Marketmanila is hosted on the PLOGHOST servers. Over the past two years, I have been less than thrilled with their service but the last few months have really been exasperating. In the last week alone, my site has been down at least 5 times, on one occasion for almost 10 hours. Is that a big deal? To me you are darn right it is. I don’t like down time. And neither do the nearly 2,000 folks who visit the site every day who account for 7,000 or so hits. And in this age of computers, back-ups, artificial intelligence, there should be no reason whatsoever for more than say a 15 or 30 minute glitch. And certainly not several hours several days of the same week. But worse than the utter lack of consistency and reliability of PLOGHOST, is the appalling service response. You cannot call them on the phone, they do not answer their published cellphone numbers nor respond to texts and lately, I have taken to bombarding their fax number with paper consuming messages that are sent 10-15 times in a row to get my point across. The last time I spoke to a human at the company, the feeling I got was that it was a mom and pop operation complete with a crowing rooster in the background. How professional can that sound to a corporate or private client? Even emails are erratically responded to though lately they have been giving me great emails like “yes, we confirm your site was down, we are checking on the problem, please let us know when your site is down again…” or sage words of that ilk that HAVE NO CONTENT OF INTEREST WHATSOEVER. Now the problem is that the specific server I am on has another client who was hacked. Do I care??? Absolutely not. Just move me to another bloody server or I can think of several kitchen implements that I can use to hack a techy or two if this kind of service continues… I am now trying to move the site to U.S. based company. Forget about giving business to locals, they (PLOGHOST) are far less reliable, far more expensive, far less responsive. Buying Filipino only goes as far as good products/services are concerned. And I paid a year in advance to boot. Will also have to prevail on other related institutions that use PLOGHOST to look elsewhere for hosting services. If you know anyone on their list of clients, give them a heads up and ask them to read this post. In the meantime, if Marketmanila.com is down again in the next few days…text some wildly outrageous and pointed messages to PLOGHOST’s supposed cell phone contact number that they NEVER EVER ANSWER… it is 09184970174 or send a fax to 6328857089. This is the reason why there have been few posts lately.
In my dreams, torturing poor service providers has been a recurring theme, regardless of business…hotels, restaurants, stores, banks, airlines, technology companies… and here are some of my recent wishlist methods of choice:
1. I totally like the James Bond whack their gonads treatment. Totally like it.
2. Making a ham out of a major body part; or minor one, at least the right small body part.
3. Having the guilty run through several rows of thorny rosebushes then jumping into a pool of 8% acidity vinegar.
4. Brining them in rock salt for two days.
5. Coating them in garlic and chilli and burying them in a cold backyard for several months to ferment.
This list could go on and on…
39 Responses
Hi MM, I’m not sure if you’re aware but a lot of the ‘locals’ selling hosting is just reselling space from US based servers. This is usually the reason why the support they provide sucks…because they just have their hosting business as a sideline. I hope you don’t give up on local hosting companies. If you want to find out about another local option, send me an email. :)
That sucks! I have had my share of shouting/crying matches with service providers (not web hosting, but others, you probably know some of them) :(
I prefer the ham technique. After chopping off said body part liberally salt the wound remaining on the cut off appendage to seal and preserve, and wrap this in cloth. This is what Leatherface would do, and he is a butcher so he should know.
I thought our MIS blocked my favorite food blog. Welcome back MM!
WOW you really let off steam that time.Not that I blame you.And yes your site was down 3 times when I tried to access it.
Just an idea,my classmates an I have a forum and we use voy.com.The guys there are great.It is a US based company.
You might have to register with them.I’m not sure how these things work but just an idea.
at first glance i thought i read it as PLODHOST. given your description of their service, the name now becomes more appropriate. no wonder. i just hope they stop plodding along now. good luck, MM.
Yeah, I’ve been noticing a lot of down times on your site, MM. I thought I was just having a problem with my wireless connection.
hahaha! MM i never want to get on your bad side or i may end up pickled :-)
I’m not hosted with Ploghost but I did notice that with most hosting providers, they do not provide any LIVE support THAT WORKS like you would expect from let’s say Amazon or Target. Good luck with finding a new host, MarketMan.
You’ve been with them for 2 years? Why haven’t you moved already? Maybe get your own server perhaps?
Ahhh, maybe you call tell all other clients of local service providers like PLDT, Globe or Smart Wifi to not use their sucky services as well. :)
MM i was thinking that you were just uploading tons of post that it why the server was done. well do get a rebate on the times that it was not accessible. i do the same thing with my cable, internet provider and now i have lots of credit.
