Need web Host/Design options

[Fat Tone]

Hi

We have the possibility of setting up a UK version of a website that currently operates in the USA, investigating a particular area of Psychology. It's not a particularly big/complex site (maybe a dozen pages to start), but its main feature will be a survey that has about 15 pages each with 15 questions (radio button fields) and that provides us and users with (email) feedback at the end. This is currently implemented using Perl, which is something we dont/cant use inhouse.

So, I need an external host (with the advantages that a snappy url will bring) that can handle Perl (I should have said we can probably have copies of the current Perl scripts), and it would be a lot easier if they could do the initial set up and then hand over future development of content/features to me.

I would doubt we would exceed 1000 hits/day, probably much less.

Can anyone recommend a host/developer option, or estimate the sorts of costs involved? Do I need a dedicated server or would a shared server be ok for my sort of bandwidth?

Many thanks

T.

[Fat Tone]

Bump.

Dumb question, or too difficult for ya?

Surely someone here has some experience with this?

TIA

T.

[az]

I'd get a cheap shared server and hire someone to do the initial work. IMHO it's a bad idea to couple hosting and content creation.

Cheap servers can be had from http://oneandone.co.uk/

I am with their german mother, 1&1 puretec, and they're very fast and cheap.

AZ

[Fat Tone]

Thanks Az. Sorry for the delay in responding.

Does anyone have *any* idea what this might cost, or a good place to invite quotes?

TIA

T.

[Wombat]

You need to start by giving us a better idea of the bandwidth. 1000 hits a day, but how many images, etc? Would 5GB/mo cover you? 10?

You're looking at less than $10 month maybe, but you haven't quite explained your needs yet.

[Gurm]

I can second the "uncouple hosting and design" advice.

While there are exceptions to the rule (I think Dan was doing both for a while, and there ain't nothin' wrong with that - until he moves and loses hosting), it's just generally a good idea to have your hosting people do HOSTING and THAT IS ALL... and the content people do the content.

- Gurm

[Fat Tone]

Thanks all for the advice. I'm sure 10GB/month will be enough, and if it turns out not to be we can always shift to a higher BW product.

What I meant was what would be a ball-park figure for the design/implementation? I am seeing the bulk of the work being implementing the form (hopefully just copying extant scripts) and assembling a small number of very simple pages.

Cheers

T.

[Taz]

Any reason why it needs to be Perl? what are these scripts doing exactly?

[Fat Tone]

The only reason for Perl is that the scripts already exist and could be copied.

They generate the form mentioned in post 1, do some analysis and provide feedback.

The analysis is probably of the form:

Q1: if they answered 'yes' then increment scale 1, if they answered 'maybe' then decrement scale 2 etc etc

Then use the scores to provide email feedback to the participant
and store the raw data and results for later meta analysis.


I could replicate this using other techniques, but I'd rather not re-invent the wheel, and I'd rather someone else was paid to do it if the cost was justifiable.

T.

[Taz]

Sounds like something that could be done very easily in PHP or ASP.

[Fat Tone]

Are you up for it then?