Choosing a Reliable Web Hosting

By Veronica Sim

Needs to evaluate on reliability.

When you registered for a domain, you must make sure of its accessibility. If your web hosting is unreliable your customers, clients, employees and browsers cannot get to your website, than it will be a great waste to your resources in building and maintaining your website.

For a retail site, it will be no good if people cannot find it.

There are many internet hosting services, but you must evaluate them for reliability.

Reliable Web Hosting consists of:

1.) Up-time is the first aspect we must look into. It means the amount of time the webpage is up on the internet and accessible.

2.) Downtime means when the servers do their maintenance. Computers require maintenance and internet is made up of millions of computers. Some server maintenance is expected. You must also know how much downtime your internet hosting service will have. Your internet hosting needs firewall protection. You will have much downtime if you do not have internet protection.

3.) The server must be ongoing monitoring than it is a reliable web hosting. The internet is a 24/7 service and you want people to be able to access your website 24/7. Even when you sleep, you want to do business, so you must choose a web hosting with 24/7 service.

4.) Lastly is the backup. Your website server must be backup everyday so that in case of any attack or computer failure you will have the backup to carry on your business.

To purchase a reliable web hosting, you must evaluate carefully the above four areas, thus you will have limitless opportunities of the internet.

About the Author: Veronica Sim is the webmaster of Home Internet Marketing Business Opportunities Sign up for her free Home Business Newsletter to receive 6 free affiliate marketing and home business related e-books.

Review of FastHosts

By James Betchley

Fasthosts offer one of the cheapest web hosting plans offered, available on Unix or Windows all plans of which there are 3 basic types; Home, Developer and Business are at the time of writing being offered at half price and with a 50 MSN adCenter voucher thrown in for good measure.

Our testers found their service to be very satisfactory all round, with short download times (0.55s for a page size of 250kb) based on a connectivity of 3064 kbps and no down time or customer service problems to note.

Control Panel, the Fasthosts Control Panel proved to be simple to use, and featured a well equipped site builder designed to get you started with only a very rudimentary knowledge of web design.

Support, comes in the form of 24/7 phone and Email support with qualified personnel on hand to deal with whatever problems arise. It should be noted that this is one of the areas which Fasthosts have in the past been criticised, but for the time being at least that problem seems to have been ironed out.

Bandwidth, each of Fasthosts packages comes with unlimited bandwidth, so you can be sure to never exceed your allowances an incur additional costs.

Up Time, Fasthosts provide no up-time guarantee an area that has plagued them in other reviews especially customer feedback, although during our month of testing we encountered no problems with website unavailability.

E-Commerce, Fasthost provide SSL at an additional cost, but an alternative great feature they offer is their merchant account, a package which stops you having to apply for a visa merchant number whilst still allowing you to take credit card payments on line.

In conclusion Fasthosts offer good basic packages which are easily upgradeable with feature such as MySQL, SSL, SEO and more advanced Email functionality such as MS Exchange.

Home Package

1.5 GB Storage, Unlimited Bandwidth Was £3.99 Now £1.99

Developer Package

4 GB Storage, Unlimited Bandwidth Was £7.99 Now £3.99

Business Package

10 GB Storage, Unlimited Bandwidth Was £15.99 Now £7.99

Reviewed on 4 Sept 2008 by James Betchley, Administrator and web hosting reviewer of Which Domain Host

Cheap Webhosting

By Bob Willis

In an industry where fierce competition exists, web-hosting companies are all out to offer the cheapest deals in order to acquire a huge customer base. This specially applies to the newer bunch of web hosts as the older companies find it a tad daunting to raise their pricing structures. These bargain deals usually seem very attractive to the customers and are usually grabbed within no time. Deals like "unlimited bandwidth for just$1!" "Cheap web hosting bargains" and other such ads create a peaked interest among the customers and this trend has made the web hosting industry fiercely competitive.

While in most cases, cheap hosting services may be viewed with a doubtful mind; it is not necessary that cheap hosting services do not offer quality services. It is always a good idea to get the services of a cheap hosting provider who is offering the same server, bandwidth and disk space, control panel, type of data center as well as technical support as their competitors. The only difference lies in their pricing structures and perhaps their experience and/or longevity in the industry.

