Webmaster Discussion & News — Host Boards

What's the modern equivalent of Geocities?

AlphaRacks — Sat, 12 Feb 2022 16:37:27 +0000

In the olden days, I had a free website on Geocities. It was super easy to use and to upload HTML files, images, etc.

Do easy to use, free services like this still exist? I miss those days.

Online Proxy Checker Tool available?

Tapioca — Fri, 14 May 2021 08:43:47 +0000

Any recommendations on the places to get Online Proxy Checker Tool?
I've done a search and found https://whatismyip.live offers such a tool.
Can Proxy Check tool detect all Proxy Servers?
Any inputs please?

History of Webmasters

DeluxeNames — Sun, 24 Dec 2006 21:38:40 +0000

While this is a long article, if your proud of being a Webmaster, you may find it to be an interesting history of Webmasters. It was written by David Belson (dbelson@bbnplanet.com) of the Webmasters' Guild:

In 1989, Tim Berners-Lee and Robert Cailliau proposed a hypertext-based systems for sharing documentation and High Energy Physics (HEP) documents within CERN. The following year, Berners-Lee prototyped Web server and browser software on a NeXT cube, and he and Cailliau decided on "World Wide Web" as a name for the system.
The Web continued to spread within the HEP community, as the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center set up the first Web server in the United States, publishing the contents of an existing database of abstracts of physics papers. The following year, HEP laboratories in Hamburg, Amsterdam, and Chicago set up Web servers. By the end of 1992, there were 50 Web servers in the world.

So who were the Webmasters for these early Web servers? While on-line histories don't provide a specific answer, we can guess that they were the lab's system administrators, or those physicists with Internet-connected workstations on their desks, and the expertise to set up the software. They served the primary function of technical Webmaster; though they were also in the roles of providing content and designing an information infrastructure, they simply served up that information (papers, abstracts, etc.) that was readily available to them in digital form, not worrying about ease of navigation.

1993 saw the release of CERN Web server software with basic protection mechanisms and early versions of NCSA HTTPd, as well as the availability of the first generation of graphical browsers, including Viola, Midas, and Mosaic. This growth in server and browser software began to make the Web available to greater numbers of people, moving further out of the HEP community, and further into the academic and commercial worlds, as an additional 200 "early adopters" set up Web servers by the end of the year. Web servers, by and large, had not yet moved into full institutional acceptance, so Webmasters, still often a single person, were challenged to perform a number of functions. Since they likely controlled the resources the servers ran on, they continued to play the role of technical Webmaster.

The Webmaster's role as evangelist began to develop more fully during this period in the Web's growth, as Webmasters tried to convince librarians, archivists, and marketers of the value of the Web, in order to get them to provide content with more depth and greater value to users. At this time, coding HTML was considered to be something of a black art, so Webmasters, who were among a select group that had developed proficiency in HTML, also played the role of designer and information architect in creating early Web sites.

By the end of 1994, the number of Web servers had grown ten-fold, to 2500, and server software was available for most major operating systems, including Unix, VM/CMS, VMS, Microsoft Windows, MS-DOS, and MacOS. Growth in the Web at this time was also due in part to media exposure, as popular magazines and newspapers began to run stories introducing the public to this "new technology."

As a result of all of this, the Web grew in acceptance and importance, and the concept of the Webmaster as a team-working with and supporting the technical Webmaster-began to take shape. New members of the Webmaster team included:

Graphic Designers: The early Webmasters learned enough HTML to create and convert content into a state that was acceptable for Web presentation. The graphic designers moved beyond being mere HTML jockeys, and brought content into agreement with accepted graphic standards, as well as designing sites that were attractive enough to draw users back for a return visit.

Information Architects: The sites developed by early Webmasters were often not well organized, but generally were collections of documents listed on a main index page, with little thought given to ease of navigation. Information architects, who were frequently librarians, archivists, marketers, or information designers, began to make order out of chaos, performing a number of functions that would prove to be increasingly vital to the success of a Web site.

As a discipline, information architecture did not really exist before the Web. Content was re-organized in an intuitive, easy-to-navigate fashion, ensuring consistency of links between documents. In addition, information architects created scalable infrastructures, encouraging information owners to contribute content, and ensuring that there would always be a place for new information. Business strategists and visionaries: As the Web moved from a grass-roots effort to being recognized and supported by institutional resources, the role of the evangelist moved into the spotlight. Business plans and visions for the future of marketing and sales on the Web were needed to sway the skeptics and secure resources.

