RustyBrick, Inc.

RustyBrick, Inc. - Blog Web site design and web development services in New York. Web Construction at its Best! - Click For More Information. http://www.rustybrick.com/ en Copyright ©; 1994-2024 RustyBrick, Inc. All Rights Reserved info@rustybrick.com Global Bedtime Shema Night - Awareness Initiative Tonight, 15 Cheshvan - October 29th, 2023 we at RustyBrick are continuing our initiative within the Jewish community - for an annual worldwide bedtime shema reading.  We would like to have this special effort promote awareness of the nightly Jewish ritual of reciting bedtime shema.  We ask that you, especially your children, grandchildren, your family members all make an effort to say bedtime shema tonight on the Hebrew date of 15 Cheshvan. Join over 50,000 Jewish children around the world reciting Krias Shema al Hamitah using the free <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-shema.php">Bedtime Shema app</a> for iPhones or Android.  Download the app for free and say Shema tonight! <img alt="Bedtime Shema Initiative" class="setlazy" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/shema-flyer-generic.png" style="width: 895px;" /> Dedicated in loving memory of our mother, Esther bas Yaakov, whose Yahrzeit is the 15th of Cheshvan. <hr>Source: <a href="/shema">Global Bedtime Shema Night - Awareness Initiative</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /shema Fri, 04 November 2022 13:19:58 EDT Ronnie Schwartz Download Our Siddur & Tehillim Apps For Free In response to the situation in Israel right now, we are currently offering our <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-siddur.php">Siddur app</a> and <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-tehilim.php">Tehillim app</a> for free.  We ask you use this app to daven/pray for the safety and security of our friends, family and loved ones.  We pray for the speedy return of security and safety to all of Israel and the region.   While the iOS version is free to download directly, the Google Android version requires you to use a promo code to download it for free.  We made a <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1iM_i0_49HMWifgBoE2uk3mbFu8b76bZqm26g0FpqoHA/edit#gid=0">Google Doc with promo codes for the Android Siddur</a> and a <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1JYB68vHdhTv2heI7QcU4AsdP5Qr99SVQlFE_BatduQI/edit#gid=0">Google Doc with promo codes for the Android Tehillim</a> where you can locate the promo codes to download them, here are <a href="https://support.google.com/googleplay/answer/3422659?hl=en">instructions</a> on how to use the code on Android (again, iOS does not need a code).  We ask you cross off the code when it is used and if there is an issue, comment below so we know the codes are all used up. We will publish new codes for Android as soon as we can. You can learn more about our <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-siddur.php">Siddur app</a> and <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-tehilim.php">Tehillim app</a> links to download them for iOS and Android on that page. The app will be free through Sunday, October 15th. <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/jewish-star-siddur-app.png" style="width: 500px; height: 578px;" /> <hr>Source: <a href="/free-siddur">Download Our Siddur & Tehillim Apps For Free</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /free-siddur Wed, 11 October 2023 11:27:26 EDT Barry Schwartz Global Bedtime Shema Night - Awareness Initiative This Wednesday Night, 15 Cheshvan - October 20th, 2021 we at RustyBrick are continuing our initiative within the Jewish community - for an annual worldwide bedtime shema reading.  We would like to have this special effort promote awareness of the nightly Jewish ritual of reciting bedtime shema.  We ask that you, especially your children, grandchildren, your family members all make an effort to say bedtime shema on Wednesday night, October 20th, 2021 on the Hebrew date of 15 Cheshvan. Join over 50,000 Jewish children around the world reciting Krias Shema al Hamitah using the free <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-shema.php">Bedtime Shema app</a> for iPhones or Android.  Download the app for free and say Shema this coming Tuesday night! <img alt="Bedtime Shema Initiative" class="setlazy" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/shema-flyer-wednesday.png" /> Dedicated in loving memory of our mother, Esther bas Yaakov, whose Yahrzeit is the 15th of Cheshvan. <hr>Source: <a href="/shema2021">Global Bedtime Shema Night - Awareness Initiative</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /shema2021 Tue, 19 October 2021 08:30:15 EDT Ronnie Schwartz New Siddur Apple Watch Complications We are excited to announce that we have upgraded our <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-siddur.php">Siddur app</a> recently to not just include dark mode support and other miscellaneous upgrades but we added numerous watch complications to the Apple Watch.  