Various Server Side Technologies for Web Design

Web technology is based on the client/ server model. The client computer runs a web browser to see the web page. The software sends the request by the internet to the software program, which acts as the web server, running on the server computer. This responds and the web page is sent back to the browser. The web server software which runs on the server computer has many helpers to perform the tasks, which are the server side technologies for advanced web design. The tasks performed by the client side server, are all client server technology for advanced web design.

If a file has server side script then, the script inside the HTML file is performed by the server before the file is returned to the browser as plain HTML It works in many ways:

1.    A web page can be dynamically changed, edited or any content added to it.
2.    It can respond to any question or any data that is submitted from the HTML forms.
3.    It can access any data or database. This results obtained can be returned to the browser.
4.    The webpage can be customized to make it more useful for each user.
5.    The server side technology can provide security. This is necessary as the server code cannot be seen by a browser.

Some of the ‘server side scripting’ languages are:

1.    ASP/ASP.NET (.asp/.aspx) – ASP or Active Server Pages was developed by Microsoft for making advanced web pages in a web application framework. It helps in building dynamic website, web applications and web services. The most common language is VBScript.
2.    PHP(.php) – PHP:Hypertext Preprocessor is easy to learn. There are many readymade scripts available. It also helps in producing dynamic web pages and is a general purpose scripting language. It runs on the web server and has to be configured to process PHP code and create web content. It is free of charge. Most web servers and operating systems and platforms can display it.
3.    JAVA via Java server pages (.jsp) – This is a very popular web server side technology.  In this, the server tags are mixed with html. This is hard to learn and complicated. It has good programming techniques.
4.    ColdFusion Markup Language (cfm.) – This is from Macromedia and this server is not free. However, you can install a free ‘developer edition’. This can be used for developing and testing your applications. It is easy to learn as it consists of xml/html like tags. It is best used for web applications that are not too complicated.
5.    Perl (.pl) – It is also widely used. It is a powerful and advanced scripting language. This is mainly available in many cheap web hosting packages.
6.    Python (.py) – It is also easy to learn, but is not as widely used as PHP, ASP or even Perl. The disadvantage with this scripting is that it does not have a standard web application framework.

Besides these you also have Lasso(.lasso), Ruby (.rb) and SMX (.smx). There are all these server side scripts to choose from.

The most widely used server side script on Unix/Linux platform is PHP. It is not only easy to learn, but also fast to program. The Java/JSP/Servelets is the preferred choice for all the bigger projects. An expert Windows programmer will use ASP. Each one right from ColdFusion, Perl and Python are good, each having their own unique specialty.

It would be best for a beginner to learn one server scripting language first. With the experience gained, he can then go on to learning the other ones, as it will be easier.

Various Aspects to Domain Management

Domain registration is generally very easy. In fact you can simply contact your local domain registrar and give your details like name, address, contact info and of course the name of the domain you want registered and your domain gets registered. Alternatively you can simply go online to your domain registrar’s website and if the facility is provided just fill out a simply online registration form with your name and other details and submit to register your domain. It’s as simple as that.

The problem arrives generally for most of us after the domain has been registered. We keep hearing all these words like name servers, domain pointing and forwarding, domain locking and other things which make it all a nightmare. But it is not as bad as you think. Domain management, once you understand the various aspects to it, is actually a very simply task. We look at some of the aspects in domain registration and management which you might have to go through while setting up your website.

Name Servers

Name servers are probably the most common words used after you have registered a domain. Your hosting company will tell you to change your domain name servers to their address in order for your web hosting service to function properly. So what are name servers?

To put it in simple language, name servers are the name of your server. It basically tells a domain where your website files are located so every time someone types your domain name in their browsers, the domain exactly knows where to go to show your website files – your homepage etc.

Name Servers generally look like this:

Assuming you are hosting with xyz hosting company then your name servers should generally be:

NS1.XYZ.COM

NS2.XYZ.COM

Note the NS could be followed by 3 or 4 depending on your hosting company. Your hosting company will generally provide their name servers to you when you register with them.

Domain Forwarding / Domain Redirect

Domain forwarding or also know as Domain redirect means if you have multiple domains registered and you want one of your domains to quite simply point to another domain that you have as an active website.

This technique allows you to have a single website be available under multiple domains. For example you can register your domain in both .com and .net format and then make the .net domain address forward to your .com website. That way you don’t have to spend on having two different websites hosted for each of your domain extensions.

Domain Locking

This is quite new to the world of domains but is a very important one and you should always be aware of your domain’s status – i.e. whether it is locked or unlocked.

