My last three articles have focused on developing a Web site. This column will cover the options and general information for hosting your site.

Dictionary.com's computer science definition of hosting is a computer containing data or programs that another computer can access by means of a network or modem.

In other words, when someone goes online and types in www.yourdomain.com, that request is sent to a computer that stores (or hosts) your Web site files. Once that computer receives the request, it sends the information (your Web page) back to the person surfing the Web.

Because you never know when someone will request this information or how often and how many people will request it, it is essential for your site to be hosted on a very fast, reliable machine that is always on and maintains a very fast connection to the Internet.

Realizing that it won't be possible to host a site on a local computer, most businesses look to an outside firm for hosting. There are free services to choose from on one end of the spectrum and other options that can cost thousands of dollars per month.

The old saying that states nothing in life is free definitely applies here. Sure, you can host your Web site without a dollar fee each month, but, you get what you pay for. Most of these companies pay for the service through forced advertising on your site. And, they are going to be unreliable, low quality services.

After all, if you aren't paying, you really don't have any recourse to complain when your site is down, when it is slow for viewers to access or when there is no one to help you with advanced features or simple updates.

With this in mind, most people go with a professional, but affordable, hosting company. These prices tend to range from $20/month to $100/month, depending on the services offered and the quality of the equipment that will host your site.

Here are some features you should consider essential when shopping for a host for your site:

Fast connection to the Internet. A good host will have a direct connection to the backbone of the Internet. T3's should be considered a minimum and many offer multiple redundant T3 connections, which means if one connection goes down, the other one immediately kicks in so your site is available 24 hours per day every day of the year.

Customized e-mail. It is very common and virtually essential for businesses to have e-mail using their own domain. So, if your domain name is yumacity.com, you should be able to have e-mail addresses such as matt@yumacity.com.

Detailed site statistics. Your host should be able to provide you with stats that break down your hits and usage by day, week, month and year. Plus they should offer information such as which site visitors came from to find your site. Also, ask if you are receiving raw data that you will need to process or if they are given to you in an easy-to-understand format.

Customer service. There will be local options and huge international companies to choose from but customer service is very important. You will want someone you can call to handle any problems or updates you need in a quick, professional manner.

So, as your Web site project progresses, do some research to find a host that will fit your needs. Also, be willing to pay a reasonable fee for features and services you should expect and need for your Internet project.

Sunday, November 5th, this series will continue with a detailed discussion about Web site promotion.