internet

Checking Your Website with Browsershots

Posted by Jeffrey Powers at 1:10 PM on February 21, 2010

I always forget about this website. When I finally go there to check my site amongst OS browsers, I always find one small problem. Quick change in the CSS and everything is all better.

I am talking about Broswershots. They simply take my site and call it up using different browsers on all Operating Systems. Linux, PC, Mac and BSD checking the following browsers:

Avant
Chrome
Dillo
Epiphany
Firefox
Flock
K-Meleon
Galeon
Iceape
Iceweasel
Internet Explorer
Kazehakase
Konqueror
Minefield
Navigator
Opera
Safari
SeaMonkey
Shiretoko

I can also view the many versions of the browsers. Let’s say I am optimizing for Internet Explorer. I can check IE 4.0, 5.0, 7.0 or 8.0 on a Windows format. Check the boxes, enter the URL and away we go.

What Dillo sees of my websites from Browsershots

The process is not instantaneous. The service will set a 30 minute time limit which you can extent, but you have to physically be there to do so. If you checked all boxes, then you will definitely need to extend the process a couple times. It can also really show you how slow your website might load if you have an influx of users. One website I checked came up with all versions in about 10 minutes, yet another website (a little more PHP process driven) took a little more time.

Once your screenshots appear, you can view and download. Of course, this is dependent on the Internet connection at both sides, so you may have to request a new screenshot if you don’t see the proper results. For instance, IE 8.0 came back with a blank screen. I then told Broswershots to retry and the end result was perfect.

This website is pretty useful in detecting problems. Although I do have a PC, Mac and Ubuntu machine, I am really happy I don’t have to load up every browser on those machines. It’s about 80 different browsers and their versions to choose from. I am hoping soon they will also check across phone browsers. That will be a perfect addition to Browsershots.

Tags: broswers, browsershots, chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Konqueror, Opera, php, seamonkey, Website

Posted in Info, Linux, Software, Windows, internet, mac

Comments 1 Comment

“So Stop Breaking It!”

Posted by susabelle at 8:29 AM on December 9, 2009

We’ve all heard that phrase, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Well, Joel Kelsey, of the Consumer’s Union, has a different answer to ISP’s that claim we don’t need net neutrality policies because “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” His statement to the big ISP’s: “So, stop breaking it!”

At issue is the FCC’s new proposed net neutrality rules. They include (but are not limited to) the following:

•No blocking. ISPs would not be allowed to block any online content, including features, apps and other Web-based innovations that develop in the future (spam, viruses and the like excluded).
•No favoritism. ISPs would not be allowed to give preferential treatment to their own content. And no price-gouging of customers who don’t want to buy their stuff.
•No discrimination. That means an ISP can’t slow down, speed up or otherwise discriminate among online traffic. They’d have to treat a start-up just as they treat Google and themselves.
•Wireless, too. Net neutrality would apply to all broadband platforms, including wireless.
•Full disclosure. To keep online traffic flowing smoothly, an ISP might be allowed to slow down some transmissions – say, e-mail – but it would have to say so publicly.

According to the Forrester Research Group, four ISP’s (Verizon, ATT, Comcast, and Time Warner) control 46% of the Internet pipe we all use; only six ISP’s (telecom and cable) control 65% of the pipe. That’s a pretty stunning number. With those big companies in control, and no rules in place to keep our Internet traffic flowing, the situation is ripe for abuse. And it is being abused. How many iPhone apps have not been approved because the app is providing something in direct competition with Apple or AT&T? How many times are users forced into going through an ISP’s portal in a very direct, advertising filled, locked-in way before they can go where they want on the ‘net? And how many of us suspect and/or can prove that their downloads of free content have been throttled while your ISP pay-for-play content streams in just fine?

Right now, the big guys (or really, any ISP), can throttle any content they want. The only repercussions they receive are customer complaints, and it’s not like most of us can go to another provider. There are only two in my area for wired broadband, Charter Communications (currently in bankruptcy and has a very poor customer service history) and ATT DSL. I use DSL and have good speeds and no problems, although I understand that this is unusual. If ATT throttles my use, my only other choice is Charter, which has fast speeds, IF it is up and running (big IF in my experience). If Charter throttles, then where am I supposed to go? The ISP’s have us over a barrel, and that is not going to end anytime soon. Wireless broadband is even worse in the way it is throttled and locked down. The big ISP’s have shown no signs of truly embracing net neutrality on their own, which may mean regulation is necessary, in the long run.

