Jump
to HelpDesk | Announcements
| FAQ | Webmail Login
Development Topics
Can I get shell access?
Lots of hosts are moving away from granting shell access to clients on shared servers. Frankly, you need to convince us you know what you are doing and that you have a thorough understanding of the security issues.
You will need to provide us with your IP address, either static or the c-block for dynamic IPs. Only permitted IPs will be able to log on to the server. If you have a developer working for you, we will need their IP(s). You can specify as many IPs as you need to... but if you are granting shell access to a large number of people, we are going to reconsider granting it. We prefer you be on a dedicated server if you have that many shell users.
Once you get shell access, you may only SSH2 to use it. There is no telnet. Inconvenient? Yes. And necessary in an increasingly hostile hosting environment. You would certainly not be happy if the serve were hacked and down... no matter why it happened... so we take steps to reduce that likelihood.
Can you recommend an SSH client?
We like SecureCRT from VanDyke Software, which costs about $100 to license.
Also look at Putty at http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/, which has fewer features but is free.
MAC users might want to look at MacSSH at http://pro.wanadoo.fr/chombier/.
What do you have for multiple domains?
We will review requests on a case-by-case basis. If you plan to host a number of domains, or if you plan to regularly open new accounts, we can arrange monthly billing of new accounts. Email support with a summary of your plans to open a discussion.
*Update* We will shortly be more formally offering private nameserver accounts and managed dedicated servers. We will post links to the information in this space.
Do you run SUexec?
Yes. That means scripts run with your own username, not with "nobody." You should have no scripts with world write permissions of 777. Use 755.
Can I set up ODBC access to a database on the server?
Not in most cases. ODBC access is not a good security risk on shared hosting. If you are using it to let the server access a local database, it potentially gives access to everyone with the same IP. Client with Nameserver accounts, VPS accounts, or dedicated servers can get carefully planned remote access.
You CAN share data using XML, if you are so inclined. Of course, you can also do a dump from the local database, transfer the dump to the new server using the File Manager in the control panel, and run the dump file on the remote server.
If remote access is either direction is mission-critical, ask us about a a different kind of hosting account.
How can I see/edit my .htaccess file?
.htaccess is a hidden file.
You can edit it from the control panel. You can also see it from the control panel, using the File Manager.
To see it using an FTP client:
In cute FTP:
1. Go to File > Site Manager.
2. Highlight the site with hidden files.
3. Click the Edit button.
4. Check the Enable Filter box.
5. Click the Filter button.
6. Select Enable remote filters.
7. Type -a in the Remote filter field.
8. Click OK and reconnect to your site.
In WSftp, type -la in the white space under the MKDIR button in the Remote Site window and hit enter.
How can I manage downloads from my site?
Got files that you want to make available to others?
Any file can be made available for download by simply uploading it and providing a link to it from a webpage or email. There are more complex solutions for managing downloads, but these are the basics.
Some things to consider:
1. Are they "private" files that you want only certain folks to access, or are they public?
2. Do you need to track who gets them?
3. Do you need to hide them from bots so they are not indexed by search engines?
4. How technically savvy are the people downloading the files?
You might want to look at download managers, which are programs that track downloads and who made them:
Download Monitor
http://www.focalmedia.net/dlm.html
Download Tracker
http://www.schlabo.com/info/dl/2.01/index.shtml
And a whole collection of similar...
http://cgi.resourceindex.com/Programs_and_Scripts/Perl/File_Management/File_Downloading/
How can I block certain IP addresses?
Want to block certain IPs from accessing your site?
In the .htaccess file...
[Limit GET]
order allow,deny
allow from all
deny from 123.456.789.0
deny from 123.4.5.
[/Limit]
IMPORTANT! IN THE ABOVE EXAMPLE, use opening and closing "<" instead of brackets "[" for the Limit command. Had to use brackets to get it to show up in the code of this FAQ page.
This example would limit anybody from 123.456.789.0, as well as anybody with an IP starting with 123.4.5.
Do I need PHP? Should I learn it?
Most hosts support PHP. I would be asking WHY, if one did not. PHP is used on more than 13 million websites (*used* not just available). So, you do not have to decide, here and now, if you need PHP... it will be there when you decide to explore it. It was introduced in 1999 and has become extremely popular.
