Gandi.net launches Platform as a Service beta

Is it only me or the latest iteration of "Platform-as-a-Service" offerings doesn't differ at all from shared hosting?

I've got a few VPSs with Gandi, this looks like a minor extension of that. The VPSs perform well, their control panel is a bit verbose but does the trick....

Where it all falls down is their bizare "pre-pay/top-up" payment system. You have to set your card to periodically to-up your account with the exact amount you need. I really hope they change this if they are going to an even more unpredictable usage plan.

If you opt-out of the pre-pay system, you have to purchase each little component (A vps here, some hard-disk there) as seperate transactions... it's a real pain.

I wish they'd figure out how to make their web site work. This morning I've spent quite a bit of time trying to change the settings of one of my domains: every time I chose it, they'd come up with a page with a pink background and an uncanny ability to replicate itself. You could eventually catch a glimpse of a link and follow it, but it was not easy. And forget about doing it with a browser other than Firefox.

I love gandi as a DNS provider. One thing to be aware of is that they are based in europe and your credit card company my ding you with a foreign transaction fee if you use them.

FYI, when signing up the "optional" website address field is actually required.

I think that tagline is going to hurt them more than the "ha, these guys are cool" factor will help them.