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produced using BigSender 3
Our New Dedicated Server:
Significant Improvements in Reliability and Performance
If you've recently visited CraigRichards.com or any of the other websites under our management, you may have noticed the significant improvement in the reliability and response... That's due to our new dedicated server – a 1.7 GHz Celeron processor box running Red Hat Linux Enterprise, Apache, PHP4, MySQL 4.1 and other essentials for a truly optimized environment.
Before the migration, we struggled to keep our domains up and running just to maintain our level of service. Now we're free to move forward on some exciting initiatives. Stay tuned..!
Domain Migration Completed:
Discussion Forum Remains Temporarily Disabled
I had just installed the terrific open source phpBB discussion forum system on the old server and I really enjoyed the straightforward administration, advanced features and enthusiastic participation of our site visitors.
However, I haven't yet taken the time to reinstall phpBB on the new server and get it working properly, so I hope you'll check again in the near future at forum.CraigRichards.com
High-Grade 256-Bit SSL Certificate:
Improved Encryption Assures Your Privacy and Security
We've completed installation of our high-grade 256-bit SSL Certificate so all license purchases and other payments at Craig Richards Design now begin from a secure online form for extra security and customer confidence.
We wanted to provide this extra assurance for our customers for quite a while and, now that we have our own server, we were finally able to get this accomplished.
Legitimate v. Illegal:
Is All Bulk Email Spam?
I've seen a disturbing trend among webhosting firms over recent years. Maybe you've even experienced it.
The "spamdemic" has never been worse and affects us all while the war against spammers seems to be a game of one step forward and two steps back.
It makes sense that a good place to wage effective battles are the messages' points of origin, the spammers themselves and the mailservers they use.
This is where the company you've hired to host your website becomes the story. Whether as a sense of duty or to avoid litigation (or both), well-meaning webhosting service providers in many countries are adopting rigid anti-spam policies – and are strictly enforcing them. Bravo!
"Sounds like those webhosting firms are stepping up to an enormous challenge," you enthuse.
I'd like to enthuse that, too. However, it seems many hosting administrators don't distinguish between spam and legitimate communications.
From the moment we receive an email we've never asked for from someone we've never heard of hyping some dubious product or service, you and I know that the message is spam. Conversely, we know that a message we've subscribed to from someone we know is not spam.
But armed with their aggressive anti-spam policies, some webhosting firms are unable or unwilling to make any such distinctions. Some administrators will even tell you they believe "all bulk email is spam."
What? Really? Are all pedestrians jaywalkers?
Okay, maybe they prefer to err on the side of caution. What's the harm? Well, while such policies may help protect the hosting firms' interests, they disregard the legitimate needs of their hosting clients, the ones whom they are purportedly in business to serve.
Huge news portals such as Wired, MSN, Cnet, Yahoo!, Google and others drive visitors to their websites through, among other methods, their daily e-newsletter to which millions subscribe. When those sites send out their newsletters, do their hosting firms consider it spam and threaten to suspend their accounts unless they stop communicating with their subscribers? They certainly could – except those sites can afford to run their own servers and do not subject themselves to the whims of a hosting company.
Can those anti-spam policies be effective? Not likely. That's because spammers are not sending email from your mailserver or mine. The bulk of spam is originating from mailservers in some foreign country that does not have anti-spam laws, penalties and fines.
Hosting firms that attempt to combat spam by impeding legitimate communications is similar to a shoe salesperson who tries to ban walking because some people jaywalk.
Enlightened hosting administrators (they are getting harder to find these days) will monitor the activity of their services and, when abuse or illegal activity is suspected, they investigate. When malicious or illegal activity is confirmed, the customer is warned or ultimately removed for the protection of the law-abiding citizens in the hosting realm and the benefit of all of us with inboxes. That's simple, effective, unobtrusive and makes good business sense. But that's not the current trend.
Do you have any recommendations for a top-notch hosting firm that is committed to serving the legitimate needs of their customers without impeding their legal communications? Please contact us with a link to that website and we will publish the list at CraigRichards.com.
