What Is XML?

What Is XML?

What is XML?

What is XML? XML or Extensible Markup Language is a language that states rules for document encoding in a format that is both readable by humans and machines. It is designed to be simple and useable, and because of that design, many application-programming interfaces were developed to take advantage of the XML format. On the other hand, some languages were even created to make use of XML, a few of them are WSDL, WAP, WML, RDF, OWL, SMIL, XHTML,  SOAP, Atom, and RSS. As of now, XML has become as important as HTML on the World Wide Web.

xmlOn web development, XML is used to store and transport data. Before new web developers tackle this topic, they must have some basic knowledge on JavaScript and HTML. Knowledge on those subjects is essentially needed since knowing XML will be useless if the developer does not know how he can use it. This is mainly true because, XML is only made to transport data, and not display it. On the other hand, even though XML is a markup language just like HTML, the tags used on XML are not predefined, and it is up to the developer to create his own tags.

In addition, there is no way that XML can replace HTML. In actuality, XML is unusable on its own. Even if you create many lines on an XML document, as long as there is no HTML document that will display and manipulate it, it will remain useless to anybody. To be more precise, XML is a data transportation tool that is dependent on the software and hardware that will use it.

Many developers liked this language since it allows them to save time when they decide to upgrade or change their systems, whether that change is software or hardware. When XML is not yet prevalent, most of those people would often convert large amounts of data, which is a very taxing task. Moreover, when the data they have are incompatible for their new systems, it will only lead to two things. They will either discard or rewrite the data they have, and that is definitely a waste of time. In addition, since XML is just written in plain text, getting operating system upgrades, using different applications, and installing new browsers will never be a problem. Furthermore, because of the popularity of XML, many applications were developed for it.

In case that you are advancing in web development, you absolutely need to learn this. However, if you are not yet familiar with JavaScript or even HTML, always remember that XML is useless on its own. Learning how to create an XML file is very easy, and the only difficult part is for you to know how you will use it. Nevertheless, when the time comes that you already know how to code JavaScript and HTML, XML knowledge can certainly help you a lot. In addition, after you learn how to use XML, it is best for you to learn other data storage and transport languages. It is advisable that you learn S-Expressions, YAML, and JSON.

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What is MySQL?

What is MySQL?

What is MySQL?

If you are going to do some advanced stuff on your website, you will need to learn about MySQL. Knowledge on it is very important, especially if you are going to create websites that need to store data like usernames, passwords, comments, content, and many more. In addition, basic knowledge of this database is needed if you are going to proceed on learning advanced web development language like PHP. Moreover, it is a widely known and used database on the internet, lack of understanding of this database can give you a difficult time on progressing as a web developer. If you want to know the answer to “what is MySQL,” continue reading.

mysqlMySQL is the most famous open-source database system on the World Wide Web. MySQL is a relational database management system (RDBMS) that stores both data and the data’s relationships on the same table. Asides from that, a user can reassemble and access its data in many ways without the need of creating any changes to the tables. With MySQL, you can create up to 4,096 columns and store an almost unlimited number of records.

Just like any other databases, it can handle values like timestamps, dates, chars, floats, integers, and Boolean values. In addition, there are two ways that you can manipulate MySQL. You can use the regular SQL syntaxes like select, insert, update, join, show, and delete to edit tables. On the other hand, you can use a graphical administration application like the popular phpMyAdmin to manage your MySQL tables.

Even if you are going to rely on a content managing system (CMS) for the materialization of your website, you must still familiarize yourself on this database. This is generally because most of the popular CMS today, like WordPress and Joomla, are using this database as their data manager. In addition, common forum applications on the internet, like phpBB and MyBB, are using this database too. When your content management system or forum application goes down, you might want to recover all the data and content that application accumulated. If that happens, the only way to do that is to check its MySQL database manually.

Moreover, many webhosting services are using this as their database. This is especially true to those web servers that take advantage of the LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP/Phyton/Perl) software stack. That is why many popular websites are taking advantage of this database, and a few of them are Wikipedia, Google, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and Flickr. It can handle small to massive websites, and it can support huge volumes of users and data. Because of that, it is recommended that you use this in case that you will create a new website.

It is absolutely required to learn this database. If you are familiar with how databases work, learning MySQL will not be difficult for you. Whether you will manually code your website, or you will use content management applications for your websites, understanding this database will be beneficial for you. As of now, many learning sources on the internet can be found for you to start familiarizing yourself on this popular RDBMS.

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What Is JavaScript?

What Is JavaScript?

What Is JavaScript?

If you have already mastered HTML coding, it is time for you to learn what JavaScript is. So what is JavaScript, exactly? In simple terms, JavaScript is a client scripting language that gives dynamism in web pages because it can push the boundaries of the read only HTML codes.

javascript Learning this language requires a web developer intermediate knowledge on HTML and basic familiarity on CSS. After the web developer learns this language, he can freely advance to understanding AJAX and PHP. For you to know more about it, continue reading.

A few things that you can do with JavaScript are calling popup messages, changing the properties of elements, displaying the date, rotating pictures, and call events. However, always remember that this language does not need to be compiled since the browser will be the one that will compile and execute for you. Moreover, when coding, all you need to do is insert the script on a web page’s code together with its HTML code.

Many websites are using JavaScript to perform some essential tasks. One of those important tasks is cookie storage, which is vital for e-commerce and social media websites. While some developers use this script for advertising, e-commerce, alerts, and security purposes.

Whenever a person visits a page with JavaScript on it, his browser will read, translate, and execute the embedded script on the page. On the other hand, the execution speed of the script relies on the visitor’s browser and computer speed. Because of that, the developer must always take a note of this to prevent any attempt of stuffing a page with tons of complicated codes that may cause a visitor’s browser to crash.

