Cheap Web Hosting is No Bargain!

Ever heard the saying “Penny-wise and Dollar-foolish”?

Well bargain priced website hosting may just represent the perfect example of watching a jar full of pennies while bucket loads of dollars fly out the window!

When I launched my first website (way back in the “dark ages” of 1997) I paid almost $150 a month in hosting and data transfer charges. My web host watched how many files I uploaded like a hawk and always seemed to send their hefty invoices earlier with each passing month.

I’m obviously not the only one who felt that way, because suddenly a whole industry of “bargain” web hosts sprang up all over the web.

On the surface they all sound great, especially when you think you can go from $150 a month down to $4.95 a month!

Five bucks a month sounds great, until you realize the amount of data transfer (number of page views) and bandwidth (the amount of data transfer your host allows in a given period) you get for that low price potentially hampers your ability to do business.

This realization - along with a panic attack and a quick lesson in calculating data transfer and bandwidth - usually comes at the least convenient time.

When you exceed your limits, a bargain host usually just shuts you down with no warning. Most webmasters realize they’ve made a mistake choosing a bargain host when their site suddenly loads a blank page in the middle of a big promotion traffic spike.

Believe me, everything just stops!

Here are a few bargain hosts that provide good service, but you need to carefully check the fine print for how much bandwidth they allow.

www.FeaturePrice.com For about $24.95 a month you get to host up to six independent websites with a single account. You get unlimited data storage, unlimited email and a variety of other higher end services, but their bandwidth policy seems hard to understand.

They did shut me down when we had a moderate level of success even though I paid them an extra $300 to get what they called “maximum” bandwidth. I was NOT pleased and promptly moved the site (http://www.7dayebook.com) to another host.

www.HostSave.com Host Save is another low price hosting company that delivers a wide range of services for only $6.95 per month. They recently raised their allowable data transfer, but their policy on how much bandwidth you can use at a given time seems non-existent.

www.DotEasy.com For $25 DotEasy offers a domain name purchase along with one year’s hosting. Sounds incredible until you read the fine print to discover they limit you to 1 Gigabyte of data transfer a month. Not much data once you start getting reasonable site traffic.

The moral here?

Either prepare to have your business shut down mid-stream if you get successful, or pay a few extra bucks each month to ensure you have enough bandwidth and data transfer to operate without any service interruptions.

At a minimum, specifically ask about and read the fine print regarding the host’s policies before it’s too late!

Jim Edwards is the co-author of the best selling ebook:

“33 Days to Online Profits”

How much would you pay to get day-by-day instructions from 2 top Internet marketing experts every day for 33 days? ** How about 88 cents? **

You can start with a few bucks and a good idea to make lots of money online! I did, and I’ll teach you how no matter what product you sell… ===> http://www.33daystoonlineprofits.com

Virtual Dedicated Server Hosting - The Best of Both Worlds

Virtual Dedicated Server hosting, or VDS, is the term for a physical server which, by means of software, has been partitioned into a number of “virtual” machines operating independently of each other as if they were standalone dedicated servers.

VDS - Advantages

The big advantage of VDS over a fully dedicated server is cost. Typically priced at less than one fourth the cost of full dedicated hosting, VDS hosting provides nearly all the same advantages. And compared to a shared web hosting plan, VDS is only slightly more expensive providing an excellent balance of economy and control.

With a VDS all physical resources such as memory, disk space, and the CPU continue to be shared, but each virtual server operates in a fully independent manner. For example, each VDS can run its own unique operating system and can be set up in any configuration imaginable.

The main advantage of a VDS is that each administrator maintains control at the root directory level of his or her own virtual server. Access at this level permits the web site owners to do a lot of neat things:

• Administer their own file directories
• Assign domain names that resolve to a primary domain without having to go through the web host
• Create and add e-mail accounts
• Assign email addresses
• Manage their own log files
• Maintain passwords
• Set permissions
• Delete and install software

VDS administrators effectively have the ability to do whatever an administrator can do on a real, physical server.

Security

Besides providing significantly greater control over the web hosting environment, the virtual dedicated server hosting is inherently more secure than any shared hosting server can be. Because web sites hosted on a shared server have to use the same operating system, a hacker who gets access to the server’s root directory could damage all the websites residing on that server.

On the other hand, A VDS is compartmentalized such that a hacker gaining entry via one account could in no way access any of the others. Each VDS is totally invisible to each other and it’s impossible to transfer root-level access capability from one account to another.

Virtual Dedicated Servers can be configured by the hosting company in a variety of ways so it’s important that you understand how your web host has allocated the server’s resources.

Typically the host would distribute the physical server resources evenly based on how many accounts and/or web sites are being hosted. Thus, with ten virtual servers on one physical server, each would be allocated ten percent of the storage, bandwidth, memory, and CPU time.

