Hosting your domain

Finding a cost effective web site host can be intimidating.  The best prices come from providers offshore.  USA based providers are pricey but you get more service and less space.

Q. What does it require to host a web site?

  1. Your Domain name
  2. A computer Server and space for the web pages and images
  3. High speed connection to the internet backbone.
  4. A fixed IP address (so others can always find your web page).
  5. FTP connection for publishing your pages to the server.

Q. What does it cost?

A. Variable, depending on:

  1. Domain name (www.yoursite.org, etc) per year.
  2. Monthly hosting fee billed to credit card.  Plan on $10-$25/mo depending on the provider and options picked. Business sites may cost more.
  3. Cost of creating and publishing the web pages
  4. Cost of updates if needed (minimal)

Note: For a techie who does it all, the cheapest reliable offerings are hosting for $6/month or less.  That's is why it is recommended that you use your personal web space from your ISP.

 

You want Live Tech Support?

If you are not technically proficient with managing and creating a web site, you will require live tech support.  Very few hosting providers offer that survive because of the cost.  The cheapest offering I have found with live telephone support is $35 a month.

Except for an occasional new company startup, all hosting support is automated with a Control Panel.  If you can't manage your needs yourself, you use email.

If you email a request that is normally handled through the Control Panel, you will simply get a standard response to "Use the control panel".  Low cost hosting companies are not staffed or funded to train the customer.  In other words, forget about customer service when you are buying cheap hosting.

DOMAIN NAME

What is a Domain Name?

It is your unique web site name that distinguishes your web site from all other web sites in the world.(E.G. aol.com, cnn.com, earthlink.com, rnc3.com, etc.)

To maintain that uniquness, an Authority (ICANN) has rules for issuing and tracking what is available.  A fee is charged by the year.  You may pay for multiple years if you like.