web hosting

Umbraco: The Microsoft .NET-based Open-source CMS

Originally released in 2001, Umbraco is one of the only open-source content management systems built on ASP and Microsoft’s .NET technology stack.  To no surprise, the platform isn’t necessarily made for beginners, yet developers who prefer to utilize .NET web technologies.  For those who are not familiar, this article will provide more detail on the features and capabilities of the Umbraco CMS.

Core Technologies

Umbraco is a content management solution that thrives off Microsoft web technologies, running on the Windows Server platform and SQL Server or VistaDB database system.  Built on the NET 2.0 framework, ASP.NET 2.0 and C#, it supports both NET User Controls and .NET Customer Controls without having to do much at all as they can easily be added using macros.  The CMS also provides you with full access to the Umbraco API, which has more than 15,000 lines of code.

Presentation

Unlike other open-source systems, Umbraco doesn’t have a template engine, yet a single template system, which can be viewed as both an advantage and disadvantage.  The good aspect is that you do not have to learn a brand new programming language in order to create your website.  With Umbraco, you can design your site with a popular tool such as Abode DreamWeaver or FrontPage, cut and paste the HTML code into the template editor and save.  When you render a page using the template system, the content can be automatically displayed in dynamic fashion.

The Umbraco CMS gives you complete control over your website design.  There is no need to scan the web for themes as the design can be anything you desire.

Umbraco Content

In the Umbraco environment, the core foundation of your site is the Document Type.  The Document Type refers to the type of content that can be incorporated into your website.  Prime examples include Articles, News Items, your HomePage and SearchPage.   Determining how Document types work is key to grasping the Umbraco application itself.  While this isn’t the easiest part to decipher, once you get a solid understanding of these concepts, the rest of system will become much easier to comprehend.

Administrative Functions

The Umbraco Back Office is where you can perform a variety of administrative tasks.  The number of tasks others can perform all depends on their roles and permissions.  Some of the management options you have are dealing with scripts, custom templates, media and document types, style sheets and programming languages.  There is also a section made for developers, allowing you to perform actions such as adjusting browser cache settings, manage data types, create macros, Python files and more.

Conclusion

The Umbraco CMS makes an ideal solution for the Microsoft .NET savvy developer.  It has become very popular over the last few years, now averaging approximately 7,000 downloads per month.  Though not an out-of-box, user-friendly content management tool like Joomla or Mambo, Umbraco’s power and straightforwardness makes it a winner.  If you’re looking for a .NET-driven system to create a content-rich, dynamic website, the Umbraco CMS is worth checking out.

Web Hosting Features – A Necessary Foundation

For a plethora of reasons, millions of customer are motivated to start a website.  Each new hosting acount accompanies a unique set of requirements.  Although price, customer support, and reliability are key points, features also play a major role in making a decision.  Features are often the most attractive part of a web hosting package and thy act as the foundation to any hosting account.   This article will talk about some of the most common features you will encounter when looking for service.

Email Tools

Email is the preferred method of communication for millions of individuals and businesses across the world.  Realizing this, web hosting companies provide all the email features needed to keep base with contacts.  Aside from multiple accounts, you generally get complimentary features such as webmail, autoresponders and forwarders to communicate effectively no matter where you might be.  Because unsolicited mail and virus infected attachments are a tremendous problem, hosting providers help you stay protected with spam filtering applications to dramatically cut down on those potentially dangerous messages.  Often overshadowed by more luxurious offerings, but email remains to be one of the most useful features in any hosting plan.

Shopping Cart Software

E-commerce is a driving force on the web and shopping carts are a big part of what enables this thriving industry.  If you have aspirations of selling your own products or services online, this is the type of software you need to make it happen. Shopping carts often come included in business or e-commerce hosting packages, usually at no additional costs.  In many cases, these programs can be easily installed through your control panel interface.

Programming Languages

Scripting or programming languages, have become common on the web hosting market but these features are geared towards more advanced users.  Some examples are open-source languages such as PHP, Perl and Ruby on Rails and proprietary technologies such as ASP and ASP.NET.  These programming tools serve benefit to developers and webmasters who are proficient at coding and building content from scratch.  A hosting provider that has these software packages installed on their server allow you to diversify your website with dynamic content that stand outs from static HTML pages.

