web hosting

The Planet Introduces New Cloud Storage Service

A global leader in dedicated and managed hosting solutions, The Planet is enhancing its infrastructure in the terms of storage performance with cloud storage functionality.  This new service offers an on-demand, highly scalable solution that will ensure the stability large enterprises need to flourish in today’s business environment.

Last week, The Planet announced that the new cloud storage service will be limited in availability to its existing hosting clients.  Rob Walters, General Manager of The Planet’s storage and data protection division, says the service offers a world of new opportunities as customers can extend their hosted environments right into the cloud storage facility.  The cloud storage platform is geographically distributed, providing customers with the ability to upload to the local network node along with a single policy enforced account to administer all of their file-based storage requirements.  The Planet’s cloud storage solution is based on a 40 cents per GB pricing scale and doesn’t come with any hidden fees or performance issues.  Most cloud storage providers charge fees for sundry access services.  Amazon Web Service’s Simple Storage Solution is one example that charges around 1 cent per 1,000 put, post, copy or list requests.   According to Walters, the new cloud storage service is a first in the hosting industry.

The Planet’s announcement of its high performance solution is great news for customers as past services haven’t been cheap to utilize.  On the surface, cloud storage generally seems to be a more affordable approach for addressing the storage issues faced by so many companies today.  However, unexpected fees usually rear their ugly heads, hidden charges associated with bandwidth and additional costs for accessing data.   These fees typically result in costumers paying far more than initially anticipated.  With the cloud storage solution offered by The Planet, customers are charged a fixed rate and know exactly what they are paying for.

Another advantage of The Planet’s cloud storage service is that it makes up the only geographically distributed storage solution of its kind.  Leveraging its state of the art Dallas-based  data facility and solid partnership with Nirvanix, The Planet is able to take advantage of the Storage Delivery Network and allow customers to choose exactly where they want to store data on the cloud.  There are no limitations as data can be placed on any node in both networks.

In a recent statement, Patrick Harr, Nirvanix Chief Executive Officer, commends The Planet on its extension of the Storage Delivery Network.  By providing more flexibility, The Planet is essentially giving its customers the best of both worlds, resulting in a win-win situation for all parties.  By utilizing Nirvanix’s global cluster, customers have the freedom to access the local Dallas node or optimize storage from virtually anywhere in the world.  Coupling an attractive price with respectable service level agreements, the new cloud storage service provides clients with more options for creating and scaling next-generation web applications.

Although The Planet stands firm in its claim as the first to offer such a cost effective solution, the new service actually follows a cloud storage system launch initiated by Webair last month.  eLina, Tilana and Nirvanix also introduced similar services prior to The Planet’s recent launch.

Finding a Domain for Your Business

Having a domain name is vital for any online company.  Some view this as your official license to effectively do business on the web.  If you are just starting out online, it is important to look around and get the best domain name deal you can find.

The price for domain name registrations have dropped significantly, although there are still a few companies that will charge more than $20 per year if you are not careful.  Before signing up with the first registrar you run across, do a little research and find out what is available.  By doing so, you will know more about the domain game and what is acceptable and what is completely ridiculous.

Where to Look

The ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) is the body that accredits companies as official domain name registrars.  This organization makes a great resource as it lists the names for all accredited registrars on the website.  These companies are generally trust worthy as they are required to follow the rules and regulation set forth by the ICANN.  While this lists makes a good place to start, it will not provide you with any price comparisons on domain names.

Comparing Prices

You could easily spend hours searching through dozens of registrars looking for one that offers a decent price.  There are however, several companies well known for their affordable price on domains and associated services.  One name you are sure to run across is GoDaddy.com, a global leader in domain names.  GoDaddy has some of the best deals on the market, frequently offering bargains on relative extensions when making your initial purchase.  This registrar also allows you to transfer existing domains from another service, letting you to take advantage of a lower price and extend the current registration.  Aside from domain names, GoDaddy offers a number of services and options that you may find very useful.

