Discover the one easy change that could save you from losing visitors and sales!

Here's something you may never have thought of before: If I were to type your domain name (http://www.yourdomain.com) into my web browser without the "WWW" so it looked like this: http://yourdomain.com... would I be immediately sent to your site or would I receive a "Page Not Found" error.

Don't be too quick to answer. Think about it. Have you tried this before? Because while most Web hosts and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are now set up to accept both - some are not! Which means visitors who drop the "WWW" and simply type "yourdomain.com" into their browsers may be getting an error message. And you may be losing valuable traffic!

If you try this and find that "yourdomain.com" doesn't work, contact your Web host or ISP and request that they make the necessary changes. It's a quick 5-minute fix for them, and everyone they service will benefit.

Some may try to charge you a fee for this change, but I would argue that this is a common service provided by the majority of ISP's and Web hosts today. If they want to remain competitive and keep your business, then you shouldn't have to pay. However, if they still insist on charging you, and the fee is minimal, then you should pay it. After all, you're probably losing valuable traffic that will more than pay for this expense in the long run.

Your other option is to consider switching to a Web host who offers this feature... as well as better customer service. (If you'd like us to recommend a top quality Web host that I've been really happy with, visit http://www.hostforwebsite.com )

It's such a minor problem... but it could be losing you major traffic! So check into this today!

Written by Ash Kawa.

No, ‘cheap’ is not necessarily a bad thing (well, not always), but when it comes to a services industry as competitive and with as thin margins as the web hosting industry, customers better watch out. Hosts offering ‘low-cost’ services tend to offer the world for Rs. 900 per year but, usually fail to deliver even the most basic of services. Surprised? I’m not. Let me explain some basics for the benefit of the vast majority who would still be unsure as to what I’m rambling about.

A “web host” is a company (well, most like to think of themselves as such but that’s a whole new article) that is in the business of procuring bandwidth (internet connectivity) and servers (glorified computers) with the intent to re-sell the same, in smaller bits, to people who need storage space for their e-mails and websites. This is usually (read always) accomplished by renting out dedicated servers with a decent hard drive and bandwidth quota and then using a hosting automation suite (control panel) to divide the server resources up into smaller chunks called ‘hosting plans’. The goal is to price these plans in a way that they remain affordable for the client while helping the host maximize profit from the resources it has.

Now comes the fun part... Since there are almost no barriers to entry in this particular industry, new web hosts keep popping up every day. This helps keep the price for hosting services sane and should also mean better service for the customers since there are many hosts competing for their business. What really happens is that one Johnny-come-lately decides that the only way he can grab some market-share is by offering the lowest prices. Once customers start quoting his price to the host struggling for their business, the host decides to match it. Before you know it, everyone has slashed their prices by half! This, in Pakistan, can be seen every 10 – 12 months.

“Good”, you say? Read on... What does this mean for the web host? Suddenly, all their existing clients are paying them half of what they used to. This means that in the coming year, they would have to generate twice as much new business just to make the same amount as last year! Is this considered growth? I think not!

Sadly, the number of clients does not magically increase with every price shave. So, the web hosts are left with little choice other than to cut costs just to make ends meet. Where there were 3 support people, they decide to make do with just one. Where there were 2 servers earlier, they decide that they can load all of the clients onto just one server resulting in lower operating costs. These measures, needless to say, do have a positive impact on the host’s bottom-line but deteriorate the services resulting in un-answered support queries and long periods of downtime (website/email inaccessibility) or extremely slow server response due to excessive loads on the server.

Now, if the host were to put their existing clients first, they would price their service fairly so that every client not only feels good in his wallet, but can also rely on the service being offered. I guess, all it boils down to is; whether a web host is in this business to provide a top-notch service with a long-term business goal or is just there to make a quick while competing with all the fly-by-night hosts who happen to come along.

Recently, I have come across at least three such hosting companies that are now in financial peril because they could not resist the urge to slash prices in order to try and capture some new business. Sadly enough, these are not people who are ‘new’ to the industry. Such an impact on the market is magnified 10 fold when an older host decides they would be better off by just slashing prices rather than improving on service. As a result, the younger companies follow suit and create a mess for themselves and more importantly their clients. The ultimate outcome is that frustrated clients decide to switch to foreign web hosts that provide a better service at a saner price.

