Welcome to the blog
Welcome to the HostSphere Blog, a place where you can catch up on all the latest news and find out about fantastic resources! We will also be publishing tip and tricks, advice and useful links to tools that can help you develop and manage your website.
We're always on the lookout for people to write articles for our blog too... so if you would like to become part of our blog writing team please get in touch (blog@hostsphere.co.uk)
Don't forget to find us on facebook, like us and keep upto date with our latest news and competitions.
What is the EU Cookie Law?
In May 2011 a European Union law was passed stating that websites that leave non-essential cookies on visitors' devices have to alert the visitor and get acceptance from them.
This law applies to both individuals and businesses based in the EU regardless of the nationality of their website's visitors or the location of their web host. It is not enough to simply update your website's terms and conditions or privacy policy.
The deadline to comply with the new EU cookie laws is 26th May 2012. Failure to comply may mean you can be fined up to £500,000.
What are 'non-essential cookies'?
Non-essential cookies are basically those which aren't required for the website to function. For example, if cookies are needed for a customer to check out and buy products, that is considered an essential cookie.
Examples of non-essential cookies include (but aren't limited to) those from analytics, advertising and affiliate networks such as Google Analytics, Google Adsense, and all affiliate programs. The vast majority of websites drop non-essential cookies, and it's more than likely that your website contains a mix of essential and non-essential varieties.
The Cookie Policy Widget
We've put together a Cookie Policy widget that you're free to use on your websites regardless of where or how they are hosted. This, in conjunction with updating your website's privacy policy, allows you to comply with the EU cookie law quickly and easily.
Our EU Cookie widget is:
- Easy to implement - add it to your site in seconds
- Completely free
- Available to everyone, regardless of whether or not they are a Heart Internet customer
- Mobile-friendly: no code changes are needed
- Designed to give your visitors the option to accept or reject cookies in compliance with the EU cookie directive
How to use the widget
1. Simply copy and paste the two lines of code of code below, change the link to your own privacy policy and you're ready to go.
Dark version:
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.hostsphere.co.uk/eu-cookie/support-opt-in.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.hostsphere.co.uk/eu-cookie/require-opt-in.js" read_more="http://www.your-site.com/privacy-policy"></script>
Light version:
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="http://www.hostsphere.co.uk/eu-cookie/white.css"/>
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.hostsphere.co.uk/eu-cookie/support-opt-in.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.hostsphere.co.uk/eu-cookie/require-opt-in.js" read_more="http://www.your-site.com/privacy-policy"></script>
2. To enforce it for server scripts, add the following to an .htaccess file in your home directory:
SetEnvIf Cookie "eu-opt-in=1" opted_in
Header always unset Set-Cookie env=!opted_in
3. To enforce it for client scripts (javascript), modify your code from (example):
document.cookie = mycookiestring;
To:
if(HI.optInCookies.allowed()) document.cookie = mycookiestring;
Please note that this will require http://www.hostsphere.co.uk/eu-cookie/support-opt-in.js to be loaded on each page.
If you're using a content management system (such as WordPress, OpenCart or phpBB) you can insert the code from step one near the top of your footer file, and follow steps 2 and 3 as necessary.
Download all the files you need in a single zip file... click the download button below
Download Zip File
10 Year .UK Domain Registration
Multi Year .UK Domain Names, available very soon!!
From May 1st 2012, you will be able to register your .uk domains from 1 to 10 years, giving you greater control and flexibility over your .uk domains.
Click on the Read More button below to find out more information!
Facebook Page Timeline Feature
The changes and what you need to know!
Facebook unvieled today what many people have been guessing at for the last few months, Facebook Pages will be getting the Timeline Feature! But what is this timeline and what changes does it mean to your current page and how you manage it!
Click on Read more to find out!
Raspberry Pi - Now On Sale!
At 6am GMT, the makers of Raspberry Pi announced their mini pc would be released!!
Facebook have been saying it's changing for quite some time now.... and HostSphere can reveal that the change is almost upon us all! Facebook's new TimeLine profile style will be rolling out across all accounts in the 2012, however some people have already got access to it. Click on Read More to find out more about Facebook Time Line profiles and how you can get the TimeLine profile early!
When it comes to designing your project, sometimes you need something quick and easy. So we've searched the web looking for bits and bobs to make your life easier!
We've got icons and images and more (...oh my...) . All free of charge!
With the release of Drupal 7... and the fact we've also upgraded acounts for free (again?? Are we mad??) so everyone on a linux package has access to at least one version of Drupal we decided to provide you with some fun facts and figures about Drupal. Click on the read more button to view our fantastic visual infographic!