We’ll see what happens. The FCC is currently mulling its choices on the matter, and no official policy statement or regulation has yet been yet issued. However, some sort of action will be forthcoming. The “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” argument is old and worn and furthermore, does not work. Net neutrality is broken, and needs to be fixed, before further throttling and lock-downs occur.

Posted in Net Neutrality, internet

2 Comments

Scareware – Is it a Halloween Treat?

Posted by susabelle at 8:46 AM on October 19, 2009

This weekend I had to fix my dad’s computer after it got a Scareware popup. This Scareware was rather different than anything I’d approached before; when the popup appeared asking him to purchase via credit card some bogus software to “fix” his viruses, it also locked up his programs so that nothing else would work. He couldn’t open his virus program, email program, Microsoft Word, or anything else. Except, of course, for Internet Explorer, which redirected him immediately to a page where he could put out $80 via credit card to “fix” his access. “Scareware” is a term being used to describe malicious software and/or popups that ask a user to pay a fee to have the “virus” removed by bogus software.

Dad’s smart, he called me. Not only was the virus “vendor” (term being used loosely here) going to gank $80 of my dad’s hard-earned retirement money, they were also going to be in possession of his credit card information, which could have been shared with who knows what kind of nefarious individuals.

I headed straight over there with my laptop, downloaded HiJackThis to a flash drive, which I was then able to pull up on Dad’s machine and run. It immediately took care of the removal. There are some great instructions on using this tool here and here. These are both sites I trust. The first link has really easy instructions, follow them to the letter, and you’ll have no trouble. The second link includes manual removal instructions, which also work but are more time-consuming.

Dad doesn’t know where he got the trojan to begin with; it would have either been from a bugged web page, or possibly from a link in an email. And he got it by using Microsoft Internet Explorer, not Firefox. I had to reset the default browser (I suspect the Trojan had affected this somehow), and make IE a little harder for him to find and click on. To him, the two programs are the same and he doesn’t understand the difference. I also re-activated the AdBlock Plus Plug-in, another “hold” I think could be used to install a Trojan/popup on a system. We’ll see if all of this works. 24 hours later, I’ve received no additional panic calls from Dad.

The virus and trojan makers are getting slicker and slicker. Our protection tools can’t keep up with everything; Dad’s anti-virus was up to date and his Spyware and Malware programs were running once a week at night and fixing problems. But that wasn’t enough to keep him from being infected. And how many people, besides techies, would know how to remove these malicious pieces of software once they get installed, much less know where to look for the tools to do so?

This is another one to watch out for, I fear. It will only get worse.

Posted in Information, Virus, internet, spyware

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Unscrupulous Scruples: Watch where you click.

Posted by Jeffrey Powers at 9:51 PM on September 28, 2009

I’ve been seeing this more and more. You have to upgrade a product – a home (free) edition or something. You press the link and it sends you to a page that talks about upgrading. In fact, everything this page screams is “We don’t have the free version, you must buy an upgrade to continue”.

But if you scan the page, you see on the bottom in small print “No thanks. Register the Free version”.

Another case in point: I was searching for Drivers for a friends computer. I got to the companies webpage and selected what I thought was the driver. Instead, it shuttled me to download a program that would then collect information on my PC and find the right drivers.

It was not malware, but more of Bloatware. And that program wasn’t afraid to do the same thing – ask to install more Bloatware.

This practice is on the verge of misleading. You have to really scan pages to make sure you are selecting the right option.

Case in point #2: There is a great website out there that helps webmasters. We won’t get into the name, because this is not a witch hunt. I will say that when you purchase something on their site, you are taken to a page that looks like you have to press an “OK” button. However, this button is not to OK the purchase, but to add additional services. By scanning down the page, you find the “No thanks – Continue” option stuffed in the bottom part of the page.

In advertising creation, you learn a little trick. When an eye hits an ad, they instinctively start in the middle and work clockwise around the ad. Therefore, you put your “Hook” in the middle and the other items on the sides, including the name of the product.

