unclear what my requirements are

WebHelper Joined: 15 Jan 2004 Posts: 91

Hi all,

I am looking to setup a portfolio website and am unclear what my requirements are.
I have experience of setting up multiple free sites and one that required cash.
I am new to server side coding (set up a few php and perl scripts) but would like to learn and code my own.

I would appreciate it if people could provide any useful links that help you decide your requirements and explain (in simple terms) what the terminology means?

My requirement are:

Sure

FTP access (essential)
No Adds / popups (essential)
Month by month billing or free (if possible)
Mysql: at least one database (essential)
CGI capability (essential)
PHP capability(essential)
Perl capability(essential)
SSI capability(would like)
.htaccess usage aloud (would like)
Good (quick email support) or an active support forum (linked to the host) (essential)
Own the domain name not tied to host (essential)
Email / URL forwarding (essential)
(no more than 100MB should do for space)

Not sure

Bandwidth (not sure on a figure, should not get too many hits per day)
ICANN accredited (I don’t really know what the implications of non accredited hosts are, can anyone elaborate? Could they take the domain off you?)
Sub domains (could someone explain what they are and when you would need them)
Separate domain registration from the hosting package (I think this would be preferable as it would not tie me to one host, however I need a host as well, could someone please advise?)

Hope you understand, and can help,

Thanks in advance,

Dom...

Team Member Joined: 06 Jan 2002 Posts: 2564

Unless you're buying a domain from your host then ICANN accredited doesn't matter. Also I think that if a company isn't accredited, all it means is that they are a reseller of a company which is.
Subdomains: http://forums.4webhelp.net/ is a subdomain of 4webhelp.net. http://mail.yahoo.com/ is a subdomain of yahoo.com.

Are you looking for a host for us to recommend? If so you'll have to give us an approximate budget and at least an amount of space which you need (since you don't know how much bandwidth you need).

WebHelper Joined: 15 Jan 2004 Posts: 91

Hi Daniel

Yes I would appreciate your advice. I have spent the last hour reading the forum to try and figure out a host / domain name seller that will fit my requirements. I am confused as to the volume of choice.

Firstly I need to be clear in my mind on what I need. This is the problem I have. This is why I put the loose specification down in my last post. I hope to get some advice on refining this specification then I will be clear in my mind what I need and hence know what I am looking for.

In answer to your previous post I should be ok with 100MB of web space and as far as budget, I am not sure what a reliable host costs (for the features I want).

I have a few questions that will help me understand, here it goes,

1) Are there any advantages in NOT buying your domain name from a host?
(assuming the host is ICANN accreted) ( eg. the domain not being tied to the host)?

2) Can resellers resell your domain name once you have parted with your money? Are they more expensive than ICANN accredited domain name suppliers?

3) I understand about sub domains now, thanks. However why would you want to have them unless you are a large organisation or providing separate sites under one umbrella name?

4) I am not sure if I should register a domain name first and then look for a host. I am assuming this will give me more flexibility in moving the host (if a better / cheaper one comes along). Is this true?

5) can you give me an idea of bandwidth requirements, say 10hits/day=x bandwidth, 100hits/day=y bandwidth, 1000hits/day=z bandwidth. I know if you had a 100MB downloadable file and 10 people downloaded per day then you would need (10x100) MBs per day of bandwidth. Are there any rules of thumb on this issue, or is it a case of suck it and see?

Is this clear?

Thank for your help,

Dom.

Team Member Joined: 06 Jan 2002 Posts: 2564

1) I would always stay away from buying domain names from your host. You never know what they might do if you decide to stop buying hosting from them.

2) If they're crooks, I guess they could Very Happy

3) Most of the time they are used to make a site look more professional. However they do have some other uses: for example, if you want to host a part of your site on a different server, you could have one subdomain on a different server. Also, depending on your host, you may need to create subdomains to grant access to a certain part of your site using a different password (this may involve actually creating a different account).

4) My advice: find a host, register your domain name, wait a day or so, and sign up with the chosen host. That way your domain name doesn't sit being unused if finding your host takes a while.

5) Bandwidth usage can't be explained in that way. It all depends on how many hits you get, and the size of each file. Just keep in mind that bandwidth figures are given for a month, so 1gb would give you roughly 34mb of bandwidth per day.

