Yes, indeed. My local small business directory - www.sgsmallbiz.com has gained Authority Status by Google. I am pleasantly surprised myself. If you don’t know what this Authority Status means, well, it is when you do a search on let’s say “Singapore Small Business Directory” on Google, you will see that the first result is slightly different from the rest. They have additional links included in the first search result. From what I have gathered, it is meant to say that this site has something more to offer and Google has gained it more “value” and “weightage”. First of all, I am not sure whether this is true or not, but from what I know, it seems that Google does place more weight on these sites than the rest. Although the mechanics of it, we won’t know unless we are one of Google’s engineers, but look at it this way, if the site isn’t offering their viewers something extra, then why did they place the extra links there in the first place? There should be something different from the rest of the search results, in Google’s eyes.

One thing about this Singapore Small Business Directory is that I have added most of the listings myself.  About 90% of all the listings I have sourced myself. This isn’t the one of the web directories out there which waits for people to submit their site to. I did some very comprehensive searches on Google, Yahoo and other sites and resources to get those links. It took me over 2 years to get about 2500 listings in the directory. Sure, it is not as big as some of the bigshot business directories out there, but do note that this is a one-man show and I usually add the listings only in the evening. The daytime, I am stuck at work so I can’t be adding the listings. When I stated this directory, all I wanted was to have a lot of customers who would be willing to pay big bucks to get listed on my directory. But then I realized that if I do it this way, then this directory won’t get the content (in this case listings) needed to attract visitors. And without visitors, this directory is just useless. So I decided to add business listings myself and this way, this directory will slowly build up useful content for it’s visitors.

I think one of the ways Google could have noticed this business directory is that the number of visitors to this site is increasing. In the past (maybe about 6 months back), I usually get about 900 visitors to the directory per day. Now, I get about 1,400 visitors per day! And most of the visitors come from Google. This could be one of the ways Google figures out how useful a site is to their visitors. This is of course only a guess.

Don’t know what is Virtual Network Computing (VNC)? In basic terms, it is sort of like remote computing. Let’s say you are at your office and you need to access your home PC. You can use this software or technology to access your home PC’s desktop and do whatever you want like you are physically there. But of course, you can’t insert a floppy or insert your USB thumbdrive, but I hope you get the idea. It allows you to “virtually“ control your mouse, keyword and access your PC through the network or Internet with a graphical interface.

So now you know what VNC is, you can appreciate the usefulness of this software/system. You can see on your screen exactly what is shown on the other PC’s screen. You can control and access several PCs from just one location, without the need to be physically present. Think of yourself as a king controlling everything from his castle without even the need to leave the comfort of his servants.

What you need is actually two pieces of software. You need a VNC Server and a VNC Client. So, for the PCs you want to remotely access to, you need to install the VNC Server. And on the PC you need to control your other PCs from, you need to install the VNC Client software. Of course, you will need to open up your firewall (if you have) to allow access to the Server PCs. For each PC you need to access, you will have to run the client software to access the server.

There are two very popular flavors of VNC. One of them is RealVNC while the other is TightVNC. I am currently using TightVNC as it is very powerful and have tons of features which I really need. However, I find that TightVNC is not very stable. Not stable as compared to RealVNC. RealVNC gave me no problems all the while I have been using it, although it has less features. And if you need the more advanced features, you need to purchase the Enterprise Edition. Anyway, TightVNC is backward compatible to the original version, so you can use TightVNC Client to access RealVNC Server but any feature not supported by RealVNC cannot be used.

Hey guys, I am back again to introduce to you yet another authority site. This time it is a site for a forum script. The script is called Vanilla. I am sure if you are a forum webmaster, you will know this name. Although I won’t say it is as popular as PhpBB or VBulletin, it is nevertheless pretty famous. Why is it famous? Well, the main reason is it is unique. It is not your regular forum in the way that it displays the messages and threads if the forum, some of which is being copied by other forum scripts. The latest threads will be shown at the top of the main page so you don’t need to browse to a subforum before looking at the latest discussions. The arrangement and the layout of the threads is very intuitive. You can even browse by the regular method of subforums(or by category) if you so wish. They also have a very powerful search function available for those who like to do searching.

The thing about Vanilla is that it comes out of the box lean and very light-weight. Their requirements for installation and setup is low, so most web servers (with PHP support) with MySQL would work. Although it has all the basic functions for the users and the administrator, compared to other scripts, you can say it is very plain. But Vanilla has a lot of “add-ons” available. In fact, it is designed so that developers can easily and quickly create powerful add-ons for the Vanilla system. Oh, if you are worried about the looks, Vanilla sure won’t disappoint. It has the web2.0 kind of feel but there are many other themes and styles out there too. I am actually very impressed with it’s look. So if you are looking for a unique design for your brand new forum, you will be able to find them easily or you can look for developers to help you create one.

Yes, this is a free script. Open source and standards compliant. They have a very active community which I am sure will be willing to help you out if you have any problems with the script. And furthermore, it supports a variety of different languages with add-ons available. You can finally make your truly global internet forum real soon with this forum script.

