Comments on: Recent Downtimes http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/ Personal Website of Arne Brachhold, Stuttgart, Germany. Mon, 06 Sep 2010 09:13:13 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: tabrez http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-2213 tabrez Sun, 11 Jun 2006 10:05:04 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-2213 For shared hosting, http://www.siteground.com/ is also one of the better options. Until few months back, I would have recommended it whole-heartedly, but their biggest strength - technical support - has now become poorer than it was when had I signed up with them. It doesn't affect me much though, I do most of my stuff by myself. So I like their other features a lot - good disk space and bandwidth, CPanel, Fantastico(I hardly use it), FileManager(when FTP is not there), unlimited subdomains, unlimited ftp accounts, perl,php,python support, unlimited MySQL and PostGRE databases, etc. There are very few reports of downtimes and they respond very quicky if a customer reports about a downtime. There is a forum where people discuss various things related to siteground but some sections of it are heavily censored in my opinion. I only see praise over there. Except for the support(which is free for hosting related, non-technical questions, but paid(don't believe what the website says - read their terms) for hosting related technical and non-hosting related technical[this is justified]), everything else worked out fine for me. If support is not the first thing on your mind, this is a good option for cheap hosting. Some times people also come complaining in the forums that their website was disabled/suspended because of overloading the server. The cpu or the database cannot be overloaded by a single site because it is shared hosting. But the customer should be given a chance to rectify it, but sometimes they do(disable site, send email and re-enable) and sometimes they don't(just suspend the site; no option even to get all the files from their servers to our local machines so that we can move to a different provider). They only take backups once per week. We have to do the rest of the backups. Thanks for the wonderful Sitemap plugin! :) For shared hosting, http://www.siteground.com/ is also one of the better options. Until few months back, I would have recommended it whole-heartedly, but their biggest strength - technical support - has now become poorer than it was when had I signed up with them. It doesn’t affect me much though, I do most of my stuff by myself. So I like their other features a lot - good disk space and bandwidth, CPanel, Fantastico(I hardly use it), FileManager(when FTP is not there), unlimited subdomains, unlimited ftp accounts, perl,php,python support, unlimited MySQL and PostGRE databases, etc. There are very few reports of downtimes and they respond very quicky if a customer reports about a downtime.

There is a forum where people discuss various things related to siteground but some sections of it are heavily censored in my opinion. I only see praise over there.

Except for the support(which is free for hosting related, non-technical questions, but paid(don’t believe what the website says - read their terms) for hosting related technical and non-hosting related technical[this is justified]), everything else worked out fine for me. If support is not the first thing on your mind, this is a good option for cheap hosting.

Some times people also come complaining in the forums that their website was disabled/suspended because of overloading the server. The cpu or the database cannot be overloaded by a single site because it is shared hosting. But the customer should be given a chance to rectify it, but sometimes they do(disable site, send email and re-enable) and sometimes they don’t(just suspend the site; no option even to get all the files from their servers to our local machines so that we can move to a different provider).
They only take backups once per week. We have to do the rest of the backups.

Thanks for the wonderful Sitemap plugin! :)

]]> By: David http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-1944 David Fri, 02 Jun 2006 16:50:52 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-1944 Hi Arne, That's troubling to hear about downtimes. I've been using them since 27 Jan., and I did experience one outage. I'm sure they have growing pains, but I know they're doing really well financially & working hard to solve problems. If for no other reason I can't imagine that feeling of having tens of thousands of unhappy customers :) Anyway... I'm sticking around until they really disappoint; nowhere close so far. When I open new accounts for clients, I ask for a switch to php5 box; not sure if that gets me on a "new" server... Ok ciao Arne. Thanks again for the cool WP plugin! David Hi Arne,
That’s troubling to hear about downtimes. I’ve been using them since 27 Jan., and I did experience one outage. I’m sure they have growing pains, but I know they’re doing really well financially & working hard to solve problems. If for no other reason I can’t imagine that feeling of having tens of thousands of unhappy customers :) Anyway… I’m sticking around until they really disappoint; nowhere close so far.

When I open new accounts for clients, I ask for a switch to php5 box; not sure if that gets me on a “new” server…

Ok ciao Arne. Thanks again for the cool WP plugin!

