There are a lot of good choices when it comes to picking your FTP client.  I have reviewed several via the website here and I am sure there are other good ones I haven’t looked at.  Personally, my favorite FTP client is FileZilla. You could also try out WS_FTP, SmartFTP, CuteFTP or a number of other choices there are out there.

Now that you have an FTP client, how do you get started? Well, instructions may vary depending on the FTP client you choose.  Here are the basic details you will need to input:

• Hostname: yourdomain.com
• Username: your account username
• Password: your account password
• Passive FTP: ON for linux accounts, OFF for Windows accounts

Should you use a web browser for FTP? I would suggest against it.  It can be done usually by going to ftp://yourdomain.com or ftp://user:pass@yourdomain.com/ but my best advice for you would be to get a FTP client to do the job for you.  If your webhost allows it, you might also want to set up secure FTP or FTP over a TLS connection.

So this is what I want from you, please feel free to post your feedback (in the comments) about the past month’s articles here!  I would love to hear what you  have to say and what you might like to see more of in the future.

Why duct tape marketing? Well, duct tape is often associated with doing things yourself – and I want to help you learn all there is to know about marketing your website, your business or anything else you are putting out there for the masses to enjoy, with the smallest budget possible. 

So be sure to check out Mitchelaneous.com every single day this month, as I guide you though the best ways to make yourself more successful, without putting too much of a strain on your wallet.

Better PDF Editing Abilities

Need an easy way to edit PDF files without the expensive PDF editor?  In the past, I have told you about creating PDFs via Open Office.   However, what if you could convert those PDFs to Word doc files to edit instead?  Pickup the Free PDF to Word Converter for Windows to get the job done.

Better PDF Browser Support

How about better PDF support for the browser?  PDF files are notorious for crashing your modern web browser.  So with that said, what tool can you use to make the experience better?  A browser add-on named PDF Download.  It’s features include:

• Convert Web pages to PDF. (NEW) Convert any Web pages to great looking PDF files, and then save, share, print or archive them.
• View PDF as HTML. View the contents of PDF files faster and eliminate browser problems by instantly converting any Web-based PDF to a browser-friendly HTML Web page.
• Control PDF files in Firefox. Stop crashes and get the upper hand on Web-based PDF files by automating and controlling how your Firefox or Flock browsers deal with them.

PDF Download works with Firefox 2 & 3, Flock 1, and Internet Explorer 7 & 8 (beta) web browsers.

Better Printing Abilities to the PDF Format

Now this one isn’t really PDF’s problem, however I do have a solution.  If you are wanting to cut down on the paper you use, printing to the PDF format can save you some cash in the long run as well as conserve that printing paper.  All you need to do is grab PrimoPDF for Windows.  It will add the ability for you choose “Print as PDF” from any print screen.  All you have to do is select it as the printer of your choice.

So what other things bug you about PDF files, or have you found any other solutions to your PDF powered problems?  It might not be the best standard in the world, however it can come in handy from time to time.

We all like feedback right?  Here is how crowd sound works.  All you do is sign up for your free account, and then login.  Once you do, you can embed the widget into your web site.  Just copy and paste some simple JavaScript into your own design.

Now with the web site widget, you can add some entries. and then have other visitors vote up the idea or vote down the idea.  So this separates things into the people who want to give you good suggestions and the people who just like to vote for things.  You can also via the widget browse through the most recent or the most popular.

I think crowd sound is delivering a very unique way of looking at feedback gathering from your base.  Those could be customers, they could be readers.  The thing that is important is that you get their views to make your content better.

• topicm says 1and1.com
• Live Crunch says 1and1 for 50 domain names and lunarpages for hosting
• tangledcords says hosting matters
• AmberCadabra i use 1and1 now but will be moving to inmotionhosting.com
• dexthageek says dreamhost
• SonnyShear says hostasauraus and bluehost…depending on the site
• torka says pairNetworks
• Prisqua says inmotionhosting.com and servage
• danielout says Dreamhost
• twistermc says asmallorange.com and dreamhost
• JimHutchinson says WebsiteManagers.net hosts all my sites.
• Ecin says slicehost.com for those of us who aren’t afraid to use root.
• shotokan says I have good luck with Hostgator close to two years now.
• samafunk says using godaddy
• jprice1542 says shotokan I just left host gator cause they couldn’t support the framework I needed
• wondrous says CrucialWebHost, but I joined them before they rolled out their new (costlier) plans.
• AZJazzyJ is using IX Web Hosting but is moving to HostGator
• jprice1542 says media temple
• Will_00 says Bluehost is definently the best!
• donwhite says dotCanada.com
• matthewhughes says WordPress for hosting, godaddy for e-mail (BTW, I hate godaddy) and 123-reg for domain names

Need more?  Check out the Plurk page to see if anymore suggestions have been added (or you can add your own!).

PimpMyDesk.org – One of my side hobbies (I guess that is what you could call it) is looking at and using some interesting an alternative wallapapers and icons out there to change up my computer’s look and feel.

Worthy Example Post? SnowRemixo -Wallpaper pack

ProBlogger.net – Another entry into the “duh!” list of feeds, I don’t know any writer (blogger or not) that couldn’t get something from reading ProBlogger.net. Definitely a daily read and highlight of my day for sure.

Worthy Example Post? How Bloggers Make Money from Blogs

Service Untitled – When it comes to customer relations, nobody knows better than Douglas Hanna. Ever since having him on my podcast back on episode 107 I have been reading his blog religiously.

