Human capital has become quite mobile these days. Employers tend to recruit people from different countries and cities. In this process of recruitment, Skype plays an integral role. After all, how else can you interview potential employees?
Skype has ensured that the process of technical interviewing goes by as smoothly as possible with the inclusion of a real-time code editor.
What Does This Mean?
You might wonder, what will this latest feature offer to users? Well, with the help of this function, any video call you make would be placed on a code editor, which will allow interviewers to interview applicants without changing applications.
This code editor feature has the power to support over seven languages including C, C++, Java, and Ruby. Additionally, it comes with a syntax highlighting function which is built into the system to provide optimum performance.
How Does It Work?
The next question that will cloud your mind is, how can you avail this service? The answer to this query is quite simple as well. All that you are required to do is go to the Skype Interviews site online and click on the option that allows you to start your interview.
Skype will then send both the interviewers and interviewees a unique link. Once all of the participants follow the given link, the interview can begin.
Does This Sound Familiar?
If you are a tech-savvy individual, you might be rolling your eyes right now. This is because you must be aware of various other tools that provide a similar function. For those of you who are not aware of such tools, one that you can search about is HackerRank.
HackerRank allows programmers to come together and practice and compete in different elements like coding. It also allows you to get employment through a similar method as recently launched by Skype.
Conclusion
All in all, while Skype may not be the first to start a code editor feature, it certainly isn’t that late to the party. Since it is a credible way of communication, the fact that it is revamping to ensure that it meets the current needs of the masses is a step in the right direction.
Regardless of whether you are conducting the interview or are being subjected to it, the fact remains that technical interviews have now become easier to perform with the help of Skype.
Have you ever come across brand names and encountered various symbols which you did not understand the meaning of? Well, that is usual as there exists a nomenclature which legalizes certain brand names. These naming methods include trademark, registered, and copyright. These three names give a different message and allow you to understand the brand better.
Trademark ™
Whoever has not yet been able to register their brand name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) should be listed as a “Trademark” as opposed to a “Registered.” Similarly, even if the application has been submitted for registration but has not been accepted yet, the brand name continues to be listed under “Trademark.”
While the use of the trademark label protects an unregistered name, it does not guarantee protection under the trademark law. In order to guarantee safety under the Lanham Act, the owner of the trademark needs to ensure and prove that they were first to use the trademark and that the use of the trademark by other parties will confuse the audience from distinguishing between the good’s source.
Registered ®
Any brand name registered with the USPTO is denoted by the “R” symbol. Being registered allows you to use your trademark in a more superior manner over others and allows you to obtain damages against infringers. Registering a trademark prevents any imitators from bothering you and provides you with a heavy presumption of ownership. It is generally preferred to have a registered trademark over one that is unregistered.
This “C” symbol, giving the impression of copyright, sends a message to the public saying that the work is copyrighted and the user has ownership of the work. The symbol is not necessary in order to protect your work as it achieves automatic protection upon creation.
Now that you are aware of the nomenclature, you will be able to better identify brand names. Any of the brand names which have not been registered or are waiting for registration are to be termed under the trademark symbol, whereas registered brand names have the “R” symbol right after them. Finally, any work that is copyrighted and requires a visual impression given to the public uses the “C” symbol right around the corner of the work.
Building a brand image is not an easy task. It requires a lot of effort and dedication. There are multiple advantages of building your brand name, number one being brand recall; that’s when everyone starts to recognize you by name.
However, what happens when someone else starts using the same name as your brand? At that point, customers can easily mistake your brand for the counterfeit one. Plus, various competitors can pop up with a name that has little or no difference from yours.
In order to protect your name, you must trademark it. Once you trademark your name, you get exclusive rights to it. The name does not need to be one word. It can either be a few words, a phrase or even a short sentence. Not only that, but you can also trademark a design, a symbol or your brand logo.
Before you decide to trademark the name, you must know that you can only do so if the name belongs to a business that is operational or will be used by a setup in the future. You cannot trademark personal names.
Also, you will only be able to trademark it if the name of your business is unique and does not sound generic at all. For example, Starbucks is a different name, so the trademark was given. Names such as ‘cold ice-cream’ will not be given consideration.
When you are deciding a name for your business, make sure to run a little background check to see whether any other company has the same or similar name because if there is one available, you will not be able to get the trademark. Also, make sure that your name is specific to some type of goods or services being offered by the company, which would increase the chance of you getting the trademark.
How to Trademark a Company Name
Deciding on the company name can be a daunting task as it is a name that will be associated with you forever. You need to make sure that you pick a name that you do not regret. However, what can be discouraging is when you finally decide on a name and you find out that you cannot trademark it. This is why you need to know how to trademark a company name beforehand. Once you follow the points below, you will be able to ensure that it does not take you forever to decide on a name only to revise it.
Do Some Research on Trademark Name
By conducting a trademark search, you will be able to find various problems that you may encounter when you go to file the application. It will save you a whole lot of time, and you will be able to make things clearer in less time, saving you money as well.
