Tag cloudflare

Entries 4 Total

CloudApp Makes It Easy to Share Files Fast

Feb 25, ’11 10:07 PM

The ability to share files quickly and easily is necessary for many of us. I’ve tried various solutions and I’ll bet you have too. Today I realized that CloudApp was the right fit for me. Here’s why.

Cloupapppic

First of all, CloudApp has a free version. I’ve been using it for a while and it truly is quick and easy. For instance, if I want to share a screenshot, I just press Command-Shift-3 or Command-Shift-4 on my keyboard. Immediately, CloudApp uploads the screenshot and copies a link to the screenshot into my buffer. All I need to do is paste the link and I’m done. It can’t get much more streamlined than that.

As I was poking around the CloudApp site, I realized that I could map my own domain to the links that I share. OK, now they had me. So, I ponied up for 1 year of CloudApp service for $45. They do have a monthly plan but I like to commit and get a better rate.

Once I paid for the plan, I visited my CloudFlare dashboard and created a CNAME record, pointing cl.btm4.us to CloudApp’s server. Easy as pie. Now, when I take a screenshot, or upload anything to CloudApp such as an audio file, bookmark, video or zip file, I get a link to it with my own short domain name. Smart, CloudApp, smart.

Now, I do hope that CloudApp considers the importance of us users and owning our content. Any reader of this blog knows that I am all about avoiding corporate silo’s such as Twitter, Facebook, and other lock-me-in-the-trunk entities but I’m hopeful that CloudApp may allow us paying customers to keep our own data on our own server someday. Right now, CloudApp touts their redundant system of Amazon cloud storage.

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Great. But I’ve got Amazon cloud storage too and I’d rather keep my own files in my own bucket, thank you very much. It seems to me that CloudApp has taken the first step of allowing us to map our domain to our account. Let’s hope they go the distance and allow us to host our own content as well someday.

With that quibble aside, I am extremely pleased with CloudApp. They’ve made sharing quick and easy. And this wouldn’t be a proper review of CloudApp if I didn’t link to a file I’d uploaded with the tool, now would it. So, here you go… http://cl.btm4.us/4qcV

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ScreenSteps Creates Visually Compelling Documentation

Feb 24, ’11 8:25 AM

Creating lessons on Become the Media is tricky. It’s difficult to explain some of the concepts that I’d like to share. Topics such as configuring DNS settings, configuring link shorteners, setting up virtual instances, explaining the benefits of a river of news, sharing the wonders of the Radio2 minimal blogging tool and its significance need visuals to make the idea stick.

In an effort to better share these concepts, I ponied up for ScreenSteps, an application that makes it easy to create screenshot based lessons. After downloading ScreenSteps, I was off and running. I created two lessons last night and the results are impressive.

Screensteps

I signed up for their free service, ScreenSteps.me and hosted my lessons there. But then I moved them to my own server. ScreenSteps.me may be worthwhile for your needs. Definitely check it out for easy hosting of your documents.

Sure, I could have used my favorite screen capture apps and cobbled together the results but ScreenSteps removes all the footwork. I encourage you to check out my post on Become the Media which shows off the power of ScreenSteps. You might even learn a thing or two about link shrinking with CloudFlare and Adjix.

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My New CloudFlare Shirt

Feb 12, ’11 4:05 PM

The kind folks at CloudFlare sent me a shirt. Thanks for the shirt and for powering my DNS needs!

My daughter, Parker, is mesmerized by the cloud. :)

Cloudflare shirt

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DNS and Me

Feb 9, ’11 10:12 PM

Years ago, I ran a humble web hosting company called Web Surf Hawaii. I was fully immersed in the web back then and an eager beaver to learn everything I could about the net.

As part of my hosting learning process I resolved to take control of everything from DNS records on down to creating web pages. So, I bought myself a copy of DNS and BIND from O’Reilly Media and figured it out. In order to manage my own DNS records, I purchased QuickDNS Pro by Men and Mice. The software was costly but I learned a lot and was able to learn about managing DNS records at a very low level.

It was a powerful thing to be able to harness control over domains. If I wanted a subdomain, I just made it happen. I didn’t have to file a ticket with my host or even use their web interface. I can’t even recall what that process was like back then, honestly.

Once I gave up Web Surf Hawaii, around 2001, I stopped monkeying around with DNS records and moved on to other things.

Now that I’ve got something brewing around hosting rivers of news, my interest and need for control over my domains has resurfaced. I wanted to point a subdomain to my EC2 server and had to file a ticket with my host in order to accomplish it. Hmph. Thankfully, my host suggested that I should give CloudFlare a try if I wanted more control over my domains. I took a look and was impressed. In one fell swoop, I transferred my DNS records for ten domains over to CloudFlare. Now, I’m creating A records and marveling at the power of doing it myself once again.

CloudFlare does much more than I had imagined. All I wanted was to be able to create my own A records but CloudFlare can help me with so much more like monitoring traffic, keeping spammers at bay, speeding up my sites, and more.

It feels good to be back in charge again. Filing a ticket to have someone else do something I can do myself is silly. Time to get my chops back in order.

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