when the Web just getting started. Nobody really knew what this stuff was worth. As
competition grew, as always, prices came down. Now you can purchase a hosting account
for less than $50 US per year or roughly $4.00 per month. This will often be a basic ac-
count, but it should provide ample features for most musicians. For example, I use Hands
On Web Hosting’s Ultralite package for my sites. I pay for it annually and it’s $48. For
that, here’s what I get:
- 5 gigabyte of storage
- Unlimited bandwith
- Unlimited email accounts
- Unlimited email autoresponders (automatic emails)
- Unlimited MySQL databases (important for blogs and e-commerce)
- Wordpress and several other blogging applications
- Numerous scripts, or programs, that do all sorts of things
There are many options when it comes to hosting companies. As mentioned, I use
HandsOnWebHosting.com. Similar hosts include HostGator.com, LunarPages.com, Blue-
host.com and many more. A quick Google search for “hosting companies,” or “compare
hosting companies,” will return plenty of contenders. Also, ask around to learn what
hosting companies your friends and colleagues are using for their sites. Two of the most
important things you’ll want to find out is how their good and responsive their support
team is and how much “up” time their servers have. “Up” time refers to the amount of