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domain name and web hosting

updated thu 9 aug 07

 

Ingeborg Foco on tue 7 aug 07


Hi Clay People,

I am unhappy with my hosting company. June 28th was the last day I was able
to receive email. My web site was also not operational for some time but
they finally fixed that. I still can't receive email. Everything sent to
'ingeborg@thepottersworkshop.com' is returned to sender. I am tired of
submitting trouble tickets to people who obviously don't know what is going
on and are difficult to communicate with even though their names are John,
Peter, Mary Henry etc.

Before signing up with Dot5Hosting, I researched hosting companies on the
internet and picked them because they were rated so highly. At this point,
I have little confidence in those internet ratings and wonder what your
experiences are or have been with your respective web hosting companies.

My domain name was transferred to Dot5Hosting and if I recall there was no
fee involved since I was buying a web hosting package. I went to WHOIs and
it indicates my domain name expires on 2nd Nov 2007, Transfer is Prohibited
and client update prohibited...whatever that means.

I do not want to lose my domain name and think it might be best to register
the name separate from any hosting company. That way I could avoid these
issues in the future. Is it possible and how does one go about it before it
expires. I do not want to renew my service with Dot5hosting which expires
Sept 5, 2008. I would like to own my own name. Presently the registrar is
YUCOWS inc.

Today I received an invoice from Domain Listing Service for $75 to purchase
my own domain name. The dates of Listing are Aug 31, 2007 to Aug 31 2008,
different from my expiration date of 2 Nov 07. Regardless, I have no
interest in paying someone $75. If push comes to shove I guess I could let
it expire, hope no one picks it up and if they do, pick something else.

Do any of you have any words of wisdom or a better grasp of these things
than I do? To me, it seems a bit like selling air and snake oil at the
same time.

Thanks very much.

Sincerely,



Ingeborg

www.thepottersworkshop.com

Michael Wendt on tue 7 aug 07


Ingeborg,
I'm with Network Solutions or
contact GoDaddy.com .
My wife has her domain registered with them
for almost nothing.
$75 would buy you several years.
They also offer different hosting packages.
Barb's web page:
http://www.UniquePorcelainDesigns.com
She built it herself in a few days with no
prior experience using Microsoft Front page
2000.
Still some learning to do but pleased.
Regards,
Michael Wendt
Wendt Pottery
2729 Clearwater Ave
Lewiston, ID 83501
USA
208-746-3724
http://www.wendtpottery.com
wendtpot@lewiston.com

Tom at Hutchtel.net on wed 8 aug 07


The problem with using others than Network Solutions to register your name,
is that whoever registers it, owns it. That's why the 'cheap seats'
companies are cheap...they didn't actually sell you anything. If you
register it yourself, it is in your name. Now, that does mean that you
have to go in and switch the server address yourself if you switch
companies, but this is very simple to do.

The downside is that when someone else is the registrar, tehy essentially
own your name and, unless they agree to allow changes, you're kind of locked
in.

Yes, Network Solutions costs a few dollars more, but I'd just as soon
control what is now one of the most important parts of our business.

If you switch host companies, Dot5Hostings can change the ownershhip if they
will, but I wouldn't bet on it. What you want to do is get it transferred
to your control.

Good luck

Tom Wirt

John Rodgers on wed 8 aug 07


Excellent points, Tom.

You have prompted me to see about changing my name registrations.

Thanks,

John Rodgers
Chelsea, AL

Tom at Hutchtel.net wrote:
> The problem with using others than Network Solutions to register your
> name,
> is that whoever registers it, owns it. That's why the 'cheap seats'
> companies are cheap...they didn't actually sell you anything. If you
> register it yourself, it is in your name. Now, that does mean that you
> have to go in and switch the server address yourself if you switch
> companies, but this is very simple to do.
>
> The downside is that when someone else is the registrar, tehy essentially
> own your name and, unless they agree to allow changes, you're kind of
> locked
> in.
>
> Yes, Network Solutions costs a few dollars more, but I'd just as soon
> control what is now one of the most important parts of our business.
>
> If you switch host companies, Dot5Hostings can change the ownershhip
> if they
> will, but I wouldn't bet on it. What you want to do is get it
> transferred
> to your control.
>
> Good luck
>
> Tom Wirt
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
>
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>
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>
>

Maurice Weitman on wed 8 aug 07


Greetings, Tom, and domain-loving clayarters everywhere,

It would behoove those who own or wish to own their domains to learn
about the process from the source, not from well-meaning potters
(including myself).

