Web Scraping in SEO

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the visibility of a website or a web page in a search engine’s “natural” or un-paid (“organic” or “algorithmic”) search results. The value of having sites highly ranked and visible in search engine results is widely known as they are the principle drivers of traffic to any website. The visibility of a site on search engine could very well be the difference in success or failure of a business.  Although an old concept, but one by which SEO practioners still swear by is one of the most widely used SEO technique. It requires webmasters to insert relevant meta-tags of keywords and description apart from having the right page title. With numerous sites in same genre trying to outdo each other and algorithms of search engines changing by the day, it is extremely important to monitor your competitors content, keywords and title tags. Doing the task manually everyday is time consuming & tedious. A much faster and simpler way would be to automate this process using a technique of web scraping.

Web scraping or web data mining is a technique used to extract data from HTML web pages in documents. Web scraping can help a lot in  monitoring of the titles, keywords, content, meta-tags of the competitors websites. One can quickly get an idea of which keywords are driving traffic to the competitors’ website, which content categories are attracting links and user engagement, and what resources will it take to rank your site higher than competition? This would allow you or your SEO practioner to take undertake necessary steps in making changes to site before its too late, and ensure that your site is always at the top of search engines and get traffic to keep your business on the growth trajectory.


Source: http://blog.itsyssolutions.com/tag/web-scraping-2/

As Scrap Metal Theft Problem Grows, New Law May Help

LAKELAND | If you thought the commodity markets were just for Wall Street financiers, think again. Crooks are watching the markets, too, and making more than a pretty penny in Polk County.

The prices of scrap metals are at an all-time high and so are thefts, especially for copper wire.

Copper is fetching close to $4 a pound, according to Kitco Base Metals, a precious metal retailer, up from about $2.75 in December. Aluminum is raking in $1.30 a pound compared to less than $1.10 in December.

The price increases on metal commodities are being fueled by growing demand from foreign countries — namely China and India — that find themselves in an economic boom and facing a worldwide shortage of the materials.

'We have seen an increase around the city in copper wire thefts,' said Jack Gillen, a spokesman for the Lakeland Police Department. 'The problem is definitely worse than it was last year.'

In 2007, LPD investigated about 60 scrap metal thefts through April. This year has surpassed that, Gillen said, though he didn't have specific numbers.

'They are not just taking air conditioning units or little bits of wire,' he said. 'They are breaking into places and taking massive rolls.'

Most recently, a supervisor at the Waste Water Treatment Plant in Lakeland was arrested last month and charged with stealing scrap metal from the plant, Lakeland police reports said.

Many times, though, arrests are not made or the cases are thrown out in court, said Rose Mock, president of Allied Scrap Processors in Lakeland.

In March, a copper thief caused a brief electrical blackout for about 4,000 Tampa Electric Co. customers in Mulberry.

The Polk County Sheriff's Office estimated damage at the company's substation at Moore's Lane and Diesel Road at $500,000.

Also in March, a Lakeland man was arrested for breaking into a Habitat for Humanity home and stealing about $2,000 in copper wire and tubing, according to police reports.

In January, a burglar left Alliance for Independence without heat after destroying two of the company's three heaters for copper wire. The nonprofit organization, which provides assistance and life-skills training to developmentally disabled adults, was forced to use space heaters on the coldest day of the year.

On Jan. 2, copper wire was stolen from air conditioners at the Boys and Girls Club on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue and Catholic Charities on East Memorial Boulevard in Lakeland. The copper wire thefts from four air conditioners at the Boys and Girls Club caused $12,000 in damage, reports said.

'The cost in damages to the business far exceeds the money the thieves would receive for the scrap metal,' Gillen said. 'They can cause thousands of dollars in damage just to get a small amount out.'

These are just a few of the instances of scrap metal thefts from around the county in recent months without arrests.

Unincorporated Polk County, which is patrolled by the Polk County Sheriff's Office, has had 178 scrap metal thefts through April, which is nearly even with 179 reported between January and April 2007.

Last year, PCSO detectives were called to 537 scrap metal theft cases.

But law enforcement officials and scrap dealers are hoping a new law passed in the recent legislative session will help to combat thieves looking to unload their stolen loads for cash.

Last week, in the waning hours of the legislative session, House Bill 105 received final approval from the Senate and is now on its way to the desk of Gov. Charlie Crist.

The bill, spearheaded by Baxter Troutman, R-Winter Haven, specifically spells out 11 new standards and restrictions to the current process of handling recyclable metals. Troutman has been a victim of scrap metal thieves.

'From a law enforcement standpoint, whenever that thing can be put out there, it's really going to help us out,' Gillen said.

The bills provisions include:

* Eliminating the requirements that transactions must be greater than $10 in value to be regulated under statutes.

