OnSite/OnPage SEO: Types and Techniques

Search Engine Optimization or SEO is such a hot topic these days. How do you get your web site within the first page or two of the search engines? How do you increase your Google page rank? First thing comes first, there is no hard and fast rule in SEO as no one knows how crawlers work. Search engines keep this algorithm secret and do change it time to time. So, nothing can be the concrete solution here. It’s always a method of hit and try. However, there are some techniques you can do for your site that will help increase your chances of having good results. These techniques are being categorized in two: "On Site SEO" and "Off Site SEO". Let me explain each one by one.

On Site SEO:

On Site SEO is the kick start point of SEO and the most important one too. Because whatever you do in this phase, matters in the next one too. So be careful and do not over optimize your website Or the hunters like Google Penguin and Panda will hunt your site till a devastating end. Let me show you a brief insight of techniques which we apply during On Site SEO phase.

Website Compatibility:

check of your website to make sure that all famous browsers translate your website properly. Although it is not your job but it would be helpful for you to inform owner of the site if there is some thing wrong with website.

Title Tag:

Near the very top of a web site’s source code you’ll find various meta tags, the standard ones being the Title, Description and Keyword tags. The title tag is technically not a meta tag, though it is commonly associated with them. The title tag plays such a large role in the indexing of your web site, that it is considered the most important of the three. A page title is the first thing a search engine will look at when determining just what the particular page is about. It is also the first thing potential visitors will see when looking at your search engine listing. It’s important to include a keyword or two in the title tag, but don’t go overboard, you don’t want to do what’s known as “keyword stuffing” which does nothing but make your web site look like spam. Most people will include either the company name, or title of the particular page here, as well.

Meta Tags:

Two types of meta tags are very important when it comes to SEO, the description and the keyword tag. It is becoming debatable whether search engine uses these tags to index a website or not but for the time being even if it is not much effective but it is still in the play. Be sure to include a few relevant keywords in this tag, but don’t stuff it with keywords either. The description tag should read like a sentence, not a keyword list.

Heading Tags:

When you are writing content of your website, heading tags are the most important elements to consider. Use of heading tags helps users, web browsers and search engines alike know where the major key points of your website are. It makes it easier for search engine to determine the nature of the content.

Alt Attribute of Images:

Search Engines do knot understand what image is. They read the image like a text. Adding Alt attribute to images will help them understand what type of image it will be. The more relevant attribute is the more quickly it will get indexed.

Title Attribute of Links:

When you move mouse pointer on a link a tiny too tip appears which is title attribute of that link. As a note, you should use descriptive text for your links. “Click here” doesn’t really tell a person or more importantly, the search engines about the link. At the very least put a title tag that will explain that “Click Here” really means “Web Design Portfolio” for example. Better yet, make the main link text something like “View my web design portfolio”, this will give some value to the link showing that the resulting page is relevant to searches for portfolio’s.

XML Sitemap:

XML sitemaps are used by the search engines in order to index through your site, as well. This list of ALL pages / posts / etc. of your site also includes information such as the date the page was last modified, as well as a priority number of what you feel the most important pages of your sites are. All elements that help the search engines properly find and link to all content of your site.

This post is for general understanding regarding types and techniques. Further i will explain how to implement these techniques. The purpose of keeping the pace low is to teach visitor from very basic to advance level. In the upcoming post we will discuss about Off Site SEO. Stay in touch and keep on visiting Microcom IT's Blog.

Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization or commonly called SEO is a process to improve visibility and ranking of a webpage or website on search engine's organic or natural results. The better the ranking and visibility of website, more traffic it will receive from users. That is what making SEO the most important thing after development and launch of a website. Every organization and company is dying to have their website on the first page of search engine. SEO mostly focus on these type of searches: video, image, local and academic. SEO is an internet marketing strategy which keep tracks of how search engine works? What keywords and terms people use to search? and Which search engine is the most famous among their target audience.

