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  1. #1

    Help buying domain and hosting

    Hi

    I want to buy a domain and set up a small personal website. What shall I do and how much must I expect to pay? One off charges / yearly charges?

    I have checked that the domain is free but any further than that and it is like a jungle.

    Is it enough to just buy the domain? I will then be able to set up email addresses but will I also be able to host pictures etc? Suggestions of website to buy from are welcome. Based in the UK if that makes a difference..........

    Any help appreciated. Needless to say I am clueless regarding this so please spell it out if it is a little complicated:-)

    Oppers

  2. #2

    Mite be able to help

    i was a little confused when looking at your post, i understand you want web hosting for your self and you want a domian name however what specs would you like with the account.

  3. #3
    Hi 123gohost

    What do you mean by specs?

    All I want is to be able to set up a few personal email address and be able to save photos on the website. Not sure what specs are needed for that?

    Can you help? Maybe I am not asking in the right way or on the right forum but all this is rather new to me:-)

    Thanks

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    EU - east side
    Posts
    21,920
    Since you're new to all this, the safer route would be to register the domain using a well known registrar like Namecheap or Godaddy. This will ensure that you have complete control over the domain. It has happened before for a host to register the domain in their own name and later on refuse to release it to the customer when he decided to change hosts (usually due to low quality hosting service).

    A domain will cost you some $9 per year, and IMO it is a low price to pay for peace of mind.

    Next you would need a hosting account from a company that focuses on hosting services. To point your domain to the hosting account you will login in your customer account at the registrar and change the nameservers associated with your domain (the correct namservers to use will be given to you by the host). The registrar's help or FAQs section can guide you on how to accomplish this task. If if that fails for one reason or another, you always can contact the registrar's support department for help.

    Hosting packages are mainly defined by the disk space and data transfer (wrongly but often named "bandwidth"). The vast majority come with email capability as well. The plan's details should make this clear, but if you find them too confusing, contact the host's sales department.

    It should be relatively easy to estimate how much space you need for your site, based on how many pictures you plan to upload and their average size. If you have them all in a folder you can simply take a peek at the folder's properties.

    If you plan to take care of the website yourself, you need to get acquainted with the basics of HTML. There are plenty of free HTML tutorials out there, all you have to do is use a search engine to find some.

    There are also sites that give free templates. These can be a good starting point in both learning HTML and in developing your site. A fairly powerful tool to use in developing your site is http://nvu.com. It's free.

    Of course, there are more advanced solutions out there than plain HTML, such as image gallery scripts that make use of databases, but I'm not sure it would be best for you to use them at this point in time as they're fairly complicated.

    A very important bit of advice: always keep a recent backup of your site (files+databases+emails) on your own computer.

    Feel free to ask any questions you might have. Plenty of forum members should be ready to answer them. I'm off for dinner.

    Good luck!

  5. #5
    Hi ldcdc

    THANK YOU ! This is exactly the kind of info I was looking for. I will be off to check the various sites out and hopefully get it all off ground soon. It will be fun to play around with.

    Enjoy your dinner and thanks for your help.

    Oppers

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2000
    Location
    San Antonio, Texas
    Posts
    3,690
    Great advice by Dan :-))
    HostCaters.com - Quality Web Hosting - Under A Gig! - Since 1999

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    Northern Europe.
    Posts
    2,573
    Dan did a good job... there are plenty of hosting companies and you would probably only need a basic plan, which might cost $5-10 per month. Even a simple plan like that will include plenty of space + bandwidth, plus the ability to set up many e-mail addresses (something@yourdomain.com).

    My advice is to look for hosting companies that have a good customer reputation. This varies a great deal, and even some large companies have a lackluster customer satisfaction record.
    Web Hosting Reviews — based on real customer feedback
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  8. #8
    Join Date
    Nov 2003
    Location
    Amidst several dimensions
    Posts
    4,324
    Never use godaddy for a domain registration. If you experience any problems with a transfer, or your passwords, identity, etc, youll be in real mess.

    I strongly suggest enom for any domain registration.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    EU - east side
    Posts
    21,920
    Hi ldcdc

    THANK YOU !
    You're welcome oppers.

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