If you haven’t already heard, the latest from Mozilla is out in Firefox 3.  And I’ve got to say AWESOME is a pretty good word to describe it.  On the surface it doesn’t look like much has changed, but underneath it has become even more customizable than before.

Security:
Instead of just using a padlock to let us know when a site is safe, the padlock has now moved to the status bar and it provides much more information about the site you’re looking at.  It is also color-coded to give you a quick idea of the site’s security credentials.  Gray means none and Green means maximum.  It even tells you which cookies you’re going to pick-up when you visit.

Interface Improvements:
Better graphical integration with your OS (think Vista and OSX).  Session saving which can be setup to prompt you if you wish Firefox to remember your last browsing session every time you close it.  Improved Download manager that allows you to pause, resume, and save downloads – you can even save a download to your clipboard for IMing or emailing!  The password manager is no longer a pop-up, it drops down like an ActiveX control prompt in IE7.

Bookmarks:
You can now tag your bookmarks for easier/better cataloging.   There is a star next to your address bar for easier bookmarking and categorizing too.  Mozilla now has a thing called “Smart Bookmarks” which is similar to iTune’s smart playlists with top sites, most recently visited, etc – totally customizable.

Awesome Bar:
No longer called the location bar because it is….well….Awesome!  When you start typing a new URL into your address bar it will give you multiple options instead of just a list of URL’s you’ve visited since your last history dump.  You’ll have to try it to see it.

Memory allocation:
This is one of my favorite features.  When you spend a lot of time going through numerous sites your browser will store all that history in a “short-term memory” block that will start to make your virtual memory slow down.  After every 30 minutes of browsing Firefox 3 will dump this little block keeping your system’s resources more available for other applications…..very cool!

Scaling/Zooming:
This is my other favorite new feature.  Pre-FF3, when you zoomed (CTRL+scroll wheel or +/- keys) only the text changed size.  Now absolutely everything on the page resizes!  You can make images larger/smaller, videos scale, and borders.  On top of that, FF3 will remember where you last scaled the page to, so when you go back it will still be at that size!!!  So friggin’ cool!!!  I have a feeling this is the start of a major movement away from GIF’s and JPEG’s into better scaling image types (EPS images, PNG’s, PDF’s, etc.) – the Internet is going to look good!

You still have skins, plug-ins, and other add-on’s for FireFox, but imagine the kind of SEO tracking pieces that will come out of FF3.  It opens new doors in the developer arena!

Research for this article came out of the August 2008 issue of Maximum PC.

I know this isn’t an area we typically think about, or talk about for that matter, but it is a very important piece in our arsenal.

Warning:  Some of this article (and any following comments) may get a bit on the technical side.

We talk about vendors, leads, CRM’s, site hosts, and all kinds of other automotive eCommerce tools but fail to ever bring up Intel, Microsoft, Dell, Apple, Adobe, Sony, etc.

Let’s talk about the thing that let’s us do our jobs:

The Computer

First off, you can get a lot more for your money if you build your own.  And you can get extremely specific with how your machine operates too!  I’ve been building PC’s since I got my first 386 machine, and there has never been more options for a PC builder than there are today – on top of that, it is waaaay easier than ever!  Yeah, you can buy a Dell or an Apple and piece-meal some small components, but you’re stuck with whomever those companies are partnering with for the most critical parts that month.  If you go Apple, you’re seriously limited (but their Operating System is impressive).

1.  What are you going to do with it? Build websites, create graphics, splice video, multi-task, monitor things, are you mobile….  how many programs will you be running at the same time?

2.  Processor: Single-core processors are dead.  Dual-core processors are almost dead.  Think Quad-core!  Yeah, that’s basically 4 processors in one!  Intel is currently dominating this area and prices aren’t that bad.  The new Q3000 just came out and it is less than $300.  More CPU cores allow for more applications to be handled faster at the same time.  Of course, there are a lot of other things about a PCU (FSB, clock speed, ability to overclock, etc), but for the average user those items aren’t super important – just buy a Quad core and the rest will fall in place.

3.  Motherboard: This is extremely important.  It needs to be able to handle the communication between all the different components of your computer.  When looking for a motherboard, first look at the Front Side Bus (FSB), which is a measure of the speed communication happens at across the components.  Then look at how well it can handle a RAID configuration or how many components if can handle (USB ports, Firewire ports, PCI slots, sound).  Motherboards can be somewhat tricky too because they come in different chipsets such as P35, X38, X48, 680 with SLi/CrossFire capabilities.  I don’t have the time to get into all the details here, but I will say the P35 chipset is probably the most stable one, and the one I recommend the most.

