audience know what the website is EARLY: People paying attention to your website is the key factor of getting any real hits. Using Keywords allows you to get points across simply and quickly.  If users cannot figure out what your site represents in a couple of seconds, you will probably end up losing them!  Your website should say on the first page exactly what it is about and carry that message through right up until the last page.
4. Do not use pop ups: this goes without saying really. You will never find an advertising popup on our websites.  I personally, hate them as they get in the way and I don’t think anyone actually ever clicks on them! It’s a wonder they get any business through them (that is if they do).
5. Do not use animated GIFs: unless you have advertising banners that require animation, avoid animated GIFs. They make a site look unprofessional and detract the attention from the content.
6. Do not use small fonts:  This goes without saying, really.  Small fonts can be hard to read for people with sight problems.  This means that your website’s accessibility is down-hill from the start.
7. Do not ignore complaints / suggestions: allowing your customers a survey page or something similar means that if there any suggestions to better your website, you can take them on board.  Just make sure you ARE taking them on board and implementing any changes as you see fit.
8. Do not resize the user’s browser windows: allow the user to size the window as they see fit.  You might mess up your design.
9. Never subscribe the visitorwithout their allowance: do not automatically subscribe a visitor to newsletters or other promotions without first getting consent from them by means of a tick box etc.
10. Do not make people register if there is no need: This is a very important point I feel.   I come across countless websites that try to make me register just to access information that I could access from elsewhere without registering first.
11. Do not play embedded HTML music: This was a popular feature in the start of webdesign but is an absolute disgrace nowerdays! If you want music on your website, use an embeded player so your users have the option of listening to it or not.
12. Do not overuse Flash: Now, Flash is a great tool but unfortunately, at this moment in time, it is not indexed by Search Engines and therefore your site might not rank very well if it is entirely Flash based.  Professional Flash websites available in our Affordable Website Package.
13. If you MUST play an audio file let the user start it: some situations might require an audio file. You might need to deliver a speech to the user or your guided tour might have an audio component. That is fine. Just make sure that the user is in control by using a smart, media plugin / embeded player.
14. Do not clutter your website with badges: first of all, badges of networks and communities make a site look very unprofessional. Even if we are talking about awards and recognition badges you should place them on the “About Us” page.
15. Do not use a homepage that just launches the “real” website: these pages are POINTLESS! The less pages the user has to go through to get to your content, the better.
16. Do not use blinking / rave text:  the last time I saw this, it was when I was 13 and I put it on a wannabe website I started up using Freewebs!
17. Make sure to include contact details:  include correct, concise contact details allowing the visitor to clearly get in touch with you if they want to.  This may also lead to more sales.  I have seen websites that have nothing but an 0870 number on and this puts me right off!
18. Do not break the “Back” button: disabling the use of the back button by opening up everything in new windows can be annoying to users. If they close the wrong window too, they might lose your website and then lose interest before they bring it back up! Using Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) friendly URLs means the robots can understand them a lot better.
19. Avoid complex URL structures: if your website uses complex / dynamic URLs, the chances are your customers won’t be able to tell which page they’re going onto and also Google and other such search engines may find it hard to display the page.
20. Make sure users can search your website: having a built in search function means visitors can search for specific articles within your website meaning they can find exactly what they want without having to read anything they don’t.  Perhaps even leading to more sales.
21. Avoid “drop down” menus: drop-down menus are a good space saving technique but they hide links. If the user cannot see the links straight away and are not computer literate, you might end up with them not being able to find the page at all.
22. Use text navigation:  using buttons in your navigation bar has become a thing of the past, not only does it slow the page load time down, but text links are more optimisable and easier to read.
23. Do not confuse the visitor with many versions: avoid confusing the visitor with too many versions of your website. What bandwidth do I prefer? 56Kbps? 128Kbps? Flash or HTML?  Just give them the content that they have come to see on the first page, and leave them alternate versions on the homepage in the footer if necessary.
24. Use CSS over HTML tables: HTML tables were used to create page layouts. With the advent of CSS, however, there is no reason to stick to them. CSS is faster, more reliable and it offers many more features. Using the DIV tag is a much more popular way of doing things now.
25. Do not blend advertising inside the content:  Blending advertisement links into your text is a good way to trick users into creating you revenue, but too many can be annoying.  If you are going to do it, DO NOT do it in the middle of sentences and try and keep it to a minimum.
26. Use a simple navigation system: use a navigation system everyone can use.  Keep the navigation the same every page it features on so people can always get where they want to go.
27. If you are linking to a file that will open with an explorer addon: For instance, if you link directly to a PDF document, Internet Explorer freezes while Adobe reader loads up.  This could fase some web users if they are not familiar and not expecting it.  Always give a warning either in the link of before that it will not open in a straight forward explorer window.
28. Avoid “intros”: do not force the visitor to sit through a flash intro.  If you insist on using one, ensure it has a skip button!
29. Do not use FrontPage or cheap Website Editing software: this point extends to other cheap HTML editors. While they appear to make web design easier, the output will be a poorly crafted code, incompatible with different browsers and with several bugs.  I used Frontpage for all of 6 months when I was about 14.  I would honestly rather use Wordpad and would probably come put with better content if i did!
30. Make sure your website is cross-browser compatible: not all browsers are created equal, and not all of them interpret CSS and other languages on the same way. Like it or not, you will need to make your website compatible with the most used browsers on the market, else you will lose readers over the long term.  People use a huge range of web browsers and testing a website with just Internet Explorer is not enough.
31. Do not cloak links: your side will lose credibility both with Search Engines and with people if you try and hide link locations on your site.  Always allow the user to see where the link is taking them in the status bar.
32. Make sure to include anchor text on links: As you will see, I have linked multiple words throughout this blog to pages of our website.  This is for Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) purposes.  I also use strategic text for the links when posting on outside websites.
33. Let the visitor know where a link is: make links stand out to ensure easy navigation for visitors.  If links blend in with the text, the only way the visitor will find it is if they roll over it and it has either some sort of roll-over formatting or a link title.  Making them stand out lets a visitor know exactly where they can go.
34. Make clicked links change color: this point, I feel is not that important but is still one worth mentioning.  Some people say this is imporant to stop visitors going round in circles, but if your navigation is simple and your links clearly tell you where yo are going, you should not ever have that problem.
35. Make sure to use the ALT and TITLE attributes for images: apart from having SEO benefits the ALT and TITLE attributes for images will play an important role for blind users and users with sight difficulties.
36. Avoid Javascript links:  Javascript can be quite “Buggy” if not coded right and quite often causes problems for users.  Many web browsers do not like javascript and bring errors up more often.
37. Include functional links on your footer: people are used to scrolling down to the footer of a website if they are not finding a specific information. At the very least you want to include a link to the Homepage and possibly a link to the “Contact Us” page.  If you navigate to Hartlepool Webdesign, you can see we use our Footer effectively to display any links we cannot get in the main navigation.
38. Avoid overly-lengthy pages: pages on your website that require lots of scrolling become tedious to visitors.  I do not like scrolling lots to find information and I’m sure you do not either.  This article is about as long as it gets for me.  Try and break pages down into multiple pages if you feel them getting too long.
39. Do not rush or limit the number of design revisions: if you are not happy with your initial design, or your client is not happy, do not try and throw together another one instantly.  Take constructive feedback onboard and draw out a mind map.  Use these comments to help you design your next revision.  If you rush a design, you will find you make mistakes and will probably make your clients unhappy.  Make that first impression count by taking time when designing and doing a good job!
40. If you use CAPTCHA make sure it is easy to understand and not faulty.  I have been in charge of an online community of over 2000 people.  I know how many phone calls I got regarding registration errors due to the CAPTCHA box dissalowing things.  Check that visualy impaired users can read it fine and also check to see if it is working well. Ask your customers, do a survey and make any changes necessary with the answers.