We've been at it again.... fiddling and tinkering away and giving you even more! We've upgraded our Windows Small and Linux Starter plans... and there are NO price increases! Read on to find out more about the upgrades and why not compare all our packages while you're at it.
Monday Mayhem - 15th August...
Get your gum around something sweet. The sun is shining outside ( well on the south coast it is anyway....) and summer is really here! We've got another game for you to play and get rid of your Monday Blues! This time it's a sweet shop simulator! It kept us amused here for a little while I can tell you :)
Monday Mayhem...
We all hate Mondays! But, we have to have them..... so to make your Mondays a little easier we are going to upload some fantastic free games to play online!
HostSphere just keeping giving you more and more and more! Once again we've done a massive update to our One Click Installers! We've added a few new things and updated a few scripts too.... so you've got even more toys, scripts and gadgets to play with!!
Click on Read More below to find out whats changed!
We're offering all visitors access to our brand new FREE QR CODE creator. Powered by QRstuff.com, the generator will create a basic black and white QR Code for you to use anywhere you choose. Click on Read More to find out why you should get a QR code today and then create your own.
BREAKING NEWS: Last week we gave you OpenCart as part of the 1 Click Installer system.... we're proud to annouce we've got MORE to give you! But not just 1 more.... 6 MORE INSTALLERS! We've got some new shopping carts, a new "Digg Style" installer, a new forum installer and more
Click on the Read More button below to find out exactly what we're giving you.
There is no denying it, facebook is getting bigger and bigger EVERY DAY. It's starting to take over every aspect of our lives, a little bit like google! But are we too obsessed with facebook? Some people seem to think so! And according to research carried out earlier this year, 1 out of every 13 earthling have a facebook profile! Thats scary when you think about it is real numbers. Check out this blog entry to find out more!
Dreamweaver, according to some developers is THE tool every designer or web site builder should be using! And yes, while that is true it's sometimes not realistic to own Dreamweaver! The softwares price tag is quite high so here are some free alternativea we think is just as good ( if not better in some ways) as Dreamweaver! Read on to find out more ...
Testing sites for Internet Explorer flaw can be a tricky process... especially when you can't install multiple versions of the software on your computer. We've found a tool that can help! And best of all it's completely free to download and use!
Is your website running on Joomla? If so, you need to check out some of these free Joomla Templates. We've got templates for both Joomla 1.5 and the latest Joomla 1.6 ... grab them while there hot!!
With HostSphere we give you the choice on how to create your site! If you choose to, you can either upload your files using the File Manager via your control panel or you can use an FTP program to connect and upload! Personally we prefer the FTP program option! It's much quicker and easier!
Thats why we recommend FileZilla... it's a free FTP program thats very quick and easy to use!
We've been searching for the best HTML builder... and we finally found one that works quickly, easily ... and it's completely free. Just design your HTML form using the easy to use interface, download it and that´s it, the form is yours. There are no monthly payments or hidden charges. You can basically do anything you want with your form: edit it, modify it and install it in as many websites as you desire…you may even publish the code: no limits or ties.
We all know that time equals money ... so save yourself both! HostSphere not only offer Unlimited Web Hosting and cheap domains, but we also offer Free 1 Click Installers too!
These days you don't want to spend time uploading and installing software... you want to get on with it! You want to get your content online as quickly as possible! Read out guide on our 1 click installers and learn how you can get your website online in minutes
Click on the read more button below to find out more about our free 1 click installers which now also contain OpenCart.
We like to listen to our customers and you've been screaming out for OpenCart to be added to our 1Click Installers! We're pleased to say.... it's here! Thats right, as of today you can now install OpenCart via our 1 Click Installer system. Find out more about OpenCart....
So a few weekends ago we had a lovely weekend off, which was well deserved after a busy beginning to the year. Alex was invited around to his friends house for a few drinkies and nibbles... so a fun night was ahead.
Little did I know how much fun! .... click on read more to find out and play with what we found!!
We have had a “Javascript Generator” page in eXtend for some time now. They were nice in their time (circa 2004) however scripts such as “bookmark us” buttons would just show text in modern browsers, the “popup page” would routinely be blocked nowadays, and the “frameless popup” only work in IE6. Simple widgets for a simple time. Because of this we have replaced them with modified versions of some of our own code which can give your site more of an interactive feel. They’re all relatively simple code which you should be able to customise without much trouble.
One of the most common questions we get is about PHP 5.3.5 and when it will be available on our shared hosting platform. The answer to that question is: right now!