Electronic Pearl Harbor
by Tom Anthony on Aug.13, 2010, under Internet, Internet Marketing
I don’t have much use for most of our politicians from Virginia – with one notable exception: Congressman Randy Forbes. He seems to share my core values, and he appearsto be a “real” person. I mean anyone who rides a big bike at the head of the Rolling Thunder Ride for Freedom in Washington, D.C. on Memorial Day Weekend can’t be all bad. Perhaps even more importantly Forbes appears to “get it” when it comes to the Internet based threat we face from foreign powers.
Congressman Randy Forbes in Rolling Thunder Ride for Freedom in Washington, D.C.
In a recent Newsletter Congressman Forbes wrote about an Electronic Pearl Harbor describing in interesting detail how cyber security attacks against the United States are rising drastically every year. Let me tell you how close this hits to home. I am a small business owner who was impacted this summer by two such attacks.
In late June a SQL Injection Trojan compromised all my Word Press based websites – about two dozen on my servers – and almost half were my own business sites. This was not because the Word Press content management platform had evident flaws. The people who perpetrate these kind of attacks are not pale and pimple faced geeks living in their mother’s basements.
According to Congressman Forbes report the most serious and potentially the most dangerous have come out of China.
Some of the more sophisticated military analyses from China’s armed forces propose to enhance the ability to attack an adversary’s satellite communications and sensor systems, critical transportation and energy infrastructure, ports of air and sea embarkation, and military command systems. (see http://forbes.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=202509)
Just this week there was news out of the UK that a members of a Russian organized crime gang had used a SQL Injection Trojan as the tool to steal over $9 million dollars from the bank accounts of unsuspecting Brits over the past year alone. I believe it is only a matter of time before we discover this kind of massive fraud here in America.
As a result of that WordPress SQL Injection Trojan we lost two weeks restoring client’s websites in July that obviously we could and would not charge them for. Then add two weeks restoring my own personal and business sites. Since we could not work on new client business at the same time as restoring my own business sites it effectively cost me a month’s income.
“But wait, there’s more! …”
Since that SQL Injection Trojan in June I discovered that an old and forgotten Forum type website I had on my server had also been compromised – this time by a different method. The end result was almost the same however, and my business and personal sites - including this one – went down again.
So the first almost two weeks in August are spent missing my company’s earning potential re-building my business and personal sites again. On one hand it has made me much more expert at launching custom Word Press sites quickly and more securely. On the other hand it has cost my business precious time. Not unlike losing sleep, the reality is that while you still move forward the next day, you really never catch up. Thanks China.
Google Places
by Tom Anthony on Aug.10, 2010, under Internet, Internet Marketing, Media
I just finished up a new video – this time for my own company, IMS Strategic Internet Marketing. This was a fun but really important project. Google Business Center was renamed and re-launched a couple of months ago and it’s now called Google Places. That’s where every business owner can claim their own listing – and add content such as business hours, types of payments accepted… that sort of thing. But Google Places also allows you to add other content such as Photos, coupons, even blog type posts and up to five videos to help make your case. That’s pretty powerful.
I decided to make a video specifically to be viewed from within Google Maps under the listing of my own marketing company to illustrate what could and should be done in Google Local. I also wanted to create it using hardware and technology my company owned and operated to make the case for selling the production of such videos. To this end I used a portable backdrop stand we own, with a big roll of special chroma key paper. This is also known as blue screen. I used a photographers light with reflector screens to not only illuminate the subject – which in this case was me – but also to create an even light on the blue screen.
That’s important when you are editing the video – if the blue screen is well lit it is easier to remove the background so you can replace it with something else. That’s how your local TV weather forecaster does it, only for this video instead of a weather map I used a loop of video showing an office building. It looks like I am in front of a window and you can see the office building and street activity below.
Laptop Teleprompter
I think the best item is the wireless mouse which powers a PowerPoint file containing the script. The PowerPoint is being displayed on a laptop that is located immediately in front of and under the camera so it acts like a teleprompter. I have been on both sides of the camera for over 30 years and even if you memorize what you intend to say it ALWAYS comes out better with a teleprompter or similar device. Of course a lot of my early professional life was behind a radio microphone with a script so perhaps that’s just my comfort zone.
I would enjoy your feedback on the video – call me.
You should be able to view the video directly from Google Maps if you type in the following:
“IMS Internet Marketing Services, Chesapeake, VA” or just click here.
