Jul 3

Happy GatorFriday

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Friday’s are both a blessing and a curse here at the GatorPen. On the one hand – IT’S THE WEEKEND BABY! And on the other, there’s just sooo much cool stuff still to see , do and build here at. The idea for these GatorFriday posts is to let you know what we found cool, funny or cute this week, but more often than not there are folks out there that are smarter and cooler than us (but only just).

So, I’m going to have to figure out an easy way to sift and sort through all the cool content we’re receiving. Another challenge is THE LINE. I have bad eyesight when it comes to the line as I have a very hard time seeing it. We don’t want to offend anyone, but sometimes the funniest acts are the taboo. So, if we upset you with any of our GatorFriday stuff, please drop us a line or a comment and let us know.

From Stii – Russia’s got Talent (more like Russia had talent!)

We’re not sure if this video is real (there are mixed reports) but either way – you have to wonder what was going through somebody’s mind (other than an arrow).

From Adele – Sidewalk Chalk Art

“Hey :) I stumbled upon another chalk drawing and its even better than last week, thought I’d share :) ” ~ Adele

Adele likes chalk art

From Lester – LandRovers are cool.

My friend Kate is always telling me how cool Landies are and when I saw this clip, I had to admit that  it is pretty wicked! I bet a Hummer can’t do that (in addition to using a regular sized parking bay)

Justin and Mamello have been too busy with “real work” for me to bug them today, but I promise I’ll hassle them a bit more next week!

From us here at the #GatorPen, we wish you a great, safe and fun weekend :) And remember – don’t just talk about it, blog about it!

Lester

http://gatorpeeps.com/lesterhein

P.S – Are you on GatorPeeps yet?

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Jul 2

Country Close Up – Ghana

This week in the Afrigator country close up we pack our bags and head for the beautiful Ghana. One of our future featured fellas (try saying that five times fast) is from Ghana. So with this in mind I figured it would be a great idea to get to know a bit more bout Ghana. Another reason I was quite keen to showcase Ghana is due to the steady increase in traffic to Afrigator from this region. It seems like more and more Ghanians are going online and finding cool content on Afrigator (the sport section gets most of the visits by a long shot).

Afrigator Country Close Up on Ghana

Wikipedia Excerpt:

Ghana was inhabited in pre-colonial times by a number of ancient kingdoms, including the Ga-Da?mes on the eastern coast, the inland Empire of Ashanti and various Fante states along the coast and inland. Trade with European states flourished after contact with the Portuguese in the 15th century, and the British established a crown colony, Gold Coast, in 1874.

Gold Coast achieved independence from the United Kingdom in 1957, becoming the first Sub-Saharan African nation to do so. The name Ghana was chosen for the new nation to reflect the ancient Empire of Ghana, which once extended throughout much of western Africa. In the Ashanti language it is spelled Gaana. About 30 % of the population live below the international poverty line of US$1.25 a day.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghana

Map Location

The Republic of Ghana is located in West Africa. It borders Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south.

source: http://maps.google.com

Vital Stats:

  • Name: Republic of Ghana
  • Internet code: .gh
  • Population: 23.5 million people
  • Number of blogs on Afrigator: 134
  • Capital City: Accra

Demographic Information

Ghana Demographic information“.

source: http://wolframalpha.com

Cultural Information

source: http://wolframalpha.com

Interesting facts about Ghana:

  • Ghana is the size of the UK and consists of rainforest, savannah, scrub and the biggest man-made lake in the world – Lake Volta.
  • Ghana supplies most of the world’s cocoa.
  • There are over 60 different languages and tribes, with the main tribes being the Ashanti, Fante, and Ga and the most widely spoken language other than English is Twi.

Ghana in Images

northern Ghana

Independence Arch - Accra, Ghana

Ghana 2008 Photos

Ghana 2008 Photos

Got an interesting story or fact about Ghana? Drop us a comment below and let us know! (hey – that rhymed. cool :)

Lester

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Jul 1

No Woman No Cry

Today was supposed to be Women Wednesday. Well, technically is still is Women Wednesday, but it’s also the start of a new month and more importantly the end of the old one. As things stand, I’m snowed under with admin wrapping up June here at the GatorPen, so there won’t be a Women Wednesday post today :(

On a positive note, Afrigator had it’s 10,000th blog added today ;) This is proof that the universe is listening. I love house music, so does Justin, so it’s only fitting that the 10,000th blog is all about house music.

Have a look and see for yourself ;)

http://www.hotshotsound.blogspot.com
Afrigator gets 10000 blogs

Be sure to check back tomorrow for our country close up on Ghana!

Lester

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Jun 30

General Tips for easier blogging – Tuesday Tips #5

Sometimes I hate writing this blog. It means having to actually think, sometimes for long stretches of time. Sometimes late at night, or early in the morning. But write it I must and once I get going I realise why I actually enjoy it so much. Boring though this little confession may be, it forms the basis of today’s Tuesday Tip.

Today’s tip isn’t about technical wizardry or the latest and greatest plugin to get for your blog. These are simply a few thoughts on ways to make your blog a little more reader friendly. When you think about it, it’s readers that count at the end of the day. If you create great work that’s well thought and laid out, this can often trump awesome SEO (search engine optimization) skills. I’m not saying throw the SEO tips out of the window, but you know what I mean.

Now, when you read the tips below for the first, some of them might sound all smart and others might sound like they could even be real advice. But the actual value in these tips is the fact that this is what worked for us, so it’s not just theory or speculation.

