Stay informed with the latest features and development news for SnapPages - the easiest way to create a website http://blog.snappages.com Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:58:20 +0000 Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:58:20 +0000 hourly 1 3600 SnapPages.com Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2013/04/17/want-to-try-out-the-new-theme-app Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:58:20 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2013/04/17/want-to-try-out-the-new-theme-app
]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2013/04/17/want-to-try-out-the-new-theme-app#comments 35 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2013/01/07/themes-2-0-teaser Mon, 07 Jan 2013 12:14:26 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2013/01/07/themes-2-0-teaser




There are two requests that we have heard over and over again when it comes to the themes for your website. More flexibility and more themes. We've heard you loud and clear and it's coming your way (plus a lot of stuff that you didn't ask for but is equally as awesome). By moving everything over to HTML5 it's allowed to add levels of flexibility that were just never possible with our flash based version. Just how flexible are we talking here? Well take a look at this screenshot to get a small taste of what this will practically look like:



And that's just the tip of the iceberg. The main goal is to add as much flexibility as possible while still maintaining the ease-of-use that makes SnapPages what it is. Be on the look out for more news on this in the coming weeks about when beta testing will open up for the new app.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2013/01/07/themes-2-0-teaser#comments 20 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/10/05/beta-update-billboards-and-ui Fri, 05 Oct 2012 16:02:18 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/10/05/beta-update-billboards-and-ui


In addition to this you'll find that some of the UI elements (buttons and stuff)  have been updated to a newer fresher look. We are getting closer to rolling this out to all our users so be sure to keep the feedback coming!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/10/05/beta-update-billboards-and-ui#comments 9 Steve Testone Steve Testone clicking here. [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/10/01/beta-update-images-and-publishing Mon, 01 Oct 2012 17:17:39 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/10/01/beta-update-images-and-publishing clicking here.



We've added two highly requested features for the images on your website. You can now easily add ALT tags (helps with SEO...google it...) and you can also enable a "zoom on click" feature. This basically allows a user to click on an image and instantly view a larger version of it. To see how this works, just click on the image to the left.



Previously, the only time you would need to publish a page was if it was a "draft". This meant you were still working on it and didn't want it to be viewed online at all. But what if you are working on an existing page that is live on your website and you don't want the changes you are working on to go live just yet?




This is exactly the issue we are trying to solve with this update. Now when you save a page, the changes won't go live on your site until you officially "publish" them by hitting the publish button. This allows you to save your work far more often and you don't have to worry about it going live on your site. You will see a special icon that shows you when you have unpublished changes on a page so you'll know if they are out of sync. 


Thanks again to everyone for your feedback so far on the beta, with your help it's going to just keep getting better and better!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/10/01/beta-update-images-and-publishing#comments 6 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/09/17/pages-2-0-beta-open-to-all Mon, 17 Sep 2012 14:03:20 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/09/17/pages-2-0-beta-open-to-all




Even though we are opening this up to everyone, it is still in beta which means it's not 100% complete at this point. This also means that there are still likely a few bugs here and there and we'll need you to let us know about them if you find them. Also this means that we will still be adding in new features as the beta continues and we get closer to launch.



The new editor will be able to load up and edit any of your existing web pages, but it's important to  understand that once you save a page using the new editor, you won't be able to edit it with the old editor any longer. However if you need to you can always revert a page to the previous saved version that was created in the old editor if you have issues with the new editor.



There are more new features than I can list here, but I'll highlight the big ones.

HTML5
The new app has been re-created from the ground up in HTML5 vs. Flash. This allows for a lot of great new features like true WYSIWYG editing so what you see in the editor should match what you see on your site. It will also allow you to edit pages from your iPad and a whole lot of other stuff you'll see in the future.

Billboards 2.0
Another element that has been completely re-imagined is our billboards feature that allows you to add horizontal slideshows to the tops of your web pages. These new billboards are also completely in HTML5 which means they will show up on mobile devices. We've simplified the process of creating billboards quite a bit so that the end result is a higher quality slideshow. In addition to this we've added some really awesome ways to add some style to these billboards, as well as re-size them!

It's important to note that your existing billboards will need to be converted into the new format when the page is first edited. After this conversion takes place you will probably need to make some additional manual adjustments as well.

Custom Page Layouts
One of the most highly requested features was that our users wanted more page layouts than just the default ones. We thought we'd create something even better and just let you customize and create your own page layouts!

New Web Blocks
We've already added two completely new web blocks and we have plans to add a few more before it's actually launched. The two new ones we've added so far are the Anchor and the Spacer blocks. The Anchor block will allow you to drop anchor tags on your web page that you can link to. This allows you to link to specific content on a page. The Spacer block is exactly what it sounds like. It allows you to add a custom vertical space in between blocks so you can get that pixel perfect alignment you've always wanted.

Custom Code Snippets
We've re-written how our Code Box blocks work so that they are more powerful and flexible than ever. You should now be able to use almost any client-side custom code you want in these boxes and it should work seamlessly with your existing page. In addition to the Code Box, there are two other places you can inject some custom code. In the page settings menu, you can now drop some custom code into the header and the footer of your web pages.



Launching the new app is pretty simple. When you log into your SnapPages account, just visit the following URL to access the new Pages app:

http://snappages.com/app/pages

That's it!



As always, we need your feedback to truly make this a success. If you find a problem or have any questions you can submit them at the link below. Also it never hurts if you just want to let us know what you love about it too so we know when we are on the right track!

Submit Feedback >

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/09/17/pages-2-0-beta-open-to-all#comments 30 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/08/28/open-beta-coming-soon Tue, 28 Aug 2012 16:13:53 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/08/28/open-beta-coming-soon
We've never really done an open beta before, but then again we've never had so many people interested in trying out a new product. On top of that, this is really in many ways the most important app on SnapPages so we really want to test it out thoroughly before we let it loose on everyone. We will post more details about it right here on our blog in the next following week so be sure to check back here or follow us on our Twitter and Facebook pages.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/08/28/open-beta-coming-soon#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/06/19/want-to-try-out-the-new-web-pages-app Tue, 19 Jun 2012 17:02:19 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/06/19/want-to-try-out-the-new-web-pages-app
Don't worry, you don't have to be a techno savvy person to apply. In fact it's crucial that we get feedback from people at different skill levels.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/06/19/want-to-try-out-the-new-web-pages-app#comments 84 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/06/05/what-do-you-want-to-see-in-2-0 Tue, 05 Jun 2012 15:58:32 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/06/05/what-do-you-want-to-see-in-2-0
As some of you may have noticed we recently launched a new community forums and help center. I'll write another post about the help center later, but be sure to head on over to our new community forums because there's now a great way for all the users to tell us which new features they'd like to see the most. You can even vote on features others have suggested so they get moved to the top.

If you've been a SnapPages user long enough then you'll know that we really do take these things into account when we add new features so be sure to take advantage of it and feel free to dream big!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/06/05/what-do-you-want-to-see-in-2-0#comments 24 Steve Testone Steve Testone Yes, there will be custom layouts. One of the most requested features that users have been asking us for will be included in the new page editor that we're working on. With this new feature you will be able to customize existing column layouts or create your own with an easy to use interface. This is just one of the many awesome [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/04/16/custom-layouts Mon, 16 Apr 2012 17:06:28 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/04/16/custom-layouts Yes, there will be custom layouts. One of the most requested features that users have been asking us for will be included in the new page editor that we're working on. With this new feature you will be able to customize existing column layouts or create your own with an easy to use interface. This is just one of the many awesome features that are on the way so stay tuned for more previews!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/04/16/custom-layouts#comments 8 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/03/23/blogging-on-your-ipad Fri, 23 Mar 2012 16:26:15 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/03/23/blogging-on-your-ipad




As I have been saying, the new HTML apps are going to allow us to do things that just weren't possible before. I will draw your attention to exhibit A. The blog app can now completely run on an iPad right in the browser. That means there isn't any extra apps that you need to download. Now granted it might be a little slower to type out a blog post on an iPad but at least now you'll have the option, or if you're like me and have a new iPad you can dictate the whole blog post and it will type it for you.

In fact that's how I added this entire blog post. Pretty cool. But don't just take my word for it, go and try it out for yourself and let us know what you think. It's our first ever iPad capable app so it will probably take a little more fine tuning to get everything perfect. In addition to this the web browser on the iPad seems to run a little slower than it's desktop counterpart so that can cause a few issues as well. Let us know if you run into any problems.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/03/23/blogging-on-your-ipad#comments 9 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/03/02/the-new-blog-app-is-here Fri, 02 Mar 2012 16:26:35 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/03/02/the-new-blog-app-is-here
The year of SnapPages 2.0 has officially begun. The first new app to launch is an updated version of our blogging app. It's been almost 3 years since the first blog app launched and we've learned a whole lot since then. We also had a wish list a mile long from our users of features they'd like to see included in this new app and we did our best to fit these in where we could.

• New HTML5 interface
• Additional text formating options
• Improved tagging
• Sub-categories
• Scheduled publishing
• Page breaks for shorter previews on main blog page
• Improved WYSIWYG editor
• Auto-moderate comments
• More flexible side block area
• Add code boxes to the side of your blog (great for ads)
• New social sharing buttons
• Archive view
• And a whole lot more...

One thing to keep in mind with the new 2.0 apps is that they've been designed to be much more flexible then our current apps. This is because we plan on adding new features and updating these much more often then we have in the past. So if you don't see a new feature you were hoping for in this launch, that doesn't mean we might not be adding it sometime this year.



Although the new Blog app has been rebuilt from the ground up, it should still be very familiar to those that have been using the original Blog app. However the entire interface has been streamlined to help you manage your blog with less hassle.

For instance your blog posts are now all color coded so you can easily see which ones are published and which ones scheduled to be published later.



The new editor we've built allows us to do a lot of things that just weren't possible in the old flash version. For instance you will find a lot more text formating options.

The biggest advantage is perhaps that we can now display content in the editor almost identically to how it will look on your website. No need to preview anymore because what you see is what you get!