Before we dive into the ocean of SEO, there is a bitter fact i want to share with you. SEO techniques looks simple and easy and they are but it does need a creative mind to implement it. Some time after trying almost everything, the result is not what we desire. It is because its not only SEO which matters to bring traffic to website it also the design, content and nature of the website. Business regarding selling and purchasing often receive large traffic caps. Websites, built for entertainment purpose also receive huge traffic caps even with less SEO efforts. But for business websites it is very difficult to bring traffic to them with legal methods as their target market and customers' window is too narrow. Most of the time only concerned people such as their clients, customers or the one who is interested in having their service or product, pay a visit to their website. This is a fact that every businessman and company needs to understand. The best approach for them is to keep their website up and live, spread the word on social media and focus on link building.

Today i will discuss types of SEO and in the coming days i intend to expand this topic to cover other aspects of SEO. Lets dive :) and experience the mystery world of SEO. SEO is divided into two major categories such as White Hat SEO and Black Hat SEO.

White Hat SEO:

White Hat SEO focuses on building long lasting effects. An SEO technique is White Hat if it is being accepted by the search engines and is in accordance with their term and conditions. In White Hat prime focus is audience. It enhance Web Usability Everything is built for them not for the search engine. It makes sure that search engine index the same content which an organization or company needs to be there for their audience. Promoting your website without using deceptive techniques is White Hat. This method is slow but its results are durable and long lasting. White Hat keep your website out of harm.

Black Hat SEO:

Black Hat SEO involves all methods and techniques which are disproved by search engines and include deception. Hidden text or div is very common and basic technique in which they use text with the same color as background. or hide a dive or position it off screen. Another method is clocking which means if a human user is requesting a page they provide a different one while for search engine they have a different page. The impact of the Black Hat is quick but it never last long. Once search engine figure out what is going on, it penalize such website by either decreasing its ranking to an extent from where it is impossible to bring that site up or they simply remove the website from their database and block domain address.

Have patience and gain a lot and keep on gaining. Have quickly and then lost completely. It is your decision about which option you want to go with your website.

Computer Network-Network Topology

In networking, Topology is the physical layout of network. It is also known as design and structure of a network. Topology can be depicted as Physical and Logical. Physical Topology represents the placement of the network with its devices and systems and logical represents the flow of data. A topology with its physical structure can be Ring topology but data flow can be Bus topology. In this post we will discuss different types of topologies one by one.

Bas Topology:

In bus topology are systems are connected to the central bus which is network cable and also known as trunk. Data travels in both directions. Each system checks the header of data for destination address. If address does not match, machine simply ignore it. If address is the match, machine accepts data. At both ends of bus, a terminator is connected which terminate signal after a specific time period. If a bus has only two end points, its called linear bus or linear trunk. If bus has more than two end points, it is called distributed bus or distributed trunk.

Star Topology:

In Star topology each host machine is connected to central node which can be a Hub or Switch. Central node is a server and Hosts are the clients. Hub works as a signal repeater. All the traffic on the network passes through central node. Star topology is considered the most easiest and mostly used topology over LAN because it is very simple to add additional nodes.

Ring Topology:

In Ring topology all hosts are connected in such a circular way that they form a ring shape. In Ring topology when a machine sends a data, it travels to each node in the ring until it reaches its destination. Each hosts works as a signal transmitter to keep the signal strong. Each machine checks the data header for destination. If its a match, data is accepted otherwise it is being forwarded to the next host in the ring.

Mesh Topology:

In Mesh topology each node not only accept its own data but it also act as a relay for other nodes which mean it should propagate data on to the network until it reaches its destination. If in a Mesh network all nodes are connected to each other, it is called Full Meshed network. If some nodes connected to more than one nodes then it is called Partial Meshed Network.

Computer Network-Network Scale

Networks are often divided by their purpose, usage, access rights, physical and organizational extent.

Personal Area Network (PAN):

Personal Area Networks is network in which communication occur among computer and other technological devices which are close to a person. The best example for PAN is a Personal computer connection with printer, scanner, PDA's, Fax Machine and Video Game console.

