Web Hosting and Development

If you've ever browsed the World Wide Web and wondered how you could stake your claim on the Internet, like the millions of others that have done so already, then web hosting can provide you with the services to do just that. The Internet is a great way of sharing information and it is possible for you to take a portion of the web and make it your own. This article introduces the term "web hosting" and provides some useful tips for web development once you've obtained some web space.

What is the World Wide Web? The "World Wide Web" is the network of computers from all over the world that communicate with each other using the HTTP protocol, a language that allows the transmission of web documents. Be careful as this term is not synonymous with the "Internet" because it is defined as a network of networks, where the computers communicate with protocols other than HTTP. The web is what you see on your Internet browser, the web pages complete with graphics, sound and other information. All this has got to come from somewhere, and this is where web hosting comes in.

Web Hosting The information that you see from your web browser is contained in web pages. These web pages are kept on computers called web servers. Web hosting is about the storage of the web pages so that people can access them. It is possible to host your own websites yourself but the reasons stopping most people doing this is that there are issues to consider with having the right hardware and software to successfully host your web pages. Your web pages will take a certain amount of space, users will need to download each page to view them and your Internet connection needs to be fast to offer good performance to your viewers. Using specialised companies that offer web hosting capabilities on their web servers will take most of these worries away from you but you will need to choose wisely and weigh up the costs and your needs. In addition to having access to a web server, you will also need to register a domain name (for a cost) that uniquely identifies your website.

What Web Hosting Can Do For You The most basic service that web hosting offers is that it exposes your web pages for others to see. The other services are: email capabilities that allow for email to be received and sent from your server; database capabilities that allow for large amounts of information to be updated and accessed on the web; and dynamic content which allows for users to interact with the web pages you've made.

Website Development Poorly designed websites will most likely turn away users and harm the credibility of the information it contains. Thought should be put in on the way it looks and the way you intend your users to interact with the content. It is also recommended for more complex websites, a structured development process should be followed. Here is a guide to the logical steps of web development: · Requirements Analysis: What is the purpose of the website? What content should it contain? · Design: How should the pages be linked? What structure should they take? How should the pages interact with the user? · Implementation: This step is the actual coding of the websites in accordance to the previous websites. · Testing: Does the website do what it should? · Maintenance: Is the information on the website up-to-date?

Some useful hints for web development below are taken from software quality aspects but they apply to the development of websites as well. They are described in terms of web development:

Reliability: Is the website reliable? Do faults allow for the system to continue running? Robustness: How does the website respond to incorrect input? Performance: How fast does the web page respond to user's actions? Is it efficient in processing requests and inputs? Usability: Is the website easy to navigate and understand? Maintainability: Is the website easy to change? Can new functionality be added? Portability: What software requirements does the website require? Will this limit the amount of potential users? Understandability: How well do you understand the website you've developed?

When designing your website, keep these quality aspects in mind as they will help you develop pages worth visiting. How to choose the way to host your website is half of the problem, the other half is to create a website that people would want to visit and come back to. Knowledge of producing a good design can help you get the most out of your creations.

William Ly M6.Net http://www.m6.net

---

Unlimited Bandwidth in Web Hosting

Bandwidth explained:Bandwidth is the amount of data transfer that you... Read More

Dedicated Web Hosting Is Easy When You Know These 3 Timesaving Secrets

Dedicated web hosting has its difficulties and problems from time... Read More

Confessions and Tips from a Top Web Hosting Salesman

Have you ever gone car shopping with a former car... Read More

Budget Web Hosting - Dirty Secrets That Can Squash Your Websites Chance of Success

When it comes to budget web hosting, there are a... Read More

Avoid Getting Ripped Off By A Hosting Company

Chances are if you host multiple domains or websites you... Read More

Choosing Between Free or Paid Web Hosting

There are a number of things to consider when choosing... Read More

Webhosting for Blogs - Free or Paid Service

Blogging is an abbreviation of "web-logging". The simplest definition of... Read More

Effectiveness of Web Hosting Directories (WHDs)

John is very happy today, for the first time in... Read More

Great Web Hosting - What to Look For!

Web hosting can best be described as a modern-day marriage:... Read More

The Problem with Free Web Hosting Plans

In my opinion, free web hosting is one of the... Read More

Virtual Private Servers (VPS) Web Hosting

A Virtual Private Server (VPS), also referred to as Virtual... Read More

Setting Up Your First Web Hosting Account

The BasicsSetting up a web hosting account for the first... Read More

Dedicated Server Price Check

The price of dedicated hosting services has really come down... Read More

Are Free Webhosting Accounts Really Free? - 5 Critical Things to Consider Before Choosing a Free Web

Many free web hosting accounts are free to use, however... Read More

Five Quick Ways to Determine One Hosting Company From Another

These days, web hosting companies are popping up faster than... Read More

Cheap Hosting Packages and Low Cost Web Hosting - Watch For Hidden Costs

If you're shopping around for an affordable web hosting plan,... Read More

A Beginners Guide to Web Hosting

What is web hosting? Whenever you visit a website, what... Read More

Web Hosting - Choose Affordable, Cheap Web Hosting

The Basics:Web hosting offers you the opportunity to put your... Read More

Top 6 Ways to Promote Your Web Hosting Business Part 2

Here are the following three methods that can help you... Read More

Back To School Web Hosting

Every year as school starts web hosts see an up... Read More

Choosing a Web Hosting Provider from 40 Million Other Web Hosts - Pt1

Discover how to go about choosing a web hosting provider... Read More

A Simple Guide to Web Hosting

Personal Computers, Servers Or ISP?You need a server to host... Read More

How to Choose the Web Hosting Provider?

1. Does the company offer telephone support or 24/7 email... Read More

The 14 Point Web Hosting Checklist

How To Select A Web Hosting CompanyWhen starting out, it... Read More

Woe the Web

Finding a good and reliable web hosting company is like... Read More

Linux Web Hosting: The All You Need to Know

Linux web hosting is so named, based on the operating... Read More

Cheap Internet Hosting - Get The Most For Your Money With a Cheap Web Hosting Package

With so many web hosting companies competing for your web... Read More

Internet Domain Registration - Establishing and Transferring Your Domain Name

If you're in business, one of the most important things... Read More

Importance of Educated Choice While Choosing A Web Hosting Provider

There are many attributes that makes a web hosting provider... Read More

Why Dedicated Hosting?

If you're reading this article, you might be interested in... Read More

How To Choose A Web Host That Meets Your Needs

One of the most difficult choices you have to make... Read More

Cheap Web Hosting - When Cheaper is Better

Anyone who has ever shopped for web hosting knows that... Read More

How Much Bandwidth Does Your Web Site Need?

One of the most common concerns people have when deciding... Read More