In Good Company
by Tom Anthony on Jul.19, 2010, under Internet, Media
I just finished a new flash banner for Joe Cipriano’s client site and am reminded of what fun it is to be associated with a guy who is in such good company. I have been doing all of Joe’s Internet marketing for over 10 years and the relationship goes a little beyond client-vendor. I take a lot of pride in having Joe voice my podcast open and close – it’s the same voice that introduces America’s Got Talent and well – listen to a “Web Strategies Podcast” episode when you get a chance and you’ll know what I mean.
Here are Joe’s instructions for the new animation and below is the work I just launched earlier this evening.
Signature Voice of:
Fox, CBS, Hallmark Movie Channel, The Simpsons, Two and a Half Men, Rules of Engagement (CBS), Mike and Molly (CBS), Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader, America’s Got Talent.
Radio Imaging: Boom 973 Toronto, Star 941 San Diego, The Fish stations (portland, cleveland, honolulu), Country 105 Calgary, KLLY Bakersfield, ED FM Albuquerque, 102.3 The Wave Vancouver Island, Mix 106 Owen Sound, Magic 93 Charlottetown.
Live Shows: Emmy Awards, Grammy Awards, PGA Awards
Local Insertion Advertising
by Tom Anthony on Jul.12, 2010, under Media
In December 1981 cable television programming was still pretty new. CNN was barely 18 months old and MTV had just debuted 7 months earlier in August. Previously the only revenue stream available for Cable Providers was the monthly fee for bringing premium movie services such as HBO or Showtime into the home. Now with the advent of cable-only programming the carriers had an opportunity to score with advertising dollars formerly reserved for the local television stations.
I was selling radio advertising at the time and the manager of the local cable company knew I was also a producer and announcer. That’s when I was recruited out of a radio job by Centel Cable Television of Florida to head their first local insertion advertising efforts. They put my office down at the technical center – also called the “Head End” so I could be close to the actual tape machines used to feed the network.
Each month I would get reels of promotional videos from the networks like Cinemax and HBO, add a voice over announcing local phone numbers for the cable company and schedule the spots to run on the first ever cable networks such as ESPN, CNN and MTV. Recently I was transferring my last bits of video from VHS to DVD and came across a reel of those spots. Here is a group of commercials for Cinemax, HBO, Schlitz Beer, and Florida based music retailer Specs.
Don LaFontaine Vid Passes 300,000 YouTube Views
by Tom Anthony on Jun.14, 2010, under Internet, Media
Back in April 2007 I uploaded this Today Show segment which featured featured Don LaFontaine, Joe Cipriano, George DelHoyo and Mark Elliott. About a year later Don passed away (September 2008) and the clip generated over 250,000 hits in a short time – and at this posting is now well over 300,000. Recently I found the original HD DVD master and in response to the incredible interest now re-posting in a higher quality. enjoy.
Secret Purchase In The Middle Of a Typhoon
by Tom Anthony on Aug.12, 2009, under Internet Marketing
One of my first clients was the New York Times Company owned Norfolk, Virginia TV station WTKR. The then general manager knew I was in the Internet business and confided that during a recent hurricane the TV station’s web site was overwhelmed with viewers looking for the latest weather – at the time they only carried the national content from CBS. (Called “CBS Now”). The point was clear – whether you are ready or not – if it’s on the internet people will find you.
That is sort of the case with this Google owned platform, Blogger. On March 31st, 2008 I launched my “new blog” at http://blog.tomanthony.com and just put a forward link on my Blogger profile http://tomanthonydotcom.blogspot.com. Now every time I log into my Google account it lies there waiting for me to do something.
I did not want to have to keep up with two blogs, but I believe it is in my company’s best interest – if nothing else as a link back to the corporate site at http://www.strategicimsweb.com. But I don’t want to waste anyone’s time either, so I have decided to post unique information on my Blogger page. The next thing there will be about a secret purchase I made in the middle of a typhoon. Dang – what a great teaser line!
No one listening
by Tom Anthony on Aug.07, 2009, under General Posts, Personal
OOOOO K sir I’ll let Senator Jim Webb know…
I was hoping for a town hall meeting but what I got was… “Well the Senator is going to Asia for a two week tour starting Sunday, and even the people who work here have not been told of a certain date for any Town Hall events”. I asked the young man to pass on my “strongly opposed” sentiment to the Health Care bill and the Cap and Trade legislation – and the answer I got was “OOOOO K sir I’ll let Senator Jim Webb know…” It truly sounded like the Senator’s aid through I was some kind of a nut.
