What exactly is web hosting?
In
offline terms you can compare a web hosting provider with a landlord,
renting a house, office or shop to you. In online terms the house could
be a personal website, the office a commercial service and the offline
shop can be compared to a shopping website like Amazon.com etc. So a web
hosting company rents space on the Web to others (and not on the earth
like landlords do) and this space can be used for anything from personal
stuff to corporate websites.
The first step you should take, is
the decision what your website will be for. Is it for personal use, for
business, politics, economics, science etc.
The second step is to
decide what your domain name will be. A domain name is your physical
address on the Internet and every domain has a different address, just
like in the offline world. Addresses of domains are called an IP
address. Choose a domain that is related to your website's content. There are many cheap domain providers so it shouldnt be difficult to find one.
Next step: choose a cheap web hosting company. Depending on your needs there are different hosting plans available, like simple basic plans for personal sites or blogs, more
extensive plans for businesses including all sorts of free scripts and
corporate packages.
The most important features of website
hosting providers are their technical support quality and their
equipment. Choose a provider who has 24/7/365 technical support by
competent people and who can guarantee at least 99% uptime of your blog
or website. Also see to it that there is instant account activation
available so you can start buiding your website right away. It would
also be great if the company could help you with your search engine positioning. Its best to choose a Linux host because Linux hosts are generally speaking cheaper and more secure compared to Windows web hosts. Success!
