Archive | December, 2006

5 Things You Don’t Know About Mitch

Dec/27 in All Posts

I have watched this little challenge I guess you could call it make its rounds around the Internet and wondered when it would get to me. Well it has hit (or tagged as the kids say), so I guess I will play along and share with you all. I am a pretty open book, so coming up with five things that you do not know about me is kind of hard.

1. I have always been obsessed with recording myself. When I was a kid I used to make mixed tapes of songs and do little radio DJ type segments in between. Of course back then it was only for my own entertainment. In high school I did color commentary (I was the voice of the EAW) for our backyard wrestling federation. Now I record a little podcast that a few people listen to. ;)

2. If I had not gotten my first job in the Web hosting industry and had not gone down that path, I would probably have either turned to something more artistic or professional wrestling. I have been drawing as long as I can remember and a wrestling fan even longer. All is not lost though, because I get to live out one of my dreams through my good buddy SB-1.

3. I am totally addicted to music from Final Fantasy. One of my prized possessions is the soundtrack from Final Fantasy VI. I have always been a fan of the series, but I do have to say I think Final Fantasy VI was the best of the best thus far. I never really got into everybody else’s favorite (Final Fantasy VII).

4. I have been both a customer service manager and a customer service director for a Web hosting company. No, I still do not know what the difference is between the two.

5. I am far from being a know it all about Web hosting. In a lot of ways, I am trying my best to learn about the business every day, just like you. One of the misconceptions with this show is that I am some sort of Web hosting genius – but I wouldn’t call myself that. I am a fan. There is a lot of stuff I do know, but a lot of stuff I am still learning with the rest of you as well. The day I stop learning about it will probably be the day I retire or the day I die.. which ever of those two happens first.

Alright, so now I have to find five other folks to tag? I’ll pick the Web Hosting Finds Blog (because it is awesome), Matt Hartley (because he’s a cool dude as well), Inside ISPCON, anybody who wishes to at Lunartics, and the Web Hosting Geek (to prove to me he is still alive).

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Holiday Hosting Break

Dec/26 in All Posts

Well, as you have probably guessed by now the Web Hosting Show took the holidays off.

With having people over and just being a little burnt out and short on time; I just did not have my usual free time to get things done. Have no fears though because the Web Hosting Show will be back and better than ever next year.

The next podcast should be out and ready to listen to on January 1. Make sure you come back and celebrate the New Year with a brand new edition of the Web Hosting Show!

Till that happens, here are a few things you can do to keep yourself busy:

1. Check Out the Web Hosting Show’s Archives and Listen to Past Podcast Episodes

2. Send Me Your Hosting Questions, Suggestions and Products You Want Me to Plug, Pimp, Promote

3. Send Me All Your Christmas Presents!

Ok, so maybe that last one was tossed in there to see if you were paying attention. ;)

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Host Gator Kills Hate Speech Site

Dec/22 in All Posts, Hosting News, Web Hosting Tutorials

I hate idiots as much as the next person, and sometimes these idiots are able to slip by the Web hosts and get Web sites. Now is this the Web host’s fault? No. No matter who the Web host is, they can not do a background check on every person that wants to host a Web site with them.

This recent story, ripped from today’s headlines though is a welcome early holiday gift to those of us who hate these morons out there in the World.

Web hosting provider HostGator has recently been asked by the Tampa-Florida office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations to drop one of the Web sites it hosts that supports calls to kill Muslim children.

Now not to get into politics, because I refuse to cover them on a podcast about Web hosting, this is just wrong and I am happy to see that HostGator has taken these folks down. Here is some more of the story I’d like to share.

Under the headline, “Love Your Kids? Fear For Their Future? Kill All Muslim Kids,” the Web site”s owner, who lives in the Tampa area, wrote, “Makes sense to me. After all, if Muslims are raising their little crumb-snatching, curtain climbing, ankle biting rug rats to strap on bombs in order to kill us, it is logically correct to assume that in order to stop that from happening we need to kill all Muslim kids. Starting now.”

This type of content on the Web should not be stood for. I know some people out there might speak up for free speech in this situation.

Hate speech is not a protected right though. Also, other people have the same right to say this type of content is just wrong.

The moral of the story is that if you see a Web site that might seem a little fishy to you, you should always try to hunt down the Web host and ask if they know they are hosting such content.

+ Check Out the Podcast This Was From! Listen to the Web Hosting Show, Podcast 89!

