IE6 has been a subject of debate, some offensive, some defensive. However, this site goes way out to kill the poor browser. The site has been created by Alex Design Group who are a design company based out of Colorado.

The site has a page dedicated to memories. Here is mine

What is your most memorable experience with IE6?

The vulnerability exploits a new feature that has been introduced in WordPress 2.9: the trash. The trash is a basic trashcan where deleted posts are placed so that they can be restored if they have been deleted by accident. This trash can be disabled but is activated by default on all WordPress 2.9 and later blogs.

Every logged in user, even those with the subscriber role, can access all deleted articles and posts that have been moved to the trash. This might not affect the majority of blogs as there need to be at least two registered users and at least one user that is not trusted by the administrator of the site.

In theory though anyone with a user account at the website can access the trashed articles regardless of which user wrote them.

The WordPress 2.9.2 patch fixes this exploit so that this is no longer possible. WordPress 2.9.2. can be downloaded from the official WordPress website. Users who have configured their blog for automatic updates can also update the blog from within the blog right away.

One way to clean up your WordPress Database, including old post revisions and items that are in trash, is to use WP-Optimize.  It does a great job at cleaning up bloated databases on busy WordPress sites and keeps them running fast.

I found this list on eHow and thought that it would serve as a good guideline when evaluating ones own Web site for credibility.

How to Determine Website Credibility

1. Look at the URL address of the website. The URL address starts with http://. Addresses ending in .gov, .us and .(STATE ABBREVIATION) are reliable. All other endings will require more investigation to know if they are credible or not.
2. URL address that contain tildes (~) usually mean that an individual published the site. Individual publishers unaffiliated with a credible corporation can have their own agendas. These sites may not have the most credible information.
3. Check the publishing date. Obviously, Internet pages that have been published more recently are more credible.
4. Figure out the site’s purpose. Sites that are selling you something or asking you to sign up for something may not be present you with neutral, unbiased information.
5. Check out the contact information and resources. Credible websites should list contact information and resources.
6. Decide if the article is describing facts or the author’s opinions. Statements that start with “I think” or “From my experience” aren’t as reliable as those that begin with “Experts recommend” or “Research proves.”
7. Ask yourself whether or not the article has answered all of your questions after you have finished reading it. If the article still leaves you with questions, it may not be the most credible source.

Please share your experiences with validating a Website in the comment section below.

According to the article, city officials seem to think “their website was stolen via ‘cyber squatting.’” I did a some research on the domain name, and according to a Whois search on the last archive date where the domain name was owned by the city, the domain name was set to expire on November 26, 2009. It appears to me as if the domain name was not renewed and someone else acquired it.

The business of drop catching expiring domain names is completely legitimate – and it’s the reason companies like Snapnames and Namejet are in business. It’s also the reason why several high profile domain name investors became very wealthy. It’s not necessarily from selling the expired names back to the previous owner, but by using those names for their businesses. Godaddy also allows people to place backorders on domain names, on the off-chance the name isn’t renewed.

The article quotes Jason England of Premier Quest ISP, the website’s host (according to the news article). England believes it’s a case of cybersquatting. He mentioned that when a domain name expires, there are people who will try to register it immediately, especially “folks typically from the same type of geography that the majority of the world’s spam and viruses come from.”

Incidentally, the Administrative Contact at the time the city owned the domain name was premierquest@pqisp.com. Had someone paid the annual renewal fee of somewhere around $10, the city would still presumably own the domain name. Based on my experience, Godaddy sends notices 90, 60, 30, and 15 days prior to a domain name’s expiration – and possibly even more frequently.

As far as I am aware, it’s perfectly legal to register domain names – especially geographic and non-trademarked domain names – after they expire. Just check out what a UDRP panelist said about geodomain names recently when he referenced “the general rule that geographic names are not subject to trademark protection.”

I will provide an example to equate this to physical real estate,. If someone in Morehead, Kentucky decides he doesn’t wish to pay property taxes this year, I am sure the city will go after his property, maybe file a lien, and perhaps even seize it. They may even put it up for auction for others to bid on it once it’s seized. Likewise, when someone doesn’t renew their domain name, the registrar can put the name up for auction.

