Meryl's Notes Blog

Another whiz bang tutorial from A List Apart shows you how to build a style switcher using PHP. When I briefly worked on my site’s redesign (which, of course, has not met its public), one of the key features I added was a style switcher so visitors can change the style of the site that works best.

I use PHP on some of the meryl.net pages and would love to use it on all pages. But who has time?

But wait… there’s more. ALA has a second article, This Web Business Part 4: Business Entity Options. It may look scary to run your own business, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. To start mine, I filled out and notarized a form from my county to established the company, meryl.net (creative, isn’t it? Not really) and paid 10 bucks.

I have an Excel spreadsheet and manage all activities. One page for expenses, one page for charitable donations, one page for each company or business that pays me, and one page that has the totals by quarter for the year. I pay quarterly taxes to Uncle Sam. You can get a 1040-ES form from the IRS Web site.

The form, it has four parts with each due in April, June, September, and January (dates are listed). The first part helps you figure out how much to pay for the quarter. I skipped that part entirely. Instead, I made a guesstimate in the first year I was in business (and later checked with an accountant), and learned from the results. I underestimated. This year, armed with information, I knew how much to pay in the first quarter. If I made more or less than that amount, I adjusted it.

Once you submit a quarterly tax form, the IRS will send you a pre-printed form. They do it because they want your money and want to keep it simple.

Of course, here’s the standard disclaimer. I’m not an accountant nor a lawyer. Use the advice at your own risk.