I did fill out the message form on Senator Webb’s website.
“Senator I am really disappointed you have not scheduled any meetings with your constituents to discuss the health care issue. Are you avoiding a public debate, or perhaps do you feel it is not important? I am not thrilled as a taxpayer to finance your two-week, five-nation tour of Asia “to explore opportunities to advance U.S. interests in Burma and the region”. If anything sir I would have hoped you could seek out ways to advance U.S. interests here at home where there are grave concerns about our ability to maintain even this weak economy. What could be more important than listening to the people who elected you?”
http://webb.senate.gov/contact/
And here is an interesting account of someone else who tried to get the same information:
http://swacgirl.blogspot.com/2009/08/jim-webb-has-no-townhalls-scheduled.html
The best example of a cowardly politician is Senator Mark Warner who is only taking moderated questions on Google – no meetings – no live response – in fact, so far no response…
Here is a typical question posed by someone in Richmond… “Sen Warner, you said during July you would answer our questions. It is now August, but I don’t see any responses. Also, you have no public meetings scheduled to discuss healthcare during the Aug. break. Are you afraid to face your constituents?”
After figuring out which button to push I submitted this question: “Senator, why are you so afraid to answer our questions about healthcare?”
BTW You have to log in with a (free) Google Account to participate http://moderator.appspot.com/?embed=#0
There does not appear to be a place on Senator Warner’s website to contact him by email – but if you want to call or write to the Honorable Senator Mark R. Warner;
101 W. Main Street
Suite 4900
Norfolk, VA 23510
Phone Number: 757-441-3079
Fax Number: 757-441-6250
-or-
459A Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-2023
Fax: 202-224-6295
http://warner.senate.gov./public/
here is another interesting blog entry about Senator Warner:
http://swacgirl.blogspot.com/2009/08/will-mark-warner-face-virginia-citizens.html
And next I went to Congressman J. Randy Forbes (VA-04) site… apparently Congressman Forbes has scheduled a meeting… sort of. It’s a free “Seniors Protection Workshop” to be held at the Chesapeake City Council Chambers on Wednesday, August 26th at 10:00 a.m. It is sort of about health care, but not covering the current health care legislation. In fact is it intended mostly for senior citizens according to his web site.
(https://forbes.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=140880)
Here is the question I posed to Congressman Forbes:
“Are you scheduling any public town hall type hearings dealing with health care? Our two senators are apparently under their desk on this issue – one is fleeing on a two week Asia junket with no town hall meetings scheduled, while the other one is only taking questions through Google Moderator and since July has answered exactly none.”
I would like to make my voice heard – but so far I can’t find anyone to listen. I mean literally – can not find anyone to listen… I am not just a frustrated citizen – there really does appear to be no one in Washington listening – here is a post revealing that with the notable exception of Democrat Tom Perriello, pretty much no Virginia Politician has any plans whatsoever to face the citizens this summer: (it is a PDF file)
http://www.richmondteaparty.com/TownHallMeetingsAug2009-1.pdf
You people in Washington should be absolutely ashamed of yourself.
Beam me up, Scotty!
by Tom Anthony on Jul.22, 2009, under General Posts, Media, Personal
In October 1994, the Star Trek Association of Towson, a fan club in Towson, Maryland, sponsored “The Big E Con,” a convention held aboard the carrier Enterprise while the ship was at its home port of Norfolk, Virginia. The events featured tours of the ship and appearances by Star Trek notables including James Doohan, or “Scotty” on the original series.
At the time I was the production Director for WFOG radio. The week preceding the convention as part of the pre-promotion I had the opportunity to interview Mr. Doohan by phone at his home in Redmond Washington. I tried to keep the interview interesting by focusing on Jimmy Doohan, and not just the Character he played on Star Trek – but you be the judge. Here it is, almost 18:00 unedited and real life. There is a point where he corrects my pronunciation of his last name – his son called to ask for money during the interview, this was the real deal.
The following week I toured the real USS Enterprise with some of the convention celebs. By some weird stroke of luck I remembered where I stashed some pictures I took during that tour. In this picture I am standing with Actress Terry Farrell from Deep Space Nine, Michael O’Hare the original Commander of Babylon 5, Herman F. Zimmerman the Chief Production Designer for Star Trek Next Generation and DS9, and another actress who’s name totally escapes me. But I think I did pretty good remembering Farrell, O’Hare, and Zimmerman after 15 years!
