Hi Everyone,

I had the opportunity to present “Safety First!,” a presentation about security for WordPress at the WordCamp Fraser Valley event on Wednesday, July 16th.

Thank you to OpenOffice and SlideShare, you can view my slides below.

And thank you to Gary from BlueFur for this video of my presentation. The audio is a little poor and my voice is pretty monotone (sorry!) so I kind of got a headache after watching the video again. I wouldn’t suggest watching the full 30 minutes in one shot. BUT it’s good for you (like medicine), so check it out and let me know your thoughts!

To be completely honest, my life leading up to the event was a little busy, I wasn’t able to fully prepare the delivery. Otherwise I would have been more interactive and summarized some points in order to make time for Q&A. On the flipside, I am glad a lot of people took notes throughout the presentation and are implementing the tips on their blogs.

If you have any questions please feel free to post in the comments here.

-k.s.

Hey everyone,

Back in the day (as in.. a few months ago), you would have your entire Facebook friends list as one. Inviting people to events was both tedious and risky. You might invite the wrong person, and your finger would be tired by the time you got through the list.

Whether you’re doing marketing and promotions on Facebook for businesses or non-profits, you’ll want to make sure your event, group and page invitations get to the right people. So how can you do this? Well I’ve already talked about making multiple profiles. Although FB doesn’t like it - I think it’s a matter of choice. I have several profiles. One for strictly personal, family, fun stuff. Another for professional, work-related stuff. And yet another for marketing and community relations.

So how do you manage all those lists? The way to do it is to SEGMENT. You  need to go to your Friends list, and make individual lists of your friends. You can do this in the right-column beside where all your friends are listed. You can make as many lists as you like, and add friends individually or in bulk to each list.

Here’s an example of practical usage. You are on Facebook doing marketing for Barack Obama. You have 300 friends, from various locations throughout the USA. If you make seperate lists for the region of the country in which those friends live, such as East Coast, MidWest, etc., you can invite particular people to relevant Obama campaign events, groups, and pages. This will allow you to more effectively target your campaign marketing. Segmenting your audience list is a standard practice of email and conventional marketing, so it is no stretch to also apply it to your Facebook marketing.

Are you using lists? Any extra tips on this topic? Please share :)

-k.s.

Hey Everyone,

So just over a year ago, I purchased a new Dell Inspiron 9400 from the Dell.ca website. For the first eight to ten months, the battery would last at least 1.5 if not two hours without a recharge. Recently, however, whenever I’d pull out the power cord, the battery would give strange numbers about how much power is remaining. It would say something like “28 minutes…” and just a few minutes later it would say “8 minutes.”

So I decided to call up Dell technical support and was introduced to a catch in their sale of notebooks. The 3 year warranty with CompleteCare that I have apparently does not extend to the battery. I was not made aware of this at the time of purchase, and the friendly voice on the phone now told me that usually the battery is only covered for the first year. So I thought, “well that’s alright - I am within the first year right?” Sadly I was informed that I was just a few weeks past the first year mark and therefore the battery was no longer covered.

Then, the friendly voice on the phone said, “But what I can do for you, sir, is connect you to our [forget the name] department and they can quote you on the price of a new battery.” The tone with which he gave me this sales pitch, as if he was doing me a huge favour by connecting me to a sales person to purchase a new battery because this battery had barely lasted a year, was priceless.

In any case this post is just a heads up to all those who own or are planning to purchase a Dell notebook. Check your battery regularly and if it has issues, get them fixed within the first year. :)

stay in high spirits,

-k.s.

——

Photo Source: Kansir

Dot So Fast
My e-mail address is kulpreet [dot] singh [at] gmail [dot] com. So today, when I received an e-mail sent to kulpreetsingh [at] gmail [dot] com, I was surprised and thought the e-mail was sent in error. It turns out, when you register for an e-mail account with Google, the alphabetic characters in your username matter, not the dots. If you have dots in your username, you will still receive e-mail for the same username without dots. At least, that’s what this Gmail help page says.

Dot Be Gone
The reason I’m posting this is because I had always told people to e-mail me at the address with the dot, and then regretted it because it’s just annoying to mention the dot. So now I can just tell people to e-mail me without the dot. I have to admit I am still a little suspicious because I thought somebody else already had my e-mail without the dot, but I guess not.