One of the most requested features our customers have been asking us is to add support for additional Apple Watch complications.  Complications are one of the ways you can customize your Apple Watch face. Complications display information from apps and can be directly added to Watch faces.  You can learn how to add these in the <a href="https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT205536">Apple help center</a>. In addition to the "Default" Complication that is controlled by the Watch App under "Settings" on your iPhone, we added the following complications: <ul> <li>- Hebrew Date in English Complication</li> <li>- Hebrew Date in Hebrew Complication</li> <li>- Daf HaYomi in English Complication</li> <li>- Daf HaYomi in Hebrew Complication</li> <li>- Sedra in English Complication</li> <li>- Sedra in Hebrew Complication</li> <li>- Next Upcoming Zman Complication</li> <li>- Over 10 Zmanim Complications</li> </ul> Here are some samples: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/siddur-app-apple-watch-complications.png" /> We also added support to more complication layouts and templates.  Progress indicators on some Daf HaYomi complications and much more! <hr>Source: <a href="/siddur-watch-complications.html">New Siddur Apple Watch Complications</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /siddur-watch-complications.html Fri, 12 February 2021 11:25:32 EST Barry Schwartz Global Bedtime Shema Night - Awareness Initiative This Tuesday Night, 15 Cheshvan - November 12th, 2019 we at RustyBrick are continuing our initiative within the Jewish community - for an annual worldwide bedtime shema reading.  We would like to have this special effort promote awareness of the nightly Jewish ritual of reciting bedtime shema.  We ask that you, especially your children, grandchildren, your family members all make an effort to say bedtime shema on Tuesday night, November 12th, 2019 on the Hebrew date of 15 Cheshvan.  Join over 50,000 Jewish children around the world reciting Krias Shema al Hamitah using the free <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-shema.php">Bedtime Shema app</a> for iPhones or Android.  Download the app for free and say Shema this coming Tuesday night! <img alt="Bedtime Shema Initiative" class="setlazy" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/shema-flyer.png" /> Dedicated in loving memory of our mother, Esther bas Yaakov, whose Yahrzeit is the 15th of Cheshvan. <hr>Source: <a href="/shema2019">Global Bedtime Shema Night - Awareness Initiative</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /shema2019 Fri, 19 October 2018 09:33:12 EDT Ronnie Schwartz Barry Schwartz Wins Search Engine Land's Outstanding Community Service <img alt="Barry Schwartz - Search Engine Land Award" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/barry-schwartz-search-engine-land-awards-podium.jpg" /> On June 4, 2019 in Seattle at the <a href="https://searchengineland.com/awards">Search Engine Land Awards</a>, I was honored by my colleagues and peers to have been awarded the Outstanding Community Service award.  This was a special and really meaningful award to have been given, since the SEM/SEO community is a very important part of my life. This award follows the <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/barry-schwartz-search-personality.html">US Search Personality award</a> from back in October 2018.   I have been writing about SEO topics at <a href="https://searchengineland.com/">Search Engine Land</a> since the site launched, it is the site Danny Sullivan co-founded and ran before <a href="https://searchengineland.com/danny-sullivan-joins-google-283977">joining Google</a> not too long ago.  I cannot tell you how meaningful it is to be honored by the people you work with with such an award. What was even more special about this award, that night, was that <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregsterling/">Greg Sterling</a>, who also writes at Search Engine Land, and someone I've known and been writing side-by-side with for 15 or so years, also won that award.  Being on stage, accepting the award, with Greg, was the highlight of the night and possibly of all 2019. Here is a photo of us with our awards: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/barry-schwartz-greg-sterling-search-engine-land-awards.jpg" /> And on stage: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/barry-schwartz-greg-sterling-search-engine-land-awards-podium.jpg" /> Finally, Chris Elwell, the CEO of <a href="https://thirddoormedia.com/">Third Door Media</a>, who owns Search Engine Land, Search Marketing Expo, the awards and numerous other properties, presented the award.  