The blog at my website is now functional.
So I request all you people who are following this topic here to kindly direct your browser here to continue following this series of posts. If you have subscribed to the rss feed, the new link to the feed is http://www.mistrynitesh.com/blog/index.rss You can also subscribe to the topic based feeds (for a particular tag or tags) from the link to the particular tag. Add it to your favorite feed reader and enjoy!
Monday, September 13, 2010
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Sweeten the Deal
This is more like an update to my previous post on selecting a registrar. But I am writing a separate post because its a bit lengthy.
Recently, I was hanging out with my old friend, Google, when I thought of throwing in a query about 'promo codes' that the domain registration sites keep asking about while checking out the shopping carts. And surprisingly there are many sites dedicated to the listing of these promo codes.
Let me explain a little more about these promo codes. I've observed that in case of many registrars, while giving the final prices for the domain registration, there is usually a field to enter 'promo code' or 'source code' or something similar. This entitles you to get additional discount. Some registrars ask this information at the time of revealing the prices and some at the time of finally checking out before proceeding to payment stage.
A quick search for the words 'godaddy promo source code' brings up thousands of websites/blogs which list the current promotional codes for availing additional discounts on domain registration/transfer/renewal/etc at godaddy.com. Go to any of the site and you will find promo codes for various types of discount - like some for, say, 10% on total order value, other for $5 discount on order > $30 and the list goes on. Copy the code for the discount type that suits you and paste it in the field provided on the registrar's website.
Like I said earlier, there are many leading registrars which offer these types of discount on providing promo codes. So in the above example, replace the name godaddy with any other registrar's name having similar offering and you should find the list of relevant websites.
But there's one thing to keep in mind. The registrars keep changing their promo codes at regular intervals. I encountered a few sites where the codes given had expired. So go to a site which says 'promo code for July 2010' if you are registering the domain in July '10 to get the most relevant codes.
Now select the registrar who gives the lowest price after promotional discount. Isn't this called sweetening the deal?
Recently, I was hanging out with my old friend, Google, when I thought of throwing in a query about 'promo codes' that the domain registration sites keep asking about while checking out the shopping carts. And surprisingly there are many sites dedicated to the listing of these promo codes.
Let me explain a little more about these promo codes. I've observed that in case of many registrars, while giving the final prices for the domain registration, there is usually a field to enter 'promo code' or 'source code' or something similar. This entitles you to get additional discount. Some registrars ask this information at the time of revealing the prices and some at the time of finally checking out before proceeding to payment stage.
A quick search for the words 'godaddy promo source code' brings up thousands of websites/blogs which list the current promotional codes for availing additional discounts on domain registration/transfer/renewal/etc at godaddy.com. Go to any of the site and you will find promo codes for various types of discount - like some for, say, 10% on total order value, other for $5 discount on order > $30 and the list goes on. Copy the code for the discount type that suits you and paste it in the field provided on the registrar's website.
Like I said earlier, there are many leading registrars which offer these types of discount on providing promo codes. So in the above example, replace the name godaddy with any other registrar's name having similar offering and you should find the list of relevant websites.
But there's one thing to keep in mind. The registrars keep changing their promo codes at regular intervals. I encountered a few sites where the codes given had expired. So go to a site which says 'promo code for July 2010' if you are registering the domain in July '10 to get the most relevant codes.
Now select the registrar who gives the lowest price after promotional discount. Isn't this called sweetening the deal?
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Lightning Strikes!
I am back!
If you thought that this blog is dead, you were wrong (this time). This long pause was a result of my computer being struck by lightning, literally. And except for hard disks (only He knows how!) everything else got fried. The service engineer had to replace almost all the parts of my computer. And it took more than a month for him to fix this. With no other real alternative, I couldn't post all this time.
I guess I've given enough excuses (and I am so good at it :D ). Will be delivering the next post soon.
So don't go anywhere and keep watching!
If you thought that this blog is dead, you were wrong (this time). This long pause was a result of my computer being struck by lightning, literally. And except for hard disks (only He knows how!) everything else got fried. The service engineer had to replace almost all the parts of my computer. And it took more than a month for him to fix this. With no other real alternative, I couldn't post all this time.
I guess I've given enough excuses (and I am so good at it :D ). Will be delivering the next post soon.
So don't go anywhere and keep watching!
Monday, June 14, 2010
Pick up a Registrar
In this post, I am going to narrate my experience in finding a suitable Registrar for getting my domain name.
Who are Registrars?
To quote wikipedia -
Finding a suitable registrar is basically bargain hunting, since the end product that you will receive from any registrar is the same - that is - your domain name. At the time of this writing, domain names annually cost you anywhere between 8 to 10 US Dollars (350 to 500 Indian Rupees). However, ensure that the registrar you select provides you with full control over your domain name settings. I learnt the hard way.
The first domain name that I registered was with Indiatimes. I was not much aware of the domain name settings and primarily wanted to link it to my blog on Blogger. Indiatimes provided very little independence regarding domain name settings. Even adding/changing a cname record (I'll touch on this topic later) required me to post a request to their customer support and it would take around 2-5 days to process. They believe that their customers are not qualified enough to make the changes themselves and hence they do not provide control over such sensitive settings to their customers.
