midnightvamp

Just thought I'd post about some of my experiences with Xisto - Web Hosting. I've been with them for a long time now (I started with the free forum posting service and now have a couple of paid sites with them). Well, even though my original service was free, it was excellent. I had full control over my site and as long as I continued to post on the forums, I could keep my free site up and running without having the normal ads that free sites force on their users. That was the first thing that attracted me to Xisto.com (which was the free hosting part of Xisto - Web Hosting at the time).Well, though I liked the price of free, I sometimes found it hard to keep up with both my website and the forum posting, so I decided to pay a yearly price instead of having to post. It was very affordable and I figured my time was better spent on updating my site. They had no problem with this and I was able to keep my same hosting without posting to their forum. Well, since then, I've had to upgrade my bandwidth so the hosting costs a little more, but with the extra visitors I also make more money from my site. I would be happy to upgrade my services again, if the day comes where I need to (hopefully it does!).Anyway, I'd also like to deeply thank their support staff. Yes, they are based out of India and they work on a different time zone than I'm from, so I know most of my tickets aren't going to be responded to right away, but I typically get a response sometime during the night (most often somewhere around 1am - 8am EST). This is within 24 hours most times, except it can be slower during weekends.Also, there's been some recent changes to my hosting, where I needed to ask a LOT of questions. I felt kind of bad about asking so many questions, but Meredith (the staff member I was in contact with) was more than patient with me and ensured me that she was happy to answer all my questions - and she did just that - took the time to fully answer all my questions and concerns despite this being a busy time for them.It's this level of personalized customer service that keeps me happy to host with Xisto - Web Hosting. (The affordable prices and full site control with cPanel help too ) I don't feel like I'm just some random account number to them. I feel like a person because they treat me like one. Yes, support can be a little slow at times, but for a small company based on the opposite side of the world from me, I think it's to be expected.

Here's some background so you know where I'm coming from:Okay, so my site chromlea.trap17.com was recently moved to chromlea.com because I was told that the Xisto.com subdomain was being discontinued. I was scared to have the move made, because it's my site that makes me the majority of my income and losing it could have some real consequences for me. But since I didn't have a choice, I went with it.I was told that there would be redirects in place so anytime someone clicked on a link and arrived at one of my old pages, they would be automatically taken to my new domain (the file structure was left the same). Well, the site was moved, but the redirects haven't been added, so no one is finding my site. This is going on for a day and a half now and I'm worried that Google is going to deindex my site in the mean time, so even if redirects are eventually put in place, there will be no more of my links left in Google to be redirected.Now, normally I wouldn't be so scared about the site being unavailable for a day and a half, but a week ago, there was a server migration that also took my site down for the better part of two days. With my site being down for so much time this week, it's got me really worried about Google and being deindexed or at least losing my top rankings for my popular keywords.I realize that when you move a site, 301 redirects are the way to go. The problem is, I have no way to add them myself, because I no longer have access to my old Xisto.com subdomain's .htaccess file. I also can't put a redirect through my cPanel, because neither cPanel (chromlea.trap17.com or chromlea.com) shows the old chromlea.trap17.com domain, but rather both of them now show chromlea.com as the main domain.I've sent in a ticket to support reminding them about the redirect that I was told would be added to my old site, but I'm sure they must be swamped with everything they are moving/migrating, so I haven't heard back. Which is why I'm here asking all of you if you know of a way to add a redirect so that Google knows you have moved if you don't have access to the old site? I've searched the Internet and haven't found anything yet

As a girl... I'll try and offer my advice (but since no two girls are completely alike, who knows how useful this will be in other cases).When I'm sad, the number one thing that I want is a hug. Yes, it sounds basic, but it really does make me feel better to have someone hug me.I also want to hear "It's all going to be okay." and "No matter what, I'll always be here for you."Sometimes I want to talk. In those cases, I'm happy to have someone who will listen. It may take a couple of times in asking me what's wrong, but I'll usually walk through the door and speak about my problems if someone gives me the opportunity. (I sometimes need some time to work up the courage to say what's on my mind though, that's why it can take a couple times of gently asking what's wrong.) If I do start talking, then I'm not so much looking for someone to be rational, but more so someone who will listen without judgement so that I can get something that's been bugging me off my chest. Somehow things can get really bottled up inside and simply having someone there who's willing to listen can go a long way towards making me feel better.Other times I might not be ready to talk - chances are, if I've been asked 10 times what is wrong and I haven't yet answered, I'm not going to. In these cases, just a quiet few minutes with someone to lean on can make all the difference. Then I'm hoping for an easy transition into some light chatter about topics that don't really matter. (I don't really like to start the conversation, but I'm happy to answer if someone starts talking about "safe" topics - ie. not topics about me or my problems.) These are the times I just want to forget what's been on my mind and think about something else - anything else. In these situations, I still get to have my moment of sadness, reaffirm that someone cares about me, and then move on with my day.Like I said, no idea how relevant this will be with other girls, but that's pretty much where I'm at when I'm sad. Hopefully I've enlightened someone out there

This answer may be a bit bogus... but the only time I would want to know when I'm going to die, is if the answer was "never".Otherwise, I'd just keep thinking about when it's going to happen and not really enjoy my life. I'd rather not know than be worried about things I can't control.

