The performance of my shared server at GoDaddy leaves a LOT to be desired. Pages render out of the database in several seconds, when they should be easily generated in under a second. Their tech support response was to blame images and javascript, when the actual database-based page generation itself is waaaay too slow. Even when pages are rendered OK, they may be spit out somehow triggering a file download rather than content in the browser. (you may have seen a "Download file: index.php" dialog box - I get it all the freaking time)
Comments on the Wordpress support forum pointed to perhaps the server being overwhelmed and reverting to a "safe" download behaviour.
Either way, I think it's time to look at the options. I'm currently looking at DreamHost. Their services seem really good (use a wiki for support info, have SSH access and a bunch of other nicenesses that GoDaddy doesn't). Are there better options? Should I be concerned about Patriot Act and DMCA implications with an American hosting provider?
I'm also wondering about what the migration process is. GoDaddy hosts the DNS as well, so how smooth is it to move that to another provider?