The cost involved in small web hosting companies that manage low-cost servers from an advanced data center is comparatively smaller. This makes it possible for the hosting providers to keep their pricing structures to a bare minimum.

Furthermore, the demand for dedicated servers has grown over the years and this competition has created the need for unmanaged, low cost server rentals.

The customer on the other hand wants superior services at a reduced monthly rental. Cheap web hosting has been made possible also because of reduced server costs as compared to its costs few years ago. Cheap web hosting companies also offer additional tools and features that are not always included within the expensive packages offered by other companies. For example, some companies offer backup services free of cost while others may charge a certain fee for this service. These diverse strategies adopted by the newer companies have proven to be quite effective. Every user does not always require backups and yet certain companies impose this service and the customer is impelled to pay for a service that is included in the given package.

Affordable or cheap web hosting companies usually offer all the basic features required to host a website and offer weekly backups as an additional or free feature within the hosting package. This greatly enhances the attraction quotient of the company. These companies usually offer services starting from $2 per month to $4 per month. While some potential customers may be a tad skeptical of the services, most of the cheap hosting providers out there are offering proficient support and quality services.

There is however no rule of thumb here to determine whether a cheap web-hosting provider is better than an expensive one. It is best to gather all relevant information on the given hosting company and analyze your own requirements and budget before you compare and choose a hosting provider for your website.

HostingCoupons.org lists web hosting coupons, deals, discounts, savings and exclusive promotions from the top web hosts. You will find the best of web hosting companies listed there including the most recommended web hosts and domain registrars - godaddy, bluehost and hostgator. It covers blog discussions and topics like web hosting discussions and hosting reviews

Reliable 24-7 Web Hosting Customer Support - Does it Exist?

By Bedrich Omacka

Even if you are an experienced webmaster you will need to contact the support team time from time in order to solve problems which can be either on your side or web hosting company side. Everybody would like to get quick and skilled answer in such situation. Continue reading to learn how to recognize good web hosting customer support sooner then you will really need its help.

1. Search for others experience. Visit web hosting reviews sites (I mean those with reviews posted by real customers), ask in hosting forums or Google for terms like "company name experience".

2. Test it yourself. Look for contact form on the web hosting company website and send them a few questions. Send the same questions to 5 - 10 hosting providers and compare the time they need for the answer and also the quality of the response.

3. Some web hosts do not provide online contact form to avoid spam. Their customers usually can open ticket from the control panel. Because you are not their customer so you don't have access to the clients area you should look for control panel demo and submit a ticket from there.

4. If the web host provides online chat try it. Take into account how long you need to wait before some member of the customer support will start the chat with you.

5. Keep in mind that not all web hosts are located in the same time zone. Try to contact them in different hours before you will make any decision.

6. Always check if you got reply from human or only automatic message from autoresponder. Some companies analyze keywords in the ticket and this way they try to guess what you are asking for. This works fine if you send some basic question but if you need more skilled answer you will need to wait until somebody from the support staff will help you.

Click here: Reliable Web Hosting by MarbleHost.com providing 24/7 support with 1 hour response guarantee.

FFmpeg Web Hosting Basics

By Andrew James

A growing number of webmasters are using FFmpeg web hosting plans to create video sharing sites which attract visitors looking for informative and entertaining video content. Let's look at what FFmpeg is and why it may be a good choice for your next website.

What is FFmpeg hosting?

FFmpeg consists of a group of server-based software modules which will enable video and audio files to be uploaded, encoded and streamed online. Web hosts who specialize in FFmpeg hosting offer this collection of tools and plugins pre-installed on high-speed, optimized web servers. It's the same technology found on extremely popular video communities such as YouTube and Metacafe.

While it may be difficult to compete for traffic with these larger video communities, there is plenty of opportunity to create successful smaller video sites which are targeted to specific niches. Niche based video sites can attract a community of highly targeted visitors to watch and comment on videos again and again, plus these visitors are able to start contributing their own video content for your site.

FFmpeg hosting options:

Hosting for video community sites doesn't need to be expensive. In fact the cost is the same as for regular hosting plans, but note that video streaming can place high demand on web servers and use a lot of bandwidth.

