Web Hosting

I've built the site, now what do I need?

Once you've created your web site and you can see that it works properly on your computer, you need to "publish" it to the internet so that other people can see it.

Essentially you copy the web pages from your computer to your host server.

Choosing a website host, website hosting provider or hosting package from the many thousands of companies offering website hosting packages can be extremely confusing. Its best to choose the one you need, not the cheapest, or the one with the most features. Most providers bundle basic web hosting with a variety of web services like email, newsletters, databases etc and combine them into packages or hosting plans.

Choose the most appropriate package for your present and future needs and always choose a provider that will allow you to upgrade later if you need to.

When you are new to website building its difficult to decide what you need, and you're probably not sure what most of the terms mean anyway.

As a ‘rule-of-thumb‘, if you don't understand it then you probably don't need it.

There are two main categories of hosting options: Free and Paid.

Free Host Servers:

There are plenty of places on the internet which will host your site for free. Not surprisingly, there are catches. These may include:

• Advertising banners. Most free services make their money by inserting advertisements into your pages. The advertisements may also appear in pop-up windows which activate whenever someone visits your site.
• No domain hosting and ugly URL's. Free hosting doesn't usually allow you to use a domain name (e.g. www.myname.com). You will instead be assigned an address which could be very long and difficult to remember.
• No support. If anything goes wrong or if you need any help, don't hold your breath. Chances are no-one cares.
• Limited features. You will find that certain features aren't allowed. More often, certain features they offer are discontinued or they start charging for them.
• No guarantee of service. From time to time free hosts simply shut down, either temporarily or permanently.

Your best bet is to see what your ISP has to offer. Most ISP's have some sort of free web hosting option with their dial-up accounts

Paid Host Servers:

If the free services don't meet your needs then you'll be looking for a professional hosting service. Look for the following features:

• FTP Access. This is the most common method of publishing your files to the host server and is offered on almost all serious hosting options. Make sure you know exactly how to access your host.
• Technical Support. This is most important - does your provider offer help installing and running your site? Does this cost extra?
• E-Mail. Exactly what e-mail facilities are included? Can you have multiple email addresses? Can you set up the email accounts (addresses) yourself?
• CGI, PHP, etc. These are advanced features which allow you to add bells and whistles such as forms, dynamic content, discussion forums, etc. This is not as complicated as it seems. If your site grows you may well need extra features so find out if they can be added.
• Bandwidth. If you want to add videos or any other type of media then bandwidth may be an issue. Ask your host for advice and make sure you have a package with enough bandwidth for your requirements.

You don't have to use a host which is geographically near you - you can have your site hosted on the other side of the world.