As I posted my third ever “Tweet” on my nicely customised twitter page earlier, I got to thinking about how much I have been hearing and reading of Twitter lately.  I would imagine that you reading this, will probably be fully aware of what Twitter is but if not click here and you can see for yourself.

Twitter has become a giant, there is no denying that.  The US President is using it, CEO’s of huge corporations are using it and there are plenty of small businesses, like us using it too.  The question I pose this evening is:  Is Twitter a friend to a business or a foe?

At first impressions, almost everyone I know would say a friend due to the obvious easy advertising solution and viral marketing.  I myself, did indeed say the same thing but after really thinking about it, I started asking questions.  A recent article released by multiple sources claims that:

“ 22% of UK businesses willing to pay for additional Twitter functionality “

This has me worried as a new Twitter user and an up & coming avid fan; If Twitter did start charging for use, what would they class as “Additional Functionality” and what would be left to the small companies & individuals who are not particularly willing to pay for Twitter usage?  Will additional functionality be the only thing to pay for or will Twitter as we know it become a subscription-only paid service?  Now, I like Twitter but I would not pay for it (YET!)

Maybe because I have not got many followers or maybe just because I have only tweeted 3 times, I will probably at some point fall madly in love with Twitter just like many of my acquaintances.

“ Of most interest to Twitter itself, however, is that 22% of UK businesses said they would pay to get additional business functionality versus 36% who said they wouldn’t and 42% unsure. “

Now, this could just be me being cynical but I can see Twitter becoming yet another money hungry giant trying to screw the hard-earned cash from companies now trying to find more and more ways to market their products & services.  It’s not like we haven’t seen this before; websites allowing free use for so long, then switching to a subscription only service.  A great money making technique for Twitter to use perhaps, and probably a fantastic step in Twitter’s no doubt long life, but by the looks of the statistics above; depending on what Twitter define as “Extra Functionality”, if they do start charging usage fees, they will see a drastic drop in users.

Alongside this article, some information has been released regarding Search Engines such as Google, incorporating Live feeds into their search results.  Now, this could work as a HUGE advantage to anyone who knows how to use Key words to their advantage.   That is probably a story for another blog, hopefully soon.

Anyway to summarise a lengthy and rather nonsensical post, yes, even after all of that rambling…  I would class Twitter as a FRIEND.  Although I am weary of them becoming a money hungry giant, and I myself would not pay for it, Twitter is a great Micro-blogging service and a fantastic tool to keep updated and keep your clients / contacts up to date.

One last thought:  What is to stop Facebook, Myspace and other social giants charging for use? …  A scary thought I suppose!