Your favorite Web Hosting Evangelist and I just returned from a week in San Francisco at the ad:tech 2008 trade show. We returned older, wiser, and I for one learned many truths:

1. The estimated time for set-up and take-down of one’s booth is always two hours longer than your worst-case scenario
2. Booth babes, whether “babey” or not, major traffic at one’s booth and guarantee drool from sales guys
3. It’s probably in my best interest not to go along with any of Hazard’s ideas … and then let him film it

In what could probably be considered a lapse of judgment (I blame the delirium that settled in on the second day of the show), I actually let Hazard convince me to anchor a mock “World News from The Planet” show from our booth. The idea sounded innocently fun at 9:30 in the morning, before I had my coffee.

I put on my best “serious journalist” face (required: squinty eyes and permanent look of concern) and attempted to imbue the most banal statement with great importance (a combo of long pauses and squinty eyes here do the trick).

Check it out for yourself below as I give an “insightful” report on what you should look for in a data center, with a special bonus interview with The Planet’s Jeff Reinis. Meanwhile, I’ll be huddled in my cube, cringing from embarrassment … while Kevin cackles with evil glee on the other side of the partition.

According to Time Magazine’s blog, yesterday was the 40th birthday of the beloved Cubicle. We’ve all had them at one time or another. Some good and some … well … I’d rather work in a hole.

At The Planet, we have an open-concept work environment filled with fabulous “newbicles”—cubicles that are neither drab, dreary or soul-sucking. We have shelves, fun white boards and a really large workspace to spread out on.

I wasn’t sure I was going to be thrilled with the arrangement when I first heard about it, but I’ve grown to love it. They are big enough that we aren’t squished on top of each other and the white noise that’s piped in really helps give you privacy. I like being close to my team, too. I just have to roll around on my chair to talk to them!

So, in celebration of the birth of these little gems, I thought we’d pay homage to our friend the cubicle—picture style.

Some prefer a really business- like atmosphere. *cough* …Accounting… *cough*

Some like to show off achievements. (Hi Phil!)

Others prefer to decorate with some panache… (Guess whose sits there? w00t!)

Some need a sufficient place to primp or get food out of their teeth.

Most love to display their collectibles (better known as toys).

Note: We obscured some super-secret plans on the white board.

Beware of this dude. He’ll pelt you with that giant koosh ball or nerf gun when you least expect it.

Never fear. Scully and Mulder are here to protect us from the abnormal… well, extra abnormal.

Excuse me, I believe you have my stapler…

Happy Birthday, cubicle! Don’t worry, 40 is the new 30. You still look fabulous.

-Ali

Stop laughing. Computers are cool now.

That’s what the sticker in my office says, anyway. (Given to me by our very own Todd Mitchell, thank you very much. He’s funny.)

To conclude my three-part blog, I thought I’d focus on some sites I think have really helped to define this new era of the Internet. Plus, it gives me an excuse to play…er, I mean research the Internet while at work. Bonus!

Let’s start with MySpace because, well, it’s the one I’m most familiar with. I’ve had my account since early 2004. I’ve seen lots of growth and changes with the site over the years. Many new features have been added, with better functionality, which makes it really easy to use, but even more it’s really easy to be addicted. With all of these upgrades, the fundamentals of MySpace haven’t changed; it’s a place to hang with your friends and make new ones via the interwebs. That plays a huge part in the site’s success.

In the beginning, the site featured blogs, profile customization, bulletins and comments from other users on your friends list. Today the site has expanded to video, music, instant message, mobile texting and news. You can even search job listings there! Part of what makes this site so compelling is that in order to participate, you have to be a member. You create an account because someone you know has one, and you want to read their blogs and have the ability to comment. Once you get involved, you’re addicted. You also have the ability to completely control who views your page. You can be as public or as private as you like. It’s really all about your comfort level, but more importantly, it’s all about you.

MySpace was founded in August of 2003 by eUniverse (now Intermix). The site was sold in 2005 for $580 million to Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation. (That’s some serious moola for a site built on the geeky idea of making Internet friends.) The site is currently ranked by Alexa as #3 on the list of most visited sites in the U.S.

