#where are the tech savvy people who a) help out apple users when the company doesn't care and b) aren't scammers | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hiyabeto · 5 years

Text

Warning: This is not an endorsement or encouragement for you to start behaving in illegal or immoral behaviour. I am not held responsible for any trouble you decide to get into; or what you do I encourage people to use my information I post in a responsible way and not violate any state or federal laws

History Of The Dark Web

The Deep Web and it’s Dark Web brother have been in the public eye more than usual in the past few years. Once the things that happen on the hidden part began having an impact on the day to day and safety of our lives, ordinary people started to take an interest. That doesn’t mean the hidden part of the internet is a recent development. It’s just about as old as the internet itself!

Now days tho it is dangerous if you are less then tech savvy and it could turn deadly for a new person stumbling onto the dark side of the internet where things like killers for hire, Drugs, Guns, Fake Money, and even Identities and people can be bought! You can only guess what can happen if you stumble onto one of these sites without knowing and ask the wrong questions!

1980

The history of the hidden web is almost as old as the history of the internet itself. Obviously, the same technology that made the internet and the web possible, also makes the Dark Web possible thanks to its architecture and designs. Which is why it is fair to pin the start of the Dark Web to ARPANET. Which is the direct precursor to the internet of today? While ARPANET may not have had a Dark Web as we know it now from the start, it wouldn’t take long before people started to make use of this technology for things they wanted to keep a secret. It turns out that the first ever online sale happened in the early 70s and was in fact cannabis. Students at Stanford sold weed to students at MIT, using ARPANET. Remember that at this point most people didn’t have personal computers, much less home internet access.

In the 1980s, access to the internet for normal citizens is still a dream. This was the decade when everything needed for a worldwide web would fall into place. In the early 80s, the TCP/IP standard is solidified. By the mid- 80s personal computers and modems are, if not affordable, at least available for anyone to buy. Internet pioneers also invented the domain name system we use to resolve website names during this decade.

Data havens emerge as an idea at this time as well. Since the world was going global, worries about where data should be stored came to the fore. Storing your data in a haven meant sending it out of the country to a territory that had better legal protection against government spying. At the extreme, data havens would be in no country at all. They would be built on structures or vessels out in international waters . A similar idea to seasteading. Actual data havens in the 80s popped up in the Caribbean islands.(Or as it turns out and which is slowly starting to be developed the Decentralized web run off the BlockChain and which has the potential to be way more secure then the darkweb)

1990's

The 1990s are without a doubt the time when the World Wide Web went mainstream. Thanks to web technologies like HTTP and FTP along with graphical computers capable of running a web browser, there was a sudden mainstream appeal to this whole internet thing.

Towards the end of the 1990s, there was a real leap in the technologies that allowed large amounts of data, such as multimedia, to be shared online. MP3 technology in particular lead to a massive shakeup of the music industry. Thanks to like the likes of Napster, people could perform illegal peer-to-peer exchanges of ripped and compressed music. This caused a complete meltdown among musicians and music executives. Lars Ulrich famously sued Napster which was really symbolic of the battle between old and new school. Today the music industry has adapted and streaming subscriptions are the norm. Without Dark Web alike peer-to-peer exchanges it’s doubtful we’d have the consumer-friendly online media world of today.

2000

The Dark Web proper really got its start in March of 2000 with the release of Freenet. The service still exists today and provides a censorship-resistant way to use the web. It is a true implementation of the Dark Web and provided a way for plenty of illegal information to pass around. This included illegal pornographic material and pirated content. Of course, actually exchanging money anonymously is still incredibly hard at this point, since you have to use cash. So Freenet doesn’t lead to any black market activity to any significant degree.

A data haven called HavenCo was established in Sealand (a seasteading micronation) which promised to store sensitive information in a place where no government could stick its nose. It seemed like a Dark Web dream, but by the early 2010s HavenCo was dead.

The most important Dark Web development of all time happened in 2002, with the release of TOR or The Onion Router. It was created by non-other than the US government, as a way to help their own operatives remain untraceable. It’s no exaggeration to say that the Dark Web of today could not exist without this technology.

Late in the 2000s came the advent of cryptocurrency in the form of Bitcoin. The final piece of the puzzle needed to make the Dark Web really click.

The Early 2010's

The 2010s represent the era where cryptocurrency and TOR met to create the first proper black markets. The pioneer was the Silk Road, which is now long defunct. Despite taking all the important figures out behind the Silk Road, it has seemingly done little to stop the trade of drugs and other illegal goods and services over the Dark Web.

This is the era in which the Dark Web becomes a topic of public concern, rather than just something discussed as cyber security conferences. Many mainstream articles emerge that explain the difference between the massive Deep Web and the relatively tiny Dark Web.

It becomes especially scary when it emerges that terrorists are using the Dark Web to communicate and coordinate. Ironic, given what the US created TOR for originally. Research published showing that the Dark Web is mainly being used to commit crimes.

Today

The Dark Web of today is reportedly in decline. Despite this, there is an incredible variety of hidden services and significant information exchange happening out of sight of the mainstream web. It doesn’t really matter that the Dark Web is relatively small compared to the surface web as a whole. Its impact is disproportionately large. Small groups of hackers collaborating on the Dark Web can bring a multi-billion Dollar internet company to its knees. Hackers end up impacting millions of users.

Darknet black markets are also thriving and putting both traditional and new synthetic drugs into the hands of anyone who wants them. Cryptocurrency has been the biggest factor in this maturation of the Dark Web.

Now you know the basic history of the dark web,. now lets get into the history of the newer technologies that help run the dark web and keep it secure technologies like TOR and the Cryptocurrencies that helps collect payment from the goods that are sold on the dark web.

History Of Tor

Tor is based on the principle of ‘onion routing’ which was developed by Paul Syverson, Michael G. Reed and David Goldschlag at the United States Naval Research Laboratory in the 1990’s. The alpha version of Tor, named ‘The Onion Routing Project’ or simply TOR Project, was developed by Roger Dingledine and Nick Mathewson. It was launched on September 20, 2002. Further development was carried under the financial roof of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).

The Tor Project Inc. is a non-profit organization that currently maintains Tor and is responsible for its development. The United States Government mainly funds it, and further aid is provided by Swedish Government and different NGOs & individual sponsors.

The U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) has called Tor “the King of high secure, low latency Internet anonymity.” And similar comments by BusinessWeek magazine, “perhaps the most effective means of defeating the online surveillance efforts of intelligence agencies around the world”.

Another speculation made is that Tor takes its funding from the U.S. Government which may lead to the assumption that NSA may have compromised the identities of individual Tor users. However, the executive director Andrew Lewman has disclaimed any confederations with NSA.

How it works

Tor works on the concept of ‘onion routing’ method in which the user data is first encrypted and then transferred through different relays present in the Tor network, thus creating a multi-layered encryption (layers like an onion), thereby keeping the identity of the user safe.

One encryption layer is decrypted at each successive Tor relay, and the remaining data is forwarded to any random relay until it reaches its destination server. For the destination server, the last Tor node/exit relay appears as the origin of the data. It is thus tough to trace the identity of the user or the server by any surveillance system acting in the mid-way.

Other than providing anonymity to standalone users, Tor can also provide anonymity to websites and servers in the form of Tor Hidden Services. Also, P2P applications like BitTorrent can be configured to use the Tor network and download torrent files.

Is It Safe

Various claims have been made to compromise Tor’s anonymity and security from time to time. The most famous one was the Bad Apple Attack in which the researchers claimed to have identified around 10k IP addresses of active BitTorrent users who were connected via Tor.

The Heartbleed bug was behind another major compromise in April 2014 which halted the Tor network for several days.

Traffic Fingerprinting is a method used to analyze web traffic by analyzing the patterns, responses, and packets in a particular direction. This technique can be used to attack the Tor network by making the attacker’s computer act as the guard. The main vulnerability was found at its exit points where the level of security is very low as compared to the rest of the Tor network.

The History of cryptocurrencies

In 1983, the American cryptographer David Chaum conceived an anonymous cryptographic electronic money called ecash. Later, in 1995, he implemented it through Digicash, an early form of cryptographic electronic payments which required user software in order to withdraw notes from a bank and designate specific encrypted keys before it can be sent to a recipient. This allowed the digital currency to be untraceable by the issuing bank, the government, or any third party.

In 1996, the NSA published a paper entitled How to Make a Mint: the Cryptography of Anonymous Electronic Cash, describing a Cryptocurrency system first publishing it in a MIT mailing list and later in 1997, in The American Law Review (Vol. 46, Issue 4).

In 1998, Wei Dai published a description of "b-money", characterized as an anonymous, distributed electronic cash system. Shortly thereafter, Nick Szabo described bit gold. Like bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies that would follow it, bit gold (not to be confused with the later gold-based exchange, BitGold) was described as an electronic currency system which required users to complete a proof of work function with solutions being cryptographically put together and published. A currency system based on a reusable proof of work was later created by Hal Finney who followed the work of Dai and Szabo.

The first decentralized cryptocurrency, bitcoin, was created in 2009 by pseudonymous developer Satoshi Nakamoto. It used SHA-256, a cryptographic hash function, as its proof-of-work scheme. In April 2011, Namecoin was created as an attempt at forming a decentralized DNS, which would make internet censorship very difficult. Soon after, in October 2011, Litecoin was released. It was the first successful cryptocurrency to use scrypt as its hash function instead of SHA-256. Another notable cryptocurrency, Peercoin was the first to use a proof-of-work/proof-of-stake hybrid.

On 6 August 2014, the UK announced its Treasury had been commissioned to do a study of cryptocurrencies, and what role, if any, they can play in the UK economy. The study was also to report on whether regulation should be considered.

Definition

According to Jan Lansky, a cryptocurrency is a system that meets six conditions:

The system does not require a central authority, its state is maintained through distributed consensus.The system keeps an overview of cryptocurrency units and their ownership.The system defines whether new cryptocurrency units can be created. If new cryptocurrency units can be created, the system defines the circumstances of their origin and how to determine the ownership of these new units.Ownership of cryptocurrency units can be proved exclusively cryptographically.The system allows transactions to be performed in which ownership of the cryptographic units is changed. A transaction statement can only be issued by an entity proving the current ownership of these units.If two different instructions for changing the ownership of the same cryptographic units are simultaneously entered, the system performs at most one of them.

In March 2018, the word cryptocurrency was added to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary

What is Blockchain

A blockchain, originally block chain, is a growing list of records, called blocks, that are linked using cryptography.[1][6] Each block contains a cryptographic hash of the previous block, a timestamp, and transaction data (generally represented as a Merkle tree).

By design, a blockchain is resistant to modification of the data. It is "an open, distributed ledger that can record transactions between two parties efficiently and in a verifiable and permanent way". For use as a distributed ledger, a blockchain is typically managed by a peer-to-peer network collectively adhering to a protocol for inter-node communication and validating new blocks. Once recorded, the data in any given block cannot be altered retroactively without alteration of all subsequent blocks, which requires consensus of the network majority. Although blockchain records are not unalterable, blockchains may be considered secure by design and exemplify a distributed computing system with high Byzantine fault tolerance. Decentralized consensus has therefore been claimed with a blockchain.

Blockchain was invented by a person (or group of people) using the name Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008 to serve as the public transaction ledger of the cryptocurrency bitcoin. The identity of Satoshi Nakamoto is unknown. The invention of the blockchain for bitcoin made it the first digital currency to solve the double-spending problem without the need of a trusted authority or central server. The bitcoin design has inspired other applications, and blockchains that are readable by the public are widely used by cryptocurrencies. Blockchain is considered a type of payment rail. Private blockchains have been proposed for business use. Sources such as Computerworld called the marketing of such blockchains without a proper security model "snake oil".

Structure

A blockchain is a decentralized, distributed and public digital ledger that is used to record transactions across many computers so that any involved record cannot be altered retroactively, without the alteration of all subsequent blocks. This allows the participants to verify and audit transactions independently and relatively inexpensively. A blockchain database is managed autonomously using a peer-to-peer network and a distributed timestamping server. They are authenticated by mass collaboration powered by collective self-interests. Such a design facilitates robust workflow where participants' uncertainty regarding data security is marginal. The use of a blockchain removes the characteristic of infinite reproducibility from a digital asset. It confirms that each unit of value was transferred only once, solving the long-standing problem of double spending. A blockchain has been described as a value-exchange protocol. A blockchain can maintain title rights because, when properly set up to detail the exchange agreement, it provides a record that compels offer and acceptance.

Blocks

Blocks hold batches of valid transactions that are hashed and encoded into a Merkle tree. Each block includes the cryptographic hash of the prior block in the blockchain, linking the two. The linked blocks form a chain. This iterative process confirms the integrity of the previous block, all the way back to the original genesis block.

Sometimes separate blocks can be produced concurrently, creating a temporary fork. In addition to a secure hash-based history, any blockchain has a specified algorithm for scoring different versions of the history so that one with a higher value can be selected over others. Blocks not selected for inclusion in the chain are called orphan blocks. Peers supporting the database have different versions of the history from time to time. They keep only the highest-scoring version of the database known to them. Whenever a peer receives a higher-scoring version (usually the old version with a single new block added) they extend or overwrite their own database and retransmit the improvement to their peers. There is never an absolute guarantee that any particular entry will remain in the best version of the history forever. Blockchains are typically built to add the score of new blocks onto old blocks and are given incentives to extend with new blocks rather than overwrite old blocks. Therefore, the probability of an entry becoming superseded decreases exponentially as more blocks are built on top of it, eventually becoming very low. For example, bitcoin uses a proof-of-work system, where the chain with the most cumulative proof-of-work is considered the valid one by the network. There are a number of methods that can be used to demonstrate a sufficient level of computation. Within a blockchain the computation is carried out redundantly rather than in the traditional segregated and parallel manner.

Block time

The block time is the average time it takes for the network to generate one extra block in the blockchain. Some blockchains create a new block as frequently as every five seconds. By the time of block completion, the included data becomes verifiable. In cryptocurrency, this is practically when the transaction takes place, so a shorter block time means faster transactions. The block time for Ethereum is set to between 14 and 15 seconds, while for bitcoin it is 10 minutes.

Hard forks

A hard fork is a rule change such that the software validating according to the old rules will see the blocks produced according to the new rules as invalid. In case of a hard fork, all nodes meant to work in accordance with the new rules need to upgrade their software.

If one group of nodes continues to use the old software while the other nodes use the new software, a split can occur. For example, Ethereum has hard-forked to "make whole" the investors in The DAO, which had been hacked by exploiting a vulnerability in its code. In this case, the fork resulted in a split creating Ethereum and Ethereum Classic chains. In 2014 the Nxt community was asked to consider a hard fork that would have led to a rollback of the blockchain records to mitigate the effects of a theft of 50 million NXT from a major cryptocurrency exchange. The hard fork proposal was rejected, and some of the funds were recovered after negotiations and ransom payment. Alternatively, to prevent a permanent split, a majority of nodes using the new software may return to the old rules, as was the case of bitcoin split on 12 March 2013

Decentralization

By storing data across its peer-to-peer network, the blockchain eliminates a number of risks that come with data being held centrally. The decentralized blockchain may use ad-hoc message passing and distributed networking.

Peer-to-peer blockchain networks lack centralized points of vulnerability that computer crackers can exploit; likewise, it has no central point of failure. Blockchain security methods include the use of public-key cryptography. A public key (a long, random-looking string of numbers) is an address on the blockchain. Value tokens sent across the network are recorded as belonging to that address. A private key is like a password that gives its owner access to their digital assets or the means to otherwise interact with the various capabilities that blockchains now support. Data stored on the blockchain is generally considered incorruptible.

Every node in a decentralized system has a copy of the blockchain. Data quality is maintained by massive database replication and computational trust. No centralized "official" copy exists and no user is "trusted" more than any other. Transactions are broadcast to the network using software. Messages are delivered on a best-effort basis. Mining nodes validate transactions, add them to the block they are building, and then broadcast the completed block to other nodes. Blockchains use various time-stamping schemes, such as proof-of-work, to serialize changes. Alternative consensus methods include proof-of-stake. Growth of a decentralized blockchain is accompanied by the risk of centralization because the computer resources required to process larger amounts of data become more expensive.