VDS - Disadvantages

Interestingly, the disadvantages of hosting on a VDS are pretty much the same as what the advantages are. If you’re not sure what you are doing, having the full control that virtual dedicated hosting allows can be very risky.

For example, you can accidentally delete files, or set permissions inappropriately, or allow viruses and other malware to enter the system and, overall, just make a real mess of things. So if you lack the technical skills to administer a web server, and are unable or unwilling to learn them, virtual dedicated hosting may not be a good choice for you.

However, if your site has reached a size where shared web hosting no longer accommodate the demands of your business, virtual dedicated hosting can provide a highly cost-effective alternative to “real” dedicated server hosting.

The Bottom Line

When selecting a virtual dedicated hosting plan, make it your business to understand how all the server resources are allocated, what the available options are for operating systems, how many VDS accounts will reside on each server, as well as the terms and conditions for upgrading and downgrading to a different plan.

Virtual dedicated hosting is the real deal when you need a robust yet economical home for your web site.

About the Author

Anthony Hamill is the founder of Web-Host-Watch.Com which provides webmasters with all the information they need to select a web hosting plan that’s right for them.

Cheap Dedicated Server: The Ins and Outs Of Hosting Service Selection

In this article I will go over the ins and outs of shared packages (supervised and unmanaged), reseller hosting, virtual private server accounts, personalized hosting, and even arrangements your own sites on your own individual-only servers. Stick on by!

Finding a cheap dedicated server web hosting purchase can be a harrowing session especially if you are a beginner to this topic. Essentially, hundreds of posts across the internet are being passed back and forth debating the merits of various exclusive server hosting offerings.

The bottomline is this, Finding a cheap dedicated packages server solution is not difficult. Here is the rule of thumb for beginners:

1. Shared web hosting mostly gives you less performance as you are basically sharing your web hosting with many other hosting subscribers, sometimes countless or even hundreds of thousands of them. Also, you will get less access to the technical aspects of the arrangements. Clearly this is a good answer for beginners. 2. reseller hosting gives you a bit more flexibility, but ultimately all the shared accounts will be sharing resources such as CPU and Ram. You get a bit more control in that you can setup accounts and your own domain names. This is an attractive packages alternative for those with lower to medium trafficked sites. 3. vps web hosting is pretty much the same as the previous options in terms of it still being a ’shared’ answer, but it gives you far more control over your own hosting environment, and giving you greater resources allocated solely for your needs. This is normally the step individuals pursue who do not need a full-blown personalized server package off the bat. 4. individual-only server hosting is what it sounds like, you get the whole shebang, total access to your web hosting machine and you are free to alter the server requirements to whatever you desire. You get better performance and flexibility.

Those previously mentioned opportunities are mainly what’s found to website owners all over. It’s not persistently cut and dry in terms of how to decide on the best setups solution. I.e. you should never base it solely on price. Reputation and years of operation of the firm are crucial points. Do not entrust your internet existence to unstable operations!

About the Author

Magnificent windows dedicated server items can be downloaded from my web page.

http://www.24hrdedicatedhosting.com/windows-dedicated-server/

New Techniques for Marketing Your Web Hosting Company

There are many ways to market a web hosting company. Traditional methods include web hosting directories, banner ads on webmaster sites, search engine placements, ppc advertising, and so on. These are all effective methods if used and managed properly. These techniques, however, market primarily to a limited target audience: Webmasters, Programmers, Graphic Designers, and small hosting companies.

With the evolution of web hosting and website builder tools, as well as the ongoing education of the common person, the average web hosting customer is no longer a Webmaster. It is more likely an alumni association, a church, an artist, a soccer club, or a family photo album. Recently, the staff of Hostchart.com analyzed the signups from several popular web hosting companies across the month of January, and here is what they found: the number of signups from people in the industry was less then 20%. Over 80% of all Hosting customer signups were from people who are not Internet professionals! So, how best does a Hosting Company target such a wide audience?

Assuming that 80% of your customer base is non-internet professionals, a Hosting Company’s marketing methods should be greatly expanded beyond Webmasters alone. If your marketing budget includes online marketing only, then some potentially rich areas to find Hosting customers may be on sites like Vacation/Travel websites, Investment sites, Retirement websites, or any site that has a potential customer base with expendable time and/or income.

If a Hosting Company’s advertising budget includes non-Internet methods, it may want to consider marketing on billboards, in newspapers, phone directories, or even brief commercial ads. GoDaddy has proven how powerful a TV ad can be with it’s provocative Superbowl ads the last two years. Even a simple advertising method like handing out free t-shirts can have a farther-reaching impact on branding a Hosting Company’s name than one might think.