Additionally, there are several comparison sites that will chart several domains so you can see what’s available.  If comparing multiple registrars is something you want to do, you will find  RegSelect.com as a great resource for comparative domain shopping.  The website is simple to navigate and allows you to view the cheapest or largest domain registrars.  RegSelct provides you with a full list of ICANN-accredited services and makes it easy to find one that meets your needs.  This service is free of charge and quite valuable as it gives you side-by-side comparisons of prices as well as features such as domain parking, forwarding and other services.

Shopzilla is known for its comparisons of various consumer products, but also allows you to find domain name registrars.  While the results are not as extensive as what you’ll find on RegSelect, the site still makes a good source and does pull up a few of the top companies.

Conclusion

Domain registrars are plentiful so there is no need to settle for steep prices.  A simple domain name will likely have implications on your business for as long as you own the website.  By spending a little time to find a reputable service, you can get a great bargain along with some extra perks that benefit your business.

The CMS Drives the Hosting Industry

Considering the opportunities the internet offers and heavy competition across multiple industries, the simple website that may have sufficed years ago is no loner enough for today’s online business owner.  As content is the major key to generating traffic, the CMS has become one of the hottest commodities in the web hosting business.

More commonly known as a CMS, a content management system is a type of software used to create, edit and manage content on a website.  These robust systems enable processes and workflows to be streamlined and typically involve the organization, categorization and structuring of information.  This technology allows you to store content as entire documents or configurable components, all while maintaining the links in between, making the CMS is great tool for search engine optimization.  Most systems enable the complete control of a website from working with scripting languages and building pages to managing files and actual programs.

Years ago, most web hosting companies only granted their clients with access to areas that permitted them to upload content to the server.  Rarely did they provide a means for controlling management and the structuring of data.  Even corporate users were limited as the tools provided didn’t allow them to monitor what changes had been made to their sites and who made the alterations.  With a CMS, users are fully equipped with tools that offer extensive control over the management functions of their website and all of its content.

Due to mass popularity, web hosting customers with a large amount of content now have various options for implementing content management systems.  With the development of open-source solutions, providers are offering these programs for next to nothing as a part of their monthly hosting plans.  Some of the options you will commonly find are Joomla, Drupal, PHP-Nuke, Mambo and Xoops to name a few.  Here are some other choices on the market:

OpenCMS

Hence the name, OpenCMS is an open source content management freely available to developers and users.  This software is preferred by many small to medium sized businesses as it enables them to create highly customized sites with interactive functionality.  OpenCMS supports a number of web-based programing languages including PHP, XML, Java, JSP and several others.

Microsoft Content Management Server

The Microsoft CMS is more suited for larger enterprises.  This system offers transparent content management and integration along with data transformation and syndication, all of which seamlessly combine various information and business processes.  The Microsoft solution is more advanced than most open-source packages as it has the ability to present information based on the customer’s needs.  The major difference between the Content Management Server and other systems is that it is a Microsoft commercial product, and therefore more expensive.

Regardless of what your requirements are, there is sure to be a CMS out there for you.  These programs go far beyond the basic tools offered by a provider and have the power to transform your site into an interactive, user-friendly platform.  As nearly every host is offering some type of system, it’s safe to say that the CMS is a driving force in the web hosting industry.

Ensim and Norseman Team Up

Ensim Corporation, collaborative infrastructure and web hosting application provider, recently formed a partnership with Norseman Defense Technologies, a prominent solutions integrator.  The new business relationship was established to offer Ensim’s Unify Enterprise Edition to United States government agencies.  According the agreement, Norsemen Defense Technologies will be responsible for selling and supporting the Ensim Unify Enterprise product to its nationwide client base of organizations in the public sector.

The latest Unify Enterprise helps organizations meet security and other compliance requirements with the enabling of access control, identity and change management, reporting and auditing, password management and fully automated provisioning.

Additionally, the Ensim product offers delegated administration and role management as well as simple configurations for clients and network devices.  Available as a complete suite or individual tools, Ensim Unify Enterprise Edition provides organizations with instant cost savings as the number of help desk calls can be reduced by up to 40%.  Savings can also be enjoyed by reducing or completely eliminating repetitive tasks, a factor that helps to improve productivity and efficiency as IT departments in organizations of various sizes can place emphasis on more strategic tasks.

