Just within the past few days, WordPress has released the updated version.  WordPress 3.1.2 is the most current release of the platform and is a security fix.  Previously, Contributor level users could possibly publish posts improperly.

Also, WordPress 3.1.2 features some additional bug fixes that were previously not addressed in 3.1.1.  No matter what version of WordPress you are using, it is highly recommended that you upgrade to the latest stable version for the best security.

Lastly, some of the plugins have been updated recently as well.  Be sure to log into your standalone blog soon to see if there are any updates available for your blog or plugins.

As an added benefit, all design clients with River Valley Hosting & Web Design will have their blog-site updated for them.

One of the best clients I picked in 2010 would have to be none other than Steven Dail, owner of Out Of This World Entertainment.  Working with Steven has been something of an other-worldly experience as he is as dynamically creative as he is driven by a clear, concise mission.

When I first met Steven and his wife Kristie in June, we rapidly developed a rapport and the ideas started flowing shortly thereafter for this web development project.

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One of the biggest things I have been working on is picking up new web hosting clients since the beginning of the new year.  The first step in realizing that goal has been working on a deal with a local computer company, Columbia Discount Computers.  River Valley Hosting & Web Design will be taking over all of their web hosting and web design needs in 2011.  The first step in that process is moving the Columbia Consolidated Fire Department website over to the RVH server.  Naturally this is the ideal first step since my company is already providing web development services for the fire department.  (more…)

As was previously mentioned, there are a number of projects all revolving around this website and making it more user friendly.  Graphically speaking, the new client area with trouble ticket and automated billing system is now mostly integrated into the rest of the site.  There is still much work to be done in order to iron out all of the kinks in the billing system, so it will take a bit longer than was expected to start adding content to the knowledge base and tutorials areas of the site.  (more…)

When I sat down with the President and the Fire Chief of the Columbia Consolidated Fire Department, I was excited by the possibilities for this web development project.  I had a number of ideas that I was eager to run by them as well as taking notes on what the fire department was looking for.  As usual, I made several recommendations to take advantage of the leverage that could be had with utilizing social media and a blog as a website.  It did not take very long to develop a strong rapport with both gentlemen and the three of us started forming a firm vision of what the new CCFD website would be.  (more…)

The most recent project that was completed this week was actually some web development for myself.  I wanted a website that highlights everything that I am doing with my businesses as well as my books, public speaking and so on.  Particularly, I wanted to create a site that connects all of my other sites together, all in one tidy place.  The results is yet another WordPress blog that I made a custom theme for and I am quite happy with the results.  (more…)

Another recent project that was just wrapped up is the new CustomerServiceAtoZ.com website/blog.  This site was developed for Larry Williams’ latest writing project ‘Customer Service A to Z’ which will be released later this year.  This is our sixth major full design project working with Larry and as always, it was a pleasure to serve him.  Planned additions coming to the site in the near future include the ability to buy copies of the new book when they become available as well as a forthcoming Flash animation to be included on the home page.  (more…)

Changing gears a bit, this recent project is for a local church in Columbia, PA – my home town.  The biggest challenge with this site was that there was precious little to start with.  There are no official church logos, letterheads, etc. and there were few ideas presented, some text and a few pictures.  Everything was going to need to be created from scratch!

Since this was my first church web design project, I took a long look around the web at a great many church websites, both locally and regionally, to get a feel for some design ideas.  I seen some great sites for churches and more than a few that I felt could have been executed better, but there was nothing that particularly caught my attention.  I had absolutely no idea of where to even begin or where to go with this web development project at first; I was stuck and worst of all I knew it! (more…)

Another great project that has been wrapped up recently includes the new LarryWilliams.biz website.  This is the fifth full design project that Larry has contracted us to do and as in the past, working with him has been a very rewarding experience.  I always look forward to working with Larry because he comes up with some rather unique and out-of-the-box creative ideas to incorporate into his websites.  This particular project was originally based on another design that a mutual friend had implemented with his site.  But while the concept is basically the same, the end results are that he now has a visually unique site that sets it apart from the competition.  (more…)

Recently I finished up a lengthy design project for Mitch Taylor, owner of Taylored Weddings in Michigan.  One of the great thing about this web design project was working with Mitch over the course of several months to develop a visually pleasing concept that is both user friendly as well as highly effective at converting site traffic into sales.  After many hours of consultations and several abortive concepts, we finally landed in that sweet spot where creativity and inspiration come together with amazing results.  Mitch found a WordPress template that he liked and it was up to me to hack it to his specifications.  (more…)