From experience, I have learnt that providing a good service is what really matters. The rest falls into place when clients realise that they can only run their online business if the service they get is of good quality. After all, you get what you pay for. What good is a cheap service when you will eventually stop getting any?

Zahid N. Sindhu is currently working at Inspedium Corp (inspediumcorp.com). Inspedium provides software development (inspediumsoft.com) and quality webhosting services (inspediumhosting.com). The latest venture undertaken by Inspedium is Article Street (ArticleStreet.com), the place for quality content for your site and ezines.

The first thing before choosing a web hosting provider is that you should be fully aware of your hosting requirements. If you are a beginner wanting to host a personal web site, then your only concern is that you get a decent amount of disk space for your web site with a host that is as cheap as $5 per month. However, if you are a developer, an online entrepreneur or an online business looking for e-commerce capabilities or advanced scripting technologies, then you can determine your requirements in the following order.

(1) Whether you need Shared Hosting or Dedicated Hosting:
This depends mainly on two major requirements, the traffic your web site is expected to receive and the degree of administrative privileges you need. If you expect your web site to receive huge amounts of traffic, then you will need to have a Dedicated Server which definitely has a much greater bandwidth offering. Also you should select Dedicated server hosting if your web site requires customized options, secure information or complex applications i.e. e-commerce, dynamic content, database and multimedia applications.

(2) Whether you need Linux Hosting or Windows Hosting:
If you're going to use server technologies such as ASP, JSP etc or intend to run Microsoft applications like Microsoft Access or Microsoft SQL database on your server, then you should use a Windows hosting provider. Although ASP can be run on the Linux platform using some commercial applications, there are security and reliability concerns related to it. However, if you want to use ColdFusion, it can run on both Linux and Windows platforms.

(3) What are your Space and Bandwidth requirements:
Many web hosting providers nowadays offer generous amounts of disk space from 1 GB to 3 GB. However, if your web site mainly acts as a download resource, then your disk space requirements may be 5 to 10 times greater than this. The second consideration is how much traffic your web site is expected to receive which will let you estimate your bandwidth requirements.

(4) How many Parked Domains and Subdomains do you need:
Parked domains are very advantageous and can significantly increase the amount of traffic to your web site. Similarly, subdomains can help with your search engine rankings by pointing to specific directories of your web site. Parked domains and subdomains occasionally come free with certain web hosting packages. However if you need more, you will have to pay an additional price per month.

(5) FTP Accounts and Anonymous FTP Requirements:
You may need more than one FTP account if you have coworkers working on your web site project at different locations. The Anonymous FTP permits the general public to access certain directories on your web server to whom they have been granted permission by you. In most cases, you will need a dedicated IP address for Anonymous FTP to function.

(6) Whether you need e-commerce Features:
If you need e-commerce features, you should choose a web hosting provider that provides e-commerce functionality such as shopping carts and the ability to accept credit cards. You should also check whether their server is SSL secure.

In addition to your own hosting requirements, the following considerations must be kept in mind when looking for a quality web hosting provider.

(1) More than 99.5% uptime:
Choose a web hosting provider that has an uptime greater than 99.5% and if there is an uptime guarantee, it's even better. If your web site is for business purposes, it's very crucial that your site stays online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year.

(2) Fast Servers:
The level of connectivity of your web hosting provider to the Internet is very important. So you should choose a web hosting provider with at least a T3 connection to the major Internet backbone. Analysis has shown that the average web visitor waits for about 30 seconds before your web page loads. So if your web site takes more than 30 seconds to load, chances are that you will lose a lot of visitors and consequently sales.

(3) Server Backups:
To make your data secure, your web hosting provider must have a power backup system and should backup the data to an external device in order to prevent the data loss due to failure. Check how frequently the web hosting provider backups the data, i.e. daily or weekly.

