Three Ingredients of a Website

by Rick Morris.  May 7, 2008

People often ask me what it takes to get a website live on the Internet.  "What is a domain name?", or "What is web hosting?", they ask.  And, many don't realize that once your site is published and viewable, there are systems in place keeping it viewable.  The whole thing may seem complicated, but essentially, there are three key elements of every website on the world wide web today. 

First and foremost, you need a domain name, or the actual name of your website.  Next, your website has to physically rest somewhere in cyberspace.  That's what people commonly refer to as "hosting".  And, finally you need an actual website design.  You see, you can have a website on your personal computer.  But, if you want the world to view it at any moment, you will need a server (host) for handling requests to download (view) it.

In this article, I'll explain the three elements of a website, their functions, and how they relate to each other.  You will be enriched with the basic knowledge of what's behind the scenes of every website on the Net.  In other words, you will learn what makes a website a "website"!

The Infamous Domain Name

Wikipedia describes domain names in four ways:

• 1.  A name that identifies a computer or computers on the Internet. These names appear as a component of a Web site's URL, e.g. en.wikipedia.org. This type of domain name is also called a hostname.

• 2.  The product that domain name registrars provide to their customers. These names are often called registered domain names.

• 3.  Names used for other purposes in the Domain Name System (DNS), for example the special name which follows the @ sign in an email address, or the Top-level domain names like .com, or the names used by the Session Initiation Protocol (VoIP), or DomainKeys.

• 4.  They are sometimes colloquially (and incorrectly) referred to by marketers as "web addresses".

For the sake of this article, we will refer to item # 2 above, which is the more common use for the term, "domain name".  A domain name is simply a name of a website.  Complimenting the domain name is an IP (internet protocol) address looking something like this: 68.178.254.55.  In fact, it's the IP address that is queried when you actually enter a web address into your browser.  The benefit, clearly is that you can remember a domain name better than you can a string of numbers.

Every domain name has a top-level domain (TLD) attached to it.  This is the ".com", ".org", ".Net", etc. part.  It is sometimes referred to as the extension.  Though there are dozens of TLDs, most people prefer a domain name with the .com extension since it was the first and more commonly used TLD.

Finding the right domain name can be a challenge today.  In 1994, when the Internet was in its infancy, domain names were free to register.  Within in a couple of years, most of the single-word domains were taken.  Today, it's difficult to find commonly-spoken three-word phrases.  Even the three- and four-character domain names (i.e. abcd.com and abc.com) have been registered. 

The important thing to take away from this is you must register a domain name if you want a website live on the Net.  It's your "identity", for lack of a better term, to your website - nothing more.

To learn more about registering the best domain names, see my previous article, "How to Choose Your Domain Name".

Once you have that domain name, you now need a place where your website will rest.  In other words, you need an address, or hosting account.

Hosting Your Party

A web host is like a mailing address to your home.  Without one, you have nowhere to live.  It's you ticket to publishing a website for viewing on the Internet.  And, just like a home address, your website needs a place to live.

Website hosting companies provide space on a server (computer connected to the internet) where your website can become accessible.  This space is referred to as your web host.

"Why shouldn't I host my website off my personal computer", you ask?  Two reasons: money and technical knowledge.  A "server" is actually software that pushes a website and controls the functions and accepts connections between computers.   Server computers are devices designed to run such an application or applications, often for extended periods of time with minimal human direction.  They cost a fortune to operate and maintain.  Therefore, most common folk simply pay a web hosting company to handle the technical aspects of the server.

Now that you understand you need a domain name and a web host, the third element of a website is it's actual design.

Website Design

A website design consists of the pages of information presented when someone visits your domain.  It can include simple features such as text and images, with all the pages linking to each other.  This is commonly referred to as a "static" website, or a website that depicts information for viewing only.

A database-driven website design is essentially the same thing, with the exception that the viewer can click on various parts of the site to draw information specific to that request.  An online shopping, or ecommerce website is a perfect example of a database-driven website design.

Some website designs, like Craigslist.org have very few images and lots of links and text.  In fact, Craigslist.org is another example of a database-driven website design.  Other sites, like Walmart.com or Amazon.com are feature-packed with images and content, surrounded by themed pages rich in color and artwork.

Since most people and businesses want to present a professional image on the web, a nice website design is typically the standard.  To save money, many websites are designed using simple site-building tools.  The quality of these designs are often limited . . . as are their functionality.  

To get the latest in website design work, businesses will hire a professional web designer or web developer to create their web pages.  While custom website design is a way to bring your image to cyberspace, it can be a very expensive process.  That is, if you want it done right.  Web designers are some of the highest paid workers in America, demanding as much as $150 an hour (or more).  So, expect to get what you pay for when it comes to selecting the route you want to take in designing your web pages.

Here at WebDesignerLive.com we have thousands of free professional website designs from which you can choose for your new website.  In fact, we offer a number of website plans entailing all three elements of a complete website.  Moreover, most of our website plans come with free search engine optimization, free domain name registration, and free site maintenance . . . to mention a few.

In closing, you now understand that at a minimum, there are three elements to actually seeing your website live on the Net: domain name, hosting, and website design.  And, now that you have discovered these elements, you will be better prepared to discuss your new website with your web developer.