Keep the Dot
One thing to keep in mind is, even though your e-mail address without the dot will work, if you originally signed up with the dot, that will remain your username when you login to your e-mail.

Dot’s all folks.

Hi Everyone,

You’ve probably noticed that in the new WordPress 2.5 series Admin Panel, the navigation menu items (Write, Manage, Design, Comments) are split from the option / settings menus (Settings, Plugins, Users). Personally I don’t like it separated, but I haven’t yet had time to fix it.

What I’ve done in the meanwhile is make the sizes same of the links on the left and the links on the right. The way to do this is:

In your wp-admin/wp-admin.css file, replace:

#wphead a, #dashmenu a, #adminmenu a, #submenu a, #sidemenu a {
text-decoration: none;
}

with

#wphead a, #dashmenu a {
text-decoration: none; }

#adminmenu a, #submenu a, #sidemenu a {
text-decoration: none;
font-size: 12pt;
}

That’s it - now the links on the left and right will be the same size. I like it better because I check the “Settings” and “Plugins” almost as often as I write a post or manage comments.

Also if you want to make the sub-navigation links (the ones in the white, below the navigation links) a different size, like maybe 11pt, use this:

#wphead a, #dashmenu a, #adminmenu a, #submenu a {
text-decoration: none; }

#submenu a {
font-size: 11pt; }

#sidemenu a {
text-decoration: none;
font-size: 12pt; }

-k.s.

Hi Everyone,

For the past roughly 8 years, I’ve been signing off many of my e-mails with “stay in high spirits” or “stay in rising spirits.” This is inspired by a concept in the Sikh community called “Chardee Kalaa.”

I will explain it to the best of my ability. The words Chardee and Kalaa are from the Punjabi language, and together they form a phrase which is a state of being.

Chardee means rising, but it can also mean growing, unrelenting, blossoming, becoming whole, increasing, and elevating.

Kalaa has various meanings. Kalaa means an art, and an artist is called a Kalaa-kaar (art-doer). In addition, in Sanskrit, Kalaa-vanth means the moon (beauty-having). Kalaa therefore also refers to beauty, or unique personality.

I have a few definitions of Chardee Kalaa.

The first is the art of being in perpetual elevation. This means to always be in a state of growth, evolution, and increasing love and faith for the Truth, the Creator and Creation.

2nd: the art of becoming whole. This means to be like the moon when it is going from nothingness to becoming a full moon. The moon reflects the light of the Sun, and a truly enlightened soul reflects the light of the Truth.

3rd: having an unrelenting, blossoming personality. This means to be always in a state of faith, to not give up on righteousness, and at the same time to approach challenges with patience and love.

4th: the art of rising. This means to consistently be in spiritual growth, and to not waver or be lazy in your spiritual path. To elevate yourself, little by little, consistently, every day, to eventually become one with the Truth and the Creator who is the Truth.

I think all of these definitions work together to form the personality of an individual that is truly in “Chardee Kalaa” and this state of being relies on faith, love, courage, patience, discipline, grace, steadiness, perseverance, and optimism based on trust in the Will of God.

It’s easy to say it as a sign-off, but practicing this state of being is a real journey and there are some fortunate people who can remain in this state of being. At the end of every congregational prayer in the Sikh community worldwide, the following phrase is recited, which I think sums up this state of being:

Naanak Naam Chardee Kalaa
Thayray Bhaane Sarbat Da Bhalla

Through the teachings & blessings of Guru Nanak, through the Name of God, may we remain in Chardee Kalaa.
By Your Will, Dear Creator God, may you ensure the Wellbeing of All.

alright that’s all for now :)

-k.s.

—-

Update:

This topic continued on Cre8asiteForums with some interesting comments from the members there.

Hi Everyone,

— read the updates below —

If you’re using WordPress 2.5.1, and you don’t like the Categories box being underneath the post write box, and you want the box back in the sidebar, this is for you!

Screenshot:

—-

Before you start, backup your wp-admin/edit-form-advanced.php file.

