To help both myself and my customers I decided I needed a better system to keep all of this data in order, I had two main issues, first was keeping all of my clients contact details, including domain names and hosting purchased from me, as well as their login details for site administration, webmail and ftp, the second was billing and invoicing clients for any work I have done for them.

The simplest and most effective option I could find was ‘Wallet’, by acrylic, for storing all my clients details in one place, with the added benefit of iPhone syncing, which means I now have access to all of my customers details no matter where I am, if I ever get an email from a client in a panic having misplaced their ftp password whilst I’m perusing the coffee section in the supermarket I can simply copy and paste the required details into an email from my iPhone!

For billing and invoicing I needed an application for tracking time spent working on projects that was simple to use yet flexible enough to accommodate various rates of billing such as flat rate and timed. I initially looked at ‘Billings3′, and whilst it’s a brilliant application I found during my free trial that the interface and features were more complex than I needed, the invoice templating system also seems difficult to use.

It was whilst browsing for alternatives that I found ‘OnTheJob’ by StuntSoftware, it has a beautiful interface and is very easy to use, the invoice templating is a joy to use, just drag and drop required elements onto the page!, ok maybe it lacks the reporting of Billings3 however I don’t think that’s something I’ll need.

All dekoded customers now also benefit from having their project files mirrored and backed up, which means protection from hard drive failure and accidental deletion.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all existing dekoded clients for their custom, and if you are reading this and still haven’t decided who to trust with your website needs then I hope this post shows that dekoded treats it’s customers needs and concerns with the priority they deserve, we want to give you a level of service that we can be proud of!

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)


The brikka is basically just like your everyday Moka pot, except someone had the brilliant idea to add a ‘pressure valve’ to the outlet, this means that the pressure slowly builds until the coffee is released with a satisfying chuffing and gurgling noise.

The video above shows me ‘bedding in’ the Brikka, the instructions advise at least 3 brews before it can start making decent coffee, I’m guessing this removes the ‘new smell’ which could otherwise impart a nasty flavour into the coffee.

Yes, I really did film myself making coffee using my iPhone, and yes I did jump a little bit when the pressure valve ‘popped’!

For prolonged sessions of web design, or any other profession that matter, a good coffee makes all the difference.

Having recently updated this site it I realised that recent events in the blogging world makes creating an online identity for yourself or your business quite difficult.

There are so many blogging and social networking systems available now that having your own identity can be spoilt by other people having the same online username.

Choosing a domain name is really difficult, you want something short, memorable, difficult to mis-type and that’s available, meeting all that criteria is difficult enough, but now I think it is even harder due to the sheer number of people blogging and sharing their lives online.

It’s for these reasons that I recently changed my domain name from www.dkoder.com to www.dekoded.com, not only was the word dkoder difficult to explain to someone but I also found thousands of google results which related to someone else’s online username, someone typing your business name into a search engine and finding results relating to some possibly dubious activities could make them view you and your business in a negative way.

Obviously there’s only so much you can do about this, however I think now it’s a good idea to register to as many blogging and social networking sites with your business or domain name in a bid to try and and control the situation as best you can, obviously this will also have a benefit for your website as giving your site as much exposure and links is always good, I’ll certainly be recommending that any of my clients do the same, or at least make them aware of the potential problem.

Welcome to dekoded web design, based in Blackpool, North West UK

dekoded design has a passion for Web Development and create beautiful websites at affordable prices that are both versatile and simple to maintain

We offer a full range of website services, from Domain Names & Web Hosting, to designing custom logos, headers and graphics.

So if you need a website and are looking for a web designer then please contact dekoded now and we can discuss your requirements.

To get the most benefit from a website it’s vital that all aspects of the design, functionality and target audience are carefully considered, dekoded can help…

The most important step in creating a Website is first deciding on what it is you want to provide for you or your business.

An online presence is an added benefit for any company or organisation, whether used just as a reference site for your business or a complete ecommerce solution.

dekoded.com can provide you with a great looking site at a low price, a simple three page website from as little as £99, and that includes the domain name and web hosting for a year!

It’s important to create the right image for you or your business and this can be acheived by designing your site to appeal to your target audience.

A website should be able to convey the important information about you and your business as efficiently as possible, a good design should be easy to navigate with the most important information being given priority.

An appealing design and good content will also help keep visitors on your site.

dekoded.com can take control of every aspect of installing, configuring and getting your site online, once published, all the required login and administration details are then forwarded to the client.

Not only that but we can also provide advice on how to promote your website and help to get your site listed in search engine results.

We can even help you to remember!

We can also setup a free reminder service for you so you won’t forget to renew your domain name or hosting when the time comes!