Useful Concept

My Domain Name Generator

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:41:00-0400

For fun this weekend I decided to build my own domain name generator. It is a one page site built with ColdFusion (CF) and JQuery (JS). Basically it gets random words from the categories you select in the order that you select, then checks to see if the generated domain name is available. If so it provides a link to godaddy.com for the result. If people actually buy a domain name via the site I theoritically get a 20% commission. Now I just need 500 domain names a day purchased from the site and I am all set. For those wondering how I am getting the availability, I looked into the reseller programs of the main registrars and found that each had a fee to sign up. GoDaddy actually charges the most if you want access to their API. So I then found a handy whois cfc posted by Dan Vega that used Java to ping a whois server. I modified it for my needs and just parsed the results as needed. Instead of going the reseller direction (I don't want to be responsible for anyones domains and I think people would prefer to register with godaddy directly) I signed up with Commission Junction for the affiliate program. Let me know what you think. What categories should I add? Any words missing from categories that you noticed? Any spelling errors?

Entry Level Web Developer Needed - Portsmouth, NH

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:14:00-0400

Harbour Light Strategic Marketing is looking to grow. Looking to fill a full time position for an entry level website developer. This is an on-site job, so no telecommuting.

Skills Required:

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RIAdventure 360 = Conference + Cruise + Fun

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 14:20:00-0400

I am very pleased to announce the next RIAdventure.

This round we are partnering with the 360 Conference guys to put together a full conference/cruise. It is a 7 day cruise. Travel from New Orleans to Costa Maya (Mexico), Santo Tomas De Castilla (Guatemala), Belize City (Belize) and Cozumel (Mexico). There are two full days at sea, and it is those two days that the conference will happen.

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Seacoast NH CF/Flex UG Meeting Tomorrow

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 16:25:00-0400

The Seacoast CF/Flex User Group will be meeting tomorrow (Wednesday , June (6/17)) to showcase some of the new features coming up in Flash Builder (Flex), Flash Catalyst, ColdFusion 9 and the CF IDE Bolt.

We meet at The Press Room upstairs. This is a special event and we will be providing food, giveaways and good fun. Plus you can drink beer all the while.

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Mountain Dew Game Fuel - World of Warcraft Soda!

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 19:23:00-0400

Mountain Dew and World of Warcraft go together like cheese and crackers. So it should be no surprise that there is a new drink on the market. Mountain Dew Game Fuel. It is WOW branded either horde or alliance. My wife got the alliance drink a couple days ago and I have to say it tasted pretty good.

One thing I didn't know, is that there is a whole web site dedicated to the drink, with prizes being given out every 15 minutes. The prizes range from Mtn Dew tshirts, hoodies, gaming mice, all the way to an Alienware gaming notebook (given out daily) and trip to Blizcon (given out weekly). When you create an account on this web site you get tokens for doing certain tasks.

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My Social Links Day

Wed, 20 May 2009 13:23:00-0400

I had a great time chatting with everyone at cf.Ojbective(). One of the great parts of a conference like cf.o is the networking/social aspect. But we all know I love that anyway. Now that we are all back I have gotten a few emails, IM's and such asking for other contact info. So to save some possible time here is my linked in, twitter, facebook, etc. info. I figure hey, its Wednesday and I am goofing off for lunch, so maybe everyone else should too. Therefore I declare this Wednesday - My Social Links Day. Where everyone posts their social media links they want to share with their readers and peers.

Linked In http://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuacyr

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cf.Objective() - CF News and Feeds

Thu, 14 May 2009 12:00:00-0400

So the keynote by Adobe just ended here at cf.Objective() Lots of cool stuff including some new info. I did a live twitter of the event so rather then just paste it all here I will link to it.

You also may want to check out Adam's brightkite wall as it aggregates all kinds of local CF stuff.

CF Drinks in NYC

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 14:44:00-0400

Anyone interested in getting together with some other CF'ers in NYC for drinks and casual conversation? I am meeting Peter Bell and whomever else joins in at Slainte at 304 Bowery (between Bleecker & Houston) at 6.30pm on Monday the 4th of May.

Spread the word and hope to see you there!

cf.Objective Giveaway of CF Licenses

Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:10:00-0400

While visiting the cf.Objective web site today (finally booked my flight and wanted to confirm a few things) I noticed they are offering a pretty great giveaway for those who sign up between now and the event.

To quote the site:

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Micro-Lending with Jackley Flannery of Kiva

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 08:47:00-0400

A very interesting discussion/event is coming up at our local library.

Tuesday, May 5 at 5:30 PM in the Levenson Room of the Portsmouth Public Library for a discussion about micro-lending and philanthropy leveraging the Internet with Jessica Jackley-Flannery, co-founder of Kiva.