What these sites have done is made the ad, but then put the “No thanks” in a spot where upon first glance, the eye will miss.

I just bought my ticket for Blogworld / New Media Expo. I used a discount site to purchase the plane ticket and hotel. After making the initial purchase, I was inundated with options I should look at. I suppose it’s so the discount site can offer lower fares. Once again, I had to carefully scan for the “No Thanks” option, although those other buttons looked like they were part of the processing.

Recently, people have been finding extra charges on their credit cards. They went to an online shopping site and chose the great deal of the day. They then pressed a button that looked legitimate to sign up for monthly deals (or something like that). Of course, those deals came with a price.

I really think that the FTC needs to start recognizing these little nuances in websites. It would be like if you went to the grocery store and the clerk started asking “Should I also add in a gallon of milk?” even if you didn’t grab milk.

As for this upgrade – I understand you need to make money off the product, but being sneaky about doing it is only going to make me go somewhere else. Put the “No thanks” in a more visible area. The consumer will buy your product if they don’t feel they are getting swindled.

Tags: bloatware, charges, Consumer, credit card, download, extra, fees, FTC, Information, malware, Website

Posted in FCC, Fair Use, Information, internet

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Are You Safe Surfing the Internet?

Posted by fogview at 8:32 AM on August 27, 2009

McAfee just released their annual report talking about the dangers of surfing the Internet. In the report they highlighted the most “dangerous” online celebrities.

Fans searching for “Jessica Biel” or “Jessica Biel downloads,” “Jessica Biel wallpaper,” “Jessica Biel screen savers,” “Jessica Biel photos” and “Jessica Biel videos” have a one in five chance of landing at a Web site that’s tested positive for online threats, such as spyware, adware, spam, phishing, viruses and other malware. Searching for the latest celebrity news and downloads can cause serious damage to one’s personal computer.

I know McAfee is a provider of anti-virus/malware software so they have a lot to gain by going public with this report. But software alone doesn’t make it less dangerous.

I’ve talked to a number of people who don’t worry about viruses or malware because they are using a anti-virus program and think they are safe. I even know someone who goes to sites to download music knowing that most of the downloads are infected (they get warning messages from their anti-virus program all the time). They think their anti-virus program will protect them.

No software on your computer can protect you completely. Operating systems are very complex and WILL contain bugs that hackers can exploit. Once vendors know about these holes they do try to patch them but it may be too late for some users. Anti-virus/malware programs try to protect you but they may not always be up-to-date or in some cases are not able to detect/fix the problem.

In the past most viruses/malware were spread by email attachments or clicking links in emails. Now, you can be infected by going to the wrong website. These sites take advantage of bugs/holes in the operating system or in applications like Adobe PDF reader, Flash player, etc. A while back there was a flaw in Windows where all you had to do was go to a website with an inflected photo, and your machine was infected. No piece of software on your computer would have protected you from that.

What can you do to keep from getting infected and stay safe? Buy a Mac (just kidding). Mac users don’t have the same issues with viruses and malware but that could change. Apple has put out a number of security patches for Mac OS 10.5 lately and there are rumors that they will include anti-virus software in the upcoming release of Snow Leopard. Reports on viruses for the Mac have been few but that may change as the number of users grow and hackers refocus their attacks.

So here are my tips to keep your computer safe (for both Windows and Mac):

