Category: Tech

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    What I Want in an App

    Simplicity. Focus. Usability. Consistency. Just works. I don’t mind paying for an app that provides these features. They seem like simple enough concepts. But many of the apps out there today seem to be struggling. I know I am just dreaming, but here goes..

    Focused

    I want an app that is focused on one thing. Maybe a few peripheral features if immediately relevant. But one app per task, nice focused and simple.

    Not bloated

    I want an app that is not bloated with needless features. The most current example is AI. Seems every app and their dog is stuffing AI into the mix.

    No ads

    I want an app with ZERO advertisements. I don’t mind a few ads if they are relatively inconspicuous and/or dismissible. I don’t mind an option to upgrade to paid version, if the app is worthwhile I definitely will do so. But keep the ads and upsell nags to a minimum.

    No hoops

    I want an app that doesn’t require giving my email address just to open it. In fact I want an app that doesn’t require any email or personal information whatsoever.

    No strings

    I want an app that doesn’t track, store, or sell my data. I want to remain anonymous. I want my privacy. I want to use the app for its purpose without any strings attached.

    Usable

    I want an app that is usable. I’m not old but my eyesight is not what it used to be. I’m tired of apps that assume everyone can easily read 10-point fonts on dark backgrounds. Etc. Give me text and fonts that are clear and easy to read.

    Relaxed

    I want an app that gives me room to breathe. When using the app, I want at least SOME areas on the UI to NOT be clickable. I want to be able to touch the screen without the app taking some action. Lots of apps these days are almost impossible to use, simply because every pixel on the screen is waiting for you to click, swipe, or touch. Makes it hard to move around and enjoy the app, when everything is so crammed on the screen.

    No constant upgrades

    I want an app that doesn’t upgrade every other day. Unless for important security fixes, apps shouldn’t update so frequently as to give the user headaches. Updates should occur infrequently enough that the user isn’t saying, “I JUST updated this app”, or “Another update for this app”, or even take notice at all.

    Consistent

    I want an app that’s consistent. Not arbitrarily making changes every other update. Like randomly redesigning and rearranging the interface. Moving buttons and features around, hiding things, and just making life difficult for all its users.

    Documented

    I want an app that is well documented. This is where consistency benefits everyone. Apps that don’t randomly change everything for every update tend to have documentation that remains valid and relevant, while apps that constantly change everything tend to have outdated documentation that only adds to the confusion.

    More focused

    I want an app that doesn’t add new features just to lure more customers. Just because Joe Shmoe writes in about adding some obscure functionality doesn’t mean you should. It would just add more bloat without being useful to most users. App makers need to grow a spine and draw hard lines in the sand regarding the app’s purpose, direction and scope.

    Available anywhere

    I want an app that is available on any device. I use Apple, Android, Windows, and Linux. And as much as possible like to streamline and sync everything into a unified workflow. So it sucks when for whatever reason an app is not available on this or that platform. In most cases this is not due to the app itself, but the petty political differences among the various platforms.

    App Support

    Added by Isocat on Mastodon: Well and helpfully supported. Make it easy and effective for me to contact the publisher when something doesn’t work the way the documentation says it should. Respond helpfully and promptly. Do not offload this to the likes of ZenDesk. Do not tell me to seek answers in a ‘community forum’ where questions go to get mocked and die alone of old age.

    ? Also: the same things apply to web pages also, not just apps.

    ? Again: I don’t mind paying for apps that are worth it.

    ? Golden rule: Always think of the user!




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    My Shortlist for Managed VPS Hosting

    I’ve been online since 1999. So 25+ years of finding and dealing with a wide variety of web hosts. While painful at times, this experience enables me to get out there and find better web hosting at the drop of a hat. It’s been a while since I’ve written about my web-hosting experiences, so this post is to share a recent foray into finding a solid managed-VPS solution in the year 2025.

    Shortcut: Not interested in the diatribe? Jump ahead to the Web host shortlist ?

    Some context..

    This round of “find a new web host” happened after my then-current host raised prices, yet again. I first switched to them in 2018, and was quite happy with the provided level of service and support. But then after some time, there was a price increase, apparently because of changes with Plesk. “Okay” not a big deal. Already paying near top dollar for service, but understand that costs increase. But then just as I was getting used to paying the new rate, they raised prices again. And then a few months later, raised the prices again. Granted, each of these first several price hikes were only a few dollars or so. But still felt a little sting each time.

    Last straw..

    And the price increases continued several more times until I was paying nearly $120 per month for a 4-core, 4-GB VPS server. Check around, that’s definitely on the high end of the scale. And then they hit me.. the last straw was a scheduled “pricing update” scheduled for the end of this month. They sent out an email letting customers know that rates were about to increase by 12%, which would jack up my monthly payment to over $130 per month, or over $1,500 per year. Which is just too expensive for my humble little online operation.

