March 2013 newsletter

SUMMARY: A GLANCE
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1. git now available in Beta on Gandi Simple Hosting
2. A new version of BaseKit is ready to roll
3. Launch of the .PW extension
4. New gTLD extensions: what you need to know
5. Rate increase at the Registries
6. A reminder of our current promotions
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It’s almost spring, though winter is visiting Europe once again for a last hurrah. Gandi has some updates for you to get you through the remaining dark days…
The git tool is now available on Gandi Simple Hosting, making the beta testers happy and rubbing their hands with anticipation of super easy code and content management. If that doesn’t warm your heart, how about a new version of Basekit? Lots of cool things there, and we are also launching a new extension, .PW. For your viewing pleasure, we are making a nice preview of some gTLDs (a whole lot of them are on the way), and even letting you pre-select the ones you want. For a cold, hard reality that is not yet upon us, there is a price increase on the way for some popular extensions (though thankfully not for .COM).

1. git available on Beta Hosting Simple
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git is a code and file management tool well known to many web developers. This tool allows you to do version management on your code, revert easily to prior versions, merge code, fork, and collaborate. It’s available right now, in beta test in the Paris data center. Anyone can start an instance there, so no reason to wait! To learn more about using git on your instances, click here.

2. A new version of BaseKit is ready to roll
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We are rolling out a new Gandi Basekit version this week, with new and improved templates, easier upgrades and better management screens. If you had been wanting to try Basekit, check it out now!  Here are some features we have added

3. Launch of the .PW extension
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.PW is the official extension of Palau, in Micronesia, with a little more
20,000 inhabitants. Most geeks (like us) think of “password” when we see the .PW at the end of a domain, but you could also think “Pro-Web“, as in a professional working online. So if you are a Web marketing professional from Palau, or a geek sporting a beard, or both, you need to know that the official opening of this extension is on March 25th, and everyone is welcome to register. If you want to pre-registrer your .PW domains at Gandi,  just log in to your Gandi account, and register now! Prices for a .PW start at $15.00.

4. New extensions: you need to know
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Did you know that 2000 new extensions will be created over the next two years by ICANN? From .PARIS to .FOO (not to mention .FUN), registrations will multiply and domain names abound! Although many extensions will soon be forgotten after 15 minutes of fame, many will be imprinted permanently in the Internet landscape.

As always with this sort of thing, excluding the protection afforded to brand names, it is the law of first come, first served. Currently, estimates of the availability dates for the first extensions are leaning towards September. However, the registries do not yet know the conditions, nor the rates, for granting registrations.

That’s why, starting at the end of the month, Gandi is offering pre-registration! This will allow you to choose among the extensions you are interested in and place free reservation orders. You’ll be kept up to date regarding the selected extensions and can, if you wish, turn them into final orders when the time comes to decide.

5. Rate increase at the Registries
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Price increase? Yes, as we had announced last year, several major gTLDs ( namely .NET .ORG, .INFO, .BIZ and .NAME) will increase in price this summer. Interestingly, .COM will not increase, because the U.S. government did not authorize a price hike. We are, unfortunately, going to have to pass on this increase to our customers, and so these domains will end up more expensive by $0.51 to $0.78.

6. Reminder of our current promotions
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Here’s a little reminder of the promotions we are currently running on domain names:
– The .ASIA extension is available for $10.00 for creation of new domains for a year. This promotion is valid until April 30 2013.

– The .ME (for Montenegro) extension is 25% off, for creation of new domains at all price levels. Valid until the end of March.

So dear reader, as always we want to hear from you. Send us your suggestions, comments, praise, criticism, and witticism. We read what you send to newsletter-en@gandi.net with interest.

Sincerely,
Nicolas Lhuillery
Product Director
gandi.net

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