June 26, 2017

Domain Related

Reading Time: 6 minutes

Elon Musk is by and large a household name these days, not only for his creation of the first widely-used digital payment alternative in PayPal but also for being the engine behind the Tesla line of high-end electric vehicles. PayPal is well established, but Bitcoin is moving out of the shadows of the could-be class of digital technologies and yet next to no one will know who Satoshi Nakamoto is. He’s the man who developed Bitcoin in 2009, and he’s acknowledged to be something of a ‘mysterious’ figure in the tech world. Here at 4GoodHosting, we’re a top Canadian web hosting provider, but we’re also keenly attuned to how many of your clients are operating e-commerce websites. Bitcoin is something of a buzzword these days, and as it continues to gain momentum there’s more than a few who are wondering how easy or not it will be to adapt Bitcoin as a payment method for customers. Bitcoin is what’s come to be known as ‘cryptocurrency’ that is based on blockchain technology, rather than being regulated by a national currency, Bitcoin is considered by its proponents to provide unmatched privacy and security when compared to other currencies or payment systems, and without transaction fees or taxes. Where it’s iffy is that some of these same advantages also make Bitcoin appealing to those conducting criminal business online. In addition, security issues with Bitcoin exchanges and wallets contribute to its extreme volatility. Still, its growing popularity cannot be denied, and we bet that it will continue to make inroads into the e-commerce world A cryptocurrency is a subset of digital currency that is decentralized and structured on a set of algorithms and protocols that enable a peer-to-peer, cryptographically based payment mechanism, medium of exchange and store of value. It’s independent of external monetary value influences, and as such presents a more organic, interpersonal buyer / seller experience. Independent Currency Bitcoin’s currency supply is created through “mining,” and transactions with it are conducted peer-to-peer before being verified by network nodes. The blockchain is where each transaction is recorded in a public database. Blockchain technology is based on the concept of a distributed database, in...

June 19, 2017

Domain Related, Hosting Related

Reading Time: 5 minutes

With the way the business and private worlds both are ever more relying on digital capabilities, it’s really no surprise that data centers are constantly growing and evolving to take on the increasing demands being asked of them. It’s a trend that doesn’t look to be slowing down anytime soon, and as seeing to it that data centers are expanded in the smartest and most foresighted manner is very much a priority in the IT management world. Here at 4GoodHosting, in addition to being a reputable Canadian web hosting provider we’re also keenly interested in the workings of our industry as a whole and both keeping on top of and being responsive to trends in the industry. This is one that is immediately relevant to us, and so today we’ll take a look at what experts predict will be the nature of data centres in the not-too-distant future. The popular belief is that over the next 3 years, we’ll see the conclusion of a trend that has promoted change in almost every area, with networks, servers, and storage having been altered very drastically in a very short period of time. Folks like us will need to ensure our data centres are ready by focusing on networks, software, hardware (including servers), and storage. Preparing these crucial components of our data centres well in advance of the coming demands is supremely important. Here’s 5 developments we believe we can expect to see with regards to data centres Hyper Convergence Infrastructure Systems There are greater numbers of different infrastructure systems than ever before, but hyper-converged infrastructure systems are increasingly the top choice for data center operators. Hyper-converged infrastructure systems are software driven systems that combine networking, storage, and other technology to enable the virtualization of the infrastructure system. By utilizing commodity computing, the system is able to streamline processes and maintain lower operating costs while still being administered by an individual hosting company. This essentially creates a nice consolidating of services and resources into a single system. Certain critics do question whether or not hyper-converged systems have the ability to keep up with technological advances, especially considering the number of different components bundled...

June 12, 2017

Domain Related

Reading Time: 7 minutes

You’ve probably all heard a story or two where someone foresaw the popularity of a particular term or name that would be associated with a specific subject matter. They then proceeded to purchase it as a .com or other extension domain name, and before long they flipped it off to a very qualified and desperate buyer who absolutely HAD to have it for their business. While not the most well known such transaction, the biggest one was when someone made $35,000,000 for VacationRentals.com. Here at 4GoodHosting, we are a top web hosting provider in Canada, but our ‘worth’ is nowhere near such a lofty sum. With that understood, however, we do know quite a bit about buying domain names and how it’s rarely the windfall some people expect it to be. However, when the domain trade is done right and you have a little bit of luck, it is an enterprise where particularly lucrative deals are certainly not unheard of. The tactic is straightforward: domain names are purchased with the prospect of reselling them at a significant profit. The trick, of course, lies in securing domains that may be valuable to deep-pocketed buyers, like a large company, somewhere down the line. Today we’re going to discuss all the important facts and terms on the topic of selling domain names for a profit, as well as taking a look at some impressive examples of crazy high sale prices for publicly traded .com domains. Selling a domain Domains are nonmaterial goods. Accordingly, when they are sold the only transaction taking place is the actual transfer of the domain rights between users. With the exception of any instance where there is a copyright or trademark violation, pretty much any domain name can be bought or sold. However, generic domain names, such as car.com or computer.com, are not legally protected and as such can be reserved by anyone. The value of a domain is determined via a specific evaluation process. The obvious part of that would be in understanding that traders will find domains that are indexed on Google and highly ranked to be particularly attractive. (Here is a very useful free Google Index...

