Attending the Fort Worth Rodeo

Posted on December 12, 2012 by chrisb

This past Saturday, I attended my first rodeo show ever (even though I have lived in Texas for nearly 4 years. I know, I know… Blasphemy, right?!) It was put on over at the Fort Worth Stockyards, and featured various different tournaments, mostly consisting of rider’s trying to stay on some type of animal (bull/bareback horse/saddled horse) for longer than 8 seconds. This was coupled with events of riders roping calves and racing around barrels as fast as they could.

Having never been to a rodeo before, I was attempting to make as much sense of the rules as I could, though I was surrounded by people who knew the same amount as I when it comes to proper Rodeo etiquette. Perhaps someone can help me out, because I was at a loss when a majority of the riders were penalized 10 seconds for “breaking the barrier” to rope calves. Is this akin to crossing the line of scrimmage in football? I paid fairly close attention, and I generally saw no rider cross the line before the calf bolted from its gate. If you know the rules and can fill me in, shout out below in the comments!

Despite my complete lack of knowledge, I still had a blast seeing the craziness that ensued. Be sure to check out the video above of a bull bucking its rider and then taking its vengeance out on a nearby mannequin!

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Using jQuery noConflict

Posted on November 28, 2012 by chrisb

Here is a little tip for everyone out there when adding various javascript libraries to a website.

When using two or more different Javascript libraries, typically you’ll run into an issue where they both try to utilize the $ function inside their protocols. When this happens, the browser will run one and render the other one null or useless. The general way around this is to find different plugins that all use the same javascript library, but sometimes that’s not feasible. How do you get around it?

Well, if one of your javascript libraries is jQuery, you have a method built right in. Instead of utilizing the $ call in your function, you can instead switch it out for the term “jQuery”. If you don’t want to modify ALL of your code, an easier way is to include both library .js files, and then in your script tag, write “$.noConflict();” at the very beginning. This will allow you to put both types of code in and allow them to work harmoniously!

Now you know, and knowing is half the battle!

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Email Blasts To Stay In Touch

Posted on November 8, 2012 by chrisb

As one service we offer at TXAD Internet, creating and sending email blasts tends to be more overlooked than most. An Email Blast is when we design (or receive a design) and send an email for a client to multiple recipients, i.e. a monthly e-newsletter. An email blast is a great way to keep in touch with customers who are already familiar with your product/company/rv park/etc, and to make sure to remind them of what kinds of services you provide to entice them to return.

For some companies, this means letting your audience know about sales and deals they can expect to find, and when. For others, maybe you just want to touch base and update them on the goings-on in the area. Since a chunk of our clients manage RV Parks and Resorts, we typically see emails detailing upcoming events in and around the park, along with temporary rate reductions and offers on extended stays. This is a wonderful tool, because it lets your customers know that you remember them and want to extend them friendly information, almost like letting them into a circle of trust.

These days, with online communication and interaction being so heavily utilized, email is an excellent way to reach a wide audience and get some repeat business. If you’re interested in doing so, feel free to drop us a line and we can work out a deal for you!

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Yogi Bear Jellystone Show

Posted on November 8, 2012 by michael

We’re starting day two here at the Yogi Bear Jellystone show and we’ve had a great time! We’ve talked to a lot of new clients along with old friends.

One thing I’ve personally noticed is how involved everyone seems to be in their web presence, a far cry from a few years ago. As an Internet company, this is great to see and we’re confident we can help these folks out. It’s always great to talk with people about things you know and have them be interested.

We head out later today for the DF-dub. Hopefully, the windshield won’t crack this time.

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Keeping Sites Live

Posted on November 2, 2012 by chrisb

When a website goes down, it can mean a number of different things. Typically the most basic answer is the correct one, and in this scenario, it is dealing with the hosting server itself.

For those that are unaware, website servers are simply computers assigned to do one function, and that is to send and receive data associated with the files in its system.  They suffer the same type of hardware issues that computers do, such as power loss, overheating, and parts wearing out over time. Luckily, most hosting providers split their services over various computers, and have contingencies in place should one computer be taken offline for a period of time (maintenance, updates or replacing). However, there will be times when that backup is not enough. Several large news companies based in and around New York found that out when their servers were taken offline during Hurricane Sandy this past week.

Here at TXAD Internet, we are constantly looking to keep your website running smoothly, without downtime if at all possible. We also have systems in place to notify us immediately should your website go down for any reason, so that we can resolve the issue  in the most timely of manners. If you have any questions or concerns about your website, don’t hesitate to contact us  so that we can address them for you promptly. We want to make sure you’ve got the tools you need to be successful, and a working website is top priority!

 

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Take a Break

Posted on October 31, 2012 by michael

In the past, I’d typically spend lunch at my desk. Oh sure, I’d have my lean cuisine but I’d spend my hour surfing the internet or running errands.

I was also getting super burned out. The days seemed like they lasted forever and the weeks started blurring. I need a break. Not a long one (although a honeymoon in Hawaii doesn’t hurt) but just something to break up the day.

Luckily, lunch provides the perfect stopping point, smack-dab in the middle of the day. But it also allows you to converse with your co-workers and NOT talk about work for a bit. As humans, we need those things.

