Work at Home Internet Marketing Business

The phrase in the title does not, unfortunately for most of us, refer to a butler who brings coffee to your desk in the morning. It refers to a computer in the office that has a few special tasks to perform on behalf of others. So, perhaps in a different way it’s a little like a butler.

You could store all your files, emails, photos and more on your own computer. You could use only your computer for access to the Internet, printing, faxing and more. But that setup has some potential downsides, especially when your office grows to hold multiple desktops.

If your personal machine goes south, you could be out of business (at least for a while). Even if your machine doesn’t completely crash and burn, you could still be in serious trouble just by losing one file. You could make backups locally, say on a USB flash drive. But storing and using those small devices could lead to complicated and duplicate effort if your office has multiple computers.

If your machine is directly connected to a DSL, cable or satellite modem anyone else on your office network accessing the Internet has to go through your machine to get to the web. That drags down the performance of your machine while you’re using it, and slows down Internet access for the others.

All these problems and more can be solved by investing in a single computer that performs services on behalf of others. That’s the role of an office server. It centralizes your local email system, so everyone can take advantage of it without slowing down anyone else. It gives you a place to attach a printer, network fax machine and more so that everyone can use them without slowing down or relying on anyone else. Most importantly, it gives you a central storehouse for file backups and - heaven forbid - restores, if and when they’re needed.

With the enormous hard drives available on even ordinary computers today, servers are no longer critical for housing raw space. But their role is still important. They provide a convenient place to centralize documents, images and more that is accessible by every computer on the network with the security rights to get to them.

The alternative is what’s known as a peer-to-peer system, in which all machines on the network are equal. The Internet and all the personal computers that use it are somewhat like that (although, it also uses millions of servers).

For example, you may store your email, files and more on Google, which acts like a central server for you. Or, you may just pass files back and forth with other users, each one acting as a peer to the other. That method has its benefits and drawbacks as well. But for those who maintain an office of anywhere from two to two thousand computers a central server provides numerous values. You gain reliability, security and performance benefits from having a central system that does work on behalf of others in the office.

Now if you could only train one to bring coffee in the morning…

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In reviewing web hosting plans, many web site owners are faced at some point with the decision of whether or not to pay for a dedicated server. A dedicated server is one which holds your site(s) exclusively. It’s not shared with other sites. You then have the option to put one site or many on that piece of hardware.

But the decision is never easy. There are multiple considerations to take into account, far beyond just the higher dollar outlay that inevitably accompanies a dedicated server option.

Performance is (or should be) a prime consideration for the majority of site owners. Studies show that when a page doesn’t load within about 10 seconds or less, almost everyone will give up and go elsewhere. The delay may be caused at any of a hundred different points in the chain between the server and the user. But often, it’s the server itself.

In any case, it’s important to eliminate the server as a possible bottleneck, since it’s one of the few points over which the site owner can exercise some control.

That need for control extends further than just performance, however. Other aspects of the user experience can benefit or suffer from server behavior. Security is a prime example. With the continuing prevalence of spam and viruses, a server can easily get infected. Having only your site(s) on a single server makes that issue much easier to deal with.

With fewer sites on a server, there is less likelihood of getting infected in the first place. Also, since you will place a higher value on security than many others, it’s easier to keep a dedicated server clean and your site well protected. You can use best practices in security to fortify your site. Having other sites on the server that you don’t control raises the odds that your efforts are for nothing.

One way your efforts can get watered down is through IP address sharing. Less sophisticated hosting services will often assign a single IP address to a single server and multipe sites. That means your site is sharing the same IP address with other domains. That leaves you vulnerable in several ways.

Virus or spam attacks may target a particular IP address. If you have the same one as another site, one that is more likely to attract hostile intentions, you suffer for and with someone else.

In other cases an IP address range is assigned to the server, with each site receiving its own address from within that range. Though better than the one IP:server scenario, this still presents a vulnerability. Many attacks try a range of IP addresses, not just a single one.