Keep your computer Operating System (OS) up-to-date. Don’t disable or put off updates your OS vendor sends. Chances are they are patching a problem that is currently being exploited.
Keep your applications up-to-date. In the past you may have put off updating to the latest Adobe Reader because you didn’t see any problems with the one you’re using. Now the update may include a security fix too.
Don’t click on unknown links. Be careful clicking on links in emails or social sites (like Twitter and Facebook). If your bank sends you an email saying there is a problem with your account and says “click here,” close the email and enter the bank’s website address yourself so you know you’re going to the right place.
Don’t go to risky sites. Some browsers (i.e. Firefox) use a list of infected sites and will warn you if you about to go there. Google search does the same. http://googleonlinesecurity.blogspot.com/
Be careful when you get a message box saying that a program wants permission to install or access one of your computer’s resources. Don’t blindly hit Yes/Ok unless you know that is what you want to do.
Don’t believe message boxes that pop up when you go to a new website. A common popup is a warning that your computer is infected and you need to click this link to run a scan of your computer or download a program to remove the infection. Generally, the program you download (and install) IS the infection! Once, I ran this scan on my Mac and it told me my Windows computer was infected with a virus.
Don’t reuse passwords. A lot of sites require you to sign up for an account and create a password. Don’t use your email account password for your online banking account. Get a program to manage your passwords and use a different password for each site. Most of these password programs will generate a long random password that can’t be guessed. (I use 1Password for the Mac, and Personal Passworder for Windows.)
When going to secure sites, like banks or sites to purchase items, make sure you have a secure secure connection when you are about to enter sensitive information (i.e. credit card number, password, etc.). You should look for the small padlock symbol at the bottom of your browser window and make sure the URL to the site begins with HTTPS, indicating that you are using a SSL (Secured Sockets Layer) connection. The URL should match what you are expecting. If you go to the Bank of America website make sure the URL shows https://www.bankofamerica.com and not https://www.bankofamerica.com.myxyz.com.

I know the above list doesn’t cover everything that you should do to keep your computer safe, but I think it’s a good start.

If you’re a regular to Geek News Central, you most likely know what to do and what not to do to be safe. Do your family and friends a favor and send them a link to this post or, at the very least, talk to them about how to be safe on the Internet.

73’s, Tom

Tags: malware, spyware, Virus

Posted in Security, internet

2 Comments

No Podfade — Just Pulling the Plug on MYDL.ME

Posted by fogview at 4:45 PM on August 25, 2009

f you’ve been around the Internet for any length of time, I’m sure you heard of Scott Bourne and Andy Ihnatko. Both can be found at the MY Digital Life blog and podcast — at least until August 31, 2009.

Scott and Andy have been doing a podcast and blog helping listeners manage their digital life for the past six months. Everything from backups to storage and cool gadgets were discussed on their blog and three times a month on their podcast.

The last podcast, MYDL #15, was a much shorter show and Scott announced that they were pulling the plug on the podcast and blog at the end of the month. The site was sponsored by Data Robotics (Drobo) and everyone decided it was time to shut down and move on. I had the pleasure of generating the show notes for the podcast and learned a lot in the process. Scott and Andy had some great information and the show will be greatly missed. Scott and Andy will still be around but focusing on other things.

In Scott’s final comments to his listeners, he urged everyone to backup, backup, backup. Something Scott and Andy preached on every show and good advice for everyone.

In the Internet world we tend to think everything lives on forever. Podcaster fade and websites go dormant, but rarely go away. MYDL is an exception. If you haven’t been to MYDL.ME, head over there now before August 31, and check out the great content, before it’s gone forever. 73’s, Tom

Tags: Drobo, mydl, podcasting, podfade

Posted in blogging, internet, photocasting

Comments 1 Comment

Preparing to move overseas with technology (Not Todd!)

Posted by Nolan at 8:48 AM on August 6, 2009

airplane My wife and I, contributing editor Nolan, are just 4 weeks away from moving to a developing country for at least a year of humanitarian work. So what about moving with technology? First off what is not making the move?

Desktop computers and second monitors. Nope not going to make the suitcase. To much weight too much space.
Television & Players. Our 22 inch Samsung and dvd player are being given to a friend. Will certainly miss the screen and its vivid movies.
Bose audio system. This was a tough one. Its is a small 2 speaker/1 woofer system that sounds wonderful. I really debated taking it. The end decision came down to trying to clear customs in entering the country. It would probably “get lost” in transit.
Cell phones. No CDMA where we are going so the 6 year run with Verizon is over. Going to try to beg out of my contract to avoid the fee since I have 5 months left on my contract.
Printer. Once again to much space. Will look for one in country.

What is going to make the trip? Small in size items.

