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The Fundamentals of Professional Web Sites for Business Professionals |
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This Week’s: Features Step-by-Step: Choosing a Hosting Service Joy to the URL! Promoting Your Web Address Reviews "Smart Choices" is a Smart Idea The Quest for the Best in Web Hosting - FutureQuest Techniques |
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ReviewThe Quest for the Best in Web Hosting - FutureQuestFutureQuest isn't the cheapest web hosting service, but if security, reliability and excellent customer support are important to you, they are worth every penny. I've been remotely hosting web sites since 1995 and these folks are the best I've used during this period. I've used FutureQuest for two years now with complete confidence and success. Futurequest has focused on building their business in pace with their ability to support their customers. While other companies race to offer every new service, the company has unrolled additional services only after they developed the expertise to provide them reliably. The technical staff knows the Unix/Linux-web environment, heavily customizing their Linux kernel over the past years and optimizing their Apache server resulting in better response times, reliability and security. Since switching to FutureQuest I have not had a single system hack, something of a problem on all but one of the 6 other companies I have used in the past 5 years. Up-time has also increased with only two known outages of less than an hour average duration in 2 years. One was due to an area-wide power failure. The very few times I've contacted customer support, I received prompt, courteous and knowledgeable assistance. The Community Forum boards a great resource and help center, allowing FutureQuest customers to share knowledge on diverse issues In addition, the board allows FutureQuest's support staff to provide accurate and timely solutions. There is also a technical support online tutorial system with clear, useable instruction on everything from simple web coding to .htaccess setup to crontab to e-commerce questions. When a previous hosting service established an online account management system, customer support disappeared behind a cloud of new fees and web forms and I disappeared as well, so I was naturally concerned when FutureQuest introduced their Command 'n Control online account maintenance program. The program, however, has had no ill effects on customer support or service and has proven useful on several occasions when I've web access, but not telnet or ftp access, and needed to do site maintenance. Futurequest provides only Linux/Apache servers, but they can also provide just about anything you can need in a Linux environment — e-commerce packages, secure servers, internal sub-domains, autoresponders, email aliases, PHP, and much more. At the Gold level of account ($35/month with 12-month pre-pay or $40/month month-by-month), you get 6 MySQL databases at no additional cost. They even allow cron jobs with no additional cost provided the job doesn't disrupt another site or server performance. Crontab jobs are invaluable for sites wanting to run automatic maintenance programs on a regular schedule for content modifications, archiving and so forth and usually requires a dedicated server account at other companies with less technical skill. A number of CGI scripts com pre-installed with every account, but most are targets of my "10 Quick Upgrades That Say 'Professional'", so please feel free to remove them. Futurequest polled their clients in 2000 for feedback on service improvements (the first hosting service that ever did in my experience) including soliciting suggestions for pre-installed scripts. Check to see if they've added something you can use before cleaning out the entire cgi-bin. They offer a code-generator that will auto-create the web code for a simple e-mail form which can be a time saver in a coding crunch or for small offices with limited programming resources. In SummaryFutureQuest provides a Linux/Apache server hosting service offering impeccable reliability, service and support. They support all of the major Linux-environment backend languages and features plus have a handy web-based site management program. They do not have NT or MS IIS servers and while you can use MS Frontpage to build, upload and maintain your site, you can't use the Frontpage Extensions for forms and interactivity. The FutureQuest auto-code forms generator is provided as a substitute to the mostly common use of Frontpage Extensions. FutureQuest is the company I use to host my personal, business and client sites whenever possible. I have never recommended a company as often or as strongly as I do FutureQuest. Like an old Unix-guru who may not look cool but can make the servers dance at his command, FutureQuest works. If you are planning a small, brochure-style site of flat, non-interactive web pages and don't anticipate needing additional features, you can certainly find a cheaper hosting service. If, however, you need dependability, security, features and support of a Unix/Linux-environment, or you are planning to expand your site downroad with interactive or commercial features, you should check out FutureQuest. For more specific information, check the FutureQuest FAQ at http://www.futurequest.net/FAQ.php.
Click here to check out Copyright ©1995-2001 Carolyn E. Cooper. All rights reserved. |
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