March 2009

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My Resume

Posted Thu, 03/26/2009 - 10:53 by Anne

Web Development Expertise

  • Web site development expert who has used Drupal CMS to increase traffic for client web sites up to 280%, improve income by up to 57 percent and raise Google Page Rank from unranked to PR4. Skills include core installation, module integration, custom themes and templates, testing and measurement, and ecommerce. Intermediate HTML and CSS coding skills. Basic PHP skills.
  • Skilled user of Web 2.0 content platforms including Squidoo, Blogger / Blogspot, WordPress, YouTube, and others, plus social bookmarking tools such as Facebook, del.icio.us, Propeller, and StumbleUpon.
  • Professional writer and editor with 25+ years experience. Skilled in organizing content for the web and print publications, crafted for all reading levels and search-engine optimization.
  • Expert in Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, and Publisher). Proficient in Adobe Photoshop Elements.
  • Reliable team member who also works well independently. Strong project manager who can provide direction, vision and structure. Dependable colleague who is dedicated to the long-term success of the organization with the highest degree of integrity.

Drupal Web Sites

St. Ignatius Martyr Parish, Austin, Texas  (2006-2008)

  • http://st-ignatius.org: Web site for large parish with extensive ministry programs and elementary school. Project planning; Drupal core installation; module selection and installation to accomplish site objectives; development of custom themes using tableless CSS, page templates and graphics; selection and implementation of taxonomy (vocabulary and terms) for effective navigation and SEO; content conversion from previous web site, including sidebar blocks; Google Analytics integration; user training and support; ongoing updates and consultation. Initial installation in Version 4.6; upgraded to Version 5.3.

Messiah Lutheran Church, Knoxville, Tennessee, 2007-2008

  • http://messiahknoxville.org: Web site for small parish that wanted a personal feel. Content consulting; Drupal core installation; module selection and installation to accomplish site objectives; development of custom themes using tableless CSS, graphics and special front-page template; navigation implementation; user training and support; ongoing updates and consultation.

Mouse Map: How to Plan a Disney World Vacation, 2005-Current

  • http://www.mouse-map.com: Companion to Walt Disney World travel guide featuring maps, checklists and other travel planning aids. All content development including short videos; Drupal core installation; module selection and installation; taxonomy development and application; development of custom themes using tableless CSS and graphics; integration of ecommerce using Ubercart and PayPal Website Payments Standard; Google Analytics integration.

National Organization for Human Services, 2004-2007

  • http://nationalhumanservices.org. Public and members-only web site for national professional association. Project management; Drupal core installation with conversion from Joomla; module selection and installation; custom theme and graphic development; implementation of user access control to protected content; development of taxonomy for effective navigation; integration of ecommerce using CiviCRM and PayPal Website Payments Pro.
  • This project also included converting a stand-alone Access database into an interactive online membership database that integrated Drupal users into CiviCRM. (Site uses the navigational structure I developed; the theme that I developed is no longer being used.)

Personal Blog

  • http://www.anne-easterling.com: (The site that you are viewing.) Simple web site to demonstrate trial themes and serve as a platform for client training. Drupal core installation; module selection and integration, notably the theme switcher; development of taxonomy and content.

Other Web Projects

Squidoo.com web pages, 2006-Current

YouTube videographer, 2007-Current

Short tutorial and informational videos: http://www.youtube.com/disneyanne. Relevance to current Drupal work: Three tutorial videos that I developed to help my clients use Drupal.

City of Austin Economic Growth and Redevelopment Services Office, 2002-2004

Web designer and writer for department web sites: http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/cityhall/ , http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/culturalcontracts/default.htm and http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/redevelopment/. Developed using proprietary content management system. Relevance to current Drupal work: HTML coding and CSS. (Some content has been updated, but my original design and background content are still used.)

Texas Recreational Vehicle Association, Austin, Texas, 2000-2001

Web site for statewide trade association. Developed using FrontPage. Relevance to current Drupal work: HTML coding; project management; content organization. (The site that I developed is no longer online. Archived: http://web.archive.org/web/20010925053751/http://www.trva.org/ .)

Texas Physical Therapy Association, Austin, Texas, 1998-2000

  • Web site for statewide professional association. First developed as HTML hand-coded, then converted to FrontPage. Relevance to current Drupal work: HTML coding; content organization and management. (The site that I developed is no longer online.)

