While the rest of the country bundles up for the winter, Southern California smugly puts on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Part of the thanks, or the blame, belongs to the Santa Ana Winds. They help keep Southern California warm during the winter, but they bring their own temper.

The winds are formed when the inland Mojave and Sonoran Deserts are cold, usually from October through March. Known as downslope winds, air is drawn through the mountains down into the Los Angeles Basin, Orange County and northern San Diego County. Winds reach speeds of 70 mph, which qualifies as hurricane force. Sometimes the Santa Ana Winds force pollution from Los Angeles across the Pacific Ocean out to Catalina Island.

Sometimes they are enchanting and seductive. The warm currents feel silky on your skin and you find yourself looking up at the sky, taking a deep breath of nature’s heady soul.

Other times the Santa Ana winds are heavy and ominous. Sharp, jagged palm fronds fly through the air. Strong, fast winds reach under your clothes to grab at your skin. You close your eyes and mouth to shut out the gritty dirt hurling at you and past you, whipping your hair into tangled knots. Dust Devils spin past, picking up trinkets and carrying them high into their tall curving funnels.

Raymond Chandler wrote about the Santa Ana winds in the opening line of his story Red Wind;

“There was a desert wind blowing that night. It was one of those hot, dry, Santa Anas that come down through the mountain passes and curl your hair and make your nerves jump and your skin itch. On nights like that, every booze party ends in a fight. Meek little wives feel the edge of the carving knife and study their husbands’ necks. Anything can happen.”

When the Santa Anas blow strong, animals get a wild edge. The dog stares at me from across the yard with a low, hunched-down gaze. His eyes look small and beady. Some primal instinct makes me want to pick up a club or a spear. Instead, I close the door, deciding the dog would enjoy more time outside. Indoors, the cat drops by for a quick snack. He has covered himself with dirt and stalks through the house like a panther, flipping his tail impatient and prickly.

The native Chumash Indians know of the winds from long ago. Shamans can understand their meaning and read secrets carried on the winds. The winds sometimes foretold the coming of gods. And Mother Momoy promised if the winds got too bad she would protect her people in her sacred abode in the mountains.

Mysterious, seductive and strong, the Santa Ana Winds are one of the unique things that gives Southern California its allure.

Laura Zinkan is a writer and artist in Los Angeles. You can share her vision of California at her web site http://www.AngelCityArt.com. She also cultivates a gardening site http://www.theGardenPages.com with tips and photos of California native plants, and succulents. Copyright © 2006 by Laura Zinkan. This article may be reprinted as long as author credit is given with website. All rights reserved.

Good quality printer ink is essential for clear and perfect images. A wide variety of printer ink toners and inkjet printer inks are available in the market to cater to the varied requirements of customers. The quality and reliability of printer ink is for the efficient functioning of any type of printer and for ensuring perfect image quality. Although a huge variety of printer ink toner and inkjet printer ink are available across a wide price range, some still suggest the use of toners and cartridges recommended or manufactured by the printer manufacturers themselves for best results.

Types Of Printer Ink Toner And Inkjet Printer Ink

Printer users have the option of using manufactured by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) or cheaper non-branded alternatives. Until a couple of years ago, inkjet printer manufacturers used to sell their printers at a marginal profit while selling the ink cartridges for these printers at high prices. But then alternatives emerged in the form of cheaper cartridges. These non-branded inkjet printer ink cartridges are much cheaper than the ones offered by the OEMs and are therefore used extensively.

How Good Are Third Party Printer Supplies?

The manufacturers say that research and other costs that have gone into the development of the ink as the reason for their ink cartridges being expensive. Inkjet print manufacturers say that their production methods are unique and cannot be copied by anyone to produce the same quality of products. However, actual usage has shown that many third party products can be as good as OEM printer supplies.

Best Print Cartridges For Photos And Text Material

OEMs say that perfect images are only possible with a combination of printer and ink manufactured by the same company. However,this argument no longer stacks up. Now you don’t have to be well-off to experience the same level of print quality as those who use branded print cartridges.

Only Boris Johnson, the most colourful Mayor of London since Dick Whittington, could have the vision to offer free office space to attract new companies into the city. Announcing the initiative at a conference on property in southern France, Mr. Johnson and his team explained that in difficult times, extreme measure are often required.

