GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Questions on how we spend our money and our time - consumer goods and services, home and vehicle, leisure and recreational activities
Topic Author
fsrph
Posts: 1610
Joined: Sun Jul 26, 2009 7:54 pm
Location: Pa.

GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by fsrph »

I have two websites. They are for recreational use, just of things I like in life. I have used GoDaddy (GD) to host them, no real problems till now. It's renewal time. GD always had quite good discounts for website renewals but they seemed to have recently eliminated all renewal discounts. I renewed for only one month, hopefully I can find better options. So,

Any good options to GD for hosting?

Is it difficult to transfer a website to a different hosting company?

Thanks.
Francis
"Success is getting what you want. Happiness is wanting what you get." | Dale Carnegie
spaddlewit
Posts: 58
Joined: Sat Oct 12, 2013 7:56 am
Location: Bradenton, Florida

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by spaddlewit »

I use HostGator and have been very happy with it.

Depends on how you built your website for how hard it would be to transfer.
singlephoton
Posts: 20
Joined: Mon Jun 09, 2014 4:54 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by singlephoton »

I've used dreamhost in the past to host my websites. Happy with them. If it's a non-commercial website, you can just host it yourself using one of your computers as a server. Mac & PC have software for this or you can buy a dedicated NAS. I like synology. You'd have to keep the computer on, but would not have to pay a monthly fee.

Transferring my websites to another hosting service was a huge pain in the ass. Wouldn't do it again. I was using wordpress.
KyleAAA
Posts: 9498
Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2009 5:35 pm
Contact:

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by KyleAAA »

If it's non-commercial and you don't have many actual users, just go with the cheapest option that will support whatever platform you're using. They are pretty much all the same.

Transferring to another hosting service is generally really easy.
harrychan
Posts: 2047
Joined: Sun Nov 14, 2010 8:37 pm
Location: Pasadena

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by harrychan »

I have had 1and1 for the longest time. In the 8-10 years I maybe had one outage lasting 2 hours? I spend $50 a month for hosting fees. I recently upgraded as I ran out of SQL databases. It's a hassle for me to move to another host as I have over 20 websites running.
This is not legal or certified financial advice but you know that already.
User avatar
tc101
Posts: 3810
Joined: Tue Feb 20, 2007 2:18 pm
Location: Atlanta - Retired in 2004 at age 54

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by tc101 »

Is it a simple static web site, or something interactive that needs a database or server code?
For a simple static web site, look at fastmail.fm, which is very very cheap.
. | The most important thing you should know about me is that I am not an expert.
YttriumNitrate
Posts: 1093
Joined: Tue Mar 26, 2013 12:13 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by YttriumNitrate »

For my orchard's website, I use 000webhost. It's free and reasonably reliable. One thing is that they make you log into the admin account at least once a month or they will suspend the website.
Topic Author
fsrph
Posts: 1610
Joined: Sun Jul 26, 2009 7:54 pm
Location: Pa.

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by fsrph »

tc101 wrote:Is it a simple static web site, or something interactive that needs a database or server code?
For a simple static web site, look at fastmail.fm, which is very very cheap.
I did the website myself following an online template. I do not know how to write code. Anyway, this is one of the websites http://marcoislandsunshine.com/Home_Page.php
Would you consider this a simple, static site?

On second thought I don't even know if I can transfer the site. I used GoDaddy's Website Tonight to build the site, do they have rights to not allow a transfer?

Francis
"Success is getting what you want. Happiness is wanting what you get." | Dale Carnegie
SicEm
Posts: 18
Joined: Mon Jun 02, 2014 4:46 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by SicEm »

I've used aqhost for many years. The userface is a bit dated, but I've found them cheap and their customer support is very fast and helpful.
KyleAAA
Posts: 9498
Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2009 5:35 pm
Contact:

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by KyleAAA »

If you used Godaddy's website tonight service, you probably can't move to another host. You could save all the contents of the various pages and transfer them to something like Wordpress and move THAT to another host, but that would probably take weeks of effort for a non-technical person.
zeppy
Posts: 53
Joined: Wed Jul 04, 2012 2:11 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by zeppy »

I have used JustHost for a couple of years and am pleased with them. I pay $25.98 a year which includes domain name registration and domain privacy protection.
The pictures on your site are lovely.
..........Zeppy
User avatar
Rob5TCP
Posts: 3812
Joined: Tue Jun 05, 2007 7:34 pm
Location: New York, NY

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by Rob5TCP »

I usually call GoDaddy's sales line.
If I talk 5 minutes or more - they always end up giving me a discount rather
than have me wait to purchase. Minimum of 20% and a couple of times as high as 35%.
I do use their website complete -- and keep with GoDaddy mostly out of lethargy.

