Web Introduction
The Internet has taken on many names over the past years, World Wide Web, the Net, the Web but to name just
a few. This brief introduction serves to introduce some of the terminology used about the Internet, explains
what it is and what it could do for your company. This introduction addresses the following basic
questions. Click on a question to view the answer:
The Internet was originally created by the U.S. military as a network of computers to play war games
and defend the country during the cold war. This technology was then used for non-military use
as a method of disseminating information globally. Eventually the potential of the Internet was realised
and the Internet or Web boom began ! The Internet is literally a network of millions of
computers worldwide connected to each other using telecommunication cables around the world.
Back to the questions
The internet is divided up into websites. Each computer (also known as a web server)
on the internet contains many websites, depending upon the type of computer. Each website is addressable
through the use of a URL (Uniform Resource Locator). This the familiar string that you see
advertised on the television, on business cards and in business directories (e.g. www.databasepower.net).
This is also the string you enter in the URL or Address field in the top of your Internet browser.
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Large companies often have their own web servers on the internet and choose to use them for
their own websites.
Although the costs of computer equipment has fallen dramatically during the last few years, the price
of telecommunication lines to connect a web server to the internet is still beyond the reach of many
companies. For this reason, companies called web hosting providers have taken on
board the cost of adding web servers to the Internet in order to then host websites on behalf of other
companies or individuals. This is referred to as Web Hosting.
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Users who wish to browse the Internet must connect into the network in order to reach the websites.
Due to the high price in telecommunications, this is not feasable for many companies or individuals.
For this reason
some companies have taken on board the cost of the connection to the Internet and offer a dialup or
permanent service between the user and the ISP. A typical home user can then install a modem into
their PC and dial their ISP to connect to the Internet. This allows more cost effective access to the Internet
for most users. These companies are known as ISP's or Internet Service Providers.
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The full business potential of a website has only been recognised during the last few years. The
following are some typical uses for a website.
- Advertising of your companies product and services.
- Disemination of Information. A website can be used to
keep your customers up to date with information regarding your company.
- Online store where customers can purchase goods and services.
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The majority of web sites on the internet are virtual websites. A virtual website shares a servers resources with other websites.
Most websites do not require the resources of a dedicated server and cannot justify the cost of several hundreds of pounds per month
for a dedicated server.
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Getting a website up and running for your company consists of the following 4 basic steps:
- Choosing your Domain name. This will be the URL or address for your website on the internet.
Our website contains several tools to help you choose and check if your domain name is free. You can try our
Generic and UK Domain Search. Enter a domain name e.g. yourcompany and
this tool will then check the generic and UK domains to show which ones are available.
- Get your website designed and built. This process consists of analysing what you want
your web site to do, and then using the appropriate computer programming tools to write the web pages.
For further information regarding our Complete Website Packages and our design services, please see our
Design Home Page.
- Find someone to host your website. For further information regarding Web Hosting, please see our
Plans & Prices. You will find our hosting rates one the most
competitive and best value for money on the Internet.
- Promote your website. This may consist of including your website URL on your company stationery,
business cards, letter heads, brochures etc. Most website visitors will be drawn to your website from
the Internet Search Engines. Approximately 90% of website visitors find websites using the top 10 search engines.
For further information regarding Search Engine Promotion, please see our
Services & Prices.
Database Power offer complete website packages which include most of the above steps. Contact
sales@databasepower.net if you have any queries or questions.
The answer is Yes and No, it depends upon the website. Follow these basic steps to identify if a website is safe enough to enter your
credit card details.
- Is the web page using SSL encryption software ? If not, then your credit card details are being transmitted
across the internet in clear text format. This allows fraudsters to capture and read your credit card details.
You can normally identify an SSL secured server in the following 3 ways:
- The URL or address in your browser will start with https:// instead of http://
- A small padlock should be visible in the bottom status bar in your browser.
- (If using Windows) right mouse click on a piece of blank background on the page surrounding the credit card number field
and choose properties. Then click on the
Certificates button. If an error is displayed then it is NOT a secure server. If a certificate is displayed, then the server
is using SSL encryption.
- Once you have identified the server is using SSL encryption, you are most of the way there. The website will then do one
of 2 things with your credit card details:
- EMail the details to someone so that a standard 'customer not present' transaction can be performed using a
credit card merchant account. However the contents of the email is open to fraudsters, just like a web page. Some websites
use another form of encryption called PGP to encrypt the email text. If this is done, then your credit card details are safe.
However not all websites state whether email generated by a signup page is encrypted or not.
- Online clearance. This is when the credit card details are authorised online. This generates no email and therfore does not pose any
risk in this area.
Summary
If the website is not using SSL, then do NOT enter credit card details. Always try and use sites that either have online clearance
or sites that explicitly state they encrypt email for order forms if emails are sent which contain credit card numbers.
There are also other considerations regarding the physical location and physical security of the actual web server, however if you follow the
above basic steps, entering credit card details on the Internet is generally MORE secure than giving them over the
phone or via fax or post.
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