by Nick Throlson | May 13, 2019 | Guest Post
Of all the fads of our time that have hit the Internet, none has had such a great impact as the selfie. “Selfies” is the colloquial internet term used to refer to self-portraits. When it first showed up a few years back, it took to the photo-sharing communities – the uploader would take the photo of him/herself.
The actual origins of the term are unclear, but it first showed up in the Internet site Flickr in 2004, and then just grew from there. By 2005, the definition was included in the Urban Dictionary. So mainstream has the concept become that Smartphone manufacturing companies adopted a front camera to make it easier for people to take selfies using their Smartphones.
Taking good selfie/selfy pictures
Before you can make a meme, you should begin with an awesome picture of yourself. Sure, you can take and delete as many times as you like, and you should until you feel like you’ve nailed the look that you were going for. If you have makeup on, make sure it’s done right and also if the idea is to be goofy, ensure you’ve nailed the goofy look right before trying to make a meme out of it.
Be creative on the poses – don’t go for the snap in front of a mirror or the snap as you pose to show off the good side of your face. We’re tired of those, we want more, and so do you or you wouldn’t be reading this article. You’ll attach some funny quip to it, so make it a funny photo e.g. ugly selfies, which are a thing by the way.
Instead of taking 50 photos of your OOTD (Outfit of the day) try taking selfies of remarkable things. First, of course, you have to do something remarkably daring. One Japanese astronaut, Akihiko Hoshide, took a selfie of himself when he was at the space station about to launch into space. While it’s difficult to top that, try going creative.
Finding the captions
Depending on who you’re addressing the selfie meme to, it’s important to ensure that they’ll get what you mean. For example, if you’re travelling and you miss your friends back home, you can take a sad-face meme and then caption it with “Miss you guys”. You can post grouchy-you and excited-you selfies to show the difference between how you feel on Friday evening and Monday morning.
You can also use existing memes to advance your funny selfie meme story. For example, you can take memeing a step further and Photoshop your awesome selfie onto the face of Don Equis’s The Most Interesting Man in the World and caption it in common style, “I don’t always miss, but when I do it’s you guys” (when you’re away from the fam)-or Photoshop any of the Rage Comics onto your face to help make your point.
The idea is to be creative. Visit http://memes.com and you’ll see thousands of ideas you can use your selfies on. Remember that, especially where you’re not addressing people who personally know and love you (like your family), the bar is rather high, so you should put some thought into the picture so that somebody doesn’t respond to your meme with a criticizing Condescending Wonka message.
by Nick Throlson | Apr 23, 2019 | Guest Post
James Dondero is an entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist in Dallas, Texas. James is the co-founder and President of Highland Capital Management, the Dallas based investment firm.
Each day, James spends a tremendous amount of time managing the firm and taking steps to make it more successful. However, he also participates in a number of philanthropic projects. These activities are performed in an effort to contribute to the improvement of Dallas and the surrounding community.
If you are interested in learning how to apply business acumen to philanthropy, then Mr. Dondero is the kind of professional you want to learn from. As an entrepreneur and a philanthropist, James has contributed financially to various charitable organizations and has made tremendous efforts to help make Dallas community a better place.
From the start, Mr. James Dondero ensured that the mission of Highland Capital Management included charitable giving and participating in charitable activities. Through his entrepreneurial acumen, James has made a tangible, huge impact with his foundation or organization on the Dallas community.
James Dondero is one of the top-rated investment professionals in the industry. He has been in business for years and is well recognized around the world. Numerous organizations and individual investors turn to Mr. Dondero and his team for expert guidance and assistance with their investment projects and related issues.
After obtaining finance and accounting degrees from the University of Virginia, Mr. Dondero decided to join JP Morgan. After working for JP Morgan for four years, he started working for American Express.
As an experienced investment professional, Jim Dondero managed fixed income funds for American express while he learned how to handle alternative credit strategies. Dondero established a great reputation at American Express and was named CIO in 1989 by Protective Life’s GIC subsidiary. By 1993, he was ready to strike out on his own, so Mr. Dondero and fellow investment banking expert Mark Okada started Highland Capital. In 1994, the headquarters of Highland Capital Management was moved from Los Angeles to Dallas.
Dallas is one of those popular American cities that attract multinational companies, big corporations, and affluent individuals. Many fortune 500 companies are based in Dallas, Texas. Dallas is not just a premier business area, but it’s also a fun-loving metropolis with a wide variety of activities. The Dallas area also attracts tourist from all over the world.
