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From m6.net
10-27-02
Get Yourself a Website - Without the
Drama
So, you're done with the free web hosts. Gone through Geocities,
Angelfire, Fortune City. You're exhausted with the pop-ups and banners.
You want a real site. But where to go? You look around the net,
and the possibilities seem endless. 20 MB of space for only $20
a month! Wow! That's fantastic!
Or is it? Way back when I bought my domain and signed up with a
web host, I was the typical "the internet is so wonderful" optimist.
I was thrilled to find something that sounded just about what I
kind of wanted - and bam, just like that, $300 poorer and with a
useless chunk of web space that wouldn't even work properly. My
domain addresses wouldn't connect, my content was being warped -
things weren't looking too good for me.
A year later and much the wiser, I know better. My site is working,
I have a lovely, helpful support team, and I now know what I want.
But, that's all well and good for me - I have had the added advantage
of working for a web hosting company. But what about the rest of
you out there who don't have my experience, who see a world of opportunity
and are about to jump into the cesspit of money loss and disappointment.
So, I figure, why not let you in on a useful hint, one that may
save you from misfortune. What is it, you ask? Well, simply - know
what you want! Sounds way too simple for me to be handing it out,
right? I don't think so! Sure, you have a vague idea of what you
want, but do you know what all of it means? The "mumbo jumbo", so
to speak?
I didn't think so! Listen up, sit back, relax, and before you go
jumping off the deep end, scroll down and read a bit.
MB of space - MB? Eh? Well,
MB stands for MegaByte. This is basically the amount of storage
space you will have. You can figure out how much space you will
need if you spend a little bit of time thinking about what is going
onto your site - how graphic intensive it will be, how many pages,
any multimedia or music, etc. Make an approximation in your head
and then add another 50. This will allow you to add on and expand.
It's always better to have too much, rather than too little.
Pricing (Monthly/Yearly) -
the payment plans are generally either monthly or yearly. Make sure,
even if you want a year or more of hosting, to start with a monthly
plan! If you give them $3/400 for a year, and then they end up being
useless, I'll bet you that you won't be getting that money back.
If you start with a monthly account, you can always upgrade to a
yearly account. And if you can't upgrade and you're really worried,
add up how much it will be for a year, and set that money aside
to slowly add back onto your credit card every month.
Domain Registration - do you
already own a domain name? A domain name is basically the www.yourdomainname.com.
Most of web hosts will provide domain name registration in their
packages. If you already own your own, you will have to transfer
it to their name servers. Make sure this is possible! Ask them if
they will do it for you, or ask for directions on how to do it yourself.
If you don't own a name already, though, how many will you need?
Will the one be enough? Do you need redirects; do you want extra
names attached to sub-domains?
And then you need the actual name! If you're completely stumped,
have no ideas, there are some really good places online which will
create a list for you.
http://www.ecxmall.com/domains/
Make sure your name is relevant to what's on your site - people
tend to get annoyed if your website is called "cool-cars.com" and
it ends up being about cushion embroidery.
Email Accounts - there are
quite a variety of options in this area. You have mail servers,
mailing lists, redirects, catch all. If you're going to be getting
a substantial amount of mail through your website, you might want
a mail server - an actual site online where you have your own personal
mail box. It would usually be mail.yoursitename.com. Mailing lists
are sometimes offered and sometimes not - if you're going to be
sending out a newsletter, promotional info, etc to a lot of people
you might want to go with this option. A mail catch all basically
does what its name suggests - catches emails with typos, wrong names
etc, but have your domain written properly in the address, (i.e.
typo@yourdomain.com). And finally, mail redirects, which give you
an email address, but redirects emails sent to it to another mailbox
- for example, if you have johnny@johnnyssite.com, it could redirect
to your hotmail account.
There are many other added options as well, which you need to think
about. If you want to have multimedia on your page(s), Front Page
support, Access/database support, cgi-bin, custom 404 error pages,
search engine submission. Sit down and make a list of what you need.
But before you do anything, send the support team of the web host
an email. Ask them if they provide all of your specific requirements;
describe what you are looking for. Be friendly and concise, and
see how they react. If they are prompt and friendly or slow and
unpleasant. You are always going to end up needing some sort of
support during your hosting, and this will be a good indication
of what kind of assistance you will get further down the line.
Basically what I'm telling you here is to think before you spend.
So many people have tales of woe and disappointment; don't end up
being one of them. There are no guarantees here, but make it as
close to it as possible.
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M6.net - http://www.M6.net
Web Hosting - Fast, Reliable and Affordable Windows Web Farm Hosting.
Domain Registration - $12.75 per domain per year.
.info .bz and .nu domains Available NOW!
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