While much of the advertising attention at SES is focused on pay-per-click programs in the search engines, there’s still room for more traditional approaches to marketing and advertising using rich media to provide a solution. At SES San Jose, Chris spoke with Rick Corteville of Organic, a company that specializes in finding the right advertising campaign for clients across a broad range of rich media opportunites. From advertising through video on the Web to more traditional video outlets, as Organic puts it, “We think about digital media in the broadest and most holistic sense — across multiple screens and platforms. We like addressing complex problems with thoughtful, simple solutions.”

I’m disappointed. I mean, here we are in Alaska, and Ted Stevens has not stopped by to say hello. That’s the least he could do for me, considering CNN put the InterTubes bLaugh in one of their segments the other day! I was sorting through my spam remotely (through VNC to my home computer) when I saw a message from captured the video for me to see it second-hand. The quality isn’t amazing, but it seems that in the broadcast, they kept our sponsor’s message (the GoDaddy coupon code “bLaugh“) intact. Freakin’ sweet! I wonder if we’re anywhere near Ted’s place today?

Ponzi couldn’t wait to hit Ketchikan today, although her window for shopping will be relatively short. We docked in the early morning hours and will be departing before 1pm. I’ve been playing the “lazy card” for most of this week, and today is no exception. I could hear the seaplanes buzzing a few hundred feet away, but that wasn’t enough to wake me from my slumber. It’s a bit overcast in this port, which is exactly how I like it. I’m chilling in the ship’s library right now (though it’s far from quiet here). Ponzi’s on shore, no doubt looking for sales and specials and more ways to ensure that our suitcases will get the honorable “HEAVY” tag slapped upon them before transport. I’m just glad she didn’t force me to tag along; I really can’t stand shopping if I don’t know what I want or have nothing specific to attain. She, on the other hand, has some kind of “buy” instinct. Is there a pill for that?

We’ll be back in Seattle on Saturday morning. The concierge asked if the latest departure time would be okay. 10am? Fine by me. We’re honestly in no rush. That said, I’m very much looking forward to returning to an “always on” Internet connection. I’m thankful that Pluggd stepped in to sponsor our connectivity while on board Holland America’s Oosterdam, but those moments are fleeting. It’ll be far better to post photos after I’ve had a chance to sort through them and pick out the best ones. The text summations are sufficient, considering we really haven’t done many touristy things in Alaska. I almost wish we could stay another week. Almost.

With the recent battery recall from both Dell and Apple a large percentage of laptop batteries may be at risk. While you certainly have the option of getting a replacement battery from the original manufacturer, it might also be worthwhile to consider some alternatives. One useful option is to find a compatible battery with a longer life than the original battery. Here Chris talks with battery expert Larry O’Connor of Newer Technology about the Apple recall, how to pick a battery and a number of tips for getting more life out of your battery while you travel.

Moniker is one of the leading companies in the space of buying and selling domain names. They offer services well beyond the basic domain registration. If you have a domain name you want to sell, Moniker can help in apprasing the value and assist in brokering a deal. If you’re actively seeking the perfect URL, chances are Moniker or one of their competitors is handling the transaction. In this conversation with Chris from SES San Jose, Monte Cahn of Moniker offers some helpful tips on making sure you get the most from your domain purchases and sales no matter which company you use for the transaction.

I can’t remember falling asleep last night. It’s not like we had a very active day (though I did crash early the night before after another round of fine cigars and cognac). Ponzi was up late, ordering chocolate cake and a club sandwich from room service after Midnight. I woke up to the sound of the ship’s activities director, telling us that we had finally arrived at Sitka. I didn’t want to get out of bed - it was too comfortable. What’s there to do in Sitka? Not much, as we would come to discover.

According to reports, there were a few stores in town - and Ponzi’s sale magnet was spinning wildly (she had it implanted a few months ago). We finished watching the morning movie, ate our breakfast in bed, and prepared ourselves for a small adventure in Sitka. This is where Alaska became a member of the United States - a good reason to go ashore via tender. We didn’t even grab a cup of coffee before heading out!

On the streets of Sitka, we found several stores. Before too long, however, we found ourselves dining at the Raven Room. I ordered the reindeer sausage sandwich and an Alaskan ale - and I’d heartily recommend both. We stopped by the post office to mail a few postcards, moseyed down the block to pick up two breve mochas, and continued to window shop our way to exhaustion. Two hours seemed like four, and I was ready to head back to the ship for a game of Scrabble and leisure time on our verandah. Didn’t get to tour Castle Hill, but at least we can say that we were there.

