Question 1

What is Smart Grid?

Accepted Answer

This video focuses on the basic ideas that make up the smart grid, which is the next generation of the network that delivers electricity to our homes. It teaches:

What's wrong with the current grid
What makes the grid "smart"
How it will help us reduce the use of fossil fuels
How it will help us reduce blackouts
How smart meters will help us manage electricity usage

Video Transcript:

It’s easy to take electricity for granted. But modern life would not be possible without it. To keep it going, we need more efficient ways to manage electricity.

For over one hundred years, coal and other fossil fuels have been used by power plants to produce the electricity we use every day. The Grid is a network of power lines and substations that carry electricity from power plants to homes and businesses.

Today, the grid has problems. It needs updating and is running at capacity. When power lines break or powerplants can’t produce enough power, blackouts can occur – and that’s a problem that can cause fatalities.

At the same time, today’s grid often relies on a single power source and doesn’t provide detailed information on usage, making electricity difficult to manage.

To address these problems in the past, we simply built new power plants. But now we can work toward sustainability and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels by using a smarter grid.

Here’s how…

The Smart Grid means adding sensors and software to the existing grid that will give utilities and individuals new information that will help them understand and react to changes quickly.

Let’s say a tree falls on a powerline and one thousand homes lose power. With the current grid, utility employees often physically re-route power, which takes time.

With the Smart Grid, sensors and software would detect and immediately route the power around the problem, limiting the issue to fewer homes.

And there’s more. The price of electricity changes throughout the day, but we can’t see it with the current meters on our homes. It may be expensive during peak hours and cheap late at night. With new Smart meters at your home, you could set your dishwasher to run when power is cheap. This provides more control of your energy bill and helps prevent blackouts at peak hours.

The Smart Grid also means news ways to use renewable energy. Power generation can now be distributed across multiple sources so the system is more stable and efficient.

It’s this ability to communicate and manage electricity that makes the grid smarter and helps us avoid burning more fossil fuels in the future.

The Smart Grid is still a few years away, but soon we’ll be able to manage our energy bill, help the environment and help the economy by making more informed decisions about how we use electricity.

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This FAQ library was created by Eran Bucai. Eran is an online entrepreneur who is passionate about helping people find success building a profitable business online without the high ticket prices and without the marketing hype.

Eran has a tech support membership which you can learn more about here: DotComTruths.com

Eran helps people choose the best software for their business which you can find out more by visiting EranFunnels.com/software.

Question 2

What is Project Management Basics?

Accepted Answer

This video follows the story of a team who works together to build a prototype for an upcoming meeting at work. Thanks to a project manager, they are able to align their work efficiently and complete the project with limited time, budget and resources. It teaches:

Why project management matters in getting things done
How project managers help plan and align the team’s work
Why project scope (time, budget and resources) matters
How project managers work with stakeholders
How the basics of project management can be applied to other types of projects.

Video Transcript:

Let’s imagine a perfect scenario for completing a complex project. Here, specialists form a team that covers all the skills needed for the project. The team members communicate and collaborate.

Each skill fits into the project perfectly and the project is finished on time and with great results. This is the dream, but not often the reality.

Many projects end up in chaos because it’s difficult for the specialists to focus to on their specialty and manage things like budgets and timelines for the whole project.

Solving this problem means having another kind of specialist involved who keeps everything aligned and working together smoothly. That’s the role of a project manager.

Here’s an example…

This prototype is the project’s deliverable - the end result of the team’s efforts. This project, like most, has specific limitations: Time - it must completed by a specific date. Budget - it can only cost up to a certain amount. Resources - it can only use specific people and tools.

These limitations are called the scope of the project and are part of what define it. The project manager’s job is to keep every part of the project aligned and working within those limitations.

And there’s more. Success depends on the project team, but also the perspectives of others - the stakeholders in an upcoming meeting. These are company executives and potential customers, who may not work on the project, but have a stake in the results.

Part of the project manager’s job is to communicate with stakeholders, understand their needs and set expectations for the deliverable. Now, let’s sum this up...

This project requires a team to work together and deliver a prototype to a group of stakeholders. To do it, the team will have a limited scope of time, money and resources.

The project manager, who may not work on the prototype directly, must see everything from a high level and constantly work to keep all the parts moving within the scope of the project.

When projects like this are well-managed, they can be efficient and allow team members to focus on what they do best.

Today, project managers are often highly trained professionals who can manage large-scale projects or multiple projects at once.

But the idea of project management can be applied to getting almost any set of tasks accomplished.

Whether you’re working on a class project, a new product at work or planning a family reunion, think like a project manager and you can get great results and keep chaos at bay.