Another noticeable change in the Web Hosting industry is the comfort level customers have with switching Hosting providers. Historically, customers did not change hosting companies. Most people were not comfortable moving their website for fear of downtime and lost data. The times have changed. People are more educated on websites, and there are plenty of web Hosting services that will move sites at minimal charge and without downtime. People feel free to move from Host to Host when they are offered a better plan. It is an increasingly competitive market, where companies must find new and better ways to stand out from the competition, whether that be from decreased cost, increased Customer Service, or farther reaching advertising campaigns. But Hosting Companies need not lose heart, for although competition is increasing, the number of people Worldwide who are getting connected to the internet is increasing at an exponential rate. It is a good time to be in the Hosting Industry!

About the Author

About the Author: Rodney Ringler is President of Advantage1 Web Services, Inc., which owns a network of Web Hosting Informational Websites including HostChart.com, ResellerConnection.com, FoundHost.com, ResellerForums.com, and HostingKnowledge.net. Rodney has over 15 years industry experience from programming to internet marketing.

Hosting Multiple Websites Using A Single Ip Address in IIS 6.0

If you host your site with a web hosting provider, you probably have access to a control panel that allows you to easily setup new websites. For the rest of us using our own dedicated Windows servers, we need to manually configure our servers and handle all of the administrative tasks ourselves. In this article, we will learn how to configure Microsoft’s Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0 to host multiple websites.

Internet Information Services (IIS) allows you to map multiple websites, using the same port number, to a single IP address using a feature call host header names. To get this to work, you simply map the DNS host name of your site to the Host Header Name in IIS. For example, if your website address was www.microsoft.com, then this is the value you would want to use for the Host Header Name in IIS. This also means that if there is more than one website configured to a single IP address, you must connect to the website by using the host header name. When you try to connect to the website by using the IP address, you receive would recieve an error message becuase IIS uses the requested host name to figure out host header value it is mapped to. With all of this in mind, lets get started configuring our web server.

1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Internet Information Services.
2. Expand server name (where server name is the name of the server), and then expand websites.
3. Right-click the website that you want, and then click Properties.
4. The website name Properties dialog box appears (where website name is the name of the website that you selected).
5. Click the website tab, and then in the IP Address list, select the IP address that you want assigned to this website.
6. Under Multiple identities for this website, click the IP address, and then click Edit.
7. In the Host Header Name box, type the host header that you want. For example, type www.microsoft.com. Add the port number, select the IP address in the list, and then click OK.
8. In the Advanced Multiple website Configuration dialog box, click OK.
9. In the website name Properties dialog box, click OK.
10. Right-click the next website that you want, and then click Properties.
11. In the IP Address list, select the same IP address that you selected before, and then click Advanced.
12. Under Multiple identities for this website, click the IP address, and then click Edit.
13. In the Host Header Name box, type a unique host header for this website. For example, type www.msn.com, add the port number, select the IP address in the list, and then click OK.
14. In the Advanced Multiple website Configuration dialog box, click OK.
15. In the website name Properties dialog box, click OK.
16. Repeat steps 10 through 15 for each website that you want hosted on this IP address.
17. Register the host header names with the appropriate name resolution system -for example, a Domain Name System (DNS) server or, in the case of a small network, a Hosts file.

That’s all there is to it. Your websites should now be configured to accept incoming web requests, based on their host header names. Keep in mind that you do not assign a host header name to the Default website. Many programs expect the Default website to use an IP address of (All Unassigned), TCP Port 80, and no host header name.

In this article we’ve showed you how to host multiple websites using a single IP address in IIS 6.0. Hopefully this article was helpful to you, to learn more about Internet Information Services (IIS) visit the IIS Technology center at http://www.microsoft.com/WindowsServer2003/iis/default.mspx .

About the Author

Matt Peterson is a Senior Consultant for N2 Network Solutions, a phoenix computer networking firm providing IT Outsourcing and computer repair in phoenix .

Introduction to Web Hosting

Web hosting is the process by which several websites are run from a single server computer. The specialized provider of such a service is called a web host. You might design and develop your website but not have the technology to make it available to everyone on the Internet. That’s where a web host can help you.

Using the services of a web hosting firm, you can upload your website and keep it updated. You get online through dial-up or broadband Internet access and send information to the host server. The server then transfers that information to your web pages. When people browsing the Internet type in the domain name (web address) for your site, they are connected to the host server that then leads them to your web pages.

A host server essentially stores many different websites, which share space within it. Web hosting is a much-sought service these days because while virtually everyone feels the need to be present on the World Wide Web, few can afford to buy and operate their own web servers. Web hosting companies charge a rental fee for storing your website and allowing visitors to access information from it. Running a website via a web hosting company is more economical. Outsourcing to a web hosting firm also means that your company does not have to worry about server maintenance and will not need to hire technical expertise.

The backbone of any web hosting operation is the server. A server is a special computer that runs on two or more processors for greater speed and the ability to run several applications simultaneously. It has two power sources to ensure uninterrupted service and at least two hard disk drives to back up all data. Servers run on special operating systems - the most widely used one bring from UNIX, followed by Windows.

