What is a website?

Essentially, a website is a means for you to present information to a global online audience. Websites make the information you present or the products you sell more accessible to an immensely large market, now extending to billions of people. There are no limits to what can be achieved with your website. A website is essentially a series of documents all linked together in a self-contained environment, much like a book - but to move between pages on a website, we click on hyperlinks rather than turn pages. Unlike a book, a website can be a very dynamic environment offering a personalized reading experience with a high degree of interactivity.

Why do I need a website?

Every day more and more people are coming online. Every day, people are spending more time online. People are becoming more reliant on the Internet not only as a means of direct communication with loved ones, but as a source of information, a way to explore new ideas and as a place to buy products and services. Much of the world's business, legal and administrative infrastructure is now highly dependent on the Internet. Actually, the Internet and the WWW (World Wide Web) are two separate entities. The Internet is the basic infrastructure of our global network, and part of that network is the World Wide Web, which consists of web sites and pages, much like the one you are viewing now. There are now more web pages on the WWW than there are human beings on this planet!

As the Internet matures, websites are ceasing to become a novelty and are quickly becoming a necessity. It has been often stated by the powerbrokers of major companies that many businesses not making the transition to the World Wide Web will be out of business within a few years. If your business is not online as yet, it's important to remember that many of your competitors are - and they are targeting your clients!

Having your own website allows you to:

· Share ideas with an audience 
· Meet people who share common interests 
· Provide advice or support to visitors and clients 
· Give your company a more professional image 
· Market products to an international audience 
· Provide a wide range of information based services 

Those are but a few of the opportunities that the World Wide Web offers. Whether you choose to share your website with friends and family, or with millions of visitors, the possibilities are infinite.

How do I get a website?

In order to make your information accessible from the Internet, you must have a place to host your files, called a server. Web hosting companies such as ThinkHost allow people like you to make their ideas and products available to millions of people around the world by renting out space on their servers and providing connectivity to a global network.

Want to learn more about web site hosting?

Read on and learn web hosting companies and servers in  Part 2. of this series.

Download this series in one free guide in PDF format - Right mouse button click here and select "save target as"