Speaking to foreign business directors and the press in Cannes, he confirmed that the option of rent free office space will be up to a maximum of £ 300,000 for a year. This is seen as a very inventive way to reduce the amount of empty office building, rapidly increasing in London. So, if you’re looking for desk space to rent, take a look at this dedicated site and click on desk space London.

The sterling exchange rate and the cost of living, both being low and set to stay that way were used to advantage by Mayor Boris and the agency members of Think London. The whole plan is designed to give London the advantage over other cities.

Thrown in with this tempting offer is a free and dedicated advisor. An experienced professional, who will ensure that any company, will get the very best out of this unique opportunity. Although, if it works for London, it is hard to imagine other European cities not trying it out themselves. Ultimately, there isn’t that much to lose.

The initiative has the full support of every political party and cash backing from the city of London itself. Think London is all about a city dealing with a problem head on and with the Olympic Games on the horizon, this can only add to the likelihood of success.

Prince Edward Island is the smallest province that I am going to be writing about which is situated in the gulf of saint Lawrence north of Nova Scotia , east of new Brunswick. The capital city is Charlottetown also being the largest city in the province with the population of 137,900 people spread out on 5,660 km. Of land mass.

The provincial economy is dominated by the seasonal industries of tourism, fishery, and agriculture. The province is extremely limited in terms of natural resources such as minerals, oil, diamonds, although there may be undetermined quantities of natural gas beneath the eastern end of the province. PEI’s Agriculture remains the dominant industry in the provincial economy; potatoes have replaced mixed farming during the 20th century to become the leading cash crop – accounting for one-third of provincial farm income. The province currently accounts for a third of Canada’s total potato production, producing approximately 1300 million kg annually. Tourism eclipsed the fishery in the latter half of the 20th century with over a million visitors entering the province each year to use beaches, golf courses, and visit local attractions and events. The high season is during the summer months of July and August, although increased travel by American visitors during September and October for fall foliage tours. The province is less dependent on the ground fishery than the other Atlantic Provinces, with fishing being dominated by shellfish harvesting – most notably lobster. In the last little while, the provincial government has been encouraging ersification of the fishery by promoting the aquaculture industry, largely through cultivation of mussels.

There are many wonderful things to do here, you can check out like the shoreline of the island consists of a combination of dunes, long beaches, short sandstone cliffs, salt water marshes and numerous small bays and harbors. The white sand at Basin Head is unique on the island. The unusual shape of the grains cause a humming noise when rubbing against each other when walked on. The Victorian-era houses and buildings are also a big attraction, when you live in the big cities.

Facts

-The island’s namesake is Prince Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (1767-1820), the father of Queen -Victoria

-Largest city, Charlottetown

-Land 5,660 km

-Date, July 1, 1873 Order

-Admittance into Confederation Date, July 1, 1873 Order

-8thTime zone

-English speaking province

This province can be the perfect getaway from the hustle and bustle of the big city life. It has so much to offer that I would recommend going there and seeing nature at its best.

Feel free to reprint this article as long as you keep the article, this caption and author biography in tact with all hyperlinks.

Ashton Billesberger is the owner and operator of Prince Edward Island Canada – http://www.prince-edwardislandcanada.com, which is the best site on the internet for all Prince Edward Island related information.

Just when your website becomes successful and at last you are getting the sort of traffic you have been dreaming of, you get the dreaded email. Your web host informs you that the high number of visitors is monopolizing the server and unless reduced immediately your account may be terminated (often without a refund) for breaking its terms of service.

If this story sounds familiar, then you are one of the million of successful website owners who have quickly outgrown traditional shared hosting. So what are your options now? How can your website grow without the fear of your site being terminated? Well you will be please to know that there are several different options available to you! This article will cover each one, so that you can be sure you choose the option that is most suitable for your individual business needs.

Premium Hosting Benefits

Premium Hosting is ideal for those customers that have one very large and/or busy sites for example bloggs, forums and online businesses. The only sites that are not suitable are audio and video downloading or streaming websites or free/ mail providers as these sites could still monopolize the server resources.