Openness

Open blockchains are more user-friendly than some traditional ownership records, which, while open to the public, still require physical access to view. Because all early blockchains were permissionless, controversy has arisen over the blockchain definition. An issue in this ongoing debate is whether a private system with verifiers tasked and authorized (permissioned) by a central authority should be considered a blockchain. Proponents of permissioned or private chains argue that the term "blockchain" may be applied to any data structure that batches data into time-stamped blocks. These blockchains serve as a distributed version of multiversion concurrency control (MVCC) in databases. Just as MVCC prevents two transactions from concurrently modifying a single object in a database, blockchains prevent two transactions from spending the same single output in a blockchain. Opponents say that permissioned systems resemble traditional corporate databases, not supporting decentralized data verification, and that such systems are not hardened against operator tampering and revision. Nikolai Hampton of Computerworld said that "many in-house blockchain solutions will be nothing more than cumbersome databases," and "without a clear security model, proprietary blockchains should be eyed with suspicion."

Permissionless

The great advantage to an open, permissionless, or public, blockchain network is that guarding against bad actors is not required and no access control is needed. This means that applications can be added to the network without the approval or trust of others, using the blockchain as a transport layer.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies currently secure their blockchain by requiring new entries to include a proof of work. To prolong the blockchain, bitcoin uses Hashcash puzzles. While Hashcash was designed in 1997 by Adam Back, the original idea was first proposed by Cynthia Dwork and Moni Naor and Eli Ponyatovski in their 1992 paper "Pricing via Processing or Combatting Junk Mail".

Financial companies have not prioritised decentralized blockchains.

In 2016, venture capital investment for blockchain-related projects was weakening in the USA but increasing in China.[37] Bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies use open (public) blockchains. As of April 2018, bitcoin has the highest market capitalization.

Permissioned (private) blockchain

Permissioned blockchains use an access control layer to govern who has access to the network. In contrast to public blockchain networks, validators on private blockchain networks are vetted by the network owner. They do not rely on anonymous nodes to validate transactions nor do they benefit from the network effect. Permissioned blockchains can also go by the name of 'consortium' blockchains.

Disadvantages of private blockchain

Nikolai Hampton pointed out in Computerworld that "There is also no need for a '51 percent' attack on a private blockchain, as the private blockchain (most likely) already controls 100 percent of all block creation resources. If you could attack or damage the blockchain creation tools on a private corporate server, you could effectively control 100 percent of their network and alter transactions however you wished." This has a set of particularly profound adverse implications during a financial crisis or debt crisis like the financial crisis of 2007–08, where politically powerful actors may make decisions that favor some groups at the expense of others, and "the bitcoin blockchain is protected by the massive group mining effort. It's unlikely that any private blockchain will try to protect records using gigawatts of computing power — it's time consuming and expensive." He also said, "Within a private blockchain there is also no 'race'; there's no incentive to use more power or discover blocks faster than competitors. This means that many in-house blockchain solutions will be nothing more than cumbersome databases."

Blockchain analysis

The analysis of public blockchains has become increasingly important with the popularity of bitcoin, Ethereum, litecoin and other cryptocurrencies. A blockchain, if it is public, provides anyone who wants access to observe and analyse the chain data, given one has the know-how. The process of understanding and accessing the flow of crypto has been an issue for many cryptocurrencies, crypto-exchanges and banks. The reason for this is accusations of blockchain enabled cryptocurrencies enabling illicit dark market trade of drugs, weapons, money laundering etc. A common belief has been that cryptocurrency is private and untraceable, thus leading many actors to use it for illegal purposes. This is changing and now specialised tech-companies provide blockchain tracking services, making crypto exchanges, law-enforcement and banks more aware of what is happening with crypto funds and fiat crypto exchanges. The development, some argue, has lead criminals to prioritise use of new cryptos such as Monero. The question is about public accessibility of blockchain data and the personal privacy of the very same data. It is a key debate in cryptocurrency and ultimately in blockchain.

Types Of Blockchain's

Currently, there are at least four types of blockchain networks — public blockchains, private blockchains, consortium blockchains and hybrid blockchains.

Public blockchains

A public blockchain has absolutely no access restrictions. Anyone with an Internet connection can send transactions to it as well as become a validator (i.e., participate in the execution of a consensus protocol). Usually, such networks offer economic incentives for those who secure them and utilize some type of a Proof of Stake or Proof of Work algorithm.

Some of the largest, most known public blockchains are the bitcoin blockchain and the Ethereum blockchain.

Private blockchains

A private blockchain is permissioned. One cannot join it unless invited by the network administrators. Participant and validator access is restricted.

This type of blockchains can be considered a middle-ground for companies that are interested in the blockchain technology in general but are not comfortable with a level of control offered by public networks. Typically, they seek to incorporate blockchain into their accounting and record-keeping procedures without sacrificing autonomy and running the risk of exposing sensitive data to the public internet.

Hybrid blockchains

A hybrid blockchain simply explained is a combination between different characteristics both public and private blockchains have by design. It allows to determine what information stays private and what information is made public. Further decentralization in relation to primarily centralized private blockchains can be achieved in various ways. Instead of keeping transactions inside their own network of community run or private nodes, the hash (with or without payload) can be posted on completely decentralized blockchains such as bitcoin. Dragonchain uses Interchain to host transactions on other blockchains. This allows users to operate on different blockchains, where they can selectively share data or business logic. Other blockchains like Wanchain use interoperability mechanisms such as bridges. By submitting the hash of a transaction (with or without the sensitive business logic) on public blockchains like bitcoin or Ethereum, some of the privacy and blockchain concerns are resolved, as no personal identifiable information is stored on a public blockchain. Depending on the hybrid blockchain its architecture, multi cloud solutions allow to store data in compliance with General Data Protection Regulation and other geographical limitations while also leveraging bitcoin's global hashpower to decentralize transactions.

Getting Started On The Darkweb

Technically, this is not a difficult process. You simply need to install and use Tor. Go to www.torproject.org and download the Tor Browser Bundle, which contains all the required tools. Run the downloaded file, choose an extraction location, then open the folder and click Start Tor Browser. That's it.

The Vidalia Control Panel will automatically handle the randomised network setup and, when Tor is ready, the browser will open; just close it again to disconnect from the network.

Depending on what you intend to do on the Dark Web, some users recommend placing tape over your laptop's webcam to prevent prying eyes watching you. A tinfoil hat is also an option. If you're reading this to find out about torrent files.

The difficult thing is knowing where to look on the Dark Web. There, reader, we leave you to your own devices and wish you good luck and safe surfing. And a warning before you go any further. Once you get into the Dark Web, you *will* be able to access those sites to which the tabloids refer. This means that you could be a click away from sites selling drugs and guns, and - frankly - even worse things.

Aggregation sites such as Reddit offer lists of links, as do several Wikis, including http://thehiddenwiki.org/ - a list that offers access to some very bad places. Have a quick look by all means, but please don't take our linking to it as an endorsement to go out and get your self in trouble and please note I am not responsible for what you do

Also, Dark Web sites do go down from time to time, due to their dark nature. But if you want good customer service, stay out of the dark!

How to download Tor browser?

NOTE:Altho TOR is secure it is still advisable to download a 3rd party Virtual Private Network (VPN) as it will give you a much greater chance of not being intercepted and anything you can do to repel the people looking for what you are doing the better! ok, now lets get started

The Tor Project Inc. has released Tor Browser which is a modification of an Extended Support Release version of Mozilla Firefox browser. The browser is portable so that it can be used from an external media and also reduces the hazel of installation. Tor Browser removes the browsing history and cookies after every use, thus reducing the risk of any cookie tracking. We can set-up SOCKS (Socket Secure) based applications to use the Tor network by configuring them with a loop-back address.

Tor Browser removes the browsing history and cookies after every use, thus reducing the risk of any cookie tracking. We can set-up SOCKS (Socket Secure) based applications to use the Tor network by configuring them with a loop-back address.

The Tor browser is available various desktop operating systems including Windows, Linux, and MacOS. You can visit this link to download Tor browser.

How to install Tor browser on Windows?

Run the Tor Browser setup.Choose your desired language.On the next windows, choose the destination folder. Using Tor would be easy if you choose the Desktop as the destination.Click Install.

The setup will create a folder named Tor Browser on your Desktop. Open the folder, and run the shortcut file to use Tor Browser.

For Linux, you’ll have to extract the downloaded file either using the command line or a file extractor application.

Tor Browser for Android

Orbot – a proxy with Tor for Android devices.

Orfox – a mobile version of Tor Browser for Android devices.

The Guardian Project, a global developer community founded by Nathan Freitas, is to be credited for the development of these apps.

Tor Browser for iOS

An official Tor browser app for iOS is available on the App Store.

Tor Alternatives

Hornet is a new anonymity network that provides higher network speeds compared to Tor. I2P and Freenet are other anonymity networks which can act as Tor alternatives. Also, Tails and Subgraph OS are Linux-based distributions with built-in Tor support.

Should I Use Tor?

Tor has proved to be an excellent medium for safe, secure and anonymous web presence available to a user at no cost. The developers of Tor didn’t intend it to become a hotbed of illegal activities, but evil-minded people have leveraged Tor for their benefits. The Tor project has led to an optimistic approach towards censorship and surveillance-free internet.

You can use Tor if you want to conceal your identity on the web or access some website that blocked in your region. But refrain yourself from doing anything that’s above the law because nothing is fool-proof and they can still catch you. Also, accessing your social media accounts over Tor can expose your identity. This being said me personally I use TOR only for my dark web research and visits. I do not access no websites with a commercially available router extension (IE: Com, Net, Org, Or anything else) the only extension that is run through tor is .onion extensions. The reason being is that any other extensions have the possibility to provide backdoor access to any an all of your information that is run while it is active.

NOTE: TOR's cookies are not dumbed until after you close the browser so it is still possible to track you if your browser is left open after you visited any other sites.

Steps For Safety(CH3)

Step 1: Plan ahead.

There are plenty of reasons companies and individuals may want to access the Dark Web. SMBs and enterprise companies in particular may want to monitor Dark Web portals for stolen corporate account information. Individuals may want to monitor sites for evidence of identity theft. Facebook's encrypted site, located at facebookcorewwwi.onion, is a feature-rich method of accessing the social network using end-to-end encryption.

Set a goal, make plans, and stay focused. Be mindful of purpose. Make sure you know what information you're looking for and why you're logging on to the encrypted web. For example, if you're a reporter and need to communicate with sources, focus on PGP, email, and encrypted communication. If you're searching for credit card information, look for Silk Road-type markets that sell hacked data.Get what you need, safely disconnect TOR and Tails, then log off.

Step 2: Obtain a new USB flash drive.

Purchase a new 8 GB or larger USB flash drive. Make sure you use a fresh, unused drive. You will install Tails, and Tails only, directly on your storage device.

Step 3: Prepare your local machine.

Ideally, use a fresh laptop. This isn't an option for most users, so instead do everything in your power to secure and isolate mission-critical information.

Back up critical data and local files.Make sure your hardware is optimized and malware-free.

Step 4: Download Tails and TOR.

TOR and Tails are available on the TOR Project website. Access download links directly from https://www.torproject.org. Insert your USB drive and follow the instructions on https://tails.boum.org.

Step 5: Browse safely.

Common portals and search engines:

DuckDuckGoThe Hidden WikiOnion.linkAhmia.fiGramsTorch

Encryption is strong, but not impenetrable. The FBI discovered and exploited vulnerabilities in the TOR network. Though the agency refused to disclose the source code used to penetrate the network, undoubtedly law enforcement agencies around the world monitor and operate on the Deep Web. Members of the TOR project vowed to patch network holes and strengthen the protocol.

Many of the best general deep web search engines have shut down or been acquired, like Alltheweb and CompletePlanet. Still, a few are hanging around to get you started:

DeeperWeb – Deep web search engine that leverages Google SearchThe WWW Virtual Library – The original index of the web, but more of a directory than a search engine.Surfwax – Indexes RSS feeds. Not certain this is still working…IceRocket – Searches the blogosphere and Twitter

These are all okay, but specialized search engines tend to be better than general ones for finding info on the deep web. If you’re looking for a court case, for example, use your state or country’s public records search. If you need academic journals, check out our article on using deep web search engines for academic and scholarly research. The more specific you can be, the better, or else you’ll just end up with the same search results that you would find on Google. If you need a specific file type, like an Excel file or a PDF, learn how to specify searches for that type of file (e.g. type “filetype:PDF” in your DeeperWeb query).

How to access the dark web on Android with Tor Browser

The official Tor Browser is now available on Android. You can get it from the Play Store or the Tor downloads page. As of writing, Tor Browser for Android is still in alpha, and additionally requires you install Orbot as a prerequisite.

The Tor Browser is the most popular dark web browser. Once Tor Browser is installed, you can now access those .onion dark net websites.

Using A VPN over TOR Or Vice Versa

A VPN allows a user to encrypt all the internet traffic traveling to and from his or her device and route it through a server in a location of that user’s choosing. A VPN in combination with Tor further adds to the security and anonymity of the user.

While somewhat similar, Tor emphasizes anonymity, and a VPN emphasizes privacy.

Combining them reduces risk, but there’s an important distinction in how these two tools interact. Let’s first discuss Tor over VPN.

If you connect to your VPN and fire up Tor Browser, you’re using Tor over VPN, this is by far the most common method. All your device’s internet traffic first goes to the VPN server, then it bounces through the Tor Network before ending up at its final destination. Your ISP only see’s the encrypted VPN traffic, and won’t know you’re on Tor. You can access .onion websites normally.

#Dark Web #Saftey #technology #Getting Started On The Dark Web #tor #tor browser #vpn #security

5 notes · View notes

tagline-infotech · 3 years

Text

How to find Android App Development Software that Works for You

There are quite a few different types of Android app development software on the market today, and it can be hard to know which one will work best for you, especially if you’re new to this whole process and don’t have much experience with it yet. In this guide, I’ll cover some of the most common methods of app development and lay out their pros and cons so that you can decide which one is right for you.

Looking For Android Developer ? Android App Development Services in UK,US

User Feedback What do you think of your app? What’s wrong with it? Which features are working best? How can you improve it? This feedback will help guide you as you work on your next release. If a user isn’t happy, he or she won’t use your app again; if users aren’t using your app, then it doesn’t matter how good it is.

Mobile Device Support It’s essential that your app works on both mobile and tablet devices. This is where most potential customers are these days, after all. When you’re deciding which software is right for you, make sure it supports devices of various screen sizes and operating systems.

Customer Service Even if you have a tight budget, don’t skimp on customer service. Hire someone who has great people skills and is personable on top of being tech-savvy. While you might be willing to sacrifice your own time and energy, your customers aren’t—so make sure you aren’t doing it for them as well. An unhappy customer is more likely to take their business elsewhere than a happy one who is satisfied with what they got at a bargain price.

Flexibility in Pricing Not everyone is going to have unlimited resources at their disposal when building an app, and it’s usually best not to underestimate how much you’ll need. A free plan may be sufficient for some users, but others will definitely want something more advanced. Be sure you know what features you’ll really need so you can avoid any unnecessary costs or distractions later on.

Platform Options As of 2019, there are three major app development platforms—the most popular being Xcode, followed by Java, and finally React Native. And while there are no shortage of opinions on which platform is best, it ultimately depends on your specific needs. For example, if you’re looking to build an app with multiple languages (that support more than one region), Xcode would be a better fit than Java or React Native—and vice versa.

Special Features The top companies I’ve had experience with provide solid customer service, even if there are occasional glitches. Whenever you need help or encounter a problem, make sure you get in touch with your vendor—and don’t be afraid to ask questions! Making contact when something goes wrong will likely lead to a quicker resolution. The best vendors know that solving your problems quickly is key, so they have dedicated teams of customer-service staff who respond quickly and helpfully.

Reputation Among Customers The first thing customers notice about your application, aside from its actual content, is how well it works. Therefore, it is essential that your app functions smoothly and does not crash or malfunction. As a developer, you must make sure your app is polished and professional by going through multiple rounds of beta testing. Before you release an app to Google Play or Apple’s store, take it off-line and check every feature separately.

#application #app development #android #app #it services #uk

1 note · View note

abigailclements · 4 years

Text

Week 8 - Industrial Design

Industrial Design continues to evolve and change our everyday lives. It provides us with many useful designs or tools that make our life more convenient. Not only are these designs useful, but they are becoming more sleek and more visually appealing to the consumer as well. Here are some industrial design examples that I use almost everyday.

TV remotes have been around for a while now, but they continue to evolve and become even more convenient for users. This is my remote for my smart tv. Not only does it function as a normal remote, but it also has buttons that can take me straight to various streaming apps like Netflix. Some remotes now a day even have voice command and allow users to direct it via their own voice without having to lift a finger. Another thing to notice about remotes is the size of them continues to be smaller and more sleek as well.