You Tube has become a crazy phenomenon. The idea behind it is quite simple: create a site with a simple interface where a user can upload any sort of video that exports into a format most browsers can view. And it’s free. Genius.

The world’s inner celebrity has come out to shine. If you aren’t contributing, you’re watching. If there is something you’ve seen on TV at some point, chances are you can find it on You Tube. If you want to show the world how you and your friends act the fool, just upload and share. Anyone who ever hoped to be some level of celebrity now has their chance, and they’re using it.

Google purchased YouTube on Nov. 3, 2006, for $1.65 billion in Google stock. I can’t even begin to fathom that amount of money. The site is currently ranked #4 in the Alexa rankings.

DIGG.com, which began as a technology-based blog site, is really a fantastic example of one that grew solely from social networking. Users contributed content by seeking out tech blogs, articles and news stories, and then posting them on the site. Now, it’s much more than just technology, with subsections ranging from entertainment, world and business, and gaming. They even offer video and podcast sections as well.

For a blogger, one of the pinnacles of success is having people “digg” your blog. Translation: having someone who reads it like it so much they link it on DIGG. Bloggers have become obsessed with getting their stories “dugg”- so much that the site has implemented practices for stopping spamming of your own writing. (But I’m not above asking you guys to click that little DIGG button on the bottom of this page. Click it. CLICK IT.)

Tons of sites have made an impact building the Internet to what it is today. These are just a few examples of sites that in my mind have been leaders in shaping the Internet culture. They’ve become regular phrases in our everyday lives translating into a major pop-culture phenomenon.

So, now my three-part look at the Internet Social Scene is done. I’m not sure what else I’ll be writing about in the future, but I’m sure there will be some topics that tickle my fancy.

If any of you, dear readers, have suggestions; please feel free to let me know! I’ll dig (ha,ha dig!) down and look into questions you have about Internet happenings, happenings at The Planet or anything else you might find interesting. The sky’s the limit.

If I can make it relevant to technology or the Internet, they’ll probably let me blog about it. Even nail polish and lipstick. Maybe. (What? I am a total girl, you know.)

- Ali

Where’s the Beef?

Remember back in the day, there always seemed to be a commercial everyone was talking about?

Two all beef patties special sauce lettuce cheese pickles onions on a sesame seed bun.
I totally double-dutched to that one.

How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?
Mr. Owl did it in three. I tried so many times to do that as a kid! It was totally impossible and I was crushed.

I’d like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony. I’d like to buy the world a Coke and keep it company.
I found this on YouTube and it instantly took me back to my living room with the green shag carpet and wood paneling. It gave me chills. I know it’s crazy that a commercial can have such an impact. But the time was so tumultuous and that commercial gave a little bit of comfort and hope to the world. (And I’m a sucker for nostalgia; Coca-Cola especially.)

Plus, I know people who cried during Hallmark commercials. My mom included. MCI long distance ones too.

Commercials became as much a part of our television entertainment experience as the shows we were watching. It was a mad competition to see who would have the funniest, catchiest and most innovative approach. Huge multimillion dollar campaigns would launch in hopes to have the next catch phrase.

It’s not really like that anymore. Sure, there are a few companies I can think of that still go above and beyond in the TV campaign area. Geico’s Gecko and Cavemen come to mind. But, really, when was the last time you sang a TV jingle? I haven’t since Chili’s made me “want my baby back ribs.”

The face of advertising is changing, my friends. Aside from the big push at Superbowl, big budget TV campaigns are on the decline. The invention of DVR and the insanely vast amount of broadcast TV and cable networks make it near impossible to pay attention to the commercials. Companies are turning to more cost effective approaches via the Internet - specifically social networking sites.

Do you know of any national retail corporation that doesn’t have a Web site? I don’t. I’m sure you’d be hard pressed to find one. Take that as a challenge, if you like! It’s now common practice to include Internet and online activities in any marketing and advertising plan.