If your website has outgrown shared hosting then Premium Hosting is definitely the most economical alternative. As most websites are not suitable for a reseller package, premium posting is a much cheaper alternative than having to get your own server.

Premium Hosting is very similar to shared hosing except the packages come with far more bandwidth (traffic) allowance and they are guaranteed to have a maximum number of accounts on each server. The benefit of premium hosting is the fact that you are sharing the server with far less accounts (normally just 30-70), therefore your website can have high traffic without effecting the server speed or causing downtime.

The other great thing about premium hosting is that is requires no extra technical knowledge and of course you still have peace of mind knowing that you still have 24 hour technical support (of course this depends on the host you choose). The last benefit of premium hosting is the fact there are several different packages to choose from, this means you only have to pay for the resources that you need at a given time. As soon as your website grows even further it is very easy to upgrade with only a slight increase in cost, which means your costs are always kept to a minimum.

Reseller Hosting Benefits

Reseller hosting is designed for individuals who wish to split up the resources allocated in their plan and resell each of these parts individually. Resellers are normally web designers, or customers that have many websites or entrepreneurs who wish to start their own web host company. (Reseller hosting is also not suitable for audio, video downloading or video streaming websites and free/email providers for the same reason as above)

With reseller hosting you can host unlimited domains, so you decided how many accounts you want to create and you decide the price you want to resell them for. The great thing about resellers packages is the fact that the web host will continue to provide the technical support to these customers anonymously, which means you don’t have to worry about getting your own staff. Each of the resellers customers has their own control panel, personalized email and FTP accounts, fantastico scripts. The reseller can even have their own name servers which makes them look very professional. The other benefit of reselling is that although it requires slightly more knowledge of the industry, there is always technical support close at hand.

Dedicated Server the benefits

If you get a dedicated server this means you are the only user of that server. However as you are not splitting the monthly costs with others users, the actual price is of course higher. The price you pay depends on the quality of the server and whether it is managed or not (always be sure that the server you get is from a reputable company). This option is for websites that are not suitable for the other two options, or for those people who just want more control or higher security for their server. There are two different types of dedicated servers available.

An unmanaged Server is generally cheaper, however you must know first hand how to run your server (or hire a system administrator that does) as you will be responsible for all the server side problems and configurations. The second option is a managed server. Although this option still requires technical knowledge, you have peace of mind knowing that your web host will always have technicians there to assist you, which means you do not need to hire your own administrator.

With a dedicated server you have full root access so you can modify the configuration of the server to whatever suits you best. You can also install any software or scripts that you choose ( all of which are not possible with shared hosting). There are many other benefits to having a dedicated server, first there is reliability. If you are the sole user of a server, you never have to worry that another persons website is going to affect the speed, uptime or security of your server. Often your server will come with more than one CPU (check with individual web host though) which means your site (s) will have greater performance, pages will load much quicker and your scripts will run much faster. An example would be Dual AMD Opterons, Dual Xeons, Dual Pentium4’s and such.

Conclusion

As your website continues to grow, you can now have peace of mind knowing that there is always a suitable alternative available for you.

The Author- Sarah Kirk is vice president of Micfo.com LLC, an international web hosting provider. Founded in 1999 Micfo.com LLC has quickly grown to become an award winning company with over 30,000 customers worldwide offering a range of services including shared
web hosting, premium hosting, cpanel reseller hosting and dedicated servers.

Even though the Property Index online service is still a recent concern, they were registered only in March of 2007, they have quick proven their mettle. On closer look, they’re a incredibly uncomplicated concern entirely dedicated to offering guidance to essentially anyone dedicated to sell, buy etc. estate in a wide selection of areas across the globe. What they assure you of is to help you out light on dead-on what you desire very quickly and, furthermore, straightforwardly.

Property can easily be purchased in many parts of the world these days, one of the high-class areas being land for sale in the States. It’s no problem to determine the tremendous properties available for sale in the States, one motivation for selecting properties here being estate you can purchase and the glorious chance to live among this fervent people. It’s one of the truly fashionable property markets these days, and with the overall attractiveness and weather surrounding you, how could you conceivably go wrong! Property in the States is rich in history, this area of the world has a long tradition as a home to quite a few indigenous cultures.