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Fun Flash Game - My Brute

Wed, 08 Apr 2009 17:01:00-0400

I recently was turned onto an adictive little flash game called My Brute. Others in the CF world were playing with it so I joined the bandwagon. Bottom line you start off as a low lvl arena fighter, and after some fights with other players you progress in skill and become better gaining skills, strength, etc. You can only fight a few times a day, and you can save your progress. In addition you can invite others as your pupil, which also helps your progress. Eventually you can make Clans, and or join them.

What is so interesting game direction wise is that there is actually very little playing. The actual fighting is just a short movie that you watch. No action required on your part at all. It's your theoretical strengths pitted against a friend or stranger. There also seems to be no way to guide your growth (more agility less strength, getting a pet dog to help you, new weapons, etc). It all appears random.

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Autelligent Laboratories - Interesting Idea

Fri, 27 Mar 2009 16:10:00-0400

I will admit I don't know all that much about autism or Asperger Syndrome. What I do know I have learned through meeting interesting people who either are diagnosed with it, or have family members that are. What I didn't know is that only about 20% of those with Aspergers are employed. My friend Isaac is trying to change that here in the states. Enter Autelligent Laboratories. It is an organization attempting to counter the specific difficulties encountered by their community and leverage their strengths. Check it out and spread the word to those you think may be interested.

NH Web Design

Fri, 27 Mar 2009 10:09:00-0400

I don't often talk about the companies I work for, but I just wanted to do a shout out for Harbour Light Strategic Marketing. It is the creative agency that I have worked with since 1997 and the other half of Savvy Software (the creator of Savvy Content Manager).

Over the years Harbour Light has delivered fantastic web design for clients all over the country. We are based in New Hampshire, and so do quite a bit of work for organizations in the region (NH, ME, MA). While Harbour Light is well known for its web work it has strengths well beyond just web design. The identity/brand creation, graphic design and trade show work is fantastic and their creative direct mail and 3D mailers always impress me.

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PAYMENT OFFICER NEEDED: This is a scam.

Mon, 16 Mar 2009 21:00:00-0400

Just got this email. Interesting twist on an old scam. Shame on them for targeting the unemployed on top of it all. --------- scam email below --------- Dear Prospective Representative, I am looking for someone to employ in the position of a Personal Assistant for me part time or fulltime. I need someone who would attend seminars and conferences all expense paid, receive and handle phone calls. YOu would also receive and issue payments on my behalf as at when due (Utility bills and allowances), These payments are in form of bank transfers and they would be paid into your Bank Account or a designated account. JOB DESCRIPTION? 1. Receive payment and issue payments. 2. Receive and make phone calls 3. Receive and forward letters and documents. 4. Attend seminars and conferences, not mandatory. But there is extra pay for attendance. HOW MUCH YOU WILL EARN? The pay is on contract basis.. It depends on how much work and efficiency with which you work. The pay is very lucrative. ADVANTAGES You do not have to leave your house unless there is a seminar or conference to attend. And attending such comes with great reward and benefit. NOTE You must be located in the UNITED STATES. If you are interested, please signify your interest by sending your full name,address and phone number. I will be expecting to hear from you as your utmost consent will be awaited. Regards.... ROBERT FLAX

Automated Phone Phishing Scam for Service Credit Union Customers

Fri, 13 Mar 2009 12:52:00-0400

I got an odd call today on my cell phone. It was an automated call (pre-recorded) saying that my Service Credit Union account was closed due to third party access. The actual quality of the voice was horrible. It was quite clearly computer generated and sounded like the text to speech software available in the mid 90's. The message told me to press 1 to reactivate my account. I figured this would put me in contact with an operator so I pressed 1. This just took me to another pre-recorded message basically saying the same thing and to press 1 again. At this point I knew it wasn't from the credit union and hung up. I am pretty certain the next step would have been for them to ask me my credit card number to 'confirm'. I wrote down the number that called me and called them back. Went straight to voicemail, and the message said nothing of Service Credit Union, banks, or anything at all related. I called Service Credit Union to check my account and let them know. They said they had reports from a few others, and they all mentioned different phone numbers that had been used. I would guess its VOIP and not the real number. Bottom line, NEVER enter your account number or any personal information on an incoming call. Never do it. If you think it may be something you need to worry about, hang up and call the bank back on a confirmed bank phone number. I have gotten many email phishing scam's in the past, but never for a bank that I actually use. I was pretty surprised that someone got my cell number and my bank correctly. Perhaps just luck on their part? In my case my account was just fine and it turns out I only owe a bit more in car payments. Woot! Oh, and for anyone planning on using my info here to try to scam my Service CU account, I am paying it off now and closing it. So don't bother.