(4) Disk Space and Bandwidth:
Choose a web hosting provider that meets your disk space and bandwidth requirements. Most web hosting providers offer 1 GB to 3 GB of disk space, so if your web site is not mainly a download resource, then this factor is not that important for you. However, as regards the bandwidth, it should be as much as possible because your traffic can increase in the future thereby requiring more data transfer. Also check that you have the option of buying more disk space and bandwidth when required.

(5) Unrestricted CGI, SSH, FTP access & Anonymous FTP:
If you have a professional web site, you will need to run CGI scripts, have SSH (Secure Shell) access and FTP access. CGI and FTP access is provided by most web hosting providers whereas SSH access is provided by a few. You may also need to check if anonymous FTP access is provided.

(6) Software/Scripts:
Choose a web hosting provider that has an extensive script library that you can use to add guestbooks, forms, surveys, newsletters etc to your web site.

(7) E-commerce capabilities and SSL:
Choose a web hosting provider that provides you with e-commerce capabilities with shopping cart software and also merchant accounts. The web hosting provider must also have an SSL secure server for safe and risk-free transactions.

(8) Web-Based Administration:
Almost all web hosting providers nowadays provide a control panel to access and manage web site features. Ask for a demo of their control panel if possible and check to make sure that it is simple as well as comprehensive. The control panel should provide access to FTP, e-mail, databases, e-commerce and all other functions for effective web site management. VDeck 2.0 and CPanel are the leading brands of administration control panels.

(9) Full e-mail services:
Choose a web hosting provider that provides both POP3 and IMAP e-mail accounts, web-based e-mail, autoresponders, mailing lists, forwarding accounts and antivirus and spam filtering software.

(10) Moneyback Guarantee:
If the Web hosting provider gives a moneyback guarantee, it's even better because it makes you absolutely risk-free.

(11) 24/7/365 Customer Support:
The web hosting provider should provide as many support channels as possible including an FAQ section, a knowledgebase, video and flash tutorials, toll-free support, e-mails support, live chat support and a community forum. Try e-mailing the web host a couple of times to check how quickly they respond to your request. The customer support should be as prompt as possible and should be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. This is crucial because if you run into problems and the support staff is not receptive or knowledgeable, you will be helpless.

Michael Smith is an expert web hosting analyst. His site Web Hosting Provider reviews and rates the leading web hosting providers.

By Jesse S. Somer

Choosing a web host is like choosing a place to eat, you want quality food with good, honest, personable service.

If you are anything like me, you’d probably like to have a website on the Internet but you just have no idea how to go about it. All this talk of web hosting, bandwidth, disc space, and other jargon can cause one to say, “This is too complicated and technical, I just wanted to have a place to put all of my favorite skateboarding photos, cool information on ramp designs, and the best places to skate!” To get a website on the Web you have to go through a web host. The question is how do you find the web host for you?

If you type ‘web host’ into your search engine like Google you will get thousands of sites. Hit on one of these and like any product on the market you will see all sorts of persuasive propaganda to incite you to use their company; that is if you can decipher any of the technical jargon that only computer-heads can comprehend. Some web hosts offer free business cards with an account; some probably offer free watches... like all consumer industries, you the buyer must beware.

I’m a writer so I’ll use the analogy of a writer’s journal. The journal I like must not be too big or small in book size. It also must have a good amount of space allocated to each day, again not a whole page but not just a few lines. Of course I also want it to be cheap but of a good quality that won’t fall apart while I’m using it, and I hope it would last for posterity. I just want the diary, some nice pictures in it are O.K. but unnecessary especially if it adds to the price.

It’s the same with a web host and web site scenario. You want to get the right deal for you, enough space and enough access to the public that you wish to associate with. As a novice who doesn’t understand all the jargon this can pose a problem. Are you an individual, small business, blog, or a big time corporation? What do you need and how do you get it?

As far as I can tell the web hosting business is a lot like the fast food business. The big corporations have strict guidelines, will offer you special deals, and have monthly ‘cheeseburger specials’. But, I’ve always been more interested in the ‘Mom and Pop’ small time diners who have that real caring human approach. You know you are a customer and a person, not just a number on a sales receipt. I believe the hosting companies are the same.

A smaller hosting company will probably treat its users with more honest integrity as well as having more flexibility in dealing with your individual situation. They can often tailor web site packages to accommodate exactly what you are looking for as well as the ability to update them quickly when your needs change.

