Hosting the Content
- 1. E-Commerce: Hosting the Content - Ecommerce, Web Space Providers, Account Feature... Page 1 of 4 Consulting | E-commerce Hosting the Content BOOKS ON E-COMMERCE After creating your content, the next step is to host the content on the Internet. One problem: most small businesses cannot afford the The following titles are available for cost of purchasing a dedicated web server and renting high speed purchase from affiliate Amazon.com Internet access lines. The solution is simple. Rent space on a computer that's already connected to the Internet. Thanks to cheaper hard disk drives, storage space is widely available at very little cost. You should be able to locate a hosting service for as little as $10-20 per month, depending on features and extras. Domain Names Creating Web Pages with As part of your hosting solution, you will also want to register a HTML Simplified unique domain name for your website. The domain name allows by Ruth Maran your customers to enter a shorter and easier to remember address to your website. Having your own domain name also will make any future changes of hosting services much less difficult. Domain names are licensed for $35 per year. While a domain name can be registered with any of the six authorities, it is best for novices to register a domain name through their chosen web hosting service. Registering through a hosting service ensures that required domain name servers (DNS) are quickly and properly configured - a technical nightmare for both techies and non- techies. Most reputable hosting services assist in the registering of domain names at no extra cost. FrontPage 2000 Simplified by Ruth Maran You can check if a domain name is available by using the Whois service at: Register.com - Register.com provides a clear, simple series of online forms to help register a new domain name. They also provide a simple online tool to administer their domain name servers, making it easy for novices to direct their domain name to their web server or host. Network Solutions - Network Solutions also provides online forms for registering and managing domain names, but the process requires knowing http://asbdc.ualr.edu/ecommerce/hosting.htm 10/07/2002
- 2. E-Commerce: Hosting the Content - Ecommerce, Web Space Providers, Account Feature... Page 2 of 4 the primary and secondary DNS server addresses. Unix or NT? For the average website, which operating system and brand of web server is not important. Only when you want to customize your site with databases, scripts, and dynamic features does the question of Unix or NT come into play. Unix/Linux and Apache web server Most hosting services are based on the Unix/Linux operating system and the popular Apache web server software. Thus, there are many sources of help and information available to the novice webmaster. Hundreds of customized CGI scripts have been written for the Apache server which can automate just about anything an e-commerce site needs. Windows NT and Internet Information Server (IIS) Second in popularity are hosting services based on the Windows NT and IIS operating susyem. One of the key advantages of using an IIS hosting service is that you usually can use Microsoft Frontpage to not only design, but also to manage the website. IIS also provides active server pages (ASP) which allows databases and processing of program scripts using Visual Basic script or Javascript. Windows NT/IIS is commonly found among small business using Microsoft products for their existing in-house network. Minimum Features Regardless of the operating system chosen, there are key features that should be considered a bottom line when choosing an e- commerce hosting service. Free domain name registration and setup 10 - 50 MB of storage Unlimited traffic 1 or more POP mailboxes Visitor Statistics File Transfer Protocol (FTP) access Desireable Features Register your Domain Name Unless your site is brochureware and you don't have very high http://asbdc.ualr.edu/ecommerce/hosting.htm 10/07/2002
- 3. E-Commerce: Hosting the Content - Ecommerce, Web Space Providers, Account Feature... Page 3 of 4 expectations, you should strongly consider the following extra features when choosing your host provider. Custom CGI Unlimited email aliases Unlimited autoresponders Secure server (SSL) Shopping Cart Log files access Locating a Web Host Arkansas Internet Services Budgetweb.com - list of budget priced web space providers Bizland.com - Offers free 35 MB commercial websites with email unlimited aliasing, statistsics, and full FTP access. Freemerchant.com - Offers free retail websites with shopping cart. Webjump.com - Offers free 25MB commercial websites with free bandwidth, custom CGI, and graphical site statistics. Uploading Your Website FTP - The most common method of transferring the content from your computer to your new host account is by using File Transfer Protocol or FTP. You will need to locate FTP software. Two of the most popular are WS-FTP LE and CuteFTP. A great source of Internet FTP software is TUCOWS. FrontPage - If your hosting service offers FrontPage extensions, you can also transfer your content using Microsoft FrontPage. You will need to configure your host account as a web in Frontpage. Then, just point, click, and drag to manage your site. Previous: Content | Up: E-commerce | Next: Marketing http://asbdc.ualr.edu/ecommerce/hosting.htm 10/07/2002
- 4. E-Commerce: Hosting the Content - Ecommerce, Web Space Providers, Account Feature... Page 4 of 4 Find Information Center | Consulting | Exporting | Training HOMEPAGE | SPECIAL INTEREST | LOCATIONS | FREEBIES | LINKS UALR Arkansas SBDC 100 Main Street, Suite 401 Little Rock AR 72201 (501) 324-9043 (501) 324-9049 fax Required Statements | Last update: September 22, 2000 | webmaster@asbdc.ualr.edu http://asbdc.ualr.edu/ecommerce/hosting.htm 10/07/2002