WebHelper Joined: 15 Jan 2004 Posts: 91

Quote:

1) I would always stay away from buying domain names from your host. You never know what they might do if you decide to stop buying hosting from them.

Good point!

Quote:

2) If they're crooks, I guess they could

How do you find out this does it happen?

Quote:

3) Most of the time they are used to make a site look more professional. However they do have some other uses: for example, if you want to host a part of your site on a different server, you could have one subdomain on a different server. Also, depending on your host, you may need to create subdomains to grant access to a certain part of your site using a different password (this may involve actually creating a different account).

I see tour point about having a sub domain on a different server. I read in the forum that someone had their sub domains removed (cannot remember the post looked at so many). Why would it look more professional if a sub domain as apposed to a link under the main domain address?

Quote:

4) My advice: find a host, register your domain name, wait a day or so, and sign up with the chosen host. That way your domain name doesn't sit being unused if finding your host takes a while.

If I am convinced that the host is reliable then should I need to wait a day?

Quote:

5) Bandwidth usage can't be explained in that way. It all depends on how many hits you get, and the size of each file. Just keep in mind that bandwidth figures are given for a month, so 1gb would give you roughly 34mb of bandwidth per day.

Say you have a one page website that is 1MB. Assume each hit (user) lets their browser load the entire page and you get 34 hits per day. I assume I would need 1gb/month. Is this correct?

Sorry for the amount of questions, just trying to clear things up in my tiny mind… Very Happy

Dom

Team Member Joined: 06 Jan 2002 Posts: 2564

domuk wrote:

Quote:

2) If they're crooks, I guess they could

How do you find out this does it happen?

Go with a reputable company. Search for reviews of the host.

domuk wrote:

Quote:

3) Most of the time they are used to make a site look more professional. However they do have some other uses: for example, if you want to host a part of your site on a different server, you could have one subdomain on a different server. Also, depending on your host, you may need to create subdomains to grant access to a certain part of your site using a different password (this may involve actually creating a different account).

I see tour point about having a sub domain on a different server. I read in the forum that someone had their sub domains removed (cannot remember the post looked at so many). Why would it look more professional if a sub domain as apposed to a link under the main domain address?

You said it yourself - it makes it look as though you're a big company/organisation.

domuk wrote:

Quote:

4) My advice: find a host, register your domain name, wait a day or so, and sign up with the chosen host. That way your domain name doesn't sit being unused if finding your host takes a while.

If I am convinced that the host is reliable then should I need to wait a day?

The day's wait is for your domain to be registered, otherwise you'll be paying for hosting which you can't use.

domuk wrote:

Quote:

5) Bandwidth usage can't be explained in that way. It all depends on how many hits you get, and the size of each file. Just keep in mind that bandwidth figures are given for a month, so 1gb would give you roughly 34mb of bandwidth per day.

Say you have a one page website that is 1MB. Assume each hit (user) lets their browser load the entire page and you get 34 hits per day. I assume I would need 1gb/month. Is this correct?

Yes, that's about it.

WebHelper Joined: 15 Jan 2004 Posts: 91

Thanks Daniel,

From your advice I have refined my specification for a host / domain registration:

1) FTP access (essential)
2) No Ads / popups (essential)
3) Month by month billing or free (if possible)
4) Mysql: at least one database (essential)
5) CGI capability (essential)
6) PHP capability (essential)
7) Perl capability (essential)
8 ) SSI capability (would like)
9) .htaccess usage allowed (would like)
10) Good (quick email support) or an active support forum (linked to the host) (essential)
11) Own the domain name not tied to host (essential)
12) Email / URL forwarding (essential)
13) 50MB web space (expandable if possible)
14) Bandwidth = (20mb site with 20 full hits / month = 400mb / month) (Pay as you use if possible)
15) ICANN accredited (not essential but must own the domain name see11)
16) Sub domains (not essential but would be nice will not pay extra for them)
17) Separate domain registration from the hosting package (essential)

However I still have a few points to clear up.

Quote:

I would always stay away from buying domain names from your host. You never know what they might do if you decide to stop buying hosting from them.

Quote:

My advice: find a host, register your domain name, wait a day or so, and sign up with the chosen host. That way your domain name doesn't sit being unused if finding your host takes a while.

With

this comments in mind

1) Where is the best place to register a domain name?
2) Have you any suggestions on web hosts now that I have refined my specification?

Thank you for your help,

I appreciate it…