We all know what a website is. We all know it’s the pages we see when we surf the Net. But how much do we really know about websites? How many of us really know how these "things" work or even come about to cyber existence? To tell you quite honestly, I did not know of the processes involved prior to my initial interest about websites. I’ve always thought that you just need to register a domain name and put content as you would using Paint or Word. Seriously. Well, this article is to hopefully educate the individuals who, just like me before, knew nothing about the "technical" aspect of websites. Still, this is written in layman’s terms and explained by a noob as well.
Websites are like online abodes. We can put whatever content we want to put in there. We can design it however we want. We can add music, play movies, post your latest poem creations, or even just create a blog that talks about anything under the sun. It is practically your online presence. But before we can do all these things, we need to understand the ways and how we can do these things.
Domain Name Registration
Before you can have a website, you need to have a domain name. Domain names are commonly percieved as the website itself but it isn’t at its entirety. A domain name is simply your online address in cyber space. Imagine building a house. Your domain name is your address. An example of a domain name is "mydomain.com.ph". It has no content yet, nor design.
Registering domain names is on a first come-first served basis. It is similar to registering uncharted land. Finders, keepers. That’s the rule. You you can simply buy it from the guy who found it first. Domain names are online real estates. People involved in the business of buying and selling domains are called domainers. Domaining has grown to be one of the most lucrative industries in the past 5 years.
You can opt to register your domain name with a .com, .net, or .org extensions. These extensions are called Top Level Domains (TLDs). Dot COM domain names is the most popoular extension available. But not necessarily the best. There are also Country Coded Top Level Domains (ccTLDs) like .ph, .us, .uk, etc. These extensions already give off partial identificaiton of the site. You can already tell that a site, for example mydomains.ph, is a site that caters to the Philippine market or has content related to the country. ccTLDs also have an advantage in search engine results. Google for example indexes ccTLDs better compared to TLDs. If you’re a businessman and you want to set up your online presence, you need to pick wisely what domain name to register and go with the extension that will greatly benefit your business. If your business caters to the Philippine market, it is highy recommended that you register a dot PH domain so your customers can easily find you if they search via search engines.
Web Design
If you have to have an address, you now need plans for making the house and actually "constructing" it. There are different ways in which you can make your websites. You can simply submit your content and have a web designer create your site for you. Or, if you lack the technical knowledge, you can avail any of many site builders available in the Net. Both for a price of course. Your site’s layout will play a crucial role in terms of how visitors will respond to your site. TIP: a page full of words and texts will bore your visitors and prompt them to leave. Use pictures. We all love pictures.
Web Hosting
You have the address and you have the plans, now you need a plot of land where you can build your site. Web hosting companies are the ones who launch your website online. Hence, they host it. There are different kinds of hosting services: shared hosting, virtual private servers and dedicated servers. There are new technologies coming about like grid hosting but the system has not yet taken a stable footing compared to the three aforementioned types. These types vary in terms of security and stability. Shared hosting is the "least secure" while the dedicated server proves to be the most secure as you practically own the machine that is hosting your site. Different web hosting companies offer different web hosting packages and vary in diskspace and bandwith limits. You can choose your web hosting packages according to your needs.
Lastly, a time for propagation is needed. Propagation is when the hosting company launches your site to all the different nameservers across the globe. In layman’s terms, it’s making sure your site will be accessible wherever you are in the world.
After you have done these three processes, you can access your website using your favorite browsers. Yay! Online presence right now is cool. And it will be a necessity in the near future.