A huge thanks to everyone who has contributed suggestions and to all of our beta testers. This is a big update to SnapPages but the year is just gettings started and we have much biggers updates on the way!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/03/02/the-new-blog-app-is-here#comments 20 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/02/20/blog-updates Mon, 20 Feb 2012 13:03:19 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/02/20/blog-updates
]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/02/20/blog-updates#comments 5 Steve Testone Steve Testone year of SnapPages 2.0 is about to begin. We're hard at work on the new Blog app and we are going to need some beta testers to make sure it's all working before we launch it for everyone. If you are interested in testing it out please leave us [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/01/23/want-to-try-out-the-new-blog-app Mon, 23 Jan 2012 11:21:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/01/23/want-to-try-out-the-new-blog-app year of SnapPages 2.0 is about to begin. We're hard at work on the new Blog app and we are going to need some beta testers to make sure it's all working before we launch it for everyone. If you are interested in testing it out please leave us a comment below and we'll add you to the list of beta testers and send you an email whenever the beta goes live.




If you sign up please keep in mind that the point of the beta is we need your feedback! I can't emphasis this enough. Without your feedback telling us what's working and what's not working there isn't much point to doing a beta test. Also keep in mind that in the future we might start doing smaller beta tests and you'll have a much better chance getting into those if you send us feedback on these ones.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/01/23/want-to-try-out-the-new-blog-app#comments 48 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/01/04/are-you-ready-for-snappages-2-0 Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:27:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/01/04/are-you-ready-for-snappages-2-0
The updates are so big and drastic that I'm referring to it as SnapPages 2.0. Almost all of our main apps are going to be reworked from the ground up and built in HTML5. I don't want to oversell it, but it will literally blow anything you've seen out of the water. I'm just warning you now, that your head might explode when you see the updates. If this concerns you, please stop using SnapPages now. If this excites you, then please keep reading.

If you've used the new Emailer app then you've gotten a small taste at what is in store since it's the first app to use our initial version of the new HTML5 editor. The first real full 2.0 app will be the new Blog app. I'll post more news on this as it progresses but if you have anything on your wishlist for new blogging features now is the time to let us know about it!

That's all I can tell you for now, but hopefully you guys will be as excited as I am to see what's in store for 2012! For now I'll leave you with a preview of the new Blog app:

Blog 2.0 Preview



]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2012/01/04/are-you-ready-for-snappages-2-0#comments 32 Steve Testone Steve Testone
Getting Started
Getting started is easy. All you need to do is log into your SnapPages account and [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/11/30/the-emailer-has-arrived Wed, 30 Nov 2011 14:30:21 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/11/30/the-emailer-has-arrived
Getting Started
Getting started is easy. All you need to do is log into your SnapPages account and click on the new Emailer app icon to launch the app.


Creating Emails
You can create beautiful html emails just as easily as you create web pages. This is because the editor for the Emailer app is almost identical to the Web Pages app except for one major difference. This editor is built completely in HTML5 and not in flash! This will bring a lot of improvements to the editor. There are now more text formatting options, improved language support, true WYSIWYG (google it) editing and a whole lot more. We will slowly be rolling this editor out into our other apps as well as we convert them to HTML5, but more on that at another time.

Sending and Tracking Emails
After an email is created you can send it out to a list of email subscribers. We've partnered with VerticalResponse to help ensure that your emails have a high delivery rate and to help track the results of your email campaigns. Once an email is launched you'll be able to see how many people opened it and other stats to help you gauge effectiveness.

Getting Subscribers
Creating emails is great but you need to have people to send them to. With the Emailer app you create Lists of email subscribers. After you create a list there are three ways to add subscribers to them:

1. You can manually enter in new members to lists.
2. You can import existing mailing lists from CSV files.
3. Visitors to your website can subscribe directly to lists from a form.

You can add a subscription form to any page on your website. If you are in the page editor, you will find a new block in the "widgets" section called "Subscribe Form". Just drop this on any page and point it to a mailing list and your done!





]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/11/30/the-emailer-has-arrived#comments 18 Steve Testone Steve Testone
The biggest change is that now you can add the same file to multiple folders. This will prevent you from having to upload multilpe copies of the same [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/11/11/files-app-updated Fri, 11 Nov 2011 17:16:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/11/11/files-app-updated
The biggest change is that now you can add the same file to multiple folders. This will prevent you from having to upload multilpe copies of the same file just to display them in different file lists on your site. Also I fixed a few outstanding bugs and made some small UI improvements.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/11/11/files-app-updated#comments 7 Kim Friesz Kim Friesz http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/10/27/snappages-video-tutorial-how-anyone-can-build-a-website Thu, 27 Oct 2011 17:16:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/10/27/snappages-video-tutorial-how-anyone-can-build-a-website


If you have created a tutorial or video on building a SnapPages website or how to add features to your website in SnapPages, let us know - we would love to share it!

And, be sure to tell us what training videos or tutorials you would find helpful. Watch for more of these coming very soon!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/10/27/snappages-video-tutorial-how-anyone-can-build-a-website#comments 1 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/09/26/want-to-try-out-the-new-emailer-app Mon, 26 Sep 2011 14:04:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/09/26/want-to-try-out-the-new-emailer-app
]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/09/26/want-to-try-out-the-new-emailer-app#comments 86 Kim Friesz Kim Friesz http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/09/23/snappages-101-getting-started-guide Fri, 23 Sep 2011 17:05:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/09/23/snappages-101-getting-started-guide
So let's get going, for those of you that have gone through the website wizard, and are ready to take the next step you can begin with content and customization. To see what your site currently looks like go to http://username.snappages.com (replace the username in this example with your username used to login).

Customize Your Content and Pages: The Web Pages App



The content on your pages such as text, images and buttons are edited within the Web Pages app, which can be found on the homescreen or from the apps drop down at the top of the screen. Simply choose the page from the list on the left that you would like to edit or add a new page and then customize by adding or editing blocks on the page. The block choices are listed on the left when editing a page and are grouped by type.

For most blocks, if you select to edit the block when placed on the page options for customizing the block will appear in the lower left hand portion of the editor. Across the top of the page editor, there are options to change the page layout and add a billboard to any page.

Note: The Page when in "edit" mode will not show your theme applied. Instead you will see a standard view that is the same for everyone (generic theme). If you preview the page (lower right corner), you will see your content with your chosen theme applied.

Customize The Look And Feel Of Your Website: The Themes App





The Themes app manages the overall look and feel of the site, such as the shell color, font choices, logo, background image or color, links and images in the header and other things related to the website's look and feel. In the Themes App, you can add your logo or choose a different theme to customize. You can find a little site inspiration in the SnapPages Showcase.

Note: Changes and selections made in the "Themes" application will not be reflected in the “Web Pages” application (and vice versa). You can see the changes made to your content within your chosen design theme by visiting it online at http://yourusername.snappages.com (replace in this example the words "yourusername" with your username used for login.

Connect a Domain to Your Website: The Domain Names App



If you have not purchased a domain name yet, you can purchase one and add email (optional) by going to the Domain Names App, purchasing your product(s) and then connecting your domain to your website. If you already have a domain that is hosted elsewhere, you can quickly and easily point your domain name to your SnapPages website (no transferring required) - read this post on Pointing a Domain Hosted Elsewhere to Your Website. SnapPages purchased domains can connect to personal (free) accounts or Pro accounts, however domains purchased elsewhere can only be linked to a Pro Account. Not to worry, we offer a free 14 day trial of the Pro Account and a credit card is not required for the trial, just select any of the upgrade to pro icons.

Promote Your Website: Settings Area (Plugins) and 3rd Party Apps and Services



When you're ready to do so, you can actively promote your new website by sharing it via email, through building a Facebook fan page and connecting your site with the top social networking sites and if you have a Pro Account you can easily submit your sitemap to Google Webmaster Tools. Additionally you can explore purchasing Google AdWords, listing your business with Google Places, and encouraging clients to post reviews on review boards such as Yelp, and other relevant review sites.

Understand Your Website Visitors: Google Analytics for Website Traffic Analytics

One tool you definitely won't want to live without is Google Analytics; it gives you information about who visits your website, where they're from, what keywords they are using to find you and much more. This information can help you tailor your content for your audience. Within the settings area of your account under plugins, there is an area to add a Google Analytics Code - read this post on adding Google Analytics in SnapPages. (Please note that in general it takes a few days before you start to see traffic data for your website.) This feature is available to our Pro Account users - select any of the upgrade to pro icons within your account to start your free 14 day trial (a credit card is not required for the trial).

Help People Find Your Website: MetaTags, SEO and Google WebMaster Tools



You'll want to make sure your website has a descriptive title, a description (both are setup within the website wizard start-up) and then for Pro Account holders, be sure to submit your website's sitemap to Google via Google Webmaster Tools. You can fine-tune your metadata in your account's Settings Area under SEO. After updating your meta tags, and linking a domain to your website (if you plan on doing so), then you can submit your sitemap to Google via Google Webmaster tools. Here is a post on how to submit your site to Google Webmaster Tools within SnapPages.



So go ahead… dive on in! If you ever need a hand, go to the "Help Center" found on the left hand side of your account’s home screen. Also, you might find the answers to many of your questions in our knowledgebase or get help from other SnapPages users in the SnapPages Community Help Forums. Be sure to show us your website creation after you have finished by sharing it on our Facebook page and in the Site Review section of the forums.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/09/23/snappages-101-getting-started-guide#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/09/13/snappages-turns-3 Tue, 13 Sep 2011 11:37:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/09/13/snappages-turns-3 envy or buy" us.

Well, three years has gone by and while we are still waiting for that acquisition offer from Apple, I'm proud to say we have come a long way and it's all thanks to our awesome users, and the other awesome people I work with here at SnapPages. In fact just last week we hit a milestone of having 100,000 registered users. This might not sound huge when compared to the other internet giants out there, but for a small company with nothing but word-of-mouth marketing, this feels like a pretty big accomplishment.

The best is yet to come.
We've added a lot of great new apps and features over the years but I can honestly say that the best is yet to come. Over the next 12 months we'll be launching some new apps as well as a complete re-launch of almost all of our existing apps. These updates are going to be so big that internally I've been referring to it as SnapPages 2.0.

The most dramatic change is probably the fact that these apps will be almost 100% HTML5. This is going to allow us to do a lot of really cool things that we weren't able to do before. There is going to be a lot more design flexibility (custom layouts anyone?) and advanced features included that just weren't possible with our current apps. Of course we are still going to make it all just as simple and easy to use as our existing apps, but for those of you that have been begging for more control, you are going to get it!