PHP is a scripting language. Scripts are little programs that make things happen on your website. Collecting the data in a contact form and emailing it to you, for instance. Or letting people register for an email list, or join a message board community.
There are other scripting languages that are popular for building web applications, like Perl, cold fusion, .asp, and .jsp... but PHP has the advantage of having been developed specifically for web scripting. Perl is probably the most comparable, as many Perl scripts are widely available. PHPNuke and PostNuke (content management systems, and phpBB (bulletin board community), are among the free website scripts that have driven the popularity of PHP.
There are lots of sites that catalog and rate PHP and Perl scripts. Try Hotscripts, for a start.
http://www.hotscripts.com/PHP/Scripts_and_Programs/index.html
It is part of the LAMP development platform: Linux, Apache, mySQL, PHP... a collection of open-source software that works together particularly well for develping web applications. The Linux hosting platform is rapidly becoming the leading platform for shared hosting. Shared hosting is where you rent a little space on a server you share with a lot of other people who rent from the server owner. It is far less expensive to set up a LAMP development platform than any Windows platform, and the Linux environment is considered more secure for shared hosting, so Linux hosting is generally cheaper and more reliable.
You do not have to learn PHP (or Perl) to use it.... you can find zillions of scripts written by other people, ready to be installed on your site. You will want to learn how to install scripts: how to set up a database for a script to use, how to set the user permissions on various files, the difference between a path and a URL, how to decide where to put a script in your file directory, some basic troubleshooting skills. You probably already have some needed skills, like experience with an FTP client. Be sure to check with your host for any "banned" scripts or other limits... some scripts are a problem on a shared server.
I would recommend becoming familiar with both PHP and Perl scripts (They are used in both Linux and Windows hosting environments). .ASP is a Microsoft product... you might want to learn something about it if you plan to work in a Microsoft environment. It can be emulated in a Linux environment by software like Chilisoft, but not perfectly
How do I use the Auto-Installer?
Depending upon which server you are on, there are two different script installers, with slightly diferent scripts.
On the Elijah server, it's called FANTASTICO and is available to clients with Level 2 or higher. You'll see it in the upper left corner of your control panel... click it, pick a script and follow the instructions in the window. Make note of the info in the window after it installs... this gives you URLs and passwords.
On the Octopus and Kracken servers, go to your control panel and look for the menu called "Scripts and Programs" then click "Add-on Scripts" at the top.
NOTE: There are some slight drawbacks to using auto-installer scripts. Sometimes the script version is not the most current. You should check the website of the script developer to find the most recent update. Some folks claim it is better to manually install a script, configuring each setting for yourself. But if you would not be able to install a script at all by yourself, this is an excellent way to get your website doing great things with a few clicks of your mouse.
ANOTHER NOTE: It's fine to test scripts by installing them. But uninstall them if you are not using them... they will eat up your storage to no purpose.
How do I set up a database?
Go to your Control Panel.
Look for the "Databases" menu in the lower right. CLick "MySQL Databases."
To set up a database, you need to do THREE things on that page:
1. Name and Create the database.
2. Name and Create a User for it.
3. Associate the User with the Database.
Once you have one user, you may be give it permission to access multiple databases.
If you are an experienced database user... look at "MyPHPAdmin" from the control panel... you can directly manipulate your databases.
Is there telnet?
No. Telnet is disabled to prevent problems. You can use an SSH client.. but you will have to email support and ask for shell access... and we may say no, especially if you are brand new to us. An inexpert user of shell access can do a lot of damage. It is abused by professional spammers.
You can accomplish nearly everything important using the Database Manager, the File Manager, and phpMyAdmin, along with your FTP client.
How can I more easily move accounts from another host?
This method only works for clients with shell access (Level 4 and higher accounts):
Step 1: Log into telnet in your old host servers, go to your public_html directory, and type in the following command:
tar -cpzf yourdomain.tar.gz *
Step 2: Now login to SSH in your Gryphyn Media account and go to your public_html directory. Then type in the following command:
wget 123.45.67.89/yourdomain.tar.gz
where 123.45.67.89 is your old website's IP address.
Step 3: Wait for the transfer to finish. Then type:
tar -xzf yourdomain.tar.gz
This can save you a lot of FTP time, especially if you have a large website.