4.  RAM: this is also tricky because it completely dwells on your motherboard selection.  For the most stable system, check with the company who makes your motherboard and buy as much RAM as you can.  Windows XP & Vista (32 bit) only recognize up to 4GB of RAM, and can get funky based on how many RAM chips are filling the RAM slots.  I recommend buying 2 2GB sticks instead of 4 1GB sticks if you’re going for 4GB of RAM.  In XP & Vista 64 bit systems you can go up to 8GB currently (there is support for much more, but nothing you’ll do will ever take advantage of that).  I recommend staying away from the 64 bit systems right now, unless you really know what you’re doing.  DDR2 is the fastest and most affordable right now.  Take a look at the ones with a rating of DDR2 800 or DDR2 with a higher number – I would not go any slower here.

5.  Video Card: for people that don’t play with graphics or video games, this is usually an afterthought, but I’ve always figured you’re silly to pack the latest & greatest into a machine and then what you see on the monitor is slow.  The real question here is:  do you want to use multiple monitors and how many?  Workstation cards (NVidia Quadro series are my favorite) are built for multiple displays where as gaming cards (NVidia GeForce are my favorite) can do this pretty well too.  Spend at least $200 in this area and you’ll have a plenty fast card for automotive eCommerce.

6.  Hard drive:  you need space to store things on, and you need space for your software to cache to.  Storage is stupid cheap these days.  Super fast 500GB drives are less than $90 now – there really is no excuse in this area.  I like to go with 4+ hard drives in my desktop systems.  I run two drives in RAID 0 configuration for speed and storage, 1 10,000 RPM drive for graphics and video editing (a scratch disk), and an external backup drive, so I don’t lose my important stuff if something breaks.

7.  Power: this is another area people don’t pay attention to, but it is absolutely essential.  Clean power will make your components last longer and operate smoother.  If you ever get into overclocking, you’ll need to invest a lot of time in learning about voltage and the number of rails a PSU (Power Supply Unit) has.  If you’re going for a kick-ass automotive eCommerce system, you should invest in a 650W or higher PSU.  PC Power & Cooling probably makes the best PSU’s, but Thermaltake, Cooler Master, and Corsair make some excellent PSU’s too.

8.  Case & Cooling: Buy a big enough case to fit your components in.  The bigger the case, the more/better fans you should have for cooling (unless you’re water cooling) too.  Most cases in the $100 – $300 are adequate for cooling without needing more fans.  If you’re getting into overclocking, you should also look at upgrading your PCU fan.  The more expensive cases come with a decent Power Supply Unit (which addresses item #9).

9.  Monitor(s): I can’t stand working on a machine with only a single monitor.  I like at least 2.  If you’re developing video or graphics for the web, you should have one really good monitor and one of a lesser quality.  You need to see what your audience will see.  If you’ve been playing on a 17 to 19″ LCD monitor at a 1024×768 or 1280 x 1024 resolution, you’d absolutely love a 22″ or higher widescreen monitor at 1680×1050 or higher resolution.  Look for a monitor with the highest refresh rate:  60 Hertz is okay, but faster is even better.  Response rates are measured as 2ms, 5ms, 6ms, 8ms – the lower the better.  You should also pay attention to contrast ratios 500:1, 800:1, 1000:1 – the higher the better, but this isn’t as serious as it used to be.  Most of today’s monitors are pretty good here.  The contrast ratio is a measure of how well the monitor can display blacks (basically).  Monitor calibration is a good idea too, but that’ a whole ‘nother topic.

10. Going green/conserving energy: Major advances have been made in this area recently.  You can check specs on any component to see the kind of wattage it eats.  Obviously, the lower, the better.  In my house, I have 2 desktops and a laptop.  When I fire-up the 4 year old machine for a long period of time, I notice a difference on my power bill.  When I only use my newer stuff, my power bill is significantly less.  Over time, a newer system will pay for itself!  Microsoft’s Vista OS and Apples OSX are excellent at power saving if you leave your computer on all the time.  By the way, I don’t recommend leaving your computer on all the time.

11.  Laptop: the above components also apply to laptops, but you’re a bit more limited when you want to go mobile.  I don’t suggest building a laptop from scratch.  Buy a laptop that appeals to your mobility.  I use a medium-powerful Sony VAIO from 2005 that is small enough not to be a burden when I travel.  Laptops are mostly about your own needs and budget.  I love Apple laptops though – the new Air is awesome!  But if a laptop is going to be your only computer, the MacBook Pro is damn good for this – especially now that you can dual boot an Apple to handle Windows applications.

I am a heavy Photoshop user and store tons and tons of images for creating new promotions.  I also run about 8 different RAM-intensive applications at once.  I am probably on the extreme of what most of you would use a computer for, but here are some lists based on my needs that you can simply purchase and go to town with:

Build your own desktop for under $4,000 through NewEgg:  Click Here
Pick out a monster at Dell for under $8,000 (not nearly as good as building yourself):  Click Here
-Comparing my NewEgg build and Dell will show you how much money you can save doing it yourself.  It makes me wish I owned Dell – just profiting on people’s laziness!
Apple’s MacBook Air:   Click Here
Apple’s MacBook Pro:  Click Here

Next up:  selecting the right software and photography equipment.

It is scary to think that the dealer group I work for has been with 4 different site vendors, 5 different SEM vendors, 2 different SEO vendors, and who knows how many Internet click-through campaigns since 1999.   I know there are dealers out there who flip between these companies faster than Paris Hilton hops to the next party.  I like to think we have found a good home with a few of our current programs, but there is always something better on the horizon.  Forget about the next greatest thing and forget about any fancy gadgets one company has; let’s talk about tracking.

Tracking is one of the greatest things the Internet provides us.  It is also one of the hardest things to police.  One company’s 1,000 unique visitors are another company’s 5,000.  Who is correct?  We have a tendency to flock to companies with backing tools such as Google Analytics, but what happens when two Google Analytics companies show differing numbers?  It has happened to me, and I’m sure it has happened to others here.

Let me get back to my company’s vendor jumping…sure, it has been due to a better deal coming along.  Sure, it has been due to a fancier product coming out.  Sure, it has been for many of the same reasons everyone else can state too.  The one thing that seems to be the major shot of death, is a loss in faith due to untrustworthy tracking numbers.

I’m sure most of the DealerRefresh participants watch their own site’s traffic like hawks, but is it truly trustworthy?  Why is there no standard out there that everyone abides by?  Why do I get different numbers from my site provider than I do from what my current banner ad on www.whereBmybannerad.com tells me they sent to me last month?  Why are the differences so huge?

P.S.  To the vendors reading this thread – I’m not attacking anyone in particular.  If this article is taken as an attack, please point it toward the Internet industry in general, and not solely the automotive end.

If your not using an RSS reader, it’s time you get on board and the site
I recommend subscribing to first is DealerRefresh.

For those who are not familiar with RSS. RSS or Really Simple Syndication
is an XML-based Web syndication tool for Web sites and blogs. RSS feeds news
content with information and a descriptions of the posting. An RSS Reader then
interprets this feed so that the user need only read the description and link to
the news story or blog post.

I personally like the Google Reader and since I have been getting my news via
RSS, I would freak out if I didn’t have it. So here is a quick tutorial on
getting your RSS reader up and running and adding DealerRefresh to your
subscriptions.

1.
www.google.com/reader and sign up for a Google reader account.

2. To the left of your reader, you will see "Add Subscription". Click and
type in
www.dealerrefresh.com. The Google reader will automatically find my RSS feed
and add it to your reader.

It’s that SIMPLE, now you’ll never miss a new posting on DealerRefresh.com!!

What websites and blogs are in Jeff Kershners Google Reader? Here are a few:

http://www.copyblogger.com/

http://www.grokdotcom.com/

http://www.copywritingmaven.com

http://www.searchnewz.com/

http://www.autonews.com/

http://feeds.wired.com/wired/topheadlines

http://blogproautomotive.com/

I stumbled across this nifty program several weeks back. I don’t want this posting to sound like a sales pitch, but if you’re tired of managing duplicate leads every month you should really consider checking into i-LeadControl.

After spending some time on the website I was intrigued and decided to make a phone call. I had a long conversation with Steve Williams (one of the owners and ALSO an Internet Sales Manager!) about his product and sat through a quick demonstration. Needless to say I was impressed and wondered why didn’t I come up with this myself?

You basically forward ALL of your leads (3rd Party leads, dealer website, AutoTrader, etc.) to i-LeadControl. As your leads pass though the system, it gathers all the information then instantaneously passes the leads along to your ILM or CRM system. i-LeadControl automatically monitors, analyzes for duplication, and documents every lead that you receive.

I get tired of tracking all of my duplicate leads (since eLead Evolution 1 does’nt have a duplicate lead report). I try to keep track of it on a day by day basis but I eventually get behind and find myself trying to track them down at the end of the month. There are a few CRM’s that do a decent job tracking your duplicate leads but most do not. And the ones that do, don’t produce and actual credit invoice that you print off and send in with your bill, saving you some money .

I’ve been on board for a a few weeks now and it’s really simple to use. The set up was easy and pulling the reports is even easier. I will say, I don’t think the lead providers are going to like this too much BUT HEY; they have been screwing the dealers for so long, now it it’s time we stand our ground and get credit for all of those duplicate leads they send us.

After speaking with Steve, I really wanted to help him get his product off the ground while letting everyone know of a program that will save us ISM’s some time and money. SO we decided to offer a "DealerRefresh Special"!! If you are interested in trying out i-LeadControl, DealerRefresh readers get $100.00 OFF the setup fee.

The normal set-up fee is usually $499.99 but IF YOU MENTION DealerRefresh you get your set-up fee at a reduced rate of $399.99.

If you have a few questions before calling, you can
read the FAQ’s about i-LeadControl. I recommend taking 5 minutes and sitting through a demo to see if it works for you.

www.ileadcontrol.com

Screen shot of a duplicate lead report.

Screen shot of a generated invoice that you send it with your bill.