Feedback system for my site

Working on feedback system.

As of yesterday, I began to re-create a feedback system for http://modecideas.com that would send results to the web master by email. So far results are promising, but work is still needed. The test form is at http://modecideas.com/discuss.htm
Here is what the new forms look like.

Note: I found these forms are affected by the blog coding (distorts the form abnormally), so please visit the linked page to see it in operation, thanks!
...

Forced website update

For years I relied on the goodwill of a friend on line (Benji Spencer) who was kind enough to allow me to set up some of my pages on his server. Some time ago he made a decision to give up web hosting because other users were abusing the privilege by sending unsolicited mail from his server.

If you have had similar experiences, know that you are not alone. After Benji retired his server I had to cut back on automatic secure services because of the role his system played in delivering them.

If you have had troubling experiences with unsolicited mail and abuse of your trust or your goodwill, know you are not alone. Those of us valuing such qualities will continue on, helping others as long as we are able.

PS:Over the last 2 days about 100 pages of PC Helpers and frequently asked questions pages have been updated to correct errors and replace the out of date feedback system. Things were so busy I missed one or two appointments because of it (sorry folks!). The improvements should beef up security and reduce junk mail by non human submitters.

Updates to modecideas.com

The pages on http://modecideas.com are gradually being inspected, updated and corrected as required since information has a habit of going out of date. The following is a list of those pages beginning with the most recent.

Manage your PC-Helpers subscription here
Remember what computers used to be
How to contact us
computer services
(Main index page)
Manage your subscription to PC-Helpers list
Access to the main features and PC Helpers subscriptions.
Access site map, useful pages and URL submission services.
Description of the safe account system.
Opening a Safe Account
PC Helpers List etiquette
The original multipurpose perl script.
Ways to make money on line.
Proxy servers
the essential things users need to do to maintain a windows based PC
What does copyright mean?
How do I install a new hard drive?
Link pages directory
List of links pages
Index of links pages
Redirects to link page information
Acer PC
Order
Get more hits book
What can I use to check/monitor my site
for broken links?
Sources of scripts

Now the spammers are getting irritating!

Moments ago an email arrived containing spam. This one had a new twist. It was to me, but apparently also from me. I definitely did not send it! How would you react if one like that was delivered to you? Do I mark my own email address as a spam source?

Judge orders Microsoft to stop selling Word

Can you believe this? Here is a link to the story:
Judge orders Microsoft to stop selling Word
From what I have read it has something to do with patent violations. Would like to know your comments after reading it.

Checking your web site for broken links

As the condition of the world wide web develops, continual changes occur. New web sites are created. Old ones drop off the list or become out of date. One of the most common symptoms of this change is that some of the links on your web site no longer point to a valid page.

Thankfully, a clever windows tool is available to help check the condition of your links. It is called Xenu. Get a copy of it here: Xenu link checker.

After running a check on your pages it produces a detailed report showing which links are broken, where they pointed to and which pages they are on. It provides a printed report so you can track every problem and keep your pages up to date (my last one contained hundreds of pages of useful data).
Please note: You will also need a way to edit your pages to correct the contents as needed. One editor I would suggest using is called DZsoft WebPad. You can get a copy here: Xenu link checker (a purpose built HTML editor/creator).WebPad

If you have a web site that hasn't been checked for a while, isn't it possible the pages may need a checkup by now?

Fake CNN emails

I received 2 messages claiming to be from CNN this morning.
They were fairly convincing with headline news links etc.
When I tested them, the pages linked to either did not exist
or displayed something other than the headline story linked to it.

Based on this it may be wise to watch out for such reports and keep
clear of them.

Is your website getting out of date?

Anyone who has a website, especially one you have responsibility for, needs maintainance.
Why?
Even if your site has not changed, others have. Many sites have links that point to other useful and relevant ones. Over time, some will change while others will move or disappear completely. The reputation of your site often depends on whether visitors can find what they need there. If they can't they will try somewhere else.

Of course it is easier if you have another service host it for you. Each day you can look at it and upload changes or updates as required. On the other hand, if it is hosted in house, updating can be more difficult, often due to the fact that the only one who can't see what's going on is you. That may seem ironic, but a Linux server may not present you with a view of the real condition of your site. This is especially true if your server contains a text based server program like Debian (Linux). It's great software, known for its stability, but a demanding environment to work in. What can you do?
Being text based, and extremely stable, the server requires you to deal with it on a text level (no windows icons even if your website has them).

