Hostgator Review

Hostgator Features Review

Hostgator offers linux hosting only(even though they are expected to start windows hosting in the near future). All their packages come with all the features needed for a serious website. Baby and Swamp packages allow unlimited domains(add on), which makes a lot of sense if you have multiple websites. They use cPanel, which is the best control panel around. You get Fantastico script installer which will install most of the popular open source scripts with few clicks.

They support PHP4 & 5, SSH, Cron jobs, Python, Ruby On Rails etc. Also, all the packages include enough POP3 accounts(20 for Hatchling and unlimited for others).

Hostgator Performance Review

Hostgator host their sites on top-of-the-line Dual Xeon servers in their data centers at Dallas. The data centers are well equipped and connects to 10 backbone providers. They offer 99.9% uptime Guarantee which is the industry standard.

We started realtime testing of Hostgator uptime on Feb 2008. The test is done on a site hosted with hostgator, using a third party uptime monitor service. The result for the month of April shows 99.98% uptime for our test site hosted with hostgator.

Over a period of 3 months from February 2008-April 2008, Hostgator has been providing the BEST performance out of all hosts tested. There has never been a single case of site being down for more than 5 minutes at a stretch. Hostgator indeed lived up to their reputation.

Below is the screen shot from our report. For an live report, you may check the uptime report available here.

Hostgator Price Value

They have three hosting packages starting from Hatchling ($6.95 pm) to Swamp ($14.95 pm). The price is reasonable for the features and space/bandwidth provided. Recently Hostgator increased the space and bandwidth to unimaginable levels. They also reduced the price of all plans, by introducing 24 and 34 month pre-payment options. The monthly payment now have a small set up charge and is costlier than 12 month rates. Our advice - don't get excited by the unlimited space and bandwidth. They do have limits on file numbers(inodes) and CPU usage to make sure that only reasonable sized accounts remains in the shared servers. But for any site with a reasonable traffic, hostgator plans are more than sufficient. You obviously can not expect a site with few million page views a month to run on a shared host, no matter what bandwidth they offer.

Overall, Hostgator is fair priced and provides enough resources for a shared web host.

Star Wars Force FX Lightsabers

This isn't a toy for your six year old cousin (he probably doesn't even know what planet Wookies live on). This is an official reproduction of real Lightsabers from Star Wars. "Real lightsabers?", you might be thinking, "Star Wars isn't real!".

Tell that to the masses who dress up every day as Darth Vader and Princess Leia across the globe, tell that to the folks who build droid replicas in their garages, study Sith history, and practice their Huttese.

Star Wars is very real. And these working lightsabers make that extremely apparent. Featuring realistic lighting and sound effects, these close combat weapons of the Jedi and Sith from the Star Wars saga are absolutely amazing, features include:

• Glowing blades ignites with realistic power-up/down effects!
• Authentic sound effects digitally recorded from the movie.
• Features four motion sensor controlled sound effects, Power-up, idle hum, clash, and power-down
• Durable metal hilt looks and feels like a real lightsaber.
• Sturdy blade is permanently attached to the hilt
• Comes with a custom-designed display stand when you need a break from dueling.

Sure fear might lead to anger, anger leads to hate, and hate leads to suffering. But a quicker path to suffering includes not getting one of these striking Lightsabers!

The choice you make will determine your destiny:

• Darth Maul - Red Blade - (episode I A Phantom Menace) (Can be assembled as a double bladed lightsaber or used as two, battle damaged, single blade lightsabers.) Check-out an image here.
• Darth Vader - Red Blade - (episode V Empire Strikes Back)
• Mace Windu - Purple Blade - (Episode II Attack Of The Clones)
• Obi Wan - Blue Blade - (Episode III Revenge of the Sith)
• Yoda - Green Blade - (Episode II & III)

The Anakin, Darth Vader & Obi-Wan sabers require three AA batteries (not included). The Darth Maul, and Mace Windu sabers require six AA batteries (not included). The Yoda requires 3 AAA batteries (not included). Also note that the Yoda Force FX Saber is 33inches from top to bottom, so it's smaller than the others. Rightly so.

Bluehost Review

BlueHost takes a one-plan-fits-all approach to hosting, and it will certainly fit many. There are the usual ammenities (Perl, PHP, MySQL, SSI, etc.), the Fantastico script library, commerce features such as a choice of shopping cart and SSL support, and secure email. You also get a free domain registration with a one-year or longer pre-payment. On top of it all, BlueHost has a solid reputation for good service, unlike some other inexpensive providers out there.

If their plan fits your needs, BlueHost is a fantastic choice.

Detailed View

There is a part of me that wants to describe BlueHost as a techie's host, but that really would not be fair. To be sure, they are a great host for the technologically savvy types (ahem), but they are more than accessible to the relative newcomers to web development as well. BlueHost has just one hosting plan, so they've made sure it is a solid one. If you put all your eggs in one basket, it better be a good basket. BlueHost's plan is just such a basket.
Plan Name Storage Transfer Emails Price Features
BlueHost 300 GB 3,000 GB 2500 $6.95

Fantastico, free domain name, Shell access, host unlimited domains on 1 account, 50 MySQL databases, 10 PostgreSQL databases, Agora cart, osCommerce, Spam Assassin, Media Streaming, PHP, Perl, Ruby on Rails.

In contrast to many other hosts, BlueHost does not provide a site builder. It is not that BlueHost doesn't want to cater to beginners so much as that they see their job as providing an environment for your site, rather than the dictating anything about the site itself. Think of them as providing a wonderfully equipped kitchen with every possible appliance and utensil. Just boiling an egg? Fine. Making a seven course meal with dishes I can't pronounce? You're also covered. But bring your own cookbooks and ingredients.

All that said (and kitchen metaphors aside), they do include the Fantastico script library (blogs, portals, forums, galleries, wikis, calendars, and more) and a number of CGI scripts so you are not totally on your own. And of course there is PHP, Perl, MySQL, and so forth, for the roll-your-own crowd.

One of the nicest features about BlueHost is that shell access is included with every account. If you're a Windows or Macintosh person, this may not mean much to you, but if you've ever worked in Unix/Linux, you'll know that having the ability to actually get in there and poke around can be incredibly helpful when trying to tune things or fix weird problems. Sure, 99% of the time, you will never need it, but that 1% can cause hair to turn grey and your stomach lining to dissolve. Many hosts do not even give you the option of shell access and those that do charge extra for it. If this is the make-or-break option for you, BlueHost is the answer.

BlueHost is a hosting veteran, having been around since 1996. There is definitely something to be said for experience and it can very much be said for BlueHost. They know what they are doing and their customers benefit as a result. Any problem that might arise, they've seen it already! Got a strange requirement? They've probably heard it before as well.

What the Reviewers Say

* "It is hard to conceive of a better package." — Top Web Hosting Reviews
* "I really like this new hosting service." — Upperhost user review
* "The perfect hosting blend - low cost, great features, proactive support team, and reliable servers." — 100 Best
* "BlueHost is awesome!" — Web Hosting Jungle

What They Say

BlueHost has been providing hosting solutions to thousands of business and personal web sites since 1996. Our internet hosting package helps businesses and individuals get high-powered service at a fraction of the cost.

With BlueHost you can depend on:

* Highest customer service
* Quality equipment
* Maximum guaranteed uptime
* Highly functional tools for administration
* The leading feature set available
* Secure and reliable backups
* Solid and honest business

BlueHost is here to secure your business. We are confident we can provide you with the highest level of support with our friendly and patient support staff waiting to address your needs. Our veteran hosting team knows what it takes to be the best and how we can help make your site a success.