This advice applies to the kind of shared hosting accounts that individuals and small organizations might use. Your site shares a server with other users.

If you want to host a Website accessible to the public, how should you go about picking the host? Most people look at the obvious things:

  • Cost (including add-ons)
  • Amount of storage
  • Number and size of databases
  • Number of email accounts
  • Free non-commercial SSL certificates
  • Speed (promised)

At the moment, I have my Websites on three different hosts:

E-Mail Phishing

Recently members of one of my mailing lists received e-mail purportedly from me, and thought that I had been hacked. I am quite paranoid about computer security, so know that my systems are all secure. It takes several hours a week (at least) to do this. What I believe happened is that someone on my list has been hacked, and one of my e-mail messages to the list was intercepted, and the list was used for phishing purposes.

In my previous blog, I talked about my new Honda Clarity plug-in hybrid electric vehicle. Of course, the first stop after picking up the new car was a visit to my long-time insurance agent to get my auto insurance transferred. When she entered the VIN for my new car, it came up as a Clarity Fuel Cell vehicle with a rating of 59—much higher than my old Accord with a 39! This raised my bill a proportionate amount, so I asked my agent to call Selective and to speak with her underwriter.

I bought a 2015 Honda Accord Hybrid and loved the pep the electric motor gave when you pushed down the accelerator. I did not like the lack of room in its trunk. After almost 7 years, the Accord Hybrid's NiMH battery pack died (although it was just barely still covered by a warranty). My habit of many short drives was not good for the NiMH battery, so I traded it in for a 2013 Accord with a V6 engine that actually got better gas mileage than the older hybrid. But ever since, I have been looking for another hybrid vehicle.

I start every day with about 24 ounces of coffee, and like strong coffee and dark roasts. If you like wimpy coffee, read no further since out tastes differ.

First off, let me dismiss K-Cup machines. I bought a deluxe K-Cup machine, and a large assortment of pods, and could not find any pod that yielded a good cup of coffee. I returned the machine and donated all the pods to a teacher's lounge.

The first thing to do is to haggle.

Call the 800-Comcast number and ask for the Customer Solutions Department. I reduced my bill about $30 a month and got more channels and higher (150 Mbps) internet. And they told me to check back during the holidays for perhaps better deals. The representative also said that Comcast would warn me in the future before special promotions expired.

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