I have a website for hobby on a free host for some time now, but as it get's bigger i need sometimes help to configure some settings and get things going. Since i receive no answers from the host i have to move my site to a paid host obviously.

I do not know much about hosts and what requirements i really need for my website so i guess i just say the ones i think are most important.

unix-server.
php4, phpMyAdmin, cgi-bin.
minimum 2 mySQL databases.
minimum 200 MB diskspace.
minimum 2GB traffic.
control panel, ftp access, custom error pages.
3 subdomains.
24-7 support.
under 10$/month.

After searching through the forum and doing some research i have been thinking about these webhosts:
phpwebhosting, host rocket and JagPC but any other host which match approximately these requirements can please post a message here.

Thx in advance.

<<NONE>>

deleated, kinda, by Dogma

My last provider was phpwebhosting. Their tech support is horrible and their control panel is kinda cheesy. I don't recommend them...

My current host is HostRocket. I highly recommend them. I've been with them for about 5 months now and their support is great. They did have some problems with their provider (VDI) but all seems to be fixed now and is running smoothly. You can't miss with them.

They have their own forum set up(just like this) if you want to check that out for any questions you need answered.

Good Luck!

Hi everyone,

This is my first post although I've been lurking for awhile. I am also preparing to move my site from a "free" host, and must say it's very confusing.

In addition to having to deal with control panels, cgi, and everything else I haven't had to deal with in the past, I find I must sort through a pool of unethical hosts waiting to take advantage of the uninformed!

I started by going to one of the sites that "rates" hosts, only to discover later that it's a scam, and hosts that pay for an "ad" basically guarantee a better rating for themselves. Hmmm, something seems wrong with that.

Anyway, I started with a list of 20 potential hosts, and now have it down to just a few. Host Rocket seems to be a good one, I've seen their support guys around on various forums, and they usually maintain a good attitude about things considering the long hours they apparently work.

Now I think I may be getting paranoid about this forum. Yet another big scam to lure in the uninformed newbies? Somewhere there must be another "secret" forum where the people in the know hang out laughing about all of us here, and what a scam it is.

I don't really think that about this forum, I just want to make a good choice. How patient are the various support staffs at the paid hosts? I've read some of the FAQs on the hosting sites, and they don't always answer questions very well.

I would appreciate any input that might help me in my decision. I've been through quite a few posts here, and have learned a lot from everyone. I look forward to participating in the future.

Thanks,
Andy :)

In response to your post, cause I get the feeling you think my post was some sort of spam. I just want to add that I am only a customer of HostRocket and I do not benefit from them signing on new customers in any way.

I know how hard it is finding a good provider, I myself have been through 7 of them. I'm just looking to help anyone out by sharing my experiences.

Hi Randy, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to leave that impression. I actually took your post as another plus for Host Rocket.

I appreciate the fact that you take the time to post here, because I don't want to have to go through 7 hosts to find a good one as you did. I'm sure I'll post my experiences (hopefully good) with the host I ultimately decide on.

The point I was trying to make is that I hope this forum truly is a good tool to help separate the good hosts from the bad. The fact that I mentioned Host Rocket in my post was just coincidence. I was actually posting in response to ACmonKey, as they are on a free host right now as well, and that caught my eye.

My apologies for the misunderstanding.

Andy

I think Hostrocket is reliable. I heard good things about them. So, just give them a shot. (Yea! Shoot them! :P )

I did some research and I ended up choosing weinbar over jaguarpc and hostrocket. Mainly cause the things I heard and the speed of the pages when I go to them (good impression). I also needed to register a name so they took care of that for me at the same time and itss all under my name

:D

I have friends who host with hostrocket and they say they are more than satisfied. I host with nomonthly.co.uk who are with VDI so did have some recent problems as every other VDI host would... however they don't charge a monthly fee and I've been happy for several months now. They offer what you're looking for and their support is top notch. If you're US based though it may be a problem as they are UK only.

Sometimes the best way to find out all about a host is to go to their own forums and ask questions, as well as read up on them. If a host doesnt have their own support forums, there's generally a pretty good reason for this. Maybe too many unhappy customers, and dare not have one? If a host has a lot of happy customers, they will have a forum up to prove they have a good system, and satisfied customers.

Go with http://www.aletiahosting.com/ - superb spec and lovely Cpanel too!

I have tried TONS of webhosts, but these are the dogs sausages (especially for below $10 a month!!)

:)

Tim
http://www.anthems.com

Webdude, I don't think a host without a forum is one that's hiding unhappy clients. Only a few webhosts actually have a forum.

Get-hosted: Your right, that's not always the case, but sometimes is. So how do potential customers know? If you want to set yourself apart from the scumbag hosts and prove to your visitors that you arent one of them, a public forum is a great way to do it.

Timbo: Hey, I think your site is kewl..LOL. Love the retro.

I am also a newbie but braved the wild frontier of virtual hosting. I went with Weinbar (http://www.weinbar.com and have been pleased with everything so far. Some pointers from one newbie to another:

1. When a company advertises unlimted space or/and bandwidth, it is never unlimited.

2. Read over the Terms of Services carefully!!!!!!

3. Get a host that offers a control panel, it makes life much easier.

4. If you have worries about say their tech support, shoot them an e-mail and see how long it takes them to reply.

5. Do some of your own research, search the forums and you should get an idea of who are the good hosts and who to stay away from.

Hope this help.

@ Timbo: Cool site yours. I like it very much.

My decision will be one of the following:
aletiahosting or hostrocket.
I think Hostrocket has some advantages though which i will point out here:

NOTE: I give no guarantee on these facts. They are only some annotations i made by checking both websites and there could be some error.

Main differences i've seen:
Setup fee= Hostrocket (9.95$) / Aletia (FREE)
Static IP = Hostrocket (2$ month) / Aletia (FREE)
Control Panel = Hostrocket (Very good) / Aletia (cpanel3)
MySQL db = Hostrocket (unlimited?) / Aletia (10)
Forum = Hostrocket (YES) / Aletai (NO)

There are probably more differences but i think i mentioned the most important.


I have 2 more questions:
1. What is a Static IP good for?
2. Is the distance from where i live to the server really important? I'm using Visual Route to trace the time of response and Hostrocket is a bit slower but i have to say that i'm living on a small island (Tenerife) in the Atlantic Ocean.
Isn't it more important that the visitors are closer to the host than the webmaster himself?

I would (and will be) going w/ Hostrocket. Its not that Aletia is bad, its just that Hostrocket has been around longer (I think) and that I have heard many good things about Hostrocket, but nothing about Aletia (neither good/bad)......

:) :D ;) :stickout :cool: :homer: