Likewise, the paid versions of Automattic, SquareSpace and co. are not cheaper than your own site with a small web host! At which point you don't have to worry about random changes of policy and interface at half a dozen services, you have email, file hosting, and a homepage in one simple service.
It seems like the OP could SSH or FTP into a server at his parents' house from campus.
- Provide a free or very cheap service without lock-in antipatterns
- Capture a large share of the market
- Create lock-in
- Extract money by charging fees or doing surveillance or leveraging market power
It's amazing how the tech crowd falls for the same tricks decade after decade after decade.