The first place you will see this new editor will be when we launch our new Emailer app in a few weeks. This app will allow you to set up an email list that visitors can subscribe to from your website, and then you can build and send out newsletters to them. I've attached a screenshot of the email editor below. Of course it might change some before it's officially launched but at least you can get a feel for what it's going to be like.



Don't forget your party favors!
In honor of our 3rd birthday from now until the end of September 2011, you can save 30% off an annual subscription of a Pro or Developer account by entering in the promotion code "happybday" on the upgrade form.

As always, thank you again to all our awesome passionate users who are spreading the news about SnapPages. We couldn't do it without you so keep it up!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/09/13/snappages-turns-3#comments 7 Steve Testone Steve Testone showcase as there are some great new sites up there. You guys have been building some awesome websites using SnapPages and I've been meaning to update our showcase for a long time, but I've been pretty busy. I promise it's because I'm working on some really big [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/08/26/showcase-update Fri, 26 Aug 2011 16:06:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/08/26/showcase-update showcase as there are some great new sites up there. You guys have been building some awesome websites using SnapPages and I've been meaning to update our showcase for a long time, but I've been pretty busy. I promise it's because I'm working on some really big mind-blowing stuff (more about that next week)!

As always if you want to be considered for our next round of showcase updates, be sure to let us know. Keep up the great work!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/08/26/showcase-update#comments 3 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/08/15/server-upgrades-tonight Mon, 15 Aug 2011 16:20:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/08/15/server-upgrades-tonight
Other then that it shouldn't really effect anything. Let us know if you have any questions about this.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/08/15/server-upgrades-tonight#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/07/18/photo-grid-update Mon, 18 Jul 2011 15:10:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/07/18/photo-grid-update
]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/07/18/photo-grid-update#comments 5 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/07/01/flash-free-billboards-sort-of Fri, 01 Jul 2011 15:33:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/07/01/flash-free-billboards-sort-of
With an update this week, you will at least see the background image from the billboard slides in this space if the user doesn't have flash. We understand it's not a complete solution but it is much better then the blank space that was there before. We'll be working on improving this more in the future as well.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/07/01/flash-free-billboards-sort-of#comments 12 Steve Testone Steve Testone
The goal with this new Setup Wizard is to reduce the amount of time it takes you to get a [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/06/29/new-setup-wizard Wed, 29 Jun 2011 12:11:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/06/29/new-setup-wizard
The goal with this new Setup Wizard is to reduce the amount of time it takes you to get a site up an running. I have some other new stuff I'm working on that I hope to release this week as well so stay tuned for those.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/06/29/new-setup-wizard#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone
From now on you should see a button at the bottom of your [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/06/16/restore-deleted-pages Thu, 16 Jun 2011 16:37:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/06/16/restore-deleted-pages
From now on you should see a button at the bottom of your list of pages in the Web Pages app that says "deleted pages". When you click on this you will see a list of pages you've deleted and you can restore them back to your drafts folder. This feature won't really work for pages you deleted in the past, but any pages you delete from now on will show up in this list.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/06/16/restore-deleted-pages#comments 1 Steve Testone Steve Testone 30% off the initial upgrade price for the first year! Prepay for the entire year for only $56 for a Pro account or only [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/06/14/hot-summer-savings Tue, 14 Jun 2011 14:33:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/06/14/hot-summer-savings
Sorry for the cliché marketing line but it is about 104 degrees here in Austin and we are offering great savings so I think it's appropriate. From now until June 21, 2011 upgrade to a Pro or Developer account and save 30% off the initial upgrade price for the first year! Prepay for the entire year for only $56 for a Pro account or only $210 for the Developer account!

Just enter the promotion code "summer11" on the upgrade form and select the annual payment option to take advantage of this savings. Hurry - this offer is only good for a short time!

Click here to upgrade your account today >

Click here learn more about a pro account >

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/06/14/hot-summer-savings#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/05/19/new-theme-template-raises-the-bar Thu, 19 May 2011 15:26:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/05/19/new-theme-template-raises-the-bar
One thing we get a ton of requests for is more themes. This is especially important for those of you out there that have tons of websites with us and you have used every theme multiple times. Don't worry, I hear you. It's high on our priority list. That's why with this latest theme template called "The Bar" the two main goals were to keep it simple and extremely versatile.

It's called "The Bar" for one very simple and obvious reason, it's basically just a simple navigation bar on a blank canvas. However, this bar currently has 7 different styles that can greatly change the look and feel of the site and the rest is up to you.

You can see from the example above just how different you can make each theme that you create from this template. Also if you like any of the ones from the example above, I've posted them all in the Themes app so you can find them in the "Browse" section.

We're excited to see what sort of awesome designs will come out of this one template. If you create one be sure to let us know so we can check it out.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/05/19/new-theme-template-raises-the-bar#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone
For instance, earlier this week we launched our new [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/05/12/want-a-free-pro-account Thu, 12 May 2011 15:30:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/05/12/want-a-free-pro-account
For instance, earlier this week we launched our new Billing Center. This is basically the app that allows you to manage all your subscription information for your account and see a history of all the transactions you made on SnapPages. Pretty exciting stuff huh?

Okay, I agree it's not very exciting on the surface but what is exciting about this new billing system is that it's paving the way for some other awesome stuff we have coming down the pipe that I can't really talk about at the moment. So trust me, if you knew what I know, then I know you would be excited about knowing it.

One new feature that we are rolling out with this update is the addition of our credits system. The credits are basically a virtual currency that you'll be able to use on SnapPages to do all sorts of cool things in the future. For now you can use credits to upgrade your account or pay your subscription fees.

In fact from now until the end of May 2011 you'll earn 400 credits for everyone you refer through our new Refer-A-Friend program. That means for each referral that upgrades you'll get enough credits to purchase a free month of your own Pro account. To use the new Refer-A-Friend feature, go into the "Account" section on your SnapPages home screen and click on the "Billing Center" link. Once you are in the Billing Center in the "Credits" section you'll see the new Refer-A-Friend feature. You'll also be able to keep track of credits you've earned and apply them to your account from this same section of the Billing Center.

You can use the built in form in the Refer-A-Friend feature to email your friends invites to join SnapPages or you can send anyone a link to your referral URL and if they click on that link and sign up at SnapPages you'll get credit for it. This means you can send the referral link out to your friends on Facebook, or Twitter, or anywhere else you want to recommend SnapPages.

Thanks again to all our users that are so passionate about SnapPages that you've been telling people about us already. We are also passionate about our product and we are passionate about all of our users as well. Let us know if you have any questions about any of the new updates or if you run into any issues with it.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/05/12/want-a-free-pro-account#comments 3 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/03/24/useful-simple-awesome Thu, 24 Mar 2011 13:32:03 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/03/24/useful-simple-awesome
The vision for SnapPages has never really changed, but I've only recently come to define it in a clear statement. I'm not sure if this is technically a vision statement or a mission statement or whatever, but I like it and it helps give clarity to what it is we do. I'm just going to call it a motto for lack of a better word. So here is the new company motto:

Make it useful. Make it simple. Make it awesome.

Everything we do must meet these three requirements. I thought it would be good to share it with everyone because I get a lot of questions like "what makes you guys so different", or "why do you do this and not that?" and I think this motto helps answer those questions.

Useful.
If something is not useful then why make it in the first place. Most companies manage to make things that are useful for at least a small group of people, so this is not really revolutionary, just neccesary. It becomes much harder when you are trying to make something both equally useful and yet simple.

Simple.
Simplicity is too often underated and ignored. It is harder to be simple because it means you have to spend a lot more time thinking about the difference between what features you could add and which ones you should add. It means putting the extra time to develop something that takes one step instead of five. Some people enjoy and appreciate complicated things, but I believe most people don't appreciate or enjoy them, they simply put up with them. If you enjoy complicated things, there are many complicated solutions out there, we just aren't one of them.

Awesome.
Creating something useful takes some work, and making it simple takes even more, but making it awesome is hardest of all. Maybe it's just me but if you are going to do something, why not make it as awesome as you can? It's hard to define what awesome means but I basically just think if someone is using your product would they say "That's sort of neat.", or would they say "Whoa! That's awesome!". The latter is obviously what we are shooting for here.

Making a product awesome is what makes the difference between just getting the job done, and making it an enjoyable experience. It's what causes people to love something, rather then just like it.

In Conclusion...
So I'll get off my soap-box now. Basically I say all this to tell you that we are dedicated to this purpose and we will continue to be dedicated to it. My head is just about to explode with all the ideas and plans we have and hopefully that will make you almost as excited as I am about it. I firmly beleive that we are just scratching the surface of what SnapPages will become and we are going to constantly strive to make it more useful, more simple, and more awesome!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/03/24/useful-simple-awesome#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/03/15/improved-link-creation Tue, 15 Mar 2011 13:33:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/03/15/improved-link-creation
So in order to improve this we've streamlined the process so that now it's easier then ever to enter a link. You can still manually enter a URL but now instead of a drop-down menu, your pages are displayed in a list below the link form. This list is much easier to scroll through then the previous version and the best part is that it's searchable. So if you know the page you want to link to you can just search for it and the list will narrow down to show you only pages that match your search.

This might seem like a small update but it should save some of you a lot of time. We hope to have a lot more of these little improvements added over the next few weeks as we continue to work on our bigger projects.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/03/15/improved-link-creation#comments 3 Steve Testone Steve Testone
The problem was that sometimes when you uploaded a large image [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/02/07/better-image-resizing Mon, 07 Feb 2011 14:55:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/02/07/better-image-resizing
The problem was that sometimes when you uploaded a large image and then placed it on your web page at a much smaller size, it would look a little jagged at times. This was really bugging me so I found a way to optimize the resizes and they should look 100% better now!

If you have images that were having this problem on your website, all you need to do is open up the page that the images are on in the page editor and save the page again. When the new images get exported you should notice a pretty big difference.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/02/07/better-image-resizing#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/01/31/the-new-themes-app-is-here Mon, 31 Jan 2011 11:57:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/01/31/the-new-themes-app-is-here
New Menus

The first thing you might notice in the new editor is that we've moved some of the menu items around. This is obviously not a "huge" feature but I thought it merited a mention so that you aren't confused. Originally when the first Themes App was created most of the customizations happened in the header area of the Theme so most of the options just dealt with this. As we added more features the menu stopped being as intuitive as we'd want it to be so hopefully the options are better organized and labeled now.

