Web Hosting

What is web hosting?

When building a website, one of the first things to do is find a place on the Internet for it to live. Web hosting seeks to fill that need. A web host will provide your site with a home.

How to choose a web host

Basically, all web hosts offer space on a disk, in a computer which is connected to the world wide web. However, depending on your specific needs for your site, some hosting plans may be better than others. Finding the right web host can make your life a little easier ...and sometimes, a lot easier. The best information source is peers. If you know someone who manages a website, ask them who they use as a provider and how they like their service. The hosting industry is so competitive that it's difficult to sort out "neutral" information resources. Often times review sites earn their money from the hosting providers they feature. You'll probably notice our site features some affiliate links to hosting providers as well. It's a difficult space to play in. In my case, I try to let my conscience guide me... maybe that's naive, but since I'm a web developer first I'm familiar with hosting at a professional level, and secondly while I'd love to have this site help pay my rent, it doesn't have to. I don't have payroll to meet, and the financial pressures associated with folks running review sites and information sites as their "day job" aren't there. In my mind at least that means my information is either accurate or it sucks, based on my personal perceptions rather than on some questionable underlying financial motivation that might cause me as a reviewer to favor one host over another because they pay better. P.S. If you see anything that you question, please let me know... the more I learn the more I realize there's still so much more to learn. Anyway, that's my justification for putting my own experience on "paper", you can decide for yourself if I'm full of it. Depending on the type of hosting, your web hosting provider will often offer a free website address, or the opportunity to buy a domain name, or direct a domain you already have to point at the space they are providing.

A web host makes your website available to accept traffic 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Web hosting comes in a variety of shapes and sizes. Prices range based on what you want to do, and how much traffic you anticipate.

If you are just starting out, a free host offers you the least expensive way to jump in and start gaining experience. Once you are ready to add features, you can usually upgrade through that same host, or move to another with a feature set more in-line with your evolving needs.

Here are the various flavors of hosting and some additional information to help you make an informed decision.

Web hosting flavors

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