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I am going to assume that most of my readers are not looking to host their website on their own computer. That's certainly reasonable. But which host should you choose? While I won't give you any specific recommendations, I'll give you some helpful tips.
Software Requirements
I have been lucky in choosing my hosts—Although I didn't do much research before I signed on, I haven't had much trouble. The last thing you want to do is pay money to a particular host only to find out later that they don't offer the tools you need. Thus the first step in choosing your host is choosing your software first. Whether you decided on a wysiwyg editor or a CMS sytem, it is important that you decide that first before you pick a host. Most CMS systems are written in PHP, which is widelyl supported on all of the major web hosting companies. However, there are certain subtleties about each CMS that may make your website less than ideal. For example, many CMSs offer a “pretty URL” option. This option will make the URLs for each of your pages shorter and more readable. See this Wikipedia page for some examples. This option is certainly desirable, but I haven't been able to use it for my own website (look in your address bar, it isn't pretty, it it?). Using pretty URLs requires a rewrite engine such as Apache's module called mod_rewrite. Drupal requires this module in order to use pretty URLs. So if your host doesn't support that module or doesn't let you create your own re-write rules, then this option will not be available to you. Another example is e-commerce. If you want to allow your clients to send payments through your site, you will definitely want to make sure your host will support SSL/TLS, which is used to allow for (mostly) secure communication. These are just two examples, a particular CMS may require certain other pieces of software, such as a specific operating system or a specific database. So save yourself some trouble later by choosing your software before choosing your host. Type of Hosting Accounts
Before you chose your host, you should also choose which type of hosting account will suit your needs. There are three main types of hosting accounts (from least expensive to most expensive): shared hosting, virtual hosting, and dedicated hosting (note that not everyone uses these terms the same way). 90 percent of you will find that shared hosting is adequate, but not all hosting companies support all three options. The cheapest and easiest hosting service to find is shared hosting. With shared hosting, you share your web server with other customers. You also share the same IP address. All of your files will be kept on the same file system as other people's websites. But don't worry, no one else can access your files without some cracking. Even so, you should avoid putting confidential information on your shared host. Again, this type of service will suit most people's needs. The next step up from shared hosting is virtual hosting or VPS hosting. With this type of account, you will get your own virtual operating system all to yourself. While your files will be kept on the same physical hard-drive as other's, each virtual host is separated from its neighbors. This is a more secure option than shared hosting. You also get the added benefits of having much more flexibility when it comes to configuring your particular server. These added benefits come with a heftier price. Finally, the most expensive option is dedicated hosting. With this type, you will get your own physical server all to yourself. This will give you the most control over your server. But the price is quite hefty. It will only be worth the price if you have a very large website that requires a large amount of server resources. I don't know of a single law firm website that would require this setup. Before you make your final decision, read a few general tips on choosing your host. There are plenty of good tips out there, so I won't repeat them here. Conclusion
Choose your software before you choose your host. Once you choose your software, research its requirements fully before you choose your host. Don't just look at the price.
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