Norman Defense Technologies Vice President Justin Bonner, states that the speed and flexibility of today’s business economy requires more advanced tools to meet the needs of both small and medium sized organizations.  Already known for delivering quality solutions that exceed its clients expectations, Bonner is confident that the recent partnership with Ensim will only improve Norman’s ability to meet emerging demands and needs.

From Ensim’s point of view, the business relationship with Norseman Defense Technologies is perfect as the firm currently serves many government agencies including the FBI, Navy, The National Institute of Health, FEMA and the U.S. General Services Administration.  Norseman Defense provides these organizations with numerous software and hardware solutions, adding a variety of complimentary services such as custom network and system design, professional consultation, installation and continuous administration, services that round out its fully featured market offering.  The firm will sell and support Ensim’s entire Unify Enterprise suite along with individual modules that include the following:

Microsoft Active Directory Manager: This essential component delivers a greater level of control over Active Directory, facilitating the management of complicate tasks.  The AD Manager dramatically reduces the number of privileged accounts and also prevents unauthorized modifications.

Microsoft Exchange Manager: This Microsoft management component ensures that the Exchange server is properly configured while increasing uptime and automating critical tasks.

Mobility Manager: With the Mobility Manager, organizations can enjoy the easy configuration and management of networked smart phones.

Service and User Manager: This compound module allows corporate employees to easily self-manage assigned tasks from email profiles to distributions lists, reducing calls to the help desk and reliance on the IT staff by up to 50%.

Password Manager: This module allows employees to use a web-based portal to easily reset and manage their own passwords.

Scott Young, Ensim Vice President of marketing and product management, speaks highly of Norseman’s efficiency in terms of delivering high quality solutions to important government agencies.  Young agrees that the partnership will play an integral part in helping Ensim deliver a greater value to its clients.

VeriSign Passes a Tremendous Milestone

Security is one issue that is on the mind of millions of website owners throughout the world.  It’s good to know that more people are paying attention to the risks and have taken the steps needed to secure their sites.  Earlier this year, VeriSign Inc., the leading online security and infrastructure company, reached a tremendous milestone with more than one million current SSL certificates.  Deployment of the one millionth active SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate attributes to the solid security used by well over 90% of today’s Fortune 500 Companies and some of the largest banks in the world.

Chris Babel, senior vice president at VeriSign, notes that consumers need a greater level of assurance that the sites they visit online are safe to do business with.  The milestone of one million active SSL certificates demonstrates the firm’s presence in the industry.  Babel went on to state that VeriSign will continue to collaborate with its industry peers and help customers find most secure places for making purchases online.   Already responsible for securing more servers than any other internet security company, the VeriSign Secured Seal has become the most trusted of all on the web.

SSL certificates issued by VeriSign include VeriSign, GeoTrust and Thawte, all of which help to safeguard consumers against fraudulent websites by providing and validating information about the owner of the certificate. Consumers can learn the identity of the person they are dealing with and if the certificate holder is the legal owner of the domain name.  Most of all, these SSL certificates encrypt the customer’s personal information during internet transactions.   When a consumer visits a site equipped with such a certificate, their browser will display a padlock icon as well as HTTPS in the address bar.  This enables visitors to browse a web page with a greater level of confidence, helping them to feel comfortable about dealing with a legitimate site.

The most widely recognized of all, the VeriSign Secured Seal gives indication that a particular web page is protected with a brand of SSL certificate issued by VeriSign itself.  Throughout the world, this seal represents trust and security, one that has become a common fixture to validate leading online merchants, financial institutions and other prominent businesses on the internet.

A recent study conducted by TNS Research shows that 79% of online shoppers in the United States are familiar with VeriSign’s Secured Seal, trusting it more than other mark on the internet.  This seal is viewed well over 150 million time each day, thoroughly tested and proven to help boost online transactions by as much as 31%.  The study also reveals that the VeriSign Secured Seal can be found on more than 90,000 sites in over 140 countries across the globe.

Since the late 90s, VeriSign has been providing services for a reliable internet infrastructure to secure the huge world of networked computers.  Countless of times each day, its trusted SSL certificates and recognizable seals help businesses and consumers from worlds apart engage in secure E-commerce transactions with the utmost confidence.