Monthly Archives: August 2022

Why Python is considered the best in Artificial Intelligence?

With the emergence of virtual assistants like ‘Siri’, ‘Alexa’, ‘Google Assistant’ and many more, we can surely say that we are in the age of Artificial Intelligence and machine learning. Every tech giant, all around the world, is racing to achieve it but it is not an easy task. Hours and hours of coding goes behind into making an AI do even the simplest of task. There are many programming languages available in the tech market which help developers to do their work among which the most popular is Python.

Python is a general purpose, high level, interpreted programming language developed by Guido van Rossum. It is the successor of ABC programming language and was first released in the year 1991. Python supports multiple programming paradigms which includes structured, object-oriented and functional programming. It is dynamically-typed and garbage-collected. In this blog, we discuss some of the features and reasons which makes Python the best for Artificial Intelligence.

Simple & Consistent

Developing AI requires solving complex algorithms. Pythons helps developers to easily solve those. It is easy to learn which is why Python is the first choice of many developers. Python is also very intuitive compared to the other programming languages and helps greatly when many developers are working on the same code. The simple environment of Python helps developers to focus on solving the AI problems rather than the technicalities of programming languages which also helps to reduce the overall time required to do the work.

Extensive Library

In the programming world, libraries is referred to the collection of pre-compiled codes that the users/developers can use to optimise their tasks. One of the best feature of Python which makes it perfect for developing AI is that Python has a large collection of libraries specially built for the purpose of AI which includes NumPy, Pytorch, Keras, Scikit-learn, Pandas, TensorFlow, Theano, and many more. This means that when you need to run an algorithm, all you have to do is install and run one of these libraries according to your needs and your work will be done in an instant.

Flexibility

As mentioned earlier, Python is a dynamically typed programming language which makes it incredibly flexible. It allows user to choose between OOPS approach and scripting. There is no hard and fast rule on how to approach and build a feature using Python. The flexibility of Python allows users to choose from the different programming styles , mainly :

• Imperative Style – It is a basic style of programming with commands that tells how a computer should interpret the given commands.

• Object-oriented Style – This style of programming follows the concept of object and class.

• Functional/Declarative Style – In this style of programming, information is declared about the sequence of performing operations.

• Procedural Style – Under this style, developers follow a step by step format which helps different aspect like iteration, selection, modularisation and sequencing.

Platform Independent

Another feature that makes Python popular is platform independence. This means Python can be executed on any framework and is compatible with all the major platforms like Unix, Linux, Windows, Mac-OS and more. As such, Python can be used to make independent applications on the various platforms and these applications can be effective and utilised on different frameworks without requiring a Python translator. This way, Python also help to save a lot of time and effort.

Great Visualization

We have already discussed that Python has a great collection of library and some of these libraries are also the perfect choices for visualisations. In AI development, it is very important for developers to represent information accurately and in a manner where it is easily readable. Libraries like Matplotlib help data scientist to access histograms, graphs, charts, and plots which can be used for better representation and demonstration of data and information ensuring accurate reports.

Artificial intelligence is constantly evolving with technological advancement and we need to go with flow. With the simplicity that Python provides and it’s extensive libraries, Python has become a favourite among the AI developers as it increases their work accuracy and cuts short the overall time. Considering the features and popularity, it can be said that Python is best for AI development.

Also Read:- Business benefits of Laravel development services

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5 Mistakes You Must Avoid While Adding Images To Your Site

Customizing your website and adding relevant images is an important part of the SEO process for your website. Relevant and interesting images attracts people to your site, increasing your web traffic which will result in your website possibly getting a better ranking in Google search. According to NewsCred, articles or blogs with images get around 94% more views than articles without images, 40% of people respond better to visual information than plain text, and around 93% of people consider images to be the no. 1 factor which affect the purchase decision-making. These surveys show how important images are for a website.

However, you can not just upload any images to your website anyhow you want. There are certain regulations and formats which you need to follow while uploading images to your website otherwise, it can negatively impact your website’s SEO process. In this blog, we are discussing 5 mistakes which you need to avoid while uploading images to your site.

Large Images

With today’s cutting edge and fast technologies, people do not have the patience to wait for long. Large images, even though they are beautiful to look at, makes your website sluggish and takes a longer period to load properly. This may result in losing web traffic. Most people wait around for 3 seconds for a image to load if they are using a desktop/laptop and a maximum of 5 seconds if they are using mobile or tablet devices. So if your image takes more than 5 secs to load, you may lose a visitor.