June 8, 2017

Domain Related

Reading Time: 6 minutes

There is a definitive difference between having users download your app and then having those users actually use your app. Surveys suggest that 80-90% of users will remove an app from their device after only one go-round with it, and most of us will recollect one or more instances where this has been true for us too. With this drop rate understood, it’s clearly more important than ever for app developers to make sure their first impression with a user is a powerful one. Here at 4GoodHosting, our expertise is what’s made us a top Canadian web hosting provider, and we admire those who’ve made also made smart design and UX choices for their digital products. Here are 5 things every developer must NOT do in the interest of retaking users past the original download of the app: Pre-Registration: The appeal of having a user to register with your app before they use it is well understood. You’ll be able to gather information about them and use that info to personalize their experience or to ramp up your marketing efforts with specific focuses. However, when you come to understand that over 50% users will abandon an app if they have to register before exploring its features it’s quickly something that you’ll decide against. A tip - consider delaying the registration process until they either want to access a specific part of your app that is reserved for registered customers only, or they’re aiming to open your app for the second time. In addition, anyone who chooses to integrate social media into the login process should always allow users the option of registering without integrating their social media profiles. Constant sharing of their activities with their social networks is undesirable for many users. Long input forms: Mobile devices feature small displays. There will typically be only enough room for 2-4 input fields before the user will need to scroll down. Keep in mind as well that typing on a mobile touch screen can be difficult when the user is walking or in another form of motion, and some people have to little-to-zero tolerance for any errors or strange auto-corrects. Making it...

May 31, 2017

Domain Related, Hosting Related

Reading Time: 5 minutes

The last 3+ years or so has seen some very useful web development application tools being introduced to streamline the process of both creating and further developing websites. Here at 4GoodHosting we are always keen to offer more to our clients as part of being a quality Canadian web hosting provider, and we know that more than a few of you are the webmaster behind your website. In this week’s blog we are going to offer our recommendations on some of them that have really made the grade in our opinion and have much promise in allowing you to develop and expand upon your website. Developer Tools Notepad ++ - Choosing Notepad to write or edit your code is still a viable option, but there’s the potential to increase your productivity and efficiency with Notepad++. Among the more notable improvements with ++, it has syntax highlighting and syntax folding features that simplify the process of weeding out bugs, and a well designed tabbed interface allows you to work on multiple documents. In addition, Notepad++ boasts an auto-completion feature that makes writing code that much faster (relative to using Notepad). Notepad++ is available as both a full install and as a portable app. FileZilla - FileZilla is regarded as one of the best free FTP, SFTP, and FTPS clients around. Aside from being available for multiple platforms (Mac OSX, Linux, & Windows), it is relatively easy to navigate and use. It’s optimized for allowing webmasters to manually backup the files on their sites’ FTP servers and while FileZilla is only available as a full installer, it’s still really a top notch tool and worth the space if you’re especially active. Database Browser - This free tool lets you easily connect to databases, as well as modify data on your DBs and export or import data plus run SQL scripts any time you like. Notable supported database servers include MS Sql Server, ODBC, Oracle, MySql, BDE, SQLite, Firebird, and Interbase, among others. Like Notepad++, the program is available as both a portable app and full Windows installer. XAMPP - XAMPP gets high marks for the fact it is an extremely important tool...

May 25, 2017

Domain Related

Reading Time: 7 minutes

With the fact that the majority of customers are acquired through web searches these days, it’s an absolute necessity for any business to have a sound web presence. In contrast, during the early days of the Internet here was no telling how important and indispensable that presence would become. While the design, usability, and content of a company’s website are all important for success in digital marketing, business owners also need to look long and hard as to where they will choose to host their websites. When it comes to hosting, you really do need to understand that one size does not fit all. Here at 4GoodHosting, part of what has made us a reputable Canadian web hosting provider is the fact we’re very accountable to our customers in as far as their individual web hosting needs.Going with a web host that’s not an ideal fit for your business can result in a loss in revenue, detrimental effects on your SEO rankings, as well as the possibility of security and malware attacks. And it’s not just you the business that’s put at risk - your customers can be put in vulnerable positions as well, in particular with those same software and malware attacks. There’s no getting around the fact that the Web is an ever more competitive and dangerous space. As a result, businesses need to be very judicious in choosing web hosting. With that understood, we’re happy to offer you 6 tips here that can help businesses make the most solid choice for their web hosting. Understand the Entirety of Your Hosting Needs This may seem overly rudimentary, but business owners in the market for web hosting must first know what makes up the entirety of their online marketing needs. You’ll find that more than a few low-cost web hosting companies cut their operating costs by limiting the technologies they make available to you as a customer. Before you commit to one, make sure you ask yourself a series of questions Do I need special software, such as a CMS? What are my current traffic needs (how many visitors do I have to my website in a specific time...

