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- How do I get started?
- What is a domain name or web address and where can I find
one?
- Why can't I just use my free web space to build a
web site for my business?
- Who owns the domain name (web address)?
- What is most important?
- I'm starting a new business when should I think
about a web site?
- Common Terms
You'll
need to:
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Know
who your audience will be
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Decide
if your Web Site will be for the purpose of selling a product or service or
an information resource
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Purchase
a Domain Name (Web Address)
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Select
a Web Hosting Company - get references or a personal referral, if it's
not a nationally well known firm. Understand the features of the web package regarding space [the maximum size your web site can be], traffic
allowances, shopping cart and security features [if you plan to sell a
product on-line] and their technical support structure.
These are
just a few of the basics. Wolf On Web
offers a free 1 hour initial consultation. Call today: 805.733.5329 or email Beverly@wolfonweb.com.
Domain
name, or "web address" is like a piece of electronic real estate; it
is your Internet identity.
Domain
names (web addresses) may be secured through a Domain Registration Service, an
Internet Service Provider [ISP], commonly referred to as a "hosting"
company or with the assistance of a web designer.
| Examples: |
www.wolfonweb.com |
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www.wolfonweb.net |
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www.sbcaer.org |
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www.whitehouse.gov |
The
"www" portion of the address stands for "world wide
web". The next portion is your actual domain name (web
address). If you find your first choice taken -- you may modify the
selection by choosing a variation on the "dot extension" -- the .com
or .net or .org etcetera.
SPECIAL
NOTE:
Avoid symbols in your URL:
ampersand (&), percent sign (%), equals sign (=), dollar sign ($) or
question mark (?). They will clutter your web address and some Search
Engine Spiders will not recognize them.
To explore
available domain names options click here >>> FIND
A DOMAIN NAME
That is an
option available to you, but it would be like comparing a lemonade stand on the
corner to a retail juice bar in a mall -- how much traffic and visibility will
you get? When you promote your business web site address as www.abcbears.com
it will make
one impression while http://home.earthlink.net/~abcbears
will make quite
another. Personal web pages typically have design and traffic limitations
and some search engines will not allow them to be submitted for review.
SPECIAL
NOTE:
This does not mean that a search engine will not find a personal page and post
it if the right query is submitted.
Most web
hosting companies will offer to secure your domain name (web address) in their
hosting packages. Some web designers may also offer to secure this on your
behalf. I
caution new web site owners to proceed with knowledge
-- if you choose to register a domain name through a hosting company or through
a web designer, be absolutely sure that you will be the "registered
owner" of that domain name (web address) before you continue to do business
with that company.
There are
a few unscrupulous companies out there who will gladly include your domain name
for "no charge" or a "very small fee" as part of their
hosting package or design services. My warning to you is make sure they have
not registered themselves as the owner of your web site address. This may
not seem like a big deal until you experience problems or lack of service with
that company and choose to want to move your site -- guess what -- they own the
rights to your web site address and can now hold it hostage to either retain
your business or perhaps choose to sell it back to you at some outrageous fee.
This is
not the practice of most companies, for obvious reasons it's bad for business in
the long run. If you already have a domain name and would like to confirm
who the registered owner of the site is click here >>> WHOIS
or WHOIS.NET.
Keeping
your audience in mind. The biggest web site, fanciest
programming or flashiest graphics are worth nothing if the user of the
web site missed your message. If you like to review some guiding
points click here >>>PLANNING
TIPS.
A web site
can be an invaluable tool in launching a new business, it gives you a
forum to literally be able to communicate World Wide! You can create
beautiful "electronic" brochures or catalogs that can be available to
millions. In many cases, for businesses just getting started this
investment is more cost effective than printing conventional brochures and
catalogs.
With that
said, I'd like to make it clear that just building a web site without using
traditional marketing methods will not guarantee success. You must promote
the web site address or URL
on
everything related to your business i.e. business cards, letterhead, envelopes,
brochures, catalogs, data sheets, in all advertising including
newspapers, magazines and on billboards, in radio spots, in your
television advertising and on all press releases. Additionally, the web site
address needs to be submitted to Search
Engines.
One of the
key benefits of including a web site in your marketing and communications plan,
it that you can change it quickly -- adding new products, services, photographs,
promotions, newsworthy announcements -- for pennies on what it may cost to re-
print and mail replacement brochures and catalogs.