For new sites with small amounts of traffic a cheap shared hosting plan (usually $5-$10 per month) should be enough to start with, but be prepared to upgrade to a more powerful semi-dedicated or VPS hosting plan as your site becomes more popular (usually $25-$40 per month).

Some web hosting providers will package and provide installation for a selection of video sharing website scripts at no extra cost so you can create a fully functional community site very rapidly. You'll find there are a few of these scripts available for free such as PHP Motion, and also a number of more advanced premium scripts for sale at various prices.

Thanks to FFmpeg web hosting plans now every webmaster is able to build a video sharing site quickly, easily and inexpensively.

If you're looking for an FFmpeg hosting provider visit our site to view our list companies who offer FFmpeg web hosting plans.

Website Hosting Shopping Guides - Picking Up the Right Web Host

By Phil Anderson

There are many web hosting companies offering different hosting packages online and it's not easy for us to pick up the best from them.

It's in fact dangerous if we do not study well on these hosting packages, as a lousy web host will cause terrible losses such as website outage for a long period or loss of valuable customers.

There is no web hosting company that can guarantee a 100% great performance in terms of security or server/network troubles. However, you can actually minimize the risk to lowest by choosing a well known provider. Following, I will be showing you some of the critical guidelines in selecting the right web hosting.

1. Choose a web hosting company that's established for years.

Don't get caught up in big company's marketing gimmicks. Many think that a company with the best marketing kits will give you the best service, but the reality is sometimes, well, the opposite. When you're looking for a reliable web hosting company, what you should do is to check on the company background, such as years of operation, customer comments, etc.

Also, positive testimonial or any supports by prominent corporate would be an extra plus point.

2. Choose the web hosting company with better hosting features

One of the simplest way to pick up the right hosting is by filtering out the right hosting company by checking on their hosting features. Look for a web host that offer good hosting features (such as Bluehost, that offer unlimited bandwidth/disk storage/addon domain capacity) in a reasonable price.

3. Choose the web hosting company with the good feedback on customer support

Customer supports always the prior attribute for consideration when choosing a web hosting provider. A good provider able to help you solve problems 24/7 through many communication methods like email, phone, live chat, etc without bringing you any hassle.

4. Choose the web hosting company with user friendly control panel

Webmasters often overlook the importance of an user-friendly web control interface.

A control panel is the platform for you to customize your websites - it's like the major dash board of your ship and easy-to-operate is a must! Go with web hosting company that offer cPanel (which is the best control panel in my list); or in case the hosting company is offering in house control, do check if they provide tutorial in using the control panel.

A user friendly control panel is critical for you to work with better efficiency in long run.

5. Do not let web hosting cost affect your judgment

Although money is important, but bear in mind that don't let this affect your consideration too much. As nowadays many packages with cheap prices available in the market but not all of them are good. Most of them only can offer the fundamental features only. Many side charges will be incurred if you want to upgrade the packages to advanced one. So before you decide to use which provider, do some study on the reputation, customer services, features offered, etc.

Wish to learn more about web hosting services? Visit Squidoo lens Web Hosting Review: Real Customer Honest Reviews or check out Bluehost hosting review at ReviewBluehost.com. Article by Phil Anderson.

The World of Web Site Hosting

By Friede Rode

No website is able to be found and seen on the internet without being hosted. Hosting sites will have a category to enter a desired domain name. It will be checked for availability. Although there are millions of websites in use worldwide there will be always room for Your domain. A name with a creative touch. Next step is the hosting so Your site can be live online. Hosting solutions should just be a few clicks away, after your research is concluded.

Search results will bring up many hosting companies with varying contracts. It is important to find a reliable host that will give you the best service. Of course free hosting is available too. Keep in mind that the free services may not meet the desired expectations by having limited options, depending on the personal needs. Hosting sites may offer web-design if needed for the inexperienced. They usually have the option for many templates to choose from, also a service to build an own site.

It is important to find a hosting company that will offer a full range of services to choose from. May it be for a personal website or a more complex e-commerce site. Most hosting services will represent customers worldwide with a host of services. Checking the price range is a wise part of research. Some hosting plans may run expensive for the hosting of several websites. Others can offer a more affordable plan while providing excellent service. A well working customer service is a must option to look for. Compare the research results and choose wisely. Hosting should become a reliable experience with a long lasting relationship. Once hosting is resolved the website will run smoothly on the internet for either business or pleasure. It will become a great accomplishment to have a finished website turn live on the internet.

