We switch on our computers and expect the internet to flood into our room. And, usually, that happens. But are we getting the speeds we deserve, or even, that we are paying for?

By the end of this year (2014), Americans will have paid about $400 billion (yes, with a "B") by major players, AT&T, Verizon, and CenturyLink to "future-proof" our network with fiber optic cabling. Cabling that NEVER materialized! Though varying between states, once all the fees, taxes and surcharges are taken into account, every household would have been fleeced about $4-5,000 from 1992-2014.

Back in 1992, state laws mandated that broadband speeds should be 45mbps in both directions. My current Cox connection (in Phoenix) gives me about 65Mbps download, and around 11-12Mbps upload - a far cry from 45 each way. It might be comforting, at least, to know that, poor speed aside, we in America at least enjoy some of the best speeds worldwide, right? Wrong! We aren't number 1, or 2, or even 5. A recent test by Ookla (one of the net's standard testing companies) pegs the good ole USA as number 25 in download and number 40 in upload speeds.

By the end of

It's not often that you get something worthwhile for free. In the realm of internet marketing, many people think of AdWords when the topic comes up. But did you know there are many great opportunities to advertise for free on the net, and quite successfully?

The more obvious ones are sites like MerchantCircle, Yelp (though I have issues with some of the less-than-reputable dealings), & your local city business directories. But the one I'm going to mention in more detail is Craigslist. Yes, it has a worse look than a 980's website done by an amateur, but, for many industries, it can yield great results.

It also seems to be better in some cities than others. When we were in Citrus Heights, CA (part of Sacramento) we got 1-2 inquiries off it every week. And many of those became customers. However, Arizonans (specifically in Phoenix) web design at least on CL has been a much worse performer. We're lucky to get 1 a month. However, the time required to keep ads going is minimal, so it still is worth the little time needed.

How to work Craigslist for free advertising

I will say that when we first started on Craiglist,

There are 3 main learning styles, auditory, visual and kinesthetic. It's hard to do kinesthetic on your website - they're the touchy feely group - offer them a free sample by filling in a SIMPLE form. Visual is what you're already doing (I will assume you have a visually appealing website - if you don't talk to us about a redesign). But where is your site on auditory? If you're at zero, join the club - most are.

As many as 60%+ of the population learn by visual primarily. For those people, lack of video seriously underpowers your site!

 With the price of video production falling dramatically, it's now easier than ever to add video to your site. And, if a pictures says 1000 words, then a video says 1000 pictures. You now have the ability to showcase your business and your products and/or services like never before.

Here's a video (yep, I'm into it too!) of a local Phoenix voice over artist I know, doing just what I'm talking about - showcasing her business. I've teamed up with her and a local media production company (that Weecks Productions who made Amber's video) to bring together a special package for

A coule of weeks back, I blogged about using add-ons/extensions for Joomla that came from warez sites, and the potential security problems associated with that (see "How to get a free lunch on the internet"). A joomla website is just a bunch of images, text, HMTL files, PHP files and CSS files. Whilst it's possivle to attach "nasties" to an image, or embed in text, when it comes to websites, usually the most common is adding code to one of the last 3. And of those 3, PHP is the "best" (from a hackers point of view) as it's the most powerful for wreaking havoc.

Templates for Joomla, or any modern CMS, are a collection of HTM, CSS and PHP files, so are just a good a target for hackers as the core website files. When we're doing sites we code our own templates - we don't buy templates, so your site will be unique. Templates are not usually particularly expensive - in the $20 - 50 range - though there are some more expensive than that. However, humans are loathe to pay for something they can get for free, right?

The same sort of sites