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Choosing a Web Hosting Company
When deciding on what kind of hosting you need, two major factors need to be looked at. Customer service where you talk with a human being, or customer service by logging on and creating a ticket. Both have pros and cons.
- Web Hosting with a customer service staff that you can speak with: The pros on this seem pretty self explanatory. You get to talk with a customer service rep about your hosting issue(s). Seems like a no-brainier. But you need to be careful of some web hosting companies who say they have 24/7 coverage, but instead have coverage during the day, and off to another country by night. In some cases this can be a hassle as the customer service reps during those hours may be nothing more than glorified secretaries. Meaning that they write down what is wrong, but it doesn't get addressed until the morning shift comes on. The reason for this is they do not have access to the servers. They just receive calls and take a message. Find out if their customer service reps have access to the servers 24 hours a day. If not, then you really don't have 24/7 coverage.
Another important reason to use this kind of hosting is that you know you can get the information needed immediately. If you're selling something, you don't want the service down for any length of time. If you're someone who doesn't know the lingo, then this is the better method of web hosting. Because they will be able to work with you to figure out and fix your problem. It could take several emails to get the point across, and sometimes that isn't enough. But talking to them should help eleviate these issues.
- Web Hosting using a ticket customer service method - Believe it or not, I prefer this kind of hosting over talking to an individual. If there is an issue I log in, state what is wrong, and they go off and take care of it. I can read and reread what I wrote to make sure I included all the information needed. But if you're not web savy, or you don't think you could articulate your problem by writing, then this method is not for you.
In the past there was another issue where many people used their web hosting companies to gain access to the web. This kind of system would fail if you weren't able to connect to the web. But today you see cable companies and dsl as the two main ways in which to connect. So this becomes a non-issue.
- Another factor that you need to be aware of is the platform you want to use. A Windows, Unix or Linyx based operating system will allow you to do some things similar to the others, but there are limitations. If you have a need for asp pages, then a Windows based platform is what you should get. If you just have a bunch of webpages in the html format, then you need'nt worry about which platform you choose. Know what kind of site you need before you go and look for hosting.
- Lastly, when it comes to using a web hosting company's domain search and buy options, go directly to GoDaddy.com for those. If you want to switch hosting companies for any reason, you have to go through a lot of steps to get control of your domain name. But if you buy it yourself, then you can keep track of when it needs to be renewed, not paying extra for the domain because the hosting company puts a charge on it, and make any of the changes needed (nameservers, forwarding, etc) immediately. So definitely buy it yourself!
So which is the better method? The better method is the one that best suits your needs. You'll find the ticket customer service web hosting companies cost less money than the talk to customer service ones. But price shouldn't be the deciding factor. It should also be what will make your life easier.
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Flash Movies & Picture Galleries
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