For about a year, I have been working with a mentor, learning to build sites with Joomla, customizing templates. My background is in film/video production, and I have reasonable technical skills.

My mentor hosts on 1and1.com, using a shared server, and I now have an account there. I am about to strike out on my own, and I think it's time to rethink this. I have a new client with a mid-size business, and I want the hosting to be rock-solid.

For myself, I am also working on an interactive portal where people could upload media - images, video, audio.

I've been doing some research, but I'm still not clear on what I really need, and how to get past the hype and find a really solid provider. I have good experience with tech support from 1and1.com, but the reviews I read online are really terrible.

Suggestions?

Whats your budget?

Are you trying to create a file sharing site or something?

take alook at the shared offers section...

However if you wish to start some sort of file sharing site your going to need a VPS or Dedicated server...

I'm starting a community publication, where people can upload stories, photos, videos. Stories, photos, videos would be published in magazine, sort of a community blog.

For my client, I need a good solid business site, very secure for lots of technical documents.

By shared offers, do you mean shared hosting? Part of what I'm trying to figure out is if shared hosting is appropriate for me and/or my business client.

I want to keep the cost down, but I want to spend enough to get the service I need - maybe $10 per month, tops to start? As my business takes off, I figure I can always upgrade my package.

I posted in the wrong area - thanks for your reply - I'll repost my questions in the non-Windows section.