Tag: Tools

Google Webinar on Web Analytics

Google webinar on web analytics-

recommended for anyone with anything to do with the WWW

From

http://analytics.blogspot.com/2011/11/webinar-reaching-your-goals-with.html

 

Webinar: Reaching Your Goals with Analytics

 

 

Is your website performing as well as it could be? Do you want to get more out of your digital marketing campaigns, including AdWords and other digital media? Do you feel like you have gaps in your current Google Analytics setup?

We’ve heard from many of our users who want to go deeper into their Analytics — with so much data, it can be hard to know where to look first. If you’d like to move beyond standard “pageview” metrics and visitor statistics, then please join us next Thursday:

Webinar: Reaching Your Goals with Analytics
Date: Thursday, December 1
Time: 11am PST / 2pm EST
Sign up here!

During the webinar, we’ll cover:

  • Key questions to ask for richer insights from your data
  • How to define “success” (for websites, visitors, or campaigns)
  • How to set up and use Goals
  • How to set up and use Ecommerce (for websites with a shopping cart)
  • How to link AdWords to your Google Analytics account

Whatever your online business model — shopping, lead-generation, or pure content — these tools will deliver actionable insights into your buying cycle.

This webinar will be led by Joe Larkin, a technical specialist on the Google Analytics team, and it’s designed for intermediate users of Google Analytics. If you’re comfortable with the basics, but you’d like to do more with your data, then we hope you’ll join us next week!

Webinar: Using R within Oracle #rstats

Webinar: Using R within Oracle — Nov 30, noon EST

==========================================
Oracle now supports the R open source statistical programming language. Come to this webinar to learn more about using R within an Oracle environment.

— URL for TechCast: https://stbeehive.oracle.com/bconf/confDetails?confID=334B:3BF0:owch:38893C00F42F38A1E0404498C8A6612B0004075AECF7&guest=true&confKey=608880
— Web Conference ID: 303397
— Web Conference Key: 608880
— Dialup:             1-866-682-4770      , ID 5548204, passcode 1234

After a steady rise in the past few years, in 2010 the open source data mining software R overtook other tools to become the tool used by more data miners (43%) than any other (http://www.rexeranalytics.com/Data-Miner-Survey-Results-2010.html).

Several analytic tool vendors have added R-integration to their software. However, Oracle is the largest company to throw their weight behind R. On October 3, Oracle unveiled their integration of R: Oracle R Enterprise (http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/features/features-oracle-r-enterprise-498732.html) as part of their Oracle Big Data Appliance announcement (http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/press/512001).

Oracle R Enterprise allows users to perform statistical analysis with advanced visualization on data stored in Oracle Database. Oracle R Enterprise enables scalable R solutions, while facilitating production deployment of R scripts and Hadoop based solutions, as well as integration of R results with Oracle BI Publisher and OBIEE dashboards.

This TechCast introduces the various Oracle R Enterprise components and features, along with R script demonstrations that interface with Oracle Database.

TechCast presenter: Mark Hornick, Senior Manager, Oracle Advanced Analytics Development.
This TechCast is part of the ongoing TechCasts series coordinated by Oracle BIWA: The BI, Warehousing and Analytics SIG (http://www.oracleBIWA.org).

Funny Economics

Some wry observations from me  on the world on economics-

1) 150 years after humiliating their country in the Opium Wars, Chinese mandarins have somehow convinced their leaders and military to park 2 trillion assets in Anglo Saxon debt. If Greece geting a 50% discount on its loan is the new precedent, when will the USA force its lendors to the negotiation table.

2) Income inequality and protests are something the Arabs and Israelis have in common. Besides being the sons of Abraham of course. Note the Persians are not considered the same as Arabs.

3) Advance knowledge of geo-political events can and ensures Western financial dealers have an edge on the sovereign funds in the other hemisphere.  What used to be the playgrounds of Eton has now shifted to the pubs of Boston and So Cal.

4) After spending 1 trillion USD on arms in the past one decade (funded by guys in item 1), the United States military forces is in a much better more advanced position to wage simultaneous war.

5) Can a war in Korean peninsula affect war in the Persian sphere of influence. Just follow the money , baby.

6) Saudi Wahabis continue to fund terror despite losing a lot of money in the economic meltdown in past few years. For every 1 $ increase in Saudi oil revenue, western oil companies ,traders, financiers make more, much more.

7) Demographics is an important key to economics. An aging Japan, and stagnant West is one cause to shift from manpower intensive warfare to cyber warfare. Plus Cyber warfare is good business . Underpopulated Russia and Arabs continue to lack true economic potential.

8) There are new economic incentives to develop tools to disseminate as well as distort information flow in real time in a hyper connected digital world.

