LexiConn – December 2007 Newsletter
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LexiConn – December 2007 Newsletter
===========================================In this Month’s Newsletter:
* HTML Email Tips
* Understanding File Permissions
* Featured Client: levonhelm.com
* Happy Holidays from LexiConn!HTML Email Tips
HTML emails are far more popular currently than they were years ago. One such reason has to do with the fact that nearly all email clients can now handle HTML emails. That being said, there are still programs out there that cannot display HTML emails, which is why it is important that you send it in multipart format. This means that the email is embedded with both versions (HTML and text) of your message, and the recipient’s email program determines which one gets displayed. Our mailing list software supports this multipart format, as does Constant Contact and other third party vendors. The text version is not created automatically based off of the HTML version, so be sure that you do not forget to manually create the text version prior sending out your email.Keeping messages simple from a coding standpoint is also important. Using a little CSS is fine, but you do not want to use any JavaScript, ActiveX, or Flash. Another reason to keep your HTML emails simple is because each email client displays HTML email slightly differently. Feel free to test your email using as many different accounts / clients as you have access to.
In order to avoid spam filters, you will want to have a good balance of graphics compared to text, i.e. do not send one enormous graphic as your HTML email, as the likelihood of this getting blocked is very high due to spam rules. Also, be sure that all of your graphics are called via an absolute path (e.g.
) as opposed to a relative path or as an attachment. Avoid over-using punctuation and capitalization as well. Lastly, be sure that your code is “clean”, meaning that it doesn’t have unclosed tags (table, font, etc.), META tags and other extraneous code that HTML generating programs create. Spam filters can even mark your email as spam in the event that you are sending it multipart, but forgot to include the text version.Aside from having a non-spammy, yet descriptive subject line, you should also have an instantly recognizable from name and address. Once you choose one, do not change it, as your recipients may have whitelisted that address. You should also include your contact information as well, as that helps people remember who you are, and makes your email CAN-SPAM compliant.
Understanding File Permissions
File permissions control how the server handles files. Most users have the ability to set permissions on files that they are going to upload via their FTP client, but are sometimes unsure as to what the permissions should be set to.On a Unix/Linux system, every file and directory is owned by a specific user. Files and directories are also assigned to a group (which may or may not be the same as the user). Users not represented in either of the above categories fall under the heading ‘others’. Each of the three groupings (user, group, and others) have a specific class assigned to them. Permissions assigned to the user class only apply to that user, permissions assigned to the group class only apply to that group, etc.
There are three basic permissions that apply to each class: read, write, and execute. The read permission grants the ability to read a file, and when set for a directory it allows for the ability to read the names of the files contained in that folder. The write permission allows the ability to modify a file, and when set for a directory it allows for the ability to create, delete, and modify entries in the directory. The execute permission grants the ability to execute a file. This permissions must be set for all executable binaries / scripts in order to be able to run them.
The most common permission required to run a script is CHMOD 755. CHMOD stands for Change Mode, and just means that you are changing permissions on a file / folder. In most FTP programs you can right click on a folder to get to the CHMOD command (also referred to as properties / unix permissions).
Permission schemes for a Unix system are most commonly denoted using symbolic notation. Specifically, a series of ten characters represent the permissions scheme. The first character indicates the file type (e.g. – is a regular file, d is a directory, etc.). The next three characters represent the user class (r for read, w for write, x for execute, – if it’s not). The next three characters represent the group class, and the last three represent the others class. From our example above, the result of CHMOD 755 on a file would yield -rwxr-xr-x, which would indicate a regular file whose user has full permissions, and whose group and others classes have read and execute permissions only.
There are other additional permissions that can be applied to files / directories, but the three basic ones outlined above are the most common.
Our knowledgebase has detailed information regarding FTP, including Flash tutorials on how to change permissions in various FTP programs:
http://support.lexiconn.com/kb/index.php?ToDo=browse&catId=17
Featured Client: levonhelm.com
This month’s featured client is levonhelm.com. Levon Helm has been in the music business for over forty years, and has had an online presence for the past several. The website offers tour information, audio/video clips, photos, an online store selling CDs, DVDs, tickets, T-shirts, caps, posters and more.For more detailed information on this month’s featured client as well as a listing of all past featured clients, please go to:
http://support.lexiconn.com/news/viewforum.php?f=4
Happy Holidays from LexiConn!
We would like to wish all of you a happy, healthy holiday season, and a prosperous 2008! The turn of the year is always a great time for us to evaluate the services we provide to you and examine how we can most effectively improve and innovate moving forward. Our 12th anniversary is right around the corner in February of the coming year! We appreciate your business, and providing the best possible customer and technical service will continue to be our highest priority, just as it has been since our inception. We look forward to working with you in the coming year!
As always, feel free to contact us with any questions you may have. Complete contact and support options can be found at:
http://www.lexiconn.com/support.htmlSincerely,
- The LexiConn Team
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