When you conduct the research, you will get to know if there are existing businesses with the name you want or if there are any with names that are only a little different but can cause confusion. If there is any confusion, it is possible that your application will be denied. With the research, you will be able to figure out that possibility beforehand.
Another thing that this research will help you with is in finding businesses that have the same or similar name to yours. Though these businesses may not have a trademark, they may have their names protected by the law in specific geographical locations. It is best to ensure that you do not get into any legal trouble because of such names.
File the Application
An application must be filed with the USPTO for the trademark of names. For this, you can apply online as well and you need to make sure that the following information is included:
The address and name of the owner of the business.
The name that needs to be trademarked.
The services or goods that the business will provide and with which the name will be associated.
You need to make sure that you clearly point out whether the name will be used in the future or if the business already exists.
If your business already exists, you will need to provide evidence such as a letter head or a label. If it’s for future use, you will submit these when the business becomes operational.
You will also need to pay the fees associated with the filing. This varies from $225 to $325 depending on the class of goods or services you are providing.
Respond to Queries
Once your trademark has been assigned to a person for review, you will be questioned if any problems are spotted. These questions will come to you in the form of a letter, and you will also be assigned a specific time period in which you will need to answer. To make sure that the application proceeds to the next level, you need to respond in the given time period or your application will be canceled.
Your application will then be published for opposition. If any comes up, you will need to resolve the issue. After that is done, your trademark will be registered.
Writing is the best form of expressing yourself. If you have something deep inside or if you just want to rant, you can let it out by writing it down. There is a possibility that you will fall in love with this method and you will find yourself to be good at it.
If you feel that you have a knack for writing and want to share your words with the world, we suggest you take up blogging. A blog is easy to set up, and many people from over the world visit various blogs daily to have a read. Before you know it, you might be one of the biggest bloggers of your time.
Why Choose WordPress
There are many options that you can use when selecting a website to create your blog, but we suggest WordPress. It is accessible to everyone over the world and is simple to set up. It also comes with many different features that you can add to make your blog look more attractive. Best of all, it is free, though if you want more advanced settings or need other high caliber features, you will need to pay a little to add them to your blog.
How to Set Up Your Blog
Once you have chosen WordPress as your blogging platform, it is time for you to start creating your account.
Choose Your Domain
Make sure that you choose a unique and attractive domain name for your blog. Just don’t pick anything or assign the domain given to you by WordPress. This is because the first impression you make on your audience will leave a lasting impact on their mind. Secondly, it will help improve your ranking in various search engines.
Whichever domain name you choose should be short and define your blog or brand. Also, make sure that it is easy to pronounce with a spelling that everyone can guess in the first go.
Choose Your Theme
The next thing you need to do is to select a theme for your blog. Make sure the text part of your blog is easy to read and visible for all. Secondly, choose the color scheme that best defines your writing style or your brand. Another thing you must keep in check is that the layout of the blog is user-friendly so that it is easier for people to locate various topics.
Add Images Where Needed
If you want to add pictures to your front page or to the blogs that you have added, find some good ones online and add them. If you have taken your own pictures, then add them as this gives a personal feel to the blog.
Add Some Content
An empty blog is never attractive, so when you set up the page, make sure you add at least a few blog posts so that people have something to read when they visit your page.
Check the Plugins You Need
There are various plugins available on WordPress. Go through them and add the ones that you feel will best suit your profile.
Sign Up and Install WordPress
Once you sign up a blog with a web host, you make it accessible to a mass audience. Your content will be saved, and everyone will be able to view it when they visit.
WordPress is a commonly used CMS for building websites and blogs online. It’s a secure platform and offers plenty of themes free & premium to build your website or blog easily. You should never have to worry about security as long as your WordPress installation, plugins and themes are always up to date and you are using a strong password.
WordPress is so popular, it’s a regular target for brute force & spam bot attacks and other security vulnerabilities. Insecure WordPress installations are commonly used to launch DDoS attacks on other sites or send large amounts of spam email causing IP blacklisting issues etc. These attacks are automated and target installations that are using default usernames, weak passwords or outdated plugins/themes and wordpress installations with security vulnerabilities .
Most website owners are unaware their website or blog has been compromised until it’s too late and they start losing site traffic, their site gets blacklisted in Google and their search engine rankings start dropping.
Implementing these simple 10 advanced security measures will secure your WordPress blog or website and prevent hacking attempts.
1. Make a new user account
First create a new user account different from the default ‘admin’ account, then delete the default ‘admin’ account. This is commonly targeted by bots and attackers to gain access to your WordPress installation. Don’t use common usernames such as ‘admin’ when creating the new user. You can easily setup a new account by navigating to “Users” and then “Add new” from your WordPress dashboard menu.
2. Always use secure & strong passwords
Never use easy to guess passwords or simple passwords such as your name, date of birth etc. They might be easy to remember but they are also easy for hackers to crack. Always choose a strong and secure password with eight or more characters, numbers, special characters, uppercase and lowercase letters. You can use an online password generator such as Norton’s Identify Safe password generator.