This is my iPad that I use nearly everyday for graphic designing. iPad or tablets haven’t been around for very long as some other inventions in the tech world, but they are constantly changing and becoming more useful. When I got my first iPad in third grade, it was a lot thicker and more bulky and it didn’t even have a camera. Today, iPads and tablets can do so much and are even starting to replace laptops due to their smaller size.

Airpods have been a great edition to my life. Although headphones have been around for a long time, Apple changed the game completely with these wireless bluetooth headphones. Not only are they visually more appealing, but it’s very useful to not have cords hanging down like traditional ear buds. Today wireless ear buds have nearly taken out the traditional ear bud completely. Not only does Apple have this product, but so many other companies have created their own versions for much less in price.

I recently came across this amazing brush that has made my morning routine much more convenient. This is an electric brush that not only combs your hair like a traditional hair brush, but it also straightens it at the same time. It’s comes in many different colors and there are a lot of variations of this design on the market as well.

Another thing that I have seen really evolve in recent years are printers. Printers continue to become more simplistic, appealing, and smaller. I love the design of my printer because not only does it provide the function of printer good quality images, but it’s also super simple and not an eye shore in my bedroom. The back part is where the paper sits and it can also lay down as well, which I really like for visual purposes when I am not using it. Printers continue to change to become more convenient and simplistic for users, which I really appreciate because I am not that tech savvy when it comes to printers. There are even portable printers on the market that can fit into a purse or a bag, which is great for people on the go.

This is a great innovation for people who are always cold at night. There is nothing worse than getting into bed after a long day and your bed is ice cold. This is a heated mattress pad, and it is amazing. I also really like how small and simple it is so it doesn’t take up a lot of space on my night stand. It has multiple settings and even a preheat button that you can turn on before getting into bed at night. This design has also been really great in terms of saving money on electricity in the winter as a college student. There are tons of different kinds of mattress pads on the market and have a lot of different functions and uses for them, but this is the coolest innovation of the mattress pad I have seen yet.

When thinking about industrial design, we think of innovative designs and sleekness. This desk lap I think is a great example. This lamp has so many different functions such as; different light modes and brightness levels, its touch screen, a clock, a room temperature, an alarm, and even a USB port to charge your phone. All that function into this small, simplistic looking desk lamp! It’s pretty great and is helpful in so many ways. Obviously lamps have been around forever, but more and more am I seeing lamps that serve as multipurpose tools instead of just being a source of light.

This is my key fob for my car. In industrial design as cars are becoming more innovative and visually appealing, so are their keys. My car doesn’t need a key to be put in it to start, I just simply have to bring this key into my coat pocket when trying to start my car. I think it’s really convenient to not have to think about your keys. I just put it in my purse or coat pocket when i am leaving the house and don’t have to think about it again. There are many cars on the market today that have similar keys, some even have buttons that can start you car before you even get in it. Sometimes it’s the simplest things that are innovated and become so convenient that consumers wouldn’t have even thought twice about before it came along. I would have never thought this innovation would have become so admired, but it really is!

I don’t think anyone could talk about innovation without bringing up the iPhone. iPhones are constantly becoming more innovative and convenient for users. They serve as so much more than a smart phone. The design of iPhones are also have a very minimalist aesthetic. iPhones are also very user friendly which is great for those who are tech savvy and those who aren’t, which is a huge reason why I believe iPhones are so popular. They have so many different tools that make everyday life for its user more convenient.

The last piece of industrial design that I use heavily is my Embr Wave. Although it might not be a very well known device right now, it serves a great function. It was created to help people regulate their temperature better by allowing users to either chose to cool down or be heated up. You place this little device on your wrist because it is said to be one of the best spots in your body to help change your temperature. If you have ever seen someone pass out, sometimes medical personnel will put an ice pack on their wrists to cool them down, and this device does exactly that. I have a medical condition that doesn’t allow me to regulate my own body temperature well and if I get hot, I pass out really easily. This device has replaced the need for ice packs and other cooling cloths and has truly saved my life in some cases. It’s a really great innovation especially for people with certain medical conditions.

0 notes

lawrencekliebert · 4 years

Text

How to Sell Digital Magazine Subscriptions Online Globally

Digital books and magazines are steadily increasing in popularity. As of writing of this article, digital books and magazines account for 11% of total publishing circulation revenue. As the COVID-19 forces more people to adapt to digital life, they are finding that they can easily subscribe to great content online.

The current climate is an excellent opportunity for those who are interested in learning how to sell magazine subscriptions online. In this article, we will discuss how to sell magazines online, on Amazon, and on Shopify.

Online content distribution is accessible

As a self-published author, selling your magazines online has never been easier. Apart from the multitude of platforms and marketplaces that make this achievable, you can also sell your content directly, by cutting-off the middleman and distributing it yourself. By publishing online via FlipBook or PressPad, for example, you can entirely control the creation of your content and retain 100% of the profits.

With an estimated 3.9 billion people using email services today, delivering content to your customers has never been easier. Publishing online eliminates a lot of overhead costs, so it may be a good idea to offer your current print subscribers limited complimentary digital access to encourage them to make the switch!

Tune your pricing strategy to acquire customers

When it comes to pricing your digital magazine, you’ll want to first experiment with a few tactics, testing which of these your audience is receptive to. An entry promotion or even trial versions accessible for free to early adopters can help you acquire an initial pool of customers.

If your magazine was previously offered in print version, you don’t necessarily have to add a significant discount to entice subscribers to switch over. You can even maintain the same price, but offer an increase in value by providing extra articles or features for those digital subscribers. Furthermore, offering sample subscriptions or free trials is infinitely cheaper in digital mode. Plus, it also gives you the opportunity to gather some usage data which will help you refine the offering in time to best suit audience needs.

Expand your reach to grow a user-base

Selling magazines online also has the benefit of reaching a larger audience. Whereas printed magazines are more difficult to mail to far-off locations, digital magazines have no boundaries.

When your magazine branches to the digital world, you can uncover new markets and audiences. You can also convert more sales by engaging with prospects via an email marketing campaign. Consumers are more likely to engage in an impulse buy when they know they can immediately receive what they paid for rather than wait for it to be delivered.

To grow a strong user base, experiment with email campaigns, segmenting your audience depending on their consumption preferences. Don’t be afraid to play around with different call-to-actions, set up an email schedule so you can send your inbox updates in a paced manner, and follow-up with leads depending on how they react to your initial campaigns.

Selling magazine subscriptions on popular platforms

Selling magazines online can be done through a variety of platforms. Generally, it’s recommended that online magazines have their own app that can be downloaded in the Apple or GPlay stores.

There are other eCommerce websites that can help to sell your magazine as well. Selling magazines on Amazon and selling magazines on Shopify are both great options to reach a larger audience.

How to sell magazine subscriptions on Amazon

One of the benefits of selling magazines on Amazon is how you can leverage their technology to target a specific audience. By using their “supported placement” feature, editors can select certain articles of theirs to be featured for a specific amount of time. Amazon has some fairly strict guidelines regarding content approval, so it’s important to use your highest quality pieces if your magazine decides to do this.

Like Facebook, Amazon customizes recommendations based on user’s behavior, which can be an invaluable tool when selling magazine subscriptions online. Of course, Amazon also spearheaded the trend of the digital-book with the invention of their Kindle gadget, so this platform is a natural fit for online magazine sales.

By selling magazines on Amazon, you have the opportunity to place your magazine in front of a new audience that may be very interested in your publication. For example, if your magazine is about interior decorating, Amazon might place your magazine as a customized recommendation for a user who has been searching for home decor items. Be sure to include a preview of your magazine on your Amazon listing so you can show interested prospects the value of your publication and increase their likelihood of subscribing.

You can also boost visibility when selling magazines online by including your publication on Amazon’s “Listmania” and “So You’d Like To … “ forums. Without paying a dime, you can create a Listmania of products related to your magazine’s genre and, of course, include your magazine on the list of must-haves for those interested in the topic. HubSpot reports that an estimated 70% of companies are increasing investment in online content creation, so keep in mind your Amazon promotional content won’t be without competition.

Using the Amazon customer interested in home decor as an option, you can choose one of your best articles from your magazine for your Listmania content. If your magazine just published an excellent article about Swedish-inspired modern furniture, you can search Amazon for pieces of furniture, bookcases, vases, bedspreads and throw pillows that follow this trend.

Alongside these articles from Amazon, you can include your magazine as a “must have” for those who are interested in this type of design. You’ve added value to your magazine by creating an easy shopping list for your prospect, and perhaps convinced someone to subscribe who would have never considered a digital magazine before. Making sure that your details page on Amazon is optimized is key for exposure. It’s important that prospects see that your magazine is the established authority in your industry. It’s essential to include highly relevant keywords in your description that will guide internet users to your online magazine.

An eye-catching cover image, as well as a relevant description for your online magazine, is important to succeed when selling online magazines on Amazon. To adjust any of these aspects, you’ll need to know your magazine’s ASIN number (a 10-digit alphanumeric code that Amazon uses to identify your magazine).

Can you sell magazine subscriptions on Shopify?

Shopify is one of the most popular eCommerce platforms out there. Can you sell magazines on Shopify just like any other product? The answer is yes. The only thing you need to do is decide which platform you’d like to use to deliver the digital version of your magazine, and enlist the help of a software that will allow subscribers to pay for your service in a variety of ways, like 2Checkout.

With Shopify, you can customize the look and layout of your store, keep track of purchases, and assure your customers of 24/7 customer service and support. For those who are not tech-savvy, Shopify offers a variety of templates to create a professional-looking online store. However, if you are a web design guru, Shopify gives its users 100% control over the HTML and CSS of their online store, so you can go all out with customizations and enhancements. In order to sell digital magazine subscriptions on the platform, you may also need to install an app so you can manage your digital products, as the platform is, at its core, developed for the sale of physical goods.

Keep in mind, though, that you may need a legal entity as well to sell on the platform. While Shopify allows individual sellers or sole proprietors to use its platform, for financial compliance and tax purposes having a legal entity established greatly simplifies things. Don’t forget to also choose a payment platform for your new Shopify store. It’s essential that the payment platform you choose allows you to accept multiple payment methods including PayPal, that it can use geo-location to translate payment instructions depending on where your subscribers are, and that it provides a quick-loading, seamless payment experience for subscribers.

After all, the ability to allow readers to quickly subscribe and access your digital magazine is key in your selling efforts. If your app or payment processing software is slow to load, complicated to use or not compatible with different devices, it could cost you dearly.

Selling magazine subscriptions online: low-cost, effective and environmentally friendly

Selling magazine subscriptions online is a great way to tie in your publication with any online marketing campaigns you are engaging in, especially if they involve social media! Selling subscription magazines on Amazon and selling magazines on Shopify are both great ways to attract and retain younger consumers, some of whom are too young to have experience with printed magazines.

People these days are rarely separated from their computers or phones, so it’s a great opportunity for your existing subscribers to become more engaged with your magazine. As the publishing industry adapts to digitalization, it’s important for your magazine to be at the forefront of trends. Encouraging subscribers to read magazines digitally will also help you to better understand their behavior and adapt your content accordingly to increase customer retention and engagement. It’s a win for both you and your subscribers!

Did you know you can use the rich tool set provided by 2Checkout Subscription Billing to forge closer relationships with your customers? Our powerful subscription management and recurring billing solution allows you to offer customers the frictionless, no-hassle experience they demand.

The post How to Sell Digital Magazine Subscriptions Online Globally appeared first on The 2Checkout Blog| Articles on eCommerce, Payments, CRO and more.

How to Sell Digital Magazine Subscriptions Online Globally published first on https://mrlavishdesign.tumblr.com/

0 notes

donald-clemons · 4 years

Text

How to Sell Digital Magazine Subscriptions Online Globally

Online content distribution is accessible

Tune your pricing strategy to acquire customers

Expand your reach to grow a user-base

Selling magazines online also has the benefit of reaching a larger audience. Whereas printed magazines are more difficult to mail to far-off locations, digital magazines have no boundaries.

Selling magazine subscriptions on popular platforms

Selling magazines online can be done through a variety of platforms. Generally, it’s recommended that online magazines have their own app that can be downloaded in the Apple or GPlay stores.

There are other eCommerce websites that can help to sell your magazine as well. Selling magazines on Amazon and selling magazines on Shopify are both great options to reach a larger audience.

How to sell magazine subscriptions on Amazon

Can you sell magazine subscriptions on Shopify?

Selling magazine subscriptions online: low-cost, effective and environmentally friendly

The post How to Sell Digital Magazine Subscriptions Online Globally appeared first on The 2Checkout Blog| Articles on eCommerce, Payments, CRO and more.

How to Sell Digital Magazine Subscriptions Online Globally published first on https://yousweetluxury.weebly.com/

0 notes

purplebelievercreation · 4 years

Text

Powerpoint Download For Mac Free

Powerpoint Full Version Free Download

Professionals have long trusted its power and functionality to put their best foot forward. Students find it helpful as they create presentations for school projects and homework. PowerPoint 2016 is Microsoft’s latest version with new features and streamlined automation. This tool is ideal for anyone creating an impressive presentation, either with all the bells and whistles or with a simple and minimalist style. Suggested design templates help those who are not as tech savvy, while also being incredibly customizable for those who know their way around the interface. It currently occupies 95% of the world’s presentation software, solidifying its place as the industry standard. Using this program is sure to take your presentation to the next level.

Make your slides shine

Microsoft PowerPoint stays ahead of the curve as it releases innovative new features, still remaining the tried and true presentation software of the industry.

Microsoft leads many niches including the presentation software industry with Microsoft PowerPoint 2016. PowerPoint can be accessed either by purchasing a single software download or with an Office 365 (O365) subscription. An O365 subscription provides users access to the full suite of Microsoft Office products: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneDrive, and Skype. Most users are opting for the Office 365 subscription as the monthly fee is low and provides access to Microsoft’s full business productivity suite.

Microsoft PowerPoint with a Microsoft 365 subscription is the latest version of PowerPoint. Previous versions include PowerPoint 2016, PowerPoint 2013, PowerPoint 2010, PowerPoint 2007, and PowerPoint 2003.

W elcome to Free Powerpoint Templates Design, one of the most usefull PowerPoint templates resource website: ALLPPT.COM!We provide you a fantastic collection of Free Powerpoint Templates Design that you can download for free and regulate for your personal Presentations. Discovering and getting the most related and suitable Powerpoint Templates are as simple as few clicks.

Some of PowerPoint’s newest and most innovative updates are only available to O365 users. Those with Office 365 also have access to Microsoft’s mobile apps, including PowerPoint for mobile, automatically syncing projects across all of your devices. PowerPoint via Microsoft Office Online allows users to collaborate within a presentation simultaneously, streamlining workflow and fostering teamwork. The latest version also offers templates in over 40 categories including business cards, calendars, flyers, photo albums, business plans, and of course business presentations.

Download powerpoint 2010 free for mac - shau.handmadematters. Prezentacje W Powerpoint Download For Mac - crackskills.over. Mac Logo png download - 512.512 - Free. Start quickly with the most recent versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote and OneDrive —combining the familiarity of Office and the unique Mac features you love. Work online or offline, on your own or with others in real time—whatever works for what you’re doing.

Microsoft stays relevant with their Office Blog where users can connect with experts, see what’s new, and get the most out of their software. Microsoft provides support for large-scale presentations and offers tips on various subjects to improve user success and satisfaction. Within the software program itself, easily navigate PowerPoint’s toolbars to achieve the desired presentation. Business collaboration is upgraded with the ability to use @mentions within slide comments to notify others when you need their input.

Perhaps the most interesting new feature for business users is PowerPoint’s ink conversion capability. Users can draw directly within the “Draw” tab and PowerPoint will convert it to standard shapes. Sketch out an organizational chart within a slide and the ink converter will turn it into actual shapes and text. This takes on-the-fly edits and brainstorming to a whole new level. This feature, like many, is only available to Office 365 subscribers using Windows 10 version 1511 or later.PowerPoint is not just for your average work project though. With new features like 3-D animation and updated slide transitions, students and hobbyists can get creative as they showcase their information. PowerPoint consistently runs smoothly and quickly.

Microsoft PowerPoint 2016’s “Help” feature is enhanced from previous versions, which novices will find handy. All users are subject to Microsoft’s standard privacy policy. They do not use email, chat, files, or other personal content to target ads to users, a welcomed differentiator from other large companies such as Google and Instagram. Microsoft collects search data, location services (when activated), and stored sign-in and payment data (when authorized). Users can log into their Privacy dashboard to adjust settings, clear browsing, search, location, voice, media, and product activity. Microsoft seems committed to keeping privacy controls in the hands of its userbase.

