601. 3 hours spent on resolving a web-hosting problem

Recently, a client kindly gave me the name of the US web-hosting site which is much cheaper than what I have been paying. I thanked this young man.

From my experience, the cheaper the hosting fee, the less standard of service will be offered. This is a fact of life.

So, when I decided to start my website sometime in 1997, I decided to choose a reputable web-hosting service called Mindspring. It was acquired by Earthlink. The company recently upgraded their services. So there is again some disconnection in my web-hosting services. My webmaster is ill with cancer and so I am on my own and have to resolve my problem. In any case, he has no time for me too as he has his own things to do.

Fortunately, I had chosen a reputable web-hosting site in 1997, otherwise, readers will not be viewing www.toapayohvets.com anymore.

In choosing a reputable firm like Earthlink, I have the "Live Chat" service which is as good as talking directly with an agent. I type my questions and the agent replies.

Recently, I could not upload my files to Earthlink. It took 2 hours before the problem is diagnosed by the agent. The first agent gave up and went away. The 2nd agent had patience. It was trial and error but he discovered the problem which was one of the process of ftp. The ftp was not standardised earlier when Earthlink upgraded its services. Well, I learnt a bit about this aspect which probably frightens almost all vets as it is very technical. It is like learning a new subject like architecture and requires time and patience. Time is always in short supply to vets. We have so many things to do rather than web-hosting.

Without "Live Chat" or support services, I will have to close down my Toa Payoh Vets as Singapore does not seem to have good and inexpensive interested and experienced webmasters for the small businesses. In conclusion, it is wise to get a reputable US webhosting provider rather than go for the cheapest. There will be support services and better security.