The New Member Site: Preview Video #1

If you haven’t yet read my first article discussing the new member site, you really need to start there, or the following may not make a whole lot of sense.
Membership Site Article #1
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In this update I want to begin introducing you to some of the member benefits that will be available through the new site. Today’s topic is…

Your Free Domain Name

For anyone wondering what a free domain name has to do with computer and Internet security, the answer is: very little — by itself. But…

The registration of a domain name is the first step in creating a personal website. Yes, it is possible to have a website without registering a domain name, but then you’d have to ask people to visit you at something like http://207.46.232.182. I don’t think you’ll find that sticking in many people’s minds for very long.

OK, so what’s a personal website got to do with computer and Internet security?

Glad you asked.

Everybody knows what an insidious time wasting plague spam has become, and it’s not going to get any better into the foreseeable future. That it’s a considerable annoyance is universally accepted, but what is often not fully appreciated is just how DANGEROUS spam is.

Spam is the initial carrier of most of the cyber plagues and digital infections that cause the World Wide Web to be a much less safe and friendly place than it should be.

So it follows that any steps we take to curb spam are positive steps in the direction of a safer online experience.

Enter the Personal Website

If you share your contact e-mail address around as something like Me@Hotmail.com or Me@myISP.com, there are going to be three important consequences:

1. Your e-mail address is eventually (and probably sooner than later) going to get onto a spammer’s distribution list. Every time you register, make a purchase, post in a forum or chat room, etc. you risk having your e-mail address harvested.
2. You are a captive of the provider (Hotmail.com, MyISP.com, or whatever) and subject to their rules, regulations, e-mail filters (good and bad), and so on.
3. You do not have a permanent contact e-mail address that you can take with you if you change ISP/host/e-mail provider — or if they go out of business or cease operation for any of a number of reasons. Whatever the reason you lose or need to change such an e-mail address, it becomes a real time-wasting nuisance to notify all your contacts, particularly if you lose your address suddenly and don’t have time to arrange redirections or something similar.

For years I’ve been preaching the value and desirability of everyone having their own permanent domain name and thus controlling their own e-mail addresses.

Now I’m doing something about it!

In the video below I demonstrate just how easy it is to take the first step and get yourself an appropriate personal domain name. In a future video I’ll show you how I’ve made the next step — translating your new domain name into an actual, live, on-the-Internet personal website that’s all about YOU — just as painless.

The default personal website that we give to members includes a contact form that incorporates a “secret” spam trap. The built-in spam trap goes a long way to wards preventing its use by spam bots.

You can also distribute your contact details to friends/associates/etc by telling them: “You can contact me through MyName.com”. That’s really all they need to know. And in the Anti-spam module in the members’ area I let you in on some other tricks that will allow you to create safe e-mail addresses that don’t identify you, and redirect them to one of your personal addresses.

OK, here’s the video…

I very much welcome your comments, questions and even criticisms. Please use the comment form below, and…

Stay Up-To-Date

If you would like to be kept informed of progress and developments with the new membership site just provide your name and e-mail address below. Whenever I have new information to share relating to the new site you’ll be notified.

Given the numbers involved I’m probably going to have to restrict membership numbers initially, as I have to be sure we can service members properly. Also, we just wouldn’t be able to handle hundreds of simultaneous requests for the free website hosting.

Everybody will be catered for eventually, but at the outset preference will be given to those people who register their interest in the new site. So to avoid delay please register below now!

If you have any interest at all in your online welfare and the health of your computer you should stay tuned. I’ll be describing and demonstrating more features in future posts and videos.