Websites hosting and all

[CanonRebelz]

Hey everyone. Yes I've read threads on here having to do with websites and such, but I was looking for something more up to date as most of that info is older.
I'm looking for a place to get a domain name, and get it hosted, the whole shabang. But not too expensive, could anyone point me to some sites that are good for this?

And yes I know of godaddy.com but idk how much space I will need, and plus for 150GB of space there it's $14.95 a month..
Thanks

[acedrew]

I use Dreamhost, their simple control panel is great for web novices and pros alike. They have domains for only 9.95 a year, and I think their hosting includes one anyway. ANY domain you register through them is privacy secured, so you don't have to worry about getting tons of spam on your registered email. So far I've been very happy with their service. It's 9.95 a month for unlimited domains, storage, and bandwidth. This promo code gets you $50 off your first year: QTDPS simply enter that when checking out to get a $50 discount. They also have "One Click" setup to use google as your email host, (think having a gmail account, except the address being you@yourdomain.com) Very nice

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter | Login | Facebook

[Doug Pardee]

Originally Posted by acedrew

ANY domain you register through them is privacy secured, so you don't have to worry about getting tons of spam on your registered email.

A small caution: when you use private registry, the domain name is not owned by you. It's owned by the company doing the registering. If everything goes well and everyone plays fair, that's just a formality and if you ever want to take ownership of the domain name they should just transfer it to you. But there is a chance you could lose the domain name—the only claim that you have to it is in the paperwork of the registering company.

I've had my domain name registered publicly for about seven years and spam hasn't been a problem (well, not from there anyway).

[acedrew]

In my experience with godaddy, they actually charge extra for the private domains, that's the only reason I mention it. It is optional on dreamhost. Also I've had my domains registered for at least seven years, and not only do I get email spam, I get snail mail spam regarding them. It's not THAT bad, but it is irritating.

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter | Login | Facebook

[CanonRebelz]

I will look into DreamHost, thanks for all the info and the promo code

@Doug Pardee so are you saying if I were to purchase a domain from DreamHost, it will still be theres and if I were to change hosts I would lose the domain??
I'm confused.

Also I'm wondering, is there a way to put like an mpix ordering type thing onto my site so that people could order from my site and they would pay through paypal? Something like they can look at a "catalouge" so to speak of my images, then they can select ones they want to order, then they would pay through paypal and then finalize the order (i.e give shipping information to mpix, etc)? Or are there any other shipping services that can do stuff like that?

Thanks for all the help so far!

I'll write a tutorial when I get it all done...right now I'm in mid-process.

I went with GoDaddy, because that's where my other websites are located. I also decided to use a wordpress theme...there are tons to pick from, easy to use, and easy to install.

The process is simple:
1. Go to GoDaddy, buy a domain name and hosting account. The basic hosting is more than enough.
2. Install Wordpress. This is done on Godaddy's website. Go to hosting, applications, and search for Wordpress. Should install in a few minutes.
3. Go to themeforest.net. Find a theme you like, and pay the fee (I think mine cost $25).
4. Go to your wordpress site (yourdomain.com/wordpress) and install your theme. There's lots of tutorials online to help with this.
5. Follow the documentation provided with the template.

Keep in mind, this is not a one hour process. I've worked on this for a good 8 hours or so, and I'm only part way done: Ryan Taylor Photography - Just another WordPress weblog

A lot of time is spent cropping photos, uploading photos, making logos, etc. It's also not free...a year of webhosting plus a domain and template will run near $100.

[acedrew]

I think what Doug was warning about would be to stay away from unreputable companies offering private registration, as long as you stick to a well known company, (Godaddy, Dreamhost, etc...) you shouldn't have anything to worry about.
As for shopping cart/ photo management, I actually don't host my own site, I use SmugMug, you can see my site here: Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers I do have my smugmug integrated with a wordpress blog that I host on dreamhost. They have the best service I've found, and the print quality and pricing is great! They also offer video hosting and unlimited storage of images, you have your choice of 2 different labs (EZPrints, which is comparable or better than Mpix; and BayPhoto, a TRUE PRO fulfillment lab with incredible quality) the flexibility and features are awesome. Once more I have a coupon code: t7xduMbHw60xY

I'm very happy with smugmug.
here is what their default site template looks like:
Chris MacAskill's Photos- powered by SmugMug

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter | Login | Facebook

[acedrew]

Ryan, how do you plan on handling print fulfillment?
Also try this: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/...upton-edition/
It will help you keep your images from loading in new windows, using the lightbox effect like Darren uses on this forum. Let me know if you need help implementing it.