My wife and I each have a mac. They will both make the trip. Mine, newer, will be covered by international travel insurance against theft and accidental damage. My wife’s is 3.5 years old so we will pray over it!
Four portable hard drives in our carry-on luggage. All Seagate Free Agent drives. 1 drive for each computer that will be our daily back-up drive. 1 drive that serves as our clone and will be backed up once a month at the second office location. 1 drive that contains all of our home media (interpret that how you will, but no DVD’s or CD’s are going with us).
One desktop drive packed in a suitcase. Belongs to the organization and contains video footage (Reverse backed up to one of the portable drives).
Two still cameras. One point and shoot and one DSLR. DSLR will be insured.
One HD SSD video camera and cordless mic system. Getting decent video and audio will be important in this trip, but needed a small size without a huge (and thereby dangerous) investment.
Two iPods. One Nano and One Touch.
Power converters. These are heavy and will cost some extra money, but having dependable converters for stateside stuff is important. Those easily available in country are not dependable (learned that the hard way last trip).
Google Voice, Magic Jack, Local Phone. Another article later on how we are able to use these for easy stateside calling later.
Prayer and a rabbits foot. Somehow we need all of this to not be stolen, confiscated, or taxed up the wazoo.

What is the condition of the internet over there? First off, I have left off the exact location for personal and safety reasons. Let’s just say it is a developing country. The internet is present but slow. I expect upload speeds of somewhere between 56-128kb. It seemed like a solid connection most of the time since our VOIP calls to them work well. The pricing is either by the MB or unlimited at about $20/month. Everything works well as long as there is power and/or the back-up power supply lasts.

So here we go. A technology geek, hobby web-developer, going over to help people. 5 years ago there would have been zero internet. Going now I am blessed. Looking forward to corresponding and writing in the future from yet another technology perspective.

Tags: moving, portable, Technology

Posted in Information, Technology, internet

2 Comments

Goodbye, Compuserve

Posted by Jeffrey Powers at 2:23 PM on July 3, 2009

After 30 years, Compuserve has decided to shut down. Not the whole thing, though, as Compuserve 2000 will still be around. Still, this marks the end of an era.

Compuserve started as a dial up service in 1969. That is long before the Internet and World Wide Web were even thought of. In the 80’s it changed hands and became the biggest information and Networking services in the world. They were the first to offer Internet access (in limited fashion) via dial up.
Here is the official email to customers:

Dear CompuServe Classic Member,
After many years of providing online services, we regret to inform you that as of June 30, 2009 the CompuServe Classic service will no longer operate as an Internet Service Provider. We hope this does not cause you an inconvenience.

Note that this shutdown only relates to the CompuServe Classic service. The CompuServe 2000 service will continue to operate as it does today.

We’re aware that this change may raise several questions for you.
Here’s what this will mean:

DO YOU NEED AN INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER?

* If you need dial-up Internet access, there are two options you may wish
to consider.
Netscape Internet Service
AOL

ACCESS AND BILLING INFORMATION:

* The last day you will be able to access your CompuServe Classic account will be June 30, 2009. Your dial-up access will no longer be available after this date.
* We urge you to immediately forward, back up, move or otherwise copy to a location outside the CompuServe Classic system any stored data you wish to keep. This data will be inaccessible after the CompuServe Classic service is closed on June 30.
* The CompuServe Classic Ourworld “homepage” service
(http://ourworld.compuserve.com) will also close on June 30. After that date, you will be unable to access or retrieve any images, files, or other material stored in the Ourworld service. Any content you wish to retain must be saved to a new location before June 30.
* Your final monthly charge for the CompuServe Classic service will occur on your June billing date.

EMAIL AVAILABILITY:

* We are creating a new email system where you will be able to continue
using your existing CompuServe Classic email address. This new email
service will be available to you at no charge – but you will need to
provide your own Internet access.
* Some of the benefits of the new email system include:
+ Unlimited storage lets you keep as many messages as you want
+ Ability to receive large messages (up to 16MB per message)
+ Industry leading spam and virus protection to help eliminate
threats and hassles
+ Mail filters that allow you to store and organize mail
+ Open accessibility and compatibility with IMAP & POP3
+ Seamless integration w/ AIM for instant messaging
* The transition to the new mail system will occur in mid-May. More
information will be sent to you shortly concerning the migration
of your mailbox to the new CompuServe Classic mail system.

ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS?

Member Services phone support will remain available for the
CompuServe 2000 service, and can answer any billing questions
about CompuServe Classic.
Should you have questions about the termination of this service,
please contact CompuServe Member Services at:

Tech Support

We thank you for being a CompuServe Classic member over the past years.

