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[BE ADVISED, DO NOT REPLY TO THIS COMPANY AND NEVER GIVE THEM ANY MONEY OR INFORMATION]

One of our clients today alerted us to a Scam email they received from a shady company named Domain Registry of America.  They are trying to trick domain owners into transferring domain names to them while pretending to be associated with reputable companies like HostNed and Godaddy.

BE ADVISED, DO NOT REPLY TO THIS COMPANY AND NEVER GIVE THEM ANY MONEY OR INFORMATION

Here is the contents of that email from "Domain Registry of America"
========================================

Hello, [client_name],

The transfer and renewal of your domain name, [domain_name].com has NOT been completed.  This may be because:

A) You did not receive or respond to the transfer authorization email sent to you by your current registrar, GODADDY.COM, LLC at [email_address].

B) Your domain name has passed the expiration date of [date]

C) You may have already renewed with your current registrar: [current_host]

Solution:
- We suggest that you renew with your current registrar for 1 year and then contact us toll free at 1-866-434-0212, so that we may discuss your options.
- Call your current registrar, [current_host] and renew with them to avoid losing your domain name, if you have not already renewed.
- Please note you are only required to renew for a 1 year term, you current registrar may urge you to renew for 2 or more years but you are not required to do so.



Transfer Department
Domain Registry of America
Toll free 1-866-434-0212 or for International Callers, dial +1(905)479-2533

Please have your Domain Registry of America order number (#12345678) ready when calling.

==============================================

I have also seen these scammers send snail mail to domain owners under the same subject.

[INCOMING (IMAP)]

Personally I use webmail (RoundCube is my fave [edit June 2018: I am really liking RainLoop and using that more these days] ) almost exclusively.  But if you are using an email program installed on your computer, you will need to set up the connection ports.

Below are the connection ports to use on Cpanel hosted accounts, please note that Plesk or Windows may be different:

EMAIL PORTS:

INCOMING (IMAP)

    993 (for SSL/TLS) (*Recommended)
    143 (for PlainText/StartTLS)

INCOMING (POP3)

    995 (for SSL/TLS) (*Recommended)
    110 (for PlainText/StartTLS)

OUTGOING (SMTP)

    465 (for SSL/TLS) (*Recommended)
    25  (for PlainText/StartTLS)
    587 (for PlainText/StartTLS)


* Recommended options provide the best security and performance.
Note: When using SSL/TLS connection (recommended) be sure to choose "accept all certificates" option.  That process is different for depending on which mail program is being used.
If you continue to receive "Certificate" related errors, you may need to add SSL to your domain. We HIGHLY recommend this for a variety of reasons, including new SEO rules in Google search results. To add SSL (HTTPS) to your domain, see here or contact us for pricing: https://www.hostned.com/web-hosting/hosting-options/

For those users still hanging on to Frontpage, the outlook is not looking good.  I really have pushed for this technology (Frontpage Server Extensions or FPSE for short) -- to keep it here at HostNed for as long as possible.  What a struggle it has been!  Microsoft stopped supporting it in 2004 and full-on dropped it in 2006, but since we were operating on Server 2003, we were able to keep it up and functioning for 7 years additional.  Now that we have been forced to upgrade to Server 2012 (by MS just like dropping of Win XP), FPSE just is not wanting to work compatibility-wise.  I know the techs have been trying diligently to fit the square peg into the round hole, but it is just not going to work for us.

I understand how frustrating it can be.  HostNed started with 100% Frontpage support back in 2000. Last year our Linux servers lost Frontpage support and many users were disappointed. Personally, I was a user of Frontpage until last year, so I am part of the club. It was a wonderful product for the end user, although from a back-end admin perspective it has been riddled with problems most of it's history. There are more points I could make about trusting Microsoft, but no need to get into that now.