Moreover, when coding JavaScript, be mindful of preventing any infinite loops on your scripts since JavaScript does not support multithreading. In addition, most of the browsers today do not inform users if there is a faulty line of code in JavaScript, and because of that, debugging many complicated scripts can be difficult. However, a developer might find Internet Explorer useful when debugging scripts since it can provide with error messages if the browsers encounter an error on one of the script’s line.

Even if JavaScript opens many possibilities on a web page, it also has some limitations. First, it is only a client side script. If you are planning to create complicated processes that involve the server, you might need to mix PHP in your code. On the other hand, it is common that some users turn off their browsers’ ability to read JavaScript. In addition, many mobile browsers do not have the capability to read JavaScript properly. However, some of those browsers can read some of the script; nevertheless, the syntaxes they can read is very limited.

The things mentioned above are some of the things you need to know about JavaScript. Briefly, it is a script that makes a web page rich, dynamic, secured, and functional. Moreover, learning JavaScript is the first step every beginner should take before proceeding on learning advanced web developing techniques and languages. It is easy to learn, and learning it does not take a lot of time given that the person already has mastery of HTML.

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The Five Major Types of Website Hosting

The Five Major Types of Website Hosting

What is Web Hosting?

Understanding the answer to, what is web hosting, will help you if you plan to make money online, create a small business website or even put up a personal blog. Without hosting, you won’t be able to do any of these things. Don’t worry, it only takes a basic knowledge of hosting to choose the right type and get everything set up for your website or blog.

Hosting is split into a few different categories and the type you choose depends on what you plan to do. In order to thoroughly explain the answer to, what is web hosting, we will start with a basic definition, move onto the types of hosting and finish with a few of the finer points. When you are finished with this post, you should be able to choose the best hosting for your needs and get started with your project.

The Definition of Web Hosting

Web hosting involves a server that holds information much as your computer does. This server will store the files necessary for others to access your website and will give you the ability to see it the way you planned. Without hosting, you cannot put up a website, blog, forum, online store or any other online entity for world to see.

The way it works is simple. You create the files and code that makes your website look, function and read the way you want. There are many tools that can help you with this process, so even if you don’t know how to write any type of code, you can create a website or blog. Then, when someone types in your domain name, they gain access to these files in the form of your website.

The Five Major Types of Website Hosting

The second part of answering, what is web hosting, is to go through the main types of hosting. Within each one of these types, there may be some others types of hosting, but they all fall into five specific categories listed below.

1. Shared Web Hosting

Shared hosting is the most popular and will fit the bill for nearly everybody searching for hosting. It’s the least expensive and offers the user the ability to put up a website, blog, forum, online store or other online entity without spending very much money. Most shared hosting packages come with site builders, content management systems and many other tools that will allow you to do everything you need to do.

The server used for shared web hosting contains information for more than just one hosting account, usually quite a few per server. You will get access to all the resources of the server, but you will shared these resources with other hosting accounts on the same server. This type of hosting can handle up to about 5,000 visitors per day without the need for an upgrade.

2. Cloud Web Hosting

The next type of hosting is called cloud hosting, which is the newest type of hosting. This type of hosting is much the same as shared hosting, but allows for more accounts to be spread over a network of servers. It is more expensive than shared hosting and if you use private cloud hosting, it can get very expensive.

The major advantage comes in the form of a private cloud, which allows a company to use less servers for the same data as they spread it across more than just one server. It will pull resources from all of the servers within the network, but there are some security issues with public cloud hosting. It can be quite powerful, but it’s new and still has a few bugs to be worked out.

3. Virtual Private Server Hosting

Virtual private server hosting or VPS hosting is the next step up. This type of hosting still shares a server, but it doesn’t do so in the same way. With shared hosting, it’s a bit of a “free for all” with the resources, but with VPS hosting you get a specific set of resources assigned to you. The resources you get, all depends on the size of package you purchase.

VPS hosting can start at a little above shared web hosting for a smaller package, but will get quite expensive as you upgrade for more resources. The major downfall of VPS hosting compared to shared hosting is that it doesn’t offer the same unlimited options for space and bandwidth. However, if you need added security or you see a large volume of daily traffic, you may need to upgrade from shared hosting to VPS hosting.

4. Dedicated Sever Hosting

The most expensive type of hosting is dedicated server hosting. It can cost thousands of dollars to buy and maintain your own server, but you can also pay for a company to maintain the server for you or get fully managed hosting by renting a server. It’s the most secure, the fastest and the only type of hosting that will give you full access to your own server without sharing it with anybody else.

There is no doubt that dedicated server hosting is the best overall hosting, but it’s not necessary for most projects. Some small businesses may need a dedicated server, but most of the companies that need a server or more than one for themselves are larger corporations and internet marketers with a ton of daily traffic.

5. Reseller Web Hosting

The final type of hosting is one that most will not need, but is still important. Reseller hosting packages allow you to use the resources you need for your website and sell the rest of your package to others to use. This is the only type of hosting that you can use to make a direct profit from. With reseller website hosting, you can open your own hosting company without spending money on servers and staff.

A Bit more About What is Website Hosting

You should have a basic understanding of the answer to, what is web hosting, but it’s necessary to understand one more thing. Before you buy a hosting package, you want to make sure you get the tools you really need. There’s no point in paying more than necessary and it won’t benefit you to get dedicated hosting if all you really need is shared hosting. You will just leave a ton of resources unused.

Take the time to figure out what you really need and in most cases it will be shared web hosting, and then choose the right hosting for you. The hosting companies that offer more than one of the above types of hosting will allow you to upgrade at any point, so if you do start with shared hosting and find that you need VPS hosting, you can make the transition very easy.

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