There are better places out there - plus the owner of Godaddy is a
total a**h**e.
ThatGuy
Posts: 1002
Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2010 8:00 am

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by ThatGuy »

It might be worth exploring Google for hosting. They do offer cookbook website creation through Wix, or Weebly, or whatever the stupid Web 2.0 name is.
Work is the curse of the drinking class - Oscar Wilde
User avatar
bertilak
Posts: 10726
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2011 5:23 pm
Location: East of the Pecos, West of the Mississippi

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by bertilak »

ThatGuy wrote:It might be worth exploring Google for hosting. They do offer cookbook website creation through Wix, or Weebly, or whatever the stupid Web 2.0 name is.
I use the free version of Google for a Homeowner's Association web site.
May neither drought nor rain nor blizzard disturb the joy juice in your gizzard. -- Squire Omar Barker (aka S.O.B.), the Cowboy Poet
bloom2708
Posts: 9861
Joined: Wed Apr 02, 2014 2:08 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by bloom2708 »

I use bluehost.com.

I followed a plan from Kraig at Mathias Media. http://www.mathiasmedia.com/

He offers a course that walks you through everything to get a blog up and running. Saved me a ton of time.
123
Posts: 10415
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:55 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by 123 »

I have a domain name with GoDaddy but I have it pointed to a blog page at BlogSpot.com (free) so I don't pay any hosting fees, just a fee for the domain name with GoDaddy. The domain name shows up everywhere so while users familiar with BlogSpot can tell it's a BlogSpot blog page it works for me. I think you can have a domain name held by GoDaddy point to a website elsewhere do the domain registration and website don't have to be with the same entity. The same sort of arrangement could probably work for a number of other free or paid hosting providers.
The closest helping hand is at the end of your own arm.
User avatar
JupiterJones
Posts: 3624
Joined: Tue Aug 24, 2010 3:25 pm
Location: Nashville, TN

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by JupiterJones »

I find GoDaddy so inexpensive that if it were me, I'd probably stay even without getting any renewal discount.

Just not worth the hassle to potentially save such a small amount by switching.
"Stay on target! Stay on target!"
Saving$
Posts: 2518
Joined: Sat Nov 05, 2011 8:33 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by Saving$ »

Google GoDaddy discounts. Some of the deal sites such as fatwallet have an entire collection of coupon / discount codes. There is one for renewals.
BigTom
Posts: 209
Joined: Sat Apr 26, 2014 5:43 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by BigTom »

Just host was the cheapest when I was looking and has a free trial . Like $3 per month
Angelus359
Posts: 846
Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2014 11:56 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by Angelus359 »

I'm going to go out on a limb and state that it's better to have a virtual private server.

You can do whatever you want with it, including having SSL keys. SSL keys can be gotten for free from startssl.

Shared hosting doesn't allow SSL, unless you also pay for a dedicated IP address.

My personal recommendation: Get a VPS from digital ocean, for 5$ a month.
[OT comment removed by admin LadyGeek]

I used the coupon code SSDTWEET a while back to get 10$ free credit. Not sure if it still works.

If you don't want to bother going through the whole server setup on your own, they have premade application servers, with common web applications.
Systems Engineer
User avatar
roymeo
Posts: 1278
Joined: Sat Apr 28, 2007 7:19 pm
Location: Oakland, CA
Contact:

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by roymeo »

I use Dreamhost, and I like them so much I won't even try to get a kickback for recommending them. (though let me know if you want to, I'm sure there's some sort of discount in it for you.)
The sewer system is a form of welfare state. | -- "Libra", Don DeLillo
nerdymarketer
Posts: 197
Joined: Mon Sep 02, 2013 8:18 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by nerdymarketer »

Friends don't let friends use GoDaddy.

They're a fairly shady company that makes a lot of money on upsells and "breakage", meaning purposefully trying to be inconvenient to cancel or migrate your domain names away from them. In the domain industry, they're known for paying some of the highest affiliate fees for new registrations (which is why so many marketers push them so hard--google "domain name generator" and you'll see most generators have Godaddy as the default registrar), but then treating those customers like crap. Last year I bought a domain from someone who was using Godaddy and GD didn't allow me to transfer to another registrar for 90 days, even though ICANN (domain name governing body) specifically says all registrars must allow you to transfer out of them pretty much immediately. Still mad at how GD wasted my time going round and round on email and phone without being willing to release the domain.

As a rule of thumb, it's best to keep your webhost and your domain name registrar separate. Otherwise if you're frustrated with the service you're getting from your host, they can't hold you hostage through making it difficult to switch the domain name so it points to a different host.

Domain registration should cost you no more than $9 a year, and hosting for a basic wordpress blog or equivalent should be no more than $60 a year (at most).