Today, Highland Capital Management is one of the largest and most reliable investment firms in the country in terms of private equity and alternative assets management. Over the course of Highland Capital’s existence, the firm has been managing a number of credit investment options, hedge funds, and private equity transactions. Highland Capital has offices in New York, Sao Paulo, Singapore, and Seoul so it’s investment experts can stay on top of emerging markets.
The Investments team at Highland Capital Management is comprised of industry-focused research experts. These professionals are highly knowledgeable and have vast experience in reviewing existing investments and taking steps to evaluate opportunities across issuer capital structures. They have systems in place to monitor trends within those industries. They are also aware of the constant information flow and how to handle processes around risk management. These investment professionals maintain self-discipline and investment thesis. Finally, their active and focused portfolio maintenance and asset management process drive their bold decision making.
Highland Capital and its team of investment specialists have an established history of providing outstanding financial and investment solutions to clients. The company caters to clients from all walks of life and has numerous positive reviews. It is recommended that you visit their website to learn more about the company and its investment strategies.
by Nick Throlson | Oct 28, 2018 | Guest Post
Whenever there is a vacant position in a company, the human resource department goes through the same process to fill the position. Firstly, they would have to publish the job description on paper or online to reach out to individuals looking for a job. Upon receiving applications, the employer will then sort out the applicant pool to find potential candidates for the job and to schedule their interviews. The interviews, whether on-the-phone or in-person, will supply the employer with information so they can assess if the applicant suits the job.
That?s how the employment screening process usually goes; however, one important step was forgotten: the background check. If it seems quite excessive to go through that extra step, here are four reasons that might change your mind before you hire a prospective employee.
Highlights If There Are Any Criminal Records
Criminal records are the top reason why pre-employment background checks are being run. Of course, you?d want to hire only the best people in your company, and sometimes the existence of criminal records help you with deciding.
Having a criminal record does not necessarily mean that the applicant will not be hired, though. Reportedly, 90% of employers would automatically disqualify applicants who were convicted of crimes related to violence, theft, or dishonesty. These charges imply that the applicant may be dangerous, unreliable, or not suitable for hiring which is a red light.
The number is a lot lower if there were only minor infractions found; only 32% would disregard your application. An employer has the right to possess this information to decide in the best interest of the company.
Flags Past Infraction
Alongside the criminal history, some background checks will also flag driving records, credit histories, or other relevant information. Some may argue that several license suspensions or some missed payments and debt have nothing to do with how the applicant will perform their job.
However, if the position entails driving or handling of money, this may be an important deciding factor. For example, you hire a driver without running a background check, and he gets into an accident because he was driving under the influence. You later find out that this was not his first DUI charge when he was apprehended by the police. If only you had run a background check, you could have avoided this situation completely.
Verifies Education and Certification
For some positions, such as managerial roles, the employer sometimes requires the applicant to be of at least a certain educational attainment and have specific qualifications. Around 75% of employers would reject applicants who have lied on their resumes about their educational attainment.
If you think that altering their educational history just to land a job is uncommon, you?d be surprised at the number of people who lie about their degrees or diplomas. James Morris, the president, and chief operating officer of EmployeeScreenIQ, claims that they come across fake degrees and diplomas easily a hundred times per week. With that sheer amount, you should already be convinced to do a background check on your applicants.
The Honesty of the Candidate
Everything just boils down to the honesty of the applicant in their resume and their interviews. In addition to the 75% mentioned above, 44% would disqualify applicants who lied about their dates of employment, and 34% would reject those who altered their job titles. Background checks involve calling former employers to confirm the information on their resumes. A dishonest applicant is not someone you want to hire.
In addition to that, 75% of employers would ask potential employees to divulge any criminal history before they even run a background check. Usually, when the applicant lets their potential employer know about their circumstances and perhaps do a little explanation, it might do better than when the employer finds out by himself after the background check.
To help you sort through the pre-employment background check and to learn more about the different qualifications in hiring an employee for your business, you can check this business?blog.
Conclusion
Employment screening takes up a lot of time, effort, and money. You need it for the betterment of your whole team, work, and company. From here, you want to hire the right person on the first try to save wasted resources if you find yourself in the screening process again.
Conducting a background check also confirms if the applicant were truthful and transparent in their resume and in their interview which are some characteristics you?d want in all your employees. You would also want to keep the safety in the workplace and integrity of the company in case you run into an applicant with a dodgy history.