Drupal Activities

  • User/member, drupal.org and ubercart.org. Drupal tutorial videos on YouTube.com
  • Favorite add-on modules: CCK, Ubercart, Contact, Captcha and Captcha Pack, TinyMCE with IMCE, Pathauto, Taxonomy Context, Ubrowser, Meta Tags (Nodewords), Weight, Google Analytics, Leech. Favorite core modules: Comment, Contact, Path, Search, Statistics, Taxonomy.

Education and Certification

  • Bachelor of Arts Degree, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas. 1980. Major in journalism, minor in political science.
  • Texas teacher certification, Kindergarten-Grade 6. Qualified for certification in secondary speech and journalism.  

 

Facebook Today (or How I Overcame Social Networking Phobia)

Posted Tue, 03/03/2009 - 01:27 by Anne

Screen shot of Anne's facebook home page.First, a little background: I've always considered myself forward thinking. Way back in high school, I was the first girl to take mechanical drawing. (It was the only "art" related class at our school. Yes, it was that long ago.) We bought our first desktop computer before desktop computers were common on office desktops. My husband tinkers with all kinds of gadgets and built and rebuilt so many electronic things (including computers) around the house that I've lost track. I used the first generation of MS FrontPage, and my first web page dates back almost 15 years.

But I just couldn't get into social networking. Read more >

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Why the 3-Minute Retreat from Loyola Press Works

Posted Thu, 03/05/2009 - 10:49 by Anne

Screen shot: 3-Minute Retreat from Loyola Press.(The subtitle is "And how it could work a little bit better." More on that later.)

I'm a Catholic convert, which means that while I grew up in a Christian family, I didn't come to the Catholic faith until I was an adult. And it means that I never really learned the disciple of prayer. I'm on a constant search for tools to help me in my prayer life.

A few months ago, I found the Loyola Press web site and their 3-Minute Retreat. The 3-Minute Retreat is an online flash presentation that begins with calming your mind, then presents a scripture reading and reflection. It ends with words for a prayer and a suggestion to add your own refection or intentions. Peaceful music plays in the background. Read more >

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Real Data on What Drives Social Media

Posted Mon, 03/09/2009 - 18:16 by Anne

Photo: Teens use social networks to reinforce existing friendships.Every morning, I spend some time reviewing the latest blog posts and news on "social media." While I've been involved in web site development for more than 10 years, I've mostly relied on my intuition and experience from traditional media. That's because finding good resources for hard data -- research-based data that stands the test of scholarly review -- has been more difficult. 

Not sure if that data is becoming more available or if I'm just now finding, but that is changing. Today I found two amazing pieces that help me feel that I just got a year's worth of experience in one swoop.

First up: danah boyd's presentation to Microsoft Research Tech Fest. She gave a talk titled "Social Media Is Here to Stay ... Now What?" in February and has kindly posted her notes for all to see. Reading the article was like taking a master's class. She's sharp and to the point. Take the introduction:

Social media is not new. Media has been leveraged for sociable purposes since the caveman's walls.

and:

Social media is the latest buzzword in a long line of buzzwords.

danah goes on to give an excellent review of the technical and (he he) social history of social networks in the United States.

So why am I giving you this much history? Many who build technology think that a technology's feature set is the key to its adoption and popularity. With social media, this is often not the case. There are triggers that drive early adopters to a site, but the single most important factor in determining whether or not a person will adopt one of these sites is whether or not it is the place where their friends hangout. In each of these cases, network effects played a significant role in the spread and adoption of the site.

So my take is that social networks aren't successful unless friends can easily gather and interact there. Rather than focusing on time on site and bounce rate, we should spend more effort evaluating what is happening within the site. Are members creating friends lists? Are they commenting on each other's posts and sharing more content? Are they truly connecting?

She also compares how teens and adults interact online. The condensed version: Teen use of social media focuses on reinforcing existing friendships. Adult use focuses on making new connections. (And yes, I know that I've ultra-simplified.) In either case, we web site managers and developers must remember that our members drive platform development. No matter how well-thought out our business model, everything is subject to change based on how our visitors and members are using our site.

The final section of her talk addresses how large, traditional businesses must adapt to the new social media world but the lessons apply to everyone. Go read it, even if you're a young start-up or small business. Stay ahead of the curve!

(Tomorrow, I'll talk about the other treasure I uncovered today.... Here's a sneak peak.)

 

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Digital Outlook: What to Expect in 2009

Posted Mon, 03/16/2009 - 13:51 by Anne

I've admired the folks over at Razorfish for some time... yep, I wish I could be just like them (even though I'm not too keen on how slow their web site loads). They do an excellent job of quantitatively studying the Internet and online community building and -- even better! -- they share a great deal of data for free.