So, it is advisable to keep your image sizes under a few hundred KBs so that they can load quickly on any devices.

Image File Name

One of the most common mistake while uploading images to a website is not changing the image file’s name. Generally, images have random names saved against them and it is not a good idea to use those default names while uploading it to the website. When it comes to SEO, you need to assign descriptive and relevant keyword related names to your images for better image optimization. This helps to increase your page rank as search engines not only checks the text content of your page but also keywords in your image names.

Image File Extension

Many people avoid this point or do not understand it properly but knowing the difference between the various image formats and when to use a particular format makes a huge impact on image optimization. There are a number of image formats available that one can use according to their needs. The most common types are :

• JPG or JPEG – This is the most common type of image format available over the net. They are good for color rich photographs and gradient images but they compress the file which can result in low quality images.

• GIFs – GIFs are common format for animations. They produce lower quality images than JPG and are generally used for simple illustrations and graphics.

• PNG – This another form of image format. PNGs support high quality images and rich color. As the quality do not degrade under this format, they are recommended for logos, charts and graphics.

• SVGs – It is vector format. Images of this format are free of resolution boundaries so they remain sharp and clear on any device.

Adopting a relevant format for your website’s images can help to make your website quicker and free of technical abnormalities.

Image Description/ Alt – Tags

Just like adding image name, adding a description or alt-tag of your image is also an important part of the SEO process when it comes to image optimization. Alt-tags can be considered as the text alternative which can describe your images in case the browser can not render them properly. You need to properly implement the alt- tags with relevant keywords so that it helps your page rank but remember not to stuff too many keywords as that can be considered as ‘black hat’ SEO process. Another plus point of using alt- tags is that they can help the visually impaired to understand what your website is showing.

Distorted Images

Another point you need to keep a check on is image distortion. If your image seems too enlarged or stretched, it is probably distorted and you need to edit it. Remember to always use the original version of the image so that it stays clear and sharp. Distorted images can negatively impact your site. You can always use Photoshop and it’s feature to compare between the edited and original version.

So, this were the common 5 mistakes that you must avoid while uploading images to your website. Remember, even small mistakes can hugely impact your search ranking negatively so you need to take care of even the smallest details, follow the regulations and implement proper formats.

Also Read: JPG or PNG: Which is the best for Your Website?

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Why Custom 404 Page is More Important for a Better User Experience

When you use the internet and surf between websites, at some point or the other, you will come across a page which will display the message – ”Sorry, page not found”. This particular page is called the 404 error page. According to google :

“a 404 page is what a user sees when they try to reach a non-existent page on your site (because they’ve clicked on a broken link, the page has been deleted or they’ve mistyped a URL).”

So, when a person clicks on a broken link or tries to enter a page that has been deleted or makes a mistake of typing a wrong URL, that’s when a 404 page appears as there is nowhere else to go.

404 error pages are generally frustrating to the visitors but if it is used correctly it can help not only to retain visitors but keep them on your website and pursue them to check out other sections of your website even if they had landed on the error page which is why custom 404 pages are very important for a better user experience.

Features to Include

Some basic features that your custom 404 page needs to include for making it more attractive are :-

• NAVIGATION –

This is first and most important aspect of a custom 404 page. Landing on an empty or a stagnate page with just the error message displaying can be highly irritating and frustrating. You need to at least customize it so that your 404 page has a redirection link to your homepage or a search option through which visitors can search what they are looking for. Many custom 404 pages goes beyond and offers additional links to other contents within the website. Some even offer a ‘report filling’ section through which visitors can report about the error or ‘chatbox’ which can help visitors to find what they are looking for. This way any visitor who lands your error page will keep on engaging with your website and you will not lose the traffic.

• TONE –

The overall tonality of your 404 error page should sync with your website. This means the theme, colour, design and feel of your error page should match with your website. You can add images and logos of your website to the error page, giving it an attractive look. Some error pages even features the whole menu section of the website giving the page an overall same look as the main site.

• CREATIVITY –

Technically, there is no limit to how much creative you can get with your custom 404 page. You can add jokes, quirky quotes, and other interesting and fun elements. In the end, you just need to be creative so that when your visitor land on a error page, they are a bit entertained before they are redirected.

Importance of Custom 404

Custom 404 pages help to enhance the user experience. Basic 404 pages are boring and does not help in anyway. If a visitor lands on your default 404 page, he/she will be simply confused and would want to quickly get out of there meaning you will lose web traffic. A custom 404 page does the opposite. It helps to retain the visitors and web traffic. You can customise your page in ways which can help to take the confusion away. Perhaps, someone typed in the wrong address, or may be the page they are looking for does not exist anymore. Your custom 404 pages can help visitors to understand the problem by displaying the reason.

