While loyal open source supporters will argue that Linux is the way to go, others insist that Windows' compatibility with Microsoft technologies like ASP and FrontPage allows for a more efficient platform.

Given the debate, some Web hosting providers understandably consider it crucial that they allow the customer the choice between the two platforms.

Affinity Internet (affinity.com) launched its new Microsoft Windows hosting platform this week, through its recently launched Web hosting brand, Gate.com (gate.com).

"This is the next level of Windows hosting," says John Enright, vice president of marketing for Affinity Internet. "We're combining the latest in Microsoft technologies with [Affinity's] clustered architecture. It's the first hosting brand that we've applied this architecture to."

Affinity says it will be introducing the platform in some of its other brands in the near future. For now, the new platform takes advantage of many of the latest development tools offered by Microsoft.

Gate.com's Windows solution helps eliminate the time-consuming tasks of creating a Web site by incorporating turn-key Web applications that can be easily installed. Applications like blogs and community forums can be deployed by users of any skill-level.

"These days, the choice of platform is more driven by the applications that are available," says Enright. "With so many pre-built applications out there written to a specific platform, the choice of platform is important for more than just developers, but also for some of the more technology-adept users who are just looking to use a specific application."

As a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, Affinity demonstrates the highest level of competency for delivering Windows-based solutions.

"We've worked closely with Microsoft to review their different pre-scripted architectures and methodologies for a successful Windows platform," says William Toll, director of product and management for Affinity. "Our engineers and architects have dozens of years of experience on Microsoft Windows shared hosting."

The Gate.com Windows packages include SQL Server 2005 and ASP.NET 2.0 and use a wide range of Microsoft technologies such as Microsoft Active Directory, Microsoft Operations Manager and Windows Server Update Services.

So far, the response for the new Windows offering has been overwhelming. The company has seen numerous customers signing up for the new Windows hosting packages, helping Affinity to boost its overall sales volume.

"[The Windows package] hasn't simply taken people who were formerly Unix customers and converted them to Windows customers,- says Enright. "It's also bringing new customers into our Gate brand."

Enright says Affinity remains largely agnostic about the type of platform its customers choose - pricing Linux and Windows platforms the same - and rather, prefers that customers select the platform that best suits their needs.

"Providing a Windows solution, especially to a developer audience, is a must-have," says Enright. "There are more and more applications that are specifically written to the Windows platform and I think we are seeing an increasing trend where developers will actually have environments that run on both Windows and Unix."