Eli the Computer Guy

Archive for the ‘Vendors’ Category

I am looking at getting new broadband service and was doing the standard research into what ports and services are blocked by different providers.  I ran across this on Comcast.com and was surprised to see that Comcast says it doesn’t block port 80.

They say they only block:

• 25
• 135-139
• 445
• 1080

You can take a look at their chart of blocked ports at http://customer.comcast.com/Pages/FAQViewer.aspx?guid=d3609bda-26c4-4200-a9ba-ba991251a9f6

I transferred my website over to a 1 and1 Linux virtual server over a week ago and I can’t be happier with the solution.  I can now easily manage my site due to the enormous speed boost.  I have numerous scripts pounding away all day, but there is no performance degradation.

I was on a GoDaddy shared hosting plan and literally received an email and phone call saying my scripts were impairing the service for the entire web server my site was hosted on.  On 1 and 1 shared hosting the site has no problems whatsoever.

I am using their basic $29 per month plan and it seems to be doing a good job. The 10 GB of storage on the virtual server is small. Since I will be publishing large video files I will be keeping them on my old GoDaddy account since that account has a lot of storage available. 

If you plan to move over to a Linux Virtual Server please realize that you will have to be using a terminal to access the server to make changes to permissions and things such as PHP.INI .  It’s not too hard to learn, and there’s more then enough documentation, but it’s not as “easy” as a Windows Virtual Server.

If you are serious about your website you should look at the Virtual Servers available from hosting companies.  They really do make running you’re site easier, and since it’s your server you can install or run anything you please.

You can take a look at 1 and 1’s offerings at http://order.1and1.com/

If you need a good terminal emulator I can’t say enough for PuTTY http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/download.html

GoDaddy.com now offers a hosting plan with Unlimited Space and Unlimited Transfer for $14.95 per month.

You can check it out at http://www.godaddy.com/Hosting/Legacy.aspx?ci=9009#details

When I started in the IT industry Dell computers were the gold standard.  They were amazingly well designed so that technicians could repair them easily.  They lasted forever (I have 60 Pentium 3 Dells that still work fine), and the customer service was pretty OK.  Back in the late 90’s if you asked me what to buy I wouldn’t have paused for a second before saying Dell.

And then things changed…

They changed from selling affordable computers to selling cheap computers and that’s when it all went down hill fast.  My clients computers started arriving with problems from the factory.  It became a nightmare to find parts for out of warranty computers because they started using different parts for the same model of PC.  And we all know what happened to customer support.

After this happened I started to tell my clients to buy form their competitors.  First it was Gateway, but then after approx. 6 months we started to have a raft of problems with them.  Then we went to HP’s, only to find out later they started using substandard parts.  And for a long while we built our own for clients, but now even the high end components that we use have started to have significantly more failures.

So at the end of the day we have started to tell our clients to go back to Dell.  Not with the enthusiasm I once had for the company, but out the sheer realization that they really are no worse then anyone else, and so at least you’ll get your custom computer cheap and quick.

One piece of advice I give clients is that when they go to the Dell web site that they go to the small business section and not the home user section.  You get will better prices there and all you have to do is make up a business name when you place the order.

Note:

If you are willing to pay a 25% premium for a quality computer take a look at Lenovo computers  (www.Lenovo.com).  these are the guys that bought IBM’s PC division.  From what I have seen they have done a good job at keeping their quality high.

Update:

As of 2/3/09 Dell is still selling computers with XP on them.  Click this link to see them http://www.dell.com/business/laptops?~ck=mn#subcats=&navla=80770~0~1791344&navidc=Operating System&navValc=Vista with Downgrade to XP&a=80770~0~1791344 .

If you are looking to setup your own surveillance system, or are installing one for a client you should take a look at SuperCircuits.com.  They are a one stop place for buying CCTV equipment online.  They have a very large selection, and they’re prices and quality are very good.We have used them in the past for purchasing cameras for clients with no problems.

If you are looking to get into the CCTV installation business you might want to start buying products here, but you should find a real distributor as soon as you can.  When you are trying to install various cameras into miscellaneous situations you need a sales rep that can explain your options.  When I installed CCTV systems  I sometimes would send digital pictures of the site to my sales rep to ask what the best options were.

Take a look at their selection at www.SuperCicuits.com .  Please remember to research what you want before you buy anything.  I’ve had numerous clients go out and buy $1000-$2000 worth of gear only to realize they don’t have the foggiest idea how to set it up.