Category: Web Hosting

Tips for effective web design

Web design is not simply about adding images and words to a homepage- its about implementing clever designs which incorporate strategy, structure, visual impact, usability and conversion elements. In this article, we look at some elements which one needs to look for in effective web design.

Usability:
Usability is probably the most important element of effective web design, as nobody wants to navigate a web page which isnt easy to use and does not help the user to find information. When one enters a website, they are there for a purpose, and that purpose is to find information, contact the company or perhaps purchase a product. If the design of your website does not make this process simple, then users are going to look elsewhere.

Establish your websites goals:
Well-designed websites need to be focused around specific goals. This means that you need to think about what the aim of your website is, and it needs to be easy for users to perform the action which they want to take. For example, think about including a contact form for information pages, and allow resources to be easily downloadable. Users will get frustrated if results dont happen fast enough.

Visual Hierarchy:
Certain parts of your website are more important than others, so you need to get these parts more attention by means of visual hierarchy. You should rank elements on your website based on your business objective. More important information such as calls to action and business propositions would usually come first, while other less important information wont be as visually prominent.

Effective writing:
Effective web design is also about incorporating effective writing which is adjusted towards users preferences and browsing habits. Rather than using promotional writing which is long and exaggerated, get straight to the point and use images along with your text to illustrate your message. You should also use headers to break up content so that its easier to read. Use language on your website which is easy to understand and keeps users hooked. As mentioned before, users dont want to spend time searching for information on your website. They want the process to be swift and easy.

Impact:
A good website should have an impact on visitors, meaning that it incorporates clear images, uses colour smartly, and fonts which are easy to read. Always think from the users perspective as this will help you decide whether this is a website which you would want to visit and share.

Reasons to Choose Dedicated Web Hosting

If you are planning to embark on your very first website, you would need a service in the internet industry called website hosting. A hosting service is actually a part of the internet because it is where individuals and organizations will be storing their websites and online information and connecting them to the internet. Web hosts are actually companies that offer space on their the servers to various clients for a fee.

In the World Wide Web, there are many types of website hosting that are available. The first one is the free hosting. This type of hosting allows people to upload their websites on a shared server without any form of payment. This means that the data center for the website is free to use and there would be no form of payment or lease involved. Free web hosting is not completely free though, web hosts will usually make you display their adverts or advertising on your site, this also looks a bit unprofessional and can deter people away from your site. With free hosting you will also find that you will share an older server crammed with other sites, and have limited bandwidth and uptime.

The second and probably most common form of web hosting is shared hosting. Shared hosting is a collection of many websites which share a single server. This server will house hundreds of different websites and will allocate a certain amount of resources such as web space, bandwidth etc to each website account depending on what web hosting plan they have chosen.

The other type is the dedicated website hosting service. This type of hosting requires users to pay for the full use of a server, usually by leasing it on a monthly basis. A dedicated hosting service is better than shared hosting service because of several reasons:

The first one is that all the dedicated servers resources are yours completely. In the case of shared hosting accounts, these servers are shared by several other websites. Having a dedicated website hosting service will provide you with extra security, your files will be protected since you are the only one who would be able to access the server and your files will not share the same server with other people’s website files.

Aside from security, the second reason is on bandwidth. Since no other websites would be competing for your bandwidth, your site will will have all available bandwidth at it’s disposal. This means that more users would be able to enter your site and you website speed and performance will be greatly enhanced.

The final reason as to why you should choose a dedicated website Hosting service is because of storage. In most shared servers the storage space is limited and some do not give you the ability to upgrade. In a dedicated website hosting service, you will easily have enough storage for maximum online growth.

Why Do You Need Access to Support from Your Web Hosting Provider

With most hosting providers, tech support comes as a standard as part of the hosting package; however, the standard and quality of the tech support provider is often what defines a good or bad web host. For many business owners, they leave the technical side of the website up to the web designer. They therefore don’t necessarily understand why having reliable tech support is so important. If, however, you are a smaller business, you may have had the need to call the support desk in which case you will know how valuable it is to have a helpful and friendly voice on the other end of the line.

Day and Night Accessibility

Your web host should have a support desk that is accessible 24/7. You should be able to reach them by email or telephone at any time of day or night. Many people may ask why the 24 hour accessibility is important. Your website is accessible around the globe 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If clients browsing the web try to log onto your website and it’s down, they may think you are no longer in business or they may simply get frustrated when they can’t access web pages. That just creates a bad impression of your company. Customer expectations are so high these days with technology making websites ever more efficient that if a website is not working properly, they usually just go onto the next company. If there is a problem with your website, no matter how small, you need to be able to fix it right away. Usually, you need to be able to contact the web host to find out if it is a server problem or a problem just with your website. This is why it is important for them to be accessible 24/7.

Technical Expertise

Even for many web designers, there are times when they need to consult the expertise of web hosting providers. Your web host service provider can glance at the server on which your site is hosted and troubleshoot to see if there are any problems. This can save you and your web designer many hours of hassle trying to find the problem on your website. A good web hosting provider will also have advanced technical expertise. They can give you advice when needed and help you find solutions to any hassles you are experiencing with your website. This expertise can prove to be very valuable when you are trying to decide what hosting package best suits your needs and if you need to upgrade your website at any stage.