Where can you run this program?

Microsoft Office 365 2019 (subscription) and PowerPoint 2016 (software installation only) are compatible with Windows 10 or macOS. The 32bit version is automatically installed but users can manually choose the 64bit download.

Is there a better alternative?

Google Slides and Apple Keynote are the two biggest competitors to Microsoft PowerPoint. The first and biggest difference between these three is that Microsoft PowerPoint is a paid software and Google Slides and Apple Keynote are both free.

There are also some additional capabilities that come included with Keynote but are an upgrade for PowerPoint users. Google Slides allows you to present via Chromecast, Airplay, or Hangouts, never having to connect any wires. Other than that, the abilities of each program are mostly similar, with some additions and deletions here and there.The big tradeoff lies in familiarity vs free.

Is it worth the learning curve to try Keynote or Slides? Most large companies and those with formal presentation needs will feel safer staying close to home with what they know, which is PowerPoint. With new features added with nearly every monthly release update, Microsoft simply adds to a program you already know, facilitating easier adoption.

Our take

Microsoft PowerPoint has been and will continue to be the presentation software front runner for the foreseeable future. For important presentations for business and school, reliability cannot be left up to chance. Making the leap from PowerPoint to another program may introduce risk when the stakes are already high. People like what is working for them and Microsoft is a brand people can trust.

Should you download it?

Powerpoint Download For Mac Free

Yes. Most business professionals and students are working with Microsoft Office products like PowerPoint already. You may be wondering if the O365 subscription is worth it or if you can get by with similar, free programs. That depends on your needs. Download an O365 subscription with Microsoft PowerPoint if you need a familiar, fast, and ever-evolving presentation software. Go for Google Slides if you are willing to work through a learning curve, adapt to a new interface, and if there will not be a negative reception of non-Microsoft products at your school or office. You cannot go wrong with Microsoft.

Powerpoint Full Version Free Download

2016

0 notes

punkrockpolitix · 4 years

Text

The House Always Wins

Hedge Funds routinely manipulate the market by using disinformation and institutional buying power to move perceived values in their favor, kneecapping corporations and putting hard-working employees on the street while they profit to the tune of billions. This week, the class of investors who are so often exploited in such cons struck back and the financial world went ape shit.

To short a stock is to essentially place a bet that its value will drop between the time you take your position and a future date. You don’t even buy the stock. The investor simply borrows the shares, which they then sell at the current market price, betting that the stock’s trading price will decline and they can purchase shares at a lower cost before the borrowed shares must be returned.

Funds with billions of dollars in assets under their management can easily engineer wealth by taking short positions on a stock even if there is no reason to believe that the price is set to decline, so long as they can convince enough investors outside of their fund that it will. If you’re big enough, simply taking that position can lead to such speculation, while large, institutional investors can also influence markets simply by moving in and out of various stocks.

During the run-up to the financial collapse of the securitized debt market that helped spawn the Great Recession, many investment banks actually advised their clients to take the opposite position that they themselves were betting, enhancing their own odds at the expense of those paying the banks’ for financial advisory services. No, it was not illegal.

Increasingly, the ever-growing industry of financial news and analysis has been a platform in which large institutions create market movement in their favor. By sending a high-ranking executive onto MSNBC, CNBC, or Fox Business to give their insight to individual investors watching at home, these institutions can influence the confidence of less savvy and informed market participants.

These influences can actually cause market reaction to produce the result they’ve bet on. Once the price begins to drop, that becomes the new story and, as nervous investors who can’t afford to take a big loss get out, the price drops further, increasing the value of their short position. This happens ALL.THE.TIME. and no one cries foul. In fact, those who engineer such manipulation are routinely hailed as geniuses.

While technology has made it even easier for such big players to dominate the market, it’s also created opportunities for individual investors to mimic such tactics, guerilla-style. Smartphone applications and other digital trading technologies have decreased former barriers that slowed the movement of small investors while social media and other digital communication systems have allowed such investors to create real-time information clearinghouses that make them less reliant on antiquated and manipulative information sources like the financial media.

Founded in 2005, Reddit is a "social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion" website. It has a decidedly low-tech look and feel but has nonetheless grown into the 7th most visited website in the United States and 17th in the world. Subreddits exist for a mind-dizzying number of topics from the ordinary to the weird, to the truly disturbing.

Its look is similar to the pre-millennium chat rooms and message boards of early internet days. Users can upvote answers and contributions which push them higher in the feed, ensuring that what are thought to be the best answers, offerings or other contributions by the largest number of users are easiest to come by. Don't know if you should buy a certain year and model vehicle? There's a subreddit for that. Did you just watch a movie, not understand the point of the ending, and want to hear what others think? You can climb down a subreddit rabbit hole for hours.

WallStreeBets is a subreddit for investors who swap everything from tips to memes. Redditers there noticed that some very big hedge funds were taking short positions on GameStop, a chain of retail stores that mostly sells new and used video games. When users started pointing out that there was no reason to do so based on the company's financials they soon determined that it was garden variety market manipulation and began promoting a massive movement to buy GameStop shares in order to drive the price back up and foil their plans.

And did it ever work! The price of shares rose nearly 2000 percent, making some Reddit investors very, very rich in a matter of a day or two, as they dumped shares that had been purchased at the unnaturally low price for an overinflated one. This sort of "frontrunning," in which a price is driven up for investor benefit, is essentially the inverse of shorting it, though they were mostly working with purchased shares rather than ones that were borrowed (which is called a put option and would be the true opposite of a short).

This created billions and billions of dollars in exposure for some very wealthy and powerful people. The Redditers then went after other similarly positioned stocks. Soon, the entire financial news media was decrying the injustice done to the poor billionaires who were being fleeced by everyday people who, it is becoming increasingly clear, the financial markets aren't meant to benefit.

Robinhood is an app owned by financial services company Robinhood Markets Inc. Founded in 2013 by Vladimir Tenev and Baiju Bhatt, who had built high-frequency trading platforms for big financial institutions, its mission was said to be to "provide everyone with access to the financial markets, not just the wealthy." Let the People Trade was another early slogan.

However, while Robinhood, a free app, makes money from interest earned on its user's cash balances and margin lending, it also makes a lot of money selling user trading info to Wall Street (aka many of the people who are currently pissed) which led to the company suspending trading on GameStop and other targeted stocks on Thursday, freezing many of its users in poor positions. It turns out, they only want users to benefit if it doesn't interfere with the winnings of its real clients, the market manipulators who buy their user data so that they can more efficiently shake money from the pockets of the little guys.

When big firms make billions on speculation, there's always someone on the other end of that bet, or, in most cases, tens of thousands of people who don't have the ability to manipulate markets. The losers might be pension funds who've invested the money that's supposed to come back to employees at retirement or a middle-class worker whose 401k holds the wrong stocks. Not to mention the managers, employees, and others who are affected when a company is tanked for sport by the uber-rich.

It's hilarious to now watch those in the ivory towers—and the so-called financial journalists who shill for them—getting all worked up and actually call for the sort of regulation they so often fight tooth and nail against if it threatens to restrain their profits in the name of market stability or fairness. Where were the handsomely-paid talking heads when GameStop stock was falling for no other reason than an apex predator spotted it in the wild and decided it was hungry for a snack? Nowhere to be found because the people who butter their bread weren't making the phones ring, and they don't pick up when the number doesn't have a 212 area code.

Wall Street has become less and less about providing liquidity for markets so that the corporations that create American jobs can grow and prosper and more and more about setting up a rigged casino, in which the wales with three commas on their net worth always get dealt a hand that's superior to the tourists gambling with money that comes from wages rather than wealth. And when someone who's not in the club figures out a way to game the gamers just once? Well, that shit has to be stopped! Remember that the next time some politician points to the stock market as an expression of the American economy.

Like the yachts, boarding schools, lear jets, and palatial mansions, that shit ain’t for you, Jack. It’s for you to look at, to lust over, and to dream about so that you’re more willing to keep getting farmed for the benefit of the one percent and the promise that someday you too might get invited into the club (spoiler alert: you won’t).

A long time ago, people who were good enough at organizing in their head what had transpired in a blackjack game to bet according to what they believed was most likely to happen started taking such skills to places like Atlantic City and Las Vegas. If they were lucky, they got thrown out and told to never come back, while their picture was circulated to every pit boss in town. The message was the same one Wall Street is now trying to send to those who want to play on an honest table: Fuck off, peon, haven’t you heard, the house always wins.

Mitch Maley (bio) is the editor of The Bradenton Times and host of the Punk Rock Politix Channel on YouTube. You can also listen to the Punk Rock Politix Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and other platforms.

0 notes

rdxtango · 4 years

Text

Google is Rolling Out Maps Interface Changes to Android Auto

Android Auto is entirely a great experience, and it is still improving even though bugs appear sometimes and create disturbances. But, all these have not stopped Google from trying new things and innovations. Currently, Google is rolling out the latest updates that will make Google Maps work much better than before. The new update will help Google Maps interface work better in landscape mode. The new updates include not only the new icons but also an updated user interface. The new icons and the latest user interface will help the search giant bring the app to meet the same standards that other Google apps are meeting.

What are the interface changes and how it works?

With the new Maps interface changes, the users will now find banners and menus floating. In simple terms, all these will no longer remain tied to the app screen’s width, making it much more significant in landscape mode. The banners and menus have been pushed to the screen side as before they used to be stretched the full width to block a major view of Google Maps. Now, the users can stretch the full menu and still can see where they are currently going. However, the new user interface is rolling out through Google Maps download APK. The users can view it through Android Auto on the screens of their phones. It is expected that the standalone app will also adopt the Maps user interface.

So, the question is what is going on currently with Android Auto for phones. Google had announced a year ago to drop that they would drop the phone app in favor of Driving Mode. The company introduced at the time when most of the automobile manufacturing units were looking for ways to attract more tech-savvy users and customers. These automobile manufacturers were competing with the other systems of car infotainment from Apple and other car manufacturers. With time, the company took steps to expand its user base of android auto by launching a mobile app. This mobile app offered similar features for the users who don’t have an in-built infotainment system.

But a few months later, the company rolled its decision back and launched an app separately known as ” Android Auto for Phone Screens. The company said the users could continue using the app with the Android Auto phone screen version. Now, Android Auto and Android Auto for Phone Screens are in the Play Store of Google. Moreover, some of the phones can see both the apps. The reasons behind it seem that Android Auto being the part of Mobile Services of Google, came pre-installed on Android 10 or later devices. The Auto app is used to beam the interface of your car to the hand device of your vehicle regardless it is wired or wireless.

The phone interface of Android Auto always comes secondary to the functionality offered by the car interface of the app. The new app Android Auto for Phone screen acts only as a shortcut to an already existing phone interface in the Auto app, which is older. Once Google introduces the Assistant Driving Mode, then the users will need to use this particular shortcut to experience things like the head unit on their phones. Overall, these new Maps interface changes will help the users to move more options to the left of the map or navigation. It will result in getting much more room for the original map on the display of the device. The new updates have been rolling out to Google Maps and not the Android Auto app, so you will need to update your Maps app if you are using the Android Auto as the standalone app.

Rdx Tango is an avid technical blogger, a magazine contributor, a publisher of guides at Office.com/setup and a professional cyber security analyst. Through her writing, she aims to educate people about the dangers and threats lurking in the digital world.

Source:- Google is Rolling Out Maps Interface Changes to Android Auto

#Android Auto #Maps

0 notes

shirlleycoyle · 4 years

Text

It’s Time for the Eternal September to End

A version of this post originally appeared on Tedium, a twice-weekly newsletter that hunts for the end of the long tail.

For nearly 30 years, the internet’s culture has been defined by a corporation’s move that seemed to, without any care about what was left behind, ensure that a sense of order would never again drive the growth of this series of tubes.

This phenomenon is, in many ways, the central tension on which the modern internet is built. And it’s a tension that most people aren’t aware of, even though it is an undercurrent secretly framing our online interactions.

I am, of course, discussing the Eternal September, a 1993 move by AOL to allow its users into the free-for-all that is Usenet. In the decades since, the conflict that move created, although long forgotten today, lingers in the way that technical users and not-so-technical users interact.

And, in too many ways, it is the basis for digital conflicts that have nothing to do with back then and everything to do with right now.

It’s time to retire the Eternal September. Twenty-seven years is long enough.

“September 1993 will go down in net.history as the September that never ended.”

— Dave Fischer, a Usenet user, discussing the start of the Eternal September in 1993, the point at which the chaos created by mainstream interest in the internet began to overwhelm the early discussion forums that originally attracted technical users to computer labs on college campuses and pokey modem connections at homes.

At its root, perhaps we can blame AOL for all of this. Image: sarahe/Flickr

How the Eternal September set the stage for decades of online conflict

For decades, internet culture has struggled with the n00bs. For generations, as new people entered the digital gates, there was an inevitable sneer that awaited them as they hit the onramp.

If you’re not in the know, what do you know?

The internet is, of course, not alone in owning this dynamic. It plays out in all sorts of areas that traditionally have nothing to do with technology: High school, internships, sports teams, organized crime syndicates. The little guy knows nothing and has to work their way up. Most don’t. You get the idea.

But on the internet, we all technically should be on equal ground. After all, knowledge is at our fingertips at all times.

Yet tribalism has long defined the internet. We are built around subcultures upon subcultures, and these subcultures have only hardened over time, creating shells of insularity that have proven impenetrable.

And perhaps its most notable form came about in the mid-1990s, when the “Eternal September,” a concept involving the n00bs taking over Usenet, took hold. For those who don’t date back to this era, here’s the general gist: Each school year, thousands of new students would flock to Usenet groups for the first time, hoping to find community or learn from the folks already there. The problem was that they were green and didn’t really know much of anything, so they faced rejection until they got the gist.

In September of 1993, AOL added Usenet access, turning a controlled situation of steady ongoing community growth into something of a flood of never-ending n00bs. Suddenly, the social norms that the Usenet community was built around were broken at the seams, never to be repaired.

This was a major communal shift, and one that put early online users on the defensive. To put it simply, people were dismissive of their fellow users based on nothing other than the domain attached to their email address. It was an easy signifier; if you had an AOL.com email address, you were a dork, or beyond saving.

An essay on the commercialization of the internet, written in 1995 by MIT student Christopher R. Vincent, put the situation like this:

As accessing the Internet continues to grow easier for the novice user, it is inevitable that many of these social guidelines will fall to the wayside. This is not to say that new users should be denied access to Internet resources. It has been the first reflex in many newsgroups to flame any user who posted from an online service provider. Some of the larger providers, such as America Online have not received a very warm welcome to the network (note the formation of the alt.aol-sucks newsgroup). This reaction does not necessarily stem from elitism, but from a genuine fear that as more and more users appear, Usenet will fall apart. Indeed, this is a valid concern. The current system is not designed for the commercial-oriented direction the Internet is now taking.

Over time, the close association between AOL and lamers subsided, in part because our online access points evolved toward providers decided by local area, rather than consumer-oriented services.

So many flame wars fought over digital turf. Image: Anthony Cantin/Unsplash

But this dynamic of conflict and savvy emerged in other ways. When web-based communication alternatives emerged to replace Usenet, new types of turf wars appeared: Apple vs. Microsoft; open source vs. proprietary; Something Awful vs. Fark; Digg vs. Reddit; liberal bloggers vs. conservative bloggers; early adopters vs. technical laggards; iPhone vs. Android. You get the idea.

In many ways, these ideological battles of the digital age only found gasoline with the advent of social mediums, which helped to better connect people, but failed to account for the side effects that came with all that.

But the internet, early on, played into this tribalism in ways that allowed it to evolve into something dangerous.

“The newbies could not be forced to accept what we now understand as a central tenet of cyberlibertarianism: that cyberspace, too, was a place, separate from the world, and thus free. For it all to work, all the visionaries needed was for everyone to recognize a small set of self-evident truths.”

— Bradley Fidler, a researcher with the UCLA Computer Science Department, discussing in the IEEE Annals of the History of Computing the rise of what he calls the Eternal October—the understanding that “it is no longer possible to pretend (no matter one’s privilege) that cyberspace can circumvent the politics of civilization.” At the time he wrote this, it was October 2016, ahead of a U.S. election that helped bring some scary forces into the world. I can only imagine how Fidler must feel in October of 2020.

