April 28, 2008

Finding the right hosting company for your online business

by Rick Dupont

If you are looking at going online choosing the right web host is critical for your success you need to make sure that they have everything you need in your budget. Firstly to decide on the functions you need is an absolute necessity. You Have to decide what you want your website to do.

Initially when researching web hosting you will be overwhelmed by the choice of products out there, I know I was. Many of the web host out there are small resellers that simply by a larger hosting from an established company and then resell the space. While going with one of these companies is not a bad thing, when going on the internet you always need to plan for the future.

Make the right decision the first time, moving websites is sometimes complicated.

Depending on the type of website you are wanting to run will depend on your preferred host. If you only have a static html website then any hosting company will do. If you have more complex need like a forum, database or shopping cart then you will need to be more careful with your hosting choice.

Many hosting companies now include a program called fantastico that will automatically install many different programs. So what are the bare minimum when starting to research a hosting company and where to start.

Firstly do some research visit website host rating companies then get the names the recommend and do a search on the internet for the companies name to make sure there is not to many dissatisfied customers. You need to be careful because choosing the wrong company can be disastrous.

An important overlooked test is to see if the hosting companies own website is professional and fast loading. If they can’t look after their own website needs what chance do they have of looking after yours.

Avoid Pop Ups At All Costs.

As you search the net and research you will be at times bombarded with pop ups don’t under any circumstances use these to choose your host. Generally these are all of dubious origin and at times can provide a very bad choice of business. Use a standard method of research pop ups are not the desired or recommended method.

Don’t forget to go to a review site and check out some of the comments, this could be a quick way to get a great hosting deal, don’t delay start your search today.

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Filed under Web by Rick Dupont

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April 26, 2008

Free Web Hosting Deals

Web hosting is primarily an internet service that helps organizations and individuals create their virtual presence on the Web. Sometimes it is part of the service an internet service provider supplies as part of their package when you sign up with them and can be supplied at no charge. The hosting company has a number of servers, or data centers, where each person is provided with varying amounts of space to store their digital media, including websites; others can then access these files (web pages for example).

Free hosting deals are great for those who want to ‘dip their toes in the water’ for example but the range of services available to them will be limited. However, if you’re planning to expand you should shift to a paid service as free web hosting only gives you limited space and sub-domains for your site. You can search the Web for many of the paid hosting services but their prices may vary depending on the packages they’re offering.

In the early days you may be quite happy to have your files on a server which is shared by many others while you try their hosting services. This will enable you to see if you have chosen a very good company; then change to a dedicated server with your company when you’re comfortable with their services. A web hosting plan is no good unless you have a registered domain to use, then you can use this in conjunction with the storage space to save your files, website etc. The word ‘files’ is a generic term that can mean anything from video to audio tracks but be aware that basic packages do not give the most storage if you are intending to upload large files; however, as storage costs come down, companies are increasing this amount of space.

Web hosting also provides the facility to have your own email address unlike those supplied by Google and Yahoo for example, this means, your e-mail address is exclusive to your website. It always looks like the user is more serious about their internet presence if they have their own email and domain name, it increases credibility. If you have a busy site with lots of visitors, downloads or video etc. then you need to have a hosting package with sufficient bandwidth; this is the amount of data that can be transmitted.

Insufficient bandwidth will cause problems as visitors will be unable to see your site if it has been used up and you have a few more days before it is re-set for the following month, so you may need to use another web host. Remember, everything that is stored and can be accessed on your site has a bandwidth, even the website itself so if your site contains images, MP3 tracks and video clips for example, your bandwidth allocation will be used up even faster. Although it is possible for a person to use their own PC as a host, there are many security dangers associated with this so using a dedicated web hosting company is preferable.

Filed under Web by James

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