Site Builders

Almost all web hosting plans come equipped with utilities that provide you the ability to create your site.  With most tools, you can choose from a nice selection of pre-designed templates and basically create your website in easy drag-and-drop fashion.  These utilities typically do not call for you to have any knowledge in client-side programming languages such as HTML or even server-side variations like Python or PHP.  In addition to integrated building tools, many host also offer support for standalone web design applications such as Dreamweaver and Microsoft FrontPage. These programs allow you to create your site offline and upload it to the server without the use of an FTP client.

Conclusion

The list of web hosting features is huge and seems to expand every year.  Others you might find interesting include support for multimedia applications, web stat applications and databases among others.  To each its own in this regard because everyone has that dynamic tool set they just can’t do without.

Introducing Cold Fusion Hosting

Now an Adobe product, Cold Fusion is one of the most powerful programming languages available.  As a server-side scripting technology, it is used to create dynamic web pages and applications, quite similar to languages such as ASP, Perl and PHP.  Cold Fusion gives developers the ability to create and deploy interactive features that power self-service applications, content management systems, e-commerce sites and much more.  As a tag-based language, it is said to be one of the most comprehensive programming tools to use in the world.  In order to enjoy all Cold Fusion has to offer, you need a web hosting provider that supports it.

This article will go over the factors you must consider when looking for Cold Fusion hosting.

Available Version

When it comes to Cold Fusion hosting, it is always best to choose a web hosting provider that offers the most recent version of the language.  This will allow you to benefit from the latest features to create powerful, user-friendly web pages and applications.  It also makes it much easier to integrate the language with the database system you prefer to work with.

Possible Limitations

Choosing the right Cold Fusion solution is very important as some environments prevent you from getting its full potential.  For example, there are a few shared hosting providers that will limit the use of its tags because they are often viewed as security risks.  This is mainly due to the  mere structure of a shared server.  This is very understandable as the vulnerability of your site opens potential threats to everyone else hosting on the server.  You can get around these limitations by opting for dedicated server hosting.  Though it is considerably more expensive, dedicated hosting gives you complete control over which tags can or cannot be used on the server.

Cold Fusion Features

Cold Fusion is a powerful feature in its own right but there are some minimal requirements.  Most web hosting providers will set you up with everything required to get the maximum use out of this dynamic programming language.  All that is really needed to excel with Cold Fusion is a complimenting database to provide back-end in support for your web applications.  This shouldn’t be a problem as Cold Fusion integrates seamlessly with popular databases such as MySQL, Postgre SQL and MS SQL.

Cost Factor

Lastly, you need to consider the budget you have available to put towards a Cold Fusion hosting package.  Because it is one of the oldest languages around, you can find Cold Fusion offered in many low cost hosting packages.  However, some companies charge a pretty penny for all the advanced functionality it offers, especially when bundled with compatible Microsoft products.

In the end, it is mainly the complimenting features such as bandwidth and software add-ons that will impact the cost of Cold Fusion hosting solution.

While it goes without saying, Cold Fusion hosting is something you should only seek when having a specific need for the functionality it offers.  Though it may not be as popular as ASP or PHP, the language is widely available.  As with any hosting service, the most important aspects of this niche are reliability and quality technical support.  A stable platform will give you all the ammunition you need to thrive with a Cold Fusion website.

Hosting Your Site with FrontPage

If you want a website that looks professional but you are not well versed in programming technologies, FrontPage hosting could be something you’re interested in.  This type of hosting is a great option for the website owner who wants a site that looks good but are working with very few coding skills and money.  The powerful, simplistic technology behind FrontPage makes it ideal personal sites as well as small business ventures.  This article will introduce you to FrontPage hosting and explain the advantages it offers to your website.

What is FrontPage Hosting?

FrontPage hosting is a niche market hosting that offers support for the FrontPage application.  Developed by Microsoft, FrontPage is a program used to create and manage websites.  It offers flexibility that allows you to design professional websites all without knowledge of HTML or complex server-side scripting languages such as ASP or PHP.  Although programming skills are not required, the capabilities of FrontPage can be greatly enhanced as it allows you to format and edit HTML.  This can all be done through an intuitive user-friendly interface that contorts to those familiar with Microsoft Office applications.

