Renegade Search

Web servers are a lot like baseball umpires: when they're doing their jobs properly, you're barely aware of their existence. Of course, while watching a baseball game, you know that there are umps, calling balls and strikes and determining whether a runner is out or safe. But when the umps are really on their game, fans can safely focus on the players and the action itself. Similarly, I suspect that most web users understand that sites are hosted on some far-away computer, but this fact should never be brought to their attention while browsing the web, which is exactly what happens when error pages appear.

When an umpire blows a call, his presence on (and off) the field is glaringly obvious. Managers and players get ejected. Columnists across the country throw their two cents in. Fans boo. And one of the most common reactions typically sounds something like: nobody pays to see umpires.

And nobody (well, _almost_ nobody), wants to be aware of what's going on with a site's server. On the internet, the 'blown calls' become obvious when users see HTTP error pages. These pages appear when, for a variety of reasons, the server can't figure out how to show the user what they are trying to find.

Neither users nor search engines like to find error pages; they're frustrating and significantly hurt the user's browsing experience. If you own a site, you really do need to know exactly how, when, and why error pages are showing up for your clients. And most importantly, you need to know at least a little bit about what is causing the problem, so any issues can be addressed.

Unfortunately, like a lot of aspects of information technology, error pages weren't designed with much consideration into making them understandable. By default, most modern servers return a page with a cryptic 3-number code, and some jargon about the nature of the error. But unless you have a decent amount of training in systems administration, these messages probably aren't of much use. To help make these codes more understandable for non-geeks, I've summarized some of the most common error codes that you might see on a site, as well as steps that you can take to fix the errors.

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Every once in a while, you come across a business name that just leaves your head shaking. Whether the name chosen is a really poor play on words, really hard to spell and thusly, find, or infringes on someone else's trademarked name, bad decisions are made all the time when naming businesses.

This all took on new meaning in the 90's when domain names started to pick up popularity and you had another issue to worry about, how well your business name translates online. Take for example, a local Chicago favorite, George's Hot Dogs. They are celebrating 60 years this year, so they have definitely done something right, but with their new website, George's Hot Dogs (www.georgeshotdogs.com) looks a lot like George Shot Dogs when you look at the domain name!

Obviously this one is tough to plan ahead for when you've been in business that long, but without a doubt something you want to keep in mind for future business endeavors.

What types of business names have you seen lately that have made you laugh or think twice?

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