3. Change your author nick name
Don’t use the author name as your username, this will be displayed on every blog post. Change your WordPress account’s author name to something other than your username from your WordPress dashboard menu under “Users” and then “Your profile” by editing the ‘Nickname’ field. After you have selected a new nickname, select your new nickname under “Display name publicly as”.
4. Install a security plugin
There are several widely popular WordPress security plugins that can protect your WordPress blog or website by scanning for malicious code and blocking hacking attempts. The two most popular plugins which are regularly updated & maintained are WordFence security & iThemes security. Both of these plugins do plenty of things to increase the security of your WordPress site such as Brute force protection, strong password requirements, security & malware scans and blocking of bad bot traffic. You can also enable two-step authentication using Google with these plugins.
5. Block all IP addresses except your own from logging into wp-admin
Another great way to increase security for your Blog is by only allowing wp-admin access from your whitelisted IP addresses. You can do this by adding the following code inside the .htaccess file under your wp-admin directory through cPanel file manager or FTP.
order deny,allow
deny from all
# whitelist home IP address
allow from 22.33.44.55
# whitelist work IP address
allow from 22.33.44.55
# whitelist holiday IP address
allow from 22.33.44.55
Add this code onto your .htaccess file and make sure to replace ‘22.33.44.55’ with your own IP addresses (search “what is my IP” in google to determine your IP address). You can add more IP’s to the .htaccess file if your IP changes quite often or if you move around a lot. This is not suitable if you have a dynamic IP which is constantly changing or if you travel a lot and use the internet from different locations. Anytime someone tries to access the wp-admin directory from a non-whitelisted IP, they will be presented with a Forbidden page. If you do this make sure to update the whitelisted IP each time your IP changes before accessing your wp-admin dashboard.
6. Change the URLs for WordPress dashboard areas including login, admin
Using the iThemes security plugin mentioned above, you can also change the URLs for your wordpress dashboard areas including wp-login and wp-admin. This means if an attack bot stumbles upon your website and attempts to login to your wp dashboard, they will not be able to access your login page.
7. Don’t allow guest user registrations
If your WordPress blog or website is not membership based, there is no reason to allow visitors to register a guest account on your site. To disable guest registrations, navigate to “Settings” and uncheck the “Anyone can register” option.
8. Disable ‘pingback’ option in WordPress
WordPress websites or blogs which have the pingback option enabled are commonly targeted for DDoS attacks. This option is enabled by default in WordPress so you must disable it manually by navigating to “Settings” then “Discussion” and in “Default Article settings” uncheck “Allow link notifications from other blogs (pingbacks and trackbacks)”.
9. Monitor your Google Webmaster Tools
Google Webmaster Tools is a valuable asset when it comes to monitoring your website security. The “Security Issues” section of your Webmaster tools account notifies you if Google detects malware or any other security vulnerabilities with your site. Keeping an eye on your Google webmaster tools prevents your site from blacklisting issues and your search engine rankings from plummeting.
10. Regularly update your WordPress, plugins and themes.
Always keep your WordPress installation, themes and plugins up to date with the latest version. The #1 cause for compromised WordPress websites is outdated core install, plugin or theme with a security vulnerability which was not patched with an update. The reasons developers update their software code for plugins, themes and wordpress core files is when security vulnerabilities are discovered through Security audits or other means. WordPress has made it incredibly easy and simple to update your installation, plugins & themes with a single click from your WP dashboard. When a new update is available, you will see a notification in your WordPress dashboard as “WordPress X is available! Please update now”. There should be no excuses or reasons for you to not update your WordPress installation, you can also enable Automatic background updates .
If you are not upgrading your WordPress installation because one of your plugins might break because it’s not compatible with the latest release of WordPress, please switch to an alternative plugin which is actively being developed and updated with support through the developers.
We do not recommend installing plugins or themes from unknown sources or 3rd parties other than the official WordPress plugins directory and official websites for premium wordpress themes. Always check recent reviews of any plugin or theme you are installing, also make sure it has recent updates, is actively developed and has a high number of downloads.
BONUS TIP!! Backups, backups and BACKUPS!
Downloading regular backups of your content and database is very important! Any upgrade, security vulnerability or hacking attempt on your WordPress website could possibly lead to unforeseen circumstances. Although our shared & reseller hosting servers are regularly backed up, you are ultimately responsible for maintaining your own regular backups as well.
Each WordPress website consists of two parts
1. Database, this is where all your settings, pages, posts and comments are stored.
2. Files, this is where all your media, attachments, themes and plugins are stored.
We always recommend downloading a full backup of the entire account from cPanel which includes your database and files. In case of a catastrophic event, we can restore your entire backup to revert your website to the way it was.
You can also install a backup plugin on WordPress to create automated backups of your files & databases and email them to you or upload them to a 3rd party service such as Dropbox or Amazon S3 . There are plenty of choices when it comes to Backup plugins, two popular plugins are BackWPup and Dropbox backup & restore. Activate these plugins to create automated scheduled weekly backups of your installation and either upload to your backup storage or emailed to your address.
Implementing these simple security steps will make your WordPress blog or website much safer and secure from hackers.
