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Flights have been halted in the Pacific Ocean while tourists have tucked away flight tickets and headed off in the opposite direction. It’s all been going on down there in Japan; you name it, earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis and nuclear power plant leaks. Japan has been headline news for the past few weeks.

A mighty call for help has been echoed around the world, as the Japanese desperately seek outside help. Once Japan was a major economic power, with one of the world’s third-largest economy by nominal GDP, but Japan has taken a stumble. Nature has hit back and what was the world’s fourth largest exporter and fifth largest importer is now hanging on by a thread.

Search engine juggernaut, Google has heard the lost voices in the midst of disaster and launched one of the most critical tools in the Japanese relief effort: Google’s Person Finder, which allows people to search for and post information about missing loved ones.

Google also placed on its homepage a link to a Crisis Response Website. The page is being updated continuously to provide the latest information about the Japan crisis and ways for people to help with relief efforts.

Twitter is making ch-ch-ch-changes whether we like it or not. Soon the only way to get at Twitter might be through “official” software that is produced directly by the company.

So far the news has not gone down well and the firm has angered many software developers by suggesting they stop making “clients” that let users write, read and respond to Tweets.

Developers have called the announcement be Twitter “appalling.”

The changes come after the surge of popularity in the site from 48 million to 140 million Tweets per day in the past year.

Twitter will be making more effort to police third-party software. The increasing amount of new software being added to the site is causing inconsistent ways to send and read Tweets that will inevitably lead to user confusion.  But what do you think about these changes? Do you think Twitter is doing the right thing?

Search engine juggernaut, Google, which owns YouTube has now gone and bought Irish company Green Parrot Pictures in a bid to improve the quality of video uploaded to YouTube.

The search engine said that Green Parrot’s technology would help boost the look of videos posted on its site while using bandwidth more efficiently.

Google’s director, Jeremey Doig said: “What if there was a technology that could improve the quality of such videos- sharpening the image, reducing visual noise and rendering a higher quality, steadier video- all while your video is simply being uploaded to the site?”

We think this is great news. No more listening to music videos with someone’s out-of-tune voice destroying a perfectly good band in the back ground. Nope, this annoyance will be muffled.

Green Parrot Pictures is a small ambitious company discovered in Ireland that can do just that, improve YouTube.

Disaster recovery and backup is crucial to save businesses time and money. Without it things could go from bad to worse.

For example, a series of explosions struck Fukushima, a nuclear plant, after systems failed because of an 8.9 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami in north east Japan.

People in surrounding areas have been evacuated from a 12-mile radius from the plant. Furthermore people 19 miles away have been told to stay indoors after high levels of radiation were reported in the vicinity.

Although experts are arguing that things are somewhat under control, about 150 people from populations around the site are receiving monitoring for radiation levels.

The Japanese are taking all vital measure to tackle the problems at the power plant. And according to Professor Malcolm Sperrin, from the Royal Berkshire Hospital: “This is absolutely not a Chernobyl event; we’re looking at very low levels of radiation.”

A disaster recovery service can provide your company with a disaster recovery and business continuity plan which can be deployed rapidly and reliably if a disaster should ever befall. Having a disaster recovery solution can fully protect your company from loss of customers and loss of business.

Benefits of Having a Disaster Recovery Plan

Having a disaster recovery plan tailored to fit your individual business has several advantages, they include:

• Preventing financial loss and loss of credibility
• Prevents loss of customers and goodwill
• Services and production can continue to run to schedule
• Prevent the loss of important information

When it comes to business it’s important to have a backup plan and disaster recovery service in place. Don’t get caught short.

Japan hit by the largest earthquake measuring 8.9, causing severe damage

In the early hours this morning (UK) a tremendous earthquake hit Japan, measuring 8.9-magnitude. The quake sparked several fires in areas that included the capital Tokyo. Several people were reported dead. Stretching 250 miles (400km) from the capital and with a depth of 20 miles, powerful aftershocks were felt.

But the horror was still to come…the earthquake which has been the largest in many years to hit Japan, triggered a tsunami with waves over 10 metres high.

Japan’s NHK television aired the massive surge of debris-filled water sweeping away buildings and cars, far inland. Furthermore it captured motorists being chased by the waves in a desperate last attempt to escape.

According to BBC news report issued this morning: “Bullet train services to northern Japan were halted, rapid transit in Tokyo was suspended and some nuclear power plants automatically shut down.”

Meanwhile, the “Prime Minister Naoto Kan said there had been no radiation leaks.”