After backing it up, locate the file and open it in your code/text editor and follow these steps:

Step 1) Find and delete this:

<div id="categorydiv" class="postbox <?php echo postbox_classes('categorydiv', 'post'); ?>">
<h3><?php _e('Categories') ?></h3>
<div class="inside">
 
<div id="category-adder" class="wp-hidden-children">
	<h4><a id="category-add-toggle" href="#category-add" class="hide-if-no-js" tabindex="3"><?php _e( '+ Add New Category' ); ?></a></h4>
	<p id="category-add" class="wp-hidden-child">
		<input type="text" name="newcat" id="newcat" class="form-required form-input-tip" value="<?php _e( 'New category name' ); ?>" tabindex="3" />
		<?php wp_dropdown_categories( array( 'hide_empty' => 0, 'name' => 'newcat_parent', 'orderby' => 'name', 'hierarchical' => 1, 'show_option_none' => __('Parent category'), 'tab_index' => 3 ) ); ?>
		<input type="button" id="category-add-sumbit" class="add:categorychecklist:categorydiv button" value="<?php _e( 'Add' ); ?>" tabindex="3" />
		<?php wp_nonce_field( 'add-category', '_ajax_nonce', false ); ?>
		<span id="category-ajax-response"></span>
	</p>
</div>
 
<ul id="category-tabs">
	<li class="ui-tabs-selected"><a href="#categories-all" tabindex="3"><?php _e( 'All Categories' ); ?></a></li>
	<li class="wp-no-js-hidden"><a href="#categories-pop" tabindex="3"><?php _e( 'Most Used' ); ?></a></li>
</ul>
 
<div id="categories-all" class="ui-tabs-panel">
	<ul id="categorychecklist" class="list:category categorychecklist form-no-clear">
		<?php dropdown_categories(); ?>
	</ul>
</div>
 
<div id="categories-pop" class="ui-tabs-panel" style="display: none;">
	<ul id="categorychecklist-pop" class="categorychecklist form-no-clear" >
		<?php wp_popular_terms_checklist('category'); ?>
	</ul>
</div>
 
</div>
</div>

Step 2) Find and delete this:

<div class="side-info">
<h5><?php _e('Related') ?></h5>
 
<ul>
<?php if ($post_ID): ?>
<li><a href="edit.php?p=<?php echo $post_ID ?>"><?php _e('See Comments on this Post') ?></a></li>
<?php endif; ?>
<li><a href="edit-comments.php"><?php _e('Manage All Comments') ?></a></li>
<li><a href="edit.php"><?php _e('Manage All Posts') ?></a></li>
<li><a href="categories.php"><?php _e('Manage All Categories') ?></a></li>
<li><a href="edit-tags.php"><?php _e('Manage All Tags') ?></a></li>
<li><a href="edit.php?post_status=draft"><?php _e('View Drafts'); ?></a></li>
<?php do_action('post_relatedlinks_list'); ?>
</ul>
</div>

Step 3) Find this (Don’t delete it - just find it):

<span id="autosave"></span>
</p>

Step 4) Paste this underneath:

<div class="side-info" style="margin-left: -15px;  ">
 
<div id="categorydiv" class="postbox <?php echo postbox_classes('categorydiv', 'post'); ?>" style="width: 260px;">
<h3>Categories</h3>
<div class="inside">
 
<div id="category-adder" class="wp-hidden-children" style="margin-left: -5px; ">
<h4>	<a id="category-add-toggle" href="#category-add" class="hide-if-no-js" tabindex="3"><?php _e( '+ Add New Category' ); ?></a></h4>
	<p id="category-add" class="wp-hidden-child" style="width: 250px; " >
		<input type="text" name="newcat" id="newcat" class="form-required form-input-tip" value="<?php _e( 'New category name' ); ?>" tabindex="3" style="width: 150px; " /><br />
		<?php wp_dropdown_categories( array( 'hide_empty' => 0, 'name' => 'newcat_parent', 'orderby' => 'name', 'hierarchical' => 1, 'show_option_none' => __('Parent category'), 'tab_index' => 3 ) ); ?>
		<input type="button" id="category-add-sumbit" class="add:categorychecklist:categorydiv button" value="<?php _e( 'Add' ); ?>" tabindex="3"  />
		<?php wp_nonce_field( 'add-category', '_ajax_nonce', false ); ?>
		<span id="category-ajax-response"></span>
	</p>
</div>
 
<ul id="category-tabs" style="width: 2px; ">
 
</ul>
 
<div id="categories-all" class="ui-tabs-panel"  style="height: 400px; margin: 2px; ">
	<ul id="categorychecklist" class="list:category categorychecklist form-no-clear">
		<?php dropdown_categories(); ?>
	</ul>
</div>
 
 
 
</div>
</div>
</div>

Step 5) Save (make sure your old copy was backed up).

