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Sausage Sizzler - Mall Mania |
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G'Day Sizzlers!
As you may or may not have realized I am no longer writing the HTML version of this newsletter for Lockergnome. This means that I can create an entirely Sausage branded version for you guys. It also means we do not have to juggle being independent with our love of HotDog!
I have to tell you the following before I burst! We are soon to launch Sausage Domains and Sausage Hosting! It is long overdue in my opinion. We plan to offer competitive pricing, with superior customer support. Look for the launch in August!
Well I am on to my third computer now, the one I was talking about building for my nephew. Boy it is a nice one. He is into music so the addition of a Sound Blaster Audigy card should please him. The funny thing is I think it is a better computer for a college student than the two featured in this month's CPU Magazine! I also follow on in this weeks Gear Grinders, discussing the building phase of my computer, Black Beauty.
In this weeks HTML Basics I ask what you want to see covered there, seeing most of the basics have been completed. Your feedback on this will help a lot!
This 4th of July weekend I went to Mall of America, with my family. This is a mall not to be missed! It is huge, it even has it's own amusement park inside. It is so large two days were not long enough to see it all (and frankly I had had enough anyway).
Finally my apologizes go to those of you who tried EraseTemp last week. I did not notice that you require the .NET framework on your machine for this to work. To be honest I didn't know I actually had it on my machine. It must have been put there when I was getting one of the many updates from Windows Update.
Keep on sizzling!
Nathan Allan
Sausage Sizzler Editor
editor@sausage.com
Interactive 404 Page v1 PHP4 FREE
http://www.hotscripts.com/Detailed/14034.html
Not all scripts have to do something serious. This script adds
some comic relief to the humble and sometimes frustrating 404
error page.
All it does is display a random message when someone lands on
your 404 page. It pulls the random text from a text file on your
server. It also allows the visitor to add their own comment, which
is then added to the text file.
See an example of it in action here:
http://www.calumm.uklinux.net/404/
Review by Nathan
It is up to you!
I really want to hear from you the readers on what to evolve this
section into. If you have followed it so far you will have seen
that all of the basics have been covered.
I did have the idea of this becoming more of a question and
answer section. However it can become whatever you like. Perhaps
it could be a section for reader recommendations of sites and
resources?
Whatever you think please add your two cents worth to the forum I
have created to discuss this:
http://www.sizzlerforums.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=601
Tip by Nathan
Handy Backup 3.5 9x/NT/ME/2K/XP Shareware $30
http://www.handybackup.com/
Handy Backup is a simple to use back-up and restore utility. It
can be used to back-up data to a variety of media including CDs
and remote FTP sites.
- Other features include:
- One click restoration
- Ability to synchronize files between two computers
- Multi-choice zip compression
- Strong file encryption
- Back-ups are logged
The reason I like this so much is that you can back-up to an FTP
server, meaning that you can go anywhere and as long as you have
the server details you can access your data. there is no need to
carry around any sort of disk!
Review by Nathan
How much is that design in the window?
This section was created to highlight currently active areas in forums but there is so much I want to cover in the next week. Besides, this topic hits home.
A question was recently submitted:
-----Original Message-----
From:
Shane
Sent:
Saturday, June 22, 2002 4:32 AM
To:
editor@sausage.com
Hi Nathan
Any chance of an article on design fees, what to charge, etc? What's the feel of the other readers?
I am clueless, and sometimes feel I'm overcharging in one instance, and doing myself in, in another instance.
Regards
Shane
Shane poses a great question. Let's start with the general question of "what is something worth?" For example, why is the full version of Windows XP Home $199 and Professional $299? While the numbers aren't easy to figure out, it IS easy to understand why one costs more than the other. Professional adds the key networking features. But, why is XP Pro $299? Why not $599? It's going to be what makes your PC run (we hope). Why not $99? Forget about upgrade prices.
The above numbers are calculated based on money spent to develop them divided by "x" number of units sold to both break even and then make a profit.
All of your work should include some basic figures. Most importantly never quote on the spot. You should always take time to really think how long something will take you to produce. Even if you know, make it look like you need to calculate and quote later or the next day.
Next, you need to set a bare minimum price for your work. It should not be a price you "publish" but more for mental records. $40.00/hr? $25.00? $60.00? It all depends on the type of work, the intensity/difficulty and time it will take you. It also depends on how hungry you are; how much you want/need the work versus how much you value your work versus how much your work is valued. If you're asked what you charge per hour, you say there is not set price. It's calculated per job.
You also need to gauge your customer. Keep in mind that while customers like to save money, you're not working for free and you need to make a living. Add to this that your work has value and you should be well equipped to explain (not defend) your quote when you make it. Pay attention to details such as company size, office set up; basically be a sales person. Watch body movement. Confidence is carries with solid, unwavering movements. Lack of confidence is a hunched, frown-ish stance.
I would say it's bad practice to ask what the client's budget is. Any half-smart owner will give the lowest figure imaginable. Instead you ask lots of questions about what the person has in mind, what they want to have in the end. From there you ask more questions and of course, take notes. When the meeting is done, date the notes and get the customer's initials so you have an official record. These notes can help later when you need to explain why the quote is what it is. For example; "why does this cost $X?", "well, looking at the notes you initialed, x, y and z are needed to do this and the price reflects those steps."
With all the notes taken, sit down and make sure you outline each step of the project including design, creation of logos, graphics, pages, insertion of content, etc. Calculate how much time this will take you. With the hours set +/-, figure what
you
feel is a fair hourly rate for
your
work. In your mind you now have your "realistic" dream figure.
