Conventional site building happens on a local PC and gets uploaded to the web host. Going by this convention, you have to first create your site locally using a HTML editor application like Microsoft FrontPage or Macromedia Dream weaver and then get it uploaded to your web host.
Disk based & server based web:
During initial site building, your website can be either disk based or server based. Server based means your desktop OS, (windows 2000, XP) or any other, will run a local web server (IIS – Internet information Server) and then you would build and run your web site against that server.
Advantage of choosing server based web for site building is that you can run pages that are not completely static. For example pages which has a form that would e-mail on clicking the submit button.
Installing IIS (Internet Information Server):
Assuming you are using windows XP Professional and IIS as the web server, if it is not already installed, IIS is installed through ‘add / remove programs’ in windows control panel. Once it is installed, it can be administered from “administrative tools” again in control panel.
Running IIS.
IIS is fairly simple to administer. When you open IIS administration screen from control panel, administrative tools, you can see your computer sitting there in the first screen, double click that you will see web sites. Further you can see all your IIS based sites you built. Several web server related administration functions like configuring frontpage extensions, security, etc can be done from right here.
Windows 98 had something called personal web server and it can be your web server also. In windows 2000, procedure for installing IIS is the same as windows XP.
In disk based web, web site is created directly on the disk (c or d drive) and as a folder and not on a web server like the one we mentioned above.
Disk based web for all purposes of site building as server based web except that it can not handle any server handled processes like sending an e-mail from a from or running an asp page.
Next: Building on your own
Quotable Quotes:
“ Only the first steps to achieve something are difficult –
the planning, the getting started.”