He doesn't often speak at the podium and for him to stand up on stage and give such a warm and heartfilled talk about Greg and myself - well, that was just really meaningful.  Here is a video of that: <iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ghYPkX9FvlM" width="560"></iframe> You can <a href="https://searchengineland.com/heres-to-barry-schwartz-and-greg-sterling-heroes-of-the-search-community-317896">also read the story</a> about this at Search Engine Land by Henry Powderly. <hr>Source: <a href="/barry-schwartz-community-award.html">Barry Schwartz Wins Search Engine Land's Outstanding Community Service</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /barry-schwartz-community-award.html Wed, 31 July 2019 09:51:49 EDT Barry Schwartz Barry Schwartz Wins US Search Personality Award <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/barry-schwartz-us-search-personality-award.jpg" /> Two months ago, on October 18, 2018 in Las Vegas, I was honored to have been named the US Search Personality of the year by the <a href="https://www.ussearchawards.com/2018-winners">US Search Awards</a>.  I have to say, it was a very humbling night and I am still a bit in awe of the whole event. As many of you know, I am personally very involved in the search industry - just go read my <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/barry">bio over here</a>.  In fact, this is my <a href="https://www.seroundtable.com/15-years-old-26712.html">15th year anniversary</a> of writing about search and SEO.  I'll tell you the truth - I still love doing it, every single day.  I love how things are constantly changing in the search space, both in terms of technical changes and policy changes.  I love the search marketing industry and the people within it.  It is a wonderful community and to be given this honor is beyond words. Why did I take so long to write about it here?  Truth is, it has been a very busy year for us at RustyBrick and I wanted to let things calm down a bit before writing about this.  The end of the year is a good time to look back and reflect.  I might have to say that with this award and a few other things that happened over the year  - some that I cannot talk about yet - that it may have been the most successful year yet. Some people have been asking me for photos and videos from the event, so here are a select few, you can find more <a href="https://www.seroundtable.com/photos/barry-schwartz-tiara-26542.html">over here</a>. The award itself, it comes with a tiara - no joke: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/us-search-personality-award-2018.jpg" /> Speaking at the podium at the award show (this was from before I won the award): <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/barry-schwartz-us-search-awards.jpg" /> These photos are all over here <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/dontpanicevents/sets/72157672502671117">on Flickr</a>, plus many more. <hr>Source: <a href="/barry-schwartz-search-personality.html">Barry Schwartz Wins US Search Personality Award</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /barry-schwartz-search-personality.html Fri, 21 December 2018 13:02:16 EST Barry Schwartz RustyBrick Sukkah Is Now Available <img alt="RustyBrick Sukkah - Inside View" class="setlazy" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/rustybrick-sukkah-inside.jpg" /> Like virtually every Sukkot holiday, we at RustyBrick <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/rustysukkah-open.html">put up</a> our Sukkah named the <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/rustysukkah.html">RustySukkah</a>. I put it up yesterday, it fits maybe two or so people, and is open for anyone who wants to use it during the Jewish holiday of Sukkots.  It is normally up and running during what is called "<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chol_HaMoed">chol hamoed</a>" of the holiday, which are the weekdays of the festival.  We plan to keep it up from Wednesday, September 26th through Friday September 28th. Since those are when people who are working in the area will need it. Saturday and Sunday, people are normally home - although I will be here on Sunday.  For more on what a Sukkah is see <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukkah">Wikipedia</a>. The photo above is from the inside of this Sukkah. <hr>Source: <a href="/rustysukkah-is-available.html">RustyBrick Sukkah Is Now Available</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /rustysukkah-is-available.html Thu, 27 September 2018 09:30:53 EDT Barry Schwartz Double Header For RustyBrick's Annual Rockland Boulders Baseball Game <img alt="" class="setlazy" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/boulder-bird-suite.jpg" /> For the third year in a row, we had our <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/rockland-boulders-baseball-game.html">annual</a> RustyBrick company event at <a href="http://www.rocklandboulders.com/">Rockland Boulders</a> stadium.  