Tag Archives: careers

What Makes Ruby On Rails Special?

The post What Makes Ruby On Rails Special? appeared first on HostGator Blog . Ruby on Rails (ROR) was first released on December 12, 2005. Since then, it has been a hot commodity for developers and users alike. It’s an open-source web application and full-stack framework using the programming language called “Ruby,” hence the name. What are some of the engineering patterns it uses? Here are just a few: Convention Over Configuration (CoC) Don’t Repeat Yourself (DRY) Active Record Pattern Modern View Controller (MVC) –organizes application programming Why do developers choose to use ROR? For the most part, it can take hundreds or thousands of hours to create the app of your dreams. ROR cuts down on work with faster development time. Additionally, it has an extensive library of what are called “Gems,” that can add a bevy of functionality. Moreover, automated testing is available to let you test code as you write it.   What Ruby Offers With Ruby On Rails, the learning curve is relatively short. Its’ syntax makes the constructs stream logically, and with vibrancy. Currently there are over 200,000 sites supported by Ruby On Rails. There is also the benefit if offers with its modular design. For instance, the gems library is similar to that of a WordPress plugin. You can use gems to perform actions such as creating PDF files, displaying map data, and social media interactions. Additionally, you are given login/logout options as well as integrations with email and/or text messages.   What Can It Do? The depth that comes along with using Ruby is mind-boggling. Here are some of the features available: URL – You can adapt or develop search engine adaptive URLs Active Records – This development program includes database active library and will automatically map tables to rows and also classes in objects. Debug Applications – Ruby on Rails gives you specific and detailed error logs so you can easily debug all your applications. Tightened Security – Ruby takes away the burden of having to use the ‘h’ method. It now escapes all input by default and if you want to ‘un-escape’ data you simply use the ‘RAW’ method. Bundler – This is a useful new feature to Ruby and helps you manage your dependencies. Just add a line for the gems you need within your gem file, and it will download & configure all gems you need for the project. Action Mailer – This function has been simplified to send mail with ease. Default settings can now be optionally overwritten. It comes with cleaner APIs, and you can also retrieve and manipulate ‘mail’ objects before their delivery. Store Components – Create modularized templates and add components or store your reusable code.   Quicker Development Convention over Configuration does exactly as it states. With other programing languages, developers need to spend an extensive amount of time on how their code will communicate with the database. This is also true for the exact file structure for the project, and the wide variety settings needed for configuration files. However, CoC offers what is called “sensible defaults.” These are conventions that already work with a number of applications. This means you spend less time setting up the project and can focus more on any possible issues. Moreover, with the DRY feature, you no longer have to worry about replicating code over and over again. Instead, you write the code once and can use it where needed. It also makes things more convenient for future code changes.   What You Need To Know If you already have basic or advanced knowledge of HTML and CSS, then learning ROR should not be an issue for you. If you don’t, then you should start learning those two languages first. The good news is that they are also quite easy to comprehend and practice. Once you learn the ins and outs of ROR, it might start feel like second nature. Not to mention, it is quite enjoyable. There are a wide variety of resources available, whether it be taking online courses or reading instructional books. Most tools offer straightforward approaches to learning the structure of this dynamic language. In addition to its many advantages, ROR can make it more cost-effective to create and maintain a site and/or application. You will be able to create feature-rich constructions without as much output as one might have expected. Then, if you want additional features, they can be added rather quickly and conveniently. When you consider the power and convenience of ROR, it’s no wonder why they were chosen in the development of platforms such Twitter, Shopify and Basecamp. Their active community is helpful for those new to ROR, making it even more enticing for intrigued developers to test out.   ***** Natalie Lehrer is a senior contributor for  CloudWedge . In her spare time, Natalie enjoys exploring all things cloud and is a music enthusiast. Follow Natalie’s daily posts on Twitter: @ Cloudwedge , or on  Facebook .   Image source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/nez/177722693/   web hosting Continue reading

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The Future Of Video Advertising: 360 Degree Ads Hit YouTube