For domain name registrars, I highly recommend http://NameSilo.com/--great customer service, the cheapest sticker price in the industry (some places will cut you a slightly better rate if you have hundreds of domains), and has all the nice-to-haves like two-factor authentication.

For hosting: Google sites, Blogspot, Wordpress.com etc all let you host for free if you point the domain name at them...
User avatar
pondering
Posts: 1127
Joined: Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:04 pm
Location: 412-977-3526, originally 718-273-2422
Contact:

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by pondering »

Does everyone use their domain to send email? How reliable is the service?
--Robert Sterbal | robert@sterbal.com | 412-977-3526
forgeblast
Posts: 586
Joined: Fri Oct 13, 2017 8:45 am
Location: PA
Contact:

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by forgeblast »

I had go daddy to begin, but then switched to host gator, was happy with them when running a wordpress site, but
decided to improve my site and went with squarespace. I have been really happy with them, my site looks much
more professional and i have had more sales through it. (small seasonal craft business).
scooterdog
Posts: 166
Joined: Fri Mar 29, 2013 7:42 am
Location: Potomac MD

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by scooterdog »

A few thoughts here, from my own experience with domains, email, and setting up a personal/professional Wordpress blog for the past several years.
  • I used to use DreamHost for the first year with a huge discount, from $100/year to something like $20/year
  • Then I went to a no-frills, self-supported NearlyFreeSpeech.net for my Wordpress blog where I paid on a per-MB-transferred basis
  • The site grew to the point where it made sense to switch again, went to A Small Orange
  • Been a happy customer ever since, and pay on the order of $200/year for their mid-tier plan
  • Email with the webhost is limited to something pitifully small (50 or 100MB)
  • I've moved the email from Gmail to Fastmail, and it's $60/year per email address
InMyDreams
Posts: 1886
Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2017 10:35 am

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by InMyDreams »

simply hosting:
https://www.simplyhosting.net/

yes, I use email thru it, but quite minimally

www.xmission.com provides web hosting, and has a strong commitment to privacy. I don't have a site thru them, however.
technovelist
Posts: 3611
Joined: Wed Dec 30, 2009 8:02 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by technovelist »

I use iPage. I'm paying something like $150/year for hosting no matter how many actual web sites I have. Right now I have three actual sites with content. I pay for each domain name, currently 10.

iPage answers tech support queries quickly and usually gets things straightened out right away when there is a problem (rare).

I use their email server also, although I have an offline email program so that I can keep my email on my own computer.
In theory, theory and practice are identical. In practice, they often differ.
rustymutt
Posts: 4001
Joined: Sat Mar 07, 2009 11:03 am

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by rustymutt »

I had a 5 year license with GoDaddy and was completely satisfied with the results. I closed my business down and retired the domain name.
Even educators need education. And some can be hard headed to the point of needing time out.
SrGrumpy
Posts: 1477
Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2015 3:21 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by SrGrumpy »

JupiterJones wrote: Wed Jun 11, 2014 1:09 pm I find GoDaddy so inexpensive that if it were me, I'd probably stay even without getting any renewal discount.

Just not worth the hassle to potentially save such a small amount by switching.
Agreed. I have a small promotional website there and the renewal amount is insignificant. Changing hosts is a pain. My bigger site is through webhostinghub.com with an introductory rate of $4.99/month (I think maybe it was lower?) with excellent tech support. I usually call them a few months before my term ends, and they give me a manager's special.
User avatar
22twain
Posts: 4032
Joined: Thu May 10, 2012 5:42 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by 22twain »

pondering wrote: Fri Nov 03, 2017 7:18 am Does everyone use their domain to send email? How reliable is the service?
To address this question which revived this three-year-old thread and which seems to have started up another discussion of web-hosting in general...

How reliable it is to use your domain to send email depends on the particular service you're using.

I prefer to keep my web-hosting and email-hosting separate. If I ever have problems with one (technical or billing or whatever) it doesn't affect the other one. If I ever decide to change one provider I don't have to change the other one. Also, as others have noted, the "free" email that you get with most personal web-hosting accounts can be pretty basic.

I use the G Suite (formerly Google Apps) Basic service for $5 per month. This gives me Gmail (no ads), Google Docs and other stuff, and 30 GB of storage. I can set up multiple email addresses (aliases) that point to the same account, without paying extra. This helps me filter different kinds of email into different folders. If my wife ever wants to move away from her college email address (as emeritus faculty, we're entitled to keep those addresses), I can pay another $5 per month to set up an account for her under my domain.
Last edited by 22twain on Sat Nov 04, 2017 9:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
Meet my pet, Peeve, who loves to convert non-acronyms into acronyms: FED, ROTH, CASH, IVY, ...
tibbitts
Posts: 23728
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:50 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by tibbitts »

Angelus359 wrote: Mon Jun 16, 2014 12:54 am I'm going to go out on a limb and state that it's better to have a virtual private server.

