Technology

GoDaddy Web Hosting? No Way!!!

Posted on March 1, 2013 · Leave a Comment

First, I have to say that I’m very happy with GoDaddy’s domain registration services. Inexpensive, easy to manage domains and I think they are the best in their field for that.

Web hosting is a totally different ball game though and GoDaddy’s field is one that I wouldn’t want to play ball in! They have one of the worst web hosting platforms I have ever worked with. It is setup with a Fisher Price interface, obviously for novices to get in and poke around with. I find it restrictive and nowhere near is powerful as cPanel which is provided with traditional Linux web hosting.

Setting up a PHP e-mail script for a simple contact form is a nightmare. No, you cannot simply upload an existing formmail script. GoDaddy is paranoid about third party scripts running on their servers so you they want you to use their scripts (which users have complained that they do not prefer them) or find some type of hack or workaround to make yours work…if you can!

Submitting a trouble ticket has its problems too. It takes a long time for them to get back to you and often times, it is just some generic and idiotic response, as if they didn’t even bother to read and understand your issue. Sometimes their support ticket form does not even submit (probably due to using their own crappy form processor mentioned above) which is very frustrating.

Remember AOL? Many of us referred to them as AO-HELL due to the restrictive and proprietary nature of the Internet experience they provided. Personally, I find GoDaddy’s web hosting to be just as frustrating as AOL ever was. Our company used to work on client’s websites when they which were hosted with GoDaddy. Unfortunately, the time to workaround GoDaddy’s web hosting often costs more than the annual cheap web hosting that GoDaddy provides.

GoDaddy provides cheap web hosting. You get exactly what you paid for. Headaches are free!

Filed Under: Technology, Your Website

Why Photos and Websites Look Different on Computer Screens

Posted on September 12, 2012 · Leave a Comment

One of the things about websites that really frustrate people is the issue of “screen resolution” on computers, mobile phones and devices. Yes, your photos may look perfect on your laptop set at 1024 x 768 resolution but what do they look disturbingly huge on a desktop computer set at a lower 800 x 600 resolution?

First, you need to understand what screen resolution is and how it works. Basically, computer screens do not work like TV screens at all. When you watch a show on a big screen and then a smaller screen, it looks the same because the TV adjusts the picture accordingly. Unfortunately, computers do not work that way. Different resolutions on different screens will display an image one way on a large desktop computer than on a laptop. For instance, what looks large on a desktop will look small on a laptop. See this article for more info on screen resolution.

The latest trend in web technology is “responsive design” which should alleviate some of these issues with website and image sizes. However, it’s still a progressive technology and there are still obstacles to overcome. We should get there eventually but in the meantime we’re still subject to some of the limitations of screen resolution.

Filed Under: Technology, Your Website Tagged With: computers, mobile devices, mobile phones, screen resolution, web pages, websites

Responsive Design – New Changes for Websites

Posted on May 2, 2012 · Leave a Comment

With the proliferation of mobile devices and tablets, which are predicted to surpass desktop computer use, it is becoming more important to design websites that are friendlier for viewing on a number of platforms. Responsive design is one of the latest developments and has become a hot item in web technology. Essentially, a website designed responsively will change it’s layout and size to adapt to different viewing platforms. This is important for those who are viewing on devices such as iPhones, iPads, Android, etc. as it provides a more comprehensive method of viewing. There are some pros and cons with responsive design but for the most part, it is a new method of design that provides a much needed solution. For an example of a website incorporating responsive design, take a look at the Haskell Free Library and Opera House website. It has been designed with WordPress as a CMS and is fully responsive.

Filed Under: Technology, Your Website Tagged With: cms, content management system, CSS3, responsive design, Search Engines, SEO, visibility, web design graphic design HTML CSS

Edit your Website on your iPhone or iPad with the WordPress plugin

Posted on February 3, 2012 · Leave a Comment

We have been building “do-it-yourself” CMS websites for some time now utilizing WordPress. Now, anyone who has a WordPress based website can easily login and edit, create new content and much more via their iPhone or iPad. Check out this website for more information. Contact Alpine Web Media if you would like the ability to edit or create your own website contact on your Apple iPhone or iPad.

Filed Under: Technology, Your Website

Open Source vs Proprietary CMS (Content Management Systems)?