As the Web left 1994 behind and continued its exponential growth into 1995, several new server technologies were courting additional members to the Webmaster team. The introduction of Secure HTTP (SHTTP) by EIT, and the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) by Netscape, moved the Web beyond a simple marketing medium, raising the idea of conducting business on the Web from a specter to more of a reality.

With Web-based commerce, however, came a whole new set of issues. The Webmaster team grew to include members of the legal department, who brought with them domain expertise about tax laws, and the complications that would inevitably raise their ugly heads in the world of international commerce. Members of the sales force also joined the Webmaster team, guiding business strategies, providing domain expertise on how to integrate this new sales channel with existing ones, and acting as evangelists within the sales organization.

Continued developments in server technology over the past two years have led to tighter integration with databases, via CGI-driven interfaces, as well as through servers from database companies like Oracle and Lotus. To best use the newly enhanced abilities to collect information about visitors and to make legacy data available to visitors, programmers moved from being unsung heroes of the Webmaster team into mission-critical roles.

Marketing Webmasters and information architects were now relying on the programmers to build Web sites that could collect information on visitors, ultimately providing them with customized, personalized views of the information available on and through the Web site. Additionally, the growth in Intranets meant that the programmer was playing an important role in interfacing internal Web servers with information housed in legacy databases.

While not exactly a new development in Web server technology, the increase in outsourcing of Web server hosting has rearranged some roles within the Webmaster team. The technical Webmaster is freed from the day-to-day responsibilities of the care and feeding of the Web server, and can instead focus on designing host architectures that will scale to meet the site's needs, and can work more closely with the programmers to incorporate new technologies into the Web site. The role of the evangelists shifts into a mode where they must convince the rest of the team of the value of outsourcing, to allow the team to focus on their core competencies of building and promoting the site. The business strategists have the new responsibility of spending the money saved by outsourcing the hosting and management of the Web site.

http://www.webdeveloper.com/html/html_wg_webhistory.html

Getting your forum started

Papworth — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 16:54:59 +0000

Those of you that have started forums from scratch, will know that the first challenge is to get them first few active members. So how do you go about acheiving them?

Do you go with paid posters, or get your friends to help you out by creating a few usernames and making a post or two? Also, do you go straight into paid advertising, or is your first step to submit your forum to search engines and directories?

Spammer

Katra — Sun, 29 Oct 2006 20:47:33 +0000

Australian spammer fined ?2.2m
An Australian comapny and its director were found to have illegally sent 200m spam messages in the last 12 months since the Australian Spam Laws were introduced.
http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/2006/10/27/219454/Australian+spammer+fined+%c2%a322m+.htm

It's a shame this isnt world wide, my spam has increased 100 fold in the last 6 months despite filtering etc., Anyone notice that spam is sent as a text graphic now so that spam filters can't read it?

China Creating Their Own Root Name Server

DeluxeNames — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 09:05:03 +0000

From the article:

"CHINA will set up a mirror server for Chinese netizens to visit Websites whose domain names end with .com or .net, Sina.com reported today.

Instead of being served by overseas domain servers for making visits, the new server will provide a domain name system or "DNS" function of its own, which will guarantee the security for netizens visiting from China and also raise the linking speed.

China Network Communications Group signed with US-based VeriSign Incorporation, the world's largest domain name registry services provider, to launch the Chinese mirror server of root domain name on December 14."

My take: Scary stuff folks! One day it's their own name server, the next, their name server goes independent and China creates the first major "2nd" internet.

What's your take:
http://www1.shanghaidaily.com/art/2006/12/20/300400/China_to_launch_root_domain_name_server.htm

Help is needed!

Elenn — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 16:04:21 +0000

Hi all!

:baby: Need your advice!

We have a website to sale. I have placed the presale information at webmaster forums, eBay, etc ...

What else can I do to make people know about our website selling? Ideas are needed!

Thanks:) .

Mobile sites

rebelagent — Wed, 27 Dec 2006 03:44:01 +0000

Has anyone made any revenue from mobile sites at all??? I want solid proof before I jump into it. Well not solid but basically enough info to know if someone did make reasonable profits.

Anyone Making Money From Image Hosting?

DeluxeNames — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 09:09:16 +0000

So I'm curious if anyone is making money from image hosting, and if so, can you give any advice to the rest of us on how you do it?
Thanks

Microsoft Trying to Patent RSS!

DeluxeNames — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 08:54:53 +0000

From the article:

"If you've added headlines from a news site to My Yahoo, or subscribe to blogs on a site like Bloglines, you've used RSS, a technology that's growing increasingly popular for distributing headlines and articles from blogs, news websites, and more. But now, two recently published patent applications reveal, Microsoft (MSFT) is claiming it invented RSS.

