To begin with I am not at all affilliated with what I am discussing, just a happy customer. I thought about writing this review for a few months but did not want to seem like I was trying to sell something.

 Anyway, here goes:

I have been using this really cool VPS for a few months that runs Linux. It is basically a remote machine that offers root and ssh access. Its almost like having your own remote dedicated machine

Basically VPS is:
[quote]a hosting environment that combines the benefits of both shared hosting and dedicated hosting. It does this by creating a virtual server that runs inside a hardware server via a specially designed partition. Each Virtual Private Server partition runs its own operating system in a secure and private environment and cannot be accessed or interrupted by its neighbours. This system gives you the same level of root access as a dedicated server whilst sharing the cost of the hardware. With a VPS you are virtually running your own server but at a fraction of the cost.[/quote] http://www.webfusion.co.uk/virtual-private-servers/whatisvps.php

The one I am using is called Linode. Linode stands for "Linux Node." I discovered this service through word of mouth (which I found out was the only way they advertised). A friend of mine told me to check it out and I was amazed. They offer a trial period and I only had to pay month to month so I decided to check it out.  Typically with most VPSs you get a web interface to control your site, and ftp to upload but with Linode you get full root access and full control. One of the main reasons I decided to try Linode was I thought it was cool that you can choose what distro you want to run on it and they offer Archlinux. The current distro list includes:

Arch Linux 2010.05 (i386 and x86_64)
CentOS 5.5 (i386 and x86_64)
Debian 5.0 (i386 and x86_64)
Fedora 13 (i386 and x86_64)
Slackware 13.1 (i386 and x86_64)
Ubuntu 10.04 LTS (i386 and x86_64)
OpenSUSE 11.0
Gentoo 2008.0 (i386 and x86_64)
Debian 4.0 (i386 and x86_64)
Fedora 12
Slackware 12.2
Ubuntu 9.10 (i386 and x86_64)
Ubuntu 8.04 LTS (i386 and x86_64)
Ubuntu 8.10 (i386 and x86_64)
Ubuntu 9.04 (i386 and x86_64)

Since you have root access, you can basically do anything you want on the server.  It is like having console access to your own remote machine. You can install whatever application you want on it. I personally use mine as a FTP server and also use it as a shell account via ssh. I run gnuscreen www.gnu.org/software/screen/ so I can have multiple terminals open at the same time.  Here are some of the features listed at the website and wiki:
[quote]Full ssh and root access
Guaranteed Resources
4 processor Xen instances
Out of band console shell
Dedicated IP address, premium bw
Five datacenters in US and Europe
HA and Clustering Support
Bandwidth pooling
Managed DNS with AP
Performance
High performance SuperMicro Xeon servers
We do not over-commit RAM on the host servers.
Each machine is split differently to guarantee your CMR (Committed Minimum Rate)
Each Linode plan shares the host with others in the same plan.
You can have multiple installations at once, but only one may be booted at one time.
Linux Kernels - Ability to choose from multiple kernels at any time
Custom Configs - Ability to create, edit, and boot your own custom Configuration Profiles (but only one can run at a time)
Complete Control - Remote Reboot, Remote Console Access, Remote Desktop, Linode Platform Manager, multiple distributions, reverse dns, etc..
Instant Upgrades - Add extras like more storage, more IPs, and more RAM to your account in real-time (when available). Means a seamless upgrade path!
Linux - Plus, all the benefits of having complete ("root") access on your Linode, running your own kernel, with your own distribution
Install anything you want
Instant OS reinstalls[/quote]

Linode offers different plans with varied ram/memory/diskspace/transfer. I personally just use the $19.99 plan which offers: 360mb of ram, 16gb of storage space and 200gb transfer which is plenty for me since I do host a website or anything on it.  They also offer 5 different datacenters to choose from. Another great thing is you can wipe your hard disk and start with a completely fresh distribution within about 5 minutes if you mess anything up.

http://www.linode.com/
http://www.linode.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

I highly recommend Linode to anyone looking for an extremely reliable Linux hosting service who doesn’t want to spend a lot on a dedicated server or just want a remote machine to play with.