Please, if you do not know what telnet, SSH, or shell access are... this is not for you... yet! But you will learn. :-)
How can I help make the shared server more secure?
Your own home or office system is actually PART of our network... you connect to it when you pick up email or upload files. So there is a very real role you can play in keeping it all running smoothly.
1. Use virus protection. Our Linux servers tend to be less targeted by viruses than Microsoft servers... but a MS virus can still make us unreachable when virus traffic clogs the network. So please keep your system clean with up-to-date virus protection. Check out the FREE virus protection package at Avast.
2. Keep your passwords secure. Please don't use simple passwords that can be guessed. Your account can be highjacked by spammers in a heartbeat. Password cracking is the largest source of unauthorized account use. If you always use the same password for eveything, try getting a password management to help you keep track and assign different passwords to different uses.
3. Don't spam. It isn't just rude, or a bad business risk. It puts everyone in our IP block at risk for being blacklisted as "associated with spammers" and blocked by corporate email programs. You WILL be kicked off the server for spamming... even if I know you personally. Check with me if there is even a chance that your planned project is unsolicited bulk email. I can help you find a better way.
4. Check with us before installing things. Some scripts and programs cause problems in a shared hosting environment. We can help select compatible scripts... be sure to check the auto-installable script available from the control panel, too.
Do you do Windows hosting?
No right now. I've chosen to specialize in Linux hosting, which I think is a better platform for shared hosting, and a more affordable development platform.
I am developing a Windows product to host Cold Fusion developers in the near future.
My form is "breaking" my page layout.
The FORM tag in often puts extra vertical space into a page. Annoying, eh? Messes up your seamless graphics. Puts ugly vertial gaps in your nested tables.
There is a CSS fix that works on all browsers (except Netscape 4, of course). Set the form's
"margin" attribute to 0 pixels - for example:
‹form style="margin: 0px"›
This will remove any vertical space around the FORM tag.
I need to install a form on a website... what should I use?
Ah, those pesky forms. Some versions of the control panel still have "formmail-clone" shown on them... but it is disabled due to security issues. And please do not use any version of Matt's FormMail from the ScriptArchive, no matter how well it has worked for you in the past. See our article about form security; it lists good form-to-email scripts. Also check the FAQ section "Installing Scripts" for general hints on installing form scripts. Ask for help, if you need it.
Do you support Cold Fusion?
This page USED TO say:
"Not at the present. But since many of our clients are designers and developers, we are considering it in 2004. Please drop us a lineif you are interested in hearing about Cold Fusion hosting when it becomes available."
UPDATE (07/26/04)
Unfortunately, we have decided NOT to launch a server that support Cold Fusion. Several reasons, including:
-- Macromedia is shifting its marketing of CF. They are pushing it more and more toward enterprise users. Gryphyn Media sells mostly shared hosting and managed servers to small-to-medium business users (not enterprise users). So, the market for us will shrink as time goes by, making our investment worth less and less. That seems unappealing.
-- It runs best on a Windows platform. We tried... but we just hate it. We don't want to have to start supporting all sorts of Windows products just to be CoOld Fusion hosts. It's not where we want to go.
Sorry... no Cold Fusion.
How do I use the shared SSL certificate?
SOME of the servers have shared SSL certificates on them, including Catfish, Octopus, and Sterling. Those shared certificates are harder to get than previously, so we may not be able to offer them indefinately. If you need secure pages, the cost of getting your own certificate is fairly low: $36/year for a static IP plus $30/year for the cert.
A shared SSL certificate is not a free SSL cert of your own, so you will not see it installed on your own cpanel for a particular domain. It is installed for access by any user on the server.
Shared certificate on Catfish:
secure23.dnsvelocity.com
On Octopus:
secure12.dnsvelocity.com
On Sterling:
secure9.gryphynmedia.com
Champion and Crown: not yet available
If you have a dedicated server, you MUST buy your own cert to be installed.
This is how you would reach a page securely:
https://secure##.dnsvelocity.com/~username/pagename
This is how you would reach your site securely:
https://secure##.dnsvelocity.com/~username/
The "username" is the username we sent you in your welcome email for your hosting account, the one you use to log into the control panel or FTP.