So we are left here in our current situation.  As a solutions provider, HostNed wants to help you maintain the web the way you need it.  I will present to you three options for proceeding:


1) You can still use Frontpage (or Expression Web) to connect to your site using the FTP method (as opposed to the HTTP method).  Using this method still "works" but fancy functionality is lost -- shared borders, web forms (which I know you are currently reliant upon), and other things.  This is a good option for maintaining the current look site structure, but it can be tricky programming back in the shared borders and web forms using pure PHP as would be necessary.  Since you are not too entirely savvy with programming, you would need to hire us (or your favorite programmer) to assist you with that. For more information on connecting to your webspace using Frontpage FTP method, see here http://my.hostned.com/forum/frontpage/using-ftp-to-publish-with-frontpage/

2) You can use our Web Presence builder (Sitebuilder, click here for demo) that we offer.  This is a great option for less savvy users as it provides a very Frontpage-like web-based interface to build and maintain the website.  It is a professional level solution and costs a bit more for the licensing (currently $11/mo covers the entire package including hosting and domain name).  Mail forms are created with no technical knowledge necessary.  You may still want to hire us (or your favorite programmer) to transition a current website over to this platform, but from there maintaining it is pretty easy and required no special software -- everything is maintained on the back-end by us.

3) You can choose to use a popular CMS (content management system) like Wordpress.  Creating websites using Wordpress is the latest trend in webmastering.  It is not as simple a solution as option 2, but with a bit of learning it can be used to build powerful websites.  You may still want to hire us (or your favorite programmer) to transition a current website over to this platform as well.  Maintaining and making changes can be tricky, but for moderately savvy users it can work quite well.

For more info or specific questions, contact us.

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Here is a handy course from MS to learn how to Use your FrontPage (or Expression Web) software to edit and publish websites using FTP (as opposed to the outdated FPSE).

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/frontpage-help/how-to-publish-web-sites-with-ftp-RZ001040199.aspx

About this course

This course includes:

    Three self-paced lessons and two practice sessions for hands-on experience.
    A short test at the end of each lesson; tests are not scored.
    A Quick Reference Card you can take away from the course.

   
Goals

After completing this course you will be able to:

    Know what FTP is and decide if it's the right publishing method for you.
    Gather required information before publishing with FTP.
    Publish a Web site with FTP.

It has come to my attention that those of you still using FrontPage for web publishing using the FrontPage Server Extensions technology are having difficulty connecting and publishing the way you are used to (http method).  At this time, this applies to Cpanel only.  FPSE still works on Plesk servers.

I know this comes as an untimely inconvenience for many.  It is difficult to let FrontPage go (yes I am a user of FP as well!)

We are researching what can be done further to continue to support FPSE.  Microsoft abandoned FPSE in 2004, so for the last nine years, we have been tweaking our service to work FPSE into our offerrings.

As with any old server technology that goes to the wayside, eventually it can no longer be offered if for nothing else than the sake of security.

The techs are looking into the possibility of restoring FPSE and we will keep you posted here as to those efforts.

This page will instruct you on how to set up your HostNed domain e-mail on your Apple iPhone or iPad device.

(In the directions below, wherever it says "yourdomain.com", replace with your actual domain name.)

1.    Tap the "Settings" icon
2.    Tap "Mail, Contacts, Calendars"
3.    Tap "Add Account..."
4.    Tap "Other" (bottom option)
5.    Tap "Add Mail Account"
6.    Enter Name, address (full email user@yourdomain.com), and password.
    (iPhone will attempt to guess your settings. Allow ~1 minute for it to fail.)
7.    Choose IMAP.
    (It's the default. The option you've selected will be highlighted blue.)
8.    Under "Incoming mail server"
        Set "HostName" to mail.yourdomain.com
        Set "UserName" to user@yourdomain.com (your entire email address)
        Set "Password" to your password
9.    Under "Outgoing mail server"
        Set "HostName" to mail.yourdomain.com
        Set "UserName" to user@yourdomain.com (your entire email address)
        Set Password to your password

Setup is complete.  You are now ready to send and receive emails via your iPhone or iPad device.

