subject: Domain Hosting For Beginners [print this page] Introduction Introduction
If you are thinking about starting a website, then the basics of getting online are really quite simple. The steps that you need to do are to first register a domain name. There are free domain names avaliable, but these tend to be sub domains that are not particularly professional sounding. There are lots of domain names for sale, with the most common being the .com, .info, .net, and the country specific codes such as .co.uk. You can register your chosen domain for as long as you like, with charges being given every year until you decide to stop registering the site.
How to get started
Once you have the domain name, you need somewhere for domain hosting. Even though you have the domain name, there is no web server where your data and website hosting is held. Your website will have to be held on a physical or virtual server to be able to be accessed by the internet. You can of course host your domain name on your computer, but your website will only be accessible when your computer is switched on and connected to the internet. This is hardly ideal, and most people choose to host their website under a third party. This is the role of a webhost. They typically have hundreds of servers all openly connected to the internet. You can hire space on this server, and the server provides the memory, hard disc space, bandwidth and electricity to run your website 24 hours a day.
What you need to consider in a webhost
When you are choosing a webhost there are lots of things that you need to consider. There are so many options these days for hosting your website, from hosting a VPS to finding a webhost that will do it all for you the choice can be overwhelming. If you are looking for a company that can offer you reliable domain hosting you should bear in mind the following factors:
Included software: Some companies offering domain hosting give you software to help you build your website. If you do not have the knowledge on how to program your own web pages, or do not have the time to learn, then many companies give you free packages to design your own website. These vary in quality some only have basic functioning, and only allow you to make a single front page, whereas others give you the choice to set up functional websites within minutes. Look out for domain hosts that give you access to Cpanel or an equivalent, as these can make setting up your website a lot easier. You should also look if your webhost offers autoinstallers or an installation service these can set up a blogging program/chat forum/shopping cart within minutes with no programming knowledge needed.
Overall reliability: It is no good having a webhost if their servers are down half of the time. You should look over the downtime statistics and the backup facilities for your chosen company. Make sure you have verified statistics to ensure that you are being told the truth!