Sincerely,
CompuServe Member Services

Tags: compuserve, compuserve 2000, dial-up, internet, isp, service, Software, Technology

Posted in internet

5 Comments

WebnoteHappy – Strange Name, Great Program

Posted by fogview at 4:27 PM on June 30, 2009

I’ve been using WebnoteHappy for the Mac for a few weeks and love it. I’m always surfing the Internet researching things and have tried various ways of capturing content on web pages that I visit and want to remember. The common way to do that is with your browser’s bookmark feature. I used that for a while but wasn’t happy with the results. In the Windows world I use a program called Azz Cardfile, that allows me to paste the contents of a web page or a link to the page in what looks like an electronic card file. I can then add notes about the site and click on the link within the card file to go back to the site in my browser. The notes are searchable too.

When I moved over to the Mac world, I missed Azz Cardfile, but I finally found something better from HappyApps.com. WebNoteHappy works with your browser to capture (bookmark) a link to a web page you find interesting. You can then add notes and other information and even search your links and notes and launch the web page in your browser. This program also allows you to create folders to help you organize what you find. You can even create Smart Folders where you set up rules to automatically move items into folders. All the links and notes are stored in a common library and only pointers are stored within the folders so items can reside in multiple folders. As an example, I have a Photographer folder with a Wish List subfolder. I also have Wish List folder under Gadgets and the program allows me to store the same item in both places (if it’s photography related).

WebnotHappy

When you install the program it places a “bookmarklet” in your browser’s toolbar. When you find a web page that you want to remember, just click the “Webnote It” bookmarklet, and it opens up WebNoteHappy and generates an entry. You can then type any notes you want about the site and even add tags.

The program sells for $24.95 USD and you can try it for 30 days before you buy it. There is also a free WebnoteHappy Lite program that works the same way except it doesn’t have folders to organize your bookmarks. The program works with both Firefox and Safari browsers.

I started out with the Lite version and moved up to the paid version because I found the program was a great time-saver for me. When I installed the paid version it found all the items I had saved in the Lite version and I didn’t loose a thing. After I upgraded to the paid version I had a few questions and received very fast response to my questions.

If you use a Mac and want to get a little more organized, give WebnoteHappy or WebnoteHappy Lite a try.

73’s, Tom

Tags: azzcardfile, bookmark, browser, Firefox, mac, organize, review, Safari, webnotehappy, webnotehappylite

Posted in Firefox, Information, internet, mac, review

2 Comments

The Plan to Fix the Internet

Posted by Matthew Greensmith at 5:20 AM on June 1, 2009

Fellow Ohana, although it might be a highly optimistic claim I believe I might have the beginnings of an idea to save the Internet from itself. The audacious goals of this plan are to

Ensure users get the value they pay for
Reward contributors for the value they provide
Give incentive for quality without blocking freedom to post anything
Provide incentives to make the Internet faster and more efficient

In this post I want to lay out the basics of this plan to see what you think and gauge the reaction. If we think it will work we can take the Ohana Internet Plan (OIP) to the world, and think up a title with a cooler acronym. Bear in mind that this is a rough outline of an early stage idea, so feel free to rip it to shreds. Just let me know what you like about it as well.

I have been thinking about two seemingly seperate problems with the Internet recently, which I have talked about in previous posts here on GNC.

Metered Internet is essentially looking inevitable, so if we have little chance of stopping it how can we turn it more to the advantage of users than the ISPs currently plan?
How can contributors of quality content claim the fair value? Without them the Internet ceases to be but they struggle to attract direct revenue, and advertising is a flawed revenue model.

It has occurred to me that these two problems could have the same solution. Metered Internet that credits you for uploads.

The credit rate would of course have to be lower than the download rate otherwise there is no profit for anyone. The difference in rate would be largest at the edge and smallest at the backbone. The broad results would be:

It’s always profitable to forward traffic. Net Neutrality solved.
The more traffic an ISP forwards the better for them. Incentive to build fatter pipes.
The more traffic the ISP can keep off the backbone the better for them. Drive for better efficiency.
Popular content will receive revenue for it. Rewards for producing good content and less crappy advertising.
The return is better the closer your content is to the backbone. An incentive for aggregators like YouTube to offer to content producers to host their content.
Higher definition content is worth more to producer and consumer. If rich content is valuable to your viewers it is worthwhile to produce it in a variety of qualities and let them self select.