Advanced Color Picker

Sometimes it's the littlest things that make the biggest difference. That's why I'm really excited about the new color picker tool. You can now choose just about any color you want. There is even an eye-dropper tool so you can match colors to anything on your theme.

The coolest new part of this has to be the color suggestions. Sometimes it's hard to know what colors look good together. Now when you select a color, some color palette suggestions will appear on the right hand side that are pulled in from ColourLovers.com.

Link Boxes

For everyone that wanted there logo to be a link back to the home page, we decided to give you an even better option. Link Boxes are little green boxes that you can draw over any area in your header and turn it into a link that can go to anything you want. These will show up as green boxes when you are editing them, but they will be invisible when you are not.

Alignment Guides

Everything just looks better when it's all lined up. Now when you are moving objects around in your header, you will see some green lines appear that will help you do just that. This should not only make it faster and easier to line everything up, but it will help your site look more professional.

Theme Browser

The Theme Exchange area is now gone and has been replaced with the new Theme Browser. I'll write a more later on the reasons behind this but the short answer is that I just don't think the Theme Exchange was helping people make better websites.

This area will eventually be full of themes that professional designers have created using our existing theme templates. You can download and use these themes on your site or edit them and make them your own.

Convert To CSS

This feature is available only through our Developer account, and it was highly requested from our existing developers. With the developer account we added the ability to create your own CSS themes from scratch to use on their client sites. The problem was you couldn't use existing themes that you created in the Themes app so it was difficult getting started. Now you can export any theme you create in the Themes app to a custom CSS theme and customize it even further.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/01/31/the-new-themes-app-is-here#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone UPDATE: The update is now live! I'll write a more detailed post on this some time tomorrow.

Our big Theme app update is going live this weekend! I'm really excited about it and you should be too. There's a lot more in it then I had originally planned but it was worth the extra time. While we're uploading the new stuff the main [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/01/28/major-update-this-weekend Fri, 28 Jan 2011 16:34:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/01/28/major-update-this-weekend UPDATE: The update is now live! I'll write a more detailed post on this some time tomorrow.

Our big Theme app update is going live this weekend! I'm really excited about it and you should be too. There's a lot more in it then I had originally planned but it was worth the extra time. While we're uploading the new stuff the main SnapPages site might be taken offline for a little while. Your individual websites will not be affected by this but in case you are trying to login and edit your site you might need to hold off until the update is finished.

Check back here for more details on the update after it goes live.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/01/28/major-update-this-weekend#comments 6 Steve Testone Steve Testone
Here is a preview of a few of the new ones coming your way: [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/01/12/new-theme-previews Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:06:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/01/12/new-theme-previews
Here is a preview of a few of the new ones coming your way:











]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2011/01/12/new-theme-previews#comments 10 steve@snappages.com steve@snappages.com
We appreciate all the people who have been patient and supportive of our efforts to build the most user-friendly, and cost-effective website builder on the market. We appreciate all the suggestions, solutions, tips and tricks [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/31/the-end-of-2010-and-it-couldn%e2%80%99t-be-better Fri, 31 Dec 2010 22:55:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/31/the-end-of-2010-and-it-couldn%e2%80%99t-be-better
We appreciate all the people who have been patient and supportive of our efforts to build the most user-friendly, and cost-effective website builder on the market. We appreciate all the suggestions, solutions, tips and tricks our users have provided their fellow users as well as to us. We appreciate our staff and all of their continuing hard work to make this collective effort, dream, passion, whatever you want to call it, a reality. And now we look to 2011 with anticipation - where we plan to do even bigger, better things.

We are asking our users, our friends and our critics to evaluate SnapPages. We want to know what it is you are looking for in our product to help you with your passion. We are making our lists and checking them twice. We are setting our goals for the New Year with change in mind. Our goals will evolve, especially based on your feedback as users.

Already we have received amazing feedback from users about new and valuable upgrades to the SnapPages system. Our project board has many of your suggestions on it and we are dedicated to making these suggestions a reality in the upcoming year. We love your ideas and some of them are already on our radar. We pledge to keep improving with you in mind.

Thanks so much to all of you, and we cannot wait to see you in 2011!

Happy New Year from all of us at SnapPages

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/31/the-end-of-2010-and-it-couldn%e2%80%99t-be-better#comments 0 Nick Nick
LinkedIn has proven a great and valuable asset, helping to expand the job market [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/22/linkedin-snappages-free-resume-websites Wed, 22 Dec 2010 15:20:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/22/linkedin-snappages-free-resume-websites
LinkedIn has proven a great and valuable asset, helping to expand the job market network; however, it is a limited in many ways. Because of the online business network’s structure, it is incredibly difficult to simply reach out and grab a potential employer’s attention. Also, there are so many platforms now where you have to fill out all the little boxes it is becoming overwhelming and a full-time job in and of itself. So, the SnapPages team has come up with a new tactic to help you save time and help you find your bullhorn in the job market.

We have created a three step process to give you an online business resume without having to fill out your information all over again. What’s more, we structure your online resume to provide all the pertinent information job seekers are looking for in an employee using an attractive, stream-lined format.

How does it work?

Follow the link to snappages.com/resume and have your LinkedIn information on hand.

First you will type in your username, which will create your SnapPages URL (example NicholasAlter.snappages.com). Then you will provide your LinkedIn login information and hit connect. Hit done and you will have an online resume you can add pictures to, your portfolio, video, change themes, whatever you need to make yourself standout to potential employers.

We are very excited to offer this to job seekers free of charge. Our goal is to help you present yourself as professional, unique, passionate and innovative to companies looking for the best fit for them. This is our Christmas present to you SnapPagers. Happy Holidays!

Click here to learn more >

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/22/linkedin-snappages-free-resume-websites#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/08/snappages-app-in-googles-chrome-web-store Wed, 08 Dec 2010 10:17:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/08/snappages-app-in-googles-chrome-web-store
Click here to install the app >

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/08/snappages-app-in-googles-chrome-web-store#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/07/new-social-icons-for-your-site Tue, 07 Dec 2010 16:45:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/07/new-social-icons-for-your-site
The new Social Icons Block fixes that problem by allowing you to just drag the block on to a page, select the icons you want, and then just enter the url you want them to point to and you're done. All the icons come in four differentt sizes and have a consistent look and feel to them. A special thanks goes to Paul Robert Lloyd for creating them and making them available to everyone!



]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/12/07/new-social-icons-for-your-site#comments 11 Steve Testone Steve Testone
The big reason for the change in [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/11/17/new-web-blocks-and-more Wed, 17 Nov 2010 11:26:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/11/17/new-web-blocks-and-more
The big reason for the change in the menu layout was to make room for even more blocks while still keeping everything simple. We've added a new category at the bottom called "plugins". This category contains all the web blocks that integrate with other 3rd party sites like twitter, google, facebook, and others.

New Google Blocks

Site Search - With the new site search block you can add a Google Custom Search box to any of your pages to allow visitors to easily seach your website.

Google Translate - This block allows you to add a Google Translate box on any of your pages that will automatically translate the text on that page into a different language. Awesome.


New Facebook Blocks

Like Button - You can now put those Facebook Like buttons that you see all over the place anywhere on your website. This is a great way for visitors to share your content with friends over Facebook. By default it will "like" whatever page the button is on, but you can even set it to a different URL like your own Facebook Page if you want.

Like Box - If you have a Facebook page setup for your company or organization, you can use this block to display information about it. This will show a stream of all your Facebook Page updates as well as who else has already become a fan of your page.

Other New Features

In addition to the new blocks, you might notice that the whole look and feel of the app has been slightly reworked to feel a little more modern. You might ask "What was wrong with the way it looked before?". Good question. Nothing really, but I'm obsessed with UI design and I'm always looking for ways to make it better so that's why I did it. Hope you enjoy it.

Also I've updated the save button so that it no longer needs to ask you "Are you finished editing?" after every time that you save a page. Small detail but trust me, it really helps. Oh, and I almost forgot. I've fixed it so that the mouse wheel should now properly scroll the pages while you are editing them.

That's it for now. On to the next project. As always if you have some suggestions on things you'd like to see added, let us know!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/11/17/new-web-blocks-and-more#comments 6 Nick Nick
Any church can [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/11/15/tips-for-church-websites Mon, 15 Nov 2010 15:41:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/11/15/tips-for-church-websites
Any church can afford and learn how to use our site building platform. If you help manage your church's website or your looking to create one, here's a few helpful tips to get you started.

Things that need to be clearly visible and easily accessible:

1. Service Times, Location & Contact Information - Make sure your church’s service times are in an easy-to-see spot on the main page with your address and a link for driving directions to Google Maps. Unless you have a unique perspective on the spiritual journey, people should not have to embark on an epic quest to find your location and times. Put your contact info in a readily visible spot on the main page as well.

2. Mission Statement - Believe it or not, we have seen church sites where they fail to mention their purpose entirely, thinking news and events posts and some generic pictures will do the trick. Give a brief (yes brief) purpose statement! People want to know! You should also add a link at the end of it that leads to a message from the church pastor, where vistors will receive a more comprehensive understanding of what your church is about.

Note: This could be a video of some sort on the main page, just make it short and then have a link below it to something more in depth further inside the site.

3. Calendary of Events - Although events do not describe your church, it is imperative that these are up-to-date and easily visible. It's good for your members and vistors to see what's going on. We have a Calendar App, and we encourage you to use it often!

4. Pictures - Yes, stock photos are nice, but are they really you? No! Why would any church want to use stock photos? The church is comprised of the people after all, so take pictures of your facilities and your congregation being active in your church. We specialize in photo manipulation and presentation, so please take advantage of it. Use graphic designs specific to your ministry (if you have the resources) and let people get to know the community behind the website!

5. Downloadable Material - We are very excited about our new Files App, and we hope you are too. Churches can use this particular tool to have downloadable bible studies for small groups, activities for kids, etc. Take advantage of it.

6. Ministry Links - Create a tab where all of your current ministries are visible with short explanations for each. This way people can find the ministry in your church that they best connect with. Also, this might be a good place for you to list your service ministries where folks can easily navigate to service opportunities and contact information.