Oh, the great MJZ Hosting forum is using this script as well.

You know Godzilla? Yes, the hunk of meat that goes around tearing down houses and terrifying people in cities? Well, now, you have a software called Filezilla! Nope, it is not a software that goes around tearing down files and terrifying computer users, but a FTP Client. If you don’t know what a FTP Client does, I will tell you. FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It is used to upload (or transfer) files through this protocol to an FTP Server. It is mainly used for Webservers and for users to upload their files to their server. So for a webmaster, an FTP client is a must have.

I had tried a lot of different FTP Clients (like CuteFTP, WarFTP, MFiles and so on), but Filezilla really rocks the boat. It’s a very reliable and stable software and provides me with the least number of timeouts. And since Filezilla automatically resumes failed file transfers, it’s no hassle too. I also get very good speeds when doing data transfer with Filezilla. It supports passive mode for those hard to reach servers. They have a very simple to use interface and I am sure that most beginners will have no problems using this software. All you have to do is set your FTP host address, your username and password and click on connect. Simple! You can download this software freely as it is licensed under GPL and runs under Windows.

All in all, the main reason why I choose to use this software - it’s stable and it’s free. I had far fewer problems with this software than with other FTP clients and I have tried many. Basically, it’s a great working piece of program which all webmasters should have. It may lack the frills that other commercial FTP programs have, but if you don’t have any use for them, why bother?

Oh, they also have a server software called Filezilla Server. This is a server software as opposed to the Client software. You install this software in order to have a FTP Client download or upload files to your server. As with their client software, this is Windows only.

This software used to be my favorite media player years ago. And no, it’s not BullShit! It had all the features you need to play your avi files, mp3 files and other types of media files and more. And it is reasonably fast as well. And compared to the sub-par Microsoft Media Player, it was like superb. And from my experience, no other player even come close to it. Sure, Winamp was great for playing audio files, but it still lose to BS Player when playing video files.

But that was years ago. Now with so much competition, it has lost out a lot. I personally feel that BS Player is now a bit of bloatware and it’s kind of slow when playing video files when compared to other software. If you take Media Player Classic to compare, the speed difference is very apparent. Yes, it supports a boatload of media formats, but so does other media players out there. And with Microsoft’s Media Player maturing with a huge amount of features, BS Player has not kept up with the competition at all. I mean, it’s just like Netscape. People tend to use the media player that comes with their Operating System if it suits them fine. They won’t think of changing to another software. Worse, BS Player comes with advertisements (aka Adware aka Spyware) now. If you don’t want the advertisements (served by SaveNow), you need to pay for the “Pro” version.

I am currently using Media Player Classic to play all my media files. It supports a variety of formats and even allows the use of “subtitles” too. And I don’t have any problem playing files using this lightweight software. It doesn’t come with adware either. So why should I use BS Player? The developers need to really improve more on their software first before I would consider using it.

I am here to introduce to you yet another authority site - Big Upload. Yes, from it’s name you will know that it’s an file storage site. What you do is upload your files to their site (and you can upload up to 500MB) and they will do the rest. You may also send an email to your recipient to inform them of your storage URL for them to access it. And you get to have it stored online for as long as you constantly access it. If you don’t, it will only stay for 30 days before it is deleted. So if it is a popular file, you won’t need to worry about it.

I guess it is good for people who need to send big files (which a lot of email servers will reject) to each other. Instead of sending files through email, all you have to do is upload the file(s), key in your recipient’s email address, write a few words and you are done. Your recipient will just need to click on the link provided and he will be able to download the files. This way, you won’t clog up your email server with big attachments and you don’t need to worry about file size limitations. It also gives your recipient the ability to choose whether to download the file or not, unlike through email since he has to download the mail first.

You can also use this service as a temporary file storage system. Let’s say you need to send a file from your home PC to Office PC, instead of using floppies or thumb drives, you just need to click on a link, and you will be able to access your files from your Office. It also gives you the flexibility of accessing your files anywhere you want. From overseas in an Internet Cafe, or your client’s computer or anywhere with an internet connection! And best of all, this service is free. You can also join their premium membership, which provides you with a bigger storage space and no time limit for your stored files.

But nowadays, this service has been abused very often. A lot of people have used this service to share illegal or copyrighted files like MP3, Videos and software. Although it seems that they do respond to reports of illegal files and take action, I am pretty sure that a lot still gets through. Hope that it won’t get shut down due to this.

Thinking of setting up a email server? Thinking of doing it without the huge cost of getting a Windows server? Scared of telling your boss that the Microsoft Exchange Software will cost several thousand of dollars and it doesn’t allow you to have 200 users? Worried that without the costly anti-virus and anti-spam system, your IT department will be swamped with tech calls from angry staff? Nervous about setting up a Linux system when you do not have any experience with Linux itself? Well, you are saved! Yes, there is Qmail Toaster available for you and me.

