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Free
web hosting companies are aplenty,
ranging from the larger ones such as
007sites and 0catch, to the smaller
and more obscure ones that lurk in
the corners of cyberspace. At first
look, free web hosting seems like a
promising deal: a free web host that
supports your website, letting you
effectively earn money and conduct
business without any costs involved.
However, let us take a look at the
implications, advantages and
disadvantages of using free web
hosting.
Free web host providers are
generally supported by ads; banner
ads, pop-up ads, text link ads,
top/bottom ads, frame ads, are all
standard fare of free web hosting
websites. The pertinent question is:
do you want these ads to be
displayed prominently on your
website. The answer really lies in
what you intend to use your website
for.
A business website, one designed to
appeal to clients and attract
customers would definitely not want
these advertisements spoiling not
only their business image, but
effectively driving clients,
disgusted by the pop-up spam, away.
Even for a personal blog, these
advertisements can occasionally get
on your nerves. Is the few dollars a
month that you save worth the
frustration and irritation of
incessant advertising appearing on
your website?
Reliability and uptime are keywords
in the web hosting industry, of
which free web hosts tend to lack
both. Free web hosts usually lack a
dedicated customer service. This
means that your website might just
disappear in the middle of the night
and it can take up to weeks for it
to get back online. This means a
loss of visitors, traffic, and
possibly some regular visitors may
think that your website has been
shut down. The consequences for a
website, especially a business
website, are unthinkable.
Does this mean that there is no role
for free web hosting for a proper,
serious website and budding website
owner? The role of free web hosting
is not to replace their paid
counterparts, but rather to serve as
a testing ground for new website
owners. Free web hosting allow the
website owner to get an idea of the
website, and to allow him to
experiment with new ideas with no
consequence. Hosting a site on a
free web host, even for just a week
or two, can allow the web owner to
collect real time information and
data without signing a 12 or 24
month contract with a paid service.
You can obtain free web hosting at
almost any provider available on the
internet. A quick search in Google
will easily turn up hundreds of free
web hosting providers. How do we
pick the best free web host? A good
way to decide is to compare the
number of advertisements that will
be run on your website, as well as
the amount of space they give you.
This can range from anywhere between
50MB to 700MB. With the numerous
choices available you can take your
time to pick which free web hosting
program suits you the best.
Ultimately, if you are moving on to
a paid service, the free web host
you choose is not of crucial
importance. However, getting a good
free web host is afterall beneficial
for your website publicity.
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