In celebration of Halloween, we asked everyone in the office to bring a dish for a pot luck lunch. We also took it a step further and had everyone dress up.

Fantastic. Anyway, the point is you need to do these things every once in a while. Otherwise, no one will be whistling while they work.

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Managing Domain Names

Posted on October 26, 2012 by chrisb

Recently, we here at TXAD Internet have been noticing a alarming trend that we thought we should share and get the word out about. That trend revolves around keeping track of the domain names associated with your website (or lack thereof).

TXAD Internet provides hosting for our clients files, as well as management of domain names should the client wish. However, we are of the mindset that it is in the best interest of the client to control their domain name, so they can do with it as they please. We have seen instances where clients have been run through the gamut by other providers that manipulate them into staying customers, simply because the company holds the reigns on the domain name. If for any reason a client that controls their own domain wished to change hosts, they are free to do so at their own discretion by taking that name elsewhere.

For clients that manage their own domain names, this can pose a problem though. When you purchase a domain name, you have to set it up with certain information, like name, address, and typically a credit card to have on file (especially if you use recurring billing). Now say that you get rid of that credit card and forget to update the information with the domain name provider, and when renewing comes around, the payment fails. Most big providers will let you know via email that the process did not go through, but there are those that do not. And next time you turn around, lo and behold, your domain name is no longer yours. Its been sold off, used for some spammy content, and you don’t have any way to get it back. Then you’d probably begin the process of buying a new domain and using that as your new presence online, but now your rankings are gone and every link that used to point to your content is invalid.

Nobody wants such a situation to happen to them, but it is one that has happened often enough for us to take notice. So please take care to monitor your domain name & credit card information, and keep your site up and running (and in your hands)!

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Absolutely Adding Analytics (Alliteration)

Posted on October 25, 2012 by michael

We recently came across a website (not ours) that looked very plain. Not just aesthetically but even on the back-end. Now, I’m just a novice compared to Supasmo and ChrisB but even I can tell when a site doesn’t have the basics.

For example, no analytics. Not just Google Analytics but no trace of any analytic. :( (Super frowny face!) Personally, I don’t know how you have a website without something on there telling you where your visitors are coming from, how long they’re staying on the site, etc. Fascinating.

Second was the absence of meta stuff (tags, title, etc). Don’t get me wrong, adding meta stuff will not propel your site to the first page of Google overnight but it does help. As Wikipedia says:

Meta elements provide information about a given Web page, most often to help search engines categorize them correctly.

If it’s free to use and doesn’t take a rocket scientist to accomplish, there’s really no excuse.

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Migrating to HTML5

Posted on October 23, 2012 by chrisb

If you’ve had your website for some time and haven’t updated/upgraded it, perhaps you’ve never heard of the term HTML5. Or maybe you have, but don’t know what it means or how it can affect your online presence.

HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language, and is the default coding language used to build websites. As the web has expanded and “grown up”, so too has the languages used to create the pages that we see. The newest incarnation is referred to as HTML5, and offers a variety of improvements for the user side. These include, but are not limited to: file storage, native video and audio support, 3D graphics rendering, rich snippets, and cleaner semantics.

What are semantics? It is the branch of linguistics and logic concerned with meaning. According to HTML5Rocks.com,

“The Web is text and text has a meaning. Ultimately the content that our browsers read is pure text. Web sites and web applications have been created in an ecosystem where text based content is linkable, searchable and mashable. In the open web scenario our content can be shown, fed and remixed by third parties, search engines and accessibility tools. All these benefits don’t come for free. Automated tools can only do half of the job at recognizing the nature of the content. The better job the developer does at marking the right semantics of the content the easier will be for the rest of the agents to deal with it.”

So, how does that apply to us? Well, when coding with HTML5, we are given the ability to house the header and footer in tags with their respective names, articles in tags named article, have form inputs specifically for emails and phone numbers, etc. Now when search engines crawl your website, they know what each element means and where the actual content is placed. This creates a distinct hierarchy to the site, allowing your important aspects to shine through, and therefore can potentially boost your search ranking.

Want to know more about the benefits of HTML5, and how it can be used for your website? Please contact us so we can help you get the most out of your space in the online community!

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Roadrunner Park Gets New Website/Mobile Site

Posted on October 22, 2012 by admin

Much like former president Lyndon Johnson brought light to the Texas Hill Country, TXAD Internet Services is bringing the Internet to an RV park in LBJ’s hometown of Johnson City.Roadrunner RV Park, in Johnson City, Texas, now has a new website (http://roadrunnerrvparktexas.com/) along with a mobile version to go with it, according to a news release.

“TXAD was great to work with. I’d give ideas and they would develop from there. It was easy to ask for changes and see the results in a short period of time,” said owner Carol Birmingham.

Her website now includes rate information, thing to see and do (including the LBJ Ranch), directions and contact information.

“Very knowledgeable and great folks to do business with. I look forward to working with TXAD in the months ahead. Great work,” she concluded.

TXAD Internet Services recently combined forces with AGS Internet Services to provide website design and hosting services. TXAD Internet Services, like AGS, is now a division of Texas Advertising which serves 802 RV parks and campgrounds in the U.S. and Canada. For more information please call General Manager Michael Moore at (817) 426-9395 or visit www.TXADInternet.com.

Source: Woodall’s Campground Management

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