So, let's say you load up an order form called checkout.html on a domain hosted on Catfish... you would call it securely this way:
https://secure23.dnsvelocity.com/~username/checkout.html
If you just need to process a form securely, or collect some confidential info, this shared certificate is fine. If you need to run your own shopping cart, I would invest in your own certificate registered to your own site, so customers are not concerned that they are being misdirected. Open a helpdesk ticket to ask for help and pricing for SSL certificates.
How do I install my own SSL certificate?
We install them for you... no charge.
STEP 1: You will need a dedicated IP address for the account. Contact us if you did not already buy one for your domain.
STEP 2: We will generate a Certificate Signing Request (CSR)for you. Send us this information (cut and paste the questions into an email):
- Email Address for Cert (e-mail address where the CSR will be sent)
- Domain of account for the SSL (domain.com)
- Country (2 letter Abbreviation, i.e. US = United States)
- State (State where Company is Located)
- City (City where Company is Located)
- Company Name
- Company Division
- Email (Company Generic E-mail Address)
- Password (Alpha Numeric Password for the Certificate)
A Private Key and CSR will be generated for you and sent... then you are ready to purchase the SSL from any vendor you choose.
Your Vendor will want the Key and CSR information that you received in your E-mail. They will also ask you about the “Web Server Type.” MAKE SURE YOU CHOOSE APACHE + MOD SSL.
STEP 3: Once this is done you will receive the certificate from the Vendor... send it to us and we will install the SSL Certificate. You should then be able to access the SSL via the domain name at https://www.yourdomain.com.
I want to sell things from my site. What do I need?
That's a complex topic. You should email me directly to discuss your circumstances.
But in the meantime, I have notes from a presentation to the Philadelphia Area Computer Society in April 2004. You can browse through them to begin to get an idea of the decisions to be made.
Do-It-Yourself Ecommerce Tools
http://gryphynmedia.com/pacs/
I need help with SSI (Server Side Includes).
My SSI pages are not working. Why?
Provided that the script you are executing is correctly working the only reason the server will not serve an SSI page correctly is because the page does not have the proper (.shtml) extension.
My SSI/PHP pages worked without .shtml/php extension on my previous host.
We are not your previous host. Our servers are setup to serve pages by the industry standard defaults. Your previous host setup their servers so that the server would parse every page for SSI/PHP commands. Though it greatly reduces the questions you might have asked and consequently reduces the burden of tech support, it slows a web server down. That is a much larger problem on a shared server with many domains than on a dedicated server with one or few.
Can I use PHP and SSI together?
Here are some links that discuss various include options in PHP. Call the includes on php pages by using the include() function.
Include/SSI
http://www.spoono.com/tutorials/php/include/
Mixing PHP and SSI
http://www.zytrax.com/tech/php/php_ssi.htm
How can I keep certain pages from being indexed by search engines and other spiders?
Two methods: You can insert a NO INDEX meta tag on specific pages, and you can also upload a robots.txt file that gives instructions to crawlers and refuses some malicious spiders (the kind that harvest email addresses and such). You can keep them away from a few pages, a directory, or a whole site.
You can google "noindex tag" to find more resources, but here is a good place to start:
http://www.searchengineworld.com/metatag/robots.htm
And here is a site all about robots.txt files:
http://www.robotcop.org/links.html
Caution: Malicious bots can ignore both methods. If there is something you truly wish to hide, do not post it on public pages that are not password-protected.
If there is a specific bot you wish to avoid, you can use .htacess, editable from the control panel, to block it the IP address.
How can transfer large files to other people without using email?
Email is not the right tool to transfer large images and other files. In fact, email with attachments may be filtered out completely at the receiving end. Use an upload/download manager. Here is one that is easy to install, easy to configure and customize, easy transfer of files between you and your associates.
Demo: http://gryphynmedia.com/fileupload/
Username: upload
Password: demo
Download here: Peak Development
You will see that the maximum file size can be changed in the script, but if you want to upload files larger than 2Mb (the default PHP file size limit) you will have to add new settings to your .htacess file.
Here is an example for a 10 Mb limit... you can see where to make changes if you need a higher limit. Don't forget that these files count toward your storage limit:
php_value max_execution_time 1200
php_value memory_limit 10M
php_value post_max_size 10M
php_value upload_max_filesize 10M
What perl modules are installed?