May 15, 2017

Hosting Related, Security, Security Related

Reading Time: 5 minutes

If you yourself haven’t been the victim of a cyber attack, you very likely know someone else who has, and in fact the numbers suggest that upwards of 90% of organizations experienced at least SOME level of an IT security breach in the past year. Further, it’s believed that one in 6 organizations have had significant security breaches during the same period. Here at 4GoodHosting, we’ve established ourselves as a top Canadian web hosting provider but we’re always keen to explore industry trends - positive and negative - that impact what matters to our customers. And our array of customers covers pretty much any type of interest one could have in operating on the World Wide Web. Cyberattacks have pretty much become a part of every day life. While not to suggest that these types of incidents are ‘inevitable’, there is only so much any one individual or IT team can do to guard against them. Yes, there are standard PROACTIVE web security protocols to follow, but we will not look at those here given the fact that they are quite commonly understood amongst those of you who have that as part of your job detail and responsibility within the organization. Rather, let’s take a look at being REACTIVE in response to a cyber attack here, and in particular with tips on how to disinfect a data centre and beef it up against further transgressions. Anti-Virus and Firewalls - Insufficient It would seem that the overwhelming trend with cloud data security revolves around the utilization of firewalls, believing them to be a sufficiently effective perimeter. Oftentimes, however, exceptions are made to allow cloud applications to run and in thus doing so the door is opened for intrusions to occur. So much for firewalls securing the enterprise. Similarly, anti-virus software can no longer keep pace with the immense volume of daily viruses and their variants that are being created in cyberspace nearly everyday. A reputable cybersecurity firm recently announced the discovery of a new Permanent Denial-of-Service (PDos) botnet named BrickerBot, which serves to render the victim’s hardware entirely useless. A PDoS attack - or ‘phlashing’ as it’s also referred to -...

May 10, 2017

Hosting Related

Reading Time: 5 minutes

A good many of you who web designers out there may in fact be correct in your assumptions regarding what your defined audience wants, but there’s likely an equally large percentage of you who have made design, layout, and content choices with your site that have missed the mark. You might have hunches, and more than a few folks will have opinions for you. But how do you really take the pulse of how intelligently your site is laid out for and experienced by visitors. Here at 4GoodHosting, our expertise is naturally with quality web hosting in Canada, but our enthusiasm for trends in Internet marketing leads us to discover a number of topics that would likely interest our customers. This week, we’re inclined to discuss these 6 good PHP scripts for Canadian websites that are very practical for letting your site visitors leave you with quantifiable feedback on specific elements or components of your site, via ratings. Here are 6 that we’ve come to be familiar with, and in order of the ones we think most highly of. Thumbs Up The ThumbsUp rating script gets high marks for its modern, stylish design and how it makes it easy to implement an engaging ratings system for any of your websites. The ThumbsUp script works with a MySQL database, and incorporates an easy-to-understand configuration file, plus includes six custom templates. It looks sharp, and performs well too. The admin area offers plenty of control and customization options along with several selectable features. Users report finding it very easy to customize scripts to suit website styles and needs. Rating System The Rating System script provides a very plain way for allowing visitors to engage with your content by leaving a rating score. Choose one of the 3 different user interface styles, and the proceed to documentation which explains how to implement and configure the script to suit the specifics of your website. Another big plus is that it allows visitors to leave feedback on your content, products, and media releases, and more. Skinnable Rating System The Skinnable Rating System is not only a modern, comprehensive rating script that’s easily implemented, but it...

May 3, 2017

Domain Related

Reading Time: 6 minutes

Here at 4GoodHosting, we take pride in being a premier Canadian web hosting provider that serves customers from Victoria all the way to St. John’s. But we’d like to take a moment to explain why we’re an even better choice for those of you who are also residents of the Lower Mainland and Greater Vancouver. Read on. The Internet has been of tremendous benefit for nearly everyone on the planet and for pretty much every conceivable objective out there, and accordingly greater and greater numbers of web hosting providers have popped up to meet demand as people realize the value in taking whatever it is they have - be it a business, blog, personal venture, or anything else - onto the web. In the early years of the web, there was not much in the way of any connection to providers outside of your immediate locale Of course, that’s no longer the case. Your web hosting provider can be located on the other side of the planet if you’re pleased with their rates, service, and the reliability of the web hosting. You may well find that a provider that’s nowhere near where you’re located is offering some very attractive features or offers like more storage, lower price points and other additions. Without a doubt, more than a few web hosting customers in our B.C. backyard have taken their hosting business elsewhere, and that’s honestly as it should have been. However, more recent developments in the big picture of the world of Internet marketing has made it that there are advantages to having a local web hosting provider. Let’s discuss them. Impact on Google Ranking When a website is first created, it will assume an Internet Protocol, or IP address, that is assigned to it. It references the location, geographically, where the website was created, it’s ‘original location’. However, If you are a B.C. company that has acquired your hosting from an American provider, for example, your website’s IP address will be an American based on wherever it is they’re located. This influences the way Google views your website, as despite the fact you are a BC user, you have an...