The post The Future Of Video Advertising: 360 Degree Ads Hit YouTube appeared first on HostGator Blog . In the famous words of Nam June Paik, “The Future is now!”, at least in the sense YouTube’s Advertisements have just pioneered the 360 degree world of video, rolling out the capability on Chrome, Android and iOS. Back in January, Google unveiled being able to support the feature, and has very recently seen the first takers from Bud Light & Coca-Cola with exceptionally high-production value. JR Futrell, YouTube’s Ad product manager, remarked the new 360-degree format as a “mobile-first” initiative for two reasons: Motion – 360 ads will move with the mobile device, allowing you to view the video through a virtual lens. Mobile Is Dominating – In ten countries around the world, mobile searches have now surpassed that of desktop use, inspiring innovations to keep viewers watching advertisements longer.   When looking at how revenue is earned on YouTube in the first place, engagement is the most important aspect. It’s always been rumored that the more views you have, the more you make, but even videos with 1 million views could earn nothing unless viewers engage with the advertisement. That’s why in the ever-changing world of video YouTube has taken the concept of viewer engagement to an entire new dimension: The World of 360 Motion.   Not Just For Corporations Right away many viewers new to the concept would expect this technology to be limited to corporations or businesses with a large marketing budget to support the production value. But, creating a video in the three dimensional space has become surprisingly easy, and highly accessible to even the smallest business looking to advertise. The trick is acquiring a camera capable of filming 360 Degree video format. As the technology improves, the amount of camera options has readily increased, including: Ricoh Theta Kodak SP360 Giroptic Bublcam Allie   Tapping Into Viewers Curiosity In order to run any effective advertisement you must capture the attention of your viewer within a split second. We’ve all seen the “Skip this Ad” after 5 seconds button, which has set the standard for how fast you need to capture your audiences attention on YouTube. Skipped ads don’t create conversions, and nowadays unless there is something dynamic built into a video, viewers are quick to simply ignore it. The goal with 360 Degree video is to take the viewers from a place of feeling passive, into a realm of activity and curiosity. The Ad can involve scripted elements similar to Coca Cola’s, or it can simply allow your viewers to spin the camera behind the scenes to get a perspective on how the ad was created. Google sees this innovation as the future of advertising, and as food for thought, imagine how obsolete regular ads will feel once users can tap into this form of virtual reality. Like everything, we’re advancing towards higher forms of stimulation.   Staying Ahead Of The Curve Understandably, many business owners might feel overwhelmed by the prospect of generating 360 ads on their own. However, we assure you the process is as easy as regular video once you own the right camera mentioned above. Getting into this trend before it’s inevitably dominant will keep your advertising campaign at the forefront of newer innovations once they happen. The more interesting your ads, the greater ROI for your company. Once you have workable videos, follow these steps provided by Google to upload. Campaigns for 360 degree videos running as TrueView Ads can be set up in Adwords.   Image Source: http://i.ytimg.com/vi/9VrfFpXPK4E/maxresdefault.jpg web hosting Continue reading

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3 Ways To Make Money With A Blog

