Much like plugins for your PC applications, web hosting scripts are programs, which add to the functions of the websites. Many web hosts offer scripts like Word Press, etc. free of cost to the clients. The main purpose of these scripts is to let the owners of the website add functions to their website at a minimal cost, besides requiring little time.

Some of the web host scripts are mentioned below:

Fantastico is mainly used for commercial reasons and is a script library which assists the automation of web application installation. The website administrator, using control panel, can execute these scripts. Fantastico has revealed claims that their service has been installed on over 10,000 servers and they have in excess of a million users across planet Earth. This is an extremely large amount and would see them as market leaders for this type of product.

When a new website is created or a new application is added to an existing website, the Fantasatico script is executed. The script can assist in a number of ways and these include altering the file configuration of a web server or using a database to create a table. Fantastico may be commonly associated with open source programs, commercial products have been known to utilize it too. Once the script has been uploaded and ran, the script can be placed on every domain which is hosted by a server. An example of this would be the ability to site a website builder for SohoLaunch, software that PerlDesk provides customer support for and do the same for Account Lab Plus, which enables interaction with internet registrars.

Over 50 applications are linked with Fantastico scripts, with the most popular ones being:

shopping cart software

software to enable easy creating of blogs

* sharing of pictures

the enabling of a reliable web content management system

information sites like Wikis

There is a choice to be made between Linux and Windows web hosts and it is not an easy one. A user has to know the language that their website uses before they choose which operating system they require. The Linux platform is best suited to the websites that offer basic HTML content or a simple e-Commerce website or a php or MySQL created site. If you use or plan on using ASP or ASP.NET then you need to use a Windows server.

As we have mentioned the terms PHP, MySQL and ASP.NET, it is worthwhile to consider them in greater detail.

PHP is a short form for Hypertext Preprocessor. It's basically a normally used server side scripting language [which is mostly used for developing and creating interactive and dynamic websites] or a programming language. It is easy to plant it into an HTML code. Normally, PHP is used alongside APACHE on most operating systems, mainly on LINUX. Generally, the purpose of PHP is to act as a filter, which takes inputs from a content-containing file and other PHP instructions, and it displays a unique stream of data. In most of the operating systems, platforms and servers, the deployment of PHP is done without any cost.

MySQL primarily retrieves and manages data and it offers multi-threads and provides computer language for many users. It enables its users to gain access to, and modify, data. If you are looking for an SQL database management system that has around ten million installations then MySQL is the one to choose. MySQL can be uses as a database component for WAMP, LAMP and MAMP as well as being used in web applications and be used to track bugs in an open source manner. There are strong links between PHP, "Ruby on Rails" and MySQL. Sites like WordPress and those similar find it possible to run on MySQL and PHP.

ASP.NET, otherwise known as Active Server Page is a Microsoft product that is strongly marketed and is also the companies .NET platform division. It has superseded the technology that developed ASP and provides many uses for programmers including creating websites and XML / web applications. In reducing the number of codes required to build a web application, ASP.NET assists in simplifying the process. As it supports a number of .NET languages it improves the flexibility a user has in choosing a language. The combination of HTML and source code ensures that it is easier to compile and maintain web pages. Another benefit comes in the fact that the configuration information is built in means that there is no need to register separate components. ASP.NET is also extremely fast and is able to satisfy a large number of users with no noticeable difference in performance.

Having some knowledge about these technical terms will improve your ability to select the best server type for you. At first it is likely to be difficult to automate a website site using CGI scripts but it definitely becomes over time.

Like most things in life, starting simply and then working up can be the best way to go about things. If you need CGI scripts, visiting cgi-resources.com is a good start. No matter what you want to run, be it website management, emails, rotating banners, advertisements, password protection, polls, mailing lists, adding a search engine, having a shopping cart or any other activity, it is possible to obtain free scripts and scripts you need to buy. It is possible to buy some but it is possible to save cash by using a cheaper script and installing it by yourself. Spending a lot of money is not always the best tactic and you may get everything you need for a very little price.

The most important hindrance in webmasters not using scripts is because they have the impression that a thorough knowledge in computer science is required for setting it up, which is false. For CGI scripts, however, access is required to your server, but some free providers allow users the chance of uploading CGI scripts. You can try many combinations of these CGI scripts before going ahead with any one of them.

If the scripts include a setup or a config file, then setting up CGI scripts would be quite simple. Upon uploading the files onto your server, you would be able to access the config files and the setup files, and after you enter some content into it, the script automatically sets itself up. Having a variable file is another way of setting up things. Generally, the file has most of the information required for running the script. The most general scripts may have multiple files which need to be configured for their working.

If the script is provided with a setup or read-me file, which it generally does, then it used with HTML text and the user will be descriptions to follow when it opens up. Some script writers will provide quality instructions whilst others make an assumption that the user knows what they are doing. If your script confuses you, you could try to find a similar acting one.

If you want to maintain your site more easily and would like to have interaction on your site, CGI scripts would be the best choice for you.