The applications, filed last June but just made public yesterday, cover subscribing and discovering what Microsoft calls "Web feeds." That comes as a bit of a shock to anyone who's been working on RSS, which has its origins in a format developed seven years ago at Netscape Communications.

Microsoft executive Don Dodge, while not involved in the patent applications, says he suspects the filings were made to defend the company against "patent trolls". (The filings were made shortly before Microsoft announced plans to build RSS technology into its upcoming Vista operating system.) Still, if granted, the patents would give Microsoft a legal cudgel to wield against other companies using RSS."

My take: This is scarry stuff! :eek: If Microsoft is awarded this patent what will happen to all of our RSS feed sites? I doubt (fingers crossed) they will succeed.

What's your take?

http://blogs.business2.com/beta/2006/12/does_microsoft_.html

Personal security on the Net

Katra — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 09:39:05 +0000

Security against Cyber Stalking and/or Spamming

I thought it might be a good idea to list the do's and dont's for newcomers to the web who may fall prey to spammers or stalkers, so that if they browse this forum they may pick up some valuable information.
We could then gather together all tips and have in one sticky post.

For example:
1. Always encrypt your email address on web pages there is a good facility here:
http://www.mways.co.uk/prog/hidemail.php
or use a web based email that you can delete and make a new one easily.

2. Always look for the opt out on a web site form which asks if you mind the company sharing your details with a third party.

Boston Area Webmaster Networking

DeluxeNames — Sun, 24 Dec 2006 20:29:39 +0000

Are you a Boston Area Webmaster? If so, we'd like to network with you. In conjunction with the "Boston Webmasters Meetup Group" please meet us for our very 1st meeting on January 17th, '06. For more information: http://webmasters.meetup.com/99/?gj=sj6

A prominent and prolific Boston Area Webmaster, Peter T. Davis (http://www.petertdavis.net) (well known on DigitalPoint.com, and SitePoint.com) will be the Organizer/Leader and you are in for a treat. This is a must see event.

Also, for anyone interested, let's all meet up at Boston PubCon '07, WebmasterWorld's annual Webmaster/SEO networking session. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe it's in May of '07. Anyone have a link for it?

If you are a Boston Wembaster, please post an introduction in this thread, thanks

Can 1 Person Really Be Both a Top Coder & Designer?

DeluxeNames — Thu, 19 Oct 2006 21:11:45 +0000

Can lighting strike twice?

I've always thought that someone can either be a great coder or a great designer, but not both. I assumed it was wrapped up somehow in their personality. In other words, what they ejoy is what they do better at and that great designers don't like to code and great coders don't like to design.

Is this false? Do you know someone that loves to do both and does both well?

Your Most Embarrassing Webmaster Related Experience

DeluxeNames — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 23:07:37 +0000

What is your most embarrassing moment as a Webmaster?

In 1999, I took my very first HTML class and had to drop it becuase I got behind!

I made the mistake of taking it at Harvard where everyone in my class had previous HTML experience excpet for me so the teacher decided to go advanced and asked me to try to keep up. I couldn't! My classmates were geniuses and I was a Government major

In hindsight, I should taken it at an easier school.

What about your most embarrassing moment?

What do you hate most about the internet?

DeluxeNames — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:57:16 +0000

What is the thing that you hate most about the internet?

I hate that when you tell people that you spend a lot of time on the internet, they wonder if you frequent porn sites

Hello! There is a ton of fun stuff to do online!

New Members: People Have Gotten some Nice Free Domains From WP!

DeluxeNames — Sun, 29 Oct 2006 23:06:22 +0000

For all you new members here at WP (if you've singed up after 9/18/06), this is a reminder that, if you earn 100 Forum$ (must be earned, not donated), PM me as I'll be glad to give you a new domain registration of your choice.
Who's gotten a free domain so far?

WatchOut won his free domain on 10/29/06. He chose lwky.com as his free domain which was a nice 4 letter domain choice.

Piet won his free domain on 10/29/06. He chose ZTDN.com. Another really nice domain.

I will continue posting the new 4 letter domain drops in the domain section in case you want to select one of these as your reward. 87% of 4 letter ".coms" are now registered and my prediction is that they will be all gone in 3 months time. Their value will only go up from there just like 3 letter ".com's" value went up like crazy as they are all gone.

Adversal

Papworth — Sun, 03 Dec 2006 13:22:20 +0000

Just signed up for this today. It's a pop-under advertising company and it has had many good reviews from webmasters at DigitalPoint. They pay on the 15th of each month via check or paypal, to balances with more than $20 earnt..

