Category: Domain Related

October 11, 2021

Domain Related

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Neither of the two giants in Apple and Microsoft do much in the way of making their devices easily repairable or upgradeable, and while trying to keep their stuff proprietary as much as possible is understandable it’s not good how so many PCs and other computing devices are discarded and end up as electronic waste instead of being repaired. The basics of electronic device repair aren’t that difficult to get, and you might be surprised what can be done with know how, a steady hand and some soldering skills. Working on devices that are able to access the web is a huge part of daily life for so many people, and it will be beneficial to try and limit the amount of e-waste we create when getting rid of ones that could still have a longer working life. This is why it’s good news that Microsoft has announced that they are going to make desktop and notebook PC repair much more accessible to people. This will also have huge benefits for providing fully functional computing devices to developing regions of the world where they will assist with education and other interests. Trying to minimize their environmental footprint is a priority for any quality Canadian web hosting provider in the same way it is for all businesses these days, and at 4GoodHosting we see the value in making people aware of news like this that is in line with environmental interests related to digital devices. E-waste is a problem, and it is going to be very beneficial if people can have their computers and other devices repaired more easily so they don’t have to keep buying new ones and furthering the cycle. Around a Trend A large portion of the carbon emissions associated with the devices we own are made during manufacturing. Replacing products before the more real end of their working life causes those emissions, pollution, natural resource use, and land degradation associated with extracting and refining raw materials go way up and there is more toxic e-waste polluting the environment in places like Agbogbloshie, Ghana and Guiyu, China. The White House is already moving towards legislation that will have...

October 4, 2021

Domain Related

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Ever since the web was in its infancy and URLs were just starting to be a thing, internet names that are TLDs (Top Level Domains) are administered by ICANN, a centralized organization that has outlived its usefulness for managing internet names in the opinion of many knowledgeable people in the industry. It’s only very recently that legitimate alternatives to this monopoly of-sorts have come into existence, but the one that’s really generating some buzz these days is Handshake. It is the exact opposite of ICANN, and in particular with the way it is a decentralized naming solution for the Internet that is powered by blockchain technology – another major disruptor in the industry that we’ve also touched on here on a number of different occasions. HNS is the abbreviation for the Handshake naming system, which is a peer-to-peer network and decentralized system using blockchain as a means of offering better control, freedom, and security of the domain and website. As you’d expect, this sort of development is the type that comes up immediately on radar for those of us here at 4GoodHosting in the same way it would for any good Canadian web hosting provider that likes to have its thumb on the pulse of web hosting technology and options that become available to people who need to claim their spot on the web and use it to their personal or business advantage. The appeal of HNS naming is that it is line with decentralizing the web and allowing for a more fair reorganizing of the Internet. So how does Handshake domain naming work, and what exactly make it better for individual users? That’s what we’ll look at this week. Handshake Domains – How Do They Work? Let’s start here with a basic refresher on domain names. All websites accessible on the Internet are found on servers identified using Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. Users aren’t expected to know IP addresses, so internet names are mapped to their corresponding servers by means of a domain name system (DNS). DNS is not centralized, but the ultimate control of names via the DNS system is held by a limited number of interest groups...

September 27, 2021

Domain Related

Reading Time: 5 minutes

There has been so many different types of constraints put on the digital operations of businesses during the pandemic that to list them all would be too much of a task. Ranging from inconveniences to full impediments, the problem with all of them was magnified so much by the concurrent new reality that so many people were changing the way they interacted with these businesses themselves based on their pandemic realities. There have been estimates that upwards of 80% of businesses in North America would have faced severe realities if they hadn’t been able to utilize cloud computing to get past these issues. Here at 4GoodHosting we’re like any reliable Canadian web hosting provider in that we are just as wrapped up in the shift to the cloud when it comes data. What’s true is that smaller businesses are now coming to terms with the way physical limitations related to data can slow their own operations and / or profitability too, and the rise in their numbers plus the demands that come with their needs has meant that new offerings like cloud data warehouses are a priority for those with the means of designing and offering them. Innovation is spurred in part this way, and there’s been so much of it over recent years when it comes to non-physical data storage and the applications of it as it pertains to business operations. Fortunately those responsible for these innovations tend to not be the type to rest on their laurels, and that’s why we’re seeing more and more value in cloud data being unlocked for use by businesses. Talking about these types of topics always comes with surprising and encouraging examples of how new technologies are being implemented, so let’s get right into some of them as well as talking more about how cloud data infrastructure and application continues to get better. Better Scaling, Better Speed It is also true that nowadays business leaders are under increasing pressure to make decisions with more in the way of speed and scale as well as collaborating in real-time to adapt to change with maximum effectiveness. Despite all of this, many companies are still...