While I completely understand the fear-factor in being turned down, let the discussion of price occur with you and the client, not you and yourself. Do not think, "maybe this is too high" or "maybe this is too low". Set a price. Put it on paper including a breakdown with notes or details about the items. You have a 50/50 chance that the customer will say, "where do I sign?" You also have a 50/50 chance that the customer will not call you back.
Here is a great question. What low price will get you that call back? I don't know. Do you?
Now it's time to play hardball. Small jobs can likely suffice with a faxed quote but if you have time, show your face everywhere possible. Remember that this is also a chance to network. If possible, wear something bearing your company's logo. Branding people, branding.
Remember that when you hand over the quote, you must always make eye contact. Body language is key in selling. What if the customer says "no no no.. it's too damn much!" You have choices. The first choice is to discuss what is too much and what can be done to lower the price. Keep in mind you just quoted your dream price, not your bare minimum. Also realize the more you chop the more the client sees your margin. Quote and cut with care and remember to walk in with your bare minimum figure in mind so you know when to leave.
One of the best tactics I've learned is the "walkout". The steps are simple. You've had your discussion. Your work/product is worth "X" and you have already cut X% off of your price. What now? You pack up your things and as you do you say something like:
"The quality of my work speaks for itself. I very much want to do this job for you but at the same time I am not willing to give my work away . If you change your mind, the final price we've discussed today will remain. Should you choose to get the work done by someone else for less money, remember that you get what you pay for. Also remember that I'll have to charge more to clean up some else's mess. Thank you for your time, here is my card."
Here I am, at the end of what some may think is ramble. The original question is "what does one charge for design?" I don't think there is one set fee. It comes down to the complexity of the design, the time needed to produce the design, how many changes and updates you're willing to make, and yes, even what you think the customer can afford.
Everything in life is about selling. If you're "hungry" for $ucce$$ then every job is a new job and not one with a fixed price. If you're hungry for just enough to get by, then low-balling is the way to go.
At the end of the day, it comes down to what you can get away with charging while keeping your customer and your bank account happy.
http://www.sizzlerforums.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=632
Review by Bram
The war of the browsers: Continued or Concluded?
I read an article this week on C|Nets News.com. (http://news.com.com/2100-1023-941926.html?tag=fd_lede
).
The long article discusses various topics of the ever-lingering war. It mentions quite a few details about Netscapes attempts at come backs, all the other flavors of browsers on the market, and it even touches on the "what if" with regard to non-PC based browsers in the future.
What it also touches on, actually, what is really the main focus, is how so many companies are harkening back to the early days of the Internet. Remember back in the day when you designed a site and included those buttons "Best viewed with Internet Explorer" or "Best viewed with Netscape Navigator"?
More and more companies that offer a service online are picking only one browser to work with. Any guesses? Its Internet Explorer for anyone not wanting to guess. The article above notes a warning issued recently by a popular online photo service, Shutterbug. They now only support Navigator to 4.x but support IE to the latest.
A few issues ago I noted something similar. Another online service, EnFlyer, developed their service to work ONLY in IE. EnFlyer is a newsletter company. Check them out at
http://www.enflyer.com/.
When I say it works only in IE, I mean that the user interface for someone wanting to use the service must have IE. It was far easier to develop for IE, less time needed and a far greater amount of features could be offered because it was made for IE.
The article closes by stating its not a great idea that the online world is moving to support Microsofts business plan of world dominance.
While I do love many Microsoft products, I agree that a closed market place is not great for the consumer. At the same I truly don't support that the only reason Microsoft products such as IE are hits simply because they came on the PC. It surely helps but its not the sole reason, just as companies are moving to have IE be the only supported browser.
I find myself trying not to step off into tangents so Ill close now by asking what your feelings are on this latest news. Please take a few minutes to at least skim the article then come back to discuss.
http://www.sizzlerforums.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=3533
Discuss with Bram
Black Beauty
Assembling the parts of a computer is really not to hard at all.
You put in the motherboard making certain the spacers are screwed
into the case in the appropriate places first, and that the ports
line up in the holes on the case.
Then you can mount the hard drives, CDroms and floppies. All of
this is so easy! On the machines I have bought there are mounting
brackets that make it even simpler.
Placing the CPU in the slot isn't too hard as it is keyed to fit
in one way only, although make sure your thermal tape and clip
are on securely. As this is the key to keeping the CPU cool.
Slotting in the memory, video card and PCI cards are simple as
well. However when you get to cabling make certain you are
pushing in the plugs the correct way. They are also keyed so you
should be ok, however be careful as you do not want to bend any
pins.
Your motherboard will have come with a diagram that explains all
the jumper settings and hook-ups for power switches and the like.
These really are simple to follow.
My motherboard had plug and play BIOS so all of the devices were
automatically recognized. It was then as simple as dropping in my
bootable Windows 2000 CD and having it install Windows.
Although this all sounds really simple, if you are new to this I
would suggest you seek out a course at a local computer store or
adult education center. It can seem a bit daunting if you are not
familiar with computer parts!
Feel free to ask questions and comment in the forums:
http://www.sizzlerforums.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=600
Discuss your experiences with Bram
To read the Sizzler Forums you do not need to be a member.
However to take full advantage of this resource it will only take
you a few seconds to sign up!
- Go to: http://www.sizzlerforums.com
- Read the information and click on the REGISTER button
- Fill out the form
- You will receive an email that you simply reply to
- Hey presto! Your a fully fledged Sizzler Forums member!
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