Newsletter March 2022
As the global response to tragedies in the Ukraine and in other affected regions continues to develop, here’s a message from Stephan Ramoin, CEO of Gandi, on Gandi’s position on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Each month, we deliver our best and most relevant articles from our news site, our YouTube channel, and beyond.
In this month’s newsletter: an open-source alternative to Zoom, install WordPress in 10 minutes or less, the difference between SSL and TLS, have we given up on protecting our personal data, how to check your DNS, three things we’re reading this month, and more!
This month:
- There are videoconferencing options besides Zoom
- How to install WordPress in 10 minutes or less
- Other popular news this month
- Three things we’re reading this month
- Release note: what’s new at Gandi
- Gandi Supports
- Promo roundup
- Calendar
BigBlueButton, the Zoom and Google Meet alternative
Distance learning and remote work have seen an unprecedented increase in the past few years due to the public health crisis. BigBlueButton is an open-source alternative to the big players in the field. After all, there’s more than just Zoom out there for videoconferencing!
Install your WordPress in 10 minutes or less!
WordPress is the most popular Content Management System (CMS) in the world. This tool is known in particular for its ease of use and its continuous updates by a dedicated community of open source developers. At Gandi, we have completely automated the process of installing WordPress on your hosting, making WordPress easily available to everyone, without any special technical knowledge required. Follow our guide!
Other popular news this month
What’s the difference between SSL and TLS?
Oftentimes you hear about SSL certificates, and sometimes you hear them also called TLS certificates. So which is it? SSL or TLS? If it’s not clear to you, we’ll set things straight for you once and for all.
Interview with Framasoft: have we given up on protecting our personal data?
“I have nothing to hide,” “My online activities aren’t interesting,” — we have so many preconceived notions that lull us into complacency when it comes to personal data. This relinquishing of certain aspects of our private life is not inescapable, as Pouihou, co-director of Framasoft explains.
Literally everything you wanted to know about how to check your DNS
Configuring your DNS well is essential for your website and other services associated with it to work properly. But how DNS works is not exactly intuitive. Here we explain how you can check your DNS and stay on top of your domain name’s DNS settings.
Three things we’re reading this month
1. Does Low Code Mean More Work or More Freedom for Developers?
“Low code” and “no code” solutions are currently flourishing, especially in the area of website development, precisely because they offer users powerful tools that otherwise required a dedicated developer to achieve. Examples include sitebuilder sites like Wix and Squarespace, but also CMSes like WordPress.
It’s assumed by some that “low-code” and “no-code” solutions threaten developer jobs, but the reality is that they actually change developers’ work in various ways, including possibly creating more work for developers, but also the promise of greater freedom.
Low code and no code website development options give thousands if not millions of people a richer level of engagement with the internet. Their growth in popularity is a tremendous opportunity for everyone.
2. Crypto Agility: Solving for the Inevitable
Public key cryptography — specifically the exchange of cryptographic public “keys” at the start of encrypted communication — is based on complex math problems that take thousands of years for today’s computers to break. But with quantum computers (a type of computer that harnesses the special physics of quantum mechanics to attain lightning fast speeds) on the horizon, these problems may one day be trivially easy, breaking our current cyptographic systems wide open.
Just as attackers are harvesting encrypted data now to crack once the technology exists, so too are researchers working on quantum-proof cryptography to stay one step ahead. More short term, even outside the threat quantum computing poses to present-day cryptography, there will always be a need for greater cryptographic security. Flexibility and ingenuity are the keys to staying safe.
3. Blockchain domains and the big challenges they face
The blockchain is a hot topic, and one of the primary benefits it’s being touted for is decentralization. Some have taken this decentralization into the world of domain names, offering various blockchain-based domain names.
This piece dissects the approaches of three different options, analyzing strengths and weaknesses, concluding that Ethereum Name Service (ENS) is the most interesting of the three, particularly because it offers cross-compatibility with the existing domain name system. In all, though, clearly the “centralized” IANA authority still takes the day.
All of these begs the question, though — how necessary is a centralized name assigning authority for a universally recognized and consistent domain name system to work?
Release note: what’s new in Gandi’s interface?
This month:
- Simplified management of certificates for several years
- New promo sorting options available
- Different Gandi newsletter subscription choices
- Publication of v2.0.0 of the “go-gandi” Gandi community Terraform provider
Gandi supports
Gandi supports Infoclimat
Created in 2003, Infoclimat is a general-interest non-profit association that promotes pooling data and knowledge about climate and weather. Gandi supports Infoclimat’s approach, based on sharing data and knowledge, similar to the concept of open source.
Promo roundup
Ending March 31
- .in — $5.97 (regular price $10.20)
- .org — $9.99 (regular price $17.20)
- .io — $37.00 (regular price $55.00)
Ending June 30
- .blog — $9.99 (regular price $38.35 per year)
- .gay — $12.00 (regular price $47.87 per year)
- .ink — $12.00 (regular price $31.90 per year)
- .tattoo — $12.00 (regular price $57.40 per year)
- .wiki — $12.00 (regular price $31.90 per year)
These promos might also interest you
- .art — $6.99 (regular price $17.44 per year)
- .cloud — $10.99 (regular price $24.29)
- .eu — $6.00 (regular price $15.00 per year)
- .me — $6.00 (regular price $26.40 per year)
- .shop — $3.00 (regular price $45.95 per year)
- 5 Radix domain endings (.tech, .site, .online, .store, .space) starting at $3.40
- 35 Donuts domain endings (including .email, .info, .solutions, .world) starting at $4.00
*all prices listed are in USD and based on pricing Grid A.
Calendar
| Past events | Upcoming events |
| February 1 — GoLive/General Availability for .day | March 7–10— 73rd ICANN meeting (virtual) |
| February 9 —General Assembly of the Francophone Python Association | March 22–24 — Cloudfest |
| March 1 — Launch of .tz | March 30 — Price increase on .click |
| April 1 — Price increase on .in |