hi everyone ,

i am in a little problem .
i am trying to find a webhost , i am trying to get my own website . but there are so many , i am totally lost .
i do work in the computer business , but it doesn't mean i know everything , i know what a server is , ok , i may know other things , but sometimes i read your posts , and its like i read chinese .
does it mean i should give up ? no way .
but how do i know what to ask ?
i need lots space of course , email feature , d-board feature , other usual features ; design and so on i'll do by myself and with help at times .
i could start somewhere , and get experienced as i move on , but if a host won't meet my requirements , is it hard , difficult to start with another one ?
and how can i identify my requirements .
pretty naive questions , sorry ...

andrea

I must agree finding a host is a challenging task.

Here are my 3 tips:

1) Don't ever compromise price for features and services.
2) Stay away from host that offer "unlimited" features
3) Ask Your Host Questions before sign up! Ask Your Host Questions before sign up! Ask Your Host Questions before sign up! Ask Your Host Questions before sign up! Ask Your Host Questions before sign up!

Originally posted by Andrea
hi everyone ,

i am in a little problem .
i am trying to find a webhost , i am trying to get my own website . but there are so many , i am totally lost .
i do work in the computer business , but it doesn't mean i know everything , i know what a server is , ok , i may know other things , but sometimes i read your posts , and its like i read chinese .
does it mean i should give up ? no way .
but how do i know what to ask ?
i need lots space of course , email feature , d-board feature , other usual features ; design and so on i'll do by myself and with help at times .
i could start somewhere , and get experienced as i move on , but if a host won't meet my requirements , is it hard , difficult to start with another one ?
and how can i identify my requirements .
pretty naive questions , sorry ...

andrea


Andrea?
From the sound of your post I dont think you even have your website developed yet at all? If Im correct in that assumption...you might want to get a grasp of HTML and what it is all about. There are several good starting point for learning html http://www.htmlgoodies.com comes to mind.
If youve already started on a site and have your domain name then "yes" I would say you are ready for a paid host, and there are many. It might be easier for you to start at a free hosting service until you get the grasp of what its all about. Look here for free providers
http://www.freewebspace.net
:D Good Luck!!

thank you dynastyhost

yes , i would never look for cheap or free and "good". that is why i don't even get in contact with this free webhost companies .
nothing good and with quality is for free .

i don't make a website for business nor to make money out of it , its mostly a site that holds and exchange information . i include as well art / maps / images / mind maps .
i must be able to feed the web site on weekly bases , not only from one location , but many different locations .
and now i read other threads about bandwith . i may need lots of that indeed as the site contains images . i'll try to stick with images and forget about sounds and videos ; i anyway hate it when i have to wait ages for a video to download on a website and then its not that clear eighter ; i don't want that on my website .
there is power in simplicity too .

then you say : ask questions . well , three problems here , its hard to be sure i put the dot on the i , its harder when one is a total beginner at this to do it via email , and its harder when i know a lot about computers and computer business and not much about webhost , features , technical points etc ...

but i'll try my best , and i believe i'll be able to learn as i go along .

again thank you
andrea

hi Martie

i see i already get help . :)
its great .

you are correct - i have not started to design the website yet , all i have so far is the model and structure in paper , ideas , e-images and so on . i am on it for years .
i am aware of html but not that good at it , i actually wait now for a FrontPage CDROM . i mostly work in global computer business and additional application developments in lotus notes as our global dbs are managed through lotus notes and i developed some of them myself.

now the domain name - no i don't have it yet , isn't that something the webhost must arrange for me ? or something i must do on my own ? how ? where ?

about a freewebhost , i'm afraid i won't have the flexibility i need with one of those . perhaps i am wrong , but the few i know are tieing me on this and that , and i need freedom for this .

andrea

Andrea,

Dynasty host has made some good points. At http://www.dynastyhost.com you can chat with their tech support reps live, when they're available. It sounds like what you need is a basic commerce hosting plan. Most hosting companies should be able to accomodate that. So, you should use customer service to differentiate between hosts. Start out at Dynastyhost.com and work from there. Good luck.

Cheers

"Start at dynastyhost"? The other ideas were a lot better, especially the pointer to the forumhosts page, since that's a good non partisan kind of site. Besides, your IP address is waaaay too close to dynastyhost's for comfort.

Andrea, it seems you are not sure about what your requirements are. I would encourage you to find out your real needs before you contact hosts. It's in the host's best interest to sell you the biggest plan they have, but your interest might be in saving some cash by getting the right-size plan.

Free hosts can be of some use, but I wouldn't use them. If you are still learning HTML and are still in the design phase, I would suggest you get an account to play with. Get one with the least disk space and bandwidth. Such accounts cost you less than $6 a month and will allow you to "test drive" what is available. Now, as you develop your site and users start to use your site more and more, you can either upgrade with the same host (if it was a good one) or you would have enough experience to fish for a good deal else where.

Just my opinion. Good luck :D

You sound just like I did when I first started out. I made a LOT of mistakes, found more than my share of bad hosts. :)

Your questions:

Access: I have not seen a package where you would not have 24/7 access to your site, so that is not a problem.

Content: What kind of maps, images are you talking about? I have several gaming sites where there I have concept art, maps (for the different games), screenshots, sounds, etc. Is this the type of thing you are talking about? Anyway, there may be a way to streamline these things so it does not take up so much bandwidth...that is one of your biggest expenses, bandwidth. Figure out what you want to do before contacting you host because in truth, they really can not help you until you know what you want.

FrontPage - Most hosts support FrontPage. Keep in mind that if you are familiar with HTML, FrontPage is going to change your HTML. Your files will be larger and will not look like anything you did by hand. I started off with FrontPage and had the shock of my life when I had to convert those files to regular HTML.

Domain Name - Registering your domain name is a very simple process. I use 000Domains (http://www.000domains.com). You make a profile just like you did here when you registered for this forum, then fill out a one page form with our address and billing information. It is really simple.

Free Webhosting - I would stay away from it UNLESS you have a niche site (like a gaming site). If you have a niche site like that, I would DEFINITELY go with a gaming portal (or a niche portal) that gives free hosting. That way you do not have to worry about bandwith or space limitations, and they will promote your site. You usually have to be approved for those, but it will save you a lot of headaches in the long run. They will also help you with your site. Depending on the content of your site, I might be able to help you find what you are looking for. For the record, my gaming sites DO NOT accept other sites.

Finding a Host - You have found the right place...right here. While you are narrowing your choices, do a search on this forum and see what others have to say. Thoroughly question your host prior to signing up. Post a message to this forum. I solved my hosting woes using this forum...I only wish I had found it earlier. :)

Having a website is a giant learning process. Even after years of been on the Internet, I am still learning things everyday. Right now, I am learning PHP (a programming language) and bringing my sites to current technology. :) It can be overwhelming at first, but it all snaps into place when you least expect it!

Some resources:

http://www.cnet.com/webbuilding/0-3880.html?tag=st.cn.3880-ron.sb.3880 - CNet Builder (helps you build webpages)

http://devshed.com/ - DevShed (also helps you build web pages)

http://www.mediabuilder.com/ - MediaBuilder (free graphics for your site)

http://www.animfactory.com/ - Animation Factory (animated pics for your site)

http://www.hotscripts.com - HostScripts (scripts for your site...some free, some not).

I hope this helps...and good luck with your site!

i must admit , i am impressed and content ...
i would be pretty "slow" not to be able to find my way and do well with all the feedback . thank you all .

hope i'll do some work in the office today , not study websites and get a domain name meanwhile . :)

i'll come back as i have more questions .

tyme - great feedback !

andrea