Spam checked, bLaugh read, reports written (courtesy of Pluggd). Time to play afternoon bingo and snack on some gourmet cheese.

We never actually pulled up to a port yesterday. Hubbard glacier was to be admired from afar - and admired, it was. I’ll cover the experience in tonight’s Lockergnome report - an afternoon that will be forever etched in memory. I never thought something in nature could be so… naturally amazing. I spend my life looking for artificial creations and virtual pleasures, so this formation of snow and ice was a breath of fresh air (literally). I enjoyed watching it for well over three hours - without once thinking of the time, without once feeling bored or restless. I will return one day, mark my words.

Ponzi and I played casual all the way through the evening, though we did miss another opportunity for group trivia and bingo. I’ve got a few more cruise tips to add to my list, and I think Ponzi’s got a few of her own. Holland America still strikes me as one of the better cruise companies around - in Alaska or otherwise. Being able to connect to the Internet in the middle of the day is nice, too - thanks, Pluggd!

Small Businesses need search engine optimization too. Unlike Fortune 500 companies with massive marketing budgets, small businesses don’t have unlimited resources to “own” their category in Google, Yahoo, MSN and Ask. That’s where Search Engine Guide comes in, providing smart advice for small businesses who need a leg up on the competitive rankings in search engines. As editor of Search Engine Guide, Jennifer Laycock is on the front lines in assisting small businesses to understand the complexities of the search engine universe. Here Chris talks with Jennifer about what small businesses need to know to be found when customers are looking for informatoin.

It seems like there are dozens of places to post video these days. Few of the services are optimized for high quality video, which is where the new DivX Stage6DivX is already known as one of the most popular formats for downloading video. Not too long ago they started offering a way to embed DivX in your own Web pages. Stage6 is a natural step into the realm of offering a place for video publishers to easily share content online. With stunning widescreen formatting and an option to charge for downloads, Stage6 seems ready for prime time even though it’s still in beta at the moment. Here Chris talks with Tom Huntington of DivX about the Stage6 service, who the target audience is, and how it fits into the DivX plan for entertainment domination.

You aggitatin’ my dots? Turns out, Holland America is blocking Skype - wholesale. I went to download the VoIP client, only to be met with a message (on Skype.com) saying that it was blocked. I can only assume they’re blocking Skype traffic, too - considering they charge (no joke) over $7 per minute for voice calls from your room phone. It ain’t cheap to communicate on a cruise ship. I’ve got Google Talk installed, so I might try dialing through that in a few minutes - assuming they’re not going to cut in on the call. So much for recording a conversation with Pluggd from sea.

Alaska Cruise Tips

1. If you don’t have kids or grey hair, you’re in a minority.
2. They will feed you until your stomach explodes; pace yourself!
3. Cruise ship “Classes” are nothing more than sales pitches.
4. If you can’t get a suite with a verandah, keep saving your pennies until you can.
5. Plan on doing separate activites from your travel mate frequently.
6. It’s cold in the morning. (NSFW)
7. Formal wear isn’t required, but suggested for a more complete experience.
8. Recharge your electronics every evening, bring spares.
9. Don’t plan something for every minute of every day.
10. Get to know your staff; be kind to people and they should be kind to you in return.

And, of course, do you best to line up a ship that has an Internet connection (though I doubt I’d be able to use it much if I wasn’t able to find Pluggd as a sponsor). Maybe if I keep my thinking cap on long enough, I can extend this list to 50 general cruise tips I’ve picked up on my journeys at sea?

The world could be ending right now and I wouldn’t know it. Sure, we have satellite television on board - but the time we’ve spent in our suite has been minimal. Internet access is a premium, so I haven’t spent much of my time catching up with the news online. I’m largely unplugged this week (ironic, as Pluggd is keeping me connected to the Internet for the duration of this voyage). Yes, this week wouldn’t be half as much fun if I wasn’t able to log on and post updates near real-time. And as far as I’m concerned, a couple of times a day is just about as close to “immediate” as you get on the high seas. We haven’t been boarded by pirates yet, though.