This package depositary supports a variety of features for anyone thinking of setting up a Linux Server. You just need to download CentOS or Fedora Core or Mandriva or SuSE Linux and install it. If you can’t install these distros, you shouldn’t be administrating an email server. And after you have installed the OS, you just need to follow a few simple instructions and you are done. If you are even lazier, they have a script for you too. So just run the script and you are ready to setup your first Linux email server. Isn’t it wonderful?

The features include having a anti-spam and anti-virus email scanning system (Spam Assassin and ClamAV), supports virtual domains, allows web-based email access and administration, supports industry wide authentication, allows mailing lists, supports POP access and security features for emails like SPF, DKIM and so on. And everything is based on the popular MTA Qmail, just only easier. Best of all, it’s free. Your boss will be impressed. You just need to make sure everything is working properly first before you try to impress him/her.

I have been using this software (SpamPal) for over 2 years now and it has gotten me what I need - a way to filter out the email spam. Well, yes, this is something my email host (that’s my ISP) should have done for me, but somehow they want like S$10 per month to do that. And I heard that the service is not reliable, with a lot of spam still being allowed through. So I went ahead and found this gem. It sits between your email server and email client. It then downloads the emails for you and then filters it according to blacklists (DNSBL lists) and whatever, and then tags any email found to be “spammy”. You can then use your email client to filter them out by setting up rules.

I have to say, Spam Pal really works. Sure, it is not prefect. But then, what is? I have never seen any “prefect” solution to the spam problem. Even my office’s supposedly “fool-proof” spam filter which cost like several thousand per year to setup, still lets spam in and worse, they block legitimate emails too. At least, Spam Pal is free, easily configurable and works with any email client (Outlook Express and all others) but only if you are using POP3 (Or IMAP) to retrieve your mails. It doesn’t work with Hotmail or other web-based email services.

So, if you are having problems with spam and your ISP won’t help (or charge you a head and a toe for it), then try Spam Pal. Just install it, do the necessary changes to your incoming email server settings and username, and let Spam Pal filter the spam for you. Of course, you then need to set up rules to send any tagged mails to a certain folder. That’s it. All done and you get the emails you need without the crap. It is for Windows only but supports a variety of languages.

It’s here. The ultimate website tracker and stats program/script on the Internet. It’s OpenTracker! Why is it good? Well, this script is really one mean tracker. I don’t mean that kind of scripts which tells you where a visit enter your site, but exactly what your visitor is doing. You know, from which site is your visitor from, which page is he/she visiting, how long does he/she spends on a page and which site they exit to. Yes, from the moment they enter your site to the moment they leave it, everything is tracked by Open Tracker. And with details for the information junkie!

Although some of the features are also provided by other stats script, this powerful script allows is especially designed for “human events”. So they will filter of bots, worms or any automated system that is visiting your site and concentrate on your actual human visitors. This script and all the data are also hosted on their servers so it will not affect the performance of your site. And this data can be accessed 24/7 from anywhere on the Internet. The interface and reports are displayed clearly, allowing you to access the most important information easily.

However, I am still trying to figure out other than being hosted offsite, what difference in features does this script has over free ones like Awstats. Even Google’s analytics data is hosted on their own servers, so it should not affect the performance of the your site too. Why pay for something that has no real advantage unless you are really a detail freak with too much free time on his/her hands?

Yes, surprisingly that’s the name - HeadSprout. If you were to take it literally, it means growing a head. If you are some weird alien without a head, this will be a great site for you to become more human, by growing a head. But for the rest of us humans, this is a site to help youngsters learn to read. What they provide is an interactive program which encourages children to read and to learn through the Internet. So students from school or from home can login to HeadSprout and start the interesting and fun lessons at their own pace. Teachers and parents can also monitor their students or children’s progress. Oh, and HeadSprout guarantees results!

Anyone tried this service before? I mean, it looks like just another one of those online sites which offers stories and reading materials. Nothing special to me. In Singapore, I have seen such programs offered by big commercial schools which cost several thousand dollars and requires like 3 hours per day. I myself thing that such programs are highly ineffective. Sure, it looks like they are offering a lot of materials and lessons (mainly to impress brain-dead Singapore parents who are too busy shopping) but does it work? Will young children be able to concentrate on so many things for such long period of time? I don’t think so. Heck, spending 3 hours on lessons? I doubt that 90% of Singapore parents can even stay awake for 15 minutes, let alone listen to lecturers for 3 long hours.

So please come on, let your children enjoy life for once. Let them play in the sun instead of stuffing them full of books and interactive DVDs or maths quizz or tuition lessons or what other shit so that you can spend your time shopping. I really pity the children nowadays. Singapore parents are probably the worst kind of parents you can find in the entire world. Thus you can look at the next generation of Singaporean young and the society that resulted from it.

It shouldn’t be HeadSprout, but HeartSprout. Singaporeans, especially the parents should all grow a heart and stop being childish and know that parenthood requires some effort.