Maybe you have been surfing online for several years now. Perhaps you have created accounts on a few social networks and you consider yourself to be an expert at handling email and RSS feeds. But as far as website creation and management goes, you are basically a newbie. So, you hired someone to design your website. Now, though, you are supposed to make a decision about web hosting–and you aren’t even sure what that is.
Don’t worry–web hosting isn’t a difficult concept to understand. In fact, after reading this short article, you will be able to answer when other people ask, “What is the definition of web hosting?” So, read on–and you will soon be on your way to understanting why you need a web host for your website.
Perhaps the easiest way to think of web hosting is to imagine your website as a house that has been built in a factory, but that needs land on which to be placed. A web host would be the land for your website; hosting providers give websites a place to live.
Another way to understand what is the definition of web hosting might be to think of a web host as another computer that has a great deal of space. Customers pay to put their websites on that space–the space on the web host–which allows their sites to be displayed online.
People who are just a bit more technical might understand that the web host is not merely another computer; web hosts provide the space for their customers on servers. A server is a specialized type of computer that acts as a hub to connect computers. Servers store and manage information as well; this is why they are used by web hosts for their customers’ websites. Another function of servers is that they provide data backup and storage. They also serve to provide email and internet access–chances are, you have already been using servers before when surfing the internet and accessing your own email. The servers for web hosting providers aren’t all that different; they just hold more information.
So, why do you need web hosting for your website? The short answer is that without it, no one except for you will be able to see your website. You need web hosting in order for your website to be live; in other words, web hosting allows the world to have access to your site. There are other services that are provided by web hosting providers, however.
Through a web hosting provider, you will be able to register a domain name–this is the address of your website, such as mywebsite.com. You will also be able to have an email address at your domain name through which people (customers and clients, perhaps?) can contact you. You email may be something like me@mywebsite.org. A web host also allows you to back up your data online, manage the look of your site, and much more.