Case in point: The 2009 Digital Outlook Report. CEO Clark Kokich begins with this observation:

I spent the first 30 years of my advertising career focused on saying things. What do we need to say to persuade people to buy our product or service? How do we say it in a unique and memorable way? Where do we say it? How much will it cost to say it? How do we measure consumer reactions to the things we say to them?

Sounds like he's one of us Baby Boomers. That's how I was taught to do marketing. But, the times, they are have been changing. So I totally get what Clark's saying. He continues:

Now, after 10 years in the digital space, I find myself spending my time talking to clients about building things.

He then describes how advertisers and marketers are changing their focus to helping clients create experiences and interactions and connections -- the kinds of things that truly build brands. I browsed through the report till I found what I was really looking for: Trends in Social Influence Marketing, which was written by VP and Global Social Media Lead Shiv Singh. You may have seen the Top 10 trends in social influence marketing quoted by others.... so I decided to do my own interpretation:

  1.  Consumers will pay more attention to social influencers, such as bloggers and referral sites, than traditional advertising.
  2. The "sneezers" and influencers will have be in the spotlight.
  3. Brand managers will finally realize that consumers are the ones who drive the brand identity. (And it'll be about time.)
  4. Social advertising will mature -- which I hope means that they will get smarter about "programmed" advertising and stop putting kid-focused ads on sites simply because moms congregate there.
  5. The ability to share information between sites like Facebook and Twitter and other social sites will be easier -- and I hope we'll have the ability to customize privacy settings and determine what's shared with whom.
  6. We'll care more about our extended network of friends, not just close friends, in our online communities.
  7. Research will focus more on meaningful results, not just counts of web hits and contacts. And what are meaningful results? Authentic referrals, repeat sales, and probably some kind of measure of social interaction.
  8. Social influence marketing will be the center of marketing activity, not just an afterthought.
  9. The barrier between intranets and the World Wide Web will disappear.
  10. The boss will climb down from the ivory tower and participate.

Razorfish will review the list in six months, then at the end of the year to see how well their crystal ball works.  Of course, this list is only a small portion of the report. I'm studying the rest to see what I can apply and share. For now, I'm just letting it simmer....

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Encouragement from St. Joseph

Posted Thu, 03/19/2009 - 21:48 by Anne

It's been a busy week, so I haven't had time to write... but I had to take a few minutes to recognize the Feast of St. Joseph, the Husband of Mary.

Over the past few months, I've depended on dear St. Joseph quite a bit. We spent about a year rehabbing our house. All those things that got neglected or postponed while the kids were growing up demanded attention. We spent many hours de-cluttering, scraping paint and old tiles, painting, scrubbing, scraping more tiles, more de-cluttering. Whenever I became discouraged or encountered roadblocks, I prayed to St. Joseph.... and always felt immediately encouraged and energized. I feel that I now have two patron saints: St. Francis de Sales (my birthday saint) and St. Joseph.

One of the few books that made it through the de-cluttering purge is My Life with the Saints, by Fr. James Martin. He has a wonderful video on my new patron saint... I hope you like it!

Tomorrow is Friday... I always enjoy Fridays during Lent. Have a blessed day!

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Two enhanced features on Google Search

Posted Tue, 03/24/2009 - 20:31 by Anne

Call me a Pollyanna, but I believe that Google's concern about providing the best search has our best interest at heart. Some folks think that changes in Google's search algorithms are just to keep Internet marketers on their toes... well, that may be a result, which isn't necessarily a bad (or even good) thing. The goal is to make search results more relevant to us, their humble readers.

Two changes in Google's search engine and search results page went into action this week.

First... word associations. Ever get stuck trying to find the best words to use in search phrase? Did you ever notice that Google offers alternate search terms at the bottom of the search results page? Google says that they've enhanced their related terms and alternatives to give you even better suggestions, just in case you haven't found what you're looking for.

Second ... longer snippets. If you type in a search phrase that's longer than three words, Google will return a longer description to help you evaluate that result more easily. In theory, they are providing three (maybe four) lines instead of two. In all of the tests I did, all of the search results were only two lines so apparently this feature isn't either (1) what I expected or (2) being fully implemented yet. I'll keep watching to see if this improves in upcoming weeks.

For all the talk, it doesn't seem like a big difference to me ... yet. I'd love to hear what you think.

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