You can view an up-to-date list of installed modules by logging into your contorl panel and looking for "Installed Perl Modules" in the left column.
What do the different terms mean in the statistic programs?
We offer three different installed website statistics programs: Webalizer, AWstats, and Analog. We also offer raw log files, if you or your consultant wants to run them through a more sophisticated log analysis program.
Find all the statistic info by going to the control panel and looking toward the bottom for the "Stats" menu. Log in with your hosting (not email) username and password:
http://yourdomain.com/cpanel
(Substitute your domain name for "yourdomain")
The different terms can be confusing. Here are glossaries:
Webalyzer:
http://www.mrunix.net/webalizer/webalizer_help.html
AwStats:
http://awstats.sourceforge.net/docs/awstats_glossary.html
And here is a chart that compares the features of all the stat programs on the server:
http://awstats.sourceforge.net/docs/awstats_compare.html
Can I use Frontpage 2003?
If you upgrade to Frontpage 2003, you may find that you cannot use some of its features on our servers. We are running FP Extension for FP 5.0.xx, but we CANNOT upgrade it to FP 2003 "Extensions" because there are none. Microsoft now requires it to be run on a Windows serer with yet more expensive MS software.
As you know, Gryphyn Media does not license Microsoft products. So, Microsoft will continue to support "old" extensions on Linux servers, but there will be things you can't do on FP 2003.
You WILL still be able to develop a website using FrontPage and PUBLISH it to our servers using the "regular" FTP process that everyone else uses.
Microsoft: "While we are eliminating investment in the development of future server extension versions, we will continue to support existing server extensions on the Windows and UNIX/Apache server platforms. We will also update the FrontPage 2002 server extensions to support Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS 6.0), but will not add any additional Web site authoring functionality."
Microsoft: "All of the live data-driven Web site features in FrontPage 2003 require Windows SharePoint Services. Some of these features include data-driven Web sites, XML support, the Data Source Catalog, Web package templates, and Web Parts."
Read more at the Microsoft site:
http://www.microsoft.com/office/frontpage/prodinfo/faq.mspx
Why does my form redirect to a "contact support" message?
Formmail scripts that are named formmail.pl or formmail.cgi or any combination of "form" and "mail" will not work.
Old versions of formmail are very easy to hijack and use for the mass-mailing of spam. See this article:
http://gryphynmedia.com/articles/formmail.html
One step we have taken to protect clients from being turned into unwitting spammers is the redirecton of ANY request for a file called "formmail." Those requests are redirected at the server level to a page that says "Please rename your formmail script. Please contact support if needed. " We don't even let people accidentally use a script with an exploitable name. You must rename the file to make it harder to find and exploit. Try a random filename like 34hwbp.pl.
Even if you have not installed ANY formmail script, you will still find entries in your stats and error logs. Those are from automated bots looking for insecure scripts to exploit. Those attempts will also be redirected and you will see a 302-Redirection result. Any internal or external request for formmail will be met with failure.
How do I get Dreamweaver to connect to my account?
FTP Host: yourdomain.com
Host Directory: If you want to upload your files directly to your web-viewable directory, set this to public_html
Login: If this is the main FTP account, it is simply your username. However if this is a sub-FTP account then the format will be ftpusername@yourdomain.com.
Older versions of Dreamweaver may operate differently.
How can I use mod_rewrite to make my URLs more search engine friendly?
This FAQ explain how to change an example URL
http://www.yourdomain.com/news.php?id=24
to
http//www.yourdomain.com/news/24
to encourage search engines to index the page.
If you do NOT KNOW HOW to find and make files in your directory structure, this method is too advanced for you.
In your .htaccess file of your document root (i.e. /public_html), put the following two lines:
RewriteEngine on
RewriteRule ^news/([0-9]+)$ /news.php?id=$1
.htaccess doesn't exist by default, so you may have to create it. It's just a normal text file. Some ftp clients won't list it unless explicitly told to do so. It WILL appear in the File Manager of your control panel.
The directives above mean, in essence, "turn on the rewrite engine, and here's a rule to check for."
The RewriteRule is a regular expression that the mod_rewrite engine tries to match each and every page request to. It is always in the form of:
RewriteRule pattern-to-find substitution-to-rewrite-to [OPTIONAL FLAGS]
Each portion of the directive is separated by 1 space.
