So you’re ready to set up shop on the web, are you? Terrific! The Internet is the fastest growing form of media in existence, boasting some 700 million users and almost 50 million websites. You should be there, taking your place on the side of the information superhighway.
However, website hosting can be a complicated affair. There are hundreds of companies out there offering web hosting services, and trying to figure out which one is right for you can be a daunting task. Website hosting involves a lot of concepts and words you may not be familiar with.
Don’t be scared!
When you are ready to enter the world of website hosting, be sure to take a look at this glossary of terms. It can help you figure out what’s what with web hosting.
Alias
Aliases can be used to identify different e-mail
accounts and can redirect mail to other POP3 accounts or
to another folder within the same address. A catch-all alias
can be used to process e-mail from unknown senders, and
is often known as a “junk-mail” sorter.
Auto responder
Auto responders are not true email accounts, but
they do have an e-mail address and reply to anyone who sends
them an e-mail. This is a handy tool if you want to send
out the same information to anyone who asks for it. The
pre-formatted e-mail is automatically sent as a reply, guaranteeing
that every response is identical.
Bandwidth
Bandwidth is a term used to describe the amount
of data that can pass through a communications channel (such
as an Internet connection) in a given period of time. Bandwidth
is often measured monthly.
Browser
A browser is a program that allows access to the
web visually by allowing requests from special files known
as HyperText Markup Language, The language of websites.
There are many web browsers out there to choose from. Microsoft’s
Internet Explorer program is one of the most popular.
Client
A client is a computer program that can download
files for editing, run applications, or request application
based services from a file server. An FTP client is a common
software package used for uploading and maintaining websites.
Dedicated Hosting
Dedicated Hosting is a service that Web hosting
companies provide to their customers whose websites generate
a lot of traffic. Essentially, and entire server is used
for a single customer, ensuring that all of the server’s
resources are used to that customer’s needs. This
is important for companies that do business online, as heavy
traffic tends to eat up bandwidth and make sluggish websites.
DNS
DNS stands for “Domain Name System”,
and it is a way for institutions differentiate themselves
from each other. The most famous domain is the “dot
com” (.com) domain, which denotes a commercial website.
Other domains include the name of the host country (.us,
.ca) or a specific sector of society (.mil for military).
Domain Parking
Domain Parking refers to when individuals or companies
by up domain names before they are ready to use them. A
simple web page describing the future content or advertising
the new owners of the website is then “parked”
on the address in order to generate interest before the
website actually goes online.
Download
Simply put, when you download data or programs
you are transferring data from a server or host computer
to your own computer.
E-mail
Created by Roy Tomlinson for ARPANET in 1971, e-mail
is a system for sending and receiving messages electronically
over a computer network. E-mail has revolutionized personal
communications in the 21st century.
Forwarding Account
Forwarding accounts are special e-mail accounts
that allow e-mail to be redirected to another account as
soon as they come in. This can be helpful when you have
several accounts running at once and would like to consolidate
your email to a single address.
FTP
FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It is a
communications protocol that governs the transfer of files
from one computer to another over a network.
Gigabyte
A gigabyte is a unit of computer memory or data
storage capacity equal to 1,024 megabytes. One Gigabyte
(Gb) is equal to about one billion bytes (230 bytes).
HTML
HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language. HTML
is a special computer language used to structure the text
and multimedia documents of a website. It also is used to
create hypertext links between electronic documents. HTML
was invented in 1991 by Tim Berner-Lee, and makes use of
specifications made by URLs (Uniform Resource Locators).
HTTP
HTTP stands for HyperText Transfer Protocol. HTTP
is mostly used to request and transmit web pages and web
page components over the Internet or other computer networks.
Internet
The Internet is an interconnected system of networks
that connects computers around the world. The Internet was
developed by many different minds, but most agree that the
real birth of the modern Internet was the ARPANET program
in the 1960’s. The Internet connects networks together
using the TCP/IP protocol.
ISP
ISP stands for Internet Service Provider.
Managed Hosting
Managed hosting is when a web hosting company provides
services for their dedicated servers. Managed hosting can
be thought of as having the space and freedom of a dedicated
server, but with the perks and services that are provided
to shared-server packages. As businesses continue to grow
online, so has the need for managed security, storage, and
database monitoring.
