There is a lot to consider when choosing a hosting plan. There are obvious things like price, space, and allotted bandwidth, which should be as the top of every potential webmaster’s list of things to compare. At the same time, though, there are other things to worry about. One of which is the kind of control panel system that particular host will have you use. Here today we will be comparing two of the control panels available on the web for webmasters: the cPanel and vDeck systems.
CPanel is, by far, the most widely used of the two, and is the most popular one today. It is practically an industry standard, and is known and loved for its easy to use interface, low learning curve, and the ability to get extra functions added to your website via what are called Fantastico scripts. Fantastico scripts allow you to install a blog, wiki, or an advanced CMS (content management system) to your website, giving you, the webmaster, freedom to create any kind of site you wish.
VDeck is a much more robust and complicated control panel. The learning curve is much higher, and there is considerable depth to it that cPanel lacks. The third edition of vDeck also includes the Install-Central feature, which is very similar to cPanel’s Fantastico. VDeck’s tools go beyond just website administration, though. There are also built-in tools for marketing your website, and features a plethora of extra advanced customization tools that can make a website really shine.
In comparing the two, it simply is not possible to say that one is definitely and indisputably better than the other. However, depending on the kind of website you are needing, one control panel will be more suited to your needs than the other.
For personal websites, cPanel is the better choice. As stated earlier, cPanel is much easier to pick up and use than vDeck, and more features can be installed via Fantastico. The library of Fantastico applications available is much larger than vDeck’s Install-Central thanks to cPanel being around longer and having a much larger user base. With only a few clicks needed to set up a blog and basic forum, cPanel rules the house for private users and small businesses.
Larger businesses may need more than cPanel’s simpler interface can offer, however, and this is where a lot of vDeck’s more advanced features come in. With built-in tools to set up and track your marketing, easily set up an online store, and add extra functionality to your website like customizable user areas, vDeck’s many strengths and fully featured and more complex user interface is ideal for users who need a highly professional and very large website with which to feature and advertise their products and services.
That is, in a nutshell, the strengths and weaknesses of these two excellent control panels. Most hosts offer cPanel automatically, so most webmasters looking to begin building their web presence will not need to spend a considerable amount of time looking for a host to call their own.
Armed with this information, we hope that webmasters reading this will be better able to make the choice that is right for them. Have a great time creating your sites, webmasters!