Another way in which custom 404 helps visitor is by redirecting them to what they were looking for or other relevant topics. When your 404 page feature links which redirects visitors to other contents in your website, visitors may halt and check them out. This way you don’t lose any web traffic. And if your error page is quirky and interesting enough, visitors might even share them which will attract more users and web traffic as a result.

Ultimately, it needs to be said that with today’s competitive online market and SEO up rise, you can not just ignore the importance of a custom 404 page. Even if you have a high quality website with intricate developmental details, you can not guaranty that your visitors won’t ever face the 404 error page which is why you need to have a solid custom 404 page.

Also Read: How to Create An Attractive Landing Page to Increase Sales

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How Toxic Backlinks Hurt SEO and How to Get Rid of Them?

Backlinks, also referred as incoming links or inbound links, are one of the major factors of Google’s search ranking and therefore, an integral part of SEO. When a different website links to your own site, a backlink is created and without proper backlinks, your website won’t rank much in the Google search engine rankings. The more backlinks your website earns, the more it is likely that your website will rank highly for relevant keywords and search topics. However, not all backlinks are the same. As there are proper backlinks which helps to optimize your website’s ranking, there are also bad or toxic backlinks which harms your website.

Toxic Backlinks

Toxic backlinks or unnatural links or bad links are those types of backlinks that can negatively affect the SERP of your website and hurt the SEO process. Too many toxic backlinks against your website can even compel Google to remove your website from the database. According to Google’s link scheme guide :

“Any links intended to manipulate PageRank or a site’s ranking in Google search results may be considered part of a link scheme and a violation of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines. This includes any behaviour that manipulates links to your site or outgoing links from your site.”

Identifying Toxic Backlinks

There several ways by which you can understand whether your website is being affected by toxic links or not. If your website’s organic traffic suddenly decreases, chances are that Google has fined you for too many toxic backlinks.

Another sure shot way of knowing is that when Google Webmasters sends you a warning regarding the build up of toxic backlinks of the website. But how to identify which links are good and which are toxic? Generally toxic backlinks are created when :

• Links come from a spam site or sites which are particularly set up for the purpose of link building.

• Links come from sites and topics which are not relevant to your website.

• Links come from sites which are not indexed by Google.

• Links are forced into blog comments.

• Links come from sites which contains virus and malware.

Impact of Toxic Backlinks on SEO

Toxic backlinks mainly hurts the SEO process of your website. It decreases the organic traffic of your site. If your website generates too many bad links, google will penalise you for it. Getting penalised decreases the chances of your content to be found on google and in worst case scenario, your website might get taken down. There are mainly two ways by which you might get penalised.

First, back in 2012, Google introduced the Penguin algorithm which targets low quality backlinks. If you get penalised by the Penguin filter, you won’t be getting any warnings or notifications about the penalty. You can’t even file a reconsideration request to alter the penalty.

Second, you receive a manual action. According to google :

“Google issues a manual action against a site when a human reviewer at Google has determined that pages on the site are not compliant with Google’s webmaster quality guidelines. Most manual actions address attempts to manipulate our search index.”

Manual actions can target either a section of your website or the whole website itself. They are mainly triggered when a competitor files a spam report against your website or the Penguin algorithm detects issues which triggers the manual action. To remove a manual action, you need to identify and remove all possible toxic links or disavow any which you can not before applying for a reconsideration request.

How to Get Rid of Toxic Backlinks

There are several ways through which you can remove toxic backlinks. But first you have to make a list of the toxic links. There are many software and tools available in the market today which can help you to analyse and determine the good and toxic links. Once you have the list of the toxic links, you can contact the administrator of those particular linking sites and apply for the removal of the links.

Another way of removing toxic links is disavowing. If your removal request was unsuccessful, then you need to disavow the links. A disavow file is basically a request to Google to overlook the links which you upload and not take them into consideration while analyzing your website’s ranking. However, it is important to use Google’s disavow tool carefully and correctly otherwise it can affect your website’s performance.

Hopefully, now you can understand how toxic backlinks affect your website’s SEO process and why it is absolutely necessary to get rid of them. Carefully building good quality backlinks and keeping in check with Google’s rules & regulations is mandatory if you want your website to rank high in search results.

Read Also: What is Image SEO and How to Optimize Images for Search Engines?

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