It turned out to be a double header game, so two games for the price of one.  Our first game was cancelled, which caused a huge amount of scheduling complications within the company.  And then the game the night before was cancelled, so they ran a double header last night.  That meant the games started at 5pm instead of 7pm, which was a good thing for the kids.  The Boulder Bird came up to visit some of us in the suite we rented for the night.  You can see from the photo above some of the kids loved it, while others found the bird to be unusual and a bit scary - can you blame them? Here is a photo of the stadium putting RustyBrick up on the big screen, not sure you can see it, but trust me, it is there: <img alt="" class="setlazy" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/rustybrick-boulders-game1.jpg" /> It did end up raining briefly last night but there was no need to tarp the field and the game continued on.  The kids loved the bird, train, playground and the game and it was a good night for all! <hr>Source: <a href="/double-header.html">Double Header For RustyBrick's Annual Rockland Boulders Baseball Game</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /double-header.html Wed, 15 August 2018 09:35:23 EDT Barry Schwartz 10th Year Anniversary For The Siddur App <img alt="Siddur 10 Years Old" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/10thbirthdaysiddur2.jpg" /> Today, July 25, 2018 marks the 10 year anniversary of when we at RustyBrick first submitted the revolutionary <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-siddur.php">Siddur app</a> to the iPhone (iOS) app store.  It was the first fully smart Siddur that aimed at not just giving Jewish people a way to pray while on the go, but a way to know exactly what prayers to say for the day and time.  Be it a normal weekday, a Monday or Thursday Torah reading, Rosh Chodesh, Chol Hamoed or other weekday based event, the Siddur app is the go to place for Jews to rely on when praying daily.   In the Siddur app, you can find the proper times when to pray with the localized zmanim, find the closest minyan to you with the Minyan database, be reminded about special lifecycle events, multiple nusach support, a jewish calendar and so much more.  The RustyBrick team has spent countless hours building this app, adding feature after feature over the past ten years.  We consider this one of our flagship apps and we are so honored by the feedback we have received over the years. As a special thank you to the community - we are holding a 50% sale on our Siddur for both <a href="https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/app/siddur-sdwr-zmanim-luach-minyanim/id286478367?mt=8&at=11l4Pn">iOS</a> and <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rustybrick.siddur&hl=en">Android</a> until July 31, 2018.     <hr>Source: <a href="/siddur-10-years.html">10th Year Anniversary For The Siddur App</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /siddur-10-years.html Mon, 23 July 2018 14:09:52 EDT Barry Schwartz 2018 ShulCloud Conference Recap The annual <a href="https://www.shulcloud.com/">ShulCloud</a> conference, an event for our synagogue customers, took place yesterday and it was by far our biggest and most successful event.  We had double the attedance of last year, with about 260 synagogue administrators registered to attend in person and hundreds more watching live from across the world.   We had even more content and more speakers than ever before and of course, twice the amount of food than the <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/shulcloud-6-years.html">prior year</a>. ShulCloud is now just a bit over seven years old now, and in the past year our growth has been tremendous.  The product, our services, our customers and our support have all significantly increased over the past year.  Here are some highlights from the keynote we gave yesterday morning: <ul> <li>ShulCloud is 7 years old</li> <li>Almost 800 active synagogues using ShulCloud</li> <li>220+ New sign ups over the past year</li> <li>Over 3 million users stored on ShulCloud</li> <li>67+ million stored financial transactions</li> <li>Processed over $315 milllion through ShulCloud</li> <li>Over 100,000 support requests professionally handled</li> <li>Average support calls take about 6 minutes</li> <li>Over 500 documented new features releases in the past year</li> <li>Announced the new SMS messaging feature, upgrades to the admin mobile apps, massive calendar rewrite, credit card updates, international tax support, form and transaction features, the new private files system, contact syncing, security upgrades, and so much more.