[Discussion]Web Hosting Discussion Thread

This is the official discussion thread about web hosts. Discuss certain things about the different webhosts out there. Give reviews for the ones you have used. Tell about the ones you have heard about. Give advice on certain things...etc.

There are many web hosting sites out there. There are free ones, cheap ones and expensive ones. I have used both free and paid web hosts, and I would definitely say that if you can save enough money for a website, use a paid hosting service. Free webhosts, for the most part, are not very good. They do not offer good services and are unreliable; if you do not have a domain name to transfer, you will get a sub-domain name (ex: http://yourname.webhost.com). If you are looking for a personal website, a free webhost would not be too bad.

Here a few cheap and free webhosts:

-1and1 - as low as $3.99
-BlueHost - $6.95
-Hostgator - $4.95
-Hostmonster - $6.95
-Awardspace - Free
-Freehostia - Free

I figure this could be very helpful for users who want webhosts but are searching. I, for example, may be looking for a good web host very soon for a project I am working on. So, I could definitely use the advice when I am ready to choose.

As I have said, I have used both free and paid. Currently, I use hostmonster. They are reliable, offer great services and have (from my experience) good support. I use to use awardspace. That was the best free hosting site I could find.

 

Great thread! I'm likewise working on something I may need a website for soon, and I could use some guidance sorting the good hosts from the not-so-good. I know a handful of people who use godaddy.com, but I don't know that I can get past the fact that these people voluntarily called their company godaddy.com.

 

My current job has me working with Telligent's Community Server software, and as a result I keep an eye on their forums. Godaddy has come up with both good and bad points there. Some people are fine with them, others have had problems. A Google search of "Community Server" and godaddy should get you some of the stories. A lot of them will be old - 2006/2007. Telligent have radically overhauled their product now and I don't know if people still use Godaddy for hosting. We're using CS 2007 with remote hosting but it is on dedicated servers, not a hosting company.

 

I've only used free hosters, so I really can't add much to the discussion.

 

I can't help but notice you've left LunarPages out of the formula.

 

I use Hostmonster, for both of my two websites.

They are great, and you can't beat $6.95 per month, for non-stop service with unlimited storage and bandwidth, at least IMO.

 

Hmm. I've been thinking about getting my own webhost for a while now just so I have a place to experiment with things online ... and Hostmonster gives you SSH access! This has potential.

 

IIRC, lunarhost is $4.95 per month for the exact same plan.

 

Wow, this is a great thread. I've been wanting to have my own website for a while, one where I could sell and self-publish e-books. Anyone have any ideas how to do that? I have no clue what web host I'd use or how to sell an e-book.

 

You might want to check out Lulu for selling ebooks. You could get your feet wet here without the expense of setting up your own site.

 

I'm currently using GoDaddy as the host for my boyfriend's website, and I have no complaints. We've experienced no down time, and things are running very smoothly.

Another site that I administer is currently hosted by DreamHost. Again, no complaints with their service.

 

Hi all.

I have two GeoCities sites that I have had for years, whose primary purpose now, is to host pictures that I use to spice up or describe my posts on the Roleplaying Forum.

Yahoo! will close down the free GeoCities service next month (October 2009) so I am in a bit of limbo as to where to store my pics.

I have a full web page set up, since I am okay at XHTML, so ideally, I would like to know of a free web host that will let me upload my webpages - I am assuming services like Photobucket don't do that? - as well as hotlink to my pics from TFN. Be no good to me, if a dead link or a placeholder about 'no hot-linking' appears in the thread, which is why I have not just shifted to Angelfire, where I also have sites.

 

Dreamhost is my choice du jour. I've been with them since 2005 and aside from the infamous credit card blunder (of which I was not affected by), it's been a good service. A little pricier than most, but you get tons of space and all kinds of goodies to work with and use as well.

 

Photobucket is purely for image hosting and not entire websites like you asked (so no, it doesn't do that), but it is really good if all you have is images. Hotlinking to your hosted images on photobucket works beautifully -- it's partly what I believe it's designed for. I've used it for years for certain images I wanted to display here on this forum.

 

Was using Servage.net for all my hosting needs, but I'm switching to Arvixe by the end of the year. Both have good features and pricing, but I got disappointed by the intermittent file/database issues on Servage. I hear Media Temple is good as well, but have yet to try them...they certainly are one of the most popular I've seen!

 

I recommend Bluehost for hosting.

I've gone through the ringer with Lunarpages and IXWebhosting and will never recommend them again.