Property Index sell a range of villas and apartments, take a look at their site if you are looking for overseas property investment, click here to view the properties.

Around 30 years ago you’d find only very few of Britons keen on properties in the States. Just ask any person who has moved to the States and they’re likely to tell you the same. Lots of people would will see it as a vogue and others will see it as a that’s quite an obsession! People who move here range from yuppies keen on a bit of a new challenge in life to retired people meaning to enjoy themselves and rest. Do bear in mind, however, that there can be hitches when purchasing properties overseas; expectably there’ll be a hundred actions be it when devising a plan, surveying or signing up. Even if a single minute action is missed that can kick up sizable hitches not to forget, more importantly, monetary loss.

Naturally, as is to be counted on with this favored location, properties could be expensive in this location which is, of course, simply on account of the great demand. Nonetheless the property buyer is presently very spoilt in terms of choice in a location blessed by terrific vista. It certainly has the lot a patron might yearn for and plenty more.

Besides Stephenville, Texas, there are several cities across the nation that refer to themselves as the “Cowboy Capital of the World.” Whoa! Now, wait a minute! How can Dodge City, Kansas, Banderas, Texas and Oakdale, California ALL claim the same title as Stephenville? Somebody ain’t tellin’ the truth.

Git a rope.

True, Oakdale, California had the first outdoor rodeo in the West, started early in the fabulous 50’s. Nineteen fifties, that is. What’s so “Cowboy” about the era of Rockabilly, Elvis, 3-D movies and the hoola-hoop?

Banderas, Texas got its start as a staging area for the great cattle drives of yesteryear. The town is known for its “dude” ranches which came into being when ranching fell upon hard times. When was that? During the Great Depression of 1929. One enterprising rancher decided to open up his ranch to city-slickers as a means for generating earn extra money and a new industry was born. Perhaps it should be called the City Slicker Capital or the Dude Ranch Capital, since that’s what Banderas has hung its hat on.

Dodge City, Kansas is known by several nicknames including Queen of the Cowtowns, Wickedest Little City in America and Buffalo Capital of the World. C’mon, Dodge, surely you don’t need another moniker, do ya? Famous for the likes of Bat Masterson, Wyatt Earp and Boot Hill, these days, Dodge is keeping its heritage alive through historical preservation programs. Dodge, stop “dodging” the issue….honor your past but stop living in it. That’s just sad.

WILL THE REAL COWBOY CAPITAL PLEASE STAND UP?

Enter Stephenville, Texas! The REAL Cowboy Capital of the World located in what’s referred to as the Cross Timbers region of the state. How can one small town, 70 miles south of Fort Worth and almost 2 hours from Abilene, make such a bold claim? Easy! The Cross Timbers region has been a thoroughfare to the American Cowboy since Americans crossed the Mississippi westward. The lush, timbered basins of the Trinity, Brazos and Bosque Rivers (the timber ranges “crossed” at this juncture, hence the name “Cross Timbers”) yielded thousands of unbranded Longhorn cattle. Essentially, it’s where the longhorns came to graze. The famous Goodnight-Loving trail originated from the Cross Timbers region; the Great Western Trail passed right through the heart of the Cross Timbers area. One old-timer told me that one of those trails started right where the Sonic Drive-In is located on Washington Street and insisted there should be an historical marker placed there.

This Cross Timbers area is one of very few places in the United States that is directly involved in the evolution of the “professional cowboy.” During the period from 1930 to 1950, the ranch cowboy discovered that the general public was enamored with the idea of the Cowboy. A significant number of movies produced by Hollywood glamorized the myth of the Cowboy and the public yearned to get more of him. To meet this need, rodeos were held in Madison Square Garden, Boston Garden, etc. These rodeos played to packed houses, even during the Great Depression. Since the first indoor rodeos were held in Fort Worth at the Cowtown Coliseum, much of the expertise for these big-building rodeos came from the Cowboys of the Cross Timbers area, many of which called Stephenville their home.

This being the Cowboy Capital, you are quite likely to find all things Cowboy just as you had hoped, in every direction you turn. For example, here’s where you’ll find the largest private Country and Western club in the state, with live CW bands and two steppin’ all night long. Then there’s the Cross Timbers Country Opry, a thriving equine industry, and the fact that Stephenville is the county seat of Erath County, the largest milk producer in Texas.