Posted on January 2, 2012 · Leave a Comment

With the popularity of open source content management systems (CMS) like WordPress, Joomla andd Drupal over the past few years, development costs have dropped dramatically for customers who desire a website that they can easily edit and manage themselves without programming skills. It seems that the glory days of the proprietary CMS are not as profitable as they once were, which is good news for everyone.

A proprietary CMS is a database driven, content management system website that the website owner can login to and make changes. Yahoo Store, many automotive dealer and real estate websites are a good example of this. A good CMS is easy for the novice to use and offers all the flexibility they need. The problem with a proprietary CMS is that development costs and monthly fees are much higher than an open source solution. Features may be outdated or a company may be slow to add the latest, greatest functionality (ie. “bells & whistles”). Even small changes to a proprietary CMS can be quite costly or require you to sign up for a “maintenance contract” or require a minimum hours of project work before the company will even begin to assist you. Many people who often find this out later feel locked into something that is costly and inflexible. Unfortunately, they have invested thousands of dollars and if they are not satisfied with their proprietary CMS, they lose everything when they discontinue services and must start again from scratch.

On the other hand, open source content management systems such as WordPress, Joomla and Drupal (and many others) are free to download and upgrade costing you only the development costs. Because they are open source code, you have the advantage of backing up and saving your website database and files. If you’re not happy with your web design company or they should go out of business, etc. you can simply take your database and files to another company. You cannot do this with a proprietary CMS so if you don’t use it…you lose it. Another advantage to the open source CMS is constant development and new widgets or features that are often free, very low cost and take only minutes to install. A fraction of the cost that a company offering a proprietary CMS would charge. These are the reasons that Alpine Web Media works with the open source CMS model.

To be fair, the companies who offer proprietary CMS’ will say that open source solutions are more vulnerable to viruses and hackers. Like any other popular software, that is true. However, nothing on the web is 100% safe from hackers, not even a proprietary CMS. There are a number of debates on the web about “open source vs. proprietary CMS” and it’s easy to see that the “proprietary” crowd are fighting to retain their high profits and 100% control over their customer’s websites. Their primary argument is that their systems are safer from hackers. If your open source CMS is developed properly with the correct file permission, strong passwords, file backups and vigilant updates, you really don’t have much to worry about, proprietary or not.

A number of large corporations and government organizations utilize open source content management systems. For instance, the White House website is based on Drupal. I think open source is a pretty safe bet and certainly far more flexible and cost efficient. Ultimately, the decision is up to you and your budget.

Filed Under: Promote Your Website, Technology, Your Website Tagged With: cms, content management system, Drupal, Joomla, wordpress

Turning Lead (ColdFusion) into Gold (WordPress)

Posted on November 11, 2011 · Leave a Comment

If anyone out there has any thoughts or ideas about how to import ColdFusion coded pages into a WordPress template page, I’d really like to know. Can it be done or is it impossible? The more I have researched it, the more I am beginning to think it would be easier to find Noah’s Ark.

I did find a post here that provides a roundabout inkling that it may be possible to integrate the two technologies, but there is nothing forthcoming or any new ideas posted to the website. I have contacted several of the top ColdFusion experts about this but even they are not sure because they’re not attuned to the WordPress coding side of things. So, if anyone has any ideas, please let me know so I can either keep digging around or put this beast to rest once and for all.

Filed Under: Technology, Your Website Tagged With: coldfusion, wordpress

Why You Shouldn’t Use Free E-Mail Accounts Like GMail, Yahoo or Hotmail, etc.

Posted on August 30, 2011 · Leave a Comment

First let me start out by saying that there is nothing wrong with using free e-mail accounts. In fact they are terrific for many reasons and I have several accounts myself that I find very useful. Like anything else, used properly, free e-mail accounts are highly recommended.

On the other hand…

If you already have a registered domain name for your business you should definitely be using e-mail accounts from your own domain web hosting account such as info@yourbusiness.com. Why? Because in the first place, it promotes a positive image of your company and profession. When you think about it doesn’t info@microsoft.com seem much more professional than bill.gates@yahoo.com? Absolutely.