Many companies have gone way beyond simply having their own Web sites. They’ve ventured into the social networking scene, creating MySpace pages and blogs and using email campaigns to drive traffic to these sites. And why wouldn’t they? It’s the Internet version of pollination.

A busy little Internet bee stumbles upon a blog or new Web site. They take that information and link to their own blog or post it on a message board. They use it to pass along information and foster discussion. Then along comes another little busy Internet bee that takes the link and posts it in various other places and so on and so forth. Voila! Pixel pollination. I can’t really think of a much easier way to spread your message than having someone else do it for you.

For some, these practices are still brand new. People are just testing the waters. As we start to see more success with this sort of “grass-roots” marketing, the entire way we implement advertising and promotions will change.

It’ll certainly be interesting to see where we are a year from now. With the ever-changing face of the Internet, new marketing and advertising opportunities will always be on the horizon. It’s an exciting time to be part of such prevalent change in this still-budding new medium. No one has really jumped out as a leader in innovation for this new age of Web-based marketing. Having the opportunity to be a player rather than just a spectator is making the evolution all the more fun.

Up next - The Social Scene 3: Web based communities - top sites, key features and why they’re so addictive.

Stay tuned!

- Ali

Long Distance Social Networking circa 1993:
Get paper.
Get pen.
Sit and hand write the first draft.
Massage hand for a moment to get the cramps out.
Find the nice stationary and the good pen — the one that doesn’t leak.
Write more.
Crumple up that first page because you totally left out a word.
Write more.
FINISH!
Place in envelope.
Write out the envelope.
Realize you left out the last page.
Argh …
Open (and ruin) envelope.
Write it out once more.
Place the letter (all pages!) in the new envelope.
Seal. (Ick. The glue is gross.)
Find a stamp.Um. Stamp. Where are they? Think.
Tear up your house looking for one.
“MOM! I need a STAMP.”
Bug mom to get stamps on her way home from work for two days.
Get the stamp and place the letter in the mail.
Wait weeks to see if your friend received it while everything in it is completely outdated.
Start over again.

Long Distance Social Networking today:
Log onto Myspace.
New Comments! New Messages!
JOY!
Read messages and comments.
Respond.
The end.

The above happens within a two-minute timeframe. Who would have known how vastly different the world would change in a mere 14 years. Really, five years if you simply go by the introduction of the Internet to the masses. It has changed the way we communicate in every capacity. Everything is faster, sleeker, wittier and smaller. Every day teeny tiny new little gadgets are invented to enable us to stay plugged into everything: our friends (and frenemies), TV, music, movies, sports, news, gossip … it’s never ending.

I find it all incredibly fascinating.

Technology is moving so fast that it’s hard for even the techiest of tech people to keep up. Web 2.0 applications and practices are in full swing with blogs and social networking sites becoming actual outlets for advertising and marketing opportunities. Not just a place to write about what you had for breakfast and saying “What’s up” to your homies. The entire landscape of the Internet has changed and in the grand scheme of things, it’s still in its infancy. As a result, traditional marketing and advertising practices are taking a backseat to more innovative approaches.

I’ve often been questioned by people who haven’t embraced the Internet (and more specifically social networking sites) as fervently as I have. They don’t get it. I might as well be telling them that I talk to monkeys. But slowly, even the most skeptical people are coming around.

My first foray into the realm of Internet geekdom was message boards. I found a couple that focused on topics I liked and I dove right in. Now, I’m a social person. I talk non-stop. (Go figure I work in communications.) I love to debate, but even more so, I love being in the know.

So the world of message boards was like a little piece of pixel heaven. I can talk, laugh, argue and always be in the know because the posts stay there. I can go to bed fully engrossed in a topic, then wake up the next morning and catch up on what I missed while drinking my coffee and lounging in my jammies. You can’t do that in real-time. If you aren’t there, you simply miss out.

For years, I was happy in my little communities. I knew everyone. Everyone knew me. It was like Cheers but with a keyboard and no beer. I made friends and attended “meet-ups.” I talked regularly to folks both on the boards and on IM from all over the country. Then one day, my friend Gabe sent me an invite to MySpace. I was totally confused. I had heard of Friendster and never understood it, either. I mean, why would I need MySpace? I have my beloved message boards!