This introduction to web hosting comes from Business 1st, a leading web hosting solutions provider in the UK. We have backed our main server up with six additional servers to ensure completely reliable service to our clients. If you already have a domain name, you can transfer it to us free of charge and enjoy our superior service for just 4.99 pounds a month. If you are a beginner on the web, we can help you get started.

For more information on our web hosting service visit www.b-1st.com.

Your Web Hosting Company - Are You Just a Number?

By now I’m sure you know how important your choice of web hosting company is to your business. But just in case you don’t, let’s review. At first glance, cheap web hosting may seem like a pretty good deal. Who doesn’t want to save money? However, there are some areas in which you, as an online business owner, just can’t afford to cut corners. Would you put water in the gas tank of your car just to save money? Choose a cheap web hosting company and you are doing exactly that. While you can cut corners in other areas of your business, your web hosting company is not where you want to do this, if only for one simple reason: with free or cheap web hosting companies, you are little more than a number, just another website.

Let’s take a look at how cheap or free web hosting companies make their money and how they do business. First, how can they offer such cheap prices? Or even free web hosting? There is only one answer: volume. They host thousands of websites, some smaller, some larger than yours. Do you think that in hosting thousands of websites, they can give you the personalized service that you deserve? Let me answer that one for you: they simply cannot. Why? Because the number of sites hosted, coupled with the low pricing simply makes it an infeasible business practice. Practically speaking, from a business standpoint, they cannot do this. It would not make sense to their bottom line. Second, large web hosting companies generally run lean and mean. That is, in business 101, they do more with less. They are not going to provide more people to service more customers when they can do the same job with less. Granted, customer service will suffer. But to them, this is a tradeoff that they make up for with volume.

Now let’s look at things from your point of view (an online business owner). You already know that time is money. You have probably already figured out that, sadly, time is not on your side. Thus, every time your site is down you are losing money. Even 5 minutes is too long for your site to be inaccessible to visitors (potential customers). Online business runs 24/7. Does your web hosting company understand that? More importantly, when you have a problem, is your business “just another website” to them? Or will they take personal ownership of the problem and solve it as soon as possible? What about follow up? Are you just another website in the heap? Or will they follow up with you to make sure that you are a satisfied customer and your site is running smoothly? Better yet, will they follow up personally, via phone call? Or will they just send an email - an automated one at that?

Many Internet business owners make the mistake of choosing a cheap web hosting company, thinking that it will help save them money. Often, it costs them more in the long run in the form of downtime, time spent waiting for answers from the hosting company and lost customers. Below are 6 tips that should tell you if you are “just another website” to your web hosting company:

* Time - Does your web hosting company have an “open door policy”? If you have a question, Will they have the answer or will they refer you to their Help Page URL? As an online business owner, there is nothing more frustrating than calling the web hosting company for help and then being told to go to a URL for help. If your web hosting company does this to you, then you are just a number to them.

* Accessibility - Is your web hosting company answering the phone promptly? When they do, who is it? Sales? This is a big tip-off. A web hosting company that really knows you and cares about your business won’t automatically try to sell you something and they won’t hide behind an answering machine or salesperson. A cheap web hosting company definitely won’t know you by name; they will know you by the domain that you have with them.

* Business Knowledge - Does your web hosting company know what your needs are as a website owner? Do they care? Are they hiring teenagers from the local high school to answer the phones (who can’t really help you)? Does your web hosting company have Internet Marketing experience? If you are with a cheap web hosting company, the answer is no, because they do their business by volume and can’t be focused on those kinds of issues. Kind of ironic, don’t you think, given the fact that you have a website in the first place due to the Internet?

* Advertising/Sales Tactics - As your business grows, how many services is your web hosting company trying to sell you? How many emails do they send you trying to get you to upgrade, pay upfront, etc, etc.? Better yet, how do they make their sales? I’ll tell you how: aggressive advertising and sales tactics. For a cheap web hosting company, it’s the only way, because it is all about the numbers. And you are one of them.

* Relationship-Driven - Does your web hosting company want a relationship with you or with your money? I bet by now you can guess the answer. The fact is, cheap web hosting companies make profits by increasing sales. If one customer leaves, so be it, because they have the volume to make that up. They really don’t have the time, resources or the inclination to really make sure they have a satisfied, long-term client in you.

* Patience - Lots of Internet business owners don’t know the ins and outs of web hosting. That’s understandable. When you talk to the sales department of your web hosting company do they use Plain English or “technospeak” that you don’t understand? Do they have the patience to explain everything to you? Or do they automatically assume that you should know and become more impatient the more questions you ask? To put is bluntly, do they make you feel stupid or dumb? If you are trying to give the web hosting company your business and they are making you feel stupid for asking questions, they may as well be saying “Next!” Why would they do this? Because your business is just another website to them.

