Go figure, but I am actually being forced to come out of my cave (or cage, depending on how you look at it) and to exist in the 21st century. This is obviously a radical change in my life. I have certain tasks I have been assigned, which I have very little knowledge of in regards to current standards and protocols. Most of the software/hardware I once utilized to work on these tasks is over 10 years old, and thus obsolete. I could use your advice in the following regards, if you have the time and advice to spare: 1) I need to set up an email client program. I have the built in Mac iMail one or whatnot, and I also have Thunderbird. I could learn to use either, but keep in mind that I am not particularly tech savvy, so any other suggestions that would lead to a more user friendly experience/interface would be much appreciated. I will eventually be expected to set up and maintain an entire email server. 2) I need to know some things about S.E.O. Search Engine Optimization. Obviously I don't expect the peeps on here to lay that all out for me, but some basic pointers and perhaps a helpful, tried and true online tutorial could help me out extensively. Obviously a simple Google search would give me a Cornucopia of information, and that is half the problem. There is simply too much out there, I know some of you have mastered these skills, and could provide some real life stories/experiences to go along with the details of the technical know how that I could undoubtedly unearth. I would just like some personal experiences of others to utilize as a jumping off point, if it is not too much trouble. Thank you for your time and energy, and if no one replies, I understand.
1. Email As far as clients go, in a business setting Microsoft Outlook is king. And it will probably come bundled with Excel and Word which are other office favorites. You'll get a ton of people bashing MS and proclaiming their love of Open Office / Libre and Thunderbird but if you have any power users who have to do more than grocery lists, -- it's the way to go Alternatives: * Gmail - Google can host email using your domain under a business license. A lot of people like the interface (I personally don't) so that may be an option. * Microsoft Office 365. Hosted Email and Office App solution from MS. They essentially are hosting the mail server for you. May be easier to maintain. Challenges and Considerations: * If you have a job soley to support this, then outsourcing the functionality isn't gonna help you. If its not your sole responsibliity, then try to do so. A lot of companies are moving away from managing the email servers -- its too much to work trying to keep up on the issues, making sure its secure, making sure the firewalls are right, keeping the antivirus up to date. The cost in man power is too high so a lot of them are outsourcing it to providers who have the reach and the scale to make it happen. * Mobile Connectivity? Do you need to support Black Berry's? What about Andriods and iPhones? Another set of complications. * web access from home? Another complication. Not trying to be discouraging. 2. SEO - Clean URL structure - Light weight CSS / HTML size - Fast loading site (use CDN's for as much as possible) - Create good content and get good link backs - Use something like www.marketsamurai.com to find search terms to target your content towards. - Read Matt Cutts blog (works for google)
I think we are going to use Gmail, so thank you for this. Working with Google groups now, someone else is actually doing the email client now, luckily. I will pass this on.