If the City of Morehead wishes to have this domain name back so they don’t have to order hundreds of dollars worth of stationery, they should hope the owner would want to sell it to them. Otherwise, they will be forced to use new email addresses, change all inbound links, and probably spend in excess of the $10,000 figure they quoted in the article. They now also need to worry about confidential emails addressed to @cityofmorehead.com email addresses.

I really feel badly for the City and especially for the person who was responsible for renewing the domain name. This is a very good example of why domain owners need to be the Administrative Contact email on their domain names so they can be sure the bill is paid each year.

Both should take should take you to the same place. If not there is a problem! Personally, I don’t want to type in the ‘www’ and I don’t really see the need for it.  For example, when I go to SpiderSavvy.com or JamesMcWhorter.com I don’t type in www.

This brings me to an important SEO and usability tip that is often overlooked in sites with regards to those who find your site by typing ‘www’ before the domain name. Search engines may think spidersavvy.com and www.spidersavvy.com are two different sites. To avoid dillution of your Web site’s SEO you should set up a permanent redirect (technically called a “301 redirect”) between these sites. Once you do that, you will get full search engine credit for your work on these sites.

It works like this.  When you enter www.SpiderSavvy.com the redirect will automatically take you to http://SpiderSavvy.com.  This effectively funnels all traffic through one place instead of two or more.

This can be done by finding the .htaccess file, on your Web site, and entering:

RewriteEngine On

RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^www.(.*) [NC]

RewriteRule ^(.*) http://%1/$1 [R=301]

Usability is like cooking: everybody needs the results, anybody can do it reasonably well with a bit of training, and yet it takes a master to produce a gourmet outcome.

If your business owner you may be asking your self why usability is important and how it can help your business.  The answer is simple. ROI.

Nielsen states that if you’ve never done any testing, you can typically  double your conversion rate or other key business metrics.  With that kind of return how can a business afford not to do simple usability testing?

Timeline

It takes only 3 days to complete a small usability project:

• Day 1: Plan the study and write the test tasks.
• Day 2: Test 5 users for about 1 hour each (cleaning up between sessions).
• Day 3: Analyze the findings and write up the top recommended design improvements.

If you have any experiences in usability testing please share your experiences in the comment section below.

There are some really cool features that are being included in this release. They include:

1. Global undo/”trash” feature, which means that if you accidentally delete a post or comment you can bring it back from the grave (i.e., the Trash). This also eliminates those annoying “are you sure” messages we used to have on every delete.
2. Built-in image editor allows you to crop, edit, rotate, flip, and scale your images to show them who’s boss. This is the first wave of our many planned media-handling improvements.
3. Batch plugin update and compatibility checking, which means you can update 10 plugins at once, versus having to do multiple clicks for each one, and we’re using the new compatibility data from the plugins directory to give you a better idea of whether your plugins are compatible with new releases of WordPress. This should take the fear and hassle out of upgrading.
4. Easier video embeds that allow you to just paste a URL on its own line and have it magically turn it into the proper embed code, with Oembed support for YouTube, Daily Motion, Blip.tv, Flickr, Hulu, Viddler, Qik, Revision3, Scribd, Google Video, Photobucket, PollDaddy, and WordPress.tv (and more in the next release).

WordPress 2.9 Summarized:

Every now and a then I run into someone who has a domain name they would like to sell and are not sure how to go about doing it.

Question

I have a domain name that I think is valuable. How do I sell it? How can I make them stand out?

Answer

I use a service called Sedo. I’ve compiled a list of the top 12 ways you can help promote your domain and make the most of Sedo’s online marketplace:

