Acro.net – Technology Rants & Raves by Acroplex®

George T. Orfanakos is the president of the Children’s Tumor Foundation, a non-profit 501(c)(3) medical foundation, dedicated to improving the health and well being of individuals and families affected by the neurofibromatoses (NF).

Having donated to the fund in the past, I received their newsletter; it’d be great for everyone to give a small token of appreciation; to show your support to a loved one who might be sick, or simply because you are aware of how blessed you are to be healthy.

Happy Holidays – it’s the best time to give.

This summer while attending the Children’s Tumor Foundation’s annual NF Forum, I had the pleasure of speaking with an impressive gentleman named Matt Hay. A husband and father, Matt is an active member of our NF Endurance Team and was, at the time, training for an Ironman triathlon.  An Ironman includes a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride, and a 26.2-mile run.  A monumental effort by any measure, but even more impressive when you consider that Matt is living with neurofibromatosis.

Diagnosed with NF2 in 1998 at age 19, Matt has had two brain surgeries, a spinal surgery, and five eye surgeries in the last decade.  He has had to relearn how to walk and hear several times, but as I spoke with Matt, I was overcome with an extraordinary realization. Although his challenges are enormous, his passion to prevail is even greater. This quality, I’ve learned, is embodied by NF families everywhere.

On September 11th of this year, Matt finished his Ironman after 15 hours and 41 minutes of pure drive and determination.  He stuck to his plan and accomplished his goal and I’m proud to say, because of people like Matt, WE are on course to do the same. It is because of this determination that we have grown from two to now 50 drugs in early stage testing to treat NF, which compliment our 25 ongoing NF clinical trials.

This progress would not be possible without a proven strategic plan, sincere generosity, and enduring support from the NF community.  We are still working to find solutions for all forms of NF, but our partnerships with government and industry will better leverage each and every dollar donated.

I share Matt’s story to inspire you and to emphasize the importance of your support. I realize that the current economic climate is challenging for everyone, but NF won’t wait until things improve. I ask you to consider why you first gave, measure our progress and stewardship, and renew your support with a gift today.

On behalf of the Foundation, the Hay family, and the millions battling NF around the world, I thank you.  We are truly grateful for your generosity and consideration.?

Sincerely yours,

George T. Orfanakos
To make your gift online, please go to:  ctf.org/giving

I love NameJet’s live auction mode as it clearly displays the bids as they come in. It’s live domain auction with no wondering whether your bid got in or who’s outbidding you.

On TDNAM, that’s another story.

Not only there is no live mode, in which case one has to keep refreshing a window, but also the drop down menu often misbehaves due to some CSS glitch.

The final straw: delayed email confirmations. Today I was bidding on a domain and made sure that I refreshed the auction window every few seconds.

The email notifications arrived with insanely late timestamps, some up to an hour later. By that time, I had won the domain but it’s definitely frustrating seeing how one might lose a good deal.

The best part of a Sunday is waking up, realizing that no late Saturday partying stands as an obstacle to doing business.

No matter how much alcohol or other adult activity is involved – at least, those permitted to us single guys – the world of domaining and development keeps on rolling forward.

It feels fantastic waking up to several deals closing on Sedo, having new professional connections being established (thank you, LinkedIn) and simply smelling the coffee of the exciting week ahead.

The world of domaining is by far the best industry to be in, although I would not mind being a soccer player during the World Cup. The level of excitement is the same.

When it comes down to acquiring domains in the aftermarket, such as Afternic, NameJet, Sedo and TDNAM there is only one method to acquire the domain you want.

It’s obvious: you need a hearty budget and a good bidding strategy.

Unlike silly statements made by Flippa executives in sponsored posts, the domain investment industry is far from dead.

More than $2 million in sales occur on the main domain selling venues collectively, every week.

Some of these domains can be had by you, if you follow certain guidelines.

First, define your budget. If you set forth to spend e.g. $5,000 then do so with careful planning. Don’t bid all of it at once but in a manner that indicates you are serious in bidding. Counter-bid in sizable chunks but not beyond a certain rate.

Second, timing is important. Don’t wait until the last minute to secure a bid because you simply might miss the deadline. Don’t forget to set reminders – e.g. via your cell phone, email alerts etc. about the closing times of an auction.

Third, learn to respect your opponents. On certain platforms such as NameJet, bidding is made using aliases. Most domain investors bid with the same pattern and win or lose an auction at similar amounts. Always attempt to find out who they are once they win a domain. You might even know them in person!

Lastly, don’t be afraid to lose. Auctions are an investment game and it’s not the battle that counts but the war. There will always be another opportunity to invest in another domain, and many more ways to make money.

Everyone agrees that it’s still a bad economy out there, with no real indication of a bounce back, particularly during an election year.

This does not mean business comes to a standstill; but some practices leave me wondering what the heck is going on with some domainers.

Recently, an incident where a domainer tried to flip a domain he won on NameJet before he’d submit payment, ended up with the winner of the auction paying for the domain ten days later.

Essentially, he tried to make a profit by rushing to resell it at a higher price and having a sale committed, with which he’d then fund the purchase.

That’s called hot air selling.

Then again a buyer engaged in a Sedo agreement, and when the upper $x,xxx deal was reached, failed to make payment within the 5 day timeframe. Upon my inquiry through Sedo, he said that he’d need “a couple of weeks” to form a European company through which he’d then pay for the domain.

That’s called bullshit trading.

I don’t know about how everyone conducts business in domaining but in my book, this kind of behavior is unethical and characteristic of people with no business scruples.

When I make an offer, be it for $50 or for $50,000, I make sure I have the funds in the bank. The moment that the agreement is in effect, I must be able to commit to the terms of the agreement and submit payment.

That’s what honest domainers do.