7. About Us/Staff Page - People want to know who is helping to lead the church. Make a page for this that has some basic information about each staff member and a way to contact them.

8. Social Media - You can add social media to your site and you should. Social Media tools allow for your church to stay connected, communicate more effectively and lead others to your church that you may have not known otherwise.

Just so you know, these are suggestions. Things we believe are good to have when creating a website on SnapPages for your church. If you have other suggestions, please just comment below. We are thrilled that we can offer this to churches so that they can spend less time and resources on their website and more on the important things.

Here are some examples of SnapPages sites created for churches just so you can see what your church can do with our help!

• Crossroads Community Church
• The Missio Dei
• The Church at Bee Cave
• Canyon Creek Student Ministries
• The Church at Canyon Creek (under construction)
• http://www.leest.org.uk/

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/11/15/tips-for-church-websites#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/10/21/the-new-files-app-is-here Thu, 21 Oct 2010 16:00:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/10/21/the-new-files-app-is-here
The Files app is available to anyone with a Pro account. To start uploading, just launch the Files app and find the "upload" button. You'll be prompted to browse to the files on your computer. If you have a newer browser like Chrome, you can even drag-and-drop files directly from your computer into the upload window and it will add them for you. After your files upload, just set them to "public" and you're ready to start sharing.

There are several ways to link to your files. If you click on a public file in the Files app you will see the public URL of the files on the right side of the screen. You can use this public URL to link to the file from your website or even send it to someone in an email. The easiest way of course is to just use the new built in "Download" block in the page editor.

When you use the Download block, you can choose to point it to a single file to create a download button on your site, or you can point it to a folder and it will automatically create a list of all the public files in that folder and display them on the page. When you highlight text, you'll also notice that in addition to the regular web and email link buttons, you can now also create a text link directly to any file you have stored in the Files app.

This is a huge new addition to SnapPages and it should open up a lot of new potential to create some really cool sites. It will make it a lot easier to manage your site and that's pretty exciting. Let us know what you think!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/10/21/the-new-files-app-is-here#comments 14 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/10/08/get-a-sneak-peek-at-the-new-files-app Fri, 08 Oct 2010 15:38:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/10/08/get-a-sneak-peek-at-the-new-files-app
To try it out simply login to SnapPages and then to the following URL:

http://snappages.com/app/files

This is a an early release, so we'll be adding a few more features before launch but be sure to send us any feedback you have on it. Again, thanks to all our users who suggest great things like this. Keep the suggestions coming!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/10/08/get-a-sneak-peek-at-the-new-files-app#comments 6 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/28/test-drive-the-developer-account Tue, 28 Sep 2010 14:49:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/28/test-drive-the-developer-account
http://snappages.com/developer

and click on the "Get a Developer Account" button. You'll then be prompted to either start the trial or go ahead and fully purchase the upgrade. It should be self explanitory at this point, but just in case it's not, if you want to try it for free make sure and select the option "try it for free" and not the "buy now" option. Let me know if you have any questions about this and I'll be happy to answer them.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/28/test-drive-the-developer-account#comments 3 Nick Nick http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/24/hello-world Fri, 24 Sep 2010 12:39:15 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/24/hello-world
We also have a couple new faces here at SnapPages to help make all this possible. Nick and Charles have joined our family to help us speak more in the spaces where you, those interested in SnapPages, are hanging out. You can also expect more blog posts that deal with other issues beyond updates to our ever increasingly awesome product.

Don’t forget though, if you have a problem with your SnapPages website, submit a help ticket. That is still the best way for us to help you directly. Other than that, we are excited about coming out to play with the other kids. We love what we do, and it is our passion to help you do what you love doing.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/24/hello-world#comments 1 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/08/use-tabs-in-text-fields Wed, 08 Sep 2010 12:54:14 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/08/use-tabs-in-text-fields
]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/08/use-tabs-in-text-fields#comments 5 Steve Testone Steve Testone
AdSense is a very easy way to monetize your website and all you'll [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/03/new-google-adsense-integration Fri, 03 Sep 2010 16:32:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/03/new-google-adsense-integration
AdSense is a very easy way to monetize your website and all you'll need is a Google AdSense account to get started. If you don't have one, you can set one up directly in SnapPages. To setup your account or link to an existing account you can either try to add a Google AdSense web block to one of your pages and you'll be prompted to setup your account, or you can go into the setting tab on the home screen and look under the "plug-ins" section for the Google AdSense settings.

Once the account is setup you can place both text and image ads anywhere on your web pages. When users click on these ads a portion of the profits will go directly to your Google AdSense account. It's that easy. Use the link below to learn more about Google AdSense:

Learn More about Google AdSense >

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/09/03/new-google-adsense-integration#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone
If [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/08/26/image-issues Thu, 26 Aug 2010 13:02:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/08/26/image-issues
If anyone else has any additional issues please be sure to report them to the help desk as well as we are doing our best to address them as quickly as possible.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/08/26/image-issues#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/08/24/slideshows-are-now-iphoneipad-friendly Tue, 24 Aug 2010 14:22:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/08/24/slideshows-are-now-iphoneipad-friendly
The album links that show up next to the slideshow on the gallery pages are now completely in html for everyone. The reason I didn't leave these in flash at all was because they really didn't need to be since I could do all the same stuff with javascript.

If you are a non-technical person you probably don't care about all this and have just read blah blah blah iPhone. So the main point is that the slideshows will now display your photos on both the iPhone and the iPad.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/08/24/slideshows-are-now-iphoneipad-friendly#comments 6 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/08/16/the-new-photos-app-is-here Mon, 16 Aug 2010 15:37:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/08/16/the-new-photos-app-is-here
The new Photos app is finally here and it's live on the site for everyone to enjoy. The Photos app is one of our most popular tools but it was in need of a serious update because it was almost 3 years old and we've had a lot of requests for new features over the year. I've tried to incorporate as many of your suggestions and wishlist items as I could.

There are so many new features in this app that it's hard to know where to begin. The most obvious features you'll notice right off the back is the integration with other social networking sites that we've added directly into the app, but the more you use the app the more you'll see that just about everything in the app has been greatly improved.

3rd Party Integration
Now if you have photos stored on Facebook, Flickr, or Picasa, you can import them directly into your SnapPages photo library by easily dragging and dropping the photos from one album to another. When you connect with one of these 3rd party sites, all your albums from the other site will show up right alongside your SnapPages album. You can click on the albums and view the photos directly from the Photos app, and even drag them to and from the albums to import them to SnapPages or export them back out to the 3rd party site. Yes, it's as easy as it sounds!

Improved Photo Editing
The new Photos app comes with completely new photo editing features so that you can crop, adjust, and enhance your photos all online. This gives you all the power of professional photo editing software right on SnapPages. We've even include a new red-eye removal tool and a "save-as" feature so you can save a copy of your edited photo while keeping the original.

And Much More...

• Faster - Everything about this app is faster from imports to edits
• Improved photo imports
• Upload GIF and PNG images to use on your site
• Separate library for "graphics" so buttons and icons don't mix with photos
• Preview photos in the new 3D photo wall
• Reorder album photos from the main library window
• Improved tagging engine
• Optimized thumbnail zooming in library
• Redesigned UI to fit with other apps
• Photo edits now apply to source images
• Simpler album creation
• and more...

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/08/16/the-new-photos-app-is-here#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/07/29/import-from-picasa-in-the-new-photos-app Thu, 29 Jul 2010 11:57:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/07/29/import-from-picasa-in-the-new-photos-app
http://snappages.com/apps/photos

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/07/29/import-from-picasa-in-the-new-photos-app#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone Photo app for you to test drive. This week we've updated that app and added in support for Facebook and Flickr. Now you can connect your Facebook and your Flickr accounts to your SnapPages ones so [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/07/23/facebook-and-flickr-added-to-the-new-photos-app Fri, 23 Jul 2010 16:37:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/07/23/facebook-and-flickr-added-to-the-new-photos-app Photo app for you to test drive. This week we've updated that app and added in support for Facebook and Flickr. Now you can connect your Facebook and your Flickr accounts to your SnapPages ones so that you can import photos to SnapPages, or move your SnapPages photos to Facebook or Flickr. Now you can easily manage all of your online photos in one place. To move photos back and forth between the different services, all you have to do is drag and drop the photos from one album to another.

We'll be adding support for picassa next week as well as some other new features. Remember this is still a beta so it's not 100% finished. If you want to test these and the other new features out, log into your SnapPages account and then go to the following URL:

http://snappages.com/apps/photos

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/07/23/facebook-and-flickr-added-to-the-new-photos-app#comments 5 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/07/14/test-drive-the-new-photos-app Wed, 14 Jul 2010 16:55:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/07/14/test-drive-the-new-photos-app
For this, and many other reasons, I decided it was time to kick the old one to the curb and come up with something new. Now it's not completely ready to be launched but I decided to share it with you early if you want to start test driving it. If you want to try it out, all you need to do is login to your SnapPages account and then go to the following url:

http://snappages.com/apps/photos

That's it! If you do try it out please give me your feedback. We still have some other really cool features that we are adding before the launch, like the ability to import and export photos to other sites like facebook, flickr, and a few others. Enjoy!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/07/14/test-drive-the-new-photos-app#comments 11 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/05/19/its-time-to-update-your-theme Wed, 19 May 2010 13:21:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/05/19/its-time-to-update-your-theme
How do I know if my theme needs to be updated?
The easiest way to see if your theme needs to be updated is to visit your website and right-click anywhere on the header. If a flash menu pops up then you still have the old theme.

How do I update to the new versions?
If you simply go in to edit your theme and hit the "save" button, it will re-export it using the latest version and your theme will be updated. To be on the safe side, you can do a "save as" and export a new copy in case you want to keep your old theme. Then when the new copy is exported you will need to apply it to your site.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/05/19/its-time-to-update-your-theme#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/05/17/your-website-just-got-better Mon, 17 May 2010 14:26:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/05/17/your-website-just-got-better
Here's a quick list of most of the changes that you will notice on your sites:

• converted contact forms to html
• improved blog comment forms
• improved drop down menus with animation and drop shadows
• added indicators in the navigation to show that there is a drop down menu
• improved photo grids
• improved visual style of new buttons
• decreased load times by opmtimizing code

This is all just the beginning in a long series of updates we want to do to improve the websites in general. This was a big update and it will effect everyone so be sure to let us know if there are any issues you see with this update that we need to address. For instance there was a bug with the drop down menus in Internet Explorer that should be fixed now.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/05/17/your-website-just-got-better#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/04/13/new-integrated-tutorials Tue, 13 Apr 2010 14:53:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/04/13/new-integrated-tutorials
The idea behind it was that it while video tutorials are great, they can be difficult to create, and can quickly become obsolete if a feature is changed or a new feature is added. In addition to this, once you finish the video tutorial, you are still left with the task of actually going in and doing the work yourself, while trying to remember everything you learned in the video tutorial.