Andrew Rodgers
http://perfectedperspectives.com | http://twitter.com/acedrew | http://fb.perfectedperspectives.com

[CanonRebelz]

Originally Posted by rt80639

I'll write a tutorial when I get it all done...right now I'm in mid-process.

I went with GoDaddy, because that's where my other websites are located. I also decided to use a wordpress theme...there are tons to pick from, easy to use, and easy to install.

The process is simple:
1. Go to GoDaddy, buy a domain name and hosting account. The basic hosting is more than enough.
2. Install Wordpress. This is done on Godaddy's website. Go to hosting, applications, and search for Wordpress. Should install in a few minutes.
3. Go to themeforest.net. Find a theme you like, and pay the fee (I think mine cost $25).
4. Go to your wordpress site (yourdomain.com/wordpress) and install your theme. There's lots of tutorials online to help with this.
5. Follow the documentation provided with the template.

Keep in mind, this is not a one hour process. I've worked on this for a good 8 hours or so, and I'm only part way done: Ryan Taylor Photography - Just another WordPress weblog

A lot of time is spent cropping photos, uploading photos, making logos, etc. It's also not free...a year of webhosting plus a domain and template will run near $100.

Thanks for the help and mini-tutorial
Yes I know it's not free, never planning on it being free.
I don't really want to spend extra money on a template, so I'll find something else for that.
Plus I don't want a blog, just a e-store type thing.

Originally Posted by acedrew

I think what Doug was warning about would be to stay away from unreputable companies offering private registration, as long as you stick to a well known company, (Godaddy, Dreamhost, etc...) you shouldn't have anything to worry about.
As for shopping cart/ photo management, I actually don't host my own site, I use SmugMug, you can see my site here: Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers I do have my smugmug integrated with a wordpress blog that I host on dreamhost. They have the best service I've found, and the print quality and pricing is great! They also offer video hosting and unlimited storage of images, you have your choice of 2 different labs (EZPrints, which is comparable or better than Mpix; and BayPhoto, a TRUE PRO fulfillment lab with incredible quality) the flexibility and features are awesome. Once more I have a coupon code: t7xduMbHw60xY

I'm very happy with smugmug.
here is what their default site template looks like:
Chris MacAskill's Photos- powered by SmugMug

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter | Login | Facebook

Oh ok I see what your saying. Thanks for all the help.
Thanks for the discount code too, how much $ does it take off from 1 year's subscription? (or how much %, if it's like a 30% off type of thing) Their prices aren't too bad, and it looks worth it.
Can people simply order on your smugmug and they pay you thru paypal or however smugmug does that? If so, that sounds good and I will be strongly considering just going there.

Originally Posted by acedrew

Ryan, how do you plan on handling print fulfillment?
Also try this: WordPress › jQuery Lightbox « WordPress Plugins
It will help you keep your images from loading in new windows, using the lightbox effect like Darren uses on this forum. Let me know if you need help implementing it.

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter | Login | Facebook

I'm curious about what he plans to use for that too.

Oh cool, thanks for the link.

Thanks everyone for all your help!

[WooD]

Originally Posted by CanonRebelz

Oh ok I see what your saying. Thanks for all the help.
Thanks for the discount code too, how much $ does it take off from 1 year's subscription? (or how much %, if it's like a 30% off type of thing) Their prices aren't too bad, and it looks worth it.
Can people simply order on your smugmug and they pay you thru paypal or however smugmug does that? If so, that sounds good and I will be strongly considering just going there.

The discount code will save you $5.00 off a one years subscription.

All you have to do is upload your images, smugmug will deal with all the order, printing, and shipping.

Here is a break down of how you get paid if you use smugmug.

help - Pros: Reporting and payment

I bought my domain name thru Joker.com, I think it was around $7.00 year.

I've been with smugmug 3 years, and have never had a problem.