Step 6) Login to your WP Admin and go to “Write > Post” and check it out. If you like it let me know that it worked. If not, I cannot provide support but you can still contact me at info [at] kulpreetsingh [dot] com.

Disclaimer:
This has been tested on WP 2.5.1. I am not responsible for your WP installation or for this fix. Please backup your edit-form-advanced.php file and restore it if this doesn’t work.

—-

Update:

Screencast by Rebecca Bollwitt (Miss604) on how to do the above:

—-

Update 2:

It turns out there’s a plugin that does this as well! Probably easier to manage for the non-coding population, especially because it will / should extend regardless of your version updates. It is a little different from my method, but the concept is the same. The website’s in Turkish but the plugin page is in English: http://beyn.org/sidecat/

—-

Update 3:

Peter Keung took this fix and the plugin above and made a new plugin. Thank you Peter! You can download it here: http://www.theblog.ca/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/sidecat_reloaded.txt

Hey everyone,

So most of you probably have a Facebook account, but have you ever thought about whether one account is enough? Yeah, I know you’re probably thinking “is he crazy? I get enough pokes and vampire invitations already.” But hear me out.

Before they become habits, we all come to social networks with some type of agenda. In the case of Facebook, there are many reasons why people use it because although it began with students, its user base is continually expanding to the general population. Firstly, we use it to keep in touch with our current friends, relatives, and associates. Second, we use it to get back in touch with people with whom we lost touch. Third, we use it to network with professionals (i.e. people at work, people at school, people in the same field, people from the same discussion forum). Fourth, we use it to learn or teach about issues we consider important (e.g. Allow coloured profiles on Facebook, Don’t allow coloured profiles on Facebook, Leave Britney Alone, 1,000,000 Who Hate George W. Bush, etc.). There are other reasons as well.

Now, if you have one profile - and only one - it will be difficult for you to post images you want to share with friends, while you have professional associates on your Friends list. Likewise, if you’re in groups with strong political or religious motivations, it could have repercussions in your work or school situation.

I know that technically Facebook doesn’t allow or encourage multiple accounts, but I think it is essential. Here’s how I would go about it:

The Personal Account
Use this account for only your close friends, family, and people with whom you’ve grown up. People that you trust and who trust you. People who wouldn’t Photoshop your pictures and re-post them on Fark.com. This is the profile where you can relax a little bit.

The Professional Account
Use this account for your work associates, school non-friends and professors, and people to whom you’d like to show your most polished self. This one can have a more detailed “Career” section while not having to be filled with your favourite movies, books, etc. It’s a good idea to keep your profile on this one free from the clutter of applications like “Hot or Not” and “Pet Pupz” and instead make it look like a professional portfolio.

The Anonymous Account
Facebook doesn’t like anonymous accounts and they might try to stop you, but usually you can come up with a reasonable name that is totally anonymous. You can use this for activism. If there is a group that you want to join or start, but can’t be associated with, you can use this account. Some people might not like my suggestion here, but this is a really important tool for non-profits as well. Sometimes you want to promote a cause, but don’t necessarily want your organization to be responsible for the group. You can start a group with this account and still promote your cause and even indirectly promote your organization, but not be representing your organization. Note: in a legal sense, regardless of the name you choose, you are responsible for your actions and I do not suggest anyone to use this method for anything inappropriate or illegal. Use your head!

It’s important in the case of all three of the above to keep an eye on your privacy settings. Sometimes when you have your settings set too loosely, people can still see your profile although you’d prefer they didn’t. For example, when you send someone a message, they will be able to see, at the very minimum, your limited profile. So it’s a good idea to make sure you’re sending a message to a particular person from the appropriate account.

Fake Profiles for Spam
Be careful if you’re using an anonymous account. Only use it for good, and don’t get attached to it. If you use a fake profile for spam, that is EVIL! Don’t do it! You probably will get reported and it’s not good karma.

Source: JVManna on Flickr.

Next Up
Throughout the month of May (and some of June), I’ll be sharing my experience in the last two years with the following topics: “Facebook Marketing for Non-Profits” and “WordPress as a CMS” - Look out for it! If you have any questions for me you’d like answered, please post them in the comments or e-mail me: info [at] kulpreetsingh [dot] com.