Ploghost has no idea how many people visit your site on a daily basis. Since your visitors are worldwide access 24 hours a day, seven days a week is a must! That is the totality of the http://www.. concept for worldwide web accessibility regardless of weather and time zone barriers. It is annoying and stressful on my end when I view your site and is unavailable. Missing a single post of yours is sickening to me. By this post, I am advising Ploghost that I have a productive and progressive life. Ploghost do not even think that I have nothing better else to do. I visit your site to share my endless passion to foods, arts and crafts, flowers. . . . To add further insult to injury they got your money. I hope this issue will be resolved and everyone will be happy. MM you have to do what you need to do. Keep your ears open for good site provider that will keep you up and running 24 hours a day, seven days a week! I greatly appreciate all your efforts on this.
i’m really starting to love your rants, mm!
i wonder though, should the james bond whacking should only be reserved for those with bodies like daniel craig? or would the sheer pleasure of whacking crappy service providers be enough without the added visual treat?
you can add this to your list: have the guilty swim in honey then leave him tied down to a post surrounded by anthills
hehe
if you have so much hits, maybe you can’t be in a shared hosting environment. Try VPS or semi-dedicated.
Ditto, John. Marketman deserves to have his own server. :-)
And I like the torture-by-brining treatment. Then you can roast the culprits or dye them magenta for the complete “salted red egg” look.
t is kind od frustrating to get an errorpage everytime I try to open your website and if it does open, the search function does not work. I’m sorry you have to pay for this kind of service even though it’s nice to have no distracting ads on the side. I hope they get it right.
I hear you, MM: I had the same experience with a local service provider. Extensive downtimes, erratic customer service, etc; the only thing I could rely on was for them to collect on time. Do consider moving to another host. I recommend Quadra (quadrahosting.com.au): very affordable, reliable service, and no downtimes so far in my 2+ years with them. Spare yourself the headache and us the heartbreak; it’ll be the perfect Christmas present for all!
You seem to be a rich guy and all. Can’t you afford to get a dedicated server with all that hits you get? I’m sure if it’s only MM hosted on a server, you won’t feel the pain of having to share it with other hacked sites. A dedicated server is only $200 a month. Don’t let us your regular readers suffer anymore.XXXX. EXCUSE ME. I will take your comment on the lighter side of obnoxious, considering you have never commented on the site before but at least transparent enough to leave a link to your site ” xxxx”; which is commercial, I gather. $200 a month is PHP120,000 a YEAR! Which is enough money to feed several malnourished children many times over…so blithely spending it on a dedicated server is NOT something to be taken lightly. I pay a fraction of that amount for my server now and will hopefully be moving to a U.S.-based server with greater reliability in the weeks ahead, if I can figure it all out with the help of a techy friend. I am not computer savvy enough to understand the details. My financial capability is irrelevant and frankly, NONE of YOUR BUSINESS and regardless of the size (or lack of it) of my bank account, it doesn’t mean I would choose to throw it around simply FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE, as you suggest. Considering that Marketmanila.com is completely FREE for you and the other readers, and free of annoying advertisements, and that I spend enough of my own money to keep it going, I think your individual “suffering” is a small price to pay if you are interested in the site’s content and are faced with downtime. Yes, downtime is annoying, but oddly, your comment is even more annoying. I, unlike you and your linked site, MAKE ABSOLUTELY NO MONEY from my site. Since you are being so flippant with other people’s money, perhaps you could offer to donate USD200 every quarter or so to a fund that buys children’s books for Filipino public schools or pay for feeding programs at nursery and pre-school programs for every 200 posts that you read… I wish I were smart enough to have a feature that could block you out as a viewer of this site’s content forever…
Miriam, yes, I know ploghost just resells…but when I started this site, I had no clue I would ever get to 7,000-8,000 hits a day so now I am figuring out how to move elsewhere… Joey, yup, the ham method is good. If we dry and age the appendage for long enough (say 2 years in the dry cool air of mountain caves in Italy), then we might have the world’s smallest salametti ever! Heehee. Wendell, yup…just bear with the service interruptions please… Peanut, thanks for the suggestion, I am working on alternatives. bohemyo, PLODHOST, that’s a good one. Brought a smile to my face despite my previous comment above. MrsA, pickled would be light treatment…heehee. Mia, it’s a techy world, no one wnat to talk to humans anymore… John, huge glitches have only been in the last few months. And with nearly 900 posts and nearly 2000 photographs, I will have a major job of moving to another provider…but will do so soon. Asunta, I have TONS of posts to upload but in the past few days I have lost drafts several times. If I could physically get to the PLOGHOST folks they would be seriously worried. Maria Clara, thanks for the support! Currystrumpet, good question, but no, I would not discriminate re: gonad whacking treatment. After all, any man in the moviehouse probably visibly lifted off their seats during that scene! Angela, I like the honey treatment. Noemi, that is so technical, I have no idea what VPS even is (Very Pilipino Server?). Up until recently, I thought a server was a politically correct term for a waiter/waitress regardless of gender. Trish, of course, after brining I forgot the roasting… lojet and all readers, yes, my apologies for the inconvenience, hopefully PLOGHOST gets the message.
ploghost servers are in a US datacenter which means it’s a US based server. I am not from ploghost btw. I have a small webhosting company and I am not promoting it here as I have adequate customers already. Just trying to help you out. Most of our local hosting companies purchase/lease US based servers because of fast and reliable connectivity . Your techy friend will help you look for a server/hosting plan that can serve your needs. Good luck.