Stands to reason that where there are horses and cows, there are cowboys and cowgirls. Yes, people shopping with spurs on can be seen in these parts all the time. It’s not uncommon to see a world champion cowboy or musical celebrity around town, sharing in day-to-day community life. Around the town these days, it might be the singer Jewel or Rodeo Cowboys Ty Murray, Tom Reeves, Tuff Hedeman or Cody Ohl. Time was, when 20,000 spectators would crowd into Everett Colburn’s Rodeo Bowl from 1940 to 1959. Colburn’s Lightning C Ranch was the world’s largest ranch devoted entirely to Rodeo livestock. Lightning C was operated by Colburn but he was joined later by TV Cowboy star Gene Autry. This rodeo made up its events and contestants each year in Dublin and then rode the train to New York’s Madison Square Garden and the Boston Garden. In those days, the likes of Autry, Roy Rogers, Audy Murphy and more of Hollywood’s Western stars and Rodeo greats were spotted regularly around the Cross Timbers area, especially Stephenville and nearby Dublin, according to local old-timers. Many of these are honored off downtown Stephenville’s Heritage Square where you’ll find the Cowboy Capital Walk of Fame, here to recognize the significance of the Western heritage that is an integral part of Stephenville and the Cross Timbers Area.

SMILE WHEN YOU SAY THAT

So, what do we mean when we use the term “cowboy” anyway? Stephenville backs up its Cowboy claim by declaring that Erath County is the home of more professional cowboys and cowgirls, per square mile, than anyplace else on the planet. Who did the math? Well, that’s a mystery the likes of Marfa’s lights, but there’s no question that there are lots of horse trailers, pick-ups and Western Wear stores to accommodate all the ‘pokes in these parts. Our cowboy culture is the real deal, and all one must do is take a look outside – or sniff our dairy air – to attest to that fact.

The REAL Cowboy Capital is home to Lone Star Arena, a huge, indoor rodeo complex featuring a regular schedule of barrel racing, horse shows, bull riding, team roping, and more (www.lonestararena.com). The USTRC calf roping finals are held there annually and the Bayer Legends Celebration of Champions will be here in February 2006. Other crowd favorites that are held in Stephenville each year include Larry Joe Taylor’s Texas Music Festival and Chili Cook-Off in April at Melody Mountain Ranch & RV Park (www.larryjoetaylor.com) and rodeo champions will herd into town for the Cowboy Capital of the World Pro Rodeo (www.stephenvilleprca.com) in May at the Erath County Livestock Arena. DairyFest, an annual celebration of the local dairy industry with all the free dairy products you can stand, takes place in June at City Park.

CAPITAL IDEA FOR THE NEW MILLENNIUM

Is Stephenville the Cowboy Capital? You bet yer boots! But it’s more than that. Whether your focus is commerce, education, culture, recreation or just a great place to settle down, Stephenville is a “capital” idea. The town is known as one of the country’s most desirable places to live and earn a living. In fact, it is included in Norman Crampton’s “The 100 Best Small Towns in America,” published by Prentice Hall.

Yes, City Hall is committed to aggressively providing services that encourage the highest quality of life to the citizens of Stephenville.

Promoting a business? Nobody helps you maximize your business capital like The Chamber… the award-winning Stephenville Chamber of Commerce, that is! In five years, this organization has blossomed from less than 300 to over 700 local businesses and tourism income is consistently higher than it’s ever been. As a business professional, you’ll definitely want to capitalize on Stephenville’s ready and able workforce, many of whom attend our local university.

Where Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic are concerned, Stephenville spells “Education” with a capital “E!” The Stephenville Independent School District has a total enrollment of nearly 4,000 students. There are two elementary schools for children in grades K thru 4, and intermediate school for grades 5 thru 6. Junior High includes grades 7 and 8 and High School, grades, 9 thru 12. Scholastically, musically, athletically…the success of these schools have truly made Stephenville a City of Champions!