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Domain Name Tools – Ajax DNS

Dec/21 in All Posts, Online Tools, Web Hosting Tutorials

Now there are tons of domain name and hosting tools that you can find Online these days. One of my favorite just happens to be DomainTools.com.

They do not do everything though – which means I must use more than one Online domain name tool. One that caught my attention last week was AjaxDNS.com.

Dorky names aside, when you enter in your domain name or server’s IP address it will provide you with several options. The options included are DNS lookup, WHOIS lookup, ARIN IP lookup, HTTP header check, spam blacklist check, ping, or DNS traversal check.

All handy things to have when you want to check out the health of your domain name over IP address.

For the Web hosting customers out there, this provides you a tool which will give you more information to share with your Web host. Hopefully – having this information off the bat when something on your account is going screwy will help the Web host get your problems fixed faster.

For the Web hosts out there, this is yet another handy link to have in your toolbelt. Ajax DNS offers a lot of options and has them all featured on one Web site. All you need to do is type it in once (your IP address or domain name) and allow the Web site to do the rest of the work for you.

+ Check Out the Podcast This Was From! Listen to the Web Hosting Show, Podcast 89!

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Web Hosting Magazines – Read Them Online

Dec/20 in All Posts, Online Tools, Web Hosting Tutorials

Both Ping! Zine and the Web Host Industry Review feature Online versions now of their respected paper magazines. Now this is a great thing for everybody because no matter where you live or how you like to get your content, it can now be done easily.

Personally I like the paper magazines, because it allows me to spend a few minutes away from the computer, but if you want to save trees or would rather get your content in digital delivery – here is how you do it.

The Web Host Industry Review

For the Web Host Industry Review, you just need to visit TheWHIR.com and click on the link that says “WHIR Print Magazine”. Now from there you can fill in your information and sign up for the paper version. That much is not too hard to figure out.

Now if you want the digital version of the magazine, look for the link that says “Current Issue” towards your right. You can also scroll down the links for “Digital Back Issues” if you want to read more than one issue of the magazine.

Ping! Zine

Now for Ping! Zine, first point your browser towards PingZine.com. To get the digital version of the current issue, click on the “Current Issue” link on the left side of the Web page. From there you will be brought to a Web page that tells you all about the current issue and allows you to download it to your PC.

To subscribe to the paper version of Ping! Zine, all you need to do is click on the “Subscribe” link on the left side of the Web page, and then fill in your information. It could not get any easier than that.

As you can see, it is not too difficult to get either paper or digital versions of either of the Web hosting world’s two leading publications.

+ Check Out the Podcast This Was From! Listen to the Web Hosting Show, Podcast 89!

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Google Does Domains

Dec/19 in All Posts, Hosting News, Web Hosting Tutorials

Oh my goodness, the trees are going to die. The birds are going to stop singing. Google has started to sell domain names!

It seems like a lot of folks out there in the Web hosting industry are claiming that because of this – the sky is going to fall. Personally, I do not see what the big deal is about it.

The argument is that if Google registers your domain names – then they will own your soul. No wait, I did not mean it that way. It would mean that they could hold search engine placement over your head though.

Would Google domains do better in Google than regular ones?

Now why is none of this going to happen? It is because Google does not want to be the controller of the Internet. Google wants to be the fast food of the Web hosting industry. A few months back we were told that their page builder and movement into the hosting industry was going to be a big deal. Was it? No. They threw up a WYSIWYG editor and left it at that. Not exactly the most in-depth hosting environment. I have a feeling the domain name registrations are going to be handled much in the same way.

If Google really focused their efforts on domain name registration, it would be more of a threat. Right now though, it sounds like they are not undercutting prices and are not offering anything folks can live without. From what I have read so far, they are reselling domains from GoDaddy and eNom. For $10 a pop, and only offering “.com,” “.net,” “.biz” and “.info.” domain extensions – there is no deal here. I can get it cheaper by going to GoDaddy and eNom themselves.

To read more about this topic, here are a few good resources to check out:

To make this a success, Google will have to find something better than the “Google Apps for Your Domain” to package this with. Unless people just pay because it is Google (and some people will) I doubt they are really going to make any real dent in the market. Google needs to offer a better deal or get out of the way – because they are just cluttering the market and not making it any more competitive.

+ Check Out the Podcast This Was From! Listen to the Web Hosting Show, Podcast 89!

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Digg the Number 1 Hosting Podcast

Dec/19 in All Posts

New Digg.com

Go Digg the Web Hosting Show Podcast!