Ponzi and I had a wicked time in Juneau yesterday, coptering halfway across the city to land on a glacier. There sits a modest dogsled training camp - populated by over 300 dogs and a dozen mushers. We walked amongst Iditerod champions and hopefuls in the early afternoon hours - but when they took us on a short run “around the block,” we were smack dab in the middle of the action. Certainly, the teams didn’t open up all the way. It was a first for us, though. I’m surprised the weather was relatively temperate, especially at the higher altitude. Even so, I’m glad we picked up suede gloves in downtown Juneau earlier (miles away from and well below the dogsled adventure).

What goes up must come down, and so another helicopter returned us to less-icy ground. The views from the air were spectacular. On the bus ride back to “the city,” we spotted an American Eagle - another first for both Ponzi and myself. I snapped a few pictures through the tinted glass, so I’m afraid the images won’t be crystal clear. When we returned to Juneau’s downtown shopping district, Ponzi wanted to hop out and poke around - but I was ready to eat (as we hadn’t hda a nibble since breakfast). I’m pretty predictable when it comes to my “I hate to shop” attitude, so we shuttled our way back to the Oosterdam for a relaxing afternoon.

Today? We’re visiting the largest glacier in North America.

All the efforts by marketers aiming to game the search engines for top positioning could easily be put to rest by providing good old fashioned useful content. Instead of focusing on keyword density and crafty tricks to get to the top of the search engines, provide something people want to read and use common sense. That’s the message from Heather Lloyd Martin, CEO of Success Works and author of Successful Search Engine Copywriting. In this conversation from SES in San Jose, Heather talks with Chris about the fundamentals of writing for your Web site in a way that is both useful to customers and effective at getting good placement in the search engines.

Today marks the first day we’ll be stepping off the ship. We’re in Juneau, Alaska - ready to embark on our first dogsledding adventure! I hope to have a few good photos from that excursion. We haven’t quite yet docked for the day, though the views outside our stateroom window have been absolutely amazing. It’s been like watching a long, scrolling postcard from the time we woke up a few hours ago until now. It’s true what they say - the landscape is pretty amazing. The weather is pretty temperate right now, too - haven’t seen a single iceberg float by. I’m a little disappointed that we won’t be touching the Arctic Ocean before turning around and heading back south. It would’ve been “cool” to say that I had been there.

I guess Alaska loves tourists - given the amount of primping and priming the cruise shopping director is giving us through the ship’s closed-network video channel. Ponzi can’t wait to hit the shops, if only to find a totem pole “face” that we can hang on our wall at home. She’s also looking forward to finding a few tanzanite pieces. I think I’m spelling that correctly? I guess it’s a gem that’s native to the area. Maybe I can convince her to go panning for gold at some point during this trip? I did it once in Colorado when I was a kid, turning up a gold flake or two (planted for the kiddies, no doubt).

Thanks again to Pluggd for giving us the opportunity to get online during this cruise on Holland America’s Oosterdam!

Despite weathering a relatively restless night, I feel refreshed. The bed was comfortable enough, with two twin mattresses akimbo, 250 count sheets, and soft pillows. However, my sense of balance kept me from enjoying a peaceful sleep. I think I’m finally getting my sea legs, though. At least, I hope! It’s most difficult to manage when I can’t see the horizon. The temperature outside? Chilly, but certainly tolerable with thicker clothing. Despite the cool climate, We opted to dine on the verandah for breakfast this morning - the view was oceanic and the company kept us warm. Ponzi and I have a private space just outside our stateroom. Despite the weak coffee, they did bring us heavy cream (per our written request). We’re now getting ready to enjoy our day on board, with Ponzi hot to attend a couple of classes (even though some of them are designed to teach you how to buy more junk that you don’t really need).

Last night, Ponzi and I decided to get a nice cigar and sip cognac in the Oak Room on the upper deck of the Oosterdam. Neither of us smoke, and we really don’t drink, either - but it was an “experience” nonetheless. I took a few more photos, though I might wait to upload my favorites at the end of the day. Tried to help a mergers and aquisitions lawyer with his wireless connection a few minutes ago - seems I can never escape this lot. Coffee’s good in the Neptune room (though I had to bring in the heavy cream from breakfast). Gotta check my email now… and again, thank the gang at Pluggd for enabling us to get online and check in with friends on our journey to Alaska.

The Internet connection on this Holland America liner, itself, is flaky - and not very trustworthy. For some reason or another, Akismet crapped at at some point in the past 24 hours, and I can’t load a full page to clear ~250 junk comments from my legit queue. Argh! Ooooh, now I sound like a pirate.