The post 3 Ways To Make Money With A Blog appeared first on HostGator Blog . A blog that you use to share your knowledge on frequent basis is a small business entity, even if you haven’t yet recognized that fact. Starting a blog is starting a journey in several different areas; writing, marketing, social media, even creativity. All these areas can be individualized and you will find plenty of job opportunities on both freelance sites , and startup companies . The blog itself can be turned into a money making property as well, with the right tools and attitude it is possible to earn a solid 5 figure income every year, those who have the right patience and approach are able to have a turnaround of 6 figures. Darren Rowse is one of the oldest professional (and well-known) bloggers in the community, and although over the years he has quieted down, he has achieved a level of mastery over blogging that he can turn any blog into a revenue powerhouse . How do we go about making money with our blogs? Can we do it without being overly invested in writing and publishing? Below you will find the most popular advertising techniques that bloggers employ on daily basis. Remember: You should never compromise the quality of your content for advertising revenue, eventually content that’s overpopulated with advertising techniques is going to dry out and you’ll feel bad about the choices you made.   1. Affiliate Marketing Are you familiar with the term affiliate marketing? It’s very likely that you’ve heard it before, and if not here’s a great introduction piece that shares some tips, for bloggers, on how to make the most out of it. Affiliate marketing is the process of selling someone else’s product that gives you commission for each sale. It may be 35% or 70% — each program is different. Of course, HostGator has an excellent Affiliate Program . Additionally, sites like ShareASale , LinkShare , and Amazon Associates are among the leading affiliate programs that a vast majority of bloggers use today. Through these sites you can find products in pretty much every niche imaginable, which gives you the freedom of choice as to what kind of products you wish to promote.   2. Launch A Product To counter the above technique, we can actually try and build our own product; whether it’s a simple eBook or an online course — it won’t matter. Launching our own product as a blogger can be an exciting journey of learning, understanding, and most importantly success. A successful launch begins with great timing. You might feel a sense of urgency to introduce your service, but rushing could spell disaster. When necessary, temporarily postponing your launch can mean the difference between failure and glowing reviews. — Chuck Cohn Types of products a blogger might create and sell: Courses Webinars Reports Software/Apps/Plugins Video/Audio/DVD Merchandise If you have got the available capital, you might also want to consider investing in creating something that people can use to improve their own blogging experience; perhaps a keyword analytics tool, or a platform that analyses social media profiles, Product Hunt is a great place to start for amazing business ideas.   3. Paid Services Like I mentioned at the beginning of the article, blogging is going to yield you a significant number of skills, all of which can be utilized together (as a blogger) or individually, and still provide a solid stream of income. Here are some of the most common services that bloggers might promote themselves as being able to do: Freelancing — freelance is the most widely known way of working online, and as a blogger one of the most valuable skills you have is writing and marketing; there’s plethora of jobs available to individuals who can do both. Coaching — you can promote yourself as an online coach who can teach others the ins and outs of successful blogging. Speaking — make sure that businesses and conferences know that you’re available for speaking purposes, not only will it help you to become better at what you do, you will be able to promote yourself beyond your usual reach. Design — bloggers are often indie designers, which is why you can try and charge for design tips and other design related issues that other freelance bloggers might have. Events — attending events and promoting your services in the real world is a great way to make new connections and meet new friends. Training — once you feel proficient enough in building blog sites that are truly community oriented, it might be time to consider training others on a larger scale. blogging is definitely not sitting and writing, it is much more than that and you have to spend some time being a blogger to truly appreciate that fact. HubSpot has written a great piece on how bloggers can utilize their blogs to acquire customers instead of visitors. When we start investing our time and energy into something like a blog, it’s only natural that we will eventually want to start getting paid for it, not only to sustain ourselves, but to be able to push further and further. web hosting Continue reading

