July 2011
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Greetings from Karelia Software!

Sandvox 2.1 is Available

Sandvox 2 icon

Just in time for the release of Mac OS X 10.7 “Lion” (perhaps as soon as tomorrow), we’ve updated Sandvox to a new 2.1 version that functions well under the new operating system. If you are going to upgrade to Lion, be sure to grab this new version.

Even if you are holding off for a while on Lion, the 2.1 update to Sandvox has some great improvements. We’ve implemented some optimizations to publishing and to saving that make the application feel much more zippy. We’ve also introduced a new “block quote” object which makes it easy to insert quotations as snippets.

Finally, check out the return of the “Clear Style” menu command, greatly improved since its days in the 1.x versions of Sandvox. This is a great way to reset the font, size, and color of text you have pasted in from other sources to match the look of the rest of your website. But what’s really cool, we think, is that it preserves runs of bold and italic text, since that’s something you probably want to keep.

Download Sandvox 2.1 now.

Welcoming iWeb Users

People have been “graduating” from iWeb to Sandvox for years, but due to the recent announcement that Apple’s MobileMe service will be shutting down next year, many iWeb users are ready to look for another app that will help them build their website. To help iWeb users graduate to Sandvox, we have created an online resource that helps explain the differences between iWeb and Sandvox, with helpful suggestions on how to make the switch. If you have friends who have been using iWeb and need a new way to build their website or maybe you have been sitting on the fence yourself, please read and share our iWeb transition guide.

SEO for Sandvox from Rage Software

Our friends at Rage Software have just created a dynamite set of video tutorials explaining SEO — Search Engine Optimization — for Sandvox.

This series of 25 YouTube videos is free for watching over the web. It explains SEO terminology from the ground up, and shows you how to make effective use of Sandvox’s built-in SEO features to make your website extremely friendly to search engines and likely to be clicked on in search engine results pages.

If you want your Sandvox-built website to be found easily (who doesn’t?) and you need some help understanding the best practices for doing so, be sure to set aside some time to watch your way through these videos.

Shopping Cart Software Made for Sandvox

If you are building your website with Sandvox, and you need it to integrate with some shopping-cart software to run on your server, you may want to check out Datalogica’s CGI shopping cart software.

The software has a free version (with limitations) for you to try it out, and a customizable paid version as well. The software appears to be very well-supported, with helpful tutorial videos to help people get the software up and running.

Looking for example of websites that use the Datalogica shopping cart? Try ClinicalPosters.com and Green Star Homeopathics. You can also try out the administrative functionality via a demo website.

If you are interested in running your own shopping cart, take a good look at Datalogica.

In This Issue

  • Sandvox 2.1
  • Welcoming iWeb Users
  • SEO for Sandvox
  • Shopping Cart Software
  • Websites of the Month

Application Downloads

Download iconSandvox 2.1

MacAppStore iconiMedia Browser 2.0.1

Other Downloads

(Only for our newsletter subscribers)

Download bonus book “77 Ways to Get Traffic” eBook

Sandvox Design Providers

Get the latest updates from all design providers

Sandvox Sites Directory

Examples of Sandvox-Built Websites contributed by people like you

On the Social Networks

Twitter: Follow @karelia

Useful tidbits posted frequently!

Facebook:
Become a fan of Karelia and join Sandvox group

Facebook-exclusive Sandvox discount!

Sandvox Websites of the Month

We resume our monthly feature that spotlights a few Sandvox-created websites that we think show off the application’s features well. From now on we are focusing on websites that were built with Sandvox 2. If you are hoping your site will be featured in our newsletter, make sure that your website is built in Sandvox 2 and that you have submitted it to SandvoxSites.com!

If you would like to have your website considered for our Websites of the Month spotlight, just choose “Submit to Site Directory…” from the Site menu in Sandvox, and fill out the details about your site (or sites). Doing so will get your website listed on SandvoxSites.com, and we may choose to feature your site in a future mailing of our newsletter.

New England dance band Charisma spokesperson Mitchell Taub resisted the undoubtedly strong temptation to activate their music to all site visitors upon arrival. He obviously realizes there are many who want to determine when it should play. He has also wisely utilized thumbnails of the band’s YouTube video to speed the site’s load time.

Mitchell told us that the rollout of Sandvox 2 played a big part in his decision to go with Karelia. “Knowing that Sandvox is planning to provide a major software update in the near future was also a big plus — other companies didn’t necessarily provide the same impression that they were committed to continuous improvement of their product, which is very important to me.”

Catherine Crawford is an unusual artist. Her subjects are dogs and her renditions are striking and arresting. She has an amazing knack for capturing that look in a dog’s eye that defies description. You’ll have to go to Lucky Dog Paintings to understand! Click on any of the selections in her gallery for a closeup of the image.

She also makes good use of color to grab the attention of the site visitor without creating a distraction. The navigation is spot on with respect to utility of the site. And, the content is in a large font, taking into consideration older people who are now using the Internet more frequently. 

Most websites exist for the purpose of promoting a service, product or business venture. So, we compliment Bjorn Gunnar Eggen who has developed a site that is dedicated to his relocation from Norway to Thailand. It has been set up as a blog primarily for his friends and family.

Since he is using Sandvox, the process is neither time consuming nor expensive. Mr. Eggen notes, “…the look of the website is professional, not like a “homemade” site. The finished results are perfect and I really enjoy using it. [It] gives me inspiration; there is an easy-to-use solution for whatever I want to do.”

Congratulations to this month’s featured websites!

See you in the Sandvox!