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This FAQ library was created by Eran Bucai. Eran is an online entrepreneur who is passionate about helping people find success building a profitable business online without the high ticket prices and without the marketing hype.

Eran has a tech support membership which you can learn more about here: DotComTruths.com

Eran helps people choose the best software for their business which you can find out more by visiting EranFunnels.com/software.

Question 3

What is Clear Communication in Email?

Accepted Answer

Every day, emails are sent that don’t get results. Part of the reason is that people aren’t receiving the information they need. This video explains the problem and how to fix it by asking three simple questions. It teaches:

Why writing effective emails can be difficult
What prevents recipients from seeing or responding to email
How to get the recipient’s attention
How to respect the recipient’s time
How to get the results you want from email

Video Transcript:

Think about it this way… When you speak with someone in person, you can tell a lot about them. You can see if they are happy, sad, or in a hurry. This information helps you adjust what you say and how you say it. For example, if someone looks confused, you might try using different language or examples.

With email it’s difficult to make these adjustments because you can’t see the recipient. And if your message doesn’t account for their needs, it could be ignored.

That’s why it’s important to write emails in a way that’s very clear and helpful for the recipient.

You can do this by answering a few basic questions for them. What is this about? Why am I receiving it? Is there anything I need to do?

When your email appears, this busy person will quickly need to decide if it’s a priority.

Next, your recipient will wonder why they are receiving the message. In the beginning, quickly explain the situation. You might write, “I’m writing to update you on the project.” or “I’d like to schedule a call.” Be specific and direct and they will notice.

Lastly, they will wonder if they need to act. Be sure to state your request clearly. This might be a request for a response, a link to a website to review or a number to call. Consider using bold font to be sure your request is noticed.

By considering these three questions, you can communicate clearly, get results and respect the time and attention of those who receive your emails.

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This FAQ library was created by Eran Bucai. Eran is an online entrepreneur who is passionate about helping people find success building a profitable business online without the high ticket prices and without the marketing hype.

Eran has a tech support membership which you can learn more about here: https://www.dotcomtruths.com/

Eran helps people choose the best software for their business which you can find out more by visiting EranFunnels.com/software.

Question 4

What is Project Based Learning?

Accepted Answer

Education can be more interesting and effective by focusing students on work that matters. Project Based Learning focuses on involving students in projects that teach a variety of skills. Key points in this video are:

How critical thinking, collaboration and communication help everyone in the real world
How PBL helps develop these skills in students
An example of a teacher who uses PBL in the classroom to get students involved in asking questions, doing research, collaborating and communicating
The impact of learning a subject in-depth via PBL and presenting the results to others

Presentation Note: This video is courtesy of BIE.org and includes a title slide at the end of the video.

Video Transcript:

You remember what it was like in school. IT WAS BORING! You sat in class, memorized as much as you could and tried to pass a test at the end. But is that good enough? These days school can be more interesting and effective by focusing students on work that matters.

Most adults live in a world of projects. Whether it’s a job assignment, home improvement or planning a wedding, we need to actively solve problems. But unfortunately, schoolwork looks more like this than this.

Let’s take a look at this Project Based World. Meet Claire. She was recently presented with a challenge. Her company, Super Suds, makes soap and it was up to her to find the most earth-friendly way to produce it in the future. Her boss gave her a budget and a few requirements - and it was up to her to come up with a solution. She organized and managed a team who researched the options and created materials summarizing the issues. Claire’s team asked for feedback and presented their findings to the boss.

Claire came out of the project looking like a rock star and she learned a lot about green products. If you look closely, Claire’s success involved critical thinking, collaboration, and communication. Things that aren’t often taught in traditional classrooms.

The world needs more Claires. So how do we get them?

The answer is Project Based Learning or PBL. By focusing students on a project, teachers put them on a path that deepens their knowledge and builds skills they’ll need in the future.

Here’s what I mean. Mr. Simmons has always been a good science teacher and his students do well on Fridays’ tests. Unfortunately, what they learned was gone by Saturday morning. That wasn’t good enough for him. Soon he learned about Project Based Learning and decided to give it a shot.

Mr. Simmons got the idea for his first project on microorganisms when nearly half of his students were suddenly absent with the flu. He asked his students why they thought so many of their classmates got sick at the same time. That lively discussion produced a lot of good questions and a list of things the kids wanted to know. Mr. Simmons then announced their project was to help elementary schools kids understand - How can we not get sick?