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2015 Holiday Dash

The post 2015 Holiday Dash appeared first on HostGator Blog . HostGator Holiday Dash Giveaway Official Rules NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY. A PURCHASE OR PAYMENT OF ANY KIND WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. Eligibility The HostGator Holiday Dash Giveaway (the “Giveaway”) is open only to legal residents of the fifty (50) United States (including District of Columbia) who are eighteen (18) years or older at the time of entry. Void where prohibited by law. Employees of The Endurance International Group, Inc. or any of its respective affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising agencies, or any other company or individual involved with the design, production, execution or distribution of the Giveaway and their immediate family (spouse, parents and step-parents, siblings and step-siblings, and children and step-children) and household members (people who share the same residence at least three (3) months out of the year) of each such employee are not eligible. The Giveaway is subject to all applicable federal, state and local laws and regulations. Participation constitutes entrant’s full and unconditional agreement to these Official Rules and Sponsor’s decisions, which are final and binding in all matters related to the Giveaway. Winning a prize is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements set forth herein. Sponsor The Endurance International Group, Inc., 10 Corporate Dr., Suite 300, Burlington, MA 01803. Timing The Giveaway begins on September 21, 2015 at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time (“ET”) and ends on October 16, 2015 at 11:59 p.m. ET (the “Giveaway Period”). Sponsor’s computer is the official time keeping device for this Giveaway. How to Enter During the Giveaway Period, you will automatically receive one entry into the Giveaway for doing one of the following: Tweeting your favorite tip from HostGator’s Holiday Dash email series using the hashtag #dashwithsnappy; or Alternatively, you may enter by hand printing your name, age, complete address (including zip code), daytime phone number and e-mail address on a 3″x 5″ card and mail it, postage prepaid, to: The Endurance International Group, Attn: HostGator Holiday Dash Giveaway, 10 Corporate Dr., Suite 300, Burlington, MA 01803. Mail-in entries must be postmarked by October 16, 2015 and received by October 21, 2015. Mail-in entries will NOT be accepted via messenger/courier delivery service or any means other than United States Postal Service mail. Sponsor is not responsible for lost or misdirected mail in entries. Limit one (1) entry per person during the Giveaway Period regardless of method of entry. Any attempt by any participant to use multiple Twitter accounts to enter will be ineligible. Use of any automated system to participate is prohibited and will result in disqualification. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, invalid, unintelligible or misdirected entries, which will be disqualified. In the event of a dispute as to any entry, the authorized account holder of the twitter account used to submit the entry will be deemed to be the entrant. The “authorized account holder” is the natural person listed as the owner of the twitter account. Potential winners may be required to show proof of being the authorized account holder. All entries become the sole and exclusive property of Sponsor and will not be returned Winner Selection On or about October 22, 2015 the Sponsor will select one (1) entry as the Prize winner in a random drawing of all valid entries received during the Giveaway Period. The entrant will be contacted using the Twitter handle or email address provided with the entry and may be awarded the Prize (subject to verification of eligibility and compliance with the terms of these rules.) Sponsor’s decisions as to the administration and operation of the Giveaway and the selection of a potential winner is final and binding in all matters related to the Giveaway. The winner will be notified one day after the drawing. POTENTIAL GIVEAWAY WINNERS ARE SUBJECT TO VERIFICATION BY SPONSOR WHOSE DECISIONS ARE FINAL AND BINDING IN ALL MATTERS RELATED TO THE GIVEAWAY. Verification of Potential Winner The potential winner must continue to comply with these Official Rules and winning is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements. The potential winner will be required to sign and return to Sponsor within five (5) days of the date notice is sent, an affidavit of eligibility and liability/publicity release (except where prohibited) in order to claim his/her prize. If a potential winner of the prize cannot be contacted, fails to sign and return the affidavit of eligibility and liability/publicity release within the required time period (if applicable), or if the Prize or prize notification is returned as undeliverable, the potential winner forfeits the Prize. In the event that a potential winner of a Prize is disqualified for any reason, Sponsor may award the applicable Prize to an alternate winner by random drawing from among all remaining eligible entries. Prize Winners One (1) prize winner will receive a goMobi bundle, which includes a professionally set up mobile site and one (1) year of goMobi service (the “Prize”) for a total value of Two Hundred and Fifty-Nine Dollars ($259). The Prize is non-transferable and no substitution will be made except as provided herein at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the right to substitute the listed Prize for one of equal or greater value for any reason. The winner is responsible for all taxes and fees associated with Prize receipt and/or use. Odds of winning a Prize depends on the number of eligible entries received during the Giveaway Period. Entry Conditions and Release By entering the Giveaway, each entrant agrees to: (a) comply with and be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of the Sponsor which are binding and final in all matters relating to this Giveaway; (b) release and hold harmless the Sponsor and its parents, subsidiaries, and affiliated companies, the Prize suppliers and any other organizations responsible for sponsoring, fulfilling, administering, advertising or promoting the Giveaway and all of their respective past, present and future officers, directors, employees, agents and representatives (collectively, the “Released Parties”) from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liability, including but not limited to negligence and damages of any kind to persons and property, including but not limited to invasion of privacy (under appropriation, intrusion, public disclosure of