David

]]> By: arne http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-1941 arne Fri, 02 Jun 2006 12:31:47 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-1941 Hi David, I've found out that I can phone them with Skype for free. This is definitely a good point, but I searched their customer forum a little bit and found various threads with complaints about downtimes, especially on newer boxes which seem to happen more than two times per week. I will have a look at the forum a few days and if it's ok, I will move as soon as possible. Thanks, Arne Hi David,
I’ve found out that I can phone them with Skype for free. This is definitely a good point, but I searched their customer forum a little bit and found various threads with complaints about downtimes, especially on newer boxes which seem to happen more than two times per week. I will have a look at the forum a few days and if it’s ok, I will move as soon as possible.
Thanks,
Arne

]]> By: David http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-1925 David Thu, 01 Jun 2006 23:40:41 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-1925 Hi Arnie, Cool I'm glad it checks out well for you. I gave them a ring to ask about the add-on domains pricing for you... they answered in less than a minute. You have to hit #2 to get in the tech support queue. Their growth has skyrocketed but instead of support getting worse... they went from monday-friday business hours' tech support to 24-7days a week. If you're feeling generous... buy it through my referral site.. either way I'm comfortable sending people to it. Cheers, David Hi Arnie,
Cool I’m glad it checks out well for you. I gave them a ring to ask about the add-on domains pricing for you… they answered in less than a minute. You have to hit #2 to get in the tech support queue. Their growth has skyrocketed but instead of support getting worse… they went from monday-friday business hours’ tech support to 24-7days a week. If you’re feeling generous… buy it through my referral site.. either way I’m comfortable sending people to it.
Cheers,
David

]]> By: arne http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-1924 arne Thu, 01 Jun 2006 23:28:48 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-1924 Hi David, thanks for the information :) I searched a little bit and found some other sites on the same box as yours (I love the ip: parameter of MSN search) and they perform very well. Of course, it's not the same speed for me like a root server at Frankfurt am Main, but it's quite OK and most of my visitors are from the US. And since the dollar exchange is quite low, it's doesn't cost much more than my current provider (but has a lot of more features!). I'll phone them these days and ask some technical details, but overall BlueHost left a good impression! Thanks, Arne Hi David,

thanks for the information :)

I searched a little bit and found some other sites on the same box as yours (I love the ip: parameter of MSN search) and they perform very well. Of course, it’s not the same speed for me like a root server at Frankfurt am Main, but it’s quite OK and most of my visitors are from the US.

And since the dollar exchange is quite low, it’s doesn’t cost much more than my current provider (but has a lot of more features!).

I’ll phone them these days and ask some technical details, but overall BlueHost left a good impression!

Thanks,
Arne

]]> By: David http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-1922 David Thu, 01 Jun 2006 22:58:22 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-1922 Hi Arne, I think you visited my hosting referral site (linked from my name on your site). That one is at Bluehost on my account. This site is also there www.fairhopebeachhouse.com (a wordpress site) on a different account. You can check the speed to see if it's good for you. Honestly I was on your site looking for a wordpress google sitemap extension.. but I do feel very comfortable recommending this host. The base price allows 6 domains to be hosted (and one of those is free if you'd like to buy from them or move the domain to their registrar). You may additionally buy blocks of 5 more add-on domains at a cost of $2.50/month. So each time you add a block of 5 it is a $30 charge. I have dozens of domains too, but for me the add-ons has been ok so far. I only use a few domains so I've bought one additional block so far. I was using dedicated server for my sites & my webdev. customer's. I'm ok with linux, but it was too much responsibility to have a bunch of customer's sites.. basically I didn't have the time to be a host. Thanks for this google sitemap extension. I'll slap you a few bucks when I implement it. I have a few WP sites that need it. Best Regards, David Hi Arne,
I think you visited my hosting referral site (linked from my name on your site). That one is at Bluehost on my account. This site is also there http://www.fairhopebeachhouse.com (a wordpress site) on a different account. You can check the speed to see if it’s good for you. Honestly I was on your site looking for a wordpress google sitemap extension.. but I do feel very comfortable recommending this host.

The base price allows 6 domains to be hosted (and one of those is free if you’d like to buy from them or move the domain to their registrar). You may additionally buy blocks of 5 more add-on domains at a cost of $2.50/month. So each time you add a block of 5 it is a $30 charge. I have dozens of domains too, but for me the add-ons has been ok so far. I only use a few domains so I’ve bought one additional block so far.

I was using dedicated server for my sites & my webdev. customer’s. I’m ok with linux, but it was too much responsibility to have a bunch of customer’s sites.. basically I didn’t have the time to be a host.

Thanks for this google sitemap extension. I’ll slap you a few bucks when I implement it. I have a few WP sites that need it.