Local Area Network (LAN):

LAN is refer to a network which interconnects computers and network devices within a limited geographical location such as home or an office building. There are number of topologies have been used in LAN such as Bus, Star, Ring and Mesh. We will discuss them in detail in our next post. Ethernet is most widely used protocol over LAN.

Home Area Network (HAN):

HAN is refer to a network which interconnects computers and network devices within a parameters of a house. The main purpose is to access internet most commonly via a broadband connection through a DSL or Cable TV service provider.

Campus Area Network (CAN):

CAN is an interconnection of LANs within a limited geographical location such as university. The main purpose is to access internet most commonly via a broadband connection through a DSL or Cable TV service provider. Network devices such as Switches and routers along with communication media such as Cat5 or fiber optics are used. In case of University, purpose of CAN is to connect different university campuses, departments, library and student hostel.

Backbone Area Network (BAN):

BAN used to tie different pieces of network or sub networks to a limited geographical area such as a building, campus or can be in different building or even over a wide are. Backbone capacity has to be greater than the networks tied to it. A multinational organization which have many locations may have Backbone network to connect all its branches, offices and warehouses.

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN):

MAN is a large network which spans over an entire city.

Enterprise Private Network (EPN):

An enterprise private network is a network built by an enterprise to interconnect various company sites, e.g. production sites, head offices, remote offices, shops, in order to share computer resources.

Wide Area Network (WAN):

Different LANs when are being interconnected over a larger geographical area, they form a Wide Area Network. WAN mostly cover intercontinental distances. Internet is the current and most famous example of Wide Area Network. WAN uses different communication channels such as telephone lines, cable, air waves etc. WAN technologies generally function at the lower three layers of the OSI reference model: the physical layer, the data link layer, and the network layer.

Computer Network-Network Protocols

Network protocols are the sets of rules which govern communication over the network. This works like a stack of protocols in which each protocol uses the one below it. Protocols have signaling, authentication, error detection and correction capabilities. Protocols are of two types in nature, "Connection Oriented" and "connectionless" whether they are on Circuit switching or Packet Switching network. There are many types of network protocols, we will discuss some of them below:

Ethernet:

Ethernet is a family of network protocols mostly used for Local Area Network (LAN). The original 10Base5 Ethernet used coaxial cable as shared medium but later on coaxial cable was replaced with twisted pair and then later fiber optics in conjunction with switches or hubs. Advancement resulted in a periodic increase in data transfer rate from 10 megabits to 100 gigabits per second. Over Ethernet, data packets are divided into small pieces called frame. Each frame contains source address, destination address and error checking data so damaged or lost data can be retransmitted. Ethernet has a sound reputation about its compatibility since its commercial release.

TCP/IP:

TCP/IP, also known as Internet protocol suite is the set of communications protocols used for the Internet and the most popular protocol for wide area networks. TCP/IP is a combination of two networking protocols which are "Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)" and "Internet Protocol (IP)". TCP/IP specifies end-to-end connectivity specifying how data should be formatted, addressed, transmitted, routed and received at the destination. It works on four layer to sort all internet protocols according to the scope of the network. These layers are:

• Link Layer: contains communication technologies for a local area network (LAN).
• Internet Layer (IP): connects local networks to establish inter-networking.
• Transport Layer: responsible for host-to-host communication.
• Application Layer: contains all protocols for specific data communications services on a process-to-process level. For example, HTTP specifies the web browser communication with a web server.

Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM):

Asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) is a switching technique for telecommunication networks. It uses asynchronous time-division multiplexing and encodes data into small, fixed-sized pieces called cells. Here it is different from other network protocols such as TCP/IP and Ethernet who uses variable size packets. ATM uses a combination of both Circuit and Packet switching. This makes ATM a good choice for a network that must handle both traditional and real-time, low-latency content such as voice and video. ATM uses connection oriented model which means a virtual connection must be established between two ends before actual communication took place.