Located in the heart of Stephenville is Tarleton State University. Founded in 1899 as John Tarleton College, in 1917, the college became a part of the Texas A&M University System, gaining official status as a university in 1973. Tarleton University has experienced considerable growth over the past decade (about 8% annually), with a current enrollment exceeding 8000. Students come from over 200 Texas counties, as well as 30 states and ten foreign nations. Tarleton is dedicated to providing outstanding instruction and concern for the individual, ensuring that students acquire the tools they need to achieve successful careers, gain cultural enrichment, and become productive citizens and leaders in a diverse and ever-changing culture. Tarleton offers the community the Clyde H. Wells Fine Arts Center as well as the TSU Planetarium, giving the community a wonderful array of visual sensations to enjoy.

While we’re on the subject of higher education, let’s talk about the Highest Education, developing one’s spiritual life. Whatever your worship preference, you’ll probably find it here in Stephenville. With a large variety of churches to choose from, many with a passion for unity, you’re sure to find your next home church here! That includes (what else?) the thriving Cowboy Church of Erath County.

Yes, Stephenville is the Cowboy Capital of Texas… and proud of it. But overall, whether your interest includes business, family, education or recreation, you’re bound to find Stephenville, Texas to be the “capital” idea you’ve been looking for!

Mike Tummillo is the Communications Director for the Award-Winning Stephenville Chamber of Commerce, Stephenville, Texas and can be contacted at 254.965.5313 or e-mailed at miket@stephenvilletexas.org

New Zealand is one of the ultimate travel destinations in the Southern Hemisphere, with something for just about anyone. New Zealand has everything, right from ski fields to volcanoes, from big cities to small towns and from beaches to mountains.

New Zealand currently has a population of just over 4 million people. Auckland is the biggest city with over 1.2 million people and the capital city Wellington has a population of around 400,000. Most of the country’s resident population is based in North Island and so, South Island offers the opportunity to get away from the busy cities and get up close and personal with the elements.

New Zealand offers a lot of activities, especially for the adventurous kind. You can bungee jump, ski and snow board, relax on the beach, go for a bike ride, take a 4 wheel drive adventure, ski dive, surf or simply, shop! Most adventurous activities are available in the South Island, whereas North Island offers the charm of the big cities, some great shopping as well as some uniquely New Zealand attractions, like the Maori village in Rotorua.

The best way to travel around New Zealand would be in a rental car. Most New Zealand cities are very well connected with the main motorways and traffic is usually not a problem. There are information centres in most tourist areas, providing useful travel information, maps etc.

Ramnish Gupta is an amateur photographer based in Wellington, New Zealand. Some of his work can be found on the website: http://www.newzealandphotography.co.nz

LINKIN PARK
MEET THE THEORY
WHERE IS LINKIN PARK?
REVOLUTION TOUR
REANIMATION
LIKE A METEORA
BREAKING THE HABIT
FROM THE INSIDE

LINKIN PARK
Linkin Park takes hard rock and hip-hop vocals, blazing guitars and drums and vaporizing spins blenderizing them into a sound that is truly modern and unique. No wonder they are one of the most successful current bands.

MEET THE THEORY
Linkin Park is comprised of band members Chester Bennington, Rob Bourdon, Brad Delson, Joseph Hahn, Mike Shinoda and Dave “Phoenix” Farrell. Prior to 2000, the band was going by the handle of “Hybrid Theory” after switching up they then dubbed their first album by that same name.

WHERE IS THIS LINKIN PARK?
The band has gone through three name changes. First it was Xero, then Hybrid Theory before landing solidly on Linkin Park. But how did they come by this motley handle? The name is a misspelling of the landmark Lincoln Park in Santa Monica, CA where the band originates. They played many of their emerging gigs on the Sunset Strip at the Whiskey A Go-Go.

REVOLUTION TOUR
With the combined tours of Family Values, Ozzfest and the Projekt: Revolution Tour with Cypress Hill the band played a staggering 324 shows in single year during 2001.

REANIMATION
A year later, they had moved onto headline status and garnered three Grammy nominations for Best Rock Album, Best New Artist and Best Hard Rock Performance.

