Launchrock for error pages | Hacker News Reader

Launchrock for error pages

404engine.com

6 pointsbgnm200039 comments

Since there are not FAQ/About/Explanation pages can you explain what is the idea behind this ?

Other than an online webpage editor that works in Chrome.

Edit: I'm asking this because I only see a web editor and a save button that ask you to register and two "sign in" "register" buttons.

Other than that i can't relly tell what this is suppose to be other than what I can guess by the Website Title.

Yup, the idea is you create a page on 404engine, and then drop a script tag on your static error page. When the error page is called, it loads the page you created on 404engine dynamically. Tracks requests etc. And it alerts you if the page has over X requests in a day.

The point is just that, creating good error pages is the last thing anyone wants to spend time thinking about or doing. So this streamlines that.

>[...] Tracks requests etc. And it alerts you if the page has over X requests in a day.

That's the (for me) interesting part but there are no signs of any of that on the website.

Probably if I register everything will be explained to me, but let me know what I'm registering for before I do it out of blind faith.

the site is meant to be beyond easy to try out and register for, with the lowest barrier to entry possible. But I understand the problem with not highlighting features initially.

That said, if you do register, you can click your email account to modify how many request a page must receive for you to be alerted.

I tried to trigger a 404 on your site hoping I could see one in action (and maybe see an example of the scripting) but you don't appear to be using it yourself?

You probably should offer a bit more information. After all, you're targeting this at technical users, the barrier for entry doesn't have to be that low. Particularly since the service you're offering is "trust me to redirect your users with javascript whenever your site messes up."

Agreed - I can't believe I forgot to make one for myself (embarrassing) - will be adding one later this evening.

I also agree I need to add more information. The javascript isn't redirecting at all though - just dynamically loading the page in the static error page.

Nobody is going to register without knowing what they are registering for...

Haha as I am learning now

I really don't understand why you would submit the site to hackernews then. You only have one shot at a first impression especially if your service is a paid one and you're trying to make a sale. By not having an explanation of what the site's purpose, functionality and benefits are, you frustrate visitors that initially go to the site and risk them just writing it off.

It's a shame because after reading the explanation you give for your service, this is something that IS extremely useful with a low bar of entry. Please update the site as I would hate to see you lose revenue.

Thanks for your comments! I agree, I need to add some educational info to the site ASAP. I actually posted a show hn earlier that got about no response, even though it had a lengthy explanation. I obviously assumed some elements were obvious that were not. Lesson learned, hopefully it doesn't affect the launch too much.

The irony: http://www.404engine.com/no404!

On one hand I'm very embarrassed that I forgot that. On the other hand its kind of like the proof in the pudding for me. I never have time for those damn things. I'll have a page up tonight.

I have absolutely no idea what to do

The idea is, you'd double click to start creating elements, and design your error page, then save. It'll give you a script tag to insert on your static error page et voila.

I had no clue what the hell you want me to do :-) Seriously, this needs two or three lines of good explanatory copy.

Agreed - going to be updating it tonight, sorry for the trouble!

So the idea here is that someone who can write an entire web app can't do a basic HTML page for a 404?

Haha its about saving time - as someone who designs and codes, I hate spending time to make these pages. So I was solving my own need.

You should spend more time designing good 404 pages - they can help significantly with retaining users and helping them find what they want.

I agree 1000%, this is supposed to make that faster.

Interesting. 404 Pages are a pain in the ass to build!

Exactly, the idea is with a simple script tag, you can set it up super fast, and manage it from 404engine

They are? They're just like any other web page...

Its not that they're difficult - its that they're time consuming and delay shipping features.

I disagree wholeheartedly. I've built web apps for the better part of 10 years, and I've never once thought "man this 404 page is a pain in the ass".

1. Create file 2. Write "404: Page not found" 3. Launch 4. Make your 404 page not suck ("Go home, search, etc")

So I've also been building web apps for 10+ years, and I forgot to put one on my site - for creating error pages. People are different, I'm obviously trying to solve a problem that affects me, but maybe not you.

Fair enough.

Most frameworks come with one by default. Your site's using what looks like the default Rails one, for example.

Yup, oh the shame

I thought you would have a cool 404 page for your own website but I was kind of disappointed :( Nice service though

Haha yea I just realized that myself, how embarrassing :)

heres a demo of it in action: http://guzzed.com/test/404.html

this is great! really easy to use and implement!

thanks, here to answer any questions if you have any!

You should know, it looks like that error page actually serves a 200 status code (which means you run the risk of Google crawling and indexing your error pages).

Thats not a real error page - its just a test showing the script tag implemented and loading the error page properly.

Why the dependency on jQuery, if all you're doing is loading html? That's not hard to do with native js at all.

It looks nice, and it works, don't get me wrong. I like jQuery. Just seems unnecessary here.

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