    Here is the main part of the email message they sent out earlier this month:

    Pricing Update Coming Soon

    Thank you for being a valued customer of [redacted]. We’re writing to inform you of a pricing change that will impact your monthly invoice; however, you have an option to keep your current pricing, outlined below.

    We understand and appreciate any pricing changes are impactful. As a loyal customer, we are offering you an opportunity to lock in your current monthly pricing through an annual commitment.

    Lock My Current Price

    You may continue to pay your current monthly rate, with no pricing increases during this one year commitment period. Should you choose not to take this option, a 12% increase will be added to your monthly invoice for account number [redacted] starting March 28, 2025.

    I love how they refer to a 12% price increase as a “Pricing Update”. You know those clever marketers think we’re all a bunch of morons.

    Time to move..

    Needless to say, this umpteenth price hike left me feeling rather disappointed and frankly a bit insulted. So instead of continuing with my work developing WordPress plugins and writing tutorials, I spent the first half of March finding a new web host and transferring all of my sites to a new server. Fortunately, I was highly motivated and actually inspired to find something better and start fresh..

    My requirements..

    So here it is now, the beginning of March and I have set aside the next two weeks to migrate my websites to a new host. One thing that makes the work of finding a new web host a little easier is knowing exactly what you need. Here is my specific list of requirements and/or preferences, some things are more flexible than others:

    • Managed VPS Hosting — Wish I had more time for unmanaged but I don’t
    • US-based Location — Most of my traffic comes from the US and NA
    • Control Panel — Open to any control panel that provides a demo
    • 24/7 Phone Support — Chat-based support is sooo tedious
    • Linux & Apache — Just a personal preference, it’s what I know
    • PHP & phpMyAdmin — Most web hosts provide both of these
    • Apache/.htaccess Enabled — Most web hosts provide this
    • SSL / HTTPS — Preferably free certificates via Let’s Encrypt
    • DNS access — Essential to have control over DNS headers
    • Root Access — Need to be able to customize and fine-tune things
    • Cron Jobs — For automated system reports and other tasks
    • Trial Period — In case of anything unexpected, missing features, etc.

    Everyone has different needs and preferences, these are mine. So when I’m searching for a new web host, these are first-priority features that I look for. Any host that checks all those boxes is added to my short list.

    Interviews..

    After scouring the Web and putting together my shortlist of potential web hosts, it’s time for the interviews. This is where I revisit each web host and ask a series of questions. Before jumping into the questions, I first take the time to dig around the host’s website and gather as much information as possible. Doing this usually shortens the list of questions and thus saves some time. So I find the “VPS Plans” page, examine the details, compare prices, resources (e.g., CPU, disk space, memory), and then ask the following pre-sales questions:

    • Are these *all* of your managed VPS plans?
    • Are the listed prices introductory/deals?
    • Ask about annual pricing vs. month-to-month
    • Any hidden fees, like for SSL or control panel, etc.
    • What if it doesn’t work out, refund policy
    • Options for control panels, e.g., Plesk, cPanel, etc.
    • Is there an extra charge for any specific control panels?
    • Which version of Linux, EOL etc.
    • Running Apache, Apache + Nginx, or something else?
    • Which versions of PHP are provided?
    • Which versions of MariaDB are provided?
    • Is the IP address shared or dedicated?
    • Is IPv6 available?
    • Who owns the company?
    • How long in business?
    • 24/7 phone support?
    • PCI compliance?
    • Trial period?

    Of course, in order to ask these questions, there must be a support or pre-sales person available to take the call or handle the chat. If no phone number, I look for chat. If no chat, I move on to the next potential web host. No point in waiting around for an email response for pre-sales questions lol.

    Even more: 12bytes shared even more smart things to ask when shopping for web hosts, check ’em out in the comments below ?

    Usually the interview questions narrow the list down to just a handful. At this point, it is much easier to compare prices, features, and make a final decision. Also it is wise to further vet the final candidates by searching around for any related reviews about the company/service (written by actual people/customers). Also look for available online documentation, resources, server status page, and so forth.

    ? Web host shortlist

    After going through the motions, I have put together the following web-hosting shortlist. I had asked for help with recommendations on X but didn’t think about sharing the list until prompted by @thisbitoo. So without further ado, here is my personal short list of recommended web hosts for Managed VPS Hosting in 2025:

    There are many other great hosts out there, so I encourage you to spend some time searching and researching the options to find the best possible fit for your specific needs. Note: The web hosts listed above are not a recommendation. I am merely sharing the list of final candidates in hopes that it will give you some ideas 🙂

    Honorable mentions

    There were a few other web hosts and tools that looked great but just didn’t make the cut. So here are a few more hosting ideas for your consideration:

    I hope this post is useful for anyone else looking for Managed VPS Hosting. Feel free to share your experiences and recommendations in the comments below. Thanks 🙂