Tired of hosting your own billing software, or maybe you don’t have the time or manpower to manage your invoices on your own? I’ve been tipped off to an awesome service that will handle all your financial management and I’ll tell you and only you about it on this week’s edition of the Web Hosting Show.

Download the Web Hosting Show, Episode 144!
Running Time: 11 minutes | File Size: 4.83 MB

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

• FreshBooks Offers a Better Billing Solution!
• Another Web Hosting Union to be Organized?
• Xdrive Delvers a Delightful Desktop Client!
• Know Anybody who Does Plesk Shared Linux Hosting?
• Another of the Free (no string attached) Web Hosting Deals!

The tower of podcasting power, to sweet to be sour, funky like a money the Web Hosting Show is ready to go. Got tons of new stuff to share with you and send your way, so why haven’t you started downloading yet?

Yes, Yahoo has jumped in on the unlimited hosting bandwagon. For $11.95 a month (plus a $25 setup fee) you can grab a shared hosting account with unlimited disk space, unlimited bandwidth, unlimited e-mail storage, and 1,000 email accounts.

Now usually with an offer like this, I would be pretty mad because they are selling a service they can not possibly deliver. There is no such thing as unlimited anything in the web hosting world. Now why has Yahoo still not gotten on my bad side yet? Well, unlike other hosting companies they spell out what “unlimited” really means.

What is the Catch?

First thing first, they prohibit hosting any files that are not linked with your web site your hosting. That is a good thing. With unlimited disk space they spell it out like this:

You can now create as large a site as you like (you won’t face an upper limit, or “ceiling”), but we will place some constraints on how fast you can grow. In other words, you can add as much content as you want, but maybe not all at once. The vast majority of our customers’ sites grow at rates well within our rules, however, and will not be impacted by this constraint.

The explanation for unlimited bandwidth is also along the same terms. The FAQ for that says…

In most cases, if you use our service appropriately, visitors to your web site will be able to download and view as much content from your site as they like. However, in certain circumstances, our server processing power, server memory, or anti-abuse controls could limit downloads from your site.

So I have to give Yahoo’s web hosting division a pat on the back for actually putting it down in writing what unlimited means.

Looking to put up a simple site for free? One new service that caught my attention is Webnode. They promise that you can use your own domain, create an awesome personal page or blog, and that you can do this from anywhere.

In their pitch from the front page, that do make it sound worth looking into deeper for sure:

Webnode brings you a brand new innovative way of creating and editing advanced websites by just using a web browser. The system is very easy to use and is fully interactive. Real-time fast editing as you see it in the browser. By using Drag-and-Drop from the toolbar you can add new content such as polls, forums, articles, catalogues, widgets such as PayPal and much more.

Here are only a few of the many features they provide:

• Real Time Editing
• Drag and Drop Technology
• Gadgets and Widgets
• 40+ Design Templates
• Polls, FAQ’s, RSS, and Webmail

So where is the catch? I have yet to find one yet - but to monitize the service, I can bet they will be adding down the road higher disk space and bandwidth limits for a fee or other services to get you to fork over your cash. If your low on cash and want to build yourself a simple/yet pretty web site, Webnode is worth checking into.

One phrase that gets tossed around a lot in web hosting is “oversold”. This is what happens when a web host is selling more server space than they actually have got, in the hope that their clients will never actually use the full offer that they bought into.

Take this as an example. Tom had a pie that he cut into six pieces. Tom’s problem is that he wants to give pie slices to twelve of his friends. When all of his friends show up to eat some pie, he gives each of his twelve friends a half of a pie slice and promises them if they need more pie they can have it. Tom’s problem?

He only had one pie - so he hopes his friends get full off that half a slice.

Now why does this happen? Well with prices for hosting getting cheaper and the offers for hosting as far as disk space and bandwidth go getting bigger, some web hosts don’t have any other choice.

From a purely visual side by side comparison if one place offers you 50 GB of space for five dollars and another offers you 150 GB of space for five dollars, most people are going to take the bigger offer.

Is there a real future for overselling? In the long haul - I don’t think so. Eventually web hosts are going to run into a bottle neck of what they can really promise in comparison with the technology that is out there. My hope is that people actually start to grow suspicious of such offers and rise up against it. When your getting a gift though - you don’t want to ask why or how your getting it, you just take it and smile.

For that one simple fact, the future of overselling might be a little longer in the tooth than expected.

Have a look around, web hosting is getting cheaper and cheaper by the minute. Have you ever stopped to think what price you are really paying though when it comes to these discount prices? Now I am not looking to paint every low cost web host with a broad fraud brush.

There are some providers out there that have the business plan in place to handle it. They just might be harder to find.

Do You Pay for it in Perks?

Some web hosts will get you in the door with the low prices, and then when it comes to addons or accessories to your shared hosting account they stick you with the true costs of hosting. This can often happen with upgrades for JSP and ASP support and other upgrades some, but not all, will need.

Keep an Eye on How Long Your Signing Up For!

For an example, lets say Dummy Example Web Host is offering you a hosting deal you can not beat. It is $3.50 a month for 500 GB Disk Storage and 5 TB of Bandwidth. Now when you get on the order page you notice that this $3.50 a month price is only good if you sign up for the 10 year hosting plan. To get this, you must pay up-front: $420. Now if you know they are good then you have no worries but if you have no history with the company do you really want to sign up with them for the next decade? Better yet - will they even be around that long?

The one thing you have to remember (and I have said it time and time before) you have to do you homework when it comes to signing up with any web hosting company. Don’t be fooled by the special deal - and find out if they really are the best of the best or just another guy with a server in his basement trying to make a buck.

Do I Blame the Web Hosting Companies? No!

I can not blame the web hosting companies, because they need to compete with the next guy down the street and make money while doing so. Thanks to the fact that we have so much competition out there for the proverbial bottom dollar; almost everybody undercuts and over-provides. The secret of cheap hosting is to find the one that does so the best.

On a day to day basis I get a lot of hosting related links sent my way to review and check out. Here are some of the latest hosting related web sites that have caught my eye and got my attention.

TheWebHostBiz.com
This web site wants to be your guide to starting and running a successful web hosting business. Whether you are just starting out, or you have been around for some time, TheWebHostBiz.com features the tools, applications, service providers and resources that will make your web host business a success.

ServerADay.com
Well the short story for this web site given on the web site itself is “We think all those ‘deal-a-day’ websites out there are cool so we thought what the heck. We have something to sell, so why not give it a shot.” Also being a division of OLM means you don’t have to worry about any shady deals coming forth.

iWeb’s Server Warehouse Clearance Deals
This is another server deal finder that will allow you to hunt for a server of your own. You can list by price and “time of posting” for your deals. The inclusion of an RSS feed for the deals is also a winner. This looks like a great new way for the iWeb people to market themselves to the bargain hunters.

Remember you can always send me your hosting related links at mitch@mitchkeeler.com. New or old, I always love to check them all out.

On this week’s broadcast of the Web Hosting Show - I have for you an episode filled with suggestions and resources from all around the web hosting world. We have the newest and the best web hosting links for you here on this week’s podcast.

Download the Web Hosting Show, Episode 130!
Running Time: 12 minutes | File Size: 5.30 MB

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

• CP Site Saver - My New Favorite Backup Tool
• 50 GB of Free Hosting With ADrive.com
• Resource to Teach About the Web Hosting Business
• Cheap Server Deals from Brand Name Dealers
• Quick Hosting Holiday Ideas and Suggestions

I am your web hosting suggestion master here to sort through all the crap so that you can get the best of the best, better than all the rest as far as new and exciting resources go.