At 08:12 -0500 on 8/8/07, Tom at Hutchtel.net wrote:
>The problem with using others than Network Solutions to register your name,
>is that whoever registers it, owns it. That's why the 'cheap seats'
>companies are cheap...they didn't actually sell you anything. If you
>register it yourself, it is in your name. Now, that does mean that you
>have to go in and switch the server address yourself if you switch
>companies, but this is very simple to do.
>
>The downside is that when someone else is the registrar, tehy essentially
>own your name and, unless they agree to allow changes, you're kind of locked
>in.

That's simply not true, Tom.

A registrar is simply an agent between you (the domain owner) and
ICANN, the "manager" of all domain names. See:
http://www.icann.org/faq/

The owner of a domain name is the one who registers the domain with a
registrar.

There may be unscrupulous registrars out there, but it's easy to find
legit ones. See: http://www.internic.net/regist.html

From a whois page:
"Domain names in the .com and .net domains can now be registered
with many different competing registrars. Go to http://www.internic.net
for detailed information."

>Yes, Network Solutions costs a few dollars more, but I'd just as soon
>control what is now one of the most important parts of our business.

Network Solutions may be the oldest and for a while, only registrar,
and they have for a long time used that position to charge higher
rates than newer, competing services.

>If you switch host companies, Dot5Hostings can change the ownershhip if they
>will, but I wouldn't bet on it. What you want to do is get it transferred
>to your control.

I don't know about Dot5, but hosting companies should NOT have any
ownership of your domains. That would be unscrupulous.

Regards,
Maurice, in Fairfax, California, just about recovering from a month
of travel and still wrestling with issues surrounding our likely move
back to NY (where I once belonged) next summer, and where most of our
family lives. I suppose it can be said that I'm not moving East,
rather that I am continuing to move West, across two (depending on
how one counts) oceans.

Wendy Peck on wed 8 aug 07


HI,

I have to agree with Maurice here. I've been a pro Web designer for over ten
years. The ONLY trouble I have ever had with any registration issue has
originated from Network Solutions. The second they lost their monopoly I
moved everything I had over to another registrar. Whatever registrar you
choose (do your homework, of course, using Maurice's links below) to
register your name, you own it. Period. NS charges way more, so it is in
their interest to convince you that you are getting more -- not surprising
that many believe they are the only "true" registrar. If you read their
material carefully, you will see that benefits are implied, not stated
outright. It's also in their interest to stay out of court.

Wendy



>A registrar is simply an agent between you (the domain owner) and
ICANN, the "manager" of all domain names. See:
http://www.icann.org/faq/

>The owner of a domain name is the one who registers the domain with a
registrar.

>There may be unscrupulous registrars out there, but it's easy to find
legit ones. See: http://www.internic.net/regist.html

Lee Love on wed 8 aug 07


I have had good luck with GoDaddy.

I don't trust Network Solutions. When changes were happening
and all the new registries were popping up, Network Solutions double
billed me. I had a neck of a time getting to recognize I was not
signed up with them any longer.


--
Lee in Mashiko, Japan
Minneapolis, Minnesota USA
http://mashikopots.blogspot.com/

"To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts." -
Henry David Thoreau

"Let the beauty we love be what we do." - Rumi

Jim Willett on wed 8 aug 07


One other option on hosting comes to mind. We currently have twelve
websites running on our own server. We lease the server from Server Beach
for $119 a month and manage all the hosting ourselves. I'd think in an
area where there are several potters looking to have websites they could
share the monthly lease and enjoy trouble free hosting. Just a thought.
http://www.serverbeach.com

Jim Willett
http://www.outofthefirestudio.com
Out of the Fire Studio