Internet Service Providers
If you want to use the Internet, you need to have an Internet Service Provider (ISP). And many ISPs include a small amount of free Web space to create Web pages quickly and easily. ISP Web pages are perfect for people who want to put up small sites with low amounts of traffic. There are usually rate restrictions, and most ISPs don't offer a lot of features with their Web space.
ISP hosting is best for personal Web pages that don't get a lot of traffic. If you plan to run a business, you should only use your ISP hosting for testing and preparation of your site, rather than the site itself.
Free Web Hosting
If you have an ISP that doesn't offer Web space, free Web hosting is good. There are many free hosting providers and a lot of them offer advanced services like CGI, shell access, PHP, SSI, and other advanced topics. Free hosting is usually supported by advertising.
Free hosting is best for personal Web pages and very small business Web pages. Because they are supported by advertising, they are not ideal for any serious business. If you plan to run a business on your site, free hosting is great for testing your site and preparing the pages, but not good for running the business unless you can turn off the advertising.
Standard Paid Hosting
With paid hosting, you pay some money typically once a month for space and services on a Web hosting provider's site. Prices range from $1-2USD to several hundred per month. Generally, it depends upon what services you want. Services include CGI access, database support, ASP, ecommerce, SSL, extra space, extra bandwidth, and more.
Standard paid hosting is a great option for most Web-based businessses. Be sure to examine the options available from your server so that you get what you need. And don't focus solely on price - changing hosting providers can be difficult and expensive.
Domain Hosting
Domain hosting can be hard to understand. Instead of paying for the Web page space, you pay for your domain and then have your Web site hosted anywhere you like. With Domain hosting, you can use your ISP or free hosting service, and still reap the benefits of having a personalized Web site URL. Domain name hosting is sometimes referred to as URL redirection.
Domain name hosting is perfect for small businesses that don't have a lot of money to spend on Web hosting.
Colocation
Colocation puts your Web server in the machine room of a larger company. You connect to their very high-speed Internet connection. Colocation comes in managed and unmanaged versions.
Colocation is a great option for small to medium sized businesses that want more control over their Web hosting. With managed colocation, it's almost like having an IT department, even if your company is still fairly small.
Direct Internet Access
With direct access, you host your site yourself. You need a Web server computer and software and a very high-speed Internet connection with a dedicated IP address.
Hosting your site yourself offers you the most control over your Web server. Companies that have large data centers or just want to control every aspect of their Web and Internet access should look into this type of hosting. Be sure to contact your ISP before setting up a direct connection on a DSL or consumer ISP connection.