I did use MyLot for a while, but even after posting and posting and posting and posting (yes, it feels that repetitive!) the money was never really going anywhere fast. I didn't make it to payout and just sort of gave up on the site, because I decided my time was probably better spent doing other things to earn some better money elsewhere.Also, like was mentioned earlier, most of the topics were so far from interesting it was hard to find a topic that I even wanted to reply to. Eventually it got to the point where I was just replying to anything and not really caring. Then I knew it was time to leave lol...

Good thing nanna had some ideas for you about what crows eat, because I didn't have a clue. I just wanted to chime in here quick and say that I saw some YouTube videos a while back where people had pet crows that lived in their home with them. They did indeed seem to make great pets, but I'm not sure if this is something that needs to be started from when a crow is a baby or not, but it seems interesting none the less.I'd be very interested in hearing more about how you and your new crow friend are getting along in the future

Yea, it's really hard to say in these types of situations. She very well could have been busy which is why she said next week and I'm thinking she wouldn't have started messaging you again if she wasn't actually interested in you. After some time passes where people haven't spoken it's easy to just continue the silence and let things end quietly. But since she was asking about you and hoping that you were doing okay, sounds to me like she's interested and maybe even concerned about why she hasn't heard from you in so long.Also, after not hearing from you in a long while (because you stopped texting her back too) she could just as easily be thinking you have lost interest in her. This might all be one big misunderstanding, but you won't really know until you two get together. I do like the idea of meeting somewhere casual and bringing a friend or two or lessen the tension though.Hope things work out for you!

One thing I think I'll mention about freelance work - it can be hard to find, but when you do find some, it can be both good and bad. Here's some of my story... There's been a couple freelance jobs that sort of fell in my lap. Both times I had been doing some work for people on a volunteer basis, which I do sometimes to help out if I come to like/respect people that I meet online. Both eventually turned into a paying jobs, but in the end, both of them stopped paying on time and I lost out on money that should have been paid to me for work that I had done.I hate charging people in advance, because it just feels wrong to me (I'm probably too trusting of people) but people have used me to their advantage and then left me out to dry.So it's just a warning, if you are going to start freelancing for yourself and are handling your own money collection, then be aware that it's not always that easy to get people to pay you what was agreed on, contract or no contract. Even though I have it in writing that these people owe me money, it's not like I can afford to fight them in court when they live on the other side of the world. It's just not worth it, so I have to cut my losses and move on.---As for how to start being a freelance writer, I can also tell you a bit about that, because I've been doing that for years. I've had some success with it. At first I started writing for Constant Content, and sold around $1500 or so from there... but with their cut, you only get to keep 65% of the money, so that's like $975. That's a big loss in my books, so I decided I'd try and go at it myself and see how I do.It's been slow going from my own site, because I've been having to build traffic and clients while writing the articles, but I have made about $150 sales so far (Not a huge amount by no means, but my site is only one year old now) and things are finally starting to pick up. I'm expecting it to get better soon And I only have to give up the 3% or so that PayPal charges, so I'm very happy about that.I think like anything, as long as you stick with something long enough and give it enough effort, that you can make anything work out Some things are just a lot harder to get started than others.Good luck on your freelancing!