Generally, a business web hosting company that gives you personalized service, has answers to your questions (or ways of getting those answers) will serve your online business better. Having tons of options is fine, but even better is the peace of mind that comes with knowing that to your web hosting company, your business and its success is priority one.

Hqhosts Dedicated And Shared Web Hosting: Economical Server Wizard And Per Gigabyte Services

HQHost, a web hosting provider, informs about its high end Server Wizard and Per Gigabyte services for its dedicated and shared web hosting clients. In order to decrease their outlay on web hosting, HQHosts clients can control their hosting funds by creating their own web hosting packages.

August 5, 2004 HQHost Company, a high end web hosting provider, makes clear the advantages of its economical Server Wizard service for dedicated server clients and Per Gigabyte web hosting service for its shared hosting clients to be able to create their own suitable web hosting plans.

Any web hosting can be economical if taken sensibly. HQHosts Server Wizard and Per Gigabyte web hosting services are vivid examples of economical approach to your hosting expenses. Both dedicated server clients and shared hosting clients can benefit from these services by creating their own web hosting plans with the required bandwidth and storage space.

These services are especially designed to cater to the needs of web hosting clients. No more long bills. You pay only for what you have used, not more not less, says Serg Sabetyev, CEO of HQHost Company.

Standard web hosting packages advertised everywhere demand a fixed price for certain amount of bandwidth. The burning question is if a client is able to use all the gigabytes ordered. In case of non-exhausting the limit, the client will pay the whole fixed cost of the package. In case the client exceeds the limit, he pays much more per additional gigabyte. There is the third alternative. HQHosts Per Gigabyte web hosting service applies to the shared hosting customers http://www.hq-host.com/en/virtual.html. Calculate the required bandwidth for your site and pay only those gigabytes you are going to use.

As compared to shared web hosting, dedicated server hosting is a high level secure service. Large corporate websites put up great funds into dedicated web hosting on different reasons. Some of them have sensible information to deal with. The others have complicated ecommerce software. The prevailing factor is high traffic. Whatever reason for huge dedicated server outlay there can be, dedicated server web hosting can be affordable. Any client can arrange its own rational dedicated server package with HQHosts Server Wizard service http://www.hq-host.com/en/ded_wizard.html.

According to Serg Sabetyev, CEO of HQHost Company, this is an advantage-ground for those websites that have a seasonable traffic slump. They can arrange any web hosting packages suitable for them with Server Wizard and Per Gigabyte services. If your site traffic is high at rush season only, you can benefit by HQHosts unique services.

HQHost (High Quality Host Company), a web hosting provider, was founded in 2001. HQHosts data centers are located in the United States and assure absolute visibility of its clients websites worldwide. HQHost is a privately owned company with headquarters in Sacramento, CA.

For additional information, please contact:

Serg Sabetyev

HQHost Company CEO

Address: Fast Internet Technology, Inc.

5325 Elkhorn Blvd. PMB # 8227,

Sacramento, CA 95842, USA

URL: http://www.hq-host.com/

E-mail: manager@hq-host.com

# # #

August 5, 2004 HQHost Company, a high end web hosting provider, makes clear the advantages of its economical Server Wizard service for dedicated server clients and Per Gigabyte web hosting service for its shared hosting clients to be able to create their own suitable web hosting plans.

Any web hosting can be economical if taken sensibly. HQHosts Server Wizard and Per Gigabyte web hosting services are vivid examples of economical approach to your hosting expenses. Both dedicated server clients and shared hosting clients can benefit from these services by creating their own web hosting plans with the required bandwidth and storage space.

These services are especially designed to cater to the needs of web hosting clients. No more long bills. You pay only for what you have used, not more not less, says Serg Sabetyev, CEO of HQHost Company.

Standard web hosting packages advertised everywhere demand a fixed price for certain amount of bandwidth. The burning question is if a client is able to use all the gigabytes ordered. In case of non-exhausting the limit, the client will pay the whole fixed cost of the package. In case the client exceeds the limit, he pays much more per additional gigabyte. There is the third alternative. HQHosts Per Gigabyte web hosting service applies to the shared hosting customers http://www.hq-host.com/en/virtual.html. Calculate the required bandwidth for your site and pay only those gigabytes you are going to use.

As compared to shared web hosting, dedicated server hosting is a high level secure service. Large corporate websites put up great funds into dedicated web hosting on different reasons. Some of them have sensible information to deal with. The others have complicated ecommerce software. The prevailing factor is high traffic. Whatever reason for huge dedicated server outlay there can be, dedicated server web hosting can be affordable. Any client can arrange its own rational dedicated server package with HQHosts Server Wizard service http://www.hq-host.com/en/ded_wizard.html.

