Here is a little advice.  Web hosts don’t like it when you upload 5GB worth of personal backups on your web site hosting account.  Caught the discussion on this in a couple of places so thought I might weigh in from the web host’s side of things.

Now why shouldn’t you use your web hosting disk space to backup your personal documents and files?  It is your space, right?  Well yes and no.  You see, uploading or downloading large chunks of data to and from your hosting account can often cause the server in question to go a little, how do you say, bonkers?  You have time out issues, connection problems, server resources and a whole truckload of things to worry about.  Not to mention there is no real security there (unless you put it there yourself, and do you trust yourself with being your own security expert?). If these documents are important put them in the hands of somebody who will guarantee you’ll get them backed up right and backed up securely.

If I haven’t won you over yet - I am about to.  There are already services out there that specialize in this type of Online storage.  Web hosting in the traditional sense, from places like BlueFur, Lunarpages or the like are for web sites, scripts and things of that nature.  For personal backup and storage I could recommend going to a place like Amazon S3, Carbonite or Mozy.

I was starting to use Carbonite myself before my PC melted, and from what I saw I liked it a lot.  Definitely better than trying to FTP everything I have up to a web hosting account.

The thing to remember here is to always read your terms of service and acceptable use policy.  Web hosts often spell out what you can and can not do with that hosting account you bought from them in black and white.

URLmetrix.com brings in a quick and useful way to check your web site’s Online popularity via a slew of resources.  Wondering what your Google PageRank is?  How about your Google or Yahoo backlinks?  Check them all out on this one single web site.  Definitely a resource to bookmark.

Here are all the services they cover:  Your web page title, Google PageRank, Alexa rank, Compete rank, Quantcast rank, Technorati rank, Google Indexed, Yahoo Indexed, Google Backlinks, Yahoo Backlinks and Delicious Links.

For each thing it scores it will also give you a link to go get more information.

Feel like some of the other hosting news sites are getting a little long in the tooth?  Now I read all types of hosting news and information resources from all around the Web.  I really have high hopes for a new one that just broke onto the scene.  Gawkwire.com wants to be your new web hosting and Internet news resource.

From industry news, to domain stories.  From big business to the little guy.  Gawkwire is already providing news from all corners of the hosting world and doing well at it.  Here is how Robert Lang, Gawkwire managing editor describes this new hosting resource:

“We designed Gawkwire to build on the strengths of other hosting news portals and magazines. Unlike many sites, our content is updated continuously, not once a day or even once a week. We take it a step further, by creating a dialogue with our readers that enhances the overall experience of our site.  And we don’t stop with just news articles. Gawkwire’s rich content covers a wide spectrum, with everything from video blog posts to executive interviews.”

I am very excited to see the launch of something new out there in the hosting news bubble.  Too long has the field grown more than a little stagnite, and the hopes for Gawkwire is to add a little ‘bit more spice, interest and information to the world of Internet and hosting news.

From web site launches to why you shouldn’t backup your PC to your digital hosting home.  This podcast has been in production for two weeks thanks to a slew of interruptions but I am happy to say finally the Web Hosting Show is back on the air.

Download the Web Hosting Show, Episode 154!
Running Time: 16 minutes | File Size: 7.17 MB

Here are just a few topics from this week’s episode of the Web Hosting Show.

• What is Your IP and Why Do You Need It?
• Don’t Backup My Documents on Your Hosting Account!
• Checking Web Popularity with URLmetrix?
• Gawkwire, a new Internet and Hosting News Site Launches!

Podcast Exclusive - Part 2 of Our “How to Purchase a Web Hosting Business” Series with Web Strategist Errett Cord. Download the podcast to check it out!

Ever have one of those periods of time where it seems like nothing is going right?  Two weeks ago my main podcasting powerhouse of a machine was fried and I was still waiting to get it back from HP.  Last weekend, I had no power due to a line of wicked weather.  This week I am knocking on wood and tossing spill salt over my shoulder because thus far, nothing has interupted me.

See what happens when you make fun of The Planet explosion?

Alright, I know this probably is not the good news you were looking forward to starting your Monday with, believe me - it wasn’t in my plans either.  Due to the Thursday night storms we had here in my area I had been knocked offline.  Just got power restored late yesterday afternoon.

The good news is all is fine here, just a few broken tree limbs and a big mess to clean up.  Bad news is that a new episode of the Web Hosting Show podcast may be delayed another week.  Last week the PC was being repaired, this week the power was out.  Now next week, even if there is an earthquake, flood or some other natural disaster I promise I’ll et something recorded for you all.

Thanks for your understanding, it is greatly appreciated!

Well, I tried - but looks like episode 154 of the Web Hosting Show will be delayed again this week, due to the fact that my main production machine for the podcast has yet to come back from HP.  It should be coming in Monday or Tuesday, so if I get the time - perhaps I can get an episode recorded mid-week.

I apologize to anybody looking forward to downloading the next edition, but I can promise you that after I get my PC back from getting the power supply replaced we will be back up and running again.  While we are in this unexpected hiatus - would be a great time to go browse through the archives.

Also would like to open this post’s comments up to feedback about any and all aspects of the podcast to get some of your feedback. What you you like, what do you hate, what do you want to see more of?  If you have any thoughts, get to leaving a comment!