My advice is to contact a few of the smaller companies. Look for ones with good reputations or just arbitrarily email them and compare results from different places. Which one do you feel most comfortable with? Go for it; ask as many questions as you can, see how the different hosts differ in their answers. Try one; if it doesn’t work out try another, it’s really easy to move around. Don’t be afraid, you’ve got nothing to lose except the fear itself!

By Jesse S. Somer
M6.Net
http://www.m6.net
Jesse S. Somer is a novice in the computer world hoping to inform others like him that the Internet is nothing to fear.

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Written By HostVoice.net
Every webmaster cringes at the thought of moving hosts. Like moving your home it can be messy and sometimes problems arise. But if you follow these simple steps, your move will be less painful.

Backup Backup Backup
If you’ve been diligent with your backups, you’ve got a lot of insurance to fall back on yet always make the latest backup. If you haven’t, before you do anything else, do a backup now. Backup anything and everything you can and don’t forget your database if your site relies on it. Save at least 2 copies and store them separately. One for you to work with, and the other as an archive. Do not underestimate how easy it is to copy over these files as you make changes or simply mess it up.  

If you’re moving to a host who has as different control panel, make a manual backup by downloading all your files because different control panels may not be able to restore the backups made by your old host. They also have different directory structures so your file trees will be in a mess. If you need to, make a small note file with notepad with memos for you to remember the old server configurations. This will help you as you make changes on your new host server and save the confusion moving back and forth between hosts. Remember to make the correct transfer type (ASCII or Binary) as you download. If your download is not right chances are you’ll have a tough time getting your site to work on the new host server.

If server logs are especially important, remember to backup those too. There is no good way of moving logs yet because different hosts may log statistics differently. So the best thing to do is to download it and use a log analyzer on your computer to make references to later on.

 Gather Odds & Ends

1.      A Good FTP program which you should have by now

2.      Get your new host server’s DNS

3.      It’s also helpful to have a script that tells you the server environments installed on your new host server for quick references.

4.      Get the temporary URL on your new host so you can check your site before you make a DNS change.

5.      If you have your host control the domain inform them not to change your DNS until you tell them to.

6.      If you run scripts:

A.         Get a copy of the original installation guide and the script. Sometimes after moving the scripts just do not work right so you might need to install the script from scratch.

B.         Get a list of all the server paths such as Perl, Sendmail and home directory on your new server.

C.         If your script needs special server modules or programs ensure they are installed and where. Even though these might be covered before you ordered the account with the host but sometimes your host has removed it or haven’t installed it yet.

Inform Your Visitors
It is common and good practice to inform your visitors and customers of the server move. If you run a e-store, this helps assure your customers you have not fled with their money if there is any downtime. Also give an alternate email so you won’t lose emails in the transfer. You might also want to give periodic updates prior, during (if there is downtime) and after. If your site is large, doing this is helpful because your visitors can alert you whenever there is a part of the site is not working.

Moving Day
Try to schedule the move at a time where there’s least traffic. Backup again just before you do the move so you’ll have the latest data. Start by first copying or creating your custom error pages onto the new host server. Put a small note in there about the move. You can always remove it later. Then upload the most visible parts of the site first i.e the main pages then move on to the less critical parts of the site. If you have a large site with many divisions you might want to split them across different days and instead move the least critical first. Just ensure you always do a backup before you do any moving. Use the temporary URL to check your site, visiting as many pages as you can.

 Changing DNS
Once you’re satisfied, change your DNS over. This typically takes about 24-48 hours so you have time to make some minor changes if need be. You might want to also take this time to modify your old site’s error pages to inform your visitors of the move and give a new URL if there are URL changes. To help you determine if the DNS has resolved, make a small change on the new pages to differentiate between the old and the new.

 Monitor
After you’ve moved and the DNS resolved, do not release the old account yet. Keep it as long as two weeks running concurrently. Go back and check the old servers for activity. Check your old email account and if you have a web based contact method on the old server check to see if any communication is left there. Once you’re comfortable all email and traffic is correctly directed to the new host server, you can cancel that account.

