A registrar is the company or service that provides domain name registration. A registrar may also sell web hosting, and it is often convenient to purchase web hosting and domain name registration from the same company – but it isn’t necessary.
Registrars to watch out for include Network Solutions and GoDaddy, which either overcharge or are [...]

A web host is a service that stores your information (or website) on a server, allowing it to be accessed by users on the Internet. Web hosts typically charge by the month, with discounts if you pay by the year. For most simple sites hosting charges should be minimal, around $5-$10/month. Web hosts often double [...]

A search ranking is also known as “organic ranking” or “natural ranking.” It’s the rank of a web site in a search engine’s index of sites, organized by key word or phrase. Typically the goal of a site is to appear within the top ten listed results for a given key word or phrase because [...]

Search engine optimization (also known as “SEO”) is the process of tweaking a web site to make its search engine ranking rise. Some techniques of search engine optimization include:

Having other sites link to your site (this is a biggie!)
Including key words and phrases that describe your site’s purpose, especially within the first sentence of each [...]

A content management system (also known as a content management software, or CMS) is a way to manage site content without having to know any coding language. It has many advantages for both the novice and experienced site owner. With a CMS, a site owner does not have to rely on a webmaster every time [...]

This area of the site is a glossary of website-related terms, but it’s by no means comprehensive. I recommend Wikipedia.org as a good source of additional information.
In addition, you can define terms using Google. Simply type in “define:WYSIWYG editor” in the Google search box and you’ll be given a definition of a WYSIWYG editor.

What is [...]

What is a domain name?
To discover if a domain name is available to purchase, you can go to a site such as http://www.dotster.com/go/whois and type in the desired address. Do NOT just type in the domain name into a web browser and see if a site is there. Someone may own the name and not [...]

Here is my collection of tips and tricks for creating a website. I am presenting this information with an eye on authors, but the information is universal.

How to register a Domain Name
How to get a Google Account
How to create a Google Alert
How to read multiple blogs in one place
How to track your website