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What is a domain?

Each computer on Internet has an address consisting of group of digits, so have web servers. This address is known as Internet Protocol (IP) address. For example the server on which web site of Aadi Creations is hosted has IP address as 68.67.77.2. Since several web sites are hosted on a web server IP address is appended by a ‘/’ (slash), ~ (tiled) and a few letters. When IP address is appended by these one can access any web site. For example, web site of Aadi Creations can be accessed through the address 68.67.77.2/~aadisnet. But it is difficult to remember such combinations of digits, special characters and (often weird) letters.

In view of this, domain names like aadicreations.net, which are easily remembered, are registered. The names are then made to point to the server through name servers.

What is the registration process of a domain?

You have to contact a service provider, which registers your preferred domain, if available, with some or the other domain registrar. He then makes your domain point to the server on which your web site is hosted, or is going to be hosted. You have to purchase web space as per your requirement from a web hosting company.

Usually the service providers make you available both the services, as each one complements the other and one is practically useless without the other.

What are domain name extensions?

A domain name has two parts: one your chosen name before . (dot) and the other after . (dot), usually called extensions. While you have freedom to choose the first from dictionary words, your choice is limited about the second as they are fixed like .com, .org, .net, etc.

The extensions are there because dictionary words are getting increasingly exhausted. You have to choose extension according to the ‘business’ you do. For example, if you are running an company your preferred extension may be .com, but if you are running an organisation, your preferred extension may be .org.

While these are top level domain (TLD) extensions, there are country specific extensions like .in, which is for India.

How many years a domain may be registered?

A domain may be registered from 1 to 10 years, depending upon the policy of the registrar and the service provider. The domain has to be renewed before the expiry period, if you want to continue to use it.

What is a domain transfer?

Domains are registered for clients by different service providers with competing registrars of domains. Unlike 'registrars' in government sector, registrars of domains are large companies providing domain registration services through service providers.

Domains can be trasferred from one service provider to another and also from one registrar to other.

If you are not satisfied with your service provider, you can transfer your domain to another service provider. If both service providers have the same registrar, the one making transfer has to enter registrant ID of the other and the domain will be transferred from the first to the second in about a day. If both are registering domains with different registrars the second has to initiate the transfer process after acquiring from the first registrant e-mail ID. Then an automatic mail is sent to the first one and the first one has to approve it. This is a lengthy process and is completed in 15-20 days' time.

One will seldom change registrar because that hardly affects the functioning of the domain.

The above is with two riders. One, a newly registered domain cannot be transferred from one service provider to another unless 60 days have passed from the date of registration. Two, expired domains cannot be transferred - they have to be first renewed.

What precautions I must take for domain renewal?

Domain registration is highly date and time specific. Suppose your domain was registered on May 27, 2011, at 10:30:35 hours, for one year, it has to be renewed before May 27, 2011, 10:30:35 hours. In view of this it is highly recommended that the domain renewal process is completed at least one day in advance.

If for any reason, your domain is not renewed in time the web site automatically goes offline and you will not be able to access it, nor you will be able to use features like e-mail associated with your domain name.

Most domain registrars provide free look period, during which you can renew your domain without extra charges. This period varies form one week to 30 days, depending on your domain name extension. But the renewal is effective from the date and time it expired.

After the free look period, the domain can be renewed with late fee, which is very high and ranges from Rs 5,000 to as much as Rs 15,000. This period is usually 30 days from the date the free look period expired. After this period, the domain name goes through several automated processes before it is available again for registration on normal charges.

What is renewal, and what is update?

Domain names may be registered at any time in the day (and night) and on any day in the year. It has nothing to do with holidays, festivals and Sundays. Domains are registered for one year, or in multiples of one year, and date and time to second are stamped. The renewal of the domain has to be completed before the period (in year), date and time. This anniversary can be altered in any way. In case the domain is not renewed before this period, the web site automatically goes off with a notification that the particular domain has expired.

Usually web space is allocated for a domain for the web site hosting and this renewal has also to be done concurrently.

On the other hand update of a web site refers to changes in content - text, photographs, videos, etc. This update is independent of renewal and can be done at any given time.

Are prices of update are included in renewal prices?

No. You can understand it with the analogy of living in a rented house. Domain registration and web space charges are like the rent you will pay for living in a particular house, the only difference is that you pay this 'rent' once in a year, in advance, or in multiples of year, again in advance.

Updates are like provisions that you will purchase to sustain yourself. You have to pay separately for updates.

What is web hosting?

The file system containing your web site has to be put on some web server and this is called web hosting.

What is space and bandwidth?

Web space is entirely determined by the size of web site and space required for additional services like e-mail on your domain name. The space is calculated in MBs (Megabytes). Usually web hosting service providers have packages like we have packages ranging from as low as 50 MB to 1000 MB.

The bandwidth is usually 10 times of the web space and calculated on monthly basis. If your web site is 50 MB, bandwidth of 500 MB is allocated to you. Now suppose your web site is seen by too many people and they consume 500 MB bandwidth say on 21st day of the month, your web site will automatically go off. Then you have to purchase either more bandwidth, or purchase more web space (and hence bandwidth) as per your requirement.

What is the difference between Linux and Windows hosting?

Both Linux and Windows are operating system that make computers run. While most of the home and office computers run on Windows, most of the web servers run on Linux. The choice of Windows or Linux server depends on the kind of scripting language you are going to use for your web site. If you are going to use Microsoft products, the choice has to be Windows server, otherwise Linux server will be perfect choice.

Will I be able to see web site hosted on Linux server on my Windows computer?

Yes of course. Internet and web sites are operating system independent.

What is web designing?

Web designing is the process of putting all your content (text, photographs, images, audios, videos, etc.) in a proper shape so you can have web pages that can be viewed in web browsers. Usually this is quite technical.

Which are scripting languages?

The language of web sites is HTML (HyperText Markup Language). Whatever you see in your web browser is HTML. This HTML is obtained through either as standalone HTML, or through scripting languages like PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor), JSP (JavaServer Pages), ASP (Active Server Pages), .NET (dot net), etc.

Now the big question is which scripting language one should use for designing web site. The key to the answer lies what kind of functionalities you intend to have on your web site. If you web site is just a brochure type informing visitors about your organisation, HTML web site will be perfect. But if you want that the visitors purchase items from your ‘online store’ you will have to use a scripting language like PHP or ASP.

What is tableless design?

In the earlier days web sites were designed using tables to place content. The code generated by tables is quite bulky and such web sites open slowly in browsers. Additionally, such web sites are of little help to people with low vision and search engines.

In view of this, the trend is to use div tags to layout web pages. The code is light weight. And the web sites designed with div tags are more accessible to search engines and people with low vision.

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