According to Serg Sabetyev, CEO of HQHost Company, this is an advantage-ground for those websites that have a seasonable traffic slump. They can arrange any web hosting packages suitable for them with Server Wizard and Per Gigabyte services. If your site traffic is high at rush season only, you can benefit by HQHosts unique services.

HQHost (High Quality Host Company), a web hosting provider, was founded in 2001. HQHosts data centers are located in the United States and assure absolute visibility of its clients websites worldwide. HQHost is a privately owned company with headquarters in Sacramento, CA.

For additional information, please contact:

Serg Sabetyev

HQHost Company CEO

Address: Fast Internet Technology, Inc.

5325 Elkhorn Blvd. PMB # 8227,

Sacramento, CA 95842, USA

URL: http://www.hq-host.com/

E-mail: manager@hq-host.com

# # #

7 Key Points to Consider When Choosing a Web HostKyle DusangWith literally thousands of web hosting companies in the industry all vieing for your business, carefully consider these key points to ensure you make the most well informed decision possible.

1. Server Space

First, think about how much space your site will take up on a server. Unless you are planning on running a software repository or an image gallery, the files that make up your website will probably only use between 1 and 5 megabytes of disk space. Many companies will offer several hundreds of megabytes of webspace for a very reasonable price in attempt to out perform their competitors, but ask yourself “Do I really need that much space?”. Though it’s true that you should allow your site “room to grow”, don’t opt for what seems like a great deal on a massively sized account if you’ll never use all of the space offered. Chances are you’ll find an even better deal on an amount of space more suitable for your site size.

2. Data Transfer Allowance

This decision should be based on the same principal as above. Though you may be convinced that your site will be the next Amazon or Yahoo and receive a gazillion visitors a day, you really shouldn’t need an extremely high data transfer allowance unless, as stated above, you’re running a software download site or a large image gallery. Even heavily trafficked normal HTML sites usually only use a few gigabytes per month in bandwidth allowance. Don’t go overboard just because it seems like an awesome deal. You may also want to be wary of companies who offer “unlimited” data transfer as there are usually some fine-print stipulations that make this claim not entirely true. Be sure to read their terms and conditions very carefully before opting for this type of account. A five or ten gigabyte bandwidth allowance is usually plenty enough for a small to medium sized business or personal site.

3. Technical Support

A very important point to consider when choosing a web host is the types of technical support offered by the company and how easy they are to contact when you need them. Ideally, a company should offer 24/7 toll-free telephone support and email. I have seen companies that do not even offer a telephone number on their website. You should look for a company that is very easily accessible in your time of need. Nothing is more frustrating than being in the middle of working on your site and needing an important piece of information to finish the job and not being able to contact your hosting company to find it out.

4. CGI-Bin Access

No matter what type of site you are planning on running, chances are you will eventually need to install some type of CGI script. Whether it be a mailing list management script, contact form processor, or maybe even a fancy credit card processing script, your hosting account will need to allow you to install and run them. This requires access to a special folder on your server called “CGI-Bin”. Some hosting accounts will only allow you to use “pre-installed” scripts as a security measure. These are scripts that the owners of the company have installed and configured so that they know that they will work properly and not adversely affect their server’s performance. That may be all you need, but if you have the knowledge, it’s always nice to have the ability to install your own scripts and configure them to suit your individual needs. You should also be sure that the account you choose supports the language in which your scripts are written, such as PHP, Perl, etc.

5. Up-Time Guarantee

Another very important issue in determining the value of a hosting company is how often and for how long their servers “go down”. No matter how good a deal you get on server space or bandwidht allowance, or how wonderfully the company’s tech support takes care of you, your site can’t receive visitors or produce revenue if the machine on which it is hosted is not up and running. Naturally you want a company who can guarantee the highest up-time percentage possible. Servers are taken down briefly from time to time for maintenance or upgrading, so no company can ensure 100% up-time, but you want your site to be hosted on dependable, well managed machines that are not constantly having problems which require them to be down for long periods of time.

6. Email Accounts

Again, like data transfer allowance and server space, some companies will offer you loads more email accounts than you will ever use. Some offer hundreds or even unlimited email accounts as a selling point. This is an important factor if you are Bill Gates and have thousands of employees, each who need their own email box, but not such a big deal if you’re just one person or a small company. You should be okay with 10 or 15.

7. Reputation

This is probably the most important factor to consider when choosing a web host. Do your homework. Pay attention to any negative feedback you may hear or read about a particular hosting company. There are several sites arount the Web that feature discussion forums that allow people to discuss and critique various hosting companies. Ask specific questions about any company you might be interested in using to see if anyone else has had any negative experiences with them. As a beginning webmaster, I had initially contracted the services of a particular web hosting company to host my first site, who promised very good, dependable service for a very cheap price. Then one day, for no apparent reason, decided to delete my entire site without warning or explanation. Only then did I visit some hosting forums and find that many others had similar negative experiences with that company. Don’t make the same mistake I did, find out for sure from the start that your hosting company is not going to let you down.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Webmaster: http://www.verybesthosting.com

Looking for a web host? Start here. Compare plans, features, and pricing from several of the Web’s most reputable hosting companies all in one place.

