Archive for May, 2009

The move from 1and1 to Dreamhost

Posted on May 16th, 2009 by Ryan Reed

I migrated all of my websites to my new Dreamhost provider.

For the past 4+ years, I have been with 1and1.com. They had been decent for the time I was with them but I had many issues with their service. One large problem was in the amount of mysql databases I was allowed. 1 is not enough. While I could work with 1 database, it makes things easier being able to use as many databases as I want, 1 for each site.

While that was a minor issue, the biggest issue I had with 1and1.com was their service. While there wasn't a huge amount of downtime, there was a noticeable amount. In the last couple weeks, I had seen a large amount of downtime with the site and email which was extremely frustrating. Calling 1and1.com for help only connected me with outsourced tech support who couldn't understand what i was trying to say or ask.

Dreamhost has been extremely easy to setup, in general. Except for a minor blip in email service, which I received extremely quick support for, there was very little issues. Getting the sites up with almost no down time was extremely easy. I think the only thing I might complain about is the inability to modify a mysql database without having the domain ready. I had to wait until my domain transfers went through and the nameservers updated before I could restore the main database for this site.

I can highly recommend Dreamhost as a webhost so far. I would also recommend steering clear of 1and1 as their uptime is spotty, trying to regain domains is troublesome, and their phone support is near impossible to actually get anyone who can help.

New photos with the Nikon D5000

Posted on May 2nd, 2009 by Ryan Reed

I ended up picking a nice new Nikon D5000 and decided to get some pictures. To be honest, I'm a beginner into the DSLR world so these photos aren't the best and my car could certainly use a good wash.

VW GLI

VW GLI VW GLI

As you can see, the car was extremely dirty and the pictures are so so. I'm going to work on learning all the ins and outs of my camera. Those were just using the auto program feature. After messing around for a while longer, I think I prefer using the manual or aperture modes. We'll see how things go. Expect some nice photos at the end of this month, beginning of next month as there is a road trip with 2 of my buddies, Brian Roy and Randy McCaig, to Houston, TX from Providence, RI. Should be a fun time.

Let me know if you have any thoughts, questions, or anything of that nature.