I've got my big family, though it isn't really all that big. It's just my Dad and I living at home together. Soon this might be changing though, because he's finally thinking about moving in with his girl friend. So it might be My Dad, his girlfriend, her son, and I living together soon. I'm not sure how that's all going to work out, so I guess I'll just have to play it by ear.As for the rest of my immediate family, we are kind of spread around. My mother lives with my step-father around 40 minutes away or so, and I see her on occasion. I do more talking on the phone or Internet with her though. I used to live with her when I was younger, but I moved in with my Dad when I went to college, because his house is nearby.I also have a sister, but she lives with her boyfriend also about 40 minutes away. She's really busy lately, so I don't get much chance to see or talk with her, but we get together and chat online when we can. She'll be coming over in a couple days to celebrate a late Easter! (Yes, getting our family together for holidays is hard, so lots of times we do things late haha).It's a spread out family, but I've never really known it to be any different. I don't remember us all living together, because my parents split up when I was really young. And they've always lived in different cities, so it's normal to me not to see my family all that often. Though I'd like it to be more, we still do what we can ;)As for my extended family (or Great Family as it's been called above), we are even more spread out so we see each other even less often. But we still get together for the holidays if we can (some live in different countries, or on the other side of the country, so it's hard). Even with my extended family, we are a small bunch, so during the "big" family get-togethers, we are at max usually about 10 people. Most times that number is closer to six. But it's still nice to see everyone :PFor fun, I just counted up my entire family (siblings, parents, step-parents, step-siblings, grand parents, aunts, uncles, cousin's, cousin's children - for both sides of my family) and the grand total is 27 Wow that sounds like a small great family lol! But I like it, because it's mine and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Heh... I agree with you on the "spelling" point. To me, it's gotten to the point where I can't even read some of the stuff that I find on the Internet. Sure, after staring for a while and taking a few guesses I can usually understand the meanings to things (If all else fails, I just check Google ) Mind you, my problem isn't usually so much with the people lacking spelling skills as the people who talk in "chat speak". It's grown into a language all of its own, and unless you really keep up with the times, it can certainly leave you in the virtual dust, so to speak.I really wish I could turn that talent on and off, but I think I was born just a little too early to pick it up. It always makes me laugh to read it, and I envy the people that can write in that style and like flipping a switch go back to regular writing. Perhaps, if I sat down to learn it, I would be able to type like that too, but likely, by the time I had it down pat, the "lingo" would be so old that it still wouldn't sound right lol... I think I'll just stick to typing in my regular way. It's faster for me than trying to figure out a new way of typing.Though I really wonder how many people just can't spell anymore. I'm thinking a lot of it stems from some great fear of using the backspace key... or perhaps a laziness that stops people from going back over their writing and correcting obviously misspelled words. It's not like you need to be a dictionary-level typer, but seriously, some of the things I read makes me wonder. Perhaps I'd get a lot more work done in a day if I did away with the backspace key altogether and refused to review my work before hitting submit. Mind you, that might also lead to less people wanting to do business with me... so maybe that's not the greatest idea after all.Either way, it was an interesting article to read

lol... I think if I knew how to stop internet addiction I wouldn't be here right now.But I can sympathize with you. I spend way too much time on the computer. If it was all - or even mostly productive time, I wouldn't care so much, but I spend so much time doing things that I could probably be better off avoiding. I think my problem is that there's always "something" that I could be doing online. Because the places to visit and things to read are endless... it keeps me going without ever finding a finishing spot. I wish I could meet the day when I can just say, "Wow! I've finished it all! I've made it to the end of the Internet!" But because no matter what I do, there's always more, so I can't feel finished. It's a never ending cycle ;)I think I really need to take some of your advice posted here, and hopefully get a little more of a life haha. But that can wait. I have more things I need to get done online

I know what you mean about people using multiple languages in the same conversation. My family does it all the time going back and forth between german and english. (German is their native language). The only problem is, they never taught us kids any german, so when they are talking, we miss half of what is going on lol... But then they tend to notice and switch back over into english for a while again until they forget ;)But I can see how speaking in both languages can benefit conversation though, because each language has certain words or meanings that can't quite get the same point across when translated into english or whatever language. But it really helps for both parties to understand both languages before you start using both haha

I read three of the books in the series so far... I think there is four total? Anyway, they weren't the greatest books on the planet by any means, but they were definitely entertaining and helped to pass the time. Plus, since I tend to be someone that gets easily bored when reading, and have trouble getting to the end of books... it was nice to actually finish these ones. Mind you, they are "young adult" books or whatever, so they were rather easy reading for me, and not so much of the brain-stimulating making-you-think-about everything books. Which was also nice, cause it's nice to just get lost in the world of a book and not have to over anaylyze everything. Plus, it lets you read the books faster :)I wouldn't mind seeing how the movie does when it comes to theaters too. I'm not sure if the movie is supposed to be about the first book, or about the full series? I guess I'll find that out later. From the previews that I've seen, it seems to be following the books pretty well, because I recognized the scenes right away as I was watching. Mind you, the actors aren't anything like what I'd envisioned in my head, but I think that's just what always happens when books become movies.As for what they are about, basically the books are about this girl that moves to a small town to live with her father, and while she's going to school there, she meets this family of vampires. Fate brings the group together, and it's like the story of how people from such different lives interact, and about the romance and friendships between a human and the vampires.

That's an interesting concept, though I'm not so sure that this type of program exists just yet. Mind you, I haven't been able to try many of the ad companies on the Internet, so it could be out there.One program you might want to look into is Amazon Affiliates (they have different branches for US, UK, Canada... etc. I've made an account with a few of them.) I know that one of their payment options allows you to order things from their site. So, once you've sold enough of their products on your website to have earned at least $10 (they give you a small commission from each sale that you refer to them), then they can give you sort of like an e-giftcard, which you can use to order things from the Amazon website.I'm not sure if this is available to all countries, or exactly how it all works, because I've only accepted checks from them in the past, but it might be something worth looking into a little deeper. Obviously it's harder to have someone click a link and then make a purchase, than it would be to have them simply click on an ad like with Adsense, but it might make a little money if you can't find anything better.I've used Amazon on my websites, with limited success. Though my Adsense outdoes it each month.Anyway, best of luck on your search! If you find something, be sure to let us know

Wow, that was very informative... and makes me want to look back into that area again. I've played around with the ideas before now, but never too seriously, but it would probably pay off bigger down the road for all the efforts put in early into keyword research.