Considerations IF moving to different web host

[Howard Kaikow]

This afternoon, after all too many years of using dial-up, I will be switching to Comcast Internet.

My present plan is to leave my email and web site at my current ISP.
If I decide to move to another web host, I can think of 2 issues:

1. My current ISP provides a mechanism on the server that we Client side folkes can use to include counters in our web pages. If I move to another web host, I'd likely need some server side scripting. What's the best way to do this?

2. Which are the best web hosting companies?

I've heard of the following, which are the good ones, any other recommendations?

1&1 (http://order.1and1.com/xml/order/Hosting;jsessionid=33E4ABC1B9910E52A7FC3D491C62AEC6.TC60b?__frame=_top&__lf=Static)
Go Daddy (http://www.godaddy.com/)
Hostway (http://www.hostway.com/)
pair (http://www.pair.com/)
Tera-Byte Dot com (http://www.tera-byte.com/)

[yamaharuss]

What are your language and database hosting requirements?

[Howard Kaikow]

What are your language and database hosting requirements?

I would want to use some "standard" code that I could just plop on the server side, so I guess the code would have to run in *ix, unless I choose a Windoze based server.

I have no interest in maintaining databases on the server.
Current interest would be:

1. Having counters.
2. Maybe, code that prevents user from accessing a file, without registering.
3. And, using server side code, I may find a solution to the query I raised in Choosing alternate target for a link (http://www.webdeveloper.com/forum/showthread.php?p=785502#post785502)

Until I choose a web host, I would not know what I would be allowed to do, but I expect that most allow PHP.

[Fang]

1. Counters are meaningless, they can easily be faked.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is more important.

2. Can be achieved by the webserver or a server side language.

3. navigator.onLine would work for those browsers, but would require some extra work on the paths in each browser.
It is a very strange thing to be requesting.
I would want to use some "standard" code that I could just plop on the server sideNothing is "standard". All web host give a list(s) of supported features.

[ryanlund]

There are a few free web hosts out there that do decent packages if your running a very small website(such as a hobby site or something) and need some simple PHP etc. Take a look around those first - but please dont use it for a business site or anything important.