You can do whatever you want with it, including having SSL keys. SSL keys can be gotten for free from startssl.

Shared hosting doesn't allow SSL, unless you also pay for a dedicated IP address.

My personal recommendation: Get a VPS from digital ocean, for 5$ a month.
[OT comment removed by admin LadyGeek]

I used the coupon code SSDTWEET a while back to get 10$ free credit. Not sure if it still works.

If you don't want to bother going through the whole server setup on your own, they have premade application servers, with common web applications.
Shared hosting now generally includes basic free ssl for websites that is compatible with most web technology; there is no longer a requirement for a dedicated IP. Free certificates and shared IPs, no matter where you get them from, are not suitable for serious e-commerce or high-traffic websites. If you run Amazon, you should still pay for your own IP(s) and ssl.

With a VPS you may be entirely responsible for updates, patching, reboots, etc. for your operating system, not just your CMS (wordpress, etc.) Some of this can be automated, but VPS will still generally require more involvement (and usually higher cost.)

Shared hosting usually includes email that is reasonably reliable, but not to the extent of Google's or Microsoft's or other commercial services.
User avatar
plannerman
Posts: 855
Joined: Wed Feb 21, 2007 9:42 pm
Location: NC Mountains

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by plannerman »

This is a timely post for me. I am the default (I don't know nuthing but it's more than other members know) website administrator for a small non profit social club.

I am in the process of updating our website. The developer I use hosts the website (I least I pay him to). He has changed his business model. He charges less for the site development and more for the web hosting--$1200/year going forward (it was previously $300/yr). For the same reasons he likes the new business model, I don't like it--but I feel like I'm trapped. I don't know enough to move the site to another web host and would have to pay him, or someone else, to do it. Any advice on what to do would be welcome.

The second issue I have is the domain registrar is a company called MySite. They charge an additional $180 per year and I don't have a clue what value they add to earn this money. I mean I literally have no idea what they do. Should I try and transfer our domain to another registrar and if so to which one? My one experience with this company was extremely painful. It took 6 months and about 15 emails to get them to transfer the ownership of the domain name to the Club from the previous owner who was no longer associated with the club, and was more than willing to transfer the ownership. Based on this experience, I'm hesitant to even attempt a transfer.

Is there anybody out there that's in the business of handling these kinds of issues that I can hire to help me out? Or would I end up locked-in with them.

plannerman
tibbitts
Posts: 23728
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:50 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by tibbitts »

plannerman wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 9:40 am This is a timely post for me. I am the default (I don't know nuthing but it's more than other members know) website administrator for a small non profit social club.

I am in the process of updating our website. The developer I use hosts the website (I least I pay him to). He has changed his business model. He charges less for the site development and more for the web hosting--$1200/year going forward (it was previously $300/yr). For the same reasons he likes the new business model, I don't like it--but I feel like I'm trapped. I don't know enough to move the site to another web host and would have to pay him, or someone else, to do it. Any advice on what to do would be welcome.

The second issue I have is the domain registrar is a company called MySite. They charge an additional $180 per year and I don't have a clue what value they add to earn this money. I mean I literally have no idea what they do. Should I try and transfer our domain to another registrar and if so to which one? My one experience with this company was extremely painful. It took 6 months and about 15 emails to get them to transfer the ownership of the domain name to the Club from the previous owner who was no longer associated with the club, and was more than willing to transfer the ownership. Based on this experience, I'm hesitant to even attempt a transfer.

Is there anybody out there that's in the business of handling these kinds of issues that I can hire to help me out? Or would I end up locked-in with them.

plannerman
$1200/yr for hosting and ongoing maintenance/development for a business website isn't unreasonable. I assume you have some new or changed features you want periodically and that's now included in the price? $180/yr sounds like more than a domain name so I would contact them and ask what is included in your fee. It's not completely trivial to change registrars but if they aren't doing anything else for $180 that would be worth it. Whatever you don't bundle the domain name with your site hosting - always retain direct control of the domain name.

