Archive for November, 2008

One should consider the given below web hosting mistakes and should restrict them from having a seriously negative impact on his/her website.

Mistakes and solutions:

1. Contact Information

One should make sure that his/her web host has contact information available to user 24 hours / day and 7 days / week. This facility provided to the user should be in the form of phone numbers plus e-mail addresses that correspond to the web host domain name. The user should make sure that he/she is dealing with a real company that not only concern about there own business but also of user’s.

2. Excess Bandwidth

It is a serious problem faced by the user that while using a free or cheap quality web host there are more chances that he/she do not possess sufficient amount of bandwidth which could cause problems with user’s website in the later time. Even in the condition when user has to pay a little bit more amount of bucks, it is worth to gain further bandwidth. The user should inquire about this before signing up with a web host.

3. Liberal Disk Space

Several times it happens that user is in false happiness for finding a cheap or free web host and just signs up without even inquiring about the quantity of disk space they provide. A user should ask just one question to him/her, what he/she will do in circumstance when the disk space fills up? One should confirm that his/her host provides him/her liberal amount of disk space or not, if not one should look for an alternative (web host).

4. Web Host Domain Name

One should confirm that the company domain name that it matches with the web host company name or not prior to disclosing his/her credit card information or rather say hosting his/her website with them. On the Internet it is up to the user to choose whether a company is genuine or not, one should verify the domain and company name to locate a combination between them to sustain.

5. Protection

Inspite of the web host and website design, the user must ensure that he/she have secure websites for purchases where people will enter the banking or credit card information. There is no argument on the fact that, if one’s site does not appear to be secure, customers will definitely leave. One must get rid of such circumstances and must go to an extent of the limit to make customers feel secure and convinced buying from his/her own site.

6. Strategy Ahead

One should be prepared for the future and should give a thought in his/her mind about the websites growth. In absence of proper strategy one has to face some severe challenges if one outgrow his/her website, shopping cart, bandwidth etc too quickly. One should adopt a systematic plan for slow, medium, as well as fast growth so that one can remain aware about how to tackle challenges in every sort of situation.

7. Sluggish Server

One should confirm that his/her web page loads within 10 sec. for a 56 k modem. If not, then people will prefer to desert one’s site before the page ever opens rather than waiting. The reason behind it is that, people are looking for instant gratification on the Internet. How to provide information is user’s headache, if cannot the people (customer) will leave on the spot. There is no matter to compromise.

8. Blueprint

One should confirm that his/her host should permit him/her to design the site for ultimate success. Presence of too many policies or regulations regarding the site design will probably influence the sales and the way customers perceive one’s site then should look for another host. There is no scarcity of choices.

9. Checkout

One should prevent several formalities in the checkout process and should ensure that it should be in clear, simple, and to the point format. People prefer to buy their products without giving one a lump of private information. Let the customer do that or plainly make certain fields optional if one is attempting to carry out market research.

10. URL

If one wishes for an ideal reflection of one’s business and services he/she should possess own personal URL. One should not use a free host that provides him/her some kind of space using their URL with some further information at the end of the URL that directs it to him/her. There is no harm in loosing some of the bucks and getting one’s own URL that is unique, simple to process, and says something about one’s company. No doubt, it is going to be most crucial.

Free Web Hosting ??not Bad!!

In terms of price, one can find two types of hosting in the market:

1. Paid web hosting and

2. Free web hosting.

Several people run away from free hosting thinking it nothing but making fool of one.

However, it can have its own advantages.

It relies on the use and place of the user.

Why use (purpose)?

When one talk about a commercially meant website, for e.g. an Ecommerce web-store, dependability and uptime is must. As it is well said, downtime for second, high amount revenue in crater. However, some free web hosting assures providers warranty of uptime, still one cannot make them liable if they fail to reach as per user’s requirements. Now one will ask why? Since their clause mention lack of uptime guarantee due to free of cost service. As mentioned above, along with a crucial business website one cannot commit suicide by relying on a free web hosting.

Though, there are several user’s trying something outstanding or different from others on their websites, not assured with positive output. For them free web hosting is the best choice as it does not involve any gamble with currency and both parties can prevent themselves from any unanticipated damage. Each person learns from experiences and what can be the best way to learn as compare to it? One can see free hosting plans as supreme platform for optimistic webmasters to launch themselves to a new helpful scenario. Certainly, it is not free in the real sense, they ask something in return i.e. visiting sponsors, exhibiting ads on hosted pages, reading emails, and not long, sharing in online communities of the free web-host. This final alternative cannot say to be a worse thing as online communities permit several users to interact and discover something new from one another.

