Friday, May 31, 2013

32-year-old Doncaster woman attended the Box Hill station to report for bail took a Toblerone bar

Senior Sergeant Wayne Williams said the woman took a Toblerone bar from a charity fundraising box on the front counter. She tucked it under her arm and walked out of the station, but the nutty plan was foiled.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

BUNNINGS has been given the green light to build a new flagship store along with 385 apartments in Doncaster

BUNNINGS has been given the green light to build a new flagship store along with 385 apartments, in an Australian-first project approved by the Manningham Council.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Doncaster woman arrested over handbag thefts

A 38-year-old woman has been charged over a series of handbag thefts at Doncaster shopping centres.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Monday, May 27, 2013

Doncaster Rail Study Leader, Tim Gosbell, provides a presentation

Doncaster Rail Study Leader, Tim Gosbell, provides a presentation outlining the findings and preferred alignment of the Phase One Study into a heavy rail connection between Doncaster and the Melbourne CBD. ... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Elderly man on scooter refused service at McDonald's drive-through in Doncaster

AN elderly man is outraged after he was refused service at a McDonald's drive-through on his motorised mobility scooter. ... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

NOTE: The original article indicates the McDonalds is in Doncaster East. The McDonalds is quite a few kilometres away from Doncaster East and is located in Doncaster. Many people may think the McDonalds is located in Templestowe Lower being on the corner of High Street and Manningham Roads, but due to an interesting alignment of location boundaries this area is part of Doncaster.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Elderly man from Doncaster fights for life after hit-and-run

An elderly man is fighting for life in hospital after his vehicle flipped onto its side during hit-and-run in the state's north-east last week.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Eddie Illingworth's skills at baseball and cricket have been acknowledged.

The 74-year-old Glen Iris resident was recently inducted into the Melbourne Cricket Club's baseball section Hall of Fame and, on the same night, was named in the Fitzroy Doncaster Cricket Club Hall of Fame.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Doncaster murderer loses appeal.

A Doncaster man who fatally stabbed a 17-year-old outside a Box Hill service station has lost a Supreme Court appeal to reduce his 19-year murder sentence.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Friday, May 10, 2013

Doncaster rail promise by current Liberal government won't show progress as promised.

At the last State election I stood as an independent. I spoke to one of the people handing out leaflets for Nicholas Kotsiras. They believed in their hearts they would make it happen. I believed it was a promise they would most likely not keep. People thought the Liberals had committed to building the rail. All I could see was a commitment for yet another study.

DONCASTER Rail looks set to be placed off-track for at least another four years, the State Budget has confirmed, raising the ire of public transport advocates and the Opposition.... Read More

Political parties always make promises they won’t keep and yet 80% of voters vote for them. In the end voters really get what they deserve and that is broken promises. Come the next election we’ll see the next round of broken promises and flurry of spending coming up to the election to keep everyone happy. Then we’ll go back into the cycle of backtracking on the promises. The rail was the Liberal’s single main promise and those who think they’d see dirt turned on the project didn’t really check out what was really being said.

I also don’t blame people for not voting for independents. A number of current Federal independents went against the majority of the people in their electorate and aligned with the Labor Party. When I see that I wouldn’t vote for an independent. Independents should remain independent and not align with a party. They should vote for each issue based on the will of their electorate. That is what I intended to do but the public voted and I accept they didn’t want that approach.

I am neither for or against the building of the new rail line. It is for all the residents of Manningham to decide if that is what they need and want. I’m not sure the proposed plan will help many locals and I feel real feedback from locals is needed to really gauge the value of a new rail line. Ask yourself the question. If a rail line was built to the bus exchange at the corner of High Street and Doncaster Road would you use it and give up your car? I suspect the answer for most people will be no. Be truthful to yourself and the government will make better decisions. We shouldn’t listen to the small group of people who make loud noises in their own interests or the Local and State government who want to be seen to be doing something. We should make decisions for the good of as many people as possible.

 

My real desire is to encourage people to work locally providing products and services to other locals. Then our need to travel for work is reduced reducing the number of cars on the road and the cost of expensive infrastructure.

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Melbourne bus driver caught reading newspaper while driving on Manningham Road Doncaster

A bus driver is in hot water after being caught apparently reading a newspaper while negotiating traffic on a busy road in Melbourne's north-east.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Search Australia new features including searching using your choice of Google, Bing or Yahoo, quick access to a JustLocal postcode page and check if you're using the preferred Australian English spelling.

Search Australia was added to JustLocal to give those who wish to search a search engine which focuses on Australian sites and removes many of the directories which have now taken over the internet. I’m pretty happy that if I search for ‘fish and chips’ in a local suburb, if the business has a web presence I can now see their page. Of course many small businesses don’t have a web presence which doesn’t help them or their customers. I’ve shown a number of local businesses how a site I’ve put on the internet for them can generate hundreds of leads a month but in the end they don’t seem to care.

The worst example of not providing up-to-date information is when I went into a fish and chip shop in Doncaster Road. After placing the order via telephone the order was some 15% dearer. Every customer was complaining because like me they were ordering from an out-of-date menu and the business decided to increase their prices without letting them know. Had the business put their menu on the internet I would have known before I ordered and so potentially could everyone else. I’ve never used the business again so an out-of-date menu can and does lose businesses customers. A single page site assists hundreds of customers a year and is easily paid for by a single repeat customer. Small business can’t see if they don’t provide the tools people need they’ll go elsewhere and the bigger companies ARE providing online menus.

