I have a few static websites that I maintain, two of which could certainly use a database.

My question is should I use a windows server and ASP or a UNIX server and PHP?

I had decided to move the websites to windows and use ASP, however my daughter (a lan administrator and a big UNIX bigot) warns me that if I move to a windows server my websites will get hacked - not 'could get hacked' but 'will get hacked'....

I don't feel that UNIX with Apache is a good alternative - even if it is available today there is no guarantee that it will be available next month....

Any help will be appreciated.

What do you mean by available? Personaly I would use php on a linux server.

*NIX hands down.

A Its free
B Performace
C heed the advice from your daughter.

At the end of the day its down to what is best for you. But windows would be my last choice.

Ibbo

freebsd... fedora... iis... all good choices. Geting hacked depends on the skill of the admin.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with going with Windows and ASP. But consider this. When a problem crops up, the Apache and PHP folks are usually right on top of it and get a patch out very quickly. And I wouldn't be too worried about them not being around in a year or two. They aren't going anywhere for quite some time. They've become staples, they know it, and they're serious and dedicated to their products.

It really comes down to a matter of preferense. What do YOU feel more comfortable working with. They both have pros and cons, both can be hacked just as easily.

I've been running www.internet-clubhouse.com for 3 years now on IIS/ASP and never got hacked, and never any major problems.

People tend to lean towards Apache/PHP because it's free and supported by the community. You made a comment about it not being around too long... it's here to stay. It's becoming more widely used by coperations then windows is.

So, tell us.... what do you feel more comfortable with?

I have to admit as well, that even though I am a *Nix junky, the new .net languages have some really neat features. asp.net really surprised me as to how powerful and simple to use it really was.

I really appreciate all your input and will 'chew on it' for a while before I make my final decision on the platform.

By the way, I didn't mean to imply that Apache or PHP was going away - I meant that just because my host currently uses Apache doesn't mean that they will continue to do so (for whatever reason they make these decisions) - nothing sinister in that remark, just that it is not under my control.

Again, Thanks so much for sharing.

Everyone here is wrong, haha.

Windows hands down. Because you can run EVERYTHING under windows. My server is a Windows 2003 Server with ASP/ASP.NET/Perl/PHP4... You are never limited, and you can even mix and match languages within web applications. It's a beautiful thing.

Also a huge range of databases, and how should I say data servers (e.g. MySQL, MSDE, MSSQL, Access, ETC...) are supported fully under windows.

Amen spudge