Web Hosts: Their key functions
Web hosts are out to convince you that they offer a suite of services you can't get anywhere else. They offer loads of tools and features and benefits, many of which are truly useful. As you read web hosting reviews, you'll notice different web hosts are geared to specific types of individuals or businesses.
With all the information being thrown at you, sometimes it's difficult to tell exactly what a web host does. Sure they offer you all sort of programs and perks, but why do you actually need a web host?
There are three key parts to a web host's service, which you will read about in web hosting reviews:
Email addresses
Sure, you can sign up to any number of free e-mail services out there - but wouldn't it be great to have your own? It looks more professional to have info@yourcompany.com as a contact than an address affiliated with any of the large email services. Besides, web hosts will allow you to have several email addresses, so each of your employees may have one. Or you can have several yourself, to give the illusion of a slightly larger enterprise.
Web hosting reviews will usually tell you how many email address a specific web host will offer you. In fact, certain email web hosts offer specific packages to those who only want their own domain name and email address, but no website.
Disk space
You can design a web page on your computer, but it has to be saved somewhere people can access it. Your website needs a home on a server: this is the "hosting" part of web hosting! Most web hosts will allow you a certain amount of disk space you can use - a large site with video or many complex pages will require more disk space than a more modest site.
Web hosting reviews will often point out web hosts with unlimited disk space. Sound too good to be true? Well