Megabyte
A megabyte is a unit of computer memory or data
storage capacity equal to 1,048,576 bytes of information.
A single keystroke is equal to a single byte of information.
Packet Switching
Packet Switching is essentially a method of data
transmission where small blocks of data are transmitted
rapidly over a channel (such as a phone line) that is dedicated
to the connection only for the duration of the packet's
transmission. Packet switching is one of the fundamental
concepts responsible for computer networking and the Internet.
It was developed in the 1960’s by Paul Baran, and
was designed to help the military build a communications
network capable of withstanding a nuclear attack.
POP3 Account
A POP3 account is a standard e-mail inbox, a place
on the server used for storing incoming e-mail messages.
E-mail accounts usually come as “POP3” accounts.
A specific amount of space is often allotted to a POP3 account,
and going over can cause incoming mail to “bounce”,
or return to sender.
Server
A server is a computer that processes requests
for HTML and other documents that are components of a webpage.
All website hosting takes place on a server of some type.
A server can be as small as a personal computer or span
thousands of Gigabytes in the case of large telecommunication
companies.
Shared Hosting
Shared hosting refers to the practice of splitting
up server resources among many customers in order to defer
the cost to many different customers. This means that the
shared host accounts are more affordable. Additionally,
shared servers are often run by the ISP itself, meaning
that they handle security issues and technical operations
as they arise in a “managed” environment.
Storage
Storage on a server is simply the memory space
available to hold files.
TCP/IP
TCP/IP stands for Transmissions Control Protocol
and Internet Protocol. TCP is the host to host connection
used by computers to govern networking and IP passes the
individual packets of information between computers. TCP/IP
is responsible for the interconnecting of all the smaller
networks that make up the entire Internet.
Traffic
Traffic on a website refers to the amount of people
who visit the site on a given moment. Traffic also describes
all of the interaction that visitors take part in, such
as surfing or using e-mail while on that site. Companies
pay particular attention to the amount of traffic on their
sites because it gives them an indicator of how successful
their website is.
Transfer Rate
Transfer rate and bandwidth is essentially the
same thing, referring to the amount of data that can flow
through a communications channel over a given time.
Upload
Uploading refers to transferring files from a client,
such as your home computer, to a host, such as your web
hosting company. Uploading is usually accomplished with
the help of an FTP client. Think of it as the opposite of
downloading.
URL
URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator. A URL
is an Internet address (for example, http//:www.domainname.com/example).In
this instance, the URL consists of an access protocol (HTTP),
the domain name (www.domainname.com) and optionally the
path of a file or resource residing on the server (/example).
Traditionally, the domain portion (.com) of the URL denotes
what sector of society the website belongs to. (.com) denotes
a commercial site.
Web Server
A web server is a computer that stores websites
and their related files for viewing on the Internet. Visitors
wishing to access the sites and files simply type in the
corresponding URL to the site they wish to view. Web hosting
is big business in the age of electronic commerce.
“WWW”
“WWW” stands for World Wide Web. The
World Wide Web is the collection of networks that make up
the Internet. The World Wide Web incorporates HTML files
that can be viewed by any web browser connected to the Internet.
The World Wide Web was created by the folks at CERN in 1991
in order to create a global network out of the many networks
operating in various parts around the world.
Now you’re ready to take a road trip on the World Wide Web. Excited? A little scared? These are all natural feelings. Having your own personal website can be a deeply rewarding experience, and it can give you a sense of accomplishment when you see yourself on the ‘net, available to millions of visitors every day.
If you own a business, how can you honestly expect to survive without a web presence in an age where Internet commerce generates between four and five billion dollars annually? Your rivals are almost certainly on the Internet already, soaking up those online sales.
Why aren’t you?
About The Author
Bill Schnarr is a successful freelance writer providing
valuable tips and advice for consumers purchasing website
hosting services, understanding prepaid cellular telephones
and finding website templates & development. His numerous
articles offer moneysaving tips and valuable insight on
typically confusing topics.
This "Glossary
of Website Hosting Terms and Definitions" reprinted
with permission.