Where to buy cheap domain names?

It's an easy question. Is it really? I decided to write this because just few days ago one of my friends bought a domain name for $34/year. And when I told him about cheaper deals, he was shocked. So how would you decide yourself when it comes to getting a domain name? There was time when I spent $35/year for a domain name. That was when there were no other registrars. It was with Network Solutions. I had to pay for two years at a time.

Tables have turned now. You can now even get domain names for as low as $1.99 at Godaddy.com, or $2.99 at Yahoo . But these deals that I just mentioned are for new customer. So it would be better to get more than one domain at once to get that deal. Godaddy.com otherwise will charge $8.95/year.

I like the price at Ipowerweb.com also. They are currently offering $2.95/year for a domain name. But I think the price is still better at Yahoo if you want to register the domain name for more than 2 years. Because Ipowerweb charges more if you want to register for more than 2 years.

There are many more places where you can buy them. Even you will see some banner ads on this website for domain names with low prices. Following is the list of some cheap domain registrars for under $10:

• Cheap-domainnames.com
• Aplus.net
• Dynonames.com
• Ipower.com
• 1&1

Some things to note before buying a domain name

• Make sure that the special they are running is really true, because like I mentioned above some of the deals are valid only for new customers or if you get non domain products
• Make sure that they have good domain management system, which allows you to park your domain names for free even if your website is not ready yet. I like Yahoo becuase it lets me forward my domain to any other domains for free. I guess other registrars might have the same feature.
• Most of the time such low deals apply to common extensions such as ".com", ".org", or ".net." So make sure that to look for deals for other extensions also (if you are looking for such)
  

Hope this will help even if it is going to be a small investment.

Tips for Online Shopping

I wanted to write about this topic for a long time, but it was not until today that when a friend of mine asked me for the site to buy for a good lap top.

This is solely based on my experience. Some of you might have different opinions/tips.

• I would first research on an item that I m looking for. I would research by going sites like Epinions.com. This site provides reviews along with recommendations from other customers/consumers who have the same product you are looking for. I m not saying that you should totally depend on the consumer reviews, but its a starting point, and you will get some idea on the product.
• After I get some information on the item then I would search for that item on comparison shopping sites. Some of the comparison sites I visit include shopping.com, pricegrabber.com, shopping.yahoo.com, mysimon.com. You can read more on comparison sites on my previous post.
• Once you find the right price, make sure that you read the feedbacks left my customers to the merchant. Selecting the lowest price is not always an good idea. Sometimes, the merchant wants you to call them so that they can convince you to buy other extra stuff such as warranties, and other accessories.
• Please note that the price that appears might not be up to date, so you might want to confirm by calling the merchants.
• Next I would check whether the site is secured or not. There are number of ways to find whether the site is secured or not. You could look for the URL/website address that starts with "https://"
• You can also check for an image that looks like golden "padlock" at the bottom right of your browser, and when you just point your mouse over the lock, then you should be able to see "SSL secured" written.
• If you still feel unsafe then you can always call the seller and ask for other alternatives. Or you could even get information on seller by calling "Better Business Bureau."

Well this is some general tips. I m sure I might have left some out. I will try to add more later.

ps. Shopping.com, and Epinions.com is now part of Ebay.

GoDaddy.com commercial rejected for Super bowl 2006

Have you ever seen commercial of Godaddy.com? Especially the one during Super bowl!!
It was rejected this year by ABC. According to its founder, Bob Parsons, the ad was rejected after Godaddy submitted for the 13th time.

Bob is not giving hope yet. Godaddy even sent the ad for the 14th time and waiting to hear from ABC. You have to see their ad as to why it was rejected.

Godaddy.com is the world's largest domain name registrar. I also have couple of domains under them, but recently Yahoo, and others have started to offer for cheap.

Don't forget to check their advertisements.

Bolivian President's Sweater-Hit on Internet

Who would have thought that the sweater worn by Bolivian President, Evo Morales would be a hit on Internet?

It’s an Alpaca sweater which has blue, red and grey stripes. It was also told that the sweater worn by the president was a gift from the indigenous people, however according to the chief financial officer of BoliviaMall.com, said it was not true. He said that the president also bought the sweater.

President was wearing the sweater during his recent world trip. He was showing his origin and unity with the indigenous people. He is also the first Indigenous President, and grew up as a cocoa farmer, and as a Llama herder.

BoliviaMall.com has been getting orders for similar sweaters from more than 20 countries around the world and is selling for $49 each.

But I was wondering when I heard this news first on NPR; the CFO of BoliviaMall.com said the sweater would cost $10.

In either case, Does Price Matter?

How about Another Search Engine?