Since you mentioned non-profits we have non-profit customers and the least expensive development and support package we know of for them is $1250/yr. That includes the initial development and an understanding they'll pay at least for a year.
Last edited by tibbitts on Sat Nov 04, 2017 10:51 am, edited 2 times in total.
Cheyenne
Posts: 548
Joined: Sun Jun 14, 2015 6:46 am

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by Cheyenne »

I've been building our business websites since 1998 using HTML coding and WYSIWYG editors. A few years ago someone mentioned Weebly site builder and hosting and I initially thought that was for amateurs, but after exploring it I decided to go with them. I works for us. I use GoDaddy for domain registration and Microsoft Outlook for business email boxes. Weebly doesn't offer email service.
bogglizer
Posts: 320
Joined: Tue Aug 16, 2016 8:56 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by bogglizer »

I am at HawkHost, and am quite happy with it. But I am willing to give an extremely negative review to Bluehost, which was a nightmare.
User avatar
BolderBoy
Posts: 6755
Joined: Wed Apr 07, 2010 12:16 pm
Location: Colorado

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by BolderBoy »

I'm with Omnis for many years now. Never had a lick of trouble.
"Never underestimate one's capacity to overestimate one's abilities" - The Dunning-Kruger Effect
User avatar
VictoriaF
Posts: 20122
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 6:27 am
Location: Black Swan Lake

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by VictoriaF »

PC Mag has a review of "The Best WordPress Web Hosting Services of 2017" dated October 31, 2017 2:27PM EST, https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2479353,00.asp . According to the review, HostGator and DreamHost have the highest ratings. HostGator, 1&1, and DreamHost are Editor's Choices.

I have a few questions:
1. Are these reviews reasonable?
- Based on other reviews I have seen, I was considering using SiteGround, but PC Mag seems ambivalent about it.

2. What is the significance of the hosting company using Linus servers vs. Windows servers?
- I use Windows at home: What would be the impact of using DreamHost which has only Linux? (SiteGround does not use Windows either.)
- HostGator and 1&1 have both Windows and Linux. Any reason to select one or the other?

3. What is the value of getting managed WordPress hosting?
- If I get it from one company, would it make it more difficult to migrate to another hosting company?

Thank you,

Victoria
Inventor of the Bogleheads Secret Handshake | Winner of the 2015 Boglehead Contest. | Every joke has a bit of a joke. ... The rest is the truth. (Marat F)
tibbitts
Posts: 23728
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:50 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by tibbitts »

VictoriaF wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 3:38 pm PC Mag has a review of "The Best WordPress Web Hosting Services of 2017" dated October 31, 2017 2:27PM EST, https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2479353,00.asp . According to the review, HostGator and DreamHost have the highest ratings. HostGator, 1&1, and DreamHost are Editor's Choices.

I have a few questions:
1. Are these reviews reasonable?
- Based on other reviews I have seen, I was considering using SiteGround, but PC Mag seems ambivalent about it.

2. What is the significance of the hosting company using Linus servers vs. Windows servers?
- I use Windows at home: What would be the impact of using DreamHost which has only Linux? (SiteGround does not use Windows either.)
- HostGator and 1&1 have both Windows and Linux. Any reason to select one or the other?

3. What is the value of getting managed WordPress hosting?
- If I get it from one company, would it make it more difficult to migrate to another hosting company?

Thank you,

Victoria
The choice of operating system depends somewhat on the technology your website uses. For a typical wordpress site Linux is fine. If you have Microsoft-specific technology in your web architecture (on the server side) you would have more compatibility with a Windows server, rather than trying to adapt Linux to the task.

Managed hosting may offer some WP-specific performance tweaks as well as assistance in dealing with plugins and themes. One issue with WP plugins and themes is that they sometimes fall off support (new versions are no longer developed, and old ones might not work with the current WP releases) so you might get some help in migrating to a new plugin for example. WP can usually update itself automatically but occasionally there are compatibility issues and some managed WP hosting providers can help you with that. It's not an option to simply ignore updates to themes, plugins, and the WP core... your site will be extremely vulnerable to being exploited. If you don't know how to prevent spam posts or brute-force attacks, for example, managed hosting might be for you. Managed WP environments may also implement additional WP-specific security on the front end (in firewall appliances, for example) that will offload some of that responsibility from your WP installation. Some WP installations can expend a great deal of resources just dealing with the usual array of constant attacks, even if they do so successfully.
User avatar
VictoriaF
Posts: 20122
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 6:27 am
Location: Black Swan Lake

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by VictoriaF »

tibbitts wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 5:38 pm The choice of operating system depends somewhat on the technology your website uses. For a typical wordpress site Linux is fine. If you have Microsoft-specific technology in your web architecture (on the server side) you would have more compatibility with a Windows server, rather than trying to adapt Linux to the task.
Thank you!