The integrated tutorials, on the other hand, are something different. They appear right in the app itself, while you are using the app, and teach you how to use it. This way you are both learning and doing at the same time.

As I said, this is really a test version to see how well it works so at the moment there is only one tutorial and you can find it by clicking on the new "need help?" link in the top right hand corner of the Web Pages app. The goal is to have several of these for learning how to do all sorts of things on SnapPages so let me know what you guys think.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/04/13/new-integrated-tutorials#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/22/server-upgrades Mon, 22 Mar 2010 19:05:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/22/server-upgrades
]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/22/server-upgrades#comments 1 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/20/scheduled-maintenance-tonight Sat, 20 Mar 2010 16:59:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/20/scheduled-maintenance-tonight
]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/20/scheduled-maintenance-tonight#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/17/create-pages-as-links Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:36:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/17/create-pages-as-links
To create one of these you simply create a new page in the Web Pages app and it will ask you if you want to create a standard page or a link page. When you select "link page" you just need to add a title and the url that you want the link to go to and that's it. Simple but effective.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/17/create-pages-as-links#comments 3 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/12/hangout-with-us-at-sxsw Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:07:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/12/hangout-with-us-at-sxsw
]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/12/hangout-with-us-at-sxsw#comments 1 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/11/new-template-desktop Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:08:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/11/new-template-desktop




]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/11/new-template-desktop#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone
If you want to know what caused this, basically we found that someone had [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/09/performance-issues-over-the-weekend Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:56:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/09/performance-issues-over-the-weekend
If you want to know what caused this, basically we found that someone had two linked feeds in their blog that were linking to each other and causing it to go into an infinite loop. This bogged our system down and was causing the speed reductions. We've fixed it so this can't happen again. Thanks again for your patience as we worked through this issue and we appreciate all of you who gave us feedback on this issue.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/09/performance-issues-over-the-weekend#comments 1 Steve Testone Steve Testone
You'll notice on this blog [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/08/new-addthis-retweet-and-facebook-plug-ins Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:51:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/08/new-addthis-retweet-and-facebook-plug-ins
You'll notice on this blog that at the top next to the comment count we have a "tweet" button and a "share" button for facebook. These, in addition to the new AddThis button that you see at the bottom of this post, are new plug-ins for the blog. You can enable these on your blog in the settings under the new "Plug-ins" tab. It's as simple as that. Just enable the plugin and it will automatically show up on your blog.

We've also added a new "AddThis" block that you can add to any web page and it will add the same AddThis button that you see on this blog to any page on your site. You can even set what URL you want shared in case it's not the same as the page the button is on. You can find this block in the "widgets" section of your web blocks in the page editor.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/03/08/new-addthis-retweet-and-facebook-plug-ins#comments 10 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/26/huge-performance-boost Fri, 26 Feb 2010 16:36:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/26/huge-performance-boost
As I've(and others) have suspected it was an issue with too much memory being required by the flash player and I couldn't really figure out what was causing this because nothing should be taking up that much memory, and on top of that I could never replicate the issue so that makes it hard to fix because it's sort of like shooting in the dark.

Thankfully with your help and feedback I've been able to determine that the spell checking that we added back in October was the culprit. You wouldn't really notice a problem until you added a lot of plain text blocks, then things start to really slow down. This is one of the reasons I didn't notice it because the text blocks should not be causing any memory issues because there isn't much to them. So to make a long story short, I've temporarily removed the spell check feature until we can ensure that it doesn't cause any further issues and everyone should see a huge boost in performance when they are editing their pages or blogs!

Thanks again to all of you who helped me get to the bottom of this one!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/26/huge-performance-boost#comments 1 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/18/developers-now-have-full-css-control Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:17:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/18/developers-now-have-full-css-control Developer account!

This was a feature that I wasn't sure was going to make it into the new Developer account we created, but I figured out a way to make it work so I just had to add it in there! This really opens up SnapPages to a new world of possibilities for users who know their way around a style sheet. You can basically make your website look however you want with this as we give you almost complete control over the CSS.

If you have a Developer account and you go to create a theme for either yourself or one of your clients, you will now see the option to create either a standard theme or a custom theme. If you select "custom" you will be taken into our CSS editor. When you start out we've given you a very basic CSS template as a starting point that you can modify however you like. If you don't want to use our editor, you can copy and paste it into any CSS editor you like and then when your done just copy and paste it back in. It's that easy.

You can create and share any custom theme with any of the active clients that you have in your Developer account, but those clients will not be able to edit the custom themes. You must have a Developer account in order to create or make changes to the custom themes.

This is obviously a very advanced feature which is why at this time we've decided to leave it only in the developer account. One of the main reasons that so many people love SnapPages is because it's so simple to use and adding this feature for everyone would certainly mess that up. Our ease of use is something that I take very seriously because it's so crucial to what SnapPages is. That's one of the reasons I'm so excited about the new Developer account, we now have a vehicle to add some of these advanced features without taking away any of the ease of use that all our Pro users currently enjoy.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/18/developers-now-have-full-css-control#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone new developer account, we're turning our attention to what next. I've decided that our number one priority before we move on to creating any new features should be to completely optimize all of our tools and squash [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/10/help-us-squash-bugs Wed, 10 Feb 2010 22:58:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/10/help-us-squash-bugs new developer account, we're turning our attention to what next. I've decided that our number one priority before we move on to creating any new features should be to completely optimize all of our tools and squash as many bugs as we possibly can so that everything runs faster and is more stable.

There are a lot of things that SnapPages does very well, but I know that there are some things that we can, and must, do much better and making our products more stable is one of them. We're committed to doing whatever is necessary in order to do this because that's what you deserve. We've already begun the process of going through much of the site with a fine tooth comb to see where can we speed things and how can we optimize. We might even be looking at upgrading our servers if we think it's needed.

Apart from these optimization efforts, I'm personally about to go on a massive bug hunt and I'm out to destroy any bugs I find with extreme prejudice. This will be a huge effort and we're going to need your help! If you know of any sort of glitch/bug/annoyance that we need to know about, I've created a new dedicated place in the forums to post these. Please let us know about any on going issues you are having here so that others can see them and comment if they are having the same issue as well. That way also we can get information from everyone having the issue so that we can find the problem and solve it. Here is a link to the bug report in the forums:

http://forums.snappages.com/forumdisplay.php?f=30

When you post here it would be very helpful for us to know things like what operating system you are on(Windows XP, Vista, Mac OSX...) and what browser you are using(Internet Explorer 6,7,8, Firefox, Safari...). Also try to keep in mind that we already have an area in the forums to post feature suggestions so it would be helpful as well if we can keep the bugs and the wishlist separate.

Thanks again for being the best users in the world, we really could not do this without your support and the great feedback you give us.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/10/help-us-squash-bugs#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone just released a statement [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/08/potential-fix-for-mac-crashes Mon, 08 Feb 2010 22:57:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/08/potential-fix-for-mac-crashes just released a statement over the weekend that explained how a bug in the flash player that has gone un-fixed for quite some time may be to blame for these issues our users are experiencing.

Basically they claim that this is fixed in the next release of the flash player which is currently in beta. I would recommend anyone that is having issues with SnapPages(or any site with flash content) on their Mac go ahead and try the new beta version of this flash player to see if it fixes the issue. Also it would be helpful if you could report back whether or not this helps. Here is a link where you can download the beta version of the new plugin from adobe:

http://labs.adobe.com/downloads/flashplayer10.html

Keep in mind that this is a beta version of their flash plugin so it might still have some bugs in it as well, but from what they are saying this version should be more stable then what's out there right now.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/08/potential-fix-for-mac-crashes#comments 9 Steve Testone Steve Testone Developer Account is finally live on the site! We've been working very hard on this for a while now and we are very excited to finally show it off. Our goal was to make easier for web designers to use SnapPages to create sites for their clients. With the new developer [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/05/new-developer-account Fri, 05 Feb 2010 17:46:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/05/new-developer-account Developer Account is finally live on the site! We've been working very hard on this for a while now and we are very excited to finally show it off. Our goal was to make easier for web designers to use SnapPages to create sites for their clients. With the new developer account, not only do you get a simple way to manage multiple accounts, you get an entire project management system, your own personal support ticketing system for your clients, an invoice creator, and a whole lot more! Watch the quick demo video below to see what I'm talking about, then you can read the detailed description of some features after the video.



We've made the entire process of creating a site for a client, as easy as possible from start to finish. Here's a quick rundown of some of the things that make these tools so great:

Simple Account Creation
You can easily create new accounts for your clients directly through the developer central tool that you get when you upgrade to a Developer Account. Also we make it easy to add existing SnapPages accounts into the system as well. You just send an existing user a request to gain admin access to their site. Once they accept, they will be added as an active client to your account.

Developer Discounts
A lot of you that sign up for multiple accounts have been begging for some sort of a discount so we only think it fair that we include one with this. It's basically a tiered volume discounting and the more active clients you have the more you save on new accounts.

One-click Logins
After you add clients you can simply login to their account through a new drop down menu on the main SnapPages menu bar. You just click on a clients name in the menu and you will automatically gain access to their account.

Project Management
We've also included a way for you to keep track of all the projects that you are working on with your clients. You can create a new project for each client, then inside the project you create milestones, or basically a to-do list of tasks that need to be accomplished before the project is complete. These milestones can be assigned to either you or your client so everyone knows who is responsible for what.

Client File Storage
When you work with clients, sometimes there can be a lot of assets that go along with creating the websites. For instance they might give you all the content in different word docs or PDFs. So we've created a central place that both you and your client can upload these files while you are working on projects for them.