["My outgoing server (SMTP) requires authentication"]

Are you getting the error message "None of the authentication methods supported by this client are supported by your server" when using Outlook?

Users are beginning to see this message more often due to recent internet standards changing to make servers more secure by default.  If you want to get geeky and see the technical reason, you can review here and here.

Fixing this is easy.  In your Outlook Account Settings, go into MORE SETTINGS -> OUTGOING SERVER and enable
"My outgoing server (SMTP) requires authentication"

Here is a link to a page outlining this in detail for Outlook 2010.
http://www.authsmtp.com/outlook-2010/default-port.html

Our company Bend Internet Solutions is providing web design and re-design service for customers of HostNed.  Support is provided directly through our portal MyHostNed.

We offer all-in-one solutions that include hosting, domain name, site maintenance/management, SEO and more.

See here for more details on web design services:
http://www.bendinternet.com/internet-services/web-design/
And here for the popular all-in-one "Homesteader" package:
http://www.bendinternet.com/internet-services/web-design/homesteader/

[Add-on domains]

Host Multiple Web Sites - Each with it's own domain name!

Add-on domains are for users of Cpanel (and new Plesk!) control panel services.  They are offered on Linux Custom Plus and greater hosting plans.

In your Control Panel, creation of an addon domain allows you to host an additional domain from within your current server Control Panel interface.  It will have access to it's own databases and email accounts, but they will count against your overall allowance of such.  It is a great solution for those who want to host more than one domain but do not mind doing that from the same Cpanel hosting account.

Cpanel Documentation for Add-on Domains

Alternatively, if you want access to a completely different server Control Panel account for different end users, you may want to consider simply having separate hosting accounts for each of them or use a Reseller Hosting account that allows for hosting of completely independent domains on separate Cpanel accounts.

In the world of server management, we know that FrontPage Sever Extensions are no longer officially supported by Microsoft as newer technologies like Visual Studio and .NET take it's place.  At HostNed, we know that many users still use and rely on FPSE technology and we plan on supporting it as long as possible.  We offer FPSE on both Windows hosting plans and Linux hosting plans.

UPDATE: We are no longer able to offer FPSE, we urge users to use an alternative web development platform. We support all major web-based scripts like Wordpress, Joomla, Concrete 5, and many more.

[Free Spam Filter for Outlook, Outlook Express, Thunderbird, Windows Mail and Windows Live Mail]

Free Spam Filter for Outlook, Outlook Express, Thunderbird, Windows Mail and Windows Live Mail

SPAMfighter has partnered up with Microsoft to build the strongest, safest, and most effective anti spam filter on the market. If you use Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Mail, Windows Live Mail or Thunderbird and you want to get rid of spam, just install SPAMfighter. And if you use it at home, it's 100% free.

Whenever new mail arrives, it will automatically be tested by SPAMfighter, and if it's spam, it will be moved to your spam folder. If you receive a spam mail that is not detected, click a single button, and the spam mail is removed from the rest of the 8,310,881 SPAMfighters in 237 countries/areas in seconds.

Start Download Now

Download SPAMfighter Free!
   

Perfectly integrated with Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Mail, Windows Live Mail (POP3) and Thunderbird

SPAMfighter Standard is 100% free for home users

Features

-    Award winning spam blocking technology
-    Protects all the email accounts on your PC
-    Protects against "phishing", identity theft, and other email fraud
-    Privacy Guaranteed - we don't see any of your email
-    Blacklist and block domains and emails
-    Spam Abuse Reporting with one click
-    Unique language filtering tool that empowers you to stop emails written in specific languages
-    English, German, Spanish, Chinese, French, Italian, Greek, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Suomi, Russian, Bulgarian, Portuguese, Japanese, Thai, Czech, Turkish, Polish, Vietnamese and Danish

[Pay With Bitcoin]

We are pleased to announce that HostNed is now accepting BitCoin (BTC) payments.  As one of the first web hosting providers to implement BitCoin Payments, we are supporting and encouraging the development of crypto-currencies while providing the convenience for customers who choose to do the same.

