New Web Hosting Tips and Advice Center

Our latest addition to our knowledge center will prove to be useful for anyone searching for advice about what type of hosting to purchase. Our Web hosting tips and advice area is filled with relevant topics - presented in a question-and-answer format - that can help to clarify the sometimes confusing world of Web hosting.

Topics include:
· Web Hosting Explained
· How to Choose the Best Host
· Web Hosting Terminology
· About Shared Web Hosting
· Compare Unix / Linux / Windows
· About Dedicated Web Hosting

Make sure that your next Web hosting decision is a smart one. You will find our easy, clear comparisons helpful whether you are searching for budget Web hosting or a more advanced, dedicated hosting solution. In addition, our knowledge center is filled with useful tools, resources, tips, advice, definitions and answers that can help to make your Web hosting choice that much easier.

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Budget Web hosting is a form of shared Web hosting, where multiple Web sites share the system resources of a single server. Each single Web site on that server is allotted specific amounts of resources at a bargain rate.

This is the most common, and cheapest, hosting option. This type of hosting is great for small to medium sized Web sites, as it provides a cost-effective (usually less than $10 per month) solution to fit tight budgets.

There is one main rule to follow when choosing a Budget Web host: If it sounds too good to be true, then it might be. In other words, if you find a Web host offering unlimited everything for $2 per month, then you shouldn’t realistically expect excellent customer support, reliability and speed.

Some Web hosts can indeed provide budget solutions and still maintain high quality servers and provide excellent customer support, but others seem to create high expectations with unrealistic offers. All in all, great deals can be found in budget hosting plans and smaller sites will usually function quite well on this type of plan.

If you think that a budget Web hosting soluton might fit your needs, check out our list of the top five budget Web hosts. Our list is continually updated with the latest deals and offers from top Web hosting companies.

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There are a lot of Web hosting companies out there, and specific Web hosting plans vary widely in price and features. Most Web hosting companies provide a wide range of services, from budget Web hosting to business Web hosting to dedicated Web hosting.

These factors make it difficult to sort through the abundance of information and find the Web host and hosting plan most suitable to your needs. Before you purchase Web hosting, be sure to understand the basics. Figure out which features you will defintely need and which features you don’t really need.

If you are new to Web hosting, it is recommended that you read up on the basics before purchasing a hosting plan. A good place to start is our own How to Pick the Right Web Host. You can also view our Web Hosting FAQs for more information about common hosting-related topics.

Once you have a good idea of what you’re looking for in a potential Web host, you can compare Web hosts right here. We always have a fresh list of deals from reputable hosting companies.

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Dedicated Web hosting is the opposite of shared Web hosting. With dedicated hosting, a server is owned by a Web hosting company but rented out and used by a single customer. With shared hosting, multiple customers purchase “space” on (and multiple sites are hosted on) a single server.

Generally speaking, Web sites in need of a lot of resources (e.g. disk space and/or data transfer) and/or Web sites that have very specific software needs may opt to rent a dedicated server. Also, customers wanting the privacy of there own server and not wanting to share the server with other, usually unknown, customers (and sites) also may choose to go with a dedicated hosting solution.

Shared Web hosting is usually sufficient for most small and medium sized businesses. However, opting to go with a dedicated server has many benefits, especially in regards to customization of features. Investing in a dedicated server is undoubtedly a wise decision for many businesses, regardless of size.

In addition, a managed hosting plan incorporates a dedicated server with technical support and maintenance services. This is a step up from standard dedicated Web hosting, where customers are responsible for all administrative and maintenance duties.

Compare Web hosts now or find answers to more commonly asked Web hosting questions in our Web Hosting FAQs.

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Shared Web hosting is an affordable type of Web hosting in which the resources of a specific server are “shared” by multiple accounts. With shared hosting, multiple Web sites (or accounts) are hosted on a single server, which share the system resources of this single server. With this type of Web hosting, each individual account is allotted specific amounts of resources.

Shared Web hosting is the most common (and cheapest) Web hosting option. This type of Web hosting can work for small to medium sized Web sites, as it provides a cost-effective (usually less than $10 per month) solution to fit tight budgets.

Compare Web hosts now or find answers to more commonly asked Web hosting questions in our FAQ area.

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E-Commerce (electronic commerce) refers to the buying/selling (or exchange) of goods and services through the Internet. Generally speaking, there are four basic components to an e-commerce enabled Web site: A shopping cart, a secure environment, a payment gateway and a merchant account (although this list can vary).

A shopping cart is an essential component for most e-commerce Web sites, as it allows users to browse for and purchase products online. Some Web hosts provide free (usually more basic) shopping carts, while others provide a shopping cart for an additional fee. Different shopping cart programs range greatly in usability, functionality and features.

A visitor uses the virtual shopping cart to choose which items (and how many of each) to buy. The transaction then begins over a secure connection (SSL). The payment gateway enables the authorization, processing and managing of online transactions, while the merchant account enables the processing of credit cards online.

There are many different levels of e-commerce integration — the more customized the system, the more complicated (and costly) the process can get. If you are in need of a complex e-commerce solution, you must be willing to pay a bit more for a reliable, flexible hosting plan.

Compare Web hosts now or find answers to more commonly asked Web hosting questions in our FAQ area.

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