The calendar never stops. Image: Eric Rothermel/Unsplash

Why, in many ways, the Eternal September is still going strong

Look, I’m not going to tell you that we have a constant influx of newbies hitting the internet at all times. That certainly is not what I mean when I describe the Eternal September as an ongoing thing.

But I do think that the spirit that led to the Eternal September becoming a landmark in the first place is still very much there. It has simply taken new forms.

There’s a modern term for what this is called, in fact: Gatekeeping. The idea that, because of your identity or lack of experience, you shouldn’t have access to an online community.

Now, to be clear, there are lots of kinds of gatekeeping in terms of the internet—for example, the technical barriers created by large companies to shape the broader network, whether internet service providers like Comcast or Verizon, or major tech firms like Google or Facebook. Those figures deservedly need their callouts.

But in this case, I’d like to focus on a particular cultural kind of gatekeeping, the kind that leaves people out for reasons of elitism, fear, or simple “othering.”

Earlier this month, a great example of this type of gatekeeping emerged on Twitter when a user claimed that they assumed anyone who used a mouse to program was a junior programmer. That user (rightly) got criticized over it—though I’ll pass on linking the viral tweet, because who needs to add to that kind of drama? But examples that don’t get called out in quite that way abound online, and they represent the way that users tend to focus on their own tribes.

Back in 2017, before our world became even more divided, CBC News columnist Ramona Pringle wrote a piece about how digital tribalism has proven a nasty side effect of highly amplified online echo chambers:

In and of themselves, tribes aren’t inherently bad. We all long to be part of something bigger than ourselves, and tribes fulfill that need. But where we get into trouble is when we introduce borders, which separate my land from your land, and by extension, my tribe from your tribe. When borders are violated, we fight. This, in broad strokes is the root of all war.

The Eternal September, in many ways, was the opening salvo in decades of division on the internet. And in the years since, it has only gotten worse.

In many ways, we understand the people around us even less than we did a few years ago. We aim for the jugular instead of the handshake. And by the time the word “compromise” is thrown around, it’s already too late. It’s a sign of weakness.

It is perhaps sad to think about, considering the early internet was built around utopian dreams. But it’s where we are. I’ll let you draw the through line between ’90s programmer/IT elitism and some of the internet’s modern day problems, because ultimately all those programmers helped lay the foundation for today’s tech infrastructure.

I’m still idealistic that some of that utopian spirit is out there, if you know where to look. But I wonder if, in the big fight for protecting netiquette, the early internet set a bad example for all the people that came after, who jumped in not looking for help, but looking for a fight. The initial separation between the normal and the technical that the Eternal September fostered underlined the tribalism that other internet users follow without even thinking about it. It discourages people from taking part in communities—especially those underrepresented in STEM fields—and sows the kinds of division that attract users to misinformation.

And I wonder if the same types of users who criticized the n00bs way back when are the same folks who can help get us back—by setting an open-arms example that other communities can follow.

At a time when Godwin’s law is less an observation and more a genuine worry, perhaps there are bigger fish to fry than whether or not someone asked a technical question the right way … and those technical users might need to shift their plan of attack accordingly.

“We need to make sure that Rust is prepared to welcome people who are just learning about Rust today. We don’t want anyone to feel like they’re late to the party.”

— Tim McNamara, a software developer and writer who focuses on the Rust programming language, making a case for leaning into the Eternal September, as far as the Rust community goes. It’s a refreshing take from someone in a technical community, and an approach that others should follow.

So, you might be wondering: Why write about this topic, and why now?

Honestly, what got me thinking about it was one specific reaction to a recent piece I wrote about the mainstream demise of FTP. I aimed really broad with that piece, because honestly, that’s usually who I write for—someone who knows something about technology, but who doesn’t know everything and is curious about learning more.

Functionally, the point of my piece was that plain vanilla FTP is on its way out, a vestige of the past for the vast majority of people, thanks to its forthcoming removal from major web browsers. But there are people in narrow spaces who likely will never stop using it—or, who choose not to stop.

While I can get technical, I generally write for regular people who know a thing or two about technology but who, perhaps, aren’t engineers.

And well, this user was a technical user in a highly technical role. And they decided to mock it for not covering specific technical cases where it might persist, rather than spending five seconds considering that they may not be the target audience for this piece. Cockroaches are everywhere—you don’t have to tell me.

I’ve seen this with other things we’ve written as well. Last year, I ran a piece about OS/2’s continued use on the NYC subway system, and I spotted a reader who got upset because we focused on the obvious novelty of a vintage operating system being used in a high-profile way, rather than focusing on the low-level technical aspects that may appeal to that specific user but may go over everyone else’s heads.

I get it. You might get upset if you dive into this with the expectation that we’re going to talk about code or infrastructure on here, and that’s not what you get.

But the reason that technology content is often written more broadly is because, well, writers often want to open up the gates and encourage people to take a deeper look into tech. As much fun as it is to do a deep technical dive into the nuances of how a system is designed, there is a deep threat of losing people if you go too deep without explaining why they should care.

Tying back to our discussion of the Eternal September in this piece, I would also like to make a broader point: We have to figure out a way to bridge the gap between technical and non-technical users online. To pretend that there isn’t room to offer a helping hand, or that we can just focus on our own tiny bubble, just isn’t working anymore.

In September of 1993, well-established users who felt their territory was being encroached on by people who didn’t earn their place in the digital culture reacted by being inhospitable to those users.

It’s nearly three decades later, and in the years since, tech has very much won. Our world has been redefined by it, in ways large and small. And while technical corners can and should exist, we should no longer pretend that technical users have a monopoly on these stories.

And, honestly, given the way that technology has negatively affected the lives of so many, we need to do a better job explaining it to the average person, so they have a chance to grab a hold of the ways that algorithms define what we see online, or how automation might reshape our lives and careers, in ways good and bad.

The Eternal September is over. We’re well into October now. We need to open up the gates.

It’s Time for the Eternal September to End syndicated from https://triviaqaweb.wordpress.com/feed/

0 notes

brassring2020 · 5 years

Text

AYA Analytica financial health memo March 2019

As of March 2019, this regular podcast is available on our Andy Yeh Alpha fintech network platform.

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez proposes greater public debt finance with minimal tax increases for the Green New Deal. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez proposes greater public debt finance with minimal tax increases for the Green New Deal. In accordance with the modern monetary theory, the central bank can print money to support greater government expenditures without tax increases as greater labor participation helps close the economic output gap. In reality, however, the modern monetary theory seems bizarre to many eminent economists such as Paul Krugman and Lawrence Summers. For the fiscal year 2019-2020, the Trump budget proposal would increase defense expenditures by 5% with 30% budget cuts to health care and environmental protection. For better border security and immigration, Trump asks for another $5 billion public finance to fulfill his campaign promise of a southern border wall.

The Trump $4.75 trillion budget plan has a slim chance of passing through the Democrat-majority House. All these fiscal details set the stage for another acrimonious battle between Trump and Congress. Alternatively, the Sargent-Wallace monetarist arithmetic analysis suggests that the government would have to tolerate higher inflation when the central bank raises seigniorage taxes on money supply growth to absorb any discrepancy between new budget deficit and public bond issuance. The subsequent Federal Reserve interest rate adjustments may thus inadvertently offset the positive economic effect of fiscal stimulus that the Trump administration proposes in the current budget deal.

OECD cuts the global economic growth forecast from 3.5% to 3.3% for the fiscal year 2019-2020. OECD cuts the global economic growth forecast from 3.5% to 3.3% for the fiscal year 2019-2020. The global economy suffers from economic protraction and uncertainty amid the recent Sino-U.S. trade and Brexit standoffs. OECD downgrades real GDP growth rates from 6.5% to 6% for China and from 1.5% to 1% for Europe. The Chinese Xi administration seeks to assuage U.S. concerns about the bilateral trade deficit, unfair technology transfer, and intellectual property protection. Meanwhile, the British May administration needs to delay Brexit to buy time for a plausible second referendum on whether the U.K. should leave the European trade bloc. These trade issues cloud macroeconomic momentum in Europe and East Asia. Several chief economists recommend the European and Asian central banks not to follow the Federal Reserve interest rate hikes too soon. To the extent that these non-U.S. central banks decelerate the global financial cycle with less hawkish monetary policy decisions, Europe and East Asia can insulate themselves from volatile exchange rates, stock market gyrations, and cross-border capital flows that might arise from the next Federal Reserve interest rate adjustments. The subsequent international interest rate hikes are likely to reflect recent upticks in consumer confidence, wage growth, and core inflation.

America seeks to advance the global energy dominance agenda by toppling Saudi Arabia as the top oil exporter by 2024. America seeks to advance the global energy dominance agenda by toppling Saudi Arabia as the top oil exporter by 2024. The International Energy Agency (IEA) now forecasts that U.S. crude oil exports will double to 9 million barrels per day by 2024. This U.S. crude oil production surpasses Russian shipments and may eventually overtake Saudi exports. The same IEA report shows that global oil demand can grow by 1.2 million barrels per day year-in-year-out through 2024. In recent times, U.S. State Secretary Mike Pompeo meets with top oil executives to help the Trump administration boost oil exports to Asia with draconian economic sanctions on Iran in the form of crude oil embargoes. This outreach represents a significant new effort to achieve American energy dominance that helps enhance the economic prospects of U.S. oil and natural gas. This effort wins success and support from China, Japan, and South Korea with more purchases of U.S. oil and gas units. In contrast to greater U.S. crude oil production, Saudi Arabia seeks to drain global supply glut to support higher oil prices by cutting oil exports to 7 million barrels per day while the Saudi oil output remains well below 10 million barrels per day.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell answers CBS News 60 Minutes questions about the recent U.S. economic outlook and interest rate cycle. Fed Chair Jerome Powell answers CBS News 60 Minutes questions about the recent U.S. economic outlook and interest rate cycle. Powell views the current U.S. economic outlook as a favorable one. The federal funds rate hits the neutral threshold where the U.S. economy operates near full employment with low inflation. Powell reiterates the *patient* approach to further raising the interest rate as the U.S. economy grows at a moderate pace. Although about 7 million Americans fall behind their auto loan payments and retail sales decline at the highest pace in the post-crisis period, Powell remains positive about U.S. economic growth in 2019-2020. As the U.S. real GDP growth rate increases above 3%, there are healthy upticks in both consumer confidence and wage growth. In light of the recent Sino-U.S. trade and Brexit negotiations, Powell considers the biggest macro risk to be a probable economic output slowdown in China and Europe. Powell considers the U.S. financial system to be more resilient with high capital buffers that help absorb extreme losses in rare times of severe financial stress. The Federal Reserve is independent in the generic sense that the monetary authority needs to execute monetary policy decisions in a strictly non-political way.

Senator Elizabeth Warren proposes breaking up tech titans such as Facebook, Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon (FAMGA). Senator Elizabeth Warren proposes breaking up tech titans such as Facebook, Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon (FAMGA). These tech titans have become too dominant and so tend to leverage their market power to squelch competition to the detriment of consumers. In addition to bulldozing free market competition, these tech titans use private user information for profits, tilt the playing field against small-to-medium enterprises, and thus stifle R&D innovation as their M&A deals encapsulate niche competitors. For better scale economies and network effects, several strategic M&A examples include the recent acquisitions of Instagram, Whatsapp, and Oculus (by Facebook), DoubleClick, Waze, and Nest (by Google), Whole Foods and Zappos (by Amazon), and Shazam, Texture, InVisage, Regaind, and Lattice Data (by Apple). Warren further proposes to bar these top platform orchestrators (FAMGA) from sharing private user data with third parties. Under the Warren proposal, small tech startups would have a fair shot to sell their products on Amazon without the fear of facing fierce competition from Amazon and its affiliates; Google could not smother competitors by demoting their products and services on the Internet search engine; and Facebook would face real pressure from Instagram and WhatsApp to improve the user experience with better privacy protection.

U.S. tech titans now increasingly recruit PhD economists to help solve business problems. U.S. tech titans now increasingly recruit PhD economists to help solve business problems. These tech titans include Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Apple, Netflix, and Twitter (FAMGANT). PhD economists exhibit at least 2 critical knowledge-intensive skills that can contribute to effective business solutions. First, many economists can apply effective empirical methods and quantitative tools to ferret out causal relations in business data. Second, PhD economists can understand the useful design of both effective incentives and market mechanisms for better business optimization. In practice, these economists help demystify many empirical puzzles in the tech sector. For instance, some economists empirically find that Uber Express Pool may inadvertently draw in active users from other Uber products without growing the full Uber user base. Also, several other economists show that eBay tends to syphon off people who would have come through organic search when the online auction website advertises on Google. Moreover, some recent economic research demonstrates that many African-American Airbnb users experience rampant racial discrimination. If tech platforms involve matching users or businesses, market design economists can likely help guide these decisions. Modern examples of disruptive platform design include Amazon, Airbnb, Tinder, and TripAdvisor etc. If scale economies are important for the business, major mergers, acquisitions, and exclusive deals may dramatically alter the strategic industry structure and market environment. For instance, Apple and Alphabet are the dominant duo in the iOS-Android market for mobile devices; Microsoft remains a primary software market player with its Office Suite and Windows operating system; Intel and Qualcomm specialize and dominate in the tech-savvy market for microchips; Google acquires 90% of U.S. online search traffic; Facebook extracts hefty profits in social media advertisements; and Netflix retains key niches in the lucrative business of high-speed original video content distribution. If tech companies need to analyze large-scale user data to make better business decisions, econometricians can apply logistic regressions, panel estimation methods, and time-series models etc to derive informative business insights into user behaviors, product reviews, and customer interests and preferences. Smart tech data analyzers include Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Twitter, eBay, PayPal, and IBM etc. In stark contrast to doctors, engineers, and lawyers who may focus on specific mechanical details and techniques, most economists focus on the bigger picture when they implement empirical methods to solve practical business problems. On balance, most economists can see both the trees and the forest in critical business decisions when push comes to shove.

U.S. trade envoy Robert Lighthizer recommends America to require regular touchpoints to ensure Sino-U.S. trade deal enforcement. U.S. trade envoy Robert Lighthizer recommends America to require regular touchpoints to ensure Sino-U.S. trade deal enforcement. America has to maintain the threat of tit-for-tat tariffs on Chinese goods for many years even though the Trump administration seeks to strike a new agreement with China to end the prohibitively costly Sino-U.S. trade war. U.S. trade negotiators and lawmakers need to monitor-and-enforce Chinese compliance with the new trade rules. The Trump administration aims to eradicate the $350 billion bilateral U.S. trade deficit. In response, the Chinese Xi administration offers to buy $1.2 trillion U.S. goods and services over the next 6 years. Also, the Trump team plans to deter the Chinese government from forcing U.S. tech companies to involuntarily transfer trade secrets, tech advances, and other major intellectual properties such as patents, trademarks, and copyrights. On balance, tariffs remain an important tool for the Trump administration to push China to initiate structural trade policy changes in light of the specific perennial enforcement issue. Due to few major surprises, most U.S. stock market indices such as S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq remain steady after the congressional testimonies by U.S. trade envoy Robert Lighthizer and Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell.

CNBC stock host Jim Cramer recommends Caterpillar and Home Depot as the current U.S. bull market is likely to continue in light of the recent Fed Chair comments. CNBC stock host Jim Cramer recommends Caterpillar and Home Depot as the current U.S. bull market is likely to continue in light of the recent Fed Chair comments. Fed Chair Jerome Powell reaffirms a patient approach to U.S. interest rate adjustments. In his biennial congressional testimony, Powell suggests that there are both economic crosscurrents and headwinds in the U.S. economy. Although the U.S. economic outlook remains solid, these crosscurrents and headwinds (such as the Sino-American trade and Brexit negotiations) may conflict with the Federal Reserve dual mandate of maximum employment and price stability. Economic policy uncertainty revolves around optimal Treasury debt positions, U.S. government budget decisions, and near-term political considerations. Specifically, Powell reiterates the Federal Reserve plan for balance sheet shrinkage with at least $1 trillion bank reserves through the U.S. real business cycle. In response, CNBC stock host Jim Cramer recommends well-known stocks such as Caterpillar and Home Depot in light of the patient Federal Reserve monetary policy stance. These stocks tend to lose hefty market valuation over the Christmas season. As the Federal Reserve switches from a hawkish monetary policy stance to a dovish one, the current U.S. bull market can elevate asset prices in stocks, bonds, and real estate properties.

