Deeper Insights on Amazon S3 and WordPress For Bold Baby Boomers

WARNING!

Do not read this post unless you have decided to install AmazonS3 or ready to dive head first into the adventure.

I recently posted about the installation of AmazonS3 after I followed the instructions. Note: I should change “I “to “we” because my husband and I worked on it with another baby boomer friend via phone. We wanted to support each other in the challenge. We knew it had to be done but had placed it on the bottom of the list of things to do.

Now, I really spend times reading the comments of blogs. Sometimes you get a lot information or clarification in the comments.So, as I read the comments to the post I referenced I saw this excellent comment by a young brilliant techi about using an added applicatio with your AmazonS3.

Now, I want you to know that I did not understand all of it. But part of this boomer journey is learning how to jump in there and ask questions. Also, you have to take each unknown word and get a definition. For example, there is a suggestion to rename the files.  I will probably need to ask for more direction or read additional reference material. But we will probably schedule another Friday or Saturday evening of fun to go deeper into our AmazonS3 adventure.

Of course the easiest solution is to have a member of your in house or virtual staff take read these posts. But if you want to learn some of the basics yourself  jump on into this post and the prior post.  Call a friend because three boomer brains can do wonders.Take a few minutes now to read what Paul Stanatiou has to add about making your AmazonS3 work well.

Easy Instructions for Setting up AmazonS3 for Videos, Podcasts and Images

This is the best instruction I have read for setting up AmazonS3. I actually followed it step by step and it worked! Now, note that there were a few bumps so if you can get someone to work and do it when you are alert. OOPS, I am going too f ast. Oh, allow me to pause and explain what AmazonS3 can do for you.

Amazon S3 (Simple Storage Service) is a web-service, part of the Amazon family of products. that enables you to store and share large amounts of data online. This is a free to join, pay-as-you-go service with no minimum fees that makes it very attractive to small businesses and individuals who need to host their videos online.

All stored data, images, videos and podcats, can be made available via the web-browser, just like any web site on the Internet. The prices are cheap, I mean very cheap. You will see the prices when you sign up. You will not believe them. No sign up fee and you only pay for the usage.

 That means you can use it and spare your bandwidth. Now, I know someone is saying why not use Youtube or other free hosts?Well, AmazonS# is the solution when you want to have video uploaded that may by accessible folks on a membership site, etc. Ssometimes you may not want the ads that come with a free hosting site.

There are other uses but allow  me to have  an excellent blog post talk about what AmazonS3 can do and how to get it installed. Be sure to view the video and also to view the videos on Amazon. Also, there are already 56 comments to the post. If you want to include a comment do it right away. Comments will be cut off after 90 days.  But be  sure to read the comments because there is a LOT of information there.

Ok, get started now by reading the post on Problogger on AmazonS3.

Tell me what you think.

Baby Boomer Divas Weekend-You Are Invited

October, 17, 2009 is the Baby Boomer Diva Weekend in Raleigh NC on Social Media. View this special invitation.

You just saw a few of the many awesome baby boomer diva’s in this short video. Can you imagine what it will be like to attend power-packed, information satuated and eye opening weekend? You will not only walk away with life changing information but you will probably have some fun.

Go ahead and read more about the weekend planned for Boomer Diva Social Media event.

Oh, did I mention that they will be talking about blogging by and for baby boomers? Also, cutting edge information on other Social Media goodies.

Google Goodie #6-Google.org

This entry is part 6 of 8 in the series Google Goodies

Google.org is probably one of the most useful and dynamic part of Google. It is where you see what some of Google’s vision and what they are doing with their money.

Why is this organization’s efforts important to Baby Boomer bloggers? Continue reading

Google Goodie #5 -Advertising to Baby Boomers PowerPoint

This entry is part 5 of 8 in the series Google Goodies

I just found a really cool PowerPoint on advertising to babyboomers.

HOW DID I FIND IT?

I am so glad you asked. Here is what I did:

  • I went to Google search
  • I keyed in baby boomer:ppt (Note that I could have used pptx if I wanted to search for PowerPoint presentations in Microsoft 2007.)

