A Good Time is Blog Time

A History of Development by Smart Media Technologies

Home Page Pays (HPP) is the latest and most exciting product so far developed by David Martin, CEO of Smart Media Technologies, and his team of 20 computer experts.  He and his team (whom he has employed for over 12 years) were responsible for developing top-secret security systems for most of the medium-sized and small banks in America.  They have an impeccable and very impressive track-record and their expertise is beyond question.

As some of you may know, when Smart Media Technologies started there were just two products:
1.  Online Tuition in computer programs (called the Smart Library)
2.  Remote Computer Software Repair (by Interactive Helpers who logged onto a subscribers PC ,on request, and sorted out any software problems they were having)

The Smart Media Desktop (SMD) and Super Browser was the next development – a downloadable product which put many features in one place – a bit like a department store instead of lots of little shops.  (SMD is still available and is being further developed, but now as a secondary product)

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If you want to work from home, or you just want a second income, starting an online store is a very real option for anyone. If you have access to good products and the right price, it is only a matter of setting up the technology you need. There are a number of options for those who want to get started without breaking your budget. This article will look at some of the issues ranging from computer support and repairs, to choosing where your site should be hosted — this is just a quick look at some of the basics but with some useful links to sites or pages where you can get detailed help.

• Getting Started. For those who want to get started, online auction and trading sites, like eBay, are an excellent option. This means you can be up and running in a matter of minutes. These sites will be your store platform, and other than having your own reliable computer at home, you are already in business straight away. You will need to keep your own computer safe and maintained, so it is worth finding a good and reliable provider in your location to give you those important support and repair services. If your home (now business) computer has problems, you will not be able to operate your business.
• Setting Up Your Own Site. You may also want to set up your own site. This is the normal next phase for anyone who has expanded beyond doing business on existing trading sites such as Amazon or eBay.  But now you will need to understand all the functions being provided on your behalf by the auction sites. You will need to register a domain name, select a host for your own site, build your site, increase security for your operations on your computer, and learn how to market your business online. Many small business operators grow out of sites like eBay and continue to  maintain their operations on it even when they have set up and are running their own websites. You can always have both at the same time. eBay and sites like eBay are a great way to increase traffic to your own stand alone and professional looking online store and website.
• Going Professional. If your business expands, which is very possible, as long as you reliably deliver all those packages and services you offer, you will need to think about professional options. Your website should be hosted in a secure location on its own dedicated servers. This means your website’s hardware will be looked after by professionals, it will run on the internet independently and will have high speed access for all your customers. When you are running a business at this level, you cannot afford to have any trouble with your hardware, connection or your business software operations.

Growing an income out of a hobby from home is very possible. Setting up small, and utilizing what is available at minimal cost is a very real option. Build your business, income and customer return rates, and re-invest that money into boosting your own site, and eventually with high speed, safe and secure managed dedicated servers to serve thousands of customers per second.

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There are big differences between the two however and Google Checkout is limited in the number of currencies it supports and as a pure online system it only accepts payments in the UK and USA. Plus Google Checkout cannot be used to transfer funds.

Paypal on the other hand operates in multiple countries and currencies and allows easy transfer of funds through their system. Question has to be asked then if having a Google checkout account is really a serious competitor to Paypal or not.

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Google checkout came into existence to become a direct competitor to Paypal who hold the prime position as the go to facility for accepting online payments.

Both Google checkout and Paypal are what are called a 3rd party payment processors, which means when you register with them you are given access to software that places different payment options on your website. When a customer clicks on the payment button they effectively are dealing with a 3rd party i.e. Paypal for example take over the purchase, accept the payment on your behalf and redirect the customer to a page that tells them what happens next. This might be a page where they can download a digital product or a page that simply informs them that the payment has been accepted and that the product will be shipped to them in the next few days.

For a merchant, Google Checkout or Paypal is a great way of handing off the responsibility of dealing with secure payments. This does of course come at a cost, both Paypal and Google Checkout charge for the service and Paypal insist that you have a business Paypal account for providing this service as opposed to a free personal Paypal account.

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Even if you are setting up a small office network, there may be issues you did not expect. When one of your clients requires you to use a Windows terminal emulator, you could find that your existing settings are not good enough. Installing a network can go from very easy to very complicated very fast. Wireless networks make things much easier, as long as everyone is using laptops, because we don’t have to start installing dongles on all of those desktops. Here is a look at ways to avoid the common problems that often appear when small business owners install their own computer network without support.

• Internet Speeds. You might have had enough internet speed when you were running a single computer, but now that you have a number of computers on your network, you will probably find that you do not have enough. There are a number of ways to get more out of your internet connection, such as with a free application by Google, known as Namebench, or maybe you will have to speak to your ISP. You can expect the need for more internet speed, and more of it to be available.
•  Wifi Issues. Wifi makes creating a network much easier because you do not have the issues of all of those cables everywhere. At the same time, cable networks are more stable, and this may influence some applications, such as VOIP video calling. Wifi networks will be unstable if you do not have enough power running through your Wifi router. Potential solutions to this problem are that you can either purchase a high-powered broadcaster, or you can make sure your computers are closer to the broadcast point.
• Security Issues. Security is always an issue when we are using computers. Now you are using a network you will need to understand this is even more of an issue. How protected are each of your computers from each other? How protected is your network? Do you know how to set levels of security and create a highly secure Wifi network? Always use Wifi security and regularly change your password.
• Device Issues. You might find you will have issues between different computers because they are using different applications and different operating systems. Starting your small business network means you will need to get all of your computer issues in order.  Again, this is another reason to get professional help.
• Support Issues. Computer support for small-scale business is available. There are those companies who specialise in small business and home computing and network support. For a set fee you will get a certain amount of computer repairs and assistance each month. Paying this upfront can save you a lot of money in the long run. Having them setup your network might be the best option in the first place.

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