Thanks Noemi, I appreciate the comments. Yes, I knew ploghost used a U.S. or Canadian based server but from what I gather, they have don’t seem to monitor them too well… Again, thank you…
I do agree with you MM that it was an inappropriate comment. I too am very much bothered, hurt, affected when people I dont even know make such comments. My laundromat made such comment recently and I told her off that I didnt like what she said and that “pareho lang tayo nagtratrabaho”. At this age you would think that everyone should be PC.
very inappropriate indeed! … ako rin nainis the first time i read it, ang kapal! ……
Eleven2 (https://eleven2.com/) is worth looking at, they host some smaller but well-known sites in the US. I have been considering moving my own site over to them when I have time. Hosting is as low as $7-$12 per month for a small web site and they most likely support the same software you are using now to make the weblog. 24/7 support via Instant Messenger or phone, diesel backup generators, etc.
You know this, but it is worth noting I am not affiliated with them…
Thanks Tom! The techy guy who helps me out is figuring this all out as I deflect the nasties. I faxed my current provider 18 times this morning and miraculously I was on-line again… :)
Bwahahahahha…. now that reader got the wrath of MM for being sarcastic, tactless and “snoopy” hehehehe… it serves her right!
hahaha!! MM, reading your blog is really entertaining.. i hate those days when i am not able to read your blogs.. and i terribly get SAD when there’s no new post.. hehehe! it’s been a ritual by itself.. and your wishlist is really hilarious.. wish i can watch you perform those wishes if ever.. hahaha!! wishing!! me, so bad!!
kasi naman eh! mm on the warpath na nga, nag-comment pa ng ganyan! mm… shall i hand thee the tasseled rope?
Dear Marketman,
KKKK & I were checking our stats at our website and saw that your site was one of the referrers. Curious, I checked your site and was quite shocked to read the comment (apparently posted by me) above as I have never posted such! Hay, this is unbelievable. We would appreciate it if you could help us get to the bottom of this. Thanks!
“Real” XXXX, I have gone back and checked the messages, the first comment was left by someone who seems to have used your name and website address…but further checking suggests that the message was sent from an IP address that differs from the one you just used for this last comment. As such, and since there is doubt as to the intentions of the first commenter AND I am taking your most recent comment at its word, I have removed all references to your website but have left the comments up, albeit in edited format, for readers who have already seen this thread. I have no idea who would put a comment in your name and drag your website into the picture, but I wouldn’t call them a friend of any sort… If you have any problems from strange email, etc., you should check if it originates from the following IP address: 210.213.160.44; that is who left the first nasty comment above. Thanks.
I visit several websites hosted by Ploghost everyday. Usually all the websites are down by midnight. I hope you get a great host so you can keep up with posts for the coming days. If you want more reliable host, I recommend get the UK based ones. Of course having your own dedicated server is an option but a little expensive. I have some websites with a good host but I forgot the exact name of the US based company. I have a list of good host providers before but couldnt find it in my file as of now and wouldnt even want to post it here. If you wish any help, I can forward the list later on and your techie friend might just look into it. Wish you luck!
hi MM, i’m sending you a link [on separate mail] for a webhost that was recommended to me by a friend in the US. am planning to use them for a friend’s site i’ll be working on soon. perhaps you and your techie friend can have a look at their site. good luck!
I fell in love with you rblog because of the yummy treats you provide for us daily – through the photos, the recipes, and the recommendations. But I love your rants the most. It is like you are the voice of Filipino consumers who have long suffered with poor service and disrespectful customer service staff.
I really love reading your blog, MM. I hope you will find a very reliable server as soon as possible. Good luck!!!
and here I was, thinking that out IT department had blocked your site from my pc.
a few days before your site was down, I saw the report the your site was my most visited site. tehehehe. =)
I am glad to know you are up and running again…
Im hosted with PlogHost too.. and of course its always down… Kadalasan madaling araw close na iyong website mo. Mini Stop is hosted with plogHost din. Pero embes na 24 hrs open, sarado website nila… lol. Anyone can suggest na magandang hosting provider dito sa Pinas?
I used to recommend Ploghost to my clients (I develop websites) but when get a lot of similar complaints, I decided to get one up. But mine is only good for SMEs, LGUs, and perhaps some blogs.
I recommend you going to hostgator.com. btw, mine is at https://teknix.biz. Great site!