I've got the same concerns as the fellow posting the question above. However, I believe it's entirely possible to host in the US and not feel paranoid. My company is based in KY and our host, BQInternet, is located in two major data centers in lower Manhattan. I personally know the man who oversees operations and can tell you how strongly he treats privacy concerns. He's happily shared with me information about his hardware configuration and the various security measures in place. Find a good host with strong ethics who will stand up for you as a customer and you'll feel confident and sleep soundly. The growing market of data warehousing will only help to reinforce the need for privacy.
As a huge classical music lover, I could spend thousands of dollars buying every CD recording of Bach's works and still not have the entire collection. Let's not forget Mozart, Haydn, Vivaldi, etc. Naturally, I want to be snobbish, exacting and demand the highest possible format obtainable. However, I refuse to deprive myself of excellent music because I cannot afford to purchase every CD, so what do I do? Here is a plan that works well for me:
1. "piecemeal" my collection bit by bit using my subscription to eMusic.com. Their lossy mp3 files are good enough for my needs at the moment, and their classical selection is practically unlimited. It costs about $10/month for 40 high-quality mp3 files. (No DRM, XP/IE requirements, etc)
2. Puchase new CDs from time to time to replace the mp3 files I most enjoy and rip them to my preferred OGG Vorbis format.
This allows me to collect the music I love immediately, enjoy it extensively and know that I'll eventually replace them with true CD quality files as my budget allows for it. About half my collection is "backed" by CD. One might argue that the $10 monthly expense could be applied towards purchasing CDs, but I consider it justified.
Like many of the Slashdot readers, I also hate the corny "buzz" and hype attached. However, the XMLHttpRequest method, like any good tool, can be wonderful if used properly. My company develops web applications and uses XMLHttpRequest rather heavily to avoid unnecessary page reloads for simple user actions (like select box changes, limited form input, buttons, etc). Thus, it actually requires FEWER resources, for the browser doesn't have to reconstruct the entire page.
Avoid "AJAX" libraries out there. Often, they are too bloated and obfuscate a really simple approach. All one needs to have a few javascript functions to test for a connection, transfer data by means of a POST query string, load the response data into memory upon success, have a timeout if connection fails, and perform some operation afterwards (change a table row, display data, etc.).
You don't need to use XML! I don't want to bother with parsing a format like XML. Instead, simply make a single PHP script that accepts actions and data from the "AJAX" POST and echoes back data in the form of javascript arrays or variables. Then, use javascript eval() to read it all into memory. Done!
Avoid using it to deliver content in end-user-oriented sites (news, articles) where search engines should see everything in pure HTML (separate content from function, whenever possible).
Perhaps the best thing about it is that it works reasonably well in Internet Explorer. Though we insist that some of our clients use Firefox, but many applications must support multiple browsers. The only browser-specific bit of code necessary is really the XMLHttpRequest object (in IE it is handled by ActiveX).
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I've got the same concerns as the fellow posting the question above. However, I believe it's entirely possible to host in the US and not feel paranoid. My company is based in KY and our host, BQInternet, is located in two major data centers in lower Manhattan. I personally know the man who oversees operations and can tell you how strongly he treats privacy concerns. He's happily shared with me information about his hardware configuration and the various security measures in place. Find a good host with strong ethics who will stand up for you as a customer and you'll feel confident and sleep soundly. The growing market of data warehousing will only help to reinforce the need for privacy.
As a huge classical music lover, I could spend thousands of dollars buying every CD recording of Bach's works and still not have the entire collection. Let's not forget Mozart, Haydn, Vivaldi, etc. Naturally, I want to be snobbish, exacting and demand the highest possible format obtainable. However, I refuse to deprive myself of excellent music because I cannot afford to purchase every CD, so what do I do? Here is a plan that works well for me:
1. "piecemeal" my collection bit by bit using my subscription to eMusic.com. Their lossy mp3 files are good enough for my needs at the moment, and their classical selection is practically unlimited. It costs about $10/month for 40 high-quality mp3 files. (No DRM, XP/IE requirements, etc)
2. Puchase new CDs from time to time to replace the mp3 files I most enjoy and rip them to my preferred OGG Vorbis format.
This allows me to collect the music I love immediately, enjoy it extensively and know that I'll eventually replace them with true CD quality files as my budget allows for it. About half my collection is "backed" by CD. One might argue that the $10 monthly expense could be applied towards purchasing CDs, but I consider it justified.
Your situation may be different.
Like many of the Slashdot readers, I also hate the corny "buzz" and hype attached. However, the XMLHttpRequest method, like any good tool, can be wonderful if used properly. My company develops web applications and uses XMLHttpRequest rather heavily to avoid unnecessary page reloads for simple user actions (like select box changes, limited form input, buttons, etc). Thus, it actually requires FEWER resources, for the browser doesn't have to reconstruct the entire page.
Avoid "AJAX" libraries out there. Often, they are too bloated and obfuscate a really simple approach. All one needs to have a few javascript functions to test for a connection, transfer data by means of a POST query string, load the response data into memory upon success, have a timeout if connection fails, and perform some operation afterwards (change a table row, display data, etc.).
You don't need to use XML! I don't want to bother with parsing a format like XML. Instead, simply make a single PHP script that accepts actions and data from the "AJAX" POST and echoes back data in the form of javascript arrays or variables. Then, use javascript eval() to read it all into memory. Done!
Avoid using it to deliver content in end-user-oriented sites (news, articles) where search engines should see everything in pure HTML (separate content from function, whenever possible).
Perhaps the best thing about it is that it works reasonably well in Internet Explorer. Though we insist that some of our clients use Firefox, but many applications must support multiple browsers. The only browser-specific bit of code necessary is really the XMLHttpRequest object (in IE it is handled by ActiveX).