In order to successfully host a website on the Internet, you must be familiar with the lingo that is used by the technical personnel who will be responsible for making sure that your experience runs smoothly. Below we will define a few of the major terms that are used in the transference of your private website into the public domain of the Internet.
What is web hosting?
Web hosting is the process by which a professional company relieves you of the responsibility of the distribution of your website onto the Internet. If the Internet is the highway, the web hosting company that you choose would be the car that takes your website from point A (your computer) to point B (the Internet).
How does it work?
Web hosting companies own physical data storage and transfer all devices known as Web servers. You can think of these servers as waiters at a buffet who take the “food” of your website to the Internet and place it on a certain table (the URL of your website), allowing any visitor who wishes to come by and explore the buffet.
There are many technical aspects that go into hosting a website efficiently. The difference between a good web hosting company and a bad one is the speed and efficiency with which they transfer your website to the Internet and the speed and efficiency with which people are able to view it.
What is a Web server and what is web space?
As mentioned above, the Web server is the physical data and transfer device that actually transmits your website to the Internet and make it public. The webspace that a server has on it is the physicals that space that your website will take up. You must make sure that you have a Web server with a sufficient amount of webspace for the web traffic that will come through and visit your website. Otherwise, you get the equivalent of a clogged highway in which no one can move and no new visitors will be able to explore your website.
What must be considered when looking for a web hosting service?
Aside from a Web server with good webspace, you need a web hosting service that is efficient in keeping your website on the Internet during traffic spikes.