Do you use the same search engine for all of your searches or do you use more than one? In my case, I use Google most of the time, and sometimes I use Yahoo. There were times when I used to use AltaVista, which is now part of Yahoo. I used to like Looksmart as well.

Anyways, I came across another search engine called "Dumbfind.com." Despite the presence of heavy players out there, Dumbfind plans to compete with them by offering more targeted searches. Dumbfind has two search boxes. The first box will display results for the actual word being searched, and the second box is supposed to shows related searches. Dumbfind.com runs on Linux, and uses tags. Tag explains about the website or a page.
I also gave it a try, and I was not really impressed with its result. I didn't get relevant searches for my requested queries.

Since this is still in beta phase, I guess it will be better in the coming days.

Is Google Sticking up to their Motto "Don't be EVil?"

I guess by now most of you might have heard of Google censoring its site in China. Not long ago Google was in the news for not being cooperative with US federal Government. You can read about that in my previous post.

Due to the request of Chinese government, Google launched its censored version of search engine in China on Jan 25th. Content sensitive to Chinese government will not be found on Google.cn. Even the Tibetan related information was excluded.

It’s an irony that just few days ago, Google refused to hand in the report of all the searches to the US government, while cooperating with Chinese government. Even other search giants like Yahoo, and MSN went ahead with the Chinese Government.

I think Google cooperated with Chinese government not just because of ethical reason, but for economic purpose. By not complying with the Chinese government can harm Google, especially when its competitors Yahoo, and MSN had agreed to go with the request of Chinese government. There is huge potential for business, and to make money in China. China is second to US in number of internet users.

Many activists and internet users are wondering about Google's motto "Don't be Evil." So is Google ignoring their motto just to make some money?

Google will not offer its email services, or blogs in China, but will offer news, and searches.

So do you think China can control Internet?

Top Wireless Internet Spots in The World

WIFI has been increasing in recent years. Many universities, cafes, pubs, and even car wash locations now have "Hot Spots." I was wondering which cities had the most wireless internet spots. According to JWire, I have listed some of the top Wireless Internet Spots by US cities, US States, Countries, and by types of Location. You can also see these data at JWire.

In USA

• San Francisco (801)
• New York City (643)
• Chicago (501)

Top States

• California (6527)
• Texas (2534)
• Florida (2427)

Worldwide Cities

1. Seoul (2056)
2. Tokyo (1802)
3. London (1627)
4. Paris (895)
5. San Francisco (801)
6. Daegu (787)
7. New York (643)
8. Singapore (619)

Top Countries

1. USA (37073)
2. UK (12668)
3. South Korea (9415)
4. Germany (8614)
5. Japan (5951)
6. France (3886)
7. Italy (1767)
8. The Netherlands (1703)

Top Locations:

1. Hotel/resort (26330)
2. Restaurant (19653)
3. Mall (13827)
4. Cafe (13815)

Its interesting to see that China has only 497 whereas Chile has 544 WIFI spots. China is behind US in Internet users in the world. I wonder what might be the reason for countries like China to have only 497 WIFI spots? Is it because of the economy? I doubt that, since its also the fastest growing economy in the world.

Also "car wash" location has 21 WIFI spots.

You can find about more cities, states, and countries at JWire. You can even search by location/cities/state at JWire.

WebSites that don't suck!!!

Below is the list of some sites that I find interesting and useful.

Coolhomepages.com-You can browse hundreds of websites by various categories. This site can be very helpful for web designers to get an idea of designs. The site also has lots of resources for web design including web templates, stock photos.

Scriptlance.com - This site is a platform where you can either posts some project, or you bid to take on projects. For instance, if you need a website to be done and you are looking for some good programmers, then this is the place to look for the programmers.

Youtube.com - Feeling bored? Want to check out some videos? Check out this website where people share their videos.

Sidestep.com - It's a very nice travel site. It searches prices from more than one travel sites. You can an also download for free. Good feature about this is that even if you search for some fares on any other travel sites such as expedia.com or travelocity.com, sidestep will also automatically search for you request on the side.

Picasa.com - Yet another company bought by Google. Very easy to use software, and free to download. I find this software very helpful in organizing, editing sending (emailing) pictures. It's also easy to transfer pictures from your digital camera.

We Sell It on Ebay For You

You heard that right. Have you watched a movie "40 year old virgin?" The lady in that movie does exactly the same thing as the title says. She sells items for someone on EBay.

EBay is the number one shopping sites out there. Started little over a decade ago, EBay now has more than 100 million registered users.

Many have even made their career out of EBay. Like the lady in the movie, there are companies that sell items on behalf of their customers on EBay. Here is how it works in most cases..

• Fill out the form
• Bring items to one of the drop off location
• They will send you a check once the item is sold
  

Some of the big players are i-soldit.com, auctiondrop.com, and quickdrop.com. There is however some restrictions on the items that you can sell through these guys. For instance most of them require that your item be of at least certain value and weight. For instance an item should not be less than $50 and should not weigh more than 150 lb.

