Groundzero Webmaster Newsletter : Issue #9
Copyright (c) 2002 : http://www.ground-z.org
September 28 2002 : All Rights Reserved
Editor : Rik Tairea - webmaster@ground-z.org

The Groundzero Webmaster Newsletter is a free monthly eZine created for webmasters and website owners who are looking for useful resources, tools, editorials, software, eBooks, promotion and design tips to help get the most out of a website. For in-depth reviews of webmaster resources and website tools, articles, books, software, awards and past newsletter issues then make sure you visit http://www.ground-z.org.


- In This Issue -

1. Introduction
2. Recommended Resources
3. Top 10 Resources @ Groundzero
4. Editors Corner
5. Promotion Tip
6. Recommended eBook
7. Design Review
8. Recommended Software
9. Contact/Unsubscribe/Subscribe/Privacy
10. Final Thoughts
11. Newsletter Details


- 1.Introduction -

Welcome to Issue #9 of the Groundzero Webmaster Newsletter. This month in the "Editors Corner" I talk about pop-ups, we have a robots.txt special in the "Recommended Resources" section and we have the usual software, eBook, promotion tip and design review.

This month at Groundzero I added 30 articles to the articles section, this now takes our article count to 100!

If you didn't already know Groundzero hosts an excellent collection of articles designed to help the modern day site owner and webmaster get the most out of a website and address various webmaster issues. Topics range from Search Engine Optimization and Website Promotion to Advertising and Webpage Design.

http://www.ground-z.org/articles.html

I highly recommend you take a look at the Pay Per Click Search Engine series of articles written by Merle located in the "Search Engines" section. If you're thinking about taking the plunge by investing your time and money into the PPC world then read these.

- All you need to know about Pay Per Click Search Engines.
- PPC SE's : Which ones are worth your advertising dollars.
- PPC Search Engine management with just one click.

I also recommend a batch of freshly added Ad Copy articles written by Bob Leduc that have been added to the"Advertising : Ad Copy : Revenue" section. If you need help with your sales copy then these are a must read.

- How to create successful advertising copy.
- How to improve your sales copy to get more sales.
- Power phrases increase your sales.

Remember that past issues of the Groundzero Webmaster Newsletter are available at the website, if you want them sent to your inbox then just let me know which issues you want. If you have any feedback about this eZine then don't hesitate to send it in.

Groundzero - http://www.ground-z.org

Enjoy this months issue!


- 2.Recommended Resources -

This month I thought I would depart from the usual various recommend resources and concentrate on the robots.txt file. Robots.txt files can be optional, they don't add any visual content to your site but they will allow you to control what the search engines do and don't when they spider and index.

Most search engines abide by the robots.txt file and check for it first when they come to your site. Upload the robots.txt file to the root directory where your index file is located on your server.

Combine these resources to learn more about spiders and the robots.txt file to create, modify or test one that suits your website's needs.

PCman's Robots.txt Creator :
http://www.thepcmanwebsite.com/robots.txt_creator.shtml

Search Engine World Robots.txt Validator :
http://www.searchengineworld.com/cgi-bin/robotcheck.cgi

Search Engine Spider Simulator :
http://www.searchengineworld.com/cgi-bin/sim_spider.cgi

Spiders Crawlers and Indexers :
http://www.searchengineworld.com/spiders


- 3.Top 10 Resources @ Groundzero -

Here are the top 10 rated webmaster resources reviewed at Groundzero. Visit the "Webmaster Resources" section and read in-depth reviews on various website tools, guides, affiliate networks, traffic generators and software. New webmaster resources are added weekly and are rated out of 5.00.

1 - iPowerWeb
2 - A Best Web
3 - Shareasale
4 - Group Mail
5 - Trafficology
6 - Ulead Cool 3D
7 - CoffeeCup HTML Editor
8 - vBulletin
9 - Sitepoint Tribune
10 - Logo Creator


- 4.Editors Corner -

"Pop-ups : the continuing saga"

Earlier in the month I read an interesting report about pop-ups. It was about an ISP that will block pop-ups and pop-unders automatically for it's customers (I'm sure some of you have read about this).

I read another article that reported pop-up blockers are being downloaded and purchased at a very high rate (I won't give out statistics because 62.34% of stats are made up).

Obvious conclusion : people are sick of pop-ups.

I've known this for quite some time but it wasn't until recently that it was drummed into my thick skull. I've been reading some threads at A Best Web that touch on this topic and there are quite a few webmasters who despise them.

Personally I can live with one pop per site, maybe even two but anymore than that and I kind of get annoyed. I recently visited a site that had three pop-ups per page and in order for me to get to the information that I wanted I had to dig through six pages of unrelated content. I had to go through a total of eighteen pop-ups in order to reach one page of info, in the end it wasn't really worth it.

Some of you may know that I use a pop-up at Groundzero and I'll always keep it there because in my humble opinion it's not too annoying and it is only "one" pop-up.

I follow these guidelines when utilizing this pop-up :
- it's not the first thing to load on the site
- it only loads when exiting the index page
- it doesn't take long to load
- it doesn't consist of any flash
- it doesn't generate any direct revenue
- it only advertises the newsletter

I've used pop-ups to generate revenue through CPM ads with Popuptraffic (PUT) and to advertise lead programs. Earning revenue with PUT was ok for a while because I used it on a site that generated a nice amount of traffic, it was nice to earn something on a content site that doesn't sell anything.

