What is hosting, and why do you need it, and what is the difference between Hosting, Internet Services and a Website? Let us start at the beginning and look at all the concepts around the Internet, websites and web hosting.
We will look at Internet Access first, since this is the most basic service that you will need to access the Internet.
~ Internet Access ~
In real life, this can be compared to getting your licence to drive a car. You can drive through the neighbourhood and look at all the houses and shops. Every now and again you can stop and buy something. Then you get into your car again and drive to the next stop.
On the Internet when we are talking about Internet Access, we are talking about the fact that you have dial-up or leased line access to the internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP). You can get onto the Internet and browse different web sites. You can even buy products on-line. You also have access to email, but your email address is normally linked to that of your service provider. In other words, your email address may be something like johnd@telecomscompany.com where 'telecomscompany' is the name of the ISP provider.
~ Domain Name Registration ~
In comparison with real life, Domain Name Registration can be compared to you deciding to get your own business. Let's say we are