Best Regards,
David

]]> By: arne http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-1920 arne Thu, 01 Jun 2006 22:15:40 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-1920 Hi David, thanks for your comment. I would favourite a decicated server because I can "play" with it and adjust everything like I want. But you are right, just for this site I don't need it. Calling a US number from Germany is cheaper than calling a German mobile phone, so that shouldn't be a problem. As long as they can understand me, everything is ok ;) I wonder what "Host 6 Domains On 1 Account" means.. Can I host only 6 domains on one account or are six domains included... I think it's the first, and that's not good because I own over 20 domains. Ok, most of them are not used, but it would be nice to have them all at one place. BTW: Can you give me your website address so I can see how a customer site performs from Germany? Best regards, Arne Hi David,

thanks for your comment. I would favourite a decicated server because I can “play” with it and adjust everything like I want. But you are right, just for this site I don’t need it. Calling a US number from Germany is cheaper than calling a German mobile phone, so that shouldn’t be a problem. As long as they can understand me, everything is ok ;)

I wonder what “Host 6 Domains On 1 Account” means.. Can I host only 6 domains on one account or are six domains included… I think it’s the first, and that’s not good because I own over 20 domains. Ok, most of them are not used, but it would be nice to have them all at one place.

BTW: Can you give me your website address so I can see how a customer site performs from Germany?

Best regards,
Arne

]]> By: David http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-1918 David Thu, 01 Jun 2006 20:49:24 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-1918 I'm not 100% sure whether you are looking for a dedicated server or not. I just downsized from a couple of servers at serverbeach, because it was too much of a pain for my purposes. I'm using BlueHost.com (shared hosting) because a) they answer the phone quickly, 24 hours a day(real tech support people). b) their plans are hot: 15gigs space & 400gigs transfer per month plus allows up to 6 domains to be hosted on one account. It's an annual fee of around $98. If you get unhappy at any time they'll refund your prorated fee. So I'm not sure about your cost to call a US number, but if it's not much per minute.. I'd use Blue Host in a heartbeat. I call them at least once a week to get some answer....After years of lame unreachable hosts.... it's perfect. I’m not 100% sure whether you are looking for a dedicated server or not. I just downsized from a couple of servers at serverbeach, because it was too much of a pain for my purposes. I’m using BlueHost.com (shared hosting) because a) they answer the phone quickly, 24 hours a day(real tech support people). b) their plans are hot: 15gigs space & 400gigs transfer per month plus allows up to 6 domains to be hosted on one account. It’s an annual fee of around $98. If you get unhappy at any time they’ll refund your prorated fee.

So I’m not sure about your cost to call a US number, but if it’s not much per minute.. I’d use Blue Host in a heartbeat. I call them at least once a week to get some answer….After years of lame unreachable hosts…. it’s perfect.

]]> By: Matthijs van der Vleuten http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-1899 Matthijs van der Vleuten Wed, 31 May 2006 17:54:23 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-1899 What kind of slow? High ping times, or low download speed? Here in the Netherlands, I've not experienced slow download speeds, but the ping is relatively high. But nothing can be done about that - in my experience, *any* data going to the USA has >100ms latency. As for the domains, they support any domain. It's just the registration of .de domains that's not possible. But if you already own such a domain (you do :)), you can use it without any problems. (I'm using my .nl domain there :)) If you decide to use their 'buckets of bandwidth', 9GB over 30 days will cost $7. But keep in mind that you have to buy these buckets manually, and when one expires, any bandwidth left in that bucket is lost. About the downtime, I especially like this FAQ entry: https://www.nearlyfreespeech.net/about/faq.php#DowntimeCredit - "In the event of a service failure, our revenue craters on the spot until it is fixed. The best word to describe that is "motivation."" What kind of slow? High ping times, or low download speed?
Here in the Netherlands, I’ve not experienced slow download speeds, but the ping is relatively high. But nothing can be done about that - in my experience, *any* data going to the USA has >100ms latency.
As for the domains, they support any domain. It’s just the registration of .de domains that’s not possible. But if you already own such a domain (you do :)), you can use it without any problems. (I’m using my .nl domain there :))
If you decide to use their ‘buckets of bandwidth’, 9GB over 30 days will cost $7. But keep in mind that you have to buy these buckets manually, and when one expires, any bandwidth left in that bucket is lost.
About the downtime, I especially like this FAQ entry: https://www.nearlyfreespeech.net/about/faq.php#DowntimeCredit
- “In the event of a service failure, our revenue craters on the spot until it is fixed. The best word to describe that is “motivation.”"

]]> By: arne http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet/#comment-1893 arne Wed, 31 May 2006 09:32:56 +0000 http://www.arnebrachhold.de/2006/05/31/recent-downtimes-with-alturo-a-member-of-united-internet#comment-1893 Hi Matthijs, seems a little bit slow from Germany. I'm currently using 9GB of traffic per month so just the traffic would cost $9. Beside of that, there are people in their forum who complain about downtimes.. and I don't want downtimes anymore ;) And.. they don't support .de domains. Hi Matthijs,

seems a little bit slow from Germany. I’m currently using 9GB of traffic per month so just the traffic would cost $9. Beside of that, there are people in their forum who complain about downtimes.. and I don’t want downtimes anymore ;)

And.. they don’t support .de domains.

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