Come on, do I really have to say anything else? I noticed this neat new feature on Digg.com a little earlier today and I do have to say I like it. Here you can digg your favorite episodes of the Web Hosting Show, or just the podcast in general.

Now I do not expect to get past four diggs or so – but you are always welcome to try to prove me wrong. Are we Web hosting freaks and geeks going to let ourselves be beat out again?

I am just a lonely web hosting soldier in the Online war, you guys and gals are the army so I will let you make the call.

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Google Domains and DNS Tools – Podcast 89

Dec/18 in All Posts, Web Hosting Podcasts

Oh no, the sky is falling and it is all Google’s fault! There has been a lot of talk the past few days about Google stepping into the domain name business.

Now is it as big of a deal as everybody is making it out to be? I say no – and I’ll let you know why on today’s show. Also I have found a great new Online DNS tool that would be handy for both Web hosts and Web hosting clients to have. All that, and your usually Web hosting goodness is now on the air.

Download the Web Hosting Show, Podcast 89!
Running Time: 14 minutes | File Size: 6.54 MB

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Here are just a few topics that we discussed on this week’s Web Hosting Show podcast.

  • Google Starts to Sell Domain Names
  • Ajax DNS Tools That You Can Not Live Without
  • How to Subscribe to Ping! Zine and The WHIR (both digtal and paperback)
  • Host Gator Takes Down Hate Speech Web Site

Link of the Week: ResellerGuide.com

This is the number one Web hosting podcast in all of the land and I am more than happy to bring it to you each and every week. As the end of the year draws near, I hope to keep entertaining you and informing you about the Web hosting industry for the rest of 2006 and on into 2007.

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You Are Not the Perfect Web Host

Dec/15 in All Posts, Commentary, Web Hosting Tutorials

Alright, it is time for me to do a little bubble bursting, I do not care who you are or what you do inside of the Web hosting industry – you are not perfect. No matter if I have a Web host that just started up tuning into me or Bob Parsons from GoDaddy, none of them are perfect. There is no such thing as the perfect Web hosting company.

Now I bet you are asking yourself, “Mitch, why are you being so depressing?”. Now I am not trying to ruin the mood for your holiday season, I am trying to talk straight with you. Every Web host out there needs to realize they have one or more places where they could stand to do some improving.

Since we are at the end of the year now is as good of time as any to look at several areas of your business to see what is working and what might not be working. Here are some questions you need to ask yourself if you are a Web host.

  • Are your sign up numbers going up?
  • Does Your customer support answer questions quickly enough?
  • Is there any public anger towards your company?
  • What could you do to make your business even better?

Now, of course, that is only the beginning of things. What you need to do is find aspects of your business that are not “up to snuff” and fix them. If you are not sure which areas of your business need work, do not be afraid to ask your clients. They will be more than willing to tell you about any problems if they have them.

Dear Web host, you are not perfect – so lets get to work and get things fixed before the new year comes rolling in.

+ Check Out the Podcast This Was From! Listen to the Web Hosting Show, Podcast 88!

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Web Hosting for Charity

Dec/14 in All Posts, Commentary, Web Hosting Tutorials

When was the last time you did something nice for somebody else? You know, this time of year always makes me start thinking about charitable events and what we can all do to make the world a better place. One thing that you may or may not know is that many Web hosts get in the holiday spirit as well. There are a number of Web hosts that provide what you would call “charity hosting” for organizations for free.

Now this is a good idea for Web host to do. It not only shows that you have a compassionate and human side, it also helps the community. Now no matter if you consider your community your local area or the entire planet – there is always somebody out there that needs a Web site and some Web hosting.

For the Web hosting clients out there that might be searching for some free hosting for their charity, finding it might be a little tricky. Sure, there are a lot of Web hosts doing it, but sometimes it can be kind of hard to figure out if they do or not. If there is a Web host that you are interested in – it would not hurt to drop them an E-mail or contact their live chat sales agent to see what deals they might have for an organization like yours.

Just last week, Web design and development product database BoxedArt announced it has released a set of six premium Web templates free of charge to charities and non-profit organizations. So as you can see, hosting is not the only thing you might be able to get for free.

The thing to remember is to not be afraid to ask questions, because if you do not, the Web host might not think of letting you know they offer free hosting services for your situation or charitable need.

+ Check Out the Podcast This Was From! Listen to the Web Hosting Show, Podcast 88!

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