What do you think about the massive tsunamis that we have been having in the past few years?

Disaster Recovery for Business

Having a disaster recovery plan is essential, in case natural disaster like this should ever strike. Do you have a backup plan for your business?

Disaster recovery or backup of important information is crucial for business continuity and keeping all aspects of a business functioning in the midst of disruptive events. Without these correct procedures, millions can be lost in damages.

There are various security companies and ways you can save important information. It only takes a few simply steps to keep your business safe and secure. You cannot afford not to have a backup plan in place.

It sounds almost cliché, but we are in a rapid advancing technology driven age. Computers are assisting in the development of new innovations, which are significantly speeding up the development process.

For business new technology inventions can be fantastic, because with high speed internet and the latest of gadgets, work is more efficient, up-to-date, quality driven etc. There’s gold there.

However, with rapid advances comes the need to keep up-dating technology, because what you purchased last year becomes “old news”. No sooner is a computer model manufactured than the next one has rolled off the design presses and no end is in sight…

Likewise, internet connection speeds are driven forward, wanting faster and faster speeds. Home Wi-Fi is ‘30% slower’ than fixed broadband, and business broadband is significantly faster than both. We have BT versus TalkTalk in a fibre optic battle, plus various others under the celeb radar connections.

Downloading videos, music, programmes and other software all takes time. We want this to be as quick as possible, Here and now. We are in the age where waiting for things to happen is old school. It’s all about instant downloads, instant coffee, instant meals and instant money.

The Great Inventors

Vinton Gray “Vint Cerf” is an American computer scientist, who is one of the founding fathers of the internet.

Technology advances use to take years and risk-taking. School children learn in history about the old great inventors such as Ben Franklin, Thomas Edison, Eli Whitney, to name but a few. But who are the great inventors of today? Should they be learning about Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg?

Technological advances are occurring at a rapid pace, the result of efforts of individuals, teams of individuals and companies. Without these advances in technology most of the work we do, or happens in our everyday lives that we are even completely oblivious to, would not be possible.

Embracing the change is a essential in today’s world. Having a reliable, fast speed business internet connection is a MUST. If you want your business to be successful in cyber space and not be swamped over by competitors, then you will understand how this can save you time and money.

Contact

Layer 7 hosting has been around for years making online companies reach their goals. We know the importance of having 100% uptime, anti-spam and virus protection. We know how to get you to the top of search results such as Goggle, Yahoo and Bing, through SEO and PPC campaigns. We offer the best UK web hosting solutions online. You can’t go wrong.

Everybody’s changing and we don’t feel the same. Embrace the change.

Warner Bros has come clean and announced to the social media world that it will be streaming some of its movies on the social networking site, Facebook.

The Hollywood studio will touch base as it becomes the first ever major film producer to work with the social networking giant in this way. Executives have got their fingers and toes crossed as they hope and pray that it will be the new way forward for the entertainment industry to rack in the cash, “ca-ching!”

However, the Facebook service will only be available for American users to begin with. But once it gets up and running it will be treading the waters to meet every Brit, Highlander and Irish folk, to world domination. You can count your socks on that one!

It works by charging people 30 Facebook credits, the equivalent of $3 (£1.85), to rent the film. The user will then have 48 hours in which they can watch the film.

The first movie that will be made avialbe will feature the 2008 blockbuster Batman: The Dark Knight.

Other films will follow in its footsteps and according to a Warner Bros statement: “It gives consumers a simple, convenient way to access and enjoy our films through the world’s largest social network.”

However, the studio bosses are worried that online movies will suffer the same fate as the music industry with online piracy, with movie streaming. However, what are your thoughts on the above topic?

A report issued last night revealed Governments are worried that hackers could take down planes and control traffic, to extents that the public is unaware.

Cybercrime is a criminal offense that has been created or made possible by computer technology. In February 2000, hackers launched a malware which distributed denial of service (DDS) on several prominent sites. These site included eBay, Yahoo and Amazon.com. The year earlier “the Melissa Virus” caused $80 million in damages to computers worldwide. Hacker, David Smith was caught and pleaded guilty to state and federal charges associated with his creation of the Melissa virus.

Since then we have been plagued with Stuxnet, and various other malware threatening to take down organisations. Governments have expressed great concern over the advancements in cybercrime movements. Hackers are so advanced these days that they could hack into systems and control traffic, set cars on fire through the Satnav systems, and even bring down planes. It is a major security concern.

