| I have been a PlanetDomain reseller for about 8 years or so now. I have a website set up at triorbit.com which interfaces PlanetDomain's console (which can be set up as an a entry on your own domain or subdomain), but I have always absolutely hated using it. I can't stand it. It's ugly, cumbersome, coded poorly and plain out just sucks. For this reason, I have never put a whole lot of effort into promoting TriOrbit, because I just plain out hate my own website, because of the interface it uses.
What I have wanted to do since day one is set up an API that allows me to add a search box to my own website. However, I've tried to look into this. I got information off PlanetDomain about the API, and it literally gave me brain damage. It didn't take more than half an hour of me trying to understand it before I was like: 'Yeah.. um.. nah, I'm off it'.
Then I go through stages every 12 months or so where I think: "I REALLY want to get an API from planet domain, that doesn't require a degree in quantum physic to understand". So I start searching around and give things another shot before I come back to the same old: 'Yeah, nah.. I'm off it'.
Does ANYONE on planet earth have a PlanetDomain API running? If so, can someone point me towards a direction where I can get a search box installed onto my website? Also, I'd LOVE to see one running!
See what I've always wanted to do was set up a basic web hosting company. I can't provide the best of support or pay a staff, so the costs would be next to nothing and the whole exercise would be pretty much just for the sake of it and maybe to make a bit of pocket money and have a reason to want to sell my domains. If it all works out, maybe I would start paying some people to help me look after it.
But that's way dowen the track.. for now, all I want is a PlanetDomain API working on my site. I've requested this information from PlanetDomain, and I have to say that the responses w ere extremely unhelpful -- and it makes me wonder whether they're actually interested in making money at all. I mean, after all these years -- in 8 years that I have been a PlanetDomain reseller, the whole setup has barely changed.
I was sitting back just waiting for them to get their act together, but after 8 years, I think It could easily become 8 more. Why doesn't PlanetDomain have a decent API system with proper documentation?
Why doesn't PlanetDomain proactively create a department or system to handle such things? The only reason I use PlanetDomain is because I am an Aussie and they are an Aussie company -- and I am not interested in MelbourneIT - period.
Ok, this just turned into a big rant. I know I wont get a search box on my website, to plug into a hosting signup. I have quite a bit of traffic running through all my websites right now, and I'm quite sure I could turn a lot of it into domain sales -- as it's mostly webmaster related traffic. But All PlanetDomain provides is a cumbersome a entry control panel, which is so ugly it makes me want to throw up. Man I hate that console.
I know it might seem like I just created this thread to bash PlanetDomain, but I didn't. This is just how I feel after 8 years of waiting and frustration. Nothing is happening.
The biggest problem is that when I used to contact Murray Kester, he'd keep insisting that everything is fine and basically threw my suggestions out the window citing that "other people seem to be selling a lot of domains".. and "works for everyone else", and "other people tell us they love the console".. Yeah PEOPLE who have NO idea how to make websites and rely on cookie cutter systems. Not everyone WANTS to use your cut and paste control panel Murray! Some people want to attract customers directly from their OWN sites. But if anyone wants to actually build a website or business that gets domains sold, they're left with nothing but scraps, crumbs and poor documentation.
Anyway, my whole point is.. anyone got PlanetDomain API working? If so, please let me know -- I'm, all ears. Maybe I'll even pay you to set mine up. But then again, I can't see how anyone is going to do that without quoting more money than I make in three months. Why should it be that way?
If worse comes to worse, I'll just move all my domains to Godaddy. They're cheaper than PlanetDomains wholesale costs anyway.
..and if anyone from PlanetDomain ever sees this thread -- look, it's nothing personal. I just think you spend too much time trying to implement addon sales and books and hosting and all that, trying to do everything yourself. You are a REGISTRAR - you should be concentrating on making life easier for your resellers! If you put your time and effort into THAT, you'd make TEN times more money! I have communicated with you before about an API, but I might as well have been headbutting an F100 towball. Why don't you want your resellers selling domains, except you getting your fingers into every little corner you can. That's now how money is made.
At the end of the day, what has prevented me from running an Aussie web hosting site is the fact that I can't get that site to interface with PlanetDomain. I have even built a custom CMS which I want to start giving websites away for free (remotely hosted), but I want those people to have the ability to purchase a domain, instead of using a subdomain. That would be a great way to get some domains sold -- but I can't, because there's no support, encouragement, help or incentive backing the API.
I admit it, I am not the best with servers and API's, etc - and maybe all the expert programmers can understand the PlanetDomain API documentation, but there are TENS OF THOUSANDS of people who DO know how to build, run, promote and SEO websites (like me), people who are marketing and front end oriented.. so if such people can get an interface running easily, then another several hundred Aussie hosting websites would spring up within a year or so, and PlanetDomain's sales go from what ever they are to several times what they are. It just makes common sense to offer a decent, easy to understand and supported API, instead being told to just go pay a programmer.
Why do you think many companies use sites such as CJ, GlixGalore and LinkShare? Because they realise that they can't do it all themselves. It's better to make an incentive for OTHER people to promote your products, and the best way to do that in the case of PlanetDomain is to offer a decent FRICKIN' API!!!
*deep breath*... *deep breath*...
ok, I'll get back to work now. Glad to get that off my chest...
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