TradesWest.ca
Web-ish Tips,
and stuff.
Trades West is closed really, but there is some useful info in the site so it will remain live. Feel free to browse around if you're thinking about setting up your own website or would like some tips on lower cost computing.
Mouse over the menus for details...
Trades West's mission is to make the Internet work for working people. This goal encompasses websites and related technologies, but also extends to desktop operating system and productivity software available from the open source communities that have flourished with the Internet.
Governments and trans-national corporations are fast turning to open source software for stability, security and the advantages of standards-compliant interoperability.
Trades West endeavors to bring these same benefits to the "little guy", the small business, volunteer sector and home users who have arguably the most to gain from the benefits of free/libre open source software.
Contact Trades West
| | Ian Stephen |
| Mailing Address: | 46155 Lewis Ave.,
Chilliwack, BC V2P 3E2 |
| E-mail: | |
| GnuPG: | public key
|
| GnuPG: | What is it?
|
For business and volunteer organizations alike, a website provides an expected, effective and easy-on-the-budget method of communicating internally and with the public.
Use of a content management system provides a website that the organization can maintain and update without requiring personnel to be familiar with the technical details of maintaining a web presence.
Another powerful tool is TWiki, an on-line collaborative environment that begins as an effective communication tool and can grow to be a repository of knowledge that survives the tenure of individuals in the organization. This can be particularly valuable to volunteer organizations where turn-over is commonly more frequent than in the corporate sector.
For things you should know before you begin, see Web Tips for the Uninitiated.
Small office, home office, non-profits, clubs ...
these are the organizations that form the heart and soul of local communities.
Trades West's SOHO page is where you'll find some things to help ease the load of these sort of organizations.
Sorry, not doing new sites anymore.
For tips before contracting someone to create your website, see Web Tips for the Uninitiated.
Perhaps you already have a website, but it is in need of updates or repair.
Often web sites that have been maintained with WYSWYG (What You See is What You Get) tools become sluggish and inconsistent, even broken entirely. The trouble with WYSWYG is that what you don't see can be most important!
I can restore the function and performance of your website by eliminating the errors and redundant code that are prone to creep in when WYSWYG tools are used.
I am also happy to perform routine updates at reasonable cost.
The worst thing you can do to attract unwanted e-mail is to have your e-mail address on a publicly accessible web site.
Google uses what are commonly termed "bots" or "spiders" to catalogue content on the web. These bots help make Google the great resource that it is.
Unfortunately spammers use similar technology to harvest e-mail addresses from websites!
Trades West's versatile solution protects your e-mail addresses while providing the utmost convenience for you and your site's visitors.
For more information on Trades West's solution see the anti-spam page.
Before your website goes live, you really should register your own domain name. Registering your own domain allows you to pick a memorable and descriptive internet address for your website and puts control of that site in your hands.
Be sure to use a domain registrar that provides an interface for administering your domain, particularly the DNS settings that allow your web site to be found on the internet.
Trades West can help you find a registrar that provides reliable service at least cost.
All web hosting services are not created equal! Many options come into play and can affect what you can do with your web site and what it costs.
Trades West can help you choose a hosting provider that meets your needs now and in the future, and fits your budget.
What is Free/Libre Open Source Software (FLOSS)?
- Free/Libre
- Often available free as in gratis, really about free as in liberty
- Open Source
- Source code is available to all for review or modification
- Software
- Software - both operating system and applications software.
For some FLOSS applications see the menu on the left.
For more about FLOSS see the floss page.
Trades West can help you choose, aquire and install the Free software to handle your computing needs.
The leading GUI image editor offered by the Free software world is the Gnu Image Manipulation Program, affectionately known as "The GIMP".
Available for Linux, Mac OS X and Windows from www.gimp.org
Free software's roots are in Unix, an operating system intended from the start for networked environments. From these roots grows some of the most secure networking applications available.
For web browsing and e-mail try the award-winning applications from Mozilla.org. Multi-platform and standards compliant, with conveniences like tabbed browsing and searches using your favourite search-engine right from the address bar. If you're tired of hearing about internet exploits that take advantage of "known vulnerabilities" in other web applications, Mozilla projects bring you peace of mind with less vulnerability to on-line threats and excellent client-side spam filtering.
Firefox web browser, Thunderbird email, SeaMonkey all-in-one and more are available free to download from www.mozilla.org
If you are using Windows it is vital to have an up to date anti-virus.
AVG Anti-virus is not Free, but it is free (one per household) from www.grisoft.com.
For antivirus that is both Free and free, try ClamAV from www.clamav.net. Versions for BSD, Linux, Windows and more are available from the download page.
Windows users should also run anti-spyware regularly on their internet connected computers.
A couple of good ones are Ad-aware from Lavasoft and Spybot Search and Destroy.
There's an on-line cartoon that says "Linux give us the power to ... crush those who oppose us".
While that may be stretching it a bit, Linux does offer a lot on several levels.
On the face of it, Linux offers a stable, secure operating system that is distributed with a full range of software for every task, all of which can be aquired at no cost.
Beyond that, if you've ever been faced with files stored in a proprietary format that is no longer supported, you will appreciate that Linux and most of the software that runs on it is based on open standards and formats. Even if the applications you use today are gone tomorrow, Free software file formats are open for anyone to work with. Your data is not locked in.
Going a step further, Free software is helping to bring the benefits of technology, communication and education to people around the world who could not otherwise afford it. While I can afford to purchase my Linux distribution and thereby support my preferred vendor, I can also give a copy free of charge and free of licencing hinderances to a charity group donating computers to needy students.
If you are curious about Linux, but not ready to make the plunge and use it exclusively, you can easily install it alongside your existing operating system, or even try it from a CD without installing anything on your computer.
I would be happy to help you make the jump to freedom.
Did someone say Linux isn't ready for the desktop?
Writer - word processor