1. What
is a Web site?
In general, a web
site is a place or a "domain" on the Internet that
can be used to display your ideas, products, services or anything
you want the entire world to see. Your web site is only one
area sector of a global network of computers, users and content
that connect people around from around the world seamlessly
24 hours a day, 7 days a week. With a website, you will be
able to have any information you choose presented to any and
every user of the World Wide Web.
2. Why
do I need a Web site?
A website is a
necessity in today's society. Millions of new users are connecting
to the Internet from any part of the world at any time. People
use the Web to do almost everything, including banking, shopping,
and researching. Not only is it quick, convenient and easy,
but it is always a changing environment. Newly updated sites
always appear and there are always new things to explore on
the Internet because of its comprehensiveness. A website is
like a phone number, it is the first place people look before
they do business with your company. If they don't find you,
they will then find your competitors. A website could present
vital company information to the prospective client. Almost
everyone can be a competitor now, whether you are a multi-million
dollar company or a startup with a revolutionary idea, visitors
will base their judgment on the design of your website. Thus,
there are endless opportunities on the Internet.
3. What
is a Domain Name?
A domain name is
an address on the Internet. It is the name people will remember
when they want to go to your site. Like an address of someone's
physical business, a domain name allows you to easily visit
his or her location on the Internet. The best domain names
to select are those that are easy to memorize, simple, and
great sounding. Great domain names help contribute to increased
site visitors and return rates of visitors.
4. What
can a Web site do for me?
A website is a
presentation tool used by many people for a variety of useful
tasks including:
Providing support to your clients by providing online chat
support or online documentation.
Providing press releases about your company. The first place
people usually expect that information (especially shareholders)
would be from the company's website.
Selling products online to people around the world at any
time of day. This can help increase your name recognition,
while at the same time increasing sales with low overhead.
Receiving feedback and comments from your users. The easiest
way for people to submit comments is through a website. No
paper or postage is necessary.
To teach people over the Internet. The Internet is a great
educational tool, allowing students to retrieve the latest
information on their subjects of study. Students can work
at their own pace and attend classes at any time with ease.
Now that you have made a determination on why you need a web
site, you must choose which hosting platform better fits the
ultimate need of your web site.
Unix vs.
Windows 2000
There are two major
platforms on which shared web hosting environments are developed
- Unix/Linux and Windows 2000. The most common asked question
to our sales staff is "Do I need Windows or Unix?"
The answer to that question solely depends on what your web
site is meant to accomplish. As a rule of thumb, we tell our
"newbie" clients to stick with Unix, get their feet
wet on the Internet and then if they need to expand to some
of the core functionalities of what Windows can offer them,
we will migrate them over to the W2K platform seamlessly,
with no downtime to their web site. There is no question that
Windows 2000 has a far greater degree of expandability and
adaptability in regards to important website components such
databases or integration with your desktop PC components.
However, those items come with a price - Windows is less stable
than Unix and very little freeware or low cost software additions
that you can add to your web site to increase its effectiveness
such as: hit counters, guestbooks, voting scripts, quiz/survey
forms, and web site form mailers. Unix has literally thousands
of free software that you can download and install on your
web site to spice up your content of the dynamic aspects of
your site's content.
One of the biggest
misconceptions is that you have to run UNIX on your own personal
computer in order for you to host your site on UNIX platform.
This is not true. Which operating system you run on your computer
is irrelevant in making your decision. This means that if
you are running Windows95, Windows XP or Windows 2000 on your
computer, you can still choose UNIX and you will see no difference
in its operational capabilities. The programs that you use
to interface with your web site such as localized FTP clients
all run on all Windows-versions and MAC-based personal computers.
The following chart
is a quick snapshot and side-by-side comparison of the two
operating systems (1 being the lowest rating and 4 being the
highest)
