Access blocked websites

Sneaky Web Trick of the Week: Accessing Blocked Websites

If you happen to work at a job where access to most websites has been blocked, come a bit closer - I've got a secret for you. Shhhhh. Don't tell anyone I told you this; I don't want to get anyone in trouble here, so use this information wisely.

All you need to do is visit a third-party website (also known as a proxy) and type the address of the site you wish to visit into a search box. The proxy site locates the site you're looking for and displays it for you - without you ever actually "visiting" the site.

Take a look at http://proxy.org/proxies_sorted.shtml to see a list of thousands of proxy websites, sorted by country. Also, please don't be disappointed if you test this out and it doesn't work for you - this isn't a guaranteed hack, I'm only sharing it with you as it's sure to be helpful information at the right place and time.



Tips of the Week: Clear the Clutter from your Blog

Is your blog getting a bit cluttered? Buttons and links and widgets that seem like such great ideas initially can add up and give your blog a bloated, overstuffed feel. Here are a few tips you might wish to consider if uncluttering your blog should (or should be!) on your to-do list:

a) Dump the Popularity Contest plugin. It's not self-explanatory, and seeing something like "popularity: 8%" beneath a blog post doesn't mean anything to your readers.

b) Check out your footer. Does it contain a link to the version of WordPress that you're running? If yes - get rid of it. There's no reason at all for it to be there; it just takes up space.

c) Drop your "spam blocked" counters. I'm not alone in telling you that I truly, truly do not care how many spam comments your spam blocker has blocked.

d) Chuck those links to the automatic translators. Yes, I know you mean well, but in all honesty those translators don't even work well enough to be of use. Plus, many of the people who need them know which ones work best for their purposes.

e) Please choose to display either a category cloud OR a category list. They serve the same purpose, so you really don't need both taking up all that space in your sidebar.

f) Finally, consider trimming down that category list. It's quite frustrating for users trying to browse your blog only to find you have one or two posts in each of those 30 categories.



Grab Bag: Five Links of the Week

• http://tinyurl.com/yt4rc6 - Take a look here if you're interested in learning how to create individual tracks from one long concert track in iTunes.

• www.DownForEveryoneOrJustMe.com - This will likely be one of the most basic looking websites you'll ever visit - but that doesn't mean it's not useful! If you're trying to access a website but it appears to be down, type the site's address into the box here and click the underlined link. You'll find out immediately if the site is actually down, or if the site is just fine and there's something going on with your setup (internet connection, browser, computer, etc.).

• http://tinyurl.com/yrxuq3 - Show this Wall Street Journal article to your boss if you'd like to have him or her purchase you a bigger, nicer computer monitor.

• http://thepowerxchange.com/category_22.html - A ridiculously comprehensive list of downloadable Photoshop plug-ins. They're not free, but if you can find the *exact* thing you're looking for here, my guess is that you probably won't mind paying a bit of money for it.

• www.roundpic.com - A free online tool that takes your regular digital photos and gives them pretty rounded corners.

And that's it for today, everyone. Have a great week, and see ya next Monday.



Based in Frisco, eRin pheiL is the primary creative force behind timeforcake. Learn more about her Colorado website design company at www.timeforcake.com or contact her via e-mail at info@timeforcake.com.