Worthy Example Post? DreamHost Fiasco

Soft Tech Reviews – Another tech/news blog, Soft Tech Reviews is one that I stumbled upon by accident via somebody leaving a comment here. The content was captivating, the writing was superb so it made it’s way to my feed subscription list.

Worthy Example Post? Create Your Own Wallpaper

Only one more left – next week I’ll be doing T to Z then my feed suggestion series will be complete. I hope you have all enjoyed my suggestions and if you have any others to give please feel free to drop in a comment and let me know.

Checkout the Entire Feed Suggestion Series!

• Feed Suggestions from A to C
• Feed Suggestions from D to F
• Feed Suggestions from G to K
• Feed Suggestions from L to O
• Feed Suggestions from P to S
• Feed Suggestions from T to Z

Life of an Internet Entrepreneur – Pinny Cohen’s blog is one that I can suggest to anybody and everybody. A true entrepreneur in every since of the word, watch a lot of what Pinny has done inspired me early on to keep doing what I am doing.

Worthy Example Post: Online Organization Tools for Freelancers

Lifehacker – Who doesn’t subscribe to Lifehacker might be a better (and somewhat shorter list) to suggest. They have been helping me “get things done” for a long time now.

Worthy Example Post: Better Gmail 2

Lorelle on WordPress – Lorelle’s well written posts and help via the blog here is one of the reasons I really decided to turn to WordPress to do everything. Still have yet to figure out how to get WordPress to write my posts for me, but I am sure Lorelle might be working on that one too.

Worthy Example Post: What Do You Do When Someone Steals Your Content

Mashable! – I started subscribing to Mashable as an alternative to Tech Crunch, but over the years it has bee much more than a replacement. It stands alone when it comes to delivering news and tips about the new social Web.

Worthy Example Post: Pandora Now Available Anywhere With GlobalPandora

Mozilla Developer News – One of the best internal Firefox blogs and news feeds out there today. If you want to keep up to date with the latest Mozilla is working on, this is the site for you.

Worthy Example Post: Firefox 3 Beta 2 now available for download

Mozilla Links – Mozilla Links does a good job at catching all the goodies that fall from the cracks over at the Mozilla camp. It is one of my favorite resource feeds for when I am working on material for my other site, FirefoxFacts.com.

Worthy Example Post: Firefox 3 Beta 2 review

Official Google Reader Blog – Ever since giving up on a slew of other feed readers out there, I have yet to find a reason to turn away from Google Reader. Reading their blog means I too can keep up with what they are doing as far as the development end goes.

Worthy Example Post: Managing your shared items

Who knows, you might love them yourself and want to share them with others. Just remember who told you about them in the first place, and feel free to share me some link love anytime you please.

Checkout the Entire Feed Suggestion Series!

• Feed Suggestions from A to C
• Feed Suggestions from D to F
• Feed Suggestions from G to K
• Feed Suggestions from L to O
• Feed Suggestions from P to S
• Feed Suggestions from T to Z

Google Operating System – This is my favorite of all the Google news, tips and tweaks blogs out there. If you want to know a little more about what is going on at Google this is the web site to follow for sure.

Worthy Example Post: YouTube Feeds

VistaStyles.org – The VistaStyles.org resource is for anybody who is a fan of making their desktop look just a little ‘bit better. No matter if you are using Vista or not – there are enough wallpapers, icons and more to keep your desktop different from the rest.

Worth Example Post: Longhorn Wall

Internet Duct Tape – IDT is one of those web sites I decided to subscribe to after seeing something brilliant they had done that had got them linked elsewhere. Filled with tons of tips, tools and tweaks on all aspects of our geeky lifestyle we all live.

Worthy Example Post: 107 t-shirts for geeks that do not suck

Kyle’s Cove – Kyle is just your average blogger who has found a niche in blogging about things that others find interesting. He didn’t start a Web 2.0 company or invent bubble wrap but I am willing to bet he’s more interesting to read than most of the two previous examples are.

Worthy example Post: Top 5 Free Software You Should Be Using

Next comes the part of the alphabet everybody slurs together. Should be able to pick some goodies from there for you to check out too.

Checkout the Entire Feed Suggestion Series!

• Feed Suggestions from A to C
• Feed Suggestions from D to F
• Feed Suggestions from G to K
• Feed Suggestions from L to O
• Feed Suggestions from P to S
• Feed Suggestions from T to Z

Writing is one of those skills that everybody can do, but not many can master. If you broke it up into a chart you would have those who can’t being a very small percentage of the pie, those who have mastered it being another slightly larger pie piece and then those who are “somewhere in the middle” taking the rest of the cake pie. 

Writing Tips to Help You Lead the Reader

If you master one skill though I can promise you that your own personal writing will improve. You must learn to lead, now what does that mean?

• Break things into chunks, with each chunk or paragraph being a new topic or idea. I always cringe when I see somebody asking my opinion on something that have written and it is a three page article that is all in one single paragraph.

• Don’t be afraid to add sub-headlines to your work. It works great to help those who just scan their articles first for information to find exactly what they are looking for.

• One thing I remember from my middle school and high school journalism classes was to write with message or idea, then follow it up with a quote. Then you give more of the story – followed by a quote. This is another way to fill up an uninteresting drabfest and make it more captivating. No mater what you think, we all want to hear what others have to say about something and that gives the reader instant gratification.

• Don’t let yourself be intimidated by other’s work. Let us say you read a great article by a great writer and your first thought is, “I could never do that”. Take this as a learning experience instead, read it again and keep this message in the back of your head, “How could I do something like this?”

So next time you start writing your opinion, want to share a suggestion or have the urge to rant about your passion don’t be afraid to spruce up your work with a few of these suggestions.