I then stopped using PUT and utilized custom made pop-ups that consisted of lead generating programs. I also used the same loading guidelines that I use in the newsletter pop-up.

So why do I continue to use pop-ups? Because they work and I figure as long as I don't over do it they will continue to (for now anyway). But I do understand why a lot of surfers hate them and I wouldn't be surprised if they and/or companies that sell pop-up ads disappeared in the future.

Use pop-ups in moderation.


- 5.Promotion Tip -

Linbo Text Link Exchange
http://www.linbo.com

Linbo.com is a free text link exchange network that provides the ability for websites to advertise each other. The concept behind Linbo is that you display text links for other websites and they display links for your website. This is an easy to increase traffic.

Text links get a higher click through ratio, load faster and take less space than banners do. Unlike banner exchange services that have a fixed exchange ratio (near 50%), Linbo have a dynamic one which is recalculated for every member and usually varies from 80% to 100%.

I've used this unique service a couple of times and thought it was ok. I initially signed up based on the testimony of other webmasters who were reporting traffic boosts of 200 unique visitors per day.

The key to gaining traffic with Linbo is that you need a concise, accurate and attention grabbing text link description to catch a potential visitors eye. You also need some initial website traffic (as is the case with most exchanges) in order to generate impressions for your link.


- 6.Recommended eBook -

Title : Learn JavaScript
Price : $9.95
URL : http://www.ground-z.org/resources/learnjavascript.html

The Learn JavaScript eBook is specifically made to help beginners learn JavaScript. The creators of this eBook have captured the most important parts of learning the JavaScript language and made it so easy that you will learn the basics of JavaScript in under two hours. Buy this eBook and learn JavaScript fast and effectively

JavaScript is a client side scripting language, with it you can add interactivity and conditional behaviour to web pages. This eBook is easy to use and understand and it has many examples that will show you exactly how the code should be written and why. This eBook teaches the basics and then the more advance features in JavaScript.


- 7.Design Review -

Site Name : Pixel-Mind
Type : Personal Site
URL : http://pixelmind.t5k.com

Pixel-Mind is a personal site which expresses the feelings, creativity and imagination of it's webmaster/creator. This site is also a past winner of the Groundzero Design Award.

As soon as you view the first page of Pixel-Mind you already know that it was designed by someone who happens to be a graphic designer. The layout is clean and eye catching and the color scheme is simple but well thought out.

I personally like the opening splash page. It consists of an animated image that gives the impression of pixels loading to form a complete image. Very well designed personal site.


- 8.Recommended Software -

Name : PhotoPlus 5.5
Type : Image Editing
Size : 20MB
Price : Free
Operating System : Windows (all)
URL : http://www.serif.com/photoplus5/index.asp

PhotoPlus has the features you'll need, from importing or creating pictures and animations, through manipulating colors and effects all the way to final export. Built in support for TWAIN scanners and cameras makes it easy to bring in your own photos, while comprehensive import filters let you open just about any standard bitmap image.

Once you've got your image into PhotoPlus, you can enhance and alter its on screen appearance with a diverse toolkit of functions and effects. A full range of export options (with special attention to web graphics) and optimization capabilities round out this software package.


- 9.Contact/Unsubscribe/Subscribe/Privacy -

If you have any questions regarding this newsletter then please feel free to contact me by e-mail. You can also send in any feedback about the Groundzero Webmaster Newsletter. I love receiving e-mail so feel free to send in a message to just say hello or, if you need any help (website wise) then send in a question that I might be able to help you with.

contact - webmaster@ground-z.org
unsubscribe - unsubscribe@ground-z.org
subscribe - subscribe@ground-z.org

I absolutely despise SPAM and I will respect your privacy. I will not share or sell your e-mail address with anyone, I will not send you any unsolicited mail or collect any demographic information about you. Your e-mail address will only be used to receive the Groundzero Webmaster Newsletter and any correspondence with me will remain confidential.


- 10.Final Thoughts -

I hope you enjoyed Issue #9 of the Groundzero Webmaster Newsletter. Remember you can always read past issues of this newsletter on the website and the next issue will be sent out October 28th 2002. Please feel free to send any feedback or comments you may have about this newsletter.

If you want to recommend some webmaster resources/websites, eBooks, software or any well designed websites then let me know, even if it's yours. If it benefits others then I'll feature it in an issue of this newsletter so send it in.

If you think you know someone who might be interested in reading this newsletter then do them a favor and forward them this entire e-mail or point them to the Groundzero website located @ http://www.ground-z.org

If you want to help out some more and you think that this newsletter is useful then feel free to put a link on your website pointing to Groundzero @ http://www.ground-z.org

Thanks for your time and stay safe.
Rik Tairea :)


- 11.Newsletter Details -

You are receiving the Groundzero Webmaster Newsletter because you submitted your e-mail address by way of a sign-up form located at Groundzero or at one of our partner sites. You may have also subscribed by e-mail. If you do not wish to receive this publication anymore then please follow the unsubscription e-mail link located in section 9.

No part of this newsletter may be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission. You may forward this newsletter by e-mail as long as you forward it in its entirety. It is forbidden to post this newsletter on any website or republish it in print or other media without prior written consent from the editor.