First of all, some people are worried that they will not be able
to use Linux hosting because they run Windows on their PCs.
However, what operating system you run on your own PC is
irrelevant to which web hosting environment you can use, because
the latter is run remotely on a web server, where your website
files will be uploaded.
Linux and Microsoft Windows are two different operating systems.
Windows is a well-known household name and does not require much
introduction. Linux is a new version of the Unix operating
system. Both these operating systems make excellent environments
for web hosting. However, there are some differences between
them.
To help you decide whether Linux or Windows hosting is better
for you, we look at the following elements:
Cost
Linux is known as an "open source" operating system. i.e. there
is no licensing fees to pay. Therefore, compared to Windows,
Linux is very cheap. Starting with Windows XP, Microsoft has
begun enforcing software activation. This means that a single
copy of Windows can only be installed on one computer. With
Linux, once you own a copy, you are free to install it as many
times as you wish on any number of computers.
Reliability
Linux is reputed to be very stable and reliable. This means that
a Linux server is much less likely to crash than a Windows
server. Subsequently, a Linux server will mean more 'up time'
for your website.
Experience
Linux has many more years of experience than Windows in hosting.
Speed
There is no real difference in speed between Linux and Windows,
but Linux is slightly faster in processing basic web pages.
Functionality
Windows support ASP (Active Server Pages), a Microsoft
programming/scripting language, which allows you to build
dynamically database-driven web pages by connecting to a
Microsoft database such as SQL Server or Access. Linux does not
support ASP nor Microsoft databases, but uses MySQL database
instead.
If you use Microsoft Frontpage to create your website, it
doesn't mean that you have to choose Windows hosting. All Linux
accounts come free with Frontpage extensions, which allow you to
upload your Frontpage website to your web space on a Linux
server.
Scripts
There are many CGI programs available on the Internet. The
majority of these are Perl scripts and have been developed on
Linux / Unix web servers. So they tend to install more smoothly
and operate more reliably on a Linux server. Moreover, many Perl
scripts are downloadable from the Internet free of charge.
To summarise, most users find that Linux hosting is easier to
use, more reliable, provides free, open source software and is
much cheaper than Windows hosting. So unless you particularly
need to use Windows specific features such as ASP and an Access
database, it is probably a better choice to choose Linux over
Windows. For more information on Linux hosting, visit
.
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