Archive for September, 2005
· September 20, 2005 at 12:13 pm · Odds & Ends
If you have used Firefox, then you know that one of the best features that it offers is the ability to extend your searching ways. By default, on the right hand side you have a small search menu set up. It has a few search engines in there already, but what if you want to do more with it? What if you want to add a few more, or take some away? I promise you, this is nothing hard.
I am sure you have all clicked the “Add Engines…” link at the bottom of that drop down menu in question. It takes you to the lower half of the Firefox Web page, where you see a few more search engines listed. If you still do not see the search engine you want to add, don’t worry I have one more place for you to look.
Over at the Mozdev.org Web site they have hundreds of other search engines for you to choose from. Chances are if it is some sort of popular search engine, it will be listed here. From Google to MSN, you have plenty of choices to choose from. Feel like you want a lot more resources at your fingertips? Then you can download the Mozdev.org top 30 search engines list. That will give you many more options when it comes to searching.
Now to get rid of a search engine, that is a little harder. You need to find the directory that your Firefox installation is sitting in. Once you get yourself inside of the Firefox folder, then look for a folder called “searchplugins”. To delete a plugin, find the .src and the .gif (or any other graphic format the icon might be in) and just delete them. Lets say you want to get rid of Google. All you would need to do is delete “google.src” and “google.gif” then restart Firefox. Google will be gone!
Have any more Firefox tips you’d like to see here? Make sure you let me know! Just drop me an E-mail and I’ll check it out and then share it with the entire world.
· September 19, 2005 at 11:20 am · Odds & Ends
It is Monday morning, that can only mean two things. You are about to get started with a brand new week, and you are sitting on the edge of your seat in anticipation for the next Web Hosting Show. Well, maybe you are not ready just yet to start the week off, but I know I at least got the Web hosting part right. So what is the big deal about outsourcing hosting jobs? Who is the new free Web hosting company?
Download Episode 30 of the Web Hosting Show
Running Time: 25 minutes | File Size: 5.81 MB
Well wait no longer, because podcast number thirty is now up and running. In an effort to provide you with more than just a sample of the show, here are two topics we discussed.
This comes from a press release put out by the folks at 8 to Infinity:
8 to Infinity is doing the reverse of the outsourcing trend by hiring more in house support staff to enhance support for its estimated 50 000 users. The support staff are given On Job Training as well as being send for various professional certification courses to enhance their service levels and provide more varied support for their clients.
Now are you ready for the kicker here? This Web hosting company is located in Singapore. Now not to bash the efforts they are putting forth, I am really happy to hear about it. I just wish more American companies would follow the lead of 8 to Infinity. There is a time and a place for outsourced Web hosting support. If you want to have somebody on call in the middle of the night, it is much easier to have a guy in India working your night time hours than asking somebody here to stay up all night long. Why? Well, it is daytime in India when it is night time here.
When Web hosts start outsourcing all the support they do out to cheaper “support farms” in other companies, that is when I put my foot down. Why? Just take a look at any Web hosting forum out there. There are dozens of unemployed system administrators and level one support folks looking for jobs to stay afloat. Why aren’t they getting hired? It is because outsourcing support is much more “cost efficient”. In other words, it is cheaper.
There is a new Web hosting company out there, and its name is Acorn Rack. Now what makes them any different than the other million Web hosting options you might have out there today? They promise you, “Automatic Web Site Creation”. Here is some more information on the “about us” part of their Web site:
Acorn Rack gives you the chance to build you very own web site, for free where everything is initially constructed. You can then enhance those foundations, and flourish your site into a state of the art internet application.
You are able to edit every page you see* through the Admin CP, from the layout, down to the colors. Accept members, assign them roles, and watch your site take off. Talk to your members on the forums, ask them their opinion via the voting section, and if someone disobeys your rules, you can suspend, or delete them from your site.
It sounds like it is totally free, but I haven’t had the time to check it out for myself just yet. So feel free to sign up, test it out, then drop me an E-mail and let me know how you like it.