Here is the formula: Phraseor word I want to see in PowerPoint slides :ppt or pptx

Why is this Google Goodie a Goodie?

Another great question. If I am plainning a presentation I can research the current Powerpoints created on a specific topic area. 

So, give it a try. And you want to see and hear the PowerPoint presentation on Advertising to Baby Boomers.

Google Goodies #4-Patent Search

This entry is part 4 of 8 in the series Google Goodies

Do you have an idea you want to patent. Want to know if someone has the same idea and submitted a patent? Ever wondered what patents are out there for blogs?

Ok, if you want to see this Google Goodie just go to Google Patents. Do a search on a term and be very surprised at what you will see. It is a lot!

Go ahead and check it out.

Google Goodies #3

This entry is part 3 of 8 in the series Google Goodies

Here is a really cool Google Goodie that will save you time. You don’t always thumb through a dictionary to find the definition of a word.

Just go the the Google search box and key in define:(Word you want to a definiton)

For example, go to the search box now and key in

define:audacity

Ok, now try your own words and have fun.

5 Blogging Basics for Baby Boomers

 

Jill Gordon is my guest blogger today. This is a foundational article that is great for baby boomer beginners but should be revisited by even seasoned bloggers.

 

Most of us aren’t experts on art, but we know a good painting when we see one. The same goes for blogs. You may not be a social media wizard but you know what you like and what is well done and what just, well, isn’t. While each blog is unique there are some big things that the top blogs have in common that you can take and use as lessons for your blog –even if you only have a few followers—which can make your site of a higher quality and much more fulfilling to write. Here are a few to consider:

 

1. Good design.

 

Even the most well-written blog out there will be hard to stomach if it looks like a design disaster zone. Spend some time making sure that things are laid out well and that you’re not trying to cram every single widget and add-on available into your one poor little blog. Keep things looking streamlined and organized instead so readers can easily navigate. If you don’t know a thing about design, look at others blogs for inspiration.

 

2. Quality content.

 

It doesn’t matter if you’re writing about your road trip to the Grand Canyon or health care reforms, if you’re not writing well (including proofreading) you’re doing yourself a real disservice in terms of the overall quality of your blog.

 

3. A clear voice.

 

When you’re doing pretty much any kind of writing on the web you want to have a distinct voice—a reason why someone would read your site over any of the other millions of blogs out there. For some people that might be adding humor while others might have a pretty unique viewpoint. Whatever your angle is, put it to good use.

 

4. Focused topics.

 

The best and most popular blogs out there tend to focus on one particular topic, whether that is celebrity gossip or global affairs doesn’t matter. Similarly, if you want to create a really great blog you need to pick a focus and stick to it. That may mean creating more than one blog if you really love two totally different topics.

 

5. Passion.

 

Is what you’re blogging about something that you’re truly interested in, love doing or want to know more about? When bloggers focus on topics like these, whether it’s for business or personal use, it makes for a much better, richer and all-around greater experience than a topic that is just a passing interest.

 

 

 

This post was contributed by Jill Gordon who writes for the blog onlinecolleges.net.  She welcomes your feedback at Jill.Gordon25 @yahoo.com.

Google Goodies #2

This entry is part 2 of 8 in the series Google Goodies

Did you know that if you key in the name of two cities in Google  search you will get airline and other travel  information? Well, all you have to do is key in the name of two cities with or without the comma.

For example, I keyed in Newark, Houston and also Newark Houston.

What does this have to do with blogging? Well, bloggers are great researchers and this is just another tool.

Give it a try

Google Goodies #1

This entry is part 1 of 8 in the series Google Goodies

jamaica

Google Goodies is the new adventure series that will be on this site. Why is it a goodie? Because any time a baby boomer like me learns something new, it is a goodie!

So let us start the tour. If you have anything to add PLEASE SHARE IT.

PHONE NUMBER SEARCH AND GOOGLE

Did you know that if you key a phone number into Google search it will provide an address?

Well, give it a try. If you key in your own phone number and you want to take it out of the search results there is an option. But note, that you might want to delete it in the other options provided also.