IIS cannot handle url rewriting out of the box and does not work with .htaccess natively. So you need some form of plug in/add on.

So, if you need to rewrite your urls (especially for Wordpress), then I would always go down the Apache road. However, if you really need to use Windows based servers then you can always install URL Rewrite Module 2.0 (for IIS7) or the brilliant Helicon Isapi Rewrite 3 or their new Helicon Jet packages which are both under $100!

I have to say Helicon have a fantastic support service and will help you on any Regex writing problems you have with their package.

In a nutshell, GZip will compress the webpage server side, transmit it across the internet and then your web browser will 'unzip' it and render the page. Significant improvements in page rendering times can be achieved using GZip.

However, despite this being a great idea, many hosting services don't have GZip running natively which is a pity. If you are hosting using Apache, then you are in luck. GZip can be instigated by coding up .htaccess using the following:

AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE text/plain

AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE text/html

AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE text/xml

AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE text/css

AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE application/xml

AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE application/xhtml+xml

AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE application/rss+xml

AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE application/javascript

AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE application/x-javascript

IIS7 should have GZip running by default and if not you can set up GZip programatically using microsoft.web.administrator. However, with IIS6 things are a little trickier. So long as you have direct access to IIS on the server then it is just a matter of checking a couple of property boxes and your done. But unless you have a dedicated server, this option is pretty much unavailable to you.

If you are having trouble getting GZip to work contact your hosting provider.