Frequently Asked Questions

There are a number of factors to consider when selecting a host. Some of the more important ones are:

• Reliability: This refers primarily to hosting uptime, which is the percentage of time the host is accessible via the Internet.
• Shared vs. dedicated server: Generally, dedicated servers give you more control and offer better speed than shared servers, but they can be expensive.
• Operating system support: You will need a UNIX-based Web host. UNIX is more stable, performs faster, and offers better compatibility than Windows-based hosting.
• Bandwidth allotment: Bandwidth is the number of bytes transferred from your site to visitors when they browse your website. Web hosts restrict the bandwidth available to websites, so it is important to find a plan that meets your particular needs.
• Technical support: The host's support staff should be technically competent, prompt, and available 24/7 including holidays.
• SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) availability: This is a cryptographic protocol that provides secure communications for data transfers, and is an absolute requirement for e-commerce websites.

NDS will be happy to assist you in selecting a Web host that meets your website's technical requirements.

They will find it through search engines, inbound links from other websites, and word-of-mouth. One of the best ways to publicize your new website is by adding your Web address to your letterhead, business cards, marketing materials, etc.

Yes. Your website will be submitted to the major search engines and to the Open Directory Project (also known as DMOZ).

Currently, the major search engines include Google, Yahoo!, and Microsoft's Bing. These search engines have relationships with other search engines, so it is not necessary to submit your website to every search engine.

That depends on the complexity of your project. Generally, the charge for a small informational site can be as little as a few hundred dollars, while the charge for a large e-commerce site that accepts credit cards can cost thousands of dollars.

Clients are charged on a fixed-fee basis in accordance with the project's scope. It is important to accurately specify the scope beforehand, because additions or modifications to the original scope will likely result in additional charges.

It is essentially a software system that automates website content management and allows users with little or no technical skills to contribute content directly into the system via a browser-based interface. Website content—including text, images, and other media—is stored in a database. The look and feel of a CMS is based on templates that can be set for the entire site or associated with individual pages.

A content management system is best suited for organizations that need to make frequent updates to site content, have the resources required to maintain the site, and are willing to learn the administrative interface.

Joomla is the most widely used CMS because it offers a number of advantages compared to other CMSes:

• Free for anyone to use or modify under an open source license
• Loyal user base and active development community
• Powerful core features and extensibility
• Easy to use administrative interface
• Minimal learning curve

The latest version of Joomla, version 1.5.x, has the following minimum requirements:

• Apache web server 1.3 or above; version 2.x is recommended
• MySQL database system 3.23 or above; version 4.1.x + is recommended
• PHP scripting language 4.3.10 or above; version 5 + is recommended

Joomla version 1.6, currently under development, will require PHP 5.2 + and MySQL 5.0.4 +.

VirtueMart is an open source fully-integrated e-commerce component for Joomla that enables businesses to sell products online. It can be used to build a product catalog, configure payment and shipping options, calculate sales tax, and manage an unlimited number of products, product categories, orders, and customers.

VirtueMart uses Joomla's security architecture and is capable of using up to 128-bit Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption. This HTTPS communication encryption makes VirtueMart much safer for both buyers and sellers.

For manually processed transactions, credit card information is stored in the database in an encrypted form. If an external payment processor is used, the storage of credit card information can be completely disabled.

VirtueMart supports multiple payment processing options and can process credit card transactions in real time. Predefined payment processing gateways include Authorize.Net, PayPal, 2Checkout, WorldPay, and PayMate. Other payment processing gateways can be used as well.

A number of shipping carriers are available to support a wide range of customers. Shipping rates for some carriers—including UPS, FedEx, and USPS—can use live update service to help ensure current rates are applied to shipments.

Search engine optimization involves designing or redesigning a website so that it does well in "organic" search engine listings. Organic listings are sometimes referred to as natural listings, and exclude paid placement and pay-per-click programs.

SEO drives targeted traffic to your website by giving it improved search engine visibility. This helps to ensure your website ranks highly in organic search engine result pages (SERPs). These organic search engine listings enjoy two distinct advantages over paid listings:

• Most searchers tend to click on organic listings rather than paid listings
• Over the long term, organic listings provide a better return on investment than paid listings

No. You must also have quality inbound links from other websites that point to your site. A link from a website that has a related topic is considered a high-quality link and is much better than a link from an unrelated site. The number and quality of inbound links have become very important factors in the ranking algorithms of the major search engines.