Elizabeth's Blog

ZendCon recently announced their speakers lineup, and imagine my surprise to see that my talk had been accepted. I’ll be speaking on PHP & E-commerce and some of the things PHP can easily do besides allowing you to set up “just a shopping cart.” Given the number of talks on the Zend Framework, I’m hoping my e-commerce talk won’t be too out of place– it’s more for the Business Case track anyway. It won’t be too code-intensive, but I hope to make it entertaining and educational at the same time. I’m also proud to give more representation to the little guys - conferences tend to focus more on enterprise, and I’m glad I can show what a profound impact PHP can have on the bottom-line.

Now, if I can just get the internet retailing industry to pay attention to open source (and PHP) then I’ll truly be a happy camper.

It’s been a while since I’ve written for my friends at International PHP Magazine, but I was happy to contribute to their recently released June edition. I did an interview with the new PEAR Group on the future of PEAR. I’m glad to see such enthusiasm and collaboration among the newly elected group; I think we’ll all benefit from some of the changes they’ll be making (and have already started to make). A big personal thanks goes out to each member of the group for their feedback.

To read the full article you can purchase a single copy of the magazine - or you can peruse the Table of Contents before you buy.

If anybody’s in the market for a new webhost (especially one that knows their PHP), let me make a suggestion: Try nexcess.net. After increasing difficulties with our previous company, I knew I had to make a change. Recurring downtime, not so helpful support, PCI compliance issues, an eggdrop attack which we’re still recovering from, inconsistent backups and several other issues which I won’t go in to, were all leading me to the point of breaking free- even perhaps going to a dedicated server (of which I have absolutely no time nor desire to manage).

So what was holding me back? For one, we’d been with the old company since 2003-2004. Our set up was comfortable in a familiar sense. The cost couldn’t be beat, and the thought of switching all those hosting accounts over quite frankly gave me a headache. As I perused my php|architect magazine a few weeks ago, I noticed (as I had many times before) the Nexcess.net ad prominently on the back cover. The thing that really caught my eye was the “we’ll transfer all your accounts for you, for free” statement which happened to strike a cord in me. Other webhosts may do this too, I don’t know, but it really stood out to me like a lighthouse in my stormy webhost relationship.

I sent them a few questions and much to my surprise, got a timely and helpful response to each of my concerns… and not by a sales guy, but by an actual support guy. The price was right, the staff was courteous and friendly, and sure enough - they did all my dirty work for me, transferring everything over without a hitch. The only thing I did was change the DNS servers for all my accounts, and they would have done that too if I’d asked.

Since then, any issue that has come up has been answered (usually within minutes) regardless of the time of day or night. In fact, it’s now roughly 11:00 pm on a Saturday night, and I’ve just finished an email exchange about one of my cron jobs (thanks Greg!).

I really can’t say enough good things about these guys and the fact that they are ingrained in the PHP community gives them extra bonus points from me. Anybody who is currently unhappy with their host, reselling plan, VPS, or dedicated server should really take a look at what they have to offer.

Mark Twain once supposedly said “When the end of the world comes, I want to be in Cincinnati because it’s always twenty years behind the times.” Normally, this is a pretty accurate statement, but when it comes to chocolate bubble gum, I guess we’re only about 7 months behind everyone else.

Chronic Chocoholic Dieters such as myself can now give a little cheer as this new (new to me, anyway) bubble gum only has 25 teensy weensy calories… yet still allows you to get that taste of real Hershey’s chocolate for a nice long time. My views on the stuff: it ain’t Godiva, it’s more like a Tootsie Roll as far as chocolate taste goes. But what do you want for 25 calories that gives you chocolate eatin’ sensations for a good half an hour or so? Also, as in traditional bubble gum pieces (ala Hubba Bubba or Bubble Yum) , the pieces are ginormous so you have to divide it down the middle to keep from globbing your mouth shut.

My rating: B+, and I only wish I’d have thought of this first.

After some negotiations, I’m pleased to announce that giftsforengineers.com has gained exclusive rights to sell some of Roger Penwill’s cartoons on merchandise. He’s a fabulous cartoonist based out of the UK, and we’re very excited to see his stuff on our t-shirts. Thanks, Roger! The full press release is below.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Giftsforengineers.com Obtains Exclusive Rights to Sell Cartoonist Roger Penwill’s Merchandise

CINCINNATI, OH (July 24, 2007)
Giftsforengineers.com is happy to announce an exclusive licensing arrangement with Roger Penwill, renowned science and engineering cartoonist based in the UK. Giftsforengineers.com will now be able to sell merchandise such as t-shirts, coffee mugs, and such featuring Penwill’s cartoons.

“We are always looking for unique items that appeal specifically to engineers; gifts you can’t just pick up anywhere. Our new arrangement with Roger Penwill allows us to bring his humor and artistic talent to those individuals in search of gifts for their hard-to-buy-for engineers,” says Elizabeth Naramore, Vice President, Web Development. “We are very excited about this line of products we are able to offer, and we’re sure it will not only help our customers provide excellent gifts, but it will significantly impact our core business as well.”

About Roger Penwill
Roger Penwill was a regular cartoonist for CADalyst magazine for many years, having previously provided cartoons for A/E/C Systems’ Computer Solutions magazine. His cartoon collections have been published in the USA, China and UK. In the UK, his works have appeared in The Times, Financial Times, Sunday Telegraph, The Countryman and specialist publications. He has also done work for Autodesk, Inc. and Bentley Motors, as well as providing cartoons for commercial calendars, greetings cards, Christmas cards and books.

Roger became UK President of the Federation of Cartoonists Organisation (FECO) in 1999 and FECO President General 2001-2005. He currently acts as the FECO Vice-President General. He is also a member of the British Cartoonists Association, the Cartoonist Club of Great Britain, and a founder member of the new Professional Cartoonists Organisation. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA). Roger also is the orginator and Chairman of an International Cartoon Festival held annually in Shrewsbury, UK, since 2004.

About GiftsforEngineers.com
Giftsforengineers.com has been in operation 2001 and has since increased it’s product offering to over 350 unique items for engineers and techies of all types. It is operated by Inflection Point, Inc., a privately owned company based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Giftsforengineers.com has been featured in The Cincinnati Enquirer and The Dallas Morning News.

CONTACT:
Elizabeth Naramore
Vice President, Web Development
513-947-1122 ext 111
enaramore@inflection-point.com

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The airfare statistics are out again, and yet again, Cincinnati has the highest airfare in the country. Yes, with an average fare of $531.50, we even rank above Anchorage, Alaska, and Honolulu, Hawaii.

Some people blame the Delta hub here for the high fares. Some blame the fact that because people end up going to cheaper cities nearby to fly, the prices here are raised to make up the difference. I’m no expert, and I certainly don’t know the intricacies involved when pricing a ticket. However, I do know that it makes no sense that a flight out of Dayton (that stops in Cincinnati) costs $250, while the same flight starting in Cincinnati costs $500+. Essentially, I save $250+ by driving to Dayton, flying back to Cincinnati, then continuing on my merry way to my real destination. Years ago, they would let you just skip that first leg, pick up the flight in Cincinnati, and save your money, but I don’t think they will let you do that anymore.

Yet again, I beseech the powers that be to get your heads out of your asses and do whatever it takes to bring Cincinnati’s fares back down to where they should be. God knows how many companies have chosen not to relocate here because of the high airfares. And we’re all tired of driving. Get with it already!