We hope you enjoyed reading this issue of News2Me – Feel free to forward this message along to your friends and associates! For your reference, this message and previous issues of our News2Me newsletter are archived at CraigRichards.com/news2me.
Craig Richards Design is an online design and development firm in central Oregon headed by Craig Richards. For more than 30 years, Craig has juggled two careers, one as an accomplished television and film actor, the other in marketing and advertising design.
In 1994, he began designing and programming custom websites for his clients at ad agencies and also currently runs the web's most popular family history- and reunion-related website: FamilyReunion.com. Over the years, Mr. Richards has developed several web applications and released them publicly as freeware, shareware and as commercial applications. Software titles include BigSender, Envirolyzer and award-winning AdminPro with more than a 1/2-million users worldwide. Craig Richards Design is a Sun Microsystems iForce Partner for the creation of essential tools that support their Unix platform.
News2Me Archive
BigSender 3.80 Availability Announced
In addition to other improvements and enhancements, BigSender now includes the long-awaited user authentication feature for connecting to your mailserver.
News2Me 05/20/2006
In this issue: we discuss some hosting firms' anti-spam policies, our shiny new dedicated webserver, our discussion forum is temporarily disabled and improved transaction security at CraigRichards.com with high-grade 256-bit SSL encryption
Craig Richards Design Plans BigSender Update to 3.70 in Early January
This BigSender release further enhances the Message Composer interface with a realtime WYSIWYG HTML Editor, a plain-text wordwrap feature, an initial caps format for names and other handy improvements.
BigSender Now Speaks Italian
In addition to other improvements, fixes and enhancements, BigSender now includes an Italian BigSender Language File plug-in.
News2Me
In this issue, we announce our website's new search feature, information on my recent movie role and the latest enhancements to BigSender.
News2Me: Imagine Contact Management Made Simpler
What should you look for in a contact management solution? Power. Affordability. Flexibility. Simplicity.
BigSender 3.670 Released: Breakthrough Features
Innovative new features make BigSender 3 more powerful than ever!
BigSender Technical Bulletin: Annotations
BigSender 3.661 Gets Convenient New Features
BigSender Reviewed by The Office Letter
After an independent comprehensive evaluation of BigSender, The Office Letter concludes that, "for the money, it's a steal!"
BigSender Now Speaks German
BigSender Broadcasts: Get the Speed You Need
How to optimize BigSender and your server environment for the fastest send rates possible.
BigSender 3.6: Continuing the Revolution
After more than six months in development, now you can match to whole records or only specific fields for the most granular narrowcasting!
BigSender 3x: Now Even More Power and Flexibility
Announcing the newest batch of features in our popular web application designed to make it simple to manage your contact lists and to easily publish your announcements, e-zines, press releases and other online publications
Monday 10/21/2002 News2Me
In this issue: Pursuing Passions and Perfection
News2Me
In this issue, we announce our new alliance with Sun Microsystems, our smooth move, and BigSender gets even more new features!
BigSender 3 Released: More List-Management Features Built In
The most complete online list-management and email/web publishing system available gets a one-click automated bounce manager and other built-in conveniences!
News2Me: How To Publish Without Spamming
BigSender is a powerful yet easy-to-use publishing system ñ but like any tool, it can be used incorrectly. Follow these guidelines to get optimal results with BigSender...
E-News Gallery Goes Live
Where publishers of electronic newsletters & e-zines can showcase their publications.
AdminPro Is Updated
No longer requires Perl to execute!
Then The Rope Went Slack
Rather than dazzled and empowererd, has all this techno-speak ever left you feeling dazed and confused?
Marketing Secrets Revealed: When Customer Loyalty Isn't
Master Minds: Becoming a Software Guru
Are you an entry-level veteran or an inquisitive innovator?
What Is A Web App?
Bill Gates emphasizes the web browser as the "central application of computing."
BigSender Backgrounder
Microsoft Discontinues ListBot
Out: free services. In: fee services.
Official Premiere: News2Me
What's Happened to AdminFTP and TestMy.CGI?
AdminPro 2.5: More Power, More Control
Debug CGI & Manage Files from a Web Browser?
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