 

LibreOffice – Extensions and Templates

Just an announcement from The Document Foundation (which has notable supporters including Google etc at http://www.documentfoundation.org/supporters/)

With both Google Docs and Libre Office – it seems like a flank attack on Office productivity software (from the cloud and from the PC/tablet ground)- however Microsoft’s Sharepoint is much better in collobration compared to the Google Docs and it has huge number of templates (more than the 38 extensions and 13 templates right now at the links below (just like WordPress has huge number of themes compared to Blogger)

Anyways, check out- it is an interesting start

http://extensions.libreoffice.org/

Extension Releases 

Extensions for all program modules
Gallery Contents for all program modules
Language Tools for all program modules
Dictionaries of different languages for all program modules
Writer-Extensions
Calc-Extensions
Impress-Extensions
Draw-Extensions
Base-Extensions
Math-Extensions 

….

and http://templates.libreoffice.org/

Template Releases

Accounting -Templates
Agenda-Templates
Arts-Templates
Book-Templates
Brochure/Pamphlet-Templates
Budget-Templates
Business-Templates
Business POS-Templates
Business Shipping-Templates
Calendar-Templates
Card-Templates
Curriculum/Resume-Templates
CD/DVD-Templates
Certificate-Templates
Checkbook-Templates
Christmas-Templates
Computer-Templates
Conference-Templates
E-book-Templates
Education-Templates
Academia-Templates
Elementary/Secondary School-Templates
Envelope-Templates
Fax-Templates
Genealogy-Templates
Grocery-Templates
Invoice-Templates
Labels-Templates
Letter-Templates
Magazine-Templates
Media-Templates
Memo-Templates
Music-Templates
Newsletter-Templates
Notes-Templates
Paper-Templates
Presentation-Templates
Recipe-Templates
Science-Templates
Sports-Templates
Timeline-Templates
Timesheet-Templates
Trades-Templates
To Do List-Templates
Writer-Templates

 

Google Cloud SQL

Another xing bang API from the boyz in Mountain View. (entry by invite only) But it is free and you can test your stuff on a MySQL db =10 GB

Database as a service ? (Maybe)— while Amazon was building fires (and Fire)

—————————————————————–

https://code.google.com/apis/sql/index.html

What is Google Cloud SQL?

Google Cloud SQL is a web service that provides a highly available, fully-managed, hosted SQL storage solution for your App Engine applications.

What are the benefits of using Google Cloud SQL?

You can access a familiar, highly available SQL database from your App Engine applications, without having to worry about provisioning, management, and integration with other Google services.

How much does Google Cloud SQL cost?

We will not be billing for this service in 2011. We will give you at least 30 days’ advance notice before we begin billing in the future. Other services such as Google App Engine, Google Cloud Storage etc. that you use with Google Cloud SQL may have their own payment terms, and you need to pay for them. Please consult their documentation for details.

Currently you are limited to the three instance sizes. What if I need to store more data or need better performance?

In the Limited Preview period, we only have three sizes available. If you have specific needs, we would like to hear from you on our google-cloud-sqldiscussion board.

When is Google Cloud SQL be out of Limited Preview?

We are working hard to make the service generally available.We don’t have a firm date that we can announce right now.

Do you support all the features of MySQL?

In general, Google Cloud SQL supports all the features of MySQL. The following are lists of all the unsupported features and notable differences that Google Cloud SQL has from MySQL.

Unsupported Features:

  • User defined functions
  • MySql replication

Unsupported MySQL statements:

  • LOAD DATA INFILE
  • SELECT ... INTO OUTFILE
  • SELECT ... INTO DUMPFILE
  • INSTALL PLUGIN .. SONAME ...
  • UNINSTALL PLUGIN
  • CREATE FUNCTION ... SONAME ...

Unsupported SQL Functions:

  • LOAD_FILE()

Notable Differences:

  • If you want to import databases with binary data into your Google Cloud SQL instance, you must use the --hex-blob option with mysqldump.Although this is not a required flag when you are using a local MySQL server instance and the MySQL command line, it is required if you want to import any databases with binary data into your Google Cloud SQL instance. For more information, see Importing Data.
How large a database can I use with Google Cloud SQL?
Currently, in this limited preview period, your database instance must be no larger than 10GB.
How can I be notified when there are any changes to Google Cloud SQL?
You can sign up for the sql-announcements forum where we post announcements and news about the Google Cloud SQL.
How can I cancel my Google Cloud SQL account?
To remove all data from your Google Cloud SQL account and disable the service:

  1. Delete all your data. You can remove your tables, databases, and indexes using the drop command. For more information, see SQL DROP statement.
  2. Deactivate the Google Cloud SQL by visiting the Services pane and clicking the On button next to Google Cloud SQL. The button changes from Onto Off.
How do I report a bug, request a feature, or ask a question?
You can report bugs and request a feature on our project page.You can ask a question in our discussion forum.

Getting Started

Can I use languages other than Java or Python?
Only Java and Python are supported for Google Cloud SQL.
Can I use Google Cloud SQL outside of Google App Engine?
The Limited Preview is primarily focused on giving Google App Engine customers the ability to use a familiar relational database environment. Currently, you cannot access Google Cloud SQL from outside Google App Engine.
What database engine are we using in the Google Cloud SQL?
MySql Version 5.1.59
Do I need to install a local version of MySQL to use the Development Server?
Yes.