private facts, false light in the public eye or other legal theory), defamation, slander, libel, violation of right of publicity, infringement of trademark, copyright or other intellectual property rights, property damage, or death or personal injury arising out of or relating to a participant’s entry, creation of an entry or submission of an entry, participation in the Giveaway, acceptance or use or misuse of a Prize (including any travel or activity related thereto) and/or the broadcast, exploitation or use of an entry; and (c) indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Sponsor from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liabilities (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or relating to an entrant’s participation in the Giveaway and/or entrant’s acceptance, use or misuse of a Prize. Publicity Except where prohibited, participation in the Giveaway constitutes winner’s consent to Sponsor’s and its agents’ use of winner’s name, likeness, photograph, voice, opinions and/or hometown and state for promotional purposes in any media, worldwide, without further payment or consideration. General Conditions Sponsor reserves the right to cancel, suspend and/or modify the Giveaway, or any part of it, if any fraud, technical failures or any other factor beyond Sponsor’s reasonable control impairs the integrity or proper functioning of the Giveaway, as determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any individual it finds to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Giveaway or to be acting in violation of these Official Rules or any other promotion or in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner. Any attempt by any person to deliberately undermine the legitimate operation of the Giveaway may be a violation of criminal and civil law, and, should such an attempt be made, Sponsor reserves the right to seek damages from any such person to the fullest extent permitted by law. Sponsor’s failure to enforce any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision. Limitations of Liability The Released Parties are not responsible for: (a) any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by entrants, printing errors or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Giveaway; (b) technical failures of any kind, including, but not limited to malfunctions, interruptions, or disconnections in phone lines or network hardware or software; (c) unauthorized human intervention in any part of the entry process or the Giveaway; (d) technical or human error which may occur in the administration of the Giveaway or the processing of entries; or (e) any injury or damage to persons or property which may be caused, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from entrant’s participation in the Giveaway or receipt or use or misuse of any prize. If for any reason an entrant’s entry is confirmed to have been erroneously deleted, lost, or otherwise destroyed or corrupted, entrant’s sole remedy is another entry in the Giveaway. No more than the stated number of Prizes will be awarded. In event that production, technical, seeding, programming or any other reasons cause more than the stated number of Prizes as set forth in these Official Rules to be available and/or claimed, Sponsor reserves the right to award only the stated number of Prizes by a random drawing among all legitimate, unawarded, eligible Prize claims. Disputes Entrant agrees that: (a) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Giveaway, or any Prizes awarded, other than those concerning the administration of the Giveaway or the determination of winners, shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action; (b) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Giveaway, or any Prizes awarded, shall be resolved exclusively by the appropriate court located in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; (c) any and all claims, judgments and awards shall be limited to actual and reasonable out-of-pocket costs incurred, including costs associated with entering this Giveaway, but in no event attorneys’ fees; and (d) under no circumstances will entrant be permitted to obtain awards for, and entrant hereby waives all rights to claim punitive, incidental and consequential damages and any other damages, other than for actual and reasonable out-of-pocket expenses, and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, or the rights and obligations of the entrant and Sponsor in connection with the Giveaway, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules (whether of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or any other jurisdiction), which would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Entrant’s Personal Information Information collected from entrants is subject to the Sponsor’s Privacy Policy. Giveaway Results For Giveaway results send a hand-printed, self-addressed, stamped envelope to Winners List – HostGator Holiday Dash Giveaway c/o The Endurance International Group, Inc., 10 Corporate Dr., Suite 300, Burlington, MA 01803. Requests for the winner list must be received by December 15, 2015. Twitter is a trademark of Twitter, Inc. Twitter is in no way affiliated with or a sponsor of the Giveaway.   web hosting Continue reading

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Constant Contact And Email Marketing

The post Constant Contact And Email Marketing appeared first on HostGator Blog . Despite the stigma that surrounds email marketing, due primarily (and justifiably) to “spammers,” this channel remains a valid and profitable avenue for generating leads, sales, and generally just reaching people. Roughly 10% of HostGator customers are Non-Profit businesses, and a recent study shows that these businesses actually get the highest open rates of any industry.  An “open rate” is defined, fairly self-explanatorily, as the percentage of email messages that are opened (and presumably viewed) relative to the total number of emails sent out as part of a given email campaign.  In other words, people are more likely to open an email sent from a Non-Profit than they are any other type of business. However, email marketing remains one of the best performing and most-effective ways to market a business. The aforementioned study, which was created by Constant Contact , also contains valuable information regarding the optimization of email campaigns and was created via the analysis of over 100 billion customer emails. Constant Contact is an excellent tool for small businesses to execute successful email marketing campaigns.  HostGator customers can learn more by visiting this link . web hosting Continue reading

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