September 20, 2021

Domain Related

Reading Time: 6 minutes

It’s been said many times that you can’t stop progress, and that’s true to the point that it may be one of the more applicable maxims around these days. Especially when it comes to technology, as there’s no way any degree of stepping backwards is going to be tolerated if advances mean real benefits. Acronyms are a challenge for many, but even if you have the slightest amount of digital savvy you’ll know that SaaS stands for Software as a Service and its one of many examples where cloud computing technology has made the hassles of hardware installation a thing of the past. Here at 4GoodHosting we’ve had firsthand benefits from the Cloud and how it’s removed the need for a lot of physical hardware and infrastructure is something any Canadian web hosting provider will be able to relate to. As a collective user base we’re certainly not going to approve of any regression here either, but more and more we’re learning how there are security risks related to cloud infrastructure. That’s not news, and the fact that ease of access increases that risk probably doesn’t come as a surprise either. But that’s the truth of the situation, and it’s something worth looking into, especially as businesses are flocking to software-as-a-service applications with the aim of improving the efficiency of their operations and overall employee productivity. The question is though – is weak control of access to cloud apps putting those organizations’ data at risk? 1.5x Exposure on Average There was a recent study that showed that the average 1,000-person company using certain SaaS apps is likely exposing data to anywhere from 1,000 and 15,000 external collaborators. Similar estimates from it suggested between hundreds of companies if not more would also have access to a company’s data, and around 20% of a typical business and their SaaS files might be available for internal sharing with little more than the click of a link. What can be taken away from that is that unmanageable SaaS data access is a legit problem that can apply to businesses of any size these days. Last year, slightly more than 40% of data breaches occurred...

September 13, 2021

Domain Related

Reading Time: 6 minutes

Anyone who knows of a quality smartphone that checks all the boxes and comes with an agreeable price tag can speak up and volunteer that information now. A good one that’s not going to be obsolete within a year or two is going to cost you, and it would seem that given recent worldly developments in the digital hardware sphere it might be that even the less expensive smartphones, laptops, and desktop computers are going to be going up in price quite a bit too. We’re entering an inflationary period in North America right now, but that’s not why prices on devices are shooting up. It’s mostly related to how international chip makers are hamstrung in their ability to make the semiconductor chips in the same quantities they made them for years. Take a look at any of the very newest smartphones on the market and your enthusiasm for them based on the features is quickly slowed when you see how much they cost. If you’re a person who’s fine with a more standard and ordinary device this trend isn’t going to bother you too much, but if you’re all about the latest and greatest in technology – be prepared to pay quite a bit more for it. There’s no getting around the basic principle of supply and demand with pretty much any consumer product in the world. It turns out this applies to components too, and when it comes to what enables these devices to work their magic the demand is now outdistancing the supply of them like never before. Any Canadian web hosting provider like us here at 4GoodHosting have our own operating constraints related to demand outstripping supply too, but it’s different when it’s the individual consumer who’s faced with the prospect of paying a LOT more when it’s time to upgrade or replace. Wafers Wanted Wafers aren’t only snacks, and in fact they are integral part of the chips that are so needed by mobile and computing device manufacturers these days. What’s happening now is that recent increases in wafer quotes by major manufacturers means there’s going to be a serious impact on the price of...

September 6, 2021

Domain Related

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Most people don’t know the workings of what goes into their being able to surf the Internet and visit web pages. That’s perfectly fine unless you’re a developer or something similar. When you click on URL what you’re doing is making a request, and that request is handled by a server. Back in the 1990s when the Internet was in its infancy there were requests being made, but nowhere near the massive numbers of them being made nowadays. This is why servers have been having a lot more asked of them all the time, and sometimes they just don’t have the capacity that’s needed for them. Need and demand have always been the spurs for innovation, and this is no exception. The aim has been to design servers that have the ability to handle the ever-greater demands on them, and these days the top dog in that regard is a bare metal server. That may sound like a strange name, but they’re called bare metal servers because by being just ‘exposed metal’ they highlight the fully physical aspect of centralized and individual hosting of websites. That’s because the appeal of bare metal servers is all about ‘single tenancy’ and having the best in performance, reliability and security. It means that your website will be as readily available as possible for visitors at all times, and of course if that site is a key part of your e-commerce business operations then having that performance, reliability, and security is going to be of primary importance for you. Here at 4GoodHosting it should come as no surprise that as Canadian web hosting provider this is the kind of stuff we are very in the know about, so let’s get further into why bare metal tends to be best when it comes to servers. Better Relative Costs The performance of on-premises servers and bare metal servers is fairly similar. The biggest cost savings come with datacenter space for hardware as well as data center power costs. These cost savings can be significant, and both offer varying degrees of quality of service. You will pay more upfront for a bare metal server, and that’s because...

