e (a cool Windows editor) reviewed and a bonus: cygwin

This is a little off-topic, but not really--1&1 is providing the hosting, and you have to have a server somewhere to run php files, or any program files that are not intended to be run on the browser/client side. 

PHP programming:

You can use the nano/pico editor on Linux or notepad on Windows, but for real productivity you need a real programmer's editor. The first time you get a pair of braces or parenthesis misbalanced, you'll know what I'm talking about. Currently, I am trying  e (Windows) and, except for the price tag ($30 US), it seems truly cool. My initial impression: recommended.

Getting the Linux Functionality You Want

This post runs a little techie, so if you are not interested, just move on. The problem I faced was I wanted to run the htop command that I had seen on another Linux system. It's nicer looking than top, and seems to give you more useful info. The way I have seen for installing new commands on Linux is apt-get package-name (ie, apt-get htop), but the error message from Debian Linux apt-get was "you are not root (privileged), do you want to change to root?"

Now, I am not the root user on 1&1, nor do I want to be. The stuff on the web was along the lines of give them root access, and they'll install anything and everything; it's dangerous, etc., etc. The message from Debian and 1&1 was: you have to be root to install commands. But after muddling around Google and the Debian website for a while, and fiddling with non-root messages and finding no fixes or workarounds, it struck me: I don't want to install or modify a system-wide command, I run want to run the htop program.

Here's the Readers-Digest-411: download the source for the program/command you're interested in (in my case htop), and follow the instructions in the INSTALL file for compiling and what-not. There might be some error messages related to trying to install the program system wide, but those specific messages can be ignored. Presto.

The moral of the story is: whenever they're telling you you can't do this because of that, pay no attention, and keep focused on what your goal is. It can pay off in the end.

nb: neither 1&1 nor Debian are at fault here. 1&1 has their policy for shared web hosting, and Debian looks like they lack some vision--but that's not a major failing.

--pjm

Initial Impressions

Setup was fine. The website was available almost immediately, and most everything works as advertised. Haven't noticed any speed problems, but since my initial web page is smaller than small, I really have not way to tell. Not yet.

Support has been quick, and mostly to the point. I have only used the contact form on their control panel and have received responses via email, and they respond in less than an hour. They have been educating me as to what exactly a shared web hosting account is and is not. 

To me, an ordinary linux user is restricted and pretty much kept out of harm's way, but this is 1&1's version of being really safe. So, some of the technical decisions they have made sometimes seem a bit overdone. 

For instance, I want to look at my "ac" accounting login records. I don't think this is an unusual requirement. I'm not sure what 1&1's admin's are afraid I will see, since I haven't seen anyone else logged into the virtual linux space I'm in anyway. (From my point of view, this virtual linux machine is unoccupied.) I know this is not really the case, and it's all simulated because I'm sharing this computer with god knows how many other customers, so what are they worried about? I certainly have no interest in what other customers are doing. Really. 

--pjm