· September 19, 2005 at 11:19 am · Odds & Ends
There are a lot of different ways you can extend the look of Firefox. If you get tired of your basic icons, all you have to do is find another theme you like and you are ready to start a new browsing experience. I know folks that chance Firefox themes once a day, once a week or even once a month. I even know folks that have never chanced the basic Firefox themes.
There are a lot of pretty ones out there, so lets have a look at some of the more popular Firefox themes out there today.
Noia 2.0 (eXtreme) 2.88
I used this theme myself a few weeks ago because I thought it had a very “fun” feeling as far as the icons go. It is very colorful as well. So if you like for your Firefox themes to be screaming out at you, this should be your pick.
Aquatint
Aquatint goes to show you that if you “keep it simple” you can go a long way in the pretty theme department as well. With blue globes on every button, how could you not feel more complete? Think of it as your yin having a party with your yang until you feel at peace with yourself.
Silver Skin
I am sorry. I know this is one of the most popular skins out there for Firefox, but I just think it is one of the ugliest ones that I have ever seen. Don’t get me wrong, I love silver, but the mix with the colorful buttons and the silver background just makes me want to gag myself.
Have a Firefox theme that you love that I didn’t mention here? Let me know about it. I am always willing to try a few new looks for my favorite little browser.
· September 18, 2005 at 6:58 pm · Odds & Ends
Loomia is another podcasting directory Web site, but it does have a few neat features that others do not. Just check out the Web page for the Web Hosting Show here:
The Web Hosting Show on Loomia
It has a section for both audio and video posts, which is nice to see. It also has the standard voting options, tags and everything else you’d expect to see. It also looks like it gets it’s image tags from the iTunes tags. Mine is a little big, so with the down size they have done it makes it look ugly. Hopefully they’ll get that fixed soon. Other than that, I have high hopes for them. Feel free to sign up and vote for the Web Hosting Show as well. You know me, I can use all the help I can get.
Update: I added a picture of the “Most Popular Channels” from Loomia because right now I am beating TWIT. 
This is probably both the first and last time this will ever happen.
· September 16, 2005 at 11:00 am · Odds & Ends
Firefox is slowly becoming the standard Web browser for a lot of folks out there. Who could blame them? It offers many things for many users. One of the best features it has is that it can be warped and twisted into a Web browser that fits your browsing habits best. The question is, do you know all the tips, tricks, and hacks you can do to Firefox to make it your own?
Most people do not. Others would say go to several hundred different Web sites to get all the best hacks and all the best features. I can do you one better. Thanks to the new book from O’Reilly, Firefox Hacks, you now have a one stop place to find out all the ways you can get better use out of Firefox.
Want to customize the way things look? Firefox Hacks shows you the best ways to edit the exterior of the program, download skins or make your own. Want to customize how things work on the inside? Firefox Hacks covers that, as well.
Through 100 hacks, tips, and tricks, Nigel McFarlane teaches you the best way of going about going in and making Firefox your own browser. Why would you want to use a browser that doesn’t take your browsing habits into consideration? With Firefox and the book Firefox Hacks, you have a tag team combination that cannot go wrong.
Don’t want to believe me yet that this book is that good? Go take a look at some of the sample chapters for yourself.
Out of all the books in the “Hacks” series, I do believe that this one is the best of the best so far. So pick it up and let me know what you think!
· September 15, 2005 at 1:43 pm · Odds & Ends
Next week will mark the launch date for the Web Hosting Show Video Tutorials. I can not tell you how excited I am to finally be able to bring video content out there to both the Web hosting world and the regular folks out there as well. The folks at the WHIR TV do a great job at bringing video “news” content out there about the Web hosting world. I want to give folks more options though. I won’t have a fancy studio or expensive equipment. What you will get from me is a lot of hard work, a lot of information and hopefully a few laughs as well. Also, I will be offering both flash videos and video downloads as well. This way you can choose how you wish to take in the content.
I was the first to give you a one of a kind Web hosting podcast, and hopefully I can do the same thing for video distribution of Web hosting content as well. So make sure you tune in next Thursday to see the debut of the Web Hosting Show Video Tutorials! Also, if you have any content ideas, be sure to shoot them over my way.
