What's happening at Simple Helix?

Support working remotely

  • May 01st, 2011
  • Posted in News

Currently our tech support team is working in Atlanta from our Data Center. Ticket times still may be delayed but we are making every effort possible to provide our customers the support they deserve. Thank you for your continued support and we hope to have the office in Huntsville Alabama back up soon.

Tech Support Office Closed

  • April 28th, 2011
  • Posted in News

Due to the severe weather our corporate office located in Huntsville Alabama is closed until further notice. Our office is with out power and internet access. Please note this has NOT effected our servers. All sites are up and running as normal. Ticket responses will be delayed. We ask for your understanding during this period of time and we will make every effort to resolve your issues in a timely manner. Thank you for your continued support.

Magento Now Offering Magento:Professional!

Magento has listened to the feedback for a mid-tier version of its product, and today has announced the release of Magento: Professional, which will feature “revenue-generating features” not found in the community version at a price tag much more accessible than the Enterprise edition.

For more information, you can read up about the new release here.

Laying Out the Welcome Mat

  • March 08th, 2010
  • Posted in News

Hi there!

My name is Sarah, and I’m new to the SimpleHelix team.  I’ll be your new, real-life, honest-to-goodness blogger!

Little bit about me: I’ve been blogging since 2004, when we still used the term “webblog”.  Remember those days?  Prior to then, I was writing on things they called “geospaces” on something called “America Online”.  And before that?  I was totally posting on “bulletin boards” on a little platform called “Prodigy”.

I know there’s an excessive amount of quotation marks there.  I use them because, well, look at how crazy far we’ve come in the online arena.  Now, we’ve got an amazing, sprawling land of Internet with limitless possibilities.

That vast internet landscape is what makes SimpleHelix just absolutely giddy.

Here at SimpleHelix, we realize that we serve as a platform for YOUR creative juices, integrating cutting edge systems with proven technology to promise new possibility.  We merely provide the springboard into the Olympic-sized pool of the internet; the difficulty, originality, and execution of the dive is ENTIRELY up to you.  Whether you’re going for a simple dip or a full-fledged cannonball, we’re here to support you and help you make a splash.

Be sure and check back regularly to see what specials we have running and what the latest news is out there to help you grow your business.  And we want your feedback!  Half of the fun of blogging is the communication, so say hi!

I’ll keep this one short and sweet, and we’ll get into some of the fun stuff soon.  Till then!

SimpleHelix asks YOU: How do you find a developer to suit your needs?

It happens more times than I care to recount. I answer a support call to hear a frustrated business owner on the other end of the line, desperate and distraught because the site is broken and no one knows how to fix it. Unfortunately, the web developer initially hired to create the site is M.I.A.

There are so many fantastic web developers out there. Unfortunately, there are some not-so-great developers out there as well. As a business owner, how are you to discern a good web development practice from a not so great one (or NSG’s as I like to call them)?

As per usual, I found a pretty comprehensive article on entreprenuer.com. This article pinpoints five questions you’ll want to ask any web developer you are considering signing on with. Some highlights from this article include:

  • What web standards are utilized? – This includes asking whether “clean codes” are used, such as CSS, XHTML, and ECMA scripts.
  • Do they design with search engine optimization (SEO) in mind? – Granted, web design does not always play a large role in SEO strategy, but it can contribute to the strategies you may choose when your site is “live”. Asking your developer about his or her standpoint on this subject will help you gauge whether or not the developer will be a good fit for your needs.
  • Do they design with growth in mind – Your site (hopefully) will grow. Is this developer prepared to equip your site with technology that will allow you to grow in terms of functionality?
  • How is their work tested – Is the site tested in several browsers? Or just one? And what real environment testing is conducted before the site construction is considered complete?
  • How are support requests handled – If something should “break”, or require adjusting, are you able to contact the developer for assistance? How much assistance can be provided, under what circumstances, and if there are any additional fees involved for requesting assistance, are also things you’ll want to consider asking
  • If you’re considering a specific platform (such as Magento), you’ll want to also consider looking for developers who work exclusively with that platform. These developers will be well versed in the most recent versions of the software and it’s capabilities. Likely, they will regularly attend events such as the upcoming “Best Practices for Magento Development” webinar.

    SimpleHelix asks YOU:

    Web Developers: What are some ways that your practice sets itself apart from NSG developers? What do you advise Business Owners to be cautious of?

    Business Owners: What are some things that you have learned when searching for a new web developer?

GNAX networking issues

  • October 26th, 2009
  • Posted in News

GNAX has been having networking issues since 4:42AM CST today. They claim to be resolving the issue and we will be updating everyone as soon as the issue is resolved. You can twitter them @gnax or follow along at WHT by click here.

Latest reply from GNAX: {11:02AM CST}

We have experienced a failure of one of our core routers. The problem is identified and spare hardware is being installed and reconfigured. Customers with single path to this router are experiencing a temporary network outage as a result. Multi path customers are routed around the problem but may see a slight slowdown in traffic. The issue should be resolved shortly. We apologize for any inconvenience you have experienced.

Last update: {12:18PM CST}
Everything appears to be back up and working. If you’re still experiencing issues, please open a support ticket via our support desk at https://www.simplehelix.com/hosting.

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