But I digress. The real purpose of this post is to let users of JustLocal know of three new features I’ve added to Search Australia, the search engine available on every JustLocal page and also available as an Add-in to Internet Explorer. If you add a single letter at the start of the search phrase you can select your preferred search engine, go to a JustLocal postcode page, or find out if you’re using the preferred Australian English spelling for a word.

1. Type in g, b, or y and go directly to Google, Bing or Yahoo. If you add a space and then your search query (such as ‘g fish and chips templestowe’) you’ll get search results for local fish and chips shops without all the directories. That is hopefully if they have a site you’ll get the actual business’ site.

2. Type in j and you’ll go to JustLocal. Type in j followed by a space and a postcode (such as ‘j 3106’) and you’ll go to the JustLocal postcode page. That’s a pretty convenient method to go direct to your local JustLocal postcode page. Keep in mind if your area isn’t covered you’ll get a place holder page with generic ads. As soon as a business or person in your area takes up the mantle to promote JustLocal in your area the generic page will be replaced with local information.

3. Type in w followed by a word and you’ll go direct to the Word Check page to check if you are using the preferred Australian English spelling for a word. You do need a password to see the answer. All clients of mine are provided with the password. In fact if you use Search Australia from JustLocal and type in ‘dictionary’, you’ll have access to Word Check for a while. A thank you for trying out Search Australia.

On top of removing dozens of directories now cluttering search results when using Google (not Bing or Yahoo) and the ability to enter a single word or couple of words to go to the top searched for sites by millions of users, these new features should make Search Australian even more useful. Clients are welcome to request the list of top site search terms. I don’t currently publish the terms on the internet because of the work involved collating the list so please feel free to ask for a copy to assist you in your searches.

Don’t forget, the most convenient way to use Search Australia is to use the link to add Search Australia as your default search engine in Internet Explorer. Then you can perform a search direct from the address bar in Internet Explorer. If everyone in Australia used Search Australia (heaven forbid as my server wouldn’t hold up to it) if could potentially save many hundreds of millions of searches when people are looking for major Australian companies, a TV guide and even the weather. Search engines want you to end up on their page to make money from advertising. I want you to get quickly to the site you want to get to.

For me the real test of whether or not something I’ve developed is worthwhile is whether I use it myself or not. Search Australia is my preferred search tool. It doesn’t stop me from using Google, and in fact if I want to use Google I simply enter the letter ‘g’ and I go direct to Google. I can quickly decide which search engine I’d prefer and not be stuck with just one. With one or two words I access most of the popular sites such as ANZ, eBay, Gumtree, Freeview (TV guide) etc., so it makes sense to use Search Australia rather than end up hunting through Google results that have become so cluttered. I hope you find Search Australia useful too.

 

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Doncaster murderer loses appeal.

A Doncaster man who fatally stabbed a 17-year-old outside a Box Hill service station has lost a Supreme Court appeal to reduce his 19-year murder sentence.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

The proposed tower, at 101-105 Tram Road, is expected to include 201 apartments and 245 parking spaces

The Manningham Council last week approved a 13-storey apartment tower in the city’s Doncaster Hill development zone. ... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Phase One of the Doncaster Rail Study Report Information Sessions

The first information session will be in person, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm on Thursday 16 May 2013 at the Manningham Function Centre, Function Room 2, 699 Doncaster Road, Doncaster 3108... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Alert: Please log off Google services such as Gmail and YouTube when using my sites.

Disturbingly I’m now seeing up to 50 per cent of people reaching my sites who may be logged on to a Google service and so could be tracked at the individual level.

I use Google’s blogger, Analytics and sometimes Google advertising on my sites. If you are logged on to a Google service your activities can be linked to you as an individual. What you are doing on the internet can thus potentially be tracked to you as an individual.

What people don’t know is when you visit a site which has advertising on it, that advertising is often provided by Google. Many sites use Google’s Analytics software to record statistics for their sites. As you move from site to site your activities can potentially be recorded as an individual.

As you read the major daily news sites, as you search for information, when you go to many sites on the internet your activities can be tracked to you as an individual. In addition it is also possible your location is being tracked without your knowledge because often the internet address you use to access the internet is known to be in a certain area.

It is up to each person to decide whether this matters to them or not. If it does matter to you then consider logging out of all Google services (and potentially other services). When you are logged on to services you can be tracked individually and a profile of you and your activities can be created. Some of this information can potentially end up in the wrong hands. The most obvious outcome is you’ll be directly marketed to and could end up paying more for products and services.

We can’t stop the government and companies collecting information, but most people aren’t aware that their activities on the internet can be tracked to them individually. Because more than 90% of Australians use Google for searching, if they are logged on to Google services (my logs are indicating up to 50% of people may be logged onto a Google service when they reach my sites) then your activities across the internet may be being recorded.

Log off online services as soon as you are finished with them. Don’t keep services such as Gmail and YouTube logged on and running in the background. This doesn’t just apply to Google. Any service that you are logged in and has software they’ve created installed on another site could be doing the same. The type of services that come to mind are social networking services. Where a site you visit displays a button from a social networking service you don’t know what that code does and neither do I. The code could be tracking you. By logging off you reduce some of your online activities being tracked.

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Body found in Chadstone car park identified

A man whose body was found in a car park at Melbourne's biggest shopping centre has been identified as a 28-year-old Doncaster man, police said on Wednesday afternoon.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Rescue hero Geoffrey Stephens' bravery is being honoured

IT TOOK a couple of weeks for Geoffrey Stephens to realise the enormity of what he had done. ... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Ambulance Employees Australia general secretary Steve McGhie said nine paramedics had taken their lives in the past five years

Ambulance Employees Australia general secretary Steve McGhie said nine paramedics had taken their lives in the past five years, including a woman found dead at the Templestowe depot last month.... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.