How To Select A Good Website Hosting Company

I constantly encounter people that want me to design or update a website for them, and they are already signed up with a hosting company. The only problem is that many of these people should never have signed up with that particular hosting company. I’m dealing with a client now who is paying almost two and a half times more a month than she should, and the service the hosting company provides is substandard.

I constantly encounter people that want me to design or update a website for them, and they are already signed up with a hosting company. The only problem is that many of these people should never have signed up with that particular hosting company. I’m dealing with a client now who is paying almost two and a half times more a month than she should, and the service the hosting company provides is substandard.

I run into many problems with hosting companies, including:

• Prices being too high. I often see people paying $15 to $25 a month, when the average is $9 or less. The $15 to $25 fee is okay, if you are getting monthly updates, or some other service, from a website designer.
  
  
• Very important features are missing, such as form handling and some e-mail features.
  
  
• You can only post websites that you make using their design software. This means you must stay with them or completely redesign your website if you decide to go to another hosting company. If you can’t recreate your website you will wind up paying hundreds or thousands of dollars to have someone else do it.
  
  
• Terrible technical support. I have called technical support at several hosting companies to get some needed information only to be told, “We aren’t going to help you with that.” You usually hear this response from companies that really don’t care about their clients.
  
  
• The hosting company has listed themselves as the owner of the domain name. This means that they own your domain, you don’t. This is considered very unethical. It can take months to have your name put on as owner, if they will do this at all. Do you own your domain name? Go to http://www.WhoIs.com and do a search for your domain. You should be listed as the registrant. If this is not the case, then you don’t own your domain.

The features offered by web hosts vary widely, as do their costs. Following are the minimum features a decent hosting company should offer, in my opinion.

• A minimum of 500 MB of storage space. This is equal to about 500,000 pages of text. Yes, this is more space than you will probably ever use, but quite a few web hosting services offer this amount. I have almost 150 pages on my website and over 300 graphics, but I only use 38 MB of disk space on the server.
  
  
• Unlimited POP3 E-mail Accounts. This lets you have an unlimited number of e-mail accounts so you can keep e-mails separated for different departments or personnel.
  
  
• 6 GB (Gigabytes) of data transfer (bandwidth) per month. This is equal to about 6,000,000 pages of text. If you have a website that contains 10 pages, and each page is a MB (Megabyte) and a person goes to each of your pages, then that person would have used 10 MB of your bandwidth.
  
  
• No long-term contract. You should be free to pay monthly, quarterly or annually. The longer you sign up for the less it will cost you. Also check into what happens if you want to cancel the hosting service. Will you get any unused money back?
  
  
• Technical support should be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You should be able to contact technical support by phone (with a toll free number) and e-mail.
  
  
• Unlimited e-mail autoresponders, so you can set up links on your site that will automatically send information via e-mail when a person clicks on the link.
  
  
• A control panel or site manager so you can control all the aspects of your website, including e-mail, backups and software installation. You should also be able to check your site statistics to see how many hits each page is getting.
  
  
• Mail list manager, so if you have an ezine you can manage your list of subscribers.
  
  
• 30-day money back guarantee. Many hosting companies don’t offer this, but many do. The hosting company I use is Westhost ( www.Westhost.com ), and they offer all of these features, and more.

Avoid Free Hosting like the plague. These hosts don’t charge a monthly fee, but they do put ads on your site. These ads may run across the top, the side or pop-up anywhere on the screen. People find these ads annoying and distracting. Using a free hosting service will put many people off and you will lose visitors. Customers will also be more reluctant to buy any products or services from you. Would you buy something from a business that couldn’t afford to pay $5-$10 a month for website hosting? It will also be more difficult for people to remember you web address. Instead of www.Acme.com, your web address may well be www.TheFreeSite.com/acme.html. And if the company goes out of business, then your site is gone and all the listings you have on search engines will no longer work.

Free sites may also change the rules about what you can have on your site. You may suddenly find that one or more of your pages are banned because of their content. I started out with free hosting years ago, but soon outgrew it and had to buy my own domain name, create a new website and start all over again getting my pages listed with search engines. When my free site was removed, all the links on search engines to that site no longer worked.

Avoid a hosting company that gives you Shared or Virtual Hosting. Shared hosting means that the server, the computer where your website resides, is shared with possibly hundreds of websites who all use the same server software. The hosting company gives you a certain amount of storage space on the server’s hard drive for your site, and that hard drive stores as many sites as space allows. The problem is that since all the websites are sharing the same server software, if one website is attacked by a virus or hacker and the server software is damaged, then all the websites on that server will be affected the same way that single site is affected.