Forwarding Domain E-mails to Free Accounts

Here’s another thing that many people do that is unprofessional and can cause problems. They have a domain, set up and email account and proudly announce their contact e-mail as info@yourbusiness.com. But then they have those e-mails forwarded to a free e-mail address such as mrsbusybody@gmail.com, for their own convenience. When they reply to an e-mail, the person who contacts them gets a response from mrsbusybody@gmail.com instead of info@yourbusiness.com. They are probably thinking who is mrsbusybody@gmail.com and why is she sending me an e-mail? Off it goes, unread, to the junk e-mail or spam box.

Which also brings up the possibility that the person receiving your email may have spam filters set to reject e-mails as spam from free e-mail account providers. Do you really want to take the chance that your e-mails are getting filtered out as spam just because it’s easier for you to forward everything to your Gmail or Yahoo account? For anyone conducting a business, this is a lazy and surefire way to annoy your customers. Worse yet it may give them the impression that you never answered their e-mail inquiries, when in fact you did but your reply went unseen to their spam folder.

Sometimes forwarded e-mails are actually weeded out by the free e-mail account provider. In some cases, you will not even receive the forwarded e-mails due to errors on behalf of GMail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc. Many companies such as AOL, Comcast, etc. that provide free e-mail addresses with their services DO NOT ALLOW e-mail forwarding from another account. If something goes wrong, don’t blame your web hosting company where info@yourbusiness.com is hosted. Nine times out of ten, the problem lies with your free e-mail provider. Good luck calling Google or Yahoo and asking them to look into the issue.

Bottom line is why would anyone want to deal with this entire situation at all when you have your own domain name and e-mail accounts? Simply use your webmail (most hosting accounts have webmail access) or configure MS Outlook or other e-mail programs on your computer to retrieve your e-mails automatically. Save yourself a lot of potential headaches in addition to providing a more professional, business like appearance with your e-mails. Use the free e-mail accounts for things like signing up for promotions, etc. to keep the spam and junk mail out of your business e-mail account.

And finally, here is the best reason for using your domain e-mail account – advertising.

If you use a free e-mail account on your website, business cards, print and other ads, what happens if your free e-mail provider switches names, etc.? For instance when Adelphia was purchased by Comcast, everyone who was using johndoe@adelphia.net had to pay a lot of money for new business cards and other changes. At that point, wouldn’t you realize that instead of changing to johndoe@comcast.net, wouldn’t it make more sense to use johndoe@yourcompany.com? As long as your domain name is paid up, you’d never have to worry about changing the e-mail address again. Simple enough?

Filed Under: Promote Your Website, Technology, Your Website

Saving Money with Coupon Codes

Posted on February 18, 2011 · Leave a Comment

With the US economy on the skids, many of us are trying to save as much money as possible. If you’d like to save a little cash while shopping online, here’s a tip that many people overlook.

When you place an order and reach the check out page, often times you’ll see a box to enter a promotional, coupon or other type of code. Most of us assume that since we don’t have such a code we ignore it and check out as usual. But wait…you CAN get a code and save some money.

Simply do a Google search on the company name followed by the words “promo code” or “coupon code”. Most of the time, a website link will become available where you can copy and paste the code into the promo code, check out box. I’ve had pretty good luck with this but occasionally it may not work because the promo codes have expired, etc. Still, 2 or 3 minutes of research is worth the effort.

Also, before you order at Amazon or other discount websites, make sure to check the manufacturer’s website first. Sometimes you can get a better price directly through the manufacturer and that is more often than not, the place where you can check out and apply a promotional code.

Filed Under: Technology

How Roboform Can Make Your Life Easier

Posted on January 14, 2011 · Leave a Comment

I don’t often plug any specific products but I came across one recently that I just cannot live without. I’ll bet that once you’ve tried it, browsing the web just won’t be the same without RoboForm either. Yeah, RoboForm (no relation to RoboCop?).

It’s a great little program that manages all of your website logins, passwords, ID’s etc. It literally only takes seconds to login to websites and saves you a lot of typing. But what I really love about RoboForm is the way it fills in forms. Nobody likes the tedious task of filling in line after line of forms. With this great little piece of software, you only fill in a form once and it saves everything. The next time you come across a form, just click a button and in one second it pre-fills form data into a web page and saves you a lot of valuable time.

RoboForm can be installed on multiple computers and synced over the web, so that the latest changes or logins are automatically available on other computers. Give it a try now, while it’s only $9.95.