</li> </ul> Here is a photo from the keynote: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/keynote-sc.jpg" /> Here are recordings from both rooms (we ran two tracks throughout the day): <iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lpvQrWhgufg" width="560"></iframe> Jump To Positions In the Video: <ul> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/lpvQrWhgufg?t=3m19s">Keynote Presentation at 3:20</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/lpvQrWhgufg?t=1h1m54s">Check Out The Calendar at 1:01:54</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/lpvQrWhgufg?t=1h48m26s">Reporting For Duty at 1:48:26</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/lpvQrWhgufg?t=3h18m1s">What's New With Our Mobile Apps at 3:18:01</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/lpvQrWhgufg?t=4h3m18s">Digesting The Campaign Module at 4:03:18</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/lpvQrWhgufg?t=4h48m21s">Getting Schooled On The School Module at 4:48:21</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/lpvQrWhgufg?t=5h35m15s">Private Files at 5:35:15</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/lpvQrWhgufg?t=6h16m12s">Bookkeeping Tips With ShulCloud at 6:16:12</a></li> </ul> <iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kpZR2IAhg8I" width="560"></iframe> Jump To Positions In the Video: <ul> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/kpZR2IAhg8I?t=17m10s">Best Practices With ShulCloud at 17:10</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/kpZR2IAhg8I?t=1h2m25s">High Holidays Are Approaching at 1:02:25</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/kpZR2IAhg8I?t=2h35m15s">Email Design With The New Mail Builder at 2:35:15</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/kpZR2IAhg8I?t=3h18m48s">Filling You In On Forms at 3:18:48</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/kpZR2IAhg8I?t=4h3m1s">CMS: Getting Your Web Site In Shape at 4:03:01</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/kpZR2IAhg8I?t=4h47m59s">Refunding Payments at 4:47:59</a></li> <li><a href="https://youtu.be/kpZR2IAhg8I?t=5h34m50s">Question & Answer at 5:34:50</a></li> </ul> Here are some more photos from the day: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/room-b.jpg" /> <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/sponsor.jpg" /> <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/kesef.jpg" /> <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/chatting.jpg" /> <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/smile.jpg" /> <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/team.jpg" /> We are so honored to be part of your community - thank you all for everything from the ShulCloud Team! <hr>Source: <a href="/2018-shulcloud-recap.html">2018 ShulCloud Conference Recap</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /2018-shulcloud-recap.html Wed, 11 July 2018 09:21:17 EDT Barry Schwartz Cold Calling For Sales On Recorded Lines <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/recorded-line.jpg" /> People that know me, know that I am a <a href="http://www.barryschwartz.org/2006/09/i_am_a_horrible_sales_man.html">horrible salesman</a>, so this is a disclaimer to this blog post before you listen to any sales advice from me. In the past couple months or so, I had two sales people cold call me and told me that I am on a recorded line.  Forget the fact that no one likes cold calls and a lot of people do not like unsolicited sales, they actually were recording the call. Yea, I get they want to record the call for (1) quality assurance and (2) legal reasons but no - I do not want to be recorded, especially if you cold called me. I told the person that called last time that I was about to listen to their sales pitch but since they are recording the call, I will not proceed.   In fact, I think there should be a way for these people to press a button to stop the recording, if requested.  The past two people that told me they were recording the call had no way to stop the recording upon request. So maybe a sales tip: Do not record the call and if you do, maybe be in a state that doesn't require you to declare you are doing so? <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">Sales tip: Someone who says in their first line of their cold call sales call, â��I am calling on a recorded lineâ�� - that isnâ��t a good move to get me to want to talk to you and listen more about what you are selling <a href="https://t.co/kvOwKcxRSB">pic.twitter.com/kvOwKcxRSB</a>— Barry Schwartz (@rustybrick) <a href="https://twitter.com/rustybrick/status/991421381828075520?