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Page Last Updated:
5/17/04 8:13 PM*
Page Creation Date:
2/01/04 2:31 PM*
* Eastern Time Zone
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Choosing a Web Host
By Erik Rodriguez
This article describes my experiences with different web hosts. I will explain what to look for and what to watch out for.
Years ago, domain names and web hosts were very expensive. Domain names were $70, and a good web host was around $20-40 per month. Not only were they expensive, but
you didn't get much for the price. Prices for both of these have dropped drastically. I first bought skullbox.net in May of 2002 for $15 dollars. Next, I
needed a place to host it. I checked ebay because that's where I buy EVERYTHING! I found a host that had great specs
for a price of $15 per year. How could I go wrong? I ended up getting a host that went down every few days. The worst part is that my data got lost as well. I
eventually talked to the guy, and he ended up buying a new server and giving me space there. This site has been hosted on the same server since. The
owner is a good guy and lets me know what is going on if the server ever goes down.
Cable/DSL hosting
I do not recommend hosting your own site for many reasons. First, most ISPs do not allow it. Unless you are using a "business class" connection, don't even try it.
The performance is often slow, and setting up a DNS server can be somewhat of a hassle. Not to mention you have to be on top of your security patches and firewall
settings. It is usually more trouble than its worth.
Ebay Scams
Watch out for these scams! There are a TON of hosts on ebay. So how do you choose one? Doing proper research will get you the best results. I will show you how
I research each hosting "company" before thinking about paying.
Watch out for Resellers
Resellers are people who buy a portion of space on a server and resell it. However, some of these servers are overloaded. This creates an uptime problem because the
server is stuck handling too many requests and it crashes. The best way to see if the server is crowded is by checking how many sites it is hosting. I use a site that
has great tools for this. Whois.sc has a tool that looks up the host and returns all the domains hosted. You need
to sign up for an account, but its free and only takes a minute. Here is a screen shot.
I do not recommend a host with over 150 sites hosted. If the host is cheap enough, there might be some clowns on there using all kinds of resources from the server.
This happened to me! I got an email from the server owner telling me that someone was offering free web hosting, email accounts, and sub domains. I am not saying that
all resellers are bad. I have 2 sites hosted from resellers.
Unlimited Options
Anyone offering "Unlimited Disk Space" or "Unlimited Bandwidth" is full of it. There is no such thing. Walk away if you see any offers like this. Although, the only
exception I can see is unlimited email accounts. I have the ability to create unlimited email accounts, but why would you want to do that?
Setup Fees
Some hosts on ebay have good specs and a low price. But in very small print they have "$25 setup fee." Remember, you don't need to buy the most expensive host to have
good services. Skullbox.net sets me back 4.99 per month. My personal resume site, erikrodriguez.net was $25
for a year.
Site Management
Make sure you get good management tools. The first one I used was a Plesk Control Panel. Both of my servers have Cpanel control. Once you use Cpanel, you won't want anything else. It's great and has all the tools you'd ever need to manage your site.
Ebay Feedback
Like everything else on ebay, check the seller's feedback. Feedback is often a good tool in choosing a seller. Check fast feedback and see if any of the other sellers'
items were web hosting packages like the one you want to buy.
The most important thing is getting a reliable host. Make sure they offer the standard 99.9% uptime. You can email the seller and ask which
data center the server is located in. Like everything else, do your research before making a decision.
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