FrontPage hosting is much like conventional web hosting services.  The major difference is the implementation of Microsoft server-based programming technologies known as FrontPage extensions.  In fact, FrontPage is only effective if the web host has FrontPage extensions installed on their server.  Though originally intended to run on Windows-based servers, FrontPage extensions can also perform seamlessly on Linux and Unix platforms as well.  For this reason, FrontPage hosting can usually be obtained at an affordable price.

FrontPage Features

The functionality of FrontPage hosting was extended greatly with the release of FrontPage 2003.  This version offered many new features such as a photo gallery, instant team websites and usage analysis reports.  Other features like the drop-down menus, radio buttons and check boxes all simplify website development and ensure a smooth ride for inexperienced developers.  FrontPage also offers a number of dynamic website templates that allow you to enhance the presentation of your site in minutes.  While there are limitations in terms of development, FrontPage can help you create a data-driven site through XML (Extensible Markup Language), a process that is made easy with the built-in WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor.  

Who Needs FrontPage Hosting?

As mentioned above, FrontPage hosting is geared towards webmasters who lack web design skills.  It is also best for users who do not require a significant amount of dynamic functions within their website.  If you can get by with features that are simple yet appealing, FrontPage hosting makes a great choice.

FrontPage hosting is a straightforward hosting solution that caters to beginner developers.  If you have a basic knowledge of Microsoft Office applications, you can truly excel in this environment.  The comprehensive Graphical User Interface allows for easy web page creation while the WYSIWYG editor virtually eliminates critical mistakes.  Though it is a niche offering, FrontPage hosting isn’t hard to find as a wide variety of companies offer support for the underlying technologies.

Introduction to ASP Hosting

The types of web hosting can be grouped in many classifications.  Some of them are actually extensions of other types of hosting.  One that falls under the Windows branch is ASP hosting, a type of hosting that revolves around ASP.  Short for Active Server Pages, ASP is Microsoft’s answer to open-source server-side programming languages such as PHP and Python.  Though used to create dynamic web pages like other technologies, ASP was developed to function specifically with Microsoft’s IIS (Internet Information Services) web server application.  Originally released with IIS version 3.0, ASP quickly became one of most the popular scripting technologies available.  Though overshadowed by its successor ASP.NET, ASP is still widely used today.

Inside ASP Hosting

The ASP language utilizes various built-in objects that correspond to specific functions when creating dynamic web pages.  Whereas static web pages are merely composed of basic text and graphics, dynamic pages contain content that changes and allows users to interact.  The data on a dynamic web page can change before your eyes without the need to be reloaded or refreshed.  The makeup of ASP gives it more functionality than alternative solutions, allowing experienced developers to create more appealing websites with ease.  In fact, almost anyone familiar with client-side programming languages such as VBscript can excel with ASP.

Since the initial launch, Microsoft has released numerous versions of ASP, with the most recent being ASP 3.0.  The company has decided to phase out this language with ASP.NET which is faster, more robust and often considered the next generation of web development.  The original language is now referred to as Classic ASP.   However, ASP 3.0 remains popular because its built-in objects tend to be easier to work with.  One of them is the Session object that administers numerous functions for web pages and applications.

The Benefits of ASP Hosting

Companies who specialize in ASP hosting are only providing their customers with the basics of the language.  The host enjoys the most benefits as administers have direct access to IIS and the Windows operating system.  Web hosts with ASP and ASP.NET installed on their servers get the best of server-side scripting along with other Microsoft technologies such as MS Access and the SQL Server.  ASP allows these companies to create and manage powerful websites of their own.  Many of them use scripts to run special promotions, limited time offerings, collect data and even sell products and services with ASP shopping carts.  The enhanced functionality of ASP makes it the preferred choice for businesses of all types and sizes.

Finding ASP Hosting

Just as with any type of hosting, it always best to shop around and compare ASP hosts.  Aside from complimenting Microsoft technologies, you should also concentrate on finding a company able to suit your needs in other areas.  If you are not familiar with the language, it would be wise to find a solution that offers extensive support and documentation on ASP to shorten the learning curve.  Without a capable and reliable web hosting company behind you, it will be very difficult to enjoy all the benefits ASP has to offer.