Help Desks
I know from personal experience that when you get a lot of clients, it can be hard to keep track of all the things that they need help with our questions they might have. A support ticketing system is a very easy way to keep track of all these issues. We've built one right into developer central for this very reason.

Invoice Creator
When you are finished with a project, we've create a simple tool that will send out invoices to your clients that they can download in PDF form. Also when you use the system to manage your invoices, you can keep track of which ones are outstanding and which ones have been paid for every client. You can even setup recurring invoices in case you bill on a monthly schedule.

Client Connect App
When you become a developer you will get a new app in your account called "Developer Central" that has all the developer tools in it. When you add a client to your account, they will get an app called "Client Connect". This app basically allows them to interact with you on different things like projects and milestones. This is also where they can submit support tickets and view invoices that are due.

There are a few other perks you get with this system and you can learn more on the information page on our website found here. We hope that this will make some of your jobs a whole lot easier, and we're committed to making this system better and better so send us any feedback you might have on it.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/02/05/new-developer-account#comments 7 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/01/20/new-home-screen Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:12:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/01/20/new-home-screen
The real reason for the update is that I had to make some changes to the home screen to pave the way for some really cool new features that we'll be adding very shortly. Most of them have to do with the new developer tools that we're getting ready to release. So if you use SnapPages to develop sites for other people, now would be the time to start getting excited.

We started out building the developer tools with the goal in mind of making it easier for developers to create sites for their clients and we've ended up going a little overboard (in a good way). Basically we've created an entire client/project management system that is fully integrated with SnapPages and it's all super easy to use. We are very close to releasing this, in fact we already have a few people testing it out already, so keep your eyes peeled for more news!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/01/20/new-home-screen#comments 5 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/01/15/new-paypal-buttons Fri, 15 Jan 2010 14:46:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/01/15/new-paypal-buttons
All you need is a PayPal business account to get started. Then you can just drag and drop a PayPal button on a page and you're done! We've added several settings that you can use to customize these buttons. You set the name of the item you're selling, the price, and currency. You can even choose a button style that looks like the default PayPal buttons (yellow and blue) or ones that automatically match your existing theme.

There are three types of buttons to choose from. You can add a "Buy Now" button for selling a single item, an "Add to Cart" button for collecting multiple items into shopping carts, and a "Donation" button that allows user to make donations right on your site. I realize that this solution might not be the full blown e-commerce store some of you might be waiting on, but for a lot of you, this should be all you need to get started selling online.

We've got a lot more updates that I'm really excited about coming up in the near future so stay tuned for that.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2010/01/15/new-paypal-buttons#comments 7 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/12/28/new-advanced-page-settings Mon, 28 Dec 2009 13:54:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/12/28/new-advanced-page-settings

• Set a custom url for the page so it doesn't have to be the same as the page title.
• Edit the pages title tag
• Add custom keywords to the page
• Create a custom page desription

These settings should greatly help you optimize your pages for search engines. Also, because we've separated the page title from the page url, you can now have foreign characters in your page titles and it should still create a valid url.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/12/28/new-advanced-page-settings#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/12/10/design-tip-2-your-logo-says-it-all Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:27:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/12/10/design-tip-2-your-logo-says-it-all
Your logo is not your family crest.
I think a big issue that people run into with their logos is that they think they need to convey who their company is through their logo. Your logo Should say something about your company but it doesn't need to say everything about your company. A good logo should be simple and memorable. It doesn't really have to say a whole lot, it just needs to be unique and look good.

Look professional.
Not everyone in the world is a designer, but most people could probably tell you if your logo looked like it was designed by a professional or not. This is an important thing to understand in an online world because you have a very small amount of time to make a great impression. You want people to instantly feel like your business is an established professional organization and a logo can be a huge part of this brand perception. One of our big goals with SnapPages is to ensure that your website looks professional for this very reason.

Your logo doesn't have to be a graphic.
I think people also have the preconceived notion of what a logo needs to be. Your company logo does not have to be a piece of art. A simple clean logo with nothing but text is a lot better then a bad graphic. If you don't believe you can have a great logo without having any graphics, or you need an example, take a look at microsofts logo.



Don't marry your logo.
Times change so don't be afraid to change your logo. Some people are really afraid that if they change their logo from what it has always been that their customers won't recognize them anymore, but this just simply isn't true. As long as you don't change your logo too often, this communicates to your customers that you are committed to improvement. There are countless numbers of very large companies that have successfully done this and been better for it. Just imagine having this on the back of your iphone...



I want to change, but I just need some help.
Alright, so some of you might be thinking it's about time to get a new logo, but you don't know anyone who can do this for you and you're a bit intimidated. That's okay, there are some great online resources out there that can help you through this process and don't cost an arm and a leg. I've listed a few below:

http://99designs.com/
http://brandstack.com/

If you guys know of anymore great resources like this be sure to list them in the comments section.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/12/10/design-tip-2-your-logo-says-it-all#comments 1 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/12/07/new-twitter-blocks Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:17:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/12/07/new-twitter-blocks
One of the blocks is called simply a "Tweet" block and it is basically will put a widget on your page that can either show all the recent tweets from your Twitter account, or it can show real-time search results for a certain keyword or phrase. The latter is pretty neat because it makes it easy to create a widget that shows what people on twitter are saying about a certain topic. This widget is actually the same widget that you can get off Twitters official site, the difference is that we've taken out several of the steps and our version will automatically update itself with the colors of your websites theme.

The other block will simply create a "follow me" button that users can click on to link to your Twitter account. This button comes in several different styles and it's something that can also be grabbed off Twitters official site, but again we've just taken out a few steps so that it's much easier to place it on your site.

Let me know what you guys think about updates like this. We hope to start doing more integration with 3rd party sites so it would be helpful to know if these are the sort of things that you would like to see more of.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/12/07/new-twitter-blocks#comments 5 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/30/new-feature-duplicate-your-pages Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:23:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/30/new-feature-duplicate-your-pages
Again it's the great feedback that we get from all of you that will really helps to make SnapPages the best it can be, so thanks for all the suggestions and keep them coming!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/30/new-feature-duplicate-your-pages#comments 3 Steve Testone Steve Testone new theme exchange area that we recently added, I've created another theme template to create themes from. I noticed that out of the last templates [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/20/new-template-stacks Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:24:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/20/new-template-stacks new theme exchange area that we recently added, I've created another theme template to create themes from. I noticed that out of the last templates that we added, the most popular one by far was also the simplest one called titled "Minimalist" so I've decided to create another template that is unique but maintains this same style of simplicity. Also a big new addition is that this theme actually has a vertical navigation as opposed to a horizontal one. We will be adding a lot more templates in the future, so check out Stacks and the theme exchange if you haven't yet.

Stacks



]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/20/new-template-stacks#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/16/the-new-theme-exchange Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:44:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/16/the-new-theme-exchange
Sharing your themes is easy. When you are managing your list of themes, you can roll over a theme and simply select the "share" button. A window will then pop-up giving you two options to share your theme. You can either share your theme with everyone and it will be posted to the theme exchange, or you can send a theme directly to another user if you know their username. The thinking behind the share direct feature is that this might make it easier for developers to create themes specifically for their clients that they might not want shared on the exchange.

This is still in it's early stages, but the hope with the theme exchange is that this area will grow over time as we learn how users are using it so your feedback will be very important. I believe the theme exchange has a huge potential to benefit all SnapPages users no matter what level your skills as a designer are. It never hurts to see what others are doing and gain inspiration or a starting point for a new design.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/16/the-new-theme-exchange#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone
We [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/15/new-redesign Thu, 15 Oct 2009 23:19:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/15/new-redesign
We received a very large amount of user submissions, so it wasn't possible to display them all, but we will be rotating them out periodically. So if you submitted one and you don't see it up there, it might still go up at a later date. Thank you to everyone who sent their site in. I've been really impressed with what a lot of you have been doing so keep up the great work!

There were several other reasons for the redesign as I mentioned, but of course as always a huge one was just because I obsess over design and I was really getting bored of the old one. I believe it is an overall improvement, but let me know what you think.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/15/new-redesign#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/12/spell-check Mon, 12 Oct 2009 14:47:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/12/spell-check
You'll now notice that a lot of areas in SnapPages will now have red squiggly lines all over the place(for me at least) because we've added some basic spell checking into the system. I've personally corrected several mistakes while just typing this post. The system isn't 100% fool proof yet and it only officially supports the English language but it should still be a dramatic improvement.

We should have some other significant updates launching later this week so be sure to be on the look out for those as well.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/10/12/spell-check#comments 5 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/26/new-domain-name-application Sat, 26 Sep 2009 11:33:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/26/new-domain-name-application
One big problem most domain companies have is the check out process is very confusing. You search for a domain name, then you go to buy it, and suddenly they've added so many extra features along the checkout process that you have no idea what you're getting or why your getting it. We've made the purchasing process simple and easy to understand so that you know exactly what you are purchasing.

If you thought purchasing a domain name with other companies was difficult, then you surely found that managing that domain name is even more complicated. Their control panels are usually not very intuitive and they use a lot of technical lingo that most people don't understand. I'm willing to bet that only a very small percentage of people have any idea what a cname record or a nameserver even is. With SnapPages new domain name application, we've taken the guess work out of it by presenting things plainly and simply, without all the technical jargon, so that you can understand what you are doing. Of course we also offer an "advanced" settings area where you can manage all these things manually if you have the technical expertise to do so.

You can manage multiple domain names with the application and you can point those domain names where ever you like. So if you have several websites you manage but want to manage all the domain names in one place, you can do so. Also if you've already purchased domain names elsewhere but you want to have the ease of use that SnapPages offers, you can transfer your domain names into our system as well.

In addition to domain names, we also offer other add-ons like private registration and branded email accounts. All of these can be purchased at anytime through the system. The domain name application is now live on the site and will probably remain in beta for another month or so. Please be sure to send us any feedback or issues that you have with it.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/26/new-domain-name-application#comments 23 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/25/design-tip-1-line-it-up Fri, 25 Sep 2009 11:13:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/25/design-tip-1-line-it-up
One thing that can make a dramatic difference in your designs is a basic understanding of "alignment", which basically means how elements in your design line up with other elements in your design. You might not realize it, but the human eye does a very good job of lining things up. For instance, you might not be able to draw a straight line, but you can probably very easily recognize a straight line when you see one. The other thing you might not realize is that your mind is constantly drawing imaginary lines between different objects, and when those imaginary lines are straight, meaning that the objects are aligned, this becomes more appealing to the viewer.

