Just made a web site in the fastest time ever, 1 hour and it's even W3C, CSS, WAI-AA and Bobby AAA approved :-)

This site is Tai Chi in Paignton, Devon and is a local Tai Chi club which is run by Colin Stevens. So if you fancy martial arts, health and fitness training then Wu Ji school of Tai Chi Chuan in Paignton is where you should be be :)

Onto other news now....

It looks like googles new algorithm is based on the Latent Semantic Indexing system which is why the results are so sporadic at the moment. If you're into your mathematics then info on googles probable new algorithm Can be found here.

If Google does go ahead with this then search engine optimisation for the amateurs is now well and truly over. When clients come to me with SEO requests I always say I make no guarantees even though 99% have a 40% or more increase in sales. I now feel sorry for those people who went with companies that say they could guarantee top 10 placements. I'd like to see them say that if Google pushes ahead with the new algo ;-)

Well the boss from SVP Communications (Steve) phoned me up today and we had a long chat.

This is his apology he emailed me today for the locals

This contains some of our phone call chat

This is the standard email they are sending out to people who have seen my site and emailed to compain.

He did also mention a few things to me he probably shouldn't have done which I will keep to myself but Kudos to you Steve for laying out all the facts!

Eek, Friday the 13th, I'm going back to bed :-)

It seems that SVP are sending out standard email replies to people asking the same thing about why they stopped pickups. I've emailed them to ask if I can use their reply or anything else they wish to say about this mess. I'll keep you posted.

I finally got around to getting a web cam so I can see and talk to my mates around the World.

Although the Criminal Records Bureau didn't manage to check properly a number of high profile child killers I see today that they will be handing a bill of 68.2 Million Pounds to the taxpayers.

In case you didn't know the Virus MyDoom stops today so no more virus emails from that one... Yay! :)

Also in case you think it's safe to push a motorbike along the streets while over the legal drink limit think again.

Torbay was mentioned in Parliament yesterday but only in a bad way. It was mentioned as one of the places where stupidly high council tax rises will happen this year. Is the 17% rise we face the highest in the UK?

SVP Communications answer to bad customer treatment

Someone sent me an email with the answer SVP Communications gave for stopping pickups. I'm not going to direct quote but it basically said that don't feel that locals have the right to tell them how to run their business and they believe it will lead to better service.

UTTER GARBAGE Blank Disc Shop!

What you should have done was say that you:

a. Would no longer take cash
b. Stop offering any advice
c. Any returns to be sent by post the usual way.

It would only take a minute to get someones order and hand it to them.

A large part of your business to begin with was word of mouth and I say again it was the locals that made you what you are today. You have no business skills at all if you think you can just scrap the people that made you what you are. I know from the emails I've been receiving that already SVP is down a few thousand pounds but as word of mouth spreads this should start increasing.

Selling online is a dangerous game because people do research how a company handles its customers. As more and more pages about SVP gets cached in search engines it should make for some interesting times ahead.

As well as woolworths if you're looking for cheap CD's don't forget Electrowise who are selling 100 blank CD's for 19UKP and they are better quality than the unbranded TAIYO YUDEN which SVP sell at £24.99 plus P&P on top of that.

Come to think of it I wonder if another reason why they don't want pickups is because they also make money on the P&P? An interesting thought.

For more details about the SVP Communications boycott click here.

VIVA LA SPAIN!

The reason for my lack of updating was I had to see a client in Spain. This was my VERY FIRST EVER time on a plane and I was really, really scared! :)

I've added a Costa Blanca wallpaper section to the site now.

I have to mention this while I think of it. We all went out for a meal on Friday and had a Chinese. I had menu "A" which consisted of a glass of wine, 3 course meal (spring roll, sweet & sour chicken, fried rice and ice cream), glass of beer and a after meal drink. The cost for all of that came to... 3.40UKP. THREE POUND FORTY?? Oh my God, I want to live there :)
In case you think I lie here is the bill :)



I was staying near Guardamar in Spain and I really loved it there. The people were really friendly, most things were very cheap and it has made me realise just how badly taxed this country is. Because I'm a web designer it would be easy for me to live there very well on the income I get from the web sites. I am seriously thinking of moving away from Torbay which I didn't think I'd ever say. The cost of living in this country just gets worse and worse and worse. I'm fed up being charged London taxes on a Devon Salary. I really can see why so many get work abroad :(

The other things I loved about it:

1. How clean it was - no bubblegum stuck to the floor, no litter and the beaches get cleaned even at this time of year.

2. How safe it was - You see kids running about everywhere and they know they are safe. Child sex crimes are unheard of there.

3. The people - Everyone was so nice.

4. The treatment - We went into one Spanish bar and ordered 3 drinks. Next thing I know we have a plate of crisps and mussles in front of us. This is unheard of treatment in this country.

5. Cost of living - Sooooooo much better than taxation Britain.

Things I didn't like:

1. erm.......
2. hmmmm....
3. ermmmm
4. I give up

:-)