I accepted the invite and let the page sit for months. Suddenly, all the people I interacted with regularly on message boards were getting pages. They started leaving comments and writing blogs. Slowly those same people started become more open and really letting parts of themselves show through. The blogs became personal. Pages were designed to reflect their tastes in art, music, film and TV. It really became and extension of themselves.

I know people often question the usefulness of social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook. They want to know why you would want or have a need for those sites, when message boards are available and so prevalent.

There are two very distinct differences between the two:
1) Message boards are about the community more than the individual, and social sites are the opposite.
2) Networking sites allow users to control who they interact with.

With social sites, the user is the superstar, so to speak. The content is about them. It’s where they can show off their creativity and inner celebrity. And most importantly, they control who views it and who’s allowed to participate. All of this in conjunction with the explosion of YouTube gives the “average Joe” the ability to create their own community of fans and get a taste of celebrity life via the Internet. Think of it as the “Me” generation of the 80’s with a focus on celebrity status rather than financial (and less hairspray).

The Web has changed the way we think and interact, both in our personal lives and in business. Marketing and advertising companies have had to completely rethink strategies … but that’s something I’ll visit in part 2. Stay tuned!

I KNOW. That’s so old school. I’m bringing it back, though.

- Ali

While I’m certainly not the first to blog on the subject of domain tasting, a.k.a. domain kiting, I wanted to chime in on the subject as someone who has managed domains from not only the reseller and registrar perspective, but as the registrant of my own domains. I hope this helps to clarify the issue for some of you.

First, a little history for those not completely familiar with the topic. On March 15, 1985, now-defunct computer manufacturer Symbolics, Inc. registered symbolics.com, the oldest still-registered .com domain. Creation of the World Wide Web was still four years away and Verisign wouldn’t exist for another decade, but that first registration was the beginning of the booming domain registration industry¹.

Changes to the domain registration system that would eventually lead to domain tasting did not occur until the late nineties. First, the creation of ICANN on Sept. 18, 1998, allowed for competition in the domain name industry. By the end of the twentieth century the cost for .com domains to dropped from $50 annually to $35 and, finally, six dollars a year. Before the end of ICANN’s first year, an agreement between the government-mandated non-profit and Network Solutions — then the .com registry — led to the creation of the Add Grace Period (AGP).

The AGP allows registrants to delete a domain name within five days of registration. The policy was created in response to demands from consumers who had incorrectly spelled their desired domain name during the registration process. While it is a very customer-service oriented policy, the AGP unintentionally led to the creation of the domain tasting industry.

My first near-encounter with domain tasting would come in August 2003, when EV1Servers became a reseller for Canadian-based registrar, Tucows. We sold domains for $5 a year, a great less than any other company offered .com domains at the time and a good amount less than we paid for them. Our hope was that the low price would drive registrants to our Web site, who would then lease dedicated servers for less than we would normally spend on pay-per-click advertising.

The low price did drive traffic to the site from potential server customers, but it was even more attractive to domain portfolio managers. These are companies that register thousands of domains and park ads and links on them, capitalizing on type-in traffic from those individuals either unaware of or averse to using search engines.

The companies who have since emulated the loss-leader domain strategy are careful to include terms we didn’t realize were necessary, like requiring the purchase of hosting, or increasing the price of renewals. Our policy allowed anyone to register as many domains as they desired, no strings attached – a lesson learned. Domain tasting employs a similar strategy. While portfolio management is considered a legitimate business, many consider domain tasting less so. They register thousands of domains and, like portfolio managers, aim to capitalize on type-in traffic. The difference is if they discover the traffic is less than favorable before the five days are up, the domain is deleted and the domain taster is refunded the cost of the domain.

It sounds like a harmless process. The domain goes back into the pool of domains available for registration and the domain taster moves on to another collection of thousands of domains. A look at ICANN’s numbers, however, reveals a practice that is out of control. Of the 1,784,772 .org domains registered by five registrars in January 2007, only 10,862 were retained after the grace period. That same month 47,824,131 .com and .net domains were deleted before the end of their grace periods.