Looking at this regular expression in particular...
The first part of the directive "^news/([0-9]+)$" is the regex pattern the engine will try to match.
In this context, the "^" character means to "anchor" the regex and start the match at the beginning of the requested url.
The "news/" characters are just regular characters, and should match exactly to the requested url.
"[0-9]" means to match only digits.
The "+" means to match the preceding expression (only digits) at least 1 or more times.
The surrounding parentheses mean that the regex engine should "capture" any matches it finds within and save them for later use.
The "$" character means to "anchor" the regex to the end of the requested url.
So in plain English this might read: "Starting at the beginning of the page request string, match "news", then a forward slash, then any digits, until the end of the page request string. and save the digits for later reference."
The second part, "/news.php?id=$1", is the substitution url to rewrite the request to if the engine has matched the preceding pattern.
It is pretty self-explanatory, except for the "$1". this is a backreference to the parentheses in the pattern. think of it as a placeholder for any "captured" matches found in the preceding pattern (remember the parentheses?). Each backreference will be replaced by the corresponding parentheses in the pattern. So if you have 2 parenthetical expressions in the pattern, you can have backreferences $1 and $2 in the substitution. You can have up to 9 backreferences.
In plain English this might read: "Rewrite (and reroute) the page request you just found a match for, to news.php?id="
A Google search on "mod_rewrite" will help you find more tutorials about this method.
What port do I use to access shell via SSH2?
First, you must have been granted shell access. We generally do not give it for individual accounts on the shared servers. If you regularly use it, or have a nameserver account with us, we will set you up on a server where we do allow SSH2 access.
If Port 22 is not working for you, try Port 8888.
We have started setting up servers to use that alternate port as a measure against automated hacking of the more-commonly used port.
What are the options for sending an email list or newsletter?
1. Using DESKTOP software. This includes Outlook, Entourage, and other
email clients, but also includes contact managers like ACT, and assorted
marketing and client mangement packages. They are have one thing in
common: they use your ISP (your internet connection) to send email. If
you should be accused to sending spam, your ISP will shut down your WHOLE
account and will be resistant to restoring your service, which disrupts
your business in a major way until you get a new provider. I have seen
this happen... and ISPs are under increasing pressure to control spam. Don't use this if you have more than 50 subscribers.
2. Using your HOSTED domain account (or server). This involves installing
software that you use to personally manage your own list, like PHPlist, DadaMail, and other free or purchased packages. This gets it
away from your ISP, without putting it in someone else's hands. There are
a lot of good programs; I like PHPlist and DadaMail best. You will have a
lot of tools you don't get using Entourage: list templates, much better
bounce handling, sunscriber opt-in and opt-out (which helps meet the
requirements of the federal CAN-SPAM act), multiple list admininstration,
mesage archiving and lots more. Your regular domain account can handle this for lists of 10-500 maybe larger, with batch handling). Ask us for help. We have options for larger lists, including a larger osting account on a higher-volume server or VPS account.
3. Using GRYPHYN MEDIA. We can give you a price for managing a list of almost any size. On a hosted domain, on a managed server, or using out list hosting partner. We will send you a list-hositng questionnaire on request.
4. Using a LIST HOST. Here is where you can get some powerful and
affordable list mangement tools without building and maintaining them
yourself... but here is also where you can lose control of your list.
Someone else has to HAVE the list to host it for you. If you go this
route, just be sure to choose a well-known list host, where you can feel
confident that they are more interested in being known as a good list host
than in making money in the background by selling it. Do no choose the
least expensive provider for this. Search this FAQ for "list" to find recommendations for selecting a list host.
Are your servers mirrored, or otherwise "bullet-proof?"
No. Did you look at the pricing? The shared hosting plans are entry-level business hosting. you just don't get "bullet-proof" at this level.
The concept of "bullet proof hosting" is an excellent one, but there are a few key things that need to be kept in mind. First, things can always go wrong, and typically these things are related to hardware. The amount of hardware required to circumvent a failure also follows an exponential curve, albeit a logarithmic one, as it is scaled.