If my architecture is a simple blog, will my Windows-based home computer seamlessly communicate with a Linux server of the hosting company? Should I expect any problems with backups or other functions?
tibbitts wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 5:38 pm Managed hosting may offer some WP-specific performance tweaks as well as assistance in dealing with plugins and themes. One issue with WP plugins and themes is that they sometimes fall off support (new versions are no longer developed, and old ones might not work with the current WP releases) so you might get some help in migrating to a new plugin for example. WP can usually update itself automatically but occasionally there are compatibility issues and some managed WP hosting providers can help you with that. It's not an option to simply ignore updates to themes, plugins, and the WP core... your site will be extremely vulnerable to being exploited. If you don't know how to prevent spam posts or brute-force attacks, for example, managed hosting might be for you. Managed WP environments may also implement additional WP-specific security on the front end (in firewall appliances, for example) that will offload some of that responsibility from your WP installation. Some WP installations can expend a great deal of resources just dealing with the usual array of constant attacks, even if they do so successfully.
You are making great points about maintaining WP plugins. I know how to protect my home computer, and could figure out how to protect my WP-based blog, but frankly I prefer not to think about it. An extra $100/year for a service is a fair price for the peace of mind.

However, I am concerned about migrating from one managed WP platform to another. Let's say I will have started with a managed WP provided by DreamHost and later had to migrate to another managed (or un-managed) WP hosting provider. Would all my themes and plugins easily migrate between hosting platforms, or each of them adds some proprietary tweaks that I would later have to identify and remove?

While it's OK for me to pay extra $100/year, I'd like to avoid the need to troubleshoot problems in the future, when the blog will be more established and its reliability will be more critical.

Victoria
Inventor of the Bogleheads Secret Handshake | Winner of the 2015 Boglehead Contest. | Every joke has a bit of a joke. ... The rest is the truth. (Marat F)
Mudpuppy
Posts: 7409
Joined: Sat Aug 27, 2011 2:26 am
Location: Sunny California

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by Mudpuppy »

pondering wrote: Fri Nov 03, 2017 7:18 am Does everyone use their domain to send email? How reliable is the service?
Sending is not the issue I've run across. Receiving is the issue if you use a email forwarding service that doesn't properly work with DMARC / DKIM / SPF email verification systems. Those emails can be easily marked as fraudulent and discarded, even if they are not. I've had so many emails lost to the ether lately on my personal domain that I'm considering paying for email hosting for the first time in the decade that I've had it.
User avatar
pondering
Posts: 1127
Joined: Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:04 pm
Location: 412-977-3526, originally 718-273-2422
Contact:

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by pondering »

Who are you considering getting to host the email?
--Robert Sterbal | robert@sterbal.com | 412-977-3526
Mudpuppy
Posts: 7409
Joined: Sat Aug 27, 2011 2:26 am
Location: Sunny California

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by Mudpuppy »

pondering wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 6:56 pm Who are you considering getting to host the email?
I haven't decided yet. I don't need web hosting as I can do that myself (it's a personal domain for photo sharing with family and a small MUD for friends, not a business). My current DNS host, NameCheap, also offers email hosting, but part of my delivery problem is that their spam filter is not very configurable. For example, they told me the only way to whitelist an email address is to email it to their support desk and they'd add it on the back-end.

The previous DNS host I used, ZoneEdit, has a better email forwarding service, but I left them because their system had too much downtime for my liking. GoDaddy is off my list due to their stance on certain topics of interest to a technologist, but which are against forum rules to discuss. Google's price point is tempting, but I don't want their algorithms sifting through my email data. There's a California ISP that offers hosting for $9.95 a month, although that also comes with web hosting which I don't really need.

So I'm still weighing my options and living with the missing emails in the meanwhile.
technovelist
Posts: 3611
Joined: Wed Dec 30, 2009 8:02 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by technovelist »

VictoriaF wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 5:52 pm
tibbitts wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 5:38 pm The choice of operating system depends somewhat on the technology your website uses. For a typical wordpress site Linux is fine. If you have Microsoft-specific technology in your web architecture (on the server side) you would have more compatibility with a Windows server, rather than trying to adapt Linux to the task.
Thank you!

If my architecture is a simple blog, will my Windows-based home computer seamlessly communicate with a Linux server of the hosting company? Should I expect any problems with backups or other functions?
Your Windows-based computer will not have any trouble communicating with a Linux server. Many websites are running on Linux servers, and you generally can't tell whether they are running Linux or Windows.

As for backup, the hosting company should provide some backup facilities. Wordpress also has a backup feature that you can use yourself to get a downloadable copy of your site that could be uploaded to another Wordpresss site.
In theory, theory and practice are identical. In practice, they often differ.
tibbitts
Posts: 23728
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:50 pm

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by tibbitts »

VictoriaF wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 5:52 pm
tibbitts wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 5:38 pm The choice of operating system depends somewhat on the technology your website uses. For a typical wordpress site Linux is fine. If you have Microsoft-specific technology in your web architecture (on the server side) you would have more compatibility with a Windows server, rather than trying to adapt Linux to the task.
Thank you!

