Web Site Hosting Reviews

   Free Web Site Hosting is very popular today. Just look at the number of users online at GeoCities.com, Tripod.com and AngelFire.com (to name a few) and you'll know what we mean. They are popular because the Web Hosting services for the free sites is becoming more and more robust. Web Developers looking to spend less (or nothing) to get their Web site online are finding it easier to add some of the glitz... the the bells and whistles that "pay for" Web Hosting traditionally provides.

   However, Free Web Hosting is just that, free. Space, content freedom, and many other areas are going to be limited. Worse still technical assistance is virtually non-existent on most of the Free Hosting sites, though some is provided on the larger ones. The ability to make money off the site can also be difficult. Free Web sites are good for dabbling in development and practice web creation as well as making personal or family Web sites, but not much else.

   The larger Free Hosting sites are built around portals, or communities where Web Developers can hang out and share information. This helped popularize Free Hosting and the membership grew astronomically. GeoCities.com, for example, grew so big it was bought out by Yahoo for not millions of dollars, but BILLIONs of dollars. Maybe "Free" hosting is mis-named.

   Still, the Free Hosting providers offer a great solution to new Web Developers seeking to get their feet wet before they put their money down.

   Typical Free Hosting plans include:

• Subdomain (www.yourdomain.somehost.com)
• 1 to 5 e-mail accounts
• FTP upload support only
• E-mail only technical support

   The typical users of Free Hosting include:

1. Internet newcomers
2. Teens
3. Hobbyists

So what is really Free hosting?

   An interesting question from a philosophical perspective... Free hosting is a service provided by companies for either financial gain or as something they are doing out of the goodness of their hearts. Most are obviously for financial gain. The typical arrangement for free hosting is that you are given space for storing your content, and in return you agree to allow advertisements sold by the service company to be displayed on your pages. So, is this in fact free? No, it is really a barter arrangement. Do you want to pay the "same" price for such service? Decision after you...

And the next question... Is Free Hosting For Me?

   Before setting up your digs at one of these sites and telling the world, consider the following:

• Read our article Picking the right Web Site Host carefully to make certain there is nothing in there you don't care for.
• Visit some sites located on their servers, and get an idea of who their advertisers are. In otherwords, look for obvious conflicts of interest
• As your are bouncing around their server(s), how is the response time (see also The Speed Of The Web Site Hosting)?
• Be certain that your content is acceptable to them, after all this has to be a mutually workable arrangement.
• Have a look at their support pages to get an idea of what it will be like to set your site up. Well written FAQs and support documentation will make your life easier (see also Web Site Hosting: Support)

   For a good many people out there, especially those of you new to the web, these services can provide you exactly what you are looking for: a presence on the Internet without you having to make a cash investment on server space.

   Author: Derek Gehl