Some of the advantages:

• It’s easy to buy on EBay but hard to sell items. You don't need to spend time in preparing an item to sell, and monitor them, especially if you have a busy schedule.
  These companies would do everything for you. They will take pictures, and write effective descriptions, and post them online. They will even ship it for you.
  These companies have very good reputations on EBay. They are usually power sellers, and have experience in selling items on EBay.
  Once the item is sold then they will send you a check minus their fee and EBay Fee.

Disadvantage

• You will get less money than if you have sold it yourself, but is this really a disadvantage? Because if you sell yourself then you will need to spend some time unless you are a pro at it.
• Need to drive to the drop off location, especially when gas is expensive. But you could drive to the store on the way to work or on the way to grocery store, since there are many drop-of-locations opening. Auctiondrop has partnership with UPS store so you could drop there as well. There are around 3000 UPS stores nation wide.

Overall, I think it’s a good idea. These companies do offer franchise, and could cost 80K to 125k to open up a franchise store.

Dangdang & E-commerce in China--Part 1

I was just listening to Marketplace yesterday on NPR (National Public Radio). They were discussing about Ecommerce in China.They were particularly talking about a website called "dangdang.com" which is similar to Amazon.com. The website started few years ago in China after its founders returned back to China from USA.

China has little over 100 million internet users. Yet, e-commerce hasn't been very huge. That is not their culture. People buy face-to-face, and pay at the spot. The other important point to notice is that only around 14% of the people in China have credit cards. So it was hard at first for "dangdang" to accept payments online since many users didn't have credit cards. So the company would deliver the product and the buyer would pay the delivery person. The buyer would even open the product to make sure it's ok. If the product was in good condition then only he/she will pay. Remember it’s not like in US where there is huge trust.

"Dangdang" had difficulties in the early years, but now they are gaining shoppers. Can you believe that they charge only around 65 cents for any orders to anywhere in China?

I also did come across related news that EBay was slashing its sellers' transaction fees in China. EBay in China is trying to compete with giants like Alibaba.com where Yahoo has some investment. EBay however will keep charging for feature products. EBay is also trying to improve its "credit environment" by having sellers to provide valid payment information. Sellers will get paid only when the buyer receives an item and is satisfied with the item.

Google under Fed Pressure to provide Sex searches

No doubt that Google is the number one search engine in the world. Millions of searches are being done at Google everyday. Topics range anything from books to sex.

Federal Government is pressuring Google to hand over the report of all kinds of searches that are being done at Google. It means several millions of queries, and the Fed is also asking them to turn in the websites that people visit.

Government wants to learn the way people surf online. They want to see how often people visit porno sites. Basically Bush Administration is trying to make the online pornography law active.

Google however is denying turning in the report saying that it will be against privacy policy. Other search engines have however complied with the government.

So is it a good thing or not? I know it’s wrong to share information in public, but what some of the services that Google offer. What about Google Earth for instance. I personally haven't used that much but heard from friends that you can even see the card parked right in front of your door/house. Now how safe is that?

We will see what happens...

American Gamer Broadcasts His Suicide

I was shocked about this news.hear this out..An American video gamer broadcasted his suicide on a Bulgarian Forum.

The 21 year old Mitchell S, was seen by other online gamers swallowing antifreeze, and pills. It was all broadcasted through his web cam.

The reason he did this was due to the "family problems" he was having.
He died later in the hospital.
Isn't this scary?
Source : Yahoo

Hackers Attacked Milliondollar Homepage

Was reading the news, and came to know that Milliondollar Homepage had been attacked by hackers.

The owner of the site Alex Tew started this site in hopes of raising 1M, and he did manage to achieve that goal in few months.

It was also reported that Alex received a call from the hacker asking for ransom, otherwise would take his site down. Alex ignored the request, and the hacker cause problems in his site.

FBI has been notified, since his site is hosted in US.

Google Buying Radio Ad Company

What started as a search engine, Google now goes beyond searching.
Its getting hard not to see giants like Google and Yahoo in the news.
Seems like they are all in a race to expand their business.

Sort of like USSR and USA back in the cold war era, competing with each other.
Google now is eying on a radio ad company trying to extend its advertising empire.
The name of that radio ad company is "dMarc" who will be receiving around $102M in cash upfront, and will receive rest of the payment over the three year period, based on the performance. The whole deal will be worth over a billion dollar.
This will be an additional plus point for Google in reaching even a wider audience, since Google will be associating its popular "Google Adword" program.

"dMarc" lets advertisers control their ads, by allowing them to schedule and present their ads, and best of all it allows them to keep track of their ads when they air.

