Web Hosting Questions

[Supernova2]

Hey!
I'm currently working on a couple of videos tutorial for a 3D modeling tool. I want to open a website which will host these videos and possibly some other related things as well. The idea right now is to have several shorter clips available for free streaming on the web site and a full download for a yet to be determined price.

The videos sizes will be quite large- ranging between 500mb-1GB each. If I want to make them available in one file the file size will obviously be even larger.

I'm quite new to the web hosting world so my questions are as followed:

1. Are shared web hosts sufficient for my needs (file hosting of large files, selling the video files online using paypal, streaming video etc.)
Take Starlogic for example. On their homepage they promote 3 different deals. Looking at the ProLogic and VPSLogic I would think that Pro is better than VPS. For instance, they say they provide unlimited GB storage and transfer whereas the VPS deal provides only 20GB of storage and 1TB of transfer and for a greater price (30$ per month vs 6$ Per month).
I take it that storage space means how much I can upload and transfer means data transfer which would be used for downloading those files.
Can anyone help me understand what is the difference between the two and what is required for my web hosting needs?

2. Would the desired process of selling the large file be complicated either for me to set up or for the consumer to download?

I'm going to get someone to help me set up the web site once I'm ready for it, unless I manage to pick it up on my own but I'll cross that bridge when I reach it.

Thanks in advance!

 

[.Andy]

Your going to want a fairly large VPS or Dedicated server. Check with your hosts TOS AUP before geting hosted there. Some datacenters/webhsots do not allow sharing. Also keep in mind if you have videos your going to need BW and lotso f it.

 

[Eclouds]

Agreed, some hosts do not allow 1. sharing 2. streaming, you should have quite some bandwidth overhead planned as well.

 

[~ServerPoint~]

I agree with Andy. And I recommend you start with VPS and then as soon as things going and then maybe upgrade to the dedicated server.

 

[arizonadream]

Defilnitely, you need a VPS or even a dedicated server.... as it has already been suggested.

As for the company recommendation, I suppose Globaltap.com would be suiteble for you... they have full fledged packages of not too big size, and reasonably priced..

Also, ServerPoint.com provides these features, but I cannot say about streaming, however you may ask ~ServerPoint~ about that

 

[Dan]

A VPS is definitely your best option to start with and then move over to a dedicated box.

 

[hostcolor]

Definitely VPS. But do not go for "unmetered", "unlimited" or for VPS offering that looks very much as offering from overselling shared host.

 

[hamster]

Get a VPS near your physical location! You're gonna experience hell if you don't and you have to upload files that big when the server is far away from you o.o

 

[fnixws]

Looking at the ProLogic and VPSLogic I would think that Pro is better than VPS. For instance, they say they provide unlimited GB storage and transfer whereas the VPS deal provides only 20GB of storage and 1TB of transfer and for a greater price (30$ per month vs 6$ Per month).

Id say definetly stear clear. Their "unlimited" plan a good sign of a bad host.

The $6 per month plan is a simple shared hosting plan where the servers CPU and ram are split up amongst hundreds possibly thousands of sites.

A VPS on the other hand dedicates the servers hardware resources to you and you only giving you a much more stable platform for a site with a large userbase.

Thing is, i dont know if you will NEED a VPS to start with.
I mean, if you selling tutorial vids, then i cant see a huge ammount of streaming happening, especially since you can easily (and its good for publicity too) host the previews on youtube. But youd need a good host who doesnt oversell.

Sites ive bought tuts from before, usually allow download insted of streaming, but it makes it alot easier to pirate the vids. If you want to stream them, youll have to look into the best way to do it before you get a host, since not all host will support the software required.

Wich is where a VPS again comes in handy, since you have full controll over all the installed software, if you need somthing, you can install it or get it installed by a pro. A shared host might not want to install what you need for one reason or another.

Main thing id advise is not to rush into buying anything, do as much research as you can and hell if you have to, play around with a free host to see how different shopping cart systems and video stream systems work so you know what your in for.

 

[.Andy]

Definitely VPS. But do not go for "unmetered", "unlimited" or for VPS offering that looks very much as offering from overselling shared host.

Good advice I should of mentioned that

Get a VPS near your physical location! You're gonna experience hell if you don't and you have to upload files that big when the server is far away from you o.o

Never thought of it. I've never uploaded to the actuall server direct.