Now, how does domain locking make a difference to you? Firstly if your domain is not locked, then malicious software or hackers have the ability to shift the domain in to their name or shift the domain’s name servers on to their web site which could cause lot of embarrassment to you. Not just that in some cases, hackers can pull the domain from your domain registrar to theirs, giving them full control of your domain.

In general you should always make sure your domain is in locked status. Of course when you need to change the domain’s name servers etc for your own use then you can unlock a domain. But always make sure moment your work is done and the name servers or any other information you are trying to change has been completed, immediately lock your domain. If you can’t lock or unlock your domain, please contact your domain registrar regarding this.

Talking About Various Features in a Web Hosting Package ? ( Part 1)

Talking about various features in a web hosting package – ( Part 1)

A web host is a service provider who basically puts your web site on a computer which is connected to the internet. In this case, the computer that we are talking about is called as a server. A web hosting provider normally has a fast connection to the internet and they have the ability to host thousands of websites on many servers. The web host rents out space to you so that you can have your website seen on the World Wide Web. Once you give the responsibility of hosting your website to an internet service provider, you then need not to worry about the complicated server technology and also about the proper technical maintenance. All this issues are handled by the hosting company. Hence, you can free yourself from website maintenance work. There are many features that come along with the web hosting package provided by the web hosting provider. They are as follows:

1) Control Panel:

cPanel is the most popular control panel. The control panel is basically an interface for accessing your website on the web server. It allows you to update and customize your website.

2) Disk space:

Your disk space requirement depends upon your website. If your website does not have too many graphics, sound and video clips or downloadable files then in that case you predict your website space requirement to be approximately 50MB. However, you can always have some extra disk space left for incase you need to upgrade your website.

3) Bandwidth:

Here, bandwidth is referred to the amount of data that is transmitted and received through the internet. The bandwidth gets consumed when the visitor makes a request for certain files available on the website and then downloads the same on to his or her computer.

4) Email Account:

Email account facility is provided so that you can check your emails. You also have pop3 email account facility, where you can check emails using outlook etc.

5) Scripting language:

The top web hosting companies use unix and linux platform, php, perl and cgi. There are all different languages provided by the hosting company. Choose a hosting company that also provides latest version.

6) Database provision:Check whether your website needs a lot of data that must be dynamically accessible. Example: user accounts, maps, interactive news, forums etc. If your website requires a lot of database then you have to choose a host which deals with the same. MySQL is a popular database program and It’s operating system is linux.

One must understand that if you have opted for more disk space and bandwidth then you will have to pay more fees. So, one must choose a web hosting package based on the present requirement and also see that the company provides after sales service

Talking About Various Features in a Web Hosting Package – ( Part 1)

Talking about various features in a web hosting package – ( Part 1)

A web host is a service provider who basically puts your web site on a computer which is connected to the internet. In this case, the computer that we are talking about is called as a server. A web hosting provider normally has a fast connection to the internet and they have the ability to host thousands of websites on many servers. The web host rents out space to you so that you can have your website seen on the World Wide Web. Once you give the responsibility of hosting your website to an internet service provider, you then need not to worry about the complicated server technology and also about the proper technical maintenance. All this issues are handled by the hosting company. Hence, you can free yourself from website maintenance work. There are many features that come along with the web hosting package provided by the web hosting provider. They are as follows:

1) Control Panel:

cPanel is the most popular control panel. The control panel is basically an interface for accessing your website on the web server. It allows you to update and customize your website.

2) Disk space:

Your disk space requirement depends upon your website. If your website does not have too many graphics, sound and video clips or downloadable files then in that case you predict your website space requirement to be approximately 50MB. However, you can always have some extra disk space left for incase you need to upgrade your website.

3) Bandwidth:

Here, bandwidth is referred to the amount of data that is transmitted and received through the internet. The bandwidth gets consumed when the visitor makes a request for certain files available on the website and then downloads the same on to his or her computer.

4) Email Account:

Email account facility is provided so that you can check your emails. You also have pop3 email account facility, where you can check emails using outlook etc.

5) Scripting language:

The top web hosting companies use unix and linux platform, php, perl and cgi. There are all different languages provided by the hosting company. Choose a hosting company that also provides latest version.

6) Database provision:Check whether your website needs a lot of data that must be dynamically accessible. Example: user accounts, maps, interactive news, forums etc. If your website requires a lot of database then you have to choose a host which deals with the same. MySQL is a popular database program and It’s operating system is linux.

One must understand that if you have opted for more disk space and bandwidth then you will have to pay more fees. So, one must choose a web hosting package based on the present requirement and also see that the company provides after sales service