Sunday, June 29, 2008

WordPress Specific Webhosts: Are They Worth They Money?

By Chris Channing

WordPress, perhaps one of the most popular blogging platforms to date, isn't exactly the first priority of every webhost around. Many webhosts are too general to provide optimal support for a specific product like WordPress. But if you value your blog, and are serious with its development and growth, looking for a webhost with WordPress-specific options would be in your best interest.

Features To Look Out For In WordPress Hosting

First and foremost, WordPress users want a platform that is easy to install. This means that advanced editing of configuration files is out of the question- and webhosts know it. Even general webhosts give access to auto-installers for WordPress, so the initial installation shouldn't be what worries bloggers.

One big downfall for normal webhosts is their lack of support for recent upgrades. When an important security upgrade comes out, WordPress users need to upgrade their blogs as soon as possible. If they don't, they may run the risk of losing their entire blog to hackers. With normal webhosts the upgrading can be delayed, since they aren't specializing in any single product.

When a blogger needs to upgrade a blog, he or she will soon find that the "one-click" upgrade feature most webhosts have is very dangerous. These installers write over previous files: meaning that old themes, plugins, and other content can be lost for good. In this case, WordPress-specific hosts take the win as they allow for better upgrading options.

WordPress users will attest that blogs take up a nice amount of bandwidth. This is because blogs use databases to store the vast majority of their information, meaning multiple connections to the database could overload the backend of a blog. In this scenario, WordPress users need a host that allows for flexible bandwidth plans. The host should also have a sturdy hardware setup so that a bottleneck performance issue is not created at the database level.

Bloggers Get Added Bonuses

Whenever it comes to the normal webhosts, there aren't many extra features they can offer for WordPress users. But with the WordPress hosts, there are usually a myriad of extra features to enjoy. This can range from special plugins and themes to other WordPress-specific services.

Interestingly, Wordpress hosts have an overlooked benefit: their exclusivity of their WordPress themes. Free WordPress themes are popular, but it seems that everyone has them. But thanks to the exclusivity of WordPress themes from webhosts, the problem of having a unique design is easily solved.

Custom designs for WordPress blogs can easily run hundreds of dollars. As compared to the low fees of a WordPress host, it's no contest as to which route every WordPress user should take in regards to themes.

In the end, webhosts that specialize their services for WordPress users have some of the best deals around for blog fanatics- or anyone just looking to maintain their own website without the hassle!

About the Author:

No comments: