This is going to be a lot more than a re-design. While the entire scope of the project is a bit large, it is actually going to be a shift in how the site conducts itself. There will be editorial changes as well. Mind you, the PCMech that our long-time readers have known will remain, however we’re adding to it through some new directions in our content.

But, for now, let me show you a few things with the new design we’re working on. First, here is a chunk of our new header, complete with a new version of our logo…

Another issue we found with the site was that we had TONS of great stuff back in our article archives that people just don’t see unless they happen into it from the search engines. So, we’re devising a way to re-feature some of our past stuff and let you guys check it out again. Here is what that will look like:

Our premium membership program is going to be getting the 5-star treatment as well. Here is a partial shot of our new feature list for our members of PCMech Premium:

To go along with the new site, the forums will also be following suit. We are going to switch to a fixed-width layout, but one that makes much better use of space and should prove a welcome change to our members. Here’s a partial shot:

As I said, we’re in the final stretch on this. Still got some things to finish before we can start to implement this new design. Even once we begin, it will be a process. There is no instant-switch we can push to flip a site this big over to a new layout, so it will come in stages, with some follow-up fixes and content re-formatting to be done after the fact.

But, when it is complete, it’ll be nice.

In the meantime, I invite you to connect with PCMech by commenting on our posts, subscribing to our newsletter, and getting involved in some conversations in our huge forum community.

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

Fresh Look At The Coming Changes to PCMech.com

It started out as a small collection of hobby articles I wrote and posted on the 5 MB of free web hosting space provided by my ISP. It then evolved to Geocities (now defunct). Then, to Pair Networks (my current host). Over the years, it has undergone more facelifts than I can even remember.

One of these days I’ll need to go through the archives and screenshot some of the old designs this site has had.

Well, we’re about to do it again. Only this time, the changes go beyond skin deep. However, let me show you a small sneak peak at what we’re working on right now for PCMech.

We’re still working on some things, but I’m really itching to launch this new layout.

As I said, however, the changes I am working on are beyond skin deep. It goes right to the heart of making PCMech a better and more relevant tech destination for YOU.

We’re also going to be making some editorial changes to the site. Some of it will be “behind the scenes”, but you will notice it by way of more content, higher quality articles, and stuff you can go and USE right away. You’re going to meet some new authors, too.

And for those of you who hang out in our forums a lot, yes, these changes will be coming to the forums, too. Look for it.

I will be announcing a “launch date” as soon as I can iron one down. Me and my designer are juggling 1’s and 0’s around right now to get this thing done.

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

A “New” PCMech [Sneak Preview]

However, we still have some stuff left to get rid of – almost all of it being our two Ubuntu training DVDs.

The terms of this sale are as follows:

• All shipping costs are normal and will be billed as they have always been billed.
• All sales are final.
• Due to the increased sales volume that is expected as we clear the inventory, my assistant might have to work herself to the bone to ship all these items. So, your patience will be needed as shipping might not exactly be instantaneous.

So, help us get rid of this stuff. If you’ve ever wanted to figure out how to do stuff with Ubuntu Linux, this is a good opportunity for you. We will never again offer this training on DVD.

If you want to get in on this, don’t waste time. We obviously have very little inventory left. Tomorrow, I’ll be announcing this to the PCMech mailing list, which is surely going to put an end to this offer because of the demand. So, if you want to beat the rush, act now.

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

Ubuntu DVDs On Clearance From PCMech

I have decided to bring an end to the PCMech line of physical products in our online store. In this modern day and age, I can better serve all customers through the use of digital content, which requires no shipping costs to you nor to me. The PCMech Premium membership has become our primary means of delivering high quality content to our customers. Our Premium membership is going strong and I expect it will continue to go strong into the future.

The line of physical products, however, has become, quite honestly, a bit of a pain to deal with for us. The hassle of inventory. The hassle of charging shipping. The hassle of dealing with the pesky problem of our ever-so-dependable U.S. postal service failing to do their darn job and instead send our stuff to never-never land.

When all is said and done, it is just EASIER for us to deal exclusively with digital content via the Internet.

Bringing an end to these products means we do have some inventory left. And we’d like to get rid of it.

So, here’s how this is going to work. I have DRASTICALLY decreased the cost of all of our physical products so that I can move the inventory and ship it to you. Once they are gone, it’s gone. As of now, I have no plans to bring it back. If I do bring any physical product back, it’ll be different and will be on a limited basis.

Here is a breakdown of the clearance items:

The terms of this sale are as follows:

• All shipping costs are normal and will be billed as they have always been billed.
• All sales are final.
• Due to the increased sales volume that is expected as we clear the inventory, my assistant might have to work herself to the bone to ship all these items. So, your patience will be needed as shipping might not exactly be instantaneous.

I should note that all of the content of these products is still (and already) available online to our PCMech Premium members. If you are a member, you DO NOT need to buy any of these items unless you just want to have a little piece of PCMech nostalgia.