You can use the button below to credit your account with funds by BTC.

Pay With Bitcoin

Note:
Soon we will have BTC fully integrated into our system backend, at which time you will be able to pay from within our backend ( https://my.hostned.com/ce/ ).  We also plan to accept Litecoin (LTC) in the near future!

[Coding techniques]

Efficient website development calls for specialized skills and expertise. That, in turn, implies that the compensation package of a professional web developer would be slightly higher than the employees involved in other, routine tasks. Is the website developer you have hired ideally suited to take your website to the next level? The answer would be positive, only if (s)he has in-depth knowledge on the following:

   
• Coding techniques - The developer should be able to make use of the latest programming and coding languages, to lend a smarter edge to your web design & development plans. Right from HTML, Javascript and PHP methods, to the more advanced Dot Net and Ruby platforms - a professional website developer should be equally at ease, while working with any of them. (S)he should also have a clear idea of how CSS stylesheets should be used.

   
• Layout development methods - The back-end coding expertise of the developer you have hired might be impressive enough, but can (s)he improve the layout and visual appeal of your website as well? Ideally, the developer should be aware of the different tables, frames lists and forms, which make the front-end interface of the website more user-friendly.

   
• Latest search engine optimization (SEO) information - Unless the online solutions prescribed by your website developer is in keeping with the prevailing SEO norms and regulations, the online visibility of your website can suffer. Make sure that (s)he has a clear idea of the latest updates in the Google search algorithms (e.g, the Panda and the Penguin updates) - and the changes in website development plans that they necessitate. Find out more about recent changes in search engine algorithms over here.

   
• Processing and/or editing website images - The website design experts need to work in close collaboration with the website developer, in this regard. The latter should, in particular, be aware of all the tools and applications (e.g., Photoshop) that are used to process pictures on websites. Using relevant images on your web pages is all very fine - but the snaps should be properly edited and processed too.

   
• Version control techniques - Over time, the scope of your business would expand - and so would your web design & development plans. Apart from being able to develop properly scalable websites, the developer should also have the expertise to keep backup copies of the previous 'versions' or 'copies' of your website. They might be required at any time for reference - or even in place of the newer version (in case it is not successful).

   
• Troubleshooting and website debugging - The task of a website developer does not end with the creation of a smart and efficient website. Technical glitches and other related problems can crop up - and (s)he should be qualified enough to rectify such issues as soon as possible. That would rule out risks of extended downtimes for your website. The developer should also have the knowledge of testing your website on different browsers. Click here to read more about cross-browser functionality of websites.

   
• Awareness of the statutory regulations and copyright issues - Photos on Flickr photostream, and copyrighted codes might seem to be ideal for your website development plans - but using them indiscriminately can lead to legal hassles. The developer you have hired should stay updated about the latest cyber regulations and laws. None of the actions that (s)he pursues, should violate these laws.

A good website developer should also make sure that you have a clear idea of the nature and purpose of the different codes used on your website. (S)he should have the knowledge to make the URLs of the different web pages shorter and more SEO-friendly too. Once you make sure that your web developer has adequate knowledge of the above-mentioned points, you can rest assured that (s)he will indeed offer good value-for-money.

This video shows how to use http://www.ftplive.com, a web browser-based FTP tool, to edit a web file.  In this example, we are just going to add in some simple HTML code to an html file.  A handy service for making minor text and code changes to files on your web server.  No software is required, just a web browser!

