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Pros and cons of hosting our own website vs contracting with a vendor
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Pros and cons of hosting our own website vs contracting with a vendor
5:14 PM EDT 10/23/08
I've been the Director here for less than 6 months. Our City has given us one page on the City's website but we want/need more than that. We have our own server and good network tech support. We share fiber with our local university and school district. Since we are literally starting from scratch, I am wondering what the benefits and headaches of hosting our own website might be. We would need a web software package "for dummies" that we can teach ourselves. Although we have good network and desktop support--our "technies" are web software illiterate. Or should we just pay a vendor like Blue Host for a domain name, storage, and support? I actually have budgeted $3,000 for website development, training, and support for FY 2009 which begins Jan. 1. That $3,000 was literally a guesstimate and place holder in my budget. Comments, suggestions PLEASE!
RE: Pros and cons of hosting our own website vs contracting with a vendor
Tags: hosting library websites
2:02 PM EST 11/9/08 as a reply to Rose Frost.
this is such a great question. thanks for posting!

have you considered working with LIS host, the library web hosting service? it might be just the right solution, since it's both affordable hosting, and you can get great support and expertise for your website as well.

you might also consider using an open source website solution for the web design aspect. there's a lot of support for these options in libraryland.

good luck, and please let us know how it goes.
RE: Pros and cons of hosting our own website vs contracting with a vendor
2:22 PM EST 11/9/08 as a reply to Rose Frost.
Hi Rose,

The best thing about hosting your own website is having complete control over the server and everything on it. The worst thing about hosting your own website is you need to worry about the server and everything on it!

Chrystie made a good suggestion with link to the open source link. I've been especially happy with Drupal. At LISHost we're now hosting at least a dozen library sites running on Drupal, and I think everyone is more than satisfied.

Setting up a site on your own server using Drupal is probably a bit too much if indeed there's no one there with real good skills in this area.

I'd be more than happy to talk with you about this, you can email me and I'd be more than happy to tell you about the pros and cons of hosting in house or elsewhere.

-Blake Carver
LISHost.org
RE: Pros and cons of hosting our own website vs contracting with a vendor
2:40 PM EST 11/9/08 as a reply to Blake Carver.
is there a list of library websites using Drupal? if not, let's start one.
RE: Pros and cons of hosting our own website vs contracting with a vendor
1:05 PM EST 11/10/08 as a reply to Chrystie Hill.
There is!

http://drupalib.interoperating.info/

There's also a listserv, drupal4lib.
RE: Pros and cons of hosting our own website vs contracting with a vendor
3:10 PM EST 11/10/08 as a reply to Blake Carver.
cool. adding to the article now. thanks.