Northeastern Connecticut's Neighbors Paper

Beware the 6 Pack Trap; or Dude, Where's My Site? (Dr. Web)

by Steve Woron

 

 

 

 

Last issue I explained how to pick a domain name and how to get it very cheaply. There is no benefit to paying more for a domain name no matter what your registrar says. Many throw in services that have no value. So once again I recommend www.1and1.com. Only register your name with them. Don’t buy the other services.

This month I’ll talk a little about the “six pack trap”. I coined this term after I was talking to various people with websites that had them made by a cousin, ex-husband, college kid, or stoner in high school. “I know someone who knows someone, who’s kid’s in college. He makes websites.”

“Really?” I say, “When was the last time he updated the site?” I usually get the stare like the frog on a lily pad.

The “six pack” refers to the payment involved in contracting the site; a 6 pack of beer. Some payment for sites isn’t even THAT!

Often I will go to the site. Most of the links are dead, outdated or go to new sites I’m sure the webmaster didn’t check or even knew the site changed. (A webmaster is a term describing a person whose occupation is designing, developing, marketing, or maintaining websites.) I have even seen sites that pointed to sites that contained adult material I’m sure the site owner didn’t know of. The webmaster’s link name was off by 1 letter and therefore pointed to an unintentional site.

The adult content aside; usually the worst offense is the site looks like it was made at the dawn the web. The earliest websites had a clunky newbie look as designers and webmasters were just understanding how the web worked and how to write HTML by hand. Pagemill was the only program around back then and it was still primitive and rightly so, so were the sites it created. It was the best of it’s time, but now surfers can easily recognize a quality site from an old outdated dinosaur.

Six pack sites are also spotted when you see material that’s horribly outdated. If you’ve still got commentary about Y2K or your reaction to the OJ trial on your site, it’s time to get with it. Nothing turns a site visitor off more than outdated material!

Six pack webmasters are also notorious for the disappearing act. I was contacted by a band who had their site made by a six-packer. This six-packer was heart broken by his girlfriend who left him. Without telling anyone, he packed his bags and followed her to somewhere in the south, or maybe it was one of those square hot dry states...

The band was left with nothing. No idea where he was, where the site was hosted, where their domain was registered or passwords to any of the above. We had to start from scratch.

I hear stories similar over and over about unreliable six-packers throwing the “keys” to the owner and taking off to who-knows-where... And those are the lucky ones who know they are being abandoned. I always say “You get what you pay for...” In no place could it be any truer than having a website built, maintained and updated.

Steve Woron is an artist and Mac technician and lives in Vernon CT. Contact him at (860) 871-9933 or illstudio@snet.net
See his ad directly below...
He also builds websites for individuals and small companies...