Some example numbers, using nice round ones for ease so lets not get too hung up on the value. Lets say that the base rate for a 10GB chunk of data is set to $1.00, this is the rate at the backbone to transfer data from one place to another. In order to get the money to maintain and improve itself it charges $1.01 to the destination of a chunk and pays $0.99 to the originator. For every chunk it transfers it makes $0.02.

Next is the wholesale ISP that connects to the backbone. It has wholesale supply deals with local ISPs (we are using a simple model here). It charges $1.30 per chunk and pays out $0.70. Whichever way the data flows to the backbone the wholesaler makes $0.29. If it can get information from the source to the destination without touching the backbone it gets more than double, $0.60.

The local ISP provides the service to your home. It charges $1.60 per chunk per download and pays $0.40 per upload. This company then makes $0.30 for each chunk regardless of which way it goes.

A key point to all this is that everything that you upload someone else must agree to download. This not only rewards people directly for a valuable contribution, but also will cause limits to rubbish. Most sites are going to charge to accept your content with a share in the payments back to you if it gets downloaded. And that share will have to be substantial to attract you to post your content to them rather than host it yourself.

In regards to general internet surfing this plan would have little effect. For text based content the incremental cost would be small enough to be insignificant unless you attracted an very large readership. And I truly believe that a metered Internet would end up costing us a lot less than ‘unlimited’ plans cost.

The problems I can see already:

This cannot happen without Government backing
Spam, do you want to pay to receive it and the originator could get a return for sending it.
Calculating what the actual rates should be is difficult
It will require a metering method that people can trust as accurate

So let me know what you think. Remember that perfect is not the goal, we are striving for better and fairer than what we have now.

Image sourced from Matt Britt under Creative Commons 2.5

Tags: economics, metered Internet, revenue

Posted in internet

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Mini Review of SquareSpace.Com

Posted by fogview at 11:35 AM on May 21, 2009

From time-to-time I develop websites for clients and they generally want something reasonable (cheap) and easy to maintain. I’ve been hearing about a new company, SquareSpace, and how great it was so I decided to try it for myself. I was generating a proposal to update a website and decided to implement a prototype in Squarespace so the client could actually test drive my ideas.

I signed up for the 14 day free trial and watched a few “getting started” videos to help understand the interface. The site uses a visual interface and it’s very easy to get started. You pick a template style and color scheme depending on the type of site you want to create: blog, photo gallery, commercial/business. The templates are just a starting point because everything can be customized. You can even start with a blank screen and build your site from scratch. The templates are really CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) pages that can be customized by a visual interface or directly adding/modifying the CSS code.

In the site editor you can add pages and sections in sidebars that appear on every page. When you create a page or section you specify what “widget” to use. Widgets determine the type of content you want to add (journal/blog, html/text, links, search, map, forum, etc.). You can add/remove widgets and even change templates on the fly.

The site editor has four modes: Style Editor, Structure Editor, Content Editor, and Preview. The Style editor is where you pick/change your template, change column layouts, adjust fonts, colors and sizes, and customize the CSS. The Structure editor is where you add sections and pages. The Content editor is the section you will use the most after your site is configured the way you want it. This is where you add blog content, upload photos to your gallery, and change the information that your visitors will see. The last mode, Preview, shows you what your visitors will see when they visit your site.

Since this is a mini review I won’t go into all the details but I will tell you that I had a simple site up and running in four hours without any CSS or HTML coding. The site was mostly functional but it didn’t have the exact look and feel I wanted. I started switching templates to find a feature or a look I wanted for certain parts of my site and looked to see how it was implemented. In some cases it was a simple setting change in the visual interface and in others it was CSS overrides that made the difference (this is where watching the advanced help videos really helped). In one case I wanted to create a HTML page and add links to other pages. Since the linked pages were not created through the normal “add page” process, I couldn’t find a way to do it. I searched the Squarespace Help forum and found a mention of creating a hidden section on the sidebar and creating my pages there. This worked but seemed to be a kludge in the overall design.

Squarespace pricing starts out at $8/month for the Basic package and runs to $50/month for the Community package. You will need the $14/month Pro package if you want to map the website you create to your own domain name.

