Cassowary Street Doncaster East House Fire

THE MFB is investigating a house fire which caused severe damage to a Doncaster East home on Monday afternoon.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Doncaster woman arrested over handbag thefts

A 38-year-old woman has been charged over a series of handbag thefts at Doncaster shopping centres.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Doncaster East Car Insurance, Home Insurance

Welcome to MayLin Finance and Insurance Services who can now be found on the Doncaster East (www.JustLocal.com.au/3109) page of JustLocal. Maylin Finance & Insurance Services offers the following services:

 

◾Life Insurance

◾Financial Planning

◾Home & Contents Cover

◾Income Protection

◾Wealth Accumulation Car Insurance

◾Business Expense Cover

◾Superannuation Advice

◾Liability Cover

◾Mortgage Protection

◾Retirement Planning Commercial Business

◾Critical Illness Insurance

◾Estate Planning

◾Truck Insurance

◾Spouse Cover

◾Pension Entitlements

◾Transit Cover

◾Partnership Insurance

◾Transition To Retirement

◾Travel Insurance

 

Other Services

◾Buy Sell Agreements/Insurance

◾Home Loans

◾Vehicle Finance

◾Commercial Lending

◾Construction Loans

◾Negative Gearing Advice

◾Consolidation Of Debt Advice

 

Kelvin Eldridge

www.JustLocal.com.au

 

Michael O'Keeffe, of Doncaster East witnessed Tullamarine Freeway truck crash

Michael O’Keeffe, of Doncaster East, was on his way to work in Hopper's Crossing when he witnessed the accident.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Sharon Crowe is offering a reward for her missing dog.

Doncaster East grandmother puts up $1000 reward for return of Jack Russell... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Jeevaranjan Fernando has had his parking fine quashed after taking Manningham Council to court.

I thought Jeevaranjan’s situation was quite interesting. You have one sign stating you can’t park during a given time which means you can park at other times. Then somewhere else there are signs which state no parking. That simply isn’t right. Well done to Jeevaranhan for taking it to court.

Blackburn South man has Doncaster Rd parking fine quashed after taking Manningham Council to court... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Aldi Foot Switch Power Point

I noticed on Saturday the 18^th of May Aldi are selling a foot switch power point for $9.99. This is similar to the foot switch I previously sold for $19.95. If the quality is good these foot switches are very good at saving money on your electricity bill. By using the Electricity Cost Calculator you can work out the payback of turning off your entertainment system using a foot switch and you’ll find it will only be a matter of months.

These switches are good if the power point is less accessible such as behind a cabinet. With the cost of electricians you may even find using a foot switch to turn devices on and off regularly is cheaper than replacing the wall switch.

Based on my experience I’d suggest the foot switch is a very good buy if the Aldi product is a reasonable quality. I have found some foot switches can last for years whereas some last between 1-2 years. At least at this cost the foot switch should pay for itself if used on a daily basis where standby power is being consumed by entertainment devices.

 

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

Bill Tsigaras gearing up to run in the Mother's Day Classic

Doncaster East man running in Mother’s Day Classic to raise money for charity... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Search Australia new features including searching using your choice of Google, Bing or Yahoo, quick access to a JustLocal postcode page and check if you're using the preferred Australian English spelling.

Search Australia was added to JustLocal to give those who wish to search a search engine which focuses on Australian sites and removes many of the directories which have now taken over the internet. I’m pretty happy that if I search for ‘fish and chips’ in a local suburb, if the business has a web presence I can now see their page. Of course many small businesses don’t have a web presence which doesn’t help them or their customers. I’ve shown a number of local businesses how a site I’ve put on the internet for them can generate hundreds of leads a month but in the end they don’t seem to care.

The worst example of not providing up-to-date information is when I went into a fish and chip shop in Doncaster Road. After placing the order via telephone the order was some 15% dearer. Every customer was complaining because like me they were ordering from an out-of-date menu and the business decided to increase their prices without letting them know. Had the business put their menu on the internet I would have known before I ordered and so potentially could everyone else. I’ve never used the business again so an out-of-date menu can and does lose businesses customers. A single page site assists hundreds of customers a year and is easily paid for by a single repeat customer. Small business can’t see if they don’t provide the tools people need they’ll go elsewhere and the bigger companies ARE providing online menus.

But I digress. The real purpose of this post is to let users of JustLocal know of three new features I’ve added to Search Australia, the search engine available on every JustLocal page and also available as an Add-in to Internet Explorer. If you add a single letter at the start of the search phrase you can select your preferred search engine, go to a JustLocal postcode page, or find out if you’re using the preferred Australian English spelling for a word.