When you go to the store, you will see an option to "Add To Cart" for any items that you want. If that button is not available, it will say "OUT OF STOCK", at which point all remaining inventory has been sold and that’s it.

Lastly, all of our combo deals for these items that we had in the past are now OVER. Since these are already clearance, and some of the items in the original combos have uneven inventory, we’re just going to sell everything separately.

OK, that’s it! Thanks to all of our past customers who have purchased any of our line of physical products in the past. You guys rock.

Go To The PCMech Store Now To Help Us Close This Out…

UPDATE 6:03PM – I have updated the current inventory counts. After less than 2 hours, we’ve already sold out of one item and the others are moving quickly.

UPDATE 11:27 PM – Inventory counts have been updated again.

UPDATE 1/10/10 10:09AM – Inventory counts last updated.

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

PCMech Ending Entire Line Of Physical Products – Clearance Sale

So, would you be interested in joining the team?

Obviously, you must be well-versed in computers and technology otherwise you’re going to have a hard time (pretty obvious). However, I am not limiting this to hardware geeks and techs. Perhaps you closely follow developments in web-based software or social media. Perhaps you are a die-hard Mac fanatic. Perhaps you a heavy gamer and want to help people in that area? Technology has progressed way past the point of fiddling with motherboards and I would like PCMech to reflect that.

You must be a decent writer. That probably goes without saying. However, I don’t expect or demand formal writing. As you can probably tell, our writing style here at PCMech is pretty conversational. So, as long as you can write easy-to-follow, interesting articles that will help our audience, you’re qualified.

I want to make sure you understand, as well, that this is NOT an employment position with my company. You will remain fully independent and the time demands will be minimal. You write when you want. As time and your interest allow, perhaps you can evolve into a regular contributor to the site. That is my goal.

As for pay, this will be addressed once I get a feel for your work. It will be on a per-post basis and you must accept Paypal. If you’re trying to make a living here, look elsewhere. I’ve seen too many people who way overvalue their blog posts. I can write one of these things in 20-30 minutes, so let’s be real. So, I’m looking for genuine interest – people for whom this is a hobby. People who just enjoy immersing themselves in tech and the tech community. Regular writers to this site will develop a following. So, this should be fun, not a J-O-B. Fair?

So, if you are interested in giving this a try, here’s what I want you to do:

1. Write a blog post for PCMech. Please don’t contact me asking for ideas. If you are a reader of this site, you know what we talk about. Just write what you enjoy, and make it web-ready.
2. Put the post into an HTML file (please, no Word documents.). Text files is OK.
3. Email it to editor –at- pcmech.com.

No guarantees that I’ll post what you write. Obviously, I have to review it. And please ensure proper spelling, punctuation and grammar. Colloquial grammar is OK, however if the post is full of gross mistakes, I’m just going to send it back.

Here are a few posts which may be helpful to you from my other blog:

• 50 Rapid Fire Tips For Power Blogging
• A Blogger’s Checklist for Guest Posting On Other Blogs
• Everything You Need To Know About Writing Blog Headlines
• The 10 Minute Blog Post

I look forward to hearing from you.

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

Want To Become Part of The PCMech Team?

In short, there are two very different aspects to David Risley. I am the founder of PCMech, a tech site (obviously). However, I am also known online as a professional blogger, one who teaches people how to build up online businesses based around blogging. The audiences are very different, and I would venture to say that a good chunk of my PCMech.com readers have zero interest in blogging. Am I right?

So, from now on, all PCMech-related posts will be sent to the @pcmech Twitter account. If you want to easily keep up with what’s happening with PCMech.com, keep up with what’s happening in technology without following anything related to blogging and marketing, then go follow @pcmech on Twitter.

Over on @davidrisley, I will continue to tweet about blogging as well as my own personal tweets. If you wish to interact with me personally, you will need to continue to follow @davidrisley. On a related note, if you want to interact with Rich, follow him @richmenga.

Not Using Twitter Yet?

What are you waiting for?

Twitter is the fastest growing communications platform in the history of the Internet. It is growing AMAZINGLY fast, and the idea of “tweeting” is quickly becoming as common as email. This is not a fad. At this point, calling Twitter a fad would be like putting you several years back and calling email a fad. It just isn’t.

If you are still in the boat of just not understanding Twitter, I invite you to download my free Twitter Manual. This PDF document gives you the in’s and out’s on how to use Twitter and why it even matters in the scheme of things. The PDF is completely free and you don’t need to opt into a mailing list or anything to get it. Just grab it.

I’ll see you on Twitter, my friends.

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

Follow PCMech on Twitter

My wife and I have enjoyed our vacation. We took a lot of photos and video, much of which I’ll be sharing online in the days after I get back to the office. We both ate WAY too much. We’ve enjoyed the shows. In St. Marten, we had the opportunity to go sailing on a multi-million dollar racing sailboat. Had a blast!