Common Terms
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Bitmap
(BMP) |
These images
can be too large to send via
e-mail and are not practical for use in web designs unless converted to
a GIF or JPEG.
TECHNICAL
DEFINITION:
The
standard graphics file format on Windows compatible computers.
Bitmap graphics support 24-bit color and can be saved for Windows or
OS/2 systems. |
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Browser
or
Web Browser |
Software
that interprets the markup of files in HTML, formats them into Web
pages, and displays them to the user. Some browsers can also
permit users to send and receive e-mail, read newsgroups, and play sound
or video files that are embedded in Web documents. |
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Counter |
A
component that keeps track of the number of visitors to a World Wide Web
site. |
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Directory |
A manual entry database system
-- Yahoo and the Open Directory both are "directories". Internet directories hire people to group all submitted sites into categories, such as Santa Barbara restaurants. |
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Firewall |
A
methods of protecting the files and programs on one network from users
on another network. A firewall blocks unwanted access to a
protected network. A company will typically install a firewall to
give users access to the Internet while protecting their internal
information. |
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Frames
Page |
A
page that divides a Web Browser's window into different areas called
frames that can independently display sever Web pages. |
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FTP |
(File
Transfer Protocol) The Internet service that transfers files from one
computer to another over a standard phone lines. |
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GIF |
(Graphic
Interchange Format) A graphics file format commonly used to display
color graphics on the World Wide Web. GIF is a compressed format,
designed to minimize file transfer time over standard phone lines. |
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HTML |
(Hypertext
Markup Language) The standard markup language used for documents
on the World Wide Web. HTML language uses tags to indicate how Web
Browsers should display page elements such as text and graphics, and how
Web Browsers should respond to users actions such as hyperlink activation
by means of a key press or mouse click. |
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HTTP |
(Hypertext
Transfer Protocol) The Internet protocol that enables Web Browsers
to retrieve information from World Wide Web servers. |
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Hyperlink |
A pointer from
text, from a picture or a graphic, or from an image map to a page or
file on the World Wide Web. Also called link. |
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Internet |
The worldwide
collection of computers, networks and gateways that use TCP/IP protocols
to communicate with one another. |
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ISP |
Internet Service
Provider. A business that supplies Internet connectivity services
to individuals, businesses and other organizations. Some ISP's are
large national or multinational corporations that offer access in many
locations, while others are limited to a specific city or region. |
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Java
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A general purpose
programming language created by Sun Microsystems.
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JavaScript
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A scripting language
developed by Netscape Communications and Sun Microsystems, Inc.
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JPEG
or JPG |
(Joint
Photographic Experts Group) A graphics file format used to display
high-resolution color graphics on the World Wide Web. This is the
best electronic format for photographs that are to be added to a web
site. |
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META
Tag |
An
HTML tag that must appear in the head portion of the page. META
tags supply information about a page but do not affect its
appearance. A standard META tag, "generator." is used to
indicate the type of editor that created the HTML page. For more
information click here >>> META
TAGS |
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Navigation |
A
collection of graphical or textual buttons containing hyperlinks to
pages that are part of the same web structure. |
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Search
Engine |
A search engine is a database system designed to index internet addresses. The typical search engine contains a special program often
called a spider (sometimes called a "bot" or "crawler"), the spider accepts a
URL, it then goes to that website and retrieves a copy of the file found there. |
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Server
or Host |
A
computer that offers services on a network. On the World Wide Web,
a server is a computer that runs the Web server software that responds
to HTTP protocol requests. Also called host. |
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Thumbnail |
A
small representation of a picture on a Web page, usually containing a
hyperlink to a full-size version of the graphic. Thumbnails are
used to help web pages with many pictures and/or graphics to load more
quickly in a Web Browser. |
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URL |
Uniform
Resource Locators: A string that supplies the Internet address of a Web
site or resource on the World Wide Web., along with the protocol by
which the site or resource is accessed. The most common URL type
is http://, which gives the Internet address of a Web page. |
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WWW |
World
Wide Web: The total set of interlinked hypertext documents residing on
HTTP servers all over the world. Documents on the World Wide Web
are called pages or Web Pages, which are written in HTML and identified
by URL's that specify the particular computer and path name by which a
file can be accessed and transmitted. |
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Webmaster |
An individual who develops, monitors, and manages web
sites on the World Wide Web. |
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Copyright © 2006 Wolf On Web. All rights reserved.
Revised: August 28, 2006
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