But even legitimate sources can give you trouble when you share an IP address or a range. If another site engages in behavior that gets it banned, you can suffer the same fate if they ban the address or range. If the miscreant that shares your server/IP address or range is himself a spammer for example, and gets blacklisted, you can inadvertently be banned along with him. Using a dedicated server can overcome that problem.

There’s a certain comfort level in knowing what is installed on the server you use, and knowing that you alone put it there. But a dedicated server option may require increased administration on your part. If you’re not prepared to deal with that, you may have to pay still more to have your dedicated server managed by someone else.

All these factors have to be weighed carefully when considering a dedicated server plan.

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New domain names are registered all the time, and ones previously registered expired. Sometimes that’s the result of simple neglect. The owner of the name chose not to renew his or her ownership, so the name became available for someone else to use. In rare cases, a highly original mind managed to think of a new one. In the other common scenarios, someone chose to just let it go or sell it.
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Among the more useful innovations in computing, actually invented decades ago, are the twin ideas of redundancy and failover. These fancy words name very common sense concepts. When one computer (or part) fails, switch to another. Doing that seamlessly and quickly versus slowly with disruption defines one difference between good hosting and bad.
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Things To Think About

You can often get a substantial discount off web hosting fees by sharing a server with other sites. Or, you may have multiple sites of your own on the same system. But, just as sharing a house can have benefits and drawbacks, so too with a server.
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One thing most web site owners have little time for is… anything! Anything other than focusing on their site content and the business or service it supports and the information it provides, that is. That means that administration often suffers, as it frequently must. Theres only so much time in the day. Continue Reading »

Few things are less exciting than managing the disk space that always seems to be in too short a supply. But few things are more important to the health and well being of your site.   Continue Reading »

The choice of whether or not to try to administer your own web site brings with it a host, pun intended, of issues.

For most web site owners, the primary focus is naturally on creating, maintaining and enhancing the site. That often is just part of managing an entire business, for which the web site is just the means to an end.   Continue Reading »

Are you a fan of Justin Timberlake? Don”t worry, you don”t need to be one to make money from his tattoo - if that sounds bizarre to you, then read on to see how it can be done, and for free…
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When you build a web site, you often provide a means for users to communicate with you. One of the most common “add-ons” to a web site is the addition of some kind of email access. Email is used to sign users up for newsletters, provide communication for administrative issues and a hundred other uses. But, as everyone sadly knows, email problems can occur.

Virus infection is among the most common, though the situation is actually better today than in the past. Huge efforts, and some progress, has been made over the past 10 years to reduce the number and severity of virus attacks. Hackers haven”t surrendered, far from it. But they”re on the defensive like never before.

Many of those viruses were (and are) spread through email, usually in the form of email attachments. That’’s the source of the now-common advice never to open an attachment from someone you don”t know. Professionals will often extend that advice to suggest you never open an attachment that’’s unexpected, even if it’’s from someone you know. Well-meaning, but computer-challenged friends often accidentally forward virus infected emails.

Spam has taken over the top spot for email annoyances. It’’s estimated by various different professional sources that 92-97% of all email sent today is spam. While the definition varies, spam is generally regarded as any unwanted commercial email sent by someone whom the recipient doesn”t know or have a business relationship with.

Spam clutters email inboxes, requires people to sift through to find valid messages, and often contains offensive messages in some form. But, it’’s a fact of life and isn’t going away anytime soon. Even though laws are in place, thousands of spammers continue to risk fines or jail for the chance of making money from that small percentage who will open the unwanted email.

Other forms of email problems are even more severe for many web site owners. When the mechanisms fail that they rely on to send and receive messages to and from their users, that’’s a problem. Dealing with those problems can range from sending an email or instant message to an administrator, to tracking down the right person to get your site removed from a blacklist.

Email is the communications vehicle of choice for millions everyday. When the system burps, someone has to take time to do something about it. Often, that means relying on a person who is already overburdened with too many issues to resolve.

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