After dividing the class into teams, he got them started on the project. It was up to the students to ask questions, research, collaborate, give each other feedback and figure out the best ways to make their points clear to children. One team chose to make an educational video on the connection between hand washing and avoiding the flu. Another chose to create posters to show how viruses spread.

The project teams showed off their final work to an enthusiastic audience of parents and their children at a nearby elementary school. Sitting in the front row was our good friend and local rock star Claire, who saw a bit of herself in the students. It was clear that the project was a success for the students, the audience, and Mr. Simmons.

His students practiced critical thinking, collaboration and communication. The project wasn’t about memorization, but learning in-depth about viruses and how to prevent spreading disease - A lesson they will never forget.

At the end of the presentation, Claire introduced herself to the students and told them that they were rockstars, and that the world needs more people who can think like them.

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This FAQ library was created by Eran Bucai. Eran is an online entrepreneur who is passionate about helping people find success building a profitable business online without the high ticket prices and without the marketing hype.

Eran has a tech support membership which you can learn more about here: DotComTruths.com

Eran helps people choose the best software for their business which you can find out more by visiting EranFunnels.com/software.

Question 5

What is the difference between a domain name and a website?

Accepted Answer

Below is a video explaining the difference, as well as a transcript of the video.

While I appreciate the wonderful video created by GoDaddy to explain this, I do not recommend using GoDaddy for buying your domain name. My recommended company to buy a domain name and hosting is called SiteGround.

Transcript of the video (italicized):

*Hi there. In this video, you'll learn the difference between a domain and a website.

While domains and websites are closely connected, they are two very different things.

After registering a domain, you need to do something with it, put it to work for you. Your domain can be used for a website, for an email account, or for both.

You can, however, register a domain and choose NOT to use it for a website or an email account BUT you can't have a website or an email account without a domain.

When used for a website, your domain name is what people type into their browser to find your site — this is why they are sometimes referred to as web addresses.

So godaddy.com is the domain used for GoDaddy's website.

Registering a domain, however, doesn't automatically create a website — it only means that you've registered the domain.

So for example, if you decided to start your own business and you thought of great name for it, you might copyright the name to protect it.

However, simply giving your business a name is only one of many steps that go into building your business.

In the same manner, when you register a domain and want to use it for a website, you'll need to first build the website, and then find a host for it, so it can be visible on the Web.

What's a host? Website hosts are companies that house, serve, and maintain files for one or more websites.

Think of a website hosting company like a shopping center that contains several individual stores.

If you want to open a store at the shopping center, you can lease space and set up shop.

Just like a shopping center, website hosting companies enable you to lease space on their web servers where you can store your website files and make them available for visitors to view.

Because you have registered your domain, you can use it at any web hosting company you want.

Remember your store in the shopping center? Suppose you decided to move your store and lease space at a different shopping center.

If you packed up your products and moved to a new location, you would still be able to use the same name for your store.

The same is true for your domain — regardless of where you decided to host your website's files, your domain remains yours for the duration of your registration.

GoDaddy is both a domain registrar AND a website hosting company — and we have the tools to help you build your website.

This means you can register your domain name, build a website for it, and get it on the web - all in one place.

Question 6

What is Intellectual Property (Patent, Trademark, etc.)?

Accepted Answer

This video follows the story of a creative and talented woman named Candice who plays music, invented a new instrument and created a new business. Using copyright, patent and trademark laws, she learned to how to protect and build a business from her creations. It teaches:

Why intellectual property is different from physical property
The risk of not establishing and protecting ownership
Why copyright law matters in selling and managing your creative works
Why patent law matters in protecting your inventions
Why trademark law matters in protecting your brand

Video Transcript:

I’m sure you have items that you consider your property. Maybe you’re like Candice. She has a bike, headphones and books she loves.

Because she owns the headphones, she has the right to sell them or give them away. Ownership means they’re her property. When ownership of physical property, like headphones, changes, it’s easy to see.

But Candice is also creative. She takes photos and has ideas. She uses her mind to produce valuable things like music. When she creates a new song, she owns it and has a right to use it as she wishes, just like a physical object.

The problem is that the ownership of intangible things like music, literature and photography is difficult to see. Someone could wrongly claim ownership of her song and sell it without her knowing. To prevent these problems, she needs a public way to establish her ownership so that she alone can decide how it will be used.

In many countries, intellectual property laws work to establish and protect ownership of intangible property like Candice’s song. They are copyright, patent, and trademark and laws, among others. It’s these laws that allow people to control distribution of and earn money from the things they create with their minds.

For example, let’s say Candice, first, wants to be sure she is the only person who can reproduce or sell her song. Copyright law is what gives her this right. As the creator, she owns the copyright automatically, which means she is the only one who can reproduce or sell the song. To make her ownership publicly known, she registers her song with the Copyright Office.

