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Your site needs a place
to call home. Choosing a good home is an important job. In fact, not choosing well can be a bad thing for the health
of your business.
Not all host providers are created equal. Some keep up with technology and offer the
latest in speed and performance, while others do not. Some are truly interested in helping
your business succeed, and others are not.
This article will help you choose well. |
TECH TALK
As you search for a host you'll run into lots of jargon, and a whole bunch of acronyms.
Things like NT, UNIX, PERL, CGI, OC3, and more. Goodness. In this article you'll find a
few of these obscenities. But...
....no need to be intimidated. Just refer to Webopedia any time you run into a confusing term. This site is an
online dictionary of tech terms - well worth a bookmark.
THE
BARE NECESSITIES
To build a useful and functional site you should insist on a few basics. These are things
you'll not want to disregard, even if you're not sure what they are right now.
1. Responsive customer support. In the real world things can go wrong. If there are
problems with your site you need 24/7 tech support. Someone should be manning the phones
anytime day or night.
2. Fast connection to the Internet. Your host should have multiple T1 lines at the very
least, while T3, OC3 lines or better are preferred.
3. You must be able to work on your site via FTP anytime day or night.
4. POP e-mail accounts and autoresponders. Many bottom end packages will only give you a
few e-mail accounts and no autoresponders. Often, it's worth the upgrade to a mid-level
package to get these features.
5. Your host should perform daily
back-ups.
6. Server traffic logs are an important instrument in helping you understand who your
customers are and what type of information they are seeking from your site.
7. Your host should be able to meet your needs as you grow. This means you should have
access to your own CGI-bin, multiple domain availability, and support for scripting
languages such ASP, PHP, and PERL.
Some hosts are better at catering to the special needs of newcomers. Click here for an example of one such hosting company. |
HOSTING
ENVIRONMENTS
Your site is housed on a host computer. The environment that exists within that computer
can basically be broken down into two categories:
Shared Server
A shared server, or virtual server, simply means your site is hosted on one machine with
several other sites. You have your own server software and can manipulate your site in
various ways, such as through the use of forms or the type of downloads from your site.
Prices range from about $20 to $250 per month.
Dedicated Server
A dedicated server is a machine that only you and your site visitors use. It offers the
ultimate in flexibility for sites with large bandwidth requirements. Prices go from about
$250 per month and up.
HOSTING
PLATFORMS
You will need to decide on the type of platform from which to base your site. You can
think of a platform as the underlying structure that allows hardware and software to drive
a site.
Which platform to use is often the most vexing question faced by new webmasters. The two
most widely used platforms are UNIX and NT. Which one you choose depends on the types of
uses and demands you expect from your site.
UNIX vs. NT
UNIX has been in existence for several decades. It was originally built to connect
networks together. Over the years there have been many applications designed to run on it.
It is generally thought of as a reliable system with full programming functionality.
NT is a product of Microsoft. As a Microsoft product it is designed to operate efficiently
in a Windows environment. Its thrust is the seamless operation of varying applications
with each other. It is generally thought of as a less time-intensive and more
user-friendly system, albeit not as versatile as UNIX.
If you expect growth, UNIX is well suited to meet your growing demands. It allows a
webmaster to program features into a site that meet individual needs. You may find NT
somewhat limiting in terms of versatility. Yet, it's important to point out that
versatility and functionality is a subjective matter.
Which platform is best suited for you? UNIX lets you get down to the nuts and bolts of
programming your site, such as with CGI scripts, to maintain a designer specific site. Do
you need that kind of control? NT lets you make use of integrated programming, such as
with FrontPage editing, to build a site that's easier on a business with limited time and
resources.
BEGIN
YOUR SEARCH
Choosing the right host for your site is an important decision, yet it need not be a
painful one. The easiest way to separate the good from the bad is to use a Hosting
Directory. Here are my top-rated directories that have search capability, Top Host
listings, news, and lots of informative articles.
==> http://www.HostSearch.com
==> http://www.HostIndex.com
==> http://www.WebHosters.com
==> http://www.TopHosts.com
In conclusion, you now have the tools needed to go out and make an informed hosting
decision. Choose well and you can enjoy a worry-free Web presence while you concentrate on
more important things... your business!
Click here for next tutorial...
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| Real-world, common sense strategies
for small and home based business success. Your issues... real answers. |
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