Website Maintenance

For most types of hosting packages, your web host service provider is responsible for maintaining the server on which your website is hosted. This means that they check and make sure that all the operating systems of the server are functional. This is important to your website because, without proper maintenance, the website can slow down and become problematic. Part of the maintenance is to ensure that the anti-virus protection is current and active. This is particularly important if you have a shared hosting package. A virus that gets into one website can infiltrate other websites on the shared server if the server is not properly maintained. If you suspect that you may have a virus or spyware on your website, you can contact the web host support desk and ask them to run some diagnostics. Their superior knowledge and systems should be able to help you pinpoint the problem.

Internet Hosting Is The Most imperative Aspect Of small business

Finally decided on something to base your business on and ready to start building the internet pages? Getting through the initial aspects of opening your web business may be a struggle. Getting all your ideas into an ordered layout etc etc. Well now that you have all your ideas prepared what to do then?

The most valuable feature you will need to have for a thriving internet small business is what type of Internet hosting you will go for to host your internet pages.

Why?

Well for one, your internet host will control all your html pages, all graphics, scripts and that. What happens once your host goes offline? Does your website stay up or go down? It goes down. When your website goes down, you lose customers, thumbs down sales all through the downtime meaning a loss of possible returns.

Take time to discover a high-quality host that will suffice each aspect of your small business. Do some research and ask some questions.

If you are searching for a shared hosting solution, find out if the host is overselling its servers. Overselling is when a Web host packs too numerous customers on one server, putting strain on the server resources. Shared hosting is not recommended for small business type Websites that need performance for its users, but it will be enough a business just starting out.

Another type of hosting solution is a dedicated server. A dedicated server is a server dedicated to merely you. It is the most Costly out of hosting solutions, but will provide the most enduring Solution. No one else has an account on the server, so all server resources are used for you. A managed dedicated solution is when your host will install operating systems, upgrades to software, or security fixes for you. You may call them any time to repair a problem as that?s what you pay for.

A step lower a fully dedicated server is what is called a VPS or Virtual Private Server. A VPS is almost like a dedicated server but the physical server will Allow a Small number of other users on it. You still maintain complete control over your section of the server, you may install Whatever you need or upgrade. The server resources are shared amongst users, but numerous internet hosts promise you a fixed amount of resources devoted to your account.

If not Needing to shell out a pretty significant Payment on internet hosting for a opening small business, I would suggest at least starting out with a virtual private server. Once you outgrow the VPS you may move onto a dedicated server of your own.

Before signing up to any internet host, do some research! Find numerous hosts that have what you are searching for and Look for reviews, your Web business depends on it. Cheaper is not always better at least in Web hosting!

Linux Php Vs Windows Asp Web Hosting Comparison

One of the first decisions to make while choosing web hosting is – what platform to opt for? Windows or Linux? PHP or ASP?

First of all, note that sites with static pages such as blogs can run on either Windows or Linux hosting platforms. These only use HTML and CSS, which are supported equally well by both operating systems.

When you require dynamic content on your website, such as eCommerce facilities, forums or other forms of scripting, then you need to pay attention to your hosting platform.

Traditionally, Linux servers are used for scripts based on PHP or Perl. These scripts include WordPress, Drupal, Joomla and many other blogging or content management systems. Windows servers, on the contrary, are used with scripts written in ASP, ASP(dot)Net or Access. MySQL works equally well with both Windows and Linux. Today, cross-platform scripting – that is, scripting with PHP/Perl on Windows or with ASP/ASP(dot)NET/Access on Linux – is permitted by some ISPs. However, cross-platform scripting will never give the smooth performance that a program does when run on its native platform – it is a bit like using emulators to run programs that are not native to the OS. There is one exception here, though – PHP runs equally well on Windows and Linux, so Linux-based hosting is no longer essential to run PHP-based scripts and applications.

Most computer geeks will advise you to go for Linux hosting, as Unix – on which Linux is based – is a far more secure and stable platform than Windows’ alternative. While this is demonstrably true – think of the millions of viruses for Windows systems, and the rare bug that crops up in Linux – it is also true that efficient server administration can render a Windows system as secure as a Linux one.

Speedwise, there is no clear winner between Windows and Linux. Some things work faster on Windows, while others work faster on Linux. So to choose between operating systems, cost and security would have to be the deciding factors. Linux here is substantially cheaper, as it is an open-source system, and most of its applications are also under GNU public licenses – in other words, free. Windows hosting comes with the added cost of the OS, and certain applications that the hosting company has to continually pay for.

As for the ASP-PHP comparison, ASP is almost universally the winner where speed is concerned. However, the learning curve in ASP or ASP(dot)NET is much steeper than in PHP – something that can backfire for advanced users looking for greater control and freedom. PHP, however, is still one of the most popular scripts around thanks to its versatility and the solid, useful applications being written using it.

In the end, choosing between Windows ASP and Linux PHP as hosting platforms becomes a matter of individual preference and contingent need. Depending on your budget, security concerns and familiarity with the computer language, you can pick either of them and successfully run a dynamic website for a long time to come.