If you want to avoid all of the complications that could arise without getting a background check on your applicants, you better start upgrading your employee screening process to get a comprehensive profile of your potential staff. After all, better be safe than sorry!
by Nick Throlson | Jul 4, 2018 | Guest Post
Because of the growing number of mobile users, the need for mobile applications is also growing. We see a lot of apps being developed and added each day. But not all apps are making it big. Some of the factors that lead to bad reception of a mobile app are issues with the user interface and the user experience.
Developing an app is not easy and it?s sad when the results are not good. But in the end, UI and UX concerns are really needed to be addressed to ensure the success of the app.
What is User Interface (UI)?
A mobile app?s user interface refers to the visual appearance of the application. This involves not only the design but also the organization of the visual aspect of an app. Ideally, an app should have an intuitive user interface that will be seen by users as appealing, and at the same time, easy to understand and use.
What is User Experience (UX)?
Meanwhile, user experience refers to the actual reception of a user towards the mobile app. UX is composed of all the interactions that the user has with the app, and will tell a lot whether the app is a success or not.
The goal of an app is to provide users with the best experience so that they would continue to use the app, and if possible, to invite other users to also use the app.
Why are UI/UX Design Efficiency Important?
When an app is developed, the goal, of course, is that users will find that it is a good app and that it would be used to its purpose.
To be able to achieve this, designing your mobile app for UI and UX efficiency is extremely important. UI and UX should work hand-in-hand to make sure that the app becomes a success.
While the UI deals with the looks, UX deals with the actual works. But UI has a big role to play in UX so it really is a matter of having the two bring about the best in each other for an app that is worth being downloaded and used.
Why Is Good UI/UX design important in app development?
The following are five concrete reasons on why a good UI and UX design is important when developing mobile apps:
- Ensure the usability of the app
One of the factors of a good UI is being user-friendly. Users would walk away from a complicated user interface. Your app should be designed to foster an app that is easy to use so that your users would love using it. User-friendliness also leads to a great user experience.
- Prevent the waste of resources
Taking into consideration UI and UX from the designing phase will save you from wasting time, effort, money, and your business? image when you launch your app. Imagine all the cost of launching an app that has a bad UI and a bad UX. Not only will you need to spend resources on trying to build another one, but you will also risk damaging your brand?s image. So make sure that at the drawing boards, UI and UX are already considered.
- Make app development easier
UI and UX design are basically planning. And having a plan will make it easier to do whatever you want to do ? even developing an app. With a good UI and UX design at hand, you will be able to lay out everything that is needed in order to build your app.
- Your app would likely earn more revenue
A well-designed app would make it big when you launch it. Your users would be very crucial for an app if they pay for it. So if you decide to create a paid app, make sure that it is well worth it.
If your app fails to meet the expectations of your customers, then you risk losing them. And it would be a lot harder to bring them back. So make sure that you design your app well so that your users would be loved you?re your users so that they would keep on coming for all that you have in store for them.
Conclusion
User interface and user experience are two separate but equally important aspects of mobile app development that you should definitely not take for granted. A good app is one that has both good UI and UX.
To ensure that your app is created with just the goal of having impeccable UI and outstanding UX, designing for it is essential.
So make sure that you come up with a great UI and UX design to help create the best mobile app that you can develop.
Author Bio
Kenneth Sytian is the Owner and CEO of Sytian Production, Web Developer Philippines. He has been designing websites and developing web apps for more than a decade. He is the driving force behind the company and an influencer in the industry of web design and development in the Philippines.
by Nick Throlson | May 31, 2018 | Guest Post
Passive income is being preferred over active by people. Google Adsense is used for a stable and long-term passive income. This is an advertising program which is being charged for clicking on it and is used by publishers to display ads according to the content of their websites. It can easily be integrated with Joomla. The process is very simple for who best in custom joomla development but the code needs to be changed every time the appearance of the ads is changed. It can be done simply by copying the javascript or HTML code in the custom HTML module.
Download And Setup Google Adsense
Google Adsense can be easily downloaded and setup from its website. In the Joomla settings, select the Joomla module in the administrator panel. Choose the “Sponsored Links” in the “New” button. Enter a name for the module and choose the option “don't show the title”. Assign a position for the module, if a size of the ad hasn't been decided and publish the module.