If my architecture is a simple blog, will my Windows-based home computer seamlessly communicate with a Linux server of the hosting company? Should I expect any problems with backups or other functions?
tibbitts wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 5:38 pm Managed hosting may offer some WP-specific performance tweaks as well as assistance in dealing with plugins and themes. One issue with WP plugins and themes is that they sometimes fall off support (new versions are no longer developed, and old ones might not work with the current WP releases) so you might get some help in migrating to a new plugin for example. WP can usually update itself automatically but occasionally there are compatibility issues and some managed WP hosting providers can help you with that. It's not an option to simply ignore updates to themes, plugins, and the WP core... your site will be extremely vulnerable to being exploited. If you don't know how to prevent spam posts or brute-force attacks, for example, managed hosting might be for you. Managed WP environments may also implement additional WP-specific security on the front end (in firewall appliances, for example) that will offload some of that responsibility from your WP installation. Some WP installations can expend a great deal of resources just dealing with the usual array of constant attacks, even if they do so successfully.
You are making great points about maintaining WP plugins. I know how to protect my home computer, and could figure out how to protect my WP-based blog, but frankly I prefer not to think about it. An extra $100/year for a service is a fair price for the peace of mind.

However, I am concerned about migrating from one managed WP platform to another. Let's say I will have started with a managed WP provided by DreamHost and later had to migrate to another managed (or un-managed) WP hosting provider. Would all my themes and plugins easily migrate between hosting platforms, or each of them adds some proprietary tweaks that I would later have to identify and remove?

While it's OK for me to pay extra $100/year, I'd like to avoid the need to troubleshoot problems in the future, when the blog will be more established and its reliability will be more critical.

Victoria
If you go from one managed WP provider to another you're likely to get some help setting up from the new host, although I supposed it's possible for some of them to add some proprietary features that wouldn't transfer. The WP core and any plugins or themes that come from the WP ecosystem should transfer without issue, but you should ask a provider your considering - it's probably a common question for them.

No matter if you host on Linux or Windows, your site should work with any client computer. WP is probably more often hosted on Linux.
User avatar
VictoriaF
Posts: 20122
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 6:27 am
Location: Black Swan Lake

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by VictoriaF »

technovelist wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 7:26 pm Your Windows-based computer will not have any trouble communicating with a Linux server. Many websites are running on Linux servers, and you generally can't tell whether they are running Linux or Windows.

As for backup, the hosting company should provide some backup facilities. Wordpress also has a backup feature that you can use yourself to get a downloadable copy of your site that could be uploaded to another Wordpresss site.
tibbitts wrote: Sat Nov 04, 2017 7:55 pm If you go from one managed WP provider to another you're likely to get some help setting up from the new host, although I supposed it's possible for some of them to add some proprietary features that wouldn't transfer. The WP core and any plugins or themes that come from the WP ecosystem should transfer without issue, but you should ask a provider your considering - it's probably a common question for them.

No matter if you host on Linux or Windows, your site should work with any client computer. WP is probably more often hosted on Linux.
technovelist and tibbitts,

Thank you so much! You helped me to finalize my choice to DreamHost.

Victoria
Inventor of the Bogleheads Secret Handshake | Winner of the 2015 Boglehead Contest. | Every joke has a bit of a joke. ... The rest is the truth. (Marat F)
User avatar
VictoriaF
Posts: 20122
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 6:27 am
Location: Black Swan Lake

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by VictoriaF »

In the last day and a half, I have spent all my waking hours reading about hosting, analyzing my findings, changing my decisions, and then finding new information. I am not complaining or bragging; I think I was in the flow state, fascinated by the things I was reading. In this post, I'd like to share with the Bogleheads community some of my findings. Important: I have no experience of blogging or using hosting. I am like a student sharing her findings with the classmates. If any blogging or hosting "academics" comment on my findings, their word supersedes mine.

I started my search by Googling for "web hosting" and "WordPress (WP) hosting." The suggestions that came up in Google most frequently included BlueHost ($8), HostGator ($7), SiteGround ($10), InMotion Hosting ($8), DreamHost ($11), WPEngine ($29), and FlyWheel ($15). The prices in parentheses are per month, using the most basic (or penultimately basic) packages and using list prices, rather than current discounts. I was ready to choose a WP managed hosting solution and was trying to understand if I may encounter any problems with migration, as I have discovered a new source of information.

