WordPress is one of our favorite CMS’s on the market.  With it’s ability to customize, user friendlyness, huge plugin market, and SEO friendliness, it makes it a very dynamic and powerful CMS website for your potential Connecticut web design clients.

Recently we had to opportunity to build CG Real Estate‘s website.  For this project I chose the Agentpress Child Theme and incorporated a new IDX.  IDX Broker is the plugin of choice.  There is nothing better on the market for that IDX currently that I have found.  And while it can be a little pricey per month than what most Agents are used to – you get what you pay for.  Automatic MLS synchronization meaning NO MORE MANUAL MLS ENTRIES, saving the agents tons of time.  A beautiful backend, tons of CSS customization, WordPress integration, round robin lead generation and lots more.

Incorporating the IDX Broker plugin and all of its features took a bit of time, as you need to mold it specifically to your WordPress installation and creating custom DNS links wasn’t too painful either.  Thankfully IDX Broker’s support documention was pretty well written and they even have special instructions for those using Agentpress.  IDX Broker Phone Support was also very helpful the 3 times I called for some specific tech questions about their software.

The Agentpress Theme also has a huge support community making it easy to fix some bugs out of the box without having to search through mounds of code for hours.

If you are debating using AgentPress or even contemplating which IDX to incorporate, look no further.  IDXBroker and AgentPress are a dream combination.

With that said, the client CG Real Estate seems to be very pleased with their new website, and we are pretty happy with how it came out too.

If you are seeking a Connecticut Web Designer, check out our portfolio at www.logisticsct.com or give us a call 860-942-8522 for a free website analysis and quote.

1. Not One, but TWO, Cameras

This is a killer differentiator. The PlayBook has a 3-megapixel user-facing camera and a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera. The main camera can also shoot 1080p HD video. The iPad has no cameras at all. RIM wins this one hands down.

2. Standardized Ports

The PlayBook comes with both microHDMI and microUSB ports. That means users have a wider choice when it comes to sharing content from the PlayBook with other devices. The HDMI port, in particular, sets the PlayBook ahead of the iPad, which is limited to Apple’s 30-pin proprietary connector.

3. Enterprise Security Story

According to Research In Motion, the BlackBerry PlayBook supports all the enterprise security and policy enforcement controls that can be applied to all existing BlackBerries. That’s vital. If the QNX-based tablet shipped with a brand new OS that wasn’t backward compatible with BlackBerry Enterprise Server, it might be D.O.A. in the enterprise. Instead, RIM did the smart thing and made sure it is as easily controlled as are its BlackBerries.

4. Smaller Form Factor

The PlayBook has a 7-inch display with a 16:9 aspect ratio. Similar to the Samsung Galaxy Tab, it is small enough to be carried around in a (large) pocket. The iPad’s 9.7-inch display makes in unpocketable. Size does matter, and sometimes not in the way you might think. The PlayBook is smaller and easier to transport than the iPad, plain and simple.

5. Dual-Core, Baby!

The PlayBook has a 1GHz dual-core processor with multi-symmetric processing. The iPad has a single core 1GHz processor. We haven’t seen any benchmarks yet, but two cores is twice as good, right? RIM claims the PlayBook is the “Fastest. Tablet. Ever.” We’ll have to see just how fast it is once it is available for sale.

Source: Information Week

The OOMA Voip device offers unlimited US calling for a one time charge of around $250.

For a great review and cost break down check out http://garyandwendy.com/wordpress/2010/08/08/detailed-review-of-ooma-plus-the-pros-cons/

My only complaint was the instructions for the average user are a bit difficult if you are running any sort of router on your home network.  Below are some settings that may assist others with setting up their Ooma box.

Pros:

Good call quality.
Getting rid of my cable company’s $40 a month phone bill.  (you still have to pay federal taxes etc which comes to around 3.50$ per month)
Once setup, it seems very reliable.

Cons:
Phone support is worthless, so you’ll have to dig through forum posts to get specific answers to some things.
Basic DSL may not be fast enough for you (a steady 384 upsteam is best at minimum)
Ooma’s “Plug and go” instructions don’t necessarily work for everyone

Other than that it appears to be a really good alternative to switching from your phone or cable company.

Here’s what we did to get the device working with our Linksys Router (different routers may vary slightly in setup):

1. Plug a network cable (supplied from Ooma) from computer or laptops network jack into the Ooma’s “Home Network” Jack.

2. Renew your PC’s IP address or reboot it. The Ooma will serve a 172 to the computer if done correctly.

3.  Navigate the PC with Internet Explorer (Google Chrome didn’t work – didn’t try Firefox) to http://setup.ooma.com

4. The Ooma Setup setup page will be displayed

5. Navigate to the Advanced Screen and mirror these settings (click image to enlarge):

6.  Update/Save Settings and reboot your Ooma device and now wait for the PC to reaquire an IP from Ooma- then navigate Internet Explorer to your Ooma setup again address http://setup.ooma.com or 192.168.2.1 if that doesn’t work.

7.  Navigate to the Network Page in the Ooma Setup and mirror these settings to match your Routers DHCP range (settings may vary depending on your router)

(We used Free public DNS Servers 4.2.2.* because our cable company’s is truly terrible)

6. Disconnect the PC and hook your Ooma  back into the Router and switch network cable from the Home Network Port to the Internet Port.

7.  Reboot your Ooma device wait about 5 minutes for it to sync with Ooma servers and you should be all set.  The center light will turn Blue and you can make phone calls for free.

Leave a comment if this worked out for you, or if you have any suggestions for an improved method.