What's next? Well, Google is still trying to invest in AOL. So lets see what happens.

Online Classes-Is it a good Idea?

Most of you have heard or seen an ad of Phoenix online University. May be you have also seen the actual building. I think it’s the largest online university. I was just wondering how effective it would be to take classes online. Recent studies show that the number of students taking classes online is increasing. I guess it’s effective. Some say that taking classes online will allow them to be flexible in their schedule. You don't have to get up early in the morning!!!

You could even chat and discuss online with other online students regarding the course.

With increasing numbers of students enrolling for online classes, there is however a threat. Hacking is one of the main concerns. Some universities now even restrict students from taking classes online unless they meet certain requirements. Students are also required to attend some important classes on campus.

So is it worth taking classes online even if you are leaving near campus?

Thompson Looks Strong--Do Google have to worry?

I had written earlier about European companies working on a search engine (more than a search engine) to challenge giants such as Google and Yahoo.
There is a company called Thompson who is also one of the key player behind upcoming project "Quaero."

Thompson is a pioneer in video and imaging, and provides service to the clients in media and entertainment fields. They include the ISPs (internet service providers), movie studios, video users, etc.

They are getting very active, and have presence in already 30 countries.

I found the following interesting facts from their site :

1. They are number one in physical media service world wide
2. Number one in out-of-home advertising services
3. Number 2 in post-production services.
4. Number 1 in DSL modems/gateways
5. Number 2 in cable modems
6. They have portfolio of around 45000 patents
7. More than 4000 people working with more than 400 engineers.
8. Have lots of properties
9. Their clients include Direct TV, Disney, ABC, ABS, CNN, Walmart, Best Buy etc
   

List goes on and on. You can also see for your self at Thompson's site .
So what does this mean? Looks pretty strong, and as I said that they are working on the "Quaero" project. So can't wait to see what will happen, and how Yahoo and Google will respond to that. It is still going to take some time but again you never know....

Possible Threat for Google??

Do you Yahoo or Google?
What used to be search engine companies, now they are more than a search engine.
I have been using Yahoo since its beginning, but now I use Google more than Yahoo for my searching purposes, and also prefer using Gmail.
I do however use Yahoo for news.
Did you know that Google represents about 40% of the search market (comScore Media Metrix). I think Google is even bigger outside of US.
I used to think that Yahoo was way bigger than Google. And yes it looks big but when I was reading somewhere on internet, I found out that Google was bigger.
I m sure once they went public, their market share has sky rocketed.
Even after spending millions of dollars by Yahoo, and even Microsoft; neither have been successful in taking over Google as a search leader. But is there any threat to Google? Well I read about this new search engine..well will be more than a search engine. Its called "Quaero", which means "to search" in Latin. European companies such ac Thomson, Deutsche Telekom, and France Telecom are behind its development.
Going head to head with such giants like Yahoo and Google has been one of the main focus even in political stream in some European countries. President Chirac of France even supports Quaero project.
We can all hope and see what it has to offer in the coming days..well make that years.

Some Internet News

Just wanted to share with you with some news related to internet..

• AOL buys video search engine called Turveo . Turveo uses "Visual Crawling", a web crawling technology to search wide variety of videos. Looks like all these big internet medias are going towards videos/media. Recently Google also started to offer some TV shows online. Yahoo is also moving towards Hollywood. Please read more about the acquisition at http://www.truveo.com/about.php?p=press
• Cybercafe users in southern India are being monitored for possible fraud, and other online threats such as spreading viruses, stealing credit card numbers.
• "Google is expanding their video offering." Back to the video world again. Google as I mentioned earlier was trying to get into this online video offerings. Google has gone live with a video store where it will be selling thousands of downloads to the public.
• Even myspace.com which is recently acqired by The News Corp will be offering downloads of video clips.
• Yahoo has started to offer free WIFI at Sheraton. Now the customers at the hotel can enjoy this service free. It will be offered in the guest rooms besides the lobby of the hotel.

That's it for now. I will be back discussing about Google and Yahoo. I will try to list down some of the companies each has acquired.

Million Dollar Home Page

Hope you all had good holidays...
I m sure some or even most of you have already heard about Milliondollar Homepage.
I came across this site on yahoo's most popular news.
I was amazed at the idea that this 21 year old came up with. Sounds too good to be true, but hey last time I checked the site, he has only 1000 pixels left.
Idea is very simple.
He is selling each pixel for a $1 to anyone who is willing to put a banner of their website/business. Since a pixel is too small to see a banner, one has to spend minimum of $100 (10 by 10 pixels).
Now there are several similar sites with similar ideas trying to bank in some $$.
Check out the site yourself. It surely does look like Times Square.
http://www.milliondollarhomepage.com