At the other hand, there are several users who heir free web hosting for a personal site as they do not think there is any use to denote time and payment for it. Still one can find few free web hosts in the market offering free service for nothing just to deal with. Thus, an apparent objective for going for a free web hosting is quite imperative. If the objective is sensitive and no excuse to problematic situations, then one should not recommend free web hosting. Except that, free web hosting cannot consider as bad.

Why position of the user?

In the present scenario, one can afford Web hosting plans in a reasonable way (some even for $1 a month). Thus, charges are not a big issue regarding web hosting for the people having high standard of living, reserve revenue can be a good option for the people to groom their web site. Further, working people can use a Paypal account as a source of payment. If one talks about students and young people they do not have much revenue to spend. For them, free web hosting plans can be the last and best alternative.

Hence, one cannot consider free web hosting a worse thing as people of some specific category can utilize it to fulfill their goals. So for the students and people trying to learn new things and gaining new experience can select, free web hosting as the best alternative.

In the web hosting market hosting providers use a variety of techniques to magnetize clients. Their features are so much identical that users especially beginners come under dilemma making the whole procedure a daunting one.

For beginner root knowledge to web hosting is essential, he/she should have a satisfactory explanation of the questions like:

1.Web host- it’s meaning?

2. What are the platforms available for host server? Distinguishing between various servers?

3. What is meant by bandwidth?

4. What is meant by a domain name? By what way one can get it?

5. The way one can create web pages.

6. Scripting languages- their meaning? What are their applications?

7. What is meant by FTP?

8. What features are essential for one’s website?

For a user whose intention is to opt a personal website just to publish few pictures and text can even move on to low priced web hosting providers or even to free hosting providers to fulfill his/her requirements.

But it is not going to happen when user possess a business site to promote sales and services, rather one needs to be very careful while dealing with a new web host. One needs to do through investigation before reaching to any form of conclusion. There is nothing when after spending so much time, effort and money user is not finding the site prepared to catch the clients required for the business purposes.

There are several features related to web hosting like storage capacity, bandwidth, platform and scripting languages about which user should have knowledge as early as possible.

After all these procedures the user will get the final list of hosts whose provided features will match user’s requirements but before coming to any of the final conclusion one should inquire about host’s past history, present and past client’s experiences and reviews. All these efforts will definitely influence user’s decision in a positive manner.

There is no assurance that while looking for any of the information such as “best web hosting” or “top 10 hosting companies” on the search engines will provide the user accurate information. This is because ranking on such reviews sites will be on the basis of the companies paying higher commissions to their affiliates.

One can say that after short listening of choices the task had not become easier rather tougher because now user needs to be very alert in every aspect. One has to evaluate them on certain measures, which might take a long period to complete the overall process.

The following are the Sources of information on which one can rely:

1. Minimum three honest and unbiased review sites.

2. Several reviews from several forums.

3. Feedback from customers.

Review Sites:

Review sites can be a key weapon to reach a very near to the actual search. It is particularly recommended for those whom search utility is based on price, space, bandwidth, and Operating Server. Which can be definitely time beneficial for the user.

One should not opt for the review sites mentioning “top 10” or like that. Instead of that user should look for client based review sites. One should evaluate at least three sites to evaluate reviews and opinions. User should remain alert while going through customer reviews as some of them are only meant to trap new comers.

Hosting Forums:

Known to be one of the prime sources of reviews and opinions, these are the open places (forums) where a client can frankly write his/her estimations and belief. But, this also suffers from drawbacks, as due to be an open place a service provider can praise his/her hosting company and competitors can use it as a weapon to damage the public image of other service providing companies. In few of the forums, such activities are not allowed. However, Moderators keep a good look on such activities, but still one cannot assure 100% guarantee of their honesty and credibility. Thus one should keep this thing in mind and then should go on with his/her search.

One can have several forums from search engines. It is quite common that almost all forums are having a search services from which one can search for his/her candidate hosting provider’s name or URL. If one gets something interesting, he/she should continue reading them as much as possible. However if one does not get any results then too there is no need to worry. In that case one can post a thread asking for customer reviews about the intended provider(s). Last but not the least, again the whole thing depends upon the prudence of user.

Customer’s feedback

There are several web hosts listing samples of their customers. Some others are there having forums on their websites for support, where one can find the real case studies where there is an issue raised by real customers and the way is given, how the company dealt it. The thing to consider is there is given the addresses of some customers. One should try to contact those customers to find the reliability of the company’s service and support.

Thus now after all these things it can be assumed that user is in a position to take right decision in order to escape from problems afterwards.