(C) all rights reserved

Friede Rode entreprenuer online, artist offline 318 Indian Trace Rd #909 Weston FL 33326 http://www.7plenty7-online.com

Small Business Hosting Ideas

By Tem Balanco

Getting a new business going can be quite a challenge. Not only must registrations and reports be completed and filed with the correct state and federal agencies, there are many other to-do lists that must be accomplished as well. In fact, before the business can even begins conduction transactions, the who, what, where, and how logistics must be accomplished as well. As these issues and responsibilities continue to mount, the need to consider web-hosting services can often get overlooked.

In our world marketplace, small business hosting is necessary for all business owners. It lets multiple streams of income and profit occur all day and night and all week long. It helps to grow and market a business in ways that we never imagined two decades ago. So who's got the time to consider web hosting? You.

There is a great deal of variety in small business hosting services. That is why it is vital for you to really think about what you want your new website to say and look like. The best way to ensure success is to truly know what you want.

The things you offer on your website should be guided by your targeted customers. You should identify and list these things in a business plan before choosing where to host your page. There are many different types of products you can offer such as, forums, blogs, and email accounts. You should know how each of these things serves to better your business before you select a host for your site.

Luckily, for an amateur programmer, a lot of small business hosting firms offer packages to remove the guesswork from what you will need for a site. Not only will they make it easier to pick functions you want to offer, but they've also got certified technicians who will install it for you in case programming is just not your cup of tea.

Of course, small business hosting companies charge rates and fees that are variable, depending on their company size, and your monthly bandwidth consumption. It follows that comparison shopping can potentially give you hundreds of dollars in annual savings. Many great resources for comparing and contrasting providers can be found on the internet as an aid in narrowing down possibilities to one that's best suited to your business.

Knowing where to look and what to expect will help you find an excellent solutions provider with relative ease. Know that doing research on companies is connected to your business success. Have Fun!

In today's world marketplace small business hosting is a must have for every business owner. Fortunately, for the novice programmer, many small business web hosting companies offer packages to take the guesswork out of what you need for your website. The amount that companies charge for hosting a small business website will vary depending on the amount of bandwidth that the business will use along with the host's size. Many sites on the internet will help you compare hosting companies so that you can select one that suits your business's needs.

Mac Website - Great Place For Finding Anything

By Tem Balanco

The MAC internet site is a fantastic source of information. Unlike most other sites, it contains a great deal of information and applications that you will be able to use. If you need MAC information, it is best to go to the source!

Another great thing about the MAC website is that all of the different products they offer are available on the site. You can get specific information about any product you are interested in. You can also choose multiple items and compare them with just a click of the mouse. MAC products can be found at other websites also, but there is no way to be sure you will get the best quality products from those sites.

Another great feature of the site is that you can look at things sorted by several different factors. For example, if you wanted to see what the newest products available are, you would be able to search based on 'newest product'. You could also sort your search based on top sellers. This allows you to see what other savvy buyers are looking at and purchasing.

You may also find great accessories on the MAC site. Tons of them are available for various kinds of products you've already got. At the official site, however, you may look for accessories which are specifically made for the product(s) you've got. This guarantees that anything you purchase will be compatible.

The official site also gives you excellent gift packaging, so that is another reason to purchase the products from there. This gift packaging is unavailable from anywhere else. When purchasing a gift for someone, you will be able to let them know that the product was purchased from a reputable site simply by the way the gift was packaged.

In our modern era, a shopper is able to visit multiple sites in only a few seconds, accessing a wide variety of data and product information. Unfortunately, with the increased choice comes the problem of knowing which retailers to trust. Luckily, there's a simple solution. If you purchase products from the official MAC website, you'll be secure in the knowledge that you're using a safe interface from a company that's reliable.

The MAC website is an excellent place to go to gain lots of info. For instance, if you wished to see what the newest products were, you could search for them based on 'newest product.' If you purchase your products through their official site, you'll be able to take advantage of the great gift packaging service that they offer. In our modern era, a shopper is able to visit multiple sites in only a few seconds, accessing a wide variety of data and product information. If you purchase products from its official website, you'll be secure in the knowledge that you're using a safe interface from a company that's reliable.

