willie jackson

Month: May 2009

  • Google Friend Connect

    As you can see (in the sidebar), I added a Google Friend Connect widget to my site this evening. What is GFC? From the website:

    Google Friend Connect

    Google Friend Connect instantly awakens and strengthens the community that visits your site by enriching it with social features. Watch the video below to learn more.

    There are some pretty neat ways of garnering visitor feedback using Google Friend Connect. Depending on the response, I’ll be rolling out more of these in the weeks to come. It was extremely simple to implement it on the site (FTPing two files and filling out a form).

    There are a few obtrusive widgets available that I’ll steer clear of, like the Social Bar (see an example on this site). Maybe it’ll grow on me and although I think the functionality is important, I can’t justify stealing 30 or so pixels from people without them explicitly enabling the bar.

    At any rate, I look forward to seeing the response from my “readership” (smile), and I welcome your feedback.

    Would you mind signing up and letting me know what you think? Thanks!

  • When building your brand online, start early

    Google search result for "Willie Jackson"

    On Friday, May 1st, I got this email from someone named Willie Jackson who had happened upon my website. Pretty neat, right? It gets better. He’s also studying IT (in California) and was instructed by his professor to do a vanity search.

    His unedited message is below.

    Hi Willie,

    True story… I’m finishing my Associate’s degree for Information and Technology and in one my classes, during a discussion about reumes, my professor tells me that I should Google my name and see what comes up. To my surprise, there was a website called williejackson.com at the top of the results. I was even more surprised when I learned that the site had tips on resumes and maintaining a good web image (which was the very topic that lead me to Google my name in the first place).

    I was pulled over for speeding once and the officer told me that there are at least fifty Willie Jacksons in California with warrants out for their arrest. Needless to say, I rather be mistaken for you than for any of them. Anyway, I will have my Associate’s degree in June and as I continue working towards my Bachelor’s in Computer Science, I will check your site frequently for more tips and information. Keep up the good work!

    -Willie Jackson

    P.S. How do you start a career in web design or programming when all of the openings seem to be looking for people with 3 – 5 years of experience?

    (more…)