SONET/SDH:

Synchronous Optical Networking and Synchronous Digital Hierarchy are multiplexing protocols that transfer multiple digital bit streams over optical fiber. SONET/ SDH was originally standardized for connecting one fiber system to another at the optical level, to form a single international standard for fiber interconnects between telephone networks of different countries. Today it is a widely deployed, mature technology used in implementing high-speed, large-scale IP networks. It combines high bandwidth capacity with efficient link utilization, making it a major building block for accommodating fast-growing IP infrastructure both in the core and at the edge. Due to its protocol neutrality and transport-oriented features, SONET/SDH also was the obvious choice for transporting Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) frames.

Computer Network-Communication Media

Computer Network is a collection of computers and other hardware interconnected with other through communication channels which allow sharing of resources and information. In a computer network each device should be able to send and receive data. There characteristics which classifies a network are communication media, communication protocols, scale and topology.

Communication Media:

Communication Media is used to to interconnect individual hardware within a network such as electric cable, optical fiber and radio waves. In OSI Model, communication media comes at level 1 & 2.

Wired Technology:

The following wired technologies are sorted in order from slowest to fastest.

• Twisted Pair Cable: consist of copper wires that are twisted into pairs. Using two wires twisted together helps to reduce crosstalk and electromagnetic induction. Twisted Pair Cable used for both voice and data transmission. Transmission speed range varies from 2 million to 10 billion bits per second. There are two types of twisted pair cable which are "Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)" and "Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)"
• Coaxial Cable: Mostly used for cable office buildings, work-sites for LAN and television systems. The cables consist of copper or aluminum wire covered by an insulating layer which is also covered by a conductive layer. This multilayer structure help reducing interference and distortion. Coaxial Cable transmission speed ranges from 200 to 500 million bits per second.
• ITU-T G.hn: Used to create a high-speed (up to 1 Gigabit/s) local area network by using existing home wiring (Coaxial, telephone line, power cable etc).
• Optical Fiber: is a glass fiber uses light pulses to transfer data. OF provides less transmission loss, immunity from electromagnetic radiation, and up to trillions of bits per second. Different colors of lights can be used to increase the number of messages being sent over a fiber optic cable.

Wireless Technology:

• Terrestrial Microwave: Uses earth base transmitters and receivers resembling satellite dishes. It has low ghz range which limits communication to line of sight.
• Communication Satellites: Satellites communicate using microwave radio waves. Earth's atmosphere do not deflected these waves. The satellites are stationed in space and capable of relaying TV, Voice and Data signals.
• Cellular: systems use several radio communications technologies. The systems divide the region covered into multiple geographic areas. Each area has a low-power transmitter or radio relay antenna device to relay calls from one area to the next area.
• Radio and Spread Spectrum Technologies: Wireless LANs use spread spectrum technology to enable communication between multiple devices in a limited area.
• Infrared Communication: Transmission is possible to short distance not more than 10 meters. In most cases source and destination devices are in the line of sight.

Optical Fiber

Many businesses find themselves in a position where their network has grown organically as their company has. The addition of IT components such as server and switches from different vendors are added as and when needed. If not planned correctly the whole management and maintenance can spiral out of control and this can cause a business to incur significant costs and become dependent on 3rd party assistance from a long list of vendors.

Microcom IT tries and keeps it simple whether you are a new business just starting out or an established organization, Microcom’s dedicated team of educated and certified professionals can bring to you solutions which best suit your current and future environment. Microcom can evaluate the existing posture of your network and define the long term goals; we develop robust, scalable and inexpensive solutions that provide infrastructure optimization.

At the most basic level, it is very important that all the network cabling within the building is done to a high standard. There are various things to consider when cabling is installed and this will affect the overall performance of the network when computer systems, servers and printers are added at a later stage.

We provide network cable installation service from small business to large organizations and can do this at very competitive pricing. With our network cabling service you will have the guarantee that your cabling has been done to a professional standard.