* Adding stainless steel beer kegs to the list of regulated materials.

* Requiring scrap metal recyclers to gather more information about sellers and storing the information in an electronic database.

* Raising the penalties scrap metal recyclers face for repeated noncompliance with requirements; including the penalty from a first degree misdemeanor to a third degree felony.

* Increasing the penalties against sellers for giving false information to recyclers; increasing the penalties to second and third degree felonies.

* Requiring the Department of Revenue to release the names of any registered recycler to a law enforcement official upon request.

* Adding that all regulated metals be transported to a recycler in a motor vehicle and eliminating the current statute's exceptions.

* Mandating payments for all sales more than $1,000 to be made by check.

The bill is a way to help law enforcement and recyclers deal with the boom in business from new sellers, who might be a bit unscrupulous in how they obtain their materials.

'Do I think it is going to help? I don't know,' Mock said about the new law, which is set to go into effect in October. 'But I am on the hope end of it.'

The impact from the bill on what Allied Scrap already does to ensure legitimate sales will be minimal, she said.

'It's another law,' she said. 'We've already been doing most of it since '89 anyways.'

That was the last time the commodity market experienced a sharp increase in prices. And at that time came more thefts, too, she said. This year's uptick in prices is no different.

The recent increase in prices has brought quite a bit of business to Allied Scrap, both good and bad. And the demand doesn't look like it will be ending anytime soon.

But with new technology and better communication with other dealers and law enforcement, cracking down on thieves is becoming somewhat easier.

Mock, who also is the secretary for the International Scrap Recycling Industries, New Southern chapter, said constant communication is key to busting theft rings trying to unload large amounts of stolen scrap.

'We are always talking to each other,' she said. 'We'll call the police if something looks suspicious, and if there is a theft, they will call us telling us what to be on the lookout for. That's how you catch people, and that's how you get things (charges) to stick.'

[ Jeremy Maready can be reached at 863-802-7592 or jeremy.maready@theledger.com. Ledger correspondent Mycah Pleasant contributed to this story. ]


Source: http://www.theledger.com/article/20080506/BREAKING/898636106

The Claremont Hotel Club and Spa

Beautiful Berkeley hills resort overlooking the San Francisco Bay

Since 1915, the Claremont Hotel Club & Spa in the Berkeley hills served as a respite from everyday life. With two pools, a luxurious spa, 10 tennis courts and a kid's club, the Claremont Hotel Club & Spa is a true urban oasis. Guests enjoy world-class cuisine at two restaurants. Spacious guest rooms bedecked in gold and blues provide comfort and warmth. The Claremont Hotel Club & Spa also sets the stage for corporate retreats, with 30,000 square feet of flexible meeting space.
Highlights

    AAA Four Diamond property
    Close to downtown Berkeley, Oakland and San Francisco
    An urban oasis with pools, tennis courts, full fitness center and a spa
    Two restaurants featuring local California cuisine
    30,000 square feet of flexible meeting space

Rooms

The 279 recently renovated guest rooms at the Claremont Hotel Club & Spa represent Old World charm melded with modern comforts. Many of the guest rooms, decorated in gold and blue, have stunning views of San Francisco Bay. All rooms, whether a classic, a Spa Elite or a PURE allergy-free space, feature either one king or two double beds. Guests enjoy flat-panel TVs with premium cable and pay-per-view movies, high-speed Wi-Fi (fees apply), in-room safes and an honor bar. Bathrooms feature signature Claremont bath products and plush spa robes.
Features

A true urban oasis set across 22 acres, the Claremont Hotel Club & Spa allows guests to get away from it all with two pools, 10 tennis courts, a full fitness center, an incredible spa with dozens of treatments, yoga classes and a kids' club. The 30,000 square feet of flexible banquet space provides an ideal setting for weddings and corporate functions. Three dining establishments offer delicious, fresh California cuisine. The 100 percent smoke-free, pet-friendly property has a 24-hour front desk.
Transportation

    Nearest Train: Rockridge BART (1.3 mi/2 km)
    Oakland International Airport (9.6 mi/15.4 km)
    San Francisco International Airport (18.4 mi/29.7 km)
    On-site self- and valet parking (fees apply)

Attractions

    UC Berkeley (1 mi/1.7 km)
    Chez Panisse restaurant (1.9 mi/3.1 km)
    Oakland Chinatown (4.4 mi/7.1 km)
    Union Square (10.2 mi/16.4 km) 

Business

    30,000 square feet of meeting space
    20 indoor and outdoor venues
    High-speed Wi-Fi throughout

Policies and fees

Starting April 1, the property will charge $26 facilities fee and $28 for parking (inclusive for all day and overnight).