Someone named Alex Sol has posted about his experience of migrating from one host to another and warned against using any hosting providers acquired by a company called Endurance International Group (EIG). This post describes his issues: https://blog.extra-paycheck.com/switching-web-hosts/ , and this post describes why he recommends a provider HostWithLove (HWL) https://blog.extra-paycheck.com/hostwithlove-review/ . I'd like to stress that I don't know this guy Alex or any other sources I am referring to. And to make it more interesting, Alex has recommended HWL in 2015-2016, but when I checked his blog today, I found out that it is hosted by QuadraNet. But that's beside the point. I started reading about HostWithLove, thought it was an excellent alternative, and was wondering why it did not come up in my initial Google searches.

In his blogpost, Alex Sol has mentioned that he had learned about HostWithLove from a discussion forum WebHostingTalk, https://www.webhostingtalk.com/ . I decided to check out that forum and got stuck there for hours. I experienced a similar predicament to the new people coming to the Bogleheads Forum and not knowing where to start. I suspect that I have missed many WebHostingTalk resources, but what I've found and read was eye opening. This forum's participants discuss hosting issues with the same civility and depth as we, Bogleheads, discuss investing. And just as we politely frown at newbies coming here with the notion that Jim Cramer is a source of financial wisdom, they politely dismiss BlueHost, HostGator and alike. They refer to a very different set of hosting services, and the names that came up most frequently in the few threads I've read included MDD Hosting, HawkHost, Veerotech, and WebHostPython. These were always mentioned positively; there were some other hosting providers that I am leaving out because sometimes they were praised and sometimes criticized. And remember that I could not possibly give this topic justice in the few hours I spent on it--just as a Bogleheads newcomer could not perform a comprehensive analysis of the Bogleheads opinion about tilting.

By the time I have finished reading selected threads I was reading in the WebHostingTalk Forum, I had a list of six potential hosting providers: To decide among them, I started entering their names in various combinations in Google to see what would come up. This approach has led me to a discovery of a site ReviewHell https://www.reviewhell.com/ which claims to provide brutally honest reviews and rankings. I found their rankings here: https://www.reviewhell.com/web-host-rankings/ : To summarize, MDD Hosting is #1, VeeroTech is #3, three of my "candidates" are ranked between #8 and #11, and DreamHost is not listed at all.

And so, as of this writing, my preferred hosting choice is MDDHosting. In a day or two, I will sign up for the WebHostingTalk Forum and ask questions related to my needs. However, it's not likely that I'll veer far off from MDDHosting, VeeroTech, SiteGround, or HostWithLove.

All comments are welcome!

Victoria
Inventor of the Bogleheads Secret Handshake | Winner of the 2015 Boglehead Contest. | Every joke has a bit of a joke. ... The rest is the truth. (Marat F)
User avatar
pondering
Posts: 1127
Joined: Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:04 pm
Location: 412-977-3526, originally 718-273-2422
Contact:

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by pondering »

I would ask for examples of sites they host.

siteground actually came up with the names of a couple of wikis they host. Bluehost hasn't.

My wiki is currently hosted for free, by people I don't particularly like or have a good working relationship with.

Can you tell me more about the use case for your site?
--Robert Sterbal | robert@sterbal.com | 412-977-3526
User avatar
VictoriaF
Posts: 20122
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 6:27 am
Location: Black Swan Lake

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by VictoriaF »

pondering wrote: Sun Nov 05, 2017 5:43 pm I would ask for examples of sites they host.
This is a good point, thank you!
pondering wrote: Sun Nov 05, 2017 5:43 pmsiteground actually came up with the names of a couple of wikis they host. Bluehost hasn't.

My wiki is currently hosted for free, by people I don't particularly like or have a good working relationship with.

Can you tell me more about the use case for your site?
I want to start a blog. It will focus on my ideas related to Behavioral Economics, and I will use it to clarify my own thoughts and get some feedback while I am working on a book. I anticipate that the traffic to my blog will be low. I don't plan to monetize the blog. I want it to be similar to academic blogs with minimum of moving parts and photos. Thus, my storage and speed requirements are at the basic level of most providers. However, I may get an enhanced package if it offers enhanced security.

Victoria
Inventor of the Bogleheads Secret Handshake | Winner of the 2015 Boglehead Contest. | Every joke has a bit of a joke. ... The rest is the truth. (Marat F)
User avatar
crystalbank
Posts: 560
Joined: Wed Nov 01, 2017 12:21 am

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by crystalbank »

If you just want static file hosting -
https://neocities.org

It's inspired by the erstwhile Geocities website and is completely free to try out. If you want custom domains you have to be a supporting member ($5/month). Even the free sites don't have any ads and the entire company is supported by paid members and donations.
User avatar
pondering
Posts: 1127
Joined: Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:04 pm
Location: 412-977-3526, originally 718-273-2422
Contact:

Re: GoDaddy - Any better options for website hosting?

Post by pondering »

What security do you need for something that is public information anyway?
--Robert Sterbal | robert@sterbal.com | 412-977-3526
Post Reply