1. Type in g, b, or y and go directly to Google, Bing or Yahoo. If you add a space and then your search query (such as ‘g fish and chips templestowe’) you’ll get search results for local fish and chips shops without all the directories. That is hopefully if they have a site you’ll get the actual business’ site.

2. Type in j and you’ll go to JustLocal. Type in j followed by a space and a postcode (such as ‘j 3106’) and you’ll go to the JustLocal postcode page. That’s a pretty convenient method to go direct to your local JustLocal postcode page. Keep in mind if your area isn’t covered you’ll get a place holder page with generic ads. As soon as a business or person in your area takes up the mantle to promote JustLocal in your area the generic page will be replaced with local information.

3. Type in w followed by a word and you’ll go direct to the Word Check page to check if you are using the preferred Australian English spelling for a word. You do need a password to see the answer. All clients of mine are provided with the password. In fact if you use Search Australia from JustLocal and type in ‘dictionary’, you’ll have access to Word Check for a while. A thank you for trying out Search Australia.

On top of removing dozens of directories now cluttering search results when using Google (not Bing or Yahoo) and the ability to enter a single word or couple of words to go to the top searched for sites by millions of users, these new features should make Search Australian even more useful. Clients are welcome to request the list of top site search terms. I don’t currently publish the terms on the internet because of the work involved collating the list so please feel free to ask for a copy to assist you in your searches.

Don’t forget, the most convenient way to use Search Australia is to use the link to add Search Australia as your default search engine in Internet Explorer. Then you can perform a search direct from the address bar in Internet Explorer. If everyone in Australia used Search Australia (heaven forbid as my server wouldn’t hold up to it) if could potentially save many hundreds of millions of searches when people are looking for major Australian companies, a TV guide and even the weather. Search engines want you to end up on their page to make money from advertising. I want you to get quickly to the site you want to get to.

For me the real test of whether or not something I’ve developed is worthwhile is whether I use it myself or not. Search Australia is my preferred search tool. It doesn’t stop me from using Google, and in fact if I want to use Google I simply enter the letter ‘g’ and I go direct to Google. I can quickly decide which search engine I’d prefer and not be stuck with just one. With one or two words I access most of the popular sites such as ANZ, eBay, Gumtree, Freeview (TV guide) etc., so it makes sense to use Search Australia rather than end up hunting through Google results that have become so cluttered. I hope you find Search Australia useful too.

 

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

Mr Spiridakis, a driving instructor, said the man was on the road, about 1m from the gutter.

A MANNINGHAM resident says he struggled to sleep in the days after finding a badly-beaten man on the side of the road. ... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: Please log off Google services such as Gmail and YouTube when using my sites.

Disturbingly I’m now seeing up to 50 per cent of people reaching my sites who may be logged on to a Google service and so could be tracked at the individual level.

I use Google’s blogger, Analytics and sometimes Google advertising on my sites. If you are logged on to a Google service your activities can be linked to you as an individual. What you are doing on the internet can thus potentially be tracked to you as an individual.

What people don’t know is when you visit a site which has advertising on it, that advertising is often provided by Google. Many sites use Google’s Analytics software to record statistics for their sites. As you move from site to site your activities can potentially be recorded as an individual.

As you read the major daily news sites, as you search for information, when you go to many sites on the internet your activities can be tracked to you as an individual. In addition it is also possible your location is being tracked without your knowledge because often the internet address you use to access the internet is known to be in a certain area.

It is up to each person to decide whether this matters to them or not. If it does matter to you then consider logging out of all Google services (and potentially other services). When you are logged on to services you can be tracked individually and a profile of you and your activities can be created. Some of this information can potentially end up in the wrong hands. The most obvious outcome is you’ll be directly marketed to and could end up paying more for products and services.

We can’t stop the government and companies collecting information, but most people aren’t aware that their activities on the internet can be tracked to them individually. Because more than 90% of Australians use Google for searching, if they are logged on to Google services (my logs are indicating up to 50% of people may be logged onto a Google service when they reach my sites) then your activities across the internet may be being recorded.

Log off online services as soon as you are finished with them. Don’t keep services such as Gmail and YouTube logged on and running in the background. This doesn’t just apply to Google. Any service that you are logged in and has software they’ve created installed on another site could be doing the same. The type of services that come to mind are social networking services. Where a site you visit displays a button from a social networking service you don’t know what that code does and neither do I. The code could be tracking you. By logging off you reduce some of your online activities being tracked.

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.