Sign up: Adversal

Please consider that link to signup.

Your Highest Adsense or YPN check?

DeluxeNames — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 23:04:04 +0000

I was curious of your highest Adsense or YPN check?

I don't receive one unless I've earned $100 so my highest check was $100 and I know that's nothing compared to some of you.

Who is Going to Internext Las Vegas?

lionsgate — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 23:16:07 +0000

Who's Going to Internext Las Vegas?
The CelebrityCash Team will be there in full force. It looks like there are some great, well organized events planned for the show. I look forward to seeing you all there.

What Do You Use for Spyware and Virus Protection?

DeluxeNames — Fri, 24 Nov 2006 19:03:46 +0000

Just curious what you all use for your Spyware and Virus protection? Do you like it? Ever had antivirus software that you did not like?

I've been using Spysweeper (from www.Webroot.com) for a long time and have loved it. They just came out with a virus program so I just bought it and will give it a try (I'll let you know how it does).

In the past, I've used two products that I did not like. I HATED www.Stopzilla.com because it acted like spyware itself the way it would prompt me to upgrade and based on how hard it was to delete.

I also disliked Bullguard (www.Bullguard.com) as it used up so much memory as it was always doing something in the background whenever my computer was on. This is the free trial software you get when you download Kazaa for the first time. It did well at finding viruses/spyware but took too much of my system's rescources.

And you? What's your favorite protection software?

Are Paid Posting Companies really worth it?

lpstong — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 03:18:47 +0000

Many ask, ?Is it worth buying post work from Paid Posting Companies?? Many worry that they will pay for a one line zinger like, ?That?s great?, ?wow that was strange, but I like it?, ?Yeah I agree with you in the first thread?. Or they pay and the company never comes through with the posts that they were paid to do. Others worry that Paid Posting Companies seem to only have 14 - 15 year old wanna be hackers posting for them.

I can hear, understand and have seen some of the concerns forum or web community owners fear. I would assure you not every Posting Company is the same. Some have higher quality posting than others. Some companies will actually provide the services(the post count and quality) with user names. Some even have better customer service than others. It is just a matter of taking the step and doing some research on a few Paid Posting Companies. Ask questions. Shop around and compare prices. so on and so forth. Treat this as though you are buying a house, car, dining/restaurants etc. Be informed.

Some things you might ask, look for, or research when deciding to go with a Paid Posting Company.

1. How long have they been in business.
2. Do they list their prices along with the post count(post/replies + new thread = total post count)
3. How many writers/posters will you get.
4. How knowledgeable are they on your forum/web community.
5. How long will it take them to do the post quota(ASAP, 1 - 2 - 3 weeks or longer).
6. Do they do sample posts.
7. What are their hiring practices. What do they require of their posters before they begin posting. Do the posters have to show their experience in post writing?
8. What type of payment services do they use.(Paypal, Stormpay, E-Gold, Credit Card, money orders etc.)
9. Where do you contact them for any further business or follow up information?
10. Look for how professional they treat you?

Some things a forum or web community owner needs to understand before buying into a Paid Posting Company.

1. The posting company is to supplement your forum and or community not make it. You paid them to do so many posts. Do not come in thinking that they will all continue to post in your forum and or community.

2. Paid Posting Services are not a Pro Bono Service. Some may do sample posts. Some offer trial packages of 5 - 30 posts for a small fee. But don?t think by asking for a sample of 100 posts. Ask for a reasonable amount. Like 5 to 20 posts. This is a business. Be professional about it. And don?t go from service to service to get 10 free samples each to make your forum and than not ever buy into one.

3. You may watch your forum or community grow. But do not rely solely on posting. Do research in Advertising(link exchange, Google adsense etc.), Search Engine Optimizations.

What kind of forum owner are you?

lpstong — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 03:15:04 +0000

I think there should be some common knowledge of someone who wants to become a forum owner. Or one that is in the process of building a forum. Many will learn tips and tricks of the trade of being a forum owner. But here are some of my thoughts to this.

1. Do you have something that is unique or do you offer something different than others with the same forum topic.
A.) If it is similar to others, what will make you stand out - Pick out your best feature about your forum and work it to the public.

2. Make your users feel special. Yet keep it on a professional level. You do not always need catchy incentives to pull the public in (although it helps).

3. Users like the ability to create their own usernames, avatars and sigs (signatures), to upload images etc.
A.) Provide an area to chat or shout out. Sometimes users need a break and need a mild form of entertainment.

