This How-To Joomla! article on how to find the right web host is an introduction. Check back here for a link to a much fuller article in a couple of days...
CPANEL...
Cpanel is proprietary software found on many web servers. It enables you to have a control panel which groups many of the functions you will need to manage. In general it is easy to use, even for beginners.
But not all web servers will be running "standard cpanel" and this may mean some programs you want to install on your server may not function properly.
Added to this, there are many hosts who promise you "unlimited domains" and even unlimited storage/bandwidth. The same outcome can happen with these hosts : difficulty in getting programs to run properly, let alone difficulty in managing other jobs on your server space.
So, how do you know if you're with a good host, with separate cpanel accounts for every domain name/web site you want to have? The answer is difficult, as it's only a matter of trial and error.
Our trial and error has been refined down into three packages, which we've now used for some 6 years :
1/ A budget host for one domain for Joomla!
2/ A budget host with fully separate cpanel accounts (Choose "Budget Reseller")
3/ A Powerful Reseller account (Choose "Advanced Reseller" - for when you want to sell accounts to other people, or have more powerful server accounts for your own separate cpanel domains)
The above three types of accounts will all run Joomla! fine, as well as every other program that we've ever wanted to install.