Top Ten Web Hosts

By Russell Hancock

Whether you are a seasoned webmaster or you are just starting out, how do you choose a web host from the hundreds, or thousands out there?

We have looked at what we feel are the top ten hosting providers, and have given you our honest review of these.

Our reviews are short and to the point, we are not going to overwhelm you with information that you don't need. Most people are just content with finding an affordable and reputable host that they can trust. These Web hosting companies have been selected based on overall popularity, performance, features, customer service, quality and price.

This week we have rated the following hosting companies;

#1. Apollo

#2. BlueHost

#3. Easy CGI

#4. Fast Domain

#5. Fat Cow

#6. Good Avocado

#7. Host Monster

#8. Host Gator

#9. IX Web Hosting

#10. Pow Web

All of the hosting providers we looked at have been in business for a number of years and have firmly established themselves as leaders in the industry.

In the past few years, web hosting has become an extremely competitive industry, some hosts are offering much lower rates if you sign up for longer terms. Some as low as $3.88 a month.

Some hosts also offer free website migration if you are already hosted elsewhere, generally this requires you to sign for a minimum term.

Always do your research and determine the type of hosting you need before you commit to a particular web host. By doing this, you can save yourself much grief in the long run. With so much competition in the industry, it is most certainly a buyers market.

Find out everything you need to know about how to choose a web host and see the reviews of this weeks top picks at Five Star Web Host Reviews

How Much Does it Cost to Have a Website?

By Michael Collins

When people learn that I earn a living online, one of the first things they ask me is how much does it cost to have a website? I assume its because they like the idea of making extra money online and want to find out how much it would cost for them to do it too. In this article I'm going to explain the basic costs of starting your very own website.

How much you spend is largely up to you. You could easily drop thousands of dollars on bells and whistles that you don't really need. But all you really need to get started is a domain name and a reliable web host.

A domain name is simply the name you want to give your website. For example, Google's domain is google.com. To get a domain name of your own you have to pay an annual fee to a registrar. This gives you the right to use that name for your website. Prices vary from one registrar to another but you can get your own domain for as little as $8 a year.

Of course having a domain name doesn't mean you have a website yet. You have to find someone to host your site for you. Think of your web host as your landlord, but instead of renting an apartment you're renting space on their server. Their server is connected to the internet and that's how your website is available to the whole world. As far as actually building your site and adding content, there are plenty of free site builders to choose from and most hosts let you choose whichever one you want.

Prices for web hosting vary wildly from one host to the next. They all offer different features and some are better than others, but there are many hosts that only charge around $5 to $9 per month. Of course you'll want to shop around a bit to find one that suits your needs.

The best place to find information and comparisons on hosting providers is at http://webhosting.youcompareit.com where you can read actual customer comments, complaints, and web host ratings.

What is Web Hosting? It Completes the Package

By Kyle Odermann

It is sometimes difficult to take in how much the internet has changed people's lives. It has changed the way we buy, the way we learn and the way that many of us spend our leisure time.

When you consider that the internet has been only around seriously for about fifteen years, yet it seems that it has been around for centuries. Maybe ten years ago, the number of companies that had a web site to their name was few. Today the number of companies, institutions and organisations who are not represented online are not worth counting.

What has made all this possible? It's just that over the years, due to the tremendous weight of public demand, everything has gotten simpler and much less expensive.

It is now possible to build a web site for a few hundred dollars, where once it cost nothing. Yet what is a web site worth if it remains on the hard disc of a computer.

Web sites are meant to deliver and if possible exchange information, and they can only do so by being online. That's why anyone who builds a web site should not hesitate to launch it on the internet, so that they can receive whatever information feedback they are looking for. There are any numbers of web hosting companies now operating, most of whom can also be found online. Check out prices and service before choosing which one is best for you. Don't forget to ask all the questions that you need to know the answers for.

In this late stage of the first decade of the 21st century, web storage is both simple and inexpensive. Bandwidth is plentiful and the era of broadband connections, photographs graphics, digital music and even films can be downloaded almost immediately.

So if you have a website that you have built and want to share it with the World, don't hesitate any longer, organize yourself some web hosting and get ready to meet the World.

HostingReviewGuide.com - Learn the ropes of Web Hosting and find Hosting Articles and unbiased user reviews of hosting solutions. Also with the most up to date Hosting coupons list on the internet.

Affordable Dental Website Hosting

By Jake Sway

Are you looking for affordable dental website hosting? Maybe you just need affordable website hosting in general. The truth is there are so many hosting companies that can fit into your business or personal needs. What you have to be careful about is what options these hosts will provide for you. Hosting can range anywhere from $5 per month to over $100 per month depending on the what you need your website to do.

For example, if you really are looking for affordable dental website hosting then you may just need an informational site where you can put up information about your practice and maybe some photos and what insurance carriers you accept. This is just one example of hosting that would need minimal options on the hosting account.

The more complex you need your site to be, the more you are going to spend every month in hosting fees. What you want to be sure to do is compare hosting companies. I have heard of people that just need a basic website yet they somehow get signed up and are paying $500 or more per year in hosting fees. This should not be the case. A simple informational website should be no more than $5-$7 per month.

Before you sign up for your hosting you need to take in to consideration the options of the hosting package. First of all, each host will provide you with usually 3 different options. The lowest priced one is usually the one you want if you just need an information website. This is the least expensive and you can get your name out there in cyberspace for next to nothing. But, make sure that they have the email option if you don't have email already. On the other hand, there are so many free email services that you can just make a new one and call it yourbusinessname@yahoo.com or whatever service you choose.

Take your time and compare hosts and you will be fine.

Compare affordable website hosting sites and get the most affordable dental website hosting for your business needs.

Test Your Web Hosting Company Uptime Before Buying the Hosting Plan

By Bedrich Omacka

When you are going to pay for web hosting service you should make sure that the hosting company has potential to keep your website accessible for most of the time. The only way how to avoid troubles caused by downtime is checking web hosting company uptime before you buy the hosting plan. In this article, I am going to explain how to do that most effectively.

Basically, there are two ways how to monitor the web hosting uptime. You can use either desktop application or some of many online monitoring services. What is the difference?

Using online service is the easiest way. You can find some websites offering uptime stats in google. The advantage of this solution is the possibility to see statistics for many months or maybe years back. The time period depends only on the date when the web host begun to be monitored. When you come across uptime monitoring services you will probably notice slightly different results. The reason of such difference can be another checking interval. While some websites check the web hosting uptime every 5 minutes, there are others which do the same in 60 minutes interval. From this reason I suggest to take some time and find a service with lower checking intervals.

You will probably find out that these intervals are a little longer than you preffer. The good solution may be to download some free monitoring software which can be run on your desktop. This way you have all settings including the intervals under the control . Set one minute intervals and add URL of web hosts you are going to compare. The disadvantage of this method is impossibility to get data for a long period of the time (I expect you will not wait full year before you sign up with some hosting company). On the other side the current uptime is more important then one year old stats because many companies may get new owner or more servers and this can impact their uptime.

Click here for web hosting service providing 99.9% uptime monitored by third parties since 2006. You can check out their uptime at http://www.marblehost.com/uptime-guarantee.php

Is Free Hosting a Good Idea?

By Andrew Page

Free hosting has come a long way since the days of Geocities. Many free hosts offer plans and tools that are comparable to paid hosts. With hosts offering gigabytes of free space why should you pay for hosting?

While free hosts are offering more and more space combined with more features it still does not make them a good alternative to paid hosting. With the cost of servers declining, the amount of storage space has become a major selling point for both free and paid hosts. Be careful not to get too caught up with the number of gigabytes being offered as their are far more important things to consider.

As with any business customer support is often the most important aspect of the company. This is an area that a free host just simply can't compete with a paid host. Free hosts typically offer little to nothing in the form of support. A free host also is likely to place forced ads on your website, this is how they are able to pay their server fees. They disregard server loads and place as many clients on a server as they possibly can to maximize the amount of ads that are displayed.