Second, Candice invented a new kind of instrument and wants to be sure that no one can copy it. She does this by filing a patent application with the patent office that states what it is and what it does. If the patent is granted, she can prevent others from copying her invention.

Third, with her innovations, Candice is able to create a new business with a unique brand that includes a name and logo. To identify her new instrument by her brand, and to distinguish her from competitors, she applies for a trademark registration with the trademark office that describes her business name and logo. Candice uses the ™ in her logo once she starts using the brand to sell her instrument. And she can use the R symbol once the trademark is officially registered. These symbols show that she has the right to prevent others from her industry from looking too much like her brand and confusing customers.

Candice’s music business is just one example. Copyright, patents and trademarks can apply to a wide variety of intangible or intellectual property. These laws ensure that even if we can’t hold something in our hands, we can still own it, protect it and use it to earn a living.

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This FAQ library was created by Eran Bucai. Eran is an online entrepreneur who is passionate about helping people find success in building a profitable business online without the high ticket prices and without the marketing hype.

Eran has a tech support membership which you can learn more about here: DotComTruths.com

Eran helps people choose the best software for their business which you can find out more by visiting EranFunnels.com/software.

Question 7

What are Web Search Strategies?

Accepted Answer

This video introduces the best ways to use search engines to find information on the Web. It uses real-world examples that illustrate ways to reduce useless results and includes:

How search engines work
Picking the right key words
Using quotes and the minus sign
Combinations of strategies

Video Transcript:

The Web may seem like a vast ocean when it comes to finding something you need. Thankfully, search engines can help turn oceans of information into small pools that make finding information easier.

Before we dive in, let’s talk a bit about how search works on the Web. Search engines go out and try to account for every word on every webpage. All this information is then organized for easy reference.

When you search for a word, the search engine finds all the pages where the word appears, and displays them in the search results. Usually the pages that appear highest in the search results have lots of other web pages linking to them. Each link acts a vote to say, “This may be a good resource.”

The problem is that there are often too many results. You need a way to reduce the number of results so you can find what you need. Let’s look at how this works.

Say you’re looking for a specific kind of fish, and these represent all the websites on the Web. Searching for FISH doesn’t help much. There are way too many results. You need to be more specific.

Try to imagine the exact fish and describe it in the search box. You’ll see that each word you use gets you closer to what you need. You can do this for any website by imagining the website that has your answer. What’s the title of the page? What words appear on it? If you put those words in the search box, you’ll get closer to finding answers.

But to be a smart searcher, you should know some basic shortcuts. Let’s say you’re looking for words that appear together, like a phrase or a quote. An example is a search for information on sand sharks. If you search for it like this, the search engine looks for pages with SAND and SHARKS. To get better results, put quotes around the words like this. It limits the results to the exact phrase.

Here’s another shortcut. Words often have multiple meanings. Consider the word MULLET which is both a fish and a hairstyle. A search for MULLET may give you a number of results about the hairstyle, but fewer about the fish.

To remove the results about hair, place a hyphen or minus sign just before the word you want to exclude, which means “show me the pages about mullet, but take away results relating to hair.” By being specific, and using words and symbols that remove useless information, you can find exactly what you need, and keep the Web from swallowing you whole.

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This FAQ library was created by Eran Bucai. Eran is an online entrepreneur who is passionate about helping people find success building a profitable business online without the high ticket prices and without the marketing hype.

Eran has a tech support membership which you can learn more about here:https://www.dotcomtruths.com/

Eran helps people choose the best software for their business which you can find out more by visiting EranFunnels.com/software.

Question 8

What is Social Media?

Accepted Answer

What it teaches:

Using an analogy of a town going through a big change, this video explains the basic forces driving the growth, adoption and use of social media. It teaches:

Why social media is different from traditional media
What makes media social today
How fans play a role in deciding what should be findable and popular
The benefits of social media to individuals and organizations

Video Transcript:

I’m sure you’ve heard the buzz. Social Media may be the next big thing. What’s it all about?

Let’s take a visit to Scoopville, a town that’s famous for ice cream. For over 20 years, Big Ice Cream Company has been making high quality ice cream with a big factory in town. A few years back, the company did focus groups and found out that they could maximize profits by offering three flavors: Chocolate, Vanilla and Strawberry.

The residents of the town were content. They never thought it could be different. Then something happened in Scoopville – A new invention came to town. Suddenly, everyone could make their own ice cream for only a few dollars. This changed everything.

