Did you know that there is a very handy method to allow you to view and test your new or updated web site before submitting a DNS change request to your registrar? This simple addition to the “hosts” file on your PC or Mac re-direct any internet requests to the IP address of your choice, for example a new server, directory, or sub-domain.
Simply add this code to your hosts file. That’s it.
127.0.0.1 yoursite.com
127.0.0.1 www.yoursite.com
Now, whenever you browse to your domain name you will be re-directed seamlessly to your development server.
Setting up the Hosts file on a PC
- Click the Start Menu button and then type the word “notepad” in the Search area.
- Right click on the “Notepad.exe” icon that appears and choose “Run as administrator“
- Click “File > Open” using Notepad and navigate to the “Windows > System32 > drivers > etc” directory.
- Click the drop-down field titled “Files of type:” and choose “All Documents (*.*)”
- Open the file titled “hosts“
- Add the following entries at the end of the Hosts file:127.0.0.1 yoursite.com
127.0.0.1 www.yoursite.com
- Save this “hosts” file. Note: Click through any warnings that pop up, if any.
- Reboot the computer.
Setting up the Hosts file on a Mac
- Look in the System Folder: Preferences and also in the System Folder for a file named “Hosts“. If it does not exist, create this file using a text editor.
- Add the following entries into the Hosts file:127.0.0.1 yoursite.com
127.0.0.1 www.yoursite.com
- Save this Hosts file into the System Folder: Preferences
- Reboot.
If you have an older Mac that is using MacTCP instead of Open Transport, you may need to put the Hosts file in the System Folder.
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The Garden’s Kitchen is the brain-child of my long-time client, Ashleigh Hutchison. She recently opened her cooking studio in San Luis Obispo, California and it has quickly taken off! She asked me to create a web site that would be simple and user-friendly and would set her apart from the crowd.
We decided to use the Joomla content management system to make back-end administration easier and to help keep her costs under budget. I also administer the site when she has updates or additions and we seem to be continually evolving the site to meet her current needs.
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Compiles Maui, Hawaii, and surfing news from a variety of sources. The system allows members to comment and vote on stories and may they even submit their own links for consideration by the administrators. Powered by Pligg, it currently only takes about an hour per day to administer.
A much larger vision is in store for the XMaui.com domain, but the new version is still in it’s planning stages.
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A free community-driven surf report site, OMaui.com is my personal Frankenstein project that has evolved over seven years to whatever it is today. The site offers a daily surf summary and forecast, weather information, and a lot of other nerdy stuff. But most importantly, OMaui offers Maui surfers and all other wave riders an online community.
The site is visited by hundreds on a daily basis and by the thousands during the good swells. I’m proud to say that the site has grown in popularity almost entirely through word-of-mouth and has earned the coveted “home page” status for many loyal members.
The site is structured by Joomla, a free content management system. Several heavily customized third-party modules add functionality to the site, but most of the tools are custom PHP coded applications that I have developed over the years.
Countless hours have been spent nurturing the site and it has provided me with many years of enjoyment.
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This new site has just been quietly launched and has next to zero traffic coming to it… yet. It is simple, and is based on the same engine that is running the HawaiiUsedBoards.com web site.
Intended to be an online marketplace where vendors can post free advertisements to entice visitors into buying their local Maui products or services. Kind of like a Craigslist for Maui, I guess.
The MauiFleaMarket.com site is simple, plain, and intuitive. Now for the traffic…
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Another mini-site I have developed for my “OMaui Network“. This simple site simply displays the current Maui tide graphs for the coastal areas around Kahului, Makena, Lahaina, Ma`alaea, and Hana.
This is basically a utility site at the moment but will evolve over time to offer visitors more detailed tide charts and predictions, information about what causes the tides, and more.
Take a look at MauiTide.info and check it out anytime that you need a quick check of the tides!
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Many years ago, a great friend of whom I never even had the chance to meet told me that he was being “forced to leave” Maui so that he and his wife could pursue their dreams. We had known each other through my Maui surf report site: OMaui.com, as well as through his web site HawaiiUsedBoards.com.
Just before he left for the Northwest Coast he asked me if I would like to take over control of his site. That was many years ago now, and I had evolved his site to where it ran really smoothly before a series of hacks prompted me to take the site down and learn more about MySQL injection attacks.
Now the site is back online and is even more user-friendly and easy to browse, search and submit your free surfboard classifieds.
MatterDaddy Market script.
More updates will come concerning the progress of this site.
Many mahalos, Brew…
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Exceptional web design and development from the beautiful island of Maui
Mahalo for your interest in my services. I have been a professional web designer for over 14 years and I assure you that I can exceed your project expectations. I have a unique style which I continue to develop every day.
As you can see, this web site is currently under re-construction but will slowly fill out as I find time between other projects and clients. Mahalo for your patience!
Read more…
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