Some organisations have started making use of “biometrics” to make it more difficult to access their computers. Techniques can even include a “retina read” of the computer user’s eyes, voice recognition, and fingerprint identification, all of which makes it more difficult for the cybercriminal.

Many companies across the UK and the world are so worried about the threat of hackers, malware, attacks etc. that they are now employing consultants to test the security of their company networks.

These “Ethical Hackers” can be authorised to secretly hack into the company’s system and demonstrate what a criminal hacker or “Black Hat” might be able to get away with. This can include transferring money from different accounts, attacking from internally and external. From this information gathered the Ethical Hackers then write a report, that shows the technical flaws and vulnerabilities in the company. This can then be changed to ensure the organisation is safe and secure.

Research by the BBC asked a question and found that:

“Should there be more controls over access to the internet to prevent fraud, pornography and paedophilia?”

Here at Layer 7, we are dedicated to ensuring maximum security and protection on your website. We have an advanced webmail- anti-spam and antivirus system, with 24/7 support. Call us on: 0844 875 0007 to learn more. Or let us know what you think?

Climbing the ladder of SEO

Eliminate the single points of failure and get high-performance; highly-reliable, load-balanced web hosting for FREE. But you must hurry because this offer is for a limited time only!

At Layer 7 we have years of experience in the online industry. Whether you need SEO, PPC, link building, scripting, you name it, we got it.

Having a web hosting service should be your priority, primarily to distinguish yourselves as a full-service solution, rather than just adjuncts to internal data centre infrastructure.

But when it comes down to hosting a site, Layer 7 won’t just stop at the basics, we go further to make sure you have the trait of a good website.

What is a good website?

A good website should provide credible, original content in various forms. Content is king. You cannot afford not to have quality content these days, with the search engine clampdown on spam and poor, out-of-date web content on many sites. This can lower your search ranking and you can even be penalised by Google. You should also provide valuable, timely information to the user, not lots of irrelevant data.

Customise and target your website towards your audience. You can do this by being responsive, use graphics sparingly, break up your tables and optimise your HTML.

A good website should also be easy to read and user-friendly, searchable, well-organised and interactive.

You can enhance your web presence with a web hosting service, which will provide you with that advanced technology “gee-whiz” factor.

Gerald M. O’Connell, from a ‘New Pitch’ Internet World said: “A Web site is like a diner. It has a core arsenal of dishes that justify its existence, but it also must have a regularly changing specials menu that keeps its regular customers coming back for more. The assumption…is that a Web citizen…visits the site on a weekly, if not daily, basis.”

Layer 7 Web Hosting Service

If you don’t already have Layer 7 as your web hosting service provider, then you need to jump on the band wagon now! The World Wide Web is an interactive, dynamic and rapidly changing the way we communicate and this is exactly what your site should reflect. At Layer 7 we are well-organised, timely and our content is original, interactive and attractive, in a consistent format. You can’t go wrong when you choose us as your web host provider.

Watch the YouTube video below to learn more about the World Wide Web:

Eager fingers tap the keyboard, typing in a search engine URL code, “we’ll visit Google today” the voice mutters under their breath. Browsing down the various search pages that appear after typing in “Black Syrian Cat, in London” on Google, a list of various websites appear. Many don’t even relate. “What’s this, a car advertisement? Don’t need that,” the voice hisses.

Google’s algorithm determines which sites get shown in search results. The higher up with search engine optimisation (SEO) the more relevant, up-to-date and quality driven, the site is. This is good for Google and it’s good for the site.

However, incidences of rotten website have occasionally crept up these search results. Watchers of Google have been wondering if the algorithm which is supposed to measure both a site’s popularity and relevance by tallying links, keywords, and other factors is broken.

For instance, in November the New York Times’ David Segel reported ‘on a seller of designer eyeglasses whose marketing strategy was to rise in results—by getting the Web talking about how lousy its customer service was.’ Mr Segel also discovered that bogus links or irrelevant sites would stem in the search results.

Google responded to the complaints and has been targeting these irrelevant bogus sites. Stamping out the clutter and cleaning up its web.

“Scientific measurement shows our search quality [was already] the highest it’s ever been,” says Google Fellow Amit Singhal, one of the keepers of the algorithm.

Meanwhile, search engine Blekko recently gave many sites the death penalty, it its bid to clean up the web and rid the content of spam. Although Google will not be going that far, it won’t talk about its precise tactics.

We will see an end of spam sites wriggling their way to the top. Poor quality content or over-used keywords, out-of-date are just a few things Google will be keeping its eyes on.

However, all Google search changes are subject to further adjustment. But what do you think of these changes?