If you don't believe me, then think about this, which looks more appealing, a pile of papers or a neat stack of papers? Now you might think that you aren't particularly bothered by a pile of papers, but I think we would all agree that a neat stack looks more "professional". This same idea can be carried into basic design principals. When the elements in your design are neatly lined up, then it just looks more professional.

Observe the two images below to see what I mean:



You'll notice that the header text on the left is neatly lined up with the body content of your website which creates a nice appealing image. In the image on the right, none of the text is lined up which creates an image in your mind that is a little chaotic and looks less professional. Also you'll notice that the text in the header on the right looks cramped because it's so close to the edge of the page. So whenever possible, try to keep elements on your page lined up and I think you'll start to notice a big difference in how professional your designs start to look.

Please let me know if you found this article helpful as it will probably encourage me to write more. Also if you have specific design questions or you have some tips of your own be sure to let me know so that I can share them in future articles.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/25/design-tip-1-line-it-up#comments 3 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/22/slideshow-updates Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:52:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/22/slideshow-updates
Also while I was at it, I improved the overall UI of the slideshow controls because I thought they could be a little cooler and I'm obsessive like that. In addition to the slideshow update I also updated the album links so that they load faster and overall work better. So thanks again for the great suggestions, keep them coming!



UPDATE: I've also just added some additional options to the default gallery page itself. Now if you click on your gallery page in the My Pages application, you'll see some extra options to use either a 3D Gallery or a Photo Grid if you don't want to use the default slide show. Also in these options you can turn the album labels back on so you don't have to rollover albums to see their titles.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/22/slideshow-updates#comments 8 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/08/submit-your-site-to-be-featured Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:01:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/08/submit-your-site-to-be-featured
To submit your site, either leave us a comment with a url to your site below, or email featured@snappages.com with the url of your website. Please also mention one short sentence describing what your website is about.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/08/submit-your-site-to-be-featured#comments 25 Steve Testone Steve Testone
3D Gallery [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/04/new-3d-galleries-and-photo-effects Fri, 04 Sep 2009 17:21:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/04/new-3d-galleries-and-photo-effects
3D Gallery



In addition to this we've added another new web block called a "Photo Grid". It basically displays the photos as a grid of thumbnails that you can click on to get a full view of the photo.

Photo Grid



We've also added some new photo effects and photo frames that you can apply to any image on your website for a little bit of added personality. Both of the new gallery types are pro features but the new effects can be used by anyone.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/09/04/new-3d-galleries-and-photo-effects#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone
In case [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/28/urls-without-extensions Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:12:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/28/urls-without-extensions
In case you are still confused about what exactly this means, or why you would use it, here is a small example:

Let's say you were sending out an email promotion or going to a conference. You wanted a way to track anybody that comes to your website that gets a handout at the conference. One way to do this would be to create a special page on your website just for people who get the brochure. You could simply title this page "brochure". So the url for this page could now look something like "http://mywebsite.com/brochure", as opposed to "http://mywebsite.com/brochure.htm".

Basically it just makes the url prettier and easier to remember.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/28/urls-without-extensions#comments 3 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/21/billboard-editor-fixedupdated Fri, 21 Aug 2009 13:54:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/21/billboard-editor-fixedupdated
I took a lot of things that I had done in the theme update and incorporated them into the billboard editor as well. For instance you can now add multiple text and shape objects. There are also several fonts to choose from now, and effects that can be applied to the text. Also it should take less time to export the billboard once you are done editing it.

In addition to these just about every other area of the billboard editor has been imrpoved. We've been rolling out a ton of new updates this summer and have no plans to stop or slow down so be sure to check back here often for more updates.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/21/billboard-editor-fixedupdated#comments 0 Steve Testone Steve Testone theme update, and now we've made another big update to the My Pages application. I'm very excited about this one because we have [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/07/custom-htmljavascript-added-and-more Fri, 07 Aug 2009 17:14:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/07/custom-htmljavascript-added-and-more theme update, and now we've made another big update to the My Pages application. I'm very excited about this one because we have finally added the most requested feature everyone has been asking for. With a pro account, you can now add your own custom html code and scripts to any page on your site!

The new web block is called a "code box" and it does pretty much what it sounds like it would do. It gives you a little box that you can dump whatever code you want into and it will run securely on your pages. You can now easily embed just about any third party widget that you want, or even add some custom html tables. The input box even has syntax highlighting and allows for the "tab" character so it will work like it's own mini code editor.

And if all that wasn't enough I also made a ton of improvements to the interface, added some other new features, and fixed a lot of little bugs. Here's a quick list of most of the improvements that were made:

• Custom code box added!
• Imroved interface for adding web blocks
• Added descriptions for web blocks so you know what they do
• Images with effects or frames added will now display as images instead of flash files so that pages will load faster and be more compatible with mobile browsers
• The blog posts block that displays your latest blog posts can now be filtered to only show updates from certain categories
• The folders in the page list menu are now collapsible
• Improved menus for web blocks
• Headings can now be centered and aligned to the right
• Improved image uploading
• Fixed several smaller bugs that would lock up the editor

I hope you guys enjoy this one. As with any big update there might be a few issues that pop up here or there, so be sure to let us know about any you find as soon as possible. We've got even more big updates on the way as well so keep sending us your suggestions. Other then that, happy coding!

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/07/custom-htmljavascript-added-and-more#comments 11 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/06/use-the-same-email-address-for-multiple-accounts Thu, 06 Aug 2009 11:48:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/06/use-the-same-email-address-for-multiple-accounts
I know this might seem like a small thing to some of you, but for those of you that have had this issue, I think it will help out a lot. We plan on releasing another big update pretty soon so keep your eyes on this blog for more information.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/08/06/use-the-same-email-address-for-multiple-accounts#comments 3 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/07/17/upgrade-before-august-1st-and-save Fri, 17 Jul 2009 14:11:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/07/17/upgrade-before-august-1st-and-save
We now offer two different ways to upgrade to a Pro account. You can pay on a monthly basis or annually. The new monthly amount is $8 per month and the new yearly amount will be $80 per year. The good news is for those of you who have already upgraded or for anyone who upgrades before August 1st, you will be locked in at our current $50 per year rate for as long as you own the account. We've suprisingly got a lot of feedback from users telling us that we should raise our prices. I'm sure that's not something that happens often but I take it as a huge compliment and a testiment to how much our users love SnapPages.

We love our users too and wanted a way to say thanks to all of you who have signed up with us during our first year. That's why we are locking you in at the current introductory pricing. As usual we also still offer our 30 day free trial, but if you are currently in the trial and thinking about upgrading be sure to do it before August 1st to take advantage of the lower prices.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/07/17/upgrade-before-august-1st-and-save#comments 4 Steve Testone Steve Testone
The My Themes application has been completely reworked and it's now better then [...]]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/07/13/the-theme-update-is-here Mon, 13 Jul 2009 18:02:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/07/13/the-theme-update-is-here
The My Themes application has been completely reworked and it's now better then ever. Here are just a few highlights of this update:

• save multiple themes
• three new theme templates to choose from
• change you themes fonts
• add custom backgrounds to themes
• customize buttons
• add unlimited number of text boxes
• modify text box fonts
• add effects to text boxes
• improved interface
• tons of new graphics and fills
• change theme font size

Not only has the My Themes application been updated, but the themes themselves have been dramatically changed. The original themes all had a flash header but now when you save your theme, it will be completely in html. This is great for several reasons, like it now loads almost 10x faster and your site will be more compatiable with mobile browsers.

A new area has also been added but hasn't gone live yet, and that's the Theme Exchange area. I'm very excited about this new feature as it will allow all the SnapPages users to share themes they've created with each other. I'll have more information on this later.

In addition to the theme udpate we've also launched a new update to our billing system that is also a pretty dramatic improvement. For instance you can now pay monthly and we even except paypal as a payment form now. I'll post more on this later as well.

Many of these changes where things that a lot of you have been asking for for a long time so I'm very happey to have been able to implement so many of them. Like with any update of this magnitude, there are bound to be a few glitches here and there so please let me know if something isn't working properly either in the forums or by submitting a help ticket.

I'll be posting more details about this update in the coming days because there is just so much that I can't fit it in one post. So please go try it out and let me know what you think! I'm excited to see what you guys will use it to create.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/07/13/the-theme-update-is-here#comments 7 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/07/02/sneak-a-peek-at-the-new-themes Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:56:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/07/02/sneak-a-peek-at-the-new-themes
Minimamlist



Tantrum



Aurora



]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/07/02/sneak-a-peek-at-the-new-themes#comments 10 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/06/18/follow-our-adventures-on-twitter Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:35:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/06/18/follow-our-adventures-on-twitter
I'm a Twitter newb myself so also if you guys have any suggestions about how you would like to see us make better use of it, feel free to let us know.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/06/18/follow-our-adventures-on-twitter#comments 2 Steve Testone Steve Testone http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/06/09/using-linked-feeds-to-import-blogs-and-more Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:49:00 +0000 http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/06/09/using-linked-feeds-to-import-blogs-and-more
The solution that we came up with was to not fully import blogs from somewhere else, but essentially allow you to subscribe to other rss feeds in such a way that they will show up along side your blog posts. We call these "linked feeds". You'll notice that all of our older posts have icons next to them indicating that it is a linked feed and if you click on one of those it will actually take you to our old blog.

This really allows you to do a bunch of cool things. For instance you can import older blogs using this method, but let's say you wanted to have a blog with multiple authors. Well they could each setup a blog on SnapPages (or anywhere else really) and then just link to all of there RSS feeds and they would all show up in one place. You can also really link to anything with an RSS feed this way. So you could display all your twitter updates along side your blog posts as well. Or if that get's too cluttered you can choose to seperate out your linked feeds from your regular posts.

To use this feature just go into the My Blog application and go into the "options" section and click on the "Linked Feeds" tab. Here you can add feeds by simply pasting the url of any RSS feed. This feature has actually been on the site for a couple weeks now while we were testing it so a few of you might have stumbled on it already, but if you haven't yet, be sure to try it out and give us your feedback on it.

]]> http://blog.snappages.com/blog/2009/06/09/using-linked-feeds-to-import-blogs-and-more#comments 6