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 1, 2018</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script><hr>Source: <a href="/cold-calling-recorded-lines.html">Cold Calling For Sales On Recorded Lines</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /cold-calling-recorded-lines.html Wed, 20 June 2018 13:20:25 EDT Barry Schwartz Google Street View Car At RustyBrick <img alt="Google Street View Car" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/google-street-view-car.jpg" /> On Friday at about 1:15pm EST a Google Street Car was in our parking lot.  It drove in and out all within 30 seconds.  Thanks to someone looking out the window during one of our weekly meetings, I was able to quickly get up and snap a bunch of pictures of it as it exited our parking lot. Here is the GIF of that in action: <img alt="Google Street View Car Animated GIF" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/google-street-view-car.gif" /> By the way, our office is already set up for <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/google-inside-street-view.html">inside street view images</a> - so this might help a bit complete the picture. <hr>Source: <a href="/google-street-view-car.html">Google Street View Car At RustyBrick</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /google-street-view-car.html Mon, 11 June 2018 12:54:40 EDT Barry Schwartz My Facebook Profile Is Verified <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/facebook-verified.jpg" /> Over the weekend I received an email from Facebook letting me know that my profile with them "has been verified."  Facebook said "now people will see a blue badge next to your profile's name."  The email went on to say "your profile has been verified! You'll now see a blue badge next to your name so people will know that it's authentic." Here is the badge on my profile: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/facebook-verified-icon-profile.jpg" /> You can see it on my profile page at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/barryschwartz">facebook.com/barryschwartz</a>.   It matches my <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/100000-twitter-followers.html">Twitter verification profile</a> badge. Facebook <a href="https://www.facebook.com/help/196050490547892?helpref=popular_topics">says</a> a "if you see a blue badge on a Page or profile, it means that Facebook confirmed that this is the authentic Page or profile for this public figure, media company or brand. Keep in mind that not all public figures, celebrities and brands on Facebook have blue badges."  If you want to verify your Facebook page, you can submit a request via <a href="https://www.facebook.com/help/1288173394636262">these instructions</a>. Now what you ask?  Good question. <hr>Source: <a href="/facebook-profile-verified.html">My Facebook Profile Is Verified</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /facebook-profile-verified.html Mon, 04 June 2018 10:56:54 EDT Barry Schwartz Why People Call RustyBrick Asking For Google <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/google-eye.jpg" /> For years and years people have been calling us at <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/rustybrick-not-google.html">RustyBrick asking if we are Google</a> and if we can provide Google support.  I just had no idea why so many people every week would call us asking for Google support.  The mystery has been solved! A guy called today and after me bugging him to explain how he found us, he finally told me it was on Google Image search. I've asked almost everyone who called us in the past, and they didn't know how they found our number. But this guy actually explained how they found our number. A <a href="https://www.seroundtable.com/google-phone-numbers-hangout-calls-18718.html">blog post</a> I wrote on my SEO blog has an image of the RustyBrick toll free number.  The file name of that image is google-phone-number-click, because I was covering how Google now has clickable phone numbers in their search results.   But that image, that contains our phone number, also ranks number one in Google Image search for the query [<a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=google+phone+number&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjR1qmj0bDbAhXNwVkKHUy3AsAQ_AUIDygA&biw=1813&bih=1279#imgrc=-mwpt_6RLfABuM:">google phone number</a>].   Here is a screen shot: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/googling-google-phone-number.png" /> Yes, the image also says right below the number that it is RustyBrick, Inc. Phone number.  When you call the number, it also says this is "RustyBrick"  but people still try to get Google support by calling that number. I guess I'll have to 404 that image and hope Google Image search drops the image. I can't believe that after all these years, it was Google Image search leading people to calling us for Google support!  