This is not a comprehensive list of fees. Any amounts listed above may not include taxes and are subject to change.


Source: http://www.orbitz.com/hotel/United_States--CA/Berkeley/The_Claremont_Hotel_Club_and_Spa.h207261/

Hotel, club operators: Oust park trustees

MEADVILLE — Operators of Conneaut Lake Park’s Hotel Conneaut and the Beach Club claim the board of trustees that oversees operations of the amusement park isn’t doing its job and needs to be replaced.

The Trustees of Conneaut Lake Park is a corporation that oversees the public trust that owns the 121-year-old amusement park in western Crawford County. It has been in charge of the park since 2007.

In electronic mailings and posting on Facebook, the Internet social media site, Greg Sutterlin of Conneaut Lake and Steve Popovich of Harmonsburg said, “The current board has proven to be incapable of preserving the assets of the trust. No business plan, no public meetings, no accountability and no ability to get anything done.”

“The goal is to have the trustees removed,” Sutterlin said in a telephone interview Wednesday. “Until that happens, we’re not going to stop.”

Sutterlin and Popovich are the principals in Park Restoration LLC, which operates the Hotel Conneaut and Beach Club nightclub under a lease agreement with the trustees. Park Restoration has been operating and restoring the two properties for more than four years.

However, according to Sutterlin, the volunteer trustees are not properly maintaining or improving the 121-year-old amusement park or paying both current and delinquent real estate taxes.

Trustees of Conneaut Lake Park, responding through an email from its attorney Brian Pulito to the Tribune, said “While Mr. Sutterlin prefers to take these matters to the public, the trustees feel it is more appropriate to handle the issues between Park Restoration and the trustees privately as they are matters of business and not public opinion.”

The issue of overdue taxes also is being addressed, Pulito said in the brief email statement.

“In the meantime, the trustees continue to work with county officials in working the kinks out of the plans that address the taxes. This too, at this juncture, is ‘in negotiation’ and therefore the details cannot be divulged at this time.”

Trustees of Conneaut Lake Park has been in negotiations on a plan toward repayment of hundreds of thousands in back taxes to area governments, but the amusement park’s real estate may be sold for back taxes at the county’s annual tax delinquency sale in September.

As of mid-January, Conneaut Lake Park owed a total of $856,212.77 in back taxes and interest to the Crawford County, Conneaut School District and Sadsbury and Summit townships, and dating back to 1997, according to the Crawford County Treasurer’s Office.

County commissioners have raised the specter of having the park go to tax sale if a tax plan isn’t resolved.

Sutterlin also said the board of trustees additionally has been secretive about park operations and finances.

“Before park buildings deteriorate beyond repair and before a tax sale is ever considered, it’s time to save the park and remove the current board of trustees for a breach in their fiduciary duties,” Sutterlin said in a posting on the Hotel Conneaut’s Facebook page and in electronic mailings.

Those electronic mailings went out to “a couple of thousand people” Tuesday night and already have started generating responses, Sutterlin said.

“People are disappointed with the progress and are upset with the board,” Sutterlin said. “What’s bringing this to a head is the potential for tax foreclosure.”

Sutterlin is asking people to write letters supporting the call for trustees’ removal. He said he plans to forward the letters to the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General.

The park is a charitable public trust that was formed in 1998 with the aid of the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. It has been under control of Crawford County Court of Common Pleas since then. The park’s 15-member board of trustees was appointed by Crawford County President Judge Anthony Vardaro in 2007.

Dennis Fisher, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, said the office was aware of the situation, but policy is “not to comment on matters of this nature.”



Keith Gushard can be reached at 724-6370 or by email at kgushard@meadvilletribune.com.

Time for a change at Conneaut Lake Park?



Editor’s note: The following is a letter submitted to the Tribune by Greg Sutterlin of Conneaut Lake and Steve Popovich of Harmonsburg, both of Park Restoration LLC, which leases and operates the Hotel Conneaut and the Beach Club.



In 2009, two families with common ties to Conneaut Lake Park started on a quest to preserve a Historic gem and formed Park Restoration LLC. Since then, our company has reopened the Hotel Conneaut and Beach Club and has begun multi-year restoration projects. The hotel is now host to countless weddings, graduation parties and reunions. The Beach Club beams with the best live entertainment that used to rock the lake in clays gone by. The outdoor concerts, polka fests and holiday light shows now draw crowds that fill this marvelous lakeside destination. The lake area is full of life and activity with people returning to make a memory; while they relive the ones of their youth.