Pros:

Easy to create a website in minutes.
Lots of features for creating, maintaining, and monitoring your site.
Import content from other blogging sites: Wordpress, Movable Type/Type Pad, and Blogger.
Detailed website analytics available.
Private site areas (password protected) and multiple editors.
Supports RSS and iTunes tags.
100% customizable.
Great pricing.

Cons:

Website must be hosted by SquareSpace.
May require some HTML and CSS knowledge to really tweak the site the way you want (you may need to hire a consultant to finish the design).
No direct support for adding audio and video content. You can embed flash players using HTML Injection points but that feature is not available in the Basic or Pro packages. This may be supported with new widgets in the future.

In conclusion I was very impressed with what Squarespace offers. They have so many great features that I can’t possibly talked about of all of them here. I would suggest checking it out for yourself (14 day free trial) if for no other reason than to see how easy it is to create your own website.

73’s, Tom

Tags: blogging, css, fogview, review, squarespace, Website, widgets

Posted in blogs, internet, weblogs

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Electicity, the Unsung Backbone of the Internet SuperHighway

Posted by KL Tech Muse at 11:46 AM on May 6, 2009

I was looking at maps of the U.S. Grid system on the NPR Web site. This got me thinking about how our whole Internet structure and all our gadgets are dependent on a utility that has been around for over 100 years and some of its structures are more then 50 years old. Many people are worried about the Internet being interrupted by cyber attacks, but the weakest point in my eyes is the electrical base that it depends on. I worked at a Midwest electric company for more then five years so I am aware of how easy it is to disrupt the electrical service to an area. Without electricity, the only connection you have to the Internet is through cell phones. Even those need to be charged at some point in time. Like the Internet itself the electric grid is so interconnected that trouble in one area of the country can effect service hundreds of miles away.

As our applications and connections are increasing in the cloud we are becoming even more dependent on our electric grid to communicate and to remain connected. The load on the electric system is expected to increase by 40% in the next few decades. At the same time the the electric grid is getting older and is more apt to breakdown. However electric companies have very little incentive to upgrade, first it cast money, second it requires in most cases permission from various public service commissions, and third the results may not show up for five to ten years. This leaves the electric company often with angry stockholders, who see their stock values go down and angry customers who see their electric rates go up. It is difficult to convince people that it is worth spending money on something that will not show results until many years in the down the road. Especially in a world where people expect instant gratification. I do not know the answers to these questions, but I do know that the problems has to be dealt with, because its only going to get worse, ignoring it will not make it go away.

Tags: connection, electricity, the grid

Posted in connect, internet

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Sneaky Surfing Actually Increases Productivity

Posted by Matthew Greensmith at 8:24 AM on April 3, 2009

I am fortunate to work in an environment where we are not really prohibited from surfing the Internet for personal reasons. We spend time on Facebook, reading the local news, searching for product information or buying items online, or emailing friends and relatives. In general, as long as you are getting your job done and meeting deadlines, then your personal surfing is allowed. For me, this creates a relaxed and positive environment to work in; most of us aren’t just “workerbees,” we have plenty of life outside the office, and most of the time you can’t completely separate those two things.

A new small study out of Australia has come forth to reinforce an earlier study done in the states that indicate that personal surfing actually increased productivity by about 9%. The indication was for those that surfed 20% or less of their at-work time. 20% is quite a bit, in my mind, but that’s probably about how much time I spend doing personal stuff at work. That 9% figure is pretty astonishing; I have never missed a deadline and often work on complex projects that have a lot of pieces to keep up with, and a lot of people to keep focused on the goal. Yet, I do surf non-work-related sites on a regular basis.

The presumption, from both studies, is that those short surf-breaks allow the mind to re-gather its resources and enhance concentration for continued productivity. That makes sense, but I believe there is an old adage at work: if you want something done, give it to a busy person. Busy people manage to do everything that is required, plus some, but also don’t give up their own selfish pleasures while they are doing it. I am often told I’m one of those people, as I accomplish considerable tasks and meet many goals, yet I still indulge my own guilty pleasures along the way, because life is too short to do otherwise.

Now, if we can just convince companies to stop spending their profits on unnecessary blocking software, that could be a good thing. It is obviously a good thing to surf a little on company time.