Mozilla Firefox 3 World Record a Success

Finally, after several days of waiting, my favorite browser, Mozilla Firefox v3.0, makes it to the Guinness Book of Records for the most downloaded software in 24 hours. The total number of completed downloads reached 8,002,530 from the time it started last June 17, 10 AM PDT. The official download started at 18:16 UTC on June 17, 2008 to 18:16 UTC on June 18, 2008.

Mozilla Firefox had started an active campaign for this download. Bloggers buzzed about this.

I like this new version and it still remains to be a fast browser that I’ve known for. The feature that I really find most useful in this new version is the ability to type in a few letters of a website, which leads me to a list of sites that I had previously visited without going to the history list (this is the only feature that I really do not like in the previous versions of Firefox).

A list of sites that start with the letter that I had typed

The Rewards of Cisco-Certified Careers

One of the most promising courses in IT comes with those who are into network administration that needs Cisco skills. Cisco-certified IT professionals still remain largely a demanding skill. In fact there are only a few IT professionals who were able to get themselves a single Cisco certification and use this skill for multinational companies that they are working for. This skill may not find itself outsourced as a freelance job, but the rewards of getting employed with this skill definitely covers a lot – locally in the Philippines and overseas.

Among these Cisco certifications, the CCNA Wireless is definitely a must-have in one’s repertoire of Cisco skills. CCNA Wireless is sure to increase in demand, as large companies and business move into mobile computing and wireless network setups. Furthermore, the internet is largely being brought into the homes and communities: in the Philippines, the internet cafe is just like that of a neighborhood sari-sari store where one can get easily get internet access.

To start on this career path, The Cisco Learning Network provides all the resources that are needed to make the big move in this career. Certifications from the entry level Cisco certification to advanced and specialized certifications are also available. The site also provides the leads accessible for any IT professional who needs to get prepared before the big exam day. The active forum discussions put warmth to the site feel that there are others who like to plunge into these career too, and others who like to share their stories of success. It is indeed a portal where everything about getting a successful career using Cisco skills.

How to Build Your Portfolio

One of the difficulties of starting out as a freelancer is having a profile that catches the attention of clients without any work experience. I have previously written a post on how to do create a profile that may help anyone land on outsourced jobs. How about those who still need to prove themselves? How will they ever land a job without any previous work to show?

photo credit: tanya_b (SXC)

A portfolio is a repertoire of skills that the freelancer is willing to show. It always showcases how the freelancer is able to prove his or her skills in doing such jobs. A portfolio can go as simple as the one that I have in SocialSpark where I have two blogs to show and a short note of interests or it could go as a full blown one like the one that I have for oDesk. Simply showing off one’s resume without any portfolio in tow on outsourcing sites can really head into trouble.

Indeed building a portfolio is almost a must, here are some ideas:

Build samples of work. I am really strong on this one. One with the skills does not need enough work experience to build strong samples that will illustrate a freelancer’s capability.
Find related work opportunities offline. One of the details that really make my profile is my offline work experience around my place. Rather than finding opportunities online, consider finding freelance work around – once it is done then have it posted on your online profile.
Use networking. Tell friends that you need to do a job. Of course, not any job around, but relevant jobs that will really build your portfolio.
Develop new or relevant skills and get certified. Taking tests will definitely help measure your skills. Some freelance sites like oDesk allow members to measure one’s capability. Others go further into earning certifications from sites such as Brainbench – you can go to some of their free tests first.
Do relevant volunteer work. Sometimes there are volunteer work around that other may be happy to accept and more often they are willing to give out certifications for a job well done. That volunteer work still counts as a work experience gained – just make sure that it is still relevant.

It might be easier to think being on the client’s side: the client wants to hire the best worker who can really prove himself to do the job. The easiest thing for the client is to shop for the best freelancer that he can find – and a good profile will still surely stand from the rest.

When Clients Do Not Respond to Interviews

Oftentimes, the new freelancer is faced with wonder why the first interested client that comes their way is not responding after they are interested in knowing a provider through an interview. There are actually several reasons why clients do not respond.

photo credit: 4U (SXC)

They are busy with their jobs. Most people that post jobs on the website are not really HR people dedicated to screen manpower. Contracted work is often defined by the department that needed it most – oftentimes the head of offices post out their subcontracted jobs at the online offshore job marketplaces.
They hired another person in another freelance site or within their workplace. This is often a usual practice, so it is important to put the best foot forward in applying for a job because the competition sometimes extends not only to one job marketplace but to others too.
They realized that they lack budget for that particular job. There are some instances when clients overlooked that they had no budget to pay for an outsourced job, or simply re-allocated the funds to some other priority task and decided not to pursue the hire.
The job is too simple: they realized that they can do that job themselves. I run into some very simple tasks that were posted out on workplaces such as oDesk where the client did not realize that the job will just need a simple Excel formula (instead of a macro) to complete the job. There were so many applicants and many even provided the steps on how to do it.

With these reasons in mind, it is often useful to write up a follow up letter or two: if there is still no response then it can be safe to assume that the buyer may not be interested. Simply relying on one job where the client invited you for the first interview could really be exciting – I did jump at joy when I got that first interview – but then, keep in mind that there are other jobs waiting to be done. Applying to other jobs will definitely increase the odds of getting better jobs and finally getting hired.

A New Extreme Way to Save Energy

Have you done extreme measures in saving energy?

Maybe you’ve tried taking a bath with one person above the other – in a way that water trickles down over the other person so he gets to reuse the soap and water that the person above used. (Can you imagine that?)

Now here is a new innovation that hits the online stores – where the Energy Star logo is not the only thing confined to computer monitors when I boot up my computer – Dirt Devil is out to present their new cordless Accucharge Stick Vac and Hand Vac which consumes 70% less energy than other conventional stick and hand vacuums. Indeed, these amazing products had rightfully earned their Energy Star logo.

Special Accucharge energy circuit is specially designed to monitor charging of this unit. Once that the charging level is reached the energy consumption is greatly reduced to maintain the batteries’ full charge. The Accucharge system also protects the rechargeable batteries from being degraded in a short time so the user should expect longer battery time.

Consider upgrading you hand and stick vacuum then to this energy saving devices, rather than resorting to extreme ways to cut down on energy costs.