August 30, 2021

Domain Related

Reading Time: 6 minutes

There are a lot of people who are decidedly in one camp or another when it comes to iOS or Android smartphones, but it’s probably fair to say that many people go with Android ones because they’re not that savvy about the technology and they like the fact that generally Android phones are less expensive than iPhones. That may change some day, but as of now that’s the way it is and given Apple’s predispositions when it comes to their devise it’s unlikely it will. So if the small green droid is your guy then just go with your inclination. You’ll be hard pressed to find any more than a few people who have less than a couple of gigs of data on their mobile plans these days, and many people will have 10+ as a minimum if they’re inclined to do more than check mails and use the odd messenger app from time to time. But if you’re an Android user and you’re roaring through your monthly data allowance then you might be interested in what we’re going to share here this week – ways to use less data on your Android device. It’s something that will be of interest to some and of no interest to others, but here at 4GoodHosting we’re like every other good Canadian web hosting provider in that we know most people choosing us for web hosting in Canada will be being carried by the increasing wave of digitalization that we seemingly al are these days. That means more connectivity, and a need for more data. Or being smarter with the existing data you have, as the case may be. So let’s get right into it and put you in the know about making your data allowance last longer, even if you paid way less for your Android OS device in the first place. After all, who is made of money these days? Diagnose Data Usage The first step is to have an understanding of your data usage each month, and where and how you’re utilizing your data. On older Android versions you can open up the Network and Internet section and tap a...

August 23, 2021

Domain Related

Reading Time: 4 minutes

If digital connectivity isn’t an integral part of your life these days then you haven’t been living on earth, or at least anywhere outside of North Korea. What’s kind of ironic is the fact that those folks are kept off the information superhighway entirely for the most part, while their cousins and next door neighbours in South Korea have the best Internet on earth. The logistical challenges that come with a country as large as Canada make those types of internet networks and speeds comparatively impossible, but there’s recently been a major development at the federal level that promises to make quality internet available to more Canadian than ever before. Here at 4GoodHosting we imagine we’re like most Canadian web hosting providers in that the recent news that the federal government is directing 1.4 billion-plus dollars to Telesat satellite internet is something we NEED to talk about. The very basis of the service we provide is dependent on the web functioning as it should, but it’s been a well known fact for years that people in urban centres enjoy much better connectivity than those in more rural areas of the country. Considering that the web is for so much more than browsing or streaming and is increasingly key to participating in life and personal advancement, that’s not right. Telesat is a Crown-owned Canadian satellite communication company, and what is in design is their Lightspeed low-earth-orbit (LEO) satellite constellation. The investment is in the development of the first and second generations of satellites, plus establishing domestic employment targets and – in the bigger picture – aiming to reduce costs for regional providers who rely on Telesat products to provide internet connectivity to customers. This has the potential to be a MAJOR development for people in quieter parts of the country who have been disappointed in the inferior internet they’ve had for more than 20 years now. Previously it was a problem without a real practical solution, but satellite internet is poised to be that solution now. 298-Strong ‘Constellation’ Telesat’s Lightspeed constellation is going to be made up of 298 low earth orbit (LEO) satellites that will be equipped to deliver gigabit...

August 16, 2021

Domain Related

Reading Time: 6 minutes

The appeal of VPNs won’t need much explanation, and as data storage and access needs continue to grow all the time we will see more and more organizations making the move to them. There’s been plenty of times the masses have been told that some new wrinkle in their digital product is innocuous or harmless, but at least some of the time that’s just not the truth. Many VPNs employ tracker apps, and the reasoning given for them is that they are part of offering you a more personalized experience and the like. That in itself is true in the bigger picture, but in the smaller one for some it may be that tracker apps are actually putting you at risk. Here at 4GoodHosting we’re a Canadian web hosting provider that takes the well being of our customers to heart and given that some of you may the ones making IT decisions for your business, venture, or interest then this is a topic that’s worthy of discussion. The industry consensus very much seems to be that tolerating VPNs with tracker apps is something you shouldn’t be so indifferent to. But of course, convincing is always required and so with that understood let’s get right to laying out why that’s the consensus, and why a less intrusive VPN may be best for you. Important Protocols Most of these types of people will be at least somewhat familiar with protocols and encryption methods used by VPNs. Usually that level of understanding doesn’t make it at all clear as to why VPNs with trackers are creating risks. But let’s start at the start and begin with what a tracker is and what a tracker does. It’s actually a fairly basic explanation – a tracker is something that tracks the choices you make when moving around the Internet. It’s true that most websites and apps use trackers in some way and they’re inclined to follow you nearly everywhere you go. The information gathered by the trackers about you is then used for targeted advertisements and the like. The trackers are built by software developers at the behest of businesses that want to create greater...