My subsequent hunt for a better registrar landed me with Godaddy. I registered a couple of other domain names with them and till now, I am a happy customer. They provide complete control over the domain name settings, so I can now change cname/a/mx/other records within minutes. They also threw in a few goodies like a 2GB mailbox, email forwarding, shared ad-supported web hosting (more on web hosting later), photo album, website builder, etc., some of which you may or may not use depending on your circumstances. All this for almost the same price as the Indiatimes charged. I am not suggesting that Godaddy is the best registrar. The point is to keep your eyes open. Every now and then, one or the other registrar comes out with some great offer for a cheap domain registration. So while registering check out the offers of 4-5 leading registrars and settle for the cheapest. Some of the leading registrars are:
Well, and did I got stuck with Indiatimes for my first domain name? No - you can transfer your domain name from one registrar to another (will do a separate post on this) as per your wish. However, you have to forgo whatever you paid to your existing registrar. Luckily for me, I found that Godaddy was offering domain transfer which included one year registration + whatever unexpired time I had on the current registration.
So chart out on your search for a registrar and don't hesitate to transfer if you are not satisfied. After all its your domain.
Who are Registrars?
To quote wikipedia -
A domain name registrar is an organization or commercial entity, accredited by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) or by a national country code top-level domain (ccTLD) authority, to manage the reservation of Internet domain names in accordance with the guidelines of the designated domain name registries and offer such services to the public.To cut the long story short - Registrars are the guys who will register your domain name with the authorities for you and hold your records.
Finding a suitable registrar is basically bargain hunting, since the end product that you will receive from any registrar is the same - that is - your domain name. At the time of this writing, domain names annually cost you anywhere between 8 to 10 US Dollars (350 to 500 Indian Rupees). However, ensure that the registrar you select provides you with full control over your domain name settings. I learnt the hard way.
The first domain name that I registered was with Indiatimes. I was not much aware of the domain name settings and primarily wanted to link it to my blog on Blogger. Indiatimes provided very little independence regarding domain name settings. Even adding/changing a cname record (I'll touch on this topic later) required me to post a request to their customer support and it would take around 2-5 days to process. They believe that their customers are not qualified enough to make the changes themselves and hence they do not provide control over such sensitive settings to their customers.
My subsequent hunt for a better registrar landed me with Godaddy. I registered a couple of other domain names with them and till now, I am a happy customer. They provide complete control over the domain name settings, so I can now change cname/a/mx/other records within minutes. They also threw in a few goodies like a 2GB mailbox, email forwarding, shared ad-supported web hosting (more on web hosting later), photo album, website builder, etc., some of which you may or may not use depending on your circumstances. All this for almost the same price as the Indiatimes charged. I am not suggesting that Godaddy is the best registrar. The point is to keep your eyes open. Every now and then, one or the other registrar comes out with some great offer for a cheap domain registration. So while registering check out the offers of 4-5 leading registrars and settle for the cheapest. Some of the leading registrars are:
- Enom - But they have some strange kind of registration process which requires you to be a reseller with them. May be I have not been able to understand their product.
- 1&1
- Network Solutions - Whoa! Just checked their pricing chart and they are charging 35 bucks for a year!
- Godaddy - As mentioned above
- Google Is Your Friend! - Key in 'domain registrar' and it will provide you with a long list of registrars.
Well, and did I got stuck with Indiatimes for my first domain name? No - you can transfer your domain name from one registrar to another (will do a separate post on this) as per your wish. However, you have to forgo whatever you paid to your existing registrar. Luckily for me, I found that Godaddy was offering domain transfer which included one year registration + whatever unexpired time I had on the current registration.
So chart out on your search for a registrar and don't hesitate to transfer if you are not satisfied. After all its your domain.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Got your domain name?
First things first. If you want a truly personalized - your very own - website, you ought to have your own domain name. It would be your permanent address on the web. A unique identity that you control. You can point it to any of your locations on the web (like right now, I am pointing mistrynitesh.net to this blog and few other places) or have email addresses ending with your domain name (like anything@yourdomain.com), etc... the opportunities are unlimited.
Getting your own domain name? You think its too "geeky"? So did I until a few months ago. But believe me registering a domain name is just as simple as ordering a t-shirt from an online store. You just need a credit card/online bank account, luck and/or imagination. Credit card to pay for domain registration; luck to find your name available and that no one else owns it; and imagination so that if your name is not available you can be a bit creative to make-up a suitable name for yourself.
Let me tell you, whether you are an individual or an organization, spending that bit on your own domain name is worth every paisa (and no, I am not selling anything here).
I will post about choosing a domain name and getting deals on domain-registration later. Till then ciao!
Getting your own domain name? You think its too "geeky"? So did I until a few months ago. But believe me registering a domain name is just as simple as ordering a t-shirt from an online store. You just need a credit card/online bank account, luck and/or imagination. Credit card to pay for domain registration; luck to find your name available and that no one else owns it; and imagination so that if your name is not available you can be a bit creative to make-up a suitable name for yourself.
Let me tell you, whether you are an individual or an organization, spending that bit on your own domain name is worth every paisa (and no, I am not selling anything here).
I will post about choosing a domain name and getting deals on domain-registration later. Till then ciao!
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