Although there is come concern regarding domain tasting’s impact on the overall stability of the Internet, the real victims of this practice are not ICANN, the registries or registrars, but rather the registrants for whom the policy was instituted to protect. Domain tasters do not limit their potential business to newly registered domains. In fact, dropped names — names that were once registered, but were deleted from the registry upon deletion — are much more valuable to tasters than new names.

Registrants who are naïve about the domain registration system often fail to recognize the importance of keeping administrative contact information up-to-date. As a result, they miss their domain renewal reminders. Not wanting to pay redemption fees that have been known to top $300 (another practice under scrutiny), they assume they can simply wait until the domain has expired and register it again. When the domain is deleted they are shocked to find it registered by a company who will either keep the domain for the traffic it generates, or offer to sell it back to the registrant for ridiculously inflated prices.

ICANN and the various registries are working toward a solution for this broken process, but how do you balance the needs of the registrant at the time of registration and during accidental deletion? To most businesses it’s an insignificant loss, but to an individual running a site for charity or a student just cutting their teeth on the hosting industry it can be devastating.

I look forward to the eventual solution of this problem. In the interim, if you find yourself a victim of domain tasting, there are a few tricks that may help you get your domain back. First, whatever you do, do not visit your former domain name’s URL.

Traffic to the domain will only increase its value in the eyes of the taster. Also, do not contact the company that has registered your domain. Any perceived interest in the domain may drive the taster to put the domain up for auction. Simply wait five days and attempt to register the domain again.

If you find at that time the same taster still has your domain you need to decide if you’re willing to pay a large amount of money to get it back. In some cases you may be able to prove the domain is your intellectual property and use ICANN’s Universal Domain-Name Dispute Resolution Policy to regain ownership. Bear in mind this is a long and often expensive process. If a different taster has the domain, repeat the same process as above for as long as is necessary.

- Brooke

1. Source: ICANN

I was reading Thanh Tran’s blog post the other night and I realized that I had the other side of that story to tell. I joined Everyone’s Internet in 2001, as the original RAQ 4i servers were just starting to be deployed and most data centers were demanding a huge setup fee to go along with a monthly service charge of $600 or more. At the time, our core business was providing dial-up internet access and this “new hosting thing” was an experiment that the owners had decided to try out.

Our support started out with a focus on control panel guidance (who here remembers the Cobalt web interface?) and reboots (offered within 24 hours, when our sysadmin, Patrick Smith, would drive from the call center to the collocation facility and process a batch of requests). At the time, my primary job responsibility was to visit customer Web sites and make sure they did not contain any adult content, which they often did when you got beyond the home page. How’s that for a job description?

Things went along at a moderate pace until two things changed at roughly the same time. First, Sun purchased Cobalt and stopped playing nice, forcing us to expand our offering to white box dedicated servers. Second, we launched our first $1 setup fee sale. I remember that I had just taken over the Web Sales team, which was then part of our dial-up sales department.

All of a sudden our little six-person team was buried in inquiries, new orders and demands for upgrades. Heady time, especially when you consider how the rest of the “tech bubble” was in the middle of a serious meltdown, and all the economy pundits could talk about was the downturn in business and a growing recession.

Now that I think about it, the ride that started that day has never really ended. 1Ghz servers became 2.0GHz+; white box systems turned into all-Dell data centers; unmanaged dedicated hosting gave way to Custom Self-Managed Servers or Private Racks; and now EV1 has joined with The Planet.

What strikes me most about that last milestone is how we all thought we would be dealing with an alien race, and instead we found we were working with the same people we had always been working with. Sometimes literally, and yes I’m talking about you, Keith.

So here we are, just over a year later, and the company known for having the best data centers has joined forces with the company known for having the best network. We also have several new members of the family on board, determined to make sure we become known for having the best support ever. I only hope the next six years are exciting as the last six were. Then again, with a company like this, how could they be anything else?

- Aaron