Free hosts generally don't have to pay for advertising so the cost to obtain a client is nothing. For this reason they can afford to not satisfy every client as there is always a replacement at no cost. If you are serious about your website then you should chose a company that is serious about your business. It is hard enough to find a paid host so be extremely careful if you are considering using a free alternative. The price of shared hosting is very affordable these days and there are many good companies to choose from.

Andrew Page is the owner of Erupt Web Hosting

Hostgator Web Hosting

By Alex Xiavier Ang

Choosing the right web host is one of the most important decisions any webmaster can make. A bad host can be one ugly and costly experience. Choose wisely when deciding on who your provider will be. Consider all the prices and packages before deciding as choosing a web hosting package is the first vital step to showcase your own website. Your Internet service provider or ISP will provide a space on the World Wide Web for your domain for the whole world to see.

What is a Web Host?

Web hosts are companies that provide space on a server which they own for use by their clients as well as providing Internet connectivity usually in a data center. A server is a unique computer where web sites are hosted, stored and makes them available to rest of the world. Web hosting clients simply upload their website files to a shared or dedicated web server which their Internet service provider or ISP maintains to ensure a steady fast connection to the Internet.

There are two types of web hosting, Free and Paid. Free web hosts generally require their own ads on your site and only allow web-based uploading and editing of your site. Most of them have very tight disk space and bandwidth limits. However, most people still start via free web hosting.

For paid web hosting, it offer great support and bandwidth but charges a monthly fee. Web hosting is a highly competitive business and a company has to provide services which are either very cheap or very good to survive. The mediocre tend to go to the wall unless they spend huge amounts of money on marketing. This simply means that most companies will be offering very good packages to get business.

Things to Consider When Choosing a Web Host

Finding the web host with the right package can be exhausting and confusing. Do not hesitate to ask them question. Comparing prices and packages are essential to get the best deal. I have engaged numerous web hosts since 2002 and I have my fair share of good and bad experiences. These experiences however make me come out with a checklist while I am comparing.

1. Prices

This is a very important factor but it also largely depends on your budget. Decide a comfortable amount you are willing to pay before looking around. Take note of the payment frequency whether it is monthly, quarterly or annual payment.

I will usually take the monthly payment when I am with a new web host for the simple reason that I can cancel anytime if the service sucks. I know they can do a refund but I prefer to keep the cash with me till the web host service and support prove to be efficient.

2. Disk Space

This is another important aspect which determines how many files or pictures you can upload to your web site. Think of this as your own computer hard disk. Say your hard disk space is 160 gigabyte; it can only store 160 gigabyte worth of stuffs.

This is the case of the more the better. Back in 2002, most web hosts provide a Disk Space of around 500 megabyte only and today my host is giving me a whopping 600 gigabyte (600,000 megabyte) which is 1200 times more!!

3. Bandwidth

Bandwidth refers to the allocated amount of Web Traffic your web site can received. Web Hosting companies often quote a monthly bandwidth limit for a website, for example 100 Gigabyte per month. When the monthly bandwidth is exceeded, additional bandwidth charges are incurred which can be expensive.

At the start, you may not need a lot of bandwidth but it will come in handy when your web site gets more popular. I tend to play safe so I have chosen a web host that offers me a 6,000 Gigabyte bandwidth.

4. Company

This is vital as we do not want to engage any fly by night company. Google about the company to get feedback or reviews before deciding. This is what I found about my current web host; Hostgator was founded in 2002 by Brent Oxley and is privately owned. Hostgator is a privately owned company founded in 2002 that has no debt, is very profitable, and has NO intentions of selling any time soon.

HostGator servers are housed in four separate data centers in Dallas, Texas. They offer a guarantee of 99.9% uptime, which is achieved through daily backups that are responsible for keeping the websites online. HostGator is one of the world top 10 largest web hosting companies with more than 700,000 hosted domains. They have over 130 employees to provide you around-the-clock support. Hostgator also offers tremendous uptime. Uptime means that the amount of time your websites hosted on Hostgator will be operational.

This type of information makes me feel more secure to work with the company. Hostgator service and support have been excellent so far which makes me a happy customer.

Alex Ang @ http://www.liveonothers.com A Singaporean who is happy to be making real money with Affiliate Marketing on the internet while having a full time job. A normal income ain't enough, get residue income with the Internet and start Living On Others!