1. Park the domain with Sedo if you haven’t already.  Because the parked page displays a sales message and link to a domain’s offer page, your chances of selling are four times higher.  A visitor may arrive at the domain because they are interested in buying it; however, that visitor might not be aware of Sedo’s award-winning services.  This way, you have given the buyer a means of placing an offer both safely and securely.
2. Order Category Showcases or Homepage Featured Listings. Place your domain in a more visible location within Sedo’s domain catalog to make it easier to find when buyers browse the homepage or the categories.  Most buyers will start in these areas, and a showcase or featured listing can increase the chances of selling by up to five times.
3. Order a Sedo appraisal so that you know the value of your domain name, especially if you are unsure about pricing. Listing your domain with a reasonable price that reflects today’s domain market is one of the best ways to make a sale.  Buyers respond well to reasonable prices and expectations that remain consistent from start-to-finish.  For more information or to order, please visit Sedo’s Domain Appraisal overview.
4. Assign the domains asking prices. Listing a domain with an up-to-date price will always generate more bids than a domain listed as “Make Offer” without a price specified.  Listing your domain with a “Fixed Price” also has its advantages.  With no need for potentially lengthy back and forth negotiations, an agreement is reached when a buyer simply accepts your listed fixed price.  Domains set with fixed prices might sell up to 3x faster than domains set as “Make Offer.”
5. Connect your offer pages. Sedo allows sellers to link to their portfolio from each domain’s offer page.  Log in, navigate to My Sedo > Domain Management, and click on any domain name.  Deselect the box next to “Do not link to my entire portfolio from this offer page,” select the option to “Apply this setting to all of my domains,” and save your changes.  Interested bidders may view your entire portfolio from the “Meet the Seller” section.
6. Use Sedo’s external link system to promote your domains. On any website you control, you can link to: http://www.Sedo.com/search/details.php4?domain=DOMAIN.TLD.  You need to make sure that “DOMAIN.TLD” is replaced by the domain name you want to sell.  When viewers click on this link they will be redirected to the given offer page at Sedo.
7. Choose at least 2 categories for each domain you list.  Not only will the domain be available through searches, it will appear in more locations to browsing buyers.  More categories = more exposure = higher chances of a sale.
8. Auction your domain. Sedo offers two types of auctions that you can use to increase visibility for your domain and encourage competitive bidding (pending certain conditions have been met).  If you receive an offer, consider pushing the domain into a Marketplace Auction.  Or, if you own a more generic, highly-marketable domain, apply for one of Sedo’s monthly Premium Auction Events.
9. Apply for Sedo’s seller-side brokerage service.  Sedo’s brokers know the industry better than anyone and look for premium, high-quality domains.  If your application is approved, your dedicated broker will work with you to price the domains, determine a sales strategy, and locate buyers.  Also, your broker might be able to include one or more of your domains in a live auction.  To learn more visit the seller-side brokerage service overview.
10. Change the public Whois information for the domain to let people know that the name is for sale. You can update the admin contact information to read: “Owner Name (This name is for sale at Sedo.com).”  This setting is adjustable through your registrar.  Domain-savvy investors may start with Whois; for secure negotiations, let bidders know up front you want to work through our online marketplace.
11. Reply to EVERY offer, even if it’s low! Very often potential buyers will start out low to “test the waters.”  You then can quote a higher price in return, and then try and establish some common ground in the middle.  Just don’t forget:  always remain reasonable in your expectations.
12. Keep your Sedo contact information up to date. If you change your email address without changing the email listed in your Sedo account, then the bid notifications will not reach you.  Not only is accurate and current information required, it prevents you from missing unique negotiation opportunities!

If you have any other tips & tricks please comment below!

Now I applaud that he sees the value in email marketing, however he’s crossing the line by his actions and demeanor (in my opinion).

Why not do it in a positive fashion, after all, email marketing will get customers in the door and stressing to your staff that the people who will benefit will be them, might just work in your favor. Here are a few more constructive ideas:

• For every valid email address your staff gets give them $2.
• If they get 20 valid email addresses they get a kicker of $50.
• Have a contest with your staff, whoever gets a certain number of emails wins a prize like cash or a nice bottle of bubbly.
• Motivate your customers to give you their email addresses by having “email only” offers in the bill holder. Test different offers to see what works like a free birthday dinner up to $xx, or free appetizers on their next visit. This gives your employees a reason to ask the customers for their addresses. Giving up something of value to get it in return can go a long way.
• At the host stand or checkout, display a business card bowl or a sign up book, then have the host stop people on the way out the door and tell them about “email only” offers.
• Give an automatic 5% VIP discount for any customer who is on the email address list.

These are just a few positive ways to get your staff excited about collecting email addresses instead of forcing it down their throats. If you’ve got any ideas of your own, please comment!