Website
A website is a collection of digital documents accessible via the Internet, often comprised of multiple web pages linked through hyperlinks. The concept originated around 1991 with the creation of the first website by Tim Berners-Lee, aimed at sharing information globally. Today, there are approximately 1.1 billion websites, though only about 400 million are actively maintained. Each website is identified by a unique Uniform Resource Locator (URL), which serves as its address on the web, consisting of a protocol, domain name, and designation indicating the nature of the site, such as .com for commercial sites or .gov for government sites.
Websites are typically built using Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), which allows designers to create various features and functionalities. These can range from e-commerce capabilities to social networking elements, depending on the intended audience and purpose. Once designed, websites are hosted on web servers, making them accessible to users worldwide. Website creators often seek to promote their sites to attract visitors and enhance engagement. Overall, websites are integral components of the World Wide Web, serving diverse needs across cultures and communities.
Subject Terms
Website
A website is a set of digital documents that can be stored and accessed through the Internet. The first website was created around 1991, and since then approximately one billion sites have been created for a huge variety of purposes. Every website has a unique address known as a Uniform Resource Locator (URL), and most sites contain one or more web pages connected by portals called hyperlinks. Designers around the world create and use websites with a vast array of features and intended purposes.
Websites in the World Wide Web
Websites are fundamental elements in the World Wide Web, the system of interconnected digital documents that make up the largest portion of the Internet. Every website is hosted on at least one of millions of computers worldwide known as web servers. These servers are connected through networks, such as the Internet, that allow them to communicate with one another and trade information. This enormous collection of connected digital data accessible to the public, mainly in the form of websites, makes up the World Wide Web.
The World Wide Web was first conceived in 1989 by British physicist Tim Berners-Lee. Berners-Lee, working at the Swiss physics laboratory known as CERN, devised a method by which he could exchange information with fellow scientists via a computer network. By 1991, he created the first website in history, which introduced his vision for a World Wide Web that would link information across the globe. Although this first website was simple and pragmatic, it demonstrated the enormous potential of Berners-Lee's creation.
The inventor's next move was equally important. He gave up possession of his creation, letting it become a part of the public domain, where it could be used freely by all people. Governments, businesses, schools, and individuals were quick to add their own sites to the growing network of publicly shared information. In the 1990s, organizations such as Yahoo, Google, Amazon, IMDb, and eBay first began their sites, which would soon soar to global prominence. By September 2014, one billion websites could be found on the World Wide Web. Although that number dropped under one billion by August 2015, it rebounded to 1.1 billion in 2024. However, only about 400 million of those sites were active.
To be accessible to users, a website must have a Uniform Resource Locator (URL), a unique address. The URL functions like the address on a house, allowing visitors to find the website quickly and easily. The URL may be typed into a browser (a computer program that allows users to access the Internet) or found through a search engine (a website that searches through other websites).
A website URL address has several important parts. The first is the protocol, usually "http" (Hypertext Transport Protocol), which refers to the method by which the computers will communicate. The next part is the domain name, or the title of the website to be visited. The domain name usually begins with "www" (World Wide Web). It then ends with a two- or three-letter designation that helps to identify the kind of website it is. Some of the most common designations are ".com," which refers to a commercial website; ".gov," which refers to a government website; ".org," which refers to a nonprofit website; and ".edu," which refers to an educational website. To visit the government website for the White House, then, a user could enter the URL "http://www.whitehouse.gov" into a browser.
Creating and Using Websites
Most websites are constructed using Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), a specialized language that instructs computers how to display sites and their various features. HTML is a mixture of human language with computer-centric coding. For example, to display words in a bold font, a designer would use the tags <b> to begin bold and </b> to end bold. Other tags started or stopped paragraphs, placed images in text, or allowed users to connect to other sites. Early Web designers had to learn many HTML codes, but since then, advanced Web design programs have automated many of the complex technical processes involved with coding websites.
Through such coding, websites could incorporate a variety of features. The basic feature of a website is a web page, which is a basic unit of digital information, typically enough to cover one specific topic or provide enough data to fill one screen. Websites may contain as few as one or potentially millions of web pages. Web pages within a website, as well as connections to other websites, are generally bound together using hyperlinks, portals that allow users to move around or between sites.
Websites and their pages can include dozens of other features, depending on their audience and purpose. Public discussion sites often include forum features, which allow users to leave and respond to comments. Social networking sites allow users to reserve and design pages for personal use. Commercial sites offering goods or services for sale usually have a shopping setup that allows users to place items in a digital "cart" and then arrange to electronically pay for the items. Entertainment sites generally include audio and video features, often delivered through special plug-ins, which are small programs that function inside a browser to help enable various features.
Once a website is designed and completed, it must be loaded onto the World Wide Web. To do this, the creator needs to arrange for web space, a spot on a web server. This will make the site and its files accessible to the public. Some servers provide this service for free, but others charge a fee. At this time, each new website gets a URL address including a unique domain name. Website moderators then usually try to promote their sites to bring as many viewers as possible.
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