What is Virtualization

Virtualization seems to be the buzz word these days and although virtualization technology has been used a lot over the last few years many organization are still not fully aware of the significant benefits that come with it. Virtualization is known for various methods, approaches and techniques of creating a virtual (not actual) layer of virtual hardware platform, operating system (OS), storage device, or network resources.

Let us first have a look at how virtualization technology actually works. At the most basic level you have your server hardware, then on your server hardware you would expect to have an operating system installed. This is where virtualization comes in, virtualization uses a Hypervisor which simply means an extra layer between the server hardware and the operating system where all the business applications are run. This Hypervisor manages all the resources of the server such as memory, disks, network and CPU and controls which virtual machine (your application server) receives how much of those resources and when. The virtual machine is an independent server which runs on top of the Hypervisor and the number of virtual machines you can run on 1 server is limited only by the servers hardware capabilities.

There are some key terms, which you need to know before you go for Virtualization.

Hardware Virtualization:

The term Hardware Virtualization commonly refers to build virtual machine which act like a real machine with an operating system. Here actual machine known as "host machine" is the base machine as hardware virtualizaton took place on it. And virtual machine is known as guest machine. Virtual Machine Manager or the Hypervisor is the software which creates virtual machine on host hardware.

There are three types of Hardware Virtualization.

• Full Virtulization: Complete simulation of target environment.
• Partial Virtulization: Partial simulation of target environment.
• Para-Virtulization: Program of guest machine runs on their own isolated domains and needs modifications to work in this environment.

Snapshotting:

Snapshotting comes handy when you want to start a risky business. This term specially relate to storage devices. Snapshot refers to the state of a virtual machine with its storage devices at an exact point in time. Snapshots can be reverted any time and so as the virtual machine also appear the same when the snapshot is being taken.

Teleportation:

Teleportation or Migration means to move from one host machine to other having its own hypervisor, without and or little disruption in services.

Failover:

An organization can not afford its system to stop completely in case of any failure. Failover means virtual machine keep on working even if the host machine fails. However, virtual machine keep on working from its last known coherent state, in this case.

Microcom IT has been working with virtualisation technology since the early days and is able to provide advice and consultancy services to organisation who are thinking of going virtual. With virtualisation, there are many platforms to choose from and a lot depends on what applications and services you will be running in your organisation. When it comes to selection we can help with selecting the most suitable.

• Microsoft Hyper-V
• VMWare ESX
• Citrix XenServer

Although these are the major technologies that are running within businesses today there are other alternatives available too that enable virtualization for different purposes. Microcom IT Ltd has worked with all three of the above vendors and has implemented solutions for businesses in the UK for a number of years. If you want to find out more, talk to us.

Microcom IT: Leading IT Solution Providers in UK

Microcom IT - like any other organization took its first step with a bunch of handful enthusiastic and career oriented professionals. It was a tough time though we have managed to not only survive but thrive. Initially Microcom IT was limited to London city but then with the passage of time we started getting clients from other cities and counties. Now we have decided to go around the globe to provide what we best known for.

Working with local businesses for a few years Microcom IT Ltd has developed significant knowledge and expertise in the way organizations in the hospitality, financial, logistics, legal and real estate industries operate. As these industries go through their changes we are always there to provide support and assistance with their chosen services.

Our software application development, managed support services and web hosting are the leading products and provide an excellent platform for our clients to operate.

Our reputation is built on our customer satisfaction. Alexander Solicitors & Advocates is a renowned law firm in Luton, Bredforshire and a valued client of Microcom IT. They describe us as "We have been with this company for over six months and we find their service second to none. They have been extremely helpful and have enabled us to stop worrying about our IT and get on with our core business". Highly Recommended! W Nisa, Alexander Solicitors & Advocates.

Purpose of maintaining this blog is to provide technological background and information about all the services Microcom IT is providing for our current and potential clients and customers. If you are small/medium size business any where in the world, then get in touch with us to find out more on how we can help you develop your business into a success.