Please recommend alternatives for iWeb

SandVox or RapidWeaver - MacUpdate or CNET Downloads.

You question is an indication of a greater problem with MMe/iWeb users. The inability to think rational.

iWeb is an application on your computer. It does not cease to work when MobileMe stops.

I use other applications as well on MobileMe. Do I need an alternative for these too?

Of course not. If MobileMe ceases to be a webserver, I have to relocate.

So you don't need an alternative for iWeb. You need to find an alternative for MobileMe.

To Wyodor: The original question might be a bit generic, but I don't think it's an indication of any problem with iWeb users in general (let alone of their inability to "think rational"—whatever that means...).

I myself was wondering the same—and not because I don't see the difference between a hosting service and a web design application, but because chances are that iWeb will soon become obsolete and unsupported. If you consider that the current version of iWeb hasn't been updated in a while and it features quite a few bugs (e.g., QT clips not appearing correctly when floating in the same page with other text boxes), one might only expect that these issues are likely to increase (if development of iWeb is dropped). That's why migrating to another application is something that many "rational" iweb users are considering.

Regarding Kappy's suggestion I too think that both SandVox or RapidWeaver are good alternatives, but they can't seem to replicate the WYSIWYG aspect of iWeb (in both applications you need to constantly switch from EDITING to PREVIEW).

PS: Bozomac, keep posting questions and don't be discourage by grumpy Mac users who treat newbies with unnecessary contempt.

I am done with Apple now. Last weekend I decided to move my website away from Apple.

I bought Sandvox and rebuild my first (of four) website with this tool. It was surprisingly simple. Sandvox 2 is also template based and requires no programming at all (this was my requirement). So my first website was rebuild in Sandvox2 in 3 hours !

Then there was the hosting issue. From Sandvox2 you can both upload to MobileMe and via FTP to any webhosting provider. I uploaded to a new webshosting provider and this went very smooth.

So after one day I am up and running. The result: www.protrack.nl (dutch website).

Three more websites to go.....

Take a look at RapidWeaver and Sandvox - they are both template based, but RapidWeaver can become expensive because of all the extra add ons that you need to purchase.

You can then take a look at Flux 3 - this is more complex, but has import facilities too. Then there is Rage Software WebDesign and PageSpinner, where you do need to know about html and css.

You can then take a look at online resources such as http://www.weebly.com and http://wordpress.com and if you then move to a new host, there are the content management systems such as Drupal, Joomla and WordPress.org.

There should be something there that fits your needs and several people on these forums have actually invested in Sandvox and like it. Others with more html and css experience have invested in Flux 3 and WebDesign and like these too.

I have switched my iWeb website to http://newmobileme.net. It is a new hosting service targeted to iweb software users so they can still use the software and get it hosted without much money.

NewMobileMe doesn't appear to offer anything that other hosting services do and, if anything, costs a little more than most for a basic account. First time I've seen a hosting product that requires a setup fee!

If they had somehow been able to offer the MobileMe only features they would have been unique. SInce they aren't it seems like a bit of a con to use the name.

I agree - seems like a con to me too. I have never paid a set up fee for any hosting that I have purchased in the past and a lot I have paid less for.

As well as not offering the MobileMe only services, they don't offer the extra add ons that other hosting services do such as one click installation of WordPress, Drupal and Joomla etc., or FormMail.

Not a very good option all things considered.

The only thing that you don't have to do if you don't want to is purchase a domain name.

Ethmoid, your last sentence is the key to the value of NewMobileMe. In addition to hosting a domain name you can also host your web site on NewMobileMe without a domain name. About half of the users of MobileMe don't have their own domain name. This service was never designed to be a full-featured web hosting service. It was designed to be an easy-to-use service for the average Joe iWeb user, someone who is not an internet expert like so many of you in this support community. It was designed for the user who may have a personal web site to showcase family activities and interests; the kind of person who did their own website in iWeb because it was so easy to create, and so easy to host on MobileMe. And now, with MobileMe web hosting going away, that person is looking for alternatives.

Is NewMobileMe the cheapest host? No it's not. There are many sites out there that will give you free hosting because they get their money by selling you other services. At $3.50 per month NewMobileMe is in line with other services, and we don't require the full annual fee up front. We bill your credit card monthly through PayPal. If you don't like the service you can cancel at any time with no further billings and no penalty.

Yes, we charge a $7.50 setup fee of in addition to the $3.50 first month's hosting fee. Because the typical iWeb user will need a lot of help switching from MobileMe to NewMobileMe. If you read the FAQ's section of our information site you will see that we spend a lot of time trying to walk the new user step-by-step through the process of going from MobileMe to NewMobileMe. Even then, we know there will be a lot of questions that need to be answered by our tech support.

What's in a name? MobileMe offered many services besides web hosting and most of those services will continue through iCloud. Apple's web hosting service hosted only iWeb-created web sites. It offered no additional web hosting services like easy WordPress installation, Drupal, Joomla, etc. NewMobileMe was created to offer the same web-hosting-only services as MobileMe because MobileMe is going away. Does that make NewMobileMe a con? Come on guys.

My name is Tom Reusse. My company hosts web sites under another company name. I created NewMobileMe because there seemed to be a need. Time will tell if that need is real. I posted this message to answer concerns raised about our pricing, services and name. If you think my response to comments like "seems like a con" was inappropriate then flame away.

Can't add. The setup fee is $6.50 in addition to the $3.50 first month's fee.

Tom

Apple's web hosting service hosted only iWeb-created web sites.

I hosted custom pages made with all flavors of applications at MobileMe.

Anyway, it's good to clarify your business.

And ignore our resident technology experts and visionaries. They parrot each other since they have no knowledge or opinions of their own. If real experts did not feed them, they would starve.

The only thing that NewMobileMe appears to offer over other hosting sites is the ability to host a website without having to purchase a domain name. It provides a similar URL as MMe did:

www.newmobileme.com/myusername/mysitename

They don't mention offering the password protection capability that other ftp servers offer that can be use to replace the password protection of iWeb. They may have it but it's not mentioned anywhere on their website. But thay may not be a deal breaker for many users.

I can see the startup fee because some of the similarly low priced hosting services require a 2 year commitment for the low price.

It appears that they're directly quoting some of our posts from this iWeb Support site in their FAQ page.

OT