How to Select a Webhost that Fits Your Needs
Whether you're considering starting a website or you have one
and want to possibly move it, this article can help you decide
what the best webhost means to you.
To begin, every website is hosted on only 3 platforms:
Unix Windows NT Macintosh
Very few sites are hosted on a MAC server, so the majority of
webhosts use Unix or NT. For these reasons we will focus on only
those 2 platforms.
Unix and NT both offer various options and have different
abilities. Your choice of which platform to use depends on what
applications you want your site to run and the amount of control
you want to have over your site.
Unix
Unix is the oldest and one of the most widely used operating
systems. It is the basis of the internet and most webservers
originally ran on a version of Unix. Unix is know as a
multitasking operating system which means that it can run many
applications at the same time without them affecting each other.
This is very important when you consider that hundreds of
websites, running thousands of CGI scripts, all receiving
thousands of hits could be running on one webserver.
Why Use It?:
It's reliable Ability to host many websites on the same
machine. Almost all CGI scripts run better on Unix. Programming
flexibility. Much more administrative control.
With Unix, webmasters can really tweak their websites (assuming
they know what they are doing) to run at optimal levels.
Developers can run CGI scripts and create applications specific
to their needs.
Down Sides:
Is case sensitive. It is not an easy operating system to learn.
Must use telnet or Ftp to make changes.
Windows NT
NT is a relative newcomer to the webhosting game but it is fast
gaining a large share of the business. NT was built to integrate
seamlessly with Microsoft's web authoring tool, Frontpage. As
such, it is often the perfect solution for newcomers who do not
want to learn HTML or CGI programming or deal with the day to
day hassles of administering a webserver.
Up Sides:
Can use Microsoft Frontpage to publish your website as opposed
to using Ftp or telnet. Can use Cold Fusion. Somewhat easier to
administer (especially for the average webmaster). Is not case
sensitive.
If you do not plan on learning the in's and out's of the web and
administering your site, NT is probably your tool of choice.
Down Sides:
Provides poorer security than Unix. Because of the security
issues, the hosting provider will usually institute tighter
security measures. Cannot run all CGI scripts although this is
changing.
Your needs as the webmaster and your visitors needs will
determine the type of webhost and the platform you need.
Once you have done some more research into what platform you
need, stop by an independent website like:
http://www.tophosts.com and choose one of the top 25 hosts to
fulfill your needs.
Some issues to consider while pondering which host to choose:
1.Uptime: This is probably the most critical piece of
information you need to know to make an informed decision. How
often a server goes down means lost business and lost sales and
no one needs that. Our webhost is up 99.9% of the time as
compared to the first one we had which was more like 25% of the
time. 2.Bandwidth Usage: Some hosts actually charge you for the
amount of traffic you get once you pass a certain percentage.
Why on earth would you want to be charged for that? Our webhost
offers us unmetered traffic at no extra cost (this is what you
should look for). 3.Server Space: Look for hosts that give
50-500 mg of space. As the technology changes sites will take up
more space. You should try to get as much as you can right now
even if you don't use it all. 4.CGI Access: This is critical.
You need the ability to use CGI and especially custom CGI. If a
host doesn't offer it, run screaming! 5.MSQL; Real Audio; Real
Video; Cold Fusion: This is the future of the web and in
particular web marketing. Make sure a host offers support for
these applications even if you don't presently have a use for
them.
You will be glad that you spent your time doing this research
before you jump in and choose a host or switch to a host that
provides you with nothing but problems. You deserve the best, go
for it.