Uber seeks an IPO in close competition with its rideshare rival Lyft and other tech firms such as Slack, Pinterest, and Palantir. Uber seeks an IPO in close competition with its rideshare rival Lyft and other tech firms such as Slack, Pinterest, and Palantir. Uber expects to complete one of the largest tech IPOs with $120 billion firm valuation in April 2019. Both Uber and its rideshare rival Lyft announce their recent S-1 confidential paperwork as of December 2018. With $50 billion taxi reservations and $11 billion net revenue, Uber runs a rideshare user network that is more diverse than the Lyft counterpart. As a global tech-savvy transportation company, Uber now operates in more than 70 countries with probable stock market valuation as high as $120 billion (well above its current $76 billion private market valuation). As a smaller rideshare tech firm, Lyft seeks stock market valuation of $20 billion to $25 billion (well above its current private market valuation of $15 billion). With these astronomical stock market figures, both companies can handle their net losses below $1 billion per annum. SoftBank Vision Fund and Toyota Motor Corp are now part of a consortium of investors that invest $1 billion in the Uber autonomous car unit. The current IPO proposal serves as a major strategic move for Uber to garner greater capital.

Lyft seeks to go public with a dual-class stock ownership structure that allows the co-founders to retain significant influence over the rideshare tech unicorn. Lyft seeks to go public with a dual-class stock ownership structure that allows the co-founders to retain significant influence over the rideshare tech unicorn. Within this dual-class structure, Class A shares follow the one-share-one-vote rule for new investors, whereas, Class B shares empower the co-founders John Zimmer and Logan Green and their executive managers to have 20 votes per share. The co-founders and their executive team may end up owning well more than 27% of equity stakes with near-majority control. The dual-class structure has become prevalent among U.S. public companies such as CBS, Comcast, Facebook, Ford, Google, News Corp, Nike, Snap, and Viacom etc. The co-founders retain significant influence over most matters that require shareholder approval, such as director elections and significant corporate transactions from M&A deals and capital investment projects to R&D expenditures and other asset sales. Harvard law professor Lucian Bebchuk criticizes the dual-class stock ownership structure. The probable costs of a lifetime lock on control tend to be especially large when the co-founders are young at the time of the IPO. The costs of inferior leadership can substantially rise when the co-founders fail to address dynamic changes in the business environment. This concern further aggravates when the dual-class structure enables a transfer of founder control to an heir who might be unfit to lead the company. Many dual-class structures allow controllers to substantially reduce their fraction of equity capital over time without relinquishing control, and controllers often do so to diversify their stock portfolios to fund other investment projects. When the wedge between the interests of controllers and public investors grows over time, the agency costs of a dual-class structure are likely to increase. Corporate controllers with a small fraction of equity capital have perverse incentives to retain an inefficient dual-class structure. The reason is that these controllers would capture only a fraction of efficiency gains (which would be shared by all shareholders), but would fully bear the costs of forgoing the private benefits of control that arise from the dual-class structure. Bebchuk proposes a sunset provision that stipulates the eventual expiration of dual-class structures after a specific period of time such as 10 years or 15 years. This proposal empowers founders to retain their lock on corporate control with minimal short-term market pressure in the early-IPO stage of their entrepreneurial efforts; whereas, the dual-class stock ownership structure should eventually converge toward the more efficient first-class structure.

Pinterest files a $12 billion IPO due in mid-2019. Pinterest files a $12 billion IPO due in mid-2019. This tech unicorn allows users to pin-and-browse images through its social media app and website. Pinterest seeks stock market valuation of at least $12 billion that would match the current valuation of Snap Inc, which owns another photo-centric social media app Snapchat. Pinterest differentiates itself from Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat etc because this new tech unicorn empowers active users to pin their recent real-life photos that hyperlink to external websites. For instance, a Pinterest user can pin her photo of a recent restaurant meal that links to an external website where others can find the recipe for the same meal. In contrast, most other social media apps and websites prefer to retain active users within their respective digital platform ecosystems. Pinterest has grown its user base to 250 million active users per month as of February 2019; whereas, Facebook keeps 2 billion active users, Instagram has 1 billion, Twitter has about 320 million, and Snapchat has almost 300 million as of early-2019. As Pinterest moves fast to disrupt the image search space via a $12 billion IPO, several other rideshare rivals Lyft and Uber seek opportunities to go public too.

A physicist derives a mathematical formula that success equates the product of both personal quality and the potential value of a given subject matter. A physicist derives a mathematical formula that success equates the product of both personal quality and the potential value of a given subject matter. As a Northeastern University expert on network theory, Albert-Laszlo Barabasi comes up with this simple and ingenious formula when he learns the transformative life stories of numerous people who achieved late-in-life successes. For instance, a U.S. analytical chemistry professor, John Fenn, conducted his revolutionary research on electrospray ionization at the age of 67 (which contributed to the quick mass measurement of viruses and ribosomes with incredible accuracy) and then received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this major contribution at the age of 85. Also, English actor and director Alan Rickman had his first movie role at 46; Julia Child brought French cuisine to the American public in her first TV show at 50; Yitang Zhang derived a revolutionary mathematical proof in his first journal publication and later earned full professorship with several special achievement awards at 57; and Nelson Mandela emerged after 27 years in jail and then became the President of South Africa at 76. The Barabasi success formula is S=Q*r where S denotes the success of a new deal, or the impact of a major discovery, which equates the product of the Q-factor (innate talent) and the value of a random idea r.

A highly creative and smart person may encounter some ordinary random idea, and this combination leads to a mediocre outcome. Conversely, an average person may come across a great idea, and this combination still leads to a mediocre result. Then there are perfect-storm instances where the idea and its creator both shine. When the Q-factor and the value of a new idea are both high, they enhance each other and result in a major breakthrough. A classic example is the revolutionary Apple iPhone that integrates the flash of genius in Steve Jobs, an Internet-connective telephone, a music player, and a digital camera into one mobile device. What illuminates the Barabasi success formula is the realization that if a person has an insufficiently high Q-factor in one vocation, he or she might want to consider switching to a different field where it is attainable to get an exceptionally high Q-factor. Amazon founder and chairman Jeff Bezos had considered becoming a physicist when he studied at Princeton, and later he realized that this ambition was too remote; as a result, he became an investment banker early in his career and then founded Amazon as an e-commerce startup, and the rest was history. Overall, these life lessons suggest that one should combine his or her high Q-factor with a healthy quantity of good ideas before the next eureka moment.

We may need to reconsider the new rules of personal finance. We may need to reconsider the new rules of personal finance. First, renting a home can be a smart money move, whereas, buying a home cannot always be a good investment. It can be reasonable to rent a home without opportunity costs such as down payments, maintenance fees, property taxes, interest expenses, and insurance premiums etc. Investing these opportunity costs in stocks and bonds may yield better long-term returns. Second, money is an important resource for long-term investment, and time is another key element of successful wealth accumulation. It takes time for compound interest to exponentially grow at the 6%-11% stock market annual rate of return. Third, it would be wiser to invest retirement finance in some stock market index to earn the average equity premium around 5%-9% in recent times. With longer lifespans and lower bond returns, stock market investors can reap higher rewards. Fourth, it is important to demystify the conventional wisdom that student loans are good debt because education pays handsomely in the form of higher future wages. However, only postgraduate degrees provide the higher *incremental* wage boost than college degrees. We should consider these new rules of personal finance during the recent Trump stock market rally.

Tech companies seek to serve as quasi-financial intermediaries. Tech companies seek to serve as quasi-financial intermediaries. Many retail traders can now list items for sale on eBay and then acquire these items economically on Amazon for direct shipments when busy buyers place orders on eBay. These retail traders serve as information arbitrageurs and clip spreads between the divergent prices on Amazon and eBay. This information arbitrage occurs often enough to be a viable business. In a practical sense, this information arbitrage proves to be a valuable service at a market price. Time is finite and human attention is precious such that this intermediary service often turns out to be worthwhile for better immediacy and convenience. In a similar vein, the online search website for real estate, Zillow Group, now attempts to serve as a quasi-financial intermediary for home purchases and mortgage loans. Zillow brings back its co-founder and former CEO Rich Barton to lead this ambitious transformation. Zillow transforms how Americans buy and sell their real estate properties as the tech platform uses both big data analysis and artificial intelligence to change how these residential owners and investors shop for homes with mouse clicks and satellite maps. Busy buyers pay for immediacy and convenience when they shop for homes on Zillow. In addition to Amazon-eBay retail arbitrage and Zillow real estate, Apple and Goldman Sachs enter into a strategic alliance to expand the joint credit card business. Apple pairs the new credit card with key iPhone features such as Face ID to better serve its active users. This credit card piggybacks on the Mastercard network and offers 2% cash rewards for the vast majority of U.S. online purchases. Beyond cash bonuses, Apple and Goldman Sachs hope to leverage the Wallet app for tracking account balances and rewards for better personal finance management. Like Goldman Sachs, big banks shift operational focus from their prior reliance on capital-intensive risk businesses to tech platforms for their tech-savvy clients. In light of financial distress and post-crisis regulation, these banks prefer to build online platforms for their institutional clients to trade bonds, funds, and other complex securities. The banks accumulate fees and commissions when these transactions take place for the mutual benefits of both banks and institutional investors themselves. This fresh logic explains why Apple and Goldman Sachs work together to strengthen their credit card business. Nowadays Amazon-eBay arbitrageurs and tech titans such as Apple and Zillow seek to serve as quasi-financial intermediaries.

Global economic uncertainty lurks in an even thicker layer of mystery. Global economic uncertainty lurks in an even thicker layer of mystery. This uncertainty arises from Sino-U.S. trade tension, Brexit fallout, monetary policy normalization, and financial fragility due to U.S. interest rate and greenback appreciation. As the Trump administration makes positive progress on Sino-U.S. trade negotiations, most economic pundits and experts expect U.S. monetary policy normalization to continue in 2019-2020 as financial asset returns and factor premiums reflect structural changes in the interest rate and dollar valuation. Also, the U.K. parliament may initiate a major delay or a second referendum on Brexit. At the turn of the new century, big data analysis, cloud computation, artificial intelligence, and robotic automation displace many workers and so irrevocably alter the tech structure of employment. Globalization is another powerful force. The free movement of goods, services, and people transforms economic integration and global value creation. This economic trend intensifies competition in the labor market, and the middle class faces higher wage growth, price inflation, human capital depreciation, and unemployment in OECD countries. In the financial sector, deregulation and capital account liberalization boost international capital flows well above trade. Post-crisis fintech advances such as crowd funds, peer-to-peer loans, and shadow banks shed skeptical light on the role of financial intermediaries in the monetary transmission mechanism. As a result, many central banks encounter real wage stagnation, deterioration in both income and wealth distribution, and a major slowdown in productivity growth. E-commerce tech titans such as Amazon and Alibaba now induce frequent, accurate, and competitive retail price adjustments. These faster price adjustments effectively flatten the Phillips curve or the inexorable and mysterious trade-off between inflation and unemployment. This macroeconomic transformation coincides with the new cycle of U.S. interest rate hikes. Through cross-border capital flows and exchange rate gyrations, U.S. monetary policy changes and trade imbalances can create global financial cycles that radically distort credit conditions in European and Asian economies. Central banks now need to adopt a cautious, gradual, and data-driven monetary policy approach for sound risk management in light of substantial macro uncertainty. Also, central banks need to monitor a wide variety of macroprudential indicators such as asset prices, risk premiums, credit supply shocks, and other financial imbalances. To the extent that both global capital flows and external supply-side shocks aggravate exchange rate volatility, central banks need to preserve greater price flexibility and monetary autonomy. When push comes to shove, the law of inadvertent consequences counsels caution.

AYA finbuzz podcast March 2019

AYA Analytica is our online regular podcast and newsletter about key financial news, market insights, economic issues, and stock investment strategies on our Andy Yeh Alpha (AYA) fintech network platform. With both American focus and international reach, our primary and ultimate corporate mission aims to help enhance financial literacy, inclusion, and freedom of the open and diverse global general public. We apply our unique dynamic conditional alpha investment model as the first aid for every investor with profitable asset investment signals and portfolio strategies. In fact, our AYA freemium fintech network platform curates, orchestrates, and provides proprietary software technology and algorithmic cloud service to most members who can interact with one another on our AYA fintech network platform. Multiple blogs, posts, ebooks, analytical reports, stock alpha signals, and asset omega estimates offer proprietary solutions and substantive benefits to empower each financial market investor through technology, education, and social integration. Please feel free to sign up or login to enjoy our new and unique cloud software services on AYA fintech network platform now!!

Please feel free to follow our AYA Analytica financial health memo (FHM) podcast channel on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvntmnacYyCmVyQ-c_qjyyQ

Please feel free to follow our Brass Ring Facebook to learn more about the latest financial news and stock investment ideas: https://www.facebook.com/brassring2013

Free signup for stock signals: https://ayafintech.network

Mission on profitable signals: https://ayafintech.network/mission.php

Model technical descriptions: https://ayafintech.network/model.php

Blog on stock alpha signals: https://ayafintech.network/blog.php

Freemium base pricing plans: https://ayafintech.network/freemium.php

Signup for periodic updates: https://ayafintech.network/signup.php

We create each free finbuzz (or free financial buzz) as a blog post on the latest financial news and asset investment ideas. Our finbuzz collection demonstrates our unique American focus with global reach. Each free finbuzz provides deep insights into numerous topical issues in global finance, stock market investment, portfolio optimization, and dynamic asset management. We strive to help enrich the economic lives of most investors who would otherwise engage in financial data analysis with inordinate time commitment.

Please feel free to forward our finbuzz to family and friends, peers, colleagues, classmates, and others who might be keen and abuzz to learn more about asset investment strategies and modern policy reforms with macroeconomic insights.

Do you find it difficult to beat the long-term average 11% stock market return?

It took us 20+ years to design a new profitable algorithmic asset investment model and its attendant proprietary software technology with fintech patent protection in 2+ years. AYA fintech network platform serves as everyone’s first aid for his or her personal stock investment portfolio. Our proprietary software technology allows each investor to leverage fintech intelligence and information without exorbitant time commitment. Our dynamic conditional alpha analysis boosts the typical win rate from 70% to 90%+.

Our new alpha model empowers members to be a wiser stock market investor with profitable alpha signals!! This proprietary quantitative analysis applies the collective wisdom of Warren Buffett, George Soros, Carl Icahn, Mark Cuban, Tony Robbins, and Nobel Laureates in finance such as Robert Engle, Eugene Fama, Lars Hansen, Robert Lucas, Robert Merton, Edward Prescott, Thomas Sargent, William Sharpe, Robert Shiller, and Christopher Sims.

Andy Yeh Alpha (AYA) fintech network platform serves as each investor's social toolkit for profitable investment management. AYA fintech network platform helps promote better financial literacy, inclusion, and freedom of the global general public. We empower investors through technology, education, and social integration.

Andy Yeh AYA fintech network platform founder Brass Ring International Density Enterprise (BRIDE)

We should not conform to this world, but we should allow the renewal of our minds to transform us, so that we can prove what is the good, acceptable, and perfect will of God. Romans 12: 2

0 notes

skillzme · 6 years

Text

10 Modern Tech Disrupting Digital Marketing [Infographic]

Technology is sometimes a blessing but most of the time a challenge. Organizations and marketers are suffering to most of the time to play catch-up instead of benefiting from technology. 10 Modern Technologies which are Disrupting Digital Marketing and still try to find their way to benefit everybody.

Digital Marketing is not anymore like traditional marketing. In the era of digital transformation happening everywhere, marketers want a proof of their investment. Most of the people are scared of the question, what is this or what does it mean? We face it every day in our life that we get confronted with technology or terms which we don't know what they stand for. Sometimes terms are misleading, sometimes it is only the fact that evolution in digital marketing is progressing in light speed. Let's have a look into 10 modern tech terms challenging us every day and which technology we should keep an eye on for better understanding. The infographic talking about 10 technologies Disrupting Digital Marketing below was put together by Spiralytics who offers data-driven marketing.

1. Big data

Big data is the biggest game-changing opportunity and paradigm shift for marketing since the invention of the phone or the Internet going mainstream. Big data refers to the ever-increasing volume, velocity, variety, variability, and complexity of information. Big Data improves data collection for accurate and personalized campaign targeting Get insights about your campaign performance Future applications include the creation of attribution models to identify the contribution of each channel on the total conversation, programmatic advertising, and optimization of video marketing

2. Artificial Intelligence

"Artificial intelligence marketing (AIM) is a form of marketing leveraging artificial intelligence concept and model such as machine learning and Bayesian Network to achieve marketing goals. The main difference resides in the reasoning part which suggests it is performed by computer and algorithm instead of human." - Wikipedia Finds useful patterns to gain insights into marketing numbers for better ad targeting and consumer behavior projection Also used by search engines to interpret queries for relevant results Al scripts for apps may enhance online customer chat platforms to learn more customer information, help solve problems, and find solutions on demand. Al-powered technologies can improve customer-centric strategies through better trend analysis, enhanced customer profiling, and even more sophisticated personalization strategies.