[Advertising Networks]

As a webmaster or content publisher you have an opportinuty to monetize (make money from) your websites 
Here is a running list of good advertising opportinities available:

Advertising Networks

Using one of these ad networks is easy and straight forward.  Join and get a code snippet to place somewhere in your HTML.  Ads are served automatically and you get paid for click-throughs and/or impressions.

Google Adsense
Value Click
VigLink
InfoLinks
Bing Ads
Chitika

Affiliate Networks

Affiliate networks are a little different.  With these, you join and then subsequently join specific merchants' programs within.  You choose the ad and you typically get paid for actions following click-throughs, for example any sales or leads you generate.

Commission Junction
LinkShare
Share A Sale

Others

Amazon

Do you know of any more?  PM me and I will add them to this list.

As part of our most recent server upgrades, our Cpanel servers (CP2 and CP3) have changed from DSO to FastGGI.  This brings us faster page loading times and more security.

Additionally the servers now have much better support for Wordpress users.

This change also renders certain .htaccess directives invalid now, they no longer support php_flag and php_value commands.  In fact, including these commands now will render an error 500 and the site will not load properly.  If you have this problem, go in to your .htaccess file and check for lines that contain these directives and if present, comment them out or remove them. 

Register_globals is now fully off.  PHP has been phasing out the register_globals function over the past few years and to stay up to speed, HostNed has now fully dropped support for this.

If you require assistance or have any questions, just open a support ticket and we will happilly assist you 

Happy Webmastering!

[Mail Filtering]

We are pleased to announce that for those who use Cpanel hosting, Mail Filtering is now available for users of RoundCube Webmail.  To access the filters, go to SETTINGS in the webmail.

ENJOY!


The mail filtering is client-side, so that means it will only filter when using RoundCube.  If you switch to SquirrelMail or Horde, the filters will not apply there.

Cpanel servers MySQL will be upgraded to version 5.1 today.

[Options]

        This article provides instructions on setting up a Fetch Mail account in   Horde, so that you can retrieve messages from an existing e-mail   account that you have outside of your domain. 
     REQUIREMENTS:   

   
• An existing Linux hosting account. 

   
• An existing e-mail box. If you do not yet have an e-mail box set up, you can create one in your control panel. 

   
• Log in to Webmail by entering the following URL in your browser (substituting "yourdomain.com" with your actual domain name): "https://yourdomain.com:2096" 

   
• On the Horde navigation menu, expand Options and then click Mail.
     

   
• Under the Message Options section, click on Fetch Mail.
     

   
• On the Fetch Mail page, click on the first item, Edit your preferences for accessing other mail accounts.
     

   
• On the next page (under Other Mail Accounts), click on the Create New Account option. 

   
• From the Mail server type to connect to: drop-down box, select IMAP/POP3 Mail Servers. 

   
• On the Other Mail Accounts page, specify the settings, as follows:
     
  
        
  • Account's name:  Other Account, or any other name that you would like to use to distinguish the account from other accounts. 
  
        
  • Protocol:  IMAP (Auto Detect) 
  
        
  • Username: E-mail address for the account that you want to retrieve mail from 
  
        
  • Password: Password for that e-mail account 
  
        
  • Server: The incoming mail server hostname; (e.g., mail.otherdomaindomain.com)
  
        
  • Remote Mailbox: Inbox 
  
        
  • Local Mailbox: Inbox  (bring the fetched mail into the INBOX)
  
     

   
• Select the check box for "Get only new messages?"  (Or for a more permanent setup, select instead "Delete fetched messages from remote server?".  Configure to your preference)

   
• Click the Create button. 

   
• Click Return to Fetch Mail. 

   
• Click Save Options. 

   
• On the toolbar (at the top of the page), click on the Fetch Mail option.
     

   
• On the Fetch Mail page, leave the [Other Account] (the one you just configured) check box selected and then click the Fetch Mail button.
   
    If mail retrieval is successful, you will see mail messages for the   account, along with the following message "Fetchmail: Fetched XX   messages from [other account] Account [name of other account]".