[flv:http://pcmech.s3.amazonaws.com/CruiseEnd.flv 640 360]

So, I’ve connected to the Internet via the satellite connection on this ship to gently remind you that our special 2008 pricing on the PCMech Premium is about to end. I’m on my way back now, and as promised, when I get back into my office, I am completely shutting down registration to the program while I re-work some things to institute my changes for the new program in 2009. When I re-launch it (probably within 2-3 weeks), the price will be higher than it is now.

Time is running short. We’ve had a LOT of people (much more than I anticipated) sign up in the days since I left town. I’ve been checking in periodically from our ship cabin and I’ve been very pleased with the amount of people making the wise move and signing up. I’m confident that you’ll kick yourself in the butt later if you don’t sign up during this limited time frame.

Sure, you’ll be able to get in after I re-launch. And it’ll be a good deal then, too. But, right now, it’s insanely cheap.

With that, I leave you and return back to my cruise. From somewhere in the Caribbean, signing off.

Click Here To Sign Up Before I Shut It Off

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

Live From The Caribbean [Video]

First, here are the three videos I’ve done this week already:

1. Feedback from PCMech Members [Video #1]
2. Explanation of PCMech Membership Program [Video #2]
3. Audience Interrogation – PCMech Membership Program [Video #3]

And, today, here is the fourth video. Below this video, I’ll explain where we’re heading and what’s going to happen.

[flv:http://pcmu.s3.amazonaws.com/PCMU_Changes.flv 640 360]

OK, so in summary, here is what we’re doing differently:

1. The membership system is going to be re-designed so that members will have no problem finding all of the members-only material that we have in our system. We have a LOT of it, but I’m also aware that PCMECH has over 4,000 articles and it might be a little hard finding the stuff which is exclusive to our premium members. That’s about to change.
2. Rich and I are going to soon begin doing videos for members. Lots of videos. Like, almost every single day (except weekends). These videos will only be available right here on PCMECH.COM. I will be covering all kinds of topics, from computer instruction, software, tips, optimization, right on into the realm of internet business, marketing, blogging, and all kinds of various ways that you can make money with your computer and the Internet. And, no, this is NOT going to be exclusive only to people who already know some of the ropes. Even if you have no earthly idea how to make any money on the Internet, you will be able to learn with these videos.
3. I will be launching a members only help desk. If you have a question or need specific help, you can submit your question to our help desk. We will either answer your question in video form so all members can benefit, or we’ll send you an email response.

All of this is on top of everything we’ve been doing in 2008.

I have been doing a lot of video over on David Risley dot com. I’ve gotten it down to almost a science. I can produce a lot of video quickly now. On top of that, video is a superior way of learning. You can SEE me. I can much more accurately convey thoughts and ideas in video form.

2009 has the potential to be a hugely successful year or a very rocky one. The economic situation means that it will be a make-break point for many. Our weekend surveys of PCMech readers indicated STRONGLY that the overriding concerns out there are job security and money. 

And I intend to help.

For more information about the NEW membership program, go here to see our new, improved signup page where you can read all about it.

Lastly, as I said, I will be on a cruise next week. During the period I am gone, you can sign up for our PCMech Premium program at the 2008 level pricing. And your subscription rate will remain in effect even after I increase the price. So, you should sign up. And you should do it right away. When I get back, I will be turning registration OFF for everybody while I get busy re-working our system for the 2009 changes.

So, there you go! And, off you go to get the juicy details.

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

2009 Changes to PCMech Membership Program

I get asked everything from the usual questions, to questions about whether I’m a scam. I take them all.

Here is the video:

[flv:http://pcmu.s3.amazonaws.com/PCMU_questions.flv 640 360]

And as a refresher, here are the first two videos:

1. Feedback from PCMech Members [Video #1]
2. Explanation of PCMech Membership Program [Video #2]

Tomorrow, you’re going to see a new page talking about the benefits of our membership program as we head into 2009. And you already know that PCMech University will now be known as PCMech Premium.

I’m asking you to join our program. There will not be a discounted special tomorrow, so what you pay today is what you will pay as long as you remain a member. And, as you will find out tomorrow, the current rate is way too cheap and you’re getting a KILLER deal. I’m just saying.

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

Audience Interrogation – PCMech Membership Program

In this video, I explain my philosophy behind this membership program. You’ll also get a little view into my office and my house (there is a reason behind it ).

So, meet the OTHER side of Dave!

[flv:http://pcmu.s3.amazonaws.com/PCMU_Why.flv 640 360]

So, as you can see, this membership program does BOTH. It is a reflection of my approach to technology. I am the ultimate geek, but I use my computer and all this stuff to improve my life. This year, using my computer and the Internet, I was able to get my online business to bring in over $140,000.

Now, as we head into 2009, a direct survey of you – the readers – tells me that the overriding concerns as we head into this next year are job security and money. So, I intend to help with that – from the viewpoint of a computer nerd.

I hope that explains a little better what this program is all about.

If you want to sign up, do so now. As you’ll find out on Friday, it would behoove you to sign up for our program this week or next. I’m just saying.

Post from: PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.

Explanation of PCMech Membership Program [Video #2]