- Change Module Parameters For Better Results
Module parameters can be used to blend ads seamlessly. It can be done in the parameters section of module parameters option. It has options and features for blocking specific IPs and optimizing the website. For better customization, use Joomla template suffix for module class suffix. Enter the information in the div CSS instead of CSS template. Choose the ad type as per the advertisement to be displayed. Corner styles are always good to watch. Browse through different sizes of the ad by Adsense for better positioning of the module.
- Use Colors For Attraction
Choose the colors of the website as per the ads to be displayed. It can make it more attractive and will gain the visitor's attention. Colors should be well matched and proportionate so that website maintains its integrity. Ad borders should be avoided. Color combinations should be tried before applying.
- Track Ads' Performance For Its Efficiency
Ads' performance can be increased by setting up channels for each by Google Adsense Channels. In the Adsense setup tab, add new custom channels in the channels option, give a name to it and add the channel. It is useful in deciding whether an ad should be removed or kept on the website.
- Ad's Position Decides It's Worth
The placement of ads on the website plays a vital role in attracting many visitors and advertisers. This will improve the value of the website and is done by ad placement option of Google Adsense. Click on channels in the Google Adsense setup. Select a channel for ad placement and click on “edit settings”. Activate the checkbox showing “show this channel to advertisers as an ad placement” and save the settings.
- Right Position Gives The Right Price
Displaying ads within the content gradually increases the CTR rate. Advertisers are most likely to opt for well-established websites. New and fresh websites must give desired and prominent position to attract the advertisers. Optimized websites have options for any ad placement position because they have established enough to survive.
- Regular Checkups For Better Understanding
The websites should be checked regularly whenever settings of the existing ads are changed or a new ad is placed. Check the website as a visitor and on different devices like mobile, tabs, laptops, desktops, if the website is responsive.
Selling ad space directly on the site can have better negotiation options and a profitable relationship with the advertisers. This is a simple and fantastic way to make money and it doesn't have any investment issues. Go for it and explore its features as its going to be updated by Google for a long-term support. Maybe something more can be extracted from it for rewarding benefits.
by Nick Throlson | Mar 27, 2018 | Guest Post
A full-featured, sophisticated mobile application these days can have as many as 100,000K lines of code, which should be considered a feat in itself, but the fact is, it?s not. It?s common, not enough. If you know anything about the tech world, you must have come across the term AI-first strategy that aims to make everything smart. In that respect, the massive amount of data that users share with applications is far more valuable than the code it is running on. From social media habits to shopping patterns, apps need not only make those tasks easier but also learn from them.
So how do you create such applications? Or to be more precise, how do top mobile app development services integrate such features into their apps? Well, the process is much simpler than most people realize. You don?t actually have to write those long, complicated algorithms by yourself but simply use them according to your needs. Here is how:
Leverage cloud
As users interact with your application, they generate a lot of data that only grows exponentially as the popularity of your app grows. To handle such massive amount of data is a challenging task, but thanks to the advent of cloud services, it can now be managed just by a few clicks.
Services like Azure, AWS, App Engine, among others, can store and maintain the integrity and security of your data at a fraction of the cost it would take to create such infrastructure on-premise. Though all of these clouds offer similar services, there are subtle differences that you must carefully evaluate before subscribing to one.
Analytics
Mining big chunks of data for valuable information about customers isn?t a new thing but as these technologies become more accurate, cheaper, and widely accessible, their relevance has risen in the recent times. The data you store in the cloud is useless unless you are able to mine useful information from it, and thanks to the highly specialized and cutting-edge tools available, you won?t have to do it by yourself.
No matter which cloud service you used for data storage, there is a good chance that it would also offer analytic services. Depending on your business, you can use the data for many different kinds of analytics, each of which will reveal a different pattern.
For instance, if you have social media application, you can monitor the images any user shares and the corresponding response they get. This data, when analyzed for some time, can enable your application to offer customized suggestions before users share an image. From eCommerce to logistics to healthcare, this is one aspect where sky is the limit when it comes to inferring information from the available data sets.
Be Flexible
It is not necessary that what works for one application would also work for you. After all, how can one decide if Netflix?s recommendation engine is better or Amazon?s? Both of them have their own approach towards the same problem and both are fairly successful. So, when it comes to knowing your customers and creating a custom experience, the only rigid rule is to stay flexible.
Many businesses still find these features and capabilities that only the top enterprises with deep pockets can deliver. The truth is just the opposite. All these tools are now easily accessible on a pay-as-you-go basis, which means you only have to pay for what you actually use. Furthermore, top app developers from India are renowned for delivering such cutting-edge features at very reasonable costs.