Unfortunately, the term "mirroring" is thrown around in the industry as if it is as simple as clicking a button. Mirroring requires a full duplicate set of hardware, software, data, and typically a duplicate network to be available, and dedicated, at all times. This by itself is cost-prohibitive for small-to-moderate businesses. We can provide these services to enterprise customers, but they start at around $1,000/month for a basic installation with N+1 redundancy, starting with 2N where N is 1. Once load balancing becomes part of the equation, it is necessary to start with 3N where N is 1 in order to provide failover without overload on another box.
Where can I find a good tell-a-friend referral script?
Let's look more closely at the idea, first. The current state of spam and email delivery has killed much of the utility of referral forms.
Referral scripts are notoriously easy to exploit. Even when they are used by "real" people to send messages to their friends, they are still sending unsolicited email that the receipient did not request - that makes it real spam. It often gets reported as spam to ISPs like AOL and gmail, leading to them block or spam-folder ALL email from your domain or IP.
What are you trying to achieve with the form? If you want to collect new addresses for marketing, this is a bad way, since you don't have the permission of the recipient to email them again (you didn't even have their permission the first time).
If you truly believe that site visitors need help telling their friends about you, an alternative is to offer to send them something to forward to their personal email lists. Let them sign up for a white paper, or a newsletter, or some other resource feed they can blog about or forward by email. Or add a member sign-up that lets them receive notices about events, discounts, member-only articles, or genuine on-topic news that they will want to send to their friends on their own. Don't use an autoresponder for white paper delivery - use a sign-up script (see HotScripts.com for examples) that collects the email addresses neatly, records the request, lets them opt in to a newsletter, and lets you follow up.
If you install a script for either sign-up or a referral form - or ANY form these days - make sure it has a graphic validation feature that makes the user enter random characters from an image at the bottom of the form - I am sure you have seen examples of that. Use only recently developed or updated scripts that are more likely to have enhanced security features.
Also, make sure the form sends the email honestly from a real POP3 account on your domain, rather than spoofing the address of the referrer - that will get much of your email blocked before it goes anywhere at all. Also, by using your own 'from' address, you will receive the bounces and abuse reports, so you can quickly see if your form is being exploited or your email blocked.
But don't rely on those security features:
Real example: A regional candidate for office had a referral form that let supporters send a campaign platform message to their friends. But the opposing candidate had a fleet of volunteers exploit the form by manually sending thousands of individual referral messages to AOL addresses, using the voter data list of the opposing party - so they were promptly reported as spam, leading AOL to block the entire server. Lots of consumers (and voters, and campaign volunteers) are AOL users, so that hurt everyone on the server. Ouch.
How can I install WordPress and get started using it?
In your control panel, you will find a link to Fantastico. This is an installer that lets you install various open-source software packages. Word Press is included. Be aware that we are only supporting the automated installation of a common piece of software - we are not supporting WordPress itself.
We recommend installing your blog on a subdirectory, like " yourdomain.com/blog" so you can mess about with the settings before you have to expose it to
public viewing. You can later redirect your home page to the first page of the blog, so the site opens on the blog.
There are LOTS of WordPress support sites full of templates, modules, and tips. Start with the official WordPress website. Fantastico will
allow you to update your software when new versions come out (highly recommended). Join the WP announcement lists to make sure you know when
that happens. If you install a lot modifications to the default script, some will be lost when you update - so keep a lot of the modifications
you make, so you can duplicate them.
Remember, as hosts, we only provide a tool that lets you install WordPress. We didn't develop the WP software, and can't help you build a site with it. Generally, the how-tos of building websites with any tool are not part of "hosting support" at any host. It's a D-I-Y world - or people hire someone to do it for them. There are many free WP themes you can easily install.
Here are some WordPress links that will be useful if you want to build your own WordPress template. WP uses the word "theme" to describe a custom template for the software.
The WordPress site itself has lots of information:
http://codex.wordpress.org/Using_Themes#Creating_Themes
and
http://codex.wordpress.org/Blog_Design_and_Layout
... and a WP forum about themes:
http://wordpress.org/support/forum/5
http://www.wpdesigner.com/
Specifically:
http://www.wpdesigner.com/2007/02/19/so-you-want-to-create-wordpress-themes-huh/
You will probably want to learn more about plug-ins:
http://blog-template-layout.com/plug-ins/
You you might want to pay attention to SEO issues:
http://blog-template-layout.com/blog-basics/how-to-seo-your-wordpress-blog/
Powered by SmartFAQ
|