LIKE A METEORA
Their sophomore studio effort, “Meteora” was released to rave reviews in March of 2003. The album sold a sky-rocketing 810,000 copies in the very first week of release. So much for those rumors of loss profits to the likes of Napster and Limewire, these guys can sell records. They were the highest-selling musical act of 2001, having parlayed more than 8 million copies of their 2000 debut album, “Hybrid Theory” to adoring fans. The album continued to sell extensively the following two years with over 14 million copies sold.

BREAKING THE HABIT
Not to corner itself into modern sound bites, Linkin Park made a throwback to the ’80s with its tune, “Breaking the Habit” on their recent album “Meteora”. They take a similar unexpected turn with the song, “Nobody Listening” which has a extensive flute and ominous guitar riffs.

FROM THE INSIDE
During their 2003-2004 world tour, the band hired a crew to document their events on and off stage, resulting in a new 144-page photo book called, “From the Inside”. This one-of-a-kind book follows the exploits of Mike, Rob, Phoenix, Brad, Mr. Hahn and Chester as they ride their meteoric success of “Meteora’s tour.

To read more articles by Chad, visit the American Pop Culture Encyclopedia at: American Pop Culture Encyclopedia.

If you would like to read this article, or others like it, on American Pop Culture Encyclopedia, please visit: Linkin Park

So you’ve decided that it might be best to leave web design to the professionals, have you? Well, the unfortunate thing about web design professionals is that not all of them are exactly professional. Some of them have just learned HTML and think they are designers, and well, some of them are working from their parents’ basement. Of course where they work from isn’t as important as the quality of the work they do.

Look at the Work Not the Qualifications

Web design is a new enough industry that what qualifications there are have ended up being largely meaningless. I’ve never met a good designer who has a qualification in web design – a qualification in proper graphical design is, of course, something else entirely. You be pretty sure that most people with web design qualifications got them at a community college to try and get rich during the dot-com boom. These people usually know very little about web design.

What you should pay attention to when you’re looking at web designers is which of their skills they think are important. If they’re marketing their Flash expertise to you, you probably don’t want to hire them. If they can competently explain what XHTML and CSS are and why they’re good for your website, then they are better candidate.

Portfolios Are The New CV’s

The easiest way to tell whether the designer you’re considering is any good or not is to take a look at their portfolio. Good designers will have a diverse portfolio, with plenty of attractive sites that they’ve built for all sorts of customers, and they’ll be able to explain to you why they built each site the way they did.

If the designer doesn’t have a substantial portfolio yet, you shouldn’t write them off there and then, but do say that you’re going to need to see something before you commit yourself. A good designer will happily do a first-draft design for one of your pages just to show you what they can do. If you’re happy with what they’ve done, then the chances are that they’ve got the rest of the design in their head, ready to code up and send to you.

Customer Not Designer Focus is Vital.

You should make sure that the designer you’re talking to realizes that they’re building your website for users, all users, no matter how they want to use it or which web browser they have. Amateur web designers have a tendency to come up with things that they think are impressive-looking, either visually or technically, while ignoring who the website is actually for, your visitors.

Some questions to ask the designer include: Which browsers are you going to test with? (The main four they should be testing in are I.E., Mozilla, Opera, and Netscape). What is the purpose of my website? (They should be able to explain the point of the site simply).

What Price Good Service?

Many web designers simply have no idea what kind of price to charge for their services. If you post a project to a freelance site where designers can bid on it, you’ll get bids ranging from $50 to $5,000. Both ends are pretty obviously ridiculous. At one end, you’ve got kids with no experience and designers who don’t speak English; at the other, you’re paying pointless committees to have meetings for a week before they type a line of code.

Your best bet is to find someone professional but independent, experienced but not corporate, and with a price that reflects the quality of his or her portfolio. As with all things in life though, don’t be afraid to negotiate, and never agree to let them do however much work it takes and pay by the hour. As with pretty much everything else, you get what you pay for so pay good attention to the price as it applies to the quality of the work.

Keep Design and Hosting Separate

Finally, beware of web designers who are trying to sell you a whole package together with a domain name, web hosting, and the rest. Operations like this are almost always flawed in one area or the other, since designers aren’t really very technical people on the whole. They’ll either be web hosting specialists who think design is so easy anyone can do it, or they’ll be designers who are reselling some cheap hosting package for a premium.

On the web, it’s better to buy hosting yourself.