Web Hosting: How to Choose a Host
Once you have a domain name, you'll need a company to host it. While there are many companies offering low monthly rates, other factors besides price must be considered when looking for a host: uptime, storage space, monthly bandwidth, email accounts offered, programming languages supported, and databases. Web Tutorial Zone recommends PowWeb or iPowerWeb as they are the best value and support most of the techniques described in the Web Tutorial Zone.
| iPowerWeb | PowWeb | IX Hosting | Yahoo! | |
| Uptime | 99.9% Guaranteed | 99.9% | Unavailable | Unavailable |
| Storage Space | 3,000 MB | 5,000 MB | 2,500 MB | 2 GB |
| Monthly Bandwidth | 50 GB | 300 GB | 100 GB | 25 GB |
| Email Accounts | 500 | 650 | 1,000 | 25 |
| Languages | CGI/PERL/PHP4 | CGI/PERL/PHP4/PHP5 | CGI/PERL/PHP4 | None |
| Database | MySQL | MySQL | PostgreSQL | None |
| Frontpage Support | 2000/2002 | 98/2000/2002 | 98/2000/2002/2003 | 2002 |
| Free Domain | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Money Back Guarantee | 30 days | 30 days | 30 days | None |
| Price | ||||
| One Year Hosting | $7.95/month | $7.77/month | $4.95/month + $20 setup fee |
$11.95/month + $25 setup fee |
| Two Year Hosting | $6.95/month | $7.77/month | $4.95/month | $11.95/month + $25 setup fee |
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Uptime
Uptime, or the time which a server has been operational is arguably the most important factor to consider when choosing a host. If the server isn't available, nothing else is. While occasional reboots are something to be expected and no host can claim 100% uptime, you should expect nothing less than the server you pay for to be available at least 99.9% of the time.
Storage Space
Web server storage space is the amount of room, usually stated in megabytes, the host provides to store your HTML, graphic and other files. If you plan to have a graphic intensive site, use multimedia like video or audio files or offer a large number of documents, you will need much more space than a simple HTML site. Even if your current site is small, always anticipate for growth and ensure you have enough room to expand in the future.
Monthly Bandwidth / Transfer
Bandwidth, also called data transfer, is the amount of data that is accessed by your visitors. It is usually expressed in gigbytes accessed over the course of a month. Sites with large numbers of visitors or large file sizes will require more bandwidth.
Email Accounts
The hosting plan you choose should include the ability to set up email accounts you@yourdomain.com. The two types of email accounts are POP3 (Post Office Protocol) and IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol). Both can be checked from a desktop client like Outlook, Eudora or Mac Mail. A good host will also offer an online interface or web client so that you can check your mail from any computer in the world with internet access.
Programming Languages
Once your site is online, you may eventually want to add additional functionality like form processing or other dynamic features. For these you will require a server-side programming language. PHP is the most popular advanced scripting language and, due to its ease of use and the large number of free applications available, highly recommended. CGI access is also an important feature to look for in a host while PERL, ColdFusion and ASP are also useful depending on your tastes.
Databases
Having access to a database will allow you to develop database-driven applications for your site. MySQL is the preferred database of Web Tutorial Zone and is frequently used in conjunction with PHP. PostgreSQL is another common option although MSSQL is most likely to be found on Microsoft servers. Avoid single-user databases like Access at all costs as they will not support normal site traffic.