This article has been contributed by the team at HostVoice.net
HostVoice.net: Where Hosts Compete For Your Business
Looking for a web host? Have them compete for your business! Submit a FREE, no-risk request and receive offers within 15 minutes from qualifying hosts. Personal, Business, eCommerce, NT, Dedicated, Reseller, Adult - we’ve got it all For information on reproduction of this article, eMail us at info@hostvoice.net

Monitor the availability and performance of one website FREE from multiple locations around the world!
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Written By HostVoice.net

Spam. Can’t mention it without cringing. For web hosts whose business is to provide a resource that can be exploited by spammers it’s a never-ending challenge. Until there are better solutions available, web hosts need to take proactive steps to stop abuse, protect their business and customers. Here are some things you can do if not already implemented.

Regular Monitoring
Unfortunately, there is no effective all automated solution yet. So you should rely on both automated and manual methods. You should monitor uploaded files for common spam scripts, server loads and unusual customer behavior especially new customers. Registering your email with sites such as Spamcop.net or Abuse.net could help channel complaints to you not your uplink. This way you can hopefully stop the problem first instead of a rude wake up call from your uplink.

Despite your best efforts, there will be times you’ll be taken for a ride. So draw up an action plan what to do when that happens. Be firm but rational. Remember, your customers may not be savvy about spam; they could have left their accounts open to someone else to use. The possibilities are plenty. It’s awfully easy to be angry with accused spammers but it’s also very difficult to gain good customers and keep them. This brings us to the next point, education.

Education
Education is key to both your staff and customers. Keep up with the trends and technology spammers use. Teach your staff what to look for in new customers and why you do it. Set firm policies about using company email such as restricting use for business use only. For customers, create informative pages on your web site or publish in your newsletter, tips to fight spam either using tools you have available or other methods. Teach them good emailing habits and also what to do if they are accused of spam.

Order Screening
Although this is a low level form of prevention, when done with other methods you can hope to weed out obvious spammers. Check customer IP’s and domains against blacklists or search in Google or Google Groups. If a domain is not registered, be cautious. When checking up customers, remember to look out for address or telephone number match also. Find out as much about your customers as possible, make sure they check out. Some customers are touchy when you start asking a lot of questions so it’s also good to make known to new sign ups your approval process and why you do it. When explained tactfully, many customers will understand and be glad because they don’t want to be affiliated with spammers any more than you do.

If you currently have instant account activation, you may want to review how effective it is for your business. Spammers love this because they can quickly set up an account, send thousands of spam and be on their way again. By the time you find out, the damage has been done. By all means have a quick and easy account activation procedure but work in a manual approval step. 

Technical Set Up
Have SMTP authentication turned on and ensure your servers are not used as open relays. If you have form mail scripts for customer use, make sure you are using a secure one. Certain form mails are easily exploited. Again, educate your customer. If they don’t use a script provided, let them know what to look for in a good form mail script.

Policies
Set up clear acceptable use policies (AUP). Many web hosts have also included a stiff penalty for spamming. This is often debated because spammers obviously pay little attention to the law and one would hardly be able to collect the fees since many spammers are located off shore. On the other hand, having stiff penalties could stop customers from developing spamming habits. It also forces the more responsible businesses to carefully review their communications before sending out a mail piece. After all, if you’re a spammer and never got caught, you’ll continue because it cost you nothing. For some excellent AUP examples, find them at Spamhaus.org (spamhaus.org/aups.html).

Web hosting is a business after all, with bottom lines to watch. The measures mentioned are blanket steps that may not work for all customers. You will have customers you trust with large legitimate mailing lists. Depending how much you value that customer, it’s worthwhile to work with them so you know what is going on. You could also have a modified your AUP for that customer, use your discretion.

This article has been contributed by the team at HostVoice.net 
HostVoice.net: Where Hosts Compete For Your Business Looking for a web host? Have them compete for your business! Submit a FREE, no-risk request and receive offers within 15 minutes from qualifying hosts. Personal, Business, eCommerce, NT, Dedicated, Reseller, Adult - we’ve got it all! For information on reproduction of this article, eMail us at info@hostvoice.net  

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