In the park ride area, things, however, are not the same. The park is lined with abandoned buildings, fire-damaged structures, root-lined walkways and is truly a depressing experience. The Trustees of Conneaut Lake Park board lease the park area as it exists without any plan or direction since the onset of the current board, and it has been in total disarray. In the last four-plus years, the current board has utilized carnival vendors to operate the park. While some faired better than others in their ability to attract crowds, they all share similarly in their lack of interest to make any park improvements. The lack of a plan for the park area is showing sorely as buildings are literally rotting and falling to the ground, tree roots grow through the midway, and there is no interest or plan by this board to make improvements and attract new business to the area. Now, there are threats of tax foreclosure as the current board does not pay property taxes.

The board for the Trustees of Conneaut Lake Park were put in place to preserve the assets of the trust.

Are they getting the job clone?



So we ask ...

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the water park were open on a hot 90 degree day? Or if the jungle cruise were open with a petting zoo? What if you could stroll through the midway without fear of tripping on a tree root? Or hide under a large arched roof that covered the entire midway, should it start to rain?

What if the entire midway was redone with new building facades, plantings and bright fun colors? What if the ultimate trip building were rebuilt into a entertainment center for all ages? What if the fire-damaged bathrooms in Kiddyland were rebuilt? What if ... any of these actual proposals presented to the park board by our company, Park Restoration, and all rejected, were accepted?

Would you want to bring your friends and family? Could the additional revenue generated by the board now be used to pay the taxes? So, we ask why ... why were they all rejected? Why is it a better plan to let the assets of the park sit idle and rot to the ground while bills are not being paid?

Our families entered into long-term agreements for the Hotel Conneaut and Beach Club and are getting things done along the lake. But, that’s only part of our interest. We want to see the park up and running and drawing the crowds it used to in days gone by. It is possible? And we understand the public frustration; this is why we are asking for your help and support. Look what we have done with the hotel and the Beach Club/Dockside. Just think what could be clone with the park. We don’t want it torn down to put condos in its place. Why? So they can put boats on an already overpopulated lake? We need the families and vacation goers to come in and spend the money in our town, supporting the local business. A positive future is possible; we just need your support.

The current board has proven to be incapable of preserving the assets of the trust. No business plan, no public meetings, no accountability and no ability to get anything done. Before park buildings deteriorate beyond repair and before a tax sale is ever considered, it’s time to save the park and remove the current board of trustees for a breach in their fiduciary duties. While the Hotel Conneaut and Beach Club are becoming bright and shiny with all their new renovations, it is not a true park without the rides.

We want the rides to stay and we need your help!

If you feel the board should be replaced by members willing and capable of getting the job done, send us an email or letter and tell us your story of your love for the park and what are your opinions about its current condition.

Although the board does not feel they are accountable to anyone, they are, and it’s time for a change.

Please email your letters to reservations@clphotelconneaut.com or mail them to Hotel Conneaut, 12441 Lake St., Conneaut Lake, PA 16316.

Source: http://meadvilletribune.com/x766094331/Hotel-club-operators-Oust-park-trustees

Web Scraping changed many business modules

If you are in the business of collecting information on prices, directories or other information for your clients or potential customers, web scraping can help you improve your business. Web scraping allows you to gather information and organize it for your customers so you can do things like aggregate travel and hotel prices or build a database of personal care physicians for a hospital. This information allows your customers to know what to expect when conducting business with you. Having information that is out of date will put you a step behind your competition and can hurt the amount of sales you are able to complete.

When you work with our web scraping experts, you can learn about specific ways that the scraping software can be used in your company to deliver a unique product that will work for you surely.
What else our web scraping service offer for your business:

Our main purpose is business intelligence – analysing your competitors and competition, enabling you to read them like a book. Not only for business intelligence as well as used for other various purposes. here are some business-related uses of a web scraping service.

    Manage your intelligence - Web Scraping service Organize all the data you collect on your competitors: their products, their customers, their messaging, their markets–all linked together in one database.
    SEO effect - Web scraping service scrap keywords for a SEO, can include things like what kind of keywords most customers require from a search engine, if you have a data from your competitors, you can quickly get an idea of which keywords are driving traffic to your competitors’ website, which content categories are attracting links and user engagement.
    Competitive pricing and pricing analysis - You can easily gather product information of your competitor’s website with our scraping service. This enables you to learn your competitors’ pricing strategy, and react accordingly.
    Market research - You can gather data from forums’ threads or other sites offering user-generated product reviews to learn what people is saying about your product
    Lead Generation - You can visit yellow page-type of sites or directories and scrape listed contact data from them for a certain term, and use the scraped data as your business leads.

Source: http://blog.itsyssolutions.com/web-scraping-changed-business-modules/

Note:

Harry Kennedy is experienced web scraping consultant and writes articles on web data scraping, website data scraping, web scraping services, data scraping services, website scraping, eBay product scraping, Forms Data Entry etc.