True or Not
by Tom Anthony on Jul.22, 2009, under General Posts, Personal
My daughter is home schooled, so from year to year I buy various text books and computer programs as part of her curriculum. Sonlight Curriculum Ltd. out of Littleton , CO has always been a dependable source. They specialize in courses with a Christian focus… and I have to believe the following is 100% true. But true or with a slight marketing spin, the following is one of the best email marketing letters I have received recently.
Subject: Explanation of how to get $25 off your Sonlight order (for a very limited time)
Dear Tom,
I am deeply embarrassed. Yesterday afternoon, in preparing my letter about five reasons to order sooner rather than later, we accidentally attached the wrong subject line to the email you received. I had prepared that subject line for a different email headed to a group of people who had never purchased from Sonlight before. I wanted to see if a special offer might help these non-customers place their first order.
The subject line for that email offered $25 off the recipient’s Sonlight order. The email these non-customers received specified a time limit on the offer, as well as a minimum order total of $250.
This morning I discovered we sent that subject line to everyone who has bought anything from Sonlight in the last two years!
Yikes … NOT what we had intended! Talk about expensive mistakes.
But I talked with John and Sarita, who said, “You gave your word. You must fulfill your promise … Since you’ve got lemons, do what you can to make some lemonade.”
So we’re going to do something we pray doesn’t completely swamp our computer system and warehouse crew. I can imagine it may slow our ability to process orders for a few days, but…
We have decided to honor the promise of my last email to you in the following manner:
Since you’ve ordered from us before, we’re extending the offer (originally intended for families new to Sonlight) to you for a very limited time. Place your order worth $250 or more (not including shipping) no later than 11:59 p.m. (MDT) tomorrow (7/23) and you will receive $25 off. That’s in addition to any Sonlighter Club discounts you may receive.
Just enter PRXDY in the box marked “Special Offer Code” at Step 2 of check out.
I hope this little bit of “lemonade” is a blessing to you.
Sincerely,
Tim Heil
Customer Relations Manager
Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
Billy Jean on WQPD
by Tom Anthony on Jul.04, 2009, under General Posts, Media, Personal
For many years I have had a box of old cassette tapes in my closet – or attic – or wherever was out of the way at the time… I finally went out and found a cassette deck at the thrift shop the other day and began transcribing them to digital. Mainly because at some point the cassettes actually lose the information stored on them. Audio cassettes, VHS tapes, 8 tracks – there is a reason they are not around anymore.
Each uses the same technology originally known as “Magnetophon” and invented by the Germans during the 1930′s. (more info) The information is stored by passing a generated magnetic field to a ribbon of plastic tape impregnated with some form of ferrous material. The little do-dad that generates the magnetic field is called a record head. The tape becomes magnetized in a certain pattern. Then when passed in front of a similar do-dad called a playback head the magnetic field is transformed back once again into an audio signal. In my mind this was a kind of magic– especially for the time.
Well the problem is that the magnetic tape is wound into a spool inside the cassette. Eventually the magnetism passes from where it is stored on the tape to the section it is wrapped around. At some point the magnetic field reaches a sort of equilibrium and the original sound or picture is not retrievable. So the dozens of recordings I had stored away will actually fade away.
Not Ed Scales
I started running the tapes through my studio to get them in MP3 format and found some interesting stuff. Mostly old air checks of me in the early 80′s on the radio in Lakeland Florida. Routinely each radio announcer would record their show on a cassette deck that was wired to record only when the microphone was turned on. In the jargon of the business it was sometimes called a “telescope” as it condensed an entire workday into a 30 or 40 minute recording. You can hear the song starting and then the tape jumps to the end of the song when the announcer next turns on the mike. The program director would then review your“telescope” to give you constructive critique – or in my case to tell me to stop talking so much.
The one below is pretty long – 45 minutes! It was a show I did on WQPD on a Monday night somewhere in March or April of 1983. I had to figure that out by some clues on the tape. A really talented high school kid named Ed Scales was my guest and we did several improvised “bits”. Basically I got on the control room studio phone a pretended to talk to a character that Ed performed from the adjoining studio. We did this live and without rehearsal. In fact in the one where I “interview” Maurice Gibb I had no idea what Ed was going to do. He came on the phone in a falsetto voice that totally cracked me up. Since Ed was in school I knew the recording was made before June. One of the last comments I make on the recording introduces the number one hit song of the day, Billy Jean by Michael Jackson. That was not released until February of 1983 – thus this recording had to be made in March or April.
The last eight minutes of the recording is the air check of the next announcer, Woody Boyer.