3. Machine Learning

Machine Learning gives computers the ability to learn from data and create accurate predictions, without explicit programming. When it comes to the marketing world, the promise of machine learning is in quickly finding hidden patterns in massive amounts of consumer data, Big Data and Machine Learning go hand in hand. Used In audience segmentation and integrated Into analytics to detect anomalies and do real-time analysis of large datasets Machines can make automated content creation possible. Banner ads, email campaigns, or social media posts can be generated and applied to different formats for different channels. As performance is being collected, headlines may automatically be changed to match the content that is performing well.

4. Bots

"When it comes to marketing, automation is a powerful tool that allows you to get more done in less time. Recently, marketing bots have become a popular form of automation. A bot is basically software that you can program to carry out a certain set of actions all on its own." - says Neil Patel about Bots Not only an effective way to communicate but is also a 24x7 two-way channel between consumer and brand. Commonly used in the sales and service departments and provides search and discovery and product recommendations May soon be able to remind consumers to replenish a purchase through voice assistants Chatbot communication may start and from one device to another

5. Voice Search

Voice users are asking your company to give them a reason to buy your product or service. The tech-savvy business that wants to increase their revenue and sales, voice search offers a smart way to do it, it's only a matter of bringing voice search optimization into your digital marketing strategy mix. Marketers utilize voice search to gather more information about the devices' users through their search engine queries, requests for specific information, application launches, selections, or voice dial. It may soon be integral to SEO. Marketers need to learn how to optimize keywords based on how it is used in a conversational manner rather than as a typed-up query. It has the potential to upend paid search and organic content strategy practices.

6. Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality

Virtual reality and augmented reality are immersive technologies which offer significant opportunities for brand promotion and the sale of products and services, but also to engage and retain customers, both B2C and B2B. Both make for an immersive experience. inciting a range of senses and emotions• Both make for an immersive experience. inciting a range of senses and emotions In turn, both offer a unique try-before-you-buy experience that enables consumers to explore a product. engage with the brand, and make the purchase all at the same time. Could bring together the physical store and e-commerce to *completely blur the lines between high street and online shopping experience." Can be used for short-form storytelling to provide interactive experiences around a branded content

7. Internet of Things (IoT) and Wearables

Since IoT technology connects the internet with objects that are ubiquitous in our daily lives, marketers in almost every industry will be able to engage consumers throughout every phase of the customer journey. Wearable technology: it's a buzzword that's incessantly thrown around without much understanding of what it actually is, or what it does. Beyond the fact that these technologies are smart devices that consumers wear and interact with, the full effects have yet to be determined. User to gather more information about its users like their habits and preferences. The more connected devices a user has, the more ways marketers can reach them in a detailed and timely manner. Sensor technology of wearables, which can also be internet-connected, made gaining insights into biological conditions possible. Biometric data may be used to understand a person's interaction with a brand

8. Blockchain

Blockchain Eliminates Digital Marketing Middleman. Digital marketing now utilizes “middlemen” that control the territory between advertisers and users. ... Google also handles the processing of transactions so that the website owner is paid fairly for clicks generated on the advertiser's ad. Marketers can use blockchain to motivate consumers to watch or read advertisements and engage by leaving feedback or tagging friends. Decentralized apps built atop blockchain have the potential to challenge the integrated app platforms by Apple and Android and to support new cooperative economies globally.

9. Beacons

Beacons are small devices that send Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) or Near Field Communication (NFC) signals to mobile devices nearby. Retailers can use beacons to identify and track people as they visited the retail outlet, providing valuable information to marketers about the past (and possibly future) purchases and segment audience though heat maps of popular products or areas in their shop. Gathers detailed information on customers to optimize store experience and create personalized campaigns based on their movement. E-commerce businesses can use localization todirectly target potential customers in specific.high-traffic locations by putting beacons in establishments and ping out offers. Bridges online and physical presence of businesses to ensure continuity. It can help determine what kinds of campaign capture the consumer's attention as it puts direct and relevant ads into every customer without chasing them down.

10. 5G

5G is the fifth generation of mobile innovation. It's an abbreviation that stands for the fifth generation of cellular wireless transmission. For marketers, it means faster data transmission and reacting faster on customers wishes and communication on the move. Faster connectivity also means faster page load times for low bounce rate and Increased CTR and ROI. May open doors for video ads utilizing VR or AR where advertisers can better showcase their products and services. May give marketers the power to collect consumer data In real-lime for optimized campaigns and improved location-based marketing. These Technologies may affect and benefit Marketing and other business activities including Data Gathering, Personalization, Data Analytics, Targeting and Placements, Content Creation, Customer Service, Content Distribution, and SEO. What is your take on these disrupting Digital Marketing technologies? Share your thought in our commenting section below. Read the full article

#AugmentedReality #BigData #Bots #BusinessChatbots #DubaiArtificialIntelligence #MachineLearning #VirtualReality #Voice-Search

0 notes

connorrenwick · 4 years

Text

Where I Work: Windy Chien

You might not think of knots as being anything other than a way to tie something up or the annoying thing that happens to your necklaces when they get tangled up, but there’s an entire other world out there and it involves fiber artist Windy Chien. After stints at Apple and owning her own indie record shop in San Francisco, Windy found her calling bringing aesthetics to the middle of function, science, and history to highlight what’s most intriguing about knots, and that’s the journey of the line. You may recall she spent 2016 learning a new knot every day of the year for The Year of Knots, which she now displays on her studio walls mixed amongst a sea of works in various stages of progress and size. Today, we pop into her San Francisco studio located on the second floor of the Heath Ceramics tile factory to see her art and space in this Where I Work.

What’s your studio/work environment like?

Serene, cozy, and clean. I’m often playing music and podcasts, and my rescue greyhound, Shelley Duvall, comes with me to the studio each day.

How is your space organized/arranged?

My studio is a private 1000-square-foot space with its own street entrance. It’s a big open space. One wall is all huge windows, and I store my spools of rope and cordage in a long row beneath the windows. Another wall, made of four sheets of plywood suspended above the floor, holds The Year of Knots, which is the project I did in 2016 where I learned one new knot every day of the year. It’s an installation of 366 knots that functions as my palette and main resource, the same way a designer or painter might have a Pantone deck.

Scattered throughout the space are seven pairs of pulleys hanging from rafters off the 20’ pitched ceiling, where I suspend each piece while I’m making it. I raise and lower the works while working, and this is how I take care of my body while enacting the repetitive, physical motions of knotting.

The entire floor is covered in bright white, wall-to-wall, faux fur carpet. I’m a child of the 1970s, so wall-to-wall carpeting is my happy place, but there’s a practical reason for it too: my standard material is white cotton rope, which picks up dirt the second it hits a hardwood floor. With the white shag, I can throw my materials on the floor and know they’ll stay clean.

I’m often working on several commissions at once, along with experimenting on one-off pieces which is my way of thinking with my hands. With that much activity, everything must have a place. I can’t be productive in chaos.

How long have you been in this space? Where did you work before that?

I’ve been upstairs at Heath Ceramics since January 2020. Before that I spent three years in a mid-century police station. My studio there was the old police captain’s office! It was a cool space, but it didn’t have the strong, high ceilings necessary for me to easily make large works, which are all I do nowadays.

Being part of the Heath Ceramics community is a dream come true. Being around like-minded, creative people is incredibly motivating and positive. They have been beyond helpful with sharing resources such as their shipping & receiving department, security, communal kitchen, etc.

If you could change something about your workspace, what would it be?

It’s truly perfect here; the only thing I might eventually consider is a bit more space. I’m going to hire a studio manager this year to handle admin, and am having to think hard about how to have more than one person in this place that feels like my sanctuary.

Is there an office pet?

Yes, my greyhound Shelley Duvall comes with me to the studio every day.

Do you require music in the background? If so, who are some favorites?

I owned/operated an independent record store (Aquarius Records) for 14 years, so my tastes run far, wide, and obscure. Some of my favorite genres are Brazilian tropicalia, Ethiopian jazz, Jamaican rocksteady, Italian prog, outlaw country, German kosmiche krautrock, and more. It’s painful to choose only one, but for years my answer was Os Mutantes, the psychedelic pop trio from late 1960s Brazil, who sounded like Sgt Peppers but stunningly weird.

How do you record ideas?

I conduct my entire business on my iPad. For ideas and sketches, I use the apps Paper and ProCreate. For lists and text, I use Evernote.

What is your typical work style?

I arrive at my studio around 10am and try to work on a current piece immediately, or I open one of my dusty old sailors knotting tomes to learn a new knot. I believe in the concept of flow, which is the state of blissful productivity, where you are working at the edges of your abilities, happily, without any external reward; the reward is inherent in the doing of the thing. Being in flow is the best way to start a day because it makes me feel so good. I avoid email until the afternoon.

What is your creative process and/or creative workflow like? Does it change every project or do you keep it the same?

I work almost exclusively by commission and there is a waiting list. Clients choose amongst my several current bodies of work, each of which sprang from a single, exquisite knot and my desire to find its ultimate expressive potential, to blow it up and give it a greater aesthetic life. We think of knots as functional, and indeed I’d say the vast majority of the almost 4,000 documented knots are functional, but along with the culture, history, and science behind each perfectly-designed knot, I see them as aesthetic objects. My goal is to bring a greater awareness to the aesthetics of knots and, by extension, to explore the journey of the line.

With that said, while I enjoy making my existing bodies of work, I believe every knot is waiting for me to find its most expressive potential, so I’m always looking for periods of free time where I can experiment with new works. I will never run out of curiosity or things to explore. I don’t get creatively blocked.

What kind of art/design/objects might you have scattered about the space?

It’s all my own work, my sailors knotting books, my materials, whatever work is in progress, and all the experiments. I have a lovely collection of artworks made by others, but I keep all of that at home.

Are there tools and/or machinery in your space?

I was recently given a non-electric, rope-making ‘machine’ (by Schacht Spindle), and am looking forward to making my own rope. I have a glue gun, but try to avoid it as much as possible. I’m a purist, and using glue feels like taking the easy way out when surely a knot will do.

What tool(s) do you most enjoy using in the design process?

Sharp scissors and bent needle-nose pliers.

Let’s talk about how you’re wired. Tell us about your tech arsenal/devices.

I worked at Apple for many years, from the early years of iTunes, to the launch of iPhone and iPad and the App Store. So I’m super savvy with the entire Apple ecosystem. It’s just designed so beautifully, with the user in mind, and with an exquisite design logic. I use my iPad exclusively, with iPhone for Instagram and photo processing.

What design software do you use, if any, and for what?

My work needs only the sketching and drawing apps listed above. Occasionally, I will open my old MacBook to use SketchUp, which annoyingly has not made it to the App Store yet, for complicated projects that benefit from a 3D model.

What’s on your desk right now?

A dozen scissors, ancient knotting books, and various Doughnut and Star Knots.

Is there a favorite project/piece you’ve worked on?

I could never choose between all my babies, but a favorite recent project is the debut of a new body of work, the Hitching Posts. This is installed in Las Vegas.

Tell us about a current project you’re working on. What was the inspiration behind it?

I recently made a Linescape for Square, the payments company based in the Bay Area. They wanted something bridge-inspired, so I used a very curly knot that is rather counterintuitively good for creating sharp angles and straight lines. We did it in a color close to International Orange, the color of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Do you have anything in your home that you’ve designed/created?

I own a classic San Francisco-style Victorian, and I put the first Helix Light Chandelier in my bay window. I also designed the paint scheme in the attic, which is 1970s-style long lines running at angles along the pitched ceiling, and done using the Pendleton Glacier Park stripes. I designed the exterior paint scheme of the house – horizontal ombré stripes running yellow-orange-red on the front and yellow-green-blue in the backyard.

Photos by Windy Chien.

via http://design-milk.com/

from WordPress https://connorrenwickblog.wordpress.com/2020/06/09/where-i-work-windy-chien/

#Uncategorized

0 notes

patriceclosson-blog · 5 years

Text

Hire iOS Developer to Rule the Market

Even though the Apple app store ranks second to Google App Store, it is one of the most sought after platforms by business owners. Just as there are users for Android smartphones, there are several who make use of the iPhones as well.

Business owners who intend to connect with their customers through apps make use of both the platforms and develop apps that support both. Apps cannot be developed by any random person and require a specialist who opts for ios Developer Jobs in India to do so.

While iPhones are no longer a rich man’s luxury, multiple financing options have made it easy for several to own one and use them. With great customer service and support, it is used worldwide, and there are several opting for apps that are suitable for the OS.

iPhones come with good security and easy testing options, and that is the reason why more and more businesses are opting for iOS app development along with Android. When you offer iOS developer jobs to a candidate for your company and allow them to create apps, you would witness multiple benefits.

You can convince your audience well

Apple has earned a good reputation for itself when it comes to helping their customers with mobile phones, laptops, tablets, etc. where users find it to be of the best quality. The software and the hardware are both easy to use and don’t have any flaws to point out. The security level is high, and the customer support is great. That is one of the reasons why users find iPhones to be better. While Android has access to multiple apps, iPhone users want the same for their phones as well. Therefore, when your iOS developer comes up with an app that is eligible for an iPhone, you get to convince your audience in a better way to opt for your app.

Your company gets better attention

When a customer chooses iPhone over the rest, they are smart enough to understand what is right and wrong. It means that they are tech-savvy and know what is right for them. When your iOS developer creates an app that is compatible with their phone, it is the right audience that you target. While they are the ones who know how to judge between the wrong and the right, you get to put yourself in the hands of smart users. This way, your app receives better attention from the users.

You can reach the global audience

While iPhones are used by people worldwide, you can offer ios Developer Jobs in India to the right person to create an app that reaches the global audience. It isn’t something limited to the local area or the country but people all over can know about your business, and that is how you get to spread your wings and receive attention as well as profits for your business.

How can WIFT help you?

When you intend to achieve all of the above, there is a need for a specialized and expert iOS developer. The WIFT app can help you get to the right person in no time. The moment you place a requirement for ios Developer Jobs in India, it would connect you to the right candidate where you do not have to worry about screening and interviewing several.

#ios Developer Jobs in India

0 notes

bentonpena · 5 years

Text

Even the tech expert from 'Mr. Robot' can’t figure out this iPhone hack

Even the tech expert from 'Mr. Robot' can’t figure out this iPhone hack https://engt.co/2oHr514

If your dad were the technical advisor for the realistic hacks on Mr. Robot and he lovingly micromanaged your gadgets, you'd probably feel pretty badass about the security of your personal devices. So when one of Marc Rogers' kids had their iPhone pickpocketed at San Francisco Pride this year, things took an unexpected turn when tech-savvy thieves pulled off hacking tricks that had Rogers beside himself with curiosity and fascination. And concern. Lots of concern.

"Since this was my kid we are talking about, the phone was up to date and had a strong password and FaceID enabled, and activation lock was turned on," Rogers told Engadget via email. The teen noticed the phone missing within 10 minutes of its theft and immediately began security protocols. "As soon as the phone was found to be missing it was switched to Lost Mode and later a wipe command was sent to it," he explained.

Since that's exactly what you're supposed to do, that should have been the end of it. A loss to be sure, and a pain to start over with a new iPhone. Except Rogers noticed that neither the Lost Mode activation or wipe command went through, leading him to "believe the phone has been immediately powered down or placed in a bag that blocked signals. That and the fact that it never resurfaced told me that whoever stole it knew what they were doing and had done this before."

Most likely, the iPhone was powered down immediately and placed in a radio frequency-blocking bag (also called a Faraday Bag or RFID bag), a foil-lined sleeve or even an empty potato chip bag. This step interferes with Activation Lock, Find My iPhone, and Remote Wipe. In fact, after anti-theft "kill switch" features were introduced, iPhone theft rate dropped by 40 percent in San Francisco and 25 percent in New York within 12 months. London saw its iPhone thefts reduced by half.

The blocked signals didn't surprise Rogers; understanding digital crime is his job, after all. He explained in a post on Dark Reading what usually happens to a stolen iPhone after that:

The devices are then powered up only when thieves are positive no signal can reach or inspect them. If the phone is out of date and a software vulnerability exists, they hack the phone and wipe it clean to be resold. If the phone is up to date but not valuable enough to resell, it is either junked or sold for parts. This can easily happen on both older and newer models of phones.