In this situation you may get help from a local Linux user group, often called a LUG. Many such groups exist, some providing voluntary free service. In the end though you yourself will need to learn the ropes to handle the system. Many user groups exist, so chances are you can contact one in your area.
My local one is found here: Wellington Linux User Group

How would you deal with these people?

I have a customer (Mr B. S.). This fellow is very keen to receive professional tech service for his computer. It is generally difficult, since he does not do any maintainance or follow any advice given to him. Consequently his system is plagued by infections and in poor condition. As if that is not enough, when he gets the bill, he gets the money from his partner or refuses to pay because he doesn't like spending money or paying bills. Meanwhile, his situation and reputation suffer. His system is due for service shortly.

Before I proceed, may I ask for your recommendations, as I am too close to this to be sure of acting objectively.

Blogs are for answering questions

In the past few months I have posted new topics and answered a number of member's questions. That is what they are for- a forum devoted to discussion with the aim of helping others. If you have a question, ask and someone answers. If you have news, share it with them. If you have insights, reveal them. If you want to correct something, don't let the matter go unnoticed! If you want to change something, start a discussion about it. Otherwise the blog fails in its purpose- to help people of all sorts. As my parents would have put it "What have you got to say for yourself?"

How trustworthy is your web site?

We know that there are good sites and bad ones on the web. They seem to come in ever more variety. How can you tell the good from the bad? One useful way is to use the web of trust (found at http://www.mywot.com/. This site is one place thousands of users have come to vote on their impression of the places they have visited. Over time, a steady stream of users have notched up strong impressions of many sites by voting on trustworthiness, usefulness, quality etc. I have used it frequently to assess what I can expect from various destinations on the web. Why not make it a regular stop, especially where the safety and security of your household are concerned? If you become a member, you too can influence the way the web is used!

Importing your blog to plaxo

It all started with this: Yesterday I was offered the option of importing my blog to facebook. That seemed a good way to increase link ranking, so I agreed. Today, when I click the original link, I get a blank screen!
http://pc-tech-upper-hutt.blogspot.com/
What do you folks get?
Has the blog been moved?
If so, I want it back!

Thankfully after the blog disappeared, facebook provided a solution to this problem.

Thank you for contacting Plaxo Customer Care.

Follow the steps to find the feed link of your blog which you added to Plaxo:

1. Signin to your account at https://www.plaxo.com/sinin
2. Click on "My Profile"
3. Click on "About Me"
4. Click on "Websites"
5. You will find the link of your blog http://pc-tech-upper-hutt.blogspot.com/

Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Even though the information was not perfect, it did provide a way to get the blog back. They deserve credit for that (name of respondent deleted).

Agressive email filtering?

Over the years I have made many friends on line. Some write to tell me their stories or to catch up with where others are. In that time contacts have been made with people world wide. Some, however have misused the email service by sending large numbers of useless messages to as many people as possible. Let's refer to them as the world of S-P-A-M. We have all had some annoyance from this practice and the misuse of legitimate services. In one case my own link page scripts were misused by people who submitted links and entered other people's email addresses with them I got blamed when their activity caused unwelcome mail from my services.


Now I have found there is a legacy that is causing a new problem for genuine users. A certain ISP (legitimate) in its attempt to prevent such problems has labeled several internet service providers in my country as sources of such mail. So instead of blocking the email addresses involved, they have blocked all mail that comes from those services.

I have just been informed that although my messages resulted in rejection errors, the intended recipients got their mail. This would surely require a weird set of circumstances involving malfunctions in the ISP systems.

As a result of this, thousands of innocent people believe they are being cut off from emailing friends who use those services just because somebody else did something bad, or because of a system error and these innocents may be punished for the wrong doing of others.

What would you think if your ISP behaved like this?

Do you have too many links in your email signiture?

A friend recently reminded me that I have too many links at the end of my emails. For those of us who have many different online interests this is a common thing. If there are too many, it can become a problem for them. For that reason I am adding them to my blog separately so everyone can benefit from a better way.
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