4. Hire Mods (moderators). Offer the mods an incentive etc. Offer it in forms of money, commission. Or offer them some form of monetary gain or reasonable offer.

5. Be active in your forum. This is a major factor in a successful forum. Check in at least once a day and make a few posts, articles, corrections etc.

6. Hire paid posters once in a blue moon to give it a boost, flare, or spice.

7. Provide a contest or giveaway for your users. It can be in any form you so choose.
A.) Link Exchanges
B.) Cash
C.) Free Domain Names
D.) Anything You Think Is Feasible

8.) Provide links on your forum that related or have some relevance to yours. And throw in an offbeat one for entertainment and fun.

9.) Do Post exchanges to see what?s out there and being said.

10. Know your business. Do not be an egomaniac. It turns people away. Remain professional as much as possible. If you do not know an answer find out and refer/point in the right direction to user where to go.

Finding An 'Un-Touched' Forum Niche

Papworth — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 16:45:57 +0000

How do people do it these days? The trouble is, all forum topics that could potentially make you a large profit, have already been exploited by other site owners, meaning you are trying to compete in a flooded market.

So how do we go about finding un-touched, or very incompetitive niches these days? I have been buying/selling forums now for a good 2-3 years, but have only made minimal profits if I'm being truthful.

Now it seems, the only way to be successful when owning a forum would be to buy a 'ready-developed' forum, invest alot of money into starting a forum in an already competitive market, or keep a lookout for upcoming US TV shows, which are likely to be big hits.

Does anyone else have any ideas on going about finding forum success? Hopefully, we can make this thread into an interesting and educational read.

good block

ayushsinhal — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 11:52:31 +0000

go forhttp://www.wetpaint.comit is a very good block

Setting up a blog

cjvj — Fri, 22 Oct 2004 18:10:21 +0000

How to set up a blog

With the blogging explosion now underway, you may be wondering how you can join in. This guide will show you how to set up a blog using Blogger.

How to set up your blog using blogger in 10 easy steps

1. Go to the Blogger homepage at http://www.blogger.com
2. Click 'Create Your Blog Now'
3. Enter your details, remember to read the TOS (Terms of service)
4. Click 'Continue'
5. If you want Blogger to host your blog for you, fill out the name of your blog and the URL you want.
6. Click 'Continue'
7. Now choose a template, try to choose one that will fit in with the theme of your site.
8. Click 'Continue'
9. It will now show a confirmation screen, click 'Continue' to proceed.
10. Your done! Now you can edit your profile and start posting!

Other Resources

1. http://www.blogspotting.com - A blog top site list
2. http://www.blogpatrol.com - A free counter for your blog
3. http://www.blogexplosion.com - Drive traffic to your blog

Enjoy :cool:

Important: Register Your domain for 10 years!

DeluxeNames — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 19:51:32 +0000

One of the saddest things to happen to an up and coming site or business is when the owner gets so busy and successful that they forget to renew their domain! There's no bigger crushing feeling than when someone else grabs your expiring domain and reaps all of the rewards of your years of hard work.

It's happened to many people in this business and I'm sure some of you might even have horror stories about this (please share).

My encouragement for you: Stop what your doing right this second and take 5 minutes. Ask yourself, what are my 3 best sites? Register those 3 best site domains for 10 years. Now ask yourself, what are my 3 favorite domains for future development? Register those 3 for at least 5 years.

Believe me, you won't be sorry you did. I did this and it gives me peace of mind and lets me sleep better at night.

Christmas Coming Early This Year: Newer Version of Studio8!

DeluxeNames — Fri, 24 Nov 2006 18:48:35 +0000

So it looks like my Christmas is coming early this year :car:
My version of Dreamweaver is pretty old so I'm getting a newer version of Macromedia Studio8 (which includes Dreamweaver). I can't tell you how excited I am to start using this! :geek:

It lists for $999.usd but I bet you can find Studio8 discounted prices for it somewhere on the net

Are many of you Stuio8 or Dreamweaver users?

http://www.adobe.com/products/studio/

How Often Do You Use Skype?

DeluxeNames — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 02:05:39 +0000

So I may be a little late for the party, but i like using www.Skype.com.

How many of you also use Skype? If so, how often and who do you talk to on it?

Getting your site going

rebelagent — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 06:23:23 +0000

How long does it take you to get at least 300 daily uniques without having to advertise on a daily basis?

Takes me about 6 months -.-

Then it goes down when I stop advertsing weekly.

EliteDrops.Com

EliteDrops — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 01:10:45 +0000