touch, peel and stand

I’ve been considering a change in hosting companies and over the course of the last six months, I’ve checked out some options… all the while giving my current hosting company an opportunity to change my mind. I’ve sent email after email to get some help on a variety of different problems, the most notable of which is intermittant downtime of the server that hosts my site (literalspace.net). Since I have my business portfolio on that domain, it is important my site be up more than it is down. Yet, my current hosting company doesn’t see things the same way I see them. In fact, on more than one occasion when I explain that my site is down, they tell me there is nothing wrong and it must be me… er, um… no. Anyway, here is the most recent series of emails and my explanation… and finally, some resolution. Well, at least acceptance on the part of my current host that perhaps I’m not willing to accept piss poor hosting even if it is cheaper than other options.

HOSTONCE REP RESPONSE:
[5/30/2006 5:00:22 PM – Debbie]
Hello 🙂

Are you looking not to renew this account at all or just to opt out of auto-renewal? If you are looking to leave our service, may I ask how I can assist you in staying?

Literalspace.net Response:
[7/16/2006 8:00:45 PM – e!]
My site is often offline. I know this because I have an image src link to a file i host on literalspace.net and the link is often broken (404 error). I’ve sent a few requests to your technical department to look into the matter, but in almost every instance, I receive messages that say the problem must be with me (or my ISP) since you have no problems on your end. oftentimes, when I send you a message that says my site is down, it is because someone somewhere sends me an email letting me know that my site is offline (different states, different ISPs, different level networks, etc). Yet, invariably, its my fault that I can’t view my website hosted on your servers.

After testing out a few other host for a year, I realize that the problem was indeed my fault… Well, let me clarify, the problem wasn’t MY FAULT as much is at is MY CHOICE in hosts. Granted, you offer a very cheap price for hosting, but I don’t expect cheap support when I am having a problem (real or imagined). Weird I know, a customer expecting a value proposition from a hosting company, but there you have it… in a nutshell, I want to end my relationship with HOSTONCE because I don’t feel that HOSTONCE values their customers enough to truly explore problems and find adequate resolution to them.

Whenever my current deal ends (I’m guessing January?? who knows… I don’t believe I’ve received a response to my original query yet), I would like to make sure I am not automatically billed as I have been in the past.

HOSTONCE REP RESPONSE:
[7/17/2006 5:00:22 PM – Debbie]
I have now marked your account for non-renewal and it will cease to function on 7th January