Some frequently asked questions

What is a .au direct domain?

Australia has introduced a new shorter domain, .au direct. eg. artful.au instead of artful.com.au.  Existing .com.au and .net.au domain owners get first priority to register their domain in the new .au direct format. After the 19th of September all domains are open to the public (and resellers!) to register any available .au direct domain.

Click for more information about .au direct domain names.

What's involved in a PHP upgrade?

Though PHP 7.4 is currently handling your website, the software is becoming obsolete and will no longer receive official security updates by it's developers into 2023. There is a strong recommendation from the developers of Joomla and Wordpress platforms that websites are upgraded as soon as possible to run on PHP 8.0 and later 8.1

What does this mean?

For your website to stay secure you need to upgrade. The unpredictable nature of this switchover due to the varying elements in your individual website is a challenge. However, Artful has robust practices in place to limit the negative impact on your website.

What to do?

  • Initial assessment to determine if upgrading your website to PHP 8.0/8.1 is a viable option.
  • Take our findings onboard, discuss and you decide the best path for your website.

If upgrading to PHP 8.0/8.1 IS deemed possible:

  • Make a copy of your website & carry out testing with the PHP update on a development platform.
  • We provide recommendations based on your website's existing software (in particular third party themes, templates, plugins, extensions that we expect to be problematic.

If upgrading to PHP 8.0/8.1 IS NOT deemed possible:

  • Unfortunately some third party software (i.e. plugins, templates, themes, extensions) will simply not have a compatible version for PHP 8.0 / 8.1. This as you can appreciate is outside of our control as we do not write the software

What will it cost?

  • Initially the test to switchover and identify possible issues if any will take between 30 minutes - 1 hour charged at our standard hourly rate of $120 per hour.
  • Artful will provide an estimate of the time we think it should take following the initial assessment. If your site can’t be easily tweaked to work with PHP 8.0 / 8.1 then we‘ll need to talk.
  • The end result or time it will take to achieve a successful switchover cannot be predicted. We will not know for certain until an upgrade is fully completed on a development environment and following extensive testing whether or not your website can run successfully on the latest version of PHP.

What are my options if my website cannot run successfully on PHP 8.0/8.1?

  • NEW SITE BUILD with Joomla 4 software compatible with PHP 8.0 / 8.1
  • Do nothing and risk your website performance and security being compromised

If you are ready for us to begin the process up upgrading your website to PHP 8 please send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will start the process for you.  Or if you have any other questions just ask us!

 

How much does a website cost?

Hmmm!  Perhaps I could ask you how much is a piece of string? :)  Artful designs websites to suit every individual business it creates one for.  So ultimately the cost of a website depends on what you want it to achieve.  But, we understand that that doesn't really help you very much does it?  So to give you a very vague ballpark, most of the websites we develop cost between $3000 and $8000.  We don't believe in quoting here at Artful though, we feel in order to cover every possibility, in order for us to run a successful business, we would need to add a lot extra to a quote to cover any contingencies!  We would rather simply charge you for the time it takes to build it!  So our websites are built by an hourly rate system, however, if you have a strict budget, we can work with you help ensure you achieve a fantastic website within that.  Whether that be by sending you regular invoices and updates or by showing you what you can do to add content yourselves. 

What is domain name management?

Domain name management is where we look after your domain name for you.  It is officially registered with the relevant registry but we ensure it is pointed to the correct nameservers and most importantly ensure that it remains yours!  We will notify you approximately 30 days prior to it's renewal date, asking you if you still require it and then keep on hounding you until you reply!  If a domain is lost, it is often difficult to get back so we do our darndest to get hold of you and pride ourselves in never having lost a domain name in our 20 years in business.

Is my website Responsive?

It is vital that from 2015 onwards all new websites are built to be responsive. With mobile devices everywhere there simply is no other option.

What does responsive mean?  A responsive website is one that automatically detects the screen size of the device it is being viewed on and alters its layout accordingly.  An easy test whether your site is responsive is to resize the screen and see if your website automatically adjusts or just gets squished!  Squished is bad and it is time for you to consider a new website!

How do I register a domain name?

Simple!  Just send us an email requesting the domain/s you are after.  We can then check whether they are currently available and register them for you.  We may even have a look for other possibilities for you too and send you a list.

What is a content management system (CMS)?

A content management system (CMS) is a computer application that allows publishing, editing and modifying content, organising, deleting as well as maintenance from a central interface. Such systems of content management provide procedures to manage workflow in a collaborative environment. Here at Artful we offer a few CMS options being Joomla, Wordpress and Opencart for eCommerce websites.

What domain name should I register?

We often suggest you consider registering a few domain names, depending on what you are wanting to achieve with it.  

If Google Search is a priority for you we would suggest you not only register a domain name that includes your business name but also one that is heavy with your chosen search phrases.  Eg. we have artful.com.au but also some more Google friendly ones too such as managedjoomlahosting.com.au.

We also have the equivalent names with different TLD's. (.com, .net. .net.au etc).  Doing this is more of an insurance policy against anyone else registering them and imitating your business.  Once someone else has them your change of retrieving them are next to none.

What is Joomla?

Joomla is an award-winning content management system (CMS), which allows users to build Web sites and powerful online applications. Many aspects, including its ease-of-use and extensibility, have made Joomla one of the most popular Web site CMS with developers world-wide.  It may not be advertised as well as it's competitor WordPress but if you're wanting to run a business other than a simple blog, Joomla is what we would choose.  It comes with many tools right 'out of the box' unlike WordPress that requires a third party plugin to do anything it seems, allowing it to be customised to do whatever you want!  And if the 'tool' is not actually 'in the box' there is a trusted Joomla community that has probably built an extension for what you need.

Joomla is Artful's go to for simple, quick and flexible website design and provide Managed Joomla Hosting for it as well!

How much does a domain name cost?

You will find if you do some research that domain names range in price from $25 to $2000!  Just like when you get quotes for selling your house, we would suggest you choose a domain provider that charges somewhere in the middle!  Too cheap often means you don't receive management associated with your domain so there is a risk that you will not be notified of the renewal and you may lose it.  With these providers if your email address changes and you don't respond to a renewal request they will not chase you, they will just let it drop.  Artful will use everything within their power to find you before we could let that happen.

Too expensive usually means baddies have immorally, and often illegally, purchased a whole heap of domains in order to sell them to the highest bidder!  Avoid these at all costs too!

Artful charges $59 every two years to manage any .au domains (eg .com.au or .net.au) and $49 every two years for non Australian generic Top-Level (gTLD) domains (eg. .com or .net).  Other TLDs (Top-Level Domains)  like .melbourne, .nz, .aisa and .coffee etc are often individually priced so you would need to ask us specifically for pricing of those.

Will I need to come back to you for any little change?

No, but you can if you like.  We pride ourselves on giving you the keys to your whole website kingdom once the site is complete.  Even providing you with training to help you update your site yourself.  We are also available on the phone or by email if you have forgotten how and will help walk you through the process.  For the most part you should be able to update a lot of things yourself, however if there is a structural change you require, we do suggest you consider coming back to us to ensure your site maintains its integrity.  Or if you find that you would prefer to leave web design to the web design experts and concentrate on doing what you do best, feel free to contact us for any change required.  We charge for updates at our regular hourly rate.

Anything else you would like to know?

If there is anything else you would like to know that we have forgotten to add here, please feel free to give us a call on 1300 278 385 or email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..