Managing Your Instances

Do I need to use the Google APIs Console to use Google Cloud SQL?
Yes. For basic tasks like granting access control to applications, creating instances, and deleting instances, you need to use the Google APIs Console.
Can I import or export specific databases?
No, currently it is not possible to export specific databases. You can only export your entire instance.
Do I need a Google Cloud Storage account to import or export my instances?
Yes, you need to sign up for a Google Cloud Storage account or have access to a Google Cloud Storage account to import or export your instances. For more information, see Importing and Exporting Data.
If I delete my instance, can I reuse the instance name?
Yes, but not right away. The instance name is reserved for up to two months before it can be reused.

Tools & Resources

Can I use Django with Google Cloud SQL?
No, currently Google Cloud SQL is not compatible with Django.
What is the best tool to use for interacting with my instance?
There are a variety of tools available for Google Cloud SQL. For executing simple statements, you can use the SQL prompt. For executing more complicated tasks, you might want to use the command line tool. If you want to use a tool with a graphical interface, the SQuirrel SQL Client provides an interface you can use to interact with your instance.

Common Technical Questions

Should I use InnoDB for my tables?
Yes. InnoDB is the default storage engine in MySQL 5.5 and is also the recommended storage engine for Google Cloud SQL. If you do not need any features that require MyISAM, you should use InnoDB. You can convert your existing tables using the following SQL command, replacing tablename with the name of the table to convert:

ALTER tablename ENGINE = InnoDB;

If you have a mysqldump file where all your tables are in MyISAM format, you can convert them by piping the file through a sed script:

mysqldump --databases database_name [-u username -p  password] --hex-blob database_name | sed 's/ENGINE=MyISAM/ENGINE=InnoDB/g' > database_file.sql

Warning: You should not do this if your mysqldump file contains the mysql schema. Those files must remain in MyISAM.

Are there any size or QPS limits?
Yes, the following limits apply to Google Cloud SQL:

Resource Limits from External Requests Limits from Google App Engine
Queries Per Second (QPS) 5 QPS No limit
Maximum Request Size 16 MB
Maximum Response Size 16 MB

Google App Engine Limits

Google App Engine applications are also subject to additional Google App Engine quotas and limits. Requests from Google App Engine applications to Google Cloud SQL are subject to the following time limits:

  • All database requests must finish within the HTTP request timer, around 60 seconds.
  • Offline requests like cron tasks have a time limit of 10 minutes.
  • Backend requests to Google Cloud SQL have a time limit of 10 minutes.

App Engine-specific quotas and access limits are discussed on the Google App Engine Quotas page.

Should I use Google Cloud SQL with my non-High Replication App Engine application?
We recommend that you use Google Cloud SQL with High Replication App Engine applications. While you can use use Google Cloud SQL with applications that do not use high replication, doing so might impact performance.
Source-
https://code.google.com/apis/sql/faq.html#supportmysqlfeatures

Google Dart a new programming language for web applications

From Google a new language for structured web applications-

http://www.dartlang.org/docs/technical-overview/index.html ( a rather unstructured website, if I may add)

Dart is a new class-based programming language for creating structured web applications. Developed with the goals of simplicity, efficiency, and scalability, the Dart language combines powerful new language features with familiar language constructs into a clear, readable syntax.

  • a structured yet flexible programming language for the web.
  • Make Dart feel familiar and natural to programmers and thus easy to learn.
  • Ensure that all Dart language constructs allow high performance and fast application startup.
  • Make Dart appropriate for the full range of devices on the web—including phones, tablets, laptops, and servers.
  • Provide tools that make Dart run fast across all major modern browsers.

These design goals address the following problems currently facing web developers:

  • Small scripts often evolve into large web applications with no apparent structure—they’re hard to debug and difficult to maintain. In addition, these monolithic apps can’t be split up so that different teams can work on them independently. It’s difficult to be productive when a web application gets large.
  • Scripting languages are popular because their lightweight nature makes it easy to write code quickly. Generally, the contracts with other parts of an application are conveyed in comments rather than in the language structure itself. As a result, it’s difficult for someone other than the author to read and maintain a particular piece of code.
  • With existing languages, the developer is forced to make a choice between static and dynamic languages. Traditional static languages require heavyweight toolchains and a coding style that can feel inflexible and overly constrained.
  • Developers have not been able to create homogeneous systems that encompass both client and server, except for a few cases such as Node.js and Google Web Toolkit (GWT).
  • Different languages and formats entail context switches that are cumbersome and add complexity to the coding process.

Interview Markus Schmidberger ,Cloudnumbers.com

Here is an interview with Markus Schmidberger, Senior Community Manager for cloudnumbers.com. Cloudnumbers.com is the exciting new cloud startup for scientific computing. It basically enables transition to a R and other platforms in the cloud and makes it very easy and secure from the traditional desktop/server model of operation.

Ajay- Describe the startup story for setting up Cloudnumbers.com

Markus- In 2010 the company founders Erik Muttersbach (TU München), Markus Fensterer (TU München) and Moritz v. Petersdorff-Campen (WHU Vallendar) started with the development of the cloud computing environment. Continue reading “Interview Markus Schmidberger ,Cloudnumbers.com”