How eye opening!  <hr>Source: <a href="/rustybrick-google-support.html">Why People Call RustyBrick Asking For Google</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /rustybrick-google-support.html Thu, 31 May 2018 15:29:30 EDT Barry Schwartz Office Hot Dog Toaster <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/hot-dog-feature.jpg" /> Every week or so Ronnie posts in our #costco Slack channel that he is going to Costco to refill the office kitchen and asks the team here if anyone needs anything. So we joke about buying a hot tub from Costco, among other things. This past week, we joked about buying hot dogs and then I thought, why not? They are easier and small to store and if we buy a hot dog machine, it would be easy to heat up. So I Googled for some hot dog machines and found a slim hot dog toaster that can do 2 to 10 dogs and buns at a time.  We got the two hot dogs and buns model from Amazon (<a href="https://amzn.to/2GHOyTd">affiliate link</a>) for about $25. <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/hot-dog-machine.jpg" /> I used it today and the dogs are pretty good and make for a very quick lunch. The toaster heats the dogs to a very good tasting temperature and it only takes a few minutes.  Now I need to work on getting a soda fountain machine installed at the office, so far all my research leads me to believe we need at least 50 employees, about double our size, to make it worthwhile. <hr>Source: <a href="/office-hot-dog-toaster.html">Office Hot Dog Toaster</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /office-hot-dog-toaster.html Wed, 23 May 2018 13:04:37 EDT Barry Schwartz Why Is RustyBrick Better At Web & Mobile Development <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/im-possible-development.jpg" /> When speaking with prospects about our company, they always want to know why RustyBrick is better than the next web and mobile design shop around the corner.  Why would they be better off working with RustyBrick than another company?  We honestly hate talking about how awesome we are, it just feels uncomfortable.  But we wanted to share three things engrained in our culture at RustyBrick that we think make us stand out from the next. We decided to have Ronnie Schwartz, the founder and CTO of RustyBrick, do a video overview of these three core reasons as well.  Here is that video: <iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yUTsSY-a9UQ" width="560"></iframe> Why is RustyBrick better or different? (1) We build everything within our office, we don't outsource it elsewhere, we don't depend on third-parties to get the job done for us. Thus we control the quality of the work and the timeline of the work and there is no pointing fingers at anyone else.  We do a lot of work for agencies that outsource their work to us because many web design shops don't know how to do real software development.  We are proud of our skills and abilities and proud that we have one unified team of talented people here that can work on your project under one roof. (2) There is no such thing as "impossible" here at RustyBrick.  We can build anything you can dream up.  Once I heard a developer here tell a client, "we can't do that" and I got very upset.  The truth was, we could do it.  There is always a way to do it.  Of course, there are always other factors to consider such as legal issues, budget issues, compliance and resource management - but anything can be built.  Developers and designers that know what they are doing can literally make anything come to life - nothing is impossible here. (3) Probably more important that the previous two points is that we deeply care about our clients and their success.  We are good, honest and caring people and we hire people who are good, honest and caring people.  When we work on any project, each and every person at RustyBrick that touches the project on any level; design, development, testing, customer service, etc - they all deeply care about the client, project and its success.   We deeply want our customers to be happy, succeed and be proud of what we help them build. There are obviously more than three reasons but these are the core reasons why we are different, better than the next company you might interview for your web or mobile software job. <hr>Source: <a href="/rustybrick-better.html">Why Is RustyBrick Better At Web & Mobile Development</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /rustybrick-better.html Wed, 09 May 2018 11:21:55 EDT Barry Schwartz Android Siddur Gets Smart Zmanim Notifications <img alt="Android Siddur" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/android-siddur-smart-notifications.jpg" /> One of the more popular features of the iOS version of our <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-siddur.php">mobile smart siddur</a> are smart notifications.  