But what happened to his kid's phone next surprised him. Within a few days, the teen "started getting these highly targeted messages using information they had apparently managed to extract." That information included the child's correct Apple ID, its associated email address, "they knew the phone number associated with it even though the SIM card had been killed," and the attackers "sent a range of different messages trying several different social engineering tactics" to try and trick Rogers's kid into clicking on tainted links.

The messages, sent by SMS/iMessage, were made to look like they came from Apple. Yet Rogers noticed they "rotated through a range of different mobile numbers, possibly to avoid detection." The attackers also rotated through a variety of iCloud addresses in order to prevent the victim from ignoring or blocking any of the messages.

Even though Rogers reported the messages as "junk" (this is what Apple advises), the messages came in a relentless flood. "At one point, more than 10 messages per day came in at all hours," he wrote.

He did some online digging and discovered what others are experiencing at the hands of similar attackers. "Apple forums are full of users asking for help after clicking on similar phishing emails. After which their phone is almost instantly deleted from their account, never to be seen again." If the target clicked on one of the links, Rogers explained, "they were immediately redirected to a fake Find My iPhone page that attempted to harvest their AppleID and password, as shown below, taken from fake Apple servers." From there, he wrote for Dark Reading:

If the target entered their AppleID credentials into the site, the phone would have been quickly deleted from their account. And often, the first moment targets know this has happened is when the missing device disappears from the list of devices trackable through Find My iPhone.

Sometimes, for good measure, the thief will hijack the target's AppleID, changing email addresses and contact information to exploit the account further."

Rogers was taken aback by the accuracy and automation of the attacks. "This is the first time I have seen spear-phishing used as a technique like this to bypass anti-theft technology used by consumers," he said. "The attacks appear to have been around since 2017 but steadily getting more sophisticated and more targeted."

He added that "normally this kind of very personal spear-phishing is something you associate with high-value targets like the directors of companies, however now it is being used against ordinary smartphone users. We have clearly reached a point where tools are readily available to do this."

So what seems like a basic iPhone theft at first glance is pretty serious and has implications of a bad privacy or security bleed happening somewhere. "All smartphone manufacturers and the mobile carriers need to find out how the attackers are harvesting personal information from their victims with nothing but a locked stolen phone," Rogers told Engadget. "Clearly they have found a route they can leverage to extract key pieces of information, likely through a multi-step process. A thief should not be able to extract the victim's contact information from a locked stolen device."

"This information exposure could have bigger ramifications than just spear-phishing."

While the attack method is somewhat of a mystery, it comes to light at the same time as a newly revealed bootrom exploit for iPhones, called checkm8. It, by the way, requires physical access to a victim's iPhone -- exactly the scenario for pickpockets and phone-snatches. Right now what is known about the checkm8 attack is that it jailbreaks iPhones, which could allow an attacker to revert the operating system to an unpatched version, could be used to undermine iCloud account locks (used for remote security actions like wipes), and more.

What's key here is that since Marc Rogers saw what happened with his kid's stolen iPhone, the world has found out that there's a whole new way to crack iPhones. And being told that attackers must have physical access to the phone is no longer a reassurance.

Personally, I'm inclined to believe we live in a terrible timeline in which privacy is burning, security is a smoking husk of good ideas and all companies hoarding our personal information are big fat thieves and liars. Maybe I'm not wrong! Or maybe I'm just feeling a little dour after finding out about the evolution of attacks on the people most at-risk to be exploited and have their lives torn apart. Namely, people who aren't up to date on all the latest security-savvy. Or, what hackers call "normal people." And companies seem to want to think of as "reputation risks when anyone finds out bad things are happening."

So like usual, we need to think a step ahead of the latest security measures. According to Rogers, that means being extremely cautious about text messages (and tell your friends and family too). "Don't trust messages with links in them, go to the site manually without clicking," he advised Engadget. "Keep your phone up to date and make sure you use all the security features available in your device. Finally, make sure all your accounts that support multi-factor authentication have it enabled. It's a good, simple defense against phishing attacks."

Yep, trust no one. Got it.

Images: Koren Shadmi (iPhone Illustration); Getty (iPhone/iCloud, Back Pocket, San Francisco Pride)

Tech via Engadget https://engt.co/2N4ekI3 September 30, 2019 at 01:06PM

#IFTTT #Feedly

0 notes

eddiecowell · 5 years

Text

Discover TOP 9 Best eCommerce Website Builders

The world eCommerce market is witnessing an unprecedented fierce race between big companies like Amazon, Shopee, Lazada, etc. Individuals, SMEs, and large corporations are heavily investing in online sales channels. In this article, CO-WELL will review the top 8 best-rated eCommerce website builder, helping you to decide which one is right for you.

1. Magento – The best eCommerce website builder for a large e-commerce store

Magento is a feature-rich, professional open-source eCommerce website. It was launched on March 31, 2008. Magento was once owned by the eBay group. But thanks to its fast and considerable development, Magento has reached out of the reach of eBay and gradually became the platform that is considered the most outstanding with its continuous development and changes over the years.

This eCommerce platform offers many outstanding features. You can manage stores that are operating in many countries with different market targets and brands with different pricing, content and payment systems from a single installation.

Currently, Magento has developed to version 2.2.6 and has 2 versions including:

Magento Community Edition – Magento version is completely free.

Magento Enterprise – The professional version of Magento integrates the most powerful features for large enterprises.

Pros:

Large user community. Over 25% of online businesses in the world choose Magento as their platform

Users have full ownership of the software.

Rich features and a large number of utilities: Support multiple currencies and tax calculator; Integrate most payment gateways you want.

Thousands of Magento extensions to meet your requirements.

Magento has been trusted and used by thousands of big names like CocaCola, Samsung, Christian Louboutin, Levi’s, etc. It is enough to see this eCommerce platform that can solve sales problems, marketing and how big a business is.

Cons:

Difficult to use and time-consuming if you do not have the technical knowledge.

High prices. The enterprise version costs up to $18,000.

Expensive setup and maintenance fees: Need to buy hosting, themes, extensions, etc.

CO-WELL – TOP Magento E-Commerce Service Company

Of course, you can considerably save up on the Magento development costs if you’re tech-savvy or have an in-house IT department. However, Magento is quite a sophisticated platform that requires solid programming skills and a thorough understanding of its peculiarities. Customization of the platform and its integration with third-party systems and services might become a tough task for an inexperienced developer. Thus, hiring a professional Magento development company is an optimal way to achieve successful and fast delivery of an e-commerce store. From 2018, CO-WELL Asia officially became Magento Business Solution Partner. With all the experience and a team of hundreds of skillful IT engineers, CO-WELL Asia is a truthful partner of every company that wants to build an effective Magento eCommerce website.

2. Shopify – The most convenient e-commerce website builder for large online stores

Shopify launched in June 2009, now has more than 600,000 online stores and handles the volume of merchandise valued USD 55 billion. Shopify is used by all types of people, from small to medium entrepreneurs to multi-million dollar businesses. Shopify provides the platform in the form of SaaS (Software-as-a-service), that is, the core system and the platform are hosted on Shopify’s own system. One of the things users love most about Shopify is that it support integrate SEO into the system. You can easily add Meta title, Meta Description, Alt text tags to each article, product or collection easily. In addition, you can integrate Google Analytics and Search Console to optimize SEO.

Shopify offers a 14-day free trial on sub-domains. To start a business, you must sign up for one of the paid plans. There are currently 3 paid versions:

Basic Shopify ($29 monthly): All the basics for starting a new business.

Shopify ($79 monthly): Everything you need for a growing business.

Advanced Shopify ($299 monthly): Advanced features for a scaling your business.

Pros:

Sell across multiple channels, including Facebook, Instagram, Amazon, and eBay.

Brilliant inventory system which helps you manage your store.

Various sales features and customer score.

There are hundreds of theme templates suitable for each industry.

There is an App Store – where you can choose for your website functions to customize.

24/7 support: Shopify provides hotline, email and live chat support.

Cons

The transaction fee for each sale (Unless using Shopify Payment).

Monthly maintenance cost.

Knowledge on Liquid is required.

Content doesn’t automatically reformat if you switch to a different theme.

CO-WELL – TOP Shopify E-Commerce Service Company

Like Magento, building a professional online store on the platform of Shopify require a professional Shopify integration partner if you do not have an in-house IT department. Hiring an experienced IT company is an optimal way to achieve successful and fast delivery of an e-commerce store. With significant experience in building enterprise systems which manage more than 200 stores, over 20 million products and handle around 10,000 orders each day, CO-WELL Asia offers consulting and development services for all-level of eCommerce systems.

3. BigCommerce – Excellent platform for big e-commerce store but weaker website design

BigCommerce is a top eCommerce platform which allows you to create an online store. It lets you set up your store, add products, and make money through your website.

But that’s not all. BigCommerce is a specialized eCommerce builder, meaning it’s designed to help you sell online. With tons of built-in features, data tools, and more, BigCommerce is best for large or fast-growing businesses.

Like Shopify, BigCommerce provides the SaaS platform. It is an online store software, integrated directly with Google Merchant Center, which allows users to promote their products on Google Shopping.

BigCommerce currently offers 4 paid plan:

Standard: $29.95/month.

Plus: $79.95/month.

Pro: $249.95/month.

Enterprise: Depend on requirements and needs.

Pros:

Most scalable eCommerce platform.

Integrating with major payment gateways such as Stripe, PayPal, Apple Pay, etc.

Lots of marketing tools including the ability to sell on multiple platforms such as Amazon Marketplace, Facebook, eBay, Pinterest, etc.

Integrate with many email service providers.

Strong security system.

Support different currencies.

Integrated dropshipping & warehouse.

Rich theme resource which is fully mobile responsive.

Excellent SEO tool.

Cons:

Complex terminology is unsuitable for beginners.

Maintenance costs are expensive for individuals.

No mobile app to run your store on the go.

Some advertised features are only available to US users.

BigCommerce operates mainly in Europe – America market and is not really popular in Asia.

4. WooCommerce

Unlike the other platforms in this article, WooCommerce is not an independent eCommerce website builder. It is the plugin that runs on WordPress, the world’s most popular CMS.

WooCommerce is an extremely powerful tool that significantly increases eCommerce functionality for WordPress. It is a favorite tool for many people in the WordPress community, as it is powerful and beginner-friendly. Moreover, it has its own extension section to help your store take the lead in the web world.

WooCommerce can handle many basic tasks, from publishing products to selling goods to processing payments. Moreover, you can add functionality to this plugin with separate extensions. There are hundreds of such extensions. For example, there are options that help you integrate almost every payment processor into.

There are three WooCommerce pricing plans to choose from:

Starter: $13.99 (Webspace limited to 100 GB)

Plus: $17.99 (Unlimited space for your WooCommerce store)

Pro: $31.99 (Includes an advanced backup solution)

Pros:

Use WordPress CMS to deploy your online store.

Customize your store easily with a vast selection of WooCommerce’s own plugin and extensions, which can make your online store even more powerful.

Various theme resources with eye-catching designs.

Supported by a huge community of WordPress users.

Cons:

Only works on WordPress.

More advanced features often require different extensions.

Lack of support: Unlike Shopify, you will not have central support. Every theme, plugin, and hosting come from different support channel.

5. WIX.com – A good choice for small boutique online stores

Wix eCommerce uses the easy and intuitive drag-and-drop editor, allowing you to build your very own eCommerce website. No need for coding, hosting, or stressing – simply pick your template, customize it by dragging and dropping elements like text boxes and images around your pages, and then hit publish!

There are three Wix eCommerce plans to choose from:

Business Basic: $17/month

Business Unlimited: $25/month

Business VIP: $35/month

Pros:

Really easy to use – no tech skills needed. Features-Packed Drag & Drop Editor.

Value for money.

Lots of creative control and eye-catching design– you can design your store, add product videos, and more.

Advanced eCommerce tools – including abandoned cart recovery to catch customers who have left items in their checkout.

Excellent SEO tool.

Cons:

Less powerful inventory than other platforms – for example, you can’t bulk upload products with Wix.

No stock management alerts – Wix won’t tell you when levels are running low, making it difficult to scale.

Doesn’t support multichannel selling.

6. Volusion – Better design, great for sales and reporting, but a little hard to use.

Volusion was created in 1999 and is one of the oldest eCommerce website builders around. Volusion provides no illusions when it comes to data reports. Everything you need for tracking your site’s performance and progress is in one place – it’s a data lover’s dream.

This makes it ideal for growing your business at a pace that suits you. Volusion’s data tools let you measure how successful your pages are, so you can easily adjust your site to improve your sales.

Volusion scored poorly for its website features – the main problem being that Volusion doesn’t offer any blogging tools. Blogging can play an important part in the growth of small businesses, so this is a major drawback. However, if you want to grow your business, Volusion is a decent place to start.

There are 4 Volusion price plans to choose from:

Personal (USD 29/month).

Pro (USD 79/month).

Business (USD 299/month).

Prime (Custom).

Pros:

Supports numerous payment gateways – choose from various options to suit your business.

Insightful data reports – learn what you’re doing well by easily tracking your site’s performance.

Mobile app: Volusion lets you manage your online store from your phone with its excellent mobile app

Cons:

No blogging tools.

Very difficult to use – you’ll have to spend some time building your store with Volusion.

No real unique selling point.

7. Weebly – Help you to have a good website, but lacks some sales features

Weebly is one of the best drag-and-drop website builders on the market today. Not only are there plenty of options available, but Weebly eCommerce is also one of the easiest platforms to use for building your own online store.

There are 3 Weebly plans for online stores to choose from (billed annually):

Pro (Group & Organization): USD 12/month.

Business (Small Businesses & Stores): USD 25/month.

Business Plus (Power Sellers): USD 38/month.

Pros:

Reasonable price, with notably cheap starter prices.

Really easy to use – no tech skills needed.

Offers great additional features such as blogging tools.

Cons:

Cannot sell across multiple channels (You can’t sell across Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest)

Lacks big data tools such as inventory management, making it unsuitable for large businesses

Unable to customize the checkout page

Poor sale features. That’s why we recommend it for small businesses only selling a few products.

8. Squarespace – Designed as a website builder, Squarespace is also a great e-commerce platform.

If you’re looking to build an eye-catching portfolio or online business, then make space for this platform. Why? Because Squarespace stores stand out.

In our research, Squarespace outperformed all other e-commerce website builders when it came to designing. Its templates are modern, sleek, and built to show off your products. You can even switch your template any time you like – perfect for any rebrands you might have down the line.

There are 4 Squarespace price plans for online stores to choose from (billed annually)

$12/m – Personal.

$18/m – Business Most Popular.

$26/m – Basic Store.

$40/m – Advanced Store.

Pros:

Exceptional website design options.

Cheaper than e-commerce competitors.

Excellent social media integration – easily promote your store across your various social channels.

Easy to use.

Cons

Lacks payment options – you can only use Stripe, PayPal, or Apple Pay.

Poor support multichannel selling (only through Instagram).

Reporting is a little basic.

No app market – all of Squarespace’s features are built-in. While this ensures quality, it means you can’t add extras to your store.

9. GoDaddy – Easiest to use

GoDaddy’s website builder, GoCentral, can help you get your eCommerce store up and running in a flash.

Through the use of ADI (Artificial Design Intelligence), creating a layout, uploading your products, and managing your sales has never been easier!

There are 3 Squarespace price plans to choose from (billed annually)

Basic: $10/month

Standard: $15/month

Premium: $20/month

ECommerce: $25/month

Pros:

Fastest and easiest to build – GoDaddy uses ADI to make building your store as simple as possible.

Supports more industries than its competitors – whether you’re a photographer, writer, or dog walker, GoDaddy’s got you covered.

Great marketing tools for email campaigns and performance analysis

Cons:

Some features lack quality – GoDaddy doesn’t have the best features around.

Can’t sell products across social media directly

Limited creative control – what you gain in speed, you lose in creative freedom.

Nowadays, creating an online store is easier than ever. The best eCommerce platform above will help you quickly create an online store that runs and operates in just a few hours. A good platform for your online store with a partner to help you to integrate and develop eCommerce system will ensure the success of your business.

Bài viết Discover TOP 9 Best eCommerce Website Builders đã xuất hiện đầu tiên vào ngày Cowell Asia.

source https://co-well.vn/en/tech-blog/discover-top-9-best-ecommerce-website-builders/

0 notes