Look for a host that offers a Virtual Private Server. This means that your website resides in a partitioned section of the server and has its own server software. I’ve used Westhost for several years with no problems. They have great tech support and constantly improve the features they offer. You can find a banner link to them at the bottom of my page at http://www.creativecauldron.com/WebsiteDesign.shtml

To look for other web hosting services try these links.

• Compare Web Hosts http://www.comparewebhosts.com/BudgetWebHosting.asp
  
  
• Consumers Review http://www.consumersreview.org/webhosting.html
  
  
• Host Index http://www.hostindex.com/
  
  
• Web Hosting Reviews http://www.web-hosting-reviews.org/
  
  
• Web Hosting Unleashed http://www.webhostingunleashed.com/
  
  
• Web Site Hosting http://www.web-site-hosting.md/
  
  
• Webhosting Top 10 http://www.webhosting-top10.com/us32/

As you check out web hosting services you will encounter some words that you may not have heard before. Here’s some useful terminology that will clear things up for you.

• Auto Responder - An automated program that, when it receives an e-mail, sends out an e-mail with a message and/or attachment to the person who sent the e-mail. This is often used with websites that sell ebooks and other electronic information. The person clicks on an e-mail link for the ebook they want and the autoresponder sends it to them. It’s a real time saver.
  
  
• Bandwidth (Data Transfer) - This is the amount of data that you or others upload to your site and download from your site. A typical site uses less than 5 GB (Gigabytes) per month.
  
  
• CGI Bin - the Common Gateway Interface bin is where programs are stored that let you put things on your site like a guestbook and bulletin board.
  
  
• Control Panel - This is an interface that lets you control the tools, settings and utilities that your web host provides.
  
  
• Disk Space - This is the amount of space you have on the server’s hard drive to store your website. Unless your site is loaded with graphics, which it shouldn’t be, then you don’t need a lot of space.
  
  
• FTP - File Transfer Protocol is a common way to upload and download your website pages and files.
  

Once you find a few place you like, check them out at the Better Business Bureau at http://bbb.org/ and do a search on Yahoo and Google to see if anyone has posted anything bad about them.

It can be difficult to know what to look for in a hosting company if you’re new to the Internet. The best solution is to do a lot of research, talk to people you know who have websites and start trying different hosts who offer a 30-day money back guarantee. As long as you own your domain name, and you have created your own website, or had someone create it for you, then you will be fine. With these two things done, you can take your site to almost any host without any problems.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

http://www.CreativeCauldron.com

Jeff Colburn is a website designer and writer. His goal is to make the process of creating or updating your website easy and simple for you, while creating a website that meets all your needs and expectations. Jeff can also create all of the copy for your website.

The Global Advantage: Team Up With An India Reseller Web Hosting Company

Resellers are in a unique position to address the needs of a specific market: the small buyers, the entrepreneur or the individual. When you are out to get the attention of a market like that, you have to know what features to highlight. The first thing on your list should be economy - and for reasons of economy, among many other reasons, an India reseller web hosting vendor should be on top of your list of solutions.

By “India reseller web hosting company,” we mean a web host based in India which distributes reseller space. Perhaps this web host is based in Delhi, or Mumbai or another famous outsourcing region - what’s important is that it has been established in the market and you have a good idea about what to expect from it. For it will define your relationship with a potential major business partner!

Reselling is a business anyone with webmastering experience can get into. However, it takes someone with the know-how and the global smarts to spot a good opportunity when it lands on one’s lap. Buying into the services of offshore hosting companies would be a great way to get ahead of the competition. For one thing, it would allow you to drive down your regular prices, giving your outfit an obvious edge over the competition!

Why are web hosting services often cheaper offshore? The cost of software licensing for servers and patent software is the same almost everywhere… except if you would like to purchase the license for localized software (i.e. software that is only available in one regional language), in which case you would be limiting your clientele: definitely something bad for a service provider offering its services internationally.

But the big thing is, hardware purchasing and overhead costs are much cheaper offshore. Given the world’s current spending standards, businesses are ideally located in lower-cost regions, where the Euro and the dollar go a long way. This makes these businesses more cost-efficient for everyone concerned - partners, investors, customers, the employees, everyone! This is also how businesses stationed in lower-cost locations manage to offer more attractive rates.

And if you’re after savings in the kind of web space you aim to resell, you ought to look into web hosting in lower-cost locations. India reseller web hosting services, for example, stand to give you greater cost efficiency. So don’t be daunted by the geographic distance: in the telecommunications age, the distance between oceans can be closed up with the push of a button. And if you know how to look, you could find a great partner for your business on the other side of the world!

About the Author

ResellerShed.com provides you with info on Affordable hosting reseller, india reseller web hosting and much more, come take a look at http://www.resellershed.com/

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