These smart notifications let you set reminders around Jewish events and times throughout the day. Such as remind me to pray mincha (afternoon) services X minutes before sunset.  Or remind me to light candles before Shabbat starts.  Also reminder me to count Sefirat HaOmer after it gets dark at night and so on.  This has been a feature on the iOS version for a couple years now and it is now available for <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rustybrick.siddur&hl=en">Android users</a> of our Siddur app. To enable them, go to Settings in the Siddur and pick which one you want to activate: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/android-siddur-smart-notitications-settings.png" /> When you click on one, you are given a screen on how you want to confirm it.  You give the notification a name, you can turn it on or off (enable), set how often you want the notifications to repeat, and then if you want the notification to be a fixed time of the day or based on an offset of sunrise or sunset. <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/android-siddur-smart-notitications-setup.png" /> After you configure how you want the notifications, it will notify you via push notifications locally on your device. The notifications may look like this: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/android-siddur-smart-notitications-alerts.png" /> I hope you like this upgrade to the Android version of the <a href="https://www.rustybrick.com/iphone-siddur.php">Siddur App</a>, again, this is now available not just on iOS devices but also on Android. <hr>Source: <a href="/android-siddur-smart-notifications.html">Android Siddur Gets Smart Zmanim Notifications</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /android-siddur-smart-notifications.html Thu, 10 May 2018 09:27:50 EDT Barry Schwartz #SmallThanks: Automatic Google Review Videos <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/google-review-video.jpg" /> Google has been sending out videos to some of businesses that have <a href="https://www.google.com/business">Google My Business</a> listings (Google Maps or local listings).  These videos are marketing materials that Google automatically generated based on your Google review history on your local listings in Google Maps. The video is titled "A #SmallThanks from RustyBrick, Inc. to you" and goes through the overall ratings and selects some random reviews left on your business profile.  The video is cute, I am not sure anyone would really use it as marketing material but it is fun to watch. Here is the video: <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7TP_EfTT53w" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe> Heck, they even know we love pizza and one of the reviews was a pizza delivery, delivered via a dog: <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/google-pizza-review-video.jpg" /> <hr>Source: <a href="/google-reviews-video.html">#SmallThanks: Automatic Google Review Videos</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /google-reviews-video.html Mon, 07 May 2018 13:04:18 EDT Barry Schwartz Office Temperature - A/C Never Works <img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.rustybrick.com/prod/images/content/fan.jpg" /> There is something about offices and A/C units that just don't get along.  I am not talking about no one in the office agreeing about the temperature the thermostats are set to. I am talking about the A/C units simply not working. Today is the first warm day, well, it is currently 67 degrees outside, but enough for the A/C to kick in.  Right now, in my office, the thermostat is reading 79 degrees Fahrenheit.  It is not even noon yet. I suspect some sort of fuse broke somewhere and the building management needs to fix it but this will be the theme throughout the whole season.  The A/C will not be able to keep up with the weather, even not terribly warm or hot weather, and I'll have two fans pointed at me all day when I work in my room. It is not like the office building hasn't tried.  They added more A/C compactly, added more vents to my office, they even put up tinted coverings for the windows.  The windows themselves would heat up the window casing so a point where it would heat up like a oven, so the solution was to tint the windows so the casings wouldn't get so much sunlight. These steps have helped but every year, the issues continue and continue. I like the cold - I live in New York. I do not like the heat. <hr>Source: <a href="/office-ac-broken.html">Office Temperature - A/C Never Works</a> at <a href="http://www.rustybrick.com/">RustyBrick</a>. /office-ac-broken.html Tue, 01 May 2018 11:42:14 EDT Barry Schwartz