web design

Top Five Web Security Tips

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Five Security Tips

The Internet is a dangerous place, you see the same news I do, new software vulnerabilities are reported daily. Security experts agree these are the top five security tips you should use to protect yourself and your data.

1: Keep your software updated.
Have you seen software notices that tell you an update is ready? You shouldn’t ignore them—that’s a bad idea. Updates and patches are there to protect us. They secure and reinforce your computer, software, and data.

2: Use strong passwords.
You probably already know how important it is to use strong, random, and unique passwords. And I’m sure your banking password isn’t your cat’s name—right?
A really solid password meets three criteria:

• It has at least twelve characters.
• It includes uppercase and lowercase letters as well as numbers and symbols.
• It does not contain words that can be found in the dictionary, or people’s names.

3: Fortify sensitive accounts.
To be honest, passwords are important, but their effectiveness is inherently limited. Add a second layer called two-step authentication. Also called 2FA or multifactor authentication, two-factor authentication is more effective than passwords alone.
Many sites already allow (even encourage) users to turn on 2FA, including Gmail, Twitter, and PayPal. Chances are your bank has it too. You don’t need to set it up everywhere, only at your most important and sensitive accounts such as PayPal or your online bank account.

4: Back up, back up, back up!
Here is the harsh reality: one day, you will lose your data. Your hard drive will crash. Or maybe you accidentally erase your data. Or maybe you lose your computer or device altogether. Losing your data can be catastrophic, but if you have a backup it’s not such a big deal. Back up regularly and test your backups.

5: Update your antivirus.
You already know that installing a solid antivirus program is one of your best defenses against malware. But installing antivirus software isn’t enough. Just like those patches and updates, you need to make sure you have the most current version and the virus definitions are up-to-date.

Of course, you can avoid the hassle altogether by allowing important software like your operating system and antivirus to update automatically. The takeaway is that a few minutes spent here and there can save you a world of pain.

Don’t be a mistake waiting to happen!

Recent Save

WNC Urban Farms was in the middle of a new site launch when their web person crashed the site, forcing a sudden rebuild. The web person could not get the UPS shipping and payment gateway to work. When pressured, she got frustrated and told WNC to find someone else, essentially leaving them hanging. Gary the owner called in a panic, watching dollar signs flying out the window. We had the problem straightened out so WNC Urban Farms could fulfill orders in less than twenty-four hours.

"I knew Lone Bird Studio from our networking group, but still made the often-repeated mistake of using a family friend. When she left us, I called Lone Bird, and in twenty-four hours they had us up and running. And, in the process, they opened our eyes to other issues with our site and marketing approach. Now we have them working on our new marketing plan. They were calm, experienced, and worked directly with UPS to solve the problem. When it’s mission critical, use a professional."

Gary, WNC Urban Farms, Waynesville NC

Uses for Augmented Realty

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Lone Bird Studio Studio Augmented RealityAugmented reality relies on three basic display types: Handheld devices such as mobile smartphones or portable computers, wearable technology or head mounted displays such as specially designed glasses or goggles (Google Glass application is one example; rumor also has it that a smart watch applying wearable technology is in construction by Apple.) and spatial displays which project computer enhanced graphics onto fixed surfaces.
Although AR was most common to training simulation applications and video games at first, its uses have widened to a great degree in the last few years. At present, we can see uses of enhanced reality in many different fields and industries.

Military

HMD or head mounted displays are used extensively in military aircraft technology. With the help of the HMD, an aircraft pilot has all the data he needs, including airspeed, horizon line, altitude, etc., right before his eyes. So, there is no need for him to look down to the instrumentation board for the perusal of such data. AR applications and HMD facilities are used for many ground troops operations, too.

Tourism

Tourism industry also makes extensive use of enhanced reality in a bid to enrich the experience of the tourists and the sightseers. Museums, for example, have introduced interactive 3D live views of the museum artifacts. These shows help the visitors to the museum gain a deeper and more interactive knowledge about the displays and the attendant historical facts.

Medical

The medical field similarly looks to make good use of the 3D visualizations made possible through advancements in AR technology. Thanks to enhanced reality, medical students can now practice surgical operations in a controlled environment. Neurosurgical methods have especially benefited from the use of enhanced reality. Since brain surgeries are often very complex operations and the margins of errors are, in most cases, very small, the doctors benefit from having access to comprehensive 3D displays of the brain prior to the surgery.

