Internet Newbie Diary

This follows up on Part One and is the second one of the lot I researched that rose to the top.

IX Web Hosting

This company offers email/ticket support 24/7 but their live chat and toll-free telephone support is not available 24/7. They have a control panel demo, so you can see how things will work and a promo video that provides a quick synopsis of their service.

Pro: They have a 30 day guarantee (see the ‘Our Promise to You’ link in the upper left hand side of the hosting page. The live chat is very helpful and the tech I spoke to was knowledgeable and pleasant (and you can ‘save’ the live chat dialogue to refer to later). They have a web hosting user manual that provides a good overview.

Con: They do not offer shorter sign-up times. If you do sign-up with them, and don’t like their service you can ask for a refund within their 30 day guarantee period. Live chat and telephone access not available 24/7.

I have a couple of more things to say about hosting. Watch for that in an upcoming post.

As promised in my earlier post ‘How to choose a hosting service’, this is Part-One of my reviews.

I researched several hosting companies and will give you a quick snapshot of the two I recommend along with what I consider to be the pros and cons of each.

1 and 1

This is a huge company, but their help is always accessible. They have a toll-free number that is available 24/7 and my wait time has never been more than a couple of minutes.

I have had them help me with things that were related but not really their problem. For instance, the ftp client I was using stopped working and they walked me through downloading a better one and getting my files moved.

Pro: You can host a number of domains with one account and that will save you some money. You can buy an account for 90 days and it automatically renews — as far as I’m concerned it’s the best of both worlds. They offer a 90 day guarantee and 24/7 toll-free support. They have great FAQ and Help files.

Con: If you have a domain registered somewhere else you will have to pay more to host that domain with 1and1 or transfer the domain name to their registrar.

I use 1and1. I’ve had only good experiences with this service and support staff. They have a lot of services, so I can stay with this company as I need to expand and upgrade my accounts.

1and1 is my first pick. (Note: An added advantage with 1and 1 is having both domain registration and hosting in one account.)

In Part Two, I’ll tell you about another company I considered.