Choosing a host

[aaron]

What advice would you give to anyone looking for a new host??

What are things to look out for, and what are the things to avoid?

Aaron
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[adigaskell]

Depends how busy your site would be I guess. One thing to look out for though is the technical capabilities of the server you're on.

Many hosts will advertise unlimited space/bandwidth but there will be obvious limits on CPU/Ram that they don't advertise, which in effect makes the unlimited claims made beforehand pretty useless.
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[india_love]

look for server uptime and support ticket reply time.
Those 2 are most imp.

[georgep]

Read reviews online. And from experience be always ready to move.

I had one of my hosters hike the prices with 500% so yeah then i was bye bye.
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[Eagle]

Allways go on personal recommendation - and maybe also forum presence.
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[OdaaNok1]

For me, When I choosing the new webhosting, I will read the comments at the webmaster forums as DP, Sitepoint, Webmaster-Talk, V7N and more....

For me HostGator is the best one.

[thepeacock]

Getting good hosting is tough. It's very competitive and many companies appear to offer unlimited everything.

First figure out what you need :

Realistically you probably don't require the 100's of GBs storage and bandwidth some of the big (US) hosts offer.

Everyone will have different needs / wants. I look for :

- money back guarantee.
- regular backups.
- host unlimited domains.
- pay in £
- good support - check their forums, send a pre-sales question, see how long it takes to get a reply.

Most important - testimonial from someone I trust.
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[Coriander]

Which hosting company to choose, for me, also depends on what I want to use the website for. For example, because of different configurations at different hosts, you can't run any scripts you want.
I once had to switch hosts because of that problem. Now, before I install a software (e.g. link directory, classifieds site, article directory) I always ask around on forums from people who already use that software / script, where they host it to avoid bad surprises.

But as mentioned before, personal recommendations are a good way to find the right host.

[vortex2000]

My choice would be 1and1 hosting. You get a free domain with your package which includes free private registration. An Example would be Go Daddy charges almost $9.00 for private registration. If you buy one domain at a time. One other thing I like about 1and1 is they have outstanding customer service. They are very patient with you if you need help with a website you are hosting.
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[gowriter]

I tried several, but I finally settled on Blue Host. They were a simple site. Clean. Their cPanel was tidy and easy to navigate. And they have video tutorials that were easy for me to follow.

My biggest frustration with web hosts was that no one explained how an FTP worked or what it was. You would ask different customer service personnel, and they would spit back technical jargon. You're expected to already know how a web host works in many cases.

It was a little easier with Blue Host than most I've seen. Phone the customer service folks and they're happy to walk you through the process.
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[toby]

For me is service and we use Hostgator & have done for about 4-5 years. I like their support, especially the online chat - works well and experienced operators who can actually help

[Ribbontree]

I like Pipeten. They have been very good for support and I think the longest response time was something like 3 hours (and that was for an almost trivial issue on Christmas Day). The average is more like 15 minutes.

I think the best thing is to choose a host that is appropriate for your size. If you are a small startup, there is probably no point going to a big host. You would probably get better support from a medium size host.

Bigger companies are more likely to have a tiered support structure; meaning the first point of contact may not be well trained or particularly bright. They will also be geared up to looking after their really well paying customers.
By contrast, the smaller hosts will almost certainly rely on the people who install/maintain the servers also answering tickets.

Very small hosts can also potentially be risky. e.g. one person running a hosting company from their home. If a server goes down, they might not be able to fix it as quickly. They're probably best for personal sites if you don't mind the risk of downtime as much. They tend to offer smaller packages at a price to suit an individual, and the support will usually be brilliant, as the person who set it all up is often the same one who answers your questions.
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[Dinfrenion]

Uptime
Your websites uptime is important for a number of reasons.

Bandwidth and Network
It’s no secret that your page load time is of great importance to your online presence.

Location
Going hand in hand with the network connection, the location in which your server is located plays a big factor in your websites speed and ultimately how it will fare with users and search engines.

Processing Power
Even if your server has the most ideal network connection possible, your page load times could easily suffer if your site is hosted on an underpowered web server.

Reputation & Abuse
Last but not least, having a shady web host will often lead to troubles down the road.

Regards,
David.
Infrenion Networks

[am]

I'd choose the host that fits my needs. Mine personally are hosting environment first, price second.