The Smiths decided to make pineapple ice cream. The Jones’ made ice cream with pecans. Soon, every kind of ice cream imaginable was being made by scoopville’s residents at very little cost.

Of course, some ice cream was more popular than others and that was okay. Sylvia’s pickle ice cream had a very small but loyal following. That was fine. She only needed enough income to buy ingredients for her next batch. Jarret’s red velvet ice cream became so famous, he created his own store. Over time, people started to think differently about ice cream.

It didn’t always come from a factory. It also came from friends and neighbors. It became something to share, something to bring people together, something to celebrate. Big Ice Cream company still made the best vanilla around, and to their surprise, demand even grew. But it was the unique, original and authentic flavors made by the residents, that brought people to Scoopville.

When they arrived, however, there seemed to be a problem. There were too many flavors. Visitors felt overwhelmed. They needed ways to find the new, the popular, the flavors that were interesting to them.

Franklin had an idea for his ice cream. Outside his house, he erected a board and invited his customers to share their thoughts on his ice cream. They could use words to describe it, stars to rate it, and leave messages for others. People loved it.

At a glance, visitors could tell what his ice cream was all about, and learn from people like them. Over time, each resident had their own board. Sylvia’s board showed that her pickle ice cream didn’t please everyone, but was very unique and interesting. Jarret’s board overflowed with positive reviews and ratings.

Soon, a few things became clear. First, their ice cream got better because they could learn directly from customers. Second, free customer reviews were more valuable than costly advertising. And third, the boards created a way for customers to find exactly what they wanted.

The combination of new technology and new ways to work with customers helped the residents feel like a unique community. So, this is social ice cream – by the people, for the people. It turns out that ice cream and social media have a lot in common.

Today, everyone has a chance to make their own flavors, thanks to free tools like blogs, podcasts, and video sharing. Plus, we now have new ways for real people to play a role in providing feedback, organization and promotion. Whether you’re a big established company, an individual with loyal fans, or simply someone with ideas and opinions, social media means new ways to create and communicate with people who care.

New tools are arriving in cities and towns around the world. When this change comes to your neighborhood, the choice is yours. What flavors will you make?

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This FAQ library was created by Eran Bucai. Eran is an online entrepreneur who is passionate about helping people find success building a profitable business online without the high ticket prices and without the marketing hype.

Eran has a tech support membership which you can learn more about here:https://www.dotcomtruths.com/

Eran helps people choose the best software for their business which you can find out more by visiting EranFunnels.com/software.

Question 9

What is Affiliate Marketing?

Accepted Answer

Affiliate marketing can help individuals earn a living by promoting products and services they love online. But how the system works is complicated and comes with important best practices. It teaches:

Why affiliate marketing is like word-of-mouth marketing
How affiliate programs provide links and graphics to affiliates
How affiliate links and graphics are used in promotions
How revenue is shared when a website visitor buys from an affiliate link
Why it is important to disclose affiliate program participation

Video Transcript:

Companies always need ways to reach new customers. Some may buy expensive TV commercials, pay to have ads on websites or even hire someone to dance at intersections.

But many companies know that nothing beats a friend telling another friend about a product they love.

It’s this kind of person-to-person connection that helped a new marketing idea become popular. It’s called affiliate marketing.

Meet Shauna, who has a popular blog about books. Among her friends and fans, she is known for great book advice and has started looking for a way to earn money for all the time she spends on the site.

Recently she learned that her favorite online bookseller offers an affiliate program. By becoming an affiliate, she could earn money by promoting books on her site. Here’s how it works.

Once Shauna joins the program, she gets special links, or even graphics, to use whenever she writes about books online. These links are unique to her as an affiliate. If one of her readers buys the book using the affiliate link, Shauna earns a percentage of the purchase price.

Over time, these small payments can add up and she can earn money by simply writing about and linking-to her favorite books.

Before using affiliate links, she did research and learned about best practices. Her fans love her website because she’s honest and authentic. They trust her advice. Because she earns money from their purchases, she has the responsibility to be clear about her participation in the program. This could mean adding a disclosure to her site or labeling affiliate links differently. Her fans don’t mind - they just want to know.

Affiliate programs are popular because they give businesses a way to reach potential customers, through people like Shauna. And when an affiliate helps someone discover something new, they can earn a little money that helps support their passion.

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This FAQ library was created by Eran Bucai. Eran is an online entrepreneur who is passionate about helping people find success building a profitable business online without the high ticket prices and without the marketing hype.

Eran has a tech support membership which you can learn more about here: DotComTruths.com

Eran helps people choose the best software for their business which you can find out more by visiting EranFunnels.com/software.