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MacSlash Domain Stolen
MacSlash's Robert Daeley writes in to tell us that the domain name for MacSlash, the Mac news site, is incorrectly pointing to a generic "Dotster" page, either by accident or by malicious domain theft or squatting. They have registered macslash.net and hope to be back up again soon, and have as yet been unable to get word from "Dotster" regarding how this all happened.
https://secure.registerapi.com/help/csupport.php Why don't you all go off an ask them what they did with the domain? I'm sure they'd enjoy the email...
We still have not heard from Dotster at this point (23:10 PDT may 29), however some folks have reported being able to get in. If you are able to, please post in the Domain Troubles story so we know you got there.
For more information and updates, please email us at macslash@earthlink.net or call Ben Stanfield, Executive Editor, 270-881-0680. Thanks to everyone who has contacted us already. And thanks to Pudge for posting the story.
We are hoping to have this issue resolved ASAP. We apologize for the inconvenience.
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
Sounds like someone missed the expiration notice...
Domain Name: MACSLASH.COM
Registrar: DOTSTER, INC.
Whois Server: whois.dotster.com
Referral URL: http://www.dotster.com/help/whois
Name Server: NS1.DOTSTERINC.COM
Name Server: NS2.DOTSTERINC.COM
Updated Date: 28-may-2002
63.238.196.105 macslash.com.
63.238.196.105 www.macslash.com.
Sorry, but http://63.238.196.105/ won't work because it's vhosted and needs a request for macslash.com.
#naabhaprzrag, #sverubfr-000, #agi-fcbafberq, negvpyr[pynff*=' negvpyr-ary-'] { qvfcynl: abar !vzcbegnag; }
Really? Where'd you heard that? Maybe I should be paying more attention to the unofficial forums...
If it's true, this is great news! I'd be so happy even if Jack only posted one or two new 'shows' a week; anything is better then nothing, and it'd be totally understandable with 'the intern' and all.
I've been feasting on Random Episodes for weeks now to help with the withdrawal symptoms, and honestly the quality of the stuff that Jack has put out daily for so long is amazing. Most people couldn't write three long pieces like that each day and still be funny, informative, and entertaining.
Kudos to Jack, and I can't wait for the big return from hiatus.
As of 10:15 am Thursday morning from inside UMich, www.macslash.com is still a dotster default page. Plain old macslash.com, however, gets me to their site.
-----
Apple hardware still too expensive for you? How about a raffle ticket?
Come to the University of Mars! Classes starting soon!
Yup... I registered macslash.org cause I thought macslash.com was squatted. (please don't disembowel me) I have contacted the real owners of macslash and I will be transfering the domain and hopefully forwarding .org to their IP address in the meantime.
As of 0952 PDT Thursday, there is still no word from Dotster. It seemed as if some folks were able to get through (including me) last night and post, but it is now offline again from where I am: no Dotster page, no MacSlash, no nothin'. A whois via networksolutions.com still brings up that Valencia hombre. Anybody seeing anything?
I will post again to this thread when we have more info.
Thanks again to everyone who has gotten in touch with us, and to the other Mac sites for posting info.
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
I've been following this story since yesterday afternoon on my fly-by-night Mac blog, obzorg.org.
If you're getting the Dotster 'coming soon' page when you try to reach the MacSlash site, check out these updates including AcaBen's public statements on the subject.
- Open your Preferences panel.
- Expand the tree for "Advanced" and click on "Scripts & Windows".
- Deselect the ability of Javascript to:
- Open unrequested windows
- Move or resize existing windows
- Raise or lower windows
That should get rid of all the most annoying features of JavaScript without killing the useful or "pretty" website enhancements.If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
expired != hijacked.
"I now inform you that you are too far from reality."
dotster's mail server is blacklisted by mac.com which is where the renewal notices were sent. so anyone with a mac.com email address rejects all mail from dotster. sucks to be blacklisted.
Do you inspect a roller coaster everytime you ride it?
1601 PDT, Thursday. Ben Stanfield, who is driving somewhere between Kentucky and Washington D.C., just received a call from a V.P. at Dotster who said that his people have been receiving A LOT of emails from you guys. He is personally looking into the problem and has assured us that he will do everything in his power to get this problem corrected. If it ends up being something that Dotster cannot assist us with we have already received an offer for Pro-Bono work from a lawyer who works with domain disputes all of the time. If worst comes to worst we'll be meeting with ICANN soon.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, macslash.net should be propagating even as we speak, so hopefully by tomorrow things will be back to (relative) normalcy. If not, I will continue to post updates in this thread. (Knock on wood laminate desk.)
Thanks much to everyone for their assistance, emails, and well-wishes.
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
Actually, Microsoft had passport.com "stolen" a few years back after it expired. The person did just do it for a joke, and gave it back.
I'm not sure what the circumstances were in this case, but my registrar Gandi reserves domain names for 30 days after expiration. After that, they are available for someone else to register.
I'm not sure how Microsoft does it now, but I imagine they have recurring billing for a number of years on their domains now, or paid many years in advance.
OK, two pieces of business.
.org has already (thanks again to Charles Ruggerio for hooking us up), we are going ahead with macslash.org for now. We will be posting a story on the site later today breaking down the whole situation.
macslash.net is not propagating properly, and since
Secondly, a Mac/ user (samiam) has already posted a great explanation of the apparent redirection to MacMall, so I won't repeat the story.
Thanks much!
I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
What seems to have happened is the owners of macslash.com let their registration expire (the Dotster e-mail warning them of this was filtered out as spam on their mac.com e-mail account apparently), and Vicente Peiro Crespo of Valencia, Spain registered and paid for it legally at expiry. According to what he's said on the macslash.org thread about this, he does this with expired domains and redirects them through Commission Junction for a little extra money from ad revenue. Not exactly the most honorable thing for a moonlighting hobby, but perfectly legal.
However, he has said that when owners ask for their domains back (eg. when the domain is still in use) he gives it to them sans profit; and further he has stopped advertising on macslash.com as soon as he found out the domain was still near & dear to people's hearts and he's stopped advertising. He's also put up a link from macslash.com to macslash.org as of this posting, as you can see. This dosen't sound like the work of a beligerent opportunist nor is this a "hijacking" as the title of this thread implies. His first post on Macslash about it mentioned that he was willing to return the domain if the former owner contacted him. But now Vincente says that he, Dotster, and Commission Junction have recieved so many flames about this that they've cut off his account and he's no longer making any money off of anything.
Somehow this seems like a simple mistake (on both the part of Vincenete and Macslash's owners for letting it expire) that could have been easily corrected but now exacerbated by a lot of flamers. So stop sending nasty e-mails to everyone on the planet about this and maybe Vincente will give the domain back if he's still inclined. Otherwise MacSlash will have to get used to permanently being at MacSlash.org