The existence of free hosting sites are becoming a trend these days, they now come with cPanel, Direct Admin and other website managers, which used to only exist with paid hosting. Free hosts also offer huge space, which may reach up to 10gigs and bandwidth. You can also use your own domain or they offer you a free subdomain. These free hosts are PHP- and MySQL database-supported. Other features may include Fantastico which contains auto-install scripts that allow you to install PHP programs and a lot more, depending on your host.
But many people worry about the stability of these sites. They may worry about how do these free hosts exist without the members paying? Simple. Some free hosts offer an ad-supported plan, which means that you agree to display their banner in the form of text link ads such as Google Adsense, or they offer plans that requires you to make a certain number of posts for a given plan. You may wonder how do they make money out of those posts. The discussions created by the members will show relevant ads for their text-link ads and it will also reflect the activity of the forum, which serves as an attractant for more members, more traffic, more earnings. Some advertisers also opt to advertise their products in these sites because they are well-visited.
Others worry about the credibility of the site, if it’s a scam or not, and how long will it stay. As long as these sites get members, then they will exist. Some worries about the security of these sites. These are just few worries that makes webmasters stay away from these sites. But there are many who take risks, and that includes me. This blog has been hosted for more than 4 months by Ejam Hosting and so far, I am satisfied with this free host. I experience few downtimes and the support has been great.
What I do to maintain my hosted account and take advantage of this great free service?
1. I always backup my database. This should be your top most priority. Backing up your database can be as frequent as after every post, daily or thrice weekly.
2. I always visit my host’s website to get me updated for scheduled downtimes, for hacker threats, and for the latest news from my host’s administrator.
3. I allot a time to post in the forums to maintain my account. Many web hosts require activity of the members.
4. I avoid one-liner response to the topics posted so I wouldn’t be accused of spamming to get free hosting.
5. I click on the ads. My web host uses Adsense revenues to pay for the server and other expenses.
6. I recommend my hosts to some friends or link them. Usually, when I put a link I always emphasize the “free” word. This attracts more members to my hosts. Putting a link is also showing my appreciation to their great service. I also post about them in webmasters’ forums.
7. Before I sign up to a free hosting site, I evaluate the host first. I look for the testimonial section to see the members’ reactions about the service. I also go to a hosting review site such as Host4Free to see for the reviews. I also check for the uptime stats of the server.
Bottom line is, using this free service is a great opportunity, you only have to be cautious to avoid database loss.
Tags: Free Hosting, Internet, Webmasters Tools
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Dec 19, 2006 at 12:11:18
parang hirap nga isipin na may mga libre na walang catch. pero yung iba na free halos di mo mapapansin na may gain din sila, like yung mga free emails, free blogsites, etc etc.
Dec 19, 2006 at 20:56:13
I’m also on a free hosting + the .com.ph domain which I’m using right now. It was to promote the use of the .com.ph domain amongst Pinoy netizens. But it’s only for a year in which I must improve the site to a level that would make my sponsors happy so that they’d keep me on for free.
That’s the only catch, but I suppose it’s easier compared to posting regularly in some forums or clicking on the ads of your hosts, as this is a more objective method of gaging whether you’d keep your free hosting or not. So up to now, I’m doing all I can to improve my site and so far, it has been greatly rewarding experience.
Dec 19, 2006 at 21:16:46
[quote comment=”171″]I’m also on a free hosting + the .com.ph domain which I’m using right now. It was to promote the use of the .com.ph domain amongst Pinoy netizens. But it’s only for a year in which I must improve the site to a level that would make my sponsors happy so that they’d keep me on for free.[/quote]
Your host, are they offering free hosting until now? I think a Philippine host is better.
[quote]
That’s the only catch, but I suppose it’s easier compared to posting regularly in some forums or clicking on the ads of your hosts, as this is a more objective method of gaging whether you’d keep your free hosting or not. So up to now, I’m doing all I can to improve my site and so far, it has been greatly rewarding experience.[/quote]
Yeah, posting in a forum can be tiresome at times and most of the time you can’t keep up with the number of posts required especially when you get busy. Good thing my host only requires me to post a little number of post to maintain my plan.
Dec 19, 2006 at 21:53:49
i’m currently using ahplace hosting, laki ng bandwidth nila problem ko lang is always down ewan ko anong problem.
i’ve also have account sa frihost, malaki din ang bandwidth nila but you have to maintain certain number of post while sa ahplace naka disable na to til’ further notice… so not bad na..
Dec 20, 2006 at 07:32:47
I think they’ll offer another round of free hosting next year. Once they’re done evaluating the first-batch of which I’m included. I’ll let you know of any updates.
I never tried a foreign hosting firm before. Partly because I don’t have dollars to pay for them, but largely because I’m more comfortable knowing that I could talk with my webhost in Filipino when the need arises. Usually when it comes emergencies like downtimes and overdue bills! lol
Dec 20, 2006 at 10:08:06
I still live by the adage “you get what you pay for.” I used to scour the internet for free hosting plans, and all those hosting sites are down now.
Well, since it’s free people can’t complain that service is 100% efficient. However, seeing your blog’s performance, your host is good for a free host.
Dec 21, 2006 at 10:54:05
Oh, if only I have enough patience and time to participate in those forums, I would have had a free hosting service and a free domain by now. But I’m lazy and cheap. So good thing there’s Freehostia.com and Awardspace.com. I use both of these free hosting sites for my two blogs. Unfortunately, I’m also using their subdomains. But I plan on moving to a paid service and getting a domain for myself as soon as I my blogs’ readership goes up. I don’t fully trust free hosting sites even though the two hosts I mentioned are providing satisfactory service. Like ade said, in the long run, we get what we pay for.