As regular as blogwork

I know from habit that Monday nights are good TV nights, so I generally try and get home early on Mondays. The same principle applies to blogging. If people know when to expect new or specific content on your blog, chances are that they’ll come around to have a look. Sort of like what we do with this Tuesday Tips section. Outline a schedule and stick to it. Just as important is to let your audience know what the schedule is. Put it up on your blog somewhere if you can. Even better yet – include the schedule in the name – like Women Wednesday. People are creatures of habit, so make it easy for us by letting us know when to come around to get the goods.

Play Niche

Trying to be all things to all men (and women) is difficult. It means that you’ll need to write about a whole bunch of topics that you’re not really an expert on. Sticking to what you know allows you to be genuine when you write (which is important) and also to create knowledgeable content. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like people going around calling me a fool. If someone does, I pity the fool…anyway. Stick to what you know and if you’re playing around with something unfamiliar make it known that this isn’t your home ground. The internet being what it is, your comments section can easily turn in to a mud slinging section before you know what hit you.

For example
Blogging about stuff we know – Tuesday Tips.
Blogging about stuff we don’t know (but are keen to learn about) – Country Close Up.

The difference is the way in which it is presented.

Keep on keeping on

Consistency is a key part of being a successful blogger. One of the most common blog posts I see on Afrigator is “sorry that I haven’t written anything in so long.” Consistency is important if you’re chasing a certain type of audience and rely on Google or other search engines for traffic. If you stop writing about your subject, someone else will soon fill your spot on SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages). Being consistent is important if you’re going to stick to the schedule we talked about earlier. We’ve seen first hand that if you miss a post or a day, chances are that your audience members won’t return because they figure if you’re too bored to post, they may as well not bother visiting.

In my opinion writing is like any other skill – it needs practice. So, the more often you write, the easier it becomes and the more fun you can have with your blog. Pretty soon all you’ll need to do is boot up and before you know it a bog post has spilled across your text editor. Oh, that reminds me…

Type your blog posts in a text editor first

When writing your blog post, do so in your favourite text editor first. There are 2 reasons for this. 1.TIA. Many times internet connections are not stable or very fast and if you’re typing your post directly in to your blog editor there’s a chance things could go wrong. I’ve lost countless posts due to my browser crashing, a save/publish going wonky or the internet stalling. For this reason I advocate typing your post out in your favourite text editor first. That way you can save a copy on your flash drive or hard drive so if something does go wrong, you’re covered.

Text Editor beats Word Processor

If you write in a word processor (like MS Word or Apple Pages) it might add extra mark-up (bits of code) to your content. Things like styling or formatting so that it looks cool in the processor. Once you copy this to your blog editor, all the alien code goes along with your posts and can lead to some pretty strange results. Your blog client might not understand the way the word processor does things. So, stick to a plain text editor like NotePad. If you’re using windows, try Edit Pad Lite . If you’re using Mac, give Smultron a go.

I hope that I didn’t waffle on for too long (I know how I get) and that some of the tips above make sense and will be of use to you. If you can think of any other tips that you think should be in this post, please drop a comment below so that we can all get a little better at our blogging.

Till next time, keep on blogging,

Lester

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Jun 29

Eye on Africa – Jon Gosier

Welcome to a great Monday afternoon ;) Today we’re spending a bit of time with Ugandan blogger Jon Gosier in our Eye on Africa weekly feature so get comfy and read on.

Jonathan Gosier is an American software developer, writer, investor and the founder of Appfrica Labs. Appfrica Labs is a venture capital firm that invests in East African software start-ups, the goal being to create jobs and prevent brain-drain. He also currently serves as the Chief Technical Officer at QuestionBox.org. He currently lives in Kampala, Uganda. He is a huge advocate for promoting the ways in which technology benefits emerging economies throughout the world. Jon Gosier is a TEDGlobal 2009 Fellow (which is way cool).

So, enough preamble, let’s get to know a little more about Jon.

Name: Jon Gosier

Blog: http://Appfrica.net

1. Are you more of a writer or a geek?

Geek.

2. What are you really passionate about?

Technology. Literature. Film.

3. Why do you think people should read your blog?

They really shouldn’t, but I’ll read all of theirs. =)

4. What did you want to be when you were 12 years old?

An Astronaut and/or Michael Jackson.

5. What really annoys you?

Gross assumptions about diverse groups of people.

6. Have you ever gotten any free stuff or gifts as a result of your blog?

No. I take blogging more seriously than most. My opinion cannot be bought.

7. Where would you go on Holiday?

I have a hankering to go to India.

8. Are you a Mac or a PC fan? Would you ever switch?

Mac all the way. I’d never switch unless Steve Jobs somehow ended up the CEO of Microsoft.

9. If you could trade places with any other person for a week, famous or not famous, living or dead, real or fictional, with whom would it be?

I think these days I’d like to know what it’s like to be President Barrack Obama.

10. What is your favourite gadget?

My iPhone.

11. If Hollywood made a movie about your life, whom would you like to see play the lead role as you?

Idris Elba because the only way I’d ever be that sexy is if someone else was playing me, lol.

12. If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?

I’d like to be able to see the future.

13. If you could work anywhere in the world where would you earn your bread and butter?

Right here in Uganda.

If you haven’t already, then click on over to Appfrica now

Afrigator loves Appfrica

It was great to get to know another African blogger a little better! Be sure to check back every Monday for 5 minutes with our featured Afrigator blogger. Maybe it’ll be you next week ;)

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