J Peterman Flash Integration

J Peterman needed a Flash overlay for an interactive map.  They wanted to integrate their own pirate map style design with a Yahoo or Google style map.  We broke new ground by creating a Flash integration with Google maps.  This has not been achieved or documented online to date, so we are very excited to announce this accomplishment!

How to create a blog

There are probably a million “how to’s” out there that explain the ins and outs of blogging and how to set up your site and where to find the latest blog skins, and who has the jazziest plugins.  Now, for the well researched would-be blogger, these terms probably ring a bell and you know what I’m talking about.  But this article is for the brand new, just starting out, newbie blogger who hasn’t the first clue about where to begin, but just knows that you MUST start somewhere.  And as far as blogging is concerned, you MUST start.

I am going to give you 5 simple steps to get you off the ground and provide an outline to begin your research.  I am not going to get into too much detail, but instead provide an overview that will help you to wrap your mind around the idea so that you know where to begin.

1. Buy your own domain name

If you want to be serious about this and truly build traffic in order to grow your business, you simply must have your own website.  Feel free to post articles on multiple blogsites all over the internet, to your little heart’s content, but ALWAYS post the article on your blog site first.  Always.

2. Choose an easy-to-use content management system

The content management system, or CMS, is installed on the back end of your website.  The front end is what everybody sees and reads and comments on.  The back end is where you write your posts.  Typically you log in to the CMS, navigate through the hierarchy of pages and posts and manage your account from there.  One that I would highly recommend is the WordPress system.

3. Use a template

You want a blog that has a look and feel that accurately represents you and/or your business.  The design should be clean and attractive, and slightly bent towards your unique style – eg. professional, or artistic, real estate or health and fitness.  Whatever your need, there are templates out there to suit your taste.  You will need to have some Photoshop skills and some html background to customize the template.

4. Upload your CMS and your template

You will need to host your site somewhere.  This will cost you anywhere from $10 to $50 a month, depending on the provider.  You will also need to know how to upload your template and your CMS and attach it to your domain name.  This is usually where the beginner falls short.  It takes an intermediate knowledge of programming to accomplish this.  You will probably need help with this step.

5. Start writing!

You need to start out writing 5 or 6 articles a week to get the blog off the ground.  After you have built up a significant number of posts, you can usually slow down to 2 or 3 a week, and then eventually just 1 or 2 a week.  Of course, you can write as much as you like, so if the thoughts are flowing, keep writing!

If after reading this, you decide that you would just rather use a company to throw it all together for you, walk you through the process, train you on the CMS and get you up and running in a couple weeks, then check out our Blog Setup package.  It is very affordable and will have you blogging in no time!

Good luck!

Flash integration with Google maps

(Click on the image above to view the Flash Google map example in your browser window)

Buteo Software has broken new ground with the hugely successful development of a flash overlay for Google maps!  So far there has been no documentation online of anyone accomplishing this tricky feat.  We developed this new technology for one of our top clients, J.Peterman.  (Yep, that’s right.  The Seinfeld character, who actually happens to be a real guy, with a real business, in case you didn’t know)  They wanted a Yahoo map, originally, which presented a fair challenge, but not beyond our scope, since this has been tinkered with before, to some success.  However, much to everyone’s dismay, the Yahoo map zoom function does not play nicely with flash and we experienced a lag when we tried zooming in and out.  Nothing exscrutiating, but not ideal, to say the least.

So we started again from scratch with a Google map instead, to see if the speed could be improved…  And, voila!  It did!  We were very happy to find that Google did a much better job of coding the map functions, and our Flash overlay did nothing to disrupt the flow.

With a very happy client and a dozen more additions underway, we are currently in the process of developing and adding even more features to the map and will be posting those here as soon as they are complete!

Stay tuned!

JessVox

This is a stunning example of how appealing a blog website can be.  The term “blog” merely refers to the backend content editing setup, but the front end can look exactly like a high quality, custom website as you can see!  If you are interested in starting a blog, it is a lot easier than you probably realize.  We have a very competitive blog set up package that can get you up and running in one week!  And our blog layout is extremely search engine friendly.  We will train you on how to edit your content, layout and post and organize your blogs.  Don’t wait any longer… You can get started today!  Click here

Keithley

Keithley is a well-established and successful industrial company that designs, develops and manufactures complex electronic instruments and systems for high-performance production testing and process monitoring.  They have over 500 products that they supply regularly to engineers, technicians and scientists in manufacturing, product development and research functions.   Along with standard web design and development, we also integrated a custom online catalog solution with e-commerce setup, I2 technologies, multi-lingual capabilities, Zope CMS and an Oracle 8i back-end database.

New Homes Realty

NewHomes.com is a national company that provides buyers agents for new home listings.  New Homes has formed many partnerships with new home builders across the country to promote their new home listings on the website, and also fnd buyers in every state to work with directly throughout the purchase process.  We worked with them to provide front end programming, bash scripting and automation, search engine optimization, blog layout and blog install, and XML data exchange.

Builderfeeds.com

Builderfeeds presented us with the opportunity to provide a full circle custom web and programming solution.  Along with the web design and html integration, we also helped them to create a back-end interface that allows their customer to log in and manage their home listings within their private account.  We installed a payment processing system that includes an automatic monthly renewal capability.  We set up a blog style usability that allows them to edit the content and add fresh text anytime they like.  Most importantly, we helped them to develop a state of the art technology that creates an XML feed for their customers and syndicates listings to multiple online real estate portals.  This required us to work closely with the major players, such as Trulia and Zillow, in order to format their feeds to meet each and every requirement.  Builderfeeds in now one of the only listing syndication service providers for new home builders that offers a user-friendly interface and a time-saving bulk listing upload process.

Handcraft House

Handcraft House is an adorable establish located in a scenic valley of the Blue Ridge mountains, near Charlottesville Virginia.

They sell high end, hard to find rubber stamping and scrapbooking supplies that cannot be found in the large, national chain craft stores.  Artists and hobbyists alike, flock to this charming store, some driving hours to get there.  Not only can you purchase supplies, but the Handcraft House is also a destination for fellow stampers to spend time together, sharing ideas, learning techniques and making new friends!

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!