I am pleased to announce that after lots of research, coding, site validation and a few headaches JustinMarch.com has finally been redesigned.

The site has been redesigned to reflect my decision to concentrate on my Web Design, SEO, & PPC services.  There is also a new page dealing with Social Media Marketing and a bunch of revamped pages including my Profile Page.  I am still offering simple Graphic Design Services to compliment my other work but Graphic Design will not be my main focus moving forward.

The redesign not only signals a determination to enlarge the business this year, but also a realisation that I have projects of my own that I want to start concentrating on.

The new site features updated graphics and focuses on pushing my SEO & Web Design services in the Gloucester and Cheltenham areas.

Next step is to redesign this blog in an effort to make it more readable and to help me get more enthusiastic about posting again.

It is essential that any new web design is thoroughly tested across the various browsers that the target site visitors may be using.  This is not as easy as it sounds there are a lot of browsers out there, Windows based users often use Internet Explorer (IE) but can also install additional browsers such as Firefox, Safari, Opera or Google Chrome.  Mac uses commonly use Safari but can also run Firefox or Google Chrome.  For more information see the W3schools.com  Browser Statistics.

While most modern browsers are fairly stable IE 6 and 7 are widely used and are particularly prone to displaying web pages with unexpected quirks.  The issue is further complicated by the limitations of Windows when it comes to installing more than one version of IE.  In order to test a web design there are thankfully a few alternatives to running a suit of Mac’s and PC’s:

Web Developers working with Windows
Luckily for me and other web developers who work with Windows the installation of the following software provides a good starting point for cross browser testing.

• IE Tester
  This fantastic piece of free software bypasses the problem of Windows limiting the number of IE installations on one PC.  Currently the software supports versions 5.5, 6, 7 and 8 of IE and you can view your page across all of these versions via a handy tabbed interface.
• Firefox
• Google Chrome
• Opera
• Safari
  Luckily there is a PC version of this the standard Mac browser.

Web Developers working on a Mac
Unfortunately Mac based Web developers are unable to run any version of IE unless they run virtual Windows software or set up a virtual PC.  Alternatives are to purchase a PC for testing purposes or to use the Cross Browser Testing Tools below.

Cross Browser Testing Tools
An alternative to installing software; there are a number of Cross Browser Testing Services available online, some free and some paid:

BrowserCam.com
A multitude of options on this rather confusing website include screenshots and live testing (depending on option selected).  Options include testing mobile devices and e-mail; prices start from $19.95 for one day of browser capture, but can sharply increase depending on your requirements.

CrossBrowserTesting.com
The service costs from $19.95 per month and includes automated screenshots and live testing.

BrowserShots.org
A free service; simply type in the web address that you wish to test, select the browsers and view the generated thumbnails. The service also allows you to set the screen size and enable or disable Flash and JavaScript.  It’s best to limit the number of browsers you select to prevent excessive waiting around.

Adobe Browser Lab
Compare side by side views of your test pages in different browsers using a Flash interface.  You will need an Adobe Account to view this site which is free until the end of 2010.

Following on from my post entitled “Some Local Business Listings Disappear on Google Maps” [http://www.justinmarch.com/blog/some-local-business-listing-disappear-google-maps/] it now seems that what I thought was a blip, wasn’t a blip at all.

In early November 2009 I noticed that the Google Maps listing were no longer appearing under some of the phrases where my business listing previously appeared, I first spotted this under a search for “SEO Cheltenham”. I checked the same searches within google.co.uk and google.com and signed in and out of my Google profile all with the same result.

I noticed that it wasn’t happening for searches such as “SEO Bristol” and that it wasn’t anything to do with the Cheltenham area either as a search for “Carpet Cheltenham” confirmed .

Finally an answer from Web Pro News “Google Ditches Local Listings for SEOs and Designers”. Essentially then if you change the search from “SEO location” to “SEO in location” (obviously replacing the word location with your location) the results will magically reappear, this works for “SEO Bristol”, “SEO Cheltenham” and other “SEO” and “Web Design” related terms.

Not all areas seem to be effected but many web designers and SEO’s are up in arms, will this change back after Google have had a chance to go through and eliminate the huge amount of Spam in Local Business Center, only time will tell…