i haz free host 2! k thnx bye!

[TaoPhoenix]

can i haz free host 2? k thnx bye!

Deeplist, I have idly joked a few times about making an actual serious host who operates as a joke with funny language. I really think there's a market for it for the folks who want to be teh hotness for a year before college profs make them spell better on essay papers.
User selectible language styles!
Lolcat (demonstrated above)
Sarcastic
(Other?)

In other words it's exactly like any other "host", but just with the ads and front end changed for commentary-humor.

Whatcha'll think - is it worth a spinoff brand? Any other hosts want to try it? Or am I just offbase again?

 

[deeplist]

It's more less just a play on all of the 12 year old kids running around on here that make stupid requests, ask for unreasonable resources, can't spell if their life depended on it, or even use correct grammar half of the time. Is there a market for a webhost with a "goofy" or "carefree" front end? Maybe. But I'm not going to go that route because I deal with a lot of local businesses nearby and they'll just think it's some kind of joke or insult. I'm not willing to create a spin-off because I personally just don't feel the market is there. Which, even if it was, you'd have to look at the people that it would attract, and are those the kinds of people that I want using my services? Probably not.

 

[TaoPhoenix]

... I'm not willing to create a spin-off because I personally just don't feel the market is there. Which, even if it was, you'd have to look at the people that it would attract, and are those the kinds of people that I want using my services? Probably not.

Heh - sure, the host would have to be ready for a rather flaky client list. However that was my double-funny humor, having a real host which can deliver parodying all the fly-by-nights and beating them at their own style. I'm mostly amazed that no one has yet really tried it even for a lark. It can't get worse than the actual subjects of our parodies.

 

[deeplist]

the host would have to be ready for a rather flaky client list.

That's the problem. Nobody would WANT to deal with that. "Flaky clients" often involve kids, scammers, spammers and pirates. You'd have to deal with the tedious task of constantly monitoring every little aspect of every account to make sure everybody is doing what they're supposed to be doing. Plus, you'd have to deal with the constant harassment from the datacenter as you'd have floods of complaints and DMCA violations. I guarantee it. Most hosts around here, like myself, have lives outside of hosting. Some of us have RL jobs, families, etc. It's just not worth the headache. I'd never create a free host like that because I just simply do not have the time, patience, or the resources to sit there and monitor things 24/7. In addition to that, you'd also have a constant flood of newbs asking questions and opening support tickets left and right because they don't know what their FTP login details are or they can't access their email.

 

[Seraphim]

Or perhaps it would be an application well suited to the infamous turnover experts. They create such a host for real, attract and filter clients in the process teaching them the basics of how to actually host something for real, then when the day of parting comes they've succeeded in raising a batch of stable and reasonable clients that have some idea how to move around in a hosting environment and know what is and is not acceptable to most providers.

But a stable long-term host just plain would have trouble making it work. Not only would it just about require offshore-based services in order to have that level of safeguarding against the abnormally high abuse rates such a service would attract, but it likely would indeed require almost constant attention to keep it operating.

Now it might be effective for a free host to appeal to the younger markets, as they aren't as likely to be able to go paid early on. But I don't think it would be beneficial to go to that low of a level, as that would discourage more experienced clients from signing up.

 

[SiberForum]

It's more less just a play on all of the 12 year old kids running around on here that make stupid requests

Yes or no, but as the host I cannot accept this idea as the marketing strategy. We prefer making quality service over trying a cheap tricks of attraction. Even if they are 'funny' as you may find.

 

[cost_z1]

Deeplist, I have idly joked a few times about making an actual serious host who operates as a joke with funny language. I really think there's a market for it for the folks who want to be teh hotness for a year before college profs make them spell better on essay papers.
User selectible language styles!
Lolcat (demonstrated above)
Sarcastic
(Other?)

In other words it's exactly like any other "host", but just with the ads and front end changed for commentary-humor.

Whatcha'll think - is it worth a spinoff brand? Any other hosts want to try it? Or am I just offbase again?

It seems you have a lot of free time to work on these type of projects.

 

[TaoPhoenix]

It seems you have a lot of free time to work on these type of projects.

That's kinda a null statement - I work full time like many here - maybe not quite so many hours as some but I'm not idle either. A lot of them are "frisbee" projects - stuff comes inbound and I toss it back, then days go by before new developments emerge. However I am also excitable and overcommit myself as well, so some never get past a concept stage.