When the talk is about small but best business web hosting, there are several aspects one needs to keep in mind. There are several features and choices regarding web hosting in the market, so to get the best; one should denote the best time to soak up useful knowledge regarding it. While selecting best web hosting for one’s small business there is nothing prior to user’s own requirements.

One can divide web sites into three kinds:

1. Personal/Small Business Homepages,

2. E-Commerce, and

3. Information sites.

Selection of web hosting largely depends on type of user’s business. The business may concern to information and small business services. That’s way it is crucial to locate which small business web hosting is best suitable for the user. A user with a small business may not require purchasing costly services as required in large sites. While dealing with a small business huge disk space and bandwidth are not the essential requirements, which is a need in large E-Commerce business sites.

Crucial criteria’s while going for Small Business Web Hosting are given below:

Limitless space, transfer: In several cases, an advertising tactic. One should not forget to verify about the Acceptable Use Policies to forecast about their unlimited plans. One may get negative response on exploiting too much space if he/she does not acquire an upgrade policy.

Setup charges: several small business web hosting services do not disclose their charges regarding services until one deal up that company.

There will be no POP email access to emails. In fact, some small business web hosting services merely offer user access to site’s email accounts.

Perimeter on monthly traffic: few of the small business web hosting services will restrict the user about monthly traffic onto his/her site.

Customer support: a user should get the satisfactory answer of the following questions. Do the hosting service provide fine customer support i.e.24/7? Does weekend support is included?

Control panel: it is not a prime concern for an experienced webmaster, however, when one talks about new comers a small business web hosting control panel is an obligation.

Does extended commitments are essential while dealing with small business web hosting service? Several times one can move on monthly basis while dealing with a good web hosting service.

Uptime guarantees: one should have a keen sight while investigating about uptime qualifications of a small business web hosting.

FTP transfer limits: some of the small business web hosts have restrictions on FTP assistance to their customers.

There is not one but several other aspects which a user needs to take into account while searching for a small business web hosting. A better output depends on the user’s time devotion to this task. One can easily judge at that period of time, how much appropriate his/her decision is.

World never ever run on the idea of one-sided benefit, mutual benefit is accomplished one way or the other. This very concept ere is applicable on free Web hosting also. But before that one must what the hosting term is; it is a process of accumulating files onto a web server so that through a web browser visitors can evaluate it.

Webmasters who have recently built the sites always face a dilemma in choosing an appropriate host for his/her site, they get magnetized towards free host providers which are available throughout the cyber world, however, as discussed previously, the service provided by a free web host is not actually free as it declares, it has it’s own drawbacks such as lack of sovereign domain name for the user.

In the case of a new webmaster, selection of ideal host can be a daunting task and even when it comes to free web host; the choice should be selective one, because the majority of free web hosts aim to exploit their users. Moreover, as user counters some of the drawbacks such as assisting a small server place and inability of utilizing the FTP clients, lack of domain name, and ample amount of ads via the Web Company and scarcity of benefits, needs to be faced while searching for a free hosting. The web hosts attempts to wrap up their costs by publishing their or any other companies ads on their user’s website.

One should account about few things, before deciding about a host, it includes requirements of the user, features offered by the host, space allowed by the host, any statistics, what form of domain name offered by the host, can user use his/her own domain name or rather provide name servers, do the host provide feature of email address, type and location of advertisements on user’s site? Firm answers of all these questions are must before coming to any of the conclusion.

If one talk about the requirements, then now a day’s websites are available in two forms static or dynamic, majority of hosts prefer static hosting and if a user’s website is dynamic then he/she should search for a host providing the potential to host the website with the use of scripting languages. Dynamic services are provided by only few companies but with several restrictions, such as no data availability, etc. Same happens with availability of space which is in the range of 5MB to 50 MB, changing with respect to other factors; companies extract more benefits as they provide more space to the user. There are many free hosts who don’t provide the use of own domain names as it is not beneficial for them. That is the reason why most of the time the user’s web address becomes www.myname.freehosting.com.

Further to long URLs accounts, a further contentious issue is their reliability. It is generally believed that free host providers means hosts with old servers and giving free space wrapping up the amount through free advertisement. This is the reason why majority of free web hosts don’t provide the guarantee of servers running through out the day excluding general breakdowns? Another problem lies in scarcity of bandwidth providing, it may create problem when user’s site starts gathering a large amount of traffic and bandwidth extends its genuine limit.

Hence after judging all the factors one can say that free web hosting is not that bad as it looks, here one can surf without many charges. One may need to counter some of the restrictions but it is a boon to newcomers who want to do something new on the web.