Apart from these, we can also find extensive use of enhanced reality applications in many other fields such as navigation, gaming, entertainment, education, advertising & promotion, etc.

In the field of website design too, augmented or enhanced reality has made its effect felt in a big way. Especially, use of enhanced reality has become a big feature in web design for smartphones, tablet PCs, and other mobile devices. The application Layer Reality Browser, for example, which is available to Android and iPhone users, makes use of enhanced reality to retrieve data on structures, places, movies, and locations and displays these data as real-time digital information, thereby augmenting our view and experience of the real world. Loan Bird Studio, as a leading Asheville North Carolina. Web design solutions firm, incorporates augmented or enhanced reality applications in their website design and other solutions, whenever possible and relevant. The firm caters mainly to medium sized businesses and one can read more about their success stories from client testimonials posted at the company website www.lonebird.com, and at other relevant online platforms.

WordPress 101

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WordPress Content Management System

WordPress powers 1 of every 6 websites on the Internet
WordPress represents

25.6% of all websites representing small, medium and big business use WordPress.
72.4 million websites host a WordPress blog.
22% of active domains created in the USA run on WordPress.

WordPress Explained

Investing money into a company website is like investing money in any other company asset. You want to get the most out of your money right from the start. Picking the right WordPress website with the right options the first time is important. We strive to ensure maximum ROI and satisfaction with minimum maintenance.

There are three main differences to be aware of when comparing WordPress options. The choices are a pre-built template, a Child Theme, or a custom-built WordPress website.

WordPress Templates

Templates are where many of you will start. It is a very cost effective and flexible way to begin.

When choosing a theme, look for the overall feel or style you want. Check what features in the design can be edited. There are thousands available, both free and purchased.

Many of the cool and specialty templates like restaurants or apartment rentals, for example, are generally paid templates. Don’t let that scare you. The costs are generally less than $100. We can do some beautiful customized work to tailor these templates to your needs.

Child Themes

We can create some pretty cool web designs with this method. Actually, this is where we do most of our work. Creating child themes allows very distinctive customization of WordPress templates to make them truly yours. A child theme is a cross between template and full custom WordPress. It is our most popular choice with businesses that “get it” and realize they need the web to grow.

You can save quite a bit of money starting with a child theme. Let Lone Bird tailor it especially for you!

Custom-built WordPress

A custom-built WordPress website means that we design and build a custom theme that will be unique to you and your branding. It is unique for your business, yet retains the WordPress functionality. We build and customize your website exactly as way you want.

Web Design 101

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The 3 Main Steps to Web Design and Search Optimization

A complete web project has three important parts: 1 – research, 2 – design and optimization and 3 – the launch. Unfortunately most just focus on the first, what the site is going to look like. Few have clear goals other than they “want to be found”.

All of our web projects cover THE 3 BUILDING BLOCKS of a complete web design.
This gives you a maximum chance for success and a solid foundation on which to build your Web presence.

1. Research and keywords

This is possibly the most important step. Why? Because the proper choice of keywords crucial. This list is one of the most valuable pieces of information you will get. Your keywords are not just for Google but you will need them everywhere. You will use them to optimize the site, you will use them to list the site, and they will go in your content, advertising, sales materials and your socials. You get the idea. They are very important and they change so need to be updated every six months or so.

Without keywords you cannot tell the search engines where to list you. True you don’t necessarily need a keyword Meta Tag but you do need the words for everything else. By that I mean page titles, file names, header tags, content, link text, listing and indexing and your advertising. See why it is so important?

2. Design & Optimization

This is a two part step and you can’t have one without the other.

Part A is the visible human side containing the design. The graphic design and how the web site handles are very important to the conversion rate. Your web design should be both pleasing and functional. This is where Chris’s marketing and design backgrounds play an important role.

Part B is the code side, what your browser and the search engines see. Google has very strict rules for page load times, content placement, content to code ratios etc. Using the keywords from above this includes page titles, file names, header tags, content, link text, and descriptions. It is very important to have the optimization and design work together here. One of the values of Lone Bird is the ability blend these two parts together. This save time, money and produces a much more effective end result.

3. Initial Launch

By far the most overlooked step of the three and it is every bit as important as the first two. Listing your site is really important. The big mistake frequently made is not properly listing the site, even with Google. Just going “live” with the website is not enough. Google alone can run 8 weeks before indexing the site. You will want to list your website as many places as possible. Putting the site up and not “working it” is the kiss of death and voids all the above.