Important: One of the biggest misconceptions
is that you have to run a version of UNIX (FreeBSD) on your own computer in order
for you to host your site on UNIX platform. That is not
true. Which operating system you run on your computer is
irrelevant in making your decision. This means that if you
are running any Windows® version on your
personal computer, you can still choose FreeBSD.
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Click for FreeBSD Plans
FreeBSD
servers are known for reliability. They are so stable they
are considered crash proof. UNIX servers are capable of hosting
thousands of web sites on a single server. While Windows servers
may slow down under heavy load, UNIX servers run without a
problem. In many cases UNIX servers run for years without
having to be touched. This is why ISPs tend to use UNIX servers
for web hosting. The Internet was built on UNIX servers. UNIX
servers have been around longer than the Personal Computer.
Other hosting platforms are new compared to UNIX. Over the
years UNIX has been refined to the point where it is bulletproof.
FreeBSD is basically a free operating system based on UNIX. It is extremeley
popular among colleges and universities. You are much more
likely to find free software for FreeBSD. There is a wealth
of free programs and utilities available on the Internet.
For example, the Internet's most popular programming language
PERL is absolutely free. There is a certain culture that has
grown up around UNIX. It's common for people to develop Internet
applications only to offer them free of charge. These applications
can be installed on FreeBSD web servers without obligation.
No matter what your need, you can probably find a free UNIX
application that will suit your application.
We recommend FreeBSD hosting to customers looking for reliability.
We also recommend FreeBSD to clients who have existing PERL or
PHP/MySQL applications on their site.
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Click for Windows Plans
Windows 2000® is the big brother to the Windows operating
system on all Personal Computers. Windows 2000® includes
a web server called Internet Information Server (or IIS).
The difference between UNIX and Windows is a programming
language called ASP and ASP.NET. ASP (short for Active Server
Pages) allows programmers to interact with databases.
ASP is the preferred way to deliver databases to the web.
Web databases represent the newest and most powerful technology
on the Internet. ASP and ASP.NETsites more closely resemble
software than web sites. You can do most things with ASP
or ASP.Net.
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FreeBSD Vs. Windows®2000 Feature Comparison
Ease of use:
Over the years, many resources have been poured into both FreeBSD and Windows®2000 platforms to make hosting as easy as possible. Today, there are no differences in terms of ease of use between these platforms. If you are an advanced user who prefers to work in shell environment, then FreeBSD is your choice. However, if you are a beginner, you will find both platforms user friendly, especially with a help of our control panel,
Reliability:
The industry consensus is that FreeBSD is more reliable. However, Peachtree WebWorks has made sure that the reliability of the Windows®2000 platform closely matches that of FreeBSD's. What this means is that you can make your decision based on the differences in features rather than on reliability.
Speed:
There is no difference in terms of speed between the two platforms.
Functionality:
This is where two platforms differ the most. There isn’t much that can be achieved in one platform that can’t be on the other one. The main difference is how the end is achieved. For example, if you need a database driven web site, you can choose either PHP/MySQL combination under FreeBSD or ASP/MS SQL combination under Windows®2000. The trend is for solutions to be supported in both platforms. For example, Microsoft FrontPage, one of the most popular web site editors out there, is supported on both FreeBSD and Windows®2000.
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